Registered with the Reg. No. TN/CH(C)/374/12-14 Registrar of Newspapers Licenced to post without prepayment for India under R.N.I. 53640/91 Licence No. TN/PMG(CCR)/WPP-506/12-14 Publication: 15th & 28th of every month Rs. 5 per copy (Annual Subscription: Rs. 100/-) WE CARE FOR MADRAS THAT IS CHENNAI INSIDE • Short ‘N’ Snappy • Americans & Carnatic music • Remembering Kalki • The new I.A.S. • The Chandhoks of Chennai Vol. XXIV No. 5 MUSINGS June 16-30, 2014 Madras Landmarks State’s sad, sad – 50 years ago tech colleges ecoming an engineer is one recession. Consequently, the nance other businesses from the Bof the easiest tasks in Tamil on-campus placement figures income earned! Nadu what with over 570 engi- for Anna University colleges are The Government has over neering colleges in the State, of a measly 11 per cent of all those the years been attempting to which 520 are affiliated to graduating. bring in some regulation into Anna University. But if that Ever since the 1980s, when these institutions. In 2001, gave you the impression of the State threw open engineer- around 400 of them were hardcore technical experts be- ing education to the private brought under the purview of ing churned out in a Germanic sector, several promoters have Anna University. The numbers mode, perish the thought. Most entered the field. Barring very have been added to since then. of those who graduate are tech- G Think ‘Oceanic’ and it conjures up was known to be one of the best hotels few, all the others have viewed But the move has not achieved memories of the 1950s – an empty San in India, “equipped with linen, crock- nically unemployable, thanks to its stated objective of raising the Thomé High Road, a pristine Adyar ery, cutlery, refrigerators, air-condi- the level of teaching and facili- bar. The cause for the failure is creek teeming with bird life, an art- tioners, cooking ranges, electric fans, ties in most colleges. The latest deco hotel standing at the edge – a ice-cream machines, ice-making G chiefly due to the poor quality news is that five more colleges by of teaching faculty at most of world-class facility where visiting machinery, light fittings and other will be added this year. Are we The Editor the private colleges. Apart from international cricket teams were moveable and also with tools, imple- focussing on quantity instead of the endemic rot in the Indian hosted. Today, all that remains is an ments, lawn mowers, equipments, quality? education system, wherein empty plot of land, fronted by a crum- kitchen and other utensils” to quote bling welcome arch over which can still from a record in the 1960s. In addi- A casual survey among this as a moneymaking option. there is a complete disconnect be seen some of the letters that once tion it had a shopping gallery where headhunters would certainly in- The investment is largely in with the outside world and its spelt the hotel’s name. some of Madras’ best known retailers dicate this to be so. Most stu- requirements when it comes to land and buildings, which is The property itself, originally five set up outlets. By 1959, the Oceanic dents hired from Tamil Nadu’s why you invariably see only syllabus, private colleges, bar- to six acres, goes back to probably the started attracting high class tourists – engineering colleges, they aver, those with large landholdings ring the best ones, do not at- 19th Century. Certainly, when lawyer being only one of three hotels in the have poor communication setting up these colleges. As for tract top quality teaching staff. K.R. Shenai bought it in 1917, it had city to offer air-conditioned rooms skills, not even bare minimum the other aspects – an enlight- This is at a time when even already had an old garden bungalow must have helped. “Luxurious Oceanic, a most popular hotel of technical knowledge, and cer- ened few go in for high quality Government colleges are facing in its Southwest corner. The evacua- tainly no practical experience. the same shortage. A recent tion of Madras in 1942 led Shenai to Madras, situated on the sea shore, all equipment and facilities. Most single and double rooms air-condi- Those taken on have to be put RTI query revealed that only sell his landholdings, and the settle for organising a fleet of part fronting San Thomé High tioned,” ran an ad in 1958. through intensive training in college buses to ferry the stu- four out of ten Government en- the organisations hiring them, gineering colleges even had Road was purchased by M.S. Chettiar died in 1964, but five dents to the remote locations Ramaswami Chettiar of Mahalakshmi years prior to that, for reasons best making it almost a repeat pro- where the colleges are and leave principals! Films. known to him, he leased out both the cess of education. Companies the rest to chance. The money All this is in conjunction hotels to R. Kapanipathi Rao, who at are grumbling at the cost, espe- Chettiar built two hotels on the they rake in, through capitation with the fact that the demand premises – the ‘Oceanic’ and the that time was running Noel’s, a well- cially at a time when margins and regular fees, is considerable. ‘Ratnagar’. Completed in 1954 or known restaurant on Mount Road. are under squeeze thanks to the Several promoters go on to fi- (Continued on page 7) thereabouts, the Oceanic in particular The lease was renewed in 1965 by Chettiar’s son Meyyappan and contin- ued to run till 1970. But by then, the Oceanic was no longer what it was. The fact that lessor and lessee were fighting each other in the Court did not Guindy National Park under threat help. In 1973, Kapanipathi Rao, following a High Court judgement, was asked to hand over the property to ur city may take pride in the construction of buildings by its original size. The GNP, in the water table and being home Meyyappan. the fact that it has Guindy Government-supported organi- 1978, was declared a national to fauna of various kinds. O The hotel could have survived had National Park (GNP), one of sations and institutions in the park. Chennai thus became the All this may have been a an urban land ceiling case not been the oldest reserve forests right vicinity. second metro in the country to matter of pride a couple of filed against the owners during which in its midst, but if the Govern- The GNP has been a reserve have such a reserve forest, decades ago. But now with the period it finally shut down. The trial ment is allowed to have its way, forest since 1910. Originally Mumbai’s Borivali National demand for space skyrocketing, went on till 1993 when judgement all this will soon be gone. It is areas such as the GNP are went in favour of the owners. There learnt that the State Govern- G by A Special Correspondent considered nuisances by those was then talk of the Taj Group of ment has written to the Union who think ‘development’ is the hotels taking over the hotel and reviv- Ministry of Environment and spanning over five square Park being four years older. It only way to progress. At the ing it, keeping the art deco main block Forests (MOEF) that the man- heart of the problem at GNP is intact. But that was not to be. The kilometres, it was steadily has since been a vital lung for owners demolished the structure early datory eco-sensitive buffer zone whittled down to make way for the city, keeping summer the proposed extension of the this century and there was talk of an around the park be removed. several memorials and buildings temperatures down in the IT Park coming up there. The site This is ostensibly to facilitate and, by 1971, was around half surrounding area, conserving (Continued on page 6) remains vacant as on date. CMYK 2 MADRAS MUSINGS June 16-30, 2014 Decentralise This scorching summer he Man from Madras nai male clad in synthetics dur- Chennai has given MMM a waste T Musings is visibly melting ing the summer. And given heightened sixth sense about in the heat. Perhaps it is the that most of these characters places where rich pickings onset of old age, or perhaps it feast rather well at lunchtime could be had for this column is just addiction to air-condi- on onion- and garlic-flavoured and something told him that management tioning. But as the years foods, the odour gets com- this spot was one. And so he progress, MMM, who for years pounded. Add smoking and looked inside. considered himself one of frequent coffee drinking and The place could have been hennai, like a number of cities elsewhere in the country, is set those hardy specimens whom you have something building a dioramic representation of Cto face an unprecedented crisis in Solid Waste Management the vagaries of the weather up that could eventually blow the Sahara. It was barren and (SWM) in the coming years. Garbage, and how we deal with it, is affect not, finds himself more away the entire ozone layer. It the only relief features were something that has drifted in and out of the greater civic conscious- and more dependent on artifi- is time we had a movement shards from broken bottles ness of the city over the past two decades and there are a number cial means of bringing down against this couldn’t-care-less that adults who evidently the ambient temperature.