Sea of humanity witness unveiling

Tamil Nadu chief minister Karunanidhi steals the show at the ceremony

The curious people had climbed all the buildings in the vicinity to catch a glimpse of the event, the culmination of a long wait since 1991. People from across the city were present to hear the Tamil Nadu CM speak.  Some of them, like Sharada Varadarju, a homemaker, ensured that she did not miss the speech of the eloquent politician. Sharada said, “Karunanidhi’s visit to Bangalore on an occasion like this, is indeed a time of celebration.  He is a good orator and to hear him speak is something to be treasured”.

For 12-year-old Raju, a school going boy, the fact that Karunanidhi was in the city was appealing. “Karunanidhi will be unveiling the Tiruvalluvar statue and will be speaking at RBANMS ground. I came to see the programme with my neighbours” said an excited Raju.

While some who had come early in the day to be part of the gathering, there were others who were checked before being allowed into the premises. With the possession of a VIP pass, only one person was permitted to be seated inside. At the entry points people were seen parting away as more than one person expected to get into the premises with one VIP pass.

As the octogenarian TN chief minister addressed the crowd, the ecstatic crowd became very noisy and agitated to handle. The police felt that the crowd would barge in at the rear end of the shelter. However it was under control with timely directions and cautions. Meanwhile as the statue was unveiled at the N Neelakantan Circle, where people tried to barge into the park to get a glimpse of the Tiruvalluvar statue, the police sprung in to action to disperse the crowd.

Cultural ties between the two

Terming the unveiling of statues of the ancient Tamil and Kannada poets as unveiling of human hearts, the chief ministers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, B S Yeddyurappa and M Karunanidhi, respectively seem to be determined to establish close cultural ties between the two states.

The next major event would be the unveiling of the statue of Kannada poet Sarvajna in Chennai by Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on August 13.

CMs drive in same car

Chief Ministers of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, B S Yeddyurappa and M Karunanidhi, respectively, paid a visit to the statue of Tiruvalluvar after the remote control unveiling ceremony. They drove in the same car beside the Ulsoor lake with the Karnataka CM garlanding the statue. Yeddyurappa posed for photographers in front of the statue and briefly addressed the media. Several Kannada litterateurs who were present at the unveiling ceremony also displayed their reverence for the Tamil saint and poet by visiting the statue.

Tamil Sangham’s efforts

Making the most of the occasion, the Bangalore Tamil Sangham (BTS) had organised several programmes to celebrate the unveiling of the Tiruvalluvar statue. A talk by a noted Tamil author was organised on Sunday evening. Literary works of Tiruvalluvar were also displayed at the Bangalore Tamil Sangham with an added collection of literature at the Sangham’s Library which already contains 40,000 books. Projects to promote Kannada and Tamil with mutual translation works are on the anvil said an administrative officer of BTS.

TN agriculture minister Armugam sans VIP pass

Tamil Nadu Agriculture Minister Veerapandi Armugam was not permitted to enter the RBANMS premises as he did not have the VIP pass.

According to officials, the minister was unaware that the pass was mandatory to enter the premises. The police officials at the entry point unaware of his identity refrained him from entering the premises. However, Mylaswamy Annadurai, project director, Chandrayaan, who was also present at the unveiling programme noticed the commotion about the minister’s entry.

Instantly, Annadurai communicated with the officials and explained to them that the minister was from Tamil Nadu and was here for the unveiling programme. Following the intervention of Annadurai, police permitted the minister enter the premises to witness the programme.