The Hindu Business Line : Heritage protection

THE Chennai offices of the British Council and the Association of British Scholars recently organised a cute little function to launch an impressive photomontage titled "Madras that is Chennai: Gateway to the South" put together with great sensitivity by Mr S. Muthiah whom one of the speakers, Mr B. Santhanam, Chairman, CII, Tamil Nadu Chapter, aptly described as the "conscience-keeper" and "one-man army" for his long public record of waging, with utter dedication, devotion and determination, a campaign to save heritage sites from despoliation.

Mr Santhanam's evocative call to stop heritage sites from being "torn apart" touched a chord in everyone's heart.

The function, while jabbing one's conscience for not doing enough to preserve and propagate the incomparably glorious heritage India has in its keeping, also brought a touch of melancholy over the apathy and indifference of not only those at the helm of affairs in the Central and State governments but also the educated sections of opinion which are normally presumed to be enlightened and aware.

There are many who regard all talk of protecting heritage as a time-killing occupation of superannuated people with nothing else to do.

Symptomatic of this lack of interest is the fact that the three earlier seminal books brought out by Mr Muthiah on The 350th Anniversary of Madras - The Gracious City (1989), Madras - Its Past and Its Present (1995) and Madras - The Queen of Coromondel (2000), of which the first edition had been sold out long ago, are languishing for want of sponsors for the second edition. The audience was startled to know that there was no celebration of the city's 350th anniversary other than the books.

Here is a challenge to the corporates themselves. They should realise that progress at the cost of destruction of heritage is piffle.

Mr Santhanam is in a uniquely pivotal position to mobilise them along two directions: Meeting the cost (which is a pittance compared to the combined assets of members of the CII and other federations) of publication of writings on heritage by persons of the calibre of Mr Muthiah; and organising at the national and state levels colloquia with the widest possible participation to draw up a blueprint for safeguarding heritage and to rouse public opinion in favour of a uniform law with stringent provisions before further damage is done.

B. S. R.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page