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 • The labour movement • The compassionate doctor • Four pages on Madras Week • A Test cap too far Vol. XXIII No. 10 MUSINGS September 1-15, 2013 Madras Week – a great Deepa Sekar conducted an extremely successful Kilpauk Heritage Walk on the first Sunday of Madras Week and Timeri Murari writes to her, enthused, “Last year half a dozen showed up; I was delighted to find 58 trailing you this time. What was even more encouraging was that most of them were young men and women who showed such an interest in their neighbourhood. Next year – 100!” One of the places the group visited was Murari’s ancestral home, Devar Kottai. R. success Revathi added, “I liked the way you obtained permission and involved the residents of old and heritage houses and made (By The Editor) them present their homes with pride.” (Also see Page 5) t’s been a great success, the Coordinators of Madras Week tell Ius. There have been 40 per cent more programmes than last year, they indicate, speaking of the programmes they were informed about. “There were many more we were not told about,” they add. The muddle that These programmes started from August 1st and are going on till the first week of September, the core week having been packed with events and many more being organised during the week that followed, making it virtually a Madras Fortnight with promise of is the ASI August-September developing into a Madras Month. Studying the programme, attending the events, catching up with the numerous reports, still more blogs and even more activi- he Comptroller and Audi- Vault, which stood next to Hynmer’s Obelisk is now more ties described in person, we are delighted to find that some of the Ttor General recently filed a Hynmer’s Obelisk, finds no or less lost to view, entry being concerns of the Coordinators in past years are being addressed posi- report that 92 monuments mention. The enclosure in through several barricades and tively. The major success story has been the number of schools protected by the Archaeologi- which several members of the trenches and an unfriendly participating. Apart from individual schools and some which cal Survey of India have gone Powney family were buried has, security guard. Experience has teamed with a school or two in their neighbourhood, a significant missing over the years. The ASI most likely, fallen victim to the taught us that monuments that contribution was that by PSBB, KK Nagar, and Pupil Saveetha has since ‘redeemed’ itself by its Metro rail development. This are lost to sight vanish over a Eco School, Poonamallee, who took it upon themselves to take the riposte that 47 out of the 92 must have been allowed by cit- period of time. have since been traced and the ing that the Justice Padmana- lead roles and act as nodal points for a cluster of a dozen and more Other Chennai-based mo- others had vanished years ago bhan Committee list does not schools each. About a hundred schools participated in numerous numents that are really pro- and the records were not specifically include the Vault by activities, some of the exhibitions they put up being, in particular, tected by the ASI (which in updated owing to oversight. All name. described as “excellent craftsmanship”. But the most significant reality means nothing more this fills us with no confidence Having said that, it must be contribution of the lot was a travelling exhibition of the CPR Envi- than a blue signboard that in either the way the CAG did pointed out that there is very ronmental Education Centre that visited nearly 200 schools and threatens vandals with dire its survey or the methods that little to rejoice about, for the showed the students a 14-panel presentation titled ‘Clean Adyar, consequences) have not fared the ASI uses to protect its struc- ASI has not really covered itself Clean Coovum, Solve Madras’s Water Problem’. The message was better. A correspondent, as tures. It is a miracle that more in glory. Both the town wall and in English as well as in Tamil. readers of this publication are buildings, icons and precincts Hynmer’s Obelisk have lost Another heartening feature has been the extended spread of aware, discovered the Bulkley haven’t gone. much of their sheen. The the celebrations. North and West Madras have seen much pio- tomb after much difficulty. The neering activity. Sri Theagararya College in Washermenpet, St. Listed among the missing condition of the sepulchre is Joseph’s High School in Erukkenchery and Ambal Matric School monuments were two Chennai- G by A Special bad and it has survived only in Arumbakkam have all contributed to this in a significant way. based monuments – Hynmer’s because it is a massive piece of Then there have been those who have turned the spotlight on Obelisk in the Law College pre- Correspondent granite. The Fort is no better. the Chennai of today that was once Madras. Namma Chennai and mises and the remnant of the The ASI may take cover under the Indian Press Institute have taken a lead in this. The British old town wall on Old Jail Road. the plea that the precinct Council had several innovative programmes ranging from the past Both of them are very much former was ‘renovated’ in com- suffers from multiple ownership, to the present. And, two surprises, the Reserve Bank of India got there unless, of course, the plete Kollywood style a few but it has done precious little to into the spirit of the celebration and organised programmes for its CAG is looking for the rest of years ago. The rampart is now a take care of what are indisput- staff, and the Hotel Ambassador Pallava introduced what we pre- the town wall which, inciden- park brought back to life but the ably its own properties within sume will be annual awards to the ‘Doyens of Madras’. tally, was demolished in the arched entry and the steps are the Fort. Lack of funds and There has also been more than a doubling of the number of 1850s (in which case the ASI eyesores with several com- manpower is the usual excuses walks, all of them well attended. Nizhal led the way with its Tree takes really long to update its memoration plaques haphaz- given, but for how long? Walks, but local individuals have shown the way to go leading records). But what is interesting ardly placed. This is hardly the is that the monument that has manner in which a historic (Continued on page 9) really vanished, the Powney monument is to be treated. (Continued on page 2) CMYK 2 MADRAS MUSINGS September 1-15, 2013 Brindian or Madras Week – MMM style! Hindlish? he Chief spoke, and there but was quite amazed at the “Ah..,” said MMM. Twas Madras Week. At cheer it exuded. No problem, it the end of it all, pronounced a caroled. It advised MMM to Once again the reporter t could be said of the English that if you took away their Latin, success by the three wise men take his time. The programme had something new. This time IGreek and French they would have to speak in sign language. who founded it, and their was for an hour and MMM he had members of the public But although Purists have decried this allegation, this ease with sidekicks who joined later, The could walk in at any time. As with him. He then proceeded which foreign words have been absorbed into the English language Man from Madras Musings is a filler, the voice said, a to interview them. One man is one of its great virtues. feeling quite weak. It is the photo of MMM had been said he suffered because of the considered view of MMM downloaded from the internet traffic. A woman wept copi- In the 18th Century there were so many Hindi words in the that what with the Madras and put on screen even while ously at the water supply. A English language (as well as Tamil, Sanskrit and Urdu) that it could Week, the Music Festival, the anchor was holding forth third recited a jeremiad on the have been predicted that the English in India would eventually the Theatre Festival, the on various issues that faced cutting of trees, while a fourth have been speaking Hindi and calling it English. Literary Festival, the Adi Chennai. blamed everyone else for the Thallupadi, the Pongal Festi- pollution. Women then join- Even Edmund Burke admitted that as much as he would like to val and other such events, It was good 40 minutes ing together screamed them- avoid these “New Abominations”, he could not, when talking of Madras that is Chennai is later that MMM reached the selves hoarse about the teem- Indian affairs, be understood in Parliament if he did not use them. becoming a much too hectic studio building which was a ing slum, and the bad buses. A place to live in. huge office complex. MMM child expressed her concern First had come merchant words suggesting comfort and com- charged in, tripped over a over trees. Then the anchor merce. The master/servant relationship being so important, hun- But leaving that aside, let couple of wires, had a glass of turned to MMM once again; dreds of words for all the infinite variety of tasks, and the servants MMM describe his own water pressed into his hand no doubt the city needed to to do them, were deemed, at that time, to be indispensable.