A board at a vacant plot on the Pallavaram section of Grand Southern Trunk Road is now the only indication that the Pond’s Company had its operations there. That is, if you are looking only for physical and noticeable indicators of the past.
For longtime residents of the region, the aroma of the Pond’s company still lingers on — invisible, but powerful. For many of them, development of the region is largely defined by this company. They would talk of two eras — one before the establishment of the Pond’s factory and the other, after.
Punching the contact number, inscribed on this board, led to Sri Kumar, whose father was employed at the company.
Sri Kumar recalled how during a walk through the neighbourhood, his father told him how most parts of the neighbourhood were deserted and poorly-lit and the roads were battered, and there were luxuriant growths of thorny bushes and how the gloomy situation improved almost magically with the advent of the Pond’s.
Pond’s arrived in Pallavaram in 1967.
Long-time residents of the neighbourhood say that before the launch of the company, the neighbourhood was merely a deserted place.
Selvam (65), one of the former employees of the company and a long-time resident of Pallavaram, said, “One of the best things the company did for the colony was provide job opportunities for women. Hundreds of women, even school dropouts, got jobs in the packing unit of the company.”
After the establishment of the Pond’s company, commerce thrived in the region. “Before Pond’s, there were only a few shops. Now, a culture of commerce was found just outside the company's gates. People started selling saris and other clothes that could be bought through weekly instalments. Several vendors would be at the gates in the evening, selling vegetables, fruits, tea, coffee and snacks. Most of the women employees used to come to the company in cycles. So, six cycle repair and puncture shops were opened on the stretch. Some women would walk to their homes and catering to them, a cycle rickshaw stand was opened just outside the gate. These rickshawallahs offered shared rides, which ensured each passenger did not have to spend much.
As the company started early, women found it difficult to bring food from home. Small eateries sprouted as a result.” A retired government employee, who is also a long-time resident of Pallavaram, said, “Due to Pond’s, the profile of the neighbourhood improved. The local body was now forced to lay proper roads and provide street lights. A few more buses started plying near the stretch. The company’s presence also led to real-estate development.”
