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PHOTOS: T. SINGARAVELOU

BIGGER AND BETTER Puducherry’s Kamban Kalai Arangam.

Minister for IT and Transport M.O.H.F. Shahjahan, terms Puducherry’s change as “development” and “growth” with new buildings, shopping malls and hotels coming up. “Earlier, we used to go to Jawaharlal Nehru Street for everything. Not any longer. We will soon have a multiplex. The spending power of Puducherrians has increased. These are indicators of development. The number of educational institutions have increased and their quality has improved.” The setting up of more educational institutions has added to the cosmopolitan life of Puducherry, says Dr. R.V. Krishnakumar, orthopaedic surgeon. “The increasing has led to chaotic traffic and sent real estate prices soaring. The town is also slowly turning into a city, with flats becoming more common. Individual houses will soon become a rarity. New construction companies have entered the market,” he adds.

Bharathi Park have been given a facelift.

As a person, who has lived here for the past 30 years, Government official Mathew Samuel says that now there are better roads, which are well lit. But the burgeoning population is making Puducherry lose its small town values. “I think what makes Pondy special is the fact that you feel at home. There is a kind of intimacy which is slowly vanishing. We are in the danger of becoming a high-priced place without much to show for it,” he says. T.P. Raghunath, a scientist with the Pondicherry Science Forum, says that over the years, the small and marginal farmers have been sidelined by the Government. “The focus is on large and medium farmers. A lot of agricultural lands have been converted to real estate plots. Land and water are connected and when the irrigation area is reduced, the recharge area also shrinks. What we need is a good policy on surface water recharging.”

Jacqueline Kapur of Casablanca says there has been a remarkable increase in the number of tourists. In the last three years, Puducherry has become more visible. We are getting a lot of French tourists, and not all are backpackers. People from Chennai and Bangalore are also coming over here for the weekend. It has become a favourite tourist destination with its French past, a lot of culture, diversity, nice restaurants, temples and yoga. “There is a lot more investment being done on hotels, and more rooms are being added to cater to the increasing tourist population,” she says.

Flats are becoming a familiar sight.

Changes have no doubt come in the form of tall buildings, restaurants, hotels, multi-brand outlets, parks for children to play and have fun. The Government too on its part has been chalking out projects such as the art village and family entertainment centres and upgrading facilities such as Bharathi Park, the beach and Kamban Kalai Arangam.

Pondy is changing and hopefully, for the better.

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