Late Sri Nannapaneni Venkatrao, an impeccable politician, a socialist, a humanist and the Godfather of the downtrodden sections, served as the Chairman of Tenali Municipality for three terms. He was the youngest socialist chairman of India, a politician par excellence, a superb player of Contract Bridge and a champion of the downtrodden sections. Tenali famous as Andhra Paris did not have even a single educational institution of higher learning even in late 1940s. The poor especially the weaker sections of Tenali and Repalle Taluqs were unable to go for higher education due to lack of an institution. Nannapaneni's conviction that upliftment of the poor and disadvantaged sections is possible only by means of providing higher education to them resulted in the establishment of VSR College in 1951. Mustering strength in every way from different angles, he constituted The Tenali College Committee, Tenali with people committed for the cause of education.
After crossing the infantile hurdles, it began to grow by leaps and bounds and witnessed many fast phases of progress and it became a prestigious institution. Generations of students remember Sri NVR the various Presidents Sri G.Ranganayakulu Chowdary, Sri.P.Sree Ramulu, Sri V.Seetharamaiah, Dr.K.Veeraiah, Sri T.Jagan Mohan Rao, Sri B.Rama Kotaiah, Sri K.Venkateswara Rao and Secretaries Sri A.Ahobal Rao, Sri A.Dharma Rao Sri N.Mohan Das. The sudden demise of Nannapaneni proved havoc and the college was renamed VSR and NVR College in recognition of the services rendered by Sri NVR in the field of education. In 25 years, it became the second best in the state strength-wise, establishment wise and placement of students wise
Sri Nannapaneni Sudhakar
Secretary
If establishing the college to offer higher education to the downtrodden and other poor sections was the dream of NVR turned into reality, strengthening the college and equipping the students with all the needed skills to face the challenges of the global village and offering educational services to generations together is the goal of the life of the present Correspondent and Secretary.
Realizing the educational needs of the present day, the Secretary Sri Nannapaneni Sudhakar strove hard to gain autonomous status and NAAC accreditation. Fulfilling the wish of the Founder Secretary, he brought technical education within the reach of the poor by establishing Nannapaneni Venkatrao College of Engineering and Technology. He works relentlessly, motivating all the stakeholders to do their best for the cause of education. He wants VSR & NVR College to stay forever offering educational services. “Men may come, Men may go. But I (VSR & NVR College should) go on forever.
VSR and NVR College is one of the biggest colleges in the state with its three storied buildings, an auditorium with the latest equipment which can accommodate 1000 members, Open auditorium, Multi-Gym, fitness centre, an Indoor stadium, Seminar hall with AC provision, well equipped labs, a spacious Library with thousands of books on various subjects, a vast playground with provision for students to play any game of their choice, hostels, Canteen, Stores, Cooperative Credit Society, cycle stand, pyramid meditation centre, non-student resident centre, waiting room for girls, Cement road, planked by Royal palms and beautiful gardens with Bharatha Matha and Mathru Murthy statues, all enclosed by compound wall on four sides.
Equal importance is given to games and sports and over 69 years of its existence it produced a number of National/ International players and coaches, especially in volleyball. M. Shyam Sunder, the Arjuna and Dronacharya awardee is an old student of our college.
Under the leadership of the first Principal, an able and experienced administrator late Sri S.P. Ragland many staff members like Kalaprapurna Konduru Veera Raghavacharyulu, Sri N V Prasada Rao famous as a man of letters known as Hitha Sri, Talluri Nageswara Rao, short story writer and novelist, Sri G.V. Krishna Rao, a well-known writer and critic, Sri M.D Nafizuddin , a writer of noble note with the pen name Sowjanya Mrs Lalitha, known as Volga and many committed lecturers worked with all devotion and enhanced the image of the institution.
