Little known stretch of sand in city may be first without structure to get status

Tilak Ghat on Marina beach is one of the two satyagragha sites in the state recommended for Unesco's world heritage status. Vedaranyam, the site for the salt satyagaraha led by C Rajagopalachari, is the other site from the state. There are 22 such sites recommended by the culture ministry for the tag.
The spot opposite Presidency College on the Marina has nothing to distinguish it from the rest of the sands but plaques explain the significance of the spot.If it gets heritage status, Tilak Ghat will be among the few to have got the tag without having any building or structure.
Tilak Ghat became famous in 1908 after freedom fighter Subramania Siva called for freedom and announced at a public meeting that the place would henceforth be known as Tilak Ghat in memory of Bal Gangadhar Tilak. Subramania Bharati, who was at the meeting, seconded the proposal. Mahatma Gandhi announced the non-cooperation movement in the south at Tilak Ghat in 1919, held many public meetings here, and it was the venue for the salt satyagraha in 1930.
Later, however, the spot was better known as Seerani Arangam and the Dravid ian parties built a concrete stage. Many election rallies and public meetings were held here during the 1980s and 1990s.
“We wanted a monument or a pillar to signify the importance of the spot. But the government refused permission citing the Marina beautification programme,“ said senior advocate R Gandhi, who argued a case in the Madras high court seeking that the government restore the name Tilak Ghat. “We need something at the spot to mark the historic spot,“ said Gandhi.
The other spot recommended for heritage tag is the route from Trichy to Vedaranyam, which Rajaji and a group of satyagrahis traversed in 1930 in defiance of the salt tax. Rajaji began the march from Trichy on April 13 and reached Vedaranyam on April 28.
Vellore fort also figures on the list of recommendations as it was the flashpoint for Vaikom satyagraha aimed at securing the rights for the oppressed classes.