Visit to Pulicat

I wanted to take my new Bajaj Avenger bike for a spin and decided to hit Pulicat (Pazhaverkadu in Tamil), a small fishing hamlet 50 kilometres from Chennai. Pulicat is about 25 kms from my native village on Minjur in north Chennai. It used to one of the greatest ports of trade five centuries ago with traders from all over settling here to set up a thriving textile industry. Then the Dutch come along and are helped by the local Muslim traders to set up a trading post. Dutch soon become the masters and build a fort at Pulicat, Masulipatnam, Karikal and Tranquebar. They also happen to be the ones who started the slave trade. With the weakening of the Dutch, the English rose to power after mighty wars and subsequent treaties, here and in Europe. This is history.

What remains now are a few crumbled remains of once glorious Dutch fort and cemetery. The town is now a small fishing hamlet with bustling seafood business. Off the map. This only serves to remind that nothing is permanent except change. A wealthy city of today can be nothing tomorrow. Conversely a God forsaken place can become the hub of wealth. Ok. My point is, tomorrow India can be a superpower.

Entrance to the Dutch cemetery. Note the skeletons guarding the entrance.





Inside the cemetery





The tombstones are embossed with details about the buried person, the year of death and more timestamps which I do not understand (It is written in Dutch). Most tombstones mention Palliacatta (Pulicat), Masulipatn (Masulipatnam), coromandel and Karikal. Some of the tombstones were large with a big and small stones probably for the man and his wife. The tombstones also have the coat of arms of the deceased.



After seeing the cemetery, I am amazed by the resolution of men and their obsession for glory and gold. The Europeans came to the East seeking their fortune - some got it and some perished in the process - in a remote corner of the world, forgotten in time.