Wed Dec 31 01:00:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a news article summarizing the provided text:
The Case of the Missing Plaque: Inaugural Marker Vanishes From Chennai’s Revamped Victoria Public Hall
CHENNAI – Amidst the celebrations surrounding the recent restoration and re-inauguration of Victoria Public Hall (VP Hall) in Chennai, a historical mystery has emerged: the disappearance of the plaque commemorating its original opening in 1888.
As historian Sriram V. noted during a tour of the hall on its inaugural night, while other plaques recognizing donors and subsequent renovations remain intact, any trace of the marker from the hall’s official inauguration is gone. The foundation stone, laid in 1883 and generously funded by the Maharajah of Vizianagaram, has been rediscovered and preserved, but the whereabouts of the original inaugural plaque remains unknown.
Records show Lord Connemara, then Governor, officially opened VP Hall in January 1888. Sriram V. speculates the plaque may have never been installed due to the controversies surrounding Lord Connemara’s private life at the time, including allegations of infidelity and a tumultuous divorce that ultimately ended his political career. While this remains conjecture, the survival of other plaques, even those on exposed structures like the Trevelyan Fountain, makes the disappearance all the more puzzling. The story of the missing plaque adds another layer of intrigue to the storied history of VP Hall.
First Piper 