‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy dies due to Covid-19 at 87

Chennai: Eighty-seven year old social activist K R Ramaswamy, popularly known as ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy died in Chennai on Tuesday after battling complications of Covid-19

Chennai: Eighty-seven year old social activist K R Ramaswamy, popularly known as ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy died in Chennai on Tuesday after battling complications of Covid-19. He had been admitted to the city’s Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital and was on ventilator support.

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Ramaswamy, a self appointed traffic regulator, for hours used to direct traffic near the Madras high court in the 1990s from where commuters began calling him ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy. Later, he walked into courtrooms and became a regular filing petitions against road traffic norms, encroachments, unauthorised buildings, and erection of hoardings.

In Tamil Nadu, which is notorious for its banner culture of sycophant cadre putting up huge cutouts and hoardings of their leaders only for it to be torn down by ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy. He’s fearlessly tore down posters in front of homes of powerful former chief ministers J Jayalalithaa and M Karunanidhi. He didn’t spare the hoardings in front of AIADMK and DMK party offices. “His fight against big digital hoardings and banners was phenomenal,” says Jayaram Venkatesan who founded the anti-corruption movement, Arappor Iyakkam. “He fought both on the road as well as in court to get it banned at one stage. His other cases on encroachments, granite scam will always be remembered. He inspired many youngsters to become active citizens.”

He has been arrested several times and has grabbed eyeballs when he would sit or lie down on a main road in protest. He has filed more than 200 public interest litigations (PILs) for the larger good. One of his PILs, led the court to direct the city police to reverse its decision on converting the NSC Bose Road (near the court) into a one-way. He moved court stating that the police were taking an easy way out by not regulating traffic and converting a broad arterial road into a one-way. He also got fish carts, that were causing road accidents, banned.

For all his mighty work, he was a frail man dressed in white shirt, khaki trousers under which his catheter was strapped, oversized spectacles and always carried a bundle full of petitions in his hands and in his pocket. In 2018, a Tamil biopic of him was released in cinemas. Until his health deteriorated, he was active following several cases.

Politicians and public mourned the loss of the activist who brought several changes for the better in Tamil Nadu.