When Mahatma Gandhi toured Andhra Pradesh to raise cyclone relief fund

HYDERABAD: It was October 25, 1936. A severe cyclonic storm had hit the coast in Krishna-Guntur districts trigging a storm surge that came six km landwards leaving behind a trail of destruction.


Incidentally, the year also saw three more cyclones earlier. People had suffered heavy losses and there was damage to property everywhere.

Mahatma Gandhi decided to collect donations for cyclone relief. He held a road show in Guntur and Krishna districts on January 23, 1937 and the donations he received was spent on relief and rehabilitation of the affected. Gandhi’s visit to cyclone and flood hit areas provided great relief to the victims. He got down train at Nidabrolu (Ponnur) in Guntur district and travelled by road for about 160 km. Later, he addressed a public meeting in Vijayawada the next day on January 24, 1937. As part of the cyclone relief fund, he also visited places that are now in Prakasam district – Chirala and Vetapalem and Paruchur.

At Chilakaluripet in Guntur district, Gandhi received a tumultuous welcome and people there presented Rs 890 towards relief fund, a big sum those days.

According to veteran journalist Turlapati Kutumba Rao, who had interacted with Gandhi in Vijayawada on January 21, 1946, the public meeting in Vijayawada turned into a sea of humanity. Freedom fighter Ayyadevara Kaleshwara Rao had translated Gandhi’s address into Telugu. He told TOI that Gandhi had visited Vijayawada six times – each time with a vision, mission and message. The first visit was on March 31, 1919 against the legislation, The Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act, 1919, popularly known as Rowlatt Act. He addressed a public meeting at Rammohan Roy library. This was followed by the AICC session in Vijayawada on March 31 and April 1, 1921. It was for the first time that national leaders had converged on Andhra soil. Earlier on August 23, 1920 Gandhi visited the city. Gandhi’s other visits to Vijayawada were on April 10, 1929 (khadi movement), January 21, 1946 (Hindi Prachar Sabha).

The places associated with Gandhi’s visit to Vijayawada now lie in a state of neglect. While Gymkhana Grounds is nobody’s baby, Rammohan library is in dilapidation.