Dr. R N Shetty

Dr. Rama Nagappa Shetty is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, and educationist Born on 15th August 1928, at Murudeshwar in Uttara Kannada District of Karnataka State, he commenced his career as a Civil Contractor at Sirsi. Aiming to be big was habitual to him. In 1961 his tryst with destiny began. It saw the birth of a partnership firm called R.N.Shetty & Co. Today the Company has grown up into one of the leading Construction Companies in India executing Project after Project comprising of Highways, Bridges, Tunnels, Canals, Dams, Power Projects and Buildings. In 1967, he took over Naveen Mechanised Construction Company Private Limited, and saw it executing project after project with impeccable success. The Company specialises in Underground Power Projects, Dams, Tunnels, Canals etc. Being a visionary R.N.Shetty also entered the Hotel Business in 1975 and formed the Naveen Hotels Limited. He constructed a 5 Star Hotel at Bangalore which has been leased to the Taj Group of Hotels. Further he constructed 'Hotel Naveen' at Hubli. 'Naveen Beach Resort and 'R.N.S. Residency' at Murudeshwar.

Always eager to enter into new horizons, in 1977, he set up Sri. Murudeshwar Tiles Private Limited, at Murudeshwar, a Mangalore-tile manufacturing Unit. Not content with the existing strengths, he began looking for fresh pastures and as a result of this, in 1981 he set up Naveen Structurals and Engineering Co. Pvt. Ltd. Hubli. The Company specializes in skilled fabrication works specific to the construction industry. The company has rolled out shuttering, silos, crest gates and many other specialized structurals. In 1987, R.N.Shetty promoted Murudeshwar Ceramics Limited (MCL) for manufacture of glazed tiles. MCL is today one of the leading manufacturers of Vitrified porcelain floor tiles in India. MCL has also forayed into the domain of natural granites. Presently, MCL has a Plant at Hubli and an additional plant was established in the year 2003 at Karaikal in Pondicherry.

Considering the necessity of Infrastructure Development, in 1993 R.N.Shetty established Murdeshwar Power Corporation Limited and has established a Bulb Unit with a capacity of 12 MW at the Narayanapura Left Bank Canal.

In 1995, RNS Motors, a Unit of R.N.Shetty and Company was established at Hubli. Maruti Udyog Ltd., acknowledging the excellent performance at Hubli awarded new dealership at Bangalore. Bangalore Unit was established with a built up area of 1,02,000 ft during 1998 and is one of the biggest in India. An additional unit at Murudeshwar was established during the year 1997 and units at Bijapur and Hour Road, Bangalore during 2003.

Amidst all the above multi-faceted business sense hidden deep in him was the deep religious and philanthropic sense urging him to devote a great deal of time and money for charity projects. He has revived many temples; educational institutions and community service related Projects in Karnataka and elsewhere. He has set up the R.N.Shetty Trust, a non-profit making institution that helps needy students and educational institutions. R.N.Shetty Rural Polytechnic was established at Murudeshwar in the year 1987, R.N.S. Pre-university College at Murudeshwar in 1996, R.N.Shetty Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology at Hubli established in 1998 and the R.N.S. Institute of Technology at Bangalore in 2001, are all run by the R.N.Shetty Trust. Dr R.N. Shetty is instrumental in bringing the name of Murudeshwar on the Tourist Map of India. He has taken keen a interest in renovating and rebuilding the Shri. Mahatobar Murudeshwar Temple located on the picturesque island in the Arabian Sea. The temple is built in the Dravidian architectural style. The Shiva idol erected on the hillock at Murudeshwar is 123 ft tall and is the tallest in the world. He has also built a 249 ft high Maha-Rajagopuram at Murudeshwar.