We might be the Chennai Rains Weather blog but there can only be one Chennai Rain Man, Dr. S R Ramanan, who is possibly the most important reason for Chennai being the Weather Blogging Capital of the country. For a city that has no seasons and only has a hot, hotter & hottest climate this city has the most active blogging community in the country thanks to the original Chennai Rain Man.
After serving IMD for almost 36 years Dr. Ramanan will be hanging up his boots today in a journey that has taken him from Pudukottai to the hearts of the Chennai people through IMD Kurnool & RMC Chennai. It is an understatement to say we are possibly seeing a similar impact among the citizens of Chennai to Sachin Tendulkar retiring from active cricket. For a couple of decades Sachin Tendulkar was the face of Indian Cricket similarly for the people of Tamil Nadu and particularly Chennai Dr. Ramanan was the face of IMD.
What possibly differentiated Dr. Ramanan was his passion for explaining weather in simple terms that could reach to the common man. If phrases like மேலடுக்கு காற்று சுழற்சி (Upper Air Cyclonic Circulation) etc and not to forget வெப்பசலனம் became popular among common people it is credit to him for his stand on using local language to communicate about weather. This video below is a testament to his cool character under adversity and his knack for explaining weather in simple terms.
Another interesting insight about the Chennai Rain Man comes from this very well written piece by Srinivasa Ramanujam of The Hindu
The Chennai Rains blog wishes to place its appreciation to Dr. S R Ramanan for all his work over the last 3 decades in reaching Weather information to the citizens of this country and those who have tracked weather for long know how crucial his role was in understanding the evolution & subsequent landfall of Thane one of the most powerful cyclones to make a landfall over the TN coast in recent times. Thank You Sir for all your work and may you enjoy your retired life in peace and we look forward to your active participation in the social media now that you would be out of the administrative shackles.