Puthumai

My Little Sweet Companions

2012-01-28T22:15:00.001+05:30

Erika and Edward have suited themselves very well into the CKS family. I was a little apprehensive initially because Ed had to use the eastern style of toilet, and has a room that is also partly our office along with another room that is being used as office as well. The food is certainly not American. But they have taken it all in a stride. They have learnt to relax themselves, as the food is

Power of the Powerless

2012-01-25T19:55:00.000+05:30

I will be leaving for Kathmandu on 29 Jan 2012 to give a training in Disaster Risk Reduction. RedR India has asked me to be one of the two trainers who will be taking this training. As I was reflecting about disasters and developmental issues, I began to wonder on what is the actual power of the "powerless". The most vulnerable sections of society, people who have been socially and economically

The Mom and the Daughter

2012-01-23T19:45:00.000+05:30

5 Jan 2012 - 01.30 am. At this unearthly hour I am waiting for Erika and Edward to land. My two students who are arriving from Seattle and will be with me for the next three months. It is often tough to get my time divided between them and my work. But it is always a joy to learn from them, because they come with fresh ideas, fresh blood and all too new view of India. After I waited for them in

Cyclone Thane

2012-01-11T18:14:00.000+05:30

A telephone call from a friend, Stephen Raj, in Puducherry (also known as Pondicherry) in South India made me write this post. He was referring to the serious damage cyclone Thane that hit the union territory of Puducherry and the districts of Cuddalore and Villupuram in Tamilnadu on 29 -30 Dec 2011. Their organization Pondicherry Multipurpose Social Service Society is responding to the needs

Sean

2012-01-03T10:36:00.000+05:30

My friend Sean has lost both his mother and father in about 15 days in December. It is really sad. I am sad too. Sean has been such a good friend since I met him first in 2004. No doubt about that. He has traveled twice to meet me and to be with me -- each time for couple of days. And I traveled to Seattle almost four years ago to be with him for nearly 10 days. And he has been such a wonderful

WANTED: Doctors for Rural Outreach from Your Desktop

2011-12-31T15:32:00.002+05:30

CKS is planning to start a rural outreach program using electronic media for medical consultancy in 12 villages initially. The plan is to reach out to the under-served communities of 12 very poor rural areas by bringing doctors closer to them using modern technology and on-line connectivity. Importantly the doctors need not move from their desktops, and they can do this service on a voluntary

Marketing the Disabled

2011-12-24T22:06:00.000+05:30

Since there is a large fair in Bolpur on the occasion of Christmas,known locally as "Poush Mela", I went to see the fair. It was pretty large and well managed. As I was walking in, due to the crowd that was jostling from every side, I was looking ahead and walked, trying to avoid as much of pushing as possible. Suddenly I tumbled on something, and I almost fell over. When I looked back, I was

Whose child is it, anyway?

2011-12-22T20:08:00.000+05:30

On 20 Dec evening I went to a fast food restaurant that is close to CKS office for picking couple of parathas for dinner. I have visited this place several times. But that day I saw a young lad of about 12 years old doing odd jobs at the restaurant. The social worker in me woke up. Usually I do not eat in places where they employ children. Since I had already given order for the food, I took the

Kids Have it Big

2011-12-20T22:45:00.000+05:30

Sunday, 18 Dec 2011. Location Aminpur, near Bahiri, a little known tribal village near Bolpur. We three of us from CKS reached the village in the morning, and the children and villagers had been informed that there will be a small sports event in view of the Christmas and New Year on the anvil. We were delighted by the enthusiasm of children and the time went flying! In about three hours with

Largesse of the Government

2011-12-17T21:34:00.001+05:30

The deaths due to consumption of spurious liquor has crossed 170 and still some are battling against death. The government of West Bengal has announced an ex-gratia of 200,000 rupees for the bereaved families. On 9th Dec 2011 after the major fire in AMRI hospital in Kolkata too the government announced similar grant. I wonder from where does this money come from. I have no problem in giving out

The Worst Continues....

2011-12-15T19:01:00.000+05:30

The deaths due to the hooch tragedy (drinking of spurious liquor) mostly by the poor, rickshaw pullers, daily laborers etc has spirally as if we are watching a cricket match! The deaths that started on Wednesday have continued through Thursday, and by evening 6.00 pm we have 131 confirmed deaths! What a shame! Last week we lost over 90 persons in fire and this week due to liquor! All

Spurious Liquor Claims 34 Lives

2011-12-14T20:43:00.000+05:30

According to breaking media reports in another kind of tragedy in West Bengal, in one of the worst hooch tragedies, at least 34 people died and over 100 were admitted to hospitals on Wednesday after drinking toxic liquor at Mograhat in South 24-Parganas district, West Bengal, India CNN-IBN reports: "Thirty-four people died and over 100 were admitted to hospitals at Diamond Harbour and

Tide, Wind and Rainfall Information

2011-12-13T19:46:00.002+05:30

Center for Knowledge and Skills had inaugurated the Tide and Wind Information System (TWIS) on 6 August 2011.. The system brings down scientific information on Wind Speed, probability of rainfall and quantity, and height of Tide on a daily basis for two days in advance in simple language that people can understand. The information comes with a color coding system so that people can be

Smoking Doctors

2011-12-13T19:27:00.000+05:30

At last the home truth is out. What do you do with the fire alarms in a hospital if the doctors smoke? Switch it off! This is what had happened in AMRI hospital in Kolkata. As mentioned in my story Hell of Fire a fire that broke out in that hospital had consumed more than 90 persons since the early morning of 9th Dec 2011. The initial inquiry shows that because there were several doctors who

On the Shores of Digha

2011-12-13T10:22:00.001+05:30

On 5 Dec morning I traveled from Bolpur to Digha via Durgapur, picking in the ABSK team on the way. We were traveling for a training of Block and District Coordinators of the Polio Eradication Project supported by UNICEF and CORE India, of which I am the State Emergency Response Coordinator. A very long and tiring journey followed as we traveled through Purulia and West Medinipur districts.

Hell of Fire

2011-12-12T22:08:00.003+05:30

A fire that broke out in a prestigious hospital for the rich and famous in the heart of Kolkata, known to all as AMRI hospital had a major fire breaking out on 9 Dec early morning and ending up killing 93 people, including 4 staff, and the rest being patients who came to the hospital to get well! RIP.The government is blaming it on the hospital not having followed safety norms. The directors of

Dry and Long - Huge Rainfall Shortage in India

2011-12-10T19:27:00.001+05:30

Northern India in general is going through a long dry spell. The report of the Indian Meteorological Department has shown that there has been a huge deficit in this year's rain fall. Whereas the usual North-Eastern monsoon period for western, eastern, north and north-eastern states of India stretches from 1 June to 15 October each year, the South Western monsoon starting from 1 October to

Body Shop and Animal Testing

2011-12-04T10:08:00.001+05:30

Early morning I had reached Mumbai airport to leave for Kolkata. As I looked around for gate A7 in terminal 1A, I found next to it a shop called the "Body Shop". It had a lot of things that the affluent need for pamper their bodies. I was looking around to see how many things are there in life without with I still remain contented. As a background of the shop there was a huge wallpaper which

Sphere - Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response

2011-12-03T17:41:00.001+05:30

The new Sphere Handbook released in April 2011 has several new insights and better view of the crisis situations. The fundamental approach in the book is to look at standards in humanitarian response from the perspective of affected population, in stead of the humanitarian agency, as previous two versions of the book had done. The book also has the revised Core Standards, Protection Principles

Singing a New Song

2011-12-01T22:25:00.001+05:30

There is too much of hue and cry about this song “Kolaveri di”. I listened to it thrice in YouTube, and added to the already 12.2 million hits in just about two weeks. It is neither a song nor a prose. It is not even worth a song that can be “sung” in bathrooms. Yet it seems to have an untold mystique to raise something deep down in the mind of people. It seems to have certain elegance and

Power and the Powerless

2011-12-01T22:21:00.001+05:30

A few kilometers south of my home town in Tamilnadu lies Kudankulam. Not the most picturesque spot. But, as you travel along the coast from Tiruchendur to Kanyakumari, via Uvari, you just cannot miss this little village dotted by palm tress that scale high – Idinthakarai. And as you reach Idinthakarai, from your vehicle you can see the sea, and move down, Kudankulam is visible. Kudankulam is

Diapers and New Age Children

2011-11-28T22:08:00.001+05:30

The other day I was talking to a senior lady. She is only educated up to the primary level, and was married off in her teens, and had three children, all of them settled now in life. I saw this lady forbidding her younger daughter when she was tying the diaper for her son. I asked the lady why is she stopping her. She had this logic: These days there are so many children who get quickly

Retail and FDI

2011-11-26T19:32:00.003+05:30

India is looking at allowing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail markets. India also hopes that this would lead to creation of at least 4 million jobs, and the investment has to be to the tune of a minimum of 100 million US $. So, with this India expects huge inflow of foreign retail marts to start huge stores across the country-- from Wal Mart to Burger King, everyone will be looking into

Children Die of Hunger in Expectant Superpower India

2011-10-22T12:45:00.002+05:30

India is longing to be considered an Economic Superpower in the globe, and to become a permanent member to the Security Council. However, things are looking grim as the new Human Development Report of the country for 2010-2011 has exposed: Over 35% of children continue to be born malnourished and underweight. My favorite channel CNN-IBN exposed how in one district of the industrial state of

Snake Bite - Know More

2011-10-15T20:51:00.001+05:30

Snake Bite.ppt

Team Anna Exposed

2011-10-12T04:26:00.002+05:30

Mr. Anna Hazare and his team of great servants of the country who have vowed to clean the country of corruption have been thoroughly exposed! They have recently gone to Hissar in Haryana state of India to tell people not to vote for Congress. Nothing wrong with that if their intention of cleaning the country matches with action. The only person in the fray with no criminal records against him is

Apple of the Apple

2011-10-07T17:58:00.003+05:30

Steve Jobs is no doubt the Apple of the Apple empire. It is a virtual world in which he alone ruled. There were many co-founders, but everyone knew apple. His followers revered him, and his rivals shuddered at each launch of the Mac and Apple application. He learned little by education, by life and experience an ocean. His speech at the Stanford University is considered as one of his masterpieces

Checking In

2011-09-23T22:27:00.002+05:30

Due to terror attacks India has made it mandatory for all hotels to check and preserve a copy of photo identity cards of its guests. When I landed in Srinagar, my driver straightaway took me from the airport to Shah Abbas, facing the picturesque Dal Lake. My room had been already booked through my friend Aamir. (Thank you Aamir for the wonderful travel plan you made for us.) As I reached the

Waning Paradise - Melting Glaciers

2011-09-23T22:02:00.002+05:30

Between 9 - 14 Sept I got an opportunity to be in Kashmir. First time in the so called "paradise on earth". The trip was highly eventful, about which I shall write in the next post. We had a good driver who took us around to some of the best places. But everyone had one thing to complain about: lack of rainfall and high amount of heat even in September, when it should have been cooler. The only

Improving Transparency

2011-07-04T21:43:00.002+05:30

One way to improve transparency and reducing black money is to start with smaller things in life--like moderating vegetable and fish markets and regulating rickshaws. Each smaller thing also requires customized solutions.Let us look at the case of the vegetable and fish markets in our towns and villages. Now, these shops do not give any bills, and the deals made are in smaller amounts. So, what

Transparent Communities, Transparent Government

2011-07-02T21:24:00.002+05:30

There is so much of discussion continuing, and people planning go on fast if the anti corruption bill, known as the Lokpal Bill is not stringent enough, and if it is not passed by the parliament. I have some primary questions to be raised before we plan to stop millions being swindled. The patrons of anti-black money and anti-corruption bill need to pay attention to this.Let us take simple two

Flood Struck

2011-06-25T19:01:00.004+05:30

Natural disasters seem to chase human kind everywhere. Incessant rains started on 16 June continued till 19 June, and there was flood like situation in several parts of the State of West Bengal. According to government reports nearly a million people were affected, and at least 30 persons have died so far due to landslides, flood and lightning. On Tuesday, 21 June evening, Mr. Nasir Ateeq from

Laser Sharp

2011-06-18T22:12:00.002+05:30

The nation is obsessed with the debate on an anti-corruption bill, known as the Lokpal Bill. Under this, there will be a committee of eminent persons, outside the jurisdiction of the government, with powers to prosecute any corrupt public servant in office. The pro-Bill group, led by a social worker Anna Hazare (a male) want a stronger Lokpal (People's Guardian) who will cover all the 120 million

In Bed, not so Good

2011-06-18T22:02:00.002+05:30

It was 7 June. I was traveling to Aminpur, a little known tribal village in the outskirts of Bolpur to meet the children and their families, because along with some friends I help for some of their education. It was a real hot day, and I was traveling on a motorcycle. Suddenly, the motorcycle began to give trouble. Soon I had to push it around until a mechanic came and got it repaired. By then I

Reaching Beyond

2011-05-22T22:21:00.003+05:30

I believe I must start regularly writing in my blog. My nephew Arul and friends Kasturi (former CRS State Rep), Shubhra (of CKS), and several other friends from USA and Europe are cursing me for not updating my blog regularly. I must get it on again, and may be spend 30 minutes each week on doing it. That should be fine.I am now in Patna! The capital of one of the poorest states in the country. I

"Polio" Breaks in West Bengal AGAIN !

2011-04-16T14:59:00.002+05:30

After years of fight against Polio, and a small lull in the number of polio cases between 2006- 2009, the very first case of Polio in India has broken out in the condensed urban municipality of Howrah, just a few kilometers from Howrah railway station. This information has shocked the World Health Organization, UNICEF, Rotary International and the government itself. On a recent visit to Kulti

Happy New Year !

2011-03-07T22:29:00.002+05:30

First of all, I must apologize for this long silence! My friends and well-wishers have been asking what has come off me.... Why haven't I updated my blog. Well, for two reasons I suspended my habit of writing the blog. One, the year 2010 was very hard.... and I found it difficult to say a Happy New Year ! And second, I needed a reason to be happy about.... And I found one. So, a Very Happy New

Vagabond

2010-12-18T17:11:00.004+05:30

The last months since May 2010 have gone quickly, with pains, burdens, relief and a sense of humor. The months passed all too quickly, without writing much in my blog through the year. But the year also gave me opportunity to explore myself. Two great things I learnt really make sense to my life. I had left South India while barely I was touching 16, after reading for several years about the

Obama is Here

2010-11-09T06:44:00.002+05:30

For the convenience of all my friends in the U.S.A., your President Barack Obama is here in India. He arrived on Saturday morning Indian time, in the financial capital of India, Mumbai and then moved on to Delhi for meetings with the President and Prime Minister of India. Statistically speaking:The President's entourage included over 240 businessmen from the U.S. The U.S. governmentThis is the

Tragedies of the Future

2010-11-02T07:41:00.003+05:30

A new trend in tragic accidents seem to be taking the form of disasters. The State of Orissa has reported more deaths due to lightning than any other natural disaster for the year 2009. In West Bengal, the cyclone Aila that hit 18 districts, affected over 6.5 million people left only139 dead in May 2009; but the single capsize of the boat in Muriganga river (in the Sunderbans, West Bengal, India)

The North Bengal Odyssey

2010-10-28T19:32:00.003+05:30

The week starting from 18 Oct was entirely spent in North Bengal. I visited Raiganj, Kaliyaganj, Bolaigaon, Chopra--all with a plan to meet women self help groups so that poverty can be eradicated from some of the villages. Couple of friends from Netherlands reached Bagdogra airport on 19 Oct, and I accompanied them to a tea production company as well. Our discussions centered around jute

In the form of a human person

2010-10-28T06:38:00.002+05:30

While walking on the street last afternoon I heard a rickshaw-wallah speaking to another in Bengali, "We are not humans. We only have the form of humans." May be they were grumbling about the hot weather at the noon hour and their predicament to pull the rickshaw. But there is something more to it. Are they really living with the dignity of humans? While I travel around the state, which I do a

Threat on the Wheels

2010-10-11T22:24:00.000+05:30

An incident at the Baghajatin railway station, about 10 kilometers from Sealdah in Kolkata, made me write this. I had just arrived at the station after a meeting with UNICEF and Ramakrishna Mission officials, to leave for Sealdah, and then to look for a train to go to North Bengal. When I reached there on the Platform No. 1, I saw an old man, a lady in her thirties and a child of 4 years old,

Yudhya (War) and Ayodhya (No War Zone)!

2010-10-11T22:21:00.001+05:30

On 28 September, my friends from Netherlands enquired about the verdict on Ayodhya- a place of worship under legal battle for over 60 years, a bone of contention between Muslims and Hindus, and a vile concoction of politics and religion in the hands of politicians looking for cheap issues other than poverty reduction and development. The place is called Ayodhya, which itself means “A place of No

Suggestions for Risk Reduction

2010-09-25T23:40:00.002+05:30

I traveled a lot into the Sunderbans and in Paschim Medinipur, one of the most backward districts in West Bengal (currently known for notorious attacks by the left wing extremists, known as Maoists). In my travels I found two of the benefits intended to help the poor have not done good. I wish someone takes note of them: a) Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (Prime Minister's Rural Roads Scheme).

Planning for a Village

2010-09-25T23:32:00.004+05:30

Part of August and a large portion of September: I spent time in Sabang block of Paschim Medinipur district. UNICEF asked me to help the local panchayat to help them plan for development and disaster risk reduction. While working in Raiganj I have seen how my staff used to be involved in preparing some disaster related plan. Some of them were accepted by the local government (called panchayat),

NAKED FAITH, GARBED PRACTICE

2010-09-01T21:23:00.001+05:30

A sudden travel plan took me to Delhi and back in a day! The National Disaster Management Authority has formed a Core Committee to prepare a Guidelines on the Role of Non-Governmental Humanitarian organizations in Emergency Preparedness and Response. I am asked to be part of it. It was nice to be in Delhi,

Stones and Stony People

2010-02-21T21:10:00.002+05:30

The week had some memorable moments: the arrival of a friend, Christine, a cousin of Regina Lyschik, and visit to some of the stone quarries in the farthest corners on the border of West Bengal and Jharkhand in Birbhum district of West Bengal, India. The area has hundreds of stone quarries stretching into two districts in Jharkhand and one district in West Bengal. The stone quarries are like huge

The Pilot and the Surgeon

2010-02-10T07:12:00.002+05:30

Weekend went off with Robert and Dan, friends of Jeff, a student who is interning with me from the Seattle University. Both Rob and Dan are friendly, out-going, serious in approach, and persons of strong character. Rob is a surgeon in Washington State, and was on a tour to India to see some of the medical practices here and to give a few lectures. My search for him in the internet showed that he

Live with Liver

2010-02-05T20:36:00.002+05:30

For those who are interested in saving their liver, there is some more health capsule....Liver Damaging Habits: 1. Sleeping too late and waking up too late are main cause. 2. Not urinating in the morning. 3 . Too much eating. 4. Skipping breakfast. 5. Consuming too much medication. 6. Consuming too much preservatives, additives, food coloring, and artificial sweetener. 7. Consuming

Brain Damaging Habits

2010-02-04T21:59:00.002+05:30

A group of friends from the U.S. sent me some information on good habits that can save your head and bad habits that can damage your brains. I thought of sharing it with you.... 1. No Breakfast: People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.2 . Overeating: It causes hardening

Elephants...

2010-02-03T22:11:00.002+05:30

Recently newspapers are full of news about elephants invading into the commoners' land in northern districts of Jalpaiguri and Coochbehar and in Purulia and West Medinipur in southern Bengal. The shrinking of forest cover, lack of food, human settlements deep into the forests and poor being pushing to the periphery of the wild--all compounded together have left both animals and humans vulnerable

PACS - Poverty Alienated Community Sucks!

2010-01-31T23:42:00.002+05:30

Since the second week into the new year, most voluntary organizations and non-profits in West Bengal and Orissa have been busy preparing Concept Notes for applying to DFID (Department for International Development of U.K.) under the Poorest Areas Civil Society (PACS) Program. The idea is to give lots of money to non-profits, strengthen their capacities in order to help them work with the poorest

National Parade

2010-01-28T09:35:00.003+05:30

India has been having several parades... Most reported on the media are the forced naked parade of women, and sometimes men, in far off villages due to caste differences, internal quarrels, alleged prostitution or even for personal enmity--just to name a few. The most watched parade is however the parade on the national television on the Independence Day (August 15) and Republic Day (January 26).

End of a Saga

2010-01-18T23:15:00.002+05:30

The State of West Bengal is mourning the death of the eldest statesman of the country--Comrade Jyoti Basu who led the state for 23 years, and paved for the state to be ruled for continuous 32 years by the Communist Party. This is the only state in the world where communists have ruled over 100 million people through a democratically elected process. There is so much said and read about this man.

Rich Gods of the Poorer People

2010-01-11T21:08:00.002+05:30

The Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh state of India is competing with Vatican, (some say it has already overtaken) for the amount of wealth it generates each day. Its annual budget is nearly 10 billion rupees, and almost all of it coming from donations! With a golden tower and hundreds of kilos of gold poured into the hundy every year, no one exactly knows how many tonnes of gold the Tirupati

India Media Smells Rot

2010-01-11T20:45:00.004+05:30

The Indian media, specially the electronic media has been flooded with the story of the "Ruchika" case and it seems to be never ending. For the last four weeks there has been nothing but Ruchika. This Ruchika, who was 16 years of age, is alleged to have been molested by a senior police officer some 18 years ago, and the attempts by the family to register case against the family seem to have not

Surprise

2010-01-08T04:56:00.002+05:30

On 28 December 2009 the celebration of Muharram in West Bengal was so huge that I had to abandon the taxi that I had hired to leave for the airport at the same place from where I had started, and catch an auto-rickshaw on a premium to beat the traffic jam that had clogged the city. When I reached the airport with about an hour to spare, and I concluded the security check, I was in for a surprise.

How Governments Work

2010-01-08T04:36:00.002+05:30

India is such a complex country, as people of every race, ethnicity, language, culture and religion rub shoulder with one another. For the starters, India is multi-cultural for millenniums. And India has learned to live that. It is said that there are over 520 languages spoken in India! That is morute than all the languages of the world put together, I suppose! However, as one country, governance

Jeyamary Weds Surendran

2009-12-31T21:53:00.002+05:30

Ms. Anto Xavier Jeyamary, the only daughter of my eldest brother, married Mr. Surendran, a driver by profession. Jeyamary is a teacher by profession with a Masters in Science (Chemistry) and a Bachelor degree in Education. However, she is under employed as she has not got any permanent job! (Height of unemployment in India) This was a arranged marriage, and both of them hail from the same

Sweepers

2009-12-27T22:09:00.003+05:30

I travel a lot in India on the trains. One sight that cripples your eyes is the sight of children coming around to sweep the wagon in which you travel, and ask you pitiably for some money. I give at times generously, and sometimes meagerly. And I avoid giving any money rarely...when I see that actually it is a group that is coming around. These children are in their pre-teens, malnourished,

First Cave-Man of the Written History

2009-12-25T21:51:00.006+05:30

From the Christmas reflections...given by Puthumai A. Nazarene, on 24 Dec 2009, midnight."Look at the Child. Look at his fragility. The One, who is born without a mother in heaven, is born without a father on earth. The one who will walk on the seas, and has the power to cross the oceans in seven steps, as Job describes, is now powerless even to stand up! The one whose breath can bring life, the

Happy Christmas

2009-12-25T21:47:00.002+05:30

Dear all, I wish you a Very Happy Christmas! May the joy and peace of newborn Christ fill your hearts with His Love.

People Solution

2009-12-24T13:57:00.000+05:30