Goalkeeper P R Sreejesh,who played a stellar role in India’s victory at the inaugural Asian Champions Trophy,has attributed the success to team work.
The player,who was given a warm welcome as he arrived here last night from New Delhi,told reporters at the airport that team work helped India to win the crucial match against Pakistan.
Sreejesh’s two saves in the tie-breaker led to India’s 4-2 win over Pakistan in the championship in Ordos in China. He hoped that the victory would make hockey more popular in the cricket frenzy nation.
On the players turning down the Hockey India prize money offer,he said it was a collective decision and the issue had been sorted out. Sreejesh also expressed happiness at the Rs 1.5 lakh cash award announced by the Union Sports ministry for the team members.
Sreejesh would be given an official reception by Hockey Kerala at Thiruvananthapuram today.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> News> Print / by Agencies / Kochi – Sunday, October 05th, 2014
The synagogues in Israel may be caught in cross-firing, but those in India are going to be spruced up soon, courtesy the Modi-led BJP government. The files started moving with speed within the Culture Ministry when the Palestine issue got worse — signifying the BJP government’s political stance in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Though the move to protect the synagogues was initiated during the UPA rule, the Manmohan Singh government developed cold feet later as Israel and Palestine has always been a volatile subject in our country. “Our team had visited the synagogues in Kolkata and had even finalised the sketches way back in 2010. But the project did not go beyond that, as there was some terse communication to go slow,” said an ASI source.
The Archaeological Survey of India is busy moving the files and renovation is expected to start soon. Sources admit that the renovation of synagogues is a political decision. “Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj are planning to visit Israel towards the year end and there are enough reasons to believe the renovation is closely connected to the visits,’’ said a government source.
There are around 35 synagogues in India—most of them in Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. “The synagogues in our country represent a rich cultural and religious tradition. The ASI is actively thinking of renovating the synagogues across the country. Most of them have been encroached upon by private parties and some, even by governments,’’ said a source in the Ministry of Culture.
The source added that the renovation work will start initially in Kochi’s Thekkumbhagam Synagogue and the Beth El Synagogue and the Maghen David Synagogue in Kolkata. The government is also planning to start a “Jewish tourism circuit” connecting all synagogues in the country, the source added. Though the government gave in following pressure and even vouched its support to the ‘‘Palestinian cause’’, it is an open secret that many BJP leaders, including PM Modi, have a close affiliation with Israel. Modi visited Tel Aviv as the CM of Gujarat, a state which has old diamond trade ties with Israel.
Transport and rural development minister Nitin Gadkari, too, visited Israel three years ago when he was the BJP chief while Sushma Swaraj is a self-declared “fan” of Israel. She, as the chief of India-Israeli Parliamentary Friendship Forum in the past, visited Israel last year.
“Both countries are victims of the growing religious fundamentalism and it is natural that they grow closer. It also helps that both share unique ethnic and religious aspects,’’ said a Culture Ministry official, who is part of the renovation project.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> The Sunday Standard / September 28th, 2014
With just a month left for the canonisation of Fr Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Sr Euphrasia, the number of people who have registered for the travel package to attend the canonisation ceremony in Rome has crossed around 200. This includes around 80 priests also.
“This is the number of people registered via Chavara Cultural Centre (CCC) alone. People from other cities and Malayalees living in various countries are also expected to attend the function in Vatican on November 23,” said CCC authorities.
A cell has been functioning at the CCC to coordinate and assist the faithful who wish to attend the historic event to participate in the ceremony. Chavara Cultural Centre, which has tied up with tour operator Oasis Holidays offers two packages – a five-day package (Nov 21-26) at `81,500 per person and a seven-day package (Nov 19-26) for `98,500 per person. “Chavara Cultural Centre’s target was to send 300 persons for the ceremony through the special package.
Two other Kochi-based tour operators have also announced special travel packages in connection with the canonisation ceremony. Besides private pilgrims, the Kerala Catholic Bishops Council has urged the state and Union Governments to send an official delegation to the function.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Express News Service / October 04th, 2014
The match between Sita Bai of Tanjore and Kamala Bai of Malabar saw enthusiastic crowds but also led to controversy. / The Hindu Archives
The 1st all-woman boxing bout lasted only 3 rounds but ignited a fiery debate
Sunday was a fine day for Indian women’s boxing at the 17th Asian Games in Incheon. Olympic bronze-medallist M. C. Mary Kom, L. Sarita Devi and Pooja Rani entered the semi-finals, assuring medals for the nation. However, it was right here, in Madras city, that the first punches in women’s boxing in the country were thrown.
It was Saturday, the 15th of March, 1931, when two Indian women stepped into the ring for a bout of professional boxing at the famous White City Carnival held in the city. Looking fierce in knee-length shorts, sleeveless jerseys and gloved fists, the women appeared every bit combat-ready. Kamala Bai of Malabar and Sita Bai of Tanjore were trained boxers, touted to be in good form. Singapore’s English daily The Straits Times reported that this was arguably a first for India.
Visibly excited, The Hindu published an article five days prior to the event urging its readers to brace themselves to witness for the first time two ‘Indian ladies’ meeting in the boxing arena — until now the most exclusive preserve of men.
Large crowds, including a number of Europeans, assembled to watch history in the making. While the first two rounds saw the boxers on the defensive, the third round saw them packing a punch, exchanging double jabs, hard rights, hooks, and uppercuts. Disappointingly, by round three, the session drew to a close with referee V.E.J Brackstone of Messrs. Parry and Company declaring it a draw.
Despite their underwhelming performance, both Kamala Bai and Sita Bai stayed in the news — even making international headlines for days to come.
‘Shocked and pained’
The fact that two Hindu women dared to ‘invade’ the boxing ring also left many Indian men and women ‘shocked and pained’. Florida’s The Evening Independent published a report on March 16, 1931 titled ‘Women Boxers arouse India’. The story stated that ‘feminine India was up in arms’ with the female boxers facing ‘social ostracism and disgrace,’ having engaged in a boxing match in Madras.
For a country that had for centuries relegated their women to rigid domesticity, ‘ladies boxing’ became particularly hard to digest.
Mahatma Gandhi for instance found this to be especially problematic. He was quoted in Pennsylvania’sReading Eagle as saying women boxing was ‘degrading, disreputable and totally unbecoming of the finer instincts of Indian womanhood.’
Today, as the country celebrates the laurels of our women boxers, it seems only appropriate to pause and acknowledge the spirit of Kamala Bai and Sita Bai. For if not for them, we as a nation may have not dared to imagine the likes Mary Kom, L Sarita Devi and Pooja Rani fighting the good fight.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Nitya Menon / Chennai – September 30th, 2014
The British resorted to many crueller acts during the Malabar Rebellion of 1921 than the Wagon Tragedy and it was because of the martial law clamped in Malabar that the world did not know about them, historian M. Gangadharan has said.
Delivering the keynote address at a seminar on Wagon Tragedy at Tirur on Tuesday, Dr. Gangadharan said the tragedy was not the cruellest act of British oppression during the Malabar Rebellion.
“We used to believe that the Wagon Tragedy, in which 67 of the 90-odd Mapilas packed in a goods wagon from Tirur to Podanur suffocated to death, was the worst and cruellest incident of the Malabar Rebellion. But it was not,” Dr. Gangadharan told a packed audience.
He argued that the world learned about the Wagon Tragedy as there was no martial law in Podanur and, therefore, the incident was reported by major newspapers of the world.
“The dastardly act of the British came to light when the goods wagon was opened at Podanur. Had it occurred anywhere in Malabar, where the martial law prevented publishing of sensitive information, it would have gone unreported,” he said.
Dr. Gangadharan said that as many as 215 Mapila youngsters were pulled out of their homes and massacred in front of their families. “It happened on October 25, 1921. The Wagon Tragedy wasn’t as cruel as the killing of those adult Mapilas in front of their family,” Dr. Gangadharan said.
MES Central School, Tirur, organised the seminar as part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Muslim Educational Society.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Kerala / by Staff Reporter / Mallapuram – October 01st, 2014
The young generation erupted in joy across the schools in the state as India made its tryst with Mars on Wednesday with the successful launch of Mangalyaan.Many schools across Kochi used the day to engage students in various activities based on the proud mission. “We want the memory of this historic achievement to be etched in their minds forever. So we are giving them various projects, such as devising the model of the orbiter craft, imagining pictorially its possible task on Mars,” said Jaideep Shenoi, a teacher who heads the Science Club of the TD High School, Mattancherry.
The club also collected available videos of various stages of the mission and played it for the high school students and also held a quiz programme. Earlier in the day, the students stood in assembly in the shape of the letters, M, A, R and S.Most of the schools wore a festive look, with giant screens displaying the event. “We distributed sweets and replayed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech. The students were very inspired,” said Dr Indira Rajan, chairperson, MET Public School, Perumbavoor.
The students of Chinmaya Vidyalaya, Kannamaly, wore red, representing the ‘Red Planet’. School head boy Gokul S Menon spoke on the mission at assembly.Schools, such as the Saraswathi Vidyaniketan and the cluster of Bhavan’s Vidya Mandirs, announced the ‘breaking news’ during their assemblies. The recorded video clips of the Mars Mission will be played to the various classes in the next two days. A victory march was conducted by the students of ACS English Medium School, Kaloor.
A large number of students attended the various programmes, organised by the Kerala State Science and Technology Museum in Thiruvananthapuram in association with Rajya Sabha TV, Vigyan Prasar and teh Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research. The historic mission was beamed live with the aid of state-of-the-art technology at the museum. Selected students from various schools were allowed to watch live Mangalyaan’s entry into Mars’s orbit at the museum.
A seminar on human space exploration and a quiz based on space exploration were some of the other events held. Students of Aakulam School were excited as they distributed toffees and sweets. Principal Mr Muraleedharan Nair explained to the students about the expedition and the future mission of Mangalyaan, recollecting his own memories as a student, rejoicing on the occasion of man reaching the moon. “This is an unforgettable moment in our history and it should always remain in the minds of students,” Mr Nair said.
Kendriya Vidyalaya, Pattom and St Mary’s Higher Secondary School also organised various programmes. Earlier, the students had a chance to interact with experts from the Indian Space Research Organisation and Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
Most of the schools in Kollam organised special assemblies and exhibitions. Siddhartha Central School in Pallimon organised a special assembly to convey to the students the importance prominence of the moment. The Mars mission was shown at the school, using projected displays. A special exhibition of photographs was held and people spoke.
The Oxford Senior Secondary School in Karavaloor also discussed India’s path to Mars by presenting special programmes in the assembly. The timeline of the Mars mission was also presented by students.
In Bright land Discovery English Medium School in Alappuzha, the assembly was devoted to the Mars mission while Maria Montessori Central School, Ambalapuzha, has decided to conduct a grand function on Thursday. “We have decided to put up a flex board, showing Mangalyaan’s entry and take a special class on the Mars mission. We cut short the celebration on Wednesday with a brief procession at school as exams are going on,” said the school staff.
The Letter Land School, Alappuzha, too has decided to hold a celebration on Friday, according to Asha Philip, school director. Schools in Thrissur and Palakkad too did not miss the mega event and organised science quiz and created a collage of the mission. Students of Devamatha Public School, Thrissur launched a picture of ISRO chairman Dr K Radhakrishnan and the Mars Mission into the air to celebrate the occasion.
Some of the schools in Kottayam district telecast the Mars mission on Wednesday itself while some others have recorded it and have decided to show it to the students in the coming days..The Cleemis School, Chingavanam, the SFS School, Ettumanur, and the AKM Public School, Changanacherry were not able not able to show the telecast live since their semester exams were on but plan to show it in the coming days.
Students of Lourdes Public School and the Junior College, Kottayam, wrote on their facebook accounts, “May this historic achievement rekindle in us the inspiration to go forward with a scientific aptitude….PROUD TO BE an Indian.”
source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / Team DC / September 25th, 2014
A view of the main block of CDS / Photo: Jayesh S. Pillai / The Hindu
The book Masterpiece of a Master Architect: CDS unveils how Centre for Development Studies showcases the architectural concepts of Laurie Baker
The picturesque nine-acre campus of Centre for Development Studies (CDS) in the capital city is a masterpiece of Laurie Baker. It beautifully complements the architectural concepts of Laurie Baker, who devoted his life to design cost-effective and environment-friendly buildings. Paying homage to this critically-acclaimed work of Laurie Baker is the book Masterpiece of a Master Architect: CDS. Through sketches and photographs the book captures the magnificence and simplicity of this structure. Designed and edited by architect, visual designer and filmmaker Jayesh S. Pillai, the book is the first documentation of a work by Baker. In an interview with MetroPlus, Jayesh talks about working on the project.
Jayesh S. Pillai / The Hindu
Coming on board the project
Though a draft of the book was presented in 2004 to Laurie Baker, on his 87th birthday, it was not carried forward. It was then titled ‘CDS: The Vision of a New Architecture’. But he suggested that his effort was never ‘new’, but an extension of the vernacular techniques deep-rooted in the architectural practices in Kerala.
Baker passed away in 2007. In mid-2008 I came to Thiruvananthapuram after completing my masters from IIT Kanpur. I came to know that the Centre of Science and Technology for Rural Development (COSTFORD)was looking for someone to take over this particular documentation. My friends suggested my name to P.B. Sajan, joint director of the centre. Thus I started working on it in February 2009 and finished it in seven months.
The process
Though the draft was well thought about, a lot had to be crosschecked, updated and added, especially because the campus was still evolving with the addition of new buildings. We had to digitise the original drawings as most of the early ones were made on paper.
Also, we had to match them in quality with the digitally-prepared ones. I had full access to the campus for documentation work and to photograph the campus and its structures at different times of the day in which I was helped by Aravind Ramachandran and Avirat Inamdar.
There are a whole lot of others who helped with the drawings, editing the text and giving necessary inputs. It took five years for the book to get published though.
A whole lot of people had helped me in the project, including my wife, Rutu Panchal, R.D. Padmakumar, Shailaja Nair, Prahlad Gopakumar and Shyamkumar Puravankara who edited the texts and Tilak Baker, Baker’s son.
What are your favourite aspects about CDS?
The campus brings together brick structures following the contours of the terrain, stairs winding around trees, circular and organic-shaped courtyards and roof terraces, a network of creative walkways, an exceptional seven-storied library tower and numerous interesting architectural structures.
The spaces are well designed with great concern for the natural landscape that Baker seamlessly blended with the structures that came up on the campus as the institute grew. And the jali wall patterns don’t just create a delightful play of light and shadow, they also provide well-ventilated spaces within the buildings.
Jali wall patterns at CDS create a delightful play of light and shadow /Photo: Jayesh S. Pillai / The Hindu
Jali wall patterns at CDS create a delightful play of light and shadow / Photo: Jayesh S. Pillai / The Hindu
Why is it considered one of the landmark structures of Baker?
It was perhaps the perfect chance for him to display his ideas and philosophy to a larger community. The campus not just demonstrates Baker’s love for nature-friendly and cost-effective architecture, but also illustrates his artistic genius. The campus stands testament to sustainable approach in architectural practices, still inspiring architects and students around the globe.
However, why hasn’t Baker’s architecture gained wide acceptance?
He has left behind a legacy with his bold and distinctive attitude towards the style that he developed (or adapted, as he would say). Even though many architects within and outside India try to adopt his philosophy, unfortunately, many still have misconceptions about the ‘Baker Style’, especially in failing to understand that he advocated cost-effective (and energy-efficient) and not simply low-cost architectural practices. As I understand, one of the focal points in his philosophy would be that an architect should not blindly adopt these techniques and practices, but adapt them to the prevailing environmental and social conditions, and their context.
In retrospection
This is the first published work that I have designed entirely. So it was a learning process for me.
I had gone through many of Baker’s drawings, paintings and sketches during the time I spent at COSTFORD. So I was able to incorporate certain visual elements in the book as a homage to him, especially the recurring mango patterns that is noticeable in his works.
The book has been published by COSTFORD and Laurie Baker Centre for Habitat Studies (LBC).
Wordsmith and artist
Jayesh S. Pillai, who hails from the capital city, is an assistant professor in Design Discipline at Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing, Jabalpur. An alumnus of Sainik School and College of Engineering Trivandrum, he did his masters from IIT Kanpur. He has a doctorate in virtual reality from Arts et Métiers ParisTech, France. Jayesh, a registered architect, is a short filmmaker as well. While his films have been selected for short films festivals in Kerala and outside, the work Beyond was selected to the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner 2011.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Athira M / Thiruvananthapuram – September 17th, 2014
chat Essie Sassoon’s book on the food of Cochini Jews, Spice and Kosher, is a rare amalgamation of the histories and tastes of Israel and Kerala
Essie Sassoon remembers her early Sabbaths as a child in Kochi’s Jew Town. The women of Mattancherry’s Jewish community spent the day before Sabbath making hamin , a rice and chicken dish with carrots and tomatoes. “Each family would make their pot of hamin and take it to our puthen veedu (Sassoon Hall, now David Hall) where there was a large porna (oven), in which the hamin would be stored for 24 hours,” she says. On Sabbath day, when fires are forbidden to be lit, the hamin made for their sumptuous lunch. Memories such as these, pepper the pages of Essie’s book on the unique cuisine and customs of the Cochini Jews — Spice and Kosher .
Kosher, Essie explains, is food that abides by the boundary of Jewish laws. Important among them are the complete separation of meat and dairy products in both cleaning and cooking, and the ritual slaughter of animals for meat. “Since Kosher meat was available to us only when it came from Mumbai, Cochini Jews had a largely vegetarian or fish-based diet.”
Jewish cuisine here also varies from traditional fare in that it had appropriated into its everyday the many spices of Kerala. “We use cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, saffron, and even garam masalain our cooking.” Thus, the 200-odd recipes in Essie’s book, co-authored with Bala Menon and Kenny Salem, trace this unusual amalgamation of Kerala and Israel through history, stories and recipes.
Israel has been home to Essie from 1973. As a 33-year-old gynaecologist, trained in Thiruvananthapuram and Chennai, Essie was practising in Kozhikode, when she was moved to volunteer her services to the Yom Kippur War. “My sister was in Israel then. Those were tough days and I knew the hospitals there needed help. So I went, convinced that I would return soon,” says Essie. Her half-year sabbatical from Kozhikode was spent working with a French doctor at Tel HaShomer Hospital. “He knew no English; I knew no French, but we managed! I also had to learn to speak Hebrew, because till then, I’d only said Hebrew prayers,” she recalls. Later, Essie shifted to a hospital in Ashkelon, a city in southern Israel. After almost four decades of service there, she retired in 2011. Soon after, her friend from Kochi, Kenny, visited her from Canada with journalist Bala requesting she document her history. Thus was born Spice and Kosher .
“I’ve always loved cooking!” says Essie. “I come to Kerala every two years and take spices back with me, always. In Israel too, the Cochini Jewish community cooks like we used to here.” In the city now for her month-long visit, Essie says Spice and Kosher is organised according to the various Jewish festivals and the foods associated with them — from Rosh Hashanah (Jewish new year) and Day of Atonement, to the Feast of Tabernacles, Simhath Torah, Purim, Hanukkah (Festival of Lights), and the Passover. The Passover, for instance, is marked by food that has not been fermented, made in special utensils designated for it. “So we make unleavened bread, called matzah , for which the men used to knead the dough, while the women opened it out and baked it,” says Essie. It was a community affair with much hymn-singing while the bread baked over an oven of coconut shells.
On the 14th day of the Passover, called Seder, the community makes a thick jam-like syrup garnished with walnuts called charoset . Essie’s book holds the instructions for Cochin charoset , a special two-day long recipe by her sister Rachel Roby. Daily cooking at Jewish homes here involves the staplekadathala pastel — a rice flour wrapping stuffed with egg, potatoes and mint leaves — served with a fenugreek ( uluva ) dip. Another regular is the yayin wine, homemade with boiled raisins soaked in sugar and turned for a month until fermented right. Special occasions such as weddings and anniversaries called for a traditional Malabari biriyani, often prepared by an invited Muslim chef, informs the book. “Back in Benyamina, in Israel, my sister still makes this biriyani for over a hundred people,” says Essie.
Spice and Kosher combines the culinary wisdom of over 30 members from the Cochini Jewish community, many of whom are now back in Israel. While Essie sought out these recipes and anecdotes from 2011 onward, it was Bala and Kenny who ordered and framed it into a book. With the book now complete, Essie spends her days at her Pilates class, as well as with her folk dancing group every Sunday with her Israeli friends, just as she has for the last 20 years.
Spice and Kosher was published by Tamarind Trees Books earlier this year, and can be bought from online retailers.
ESTHER ELIAS
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Esther Elias / December 14th, 2013
An Arab patient, Mohammed Ahammed, being treated at Malabar Institute of Medical Sciences, Kozhikode | T P Sooraj
Kozhikode :
Musabah Saeed Khalfan Al brought his younger brother Mohammad Saeed Khalfan all the way from Oman to Kozhikode to check the accuracy of a diagnosis report which they had received from a leading hospital at their native place.
After a thorough check up at the Malabar Institute of Medical Sciences (MIMS) here he was told that the doctors in Oman had made a mistake with the original diagnosis and his brother was not suffering from cancer.
“Praise to lord, this diagnosis report is such a huge relief for us,” said Musabah Saeed Khalfan after consulting the doctor.
“I am thankful for the facilities and expert doctors available here,” he said.
Musabah’s is not an isolated case. Doctors of many major private hospitals in North Malabar come across several such patients, especially, those from the Middle East who come here to verify the diagnosis made by the doctors back home or else for treatment due to the better facilities available here.
For the Arabs, North Kerala is turning out to be a healthcare hub as almost all the leading private hospitals here offer special treatment facilities, international desks, international waiting lounge, exclusive wards or rooms for them. When contacted Dr R Bijayaraj, convenor of the Academy of Family Physicians of India(AFPI) Kerala chapter, he said the cost of treatment and assured quality are the two significant elements that attract foreign patients to Kerala. At a time when they have to pay `25,OOO for an MRI scan in gulf countries we charge only `4,OOO, which they find to be affordable.”
Saleh Mohammed Hussein from Yemen, baby Mallak from Oman and Hassan Abdulla Yusuf Al from Bahrain are the patients who came to Kerala after learning about the medical facilities available here through word of mouth.
“Appropriate advices at all the stages of the caring process is new to me. Hence, I prefer coming to the Malabar region for treatment,” said Mohammed Ahammed from UAE. Al Shifa Hospital at Perinthalmanna in Malappuram district is another big hospital which caters to a huge influx of foreign patients.
“Patient satisfaction is an important dimension of healthcare sector.
“Since our departments have Arab as well as African patients the total revenue of the hospital increases by `3.5 to 4 Crore annually,” said NP Muhammadali, manager of the Department of Overseas Operation in Al Shifa.
“Though treatment facilities for the foreigners were available at MIMS hospital during its initial years, the international desk got into full swing from 2006 onwards,” said Georgiana Vandana, deputy manager of Medical Value Travel, MIMS Hospital.
“Every day our doctors have at least 30 Arab patients for consultation,” she said adding that Medical tourism in the state has emerged as the fastest growing segment of tourism industry.
Family members or those who accompany the patient are also fascinated by the old world charm of Malabar region and make it a point to visit various tourist spots while the patient undergoes treatment.
There is an increase in the number of patients over years.
According to Georgiana Vandana, 45 percent of the hospital’s total revenue is from the international desk. Similar facilities are available at Kerala Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), Lakeshore and Lourde Hospital in southern part of the state.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Kerala / by Aswathi Krishna / September 12th, 2014
Last year when he found himself in the news again for a crucial incident that occurred in his life in 1987, former foreign secretary A P Venkateswaran, ever the gentleman, refused to go back in time and dwell on his sacking as foreign secretary by Rajiv Gandhi.
“I believe that grave digging is not at all a pleasant task,’’ he said when his 1987 sacking through a press conference by Rajiv Gandhi was compared last year with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tearing up of an ordinance cleared by the UPA cabinet at a press conference in New Delhi.
The 85-year-old former foreign secretary who carried himself with great dignity died at a private hospital in Bangalore on Tuesday and was cremated in the city on Wednesday.
Despite an illustrious career spanning 35 years in the diplomatic service, Venkateswaran’s career was highlighted by his ignominious exit as foreign secretary in January 1987 when Rajiv Gandhi snubbed his foreign secretary for making contradictory statements on a proposed visit to Pakistan.
“You will be talking to a new foreign secretary soon,” Rajiv Gandhi told a Pakistani journalist who raised the question of contradictory statements coming from the Prime Minister and his foreign secretary at a press conference where A P Venkateswaran was also present.
Following the snub at the press conference Venkateswaran quit the Indian Foreign Service. “My resigning was a spontaneous action since I have always believed that life without honour is no living at all. I felt that the statement (by Rajiv Gandhi) was an arrogant attempt to try and humiliate, when all the facts were on my side like his impending visit to Pakistan for a SAARC summit,’’ Venkateswaran said last year when he was dragged into the limelight again.
Venkateswaran was considered among India’s best foreign officials while in service. In a letter he wrote to the diplomatic corps when he took over as foreign secretary to Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on April 30, 1986 stated that it was necessary for the country to perceive the work of the IFS as being invaluable. “We might flatter ourselves that we are doing something extremely valuable for the country, but unless it is also perceived as such by our countrymen, they might well conclude our contribution is not worthwhile…” he said.
Last September when asked to draw comparisons between his own situation and the one involving Rahul Gandhi, Venkateswaran only commented to say that ‘history repeats itself first as a tragedy and then as a farce.’
After his exit from the IFS, Venkateswaran, who hailed from a Palakkad Iyer family, had settled down in Bangalore and set up the Asia Centre, a think-tank on Asian affairs comprising former diplomats and academics.
source: http://www.indianexpress.com / The Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bangalore / by Johnson Abraham / Bangalore – September 04th, 2014
