The Harijan welfare movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi was closely intertwined with the freedom struggle. Inspired by the leader, a trio in Madras comprising a brother, P.N. Sankaranarayana Iyer and his two sisters, Bhagirathi Ammal and Visalakshi Ammal got together to form a movement which would work actively for the uplift of the harijans and their rehabilitation. This piece is a brief account of their venture, which was known as the Gokulam Method Village Welfare Association.
Nothing much is known about the personal life of Sankaranarayana Iyer, except that he was from Tirunelveli district. He was a lawyer, who after having embarked on a tour of the country gave up his profession to actively pursue welfare work for the masses. After staying in Bengal for a long time, he settled down in Madras in the 1920s. In 1929, he began work in a small manner in an area of homeless labourers and fishermen in Krishnampet at the far end of Lloyds Road in Triplicane. The guiding principles were making the inhabitants lead a clean and healthy life and keeping them away from the drinking habit. The idea for a new colony for them came about from Sankaranarayana Iyer’s acquaintance with a rickshaw puller by name Adimoolam. Coming to know of his pitiable living conditions and societal issues through various conversations over a period, Sankaranarayana Iyer decided to rehabilitate him and thus, was born Gokulam.
Jawaharlal Nehru addressing a meeting at Gokulam, Madras, October 7, 1936.
Around the same time, Sankaranarayana Iyer was also involved in the remodeling of a fisherman’s slum (better known today as Ayodhya Kuppam) near the Lady Willingdon Training College.
The land on which Gokulam came up (measuring around 20 grounds), which used to be known as Palayasudukadu and Oddarapalayam belonged to the Bishop of Madras. It was bought at a comparatively cheap rate of Rs 2,000 with the support of T.G. Rutherford, Commissioner of Labour. Support for the venture also came in from organisations such as the Madras Youth League, the Wesley College, the Women’s Indian Association, and the South Indian Humanitarian League. A cooperative, known as the Krishnampet Gokulam Co-operative Housing Building Society was formed. A layout was drawn with the assistance of the Director of Town Planning and around forty houses built, each belonging to a family. The land on which each house stood was sold to them for Rs 50, recoverable in 40 instalments. The colony was formally declared open in April 1933 by the Mayor of Madras, then Kumararaja and later Raja Sir, M.A. Muthiah Chettiar.
A multi-pronged rehabilitation approach, covering various welfare measures was undertaken in the colony. Recognising the need for a balanced and well-nourished diet, the residents were instructed regularly by a Miss Park on a proper diet plan. Vegetables and greens were grown around the locality to cater to the requirements. Suitable cottage industries such as carpentry, weaving and bee-keeping were introduced.Volunteers from the public taught the ladies embroidery and stitching. A library with a reading room attached to it and a night school were housed in the welfare hall, which also doubled up as a place for public meetings. Honorary doctors visited the colony regularly and rendered medical assistance. A charitable homeopathic dispensary functioned as well. The residents of the colony were encouraged to take up responsibilities regarding its upkeep and administration of the various activities. Vishalakshi Ammal organised a music troupe comprising children of the colony and taught them bhajans. These were sung at prayer sessions held every morning.
Soon, the rehabilitation efforts started bearing fruit. Those in the habit of drinking gave it up. The inhabitants also started switching over to vegetarianism. Yet another major social transformation came about with respect to the conduct of weddings. Given the high social cost involved and the fact that it landed many in debt, mass weddings were organised on a simple scale every year during Chitra Pournami to avoid wasteful expenditure. A common feast was organised for the couples and their invitees. These weddings were presided by dignitaries such as Dewan Bahadur K.S. Ramaswamy Sastri, Mary Clubwallah, Ammu Swaminadhan etc, who praised the initiative and called for the public to actively support the cause. Deepavali was yet another much anticipated event, with new clothes being distributed to the inhabitants of the colony every year. The colony had several high-profile visitors, which included the likes of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Lord Stanley, Governor of Madras, and Lady Mountbatten. In his visit in October 1936, Jawaharlal Nehru commended the way in which the colony was organised, calling it “somewhat different from the usual superimposed institutions for the lower classes” and observing that “things have been started in a different way, more from the bottom upward with no element of condescension or patronage but really in a spirit of mutual co-operation and the idea of service governing everything”.
The successful organising of the colony meant that there were calls to replicate the model in other places as well. One of its initiatives led to the formation of Mangalapuram colony in Chetpet in 1936. With a view to train others in slum work and spearhead similar efforts elsewhere, an initiative called the Gokulam Ashrama was formed the same year. Shortly thereafter, PN Sankaranarayana Iyer was entrusted with the reorganisation of the Bharadwaja Ashrama originally started by freedom fighter VVS Aiyar at Shermadevi. The movement’s good work was carried on though, with the likes of TR Venkatarama Sastry, Dewan Bahadur V Bashyam Iyengar and NK Vinayakam (later of the All-India Handicrafts Board) spearheading its activities through the 1940s. The number of students trained at the Ashrama steadily rose and by 1949 had reached a strength of around 60. The area of operations too expanded, with rural village welfare centres being setup in Valarpuram, Karanaipuducheri and Echiyur in Chenglepet District. The industrial school ran a three-year training course in bee-keeping, silk and cotton spinning and paper making.
Notwithstanding that the trail of the Gokulam Method Village Welfare Association runs cold after the 1970s, it is worth remembering that its first creation, the Gokulam colony was indeed a pioneering effort in harijan welfare in the city.