Energy of yesteryear

Energy of yesteryear
The Hindu

The municipality of Bangalore a few decades ago wasn't concerned only about civic problems. It brought lots of entertainment to its citizens



IT WASN'T ALL WORK AND NO PLAY The various activities organised by the municipality of Bangalore made city life exuberant and lively

Today's youngsters may feel that the older generation lead a dull life because they didn't bunk classes, date, or SMS. But there was no need for bunking classes then, as after Lower Secondary (Seventh Standard) or S.S.L.C., one was almost guaranteed to get a government job. Hence only very few pursued higher studies. Till two decades ago, we had people with S.S.L.C. qualification retiring as bank managers and section officers.

Those days, there was no dating, people became as parents in their teens. For those who had a steady income, life was easygoing and stress-free. The joint family system prevailed and boredom rarely affected youngsters as they had lot of people of their age group for company.

The various activities organised by the municipality of Bangalore made city life exuberant and lively. Beginning with 1885-86, Indian instrumental music and military band was played for the public every Sunday and Thursday evenings in the municipal gardens near the Dharmambudhi tank (present bus stand). This programme was later arranged in Malleswaram Park and the Bugle Rock premises in Basavanagudi.

Under the auspices of the municipality, "market shows" were held regularly where fruits and vegetables were displayed. Dignitaries like the Dewan would inaugurate the show in the morning and distribute prizes and medals to successful participants in the competition in the evenings. In the market show held in January 1930, an exhibition of milch cows and buffaloes was also held. A special feature of the market show held during 1930-31 was the organisation of charkha competition in which women also competed. The market show on December 22 and 23, 1946, featured wrestling matches, gymnastics, orchestra and nadaswaram music.

Baby shows

The municipality used to organise baby shows in various parts of the city. Competitions were held for babies in different age groups and winners were presented silver cups and cash prizes.

From 1939 onwards, the municipality used to broadcast music, speeches and other programmes relayed from Madras, Bombay and Delhi through loud speakers installed in various parks of the city.

The Maharaja, during his visits to Bangalore, used to organise a ball (a formal social gathering for dance), where the elite of the city and the Cantonment used to participate. The city also had several bhajan mandalis whose members used to assemble regularly and sing devotional songs. The devout held Harikathas and Bhagavad Gita sermons. As a premier municipality of the State, the Bangalore Municipal Council used to present civic address to prominent personalities of British India who used to visit the city. They included both governor-generals and nationalist leaders. In November 1892, the visiting Lord Landsdowne was accorded a civic address by the Bangalore city and Cantonment municipality. Arrangements were made for him to visit Lalbagh and other places of interest in the city.

In December 1900, Lord Curzon came to inaugurate the Victoria Hospital built at a cost of Rs. 70,000. Similarly, Lord Hardinge came to unveil the statue of the late Dewan Sheshadri Iyer on November 20, 1913.

On June 25, 1927, Viceroy Irwin came to Bangalore and was accorded a 31-gun salute. At the railway station, he received the civic address given by the City Municipal Council. In the evening, Irwin along with his wife visited Lalbagh and later the Indian Institute of Science and the Dairy farm. The Lady Viceroy visited the inmates of hospitals in the city and civil and military stations.

The last civic reception accorded to a British Viceroy was the one given to Lord Mountbatten in 1948. The municipality also had the privilege of presenting civic address to Gandhji on June 17, 1927, to Nobel Laureate C.V. Raman in 1931 and to a host of leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarat Chandra Bose, C. Rajagopalachari and others. In March 1955, Helen Keller was presented a civic address and in her reply she praised the services of the altruistic doctor Modi in combating blindness among the old.

As per the direction of the Government, the municipality used to organise functions to commemorate various events. In December 1911, when King George V and his queen came to Delhi, a durbar was held in the city to announce the contents of the proclamation made at Delhi to leading citizens of the city. A large number of people were fed and public buildings were illuminated. In 1927, the municipality observed silver jubilee celebration of the accession of the Mysore Maharaja in a grand manner. It appealed to the citizens of Bangalore to decorate and illuminate their houses and shops, feed the poor and offer prayers for the long life and prosperity of the Maharaja. A fete was organised at Cubbon Park where sports for schoolboys, Scout display, musical entertainment, magic show and sword display were held.

S. SRINIVAS