It was in June 2010 that we had put up photos of Chengam Bazaar in George Town. That was the market as it existed then – not much to look at, and frankly a complete mess. Nevertheless, it was representative of an era past – when purchase of groceries and other food items was done in the open air. The building as can be seen was single-storied and the stalls within were clearly demarcated, with passageways in between. Since then, Chengam Bazaar has vanished, leaving only its name behind. The land on which it stood was probably owned by a trust and they must have negotiated for the stallholders to vacate. A high rise has come up in its place. It may be spanking new, but it is another rent in the fabric that is George Town. It is not clear who gives permission for such tall buildings to be put up in such narrow streets, thereby straining the surrounding infrastructure. But then, that is the way Chennai degrades.
OLD
NEW
Our OLD is by Sriram V, dating to 2010 and the NEW is by Kalaichelvam Namachivayam, who has sent us an article on the antecedents of the market — “Chengam Market” in Chennai. The original was in Tamil and we have used Google translate to create the English version, with some edits.