Besant Nagar
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Besant Nagar is an upscale, exclusive residential neighbourhood in South
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It is located along the coast of
Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line betwee ...
. The neighbourhood is inhabited by highly affluent population and is dotted with many upmarket restaurants, cafes and boutiques. The main attraction is
Elliot's Beach Edward Elliot's Beach, simply called as Elliot's Beach and popularly known as Besant Nagar Beach or the Bessie, is a natural urban beach located in the Besant Nagar neighbourhood of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is located next to the southern ...
, named after Edward Elliot, the former Governor of Madras. It forms the end-point of the Marina Beach shore. This has become an attractive spot for youngsters and elders alike with the pleasant sceneries and the ambiance it provides.


History

Kalakshetra Academy, the dance school started in 1936 by Rukmini Devi Arundale and her husband George Arundale and their associates at the
Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of previous Theosophists, especially the Greek and Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE ...
is also present in this locality. Besant Nagar was developed by
Tamil Nadu Housing Board Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) ( ta, தமிழ்நாடு வீட்டு வசதி வாரியம்) is a government organisation in Tamil Nadu, India. History Formed in 1947 as a small organisation in the name of "City Impr ...
(TNHB) in the early 1970s and up to the early 1980s. It was developed in an area of about 4 sq km encompassing the surroundings of Indra Nagar and Shastri Nagar. TNHB developed residential plots, apartments, commercial complexes, wide roads, school zones, bus terminus and large parks. The Central Government Staff Quarters, popularly known as C.P.W.D. quarters, is located here and contributed to the development of the locality. Besant Nagar is also the residence of (former) World Chess Champion
Viswanathan Anand Viswanathan "Vishy" Anand (born 11 December 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster and a former five-time World Chess Champion. He became the first grandmaster from India in 1988, and is one of the few players to have surpassed an Elo rating o ...
.


Besant Nagar Today


Places of worship

The Arulmigu Mahalakshmi Temple is located on the shores of Besant Nagar Beach. This is the only temple dedicated to Sri Mahalaksahmi, the Consort of Sriman Narayanan (Sri Mahavishnu), on the east coast in Tamil Nadu. Other notable places of worship include the Varasiddhi Vinayaka temple (inaugurated in 1977),
Ashtalakshmi Kovil The Ashtalakshmi Kovil is a Hindu temple, which lies on the shorelines near the Elliot's beach, in Chennai, India. The temple is dedicated to the goddess Lakshmi, and her eight primary forms – the Ashtalakshmi – the giver of all eight fo ...
(1976), Arupadai Murugan Kovil (1986), Ratnagirishwarar Kovil (1968) and the
Velankanni Church Velankanni (''Vēḷāṅkaṇṇi''), is a Special Grade Panchayat Town in Nagapattinam district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It lies on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, 350 km south of Chennai (Madras), 12 km south of ...
.


Educational institutions

The Besant Theosophical High School,
The School KFI The School KFI is situated in Chennai was started in the year 1973. It is run by the Krishnamurti Foundation India (KFI) based on the views on education and philosophy of J. Krishnamurti. The school has about 350 students and 35 teachers. Un ...
, St. John's English School & Junior College, Olcott Memorial Schoola and Arignar Anna Government High School are some of the other schools in Besant Nagar. The Besant Theosophical High School founded in 1934, is the oldest unit of the
Kalakshetra Foundation Kalakshetra Foundation, formerly simply Kalakshetra, is an arts and cultural academy dedicated to the preservation of traditional values in Indian art and crafts, especially in the field of Bharatanatyam dance and Gandharvaveda music. Based in ...
. It's affiliated with the State Board syllabus and offers education primarily in Tamil, with the option of English. Olcott Memorial High School (OMHS) is named after its founder Colonel
Henry Steel Olcott Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (2 August 1832 – 17 February 1907) was an American military officer, journalist, lawyer, Freemason and the co-founder and first president of the Theosophical Society. Olcott was the first well-known American of Euro ...
who founded the school in 1894. The Panchama Free School as it was then called, it was founded to provide schooling access to the children of the fifth caste who were denied access to the regular schools. The School, KFI has been functioning on leased premises of The Theosophical Society since 1979. The school will shift to a new location and continue its valuable educational work with the help and support of parents, alumni and well-wishers of the school. The new residential Krishnamurti school, Pathashaala, near Chennai commenced in August, 2010. Arignar Anna Govt Higher Secondary School is an English medium school. The school was founded in the year 1964 and it is affiliated with the State board. The school is a Co-educational school and it has classes from 6 to 12. The School does not have a pre-primary section. St. John's English School & Junior College also shortly known as St. John's Besant Nagar is a CBSE affiliated higher secondary school in Besant Nagar, Chennai. The school was established in 1981. It caters to the age group 2 years to 18 years - from classes Pre-KG to XII, with a total strength of 2,500 students.


Other institutions

The Rajaji Bhavan building housing many Central Government offices greets you as you enter Besant Nagar. It also houses a Railway Booking counter for the convenience of the residents of the locality as well as for the other areas around Besant nagar. Besant Nagar is an excellent example of organized government town planning by
Tamil Nadu Housing Board Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) ( ta, தமிழ்நாடு வீட்டு வசதி வாரியம்) is a government organisation in Tamil Nadu, India. History Formed in 1947 as a small organisation in the name of "City Impr ...
(TNHB). Originally a quiet residential area, the popularity of the nearby
Elliot's beach Edward Elliot's Beach, simply called as Elliot's Beach and popularly known as Besant Nagar Beach or the Bessie, is a natural urban beach located in the Besant Nagar neighbourhood of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is located next to the southern ...
has led to a steady increase in traffic and commercial activities. The Reserve Bank of India staff quarters, The CPWD Quarters housing the officials of various Central Government departments, The Customs Colony, The Government Officials Cooperative Housing Society residences, and the TNHB housing buildings all laid out in neat fashion, along with modern individual residential buildings all add charm and order to the locality. The beach and the 6th avenue are the venue for many events like the Vintage Car Rally, Half Marathons, the Army Band, Musical and Promotional events, Food Carnivals and many more. In October 2015, ''The Hindu'' publication introduced the concept of a Car Free Sunday along the beach promenade in order to connect with the local community. This event is inspired by
Ciclovía Ciclovía (, ), also ''ciclovia'' or ''cyclovia'', is a Spanish term that means "cycleway", either a permanent bike path or the temporary closing of certain streets to automobiles for cyclists and pedestrians, a practice sometimes called open s ...
in Bogota, Colombia. In the past year, the Car Free Sunday has become a meeting place for families to walk along the beach, do joint sessions of Zumba, yoga, engage in sport, sing, have a fitness tryout while the kids can cycle, play local, traditional games right on the street, without the hassle and noise of traffic and vehicles. To the North East is the Fishermen village of Urur Kuppam and to the South East is a Fishermen hamlet near the Velankanni Church. This area is bound fully on the east by the Bay of Bengal (Elliots Beach), on the South by the Kalakshetra Campus, on the North by the Theosophical Society and its sprawling forested green campus ( with the Adyar Estuaries still further to its North) that except through the Besant Avenue in the North-West, the approach from Shastri nagar in the west as two points, there is no chance of traffic congestion.


Bus depot

The Besant Nagar bus terminal is used by 85 different buses making 500 trips every day. Around 4,000 people use the terminal every day. In October 2012, the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) decided to convert the Besant Nagar bus terminal into a depot. The depot will be 70 percent larger than the terminal. The depot is being built at a cost of 5 million and is expected to be completed in less than a year.


References


External links


Varasiddhi Vinayaka Temple
{{Chennai Topics Coastal neighbourhoods of Chennai Monuments and memorials to Annie Besant