Background

Padma Sundar was born at Khauma Tol, Bhaktapur, the third among four brothers.

Education

University of Michigan.

Career

He pioneered the generation of electricity in Nepal which provided power to the country"s emerging industrial sector. The family moved to Asan in Kathmandu so they could study at Durbar High School. The Rana regime disapproved of the general public getting an education.

In Japan, Padma Sundar enrolled at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

After obtaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Tokyo, he teamed up with a few Japanese friends and set sail for America for further studies. He joined the University of Michigan and studied electrical engineering, also earning the distinction of being the first Nepalese in the United States. While a student at the University of Michigan, he joined the Reserve Officers" Training Corps (Reserve Officers Training Corps) as a cadet.

In 1922, he received his degree in electrical engineering. When Padma Sundar returned to Nepal in 1925, he was not allowed to enter Kathmandu for having travelled abroad without permission.

So he moved to Kurseong in West Bengal, India.

In 1933, he set up his first hydropower station known as the Faji hydroelectric project which supplied energy to Kurseong. The Nepal government sent for Padma Sundar in 1939, and named him the chief engineer of the Morang Hydroelectric Company. He designed the power station that supplied energy to Biratnagar Jute Mill, Biratnagar.

He also designed other plants in Birgunj and Dharan.

Achievements

• In 1941, Padma Sundar was made an associate member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, a British professional body. Padma Sundar moved back to Kathmandu in the 1950s where he lived the rest of his life. He has been called the "father of Nepalese hydropower" for his pioneering work.

Membership

In 1941, Padma Sundar was made an associate member of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, a British professional body.