Nepal's disaster.

160 killed in deadly Nepal deluge; at least 133 Indians among 844 missing

Water rose 30 feet and at least 160 people were killed, while hundreds of others, including scores of Kailash Manasarovar pilgrims from India, remained missing after a flash flood and mudslide of unprecedented scale in Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers tore through a part of Nepal-Tibet border yesterday morning. It was a glacier break up!

It swept away settlements, hydropower units and the pilgrim route.

My take

A tragedy of unimaginable magnitude! My prayers for Nepal and its people!!

A quiet Thiruvonam.

Got up at 5, sent the messages, opened up the house for the day, lit up the puja room lamp and switched on the hymns on the home theatre.

It was pitter patter rain right from early morning!

Walked within the house, recited my prayers, carried out my exercise routine followed by bath.

Wore the onakkodi got from the Kuthaampulli received as complimentary from the weavers' village when we'd gone there shopping a few months back! Lekha had also done that!!

A great Thiruvonam sadya - a wonderful effort on the part of Lekha and the maid.

Had a siesta while Lekha watched the Malayalam flick, "Mohiniyaattam".

The evening chores.

We saw Drishyam 3. Good movie; the suspense was maintained till the end.

We, also, saw the grand finale of the children's reality show, "Top Singer Season 6" on the Flowers channel.

  

Wise Zen Monk Once Said....

1. When you walk, walk fully - rushing makes you miss the journey.

2. Eat with gratitude, every grain of rice carries unseen hands.

3. Own little, for possessions quickly begin to own you.

4. Speak only when your words are better than silence.

5. Anger is like hot coal - you burn yourself first before anyone else.

6. The mind becomes calm when the body learns stillness.

Tailpiece.

A great lesson!

The energies.

Positive energy

* Giving

* Forgiving

* Honesty

* Love

* Trust

* Calm

* Motivated

* Gratitude

* Passionate

* Efficient

* Happy

* Bravery

* Joy

* Inspired

* Loyal

* Selfless

* Proactive

* Diligent

* Kindness

* Creative

* Responsible

* Confidence

* Supportive

* Peaceful

Negative Energy

* Dishonest

* Complain

* Sadness

* Selfish

* Lazy

* Jealousy

* Confused

* Hate

* Procrastinate

* Fake

* Regret

* Hopeless

* Stress

* Worried

* Superficial

* Worried

* Self-center

* Ego

* Arrogant

* Greed

* Ignorant

* Violent

* Anger

* Fear

* Impatient

* Inferiority

* Indecisive

* Loneliness

* Indifferent

* Uncertainty

My take

Don't have to emphasise on being positive! Your energy shapes your life!!

Something big is moving under Kashmir.

That was my first instinct when 

Sergio Gor entered the Valley and

met CM Omar Abdullah.

Because history has a bad habit.

It whispers first.

Then it screams.

So forget today's sweet words.

Below is the American trail.

Ambassadors.

Envoys.

Meetings.

And then....

Look at the aftermath.

1950-52

Loy Henderson.

Chester Bowles.

Met Sheikh Abdullah.

1953

Sheikh resisted full integration with 

India.

Sheikh was later arrested.

1961

JK Galbraith

Srinagar.

1962

Sino-Indian conflict.

Ladakh burned.

1963

Hazratbal relic crisis.

Mass unrest erupted.

1964

Chester Bowles.

1965

Pakistan launched Operation

Gibraltar.

Infiltration began.

Full war followed.

1987

John Gunther Dean.

Met Farooq Abdullah.

1988-'89

Armed insurgency exploded.

Jun 1995

Frank Wisner.

Met officials and separatists.

Days later

Tourists kidnapped.

India was embarrassed.

1996.

Wisner returned.

Hostage crisis continued.

Militancy remained brutal.

1996

Wisner again.

Weeks later.

Candidates attacked.

Rallies bombed.

Polling challenged by militants.

Feb 1997

Wisner again.

Met Hurriyat separatists.

Mar 1997

Sangrampora massacre.

Jan 1998

Wandhama massacre.

Oct 1998

Richard Celeste.

Met Farooq Abdullah.

Separatist Shabir Shah.

May 1999

Kargil war.

Dec 1999

IC-814 hijacked.

India released Masood Azhar.

Oct-Dec 2001

American strategic activity surges.

Powell.

Rumsfeld.

Blackwill.

Blair.

Feith.

Haass.

13 Dec

Parliament was attacked.

Jan 2002

Robert Blackwill.

May 2002

Kaluchak massacre.

Dec 2002

Blackwill again.

Mar 2003

Nandimarg massacre.

24 Pandits killed.

2006

David Mulford.

US activity inside Kashmir

intensified.

Jul 2006

Bombay local train blasts.

189 people killed.

2008

David Mulford again.

Washington watched Kashmir 

closely.

Separatist politics.

Then...

Nov 2008

Bombay terror attack.

166 people killed.

2013

Tim Roemer.

Met Omar Abdullah.

Afzal Guru executed.

Valley unrest returned.

2015-'17

Richard Verma.

Visited Valley reportedly.

2016

Burhan Wani killed.

Mass unrest followed.

Then Uri.

19 soldiers killed.

Aug 2018

Kenneth Juster.

Met Omar.

Feb 2019

Pulwama.

40 CRPF personnel killed.

Jan 20

Juster returned.

May 2020

Handwara operation.

Senior officers were killed.

Apr 2025

US VP JD Vance arrives in India.

Next day.

Pahalgam.

26 people killed.

And now...

Aug 2026.

Sergio Gor.

Srinagar.

Met Omar Abdullah.

He calls J&K an "important part of India".

Good words.

But he did not say "integral part of

India".

History leaves an uncomfortable 

shadow.

Tailpiece.

(a) Watch the room after the

handshake.

Watch the border after the

photograph.

Watch who starts moving after the

cameras leave.

Correlation is not causation.

But intelligence agencies do not

survive on coincidence.

They survive on patterns.

And Kashmir has punished 

complacency before.

Don't look at his words.

Watch the actions that follow. 

(b) The BRICS summit is slated 

during mid-Sep in India. Xi Jin 

Ping and Putin are going to be

with Modi. A new economic 

order is in the pipeline which

the US dreads.

Is the US trying to torpedo it?

 

"Periyar Kullan" gets national recognition.

Bringing joy to around 200 farmers in Ernakulam and Thrissur who have been working for its conservation, Periyar cow, also known as Periyar Kullan, has been recognised as a cattle breed indigenous to Keralam.

Through the ICAR National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources' registration,  Periyar cow is the second breed to get the tag in the state after Vechur Cow. 

It's mainly seen in Koovappady, Angamaly, Kothamangalam and Chalakudy regions. With minimal human interaction, it thrives under semi-feral and graze in a single managed unit in vegetation comprising trees, shrubs and grass rather than open pastures.

They are small to medium in size and weigh between 150 and 200 kg. It has a dark brown colour which makes it stand out from other native varieties.

Know-cow

* Periyar cow population : Around 1,000 in central Keralam farms.

* Average milk yield : 2.5 to 4 litres.

* Milk is classified as A2 Beta casein, the healthiest variety.

* It contains 4.5% fat and 9.1% SNF (Solids Not Fat).

* First breeding usually occurs at 26 months and first calving at 35 months. Gestation period is 279

   days.          

Courtesy : Excerpted from Gopika Varrier's article in the NIE, 22 Aug.

Brazil emerges.

Brazil emerges as alternative to China as US, Australia race to secure rare earths.

In the global race to secure rare earths that are key for everything from mobile phones to green technologies, Brazil is emerging as an alternative to China's dominance, particularly for the US and Australia.