The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Gandhi Mandapam set for new look

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 08, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Gandhi Mandapam set for new look

T. Ramakrishnan

MoU signed between State, Aircel to beautify complex

— Photo: DIPR

An artist’s impression of how the Gandhi Mandapam will look like.

CHENNAI: Decks were cleared on Monday for the beautification of the Gandhi Mandapam complex with the State government and the Aircel group, a telecom service provider, signing a memorandum of understanding.

The company will carry out landscaping of the area and renovate fountains. It would implement the renovation project at a cost of Rs.78 lakh under the supervision of the Information and Public Works Departments.

On completion, it would maintain the complex for three years, according to an official release.

A memorial for Rettamalai Srinivasan will also be part of the project, though it is yet to be unveiled.

Memorials

Apart from the Gandhi Mandapam, the complex comprises memorials for Rajaji, Kamaraj and Bhaktavatsalam, all former Chief Ministers of the State. [Rajaji was the country’s only Indian Governor General]. There are memorials for freedom fighters and for those who died in the language stir of the 1960s.

The release said Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi had advised officials that vacant space in the complex should be used productively and that the area should attract more people. Consequently, efforts were taken to rope in the services of the private sector.

The MOU was signed on Monday by M. Kutralingam, Principal Secretary (School Education) and now holding the charge of Information department additionally, and I.V.J. Pradeep, Head-Operations of Aircel, in the presence of Information Minister Parithi Ilamvazhuthi and Chief Secretary L.K. Tripathy.

A. C. Mohandoss, Director, Information and Public Relations, said the company, which would begin its work shortly, would complete it by January.

History

The complex’s oldest memorial — Gandhi Mandapam — was opened by Rajaji on January 27, 1956. An open-air auditorium was declared open on Gandhi Jayanthi day in 1974 by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi in the presence of the then Governor K.K. Shah.

On October 2, 1979, the then Governor Prabhudas B. Patwari declared open the Gandhi library and museum. The then Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran was present.

On May 5, 1975, Mr. Karunanidhi inaugurated the Rajaji memorial. Jayaprakash Narayan was present on the occasion. A library and museum was set up 12 years later, with the then Governor S.L. Khurana declaring them open.

When former Chief Minister Kamaraj died in October 1975, he was laid to rest in the complex. On February 14, 1976, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared open the memorial.

During Mr. Karunanidhi’s chiefministership (1996-2001), he declared open the memorial for Bhaktavatsalam in March 1998, the for the freedom fighters seven months later, unveiled the busts of Sankaralingam and “Arya” Bashyam in July 1999 and the memorial for the participants of the language stir in January 2001.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu