Puducherry- The Changing Face

Has Puducherry Changed?

Puducherry (aka Pondicherry), a French colonial settlement till 1953, was known for the following:

• Sandy beaches
• The Prominade by the sea
• French villas and houses
• Auroville (City of Dawn) and Aurobindo Ashram
• JIPMER- premier institute for PG medical education and research

With the passage of time and construction of breakwaters, beaches are no longer sandy. JIPMER continues to attract top most meritorious students. Auroville, an ecologically designed township, gets thousands of visitors every week. With Union Territory status, the economy of Puducherry has bounced back. However, to cater to the tourists, number of fast food outlets, Airbnb and other types of accommodation and wine shops have mushroomed. Ghumakkad visited Pondicherry enroute to Pichavaram on 17-19 May 2024. Sharing below few pictures bringing out the changing face of this colonial settlement.

The history of Puducherry reveals territorial dominance by multiple dynasties from about 4th Century CE to the 20th Century. While staying in Puducherry, Ghumakkad noticed neighbourhood chicken and cocks fighting for territorial dominance for the morning feed. Sharing a short 30-sec video with you. Mankind, animal kingdom or the birds- the story is the same! What do you say?

How to Reach

Puducherry is well connected by road and air. Rail head is 24 kms away. See the coastal route from Chennai in the map below:

The existing icons and the emerging face of Puducherry are brought out in the pictures below.

Inaugurated in November 2022, the imposing structure shown below is sure to become the new icon of Puducherry. Unfortunately sites like Wikipedia haven't updated yet!

Airbnb and other travel portals, offer a variety of budget accommodation at Puducherry. Where we stayed, it was nicely furnished and well kept. Loved the way old glass bottles had been recycled by the owner. Few pictures.

Why carry a bicycle all the way from Chennai to Puducherry as shown in the picture below? Because on the return leg, our son Ankush who is preparing for the Iron Man challenge, rode his bicycle for 120 kms. He left at 5.30AM and reached Chennai before us in the car. 

You may browse the picture story of 70.3 Iron Man which he completed in Nov-22.

Iron Man in the Family - A thrilling narrative of 1.9 km sea swim, 90 kms bike followed by 21.1 km run - all on one morning in that sequence!

The story on Puducherry continues.

Puducherry-Cuddalore highway has a unique cafe. Called Grami Cafe, It serves millet-based dishes and is very tastefully done up. See the pictures below.

Once again, many thanks to our son Ankush for putting the whole trip together and accompanying us on the road.

Readers may browse our story on Pichavaram Mangrove Forest by clicking the link below:

Pichavaram Mangroves- The 2nd Largest in India - Pictures and videos show how the mangroves in Pichavaram have been well protected despite a large number of tourists every day.

Change is part of life. In fact changing seasons help sustain life on our planet. Best example of a change which we encounter everyday is the sunset and sunrise. We close with a PQ- picturesque quote on the morning glow in our lives by Gautam Buddha. He said "Each morning we are born again. What we today is what matters most".

Thanks for browsing. Stay connected.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ Secunderabad/ 2nd July 2024

Postscript:

3rd July: Dr Umesh Dhyani wrote: 

"1. In 1980s- Pondicherry shops had wooden doors.

2.  in 1990s-  wooden doors were changed to glass doors.

3. Shops were AC, beeches were vibrant and tourism vibrant. 

4.  You missed Pondicherry university. Campus is like a resort.

I did my PGDBA from Pondicherry university. 

City was heritage in 1980s."

#Puducherry, #FrenchColonialPast, #Auroville, #KamarajarManimandapam, #JIPMER, #UnionTerritory #TheProminade #Pichavaram #Airbnb #Matrimandir #Change #PQ #GautamBuddha #Ghumakkadhb #Ghumakkadharsh #recycling #ecofriendly #ironman

Pichavaram Mangroves 2nd Largest in India

Everyone goes to Puducherry (old name Pondicherry) from Chennai. 

But very few go another 70 kms south to Pichavaram. Pichavaram? Never heard of it?

Pichavaram (also spelt as Pitchavaram) is a tiny fishing village in Tamil Nadu located between the Vellar estuary in the north and Coleroon estuary in the south. It is famous for the Mangrove Forest which is the second largest in India after Sundarbans. 

India is home to seven percent of world's mangroves spread over the Indian peninsula. See the maps below courtesy respective websites. 

How to Reach Pichavaram

Pichavaram is accessible by road from Puducherry. See the maps below. Nearest rail head is Chidambaram.

Importance of Mangroves

Mangroves prevent soil erosion, provide breeding ground for fish and other marine animals and absorb the impact of sudden surge in the water levels like cyclones and tsunami. Mangroves are important for our survival. Pichavaram mangroves are a designated Ramsar Site vide serial number 2482. See the visuals below for the importance of the mangroves.

How to Visit the Mangroves

Row boats and motor boats along with life jackets are available for visitors. For professional videography, extra fees is to be paid. However, cell phone cameras are allowed free of charge. The forest department charges a token fee of Rs 10/- per visitor.

Our Visit

We visited the mangroves at Pichavaram on 18th May 2024. Sharing below few pictures and videos of the mangroves and its surroundings taken from a moving motor boat at high noon.

The reader may get a feel of the boat ride through the mangroves in the YouTube video shot by Ghumakkad. Please bear with the engine noise as the video has not been re-processed.

You may click on the 3-min YouTube video below shot by Ghumakkad. It takes you through the narrow waterways of Pichavaram mangroves.

A short one-min YouTube video below shows you how the canopy of the boat is folded and re-erected while moving!

A short video below shows how narrow the waterways are through the mangroves. Once again, the engine noise may please ne ignored.

Pichavaram is primarily a fishing harbour. 

Sea Food at Pichavaram

Pichavaram is a haven for sea food lovers like our son Ankush. There are numerous restaurants along the road leading to the boat house. Few pictures.

Enroute to Pichavaram

We crossed Cuddalore on the way to Pichavaram. During the Tsunami, the coastal town was devastated and more than 800 people lost their lives. The old clock tower withstood the tsunami. See the picture below.

The drive from Puducherry to Pichavaram goes through many villages and railway crossings. It was fun reliving the childhood excitement of counting the rail wagons while waiting at a level crossing. See a video and few pictures.

Mangroves - Other Stories

You may browse the following stories for pictures of other mangroves in India visited by Ghumakkad:

Mangroves at Havelock Island in Andamans - The story shows how few grandparents splashed around the Havelock Island in Andamans against the backdrop of healthy mangroves. See the tall mangroves in the background in the picture below.

Walking Mangroves at Kalapathar Beach Andamans - Kalapathar beach is where you rediscover yourself. Browse the picture story which includes the 'walking mangroves' of Kalapathar in Havelock island Andamans.

Mangroves and Corals - This story shows the co-existence of mangroves and corals around the world. See the picture below where Punam Taneja a botany teacher, explains the importance of Mangroves in maintaining the ecological balance.

Hope you enjoyed the story on Mangroves which are so important for sustaining the ecological balance on our planet. Do share your feedback even if a few words!

Special thanks to our son Ankush for organising the trip and being the local foodie guide.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ Secunderabad/ 24th June 2024

Postscript:

24th June: From Commodore TMJ Champion. "You have brought back a flood of memories of my time at Annamalai University where I did my BE. Pichavaram is a few km from my university and I been there last in 1968."

24th June: From Capt NR Ravi. "Thanks Harsh. Lakshmi and I spent our honeymoon there in 1986. Beautiful place. We spent a lot of time studying the tide based creatures we had read about in Discovery."

#mangroves #pichavaram #corals #ecology #tsunami #suddensurge #marinelife #boatride #walkingmangroves #ramsarsite #eastcoastofindia #seafood #fishingvillage #cuddalore #tamilnadu #forestdepartment #tourism #estuaries #sealevel

Our Land Our Future - World Environment Day 2024

Another World Environment Day is here.

This year's theme is 'Our Land Our Future'. The theme set by UNEP changes every year.

Ghumakkad was recently at Gandikota gorge, known as the Grand Canyon of India. The place in Andhra Pradesh attracts many visitors. But the visitors litter the rocks and the crevices as the picture shows. For such irresponsible tourists, themes like 'Our land our future' do not appeal.

No amount of sloganeering will work. The feeling and the urge to preserve our environment has to come from within. Otherwise, the slogan will have to be amended to read 'Our land, doomed future'. The glory of Gandikota as shown below, may only remain in the books and pictures in times to come.

Ghumakkad has been writing regularly to help preserve the environment. Some of our stories are listed below. Just click the link to browse.

Beat the Plastic Pollution - World Environment Day 2023

Only One Earth - World Env Day 2022

Reimagine, Recreate Restore - How to restore the environment? World Env Day 2021

Mutualism by Nature - how few species are dependent upon one another

Shrinking Urban Lakes- Impending Disaster

What Can We Do? - Practical things to do by individuals

As we said above, 'Together We Can!' Let us do our bit to save the environment. Every drop counts in this effort. The above links provide practical ways what each of us can do to save the environment.

Readers may like to browse the above message in a video format. Click on the short 40-seconds video below:

Sharing below a PQ- picturesque quote- based on a picture of Thunder Lilies in our garden shot by Ghumakkad. It says 'Smile and the world will be yours'.

Thanks for browsing.

Happy World Environment Day 2024!

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ Secunderabad/ 5th June 2024

#worldenvironmentday #environment #earth #pollution #deforestation #lakes #trees #plants #birds #animals #responsiblehumanbeings #humangreed #ghumakkadharsh #ghumakkadhb #jaagore #climatechange #unep #everydropcounts #gandikota #grandcanyonofindia