Pick A Road Name of Your Choice? ‘SAC’ Road, ‘LHH Road’ or Now Renamed ‘MSR Shetty Road’!
- Pick A Road Name of Your Choice? Either ‘St Aloysius College Road, ‘Light House Hill Road’ or Now Renamed ‘Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty Road’! If the Vijaya Bank Retired Employees Association succeeded in getting the name changed to MSR Shetty Road, with dirty politics and government influence, how come they didn’t fight to retain their Chairman’s baby “Vijaya Bank’s, name which is now, ‘Bank of Baroda’, which is definitely not appropriate or matching to the just inaugurated Road bearing the name ‘Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty’, an ALUMNUS of St Aloysius Institution, Mangaluru, and who was the founder Chairman of Vijaya Bank for many years. Bah humbug! (Ref :https://Govt/MCC has ‘Humbugged’ St Aloysius Institutions in Renaming SAC Road to MSR Shetty Road)
Mangaluru: Finally, the dream of BJP and few other organizations have come TRUE, in Officially Renaming ‘St Aloysius College Raste/Road aka ‘Light House Hill Road’, aka ‘ Bavuta Gudde Road’, as ‘Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty Road’ paying respect and honour to a great banker and founder Chairman for many years, Late Mulky Sunder ram Shetty, on Wednesday, 23 September 2020 at 9 am. Banker M S R Shetty was associated with Vijaya Bank since 1946 and joined the board of directors of the bank as Chairman from 1962, became the Hon. Chairman from 1962 to 1969 resulting in taking Vijaya Bank to greater heights under his leadership. Due to his strategy and committed work, he remained as a full-time Chairman till 1978. Under the Chairmanship of Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty, Vijaya Bank steadily grew into a large All India Bank with nine smaller banks merging with it during 1963-1968. During the year 1965, the Bank registered its own logo.
BEFORE RENAMING THE ROAD……
AFTER RENAMING OF THE ROAD……
Hailing from Mulky, He did his high school education in St Aloysius, Mangaluru, and later began his career in insurance and banking by working for various companies initially namely Tropical, Warden, Crescent, Atlas & Triton. Later he joined Vijaya Bank in 1946 and became a part of its growth story. The bank was initially established by A. B. Shetty to aid large scale farming in the erstwhile South Canara district of Madras Presidency on 23 October 1931. The bank diversified and first became a Scheduled bank in 1958 and then grew due to merging of nine smaller banks into it between 1963-68. The credit for this merger as well as growth goes to Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty, who was then the Chief Executive of the bank. Shetty served as full-time chairman of the bank until 1978 and died in 1981.
A college was established in his memory in Shirva, Udupi district, and now the road lane stretch between Hampankatta Junction and Ambedkar Circle was formally renamed today after him. Effective today, 23 September 2020, the stretch of the road between Ambedkar Circle to Catholic Club via Light House Hill will henceforth be known as ‘Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty Road’- however, it is left to you either to call it Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty Road, or the Light House Hill Road, or St Aloysius College Road-No One can stop you. It’s your will and wish. All this Road renaming is nothing but political nataka, to gain mileage and popularity, during elections.
As a matter of fact, many citizens will still want to keep the old street names because they have become a part of their identity. For many of us, street names are no more than simple signposts. Many experts believe it does. If nothing else, most of us say or type our street name on a daily basis, as we give our physical address over the telephone or enter it into a website. For most of us, it is our cultural capital, our cultural history. And it is observed in the breach – you most notice it when a street name is changed. It’s the same as a church or a temple or Mosque being knocked down: you may never have walked into that church/temple/Mosque/bank/institution etc, you may not be religious, and yet, to most of us, it is an affront, an insult. Some locals are really anal about what streets are called, others don’t care that much. Street names have substantial symbolic and historical value, and conflicts over the naming – and renaming – of streets have become a regular part of regime changes.
And with the renaming of St Aloysius College Road/Light House Hill Road to Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty Road, there are more chances of people using the former road name, than the latter. And it’s a fact! Inauguration of the new Road name was held adjacent to Hampankatta branch of Syndicate Bank, where the ribbon was cut, thereby unveiling the new road name board, short puja by smashing coconuts and releasing of balloons was done by MCC Mayor Diwakar Pandeshwar, along Founder chairman of International Bunts Welfare Trust and Entrepreneur Sadananda Shetty; Entrepreneur Ajith Kumar Maladi-the president of district bunts Nadavara Mathr Sangha, BJP district president Sudharshan Moodbidri, BJP leaders and Corporators, among others. A short procession also marked the occasion, taken from Syndicate Bank, Hampankatta till Bank of Baroda (former Vijaya Bank) near Jyothi Circle.
Speaking on the occasion MCC Mayor Diwakar said, “This was my dream and many of you gathered here and many citizens of Mangaluru to have a road name honouring a great banker Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty, and today that dream has come true, renaming LHH Road after Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty, which was definitely needed in respect a person who has done so much for the society, to the bank, and also providing numerous jobs. We need to appreciate the support of our CM Yediyurappa, and the efforts put in by MP Nalin Kumar Kateel, MLA Vedavyas Kamath, and other strong BJP leaders in getting this project materialized. Citizens and businesses on this road should start using the new road name, as a respect to a great soul”.
Even though the MCC had approved a proposal to rename this stretch of the road after Late MSR Shetty, due to objections raised by the management of St Aloysius Institutions, Muslim Organizations, and others, the matter was taken to the Court, and the High Court considering the various objections had ordered status quo on May 24, 2017. But recently, once again the High Court, hearing the arguments from both parties, receiving petitions in favour and also against the proposal, withdrew the stay order imposed on this issue by ordering the state government to review its earlier decision and take necessary steps and do the needful in renaming the road name to MSR Shetty road.
Locally MCC Commissioner who was asked by the government to review the proposal and take into consideration petitions received from people who had appealed against the earlier decision, and after thoroughly reviewing the case came to the decision that the road can be renamed after Mulki Sunder Ram Shetty. The government had recently also taken a decision to withdraw the status quo order and permitted renaming of this LHH Road. But, how the streets get their new names is a fascinating story and one that highlights the tension between those in power and those they rule. In this regard, it could be the power or influential connection of a “Particular” community which has been trying to dominate Mangaluru City in many issues- and now wants to do a change. And that MCC is bowing down to them is not right- MCC which should be neutral in such decisions and should not go out of its way-thereby creating disharmony among communities. That environment is evolving all the time, but changing street names etc, as MCC is doing in this regard is unusual. Some locals are really anal about what streets are called, others don’t care that much. Street names have substantial symbolic and historical value, and conflicts over the naming – and renaming – of streets have become a regular part of regime changes.
Sources reveal that there is a Protocol for renaming roads- Every time a road or an area is renamed, questions are raised over the procedure and logic behind the process. Names can be mooted by anyone, either the public or the MCC council. The proposal for renaming is then published in newspapers and objections are invited. On receiving objections, they are discussed in the council for approval. In the absence of a council, the administrator takes a decision. The approved resolution is moved to the Urban Development Department, Government of Karnataka which renames places in the city, it is said. After this, an intimation about the same is sent to the Department of Posts. Was the protocol followed in this case?- is what the St Aloysius management is going to brief the media today, 23 September at 3:00 pm in the College auditorium.
I think unnecessary, with this move by the state government, MCC and MLA lead to a controversy just like we had two years ago when it was decided to rename ‘St Aloysius College Road’ to ‘Mulky Sunder Ram Shetty Road’, the man behind the Vijaya Bank Ltd growth. And now with yet another renamed road, could once again end up in controversy. Until then, let’s keep our fingers crossed, and hope for the best with no communal disharmony and clashes. After all, what do we get in renaming roads/circles/parks/etc- the old-names will still remain and people will still go by the old-names! Period.
