Bengaluru, July 27 (IANS): President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday heralded the centenary celebrations of University of Mysore and that of an apex trade body later.

The president is on a two-day visit to the southern state from Monday.

Soon after arriving from New Delhi in an air force jet, Mukherjee visited the popular Chamundeshwari temple atop a hill on Mysuru outskirts and drove into the university's Mansagangotri campus.

"The president addressed a huge gathering of students, faculty and invitees from the city at the amphitheatre in the varsity campus," a protocol official told IANS.

Governor Vajubhai Vala, who is also the varsity chancellor, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Higher Education Minister R.V. Deshpande, and Revenue Minister V. Srinivas Prasad were present on the occasion.

"Vice Chancellor K.S. Rangappa feted Mukherjee with a specially-designed HMT watch and a bust of Mysore king Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wodiyar in sandalwood to mark the year-long occasion," the official said.

Flying into Bengaluru under a cloudy sky in the evening, Mukherjee unveiled the centenary celebrations of the Federation of Karnataka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) at Vidhana Sudha in the city centre.

"In view of the President's visit to the secretariat, and tight security, the state government declared half-day holiday post-noon to its employees working in Vidhana Soudha and Vikasa Soudha," the official said.

On Tuesday, the President is slated to fly to Bidar and participate in the second annual convocation of the Central University of Karnataka at Kalaburgi, and returning to the state capital, dedicate to the nation the renovated heritage building and magneto encephalography research centre of the state-run National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (Nimhans) in the city before flying back to Delhi on the same evening.