P. Selvam, a faculty member of the International Research Centre, Kalasalingam University, Krishnankoil, has been made a Fellow of International Society for Noni Sciences by International Society for Noni Sciences.
The fellowship is in recognition of Dr. Selvam’s contribution to research in medicinal plant Morinda Citrifolia L Noni and its ability to cure cancer.
Chancellor K. Sridharan, Director Sasi Anand and Vice- Chancellor S. Saravana Sankar congratulated him for the recognition, according to a release.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / by Special Correspondent / Virudhunagar – April 07th, 2016
Anuradha Balaji at her farm in Thiruvallur district D Sampath Kumar
Chennai :
When we talk of women breaking social barriers, we hardly think of them as farmers. But that’s what Anuradha Balaji of Villivakkam has done. She bought a piece of land in neighbouring Tiruvallur district, set up a farm there, and manages it almost single-handedly. She travels an hour every day to the farm at Periyapalayam and supervises the workers.
“Many people in this locality thought I’m a soft-spoken Brahmin woman who would be scared of problems and soon sell the land. But I chose to fight and asked thorough questions to get the benefits,” Anuradha Balaji tells City Express. She narrates an incident when officials asked for unnecessary documents to provide benefits to farmers. “I realised that being a woman farmer is not easy. But I fought the discrimination with support from my husband and family,” she says.
Even as she speaks to the reporter, she instructs the farm workers to stop the flow of water. “It’s afternoon; don’t water plants and trees now,” she tells them and adds that her farm (eight acres of land) is an organic farm.
“We use organic ingredients for manure, including a mix of cow urine, dung and dry leaves,” she says. How did the 43-year-old with a masters degree in library and information science and a career as a librarian in Saudi Arabia take up farming?
“I worked there for 10 years. But when I got back, the first thing I wanted to do was farming. With my husband’s help, I bought the land near Vadamadurai. My uncle too encouraged me and I finally set up this farm in 2008,” she recalls.
“Both of us were interested in organic farming for several years. My wife decided to start doing what we always wished to. I support her financially,” says Balaji, adding that he might be able to help her even more when he returns from Saudi Arabia, where he now works.
But Anuradha doesn’t depend on her husband alone. She works in such a way that the farm sustains itself. She does inter-crop cultivation, so if one crop fails, the other crop would her make ends meet. She also makes value-added products from farm produce.
“If the market for gooseberries is poor, we make candy and pickle. We also grow rice and other grains and vegetables. We also plan to grow herbal plants for medicinal use. Right now, we are laying the foundation. My failures have taught me how to manage a farm. Without my family’s support, I wouldn’t be able to do what I had always dreamed of,” she smiles.
Shankar, a chemical engineer who quit his job to assist her, explains, “We want to do integrated farming. We plan to bring in native cows also, which will help in farming and (provide) manure. Man, land and animals are interconnected and we should preserve them.”
Couple share the same passion
“Both of us were interested in organic farming for several years. My wife decided to start doing what we always wished to. I support her financially,” says Balaji, adding that he might be able to help her even more when he returns from Saudi Arabia, where he now works.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Sremathi M / March 29th, 2016
Social activist Anna Hazare and actor Suriya at the launch of Noyyalai Nokki , an initiative to restore the Noyyal, in Coimbatore on Saturday.— Photo: S. Siva Saravanan
It was a festive occasion at Kooduthurai (Alandurai) near the foothills of the Western Ghats, here on Saturday evening.
Hundreds gathered for the launch of Noyyalai Nokki , a people’s initiative to restore the 160-km long river.
The river originates in the Western Ghats and passes through Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode, and Karur districts to join the Cauvery at Noyyal village.
“I want to come after two years to see the Noyyal restored,” said social activist Anna Hazare at the launch function. It is important to focus on conservation of land and water resources for development, he said.
Earlier, he told reporters that linking of rivers was good if it was done scientifically. It was important to plan water management, conserve natural resources, take up rainwater harvesting and restore rivers.
Actor Suriya, who participated at the inaugural of Noyyalai Nokki , said the confidence of the people gathered in restoring the river gave hope for restoration of more rivers across the State. It was necessary to take up such projects and conserve water bodies for the benefit of the future generations.
According to Vanitha Mohan, Managing Trustee of Siruthuli, it was a joint project by the public to restore the river.
C.R. Swaminathan, chairman of Noyyal River Restoration Federation, said the project would be implemented on divide-distribute-develop model by forming committees for every 500 metres of the river. Volunteers, educational institutions, non-governmental organisations and the government will be involved. To begin with, a survey of the river would be taken up and an estimate of the project would be prepared. Steps would be taken to install sewage treatment plants to prevent waste water from entering the river, said S.V. Balasubramaniam, chairman of Siruthuli.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Coimbatore / by Special Correspondent / Coimbatore f- March 27th, 2016
Two city engineers who gave up the cushy confines of their IT offices to take up farming have planned to cycle across villages of India next month, with the goal of accumulating knowledge about traditional farming methods that have lost significance since the rise of chemical farming. The second phase of the cycle expedition will see the two farmers travel through eleven countries in southeast Asia.
Vinodh Kumar, 31, and Raja S Pandian, 27, left their jobs two years ago and have since been ploughing the fields in their hometown with a focus of bringing back traditional farming.
Vinoth says, “Chemical fertilisers and pesticides have brought down the quality of farming output. We want to revive the traditional crops.” Vinoth grows millets and local vegetables like ladies’ fing er, brinjal and broad beans in his one and a half acre organic farm in Cheyyur, 90 km from Chennai.
“We were exposed to farming during our school summer holidays. After school closed, we were sent to the fields in our village where we herded cattle and spent the day under the sun in the banana plantations,” says Raja.Raja hails from Valliyur, a village near Tirunelveli, while Vinoth is from Cheyyur.
Vinodh who had worked at companies like Zoho, Standard Chartered Bank and Groupon gave up engineering when he realized his true calling.Vinoth, along with Raja, took two years off and backpacked across the villages in the country covering almost every single state. “I made more money than I had time to spend it,” says Vinoth who chose health over wealth.
“Our food habits have gotten worse. Once health deteriorates you cannot buy it back with money,” adds Vinoth who passed out of SRM Engineering College.
It then directed the owners to pay `10 lakh as compensation for causing men al agony , `3 lakh as losses suffered by Natesan, ` 35,000 as refund and `Rs 20,000 as case costs.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Chennai / by Abdullah Nurullah / March 03rd, 2016
Official says it has a good market in Europe and many countries
‘Senna’ (Cassia angustifolia), a highly valued medicinal plant, could be an ideal alternative crop for paddy farmers in the arid district, said S. Tamil Vendhan, Deputy Director of Horticulture, here on Friday.
As the leafy tropical plant required less water and no application of fertilizers, farmers could take up its cultivation whenever there was uncertainty on the prospects of paddy crop.
Farmers in drought-prone Kamudhi, Mudukulathur, Kadaladi and Paramakudi areas could cultivate ‘senna’ as a late crop in the event of losing their paddy crop due to water scarcity during drought.
The plant, used as a natural laxative to treat constipation, had a good market in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other cold countries, Mr. Tamil Vendhan said.
As almost all parts of the plant — leaves, flowers, branches and roots — could be used as laxative, farmers could benefit to the maximum extent, he said. Marketing would never be a problem as representatives of companies and exporters would directly visit the field and procure the produce, he added.
The leaves and other parts were processed as powder and granules and capsules with ‘sennoside-B’ extracted from the leaves, he said. Farmers could harvest about 500 kg of leaves from one acre and sell them at Rs. 60 a kg with less input cost, he said.
As the plant was first introduced in Tirunelveli district from the European countries in the mid 18th century, it was popularly known as ‘Tinnevelley senna’ and widely cultivated in Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Virudhunagar districts. Farmers in Kamudhi and parts of Kadaladi and Sayalkudi areas had also started cultivating the medicinal plant, Mr. Tamil Vendhan said.
Instead of burning their fingers by repeatedly cultivating traditional crops, farmers could try cultivation of ‘Periwnkle’ (nithyakalyani) and dragon fruit cactus, both having varied medicinal benefits, he said.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu /by D J Walter Scott / Ramanathapuram – February 06th, 2016
As part of observing World Wetlands Day, students of Panchayat Union Middle School in Kannanderi in Magudanchavadi Union have collected 10,000 neem seeds to create a seed bank in the school.
At a function organised by the Eco-Club of the school, headmaster K. Chandrasekar explained the importance of wetlands and the need to create an awareness among the people about its values and benefits.
Eco-Club coordinator R. Jeyakumar explained the signing of the convention on wetlands on February 2, 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar.
The day was celebrated for the first time in 1997.
He said that the theme for the current year is ‘Wetlands for our Future: Sustainable Livelihoods.’ The European Space Agency has published satellite images of wetlands around the world.
As part of the celebrations, students collected neem seeds from various places and formed a seed bank.
They said that the seeds would be sowed in wetlands and more seeds would be added to the bank every year. Teachers too participated in the celebrations.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Tamil Nadu / by Staff Reporter / Salem – February 05th, 2016
To sensitise people about the importance of preserving local fish species, nature enthusiasts have decided to organise an angling festival in a water body at the outskirts of the city on Sunday. Kayal – a centre for traditional inland fishermen and fish species – and the Madurai Nature Forum are organizing the event, inviting eager people to spend some time in angling at the Nesaneri tank near Thirumangalam.
Explaining the objective of such novel initiative, M Tamildasan said childhood memories were always filled with catching fish, climbing trees and using catapults to target birds. “With many species of birds disappearing at an alarming rate, we can’t justify using the catapult. At the same time we just cannot forget the games that helped us connect with nature. Hunting for food cannot be deemed a reason for several species vanishing; the actual reasons are the destruction of natural habitat of birds and fishes for human use and the mindless exploitation of natural resources,” he said. The new generation has lost touch with nature. This angling festival is just to recreate that childhood sport and reconnect with nature, he said.
A Ravichandran of Kayal said it would be also an occasion to document indigenous fish species in water bodies. A fortnight ago, the centre organized a river walk with volunteers to sensitize them on native fish species and their decline due to commercial aqua culture.
“Angling was one of the ancient practices of catching fish. There are different methods of angling to catch different species of fishes. We will be demonstrating to volunteers these methods as well as traditional fishing practices,” he said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Madurai / TNN / January 01st, 2015
The woman from a fishing hamlet in Ramanathapuram, who won the coveted Seacology Prize from Berkeley in California, has donated one third of her prize money (2 lakh) to a local school specifying that the amount should be used to construct more classrooms and develop the playground.
The beneficiary was the Chinnapaalam Government Middle School.
M Lakshmi, 46, a seaweed collector was chosen for the prize for her contribution to the development of her community by the non-profit environment organisation, Seacology, which is committed to conserving island environments and cultures. She travelled all the way to the US to receive her prize money of $10,000, the equivalent to 6.48 lakh, on October 9 this year.
Lakshmi, also a ward member of the Chinnapaalam panchayat near the coastal town of Pamban, had never gone to school.
She started collecting seaweed at the age of seven. Then she went on to cultivate the seaweed and also educate local women on the same, using methods that did not harm the marine life in the Gulf of Mannar, where her profession was based.
According to Lakshmi, women could achieve their goals in life and become instruments of development if given higher education. “This is a small contribution with which I hope to enhance the chances of children, especially girls, in the region to pursue higher education,” she said.
Local people, who are already proud of Lakshmi for putting their tiny village on the global map, lauded her effort to help the local school.
“She is committed to developing this backward village and we will do everything possible to help her,” they said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Madurai / TNN / December 26th, 2015
Internet giants Google and Facebook have stepped in with technical aid for relief work in Chennai. Facebook has activated its “safety check” feature through which people can broadcast to their Facebook friends that they are safe with a single click. Google, on the other hand, has compiled all the crowdsourced material available online on the crisis response page. Meanwhile, small efforts by scattered individuals to bring food, candles, even power banks to the stranded, continued in the marooned city.
The Google Crisis Response page for “South India Flooding” has compiled publicly available links with help on food and shelter resources, and emergency phone numbers. Scattered online information in the form of tweets, google documents floated by rescue volunteers, and news reports are all compiled on a single location.
Facebook switched on its Chennai Flooding safety check featureat around 07.30 am on Thursday. At the time of going to press, data on the number of people who had used it was not yet available.
Besides the one-click safety check, there were several SOS calls on Facebook as well. One Kokila Palaniappan sought help contacting her family in Chennai. Saying that about 10 members of her family were stuck and unreachable, she provided an address and wrote in a public post: “They don’t have any food and most of them are sugar or heart patient. Have been trying for rescue boat for the past 12 hours and in vain. Also they don’t have much charge in their cell phones. So it is getting difficult to reach them. Any help extended would be greatly appreciated.” The post received over 3,000 shares.
By Thursday evening, a less than hopeful response came on the thread: “hi koki, went and searched ur house for 4 hrs today.. We went in boats with food and cried their names, no one responded. There’s 15 ft water in that street and it is impossible to recognise ur house from those photos,” wrote one Ashwin Badri.
Surprisingly, #chennairains not only lost its top spot from the national Twitter trends list on Thursday evening, but vanished from the list all together.
Even the city-specific trends for Chennai the tag, or one even related to the deluge, like #ChennaiFlood was nowhere on the list. However, volunteers, rescuers, and those in need of help continued to tweet their locations and the materials they required or could provide.
“Some institutions have been asking me to deliver lectures or start a course on meteorology. I don’t know what is in store for me,” says Ramanan. Photo: K.V. Srinivasan
The State’s most popular weather forecaster talks to Srinivasa Ramanujam on how he found his calling
It’s rather interesting that the overdose of ‘rain holidays’ this year, coincides with the last few months of a certain S.R. Ramanan, at the helm of affairs at the local weather department. No wonder students across the State love him. When he’s on television — and he’s there often this time of the year — they watch with bated breath, anticipating words that could mean the possibility of a holiday the next day.
Officially the Director of Area Cyclone Warning Centre, he’s much loved among the student fraternity, because it is commonly believed that he’s instrumental for schools granting leave due to chances of rain. He also has fan pages on social media, memes created on him and has been referred to in films as well. In a chat with MetroPlus on a sunny afternoon, ironically, he tells us how he got into the weather business, why he isn’t on social media and retirement plans…
Will it rain this week?
There is an upper air circulation in the South-East Bay. It might probably develop into a low pressure and it could bring rains early this week.
You sound just like how you do talk on TV. Tell us about how you got into the weather stream in the first place…
When I completed my post-graduation, the concept of Plus Two came into being. There was a dearth of teachers then, and a lot of my friends entered the teaching profession. But I had a liking for weather, and so I joined the department at the lowest rung and then rose in the ranks.
But why weather?
See, I was good at Geography; it was one of my favourite subjects. But I didn’t take that up in my college days — I took up Physics instead. I enjoyed studying atmospheric physics. I entered as an observer and enjoyed it.
You try to explain science in Tamil and you seem to have an interest in the language. Tell us about it…
I have always been interested in Tamil literature; I used to read the Thevaram regularly. When I joined the weather department, I realised that the only way this subject can reach the common man was in Tamil. I wanted to make the concept and terminology simpler. We even collated a glossary — it’s now part of our website too — of Tamil equivalents of English words.
A meme that was found on social networks:
You work in Chennai, but you coordinate on a global scale on an everyday basis…
If I say there is a system forming in the South Andaman Sea, I have to depend on information from Malaysia and Singapore. If I say there is a development in the Gulf of Mannar, I need Sri Lankan data. We receive pictures from the satellite division and radar division every day. We have video-conferencing discussions every day with colleagues in Delhi. We get information from small observatories too… that only goes into the system. Here, sitting in Tamil Nadu, we don’t work in isolation but with global trends.
If that’s so, why is there so much of ambiguity when you announce the possibility of rain? Some other countries get it more precisely, right?
It differs from area to area. At some places abroad, you can predict accurately by seeing when the cold air mass meets warm air mass. Ours is tropical meteorology — not many know it’s the toughest terrain in the entire world, in terms of weather. We have still managed to get it right on most occasions, but yes, there is scope for improvement.
Over the course of your service you must have seen several technological advancements. How do you view the emergence of weather bloggers and their predictions/forecasts on the Internet?
The Internet alone is not sufficient to predict the weather outside. If you have an illness, will you go to the nearby pharmacy or prefer the doctor? There, you have the answer to your question.
But, do you see them as a threat to you in future?
’m retiring from the department in a few months (laughs)… but someone else will come and give out official information. If other people post contrasting information on the Internet, will it not create confusion?
You’re a cult figure in the social media and online space. There are fan pages for you and a recent meme promoted you as ‘God’, with students bowing to you. How do you react when you see them?
If you delve into such things, you cannot concentrate on your work. I just see them and move on. The only good thing about this attention is that wherever I go, people feel that I’m a part of their family, perhaps because they see me daily on TV.
Why have you abstained from social media? Don’t you feel tempted to look at what people are saying about you?
If I start looking into these things, I feel I will get distracted. I give work my foremost priority.
Do you have work timings?
Weather is a 24/7 job. I have to come in on weekends too — you might have seen me on television. I had to work this Deepavali too.
We see you every day during this time of the year, but what do you do when it’s sunny and all is fine on the weather front?
Apart from my media addresses, there are many other jobs to attend to — like preparing reports. I also have an everyday video-conferencing with my colleagues nationally. Besides, I visit educational institutions to give lectures on weekends.
Stamp and coin collection are hobbies you’ve been indulging in for a while. Tell us where it started…
My uncle gifted me some stamps when I was young and I’ve picked it up since then. The moment you see a stamp, you gain a lot of knowledge. For instance, this stamp I have of Bohemia and Moravia (part of Czechoslovakia) has a picture of Hitler; it was under his rule at one point of time. I’ve another stamp of Mozambique before the Portuguese took over. If you go through any good stamp collection, you will get information about places which might not even exist today.
Don’t you think these are dying hobbies in today’s times, thanks to the advent of the Internet?
You are absolutely right; I see very few students today taking up these hobbies. I wish they take it up. Parents also have a role to get the young interested in hobbies that helps you amass information.
Did these hobbies help you hone your general knowledge, during times when Google was still not invented? You were described by peers as a “walking Encyclopaedia” back in your college days…
See, it depends on your passion. I have no interest in reading fiction; I read up only about facts and countries. Some people have a wonderful knowledge on literature and films; I have no idea about them. My interest lies in places.
Finally, you’re retiring in a few months’ time and that has reportedly upset many school students…
(Laughs) Someone else will be here and give the forecast… it is not man centric, it is system centric. Time alone can tell what I’ll do post retirement; I’m a committee member in a hospital and I may probably take that up seriously. Some farmers have been asking me to guide them with weather forecasts. Some institutions have been asking me to deliver lectures or start a course on meteorology. I don’t know what is in store for me.
A meme that was found on social networks:
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Srinivasa Ramanujam / Chennai – November 28th, 2015
