Cracker city Sivakasi to undergo spell change to rid of ' evil spell'.

SMITTEN by the numerology bug, ' Mini Japan' of the South, Sivakasi, is all set to have a change in its nomenclature, ostensibly to ward off evil.

If approved, the firecracker capital of the country will have an additional ' a' in its name and will be spelt Sivakaasi.

With the fireworks industry facing a crisis with frequent mishaps and loss of lives in its manufacturing units, the town's elite has come up with the idea to cast away the evil spell. An additional ' a' is believed to give numerological strength to the town.

Caving into the demand, the municipal council passed a strange but unanimous resolution on Friday to have a spelling change in English.

Interestingly, it was moved by the chairman of the civic body, Radhika Devi, belonging to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam ( DMK). Nine members of the DMK, which takes pride in its rationalist legacy, supported the move.

The DMK was in the forefront of de- Sanskritisation with many of its leaders opting for pure Tamil names. It takes credit for changing Madras Presidency into Tamil Nadu and Madras into Chennai. Many towns were rechristened with Tamil names. It is an irony that the resolution for this numerological change was moved by a DMK leader.

Sivakasi earned the nickname ' Mini Japan' as the town used to be busy round- the- clock with multiple shifts, when it retained a place for itself in the printing industry along with the mushrooming cracker units. Now, explosions in the manufacturing units have touched a new high, raising safety concerns among all sections.

Explaining the rationale behind the spell change, vice- chairman AMSG Ashokan of the Congress says, " The public believes there will be no untoward incidents like fire explosions if the spelling is changed. It is their desire and we simply accede to that. Moreover, it is for a common cause." In the view of this Congressman, the numerological strength of the town by adding one more vowel -- SIVAKAASI -- rises up to nine and it brings forth fortune and prosperity.

As of now, more than 100 industrialists are flaunting their business cards with this changed nomenclature.

According to Ashokan, those who have opted for the alteration have witnessed a change for the better in their business and he too is planning to follow suit.

Given the volume of business the fireworks industry has in North India and overseas, there is unanimity among the industrialists to go for the spell change. But the move has irked Left parties.

" Instead of addressing the civic woes, the municipal council has turned itself into a laughing stock," says CPI( M) secretary P. N. Deva.

Municipal commissioner S. Vijayaraghavan maintains that the resolution will be referred to the authorities concerned for ratification. Till then, the spelling will remain as it is.

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