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After 150 years, a fish gets a scientific name
‘Humpback mahseer’ christened Tor ramadevii
After being popularly called ‘humpback mahseer’ for nearly 150 years, the giant game fish has finally got a scientific name.
The species, found in the Cauvery river, was recently christened Tor ramadevii, after noted ichthyologist K. Remadevi of the Zoological Survey of India. The DNA sequencing of the fish was carried out by a group of icthyologists from the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune, and Bournemouth University, UK, as part of the naming process.
The species was “brought to the attention of the scientific community in 1849, and the recreational angling community in 1873,” noted a research paper authored by Adrian Pinder of Bournemouth University and published in the scientific journal Plos One.
The fish was assigned the name after it was found possessing the same genetic and morphological characteristics of mahseer found inside the waterbodies of the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala , said Rajeev Raghavan, Assistant Professor, Department of Fisheries Resource Management, KUFOS, who was associated with the research.
The species had slipped the attention of conservationists in the absence of a scientific name. There was no legal and conservation cover for the species. The only solace for the species was that being in Chinnar, a protected area and a wildlife sanctuary, it was protected from fishing, said Dr. Radhavan, who is also the IUCN Freshwater Fish Red List Authority coordinator (South, North, East Asia and Oceania).
Though no population estimation has been carried out, historic records indicate a dramatic depletion in its numbers. Probably, the species may be on the edge of extinction, he said
Incidentally, The Hindu had reported the identification of the species Tor ramedevii from Chinnar in 2004.
Since the nomenclature, fisheries conservationists have started reviewing the conservation status of the species for updating the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The species qualifies to be categorised as Critically Endangered, Dr. Raghavan said.
The fish is endemic to the south Cauvery river system and its tributaries. The distribution of the species is now limited to “some small pockets in Coorg, Moyar, Bhavani, Kabini, Pambar, all the upstream tributaries of the Cauvery.”
The fish can grow up to a length of 1.5 metres and weigh up to 55 kg and qualifies as megafauna, researchers said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Kerala / by K.S. Sudhi / Kochi – July 17th, 2018
Peace Mission Centre: Kerala’s palliative care that serves without charging you a penny
There is also a full-time ambulance facility that will take the patient to a hospital or anywhere they wish to go for treatment.
Kochi :
Sumitra (name changed), a cancer patient was breathing her last , surrounded by her daughter and five different nursing care staff, each of them standing apart so as not to create discomfort for the patient on bed or the grieving daughter. When five minuites later, the shrill cries of the daughter rocked the halls of Peace Mission Centre, the staff there was still present, with a comforting hand on her shoulder. The doctor was also present, knowing that the moment was then and there was nothing more to be done, yet content of having been able to give Sumitra a peaceful farewell.
A one-kilometre detour from the highway in Thuruthsherry near Mekkad in Nedumbassery will take you to Peace Mission Centre, an institution which does free palliative care for patients. Unbelievable, but true even during these times when everything is done with only profits in mind.
The Centre has the capacity to hold 40 inpatients and even does home care. Any patient admitted in the centre will have access to the best care with a visiting doctor and over 16 nurses employed here along with over five hospital care staff who keeps the place clean.
There is also a full-time ambulance facility that will take the patient to a hospital or anywhere they wish to go for treatment.
Rema (name changed) is the bystander with her mother-in-law who is now an inmate at Peace mission centre. Her husband is a carpenter and they were trying to give her the best possible help with the meagre income they have. However, her health state was so bad that she was not even able to have liquid food.
“She used to be in such a bad condition that we couldn’t bear her pain. Now, however, she is getting the best care here. She is even consuming some fluid now. They clean her and keep her in the best possible way,” she said.
“We have started this specifically to aid those with financial constraints and also to ensure that we help people have their dignity in death. A lot of people reach here when they are in the last few days of their life. Many have breathed their last here and we are happy to provide them with a very peaceful atmosphere here and also maximum care,” said Chinnan Pynadan, working with Peace Mission centre.
“The only financial funding we have is donations. Thankfully, we did not have to struggle to find it so far and firmly believe that this will be the case in future too. We take the patients in our ambulance for chemotherapy or any other treatment they want to go to,” said Father Sabu Palackal, who manages the centre.
“They come here for end of life care.We don’t have treatments here, only care. We provide some medicines and all the basic medical facilities. Everyone want painless moments once they start crumpling in the grip of cancer. We take in those people who have no hope for life or future, but the immediate day,” said Dr N Mohanan, the doctor working with Peace Mission.
The centre was launched last January here by the Guardian Angel Care Charitable Society, a Vengola based society led by Abraham Mar Severios Metropolitan.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Specials / by Gopika I S, Express News Service / July 16th, 2018
A new war memorial in Thiruvananthapuram soon
More than two decades after formal orders were issued, the state capital is set to get a new war memorial commemorating soldiers who fought in the wars and military operations that took place
Thiruvananthapuram :
More than two decades after formal orders were issued, the state capital is set to get a new war memorial commemorating soldiers who fought in the wars and military operations that took place after the country gained Independence. The existing war memorial, which stands opposite the College of Fine Arts at Palayam, commemorates soldiers who fought in World War I. According to top officials of the Directorate of Sainik Welfare, the land has been identified for the memorial near Shangumugham beach. Other details, such as the design, are yet to be worked out. The state government has formed a War Memorial committee with the Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) as chairman and the Director, Sainik Welfare, as secretary. The army station commander, Pangode; state police chief and the district collector are among the members.
The first meeting of the committee is slated to be held on July 16.‘‘In 1996, the Union Home Ministry has asked the states to establish war memorials. Many states complied. Though the Kerala Government had issued orders allotting the land at the time, the project did not take off,’’ A Kishan, director-in-charge, Sainik Welfare, said.
Also, armed forces veterans in the state have been clamouring for a war memorial memorialising the soldiers who fought and laid down their lives in the major post-Independence conflicts. In fact, the state capital also boasts numerous veterans who saw combat in the 1962 India-China war, the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971 and the Kargil war of 1999.
War memorial
The WW I memorial at Palayam is unique in the sense that it mentions the years as 1914-1921. This is rare as most WW I memorials give them as 1914-1918. 1921 was the year the Berlin Treaty was signed. Another important war memorial that has historical links to Travancore is at Colachel in modern-day Tamil Nadu.
The memorial – a soaring pillar – was erected by Marthanda Varma after his forces defeated the Dutch forces in the Battle of Colachel in 1741. Neglected for years, the pillar and its immediate environs were finally taken over by the Military Station based at Pangode in Thiruvananthapuram.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by Tiki Rajwi, Express News Service / July 10th, 2018