NEW DELHI: The Registrat General of Newspapers of India Amitabha Chakrabarti has passed away in Varanasi due to massive heart attack, the family said Sunday.

Chakrabarti, 59, had gone to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh where he had gone to deliver a lecture at the Benaras Hindu University. His wife, a son and a daughter survive Chakrabarti. The funeral is scheduled for 12 noon Monday at the Lodhi Road electric crematorium.

A 1971 batch Indian Information Service officer, Chakrabarti was a "thorough professional" and "was widely respected in the media fraternity for his upright approach in handling any responsibility assigned to him", an official release Sunday said.

Chakrabarti, who was then Doordarshan's additional director general (News and Current Affairs), was shifted to research and reference section of the Press Information Bureau (PIB).

He came back late last year when he was promoted to the level of additional secretary and posted as Registrar General of Newspapers.

Chakrabarti also served as Doordarshan's Washington correspondent and as public relations director in the defence ministry.

Among those visited his home to pay condolence include Defence Secretary Shekhar Dutt, Director General (Media and Communications) Deepak Sandhu, Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity head Umakant Mishra, and Additional Director General (Media and Communications-Defence) Sitanshu Kar, all of whom laid wreaths on the body, which had been embalmed before being brought here. A wreath was also placed on behalf of the PIB officers' association.