(May 8 marked the 75th anniversary of the end of Second World War. This story was submitted to the People’s War site by Elizabeth Perez of Stockport Libraries on behalf of Margaret Ledger who worked as a nurse in India in several places during the war including Gudalur and WellingtonRead More →
(Around the middle of the 1800 Ooty was so popular that it attracted people from most of the European countries. They came for missionary work, for research, for business and trade or for rest and leisure. Here are some interesting Paris links to Ooty) Around 1850s, Ooty was a happeningRead More →
(The following report is based on a Letter to the Editor in the Indian Engineering dated September 3,1904 by a local well wisher). There was first the selection of Mettucherry for the purpose by Sir Arthur Havelock (Governor) who did so after receiving a deputation of the leading residents ofRead More →
(The American Civil War was fought between 1861 and 1865 between the Northern States and the Southern States mainly over slavery of the blacks. Ooty locals will remember the many wonderful westerns staring John Wayne, Richard Widmark, Robert Mitcham etc on the civil war stories – especially, the climax withRead More →
(England’s Legendary Prime Minister Churchill was brash, brave and bold. He was ambitious from his younger days. His first expression of his political ambition was made in Ooty) Having failed in his attempts to obtain a more exciting posting, Churchill sailed for India on 11 September 1896 and was garrisonedRead More →
(During the British time Ooty was the preserve of the Army, Coonoor was the place of ‘box wallahs’(traders) and Kotagiri was considered the centre of missionaries and intellectuals. Today’s nugget is about two Christian intellectuals who were not missionaries. On the other hand, they both converted to Hinduism !!) JamesRead More →
(Kalhada is a small Badaga village off Jakanarai on the Kotagiri-Mettupalayam road. A Plaque “ To the Memory of Kadhir Khan My Faithfull Peon by Hastings Fraser” has been found there since many years. Several stories are made of this. Sometime back, a house was built on the site butRead More →
(The dead deserve a proper funeral. But many times a proper funeral is not possible immediately for reasons of wars, natural disasters, epidemics and so on when the bodies have to be disposed of unceremoniously out of necessity. Still they can be given the honour due to them in goodRead More →
( The Lawrence School, Lovedale was opened on May 12, 1858. Many think that it was the legacy of a rich, old, bearded philanthropist. Far from it, Lawrence was one of the rare breed of Solider-Saints who served India. He is considered the builder of modern Punjab. He died asRead More →
(May 1 is the death anniversary of Dr Carl Roman Abt, a Swiss engineer, inventor and entrepreneur who was the founder of Nilgiri Mountain Railway. With all the fun and fanfare we have now with NMR, did anyone bothered to install a memorial for this genius? ) Dr Abt workedRead More →
(One more Kapoor has gone, sadly. The Kapoors have had a long association with the Nilgiri Mountains. The shooting vans of the R.K. Productions were a permanent feature on the streets of Ooty in the 1950s to 70s.) The legendary Prithivi Raj Kapoor had no occasion to visit the NilgirisRead More →
(How Nilgiris got its name has many speculations- from the bluish Kurinji flower, from the Blue-gum trees and so on, But the sources of the name according to legends is more fascinating) Abbe Dubois, the French writer who travelled in southern India in 1792-1823 says in his book, ‘Hindu Manners,Read More →
(The Nilgiris is endowed with a variety of entertainment and past time round the year- sports, culture, nature and so on related. The British enjoyed them to the best. We are unfortunately limited by our lack of imagination, interest and initiative. The following is an account of Ooty life inRead More →
(The fabled Ooty Season must have started after 1870 when Ooty became the Summer Capital of Madras Presidency. Over the years the Season became the time for sports, festivals, shows and a meeting place for all classes of people from near and far. The tradition continued after independence. During warRead More →