Cox Town, Bangalore

Last updated

Cox Town, Bangalore
Sarvagnanagara
Neighborhood
Bangalore street Map.png
Red pog.svg
Cox Town, Bangalore
Coordinates: 12°59′39″N77°37′27″E / 12.9940515°N 77.6242794°E / 12.9940515; 77.6242794
CountryIndia
StateKarnataka
DistrictBBMP (North)
MetroBangalore
Government
  Body BBMP
Languages
  OfficialKannada
Time zone UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
560005
Lok Sabha ConstituencyBangalore Central
Vidhan Sabha ConstituencySarvagnanagar
Original Planning AgencyBangalore Civil & Military Station Municipal Commission

Cox Town, Bengaluru is a neighborhood of the Bangalore Cantonment, [1] located in the central part of the city and named after the last Collector and District Magistrate of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station, Alexander Ranken Cox (A R Cox), Indian Civil Services. [2] [3] It is one of the suburbs which came out of the plan to de-congest thickly populated areas of the Bangalore Cantonment after the bubonic plague. Agricultural fields were converted for this purpose, and town was planned according to modern hygienic standards, with drainage and conservancy conveniences. [2] Sarvagnanagara is bound by the Bangalore-Madras Railway line on the North and East, Wheeler Road in the East and the Ulsoor Polo Ground in the South. [2] It consists of posh localities like Heerachand Layout and other localities like Sindhi Colony, Jeevanahalli, Doddigunta, and roads such as Assaye Road, Charles Campbell Road, Wheeler Road, etc. and is adjoining the suburbs of Pulakeshi Nagara, Sri Krishnaraja Wadiyar Nagara and Cooke Town, with easy access to the Bengaluru East Railway Station, Halasuru, Lingarajapura, Shivajinagara. Sarvagnanagara is a well planned, posh and preferred locality in the Bangalore Cantonment, created during the British Raj. [4] The residents of Sarvagnanagara follow a liberal 'live a let live' attitude, with suburb still retaining much of its green cover, without excessive commercialisation. [5] In 1988, the BBMP renamed Cox Town as Sarvagnanagara, after a 16th-century saint poet. [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

Contents

Alexander Ranken Cox

Alexander Ranken Cox, ICS, was a civil servant of the British Madras Presidency, [11] who served as the Collector of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station [2] between 1912 and November 1917. [3] Cox, was educated at Clifton and Emmanuel College, Cambridge, passing the ICS in 1901 and arrived in India on 31 December 1902. [12] During his tenure at the C&M Station Bangalore, he was successful in continuing the reforms started by the previous collector the C&M Station F J Richards, ICS. The C&M Station municipality decided to name the new extension of the Bangalore Cantonment after A R Cox. [13] A R Cox also served as the District Collector of the Tirunelveli District between 21 October 1918 to 7 November 1920, [14] the District Collector of the Niligris between 27 October 1928 to 9 March 1931, [15] Collector of Madras around 1931, [16] and Member of the Board of Revenue, Madras Presidency in 1931. [17]

Military Heritage

ITC Infotech Campus at Sarvagnanagara, Bangalore ITC-COX-TOWN-BLR-1.png
ITC Infotech Campus at Sarvagnanagara, Bangalore
Inside the ITC Infotech Campus ITC-COX-TOWN-BLR-2.jpg
Inside the ITC Infotech Campus

Many roads in Sarvagnanagara are named after battles in which the Madras Sappers took part in. Assaye Road is named after the Battle of Assaye, Meanee Avenue is named after the Battle of Meeanee and the Malakand Lines Training Grounds is named after the Siege of Malakand - All battles in which the Madras Sappers took an active part. [8] [18]

Sarvagnanagara Market

The old British era Sarvagnanagara Market was demolished by the BBMP in 1999 after evicting the traders, replacing it with an office block. The promised new Sarvagnanagara Market has not come through, and the traders are forced to ply their trade on the footpath and streets, endangering pedestrians and worsening traffic jams. [4] [19] [20] [21] [22]

People and Culture

Like in other suburbs of the Bangalore Cantonment, Sarvagnanagara has a large Tamil population. They trace their ancestry to the large number of Tamil soldiers, suppliers and workers who were brought into the Bangalore Civil and Military Station, by the British Army, after the fall of Tippu Sultan. Sarvagnanagara along with other suburbs of the Bangalore Cantonment was directly under the administration of the British Madras Presidency till 1949, when it was handed over to the Mysore State. [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] The large Tamil population co-exist peacefully with Anglo-Indians and other communities, making Sarvagnanagara a melting pot of cultures. [10]

Sindhi Colony

Sindhi Colony is a quite residential area of Sarvagnanagara, located between Assaye Road and Wheeler Road, with majority Sindhi residents. The Sindhis trace their ancestry from the Sindhi Hindu Refugees who fled the newly formed Pakistan after the Partition of British India, in the face of Hindu-Muslim riots in Sindh. The Colony has 60 houses, a Sindhi Temple, Community Hall and Sindhi Society. Most of the original inhabitants crossed into India through Rajasthan, going towards Bombay and finally settling down in Bangalore Sindhi Colony. The Mysore State Government allocated the land for the Sindhi migrants, offering land at subsidised prices. The Sindhi Cooperative Housing Society was established to help community members buy land and build houses. Most of the Sindhis are into business and run well known businesses such as Kids Kemp, Bhagatram Sweets and Favourite Shop. [29] [30]

British Period Sarvagnanagara

Sarvagnanagara, like the rest of the Bangalore Cantonment had a distinct British influence on its culture. It was common sight to see families taking out pedigree dogs out for walks in the mornings. Western attire was also common. English vegetables, meat, pastry, Indian crispies were readily available, with coffee and dosa costing only one quarter anna. Butlers were dressed in their best, and orthodox people wore a coat and tie along with their Indian attire. [31]

One of the residents of British Sarvagnanagara was Lydia Muthulakshmi, a young Tamil / Telugu widow of the Naidu caste, who broke shackles of caste regulations by remarrying (in those days, widows were not allowed to remarry, they were forced to stay indoors in Zenanas and not allowed to go outside their homes). At that time caste Hindus fought legal battles by giving police complaints, representations to the government and legal battles in Bangalore, Madras and Trichy, in order to stop Muthulaksmi. She stood firmly against all these efforts and married Rev. Paramanandam of the Wesley Tamil Church. The incident played during 1888–98, also led to caste Hindus withdrawing their children from Christian schools for a brief period. Rev. Picken consulted the Wesleyan Mission Chairman Rev. Josiah Hudson (after whom the Hudson Memorial Church is named after), and tried to delay baptism as long as possible, keeping in view the repercussions on the working of the Mission in Bangalore. The story of Muthulakshmi is told in the book 'From an Indian Zenana: The Story of Lydia Muthulakshmi' by Rev WH Jackson Picken. The book also has an old photograph of the Wesley Tamil Church Haines Road and Narayan Pillai Street, dated 1892. [31] [32] [33]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ooty</span> Hill station city in Tamil Nadu, India

Ooty, abbreviated as Udagai) is a town and municipality in the Nilgiris district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located 86 km (53 mi) northwest of Coimbatore, and is the headquarters of Nilgiris district. Situated in the Nilgiri hills, it is known by the epithet "Queen of Hill Stations", and is a popular tourist destination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dharmapuri</span> City in Tamil Nadu, India

Dharmapuri is a city in the north western part of Tamil Nadu, India. It serves as the administrative headquarters of Dharmapuri district which is the first district created in Tamil Nadu after the independence of India by splitting it from then Salem district on 2 October 1965. The city is located 50 km from Krishnagiri, 69 km from Salem, 60 km from Tirupattur, 90 km from Hosur, 117 km from Thiruvannamalai, 126 km from Bangalore and Erode, 181 km from Tiruppur, 200 km from Coimbatore and Tiruchirappalli, 300 km from Madurai and the state capital Chennai. It is located between latitudes N 11 47’ and 12 33’ and longitudes E 77 02’ and 78 40’. It is one of the major leading cultivators and producers of mangoes in the state along with Krishnagiri, and is often referred as Mango Capital of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Bangalore</span> Account of past events in Bengaluru, India

Bangalore is the capital city of the state of Karnataka. Bangalore, as a city, was founded by Kempe Gowda I, who built a mud fort at the site in 1537. But the earliest evidence for the existence of a place called Bangalore dates back to c. 890.

The Bangalore Cantonment (1806–1881) was a military cantonment of the British Raj based in the Indian city of Bangalore. The cantonment covered an area of 13 square miles (34 km2), extending from the Residency on the west to Binnamangala on the east and from the Tanneries on Tannery Road in the north to AGRAM in the south. By area, it was the largest British military cantonment in South India. The British garrison stationed in the cantonment included three artillery batteries, and regiments of the cavalry, infantry, sappers, miners, mounted infantry, supply and transport corps and the Bangalore Rifle Volunteers. The Bangalore Cantonment was directly under the administration of the British Raj, while Bangalore City itself was under the jurisdiction of the Durbar of the Kingdom of Mysore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellington, Tamil Nadu</span> Town in Tamil Nadu, India

Wellington is a town in the Nilgiris District of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located at three kilometres to the north of Coonoor on the NH-181. The town includes a Wellington Bazaar, and the Wellington Cantonment. The Wellington Cantonment is home to The Madras Regimental Centre (MRC) and The Defence Services Staff College (DSSC). The Nilgiri passenger train passes through Wellington, which also has a railway station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangalore City railway station</span> Railway station in Bangalore, India

Bangalore City Railway Station, officially Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna Bengaluru Station, commonly known as KSR Bengaluru Station, Bengaluru City Railway Station or Majestic Railway station, is the main railway station serving the city of Bangalore, Karnataka, India. It is the busiest railway station in South Western Railway zone of Indian Railways, and is the only station classified under NSG1 category in the zone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bengaluru Pete</span> Neighbourhood in Bangalore Urban, Karnataka, India

Bengaluru Pete is the area of Bangalore city which was established by Kempegowda I in 1537 with roads laid out in the cardinal directions, and entrance gates at the end of each road. Kempegowda also termed the Pete he built as his "gandu bhoomi" or "Land of Heroes". Pete forms a well–defined body of markets which were associated with various trades and professions of the populace in the locality markets and given the names of trades pursued in such markets. The well known markets are the Tharagupete–market for grains, the Balepete – for Bangles and musical instruments, the Chikkapete and the Nagarthpete for textile trade, the Ballapurpete and the Ganigarapete market where oil is extracted by people of the Ganiga community, the Tigalarapete–flower market of gardeners, the Cubbonpete – textile manufacture by people of the Devanga community.

Karnataka is a state in the southern part of India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act. Karnataka is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, Goa to the north-west, Maharashtra to the north, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to the east, Tamil Nadu to the south-east, and Kerala to the south-west. The state covers an area of 74,122 sq mi (191,976 km2), or 5.83% of the total geographical area of India. It comprises 30 districts. Kannada is the official language of Karnataka and as per the 2011 census is the mother tongue of 66.5% of the population. Various ethnic groups with origins in other parts of India have unique customs and use languages at home other than Kannada, adding to the cultural diversity of the state. Significant linguistic minorities in the state in 2011 included speakers of Urdu (10.8%), Telugu (5.8%), Tamil (3.5%), Marathi (3.4%), Hindi (3.2%), Tulu (2.6%), Konkani (1.3%) and Malayalam (1.3%).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Austin (civil servant)</span>

Sir Thomas Austin, KCIE was a British civil servant of the Indian civil service and administrator who served as the Diwan of Travancore from 1932 to 1934.

The Karnataka Central Diocese is one of the twenty-two dioceses of the Church of South India covering the central part of Karnataka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karnataka Tamils</span>

The Karnataka Tamils are a social community of Tamil language speakers living in Bangalore, capital city of the Indian state of Karnataka and Mysore, Mandya, Kolar Gold Fields, Chamrajnagar, and other districts of old Mysore Kingdom. According to The Hindu newspaper, Tamil-speaking settlers migrated to Bangalore in four major waves, the first after the 10th century; the second during the Vijayanagara period; and the third, in the 18th century, after the need for government service required by British East India Company who built the train tracks in Bangalore. Lastly now most Tamilians move to Bangalore for work. However some may say both Kannadiga and Tamils were there from the very beginning. According to census 1991, people speaking Tamil as mother tongue in Bangalore formed about 21%. There are 2.1 million Tamils living in Karnataka as of 2011 Census report.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangalore Cantonment railway station</span> Railway station in Karnataka, India

Bengaluru Cantonment railway station, also known as Bangalore Cantonment railway station is one of the four important railway stations serving the city of Bangalore and it is located in the locality of Vasanth Nagar and adjoins Fraser Town, Benson Town and Shivajinagar. The Station started operations in 1864, with the launch of the Bangalore Cantonment – Jolarpettai train services by the Madras Railway. The train line was broad-gauge and 149 km long, connecting the Bangalore Cantonment with Vellore district. A total of 119 passenger trains start/end/pass through Bangalore Cantonment railway station. Total 499 stations are directly connected to Bangalore Cantonment railway station via these 269 passenger trains.

Murphy Town or Knoxpete, is a suburb located near Bangalore Cantonment, India. It is one of the oldest planned suburbs of the Cantonment, and was earlier known as Knoxpete, and was later changed to Hoysala Nagar. It is located North of Halasuru, with Murphy Road running along its periphery, and is also bounded by Old Madras Road and Kensington Road, with part of Kensington Road overlooking Halasuru Lake Madras Sappers.

Fraser Town, Bengaluru or Mootocherry, is a locality of Bangalore Cantonment, located in the central part of the city spread over 4 km2. It was established in 1906 and is named after Stuart Mitford Fraser (1864–1963), who was the tutor and guardian of Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV, Maharaja of Mysore. Fraser Town was established to de-congest the growing Bangalore Civil and Military Station. The foundation of Fraser Town was laid in August 1910 by Mrs. F J Richards, with a commemorative plaque on the corner of Coles Road and Mosque Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tannery Road</span> Road in Karnataka, India

Tannery Road is located in the North East of Bangalore Cantonment, India. It is a 4 km long narrow road with around 700 shops, named after the tanneries of the British India period located at the end of the Road. Tannery Road was officially renamed as Dr B S Ambedkar Road many years back, but it still is referred to by its old name. Tannery Road touches Fraser Town, Richards Town, Giddappa Block, Periyar Nagar and Pillanna Garden. The Tannery Road area is highly populated with a high density. The suburb presents a picture which is a shocking contrast to the hi-tech image of Bangalore. As elections has not brought about any changes, the residents express disillusionment with politicians and politics. Pot-holes and broken pavements are a common feature of Tannery Road, in addition to heavy traffic, water problems, garbage, etc. There is scant respect for traffic rules, and vehicles of all types zoom past in all directions. Residents have to dodge puddles of dirty water and garbage, to move around.

Austin Town, Bengaluru is a locality of the Bangalore Cantonment, named after a British Collector and Municipal President of the Civil and Military Station, Sir. James Austin. Located in the central part of Bangalore, the suburb is known for having produced some of India's best football players, with the game being very popular. In the age of IPL, the dream of the children of Ferdinand Kittel Nagara is to be playing for the best football clubs one day. In 1998, the BBMP renamed Austin Town as Ferdinand Kittel Nagar, after an 18th-century linguist and Protestant German missionary of the Basel Mission, Rev. Ferdinand Kittel.

There are nearly a thousand inscriptions in Tamil in the Southern Karnataka districts of Bangalore, Mysore, Kolar and Mandya in India. Nearly one third of these inscriptions are found in the Kolar District. Of all the inscriptions collected and published in the Epigraphia Carnatica Vol X for Kolar district, a fourth are in Tamil. The Tamil inscriptions start to appear around 1000 AD, after the conquest of the region by the Chola dynasty king Rajaraja I. Even after the Cholas left the area, the Hoysala and later the Vijaynagar kingdoms continued to use Tamil in the inscriptions.

Goodwill's Girls School is located at Promenade Road, Fraser Town, Bangalore Cantonment. Formerly known as the Wesleyan Tamil School, the school was renamed after Rev. Fred Goodwill, a British Missionary and Tamil scholar, who served as the manager of the school, in his capacity as superintendent of the Wesleyan Tamil Mission, Bangalore and Kolar Gold Fields.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangalore East railway station</span> Railway station in Karnataka India

Bengaluru East railway station, also known as Bangalore East railway station, is an old British-era railway station surrounded by Pottery Road, Kumaraswamy Naidu Road, Murgesha Mudaliar Road and Kenchappa Road. It is a small quaint station located in Fraser Town, Bangalore Cantonment. This station is very convenient for residents traveling towards or returning from Kolar Gold Fields or Madras. Express and Mail trains did not stop here until the 1920s. The station is now renovated with a larger platform. Adjacent to the railway station is the Bangalore East Football Grounds, which nowadays is more used for playing cricket. Well-known cartoonist Paul Fernandes remembers as a young boy befriending train drivers at this station and getting grease for his bicycle.

Cooke Town is a neighbourhood in Bangalore Cantonment, in Bangalore Central, India. Built as a suburb before Indian Independence, it is one of Bangalore's oldest neighbourhoods, established when the Bangalore Civil and Military Station was governed by the Madras Government. Cooke Town is named after G H Cooke, President of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station Municipality between 1928 and 1934, with the Mayo Hall being constructed during his tenure. The suburb, along with other suburbs of the Bangalore Cantonment such as Pulakeshi Nagara, Sarvagnanagara, Sir Mirza Ismail Nagara, and Langford Town, has seen dynamic changes over last few years with large British Raj era bungalows being demolished to build luxury apartments. These developments have resulted in large-scale tree-felling. However, Cooke Town still manages to retain some of its colonial charm, and is called the nicest place in the Cantonment by Bangalore historian Peter Colaco. Cooke Town is a posh neighbourhood with plenty of greenery, parks, educational institutions, hospitals and is at close proximity to the Bangalore East Railway Station in the Bangalore CBD. According to Colliers International, Cooke Town is one of Bangalore's most costliest neighbourhoods, with the cost of property being in the range to INR 80000-85000 per sq.ft, just slightly lesser than the Bangalore CBD.

References

  1. Johnson, Ronnie. "Bangalore around the late 1920s ..." Children of Bangalore. Archived from the original on 5 January 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Pani, Narendar; Radhakrishna, Sindhu; Bhat, Kishor G (1 August 2008). Bengaluru, Bangalore, Bengaluru: Imaginations and Their Times. SAGE Publications India. p. 180. ISBN   9788132105435 . Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  3. 1 2 Harshitha, Samyuktha (6 August 2013). "The forgotten leaders of Bangalore". Suttha Muttha. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  4. 1 2 R, Aarthi (7 September 2010). "Cox Town - a posh ward once, now a problem area". The Times of India. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  5. Singla, Tania (6 July 2013). "Cox Town's managed to retain its community fabric: Biju Cherayath". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  6. Prashanth, G N (14 April 2011). "It's all in the new name". The Times of India. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  7. Narasimhan, Sakuntala. "Road names change, roads don't". Citizen Matters. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  8. 1 2 "What's in a name? Perhaps, the past". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. 21 September 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  9. "Sights, sounds and smells from Bangalore". Bangalore Buzz. 15 September 2005. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  10. 1 2 Natarajan, Suja (29 May 2015). "Roads with British gentlemen names". No. Bangalore. Deccan Herald. Deccan Herald. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  11. Ayyar, K N Krishnaswami (1933). Cox, Alexander Ranken (ed.). Statistical Appendix And Supplement To The Revised District Manual (1898) For Coimbatore District . Volume 2. Madras, British India: Government Press. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  12. Office of The Secretary of State for India in Council (1905). The India List and India Office List for 1905. Pall Mall, London: Harrison and Sons. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  13. Srinivas, S (5 May 2013). "Bangalore Cantonment-Its Origin, Growth and Retrocession with Bangalore Town" . Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  14. "Tirunelveli District: Roll of Honour". Tirunelveli District. District Administration, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  15. "District Administration: Collectors of the Nilgiris District". District of the Nilgiris. District Administration The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India. 25 February 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  16. Gandhi, Rajmohan (1997). Rajaji: A Life. New Delhi: Penguin Books India. p. 131. ISBN   9780140269673 . Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  17. Stoddart, Brian (2011). A People's Collector in the British Raj: Arthur Galletti. New Delhi: Readworthy Publication (P) Ltd. pp. 217–218. ISBN   9789350180419 . Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  18. bglr_usha (12 April 2006). "Road names – Trivia". Blogs, Entertainment, Living. Bangalore MetBlogs. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
  19. "14 years on, Cox Town market still on footpath". The Times of India. No. Bangalore. 1 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  20. Rodricks, Allan Moses (14 April 2014). "I am… M. Jayachandran: Fruit vendor, Cox Town". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  21. Niranjankumar, Nivedita (5 April 2013). "Evicted from Cox Town market, vendors have nowhere to go". No. Bangalore. Decccan Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  22. "Citizens market plan, Cox Town buys it". No. Bangalore. Deccan Herald. 19 July 2004. Archived from the original on 6 January 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  23. Srivatsa, Sharath S (31 October 2007). "Bangalore calling: it all goes way back…". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  24. Steve, Arul (17 April 2013). "Specialization On Social And Cultural Indifference Among Kgf Tamil Migrants". Word Press. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  25. Rizvi, Aliyeh (18 July 2013). "Greet.Meat.Eat". A Turquoise Cloud. Word Press. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  26. Dasharathi, Poornima (23 July 2008). "Cantonment: colonial past, multicultural present". Citizen Matters. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  27. Aam AdMo (7 July 2012). "Right to be a Minority institution (and make majority profits)". Word Press. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  28. Harshitha, Samyuktha (1 June 2013). "The Mootocherry of Bangalore". Suttha Muttha. Blogspot.com.au. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
  29. Rizvi, Aliyeh (6 July 2013). "Discovering the heart of Sindh in Cox Town". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  30. Nathan, Archana (18 July 2012). "Inside every home is a small piece of history". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  31. 1 2 Balraj, James E (2003). A Salesman's Journey to Mission. Delhi: Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (ISPCK). p. 10,11. ISBN   81-7214-781-3 . Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  32. Picken, W H Jackson (1892). From an Indian Zenana: The Story of Lydia Muttulakshmi. London: Charles H. Kelly.
  33. Findlay, George Gillanders (1921). The history of the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society. London: Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society. pp.  57–58. Retrieved 30 March 2016.