Last lockdown in TN was when a space station was about to come crashing down

VILLUPURAM: All of us have taken refuge inside the four walls of our house for the fear of contracting the COVID-19. Was there a similar lockdown in Tamil Nadu when people experienced fear for life as widely as today? There was one such incident on July 11, 1979, when a 77-pound space station that had gone off the orbit and was hurtling towards Earth. Some elders reminisce that horror-filled day.

According to history, “The space station known as Skylab was designed as an orbiting workshop for research on scientific matters, such as the effects of prolonged weightlessness on the human body.” It was set into orbit in April, 1973, by NASA, which had not planned well for the return journey of Skylab, sources said. The space station went off the orbit in 1979 and was on its way to Earth.

“We had received the then District Collector’s lockdown orders for July 11, 1979, a week before that. People were asked to stay indoors,” recalls G Srinivasan, a 68-year-old retired District Revenue Officer. “It was a first such lockdown as we had seen none before. I was a Revenue Inspector of Thirumayam Taluk in Pudukottai district.” 

“In order to implement the lockdown, we were asked to curtail a Manju Virattu festival that was about to happen on that day, followed by a temple festival. As transport was suspended, my assistant and I rode on a bicycle for 15 kilometres to reach the village of Nallur, where I asked the villagers to wrap up the event by 10am. After much negotiation, they wound up the events by 11.30 am,” recalls Srinivasan. “To our rejoice, it was announced that evening that Skylab had been on its course towards Indian Ocean somewhere near Australia. Back then everybody obeyed government orders and stayed indoors, but now, police book hundreds of cases every day for violations.”

R Ramachandran (65), a retired headmaster, remembers himself ending up at his school campus that day as he had forgotten that it was lockdown. “I reached the school as usual at 8am and, to my surprise, found none on the streets, campus or anywhere. It was only later I realized the lockdown, but then I was too scared to go back home as I feared the fall of the space station. So, I stayed in the campus until dusk and then went home to the news of Skylab falling elsewhere.”