Mahatma Gandhi’s First Visit to Madras (1896)
▪ Mahatma Gandhi first visited Madras in October 1896 and addressed a gathering at
Pachaiyappa’s Hall.
▪ He spoke about the hardships faced by Indians in South Africa, many of whom were from
Madras, highlighting how most were indentured labourers suffering severe ill-treatment and
denied legal protection.
G.D. Naidu – The ‘Edison of India’
▪ G.D. Naidu, known as the ‘Edison of India’, was a pioneering inventor.
▪ During the Second World War, he manufactured mica capacitors and carbon resistors in
Coimbatore.
▪ Along with ‘Textool’ Balasundaram, he built electric motors and invented vote recording
machines, orange juice extractors, and coin-operated phonographs.
Elayaperumal Panel
▪ L. Elayaperumal, a three-time MP and one-time MLA of the Congress, led a committee on
untouchability and Scheduled Castes development.
▪ The committee submitted its recommendations in 1969.
▪ The report helped abolish hereditary priesthood and allowed qualified individuals from all
castes to serve as priests.
Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CECRI)
▪ The Central Electrochemical Research Institute (CECRI) was established at Karaikudi in
1948, a year after India’s Independence.
▪ It was set up under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
▪ CECRI contributes to energy storage innovations and sustainable electrochemical
technologies.
Ryotwari land revenue administration
▪ Thomas Munro, the Governor of Madras in the early 19th Century, and Captain Alexander
Read introduced the Ryotwari system of land revenue administration in Madras in 1820.
▪ Later, it was extended to Bombay.
▪ It was an alternative to the Zamindari system with an aim to eliminate intermediaries in
land revenue administration.
