CITY JOURNAL JAN25

'Dreams help us achieve our goals'





Staff Reporter

Faris Majeed

"KNOWLEDGE unites us and that oneness comes when we find ourselves. Through dreams we reach that goal", said Oscar award-winner Resool Pookutty.

The musician who brought fame to our homeland, Pookutty was interacting with

students of Sakthan Thampuran College of Mathematics and Arts, during the silver jubilee celebrations of the college.

A man who believes in tradition, Pookutty acknowledges the fact that words which have been handed over through the ages in the form of Vedas have transformed into sounds. When all are equipped with calibre, only some reach heights. He wanted to provide a platform to those who were talented to excel, he told

the students about his new venture.

He praised Bollywood for its success and popularity. But he rued the fact that though Bollywood was the biggest film industry in the world, it had not made any great contribution. No great camera or lenses were produced in India. We owed everything to others.

According to him, teachers had to be trained in such a way that students could be taught to find 'art in oneself'. This was his message to the students.

Prof Menon handed over a memento to Pookutty. Music composer Alphonse Joseph and singer Anoop Shankar, both alumni of the school, too were present.

CITY JOURNAL JAN22

PREPAIRE FOR LIFE, NOT JOB- DAWN DEKLE



Dawn Dekle interacting with students at the Hari Sree Vidhya Nidhi school yesterday.
By Faris Majeed
SP Jain Centre of Management's global BBA programme dean Dr Dawn Dekle yesterday said that goal of each student was to be prepared for life, not just for their first job." She was interacting with students from different schools at Hari Sree Vidhya Nidhi School auditorium Poonkunnam.
Dekle explained that SP's was the only global BBA undergraduate programme in the world to have a dual- campus, dual-country model.
A PhD holder from the Dartmouth College USA, Deckle is the winner of the most inspirational teacher award in 2005. She is in India now introducing the programme at different schools.
At the programme, students spend their first two years in Singapore learning about business in Asia followed by another two years in Sydney experiencing the financial hub of Australia. Students from various customs and cultures of six continents are converging at the centre.
Around 84% of the students from the institution, with over 20 years of experience, got their selection on the campus itself, said Dekle. There was no fee charged to apply for the programme through online. Half of the students get scholarship, but there were only 32 Indian students who pursue the course now. Apart from the BBA graduation, the SP's offers MBA, but only for those with a compulsory three year experience.
Dekle's lecture, accompanied by a power-point presentation, was met with numerous queries from the audience. When a student raised her doubt "why dual model", she explained that the dual model created a better understanding among its participants of multinational business settings.
Students from Kailasa Vidhya Nikethan Mullakkara, Hari Sree Vidhya Nidhi school Poonkunnam, Devamnatha Public School Patturaikkal, Chinmaya Vidyalaya Kolazhy, Gurukulam Public School Venginissery were also present.

CITY JOURNAL JAN20

After onions, flower prices skyrocket


Staff Reporter

IT'S THE season of celebrations and flowers are an inevitable item. Jasmine, with its sweet fragrance, is among the bestl.

However, its sky-rocketing price has made it unaffordable to most people and dampened the spirit of celebrations not only within the city but elsewhere too. In fact, Thrissur, and the temple town of Guruvayoor, being the topmost importers of jasmine flowers, are witnessing an acute shortage of the flowers.

Jasmine which comes to Kerala is commercially grown in Coimbatore, Madurai, Dindikkal and Sathyamangalam in Tamil Nadu. But unseasonal heavy rains destroyed not only the crop bu the dreams of jasmine farmers. For the customer, it was a double whammy: non-availability of the blooms and high price.

The city saw a kg of jasmine being sold for Rs.2500 last week. Flower merchants are expecting it go up further.

Other flowers too have become dearer. "One single lotus now costs Rs.5. It was Rs.20 in Coimbatore not so long ago," said Sreejith, who sells flowers at Swaraj Round.

Flowers are always in demand. Other than personal needs, temple ceremonies also require large quantities of fresh blooms. When it's the season of marriages, the demand sky-rockets, putting further pressure on the price.

Faisal, who got married last Saturday, will remember the day more for a wrong reason. On the day of the niqah, he was anxiously waiting at the rail station for the Tea Garden Express to bring the all-important flowers. He dreaded the thought of the consignment not arriving, as it often happened lately.

Increased demand for flowers because of Pongal and the emerging demand for jasmine flowers abroad are said to be the the other reasons for the ever-increasing price. According to traders, a snowfall in the season could further worsen the situation.

In the absence of the traditional jasmine, pretenders have arrived in the market. But the fragrant Bangalore jasmine does not match up and the demand is low. If the price of the flower increases further, they could possibly become a new yardstick for measuring the affluence of people at weddings - a la gold.

CITY JOURNAL JAN21

Illegal posters plague collectorate wall




By Faris Majeed
After the district administrative headquarters at Ayyanthole became ground for protesters, the wall that surrounds the collectorate is now filled with posters and banners. And in an ironic twist, the posters are pasted below an order of the collector prohibiting the same.
Almost all parties and unions make use of the wall. Waste bags can be seen lying in front of the entrance. When approached regarding the posters, a student wing leader said: "If others can do it why can't we." The collector's order has been pasted at seven places around the fence, but to no avail. During the last local body elections, several campaign fluxes were also seen on the walls.
The West police station adjacent to the collectorate seems to be blind to this public violation of the law. A nearby tea shop owner says that posters are pasted at around midnight. Renjith, a student remembers a flux on the same fence two years back certifying that it's not a new phenomenon.
The ceaseless rallies and protest marches also result in traffic jams in the area, complains an auto driver.

A poster pasted below the order prohibiting the pasting of posters on the collectorate wall

MY ELSY TEACHER

                                                    MY ELSY TEACHER

When sharp hollowness conquer the mind, when nothing more to be creative, a desperate day of such a kind can bring you in to a sudden notion of a trip. That day a small journey in to my old school were seventeen years back I was a kid with severe pranks. I went on my black bike. Some dark clouds were still lingering over the sky, but I went on. Some old frames were there in my mind of the school. A noisy mansion, nearby church, frozen classrooms….

As like love at first sight, nostalgic at first sight I was. Nothing changed. I could see the same verandah, same arch, same frozen classrooms. Without a second thought I went inside one of the class rooms, sudden the teacher stopped me, “who are you”. Is that a frown or an authoritative query she should ask? I answered her that I was an old student of the school and came for nothing, on the way I stopped and wanted to have a look. She too had a sudden surprise, and enquired all the details, which year I studied, which class, which teacher etc. but I was lost in thoughts, a boy with shorts and shirts running through the verandah, I was searching for that lost frame in my old fond memory disk.

 The teacher brought me to the office and the Head Mistress through her glass scanned me. To simplify their doubts I told them that my father was once the PTA president of the school. She took the archive and went through the photos. Yes I spotted him wearing a brown Rayban. “It’s my father”, I cried. After a fifteen minute chat I asked her if still old teachers are there in the school. She couldn’t get whom I was referring to, and the problem was I couldn’t remember her name who taught me, A for Apple, B for Bat, the first hand lessons of my life. But I remember her eyes, she has a squint eyes.

That helped her spot the teacher. She told its Elsy, I prayed God don’t let my clues go wrong. She rang the attendee and enquired if she was there. Yes Elsy teacher is there in the class. With the permission I hurried in to the class. I was busy framing her, how would she look like. Attendee took me in to the same class where once I sat with my pals and did all the pranks. LKG B, some twenty thirty kids were roaring there. But my Elsy teacher wasn’t there. I heard even a kid asking “aren’t you our new sir”?

 He searched all the nook and corner for her, but in vain. But he brought the news that Elsy teacher just left to home. Luckily the lady knows where my Elsy teacher lives. She told me the name of the place, somewhat five kilometers apart. I decided to move to her home. Before that I took some pictures of my old classroom with my mobile. Met the Headmistress who accompanied by a group of teachers. They were all gazing at me, might have wondered after seeing this old chap.

The roads in front of me lead to severe confusion; throughout I asked the people I see on the road side. At last I met the house. A small house painted yellow, showing the unlined bricks. I beckoned her name, no answer. I continued and sudden an old grandma opened the door for me. She was struggling to spot me. i enquired whether there is someone called Elsy here. A lady wearing spectacles came out.” What you want”? I was mute for a minute; the empty frame which I carried was filling with an image, my Elsy teacher. I asked her if she could recognize me, knowing that she won’t. She pondered for a while but as I expected she didn’t get me. I revealed myself, my name first, but still she failed. I told her I was a bad boy of her class, but she didn’t. sudden I remember my most outrageous prank of breaking her spectacles once,  when I was about to tell her that , I could see her eyes filled with tears, she got me, the naughtiest chap of her seventeen years back LKG batch. She was looking me up to down. She was screaming to her grandma, “This is my old student, faris”. She couldn’t stop weeping

Seventeen years flash back. We discussed almost all, my scoring of zeros in every dictation, my parents’ worries, peeing in the class etc. Everything we talked. I asked about her family and understanding the meaning of my question, she replied “is still single living for my old mom”

When I was leaving the home with a nostalgia brimming heart, I saw she was looking me with her squint eyes from inside her house, waving hands. I took my bike and within a minute I turned to the highway but her words “is still single living for my old mom” reverberates in my heart today also

                                                                                                                                            

BLOGGER

BLOG AND JOURNALISM

“What is in your mind” that’s the face book asks us when we sign in to a face book account. Twitter further asks us “what are you doing”. These two are the frequent online questions that have been answered every second by a large chunk of people today. It makes people always connecting. The blogs are more the space where we exercise our daily diary scribbling. But past 5 years blogs have been more influential and has played severe role in carrying messages. For an example, when a boy from Palestine writes about his country and people, and the chaotic situation there, it’s nothing but simple and pure journalism. Journalism can simply defined as sending information from one place to other or from one source to the destination. Here these blogs do the same as what our ordinary media does. Hence blogs are the new media where every individual can be a journalist.

WHAT IS BLOG

A blog is a contraction of the term weblog usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, description of events, or other material such as graphics or videos. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. Hence it’s a platform where an individually can express himself. Here the writer also writes whatever his or her reader intends, hence they grow in to that level where the readers come in to the blog with comments and criticism.

CITIZEN JOURNALISM AND BLOG

The idea behind citizen journalism is that people without professional journalism training can use the modern tool of modern technology and the global distribution of the internet to create augment or fact-check media on their own or collaboration with others. For example we might write about a city council meeting on your blog or in an online forum, or you could fact-check a news paper article from the mainstream media and point out factual errors or bias on your blog, or you might snap a digital photo of a newsworthy event happening in your town and posyt its online, or you might video type a similar event and post it on you tube. Foreign countries are now experience the trend of diminishing the number of print material generally newspapers. The emergence of e reading graduated their reading culture, but in India still e reading has not yet accepted fully. But social networking sites like face book, twitter are the spaces where the Indians engage to report the things surrounded them. For an example when Mumbai terror attacks hit the media coverage and was severely reporting the updates, but a group of tweets which carried the best and the latest out of the attacks were read all over India. It was the initial period of twitter, and then the whole country had a massive twitter mania which came to the public limelight when Sashi Tharoor tweeted about the ‘cattle class’ journey.

MEDIA GATEKEEPING AND BLOG

Every media has its own politics and values. In India the disease is more severe. And hence news and the style of presenting the news often vary in different media. This can cause the serious problem of ethics in journalism. While in blogs which is a open space to write anything a blogger like. Here there is no the process of gate keeping. Blogs have well used for protesting, self a, self expression etc. no outer force controls the words and sentences of the blogger. More than everything it has far more reaches than ordinary media now in the society.

Hence blog and other converging spaces have provided for better scope for citizen journalism. Now the field of journalism has reduced itself to locales. Here everybody can blog whtever happens internationally or subjects of major interest. But local issues or topics which we generally leave unnoticed can have better news value. It’s now the world of community journalist who has a rapport with their specific topic or a specific place will write or report the happenings and trends of the area they are concerned. This is the new emerging field called community journalism.

COMMUNITY JOURNALISM

Community journalism is locally oriented, professional news coverage that typically focuses on city neighborhood, individual suburbs or small towns rather than metropolitan, state or nation wide. If it covers wider topics, community concentrates on their effort on local readers. Community newspapers often but not always published weekly also tends to cover subjects larger news media do not. In the United States about 98 percent of newspapers are classified as community newspapers with circulation below 50,000. An increased number of community newspaper are now owned by large media organization

Community journalists are typically trained professional reporters and editors. Some specialized training programmes have recently emerged at established undergraduate and graduate journalism programs. Community journalism shouldnot be confused citizen journalists, who are often unpaid amateurs ,or with civic journalism, although many community newspapaers practice it.

OVERSEAS BLOGS

There are a lot of people who live in foreign countries for earning their livelihood. They too use this media to express their feelings and identity. Some blogs were of their old village, the shabby road, journeys, even good stories comes out from such blogs. Gulf countries where no other way to express themselves, they use to blog their overseas experience. Some use it as a tool to report things done there to their loved ones here.

Bloggers are now the real source of news. The blogs from the war fields such as from Iraq, Palestine are such wonderful blogs, where bloggers update all the latest. We sitting in India can log on to such blogs and can be helpful to understand the supreme life and sufferings of the people living there. For example riverbend.blogspot.com, ingaza.wordpress.com, etc are the exclusive blogs from the Middle East. There a lot others which tell us the inner stories of remote villages in farthest places. Thus blogs serve the greatest purpose of carrying the news, the real duty of a journalist.

LAGE RAHO BAPUJI....

                                                  MEDIA DIMENSIA

October second, Gandhi jayanti day for us and world wide it is international non violence day. Its so unhappy to percieve that all those said mainstream English newpapers  of the city came  without having any news about him.When governrment advertisements in not more than 4 pages about the day including Gandhis profile was there instead. A man with new formula for freedom , a man had a vision, a man who was himself simple, a man who couldnt seperate ends and means. An ardent believer in god , stood for Ramarajyam, a land where the last men holds his right...

A country where 30 percent are stuck with poverty ,  where  crores of rupees are flown in to the sky in balloons in the name of a Common Wealth Games , the cries for the cleanliness of the toilets and the kalmadi scanadal, media would  have defenitly blown the trumpets.For a country like India the game is a poineer venture, so its is like this,a deserved reporting is needed. But a man  years before found out the heart of the country lies in villages not in  this village of games was neglected by the newsppapers..

When there are still arguements that can  media bring forward the less noticed ,make the voice for the voiceless or if it has the simple function to decipher messages to the people.Anyway the editors in charge or the person corncerned can be more specific to these days, unless the leaders are in our memmory the history can easily be forgotten.........

WHEN WILL YOU REACH HERE DUDE??

                             WHEN WILL YOU REACH HERE DUDE...??

When I  was for Argentina, he hosted the flag for Brazil. When everyone danced with waka waka, he was listening to knaan. Riyas ,a sub editor in Madhyamam daily who had a passion for sports. He always wanted to fill that vacuum, wanted to become a legend sports reporter….but left this world in to a larger vacuum….

It was on the day when I started to Chennai from my home town I heard the news. Mr Riyas has left us and the funeral will be on the next day, coldness shrugged me back. But throughout journey, through the window I saw Riyas , smiling at me…

It was my internship period at Madhyamam, I met him at the desk. Erstwhile days gave me boring hours to spend with, but later in the desk I was enjoying, World cup football on one side and editing news on another side. I couldn’t concentrate my heart on both. My eyes started travelling to the screen. But a few small news stories are there waiting to be edited. In the midst I saw another guy striving hard, facing the same menace I have.

While entering to the desk, he greets his entire colleague with a handshake sandwiched with a smile. Then to his seat, skimming over the sports pages of the day, he would start his job….he corrects my mistakes with a smile. Don’t know why he had a smile for everything….

His passion for sports was there in him from his degree years.  College sports day was his day. he enjoys each and every second of the day. He never misses sports meets. He had his own style of reporting from the grounds. Our discussions and debates on Argentia,Brazil,Forlan, Maradona  made our bond more tighter. Days passé I packed up everything and left the place. But we continued our discussions through mails and scraps…

He used to travel by train.  On his last day he reached home, had his prayer, took his dinner and went to the sleep, the eternal sleep….

My train reached Chennai, again the busy travellers, vendors… I reached my room, opened my orkut profile saw some scraps in the midst a scrap from Riyas “where are you, when will you reach here dude?”

universsity rememebers raimon Panikkar

UNIVERSITY OF MADRAS REMEMBERS RAIMON PANIKAR

  The department of philosophy of University of Madras conducted a tribute to the great legend of philosophy Raimon Panikkar has been a prominent advocate of inter-religious dialogue throughout his life. Triple doctorate holder who had published around 900 articles had traveled a longway in his discipline. Raimon a scientist, a philosopher, a theologist spend his entire life teaching at foreign universities. Dr Michael Amaldoss from Loyola College, Dr Ananad Amaldoss , Satya Nilayam Resrach Institute, Dr Pushpa Joseph ,Department of Christian studies , University of Madras , Dr Panneer Selvam , Department of Philosophy , University of Madras  shared their experience and various thoughts of Raimon Panikkarn .Having authored more than fourty books,he left this world on August 26 2010,but  still his famous lines reverberates in the world of philosophy. “I left as a Christian, I found myself a Hindu and I return a Buddhist”

A WORKSHOP HELD IN THE UNIVERSITY

 WORKSHOP ON THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL JUSTICE AND THE DRAVIDIAN

MOVEMENT-

Chennai: Centre for Reaserch on Dravidian Movement of University of Madras conducted a half day workshop on the concept of Social Justice and Dravidian Movement here at Chepauk. Dr Panneer Selvam, coordinator for the Centre for Research on Dravidian Movement welcomed the gathering and explained the objective of the workshop. “History is not mere facts, but has a relevant context attached to it”, prof Anand Amaladass, Satyam Nilayam research institute Chennai stressed the lines in the Presidential Address. Prof C. BalaKrishnan, Former Professor of History, University of Madras presented the paper on ‘Demand for Social Justice under Colonial Rule in the Madras Presidency and British response (1857-1947). Mangalam Murukesh, a twin doctorate holder lectured on ‘the Implication of the Social Justice in the Present Day Context. Dr A. Azhagarasan, another speaker from the Department of English, University of Madras spoke on ‘Social Justice and Dravidian Movement: A Dalit Critique. Dr Sudharsanan Padmanabhan from the Department of HSS, IIT Madras presented a paper on ‘Social Justice in Tamil Nadu: Applying Rawls, Amarthya Sen and Periyar. Students from various departments including research scholars participated in the workshop

a blind man who see the world

CHITHAPPAN;  THE MAN OF MANAKKODY……

     It was a rainy day, sreedhar was shivering with acute fever. his mother was hold him in her bosom tightly. Whenever sudden thunder flashes across the sky, her hold tightens further. But it didn’t help sreedher’s fever to come down…….

                                              Sreedhar is now chithaappan  (59), a blind man with a sharp ears, he is the man of the village , he brings grocery for the villagers, he goes to ration shop for kerosene. He is the helping hand of all the families who don’t have male son to perform those duties.

Everybody in the village beckons him ‘chithaapan’. His daily routine starts with the daily morning bath nearby the back waters, he knows every nook and corner of the village, no every nook and corner knows him. After the shower he reaches the teashop, where all the old ones have their first puff in the morning. He then listens to the news being read in the shop. After a cup of tea he is ready for his the days work. Each household gives him some amount back for his daily expense. Even though if it is a 5 rupee note or 10rs note he is never unhappy.

Every marriages, house warming, funerals of the village is attended by chithaapan. After the lunch he dozes off for a while, then some music and then to the street waiting for his evening calls. Most of the days at evening he is busy in ration shops.  He always wears a smell of kerosene.

He is now 59, un married. He is now with his brother. His only mother died ten years back; she was the real light in his life. It didn’t stop him from living his life.

Whenever anyone gives him a puff, he is too happy the whole day...but he promises he never takes more than three or four puffs. He is satisfied with that...

He recognises the person from a long distance with his sharp ears. Then he will start speaking loudly. He is one of the story tellers of the village, according to him he has seen a lot than all other villagers. He is happy, always welcomes us with a smiling face

On that rainy night, that fever took his sight, took the colours of his life, but it couldn’t take his life, his passion for life….

           50 paisa............


 without coins, i mean without change its difficult to travel throughout city. for a five rupee tiket when we give a 10 rs note, the bus conductor or the person concerned will frown at you. why it happens,? where is the all coinns gone? is the govt responsible?

 we have been facing this problem fro around 2 years, but if we ask or queation the authority , they will mark you as maoist. and if the person questioning happened   to be in the names like muhammad, ahammad, ibrahim, then sure they will pounce upon you saying you are terrorist..

what is the real problem behind this issue, we are planning to do  a reasrch,,,
 this is just a prelude, hope god help us to go on...

KASHMIR ,the paradise on earth is on turmoil..............

                                                            NIHARIKA


let me marry you
my blind kashmiri,
your eyes have never
seen those bloody cops.
let me christen you as
'niharika'
so that they may not
rape you in the name of
religion

Who Killed Karkare? The Real Face Of Terrorism In India By SM Mushrif

Who Killed Karkare? The Real Face Of Terrorism In India By SM Mushrif

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umbrella losers

                                                         UMBRELLA LOSERS IN ACTION

Its so sad when i write this, but  yet it seems funny that why it happens... but cant do something to come out of it.It happened this year also,yes i ,lost my umbrella yesterday. It has a long history to narrate the story of this mumbrella lose.. i used to  lose my umbreklla every year, its a victious circle.. mit started from my 8th standard, it still remains so.  from tenth standard onwards my mother  starded giving me second hand umbrella,so that they dont cry over the spilt milk.. but when i was sewnt to the college, i  stopped taking umbrella, so that i can save some umbrellas.. its actually forgetfullness  that conquor over me...there are a many  suffering from this disease, me at its edge..this time i havent told my mother...let her be rid of tension.. but i believe all those umbrellas have been used by some or the other to escape from this rain.. so am doing a survice to the mankind. yes??.am now  trying to make a group of people  who have the same disease, come let us join  hands  to help the others  by losing our umbrellas