More Indians in 'city of widows'
By Jyotsna Singh
BBC News, Delhi
<http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/shared/img/999999.gif>
Women in India
<http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/43044000/jpg/_43044297_indiawomen1.jpg>
Widows are seen as a drain on resources
The number of young Hindu widows seeking refuge in India's holy city of
Vrindavan - nicknamed "the city of widows" - is rising, a study says.
The study, funded by the United Nations women's organisation Unifem, found
it was poverty, and not spirituality, that was driving women to Vrindavan.
The report said that poor and helpless women went to the northern city to
escape "humiliation and dependence".
Nearly 15,000 widows are believed to be living on the streets of Vrindavan.
Widows are traditionally ostracised in India and the new study shows their
plight remains pretty much unchanged.
Unaware of help
It says that almost 80% of the widows who come to Vrindavan - in the state
of Uttar Pradesh - are from West Bengal, and a large number of them are very
young.
All this is despite the fact that West Bengal has one of the highest pension
schemes offered by the government for widows, almost $20 (£10) a month.
A well-known journalist, Usha Rai, carried out the research. She said that
widows go to Vrindavan because often they are not aware of government
policies to help them.
She said charities in Vrindavan are relatively well-off as they receive huge
donations.
She recommended "rehabilitation and skilled training" for widows so that
they are not dependant on charity alone.
But these women are often driven away because their families see them as a
drain on their finances.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Red Mosque Fueled Islamic Fire in Young Women - New York Times
Red Mosque Fueled Islamic Fire in Young Women - New York Times
Red Mosque Fueled Islamic Fire in Young Women
Tomas Munita for The New York Times
Hameeda Sarfraz, in the dark burqa, teaches Islamic religious lessons to children in her village, about 50 miles north of Islamabad, Pakistan.
Article Tools Sponsored By
By SOMINI SENGUPTA
Published: July 24, 2007
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 23 — Hameeda Sarfraz, 19, lively eyes sparkling out of a black burqa, was describing the boons of the afterlife.
“In heaven you get everything without hardship,” explained Miss Sarfraz, daughter of a bus driver. “In heaven, if a martyr feels hungry, food appears, the best quality food, and you won’t even know where it came from.”
Miss Sarfraz, an alumna of the now bullet-ridden Jamia Hafsa Islamic school for girls, says she deeply regrets missing her chance to be a martyr. She fled through the back door of the school on July 3, just hours after a gun battle began between Pakistani special forces and militants holed up in the neighboring Red Mosque, the parent institution of Jamia Hafsa.
Sentiments like hers are the fruits of a radical Islam that has blossomed in this country — not just in the lawless tribal areas that American intelligence officials described as an enduring sanctuary for Al Qaeda, but here in its capital, in a mosque-and-school compound that until recently enjoyed the blessings of the state.
She presents a portrait of adolescent passion that one might find anywhere, except that she is a Pakistani girl from a poor rural family, whose members are less devout than she, and her passion is directed against the government of the president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Some of Jamia Hafsa’s alumnae say they still wish to die in the cause of militant Islam.
During the siege, the Pakistani military maintained that women and children had been held hostage by hard-core fighters inside the compound, but Miss Sarfraz and several others interviewed said they were free to stay or go, and some held out until near the end. The bodies of six women were recovered at battle’s end.
“I was studying there six years,” said Shahnaz Akhtar, 20, another former student who held out until the next-to-last day of the siege. “I was so attached to it. I couldn’t leave just because a dictator started bombing it. I feel more at home there than I do at home.”
Shortly before the siege began, female students had come out of the school, draped in black burqas, waving bamboo sticks and taunting troops stationed nearby. The Pakistani news media dubbed them “chicks with sticks.”
Miss Sarfraz came home two weeks ago, out of that caldron of radical Islamist fervor, Islamabad, back to the prosaic chores of a young woman in the Pakistani countryside. Home is a village perched on green terraced hills, a little more than 50 miles from the capital.
“I miss Jamia,” she continued. “My contact with books is gone. At home the only thing for me to do is take care of my parents. I clean the house. I cook.”
She and others came back with a mission to reform their families and their communities, cajoling their mothers and sisters to hide themselves in black burqas. They say they have lost interest in the pleasures of this life, though some, like Miss Akhtar, have yet to give up on pleasures like painting their toenails in dark red. They express an obsession with the afterlife.
They say they would like to see a thousand Jamia Hafsa schools bloom across the nation. Miss Sarfraz has already begun classes at home for the children in her village.
There are, indeed, already some 12,000 religious schools, called madrasas, with about one million students across Pakistan. Some, though not all, embrace militancy.
The families of these returning girls appear to be less hard-line about their faith than their daughters. They say they sent their sisters and daughters to Jamia Hafsa because it was free and safe, and enjoyed a good reputation for providing religious education.
Miss Akhtar’s family, for instance, sent her there six years ago, after she completed eighth grade and expressed a desire to further her education. Her village still has no high school for girls; the nearest one is a one-and-a-half mile walk away.
Miss Akhtar studied the Koran; the Hadith, or sayings of the Prophet Muhammad; and Islamic law. She learned of the virtues of martyrdom. “I prayed to God I would play a role in jihad,” she said.
She learned to justify suicide bombings as a weapon that could be employed in the event of a battle between what she called “true believers” and “infidels.”
Would Islam allow suicide bombing inside Pakistan, an Islamic nation? She said it was possible, and then hesitated when pressed. She said she was not a qualified Islamic scholar.
The battle for the Red Mosque compound began in earnest in January when a group of Jamia Hafsa students, spurred by reports that the government planned to demolish some illegally constructed mosques and seminaries in Islamabad, including Jamia Hafsa, occupied an adjacent public library.
Early that morning, Miss Akhtar recounted, the girls, armed with cane batons, pushed open the library’s back door and awakened the caretakers who were sleeping on the floor with cries of “God is great.” They threw the keys to the library onto the floor, and fled. Ms. Akhtar giggled as she described the events, and then said she had not been part of it.
In the coming months, the students, along with their counterparts from the boy’s school, Jamia Farida, abducted three Pakistani women accused of running a brothel. Then they kidnapped six Chinese masseuses working in what they also said was a brothel; they released them the next day, but it paved the way for the final confrontation.
Three times in the past few months, as confrontation loomed between the Red Mosque and General Musharraf’s government, Miss Akhtar’s parents appealed to her to come home. She refused, saying she wanted to be a martyr. She flashed a big smile at the memory.
In the weeks before the final siege began, she said, the students were warned that the military could strike. “Are you girls prepared for that?” she recalled being asked by teachers. “Do you have the stamina to defend your religion? Are you ready?”
By the time the fighting was over, the official death toll stood at 102, including 11 soldiers. The military said the leaders of the rebellion, including a pro-Taliban cleric named Abdur Rashid Ghazi, had been killed. About 160 people, including three women, have been arrested. Nearly 1,000 others have been released to their families, including 465 women.
To varying degrees, they have all brought a piece of Jamia Hafsa with them. And their transformation is not lost on their families.
Up the road from Miss Akhtar’s home, in a village called Kotla, sat four girls, ages 15 to 18, all cousins who said they had been forced by their families to leave the school after the military raid began.
They sat in one girl’s home telling their story, their faces uncovered only because no man was present. But when Mohammed Matloob, the father of one of the girls, walked into the room, the other three quickly pulled their head scarves over their faces. His daughter, Nagina, 16, ordered him to leave the room, which he did, with a surprised shrug.
The girls explained that at Jamia Hafsa they had been taught to observe purdah, the practice of shielding faces and figures from any man who is not a member of the immediate family. They had changed since they left home for Jamia.
“We used to listen to music and watch TV before,” said Sayeda Fazlur Rehman, 17, with a look of disgust. “We didn’t even pray.”
Practicing purdah, they said, would hasten their ascent to heaven. “This life is temporary,” Miss Fazlur Rehman declared, a common refrain of the Jamia Hafsa alumnae. “You don’t know when you’ll die.”
Red Mosque Fueled Islamic Fire in Young Women
Tomas Munita for The New York Times
Hameeda Sarfraz, in the dark burqa, teaches Islamic religious lessons to children in her village, about 50 miles north of Islamabad, Pakistan.
Article Tools Sponsored By
By SOMINI SENGUPTA
Published: July 24, 2007
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, July 23 — Hameeda Sarfraz, 19, lively eyes sparkling out of a black burqa, was describing the boons of the afterlife.
“In heaven you get everything without hardship,” explained Miss Sarfraz, daughter of a bus driver. “In heaven, if a martyr feels hungry, food appears, the best quality food, and you won’t even know where it came from.”
Miss Sarfraz, an alumna of the now bullet-ridden Jamia Hafsa Islamic school for girls, says she deeply regrets missing her chance to be a martyr. She fled through the back door of the school on July 3, just hours after a gun battle began between Pakistani special forces and militants holed up in the neighboring Red Mosque, the parent institution of Jamia Hafsa.
Sentiments like hers are the fruits of a radical Islam that has blossomed in this country — not just in the lawless tribal areas that American intelligence officials described as an enduring sanctuary for Al Qaeda, but here in its capital, in a mosque-and-school compound that until recently enjoyed the blessings of the state.
She presents a portrait of adolescent passion that one might find anywhere, except that she is a Pakistani girl from a poor rural family, whose members are less devout than she, and her passion is directed against the government of the president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf. Some of Jamia Hafsa’s alumnae say they still wish to die in the cause of militant Islam.
During the siege, the Pakistani military maintained that women and children had been held hostage by hard-core fighters inside the compound, but Miss Sarfraz and several others interviewed said they were free to stay or go, and some held out until near the end. The bodies of six women were recovered at battle’s end.
“I was studying there six years,” said Shahnaz Akhtar, 20, another former student who held out until the next-to-last day of the siege. “I was so attached to it. I couldn’t leave just because a dictator started bombing it. I feel more at home there than I do at home.”
Shortly before the siege began, female students had come out of the school, draped in black burqas, waving bamboo sticks and taunting troops stationed nearby. The Pakistani news media dubbed them “chicks with sticks.”
Miss Sarfraz came home two weeks ago, out of that caldron of radical Islamist fervor, Islamabad, back to the prosaic chores of a young woman in the Pakistani countryside. Home is a village perched on green terraced hills, a little more than 50 miles from the capital.
“I miss Jamia,” she continued. “My contact with books is gone. At home the only thing for me to do is take care of my parents. I clean the house. I cook.”
She and others came back with a mission to reform their families and their communities, cajoling their mothers and sisters to hide themselves in black burqas. They say they have lost interest in the pleasures of this life, though some, like Miss Akhtar, have yet to give up on pleasures like painting their toenails in dark red. They express an obsession with the afterlife.
They say they would like to see a thousand Jamia Hafsa schools bloom across the nation. Miss Sarfraz has already begun classes at home for the children in her village.
There are, indeed, already some 12,000 religious schools, called madrasas, with about one million students across Pakistan. Some, though not all, embrace militancy.
The families of these returning girls appear to be less hard-line about their faith than their daughters. They say they sent their sisters and daughters to Jamia Hafsa because it was free and safe, and enjoyed a good reputation for providing religious education.
Miss Akhtar’s family, for instance, sent her there six years ago, after she completed eighth grade and expressed a desire to further her education. Her village still has no high school for girls; the nearest one is a one-and-a-half mile walk away.
Miss Akhtar studied the Koran; the Hadith, or sayings of the Prophet Muhammad; and Islamic law. She learned of the virtues of martyrdom. “I prayed to God I would play a role in jihad,” she said.
She learned to justify suicide bombings as a weapon that could be employed in the event of a battle between what she called “true believers” and “infidels.”
Would Islam allow suicide bombing inside Pakistan, an Islamic nation? She said it was possible, and then hesitated when pressed. She said she was not a qualified Islamic scholar.
The battle for the Red Mosque compound began in earnest in January when a group of Jamia Hafsa students, spurred by reports that the government planned to demolish some illegally constructed mosques and seminaries in Islamabad, including Jamia Hafsa, occupied an adjacent public library.
Early that morning, Miss Akhtar recounted, the girls, armed with cane batons, pushed open the library’s back door and awakened the caretakers who were sleeping on the floor with cries of “God is great.” They threw the keys to the library onto the floor, and fled. Ms. Akhtar giggled as she described the events, and then said she had not been part of it.
In the coming months, the students, along with their counterparts from the boy’s school, Jamia Farida, abducted three Pakistani women accused of running a brothel. Then they kidnapped six Chinese masseuses working in what they also said was a brothel; they released them the next day, but it paved the way for the final confrontation.
Three times in the past few months, as confrontation loomed between the Red Mosque and General Musharraf’s government, Miss Akhtar’s parents appealed to her to come home. She refused, saying she wanted to be a martyr. She flashed a big smile at the memory.
In the weeks before the final siege began, she said, the students were warned that the military could strike. “Are you girls prepared for that?” she recalled being asked by teachers. “Do you have the stamina to defend your religion? Are you ready?”
By the time the fighting was over, the official death toll stood at 102, including 11 soldiers. The military said the leaders of the rebellion, including a pro-Taliban cleric named Abdur Rashid Ghazi, had been killed. About 160 people, including three women, have been arrested. Nearly 1,000 others have been released to their families, including 465 women.
To varying degrees, they have all brought a piece of Jamia Hafsa with them. And their transformation is not lost on their families.
Up the road from Miss Akhtar’s home, in a village called Kotla, sat four girls, ages 15 to 18, all cousins who said they had been forced by their families to leave the school after the military raid began.
They sat in one girl’s home telling their story, their faces uncovered only because no man was present. But when Mohammed Matloob, the father of one of the girls, walked into the room, the other three quickly pulled their head scarves over their faces. His daughter, Nagina, 16, ordered him to leave the room, which he did, with a surprised shrug.
The girls explained that at Jamia Hafsa they had been taught to observe purdah, the practice of shielding faces and figures from any man who is not a member of the immediate family. They had changed since they left home for Jamia.
“We used to listen to music and watch TV before,” said Sayeda Fazlur Rehman, 17, with a look of disgust. “We didn’t even pray.”
Practicing purdah, they said, would hasten their ascent to heaven. “This life is temporary,” Miss Fazlur Rehman declared, a common refrain of the Jamia Hafsa alumnae. “You don’t know when you’ll die.”
The Statesman - Foeticide and fake medicines jolt Govt.
The Statesman
Foeticides, fake medics jolt govt
Statesman News Service
BHUBANESWAR, July 24: The twin issues of foeticides and spurious medicines continued to rock the state with the crime branch recovering human bones again today from the pit used by a private nursing home in Nayagarh. Reports of raids, sealing of unauthorised ultra sound clinics and unearthing of abandoned medicines poured in from the far-flung districts.
Police and medical officers ,who were rudely jolted by the illegality taking place right under their noses since long, claimed that they were on the alert and monitoring activities at all ultra sound clinics/private nursing homes as well as medicine shops. Raids were being carried out; some of them sealed, they said. Sample of medicines are sent for tests from medicine shops and godowns in different parts of the state.
Reports of such raids came in from Berhampur, Padmapur, Bargarh, Balasore, Rayagada and a few other districts. At Cuttack, a squad has been formed by the police to inspect and monitor such places.
Meanwhile, in the state capital, the Left parties took to the streets demanding a CBI probe into the feticide and fake medicine racket. They also demanded the resignation of the health minister. He has lost the moral right to hold the post, they charged.
Led by the All India Democratic Women Association leaders Tapasi Praharaj and Puspa Das, the Left students wings staged a dharna and later submitted a memorandum to the Governor. They urged upon the government to immediately form participatory and representative committees to ensure strict implementation of the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and prevention of misuse) Act and institute a proper medical vigilance system.
Alleging that the Nayagarh incident was one of female feticide, they said it reflected the abysmal failure of the health and social welfare administration in the state.
The demographic profile of the state has already become a matter of concern as sex ratio per 1000 male is 938 in rural areas and 917 in urban areas, they noted. They pointed out that the PNDT Act mandated the district collectors to form committees for its implementation but nowhere in the state had this been effectively implemented.
Similarly, the fake medicine racket is thriving in the state largely due to failure of the health department to keep a tab and put in place a system of constant vigil, they alleged.
Foeticides, fake medics jolt govt
Statesman News Service
BHUBANESWAR, July 24: The twin issues of foeticides and spurious medicines continued to rock the state with the crime branch recovering human bones again today from the pit used by a private nursing home in Nayagarh. Reports of raids, sealing of unauthorised ultra sound clinics and unearthing of abandoned medicines poured in from the far-flung districts.
Police and medical officers ,who were rudely jolted by the illegality taking place right under their noses since long, claimed that they were on the alert and monitoring activities at all ultra sound clinics/private nursing homes as well as medicine shops. Raids were being carried out; some of them sealed, they said. Sample of medicines are sent for tests from medicine shops and godowns in different parts of the state.
Reports of such raids came in from Berhampur, Padmapur, Bargarh, Balasore, Rayagada and a few other districts. At Cuttack, a squad has been formed by the police to inspect and monitor such places.
Meanwhile, in the state capital, the Left parties took to the streets demanding a CBI probe into the feticide and fake medicine racket. They also demanded the resignation of the health minister. He has lost the moral right to hold the post, they charged.
Led by the All India Democratic Women Association leaders Tapasi Praharaj and Puspa Das, the Left students wings staged a dharna and later submitted a memorandum to the Governor. They urged upon the government to immediately form participatory and representative committees to ensure strict implementation of the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and prevention of misuse) Act and institute a proper medical vigilance system.
Alleging that the Nayagarh incident was one of female feticide, they said it reflected the abysmal failure of the health and social welfare administration in the state.
The demographic profile of the state has already become a matter of concern as sex ratio per 1000 male is 938 in rural areas and 917 in urban areas, they noted. They pointed out that the PNDT Act mandated the district collectors to form committees for its implementation but nowhere in the state had this been effectively implemented.
Similarly, the fake medicine racket is thriving in the state largely due to failure of the health department to keep a tab and put in place a system of constant vigil, they alleged.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
We can do it, says Kalam in last Prez speech
We can do it, says Kalam in last Prez speech
Home > News > PTI
We can do it, says Kalam in last Prez speech
July 24, 2007 19:26 IST
Related Articles
• 2007 to be the year of broadband: Kalam
• I will go with two small suitcases: Kalam
• Let us reach the unreached: President Kalam
• 'Kalam gives the youth hope'
• Kalam at the Mughal Gardens
• Goodbye Dr Kalam
After five eventful years in Rashtrapati Bhavan [Images], outgoing President A P J Abdul Kalam favours building of India as a developed nation where governance is responsive, transparent and corruption free.
In his farewell address to the nation, he said his mission in life would be to bring connectivity between billion hearts and minds of people in the multicultural society and to embed the self confidence that 'we can do it.'
"I will be always with you, dear citizens, in the great mission of making India a developed nation before 2020," 75-year old Kalam said.
Describing his tenure in Rashtrapati Bhavan as 'five beautiful and eventful years,' he said, "Today, it is indeed a thanks giving occasion."
The missile-scientist said that he 'enjoyed every minute' of his tenure with his "wonderful association" with people from different walks of life including politicians as also those associated with business, judiciary, academics, youth and special children.
While outlining a 10-point vision for turning India as a developed nation, the President said a developed India should have a divide between urban and rural population reduced to a think line and there should be equitable distribution and adequate access to energy and quality water.
"A nation where the governance is responsive, transparent and corruption free; a nation that is one of the best places to live in and is proud of its leadership," were among the 10 points listed by Kalam.
Kalam cautioned that in the pursuit of economic growth, care needs to do be taken for preserving the rich and diverse treasure of the culture and civilisation of the country.
"It is our duty for our future generations. This has to be done on a much larger scale through countrywide participation of multiple institutions," he said.
In his earlier speeches, he has contended that economic growth rate should be measured against poor becoming prosperous. He has come out with a National Prosperity Index whose three components were -- annual growth rate of GDP, improvement in quality of life of the people, particularly those living below the poverty line plus, and the adoption of a value system derived from the civilisational heritage in every walk of life that is unique to India.
Kalam, in his last speech as President, brought out various experiences and asked people to take resolve to work for realising the missions of developed India 2020.
The missile-man, whose popularity earned him a reputation of being a people's President, highlighted that eradication of poverty should be addressed to and envisaged a society free of illiteracy, crimes against women and children and no one felt alienated as important elements in taking India in the category of developed nations.
Stressing on a sustainable growth path for a prosperous, healthy, secure, peaceful and happy country, he said developed nation should be a best destination for the most talented scholars, scientists and investors.
The developed nation, according to Kalam, should also include ensuring health care to all, education with value system to the meritorious candidates irrespective of societal or economic stature and where agriculture, industry and service sector work together in symphony.
Sharing his experiences during his travel within the country and abroad, Kalam said empowering of over six lakh villages for development in the country and establishing nearly 7000 Providing Urban amenities in Rural Area centres across the country will help in bridging the rural and urban divide.
Kalam, as the Supreme Commander of Armed Forces of the country, did not forget to mention about the forces in his farewell address.
"Our defence forces are in a beautiful mission. When the nation sleeps during night, members of our defence teams are awake to guard us and remain vigilant to counter any threats."
Being the first Head of the State to undertake arduous defence adventures, Kalam recalled his visits to 'Kumar Point' at Siachen Glacier, underwater journey in Sindhurakshak submarine and taking a flight in Sukhoi-30 fighter jet.
"In these three experiences, I personally felt proud of our ever vigilant soldiers, sailors and air warriors performing their task beyond the call of their duty even in the most adverse circumstances -- natural or man made."
Kalam did not forget to mention the 100-million dollar pan-African E-Network Project, designed to help bridge the digital divide in Africa, a project considered as his brain child that was cleared by the Union Cabinet earlier this month as a parting gift.
As part of the project 12 universities -- seven from India and five from Africa, 17 super-specialty hospitals -- 12 from India, five from Africa, 53 tele-medicine centres and 53 tele-education centres in Africa will be connected. The project will use Indian expertise in IT, education and healthcare to deliver affordable distance education and tele-medical services in 53 countries across the continent via a network of satellite, fibre optics and wireless.
The President expressed happiness that Indian experience was beginning benefits of technology to the people in Africa to bring about societal transformation in the entire African continent.
While concluding his speech, Kalam said, "I was touched by the variety of Indian panorama, emotional content to the tune, cultural diversity and unity of minds in the vast land of ours."
Home > News > PTI
We can do it, says Kalam in last Prez speech
July 24, 2007 19:26 IST
Related Articles
• 2007 to be the year of broadband: Kalam
• I will go with two small suitcases: Kalam
• Let us reach the unreached: President Kalam
• 'Kalam gives the youth hope'
• Kalam at the Mughal Gardens
• Goodbye Dr Kalam
After five eventful years in Rashtrapati Bhavan [Images], outgoing President A P J Abdul Kalam favours building of India as a developed nation where governance is responsive, transparent and corruption free.
In his farewell address to the nation, he said his mission in life would be to bring connectivity between billion hearts and minds of people in the multicultural society and to embed the self confidence that 'we can do it.'
"I will be always with you, dear citizens, in the great mission of making India a developed nation before 2020," 75-year old Kalam said.
Describing his tenure in Rashtrapati Bhavan as 'five beautiful and eventful years,' he said, "Today, it is indeed a thanks giving occasion."
The missile-scientist said that he 'enjoyed every minute' of his tenure with his "wonderful association" with people from different walks of life including politicians as also those associated with business, judiciary, academics, youth and special children.
While outlining a 10-point vision for turning India as a developed nation, the President said a developed India should have a divide between urban and rural population reduced to a think line and there should be equitable distribution and adequate access to energy and quality water.
"A nation where the governance is responsive, transparent and corruption free; a nation that is one of the best places to live in and is proud of its leadership," were among the 10 points listed by Kalam.
Kalam cautioned that in the pursuit of economic growth, care needs to do be taken for preserving the rich and diverse treasure of the culture and civilisation of the country.
"It is our duty for our future generations. This has to be done on a much larger scale through countrywide participation of multiple institutions," he said.
In his earlier speeches, he has contended that economic growth rate should be measured against poor becoming prosperous. He has come out with a National Prosperity Index whose three components were -- annual growth rate of GDP, improvement in quality of life of the people, particularly those living below the poverty line plus, and the adoption of a value system derived from the civilisational heritage in every walk of life that is unique to India.
Kalam, in his last speech as President, brought out various experiences and asked people to take resolve to work for realising the missions of developed India 2020.
The missile-man, whose popularity earned him a reputation of being a people's President, highlighted that eradication of poverty should be addressed to and envisaged a society free of illiteracy, crimes against women and children and no one felt alienated as important elements in taking India in the category of developed nations.
Stressing on a sustainable growth path for a prosperous, healthy, secure, peaceful and happy country, he said developed nation should be a best destination for the most talented scholars, scientists and investors.
The developed nation, according to Kalam, should also include ensuring health care to all, education with value system to the meritorious candidates irrespective of societal or economic stature and where agriculture, industry and service sector work together in symphony.
Sharing his experiences during his travel within the country and abroad, Kalam said empowering of over six lakh villages for development in the country and establishing nearly 7000 Providing Urban amenities in Rural Area centres across the country will help in bridging the rural and urban divide.
Kalam, as the Supreme Commander of Armed Forces of the country, did not forget to mention about the forces in his farewell address.
"Our defence forces are in a beautiful mission. When the nation sleeps during night, members of our defence teams are awake to guard us and remain vigilant to counter any threats."
Being the first Head of the State to undertake arduous defence adventures, Kalam recalled his visits to 'Kumar Point' at Siachen Glacier, underwater journey in Sindhurakshak submarine and taking a flight in Sukhoi-30 fighter jet.
"In these three experiences, I personally felt proud of our ever vigilant soldiers, sailors and air warriors performing their task beyond the call of their duty even in the most adverse circumstances -- natural or man made."
Kalam did not forget to mention the 100-million dollar pan-African E-Network Project, designed to help bridge the digital divide in Africa, a project considered as his brain child that was cleared by the Union Cabinet earlier this month as a parting gift.
As part of the project 12 universities -- seven from India and five from Africa, 17 super-specialty hospitals -- 12 from India, five from Africa, 53 tele-medicine centres and 53 tele-education centres in Africa will be connected. The project will use Indian expertise in IT, education and healthcare to deliver affordable distance education and tele-medical services in 53 countries across the continent via a network of satellite, fibre optics and wireless.
The President expressed happiness that Indian experience was beginning benefits of technology to the people in Africa to bring about societal transformation in the entire African continent.
While concluding his speech, Kalam said, "I was touched by the variety of Indian panorama, emotional content to the tune, cultural diversity and unity of minds in the vast land of ours."
Infra-structural differences between districts of Orissa
by Purna Mishra from World Bank report and Planning commission report.
Dear Umashankar Babu,
You are absolutely right in saying that progress in health is a key indicator of progress. The Planning commission monitors the progress or lack of in seven significant areas and the commission compiles these data by districts for each of the states. The commission calls these seven areas are basic building block of a civilized society and call this group "Infrastructure". In a country like India, the seven major infrastructural factors that are most significant in accelerating the pace of economic development are: energy, transport, irrigation, finance, communication, education and health. While the first five refer to economic infrastructural facilities, the latter two relate to social infrastructure.
This is the definition of Progress used by World Bank and followed by the Planning Commission of India. "World Development Report 1994 published by the World Bank under the title " *Infrastructure for Development" *rightly mentions that "the adequacy of infrastructure helps determine one country's success and another's failure ‘ in diversifying production, expanding trade, coping with population growth, reducing poverty, or improving environmental conditions" (World Bank 1994:2). Mody (1997: xii) aptly suggests that in any modern society, infrastructure plays a pivotal role- often decisive role in determining the overall productivity and development of a country's economy, as well as the quality of life of its citizens". According to him infrastructure can be defined as activities that provide society with the services necessary to conduct daily life and to engage in productive activities".
The following is quoted from the reports of Planning Commission:
"Thus, by taking seven sub-sectors of the infrastructure such as transport, energy, irrigation, banking, communication, education and health, when we compute the composite development index of infrastructure for the different districts of Orissa by assigning weights to the different sub-sectors according to the CMIE value, it is found that among the old undivided districts the level of development disparity has been reduced over the years. In the early 1990s among the 13 old and undivided districts, six were found to be infrastructurally developed with a CDI value of more than 100. It may be noted that the average CDI value of infrastructure for the state is taken as 100 and on this basis by assigning different values given to the seven sub-sectors by the CMIE, the respective CDI value of the old districts has been worked out accordingly. It is found that in the early 1990s the infrastructurally developed districts among the 13 old and undivided districts of Orissa were, Puri, Cuttack, Sundargarh, Baleswar, Sambalpur and Bolangir in the descending order. Among the seven infrastructurally backward districts, Kalahandi was the most backward followed by Koraput, Phulbani, Dhenkanal, Kendujhar, Ganjam and Mayurbhanj in the descending order. The co-efficient of variation (C.V.) value reflecting inter-district level development disparity in infrastructure was found to be 22.15 per cent.
However, in the year 2000-01 when the C.V. value of those 13 undivided districts of the state is computed for the infrastructure sector, it is found to have come down to 15.62 per cent. At the turn of the century, there has been a marked shift in the infrastructural development positions of the old undivided districts. Ganjam among the backward districts of the early 1990s is now elevated to fifth position in the rank order, whereas the rank position of Sundargarh, which was third in the early 1990s is slid down to seventh position. Among the old undivided districts of the state the number of infrastructurally developed districts during 1990-91 to 2000-01 has increased to six from seven. Those are: Puri, Cuttack, Baleswar, Sambalpur, Ganjam, Bolangir and Sundargarh in the descending order. Similarly, the backward districts in the descending rank order of infrastructural development are: Dhenkanal, Phulbani, Koraput, Kendujhar, Mayurbhanj and Kalahandi. This implies that during 1990-2000 while the rank positions of the most developed and most backward districts of the state have remained unchanged, the infrastructural development scenario of other districts has either shown some improvement like the case of Ganjam or deterioration like the cases of Sundargarh, Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar. Further, it is revealed that according to CDI value of the infrastructure, all the four undivided coastal districts of the state and three highland districts namely, Sambalpur, Bolangir and Sundargarh are developed in the state's development parameter. In contrast, the backward tribal dominated districts of eastern ghats region comprising Koraput, Kalahandi and Phulbani as well as Kendujhar and Mayurbhanj of the northern plateau region are found to be infrastructurally backward (Tables - 2.2 & 2.3).
It may be noted that the old 13 districts of the state were reorganized into 30 districts in 1992. So, it is essential to make a focus on infrastructural development positions of the newly reorganized 30 districts of Orissa in more detail. According to the composite development index of infrastructure in the year 2000-01 half of the total number of districts in the state are found to be developed with an index value of more than 100. Among the developed districts, Khurda's position is found to be at the top followed by Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Bhadrak, Ganjam, Sambalpur, Baleswar, Sonepur, Jajpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Kendrapara, Sundargarh and Bolangir in the descending order. The backward districts of the state from the top to bottom in the descending order of the rank positions are: Nabarangpur (30), Kandhamal (29), Nuapada (28), Malkangiri (27), Nayagarh (26), Kalahandi (25), Kendujhar (24), Rayagada (23), Mayurbhanj (22), Boudh (21), Deogarh (20), Gajapati (19), Angul (18), Koraput (17) and Dhenkanal (16). The C.V. value reflecting inter-district level disparity in the development of infrastructure among the newly organized 30 districts of Orissa is found to be 23.45 per cent (Table- 2.4).
When we look at the infrastructural development status of the 30 new districts vis-a-vis the old undivided 13 districts in Tables 2.3 and 2.4, it is found that both the developed as we ll as the backward districts among the old districts depicted a picture of intra-district level development disparity of infrastructure. It is observed that the so-called developed among the old undivided districts also contained many backward pockets/ new districts such as Nayagarh in the case of Puri, Deogarh in the case of Sambalpur and Gajapati in the case of Ganjam. However, the infrastructural development position of the backward old and undivided districts is so low that none of the newly carved districts among them has been able to earn the status of developed or advanced. Rather, owing to uneven development at the intra-district level the inter-district level development disparity in infrastructure among the newly organized 30 districts of the state has shown marked increase as compared to the old and undivided districts".
by Purna Mishra from World Bank report and Planning commission report.
Dear Umashankar Babu,
You are absolutely right in saying that progress in health is a key indicator of progress. The Planning commission monitors the progress or lack of in seven significant areas and the commission compiles these data by districts for each of the states. The commission calls these seven areas are basic building block of a civilized society and call this group "Infrastructure". In a country like India, the seven major infrastructural factors that are most significant in accelerating the pace of economic development are: energy, transport, irrigation, finance, communication, education and health. While the first five refer to economic infrastructural facilities, the latter two relate to social infrastructure.
This is the definition of Progress used by World Bank and followed by the Planning Commission of India. "World Development Report 1994 published by the World Bank under the title " *Infrastructure for Development" *rightly mentions that "the adequacy of infrastructure helps determine one country's success and another's failure ‘ in diversifying production, expanding trade, coping with population growth, reducing poverty, or improving environmental conditions" (World Bank 1994:2). Mody (1997: xii) aptly suggests that in any modern society, infrastructure plays a pivotal role- often decisive role in determining the overall productivity and development of a country's economy, as well as the quality of life of its citizens". According to him infrastructure can be defined as activities that provide society with the services necessary to conduct daily life and to engage in productive activities".
The following is quoted from the reports of Planning Commission:
"Thus, by taking seven sub-sectors of the infrastructure such as transport, energy, irrigation, banking, communication, education and health, when we compute the composite development index of infrastructure for the different districts of Orissa by assigning weights to the different sub-sectors according to the CMIE value, it is found that among the old undivided districts the level of development disparity has been reduced over the years. In the early 1990s among the 13 old and undivided districts, six were found to be infrastructurally developed with a CDI value of more than 100. It may be noted that the average CDI value of infrastructure for the state is taken as 100 and on this basis by assigning different values given to the seven sub-sectors by the CMIE, the respective CDI value of the old districts has been worked out accordingly. It is found that in the early 1990s the infrastructurally developed districts among the 13 old and undivided districts of Orissa were, Puri, Cuttack, Sundargarh, Baleswar, Sambalpur and Bolangir in the descending order. Among the seven infrastructurally backward districts, Kalahandi was the most backward followed by Koraput, Phulbani, Dhenkanal, Kendujhar, Ganjam and Mayurbhanj in the descending order. The co-efficient of variation (C.V.) value reflecting inter-district level development disparity in infrastructure was found to be 22.15 per cent.
However, in the year 2000-01 when the C.V. value of those 13 undivided districts of the state is computed for the infrastructure sector, it is found to have come down to 15.62 per cent. At the turn of the century, there has been a marked shift in the infrastructural development positions of the old undivided districts. Ganjam among the backward districts of the early 1990s is now elevated to fifth position in the rank order, whereas the rank position of Sundargarh, which was third in the early 1990s is slid down to seventh position. Among the old undivided districts of the state the number of infrastructurally developed districts during 1990-91 to 2000-01 has increased to six from seven. Those are: Puri, Cuttack, Baleswar, Sambalpur, Ganjam, Bolangir and Sundargarh in the descending order. Similarly, the backward districts in the descending rank order of infrastructural development are: Dhenkanal, Phulbani, Koraput, Kendujhar, Mayurbhanj and Kalahandi. This implies that during 1990-2000 while the rank positions of the most developed and most backward districts of the state have remained unchanged, the infrastructural development scenario of other districts has either shown some improvement like the case of Ganjam or deterioration like the cases of Sundargarh, Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar. Further, it is revealed that according to CDI value of the infrastructure, all the four undivided coastal districts of the state and three highland districts namely, Sambalpur, Bolangir and Sundargarh are developed in the state's development parameter. In contrast, the backward tribal dominated districts of eastern ghats region comprising Koraput, Kalahandi and Phulbani as well as Kendujhar and Mayurbhanj of the northern plateau region are found to be infrastructurally backward (Tables - 2.2 & 2.3).
It may be noted that the old 13 districts of the state were reorganized into 30 districts in 1992. So, it is essential to make a focus on infrastructural development positions of the newly reorganized 30 districts of Orissa in more detail. According to the composite development index of infrastructure in the year 2000-01 half of the total number of districts in the state are found to be developed with an index value of more than 100. Among the developed districts, Khurda's position is found to be at the top followed by Puri, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Bhadrak, Ganjam, Sambalpur, Baleswar, Sonepur, Jajpur, Bargarh, Jharsuguda, Kendrapara, Sundargarh and Bolangir in the descending order. The backward districts of the state from the top to bottom in the descending order of the rank positions are: Nabarangpur (30), Kandhamal (29), Nuapada (28), Malkangiri (27), Nayagarh (26), Kalahandi (25), Kendujhar (24), Rayagada (23), Mayurbhanj (22), Boudh (21), Deogarh (20), Gajapati (19), Angul (18), Koraput (17) and Dhenkanal (16). The C.V. value reflecting inter-district level disparity in the development of infrastructure among the newly organized 30 districts of Orissa is found to be 23.45 per cent (Table- 2.4).
When we look at the infrastructural development status of the 30 new districts vis-a-vis the old undivided 13 districts in Tables 2.3 and 2.4, it is found that both the developed as we ll as the backward districts among the old districts depicted a picture of intra-district level development disparity of infrastructure. It is observed that the so-called developed among the old undivided districts also contained many backward pockets/ new districts such as Nayagarh in the case of Puri, Deogarh in the case of Sambalpur and Gajapati in the case of Ganjam. However, the infrastructural development position of the backward old and undivided districts is so low that none of the newly carved districts among them has been able to earn the status of developed or advanced. Rather, owing to uneven development at the intra-district level the inter-district level development disparity in infrastructure among the newly organized 30 districts of the state has shown marked increase as compared to the old and undivided districts".
Friday, July 20, 2007
ADDRESS AT THE 99TH BIRTHDAT CELEBRATIONS OF DR. SRI SRI SHIVAKUMARA SWAMIJI, SRI SIDDAGANGA MATH, TUMKUR, KARNATAKA
Speech In: [PDF Format]
07-04-2006 : Tumkur, Karnataka
The Enlightened Life
I am delighted to be in this divine environment and participate in the 99th birthday celebrations of Dr.Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji of Sri Siddaganga Math. My pranams and respects to Swamiji and greetings to all the participants in this function. Today is a very important day. I am seeing in our country, a great sage, who has been performing "Tapas” for the last 76 years. Through the intense Tapas, he has freed himself from passion, anger, love and hate. Presence of such great souls in the country, spreads peace and promotes spiritual prosperity. He is a beacon light that attracts and spreads the spiritual message to the people and society. The topic I am going to discuss to the experienced and young audience is "The Enlightened Life".
Swamiji's message
In present time, establishing peace in the world torn by distress and hate is of immediate concern for everyone. Peace has its origin in compassion. For this Swamiji says "If something when done be found harmful to you, desist from doing it, lest it harms others. If you desire for everyone's love around you then give your love to everyone that desires it". Swamiji is a towering source of knowledge that purifies every soul that comes into contact.
Top
Power of Tapas
On this day of celebration of the 99th birthday of Swamiji and his entering the 76th year of monkhood, I would like to give my respects by reciting one kural (couplet) from my favorite Tamil classic composed over 2200 years ago by Thiruvalluvar. The Saint Poet has devoted one full chapter of 10 kurals out of 1330 kurals to Tapas. It says:
It means, with the power of Tapas, if one discards the attachment to ones own life and "I" the "ahankar" in him, then all lives in the universe will bow before him. The message of this couplet truly reflects the characteristics of Sree Sree Sivakumara Swamiji. Our youth indeed will find in Swamiji the inspiration with divine blessing.
Friends, Let me share with you a personal experience. When my father was performing 5 times namaz at the age of 90s, his children and grandchildren in large number we used to wonder, the divine strength he has acquired. Of course my father was with us for more than 103 years. After a long time, today it is a great inspiring experience for me to see a great soul and sage Dr Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji.
Top
Importance of moral science in schools
When I am in the midst of such divine souls and the youth in Tumkur, I am reminded of my experience in St Joseph's College, Trichi. I remember the lectures given by highest authority of the Jesuit institution Rev Father Rector Kalathil of St. Joseph's college. Every Monday, he will take class on moral science for an hour. He used to talk about good human beings, present and past, and what makes a good human being. In this class he used to give lectures on personalities such as Buddha, Confucius, St. Augustine, Califa Omar, Mahatma Gandhi, Einstein, Abraham Lincoln including some scientific personalities and moral stories linked to our civilizational heritage. It is essential in the secondary schools and colleges to arrange a lecture by a great teacher of the institution once in a week for one hour on India's civilizational heritage. This class can be called as a Moral Science Class. That will elevate the young minds to love the country, to love other human beings and elevate the young to higher planes.
Top
First Teacher - My Father
I have a message to my young friends. To begin with I am going to talk to you about my father Janab Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen, as a teacher. My father taught me a great lesson when I was a young boy. What was that lesson? It was just after India got independence. At that time panchayat board elections took place at Rameswaram. My father was elected panchayat board member and on the same day he was also elected the President of Rameswaram Panchayat Board. Rameswaram Island was a beautiful place with 30,000 populations. At that time they elected my father as panchayat Board President not because he belonged to a particular religion or a particular caste or spoke a particular language or for his economic status. He was elected only on the basis of his nobility of mind and for being a good human being. Dear students, I would like to narrate one incident that took place on the day he was elected President of Panchayat board.
I was at that time studying in School. Those days we did not have electricity and we used to study under ration kerosene lamps. I was reading the lessons loudly and I heard a knock at the door. We never used to lock the door in Rameswaram in those days. Somebody opened the door, came in and asked me where my father was? I told him that father had gone for evening Namaz. Then he said, I have brought something for him, can I keep it here? Since my father had gone for Namaz, I shouted for my mother to get her permission to receive the item. Since she was also on the Namaz there was no response. I asked the person to leave the item on the cot that was used for work, namaz and sleeping. After that I continued my studies.
I used to learn by reading aloud in my younger days. I was reading loud and fully concentrating on my studies. At that time my father came in and saw a tambulum kept in the cot. He asked me "what is this? Who has given that?" I told him, "somebody came and has kept this for you". He opened the cover of the tambulum and found there was a costly dhoti, angawastram, some fruits and some sweets and he could see the slip that the person had left behind. I was the youngest child of my father, he really loved me and I also loved him a lot. He was upset at the sight of the Tambulum and gifts left some one. That was the first time I saw him very angry and also that was the first time I had got a thorough beating from him. I got frightened and started weeping. My mother embraced and consoled me. Then my father came and touched my shoulder lovingly with affection and advised me not to receive any gift without his permission. He quoted an Islamic Hadith, which states that, "When the almighty appoints a person to a position, He takes care of his provision. If a person takes anything beyond that, it is an illegal gain." Then he told me that it is not a good habit. Gift is always accompanied by some purpose and a gift is a dangerous thing. It is like touching a snake and getting the poison in turn. This lesson stands out always in my mind even when I am in my seventies. This incident, taught me a very valuable lesson for my life. It is deeply embedded in my mind.
I would like also to mention the writings in Manu Smriti which states that "By Accepting gifts the divine light in the person gets extinguished". Manu warns every individual against accepting gifts for the reason that it places the acceptor under an obligation in favour of the person who gave the gift and ultimately it results in making a person to do things, which are not permitted according to law.
I am sharing this thought, with all of you, particularly the young ones, do not be carried away by any gift which comes with a purpose and through which one loses his personality greatly. Do you think, young friends, you can follow this in your life? I will be very happy if you can practice this sincerely. This trait will lead to good life.
Top
My second teacher: Teacher puts the student ahead
When I think of my second teacher, I am reminded of my childhood days when I was studying in 8th class at the age of 13. I had a teacher, Shri Siva Subramania Iyer. He was one of the very good teachers in our school. All of us loved to attend his class and hear him. One day he was teaching about bird’s flight. He drew a diagram of a bird on the blackboard depicting the wings, tail and the body structure with the head. He explained how the birds create the lift and fly. He also explained to us how they change direction while flying. Nearly for 25 minutes he gave the lecture with various information such as lift, drag, how the birds fly. At the end of the class, he wanted to know whether we understood how the birds fly. I said, I did not understand how the birds fly. When I said this, the teacher asked the other students whether they understood or not. Many students said that they also did not understand. He did not get upset by our response since he was a committed teacher.
Our teacher said that he would take all of us to the sea shore. That evening the whole class was at the sea shore of Rameswaram. We enjoyed the roaring sea waves knocking at the sandy hills in the pleasant evening. Birds were flying with sweet chirping voice. He showed the sea birds in formations of 10 to 20 numbers. We saw the marvelous formations of birds with a purpose and we were all amazed. He showed us the birds and asked us to see that when the birds fly, what they looked like. We saw the wings flapping. He asked us to look at the tail portion with the combination of flapping wings and twisting tail. We noticed closely and found that the birds in that condition flew in the direction they desired. Then he asked us a question, where the engine is and how it is powered. Bird is powered by its own life and the motivation of what it wants. All these things were explained to us within Fifteen minutes. We all understood the whole bird dynamics from this practical example. How nice it was? Our teacher was a great teacher; he could give us a theoretical lesson coupled with a live practical example available in nature. This is real teaching. I am sure many of the teachers in schools and colleges will follow this example.
For me, it was not merely an understanding of how a bird flies. The bird’s flight entered into me and created a special feeling. From that evening, I thought that my future study has to be with reference to flight and flight systems. I am saying this because my teacher’s teaching and the event that I witnessed decided my future career. Then one evening after the classes, I asked the teacher, “Sir, please tell me, how to progress further in learning all about flight.” He patiently explained to me that I should complete 8th class, and then go to high school, and then I should go to engineering college that may lead to education on flight. If I complete all my education with excellence, I might do something connected with flight sciences. This advice and the bird flying exercise given by my teacher, really gave me a goal and a mission for my life. When I went to college, I took Physics. When I went to engineering in Madras Institute of Technology, I took Aeronautical Engineering.
Thus my life was transformed as a rocket engineer, aerospace engineer and technologist. That one incident of my teacher teaching the lesson, showing the visual live example proved to be a turning point in my life which eventually shaped my profession.
A student during his school life upto 10+2 spends 25,000 hours in the school campus. His life is, more influenced by the teachers and the school environment. I am sure, the schools and colleges run by the Sree Siddaganga Math has best of teachers who love teaching, particularly since they are in the divine presence of Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji, who is the greatest role model for all the teachers and students.
Top
Conclusion
When I am in this divine campus of Swamiji, I would like to share with the audience the power of proper education and its dimensions.
Ultimately education in its real sense is the pursuit of this truth. It is an endless journey through knowledge and enlightenment. Such a journey opens up new vistas of development of humanism where there is no scope nor room for pettiness, disharmony, jealousy, hatred or enmity. It transforms a human personality into a wholesome being, a noble soul and an asset in the Universe. Universal brotherhood in its true sense becomes the sheet anchor for such education. Real education enhances the dignity of a human being and increases his or her self-respect. If only the real sense of education could be realized by each individual, and carried forward in every field of human activity, the world will be so much a better place to live in.
Dear young friends, now I would like to administer a 10 point oath for enlightened citizenship. Are you ready:
Top
TEN POINT OATH
1. I will pursue my education or the work with dedication and I will excel in it.
2. From now onwards, I will teach at least 10 persons to read and write those who cannot read and write.
3. I will plant at least 10 saplings and shall ensure their growth through constant care.
4. I will visit rural and urban areas and permanently wean away at least 5 persons from addiction and gambling.
5. I will constantly endeavor to remove the pain of my suffering brethren.
6. I will not support any religious, caste or language differentiation.
7. I will be honest and endeavour to make a corruption free society.
8. I will work for becoming an enlightened citizen and make my family righteous.
9. I will always be a friend of the mentally and physically challenged and will work hard to make them feel normal, like the rest of us.
10.I will proudly celebrate the success of my country and my people.
Speech In: [PDF Format]
07-04-2006 : Tumkur, Karnataka
The Enlightened Life
I am delighted to be in this divine environment and participate in the 99th birthday celebrations of Dr.Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji of Sri Siddaganga Math. My pranams and respects to Swamiji and greetings to all the participants in this function. Today is a very important day. I am seeing in our country, a great sage, who has been performing "Tapas” for the last 76 years. Through the intense Tapas, he has freed himself from passion, anger, love and hate. Presence of such great souls in the country, spreads peace and promotes spiritual prosperity. He is a beacon light that attracts and spreads the spiritual message to the people and society. The topic I am going to discuss to the experienced and young audience is "The Enlightened Life".
Swamiji's message
In present time, establishing peace in the world torn by distress and hate is of immediate concern for everyone. Peace has its origin in compassion. For this Swamiji says "If something when done be found harmful to you, desist from doing it, lest it harms others. If you desire for everyone's love around you then give your love to everyone that desires it". Swamiji is a towering source of knowledge that purifies every soul that comes into contact.
Top
Power of Tapas
On this day of celebration of the 99th birthday of Swamiji and his entering the 76th year of monkhood, I would like to give my respects by reciting one kural (couplet) from my favorite Tamil classic composed over 2200 years ago by Thiruvalluvar. The Saint Poet has devoted one full chapter of 10 kurals out of 1330 kurals to Tapas. It says:
It means, with the power of Tapas, if one discards the attachment to ones own life and "I" the "ahankar" in him, then all lives in the universe will bow before him. The message of this couplet truly reflects the characteristics of Sree Sree Sivakumara Swamiji. Our youth indeed will find in Swamiji the inspiration with divine blessing.
Friends, Let me share with you a personal experience. When my father was performing 5 times namaz at the age of 90s, his children and grandchildren in large number we used to wonder, the divine strength he has acquired. Of course my father was with us for more than 103 years. After a long time, today it is a great inspiring experience for me to see a great soul and sage Dr Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji.
Top
Importance of moral science in schools
When I am in the midst of such divine souls and the youth in Tumkur, I am reminded of my experience in St Joseph's College, Trichi. I remember the lectures given by highest authority of the Jesuit institution Rev Father Rector Kalathil of St. Joseph's college. Every Monday, he will take class on moral science for an hour. He used to talk about good human beings, present and past, and what makes a good human being. In this class he used to give lectures on personalities such as Buddha, Confucius, St. Augustine, Califa Omar, Mahatma Gandhi, Einstein, Abraham Lincoln including some scientific personalities and moral stories linked to our civilizational heritage. It is essential in the secondary schools and colleges to arrange a lecture by a great teacher of the institution once in a week for one hour on India's civilizational heritage. This class can be called as a Moral Science Class. That will elevate the young minds to love the country, to love other human beings and elevate the young to higher planes.
Top
First Teacher - My Father
I have a message to my young friends. To begin with I am going to talk to you about my father Janab Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen, as a teacher. My father taught me a great lesson when I was a young boy. What was that lesson? It was just after India got independence. At that time panchayat board elections took place at Rameswaram. My father was elected panchayat board member and on the same day he was also elected the President of Rameswaram Panchayat Board. Rameswaram Island was a beautiful place with 30,000 populations. At that time they elected my father as panchayat Board President not because he belonged to a particular religion or a particular caste or spoke a particular language or for his economic status. He was elected only on the basis of his nobility of mind and for being a good human being. Dear students, I would like to narrate one incident that took place on the day he was elected President of Panchayat board.
I was at that time studying in School. Those days we did not have electricity and we used to study under ration kerosene lamps. I was reading the lessons loudly and I heard a knock at the door. We never used to lock the door in Rameswaram in those days. Somebody opened the door, came in and asked me where my father was? I told him that father had gone for evening Namaz. Then he said, I have brought something for him, can I keep it here? Since my father had gone for Namaz, I shouted for my mother to get her permission to receive the item. Since she was also on the Namaz there was no response. I asked the person to leave the item on the cot that was used for work, namaz and sleeping. After that I continued my studies.
I used to learn by reading aloud in my younger days. I was reading loud and fully concentrating on my studies. At that time my father came in and saw a tambulum kept in the cot. He asked me "what is this? Who has given that?" I told him, "somebody came and has kept this for you". He opened the cover of the tambulum and found there was a costly dhoti, angawastram, some fruits and some sweets and he could see the slip that the person had left behind. I was the youngest child of my father, he really loved me and I also loved him a lot. He was upset at the sight of the Tambulum and gifts left some one. That was the first time I saw him very angry and also that was the first time I had got a thorough beating from him. I got frightened and started weeping. My mother embraced and consoled me. Then my father came and touched my shoulder lovingly with affection and advised me not to receive any gift without his permission. He quoted an Islamic Hadith, which states that, "When the almighty appoints a person to a position, He takes care of his provision. If a person takes anything beyond that, it is an illegal gain." Then he told me that it is not a good habit. Gift is always accompanied by some purpose and a gift is a dangerous thing. It is like touching a snake and getting the poison in turn. This lesson stands out always in my mind even when I am in my seventies. This incident, taught me a very valuable lesson for my life. It is deeply embedded in my mind.
I would like also to mention the writings in Manu Smriti which states that "By Accepting gifts the divine light in the person gets extinguished". Manu warns every individual against accepting gifts for the reason that it places the acceptor under an obligation in favour of the person who gave the gift and ultimately it results in making a person to do things, which are not permitted according to law.
I am sharing this thought, with all of you, particularly the young ones, do not be carried away by any gift which comes with a purpose and through which one loses his personality greatly. Do you think, young friends, you can follow this in your life? I will be very happy if you can practice this sincerely. This trait will lead to good life.
Top
My second teacher: Teacher puts the student ahead
When I think of my second teacher, I am reminded of my childhood days when I was studying in 8th class at the age of 13. I had a teacher, Shri Siva Subramania Iyer. He was one of the very good teachers in our school. All of us loved to attend his class and hear him. One day he was teaching about bird’s flight. He drew a diagram of a bird on the blackboard depicting the wings, tail and the body structure with the head. He explained how the birds create the lift and fly. He also explained to us how they change direction while flying. Nearly for 25 minutes he gave the lecture with various information such as lift, drag, how the birds fly. At the end of the class, he wanted to know whether we understood how the birds fly. I said, I did not understand how the birds fly. When I said this, the teacher asked the other students whether they understood or not. Many students said that they also did not understand. He did not get upset by our response since he was a committed teacher.
Our teacher said that he would take all of us to the sea shore. That evening the whole class was at the sea shore of Rameswaram. We enjoyed the roaring sea waves knocking at the sandy hills in the pleasant evening. Birds were flying with sweet chirping voice. He showed the sea birds in formations of 10 to 20 numbers. We saw the marvelous formations of birds with a purpose and we were all amazed. He showed us the birds and asked us to see that when the birds fly, what they looked like. We saw the wings flapping. He asked us to look at the tail portion with the combination of flapping wings and twisting tail. We noticed closely and found that the birds in that condition flew in the direction they desired. Then he asked us a question, where the engine is and how it is powered. Bird is powered by its own life and the motivation of what it wants. All these things were explained to us within Fifteen minutes. We all understood the whole bird dynamics from this practical example. How nice it was? Our teacher was a great teacher; he could give us a theoretical lesson coupled with a live practical example available in nature. This is real teaching. I am sure many of the teachers in schools and colleges will follow this example.
For me, it was not merely an understanding of how a bird flies. The bird’s flight entered into me and created a special feeling. From that evening, I thought that my future study has to be with reference to flight and flight systems. I am saying this because my teacher’s teaching and the event that I witnessed decided my future career. Then one evening after the classes, I asked the teacher, “Sir, please tell me, how to progress further in learning all about flight.” He patiently explained to me that I should complete 8th class, and then go to high school, and then I should go to engineering college that may lead to education on flight. If I complete all my education with excellence, I might do something connected with flight sciences. This advice and the bird flying exercise given by my teacher, really gave me a goal and a mission for my life. When I went to college, I took Physics. When I went to engineering in Madras Institute of Technology, I took Aeronautical Engineering.
Thus my life was transformed as a rocket engineer, aerospace engineer and technologist. That one incident of my teacher teaching the lesson, showing the visual live example proved to be a turning point in my life which eventually shaped my profession.
A student during his school life upto 10+2 spends 25,000 hours in the school campus. His life is, more influenced by the teachers and the school environment. I am sure, the schools and colleges run by the Sree Siddaganga Math has best of teachers who love teaching, particularly since they are in the divine presence of Sri Sri Shivakumara Swamiji, who is the greatest role model for all the teachers and students.
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Conclusion
When I am in this divine campus of Swamiji, I would like to share with the audience the power of proper education and its dimensions.
Ultimately education in its real sense is the pursuit of this truth. It is an endless journey through knowledge and enlightenment. Such a journey opens up new vistas of development of humanism where there is no scope nor room for pettiness, disharmony, jealousy, hatred or enmity. It transforms a human personality into a wholesome being, a noble soul and an asset in the Universe. Universal brotherhood in its true sense becomes the sheet anchor for such education. Real education enhances the dignity of a human being and increases his or her self-respect. If only the real sense of education could be realized by each individual, and carried forward in every field of human activity, the world will be so much a better place to live in.
Dear young friends, now I would like to administer a 10 point oath for enlightened citizenship. Are you ready:
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TEN POINT OATH
1. I will pursue my education or the work with dedication and I will excel in it.
2. From now onwards, I will teach at least 10 persons to read and write those who cannot read and write.
3. I will plant at least 10 saplings and shall ensure their growth through constant care.
4. I will visit rural and urban areas and permanently wean away at least 5 persons from addiction and gambling.
5. I will constantly endeavor to remove the pain of my suffering brethren.
6. I will not support any religious, caste or language differentiation.
7. I will be honest and endeavour to make a corruption free society.
8. I will work for becoming an enlightened citizen and make my family righteous.
9. I will always be a friend of the mentally and physically challenged and will work hard to make them feel normal, like the rest of us.
10.I will proudly celebrate the success of my country and my people.
Friday, July 13, 2007
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