MY DIARY DATED 4-3-04 (A VISIT TO BRINDAVAN GARDENS)
My wife and daughters got up much against their will by 5am and got ready by 7am. We proceeded to the restaurant section below and had light breakfast (idli ,dosa and coffee). We walked to the main bus stand which was very near and found several buses of Krishnarajasagar-Brindavan route. Many were fast filling with passengers . A large part of them appeared to be people going to the villages and towns on the route.
The bus station area was tidy and imposing with very straight and wide streets . Right before us on opposite side of the road to right and left there were line of imposing long buildings two or three storeyed high painted in white and bright yellow . They were old heritage type buildings constructed in old style with domes at top with long narrow front gardens before all the buildings . All the gardens were of similar appearance.
A bus was ready to leave for Krishnarajasagar and we entered it. The bus sped through the straight wide streets. Mysore is famed as one of the most beautiful and one of the cleanest royal cities in India. The journey would be for about 45 minutes we were told. The road was lined with many similar long old style buildings. We saw big college buildings and hospitals all in yellow and white colours.They were so majestic and beautiful and the sorroundings were neat and tidy.
The area was very tidy and possessed old world charm . There were similar long rectangular shaped lawns before all the long buildings. The road we were travelling was perfectly straight as far as eye could see and was also very wide. We can understand why Mysore city is called city of gardens . At several main junctions there were life size marble statues of the previous Maharajas on high pedestals and under high decorated domes on long pillars. Our bus passed through two or three such junctions and crossed to the correct road towards Krishnarajasagar dam. The bus sped at great speed in the morning through empty streets . The roads everywhere were wide and straight and also had huge shade giving avenue trees. We saw on some roads old mansions with vast front gardens in walled compounds . The buildings probably belonged to rich families of old Mysore.
There were old western type gabled buildings . The red Mangalore tiled bungalows had old world charm with gardens and large shade giving trees .We passed some military areas . Some banks and offices were situated in high domed buildings painted in yellow and white colours. At many places on the way there were coconut groves. The city with its crisp dust free climate and cool weather appeared so clean. I well remember that even in the period when we were trained thirty years before in the Postal Training College --situated in a royal palace with vast gardens purchased by the Postal Department--- the area looked like a scene from a Hollywood film.
*****
Soon we left the city outskirts and entered the rural areas and rural scenery . Here we saw one or two gigantic factory areas. One of them was Bharath Earth Movers –an endless complex of huge factory buildings in a huge campus with high walls and with sentries at the high gates. We sped through the rural scenery in about 30 minutes and at last came to the bus stage at Brindavan gardens. The famed Brindavan gardens area is 20 kilometres distant from Mysore bus stand. Still a heavy fog hung all around making everything invisible. I feared that the foggy weather would spoil our visit. I felt whether we made a mistake by starting too early. But the garden is so vast that starting early also may be correct and our decision may be correct. All shops were still closed. Our camera required electric cells. We were worried. We did not also bring anything to eat thinking that the hotels and restaurents woulbe open.
The high Krishnarajasagar dam built with cement and stones was visible in the distance and we soon neared the gateway. The barrage was very high and very long perhaps two kilometres long. Its size and height were awe inspiring . it was planned and constructed across river Kaveri under supervision of the world famous engineer, stateman and former prime minister of Mysuru, Sir Mokshagundam Visweswariah. He it was who planned the big project and got it built by1931.
Sir Visweswariah offered his expert advice to many provincial governments in India and also to some governments abroad and patented some technologies in dam construction and flood control. Another great administrator of Mysore state sir mirza ismail got the beautiful Brindavan gardens built. The garden was completed by 1932. Dr Visweswariah also established great educational institutions and big industries and initiated large scale urban planning for Mysore city and also created economic plans for entire Karnataka state. He was awarded the title of Bharath Ratna by Government of India . His birthday is celebrated as Engineer’s Day. Sir Mirza Ismail, a famous Dewan of Mysore and friend of Maharaja Krishnaraja Wodeyar , planned the construction of the vast garden complex.
Comments
Post a Comment