An air raid shelter constructed for the defence of Madras during the Second World War has been restored by the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL). The shelter was damaged partially during the laying of a pipeline along the Ennore Expressway in north Chennai a few months ago.
IOCL sources said that the contractor had damaged a portion of the shelter since he could not move it. “But work was stopped when we got information from various quarters. It has been restored, painted and fenced off to prevent misuse by outsiders. A board giving details of the monment would also be put up at the site,” an official said.
Before it was damaged, the shelter was being misused by miscreants and had a lot of garbage inside. People used to climb on it to watch the rain since it is located by the sea.
A.T.B. Bose of the North Chennai People Rights Federation said he was happy that an important part of the city’s heritage had been saved.
“Similarly, if someone comes forward to save the Royapuram railway station building, it would help. The railways only wants to pull down the building, saying it is in the way of an electric engine workshop that was constructed there,” he said.
‘Pillbox’ design
Historian V. Sriram, who first flagged the developments relating to the shelter, explained that the facility was wholly made of cement concrete with iron plates inside and was the only surviving one among several that were put up along the east coast of the country. It was known as a pillbox because of its design. The narrow windows were meant to serve as lookouts and also for positioning guns by troops stationed inside, he said.
“Unlike the First World War, when Madras was the only city that was bombed, during the Second World War, it was the only city that was safe. However, since there was fear that it would be bombed, the government erected such shelters all along the coastline so that troops could be positioned inside with anti-aircraft guns to prevent air raids. However, only one fighter aircraft came to Madras. There is no record of bombing that time,” Mr. Sriram added.
It was in 1942 that the evacuation of Madras happened.
As a part of the exercise, animals in the zoo were shot dead and the High Court was moved to Thirukazhukundram. There used to be practice blackouts when air raid sirens would be sounded and people would take shelter in bunkers.
“There was one on R.K. Salai and one in Nungambakkam,” he said.
