Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Demolition move

Sir, — This has reference to the Tamil Nadu Government's decision to demolish the Queen Mary's College and construct a new complex for the Secretariat in its place. A major portion of the land on which the college stands now was gifted by S. Subrahmanya Iyer, former Chief Justice of Madras High Court and the first Indian Vice-Chancellor of the Madras University, in the 1920s. A few more philanthropists of the erstwhile Madras Presidency contributed liberally towards the construction of the complex.

Is it, therefore, legal on the part of the Government to demolish the edifice and construct the Secretariat there? Is it not an insult to the memory of those to whose munificence the college owes its birth?

Saroja Sundararajan,

Pondicherry

* * *

Sir, — Sad indeed that the Government seeks to demolish the Queen Mary's College to build a secretariat against the wishes of a vast majority of citizens.

The court's decision to stay demolition is most welcome and we, ex-students now in the U.S., hope the issue is resolved in favour of the agitating students/staff, soon and an old public institution saved and preserved for posterity.

It is strange that the Chief Minister picked this site for her grandiose plans; if she wants large space and central location, would she demolish or remodel the Madras central station, and take over the railway offices next door?

Vedavalli,

California, U.S.

* * *

Sir, — The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, J. Jayalalithaa, announced on the floor of the House that the Secretariat had `become uninhabitable'. It is, indeed, true. But you must make it `habitable' and not demolish an age-old college for women. Education, that too women's education, is a constitutional priority. The Government should be well aware of that.

This decision comes at a time when we should consider building more government schools and colleges for women. The Supreme Court in the Unnikrishnan case (though reversed on a different point) has asserted that education is a public duty. The sooner we give up such ideas the better.

See the amount of inconvenience and waste of public money at a time when the government is complaining of severe financial crunch and is not releasing funds even for judicial work.

N.G.R. Prasad,

Chennai

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