After visiting the spectacular temple of Bhoganandeeshwara, we made a quick drive to Muddenahalli (Chikkaballapur District), which is a mere 5 minutes away from Nandigrama. It is the birthplace of  Sir M. Visvesvaraya, one of the India’s most celebrated engineers, who was born on 15 September, 1861 who went on to live for a glorious 102 years. The Engineering Community across India celebrate this day as Engineers Day today, as a tribute to the greatest Indian Engineer Bharat Ratna Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya. He was not simply a brilliant civil engineer but also an economist and a statesman. As the Diwan of Mysore, he commissioned several new railway lines in the erstwhile Mysore state and was one of the architects of the Krishna Raja Sagar Dam. He was instrumental in the founding of Government Engineering College at Bangalore in 1917, one of the first engineering institutes in India. This institution was later named University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering. Simply said, he can be counted among the last century’s foremost visionaries and nation-builders.

He was decorated with several awards and honours such as Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE) by the British for his contributions to the public;  Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire and the Bharat Ratna after India got its independence.

It is said that an engineer is one who adapts the findings of science to the use of man. But other than technical skills, M. Visvesvaraya showed us that good engineers must strive for good communication, problem solving and good managerial skills. A good engineer must have good imagination, integrity and aspire for accuracy in thought and action. Indeed, engineering was an art for many centuries long before it became a science.

Muddenhalli has a samadhi dedicated to this visionary where his mortal remains were buried. It is surrounded by a beautiful garden which is well maintained with perennials and flowering plants. The house where he was born is now converted into a museum.

Otherwise, Muddenhalli is a regular quaint village with quiet streets and a central area where villagers and can sit and chat near a temple dedicated to the snake gods.

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Yoganandeeshwara Temple atop the Nandi Hills ©Sangeeta Venkatesh