After much delay from my end, and several reminder SMSs and calls from Col Rama, I’m finally uploading some pictures from the Independence Day celebrations at the Community Hall in Sector A, Vasant Kunj.
“Ms Banerjee said she would resign from politics if it was proved that the Batla House shootout was not a fake encounter.” It is time that she moved out of politics and serve our mere mortals from Singur to Jamia.
Amar Singh, can do no better than look beyond the BJP, and ironically was mouth-tied in why he was still with the congress even though he was standing and questioning the congress for having conducting the fake encounter. Well, here is his lame argument, “Mr Singh sought to clarify to the large Muslim crowd that his alliance with the Congress did not mean that his party endorsed on the policies of the ruling party“
Kerala schoolkid claims world record in memorising
By Ashraf Padanna in Thiruvananthapuram
KERALA SCHOOLBOY Jose Lawrence can memorise up to 250 words within a few minutes and recollect them in the same order, without making a mistake. Lawrence, a Class X student at the Christ Nagar School in Thiruvananthapuram, claims to have broken the world record set by 13- year- old Nischal Narayanam at the World Memory Championship held in Bahrain last year.
Narayanam, a Class VII student of Gitanjali School, Hyderabad, had set the world record for memorising 225 random objects after beating his trainer squadron leader Jayasimha’s record of 200 objects.
Lawrence displayed his skills in front of mediapersons at the Press Club in the state capital on Saturday, in the presence of his parents and teachers. Lawrence was not only able to recall all the names and objects suggested by the journalists but he also remembered the numbers assigned to them. “ Initially, we thought it’s just a kid’s play.
Then he surprised us by excelling in almost every field — inventions at the science fairs, drawing, painting, swimming and driving,”
Jose Lawrence memorised 250 words within a few minutes
said Father Paul Mangat, the school principal. “ We are trying to get his name into the Guinness Book of World Records”. Lawrence practises memory skills for 150 minutes every night before going to bed.
“ I don’t miss an opportunity to prove my skills. I have already performed the memory game on 70 stages,” Lawrence said. “ Now people call me ‘ Memory Jose’,” he added. Son of A. J. Lawrence, a scientist with the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre ( VSSC), he wants to become a computer engineer.
“ He first participated in a state- level memory power competition while he was in Class VI and he came second, remembering 58 out of the 60 words that were given to remember,” recalls his mother Rani, a businesswoman.
He usually memorises the names of objects, film stars and politicians. But at the Press Club, the audience suggested almost all major Kerala newspapers for him to remember and he did not disappoint them.
“ If any word is difficult for me to remember, I would admit it before the show and even ask the organisers if it’s possible for them to change it,” said Lawrence.
Kalam releases encyclopaedia on Hinduism
‘Unique Collection; I Like It’
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Bangalore: Former President A P J Abdul Kalam on Saturday released a concise encyclopaedia of Hinduism compiled by Bangalore Ramakrishna Mutt president Swami Harshananda, in the presence of a large gathering at the mutt.
Kalam spoke on the importance of Hinduism and, in particular, the twice-born family concept. “Nuclear families are giving rise to problems. I visited a joint family of 65 people living together. They do everything in the name of God. The aim of life should be towards God. I made it a point to visit the family in Meerut.”
Kalam then recited a prayer on universal brotherhood, peace and welfare of the country. He quoted from the book the definitions of God. “I am very impressed by the various definitions of God in this work. It covers all aspects. I find even the definitions of Hinduism are very good. It is a unique collection. I like it a lot.”
The encyclopaedia comes in three volumes and describes all aspects of Hindu religion, philosophy, culture, mythology, rituals, spiritual work, festivals and pilgrim centres. Other areas covered are astrology, biographies of religious personalities, iconography, Sanskrit language and literature, temple and religious institutions.
It was while working at the Ramakrishna Mutt in Mysore that Swami Harshananda realised there was not a single book on Hinduism that reflected its diversity.
He thought it important to compile an encyclopaedia and began working on it in 1975.
Swami Harshananda said there were not many books covering Hinduism extensively and many had focussed only on the Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita. “This is where I felt the need for an encyclopaedia.”
The encyclopaedia is priced at Rs 1,500, and 4,000 copies have already been sold. The Mutt expects to sell 5,000 more in the next 10 days based on orders it has received.
toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com
Mumbai: Senior Shia cleric Maulana Kalbe Sadiq’s proposal to hold common Id prayers for Shias and Sunnis has drawn flak from members of the two sects. Calling it an immature and impractical suggestion, both Shia and Sunni scholars have summarily rejected the proposal.
“This is an impractical advice. He may go to any congregation he likes on an individual level, but it will not be acceptable to the community in general,’’ said Shia scholar Maulana Zaheer Abbas Rizvi, adding that instead of wasting energy on organising common prayers, Maulana Sadiq should focus on other problems common to both the Shias and Sunnis.
To build bridges between the Shias and Sunnis who are at loggerheads, especially during the month of Moharram, the Lucknow-based Maulana Sidiq recently suggested common Id prayers for the two sects.
The namaz rituals of the Shias are different from those of the Sunnis and the two feel uncomfortable praying together. One of the basic differences, scholars point out, is over the imam (the person who leads the prayers). “The Shias put too much importance on the imams and rigidly follow the rules while the Sunnis are flexible in the selection of their imams. Most Sunnis will not accept a Shia scholar as their imam,’’ explains Maulana Abu Hassan Nadvi, a Sunni cleric.
Maulana Nadvi said namaz is a “very delicate issue’’ and should not be meddled with. He recalled an incident at an iftar party hosted by the US consulate in Mumbai a couple of years ago.
Some Muslims asked Maulana Nadvi, an eminent cleric, to lead the evening prayers at the consulate’s lawn. But before he could step forward, a faction of Muslims chose another imam.
“If all Sunnis cannot pray behind one imam, how can Shias and Sunnis agree to pray together behind a common imam?,’’ asks Maulana Nadvi, who maintains that there are better ways of removing the Shia-Sunni feud. He describes Maulana Sadiq’s move as “sensational’’, which should be ignored. “Such statements keep Maulana Sadiq in the news. He knows that members
of both the sects will not accept his plan. It’s a futile attempt,’’ said Maulana Nadvi.
However, secular Islamic scholars feel the two sects can pray together despite differences in their rituals.
“We pray to Allah. It doesn’t matter much who leads the prayer as long as the intention is to submit to the will of God. Both the Shias and Sunnis can pray together despite their differences,’’ says Islamic scholar Asghar Ali Engineer. “He has given an idea and it should initiate a debate.’’
Received this in email. Needs to be verified by calling Child Helpline at 1098. However, this sounds like a great initiative.
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If you have a function/party at your home in India and food gets wasted, don’t hesitate to call 1098 (only in India) – child helpline. They will come and collect the food.
This is an exciting and quite a significant news story, on the President of Russia practicing Yoga. If the story is to be believed, Russians emulate their Presidents, and thus Yoga is likely to find a large number of followers in the former communist country. This will certainly be an important step towards creating a better world, with deeper personal and world-level harmony.
China is the last bastion to be (re)won!
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MOSCOW: The ancient Indian yoga once banished from the country by a Communist leader is all set to make a home in the Kremlin next month when the new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who practises the art, takes over.
Prodded by his wife Svetlana, president-elect Medvedev had joined the thousands of Russians eager to learn the Indian art of yoga. He now takes pride in his ability to perform ‘shirshasana’, a headstand pose.
Former President Boris Yeltsin’s tennis revolution had resulted in the birth of a whole constellation of Russian superstars like Kurnikova and Sharapova.
His successor, a Judo black belt holder and mountain skier Vladimir Putin gave boost to oriental martial arts and mountain skiing in the country and if the trend continues, Russia will soon be standing on its head, Centre TV (CTV) said in its weekend analytical programme ‘Post Scriptum’. “And if this trend is to continue under Medvedev, Russia will soon have more yoga schools than India,” CTV observed. Last year in an interview to Itogi magazine Medvedev, the then first deputy PM looking after major social and health reforms had said: “Little by little, I’m mastering yoga.”
Yoga, he explained, helped him relax from the stress of work. “I can even stand on my head,” Medvedev told magazine Tainy Zvyozd (Secrets of the Stars) last month.
We are told only side of the story most often. The popular and more accepted side of the story.
The “other side of Truth” rarely comes to light. This section is dedicated to giving out stories which show the alternate side of the story – THE OTHER TRUTH.
A TRUE HERO
Singh Happy With Noble Act, Rues Labourer’s Death TIMES NEWS NETWORK New Delhi:
Would you risk your life for a stranger? The thought did not even cross 20-year-old Happy Singh’s mind as he jumped into a 12-ft ditch in Malviya Nagar to save the life of a labourer working on a sewer line there.
On Wednesday morning, Singh was at home when he heard a commotion of men screaming and women crying for help.
Said Singh: ‘‘When I heard everyone shouting that a boy had fallen into the pit, I just jumped into it. I didn’t even have the time to think of the consequences. If someone is in need of help, how can you turn your back on him? I did just what I would expect anyone to do for me, if I was in such a situation.’’
Singh, who stays with his parents in H-block, helps out in the family’s jewellery business. Residents of the area said that this was not the first time that the 20-year-old had risked his life for a stranger.
As Satyapal Gulati, RWA president of the area, pointed out: ‘‘There was an accident in our colony sometime back. Happy was the first one to pitch in with help. He rushed the injured boy to the hospital. We are all very proud of him. Very few people would have the courage to risk their lives like this.’’
Singh, who suffered minor bruises while trying to rescue 20-year-old Ashok Kumar, has just one regret that the labourer could not be saved. Once inside the pit, Singh had started out by digging the mud under which Kumar lay buried.
He was helped by the policemen, who came 15 minutes later, and the fire fighters who had by then arrived at the scene.
Said Singh: ‘‘I am just sad that I couldn’t do more for the labourer and Kumar passed away. It is unfortunate that no lessons are learnt by government agencies even as people continue to get hurt by falling into open ditches. A few days ago, another labourer had fallen into the pit and hurt himself.’’
toireporter@timesgroup.com
A great deal is being written about the Small Car Nano, a prominenet milestone on the highway of Indian Technology. Ratan Tata has delivered what he promised, despite so much opposition and cynism. His team deserves a mention too.
All eyes were turned towards the shy 36- year old Girish Wagh, Head, Project Team, People’s car, Tata Motors when Ratan Tata called for him onstage while unveiling the People’s car – Nano. He walked up t o the stage with a light gait and smiled awkwardly while looking upwards.
The soft spoken engineer is an unlikely hero . He was among the 3,500-odd engineers who toiled at the Pune factory in 2004 to launch vehicles using the Ace platform. As a divisional manager at the time he had designed Ace, Tata’s mini truck.
The product was ahead of its time and boasted of a modern cabin compared to its crude three wheeler rivals. Tata Ace created a new mini segment in India. Priced between Rs 2.25 lakhs -2.35 lakhs. It was best suited for use by villagers in carrying goods over short distances.
The dedication Wagh has shown over the years had made him different and today he is among the handful of people who have led projects that built new vehicles from scratch for Tata Motors in the last three decades.
Today, Wagh is amongst the top team leadres of Tata . He headed a team of 500 people to design Tata’s Nano.
Speaking at the launch of the Nano car today Girish Wagh, said the car had an oxidation catalytic convertor and it emitted 120 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer.
Further stressing the point on features in the car he mentioned the car meets all the safety norms and will be available in several versions which will be introduced in phases,’’ he said.
Insiders in the company Wagh say he is a true team leader and believes in hard work and dedication to his job.
The man behind the car has come a long way and now he joins the league of Sumant Moolgaonkar and Ratan Tata who have started projects from the scratch.
The Nano has been benchmarked with the Maruti 800 which is the smallest car in the country and was a runaway success for two decades. The Nano costs half as much. However, Suzuki executives maintain that it is not possible to produce a car at such a low cost.
Shinzo Nakanishi managing director of Maruti Suzuki India speaking before the unveiling of the car said, “we cannot make a cheaper car. We don’t know how to make a 1-lakh car unless we sacrifice something. We won’t go below the 800 in our product line-up.”
Maruti Suzuki’s mini 800, priced at nearly double the Tata car, was the cheapest in the market. Asked about the impact of the Tata car on Maruti’s sales, Nakanishi said: “There may be some impact.”
Venu Srinivasan chairman and managing director TVS Motor Co said, “it is fantastic; outstanding engineering. It helps redefine the sector in the country. It has established new grounds.”
P. Sam group head marketing and sales of Yamaha Motor claimed, “the 1-lakh rupee car is not going to impact our potential customers. Our customers would buy our products for the sheer joy of riding.”
Onkar Kanwar of Apollo Tures said, I congratulate Tata. He has delivered what he promised.
