HOW TO REHABILITATE the village ecosystem? Once Venu Srinivasan found an answer to this, he went on a mission mode. It is now three decades since the Chairman Emeritus and Managing Director of TVS Motors Venu Srinivasan (who has recently been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award by Economic Times) took to restoration. While the company has grown leaps and bounds during this phase (revenue of over Rs. 30,000 crore and a net profit of over Rs. 2,000 crore for FY24), Venu Srinivasan took it upon himself through the Srinivasan Services Trust to restore dilapidated temples.
REVITALISING TEMPLES AND VILLAGE ECOSYSTEMS
Thus began, in the mid-1990s, his long journey. Srinivasan’s debut project at the Yoga Ramar temple in Padai Veedu, near Vellore, transformed it from one in ruins to a thriving temple town.
The then Collector of Tirunelveli engaged with Venu Srinivasan and initiated the thought of reviving Nava Tirupathi, a set of nine Nam Azhvaar-praised temples on either side of Thamirabarani that was in a dilapidated state. “That’s when it struck me to not just restore the temples but also rehabilitate the entire village,” said Srinivasan.
Following the exercise in Padai Veedu and Nava Tirupathi temples he went on to revive the entire region. “Poverty was rife when I visited the Nava Tirupathi temples in the 1990s and one of the first decisions I made on that trip was to ensure that temple restoration goes hand in hand with social rehabilitation,” said Srinivasan when reminded of the massive restoration exercise.
Among all the temples that he has restored in the last 30 years, the one at Erettai Tirupathi ranks as one of the toughest. Almost as a divine blessing and intervention, Srinivasan found a man to anchor the architectural restoration. Among the people he has worked with, he counts Ganapathi Sthapathy as one of the most outstanding. “He was an expert of the real kind in agamas, sastras and dhyana slokas,” said Venu Srinivasan with great delight.
He laid focus on economic revival through the creation of self-help groups that led to a new-found vibrancy in the remote temple towns.
As part of this philosophy, he also ensured that the priests and service personnel were financially happy and created a monthly Sambhavanai for all of them. It was his view that if the priests were financially weak and daily sustenance became a challenge, it would likely affect their daily life and that could come in the way of discharging their duties.
A LEGACY OF RESTORATION
This year, he has earmarked Rs. 40 crore for restoration and community development initiatives. “I have been appointed as a servant of the devotees and have tried to carry out my duty to the best of my ability and as sincerely as possible. Ultimate satisfaction comes from the fact that devotees have found a positive vibration while visiting the remote temples. And the economy in the region have begun to thrive and thousands of entrepreneurs have found a financially viable business model in their hereditary locations,” said Srinivasan.
