Chennai, March 11 Outgoing Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi left for Kolkata on Wednesday to assume office in West Bengal, after serving the state for over four years.
Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar has been given the additional charge of Tamil Nadu.
Ravi was appointed as the 26th Governor of Tamil Nadu in September 2021, succeeding Banwarilal Purohit.
President Droupadi Murmu appointed Ravi as the West Bengal Governor on March 5.
Ravi's tenure as governor of Tamil Nadu will be remembered as one marked by numerous clashes with the elected government. Whether it was the clearance of bills passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly, the appointment of Vice-chancellors, or policy-driven conflicts with the DMK regime, including the one over the National Education Policy (NEP), Ravi firmly held his ground.
Ahead of his departure, Ravi, a former IPS officer, in a letter to the people of Tamil Nadu, described the life spent in Tamil Nadu as his "Golden Days."
"I express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you. For the past 54 months, I have lived among you, experienced your affection, and rejoiced in the glory of the Tamil language and the pride of the Tamil people," he said.
"Though the time has come for me to part ways with you, there is no doubt that these days spent with you are the 'Golden Days of my life," he said in his message.
"Names, memories, and ideas flood my mind like a treasure trove – the great poet Mahakavi Bharathiyar, Arutprakasa Vallalar, Kaniyan Pungundranr, U Ve Swaminatha Iyer, and many more. Over these 54 months, I lived and rejoiced through you and through these great souls. I immersed myself in noble principles and was deeply embraced by your love," he said.
Recalling that he was blessed with numerous opportunities to directly understand the various dimensions of the Tamil language and its people, the greatest quality that charmed him was the tireless hard work and joy that people found in it.
"From the capital city of Chennai to the remote villages of Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari, from the East Coast to the Western Ghats, I travelled to many towns and regions. Though the regional dialects varied, the love, hard work, the joy you derive from that work, and your intellectual maturity remained constant," he said.