A saga of Faith, Fortitude and Eternal Bond..

Of Captain Raghvendra and Prabha that must be told.

Having married only in Jul '71, Raghu was launched into the war withh 22 Rajput in the December Indo-Pak War.

Five months into wedlock, the couple had formed an eternal bond of togetherness. Before leaving for war, Raghu had lovingly pepped up Prabha. "Everything will be just fine and I shall return when this is over. Do not believe any rumours. Authentic news, if at all any, shall be be conveyed to you, by Ishtoo Bhai saab (Capt BB Deo, the Adjutant of the paltan whom Raghu deeply respected.

Oddly though, till now she had not even met Ishtoo Bhai saab but hung on to his name and association.

War is a cruel business. One fateful day, Raghu suffered splinters of a shell burst on his arm, lost a lot of blood and fell unconscious, while several comrades were martyred.

His paltan lost track of him and hence he was declared KILLED in ACTION. This devastating news was thereafter conveyed to his parents and to Prabha through the official channels.

Crestfallen and confused, Prabha felt the world crumbling around her. Raghu's parting words were, "I shall return when all this is over. So, I must await his return' were her thoughts.

Official pronouncements can be insensitive. Condolence messages were quick to follow notably from Ms Indira Gandhi, Raksha Mantri and others. So, also a compensatory draft of Rs.5,000/- from the officials.

Society is also cruel to the young brides who lose their husbands. Prabha was subjected to many a taunt, branding her inauspicious. Not just that, she was to be subjected to the disdainful and heart-rending custom of 'smashing her bangles and washing the vermillion off her forehead'. All this in a ritualistic manner.

Prabha decided that she would bear none of this and relent  no more to the forbidding society's customs. Her faith, her belief in everlasting bond with Raghu and his parting advice remained strong.

Shouting "Woh zinda hain. Unless I see his body or I hear from Ishtoo bhai saab, I shall not believe otherwise". She ran away from where the ritual was to be performed on to the roofof the house.

Seeing the young girl hysterical and unrelenting, the wise old father-in-law decided to postpone the ritual. He, too, wished for a miracle and promised an offering of five mounds of laddoos to his deity, if ever his son returned. of course he himself nor anyone else really believed that to be a possibility.

Prabha, however, was steadfast in her beliefs. The revolting ritual thus could not be performed.

On the battlefront, Raghu on regaining consciousness, found himself a prisoner of the Pak Army, ill treated when he asked for water. The junior ranks who were his custodians eventually decided to bump off this wounded liability. Having blindfolded him they were about to take Raghu for execution, when someone in an authoritative voice ordered that no harm should come to Capt Singh who should be sent to the field hospital for treatment.

Being blind folded, Raghu could not see his saviour but only heard his booming voice. After a couple of days, Raghu did find himself in a makeshift hospital where he was treated and his arm cast in plaster. There were some good and some bad momentsfor him but his mind was forever in turmoil as he was constantly thinking of his wife and what destiny had ordained for both of them.

Soon, one day, an officer by the name of Imam announced that Pak Army is about to surrender and the war is over, giving a sense of relief and new hope to Raghu. That came to be true eventually. This officer was also kind to Raghu at times in his moments of distress. It so happened that this Pak unit's personnel began preparations for the surrender leaving Raghu, who by now had recovered some measure, to himself.

And then came the opportunity Raghu was waiting for. Most Pak soldiers left for another destination leaving their equipment and some transport behind. Taking his chance, Raghu commandeered a jeep and drove off in search of an Indian army unit. He was wearing a Pathan suit given by his captors and travelling in Pakistani vehicle praying that he should not be mistaken for an opponent and face hostile action by Indian troops. But fortune favours the brave and he found himself with an indian unit where he was able to prove his identity by speaking on phone to the Adjutant, who turned out to be his course mate. "Saale tu to mar gaya tha phir zinda kaise ho gaya?" said he. "Shaayad main Pakistaniyon ke liye khota sikka nikla. Kisi kaam ka nahin tha. So, they sent me back"., countered Raghu. Such discourses can only take place between course mates!

Thus ended Raghu's ordeal of 8-10 days or so. His saga during this period, too, is fraught with valour, self belief and above all, his love for his soulmate.

The ordeal also ended for Prabha. Try and imagine her tribulation of those 10 fateful days when she had to put up with the news of her husband's demise, taunts and ghastly rituals with only her faith, eternal longing for her husband and sometimes words of comfort from some understanding relatives to support. She never relented, never lost belief in her destiny and in her husband's parting advice.

Now she even began to be revered as Savitri, the virtuous lady, who had forced Lord Yama  to abandon her husband and so brought him back to life. The trials and tribulations of Raghu during captivity and how the couple reunited is yet another story for another day.

Tailpiece.

Got up half an hour later than usual being a Sunday, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Finished my work on the laptop before lunch.

Helped Lekha in watering the plants in the evening.  

Another interesting anecdote.

I boarded the flight from Bangalore to Bombay, economy class. I put my hand bag in the overhead bin and took my aisle seat. There was an old person sitting next to me on the window seat.

I had a presentation in Bombay, so took my documents and started going through them for the final time before the presentation. After 15 - 20 minutes I was done with my documents, so I put them away and started looking out of the window and suddenly, I looked at the face of this person sitting next to me. I thought I have seen him somewhere.

He was old, his face, the suit was not very expensive and he was replying to some mail or going through some documents. I exactly don't know. I noticed his shoes, they were average quality. Something struck me and I asked him : "Are you Mr Narayana Murthy?"

He looked at me, smiled and replied, "Yes, I am".

I was shocked!

For one second I had no idea what to say next. I looked at him again. His shoes, his suit, his tie and his specs. Everything was average.

This guy was worth $2.3 Billion and co-founded Infosys.

I always wanted to become super rich so that I can buy all the luxury and travel business class. He could buy the whole airlines and yet he was sitting next to me in economy class!

I again asked : "Why are you travelling in economy class and not business class?"

He replied : "Do Business class people reach early?"

And then introduced myself, "Hello sir! My name is Mayank Gupta and I am a freelance corporate trainer and I work with many MNCs pan India".

He then put his phone away and started listening to me, he also asked a few questions and answered the questions I asked.We both went down deep into conversation until I asked a question which was about to change my life entirely.

"Sir, you are so successful and have made so many good decisions in your life. Is there something you regret?"

He got an intense look on his face, thought for a while and answered, "Sometimes my knee hurts, I should have taken better care of my body. When I was young I was so busy working that I never got time to take care of myself and now even if I want to work more, I can't. My body doesn't permit".

"You are young. You are smart and ambitious but don't repeat the mistake I made. Take proper care of your body and take proper rest. This is the only body you have got!"

That day I learned two things, one that he told me and another that he showed me!

Being rich is not about owning things.

I had got what I needed.

What a great and down to earth human being he is, no doubt he is so successful! 

Nice reflection of success with values and great learning from a humble human being.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. Hameed came by a quarter to 10 and chauffeured me to the hospital to renew my wound's dressing.

Participated in the Aazhchakkoottam : "Employment triggering projects and Indian industry" by K Babumon, Director, Kerala Chamber of Commerce and Industry, District Governor - Rotary International 2022 - '23. A satisfactory interaction!

Adieu Vishnu Narayanan Namboothiri sir.

Vishnu Narayanan Namboothiri sir, the eminent poet and academic whose verses reflected a fine blend of tradition and modernity, passed into the mist of time yesterday afternoon. He was 81.

For sometime now, he was confined to 'Sreevalli' - his home at Thycaud in Thiruvananthapuram.

In autumn '72, I was a degree student with Physics (main) at the University College, Thiruvananthapuram. Of the classes that I was very fond of attending was English, taught by a young, energetic and handsome lecturer, Vishnu Narayanan Namboothiri sir. After a few sessions and because of the frequent doubts that I would pose to him, he used to insist that I sit towards the front benches of his class.

He used to give a feedback about the interest that I took in the language and in his classes, to my grandfather. His advice still rings in my ears as I took leave of him and the college, in Dec '72, to join the NDA. Whenever I used to come down on vacation, he was one of my teachers whom I always made it a point to call on and he was very fond of me.

I remember my last meeting with him, quite a few years back, during a 'Vaayana Dinam' when I'd customarily touched his feet and he said very proudly to the people around him then, "He's one of my favourite students and has the soul of PN Panicker sir in him". I consider that compliment equivalent to the gallantry medal that I've got.

RIP sir! The unadulterated love and affection that you'd showered on me shall always remain fresh in my memories and I consider myself to be lucky. My salute to a great teacher, along with my tears and prayers. May your near and dear ones have the strength to tide over this immense loss.

    *            *              *

A lovely poem written by Mario de Andrade (San Paolo 1893 - 1945), poet, novelist, essayist and musicologist. He's one of the founders of Brazilian modernism. 

           MY SOUL HAS A HAT

I counted my years

and realized that I have

Less time to live by,

Than I have lived so far.

I feel like a child who won a pack of 

candies : at first he ate them with 

pleasure,

But when he realized that there was 

little left, he began to taste them 

intensely.

I have no time for endless meetings

where the statutes, rules,

procedures and internal regulations

are discussed,

knowing that nothing will be done.

I no longer have the patience

To stand absurd people who,

despite their chronological age,

Have not grown up.

My time is too short :

I want the essence,

my spirit is in a hurry.

I do not have much candy

In the package anymore.

I want to live next to humans,

very realistic people who know

How to laugh at their mistakes,

Who are not inflated by their own 

triumphs

and who take responsibility for their 

actions.

In this way, human dignity is

defended

and we live in truth and honesty.

It is the essentials that make life

useful.

I want to surround myself with people

who know how to touch the hearts

of those whom hard strokes of life

have learned to grow, with sweet

touches of the soul.

Yes, I'm in a hurry.

I'm in a hurry to live with the

intensity that only maturity can

give.

I do not intend to waste any of the 

remaining desserts.

I am sure they will be exquisite,

much more than those eaten so far.

My goal is to reach the end satisfied

and at peace with my loved ones

and my conscience.

We have two lives

and the second begins when you

realize you only have one. 

Tailpiece.

Got up a trifle late, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. Hameed chauffeured me to the Rajah hospital and Thesni, renewed the dressing. My wound seems to be healing comfortably.

Had a long chat with Bal, my course mate and it was great hearing him after a long time. He has settled down in California.  

Why a soldier and a civilian cannot be compared.

Robert Greene wrote in his book - 33 Strategies of War - that the best way to motivate men in war is not through reasons but through invoking emotions. Manipulation of human emotion is the art of military leadership.

Normally human beings are defensive by nature, often logic makes them meek. If soldiers start reasoning the consequences of their actions during an attack, they will succumb to their own years.

Logically it is foolish and absurd to attack up a hill when the guns are blazing from top with no place to take cover. Yet soldiers happily do it every time they are ordered to do so, fully knowing the disastrous outcome of such acts. It is all about fogging logic by emotions.

Soldiers fight intoxicated by emotions and to safeguard their unit's izzat but the military leaders lead them by logic and reasoning. A tactical commander is not blinded by emotions, he is fully aware of what he is ordering his men to do and what price he would pay.

Lt Anuj Nayar and young heroes like him knew before launching their final assaults that they might not return, yet they led their men from the front, to battle. 

It is the pride of command and sense of duty that makes a military leader fight the enemy unmindful of his safety unlike any other civilian. You know why a soldier carries his rank to the grave and retains it till eternity?

Ask a soldier how has he got his first stripe and his answer will be - "By blood and sweat". Hence he guards his rank with great degree of pride and self respect. A soldier feels humiliated when someone starts comparing his rank to a clerk or a section officer or even to a secretary in the government.

It is shockingly contemptuous and insulting when a politician or any other Indian tell him that - "You are getting paid to fight for the nation".

Ask a Special Forces Commando how they earn the Dagger with Wings. His reply would be - "By mortgaging his life for the nation".

To go where no human can go, to do what no human can do and survive where no human has survived. That's the challenge we all took through out our entire lives. Naik Hanamanthappa survived for six days under 35 feet of snow. It was the ultimate human endeavour. But remember his Commanding Officer did not leave the site till he dug every mortal remains of his men in minus 35 degree centigrade without proper shelter, adequate food and under constant threat to lives of his men and his own. It was the ruthless leader in him that made that feat possible in a life threatening environment.

Can he be compared to any other government employee how high and mighty he may be?

A soldier fights along the border and LoC because the adversary challenges his authority, on the territorial jurisdiction, entrusted to him, by his superior military authority.

I feel when the Indian judiciary issued strictures on the Army operations recently, it was sacrilege committed with far reaching ramifications. 

It may appear to be a non-issue for political leadership or bureaucrats to compare military ranks with civilian counterparts but it is sacrosanct for a soldier. 

The difference is that when a soldier salutes his superior it means - "Sir I am ready to carry out your command" and an officer returns the salute by acknowledging that - "I will lead you till last breath".

That is why a soldier never salutes a civilian irrespective of his position because a civilian cannot lead a soldier to war.

Comparing a rank with civilian designation is blasphemy and downgrading the ranks is absolutely demoralising.

If a soldier and military commander start behaving like government servants, the nation is doomed.

No nation can afford their army to behave like a government organisation because government is run by rules and wars are fought by defying rules and conventions.

That is why military ranks have sanctity and military accruements are prohibited, to be sued by police.

Government has often committed cardinal follies of comparing military ranks with that of civilian counterparts.

Xenophon had famously said in (Circa 430 - 355) "Whichever army goes into battle stronger in soul and morale, their enemy generally cannot withstand them".

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a half past 9. Was ready to go to the hospital for changing the dressing of the wound. 

Anandu did the needful, left the place by a half past 10 did a few work enroute before reaching home. My left shoulder was comparatively off the pressure! 

Under the surgeon's knife.

It was a normal day; got up at our usual time of 6, went through the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Earlier, had carried out the usual Wednesday 'aarathi' of the house. Carried out the day's work, fixed up with Appu, 'our gardener' for being my chauffeur-cum-attendant for the evening's appointment at the hospital.

We'd reached the Rajah hospital around a quarter past 5, finished the registration formalities and was at the surgical specialist's - Dr Mohammad Rafi - cabin by a half past 3 and I'd reported my arrival to the attendant nurse. Two facts about the doctor; he's a consultant doctor - to the hospital - from 1630 hrs, everyday. His father was an ardent fan of the legendary singer and had named his son after him. An efficient doctor and we have had first hand experience because sometime, last year, Lekha was treated by him for an enlargement of one of her parotid glands.

There were three of us slated for surgery at the minor procedure room and I turned up to be the last; we were in front of the staid looking place by a half past 6, awaiting the doctor to finish with his patients for the day. 

As I'd mentioned before, there was an irritating boil behind my left shoulder. There was a bit of pain - the intensity of which had reduced considerably over the past few days but I must confess that it had begun sometime last month when I'd visited my parents' place. Taking it to have been caused by an insect's sting, I'd expected it to wither away over a period of time but it didn't and on the contrary, had assumed a reddish hue and a hideous look.

As the doctor began the surgery, it was about 8 o'clock. After administering anesthesia, locally, he'd taken out a reddish blob of flesh, about 11/2 inch long with a half an inch thickness, out of my shoulder. It was a couple of my sebaceous glands - which ensures the smooth flow of sweat and other secretions of the skin - that had got clogged and formed into a cyst. So, it wasn't an insect sting as I'd surmised! The wound has six sutures and I've been permitted to have baths and report for a change of the first dressing tomorrow morning, at a half past 10. 

The doctor's efficient team consisted of the following:-

(a) Satly (the senior attendant), who'd gone to the Gulf and has now, found permanent happiness in        his work. His older and 18 year-old daughter is doing a degree course in Commerce. He doesn't look it but told me that it was because he'd married at 23 yrs of age, before going off to the Gulf.

(b) Pankaja, the head nurse, quietly efficient.

(c) Thesni, a sprightly and nimble footed youngster.

(d) Anju, from Thiruvananthapuram, who's in her final stages of training.

(e) Anandu, from Ernakulam, a fun loving youngster.

They'd looked after me, very well, during that short period and I was touched by the fact that, they'd  addressed me as dad! I've, now, graduated from an 'uncle' to a 'dad!'

We returned by 9 and I'd sent Appu back to his home, without much ado. The heaviness that I used to feel on my left shoulder had suddenly become lighter. There were many medicines added for my intake!

A quiet evening, thereafter.

Tailpiece.

It was a quiet day. There were a lot of calls from everywhere to know about my tryst at the hospital.

Today was also the starting date of the annual festivities of the Guruvayur temple and began with the elephant race that consisted of three elephants.       

Two Poems.

The Sun

Have you ever seen

anything

in your life 

more wonderful

than the way the sun,

every evening,

relaxed and easy, 

floats toward the horizon

and into the clouds or the hills,

or the rumpled sea,

and is gone--

and how it slides again

out of the blackness, 

every morning,

on the other side of the world,

like a red flower

streaming upward on its heavenly

oils,

say, on a morning in early summer,

at its perfect imperial distance--

and have you ever felt for anything

such wild love--

do you think there is anywhere, in

any language,

a word billowing enough

for the pleasure

that fills you, 

as the sun

reaches out,

as it warms you

as you stand there,

empty-handed--

or have you too

gone crazy

for power, 

for things?

- Mary Oliver

"Indispensable Man"

Sometime when you're feeling important;

Sometime when your ego's in bloom

Sometime when you take it for granted

You're the best qualified in the room,

Sometime when you feel that your going

Would leave an unfillable hole,

Just follow these simple instructions

And see how they humble your soul;

Take a bucket and fill it with water,

Put your hand in it up to the wrist,

Pull it out and the hole that's remaining

Is a measure of how you'll be missed.

You can splash all you wish when you enter,

You may stir up the water galore,

But stop and you'll find that in no time

It looks quite the same as before.

The moral of this quaint example

Is do just the best that you can,

Be proud of yourself but remember,

There's no indispensable man.

- Saxon White Kissinger

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. My cousin saw the boil on the rear of my left shoulder and advised me to meet a doctor forthwith. I'd fixed up my appointment with Dr Mohammad Rafi, the Surgical Specialist for the evening.

The minor surgery has been scheduled for tomorrow evening @ 1730 hrs.

Navy couples - Made for each other.

This is a Valentine's Day post. The title of this post sounds a bit parochial since it doesn't include the other services. Well, there is a reason. Read on...

When I was undergoing the Staff Course in Wellington (Nilgiris), in the Castle Quarters that we stayed in, there were three other houses : one belonging to an IAF officer and the other to two army officers. The IAF officer, Thakurdas and us occupied the ground floor whereas the Army officers, as always, were the upper-crust due to the sahayaks that they had at their disposal. So, while Lyn and I did everything with our own hands, the army sahibs and ladies had a number of flunkies helping them. When the rations were delivered, for example, we stood in the queues with their sahayaks while they looked down on us from their balconies, sipping Nilgiri tea and biting on cocktail idlis.

I got posted to the Naval Headquarters after that and after a few months of waiting, we were allotted a flat in SP Marg defence quarters. Our immediate neighbour was Colonel Surinder Singh of the Arty.

Once we were getting ready to go for an official party, when the doorbell rang and there stood Nachhinder, Col Surinder's wife. Both Surinder and Nachhinder were very genial and excellent neighbours and we had a great thing going as neighbours and friends.

When Lyn opened the door, she had my uniform shirt in her hand since she was in the process of fixing stripes and other paraphernalia.

This gave Nachhinder an opportunity to rag me though I was not present. "Look at yourself, Lyn." she said in mock horror, "Your good for nothing husband has converted you into a flunkie. Call him. I shall teach him not to ill-treat the lady of the house".

I was in inside room but could clearly hear the conversation.

"He can't come out now" replied Lyn with great finality.

"Aha" ejaculated Nachhinder in mock scorn, "The laat sahib is resting while you are doing all the menial work for him....."

"No" said Lyn, "He can't come out now because he is ironing my saree".

PS.

Now do you understand why navy couples are meant for each other?

PPS.

We also didn't have much though in our hearts we were rich and still are. On one of our early anniversaries, we bought a plaque and hung it in the house. It gave us enormous happiness and satisfaction. It read : "We don't have much but we have each other". We tried to make up with love what we lost because of not having flunkies and riches.   

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Initiated activities for our journey over the weekend.

The heat has picked up.  

A quiz for everyone.

There are nine questions. They are straight questions with straight answers. Answers are given towards  the end.   

1. Name the one in which neither the spectators nor the participants know the score or the leader until the contest ends.

2. What famous North American landmark is constantly moving backward?

3. Of all vegetables, only two can live to produce on their own for several growing seasons. All other vegetables must be replanted every year. What are the only two perennial vegetables?

4. What fruits has its seeds on the outside?

5. In many liquor stores, you can buy pear brandy, with a real pear inside the bottle. The pear is whole and ripe and the bottle is genuine; it hasn't been cut in any way. How did the pear get inside the bottle?

6. Only three words in standard English begin with the letters 'dw' and they are all common words. Name two of them.

7. There are 14 punctuation marks in English grammar. Can you name at least half of them?

8. Name the only vegetable or fruit that is never sold frozen, canned, processed, cooked or in any other form except fresh.

9. Name 6 or more things that you can wear on your feet beginning with the letter 'S'.

Answers to the Quiz, ad seriatim.

1. Boxing.

2. Niagara Falls.....the rim is worn down about two and a half feet each year because of the millions of gallons of water that rush over it every minute.

3. Asparagus and rhubarb.

4. Strawberry.

5. The bottles are placed over pear buds when they are small and are wired in place on the tree. The bottle is left in place for the entire growing season. When the pears are ripe, they are snipped off at the stems.

6. Dwarf, dwell and dwindle..

7. Period, comma, colon, semicolon, dash, hyphen, apostrophe, question mark, brackets, parenthesis, braces and ellipses.

8. Lettuce.

9. Shoes, socks, sandals, sneakers, slippers, skis, skates, snowshoes, stockings, stilts.

Tailpiece.

Got up half an hour late being Sunday, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Spoke to Gavvy and Ansuiya which were interesting interactions.

It was pouring last night and it continued for a while this morning. The temperatures are bound to rise in the coming days. Lekha had ordered fruits for the week. There were power outages galore today....what the hell is happening? The advertisement saying that there were no power cuts for the previous five years of the LDF government is gonna prove costly for them. 

All about the Konark Sun Temple.

Fact file

Built : Around 1250 CE.

Patron : Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty.

Chief Architect : Bishu Maharana.

Dedicated to : Sun God, Surya.

Known for : Intricate artwork, iconography and themes.

Style : Kalinga architecture.

Location : 35 km from Puri in Orissa.

UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.

Konark's Time-Telling Temple Tale

The Orissa government plans to make its already world famous temples a major draw for tourists through a slew of beautification projects in the next few years. The Sun Temple at Konark, too, figures in the list. The buzz surrounding its renovation is a throwback to its halcyon days when it was the fulcrum of the town's social ans spiritual life, with its resplendent jagamohana (open-air theatre). Here's a bird eye view of what the majestic architectural marvel on the east coast meant for people of the temple town and beyond.

* The name Konark comes from the combination of two Sanskrit words : Kona (Angle) and Ark (Sun).

* Shikhara : The structure above the inner sanctum in north Indian temples.

* Vimana : Comprises the sanctum and the structure above it in the south Indian and Orissa style of temples.

* Konark Sun Temple is an example of Rekha Deula - what remains of the temple complex has the appearance of a 100-foot-high chariot with immense wheels and horses, all carved from stone. Once over 200 feet high, much of the temple is now in ruins, in particular the large shikara tower over the sanctuary.......the present status.

Kalinga Architecture

* The style consists of three distinct types of temples : Rekha Deula, Pidha Deula and Khakhara Deula.

* Rekha Deula and Pidha Deula are associated with Vishnu, Surya and Shiva temples.

* Khakhara Deula is mainly associated with Chamunda and Durga temples.

* The Rekha Deula and Khakhara Deula houses are the sanctum sanctorum while the Pidha Deula constitutes outer dancing and offering halls.

What does it represent?

* 12 pairs of wheels drawn by seven horses marshaled by Aruna, evoking the movement of Sun God across the heavens.

* 24 carved wheels on the north and south sides refer to the cycle of the seasons and months.

* 7 horses named after the seven meters of Sanskrit prosody : Gayatri, Brihati, Ushnih, Jagati, Trishtubha, Anushtubha and Pankti represent days of the week.

* 2 goddesses flanking Surya : Usha and Pratyusha. The goddesses are shown shooting arrows, which represent a symbolic act of challenging the darkness.

* 8 spokes each wheel has. Each spoke represents a prahar, which is a 3-hour period, adding up to 24 hours of a day.

Legend

Twelve years into the project, architect Bishu Maharana was running behind schedule, with the god's crown not yet complete. Angered, King Narasingha Deva I threatened to execute all 1,200 craftsmen. Bishu's young son Dharmapada completed the crown. But worried that the king - incensed over a child having done the task - would kill the craftsmen anyway, Dharmapada took his own life.

View to remember

When viewed from inland during the dawn and sunrise, the chariot-shaped temple appears to emerge from the depths of the blue sea carrying the sun. 

And did you know?

* It was so built that the first ray of the sun fell on the gigantic sun idol kept inside the main complex.

* Even today you can tell the time by the rays of the sun falling on the wheels, which also act as sundials.

* It is believed that the sun idol here was suspended in the air as magnets were used in the construction.

* The stones used for making this temple were brought from other countries.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Spoke to Charlie Mike, at Madras, after what has been a long time and wasn't he thrilled!

Participated in the Aazhchakkoottam : "Technical Education and Start ups" by Dr MS Rajashri, VC, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University from 1600- 1715 hrs. It was a nice interaction.  

The new theatre commands.

A broad overview of the structural revamp, that is in the offing, to best utilise India's military resources. 

1. AIR DEFENCE COMMAND

What it will do. Control the air defence resources of all the three services and will be tasked with protecting military assets from airborne enemies.

Roll-out. April.

Headquarters. Prayagraj.

Headed by. Its commander-in-chief will be a top three-star IAF officer.

Why it is important. The synergy between the military's air assets will provide seamless air defence cover which will be critical to counter the Chinese and Pakistani threat.

2. MARITIME THEATRE COMMAND

What it will do. Responsible for securing India from seaborne threats and will have army and air force elements under it.

Roll-out. May.

Headquarters. Karwar.

Headed by. Its commander-in-chief will be a top three-star Indian Navy officer.

Why it is important. India's geographical advantage will be an asset in deterring China in the Indian Ocean.

3. Operational Control

The operational control of all the theatre commands will come under the CDS, with the service chiefs being responsible for raising, training and sustaining forces. Department of military affairs may be restructured later to allow CDS to focus on theatre commands.

4. Why is jointmanship important?

The CDS is expected to bring about jointness among the three services by Jan 2023. This includes bringing jointness in operations, logistics, transport, training, support services and repairs and maintenance of the three services.

In the works.

India is expected to have three other integrated commands to secure its western, northern and eastern fronts - these will be rolled out by Dec 2022. A logistics command is also in the works.

- HT.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Hameed came by and we went across to the clock shop to fetch the clock that we'd ordered. The specific piece is yet to come back after repairs; it might take another week.

Royal Indian Navy mutiny

The Royal Indian Navy revolt (also called the Royal Indian Navy mutiny or Bombay mutiny) encompasses a total strike and subsequent revolt by Indian sailors of the Royal Indian Navy on board ships and shore establishments at Bombay harbour on 18 Feb 1946. From the initial flashpoint in Bombay, the revolt spread and found support throughout British India, from Karachi to Calcutta and came to ultimately came to involve over 20,000 sailors in 78 ships and shore establishments.

Fact file

Date :   18 - 25 Feb 1946.

Location : British India, Aden, Bahrain and Hong Kong.

The mutiny was suppressed by British troops and Royal Navy warships. Total casualties were 8 dead and 33 wounded. The Indian National Congress and the Muslim League condemned the mutiny while the Communist Party of India was the only party that supported the rebellion.

The RIN Revolt started as a strike by ratings (sailors) of the Royal Indian Navy on 18 Feb  in protest against general conditions. The immediate issues of the revolt were living conditions and food. By dusk on 19 Feb, a Naval Central Strike committee was elected. Leading Signalman Lieutenant MS Khan and Petty Officer Telegraphist Madan Singh were unanimously elected president and vice president respectively. The strike found some support among the Indian population though not their political leadership who saw the dangers of mutiny on the eve of Independence. The actions of the mutineers were supported by demonstrations which included a one-day general strike in Bombay. The strike spread to other cities and was joined by elements of the Royal Indian Air Force and local police forces.

Indian Naval personnel began calling themselves the "Indian National Navy" and offered left-handed salutes to British officers. At some places, NCOs in the British Indian Army ignored and defied orders from British superiors. In Madras and Poona, the British garrisons had to face some unrest within the ranks of the Indian Army.

Widespread rioting took place from Karachi to Calcutta. Notably, the revolting ships hoisted three flags tied together - those of the Congress, Muslim League and the Communist Party of India, signifying the unity and downplaying of communal issues among the mutineers.

The revolt was called off following a meeting between the President of the Naval Central Strike Committee (NCSC), MS Khan and Vallabhai Patel of the Congress, who had been sent to Bombay to settle the crisis. Patel issued a statement calling on the strikers to end their action, which was later echoed by a statement issued in Calcutta by Mohammed Ali Jinnah on behalf of the Muslim League. Under these considerable pressures, the strikers gave way. Arrests were then made, followed by courts martial and dismissal of 476 sailors from the Royal Indian Navy. None of those dismissed were reinstated into either the Indian or Pakistani navies after independence.

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Earlier washing machinex of bed linen was carried out.

Wished Karthika many happy returns.

As we go through the news......

As days roll past, more and more information keep tumbling out about a concerted effort by a group of people - masquerading as farmers - in creating trouble within the country and it now looks they wanted to discredit the Modi government. How the anarchists had wished that the Delhi Police had fired a few rounds - provocations were a plenty - they would have had a few dead bodies to parade to prove their point.

But there were other news headlines that were demanding our attention and so, without much ado, let's have a peep at them.

(a) Power Failure in Texas.

Texas has been going through extreme winter weather over the past few days and the forecast continues to be bleak. The temperature is -4 degrees Celsius and to top their woes, there has been a massive power failure despite the fact that the state has a separate grid of its own. The snapping of power has brought about the following worries :-

  (i) Over 3 million people do not have electric power and hence, are at the mercy of the harsh weather.   (ii) People, in desperation, would tend to use hazardous means to keep themselves warm and in the         process, end up with Carbon Monoxide poisoning and it worries the government.

(iii) Water has frozen within the pipes, bursting many of them. If the same conditions were to persist, there would be problems about the availability of fresh water.

It's my fond hope that the electricity is restored at the earliest and the weather clears up at the earliest. 

(b) The Rising Cases of Covid-19.

New cases of Covid are being notified at a fairly alarming rate in Maharashtra and to some extent, in Kerala too. The exact reasons for the sudden eruption defy any logic but it could be surmised that the mutated version of the virus has been active. The use of masks, maintaining social distance and vaccine administration have helped contain the spread to a considerable extent. 

It's my fond hope that the spike comes under control at the earliest.

(c) The International Conspiracy.

It's getting fairly clear - in the progress of the investigation about the ruckus caused in Delhi on the Republic Day, this year - that there was indeed a foreign hand out to foment trouble within the country. Many arrests have been made of people who have carried out anti-national activities and more arrests will definitely take place as the complete picture emerges.

But what worries me is as to why many quarters ask for leniency for the youth who have indulged in anti-national activities. Is it because of the fear of their imminent exposure in the complicity that will take place in a matter of time?

It's my fond hope that the guilty is brought to book and appropriate punishment be meted out to culprits - without fear or favour - at the earliest.

(d) Goondaism Against The Police.

Four police officers were attacked by a batch of about 50 CPI(M) men when they had gone to arrest a local party leader in connection with a case in Kuttiady. The party's interference in the day to day police affairs has been the talking point for quite a while. Do they take advantage of their rule in the state?

It's my fond hope that this long-standing nonsense is stopped forthwith and the senior leadership of the party takes action to prevent such interference.

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores, the Wednesday 'aarathi' of the house and was ready by a half past 9. Lekha and Suma had gone to the ration shop to collect the kit for the month of January.    

 

     

The PM's stinging critique of the bureaucrats.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given the bureaucrats an earful at a January meeting of the country's top officials and underlined the price that India paid for their slow pace.

Participating in the motion of thanks on the President's address in Lok Sabha on 10 Feb, PM Narendra Modi advocated for the role of the private sector in India's progress and questioned the wisdom of leaving the country's growth to the whims and fancies of the bureaucracy.

"Babus will do everything? Because they become IAS (officers), they'll run fertiliser factories, because they are IAS, they will run chemical factories......even fly planes.....What is this big power that we have created?" PM Modi asked, questioning the traditional wisdom of vesting all power in the hands of the bureaucracy.

"What is this big power we have created? What are we going to achieve by handing the reins of the nation to babus? Just as our babus belong to the country so do the Indian youth", he said while making it clear that the country was proud of its wealth creators.

While PM Modi's remarks may have been impromptu in Lok Sabha, the idea behind it possibly emanated from a PRAGATI meeting held in January to review key delayed projects in the country. PM Modi's top aides including his principal secretary PK Mishra and cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba were also present at the meeting attended by top secretaries to the Government of India and the state chief secretaries.

It is understood that at the meeting, PM Modi questioned the slow decision making process within the bureaucracy and pointed to 10-year delays in implementation of railway and highway projects. The PM said that he was not concerned by the cost overruns alone but the opportunity lost in terms of economic growth, jobs and the future of the people due to these delays. Everyone heard the PM in stunned silence.

It was quite evident that PM Modi was very concerned about the bureaucratic decision making in the country. Despite PM Modi making it clear that he will support any bureaucratic decision taken in the interest of the country at a DGP conference in Gujarat in 2018, India's bureaucracy hasn't made the changes to how it operates and is still process-driven, not result-oriented.

That is when they are not protecting their turfs. Officials from premier civil services such as the Indian Foreign Service (IFS), the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFoS), have earned a reputation of trying to block anyone from beyond their respective services as if it was their personal fiefdom. 

This has resulted in the foreign ministry being controlled by the IFS, the secretariat in Delhi and state capitals being controlled by IAS and intelligence services and police controlled by IPS with hardly any space left for technical experts from outside the bureaucracy's mathematical Venn diagram.

The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that the Indian Armed Forces have always been bureaucratised with seniority, not merit, being the yardstick for selection of top commanders. The Indian Army, Air Force and Navy all protect their silos to such an extent that the tri-service joint manship is under threat despite PM Modi taking the path-breaking decision of appointing the first Chief of Defence Staff. Fearing that the kingdom of the chiefs will be under threat once the theatre command system takes over, the three services to think in isolation though there are costly weapons and equipment overlap. the same bureaucratic rules also apply in DRDO, which is now the bed-rock of Atmanirbhar Bharat in the defence sector. The Indian armed forces are interested in creating more verticals so that more vacancies for generals, admirals and air marshals are created.

It is not that India does not need bureaucracy or more officers, particularly in foreign service if the country has global aspirations. With a cadre of just 600 officers, India does not have enough diplomats to pitch the country on bilateral and multilateral platforms. However, thanks to ad-hoc decision making, the foreign secretary in the not-so-distant past decided to reduce the intake of officers rather than do the opposite.

The question that one needs to ask is why only IPS suited for intelligence or enforcement jobs, IAS for secretary jobs and IFS for ambassadorial assignment. Why can't officers from other civil services or technical experts be used for populating these positions on the basis of sheer merit? The cross- fertilization of new ideas with institutionalised frameworks will not only bring innovation but also more energy and synergy.

While the PM wants faster decision-making and innovation, the Indian bureaucracy also creates hurdles by dragging its feet on the removal of deadwood. It is this deadwood that, in turn, plays the spoiler. The socialist model of the past where all private players were out to rob the nation and only IAS babus were the flag bearers of the nation was and is a flawed model and has dragged the nation down. This is common knowledge and not rocket science.

- Hindustan Times

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. It was a rather quiet day.

    

To promote reading!

Every morning, the CEO of a major bank in Manhattan went to the corner where a shoeshine man was always there. He used to sit on the chair, read the Wall Street Journal and the shoeshine man gave his shoes a shiny, great look. 

One morning, the shoeshine man asks the CEO : "What do you think of the stock market situation?" 

The CEO arrogantly asks him : "Why are you so interested in this subject?" 

The shoeshine man replies : "I have twenty million dollars deposited in your bank and I am thinking about investing part of the money in the stock market". 

The CEO of the bank asks : "What is your name?"

He replies : "John Smith H". 

The CEO arrives at the bank and asks the Manager of the Major Accounts Department : "Do we have a customer named John Smith H?"

The Customer Service Manager for Major Accounts replies : "We certainly do, sir. He is an extremely esteemed customer! He has 20 million dollars in his account.

The CEO leaves the bank, approaches the shoeshine man and says : "Mr Smith, I would like to invite you to be our guest of honour at our board meeting next Monday and tell us your life story. I'm sure we will have a lot to learn from you".

At the board meeting, the CEO introduces him to the board members : "We all know Mr Smith, who makes our shoes shine like no one else. But Mr Smith is also our valued customer, with 20 million dollars in his account. I invited him to tell us the story of his life. I'm sure we can learn a lot from him. Please, Mr Smith, tell us your life story.

Then, Mr Smith began to narrate his story : "I came to the country thirty years ago as a young immigrant from eastern Europe and with an unpronounceable name. I left the ship penniless in my pocket. The first thing I did was to change my name to Smith. I was hungry and exhausted. I started to wander in search for a job, but without success. Suddenly, I found a coin on the sidewalk. I bought some apples. I had two options : eat the apples and satisfy my hunger or start a business. I sold the apples for 50 cents and bought more apples with the money. When I started accumulating dollars, I managed to buy a set of used brushes and shoe polishes and started cleaning shoes. I didn't spend a dime on fun or clothes. I only bought bread and cheese to survive. I saved penny by penny and after a while I bought a new set of brushes and shoe polishes in different shades and colours and increased my clientele. I lived like a monk and saved a penny after penny. After a while, I managed to buy a chair so that my customers could sit comfortably while I cleaned their shoes, which brought me more customers. I didn't spend a dime on the pleasures of life. I kept saving every penny. A few years ago, when the corner shoeshine colleague decided to retire, I had already saved enough money to buy his point, which was a better place than mine.

Finally, three months ago, my brother, who was a drug dealer in Chicago, passed away and left me twenty million dollars"......

. .......

Clearly, this is just a campaign to promote reading! Reading stimulates the mind and imagination, makes us travel to other places and even helps communication.

                                                 EPILOGUE

PN Panicker (01 Mar 1909 - 19 Jun 1995) exhorted the Malayalees to read with a simple, yet powerful slogan, "Vaayichu Valaruka, Chinthichu Vivekam Neduka"(Read and Grow, Think and Be Enlightened). And mind you, Kerala attained 100% literacy in 1991 thanks to this frail man's hard work, dedication and perseverance!

     

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Wound up my work quickly.

Dhinu and Abhirami, were the guests of honour for lunch with us. They'd come by exactly after a month after their marriage, after Lekha had invited them at the time of their wedding.  

A different side of the farmers' story....

Was reading a report by a retired Central Excise Officer about the ground situation in Punjab. Just sharing a few points because they seen quite plausible from what one knows about lease farming in Punjab.

Many farmers from the very small to the big lease their lands to the APMC Syndicate members on long term basis.

Many of these lands are in the down shadow of the Bhakra tributaries.

The land yields 40 - 50 quintals rice and about 55 quintals of wheat/acre. The system operates on the Hundi system of making payments per crop season to farmers based on land records kept by the Syndicate members under a cooperative loan scheme.

Farmers get a few thousand rupees as loan based on land mortgaged from time to time plus crop (only profit) payments per season. So farmers get money without physically working in the fields other than supervisory work.

The Syndicate members are mostly from the SAD, INC and some AAP and the communists.

They literally own the APMCs and the Co-operative banks.

They manage the lands by employing labour from UP, Bihar etc on short term contract basis.

As per revenue intelligence reports, 50% is purchased through APMCs and the other 50% is sold outside the state.

But the real fix is on manipulation of produce.

As per IT returns, the Syndicate members and traders show a higher crop yield to the tune of 60 - 80 quintals per acre than the actual 45 - 50.

And all this additional income on non existent produce is 100% tax free, in addition to the income from actual yield - it is money laundering on a vast scale.

It is estimated that the scam is worth Rs. 30 - 35 crores/1000 acres/pa from the non existent produce shown.

Many Syndicate members literally 'own' 2500 - 5000, some even 10,000 acres through this co-operative system.

The Badals, it is estimated, own 25,000 acres across Punjab and Haryana and earn 750 - 1000 crores pa through this co-operative land approach.

Now the farm laws threaten this Syndicate because while the farmers' income remains tax free, these laws require the farmer to disclose the PAN of the trader he is selling to.

There in lies the fix. Now the trader is not a farmer and is not exempt from IT. So if he buys thousands of crores worth from farmers and sells it, he has to pay tax and GST.

But in reality neither has the farmer sold anything nor has the trader bought anything. It was under this system that Chidambaram claimed crores in IT exemption for cauliflower grown in his kitchen garden - just like Supriya Sule in Maharashtra.

Now this route is being closed. So one can understand how high the stakes are for such harks. It explains the colossal amounts of money being pumped into Singu border protests.

It explains how it suits these sharks to allow Khalistanis and divisive elements to hijack the protests thereby turning the whole issue into a Punjab vs the Centre stand off - which takes away the focus from the sharks themselves.

As for the farmers, they are just cannon fodder!

Tailpiece.

Got up at a half past 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. It was a lazy and quiet Sunday.

Saw the television premiere of the Malayalam movie, "The great Indian Kitchen". A nicely made movie where the hero is a normal guy and not a superman. The suppressed woman who spends her life in the kitchen to cater to the male egos while being unable to pursue her dreams finally, revolts - this is the thread. Wouldn't like to divulge any more because it will dampen those of you who plan to watch the movie.  

The Chinese Energy Project In Our Backyard.

Sri Lanka clears Chinese energy project, 50 km off Tamilnadu. The site's proximity to the Indian coastline can be a cause for concern.

Sri Lanka's decision to pull out of the East Container Terminal (ECT) deal with India and Japan is not the only challenge to New Delhi's interests emerging this year. A week before reneging on the 2019 Colombo Port terminal agreement, Sri Lanka cleared a Chinese energy project in three islands off Jaffna peninsula that are barely 50 km from the Tamilnadu coast.

On 18, the Cabinet approved a proposal to involve Sinosoar-Etechwin Venture in China to install 'hybrid renewable energy systems' in Nainativu, Delft/Neduntheevu and Analaitivu, located in the Palk Bay. The islands are connected to the Jaffna peninsula by a limited ferry service, managed mostly by the Sri Lankan Navy.

India has not commented on the development but sources in Colombo said : "concerns were raised", citing the project site's proximity to the Indian coastline. Delft island is one of the closest points to India from northern Sri Lanka. The three islands, where the energy systems are coming up, are home to a few thousand people. Several families residing in these islands fled the civil war and crossed over to Tamilnadu in boats, according to residents. Following years of neglect, the islands have remained much less developed compared to Jaffna peninsula.

Housing project

The energy project is not the first instance of a Chinese role in northern infrastructure in Sri Lanka. In 2018, India voiced concern over over China's $300 million housing project for war-affected areas, accusing the Resettlement Ministry (of the former government) of holding an"opaque" bidding process. The project was eventually dropped.

Commenting on the development, Austin Fernando, Sri Lanka's former High Commissioner to India, said the Sri Lankan government cannot be blamed for this decision because the project is backed by the Asian Development Bank, which has its "own procurement guidelines that should be followed by the borrower.

However, India raising concern is "understandable" and "unsurprising", he said adding that the reaction was consistent with New Delhi's position's in the past, when a Chinese submarine called at the Colombo Port in 2014 and when the government had a Chinese offer to develop housing in the north. "The islands chosen now are even closer to the Indian border. India would not like another source of tension at a time when the confrontation with China in Ladakh is yet to be resolved", Mr Fernando said.

- Meera Srinivasan

My take.

(a) The Gottabaya brothers are unnecessarily getting into a deal with China at the cost of its friendship with India. Doesn't bode well! The brothers will get their noses bloodied ultimately, for sure!!

(b) China is at its game of playing dirty and trying to encircle India for its evil designs. The dragon has to be dealt with in a no-nonsense manner!

Had operated off the island of Delft many a time on board my ship, INLCU L36, during Aman and later, Operation Pawan towards end '87 and 1988 as part of the IPKF in Sri Lanka.

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Suma was back in action. Got the Malayalam edition of The Mahabhagavatham, gifted to me by Ajith, my classmate.

Participated in the Aazhchakkoottam on "The union budget 2021-'22" by Mr M Mohandas, President, Bharatiya Vichar Kendra from 1600 - 1730 hrs. The interaction was nice.

The Last Post.

I'm sure many of you must have been to a military funeral in which The Last Post was played. It's the song that gives us the lump in our throats and usually tears in our eyes. But do you know the story behind the song?

Reportedly, it all began in 1862 during the American Civil War, when Union Army Captain Robert Ellicombe was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia.....The Confederate Army was on the other side of the narrow strip of land.

During the night Captain Ellicombe heard the moans of a soldier who lay severely wounded on the field. Not knowing if it was a Union or Confederate soldier, the Captain decided to risk his life and bring the stricken man back for medical attention. Crawling on his stomach through the gunfire, the Captain reached the stricken soldier and began pulling him toward his encampment.

When the Captain finally reached his own lines, he discovered it was actually a Confederate soldier but the soldier was dead......

The Captain lit a lantern and suddenly caught his breath and went numb with shock. In the dim light, he saw the face of the soldier......It was his own son. The boy had been studying music in the South when the war broke out. Without telling his father, the boy enlisted in the Confederate Army.

The following morning, heartbroken, the father asked permission of his superiors to give give his son a full military burial, despite the enemy status. His request was only partially granted.

The Captain had asked if he could have a group of Army band members play a funeral dirge for his son at the funeral.

The request was turned down since the soldier was a Confederate.

But out of respect for the father, they did say they could give him only one musician.

The Captain chose a bugler. He asked the bugler to play a series of musical notes he had found on a piece of paper in the pocket of the dead youth's uniform.

The wish was granted.

The haunting melody, we now know as 'The Last Post' used at military funerals was born. 

The words are :

Day is done.

Gone the sun..

From the lakes

From the hills.

From the sky.

All is well.

Safely rest.

God is nigh.

Fading light.

Dims the sight.

And a star.

Gems the sky.

Gleaming bright.

From afar..

Drawing nigh. 

Falls the night..

Thanks and praise.

For our days. 

Neath the sun

Neath the stars. 

Neath the sky

As we go. 

This we know.

God is nigh.

I, too, have felt the chills while listening to 'The Last Post' but I have never seen all the words to the song until now.

I didn't even know there was more than one verse.

I also never knew the story behind the song and I didn't know if you had either, so I thought I'd pass it along.

I now have an even deeper respect for the song than I did before.

Remember Those Lost and Harmed While Serving Their Country.

Also Remember Those Who Have Served And Returned;

And for those presently serving in the Armed Forces.

Tailpiece. 

Got up half an hour late, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Washing machinex of the soiled clothes after our Kochi trip. Suma was on a day off because of the annual festival of the temple near her house. 

Roy comes and replenishes the distilled water for the battery of the inverter and the one for the solar light.

Fruits were ordered from our regular fruit shop at the west 'nada' of the Guruvayur temple.

India - China border disengagement : 10 key points of agreement.

1. Agreement for disengagement is for "North and South Banks" of the Pangong Lake.  The north bank has eight fingers or geographical formations with mountain spurs utting into the lake and the main point of contention for New Delhi.

2. Disengagement will be "mutual and reciprocal".

3. The implementation of this agreement was started on Wednesday in the north and south banks of Pangong Lake. The tanks have started to move and the next will be the movement of soldiers.

4. Both sides will cease their "forward deployments" in the area. The process will take place in a phased, coordinated and verified manner".

5. The most crucial point and one that forms core of the development is - the Chinese side will keep its troop presence in the north bank area, to the east of Finger 8. India, reciprocally, will base its troops at the permanent base - Dhan Singh Thapa Post near Finger 3.

6. A similar action should be taken in the south bank area by both sides. No details are known yet on how this will happen, in terms of movements of troops.

7. Any structure that had been built by both sides since Apr 2020 in both north and south bank area will be removed and the landforms will be restored. Apr 2020 is the month that saw China amassing its troops and trying to unilaterally change the situation.

8. Both sides have agreed on a "temporary moratorium on military activities" by both sides in the north bank of the lake. This includes a moratorium on patrolling to the traditional areas. Patrolling will be resumed only after both sides reach an agreement during further rounds of diplomatic and military talks.

9. Once "complete disengagement has happened at Pangong Lake, Senior Commanders of both sides will meet within 48 hours. So far nine rounds of Senior Commanders meet or military talks have taken place, the last one being in January of this year.

New Delhi's message to China by the Defence Minister from Parliament is, "By now, the Chinese side is also fully aware of our resolve. It is therefore our expectation that the Chinese side will work us in full sincerity to resolve the remaining issues". He highlighted, "I want to assure this House that in these talks we have not conceded anything".

My queries.

(a) Have we conceded the forwarded positions in the eastern Ladakh, that we'd achieved, after successfully pushing back the Chinese, a few months back?

(b) Why didn't we begin this disengagement process from Arunachal Pradesh?

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6 after a massive sleep, the chores and finally left at about a quarter to 10 though I'd earlier planned for the get away by a quarter past 9. Padmakumar showed us the way to the main road and he, then, went across to the NSS office. Reached the canteen by a quarter past 10, got a nice parking slot at the gate and while Lekha went into the grocery section, I'd got our smart cards renewed - almost six months after! And wasn't Anand glad to see us?

We finished our work, picked up the afternoon snack and began our return trip by a quarter past 12. The traffic was comparatively sparse and we reached Guruvayur by 3. Went to the clock shop to pick up three pieces - got two, placed order for the third and reached The Quarterdeck by a quarter to 4. Opened up the house in stages and had siesta in between. 

At Kochi.

Got up at a half past 4, let Lekha go about her chores and then went about mine. In the meanwhile, the lighting of the lamp in the puja room, the partial opening of the house with the Wednesday morning hymns in full flow and the 'arathi' were performed. Despite having got up at that early time, we could finally hit the highway only by a quarter past 7.

The following things also happened :-

* the railway level cross gate, at Guruvayur, was closed * the Paliyekkara toll gate was managed well as there was hardly any wait * broke our momentum for rest room break, polishing off the sandwiches prepared by Lekha, a little beyond Chalakudi.

We reached Bhima by about a half past 10. Rema and Padmakumar were already there and together, we picked up some ornaments for Achu's marriage. In between, during the break, we had a nice vegetarian lunch in the hotel across and returned to wind up our purchases, thus far.

We, then, went across to the naval base, to get myself briefed about the steps to be taken to apply for the new 64 kb ECHS card for Lekha and me. Radha had given me a good briefing as to how to go about it. On return, I went Dr Satish Bhat's clinic to pick up a medicine whose dosage had been increased.

We got back at my sister's place by 4, had a boisterous high tea and then, without much ado, my brother-in-law and I sat down to upload my application on line for the 64 kb card. There were a whole lot of difficulties faced while uploading the form but we finally, we made it thanks to an efficient Padmakumar.

It was, again, a boisterous dinner after which we got down to finalise the list for Achu's wedding and the menus for the post-wedding reception out here - during the afternoon and in the evening of the 9th of May - at Kochi. Steps to go about it were also discussed and that will be achieved over the course of the next three weeks. It would give us a fair idea as to what would be the actual number of guests that would fetch up. Their food and lodging were gone through but will require many more hours of fine tuning!

It was a hectic day. Was really thrilled to get calls from Kala (She's in Michigan with her children, who are working there) and Paulina (From Coimbatore. Sad to hear that she is a spinster!). They were in the staff of INS Agrani when I was there in the mid-'80s.

Tailpiece.

Quite a satisfying day, having accomplished all that we set out to achieve.    

Carrying ranks after retirement.

Article 18 of the Constitution permits Defence Service Officers to hold the rank, even after retirement. It's said that "rank never retires, officer does".

One needs to understand the background and context - as to why makers of our Constitution gave this special privilege to officers, which otherwise seems to be much against the very philosophy of equality in a democratic country.

The nature of duties and responsibilities of Defence Service Officers are very different from other jobs - in government or in private sector.

Defence Service Officers are commissioned by the President of India. This means that a Commissioned Officer holds a position of authority. He/she derives the authority directly from the sovereign power and the rank of an officer is bestowed upon him/her by the President of India.

Unlike other government servants, a Commissioned Officer exercises civil and judicial authority and command over his/her soldiers.

This has many implications. Besides the operational tasks, an officer is also responsible for the life of the soldiers that he commands. His responsibility towards his team is like that of a head of the family to the family members or a better metaphor would be how a patriarch/matriarch is responsible to protect a clan. Interestingly, only a Commissioned Officer can act as Commanding Officer.

It may be noted that on commission, an officer takes oath - which is very different from that of a Civil Servant. 

While a Civil Servant takes Oath of Allegiance to the Constitution, a Commissioned Officer takes Oath to serve the country and go anywhere by land, sea or at the peril of his/her life.

What are the implications?

Unlike a Civil Servant, a Commissioned Officer cannot refuse a transfer. He can't say that - "I'm resigning in protest nor can he take long leave to avoid the transfer.

If he is ordered to serve any part of the world - he has to go - it doesn't matter whether the location is in India, Africa or Antarctica.

A Commissioned Officer can't proceed on leave on his own. He can't avail sick leave, the way it is done by his civilian counterparts. The defence hospital doctors will examine and decide - whether he is required to be hospitalised. 

It's not an overstatement if one says that a Commissioned Officer's life is the property of the state.

It will be interesting to compare the oaths - oath of the Civil Servants vs oath of the Commissioned Officers.

Oath of a Civil Servant : "I,......, do swear/solemnly affirm that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to India and to the Constitution of India as by law established that I will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India and that I will carry out the duties of my office loyally, honestly and with impartiality".

Oath of a Commissioned Officer : "I (name) hereby solemnly swear that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the government of India, as by law established and that I will, as in duty bound honestly and faithfully, serve in the regular Army/Navy/Air Force of the Union of India and go wherever ordered, by land, sea or air and that I will observe and obey all the commands of the President of the Union of India and the commands of any officer set above me, even to the peril of my life".

In other words, when an officer gets commissioned he writes a blank cheque of his life and hands it over to the government and the government can encash/redeem, at its will.

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Selvam came by after A long while to press the clothes.

Started winding up The Quarterdeck, by about 4 in the evening, for our short trip to Kochi tomorrow.

  

A Quantum brain.

An intelligent material that learns by physically changing itself, similar to how the human brain works, could be the foundation of a completely new generation of computers. Radboud physicists working towards this so-called "quantum brain" have made an important step. They have demonstrated that they can pattern and interconnect a network of single atoms and mimic the autonomous behaviour of neurons and synapses in a brain. They report their discovery in Nature Nanotechnology.

Considering the growing demand for computing capacity, more and more data centers are necessary, all of which leave an ever-expanding energy footprint. "It is clear that we have to find new strategies to store and process information in an energy efficient way", says project leader Alexander Khajetoorians, Professor of Scanning Probe Microscopy at Radboud University.

"This requires not only improvements to technology but also fundamental research in game changing approaches. Our new idea of building a 'quantum brain' based on the quantum properties of materials could be the basis for a future solution for applications in artificial intelligence".

Quantum brain

For artificial intelligence to work, a computer needs to be able to recognise patterns in the world and learn new ones. Today's computers do this via machine learning software that controls the storage ans processing of information on a separate computer hard drive. "Until now, this technology, which is based on a century-olld paradigm, worked sufficiently. However, in the end, it is a very energy-inefficient process", says co-author Bert Kappen, Professor of Neural networks and machine intelligence.

The physicists at Radboud University researched whether a piece of hardware could do the same, without the need for software. They discovered that by constructing  a network of cobalt atoms on black phosphorus they were able to build a material that stores and processes information in similar ways to the brain and even more surprisingly, adapts itself.

An introduction to the quantum brain

1. Input through vision, electrical signal and data input.

2. Processing and output. The input is processed and recognised. The quantum brain has new functionality and uses less energy.

Self-adapting atoms

In 2018, Khajetoorians and collaborators showed that it is possible to store information in the state of a single cobalt atom. By applying a voltage to the atom, they could induce "firing", where the atom shuttles between a value of 0 and 1 randomly, much like one neuron. They have now discovered a way to create tailored ensembles of these atoms and found that the firing behaviour of these ensembles mimics the behaviour of a brain-like model used in artificial intelligence.

In addition to observing the behaviour of spiking neurons, they were able to create the smallest synapse known to date. Unknowingly, they observed that these ensembles had an inherent adaptive property : their synapses changed their behaviour depending on what input they "saw". "When stimulating the material over a longer period of time with a certain voltage, we were very surprised to see that the synapses actually changed. The material adapted its reaction based on the external stimuli that it received. It learned by itself", says Khajetoorians.

Exploring and developing the quantum brain

The researchers now plan to scale up the system and build a larger network of atoms, as well as dive into new "quantum" materials that can be used. Also, they need to understand why the atom network behaves as it does. "We are at a state where we can start to relate fundamental physics to concepts in biology, like memory and learning", says Khajetoorians.

"If we could eventually construct a real machine from this material, we would be able to build self-learning computing devices that are more energy efficient and smaller than today's computers. Yet, only when we understand how it works - and that is still a mystery - will we be able to tune its behaviour and start developing it into a technology. It is a very exciting time".

Source. SciTechDaily.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 6, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. A quiet day.

This disturbs me.

Background

I ain't much into politics....I'm more of a nationalist and this is what forces me to post such amazing thoughts. This has been taken from Facebook. Due credit to the author......

Adani is challenging Chinese economic hegemony in Australia and Sri Lanka by bagging big contracts in Power, Mining and Infra sectors.

Ambani is shrinking space for American Corporations in India by getting involved into businesses like 5G and Retail. The Modi government has made it almost impossible for front organisations like Ford Foundation, Greenpeace, Amnesty etc of the CIA to operate with impunity.

It has also curtailed Naxal operations by launching large scale operations in the red zone. It successfully dethroned Abdullah Yameen in Seychelles for satellite monitoring. It moved forward seeking wider military cooperation with Vietnam. 

Modi increased India's presence in natural resource rich Africa by launching "India Africa Summit Forum" which challenged China's monopoly in the region.

When you hear vilification and demonisation of Ambani and Adani at every protest in India, which has got nothing to do with the so called Cause, it's because of reasons mentioned above. When you read terms like "Hindu Extremism", it's because you're not letting Chinese and American stooges operate freely. When you hear anti-Modi rhetoric on social media, it's because he is not allowing them space in the minds of the Indians and hurting their economy overseas.

Shaheen Bagh was not for betterment or rights of peaceful community. Neither is this farmers' protest for the security of farmers. It was always about containing India, India's growth, its self reliance and controlling the fate of more than a billion Indians.

We need to shake ourselves out of our biases and think about what's good for our country.

Tailpiece.

Got up half an hour late being a Sunday, the chores and was ready by a quarter to 10. Washing machinex of bed linen.

A quiet and relaxed day!

 

Uthiramerur - democratic processes in ancient Indian cities and villages.

While performing 'Bhumi Pujan' of the new Parliament building, our PM mentioned about about a place known as Uthiramerur.

Uthiramerur is a model of democracy. It is situated in Kancheepuram district, about 90 km from Madras.

It has a 1,250-year old history! There are three important temples and they have a large number of inscriptions, notably those from the reign Of Raja Chola (985 - 1014 AD), his son, Rajendra Chola and the Vijayanagar Emperor Krishnadeva Raya!

During the period of Parantaka Chola (907 - 955 AD) the village administration was honed into a perfect system, through elections by the people!

"But it is at Uthiramerur on the walls of the Village Assembly (Mandapa) itself that we have the earliest inscriptions with complete information about how the elected Village Assembly functioned", says R Sivanandan, epigraphist at the Tamilnadu Department of  Archeology.

"It testifies to the historical fact that nearly 1,100 years ago, a village had an elaborate and highly refined electoral system and even a well written Constitution, prescribing the mode of elections! The details of this system of elective Village Democracy are inscribed on the walls of he Village Assembly (Grama Sabha Mandapa), a rectangular structure made of granite slabs".

"It is an outstanding document in the history of India! It is a veritable well written Constitution of the Village Assembly that functioned 1,000 years ago", says Dr Nagaswamy, the famous archeologist.

The inscription gives astonishing details about the Constitution of Wards, the qualifications of candidates standing for elections, the disqualification norms, the mode of election, the constitution of committees with elected members, the functions of those committees, the power to remove the wrongdoer, etc.....

The villagers even had the right to recall the elected representatives, if they failed in their duties!

What were the salient features?

The village was divided into 30 wards, with one representative elected for each. Those who want to contest must be above 35 years of age and below 70.

Only those who owned land that attracted tax could contest elections!

Such owners should possess a house built on a legally owned site (not on encroached public property).

A person serving in any of the committees could not contest again for the next three terms, each term lasting a year.

Elected members who accepted bribes, misappropriated others' property, committed incest or acted against the public interest, suffered disqualification.

The entire village, including infants, had to be present at the Village Assembly Mandapa when elections were held.

Only the sick and those who had gone on a pilgrimage were exempted.

I first came to know about these not from our history books, not from my teachers in school and college but from a book of Paramacharya, that contains his teachings.

In fact, TN Seshan, the former Election Commissioner was a bit dejected when he was appointed as Chief Election Commissioner.

He met Paramacharya, who was 97, when a visibly disappointed Seshan came to meet him. He immediately sensed the cause of his disappointment and counseled him to treat the transfer as an opportunity granted by God to serve the Indian public.

He suggested that Seshan visit the Uthiramerur temple and read through the details of electoral regulations prevalent in India about 1,000 years ago, including the qualifications of candidates who can contest the elections.

In the words of Seshan, "The credit for electoral reforms must go to Kanchi Mahaswami but for whom this would not have been possible. At 97, he had such alacrity of thought that he could describe minute details of the electoral rules embossed on the northern walls of the Uthiramerur temple.

He mentioned to me that "even implementing a tenth of these reforms would be a great service to India". The rest is history.

In the words of columnist TJS George, "Seshan showed what one man could do to ensure that democracy did not become a hydra-headed monster. In time, Seshan retired. And the monster was set free".

I doubt how many of the politicians in Tamilnadu know this? It was wonderful that our PM had shared this on the national stage so that everyone across the country know the richness of our tradition and culture.

The Vishnu temple in Uthirameruris quite unique, since it was built by Vishwakarma and it is the first 'Ashtanga Vimana' to be constructed! The Vimana in Ashtalakshmi temple in Beasant Nagar, Madras was designed and built, copying this very Vimana!

Certainly a place to visit, to know and to understand our richness!

Tailpiece.

Got up half an hour late, went through the chores and was on time for the hair stylist, Sajish's visit. Was ready by a quarter to 10.

Participated in the Aazhchakkoottam : "The 11th Pay Commission Revision Report" by K Mohandas, IAS (Retd), Chairman, XI Pay Revision Commission from 1600 - 1700 hrs.

 

Adieu Commodore THR Iyer sir.

Had got the message that Cmde THR Iyer had passed into the mist of time, this morning. He's survived by his wife, Sasi Iyer, daughter, Hema and son, Sridhar. He had been ailing for the last two years, with problematic lungs. Years of chain smoking Charminar, followed by Charms, had taken its toll! He was discharged from the hospital a few days back and realising that his mom wouldn't be able to handle the situation, Sridhar had taken his parents to Thiruvannamalai. I could speak to him today and it was he who had filled me in with the details. The Commodore had breathed his last, in sleep, sometime during the wee hours of the morning. Hema and her family, living in the US, will not be coming in for the funeral, due to the current pandemic situation as she herself is a doctor!

Shall go back in time to remember a few incidents and moments that I was fortunate to experience, along with the Commodore, way back towards the mid '80s at INS Agrani, in Coimbatore. 

   *          *          *

Towards end '83, INS Agrani - the school of Leadership and Management for all sailors - had gone through two courts martial back-to-back and the Naval Headquarters was hell bent on getting the establishment out of the blues. Captain Thinneum Harihara Rangaraja Iyer - an alumnus of the RIMC and the NDA - soon after his command of the landing craft INS Sharabh was awaiting his new appointment. The then DOP (Director of Personnel), his schoolmate and course mate had called him over to New Delhi, given him the Navy List and asked him to choose his officers to do spring cleaning of the establishment. The newly appointed Commanding Officer, however, had asked for six months to observe and evaluate the existing staff before asking for his team and the NHQ had consented to his request.

By Jun '84, his entire team was in place and I was the last to join up, on completion of the 3rd Long Logistics and Management Course (LLMC). I was assigned to look after the then existent Master Chief Petty Officers Pre-promotion Course as the new 'Management expert'! My students - Chief Petty Officers cleared to the rank of Master Chief Petty Officers - used to be presented the new rank on completion of the 4-week course - at the ceremonial Captain's Requestmen table.

The CPO Management Course

The first course of the MCPOs - that I handled - gave us a feedback that the course should be given to all sailors, immediately on becoming CPOs for the betterment of the service and not at such a late stage as they'd got. This aspect was put across to the inspection team led by the FoC-in-C Southern Naval Command and I was asked to state my frank opinions to the inspection team by the Captain. The Chief Petty Officer Management course began soon after, bringing the curtains down on the MCPO Pre-promotion course. I used to be on my toes as the Captain used to sit in my classes and go through the entire proceedings; at times, even getting the guests who visited the establishment and I suppose we never, ever let him down.

Revamping the CSA

The Coimbatore Sailing Association (CSA) was another department to be revamped. The staff studiously stayed away citing long distances but in private, admitted that they were disgusted with the manner in which the civilian members were pampered by the CSA hierarchy. With the CO as its 'Commodore' and me as its secretary, we ensured that the civilian members and our staff were given equal importance and put everyone through standard sailing procedures. The Walayar lake and dam site were our area of operations - about 35 km away from the base - where we visited every Sunday by 9, in the morning, did sailing and returned, after lunch, to the establishment. The participation had jumped manifold, as the sailing activities became extremely popular and care was taken to conduct the sailing and other related activities in an orderly and service like manner.

Divisions and X-Country

Since it was a training establishment, we had Divisions every Friday and X-country every Saturday. I was usually the OOG 1 (Officer of the Guard 1) and it would be after a great party in the previous evening. Whenever I reported to him that the ceremonial guard was ready for his inspection, he'd ask, "How are you doing" and augment it with a wink before beginning to inspect the guard.

Similarly, many of us used to struggle to be on time for the early morning x-country fallins on Saturdays but he used to be there, after his bath, much before us. Again, after a get together during the previous evening!

One-to-one Interactions

One evening - I'd completed exactly a year at Agrani - while we were in the Ward Room, he told me that I was slated to go as a commissioning XO of an LST(M) from Poland. But since the DOP was his friend and course mate, he had asked me to be retained for one more year. I remember telling him that it was the price for doing things sincerely and was very upset over the next few days. Consequently, I kept away from many things other than the group games and official activities.

And then, one evening he called me from my cabin to play squash and beat me to pulp.

Expected No Frills

Once an officer, along with his family, had newly reported. As was the custom, the Captain and his wife made a customary call on them and put them at ease, offering all assistance to them in settling down. The officer, soon after, went to the Captain's house and handed over a bagful of goodies to the bewildered lady.

A trifle later, an agitated Captain came to my cabin and handed over that bag of goodies. I saw two containers of chicken soup cubes and uttered, "Sir, he doesn't know you" and pat came his retort, "Yeah, he doesn't know that I'm a vegetarian"! I'd returned the goodies back to the concerned officer saying that the Captain abhorred anyone playing up to him.

 A Taut and Well Run Establishment

His favourite drink was 'rum-paani' and he puffed on Charms cigarettes during those interactions and he used to let us be free with our ideas and suggestions. The social get togethers were aplenty and everyone in the establishment was happy and contended. Agrani had turned a new leaf with 'Thanga Iyer's team'.

The help provided by the establishment to the needy service personnel transiting through Coimbatore was legendary. In '85, then Captain Sushil Issacs, his wife and daughter who were making an early morning transit from St Lawrence School, Lovedale, Ooty - after attending the alumni day of their school - to board the flight to Bombay, met with a tragic accident in the outskirts of the city. The tempo van carrying about 18 passengers had hit an oncoming passenger bus of the Cheran Corporation. Ms Ayesha Isaacs was one of the casualties who died, on the spot, on impact. There were three deaths and many injured; the Captain and his daughter were seriously injured and were in the trauma ward of the CMC Hospital when the XO and I visited the place to take stock of the situation, after receiving the information! 

The relatives and the guests of the family were looked after by the establishment, including the settling of the knotty issue of Ms Isaacs' funeral which was sorted out by Captain Iyer and Admiral BA Samson, who happened to be there at that time (Captain Sushil Issacs went on to become the CNS later, known to all of us as Adm Sushil Kumar).  

Surprise Muster of Accounts

I used to follow what he'd taught me while I was there. He used to fetch up at the account holders' offices and muster the cash that was held by the accounting officers. I'd seen quite a few officers struggling to tally the amounts subsequently! It was a valuable lesson learnt.

On my transfer from INS Agrani to the command of INLCU L 36, at Kochi, his terse message to me was, "Rajeev, come straight to Venduruthy House and stay with me till you take over your ship". And that was that. He had taken over as CO, INS Venduruthy at Kochi three months before my movement out of INS Agrani.

RIP Commodore Iyer sir. My tears, prayers and tribute to a no-nonsense leader with great qualities. May your near and dear ones have the strength to tide over these stressful times.

PS.

Thanga Iyer's team. LCdr AC Jose (XO), LCdr Ravi Ponappa (LogO), LCdr PK Banerjee (Training Officer), LCdr L Radhakrishnan (Education Officer), Lt (SDG) GS Deol, Lt HS Sidhu, Lt K Rajeev Nair, Lt DS Kannan, Lt RBG Nair(All Syndicate officers), Surg Lt G Vishwanath (Medical Officer) and Lt (SDAE) SR Murthy (Oi/c A & EHU). 

Lt Col CT Somaiah, the OC of the nearby TA Battalion was living in our Mess and was an active participant in all our activities and social gatherings! It's rumoured that he married Vaidehi, the wife of Lt BR Sampath Kumar, who died in a tragic road accident soon after playing Holi, in 1986!!

Of those named above, Cdr AC Jose, Lt DS Kannan and LCdr (SDAE) SR Murthy are no more with us as they have passed into the mist of time. Have also come to know that Col Tyag Somaiah had passed into the mist of time about four years back due to cancer.

                                                      EPILOGUE

Lekha and I had halted for an overnight stay at the Officers' Mess at INS Agrani in Jun '91, on our drive to the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) at Wellington in Ooty, as I was slated to undergo the 47th Staff Course. Many of the civilian staff of the establishment dropped by, at the mess, to meet us. I can never forget what many of them had told me then and I quote, "Sir, your time, here, were the golden years of this establishment. You please come back after your promotion, sir". They were endorsing Thanga Iyer's team's accomplishments at INS Agrani in the mid '80s.......and I felt proud to have been part of that team!

Tailpiece.

Got up at our usual time, the chores and was ready by a half past 9.

It was a quiet day.