Monthly Archives: November 2014

Death centenary of a Dravidian leader

Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Leaders, Nature, Records, All, Science & Technologies, Uncategorized

 

Pandit Iyothee Thass / by Special Arrangement / The Hindu
Pandit Iyothee Thass / by Special Arrangement / The Hindu
He had his roots in The Nilgiris: Nilgiri Documentation Centre

The Kotagiri based Nilgiri Documentation Centre (NDC) has pointed out that 2014 marks the death centenary of a pioneering Dravidian leader who had his roots in the Nilgiris.

Stating that not many are aware of this, NDC Director Dharmalingam Venugopal has in a statement issued here on Wednesday pointed out that Pandit Iyothee Thass (1845-1914), who was born in Coimbatore, was brought up in the English household of George Harrington in Ooty. His father worked for the Harringtons. Thass was originally named Kathavarayan.

Tamil scholarThass became a well known Siddha practitioner and Tamil scholar with expertise in the traditional knowledge on astrology and palm-leaf manuscript reading. In 1870, Thass founded Adhvaidhananda Sabha in Ooty. In 1891, he established an organisation called the Dravida Mahajana Sabha, and organised the first conference at Ooty. In that conference, 10 resolutions were passed including the one on enacting a criminal law to punish those who humiliated untouchables, creating separate schools and providing scholarships for matriculation education for untouchable children; providing employment for educated untouchables, and representation for untouchables in District Boards and Municipal Boards.

In 1898, Thass visited Sri Lanka and converted himself to Buddhism under the influence of Colonel Olcott of Theosophical Society and founded ‘The Sakya Buddhist Society’ at Royapettah, Madras. In 1907, Thass launched his journal ‘Oru Paisa Tamilan’ as an organ of this organisation.

After a year the name was changed to ‘Tamilan’. It was edited, published and owned by Thass. The average circulation of the weekly was 500. The ‘Tamilan’ is considered the most renowned journal in Dalit print history because of its rich content and ideology.

In 1881, when the colonial Government planned to carry out the second census, Thass gave a memorandum to the Government requesting that the people of depressed classes in Tamil speaking land should be considered as Adi-Tamilar and not as Hindus.

Thass died in 1914. The institute for Siddha Research in Chennai is named after him.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Coimbatore / by Special Correspondent / Udhagamandalam – November 13th, 2014

CIBA’s experiment on mullet proves a success

Business & Economy, Nature, Records, All

MulletANDHRA13nov2014

The cultivation period of the fish, which is considered an alternative variety to shrimp, was brought down from one year to barely seven months

The Central Institute of Brackishwater Aquaculture (CIBA), Chennai, in collaboration with Nagayalanka-based progressive farmer has scripted a success story by bringing down the cultivation period of Gold Mullet (Liza Parsia) and Grey Mullet (Mugil Cephalus) fish with the help of ‘formulated feed’.

The feed was developed by the CIBA and tested for the first time in Nagayalanka in Andhra Pradesh in the country. The cultivation period of the fish, which is considered an alternative variety to shrimp, was brought down from one year to barely seven months, drawing the attention of the worried shrimp farmers.

On Wednesday, CIBA Principal Scientists K. Ambasankar and J. Syama Dayal came with up their findings following harvesting of the mullet species on an acre of pond here.

The seed grown in the pond was collected from estuary and brackish water canals.

“Findings of our research on cultivation of the spices indicate disease free and high rate of survival of the seed, apart from very low input cost,” Mr. Syama Dayal told The Hindu. However, the CIBA scientists experimented on these two species in their quest to come out with alternative to the shrimp, which was driving the farmer into irreparable loss in recent years.

Experiment

“The experiment on Liza Parsia and Mugil Cephalus in abandoned ponds where earlier shrimp was cultivated is a way for those failed to reap profits in shrimp cultivation. Farmers have already begun slowly inquiring about details such as input cost,” said Mr. Ambasankar.

Beyond expectations

According to Raghu Sekhar who cultivated the fish in his pond, growth of the mullet species was beyond expectations, wooing other farmers to try their luck. “No disease is found during the seven-month cultivation period, withstanding changes in the weather and the soil of the pond,” added Mr. Sekhar.

Given the market value for value added to the Mullet Roe (egg) of the species, European countries and Japan are importing it in a large scale.

On the other hand, the CIBA was engaged in developing seed of the mullet species by the end 2016, according to scientists.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Vijayawada / by T. Appala Naidu / Nagayalanka – November 13th, 2014

Chennai historian sets off on trail of Tanjore Marathas

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Leaders, Records, All

Chennai :

In October 1677, Maratha ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji paid a visit incognito to the Kalikambal temple in George Town, supposedly while contemplating an attack on the British forces. He came, he saw, he prayed, though he never did conquer.

“He finally decided against fighting,” said historian and archaeologist Dr S Suresh, Tamil Nadu State convener of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), who will give a talk on the Art and Architecture of the Tanjore Marathas for the Chennai chapter of the organisation on Wednesday, at Amethyst, a cafe and shop in Royapettah.

A few years before Shivaji’s visit, his half-brother Venkaji had made travelled to Tanjore to sort out a succession issue among the Nayak rulers. “Venkaji pitted one against the other and took charge of the kingdom, establishing the Tanjore Maratha dynasty in the south in 1676,” said Suresh, who completed his second PhD on the Marathas.

Several Maratha families also came to the south and settled in Tanjore, Vellore and Chennai. “Over the years, they developed their own culture and language, which is very different from the Mumbai Marathis,” he said. “Today’s Tanjore Marathis speak a dialect, which is completely different from Marathi.”

Suresh will also be releasing a book on the history of the Tanjore Marathas, a clan that had been ignored in most Indian history books. “They contributed to the art, architecture and culture of south India in a number of ways, but most of that is forgotten,” he said.

“They never destroyed an enemy’s building, but preserved and expanded them, always using the same material used in the existing structure,” said Suresh, citing the example of the Tanjore Big Temple in which the Marathas added a sub-shrine dedicated to Lord Nataraja.

“The Marathas ordinarily used brick to build their temples. But here they used stone for the sub-shrine because that was what was used in the rest of the temple. No one can tell the sub-shrine was added later.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Chennai / by Kamini Mathai , TNN /  September 24th, 2014

Historian brings Dutch history in Chennai to life

About Chennai(Madras) / TamilNadu, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, World Opinion

Chennai :

The sombre surrounds of the Tamil Nadu Archives are at home with history, their halls accustomed to quiet scholarship. But on Tuesday afternoon, history leaped off the pages as Dr Bauke van der Pol, Dutch cultural anthropologist, introduced a full house to his recent book, The Dutch East India Company in India. His scholarship studies the trade links between the Netherlands and India, beginning with the 16th century and petering out in the 19th.

It was the archives’ first public address after four years, the institution being a vital resource for Dr Pol’s research. In fact it was the Dutch embassy that helped the state archives preserve and digitize its Dutch papers, which can be accessed on the website of the National Archives of Netherlands, albeit in Dutch.

Back in Egmore, Dr Pol’s presentation opened with a monogram of The United Dutch East India Company, whose acronym in Dutch (VOC) is said to be the oldest trademark of a multinational. Evidence of the trademark can be found across India, in the still-standing monuments of former Dutch settlements like Kochi, Chinsurah, Nagapattinam and Sadras. “India has a longer relationship with the Dutch than America does,” Dr Pol said.

The first Dutchman arrived in India in 1568, but trade ties were first established in 1604, when on November 11, Admiral Setven van der Hagen landed in Malabar to sign a defence and trade treaty with the Zamorin of Kozhikode. The Dutch East India Company had been established two years before this in 1602.

Although Madras was not a Dutch settlement, its neighbouring Pulicat was a stronghold; the best surviving evidence of this is the Dutch cemetery. “People presumed pirates were buried there because of the skull and skeleton carvings,” says Dr Pol, who had to enlighten people about the features of 18th century cemetery design.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Chennai / by Joeanna Rebello Fernandes, TNN / November 12th, 2014

An evening pays tribute to maestro Madurai Mani Iyer

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Chennai :

Time was when the rickshaw-pullers in Mylapore would assemble for Madurai Mani Iyer’s concert, requesting their customers to wait until the event got over. Such was the verve with which Mani Iyer approached each raga in his natural and vibrant style. And that’s the reason why an evening to mark the 103rd birth anniversary of the veteran Carnatic vocalist turned out to be special on Sunday.

The event was organized by the members of the Madurai Mani Iyer Centenary Committee at PS High School, Mylapore. Music enthusiast V Vishnuramprasad played a rare collection of songs that the maestro had rendered at Anguvilas in Dindigul in February 1962 accompanied by his favorite mridangist Palani Subramaniam Pillai, the young Lalgudi Jayaraman on the violin and Alangudi Ramachandran on the ghatam.

The three-hour concert was recorded using an old tape-recorder. Apparently, it was not easy for Vishnuramprasad to collect that old record from Dindigul. “It took a long time to covert the tape-recorded version into MP3 format. But still, the quality is not that great. But this is a vintage collection and one of the best of Mani Iyer’s,” says Vishnuramprasad.

Songs like “Karunai seivai” in Hamsadwani and “O jagadamba” in Anandhabhairavi featured in the concert, were introduced after giving final touches to the old version. Similarly, ‘Kapali’ in Mohanam followed by a grand Thaniavarthanam by mridangist Palani and ghatam maestro Alangudi shows how Mani Iyer treated his percussionists. “Palani Subramaniam Pillai was his favorite mridangist. He was an unsung hero. The Dindigul concert was the last one that Palani and Mani Iyer shared together. Palani died after a couple of months,” he says.

Mani Iyer was born to M S Ramaswamy Iyer and Subbulakshmi on October 25, 1912 in Madurai. Veteran vocalist T V Sankaranarayanan is his nephew.

R Suryaprakash, a Carnatic singer who follows the Mani Iyer style, says, “It was Iyer who popularized the avarohana (descending scale) style in Carnatic music. His experiments with ragas opened a new world in Carnatic music. And it is still respected,” he says.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Chennai / TNN / November 11th, 2014

An in-house force charting an affordable way

Business & Economy, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Science & Technologies

 

The 24-year-old is planning to make a venture out of a low-cost electric mobility scooter, a design improvised from existing models by his father. Photo: M. Moorthy / The Hindu
The 24-year-old is planning to make a venture out of a low-cost electric mobility scooter, a design improvised from existing models by his father. Photo: M. Moorthy / The Hindu
Naidhroven and his father, who have congenital muscular dystrophy, are working at making mobility devices affordable

As soon as Naidhroven A. sees a visitor approaching his house, from his first floor balcony, he quickly descends in a customised lift.

The 24-year-old and his father, R. Aravamudan (60), who were diagnosed with congenital muscular dystrophy, are working at making mobility devices affordable.

A battery-operated electric mobility scooter that Naidhroven uses to move around the house was put together by his father. While Mr. Aravamudan has built the prototype scooter, Naidhroven is soon planning to make them available commercially, at low cost.

When Mr. Aravamudan could no longer walk after a fall, he decided to build a scooter at home instead of buying an expensive one for himself. “My dad could not walk after 2010 and wanted a scooter that was tailor-made. I had a fall in 2012,” said Naidhroven, who has completed his MBA.

Mr. Aravamudan who runs an electrocardiogram machine-making business unit from home said he was able to cut costs by using locally-sourced materials. “Videos on YouTube were of great help when I was starting,” he said, adding that his background in electronics engineering and an interest in automobiles and mechanics helped to a great extent.

Naidhroven said they spent between Rs. 8,000-10,000 to build the basic prototype that they use. “The imported models were quite expensive; so, my father started making the scooters to fulfil our needs. We then thought that we could help others as well,” he said, adding that the designs themselves are not new, and were improvised from existing ones. “We outsourced processes that required certain expensive machines, and assembled it at home,” he said.

Naidhroven is raising funds for the commercial venture through a bank loan as well as through Indiegogo, a crowd-funding platform. “I want to develop a low-cost scooter that can be controlled using a mobile application and also low-cost wheelchairs that can be used to climb stairs,” Naidhroven said.

He uses two variants of the scooter, modified for indoor and outdoor use.

Radha Aravamudan, Naidhroven’s mother, said they have not bought mass-marketed assistive devices, and have instead tried to make similar ones at home for themselves in order to be independent.

Naidhroven can be reached at naidhro@gmail.com.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai> Society / by Asha Sridhar / November 10th, 2014

Former child prodigy leads naval band to Kolkata

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Kolkata :

He claims that he only managed to chew on the harmonica that his father gifted him at the age of four. His father, however, believed that there was something in the way he played it. By the age of six, he was playing a piano and barely six year’s later, he was invited to the TeenMurti Auditorium in New Delhi to play the piano on the occasion of the bicentenary celebrations of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. This child grew up to be Lt CdrSatish K Champion, principal conductor of the Navy’s Eastern Command Band that is presently in Kolkata.

“I am from Chennai but was born and brought up in Mumbai. My father was in the Navy as well. After starting with the piano, I passed a series of examinations under the aegis of the Royal School of Music, London. Even then, I had not planned a career in music but took up computers. This was when the two officers from the music wing of the Navy retired and they started looking for talent. I was selected,” Champion told TOI.

Joining was not even half of the job done. Over the next few months, he had to gain sufficient mastery over several musical instruments and had to pass several rounds of tests. After all, he was to be a conductor. Champion is also formally trained on the trumpet apart from the piano and has several musical compositions to his credit.

On Sunday evening, Champion and the members of his band mesmerized the audience at Lascar Memorial. The selection of tunes was done to suit the occasion. While numbers like Colonel Bogey (of Bridge on the River Kwai fame) got people clapping, many in the audience were tapping their feet during the Rock and Roll medley. The Xylophone solo ‘Tipy Toes’, composed by Champion was also a hit as was Henry L Kling’s composition ‘Piccolo Duet’.

On Monday, the band performed at the ICCR Auditorium. On Tuesday, it is scheduled to perform at the Tollygunge Club. This back to back schedule hasn’t been easy for the band.

“We are hardly getting any time to rehearse. After all, the selections will have to be different for every location. The compositions will depend on the audience and the ambience. We have to adapt to the changes at each location. However, I have full confidence in the members of the band and they are doing their best,” Champion added.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kolkata / by Jayanta Gupta, TNN / November 10th, 2014

Erode girls win handball championship

Education, Sports
The triumphant Erode handball team receiving the prize fromM. Ramasubramani, Inspector-General of Police, Central Zone, in Tiruchi on Sunday.
The triumphant Erode handball team receiving the prize fromM. Ramasubramani, Inspector-General of Police, Central Zone, in Tiruchi on Sunday.

Erode clinched the title in the State sub-junior handball championship for girls, which concluded here on Sunday.

The two-day tournament, played for the M.A.M. Rolling Trophy, was jointly organised by Tamil Nadu Handball Association (TNHBA), Tiruchi District Handball Association (TDHBA), and M.A.M. Matriculation Higher Secondary School.

Teams from 24 districts took part in the tournament that was played on knockout basis.

Erode defeated Tiruvannamalai in the final. Thanjavur got the better of Coimbatore in the third place playoff. R. Vimala of Tiruchi and S. Amirtha Varshini of Erode were adjudged best player and best goalkeeper respectively.

M. Ramasubramani, Inspector-General of Police, Central Zone, and president, Handball Federation of India, gave away the prizes in the presence of A. Saravanan, general secretary, TNHBA; M.A. Mohamed Nizam, secretary, MAM Group of Institutions; M.A. Fathima Mansoor, correspondent of the school; S. Amala Ruban, principal; SP. Annamalai, president, TDHBA; and R. Karunakaran, secretary.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / by Staff Reporter / Tiruchi – November 11th, 2014

Chennai’s graves to figure in WW I commemoration events

Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All

Chennai :

The government of India is planning a four-year-long celebration of the centenary of World War 1 (1914-1918) and Chennai, with its three Commonwealth War Graves Commission sites, will definitely feature in the commemorative events, says CWGC India office manager Naresh Kalra.

“This is the first of the four-year celebrations, which will go on till 2018. The CWGC sites in New Delhi, Pune, and Chennai are on the map for the celebrations although dates and events have not yet been finalised. This is a defence and diplomatic exercise and is coordinated by the Ministry of Defence, Government of India,” said Kalra, adding that the celebrations, whether at the CWGC sites or elsewhere, are coordinated by the Ministry of Defence.

In Chennai, the three CWGC cemeteries are at Nandambakkam (the largest), set up in 1952, the second within St Mary’s Church cemetery (one acre with 123 graves) and the third at St Patrick’s Church cemetery (5 graves).

“There are no graves in any of the three CWGC sites here for the Indian soldiers who died in the first or second world wars. We only have the graves of the British who served in the Indian army. We have a World War 1 memorial wall listing the names of 1,039 British soldiers and 25 graves. The rest of the graves are for soldiers of World War II,” said N Rajarajan, who has been in charge of the CWGC graves in Chennai for 23 years.

He added that the only war memorial in the city that honours soldiers who fought the world wars and other wars was at Island grounds. “It is maintained by the government of India and not CWGC,” said Rajarajan.

While the Government of India is getting its events in order, Rajarajan says plans are afoot to finally get a proper drainage system at the Nandambakkam cemetery. “Up until 2002, we used to hold the Remembrance Day ceremony (usually the second week of November) here at Nandambakkam but had to change the venue to St Mary’s Church because of the flooding. Hopefully, the new drainage system will help,” he said.

On Sunday, November 9, about a hundred diplomats, army personnel and residents of the city gathered at St Mary’s Church to commemorate Remembrance Day, in honour of those who fell in the two world wars. “We had the customary prayer, wreath-laying and bugle service,” said Rajarajan.

More than one million Indian soldiers served overseas, in different theatres, during World War 1.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Chennai / by Kamini Mathai, TNN / November 11th, 2014

Blue Boys Team of Fathima School Invent Water Alarm

Education, Green Initiatives/ Environment, Science & Technologies

BlueBoysMPOs11nov2014

Chennai :

To create environmental awareness in Saidapet, three teams — the Eco-friendly, the Blue Boys and the Go-Green — were started in Fathima Matriculation Higher Secondary School.

The Blue Boys team contributed with a water alarm.  Afrith of Class 10 invented the alarm.

One day when Afrith was alone at home, he saw water overflowing from the tank, which led to the invention.  He decided to create an alarm to alert people when water overflows from the tank.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Education> Student / by Express News Service / November 11th, 2014