‘Mahanaya Mannathu Padmanabhan – Kaalathinu Munpe Nadanna Karmakaran’, a book written by Geethalayam Geethakrishnan, has been selected for the award constituted by the Nair Service Society (NSS) on the occasion of its centenary.
The book was selected for the award by a jury comprising Kumbalath Santhakumari, K J Thomas and P A S Suresh. The award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 10,001 and plaque, will be presented to Geethakrishnan at a function to be held at the MCD Community Centre in New Delhi on January 11.
The function is being organised as part of the 138th Mannam Jayanthi and the annual day of Mahilasamajam and Balasamajam.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Express News Service / December 30th, 2014
Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan has been named the most generous person from Kerala according to the Hurun India Philanthropy list 2014.
The IT behemoth’s executive vice chairman who is ranked 8th in the list donated Rs 255 crore mainly in healthcare charities.
The list prepared by Hurun Report, a media group based out of Shanghai, states that region-wise, South Indians were the most generous, donating Rs 13,300 crore, five-times that of the amount given in charity by North Indians.
Ravi Pillai of RP Group is ranked nine in the list with a contribution of Rs 145 crore, mainly in healthcare. As many as seven persons from Kerala have found a place in the list of 49. They together donated Rs 609 crore for charity. Keralites in the list include Azad Moopen (Rs 100 cr), S D Shibulal (Rs 48 cr), P N C Menon (Rs 26 cr), M A Yusuf Ali (Rs 18 cr) and Sunny Varkey (Rs 17 cr).
“It is heartening to see that Indian businessmen are contributing more to philanthropy. This will create a more equitable society. Business is necessary for economic progress and with philanthropy business is also good for overall development of society. I feel proud to see this,” Kris Gopalakrishnan told Express.
The list has Wipro Chairman Azim Premji who gave away Rs 12,316 crore on top.
In September Hurun Report had published a Kerala Rich List topped by Emke Group Chairman M A Yusuf Ali who has a net worth of Rs 11,400 crore. RP Group’s Ravi Pillai came second with Rs 9,600 crore followed by Sunny Varkey, founder and executive chairman of Dubai-centered Gems Education with Rs 9,000 crore.
The India Philanthropy List, which highlights charity contributions made by India’s most generous measured by the value of their cash or cash equivalent donations, debuted in 2013. Donations made by a corporation in which an individual has more than 50 pc holding were recognised as being part of that individual’s personal donation. The period of calculation was from April 1, 2013, to October 31, 2014.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Express News Service / December 30th, 2014
Four years ago, Christian Waldvogel boarded a plane and flew westward at supersonic speed to shoot a video that succeeded in showing that the earth “turned for a while without me”.
Today, that unique four-minute aerial visual by the Swiss artist is wooing visitors at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB).
It was on March 17, 2010 that Zurich resident Waldvogel succeeded in his efforts to get into a Swiss Air Force (SAF) plane and move at a speed faster than the speed of sound at exactly 1,158 km per hour — the rotational velocity of the earth in his native country. He thus got to film the earth’s rotation while standing still with respect to the sun, said a press release.
Waldvogel’s ‘The Earth Turns Without Me’ is a four-part installation tuning into the core curatorial theme ‘Whorled Explorations’ of KMB in which artistic director Jitish Kallat has assembled works that allude to cosmology often referencing Kochi.
Kallat says he finds Waldvogel’s works “contemplative and sometimes even humorous”. They look at humanity from a distance and are “often grounded in intricate scientific calculations”, he adds.
To achieve his aim of remaining stationary vis-a-vis the sun, the artist converted the SAF plane’s rear cockpit into a pinhole camera that he would use to shoot the solar system’s central star. The project was triggered by two light-box images—Earthstill and Starstill, which Waldvogel shot and are also being exhibited at KMB’14. The first reveals stars as streaks because they are blurred by the earth’s motion, while the latter is a clear image of the stars using an astronomer’s camera that cancels the planet’s motion. Then, there is also the sun’s image displayed as a concentrated point.
The artist, who was born in Austin (USA), has a second work at KMB’14. Titled ‘Recently, the non-flat-earth paradigm’ is based on his “rediscovery” that for a person in Kochi, India’s northernmost point lies 125 km underneath the horizon — a fall that is equal to 15 times the height of the country’s tallest mountain range: the Himalayas.
Meanwhile, the organisers of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale informed in a communication that the exhibition would stay open from 10 a.m. to 6.30 p.m. “The organisers have decided to extend the time due to popular demand. Nearly 55,000 people have visited the Biennale since December 12,” said the press release.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Staff Reporter / Kochi – December 27th, 2014
As rampant destruction of nature has become the order of the day and even the government remains a mute witness, a woman’s efforts to build up resistance against the mighty quarry mafia for protecting a rock and its surroundings has been catching the fancy of the people at this remote village of Myladumpara near Nedumangadu in the district here.
Anandi Ramachandran, a writer herself and a friend of the late O V Vijayan, is tirelessly engaged in preserving the nature surrounding her ancestral home at Silk Farm Estate at Myladumpara.
Till recently, the land here fetched only Rs 5000 to Rs 10,000 per cent.
But with the entry of the quarry mafia, land prices have skyrocketed by ten times. But she could not imagine her house without the shadow of the rock nearby.
‘’The rock and the surrounding locale had always been there in my memory. I cannot even imagine this surrounding without the rock.
“Seeing the rock basking in the orange glow of the evening sky, the trees on the foothills dripping in the rains, the reverberating noise of the winds that hit the rock. …Money cannot be a compensation for such a distinct ecstasy,’’ says Anandi. Unlike the others, Anandi did not want simply to be cowed down by the quarry mafia.
As a first step to protect the rock, she donated one acre of land adjacent to the rock to United Library, Irinchiyam – to develop it as a mangrove.
Recently, poetess Sugathakumari launched the ‘’kavu nadal’’ project here by planting saplings.
She set up a charitable society ‘Prakritheeyam’ Centre for Conscious Living and Natural Wisdom and, under the aegis of it, a reception was accorded to the Western Ghat Protection Council’s tour at Myladumpara.
Anandi, who is the president of Prakritheeyam, also spent a good amount of her fortune to set up a headquarters building for Prakritheeyam, an open auditorium with a capacity to seat 500 people and a decorative gateway.
Constructed in traditional Kerala architectural style within 50 metres of the rock, the headquarters and its premises will function as a centre for children from the locality to sensitise them about nature and its rare bounties.
“Prakritheeyam’ will help the children realise the importance of protecting nature as it is essential for the survival of the entire humanity. We also have plans to set up a writers’ village, facilitating writers to unwind themselves and write,’’ says O V Usha who is the vice-president of ‘Prakritheeyam.’
The quarry mafia had approached Anandi by offering Rs 2 crore for two acres of barren land near the rock. But, for her, money cannot be a compensation for ‘’wiping out images lingering deep in one’s memory’’, Anandi says with conviction.
Green activist Kallen Pokkudan will formally inaugurate the activities on December 28.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by N V Ravindranath Nair / December 27th, 2014
People in huge numbers dressed as Santa Claus in Thrissur in Kerala
Thrissur, Kerala :
The archdiocese of Thrissur in Kerala on Saturday created a new Guinness World Record, when it assembled 18,112 Santa Clauses on the streets and broke the existing record set by Derry in Northern Ireland with 13,000.
The event, named “Boun Natale 2014”, was the brainchild of Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, who had last year managed to parade 5,000 Santas.
Guinness officials were Saturday present to oversee the record-breaking event, and each and every Santa was bar-coded before they assembled, to make a scientific evaluation on the exact number.
Luciya, a Guinness representative from Britain, told the gathering that Saturday’s event will be registered in the Guinness World Records as the largest assembly of Santas.
The announcement was greeted with a huge applause by the Santas.
Even though the official figure was registered as 18,112, the organisers said there were more, but could not be documented.
The procession of Santas began at 1 pm and the announcement came after 4:30 pm.
“The Guinness team with the help of new technology did the counting and it was for that barcodes was used for each of the Santas. There was an application process that each Santa had to go through and it came from the various parishes attached to the archdiocese,” said Simon Joseph, an official of the Thrissur archdiocese.
Thrissur is often referred to as Kerala’s cultural capital, and through this award winning effort, yet another feather has been added to its cap.
source: http://www.ndtv.com / NDTV / Home> South / by Indo-Asian News Service / December 27th, 2014
EMS Cooperative Library, Kakkanad, promoted by the Ernakulam District Cooperative Bank, has been selected for the award for the best library in the cooperative sector.
A statement issued by the library here on Tuesday said this was the first time that such an award was being given away.
The award was presented to the District Cooperative Bank directors P.P. Joy and Benny Paul and the bank’s general manager M.K. Radhakrishnan by former Minister for Cooperation G. Sudhakaran at a function in Thrissur. The library was opened in October 1999 with a view to inculcating the habit of reading among the young people and it was the first such venture under the cooperative sector, said the press statement.
The library is spread over 13,500 sq.ft. area in three storeys. The library is home to 86,000 books and it has a total of 11,400 members.
One of the key features of the library is a garden and walkway filled with trees and plants attached to the library and the library was launched as a place for reading in the garden.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Special Correspondent / Kochi – December 24th, 2014
A motley collection of brilliant and rare maps from the 16th to the 19th century is on display at Heritage Arts in Mattancherry as part of ‘Cosmology to Cartography’, an exhibition—the first of its kind in India—jointly organised by the Hyderabad-based Kalakriti Archives and the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.
It showcases as many as 47 maps straddling four centuries and under ‘Jain Cosmic’, ‘Pilgrimage’ and ‘Cartographic’ categories. On display are the early cartograms produced with vegetable dye on cotton and the ones in woodcuts, copper engravings with colour or watercolour and ink on paper.
A pilgrimage map to Nathdwara temple are among the exhibits at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.
Kalakriti founder Prashant Lahoti collected the unusual treasure of India maps. The brightly-coloured maps present the world in many fashions: some in sync with Jain philosophy where the earth is divided into regions of the Gods, mortals and the cursed; the pilgrimage maps, on the other hand, chart out panoramic routes to Badrinath in the Himalayas or Shatrunjaya in Gujarat.
“The exhibition displays move from the symbolic to the political, and there is a dichotomy in the first, the middle and the last few,” said executive curator Vivek Nanda, who is a town planner and whose current projects include the Mumbai-Delhi corridor. “The early part of the exhibition represents a world of meaning, while the political ones are a world of order. They depict coastal towns and sea ports, which were important trading indicators.” Also on show are the first Dutch map of the subcontinent and the Middle East, and the first map of India as a single entity, made in 1822, for the directors of the English East India Company.
The first Dutch map of the subcontinent and the Middle East done in 1596.
Arts and Medicine
The famed biennale programme, in its 43rd episode on the General Hospital premises on Wednesday, saw Kochiite Charles Antony crooning songs in at least 10 languages, including Italian, English, African, Sinhala and Japanese, as he played the guitar and the mouth organ. Mr. Antony had sung a Spanish song alongside Diego Maradona during his visit to Kerala in 2012. His 80-minute performance began with Jim Reeves’ ‘Welcome to my World’. Mehboob Memorial Orchestra provided accompaniment.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Special Correspondent / Kochi – December 18th, 2014
Chennai’s Carnatic music scene will sorely miss its bejewelled patron, Parimala Srinivasan.Sriram V.
It was rather appropriate that Parimala Srinivasan bowed out of this world just when Chennai is bursting at the seams with Carnatic music performances. It is almost as though the world is putting on its musical best to send her off. Yes, for her, music was life.
Parimala came from a family that was known for its music patronage. Father Aleppey Parthasarathy (Papaswami) Iyengar was a well-known lawyer who maintained open house for all musicians. Ariyakkudi was a close friend and music teacher. Parimala’s brother Aleppey Venkatesan also learnt from him. Another brother, P.S. Raghavan, learnt mridangam from Palghat Mani Iyer and later from Palghat Raghu.
G.N. Balasubramaniam was yet another favourite and to Parimala, in particular, he was a mentor and guide. She remembered fondly his singing the pallavi ‘Parimala Rangapathe’ at her wedding. Being an ordained ‘Sri Vidya Upasaka’, he performed special pujas for her well-being at crucial moments in her life. She kept his memory alive by observing GNB Day each year.
The ace violinist T.N. Krishnan was practically a family member and in his Sangita Kalanidhi acceptance speech in 1981, was to thank Papasami Iyengar and his clan for all their support and encouragement.
Marriage to V. Srinivasan, a lawyer, meant that Parimala shifted to Madras and became completely involved in the music scene here. Her first December Season was in 1956 when she attended the Music Academy sessions, on her father’s ticket. 1958 was of course special, for GNB was the Kalanidhi.
From then on, being an avid participant in the Season was a matter of routine. This did not mean restricting herself to just the star concerts and lecture demonstrations. It involved listening to several youngsters and encouraging them with her bright smile. And as for the volunteers, who manned the doors and coordinated traffic, there were acts of unspoken kindness – food in tiffin carriers would be brought in her car and handed out to them.
It was in 1970 that she co-founded Raga Tarangini, a sabha run entirely by women. She was to remain its secretary till her passing. Membership may have dwindled over the years, but nothing dimmed her enthusiasm. Monthly concerts were organised till the end, as was GNB Day. Over the 44 years that she ran it, almost every one of the performing artists of today was given concert opportunities by her. Most of them remembered her various gestures of kindness with affection.
No regular music concert-goer could remain immune to her charm and friendliness. Beginning with 1993 when I first came to this city, I too was drawn into this circle. As she talked of her life, I realised that she too, like everyone else, had had her shares of trials and tribulations. But she never had any bitterness and always laughed everything off. Besides, there was always music.
To her, life was an extraordinary celebration. She would always be brightly dressed and wear a number of jewels – some of them of an earlier age and time – brooches and the like. And this was not only for concerts. On one occasion, I ran into her at an open-air folk arts festival at Nageswara Rao Park. It was quite dark and there she was all bejewelled. I asked her if it was not a risk that she was taking. To this she replied that she was not going to change her way of life for the sake of some thief who may never come anyway! Happily for her, he never did. And if he had, he would have become her friend for life and never dreamt of hurting her.
On yet another occasion, I called at her residence. I asked her about a metal rail with a chair attached that ran all the way up the stairs to her first floor home. She replied that it was her son’s arrangement so that she did not strain her knees. And then, very cheerfully, she sat on the chair, pressed a switch and demonstrated to me as to how she went up and down the contraption. All this, with not a trace of bitterness about old age and its complaints.
Standing on the terrace of her house on that occasion, after I had been fed with special Bengal style samosas (“I knew you would like it, you are after all a Calcuttan”), she declared that not an evening passed without her attending a concert. Then spreading her arms expansively, she declared that there were at least six sabhas within a kilometre radius of where she lived. Others would have thought of supermarkets or hospitals.
The world of Carnatic music is that much poorer by way of losing a patron.
Adieu, sweet lady! May flights of angels ‘sing’ thee to thine rest!
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Friday Review> Music / by Sriram .V / December 25th, 2014
Efforts to set up South India’s maiden crematorium for dogs and similar animals are gaining steam.
According to reports from High Range Kennel Club, which is behind the project, there has been no crematorium in South India for such animals while North Indian states like Gujarat and Delhi already have.
Dr Babu K Nalakathu, secretary of the club, told ‘Express’ they are looking for a suitable site in Kochi to set up the first plant. Efforts will then be made to start one each at Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.
The plant is estimated to cost `15 lakh, and raising the fund wouldn’t be a problem, said Babu, adding that such a project would make a new beginning in treating animals with honour once they are dead. Developed countries have very strict regulations in disposing of dogs after their death.
In Kochi and its suburbs, an estimated 50 dogs die each day, and almost all of them are disposed of in an unceremonious manner, he said. In most cases, they are being given a watery adieu, flinging them to rivers and other water bodies, which are used by people for drinking purposes. The responsibility of removing the carcass of dogs, cats and the like falls on local bodies, who change hands to certain agents. These agents dispose them of in rivers in the dead of the night, he said. It is a grave problem which the government has not taken any interest so far.
For every pet dog there are eight stray dogs in the state as per the figures by the SPC. While the pet dogs get a decent departure, the stray dogs are treated roughly, which is a trend to be stopped. The public should join hands to begin a new culture of giving respect to the animals. A number of associations already are willing to cooperate to make the dream come true.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by P.B. Jayasankar / December 25th, 2014
Dr Joshy John, known for his work in the field of HIV and AIDS, died at the age of 71. He was a consultant physician at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London.
Dr John left for London in 1967 after graduating from the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College with a gold medal. Though he wanted to specialise in cardiology, Dr Mckee, the dean at the University of Edinburgh, convinced him to opt for one of the emerging areas. Dr John selected venereology.
He started practice at the St Bartholomew’s Hospital, the oldest hospital in Europe. By the time he obtained his M.D., HIV and AIDS had emerged as one of the biggest health threats of the century.
Dr John became an HIV specialist. He became a consultant physician within eight years. He travelled around the world and attended numerous conferences on AIDS.
A hectic period followed as a member of the Royal Society of Medicine in London, the director of the AIDS and STD clinic at St Albans City Hospital and honorary professor at Sheffield University and other institutions.
The UK government entrusted him with the duty of preparing a report on the AIDS clinics in the United States in 1984. He was instrumental in designing the four hi-tech AIDS/STD clinics in the UK.
Dr John was equally deft in carrying on with the legacy of language inherited from his father. He started a research centre named after Prof. Ulahannan Mappila in St. Berchmans College, Changanassery. He also started a research library in the college in memory of his daughter Mary Anne John Stuttgen, who died in an accident in 2009.
The library is unique in Kerala. Dr John scouted the universities and libraries of London for rare classics and first editions. He bought the original edition of John Milton’s Paradise Lost for Rs 1.5 lakh. He brought to the library a rare collection of dictionaries, including a copy of Dr Samuel Johnson’s first dictionary. The library cost Rs 1 crore. Of these books worth Rs 35 lakh came from London.
Dr John is survived by wife Tresa (Thangamani) and sons Jaison and James. The late Prof. Aniyamma Abraham, Dr Lisy Nair and Jordy John are his siblings.
source: http://www.english.manoramaonline.com / OnManorama / Home> News> Kerala / by Manorama Correspondent / Friday – December 19th, 2014
