Tyagi’s house worth Rs 1 crore to become library

Local ministers KC Veeramani (Commercial taxes) and Nilofer Khafeel (Labour) will inaugurate the library on Sunday. 

The octogenarian resides in the Pichanur area of the town. As he has no children, he was living with relatives. Natarajan wanted to donate the house where he had earlier resided in, to enlighten and educate the local people. “The move came about when he broached the subject to his friend, who was a member of the Gudiyattam library’s readers circle, and soon things started moving when district library officer K Anandan accepted the idea,” an official, who requested anonymity, said. 

Asked whether the house was really worth Rs 1 crore, Anandan told DTNext, “Yes, the land value itself is around Rs 75 lakh in that area and this building’s value when added, will easily cross the Rs 1 crore mark.” Elaborating, Anandan said, “Once functional, this will be the second women’s library in Vellore district.” Appreciating Natarajan’s initiative, Anandan said, “It is rare to meet such an altruistic person nowadays, especially someone who wants to donate a building for a library without anticipating any returns.” 

Officials undertook some minor renovation and repair work, repainted the building olive green to ensure that it stood out from the surrounding buildings.

The son of freedom fighter KS Kaliappan who was jailed for two years for participating in Mahatma Gandhi’s Salt Sathyagraha, Natarajan, also participated in the 1942 Quit India agitation, but was let off without being arrested by the British for being young. The eldest of 12 children, Natarajan’s only condition was that the facility be named after his father KS Kaliappan.