The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Yanam and the French connection beckon

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Friday, Jan 04, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Yanam and the French connection beckon

V. Raghavendra

The small district in Pondicherry gets decked up for big event

Three-day Yanam festival to begin on January 6
Agriculture, fishing are the primary vocations

Kakinada: Even after more than five decades of its accession to the Indian Union in 1954, Yanam, a nondescript town of the Union Territory of Pondicherry, which is geographically bound by East Godavari district, still recounts the days when it was ruled by the British, Dutch and French in the early 18th century.

This sea-side enclave of the Pondicherry Government is now preparing to celebrate the 6th Yanam People’s Festival while the memories of it being a French colony for most of the time, continue to cast a nostalgic spell on its citizens.

Small district

Today, Yanam is a small district inhabited by about 35,000 people and it has agriculture and fishing as the primary vocations. It has considerably high literacy rate too. Some people are French nationals, roughly 80 in number, who cast their vote in the French Presidential elections, at the Office of the Consulate General of France at Pondicherry.

The French had asked the people of Pondicherry, which was a main centre of their activity in the then peninsular India, to opt to either remain French or to become Indians at the time of it (Pondicherry)’s transfer to India. Thus, Yanam, which is one of Pondicherry’s three administrative regions (Karaikal and Mahe are the others), has so many people having French citizenship. Many of them draw monthly pension from the Government of France even today. Some are even settled in France.

Tourist spot

Besides, Yanam is an impressive tourist spot that draws a sizable number of visitors from all over the country and the Yanam festival is the time when it is decked up like a bride.

The present day Yanam has two conspicuous things which bring to mind its Colonial past: several buildings built in French architectural style and a good number of speakers of the French language.

Some local youths have taken the initiative to set up a French medium school with the objective of teaching the foreign language to the descendents of the existing French nationals and all those interested in learning it.

Though the district of Yanam came into existence way back in 1954, it started celebrating Yanam festival only in the year 2002 under the leadership of Malladi Krishna Rao of the Congress party who was appointed Tourism Minister by the Government of UT of Pondicherry.

This year’s event is going to focus on the potential of tourism industry in Yanam and also highlight its historic legacy.

The three-day extravaganza is set to enthral the visitors and local people for three days beginning on January 6.

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