Category Archives: Records, All

An inspiring saga of the Tamil diaspora’s contribution to India’s freedom struggle

Amazing Feats, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Leaders, Nri's / Pio's, Records, All, World Opinion, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

TAMIL NADU / OVERSEAS:

Spread from South Africa to Malaysia and Singapore in south-east Asia, the diaspora members involved themselves in the Indian freedom struggle. Some others, though having no direct relation to the national movement, led such a life that motivated those in India to carry on their struggle against the colonial regime.

Govindaswamy Krishnaswamy Thambi Naidoo’s love for the homeland knew no bounds, said the Mahatma. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

The contributions of Indian Tamil diaspora in the field of public life in the early part of the 20th Century carry many inspiring accounts. Some of them had involved themselves in the Indian freedom struggle while some others, though having no direct relation to the national movement, led such sterling lives that motivated those in India to carry on their struggle against the colonial regime. The Tamil diaspora’s presence was spread from South Africa to Malaysia and Singapore in south-east Asia.

Giving an account of the work of the Tamil community, S.N. Nageswara Rao, who headed the Department of Historical Studies at Sir Theagaraya College, in a recent publication of the Tamil Nadu government, Tamil Nadu’s Contribution to the Freedom Struggle, said, “Its [the Tamil diaspora’s] role is not a small part in the large national project. Its size and location in the strategic colonies ensured a bigger role for Tamils, manifest in the scale of mobilisation. Their crucial and emphatic efforts enhanced several fold the momentum of the struggle.”

A story to remember

The story of the diaspora can be best illustrated through the work of Govindaswamy Krishnaswamy Thambi Naidoo (1875-1933), Gangathura Mohambry Naicker (1910-1978), also called Monty Naicker, and Janaky Athi Nahappan (1925-2014).

Speaking of Thambi Naidoo, Mahatma Gandhi, in his book Satyagraha in South Africa (1928), mentioned, “He had never seen India. Yet, his love for the homeland knew no bounds. Patriotism ran through his very veins. His firmness was pictured on his face.”

Naidoo, the first president of the Transvaal Indian Congress, was born in Mauritius but his family’s roots were in Thanjavur district. He was a key member of the Satyagraha campaign led by the Mahatma during 1906-14. An article published by Frontline, a sister publication of The Hindu, in the issue of October 15-28, 1988, says that when, in 1906, Gandhiji sought to broaden the base of his political initiatives against the Smuts Administration, he turned to Thambi Naidoo. “But each step Thambi Naidoo took was extraordinary — extraordinary in its strength and resoluteness.”

During the picketing of Registration Offices in July 1907, Naidoo was the first to be arrested. He was given 14 days’ imprisonment. On December 28 that year, he was charged for refusing to register and sent out of Transvaal. When he refused to obey the orders, he, along with Gandhiji, was arrested on January 10, 1908 and sent to jail, points out the article carried in Tamil Nadu’s Contribution to the Freedom Struggle.

Born to a successful businessman who was into export of fruits, Monty Naicker was sent in 1927 to Edinburgh and Dublin to complete his matriculation and medical education. He returned in 1934 and began a medical practice in Durban. He was a member of the Liberal Study Group before he joined the Natal Indian Congress (NIC). Monty Naicker also participated in unionising Indian workers, according to an article authored by Surendra Bhana in a site (https://omalley.nelsonmandela.org/index.php /site/q/03lv02424/04lv02730/05lv02914/ 06lv02917.htm), which is hosted by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

A Gandhian more than a Marxist, Naicker had a passion for freedom and justice, and believed that the best way to achieve them was to demand fully what rightfully belonged to Indians as citizens of the country, according to the article. Explaining the rationale behind Naicker’s approach towards his work in public affairs, a report in The Hindu on September 6, 1943, quoted him as saying that “a voteless, voiceless community, such as Indians in South Africa, could not expect to remain silent when suppressed with legislation. Therefore, they had to appeal to India.” The fighter, who favoured multi-racialism, also made it clear more than once that his struggle was not directed against the white people of South Africa but against injustice.

Faith in Netaji

Janaki Athi Nahappan (1925-2014) was one example of the Indian diaspora who took part in the freedom struggle directly. She was a member of the Indian National Army (INA) headed by Subhas Chandra Bose. She rose to the rank of Captain and Second-in-Command of the Rhani of Jhansi Regiment and during World War II, she fought against the British on the Burma-India border, Dr. Rao writes.

Janaki Athi Nahappan, who rose to the rank of Captain and Second-in-Command of the Rhani of Jhansi Regiment of the INA and fought aagainst the British during World War II.  | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Born in Kuala Lumpur, Nahappan grew up in a well-to-do Tamil family in Malaya and was only 17 when she responded to Bose’s call to persons of Indian origin to give whatever they could for the fight for Indian independence. Twenty-five years ago, while participating in an event to receive an award in Eluru of Andhra Pradesh, she said she thrust her diamond ear rings and gold chain into his hands as her contribution towards the war fund. She pleaded with her parents, who were of Indian origin, to sign the papers permitting her to serve in the INA, according to another news item carried by The Hindu on February 3, 1998.

Stalin Gunasekaran, writer, who authored a book on the contributions of Tamils to the freedom struggle nearly 20 years ago, recalls his meeting with her. He said she, also known as Janaky Thevar, was one of the Tamil women who accounted for 75% of the strength of the Regiment. In 2000, the Indian government conferred on her the title of Padma Shri.

source http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> India> Tamil Nadu / by T Ramakrishnan / November 07th, 2023

Hidden tales of Chennai’s Harrington Road

About Chennai(Madras) / TamilNadu, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Green Initiatives/ Environment, Leaders, Records, All, World Opinion

There is more to Harrington Road than restaurants, concrete buildings and bustling traffic. Writer Sudha Umashanker unveils some secrets.

MCC School

Chennai : 

It’s been 40 years since writer-storyteller Sudha Umashanker moved from her father’s house on Marshalls Road to Harrington Road. Recounting her early memories of the neighbourhood, she shared, “I vividly remember the beautiful, long road lined up with tall trees on both sides. Apart from Madras Christian College Higher Secondary School, Chetpet railway gate and a small departmental-cum-stationery store called Hansa, the area was almost empty, and dotted with a few bungalows and villas.”

Over the years, shopping complexes, supermarkets, apartments, restaurants and educational institutions have mushroomed in the locality. Even as the area’s landscape has drastically evolved, the long-time resident took Madras Month celebrations as an opportunity to trace the history of the neighbourhood’s landmarks, as part of a virtual walk for the Madras Literary Society.

So, how did the road derive its name from William Harrington, a civil servant from the 1770s to 1790s? “Late historian S Muthiah wrote in one of his columns that William Harrington was given ten acres south of the Spur Tank.”

The many treasures
Considered as one of the greenest localities in Chennai, Harrington Road houses many service organisations that continue to do remarkable community work to date. Little Sisters of the Poor is one such. “It was founded by Jeanne Jugan, a French nun. The organisation, started in France, is currently spread across 100 countries. They came to Harrington Road in the 1930s after receiving a three and a half-acre facility from a landlord. They have 100 inmates. Plenty of patrons are contributing to keep their work going,” she shared.

Harrington Road from Chetpet signal

A few metres down the lane is another well-known service organisation called The Madras Seva Sadan. It was a women’s service centre run by the Women’s India Association that had prominent female members such as Margret cousins, Annie Besant and Muthu Lakshmi Reddy. When the Margret cousins had to leave, they proposed that Pune Seva Sadan take over the organisation by offering Rs 750, but they refused to. Soon after, the organisation was bought by Mutha Subbarao for a princely sum of Rs 10,000. “He acquired the Shenstone Park building in 1928 and that’s when the organisation moved to Harrington Road. Along with wife Lady Andal, the couple rehabilitated many women and empowered them. Presently, there’s The Madras Seva Sadan Higher Secondary School, Lady Andal School, Sir Mutha Venkatasubbarao Concert Hall and a women’s hostel within the premises,” she noted.

With educational institutions on both sides of the road, it’s not without reason that the traffic is always bustling here. Then there’s  MCC Higher Secondary School, which dates back to the 1800s. The school owes its origins to the Church of Scotland and St Andrews Kirk. Chaplains James Laurie and Mathew Bowce came to the city and set up the first school in Rundalls Road, Vepery. Then came Chaplain Anderson, after which the school was moved to Armenian street, and Esplanade. Just when it was about to shut down due to poor performance, Revenant William Miller brought it back to fully functioning system.

“The school was earlier called Madras General Assembly School. William Miller got the help of the Wesleyan Service Ministry and Christian Service Ministry to fund the school and hence the present name. The school was moved to Chetpet, its current location, by the first Indian Headmaster called Kuruvila Jacob after purchasing the Napier Gardens in 1950. He put the school on solid footing from 1931 to 1962. There’s a statue of William Miller inside the school in Chetpet,” she narrated. Besides this, there’s also the Chinmaya Mission Primary School which was inaugurated in 1982 by Rukmini Devi Arundale. Further down the road is the Chinmaya Heritage Centre.

Largely a residential area, the neighbourhood has a few places of worship, too. A few buildings past the MCC school is the Mar Thoma Syrian Church. “This is the first parish outside Kerala. It was opened in 1936. Now, 650 families come here for worship. The church belongs to Chennai-Bangalore Diocese,” said Umashanker. There’s also a samadhi temple dedicated to saint Gangadhara Navalar, who was fond of the deity of Kapaleeshwar temple. The temple is said to have powerful vibrations.

Illustration by Srishti Prabhakar

Of people and places
They say it’s the people that make a place. One among the many reputed families that lived in the locality was that of social worker Ammu Swaminadhan’s. Married to renowned lawyer Subburam Swaminadhan, the couple had four children. Gilchrist Avenue, where they resided, gained its name from the Gilchrist scholarship their eldest son, lawyer Govind Swaminadhan, earned to pursue higher education.

The area was also home to some reputed people, who contributed to the city.’s development. One such respected figure was T Namberumal Chetty, a famous building contractor. “Theory goes that he owned many houses in the locality and all were occupied by his family members. There are over 30 houses of his, presently,” pointed out Umashanker. Another eminent person who lived in the locality was JH Tarapore, the co-founder of Tarapore and Co, a well-known construction company.

Closing the session, Umashanker touched upon an important landmark that used to be in place of present-day Prashanth Hospital. It was the Institute of Techno Economic Studies founded by celebrated economist B Natarajan. “ He studied the London passenger transport system which formed the blueprint for the state transport undertaking. This was one of his best contributions. We should never forget his name.”

The area has one of the most active residents association in the city — the Harrington Road Residents Association, who’ve been actively involved in the civic and infrastructural development. “Every place has a story to tell and we’re proud of our area. The road lives on, changing itself,” said Umashanker.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities>Chennai / by Vaishali Vijaykumar / Express News Service / August 11th, 2021

IIT-Madras researchers produce bio-oil from agricultural waste

Education, Green Initiatives/ Environment, Records, All, Science & Technologies

Researchers at the IIT-M have developed a simple microwave process to produce high-energy bio-fuel oils from agricultural waste.

IIT Madras (File photo | EPS)
IIT Madras (File photo | EPS)

Chennai :

Researchers at the IIT-M have developed a simple microwave process to produce high-energy biofuel oils from agricultural waste.

The project, funded by GAIL (India) Ltd, aims to produce oil from waste such as rice straw and bagasse, and plastic. Such oils generated from renewable biological sources are considered to be a practical and pragmatic replacement for petroleum and petrochemical products, said the statement.

One of the most common methods to produce bio-oil as ‘pyrolysis’ or heat-induced breakdown of components. However, the newly developed method results in lower heating value of bio-oils compared to fossil fuels, and in addition, increases their acidity and corrosiveness, the statement added.

However, mixing plastic with biomass would produce bio-oils with better properties – such as higher energy yields. The IIT-M team used microwave to breakdown components, ranging from rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, and groundnut shell, to wood sawdust and wood from ‘Seemai Karuvelam’ tree with two synthetic plastics.

“We believe usage of microwave is a sustainable and energy-efficient approach for resource recovery from a wide variety of wastes, including disposed single-use plastics and non-reusable face masks,” said R Vinu, Associate Professor with Department of Chemical Engineering. Vinu was also the lead of the research team, and their results have been published in the journal, ‘Bioresource Technology and Fuel Processing Technology’, the statement added. Dadi Suriapparao and Banupriya Boruah from the department were also part of the research.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> /Good News / by Express News Service / June 16th, 2020

‘Rewind. Pause. Archive’: The Cinema Resource Centre’s efforts to preserve forgotten treasures of Indian cinema

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All

The Cinema Resource Centre is a treasure trove of films, songbooks, LP records and movie posters. As they step into their 10th year, founder-trustee Sruti Harihara Subramanian recalls the journey.

Chennai :

“We are caught up in our worlds. It often becomes about the right here and right now — ‘How are we going to survive?’, ‘How are we going to give the best output to the current audience?’. We have no time to stop and look back. This perhaps is one of the reasons that despite the rich cinema history we have, there is very less done to preserve it,” opines Sruti Harihara Subramanian, entrepreneur-cum-filmmaker and founder-trustee of The Cinema Resource Centre — a not-for-profit public archive designed to enable research on the audio-visual cultural artefacts produced by Indian films. As the Trust steps into its 10th year, the national award-winning filmmaker walks us through the its efforts to preserve and document the forgotten treasures of Indian cinema and film-related memorabilia.

Loaded with memories
Almost over a decade ago, when an inquisitive Sruti stumbled upon a heap of film posters, movie stills and lobby cards that had been disposed of outside a popular theatre, she didn’t think twice before getting her hands dirty. She picked several artefacts that were perhaps the last-remaining physical evidence of an era bygone in south Indian cinema.

“I came from a family that wasn’t inclined towards films. I don’t remember watching films in a theatre until I was big enough to go to the movies with friends. So, my exposure to films came very late in life. Despite this, I’ve always been curious about the nature of the celluloid,” she says. But for someone who grew up in the pre-Internet era, learning about movies meant observing the minuscule details available on anything and everything — from movie stubs, cassettes, songbooks, posters to magazines. “I eventually started collecting every small cinema-related object I came across, and during my days as an assistant director it became a serious hobby,” she says.

Access to archives
Soon, Sruti realised that she was in the midst of a treasure hunt. From loading her red Maruti 800 with slides, scripts, songbooks and posters that were discarded by production houses to hitting the jackpot and digging out gold from inside a scrap paper dealer’s bag — she found smaller pieces that would go on to complete a bigger jigsaw puzzle. In this case, an archive that would give anyone and everyone a peek into India cinema, especially those made in the regional languages of south India. “Over time, the number of materials increased exponentially and I wanted to make it accessible to the public. I came across several museums abroad that were interactive and immersive. After acquainting myself with creatives and filmmakers from outside the state and country, I realised that there was so much for us to know about cinema. My dream was to go beyond the mainstream screens and create a library or cinema museum,” she shares.

Along with a small team, Sruti registered the trust in 2009 and embarked on a mission to conserve archival material by digitising and cataloguing it in an orderly fashion. “Conserving the material is a very expensive affair. The Trust is completely funded by us. Whatever I have earned so far from filmmaking has gone back into this initiative. Our focus is on digitising whatever we have on an online cloud. Currently, we have two archivists working on the process,” she says.

The 400 magazines; 250 glass slides; 2,500-odd songbooks; 779 LP records; 25,000 vintage photographs; 8,000 posters; 5,000 lobby cards and umpteen script books, photo albums, fan stickers and launch invites that are now part of the TCRC’s  archives not only offer a nostalgic experience but have also been instrumental in aiding cinema researchers and students.  “Ironically, most of these are international students researching on Indian cinema or someone associated with the craft. In a time when there’s a dearth of archival of Indian, especially south Indian cinema, coming across our Trust is equal to hitting the jackpot for these students,” says Sruti.

CinemaTrustCF14jun2020

Built on donations
Contributions have poured in from the most unlikely sources — a stranger who donated his grandmother’s collection of Deepavali Malar from the 1940s and 50s in pristine condition; enthusiasts who’ve donated audiotapes, songbooks and LPs that they came across during a house clean-up, scrap paper dealers giving away cutouts of artistes that were once translated into posters to vendors from Moore market doing their bit. Yet, Sruti says, help from within the industry has been bleak. “I have gotten a pat on my back, been told that it’s a good initiative. But it stops at that. I am part of the industry too and I realise that we don’t look back at our own history.

Maybe that’s why we hear so many stories of former filmmakers, actors and actresses struggling today despite their enormous contributions to shape cinema. Having said that, I haven’t approached anyone for help either,” she shares.  This year marked a new beginning for the Trust and several plans were chalked to engage experts and enthusiasts alike. “We were ready to host screenings, discussions and collaborate with like-minded people as a way of celebrating a decade of TCRC,” says Sruti.  But like several dreams, the curtains have been pulled down on this one too due to the pandemic. “Everything has been kept on hold. Since we are bootstrapped, we don’t know how long we will be able to sustain the archival process given the current situation. But I still dream of a space adorned with everything cinema,” she says.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Roshne Balasubramanian / Express News Service / June 11th, 2020

Chennai-based start-up raises $5.5 million

Business & Economy, Nature, Records, All, Science & Technologies, World Opinion

The loan was deployed through IndusInd Bank’s Impact Investing Group, guaranteed by the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation.

Chennai-based agritech start-up WayCool Foods raised $5.5 million through debt financing from IndusInd Bank Ltd, guaranteed by the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

This funding follows the Series C round of $32 million led by Lightbox earlier this year. Setuka Partners LLP was the advisor to the current transaction. WayCool Foods intends to use the funds raised to introduce advanced technology, implement strict hygiene measures and increase transportation efficiency to reduce food spoilage and improve farmer yields. This will also allow the company to strengthen food distribution across South India.

Karthik Jayaraman, Co-Founder and CEO, WayCool Foods, said, “WayCool has been steadily building necessary technology and operational capabilities to operate robust agrifood supply chains from soil to sale.”

DFC, America’s development bank, provides financing to address critical challenges across emerging markets on a global scale. It invests across sectors including energy, healthcare, critical infrastructure, and technology. DFC provides financing for small businesses and women entrepreneurs in order to create jobs in emerging markets.

The loan was deployed through IndusInd Bank’s Impact Investing Group. The DFC guarantee enabled the bank to provide an equivalent of ₹35 Crores loan to WayCool, the bank’s statement said. The structure is significant as it helps in mobilizing local capital for WayCool, also it eliminates foreign exchange rate fluctuation risk from the balance sheet of WayCool, it added.

Founded in July 2015 by Karthik Jayaraman and Sanjay Dasari, WayCool procures, processes, and distributes a range of food products, including fresh produce, staples and dairy products, moving over 250 tonnes of food every day, to 8,000 enterprise clients across South India. The company operates a soil-to-sale model engaging with a base of 40,000 farmers in more than 50 regions across India.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Sangeetha Kandavel / Chennai – June 11th, 2020

Madras HC directs Tamil Nadu doctor to move ICMR on drug for COVID-19

Amazing Feats, Records, All, Science & Technologies, World Opinion

The petitioner had made representations to the ICMR to consider the importance of the concept proposed in his article and conduct trial but there was no response.

Chennai :

The Madras High Court on Thursday directed a doctor in Tamil Nadu to make a fresh representation to the Indian Council of Medical Research on his claim that a particular drug can be used to treat COVID-19 patients.

Disposing of a petition by Dr Vasantha Kumar from Krishnagiri district, a Division Bench of Justices Vineet Kothari and R Suresh Kumar also directed concerned authorities to grant him an opportunity to present his case and pass appropriate orders, as expeditiously as possible.

Vasantha Kumar in his petition submitted that he has authored an article on the use of ‘beta-adrenergic blockers,’ medications used for reducing blood pressure, in the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

He further submitted that he had examined in detail the nature of coronavirus and its effects on the human body and the possible cure for it.

He had requested a discussion on the subject for the benefit of public at large and sent a communique to the Union Health department and ICMR.

In his article, he proposed that beta-adrenergic blockers may be beneficial in coronavirus patients with hypertension co morbidity, by regulation of blood pressure and decreasing SARS-CoV-2 cellular entry.

In low doses, beta-adrenergic blockers may be beneficial in COVID-19 patients with normal blood pressure, as it may decrease the SARS- CoV-2 entry into the cell.

The petitioner said as there was no response from the Journals to which he sent his articles, he proceeded to publish it online.

Though he made representations to the ICMR to consider the importance of the concept proposed in his article and conduct clinical trial at the earliest, there was no response.

When the plea came up before the bench through video conference, the doctor claimed that the drug would stop the symptoms and not allow it to develop into fever.

Noting that the cost of the drug would be less than Rs 2 and the poor would benefit from it, the petitioner said as he has not received any response even from ICMR till date, he was constrained to approach the Court.

He prayed for a direction from the Court to ICMR to consider the importance of the concept proposed in his article and to conduct a clinical trial.

The bench disposed of the petition after recording the submissions of Additional Solicitor General G Rajagopalan appearing for the Centre and the counsel for ICMR that the representation of the petitioner would be considered in accordance with the guidelines.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Tamil Nadu / by PTI / June 11th, 2020

RIP J Anbazhagan: An outspoken leader who fought against the sale of gutka in Tamil Nadu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Leaders, Records, All

Anbazhagan filed a case in the Madras High Court to highlight the illegal manufacture and sale of gutka and pan masala in the state. His efforts eventually turned out to be successful.

DMK MLA J Anbazhagan died of Covid-19 while undergoing treatment in a hospital in Chennai on June 10, on his 62nd birthday. (Photo | EPS)
DMK MLA J Anbazhagan died of Covid-19 while undergoing treatment in a hospital in Chennai on June 10, on his 62nd birthday. (Photo | EPS)

Chennai-based firm disinfects public places for free

Business & Economy, Green Initiatives/ Environment, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Records, All, Science & Technologies

Green Globe Probiotics and Renewables Pvt Ltd. is offering its services to old age homes, orphanages and other non-profit organisations

The firm uses CSR funds to disinfect not-for-profit organisations | Photo Credit: Special Arrangemen
The firm uses CSR funds to disinfect not-for-profit organisations | Photo Credit: Special Arrangemen

If you want to disinfect a public place, old age home, orphanage or blind school and do not have funds, help is just a call away.

Over the last 30 days, city-based Green Globe Probiotics and Renewables Pvt Ltd, has disinfected more than 60 buildings in Chennai and will be offering its services pan-India next week.

“We have rendered our services to non-profit organisations and frontline warrior departments such as fire and rescue service buildings, police stations and government buildings in Chennai. Disinfecting temples will start soon. In all, we have covered 60 crore square foot of space, of which 35% has been done using CSR funds,” said Senthil Kumar, group managing director, Green Globe Probiotics.

“It is like a CSR activity. Non-profit organisations, old age homes, blind schools and orphanages are serviced through CSR funds or community/crowd sourced funds. NGOs and educational non-profit institutions are disinfected at lower rates,” he added.

Green Globe Probiotics is one of the subsidiaries of GSR Travels and Retail Ventures Pvt Ltd. that deals in retail, aviation, housekeeping and hospitality, education services, staffing and HR consultancy sservices.

The parent firm has a tie-up with Australia-based Callington, which manufactures disinfectant products to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Callington India, through Green Globe Probiotics, is marketing and distributing disinfectant products in India.

The company uses a hand-held device and disinfects around 25,000 sq.ft., of space within 10 minutes. It charges 80 paise to ₹2.50 per sq.ft.

“In the next few days, we will be rolling our services pan-India to disinfect 70 cities and towns,” he said.

To avail of the services, one can write to contact@ggprobio.com.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by N Anand / Chennai – June 09th, 2020

NASS award for Ganga Hospital research team

Inspiration/ Positive News and Features, Records, All, Science & Technologies, World Opinion

A research team of Coimbatore-based Ganga Hospital has won the Outstanding Paper Award of the North American Spine Society (NASS) in basic science category for 2020.

The research was a molecular level study probing the cause for lumbar disc degeneration, main cause of lower back pain, and attempts to identify molecular targets for biological repair of damaged discs.

The research, “Uncovering molecular targets for regenerative therapy in degenerative disc disease: Do Small Leucine-Rich Proteoglycans hold the Key?” won the award, instituted by NASS and the society’s official research publication The Spine Journal.

Social impact

The study, a pointer to regenerative interventions for lumbar disc degeneration in future, gains significance as lower back pain significantly reduces the quality of life of nearly 70% of the patients worldwide, causing a considerable economic and social impact, said the research team head S. Rajasekaran, chairman, Department of Orthopaedic and Spine Surgery at Ganga Hospital.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Coimbatore / by Staff Reporter / Coimbatore – June 02nd, 2020

Meet the water baby: This two-year-old sensation swims like Aquagirl

Amazing Feats, Records, All

Poised on the edge of the farm well, Yazhini is nearly four feet above the surface of the water.

AquaGirlsBF06jun2020

Vellore :

Poised on the edge of the farm well, Yazhini is nearly four feet above the surface of the water. There’s no show of hesitation as she dives in; she does a neat lap across the well and meets her father Angmuthu, positioned on the opposite edge of the well. They will be at this for two hours, a step-up from the one-hour sessions she had been used to in the months before the lockdown was put in place. Sidebar: Yazhini is two years old.

For the 43-year-old father, a farmer, teaching his infant daughter to swim was just a matter of aiding her growth; as commonplace as teaching her to pick herself up after a fall. Residing in a quiet corner of Melmonavur in Vellore district, the well in his farmland provided ideal grounds for the exercise too. And so, there was simply no reason to wait.

“It was about six months ago when I first took her to the well. I guided her into the water, holding her hand and letting her get over the initial fear,” Angamuthu narrates. The child responded as well as he could have hoped for. So began the lessons — with a can tied around her waist, acting as a buoyant, Yazhini got to waddle in the well day after day, kicking and pushing till her limbs grew strong enough to keep her afloat. Now, she swims with support and is comfortable diving from a height of eight feet, Angamuthu declares.

Yazhini’s prowess notwithstanding, he makes sure to be swimming alongside her at every practice session. Just to let her know she is safe around him. That is why her mother Dhanalakshmi has no qualms sending the kid off to the well every day. If anything, she is happy that the child gets to tick this life skill off the list at such a young age. Especially when children below the age of 14 years made up 13 per cent of people who died of drowning in the country in 2018.

Yazhini may have picked up swimming even before she could run well, but she isn’t alone. Her siblings — Sushmitha (10) and Ashwin (7) — got there before her.  Ashwin, who got his first lessons when he was two-and-a-half years old, is now enrolled in the swimming academy in Kancheepuram. For him, the swimming sessions have progressed from being just a domestic, play-time activity to one with prospects and promise for the future. While teaching his kids to swim came easily to Angamuthu, pushing his son through the grind for what’s to come called for more than just grit and technique. Taking his son back and forth to the academy is enough to burn through the family’s extra cash. Perhaps a free bus pass, courtesy the collector, could let them sustain the lessons and child’s pipeline dreams.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Shyamsundar N / Express News Service / June 06th, 2020