Humans of Chennai: Driven by dignity and divinity

Business & Economy, Inspiration/ Positive News and Features

Life has been a rough ride for Subhashini, but sitting in her three-wheeler, driving and owning the lanes of the city, she has shut all stereotypes.

Subhashini began driving an auto rickshaw in 2016. (EPS | Ashwin Prasath)
Subhashini began driving an auto rickshaw in 2016. (EPS | Ashwin Prasath)

Chennai  :

Four years back, my husband in his drunken state poured kerosene on me and the moment he threw his cigarette at me, my velvet nightie caught fire. I woke up in the hospital. I knew that I had to get better and live for my children. My husband had borrowed money from many people and blew it all up on alcohol. They began pestering us to repay. He couldn’t handle it so he fled three years back and left me and the children to deal with them.

I knew that running away would not help. I had to think of my children’s wellbeing. So I decided to work. I worked at a jewellery store but I realised that the work would not suit me as the timings were not flexible and the pay was meagre.

At this point, I was staying with my family. One day I asked my nephew to teach me how to drive. My uncle overheard this and volunteered to teach me thinking I was learning to pass time. What he didn’t realise was I was going to do it as a job.

The moment I learned how to drive, I told my family that I wanted to do it full-time. There was a lot of resistance. They called it ‘a man’s job’ and one that would ‘bring shame to the family’. But to me, it was like any other job. If I can clean bathrooms and do housekeeping in someone else’s house, why couldn’t I drive? I didn’t see any shame in doing this.

In fact, everything I am today is because of this three-wheeler. It has given me the confidence to live life on my own terms. It has made me believe that I do not need a man to support me. I am capable of providing for my children and myself. I live away from my family now and have no contact with either them or my husband.

My world now revolves around my children. I wake up every day at 4 am to finish all the household chores and send my kids off to school while also ensuring they have something substantial to eat for lunch. I eat breakfast and leave at around 9 am and try to get home by 8 pm-9 pm. I do not eat anything in between. But what is hard is that there is no bathroom for my use. I have to control my water intake to ensure that I do not have the urge to use the bathroom because public toilets are filthy and I cannot afford to fall sick. But I think my habits recently led to me having appendicitis. It was painful, but again, I knew I had to snap out of it soon because I need to pay back the loans and send my children to school.

I don’t get time to do much because of my packed schedule, but whenever I have time, I love to paint my nails. Pink is my favourite colour and it makes me feel fearless and feminine at the same time.

This year, only my daughter will be attending school as she is in class 12. I had to pull my son out of school because I didn’t have enough money to spend on both their education. As a mother, it really hurts me to pick between my children because I want to treat them equally, but circumstances are such that I had no option.

I feel God has blessed me through tough times and will help me through this as well. Listening to hymns while driving my auto and fills me with a sense of calm. Maybe he will send us an angel who will help us through these trying times. Even if it is a little bit of monetary help, it will go a long way because I can take care of my other expenses, but repaying the loans takes up a large chunk of what I earn.

I want to urge women who might be in tough financial situations or unhappy marriages to consider taking this as a profession because it is empowering. I will teach them free of charge because it gives a way to earn with dignity and has the potential to change lives, just like it changed mine.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Dia Rekhi / Express News Service / April 30th, 2019

Preserved in parchement

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Education, Historical Links, Pre-Independence, Records, All, World Opinion

Connemara Library opens its older section, which stores rare books, to book lovers in the city once a year during World Book Day week.

Visitors glance through rare books put on display at Connemara Public Library
Visitors glance through rare books put on display at Connemara Public Library

Chennai :

It’s that time of the year when the older section of Connemara Public Library opens its door for the public — starting from World Book Day on April 23 until today. The searing heat does not stop people from dropping in and catching a glimpse of the preserved legacy, their rare book collection and the stunning architecture. Currently, the old section is used for storing rare books. It’s restricted to public but books can be accessed by scholars, researchers or students on request and can be read from the reception room.

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There’s a red carpet path connecting the newer section to the older one. Ornate teak furniture, stained glass windows, vibrant patterns on the ceiling, arches engraved with sculptures and stacks of age-old books add to its beauty. The library was formally opened in 1896 to the south of Madras Museum, culminating in the museum theatre at the head of the campus. It is said to be named after Lord Baron Connemara, then Governor of Madras Presidency.

Past glory

The Madras Museum comprises numerous old buildings within its compound, and this library is one among them. The entire complex gains entry from Pantheon Road, which takes its name from the historic pantheon or public assembly rooms. References to the assembly room occur in 1789, a time when the city wanted a theatrical entertainment. Actively used in the latter part of 18th century, the government acquired the property in 1830 and established the Collector’s Cutcherry before the central museum in 1854.

Earlier, it had a single-floor high structure with two halls and a room for orchestra. The pantheon still exists. Two large wings with an upper floor are believed to be added when it was converted into a museum with further additions between 1886 and 1890. The space is said to have contained grooves in the roof over the stage to roll cannon balls to stimulate the sound of thunder. This structure is now a part of the two-floor old museum block, rear of the Connemara library.

Ageless charm

“What we see now is with later additions which are intricate and have a lot of details in terms of the stained glass or the teak finishes or the wooden brackets in the chambers. It has gone through four different purposes and the elements were added during consecutive additions. It’s an important part of Madras and a landmark that Chennai should be proud of,” said Thirupurasundari Sevvel, who conducted the trail as part of Nam Veedu Nam Oor Nam Kadhai. No two patterns in the stained glass windows are the same. It is said that the colours from the window reflect on marble floors at dusk.

The library benefitted from the Madras Literary Society on College Road — Fort St George campus — from where the Geology books were brought here. “We’ve displayed 300 books —  from paintings to literature. Last year the library witnessed 2,000 people during public access. This year it’s open for five days. The count has crossed 1,000 in just two days.

The awareness has increased,” said a library staff. Considering its national depository, the library is entitled to get a copy of any book published by any publication in the world. The library is accessible for people with special needs. A walk around the space will not only expose you to the grandeur of the interior decor but also its treasured collection. The older section of Connemara Public Library is open until today from 10 am to 5 pm.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Chennai / by Vaishali Vijayakumar / Express News Service / April 27th, 2019

RGGGH develops hand sanitiser, saves ₹31 lakh a year

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

The product is now being used in all its intensive care units, fever wards and isolation wards

An indigenously prepared hand sanitiser has turned profitable for the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH). The largest public sector hospital in the city is all set to save nearly ₹31 lakh every year, after its own alcohol-based hand sanitiser was introduced in many units a few months ago.

Prepared in its own backyard by the College of Pharmacy (Madras Medical College), the hand sanitiser is now being used in all intensive care units, fever wards and isolation wards, such as for H1N1 influenza cases.

“Hand sanitisers are an important aspect of a health facility, particularly to a tertiary centre like us. On one hand, we have 12,000 outpatients visiting the hospital every day and another as 3,500 inpatients. On the other hand, we have a large population of medical professionals, including undergraduates, interns, surgeons and professors. It is vital to prevent hospital-acquired cross infections, and hence, we came up with the idea of developing our own hand sanitiser,” said R. Jayanthi, dean of RGGGH and MMC.

Reduced costs

Till February, when the in-house sanitiser was rolled out, RGGGH purchased commercially available hand sanitisers. The hospital’s monthly requirement was 1,000 units of 500 ml bottles; the annual requirement being 12,000 bottles. The cost of the marketed products ranged from ₹290 to ₹433 per 500 ml.

“The cost of procuring 12,000 bottles of a marketed product, considering an average cost of ₹341 is ₹40,92,000. Our hand sanitiser costs ₹82, inclusive of packing. So, the total cost for 12,000 bottles is ₹9,84,000. We will save ₹31,08,000 per year,” she said.

While this helped in cutting down cost, the hand sanitisers also reduced the need for using water for washing hands at a time of scarcity and it could easily be taken to different wards, Dr. Jayanthi said.

Jerard Suresh, principal, College of Pharmacy, MMC, said they prepared nearly 200 litres per batch of the lemon grass-scented hand sanitiser. It was tested for dermatological safety by the institute’s Department of Dermatology and efficacy against microbes by the Department of Microbiology.

Dr. Jayanthi said once they improve the capacity to make more, the hand sanitiser would be made available in the general wards of RGGGH. “Once we are self-sustained, we have plans to provide it for other government institutions. For this, we need licence and we are at it,” she said.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by Serena Josephine M / Chennai – April 27th, 2019