MM Vol. XXIV No. 17.Pmd

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 • Crowd-funding support • Sowing the seeds of freedom • The Laurence Hope mystery • The Red Hills Railway Vol. XXIV No. 17 MUSINGS December 16-31, 2014 Are we waiting for Madras Landmarks their collapse? – 50 years ago (By The Editor) ho is to blame when a matched by restoration activi- Wheritage building col- ties. That is a script played out lapses? The Government would everywhere in our country, have it that the building is re- more so in our State. Tamil sponsible in every way for it. Nadu and Chennai, in particu- Common sense would say that lar, have scores of such in- years of negligence, irrespon- stances. Poor maintenance is sible additions and alterations, usually the first indicator that Khalsa Mahal. and sheer administrative apathy the administration is not inter- would be the principal causes. ested in protecting a heritage This debate has been revived structure. Take the example of with renewed vigour following the stand-off between the Gov- the collapse of the historic and ernment and conservationists 144-year-old Mairie building in in the 1980s over Bentinck’s Pondicherry. That is a loss Building. It was only by empty- which the Union Territory ing the structure and stopping neighbouring our State will all maintenance that the case have to now live with, but there Bharat Insurance Building. for demolition was strength- are several similarly endangered ened. The same holds good for buildings in Chennai about several others – Chepauk Palace, G One of the oldest organisations connected with the automobile in the country, which our administration seems Bharat Insurance Building, the Automobile Association of Southern India (AASI) traces its roots to 1906 to be in no hurry to take steps. Gokhale Hall, the National Art when six vehicle owners in the Nilgiris banded together to form a self-help group The fall of the Mairie has Gallery – the list is endless. named the Nilgiris Automobile Association. A couple of months later, the South followed a predictable pattern. And it is not as though we India Motor Union (SIMU) was formed in Madras with the same objectives. In Years of protests from heritage have had no collapses either. the same year, the Nilgiris body merged with the Madras one, the two by then having a combined membership of 67. The SIMU became affiliated to the Royal enthusiasts about its poor main- Capper House in the Queen Gokhale Hall. Automobile Club of England in 1910, by which time its membership had grown tenance and lack of routine Mary’s College campus was an to 181. conservation were followed by instance of that. The oldest pri- vague promises by the Govern- vate building on the beach- In 1921, with labour trouble spreading to the hills, car owners there got ment. Official sanction for res- front, it fell after being locked together to form a body that could decisively deal with the demand by chauffeurs toration came in 2010 but no up and neglected. Arthur for increased wages. This was the New Nilgiris Motor Owners’ Association. This later became the Nilgiris Automobile Association, federated with the Auto- actual work was taken up, the Wellesley’s house inside Fort St. mobile Association of Great Britain. This body later merged with the SIMU. process of tenders taking its George now consists mainly of In 1930, the SIMU, in keeping with similar organisations across the world, own time. In the meantime, the debris and has remained that changed its name to the Automobile Association of Southern India. Its offices in Indian Institute of Technology way for over thirty years! More the city appear to have been on Mount Road ever since inception. The Directory was asked to assess the struc- recently, the Madrasa e Azam of Madras and South India of 1934 gives the address as 1-18, Mount Road. It tural stability of the building, on Mount Road has lost a wing lists Sir Archibald Campbell, ICS, as the President, C. Gopala Menon as the which it did and certified some while everyone quibbles as to Vice-President and Major F. Church as Secretary. The Governor of Madras portions to be stronger than what ought to be done. and the Maharajah of Mysore were its patrons. Later, the Maharajahs of others. Conservation work be- There are several more Travancore and Jodhpur also became patrons. The annual subscription was Rs. 15 for car owners and Rs. 5 for motorcyclists. The Association’s general gan earlier this year, but it was instances when it comes to objectives are listed as follows: “Encourage and develop the automobile move- too late, for, following torrential delay in the start of conserva- ment in the Madras Presidency, Hyderabad, Mysore, Travancore and Cochin rains in November, a major por- tion activities. Everyone knows and other Native States of Southern India and to watch, protect and extend the tion of the edifice collapsed. that the dome surmounting the rights and privileges of members and automobile owners generally by all possible The Union Territory Govern- National Art Gallery in Egmore National Art Gallery. means.” ment immediately authorised has developed a crack that is The AASI was one of the pioneers in printing detailed route maps of South the demolition of the edifice, main while what is to be done is ever widening. But apart from India. It was also for several years responsible for furnishing statistics on motor citing risk to people in the vi- being discussed as advised by emptying the building and vehicles to the Government. It has since added services such as the issue of cinity. But after heritage activ- the Lieutenant Governor. putting up a warning that it is international driving licences, assisting in obtaining of local licences, providing ists protested and submitted pe- in an enfeebled state, the help in transfer of ownership of vehicles, releasing vehicles from hypothecation Bringing down a heritage and providing travel information. It also provides assistance in towing vehicles of titions, the shell of the ground building is usually executed members, besides liaising with the Regional Transport Authority. Most floor has been allowed to re- very quickly at a speed rarely (Continued on page 5) importantly, it campaigns for road safety. (Continued on page 8) Madras Musings wishes all its readers a very happy and prosperous New Year. CMYK 2 MADRAS MUSINGS December 16-31, 2014 Crowd-funding to support Lecture Demons weet December is here and into song. Most of these lec- fluid is phenol which is doled Sso is the Music Season. The demons have a lingering feeling out in kilolitres to keep the social causes? Man from Madras Musings that they would have blos- place clean. dons a musical hat during this somed as concert stars if only THE WATER CONSER- ary Kom successfully raised money through crowd funding time much to the distress of the audiences had had some VATIONIST – Deserts could Mfor her boxing training institute. the Chief who, rather like true appreciation of worth. So take lessons from this place, it “Groups, and even crowds, can be wiser than most and some- Aurangzeb, prefers music to be they make use of this opportu- being so dry. There is not a buried deep. But as this is the nity to give their singing voices drop of water – in the taps, or times even all of their members; if they aggregate information,” time when the Chief lets the an airing. This takes a good James Surowiecki says in his book, The Wisdom of Crowds. the cisterns, or anywhere else. Yuletide spirit take over, he twenty minutes. And then That does not deter our popu- This quote aptly describes what India is witnessing. We are in overlooks this minor transgres- comes the time when they look the midst of a social revolution facilitated by digital networking. lace from using the toilets and sion of MMM and forgives and at their watches and exclaim in so the entire scatological his- The digital network impacts the political, social and economic forgets. Come January, Chief a shocked fashion, “Oh, is that tory of the sabha is available at fabric of the country by influencing the crowd. It provides a and MMM are back to brood- the time? I got carried away one glance or one whiff. platform for like-minded people to discuss their passions and ing on matters of pith and and never noticed. This topic contribute to the cause. The effect is more pronounced in the case moment. Ebenezer Scrooge is an ocean and you can never THE ALIMENTARY CA- of politics. This should percolate to the other spheres of society. A and Bob Cratchit would about do justice to it in 50 minutes.” NAL – This is structured on the same principle. The can- lot of projects could be supported by crowd-funding, without sum it up. It always makes MMM wonder as to why the speaker then teen is in close proximity to waiting for government money. An integral part of the accepted the lecdem invitation where the toilet is. The idea is Anyone who has taken part in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean Music Season is, of course, the if he/she was of the view that that what goes in has to come India campaign) knows about the paucity of dustbins in his locality lecture demonstration, when the time given was inadequate.

Load more