Monthly Archives: November 2014

Gill-Sherif bag overall title

Bengaluru:

Team Mahindra Adventure’s Gaurav Gill and co-driver Musa Sherif, driving a Mahindra XUV 500, assured themselves of the 2014 Indian Rally Championship title garnering some valuable points after the first leg of the 40th K-1000 rally near Tumakuru on Saturday. This is their fourth national title.

Local star Arjun Rao Aroor-Satish Rajagopal, who were second in the overall standings, had a poor day and retired after barely starting the first stage. Their rally-specific Volkswagen Polo R2 suffered an engine failure.

Gill-Sherif have 145 points. Aroor-Rajagopal have 78 and Sunny Sidhu-PV Srinivasa Murthy 62 with one round remaining at Chikkamagaluru next month.

Gill and Sherif were assured of the crown although they trailed teammates Sidhu-Murthy by two seconds after Saturday’s first leg. Sidhu-Murthy’s total time after leg one was one hour, five minutes, 12.2 seconds while Gill-Sherif clocked 01:05:14.4. Their teammates Amittrajit Ghosh-Ashwin Naik were third overall with a time of 01:06:42.0.

“It was not a great day,” said Gill. “We had a comfortable lead but there were electrical problems with the cooling fan and the car began to overheat. Due to this, we had to nurse the car but managed to stay in second place. Hopefully, we will be able to get the lead on Sunday.”

A disappointed Aroor said: “We were barely 300 metres into the first stage of the day when the engine packed up. It is going to be very difficult to get the car back in action tomorrow. We will have to try our best in the last round in Chikkamagaluru next month.”

In the IRC 2000 class, Karna Kadur-BS Sujith Kumar (Mitsubishi Cedia) led after leg one with a time of 01:07:26.4, while championship leaders Rahul Kanthraj-Vivek Bhatt were 01:08:19.0.

In all, 10 out of the 41 cars retired on Saturday.

In the Super Special Stage, held at the Bangalore International Exhibition grounds under floodlights on Friday, Abhilash PG-Sanjay Agarwal were the fastest (one minute, 33.2 seconds) in a Mitsubishi Evo XI. Gill-Sherif were second fastest with 01:34.5, while Sidhu-Murthy were third with a 01:35.9.

Results (leg one, provisional and unaudited): IRC: 1. Sunny Sidhu/PV Srinivasa Murthy (Team Mahindra Adventure, Mahindra XUV500, 01:05:12.2); 2. Gaurav Gill/Musa Sherif (Team Mahindra Adventure, Mahindra XUV500, 01:05:14.4); 3. Amittrajit Ghosh/Ashwin Naik (Team Mahindra Adventure, Mahindra XUV500, 01:06:42.0).

IRC 2000: 1. Karna Kadur/BS Sujith Kumar (Mitsubishi Cedia, 01:07:26.4); 2. Rahul Kanthraj/Vivek Bhatt (Mitsubishi Cedia, 01:08:19.0); 3. Byram Godrej/Somayya AG (VW Polo, 01:09:06.8).

IRC 1600: 1. Phalguna Urs-Anoop Kumar (VW Polo, 01:06:50.5); 2. Hrishikesh Thackersey-Ninad Mirajgaonkar (VW Polo, 01:08:48.8); 3. Vikram Devadasen-Chandramouli (VW Polo, 01:10:13.7).

FMSCI 1600: 1. Adith KC-Harish KN (Honda City Vtec, 01:09:18.9); 2. Aniruddha Rangnekar-Nitin Jacob (Maruti Baleno, 01:15:15.20); 3. Parag C Dhiwar-Aditya R Dhiwar (Maruti Baleno, 01:15:35.0).

Caption: Gaurav Gill-Musa Sherif in action in the Beta stage on the opening day of the K-1000 rally near Tumakuru on Saturday.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Sports / by Sunil Subbaiah / November 22nd, 2014

God’s Own Kerala on the Road to Become Catholic ‘Cradle of Saints’

Kochi :

If you thought canonisation of two blessed souls from the state—Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Mother Euphrasia—scheduled to be held on Sunday was wonderful enough, think again. Out of the 30 pious men and women the Catholic Church in India has placed on the path of beatification, 28 are from Kerala, a feat that could well earn it the ‘Cradle of Saints’ epithet in the future.

Catholics in Kerala comprise less than one per cent of the global Catholic population.

BlessedLeadersKERALA20nov2014

Out of 28 revered spiritual men and women, three each have acquired the status of the Blessed (third of four stages of canonisation) and the Venerable (second stage), while 21 are Servants of God (first stage).

The other two Indians on the list with status of  The Blessed are Mother Teresa and Fr Joseph Vaz, a missionary who served in Sri Lanka.  Interestingly, Devasahayam Pillai is the only layman on the list. All others are bishops, priests, or nuns. The Kerala list includes Fr Zakharias, a Spanish missionary, and two German missionaries —Mother Petra Morningman and Br Fortnatus — who served, died and were buried here. “This is a list of people likely to be canonised. The process cannot be completed within a definite time period. The long list shows the depth of faith of Catholics here,” said  Fr Varghese Vallikkat, deputy secretary, Kerala Catholic Bishops Council and director of the Pastoral Orientation Centre.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Babu K Peter / November 19th, 2014

 

Kochi Pays Its Final Respects to Former Mayor Mercy Williams

Kochi  :
A silence blanketed Thekkumveettil House on Shantipuram Road at Palarivattom here as a sea of crowd swept to the residence of Mercy Williams, the former Mayor of Kochi, who passed away at the age of 65 on Wednesday.
MercyWilliamsKERALA20nov2014

Kochi Mayor Tony Chammany was among the first to pay tributes to the first woman Mayor of the city. 

Senior LDF councillor M Anilkumar, Deputy Mayor B Bhadra, Corporation standing committee head T J Vinod Kumar and GCDA chairman N Venugopal also rushed to the spot to pay respects.

Mercy, who was born and brought up in Fort Kochi, studied at St Teresa’s. After securing an MA degree in Sociology with first rank and gaining a gold medal from the college, she joined St Teresa’s College as a lecturer and served there for over 25 years.

She joined politics after retiring   as the head of Sociology Department from the college. The move surprised many. But the LDF independent candidate not just swept votes to become a first-time councillor, but also became the first woman Mayor of Kochi city.

“Known for her sincere and straight-forward approach, babus were afraid of her. Consequently, corruption allegations were comparatively low during her tenure,” said Anil Kumar.

Mercy was sworn in as Mayor when Kochi was gripped by an absolute crisis on waste management front. The dumping of waste at Willington Island had to be stopped due to complaints from the Navy.

A similar situation emerged at Cheranalloor owing to public agitation. Heaps of waste remained on roads with no place to dump.

It was for the Mayor to face the heat, remembered senior journalists.

“Mercy issued a bylaw for waste management, a first in the state,  which gave buckets to every house for decentralised waste segregation. Kochi was announced a ‘binless’ city.

“Spadework was started for Brahmapuram plant and plastic bouquets were abhorred even in public functions,” said a veteran journalist. Mercy could also effectively liaison with the Delhi circle to get funds pumped in for big ticket projects in Kochi, including ADB loan and JNNURM funding.

Altogether, the city received `900 crore for projects during her tenure. When she left the chair, it was not without begetting ‘the most clean city award in India’ for Kochi from the then Union Minister Jairam Ramesh.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express  / Home> States> Kerala / by Nidheesh MK / November 20th, 2014

The history of the Dutch in India

Kochi  :

Cultural anthropologist Bauke Van Der Pol will doing a reading from his book at David Hall, Fort Kochi, today Cultural anthropologist Bauke Van Der Pol will be doing a reading from his book, ‘The Dutch East India Company in India’. This will be held at the David Hall, Fort Kochi, on November 19.

The Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC or commonly known as the Dutch East India Company) is often associated with Indonesia, China and Japan. In India, however, the company covered an area larger than all its other domains in Asia. This period lasted from 1604 to 1795, and therefore Dutch trading relations with India have existed far longer than those with, say, Australia or the United States. And yet most people are unaware of the fact that 17th and 18th century traces of Dutch heritage can be found all along the coast, from Surat to Kolkata.

In this richly illustrated edition, researcher and India specialist Bauke van der Pol presents, for the first time, a comprehensive compendium of VOC heritage in India. He guides the reader through settlements, country houses, warehouses, trading posts and cemeteries featuring unique sepulchral monuments. By referring to old pictures and contemporary photographs he shows what the settlements looked like and what can still be found of them in the India of today. He elaborates on the background to how the Dutch landed in the various regions of India, and explains the details of their relationships with the Indian maharajas and other rulers. Furthermore, he describes the precious commodities that tempted the Dutch to embark on such exotic adventures, and he shows how today’s Indians relate with the traces that these foreigners left behind in their country.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Express News Services nie / November 19th, 2014

Driven by Passion to Give Vintage Cars a Fresh Start

GaneshanKERALA19nov2014

Thiruvananthapuram :

A classic Morris Minor or a Standard Herald gliding past you in today’s traffic will revive memories of the past.  Recreating the old world charm, K Ganeshan Asari of  Poozhikunnu, near Pappanamcode, is busy reworking on vintage and classic cars.

The ‘makeover versions’ of the classic cars are remodelled at his small workshop situated by the Museum-Nanthancode road in the city.

‘’I repair the body of any car that is brought to me and reworking on a vintage car gives me extra pleasure as it is something that has to be done artistically. It was in 1982 that I reworked and made a new car for the first time – a red 1980s model Toyota for Dr K M K Nair and it was launched on the road by Sundaram Nadar, the then Transport Minister,’’ recalls Ganeshan Asari. That was quite a news and people even from other districts who were interested in vintage editions began to approach him.

During October last year, Ganeshan Asari worked on a metallic blue Morris Minor for Chittur JRTO Anoop Varkey and right now he is repairing a 1956 model Fiat (Fiat 600) for him.   ‘’I am extra careful when I work on an old model because most of the customers who approach me want cars which  they can use daily and not to be displayed as showpieces. I don’t use any machines and I primarily use my hands for the work,’’ says Ganeshan Asari.

According to him, it is the trust that the customers place on him that brings satisfaction to his work.

‘’I started doing the remodeling  work with motorcycles and later my interest turned to cars and it has continued till this day,’’ he says.  Motorcycle enthusiasts in the city and other districts who could not afford a new model used to bring pictures and ask him to remodel their old vehicle into what was in the picture. For two customers from Kollam, he remodelled a Jawa and a Royal Enfield according to their wishes.  Ganeshan Asari, a primary school dropout, learnt the basics of automobile repair from his elder brother Appukkuttan Asari. It is surprising to note that this ‘makeover artiste’ of vintage cars does not own a car himself and says that driving has never been a passion for him. He has four children and two of them are following his footsteps.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by  Thejaswini Nair / November 17th, 2014

Goldsberry’s children back at Iravikulam

From left, Goldsberry's children Margaret, Alison and Joanne with family. Inset on top: J.C. Goldsberry
From left, Goldsberry’s children Margaret, Alison and Joanne with family. Inset on top: J.C. Goldsberry

Munnar:

Iravikulam national park has managed to preserve its natural beauty even as the face of Munnar has changed rapidly. Margaret, Joanne and Alison could not hide their glee at that. The three are the children of J.C. Goldsberry, the British planter who worked hard to make Iravikulam a national park. Goldsberry, a nature lover stayed in Munnar for 29 years, and left the place in December 1976.

Iravikulam was earlier part of a tea plantation. The forest department took over the place in 1972 after the Wildlife Act came into force. Goldsberry, who was the company manager at that time, started efforts to make it a national park when it became clear that the company would lose its lands following the enactment of the Land Reforms Act in the state.

It was declared a national park in 1975, and Goldsberry came to be known as its father. Although tea shrubs were planted till Pettimudi in Munnar, Goldsberry had taken care to keep Iravikulam’s beauty intact by avoiding plantations at the 8,841 feet high Anamudi and its surroundings. He never rode his bike over the grasslands as he believed that would disturb the wild animals.

Goldsberry died at the age of 87 in England in 2007. His wife Elizabeth had died in 1997.

The eight-member group that visited Munnar, comprised Goldsberry’s daughters, sons-in-law and grandchildren. They were here to see the national park that Goldsberry had helped make, and to share their childhood experiences. Margaret, Joanne and Alison are the fourth generation descendants of J.C.Abbot who came to Munnar in 1918 as a planter. Margaret’s husband Hamish Aldridge had also worked here as an assistant manager.

The group was given a warm welcome by Kannan Devan tea company and the Highrange Wildlife and Environmental Preservation Association (HRWEA). The tribal people from Lakkam and Kundala settlements also interacted with the group at the function held at KDH club.

National park

Iravikulam National Park extends between Vaguvarai and Nayamakkad tea estates on the Munnar-Marayoor route. Visitors are not allowed into the 92 square kilometer park, but the forest department has made arrangements to view the Nilgiri Tahrs at Rajamalai. Ninety-five percent of Iravikulam national park is grasslands and the rest are chola forests.

source: http://www.english.manoramaonline.com / OnManorama / Home> News> Kerala / by Manorama Correspondent / Sunday – November 16th, 2014

Aluva to get British-aided urban master plan soon

Will reduce impact of unplanned development

An urban master plan for Aluva municipality will be drawn up by March next with British aid.

The document will be prepared with the support of a British agency, Atkins. The British government will meet the expenses for preparing the document, Bharat Joshi, British Deputy High Commission, Chennai, said.

The civic representatives of Aluva and experts from various sectors had convened a two-day workshop at Kochi to finalise priority areas. The workshop was part of a project supported by the British High Commission to help Aluva minimise climate risks.

The Aluva project will address “long-term climate impacts and minimise short-term impacts of unplanned development, with an urban design framework. It will combine local city knowledge and international expertise to establish a framework to guide growth in an integrated manner to respond to the challenges of urbanisation, climate risks and impact on existing and future local communities,” according to the organisers.

Besides, the Aluva Municipal chairman M.T. Jacob and councillor Jebi Mather, Gregory Briffa, First Secretary, British High Commission, New Delhi and Roger Savage, director, Atkins, UK, were also present. Civic issues related to waste management, “uncontrolled development, general pollution, transportation and connectivity, inadequate water drainage system and the need to improve public spaces” were discussed. Deliberations on mitigating pollution of Periyar were also held.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by  K.S. Sudhi / Kochi – November 14th, 2014

Ode to a brave patriot

Samuthirakani in a still from Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil, a biopic on P. Krishna Pillai.
Samuthirakani in a still from Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil, a biopic on P. Krishna Pillai.

Anil V. Nagendran’s film ‘Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil’ is on the life and times of P. Krishna Pillai who fought against injustice all his life.

Period films have a niche audience in Kerala. So Anil V. Nagendran was always puzzled why no filmmaker had seen it fit to make biopics on the early firebrand leaders of Kerala; political activists who had jumped into the struggle for freedom and human dignity without a thought for their future as individuals or politicians. Anil decided to make amends by making a series of After tasting success with a series of audio biographies on the stalwarts of the Left movement in Kerala, eminent leaders such as EMS, AKG and P. Krishna Pillai. With people like the late actor Murali and composers like P. Bhaskaran participating in his venture, Anil’s audio biographies were a run-away success. That gave him the confidence to turn director with a biopic on the eventful life of P. Krishna Pillai, Vasanthathinte Kanal Vazhikalil. The film is on the life and times of this indomitable organiser and activist who dedicated his life to fight against injustice.

The movie, starring Samuthirakani in the lead role of Krishna Pillai, reaches theatres today. Excerpts from an interview with Anil, the director, scriptwriter and producer of the film.

Anil V. Nagendran with P.K Medhin and Samuthhirakani.  / by Special Arrangement
Anil V. Nagendran with P.K Medhin and Samuthhirakani. / by Special Arrangement

What was the motivation for making a film of this genre?

I did a lot of reading for my audio production on the late leader. During my research, I spoke to a number of senior leaders who worked with him and had interacted with this pioneer of the Communist movement in Kerala. It was a journey of discovery to learn about this relentless fighter and audacious activist who did not seem to have known the meaning of fear. While there were several films on doughty political activists from other countries, there was almost nothing on this brave Malayali who had lived all his life for the downtrodden.

What is the focus of your film?

Although I touch upon the socio-political background of the Kerala in the thirties, the film focusses on the major events in the forties in Kerala. Here was a man who had held the tricolour and kept it flying during a protest when Congress men defied the salt law in Malabar and braved the blows of the British police. Ringing in the changes that were to transform Kerala, he became the first non-Brahmin to ring the bell inside Guruvayur temple. He was also at the forefront of the Vaikom Satyagraha. This Gandhian and staunch Congressman went on to sow the seeds of the Left movement in Kerala. Later on, he became immersed in battling for the rights of the oppressed and labouring classes. When he died of snakebite at the age of 42, he was a hero of the working class in Kerala. My aim was to highlight the valour, determination and personality of this freedom fighter from Kerala. There is nothing overtly political about the film and I must admit that the film was shot with the help of people owing allegiance to different political parties. Their politics differed but not their admiration for the man who dreamt of a free and equal society.

The film was in the making for a long time

I was adamant that we would not make any comprises while making this film. Under the leadership of art director K. Krishnankutty, a set that we made in Kollam covered an area of six km. Since it was a period film, we had to ensure that there were no electric line, poles, lamp posts and so on. Effort and imagination were necessary to recreate the times in which I have told my story. Some of the events are fiction, which was necessary to aid the narrative. But the movie has not deviated from his life. We have used real footage of some of the milestones of the struggle for Independence. Since we were handling a slice of history, I wanted to spare no effort to get the facts right.

What is special about the 3,000 actors in the film is that many of them are actually labourers who we chose and trained to act in the film. KPAC Lalitha, Siddique, Mukesh, Devan, Sudheesh, V.K. Baiju, Shari, Surabhi, Bheeman Raghu, Rithesh and Tamil actor Bharani are some of the actors. Sudheesh plays EMS while Baiju acts as AKG. The star attraction, I feel, is octogenarian P.K. Medhini, who has acted, composed and sang in the film. It was an honour to work with this stalwart of the progressive movement in Kerala. This is award-wining cinematographer Kaviyarasu’s first work in Malayalam.

Another interesting aspect about the film is its music. Eight composers have scored the songs and this film happened to be the last work of Dakshinamoorthy Swami. M.K. Arjunan, Medhini, Perumbavoor Ravindranath, C.J. Kuttappan, James Vasanthan, A.R. Rehana and Anchal Udayakumar are the other composers. Twenty singers have sung the nine songs.

Why is it being released again after its first release in April this year?

The movie was released in March, when the State was on the eve of going to the polls. A complaint was filed with the Election Commission that the movie was to campaign for the Left. Since there was no intention like that, I decided to withdraw the film from theatres.

But please remember that this film is not about political parties and partisan politics. This movie is a tribute to a brave son of Kerala.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> Friday Review / by Saraswathy Nagarajan / Thiruvananthapuram – November 13th, 2014

Kunchan Smriti Museum Opened at Ambalappuzha

Cultural Affairs Minister K C Joseph inaugurating the Thullal Festival at Ambalappuzha
Cultural Affairs Minister K C Joseph inaugurating the Thullal Festival at Ambalappuzha

Alappuzha  :

K C Venugopal MP inaugurated Kunchan Smriti Museum and get-together of thullal artists arranged as part of Thullal Festival at Ambalappuzha near here on Sunday. The festival was organised by the Kunchan Nambiar Memorial at Ambalappuzha.

Cartoonist P Sukumar unveiled the photo of Kunchan Nambiar. Kunchan Memorial vice-chairman R V Edavana presided over the function. District panchayat member Bindhu Byju,  government pleader R Sanal, C Radhakrishnan, Shamsudheen Kayipuram, B Suresh and Memorial secretary C Pradeep spoke.

After the inauguration, Ambalappuzha Suresh presented the thullal ‘Karnan’ written by Kalamandalam Ganesh.

Cultural Affairs Minister K C Joseph inaugurated the Thullal Festival on Saturday. Memorial vice-chairman R V Edavana presided over the function.

The Cultural Affairs Minister also inaugurated the mini auditorium at the memorial.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Express News Service / November 17th, 2014

Pala family to witness canonisation ceremony

Maria with her family
Maria with her family

Pala:

Maria Rose, a resident of Kottarathil in Pala, who was cured of a medical condition after making an appeal through Father Chavara, and her family will go to Vatican to attend the function that will declare Father Chavara Kuriakose Elias as a saint. Maria will witness the canonisation along with her father Jose, mother Marykutty and brothers Ebin and Febin.

Curing Maria’s eyes was the miracle that was approved by the court in Vatican for the canonisation of blessed Father Chavara Kuriakose Elias. Maria was born on April 5, 2005, with squint. Jose, who is a driver in Pala, and his wife Marykutty sought the intercession of Father Chavara, and Maria was cured.

It was on October 9, 2007, that Marykutty went to Mannanam and appealed to Father Chavara to intercede. On October 12, she went with Maria and prayed at his tomb. Jose and Marykutty said Maria’s eyes were cured during evening prayer on October 16.

After it was reported that Maria’s squint was cured through prayer, a medical team conducted an inquiry and collected evidence. Later, a commission, including doctors assigned by the Bishop of Pala, conducted a study and submitted a report. A special commission from Vatican too conducted an inquiry and accepted the miraculous cure.

Maria is a student of class five at the St. Thomas TTI in Pala. She will leave with her family from Nedumbassery at 7am on the Nov 21. Her brother Ebin J. Kottaram is a student at the Kunnoth seminary in Thalassery. Her other brother Febin is a BBA student at Mar Augusthinose College in Ramapuram.

source: http://www.english.manoramaonline.com / On Manorama / Home> News> Kerala /  by Manorama Correspondent / Sunday – November 16th, 2014