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Gods on the median

Last updated 4:55 pm, Thursday, November 22, 2007.

By Karthik Krishnaswamy

Amidst the traffic - The 7th century Valmiki temple in Thiruvanmiyur in the middle of the East Coast Road. Photo: Karthik Krishnaswamy/Digantik

Chennai: Legend has it that Valmiki, basking in the afterglow of having finished his final draft of the Ramayana, went on a journey south, and stopped for rest near the Thiruvanmiyur bus stand. There was no bus stand then, however, only a placid lake. A temple dedicated to the dacoit-turned-sage duly came up at this spot, right in the middle of what is now East Coast Road.The Valmiki temple, sporting telltale red-and-white stripes, is now under the supervision of the nearby Marundeeswarar temple, built by the Cholas. According to Ishwaran, the priest at the Valmiki temple, it was built in the 7th century AD.

When the East Coast Road was widened in 2003, the Highways Department wanted to demolish the structure, but finally decided to have the road skirt it instead, after the Marundeeswarar temple obtained a stay order from the High Court. “The temple has tremendous spiritual power; nobody can do anything to it,” contended Ishwaran. S Satyanarayanan, architect and heritage buff, had a more worldly explanation. “The Marundeeswarar temple has lots of funds, and the Valmiki temple also has immense significance, because of the Brahmotsav festival held there every March, which many devotees attend.”The temple and the concrete pavement around it now act like a median.

Chennai has a lot of such middle-of-road temples. Satyanarayanan said that the Tamil Nadu Road Development Company, during the IT Corridor project, relocated, and renovated, 12 such temples.

He said that it is a more complex issue with smaller temples, which dot the lanes in the older parts of the city. In most cases, ownership is not defined. Moving them wouldn’t be the solution unless land can be found. Mostly, he said, they are allowed to remain where they are, “since those lanes weren’t built for cars anyway.”

Most old Indian towns predate the automobile. Their narrow streets follow an organic pattern, and houses, shops and temples spring up as the need arises, sometimes, even in the middle of the road.

These streets were a hub of social and cultural activity, and not merely facilitators of movement from one place to another. Usually, in urban planning, streets are primarily designed to ensure the rapid, unhindered movement of vehicles. Development and heritage conservation, therefore, are always in conflict.