Madras’ love for all creatures, great and small

Wherever we go, there it is. The COVID-19 pandemic has overwritten several scripts, laid to waste the plans of all. And this year, as the city celebrates Madras Day, in commemoration of a pact inked 382 years ago, it makes sense to anchor the overarching theme to the disruptions a pandemic causes. For a week, these columns will open a window to the past to examine aspects of the city that are in some way connected to such disruptions. While Madras Day events are low key and the usual pomp and frenetic activity that Chennaiites see during this week in August are missing, people have taken the online route, as with most things these past couple of years. For Chennai is still a city that its residents love, and harking back to its connect with good ol’ Madras is an annual ritual that has come to stay

It’s not hard to trace Madras’ enduring connection with animals and their well-being. Be it enthralled visitors gazing at mugger crocodiles dozing in the sun or pet parents lining up at one of the country’s oldest veterinary institutes, the welfare of furry, scaly and winged creatures has always been part of the city’s ethos, and this has continued during the pandemic. In 1906, the Madras Pinjrapole was established to house aged and infirm cows. Started in memory of Chathur Bookasoss Kushaldoss, a Gujarati merchant, who donated 12 acres of land in Otteri, the shelter now houses 1,800 cows, says secretary of the Pinjrapole, Kantilal D. Shah. The aim was to take care of the cows till they died naturally. “About 150 of the cows produce milk, which is given to those who help the organisation with donations,” he says.