For a long time a footpath was the existing link between the railway station and the Chromepet area. Residents who were not aware of the art of riding a bicycle or who had crossed the age of riding the bicycle took great pains and learnt to ride it. Ringing the bell constantly, holding the brakes tightly out of fear and riding the cycle in the footpath in order to reach the railway station or to return home was just a common sight.

When two of my close relatives built their houses and went to reside there I was much perturbed. The reason being all the inmates of the house were diabetic and blood pressure patients. In case of any emergency I was much worried as to how they would be able to reach the doctor or how they would bring the doctor home. But all my worries proved to be wrong. The residents rode the bicycle not once but nearly four of five times in a day to reach the railway station, which was the only available link to the outside world, from their residence. Since this turned out to be a good physical exercise there was good improvement in their physical condition. On the contrary I became sick just by thinking about them, of course, out of concern.

The second feature that added fame to the Chromepet area is MIT. Till about thirty years ago this was a self-sufficient educational institution for higher studies in engineering courses. It was only here that M.Tech. courses for Electronics and Aviation were being conducted. To procure admission in MIT excellent grades in the engineering courses were highly essential. Today MIT has become a part of the Anna University. The advent of the IIT at the national level has brought down the fame of MIT considerably. A small piece of information at this juncture - the eminent Tamil writer Sujatha is a student of MIT.

Ashoka Mithran

Retro Chennai from Asoka Mithran looks back at Chennai, in fact the Madras as it was known and existed. The column traces the city's lifescape at various points of time