Coimbatore: Kovai has a little-known link with the devastating World Wars decades ago and it lies in a nondescript house in a meandering lane in Pappanaickenpalayam.
A family of World War veterans is preserving the memories and laurels of their grandfather and father. Step into R.B. Vijay Radhakrishnan’s house and you take off on a ride back into the war-ravaged decades of the 20th century. What awaits you is a mini-museum that meticulously captures the vignettes of wars.
Vijay Radhakrishnan has spent his entire life storing all the medals, rewards, certificates, mementos, uniforms and weapons of his grandfather and father who fought the world wars. “I dream of setting up a war memorial at Race Course for the city’s war heroes,” says Radhakrishnan.
“I wanted to join the Indian Army but unfortunately couldn’t due to family problems. But I will be preserving these until my last breath,” adds Radhakrishnan, who is into trading.
There is a Burma Star, a military campaign medal received by his late father R. Balasundaram Naidu, who served as a seaman during World War II in the Royal Indian Navy under the direct command of Admiral Louis Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of India.
It was instituted by the United Kingdom in May 1945 for subjects of the British Commonwealth who served in the Second World War, specifically in the Burma campaign from 1941 to 1945. His father also received war medals before he retired.
Radhakrishnan has preserved four medals awarded to his grandfather, late Subedar K. Ramasami Naidu, and three courageous certificates signed by Sir Winston Churchill after he took over as secretary of state for war in White Hall, London.
“My grandfather was honoured with Victoria Star medal (1914-1915), General Service Medal (1914 to 1918), Great War of Civilisation (1914 to 1918, Victory, Afghan and Iraq) and St George II Class Russian Decoration Gold Medal (1914 to 1918),” informs Radhakrishnan, displaying the medals.
The war souvenir includes a bomb casing from the war front in Mesopotamia. Shaped like a vase, it is welded with two curved metal pieces. At the bottom is inscribed a few code words used by the army and the year - 1917 - with a star sign. “My grandfather preserved this bomb casing as a souvenir from World War I,” he said.
Ramasami Naidu, who died in 1968, served Queen Victoria’s own miners and sappers unit as a captain during World War I in Iraq.
“He was leading a troop of 110 soldiers. He was posted at the war front in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Russia and was also a part of the unit that combed bridges and main roads for mines. He was in-charge of clearing war trenches. He was assigned to Rawalpindi and England before he retired in 1921,” informs Radhakrishnan.
He flaunts a ceremonial sword holding awarded to his grandfather by Sir Winston Churchill for his meritorious services.
There are numerous photographs, paper clippings of important events, artefacts and awards. “My father and grandfather are no more but they live with us in all these little memories.”
He preserves the navy uniform of his father Balasundaram worn way back in 1939.
After retiring from service, Balasundaram joined Textool factory in Coimbatore as a supervisor and weapons consultant in 1940. “Textool became the first Indian company to get contract from Indian government in 1948 to manufacture and supply SBBL-12 bore machine guns for the Indian Army. Around 5,000 guns were made in one year,” Says Radhakrishnan.
He lives with his mother B. Vijiam, who is in her late 70s, and sisters B. Thilakam, a table tennis coach for the past 25 years, and B. Rajeswari, who works in a corporate company.
Radhakrishnan couldn’t join the Indian Army but took a two-year course in NCC in junior division naval wing under the unit of Tamil Nadu unit NCC Madras in 1979. “I participated in part I and II exams which was organised under the authority of the ministry of defence at Mani Higher Secondary School, Coimbatore,” he says.
Donning the military medals of his grandfather, Radhakrishnan says, “In future, when there will be no one to look after all this, I would like it to be preserved by the authorities of defence academy, Wellington in Nilgiris.”
