3 months ago
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On the work roadworthy on Marina beach, wherever Kamarajar Salai’s postulation fades into the bushed of rolling waves, a tiny subdivision room and an biology NGO person opened an antithetic transmission of connection with the sea.
In concern with the Environmentalist Foundation of India (EFI), the Directorate of Public Libraries (DPL) has acceptable up an ‘Ocean Station’ — portion speechmaking country — portion outreach centre — for marine awareness. At its heart, stands a humble station box, bearing an invitation that feels astir extremist successful the integer age: “Kadalukku Oru Kaditham” (A Letter to the Sea).
The thought is romanticist successful the aged consciousness of the word: believing that the oversea tin listen. But the intention, says EFI laminitis Arun Krishnamurthy, is deeper. “In a metropolis similar Chennai, erstwhile you basal connected the beach, it becomes serene, astir spiritual. You suffer yourself. People people speech to the ocean, effort to link with it. That water link is heavy wrong us. We are conscionable giving an accidental for radical to explicit that,” helium says. For the organisers, the station container is besides a originative engagement tool.
It is simply a mode of engaging with radical successful a precise originative mode due to the fact that they besides cognize that the oversea does not respond, says B. Chandramohan, Secretary of the School Education Department. “So what is fundamentally being done is getting radical to communicate. If they were to accidental thing to the oversea what would they say. In a way, it is besides an effort astatine making radical link with nature,” Mr. Chandramohan explains.
In 8 months, lone 4 letters person been posted. Yet each missive is seen arsenic a quiescent testament to radical opening up—often anonymously—in a nationalist space. The Ocean Station itself is the effect of a collaborative effort: EFI approached the District Library Officer, the authorities reconstructed the aged building, and EFI mobilised resources to capable the field with worldly connected marine life, water wealthiness and conservation. Today, the room has go a hub for EFI’s ocean-awareness activities.
V. Thennavan, who stumbled upon the room during a caller sojourn to the Marina, recalls visiting a tiny aquarium successful the country arsenic a child. “This is simply a bully idea, particularly erstwhile penning is declining. The room not lone makes radical read; this station container encourages them to write. Penning thoughts and feelings helps radical immensely. I person personally benefited from penning a diary,” helium says.
Behind the humble room building, the Bay of Bengal stretches endlessly—eternal, unreadable, and patient. And determination betwixt the waves and the wind, the oversea waits, quietly, for the adjacent letter.
