Some of my experiences with the Milkman, Flourmill Pentiah and my Aunty Shakuntala and observation on clock towers have been detailed in this Page 11.
These are observed and experienced at the age of 8. Come read and enjoy an innocent child's point of view.
Year 1943
Contents
Introduction (message from me) Page 1
Contents Page 2
The Milk Man Page 3-4
Flour Mills Pages 4-5
Aunty Shakuntala Page 5-6
Clock Towers Pages 6-7
The Milk Man
Yes early morning before sun rise the milk man comes home and calls my mother. He shows the empty vessel to my mother. He then leaves the calf to suck the milk from its mother buffalo udders. Later, pulls the calf and ties it to the nearby lamp post. He starts milking the buffalo. The milk is falling into the vessel with a pleasant sound. Little later, the milk fills into vessel. He comes out and unties the calf for it to suck balance milk from its mother buffalo. She tells milkman not to put milk foam. With the measuring can he measures milk and pours the required quantity of milk into our empty vessel held in hand by my mother.
Sun light coming on to the eastern sky in light creamy mixed with light blue giving a pleasant day break is a excellent site to be seen in the early morning while the Milkman returns with his calf and Buffalo .
Yes, these imprints of my childhood as a young boy of 8 years haunt me at 78 years now. How many of us have enjoyed these memorable experiences!
Flour Mills
1940's grocery shop did not sell flour of Wheat, Rice, Bengal Gram, Mirchi and others. Small quantities of flour were ground in the stone grinders of the house by the house wife. This consists of two circular stones of around 12 inches in diameter each stone of 2 to 3 inches thick held one over the other with a central hole on the top one held on to a central iron pin to facilitate rotation. The upper stone disc is fitted with a
Wooden handle fitted into a groove. The top stone disc had a small wide mouth to pour the ingredients.
The ingredient is put into the top hole and the upper stone disc is rotated with the handle.
After a number of rotations the ingredients become flour and falls from the joint of the two stone discs where a cloth or news paper is places below the bottom stone disc. Later on after the full operation the flour is collected in a vessel to store and use.
The grinding stone is cleaned and kept in its place in kitchen.
When large quantities of Flour is required say Wheat or rice or Bengal gram, my Mother will ask me to go to the flour mill near Bansilalpet nearby to my resident at Jeera Compound along with my brother take the wheat in an cloth bag and go to floor mill by walk.
The flour mill boy Pentiah who is almost drenched in flour stuck in every part of his hair, eye brows and mustache puts the wheat on to the electric grinder machine and the flour comes out from the bottom spout. The electric grinder is run by an electric motor which has a shaft. The belt is provided to transmit the rotations to the grinder shaft. As the Motor rotates on electrical energy, the grinder also rotates. It has two stone discs of large size. Pentiah puts the grain into the grinder though a hopper. The wheat falls by gravity into the joint of the grinder. By rotations it transforms into flour.
The flour man puts the flour into our bags and we walk down to our house. The fee was 2 dubs per seer (2 paisa).
Aunty Shakuntala
My Aunty Shakuntala (we called her Mausee --pinni in Telugu) only youngest sister of my mother was a very beautiful lady.
She was married after death of her mother in Hyderabad to a bridegroom arranged by my father. The groom was Dhoolapalli Kishen Rao a resident of Shahlibanda.
The marriage was performed in our Jeera Compound house by my Grandfather with the assistance of my father. I am not aware of the exact year as I was under 5 years.
My mother told me as I remember that it was after a year of my eldest sister marriage which was held in 1939.
So I presume my Aunty was married around 1940.
She was blessed with a female child some time in 1942. After the delivery she developed tuberculosis. Her husband looked after her well providing adequate medical facilities available then.
She used to visit our house sometimes at Jeera Compound. Myself and my immediate elder sister Saraswathi used to take her to our another Ayurvedic doctor Bobbilli Lakshmana chary who resided in Hyderbasty just near our family doctor Dr M K Seshadri. We walked the distance from Jeera Compound to Hyderbasty which was nearby. She used to narrate some short stories from epics during the night times. Though the medical attention was given to her she expired around 1947 leaving her girl child.
Her husband being young later re-married his own sister’s daughter. But unfortunately he himself died after a couple of years. However my Aunts daughter Sunanda, who became orphan, having lost both parents, was looked after by her step mother and her aged uncle (fathers elder brother) Dhoolapalli Narasimha Rao. Thus Sunanda being my own cousin sister was treated well in our house by my mother and father treating her as their own daughter and equated her as their sixth daughter as I have 5 own sisters.
Clock Towers
Secunderabad had three clock towers during 1940's one at Ramgopalpet housing a police station, second one at Monda Market with shops below it and the third one at Oxford street (presently S D Road). Since then no other clock towers were built. These clocks on the towers were in running condition and the general public were happy to see the time. These were built by British Government.
During that time wearing a wrist watch was a luxury. Mostly the wrist watches were imported from Switzerland. They were famous all over the world.
The people used to take these locations as landmarks. These clock towers though were in working condition for considerable time, later suffered proper maintenance and neglect by Secunderabad Municipality. Recently few years back, the clock tower at Oxford Street was renovated and clock repaired and it started working. The area around it was also developed with a good garden. I watched it during last year it was working.
The clock tower at Ramgopalpet is still not working and poses a danger as the tower itself is a century old. The clock tower at Monda Market is also not working since many years. The neglect by the city fathers in repairing it even though it is Mega Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation is not known.
In Hyderabad the clock towers exist at Fateh Maidan (presently Lal Bahadur Cricket Stadium) and another century old at Mozamjhahi market. The other two at sultan bazaar and Machili Kaman are also not working or renovated.
The four clocks on Charminar are working showing correct times. The clock on Hyderabad and Secunderabad railway stations are also working. The present Governments are not interested in Clock Towers.
In other cities clock towers are also not working. The clock on Chennai central station or Old Delhi railways stations where the clocks are working correctly.
I had the privilege of noticing clock Towers in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Sanfrancisco, Las Vegas, San Diego, and Toronto where all the clocks on Clock Towers are in working conditions showing correct time.
Concept: Krishna Rao Khanapur
Graphics Support: Manu Konnur
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