The Madurai railway junction holds a special place in my heart and comes with lot of childhood memories... every childhood trip memory starts with the waiting at the railway station for the train...
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| August 1915 |
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| Station master 1905 |
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1900s
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The first railway line from Trichi reached Madurai as early as 1857 and the station was first constructed in 1859
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1913
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| 1943 |
The facade of the junction has went through confusing phases... Railway officials have not been able to decide whether to give it a modern or local traditional look! Sometimes it looks a tacky traditional and sometimes a confused modern with glass and ACP cladding... I hope some day they will give it to a good Architect to redevelop the facade and the entire front infrastructure.
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| Traditional facade attempt |
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| Tacky Marriage of modern and old ! |
The 15 feet high '3 jumping fishes' statue in front of the railway junction was installed in 1999. My friend architect Manimaran was the man behind this effort. The fish is the royal symbol of the Pandyas who ruled Madurai.
Unfortunately the statue was removed by the railway authorities during some infrastructure rework and never reinstalled. Last i heard there is a case filed in court againt the railways to get this statue reinstalled...
Great bits of history.
ReplyDeleteThe evolution of the junction facade has certainly been a perplexing journey, reflecting a struggle between modernity and tradition. The inconsistent attempts at renovation have resulted in an identity crisis, sometimes presenting a mismatched traditional style and other times leaning towards an unfinished modern aesthetic with glass and ACP cladding
ReplyDeleteAmazing those jumping fishes and hopefully they will be put back in place if the people want that.
ReplyDeleteGood memories there and interesting to see the photos.