The General Manager

Southern Railway

Chennai

Dear Sir,

RE: Proposed demolition of the Royapuram railway station

It is with considerable distress that we have come to know about the proposal to demolish the historic Royapuram railway station. We appeal to you to kindly reconsider this decision based on the following considerations:

1. This is today the oldest railway station in the entire Indian subcontinent and not just within India.

2. It was the home terminus of the first passenger railway service in India, and drew its inspiration from the first railway tracks in the country which were in the Madras suburbs.

3. Inaugurated in 1856, it was the railway station for the city of Madras that is Chennai, then the capital of the vast Madras Presidency that extended from Orissa to Kanniyakumari.

4. The architecture of the station is typical of the early colonial classical school (of which few examples remain today) and has been repeatedly praised by historians and heritage enthusiasts. When the station was inaugurated and the first train steamed out, The Illustrated London News and other publications of the time went into raptures about the building’s architectural beauty. It thus became a South Indian landmark.

5. The station, before the construction of the Madras Port, was responsible for most of the movement of goods, which meant it played a very vital role in the region’s economy.

6. It was therefore one of the main reasons, apart from the harbour, why the First Line Beach, today’s Rajaji Salai, became a commercial hub.

7. The Madras Railway Company and its successor, the Madras & Southern Mahratta Railway, which operated from here, witnessed the birth of the Indian labour movement, with the workforce asserting itself as early as 1913, long before the first labour union was founded in this city.

8. This is a heritage structure that meets ALL international requirements that preservation of a heritage building demands: Historical value, Heritage value, Art/Architectural value, Commemorative value and Age value.

9. The Indian Railways has time and again proved itself to be proud of its architectural heritage, best evinced in the construction of the extension to the Central Station in the same style as the main building and the maintenance of the façade of the Southern Railway Headquarters.

10. There is plenty of area surrounding the station, which is also owned by the Railways. This can be put to use for the proposed development, leaving the station intact. In fact, the present station could even be incorporated into the proposed plans with the help of conservation architects and planners.

We feel that if the Railways would consider this favourably, they would be doing a great service to Indian history and heritage. It would also send a strong signal to corporate entities and Government bodies that heritage properties in their possession need to be protected.

We request you to kindly consider our appeal.

Thanking You