Narendra Modi at Mamallapuram

The Mamallapuram Summit has become dinner table conversation at every home in the city. Everyone is putting on the analyst hat and trying to predict the major announcements that might emerge from the leaders of the two of the world’s most powerful economies, India and China. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping will mix a dose of culture and art with some solid discussions on bilateral relations, terror funding and trade reveal sources.

The Indian Prime Minister’s image has never been stronger with continued successes and heightened receptiveness amongst both masses and the classes across India. With his renewed confidence as he sets foot on sensitive turf, Chennai, his team is guarded as #GoBackModi and black flags have often been a constant occurrence during his previous visits.

The entire stretch of the East Coast Road has been prepped for the grand visit that includes visits to some of the UNESCO World Heritage sites and together they’ll attend a cultural programme presented by the Kalakshetra.

From repeated sanitising of the entire stretch for weeks to stationing a bevy of police personnel along the route, the Tamil Nadu Police working alongside Prime Minister Modi’s team have ensured normal life has not taken a hit. Shree Syal, a resident on ECR who also runs an environmental programme through her residents association on Dr. Seshadri Avenue, says, “It’s a matter of pride and joy that our PM along with the Chinese PM will be crisscrossing ECR and also taking in the sights and sounds of our great city. The police have done an incredible job of providing the needed security and standing at vantage points but haven’t caused even the slightest discomfort to residents. In fact they’ve been helping people by giving information on times when they’ll be lesser traffic and have ensured that there will be no delays.”

According to sources close to 300 police personnel have been pressed into duty along the ECR and at strategic points to ensure the safety of both the visiting dignitaries and general public who may get caught up in slight traffic delays.

A tea stall owner in Akkarai, on the condition of anonymity, says, “Many policemen have been coming to my shop for tea and breakfast every day and are very polite. I was scared that they’ll remove my tea stall as it’s a temporary structure but they were told by their seniors not to disturb any local business. When police show so much concern we also feel proud of TN police.”

While the DGP of police JK Tripathy and his ADGPs, including Chennai Commissioner AK Viswanathan, has been working round the clock in planning and coordinating with the top teams from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Chief Minister’s Office too has been watching developments closely and the CM Edapadi Palaniswamy, sources in the secretariat say is overwhelmed that Modi has spoken about Tamil as an identity during his last visit at IIT and is now visiting some of the most prized heritage sites of our city.

Hoping that this upkeep of the ECR stretch continues, Kala Krishna a resident of Injambakkam and the granddaughter of Late C Rajam, the founder of Madras Institute of Technology and the daughter of Late Padma Shri C. R. Subramanian retired Chairman and MD Bharat Electronics, says, “It’s such a proud moment for all of us as Chennai will truly be on the global map with two of the world’s most popular leaders being here and taking in all the culture and art this city has to offer. The police have done an incredible job and surprisingly even the corporation and local bodies have lifted their weight to spruce up the entire area without causing any inconvenience to the general public. I wish this continues and we continue to see more cleaner roads and excellent policing even after the leaders have left.”

Students around the area who study at institutes like AMET and Maritime University are overjoyed to catch a glimpse of the visiting dignitaries. Rahul, who studies at AMET says, “I am from Kerala and came to Chennai to study. In these years I’ve begun to call this city home. I would have never managed to see the PM or Chinese PM if I didn’t venture out of my home town. Chennai in that sense is very cosmopolitan and increasingly its appeal across the world is growing and with this visit more eyeballs will be on ECR stretch which is usually just passed off as a beachside road.”

Sources at a resort on ECR where the leaders will visit are working overtime to make sure everything is perfect.

They are constantly working with protocol teams of both the Prime Ministers to ensure a thorough choreography of all activity surrounding the leaders arrival, meal times and their activity there. While they are tight-lipped and rather discrete about what’s being planned, a team that’s handling his entire visit has been briefed months in advance and trained to perfection. On the condition of anonymity a hotel source reveals that Dal Makhni has been on the boil for the past few days and an assortment of Indian desserts including Malpua are being prepared. The entire beach adjoining the resort has been policed and all the senior staff have been told to be on-call 24/7 during the two days.