What's in a street's name?

Today I felt like Blogging.I am not blogging because its 'almost' impoverished but because I do not feel like doing anything per se.

I had classes from 8:30 in the morning(on weekends too :( ). I have loads of assignments to do,some stuff to study but did not feel like doing anything.Was just tired.I just sat by the side of window.
I was thinking about the conversation me,my Chittappa,his friends and Appa had about the city where we spent our formative years.
I got involved in their talk.

What's in a street name you might ask.There is lot if street names in Secunderabad are anything to go by.
Read on..

The Raj that shaped much of what is today's Secunderabad,giving it its cosmopolitan touch and distinctive feeling,still lives on.If not in the ethos ,atleast in street names like McIntyre Road,James Street,Ronald Ross Road,King's Way and so on..
True political whims more than cultural or patriotic reasons have buried most of the names under tar.But those that survive manage to retain much of Secunderabad's old charm.
Park lane for instance,was named after Park Lane of London in the 19th century,at that time a fashionable shopping area.This place retains its British name and is a busy shopping spot too.This along with nearby streets like Prenderghast Road and James Street was in fact set up to look like England and Paradise and Patny to add in the list.

Renaming brigade

James Street(presently Mahathma Gandhi Road),King's Way(Rashtrapathi Road),Alexander Road(Sardar Patel Road) and Oxford Street(Sarojini Devi Road) have all underwent the renaming brigade's surgeries while some still in the Cantonment like Sapper's Lines,Lancer's Lines,Allenby Lines,Plassey Lines among others survive.

My Grandma,my uncles still refers to the aforementioned places by their former names giving a nostalgic feeling to them.For this is the city there were born and brought up .Those names certainly bring a sense of familiarity to them.
Ronald Ross Road still remains in a limbo.It was renamed Minister Road and when Chandrababu Naidu was CM it was given its original name.However all the official boards still call it Minister Road.
I was told that Ranigunj was named after Queen Victoria and its no wonder that Chandana's,Chermas,Anutex and the like have been substituted for some of the places.

For most of them those names still linger in their mind as a testimony to the British rule.

Comments

nice post vaish..
ppl still refer james street as james street ..
how come u missed clock tower , u know who designed Clock TOwer ..
Dewan bahudur ramgopal ... thts y places near sec-bad is called ramgoapl-pet and am happy tht name was retained and more over am very happy tht English names has been replaced with our own heroes names ..
ppl refer pg road as still pg road they havnt changed tht name 2..

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