What is "jeppiaar"

Jesuadimai Pangu Raj (June 11, 1931 – June 18, 2016), also known as Jeppiaar or J.P.R., was an Indian politician, educationist, and industrialist from the Christian Mukkuvar community. He was born in Muttom near Nagercoil, Travancore Cochin Presidency, now the Kanyakumari District, Tamil Nadu.

He obtained his Bachelor of Law (B.L.) from Madras University, and his Ph.D. from Anna University. He is the founder and Chairman of Jeppiaar Educational Trust and he is the Founder and Chancellor of the Sathyabama University. He was also the President of the Consortium of Professional, Arts and Science Colleges of Tamil Nadu.

He is one of the pioneers in privatisation of engineering education in Tamil Nadu.

His net worth was estimated at 3,000 crore in 2016.