While travelling by train in the past, one would have often come across stations with strange-sounding names and wondered about the origin of the names. Now the internet has made it easy to answer these questions. To begin with, there is this suburban station between Chennai Beach and Tambaram:
It was listed in earlier maps and timetables as Chromepet. Now what is its connection with chrome?
The answer lies in: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromepet#Etymology
The name came from the Chrome Leather Works which used to have a large factory there.
Note the mismatch between the English and Hindi inscriptions.
Also in Chennai is this station with this antique signboard:
As you would guess, the place gets its name from the humble dhobi:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washermanpet#History
Also note the misspelling of the Hindi inscription.
And this is its counterpart on the Singapore metro:
The signboard reflects the run-down condition of Washermanpet and Royapuram, the latter being the oldest functioning station building on IR. It was the main terminus at Madras when trains started running in 1856. This signboard reflects the condition of the station which has somehow escaped demolition till now:
Finally, we visit this station next to Eluru in Andhra Pradesh:
Does it perhaps have something to do with the Marathas such as Sharad Pawar? Some of them spell their name as Powar*
However, Wikipedia has this to say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powerpet
in which the name is said to be in honour of Sir Power, a railway engineer. I could not find anything else about him. But it is wrong usage, as the correct form is Sir Ravindra Jadeja and not Sir Jadeja.
*The Powar clan, however does seem to be connected to this station near Itarsi in Madhya Pradesh:
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