Madurai :
Panagal Road – the arterial road connecting Goripalayam with Sivaganga Road is named after Panagal Raja, eminent politician of the state from erstwhile Justice Party who was chief minister of Madras Presidency from 1921 to 1926. The road got its name during British rule.
Sir Panaganti Ramarayaningar (1866 – 1928) known as Panagal Raja was a noted politician in British India instrumental in starting Justice Party and raising the issue of caste based reservations. He was also the man behind educational reforms and municipal development of then Madras. As tribute to his reforms, there is a park in T Nagar, Chennai and the road in Madurai was also apparently named after him, says residents.
Colonial rulers who were living inside old Madurai city till Sepoy Mutiny in 1857 started shifting their establishments and residences in Northern Bank. Though Rajaji Hospital was established by theBritish way back in 1842, it was taken over by Madurai municipality in 1872 and the hospital came under state administration by 1918. Sir Arthur Hope, Governor of Madras inaugurated the full-fledged facility as seen today, in 1940 as per the stone tablet found in GRH.
Former Madurai East MLA, N Nanmaran said that Panagal Road could have been named after popular Justice Party leader since the Dravidian movement and parties evolved from it had its roots from that party. Government Rajaji Hospital earlier known as Erskine Hospital was very significant landmark since it was one of the biggest government hospitals for entire southern districts even today, he said. However N Pandurangan (74) an elderly Congress party man residing in the area says that the road was christened after Panagal Raja even during British days. Madurai city ended with South Bank and entire northern part was villages. The present day Panagal Road and Shenoy Nagar were Mathichiyam village, he recalled.
“In those days entire area was mostly wilderness and few houses situated here and there. But Panagal Road was still an important road with Rajaji Hospital and Collector office established in colonial rule”, he said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Madurai / by J. Arockiaraj, TNN / June 29th, 2014