Andhra Pradesh chief minister K Rosaiah resigned for cm position. Rosaiah meet the state governor today to submitting his resignation. governor suggested to rosaiah to rule the government when the new cm electing..
before the resignation rosaiah talk to media "I have done my best as the CM of the state. No one asked for my resignation, it's my own call,"
In the poorest country of the western hemisphere, residents wore protective face masks in the street and cautious parents gave their children bottled water.
As the United Nations warned that up to 200,000 Haitians could contract cholera in the country's first outbreak in a century, Dr. Jason Erb of the International Medical Corps said his organization set up a cholera clinic in the city.
"International Medical Corps came to Gonaives about two weeks ago based on a request from the Department of Health of Artibonite and OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) to look at the situation at Raboto Hospital and, in discussions with the medical director Dr. Marcel, we decided to set up a cholera treatment center. Since then, over the weekend, the number of cholera cases in Gonaives increased very rapidly," he said.
The epidemic added to a humanitarian emergency in the wake of the massive earthquake in January which killed more than 250,000.
Erb said the outbreak was aggravated by flooding caused by Hurricane Tomas this month.
"The number of cases did increase rapidly after the hurricane. We're not sure if it's related to the hurricane or not. All we do know is that those cases have increased largely in Gonaives as a whole. And so Raboto Hospital and Bon Secour Hospital have both seen this very, very fast increase and both are struggling to make sure that the best care possible can be provided to those who are sick," he said.
Public health experts warned that the country has all the classic risk factors for the disease -- overcrowded camps for displaced quake survivors, a scarcity of safe drinking water, improper elimination of human waste and the contamination of food during or after its preparation.
Additionally, because cholera is not usually found in the Caribbean, the entire population is at risk because no one has immunity to it.
In the humble neighborhood of Carrenage-Gonaives, litter fills the streets where half-naked children squander their days under the blaring sun. These living conditions leave people extremely vulnerable to the disease, which is spread by dirty water or food.
Area resident Aimer Kieukifer said he believes 50 of his neighbors have already died of cholera and sees little help on the way.
"We are all ready to get together and pray. We have not been able to find anybody to come here and help us in any way. Despite that, we have a few affected people who can't resist and died but we know that prayer is the only answer, and we are asking for everyone in Gonaives to give prayer a chance," he said.
The U. N. reported that at least 11,125 cholera patients have been hospitalized since the outbreak began more than three weeks ago. According to the World Health Organization, the death rate hasn't been increasing but is much higher than the usual 6 to 7 percent.
But with so many at risk, the U.N. has drawn up a plan asking for $163.9 million in aid over the next year to combat the epidemic.
High excise duties charged by the governments of Bangladesh and India have affected orange exports in India's eastern state of West Bengal.
Huge quantities of oranges are exported from the state's Siliguri city during the winter season (from November to January) to Bangladesh, but the Bangladeshi government has been charging excise duty of 16 rupees per kilogram of oranges.
"The rate is not in sync with the yield because the oranges being exported from Bhutan to Bangladesh have been freed from excise duty but the Bangladeshi government charges 100 percent duty on oranges exported from India. That is why the farmers are losing huge amounts of money," said Partha Charaborty, an exporter from West Bengal.
The heavy duties have forced several exporters out of business.
Meanwhile importers in Bangladesh, too, are worried as excise duties increase the price of oranges significantly by the time they reach markets.
To add to the woes of Indian exporters, they face stiff competition from Bhutan, which exports oranges to Bangladesh without paying any excise duty despite Indian oranges being of better quality.
"We have come from Bangladesh. Every year, we come here to buy oranges. Compared to last year, this year the price is quite high, and our Bangladesh government is not lowering the duties. Bhutan duties are free but the duties charged by the governments are very high unlike Bhutan, which is hitting us badly," said Muhammad Babul, an importer from Bangladesh.
The consensus is that the governments should cut down the excise duties in order to sustain the trade of oranges with Bangladesh.
Every year, the orange trade with Bangladesh rises to over Rs 200 million but it gets significantly hit by the heavy excise duty charged on the traders.
Huge quantities of oranges are exported from the state's Siliguri city during the winter season (from November to January) to Bangladesh, but the Bangladeshi government has been charging excise duty of 16 rupees per kilogram of oranges.
"The rate is not in sync with the yield because the oranges being exported from Bhutan to Bangladesh have been freed from excise duty but the Bangladeshi government charges 100 percent duty on oranges exported from India. That is why the farmers are losing huge amounts of money," said Partha Charaborty, an exporter from West Bengal.
The heavy duties have forced several exporters out of business.
Meanwhile importers in Bangladesh, too, are worried as excise duties increase the price of oranges significantly by the time they reach markets.
To add to the woes of Indian exporters, they face stiff competition from Bhutan, which exports oranges to Bangladesh without paying any excise duty despite Indian oranges being of better quality.
"We have come from Bangladesh. Every year, we come here to buy oranges. Compared to last year, this year the price is quite high, and our Bangladesh government is not lowering the duties. Bhutan duties are free but the duties charged by the governments are very high unlike Bhutan, which is hitting us badly," said Muhammad Babul, an importer from Bangladesh.
The consensus is that the governments should cut down the excise duties in order to sustain the trade of oranges with Bangladesh.
Every year, the orange trade with Bangladesh rises to over Rs 200 million but it gets significantly hit by the heavy excise duty charged on the traders.
Mayawati, Chief of India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh addressed a meeting of its party workers (Bahujan Samaj Party workers) in the provincial capital Lucknow on Saturday (November 13) to discuss strategies ahead of the state assembly election in 2012. Party workers from all the regions of the state attended the meeting and agreed to abide by the directions given by Mayawati ahead of the state assembly election.
"We have come here as Behenji (Mayawati) called us. All the directions given by Behenji will be followed. This meeting was held with the party workers and chief of party of every region," said Sitaram, a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker.
The party workers added that following the directions given by Mayawati will be beneficial to the party as well as the state and in the years to come the party members will make their best efforts to make Mayawati as the Prime Minister of India.
The party workers further informed that directions given by the state chief will further benefit its members and will also benefit all the regions of the state.
"We came here for the meeting as Behenji (Mayawati) called us. We all heard what Behenji said and our party will be benefited a lot from that. We all will be benefited; our region as well as our state will be benefited. In the years to come we will make our best effort to make Behenji as the Prime Minister," said Phool Chand, another Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker.
After three short tenures between 1995 and 2003, it is Mayawati's fourth term as the Chief of the state. Mayawati is also the Chief of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which was founded in 1984 by a political leader Kanshi Ram.
"We have come here as Behenji (Mayawati) called us. All the directions given by Behenji will be followed. This meeting was held with the party workers and chief of party of every region," said Sitaram, a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker.
The party workers added that following the directions given by Mayawati will be beneficial to the party as well as the state and in the years to come the party members will make their best efforts to make Mayawati as the Prime Minister of India.
The party workers further informed that directions given by the state chief will further benefit its members and will also benefit all the regions of the state.
"We came here for the meeting as Behenji (Mayawati) called us. We all heard what Behenji said and our party will be benefited a lot from that. We all will be benefited; our region as well as our state will be benefited. In the years to come we will make our best effort to make Behenji as the Prime Minister," said Phool Chand, another Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) worker.
After three short tenures between 1995 and 2003, it is Mayawati's fourth term as the Chief of the state. Mayawati is also the Chief of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which was founded in 1984 by a political leader Kanshi Ram.
Adam Scott is in prime position to become the Singapore Open's first three-times winner after the Australian finished the third round with a one-shot lead over the chasing pack on Saturday (November 13). Defending champion Ian Poulter of England and South Korean Kang Kyung-nam are tied for second on 13-under-par at the Sentosa Golf Club, with U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell a shot further back.
Scott, who won back-to-back Singapore titles in 2005 and 2006, was steady rather than spectacular on a hot, sunny Saturday at the Serapong course, making four birdies and two bogeys in a two-under-par round of 69.
Poulter, dressed conservatively in cream trousers and white golf shirt to match his unusual all-white driver, had leapfrogged Scott at the top of the leaderboard after birdies at the second and tenth and an eagle at the fourth, but that was as good as it would get for the Englishman after the turn.
The 34-year-old Ryder Cup player carded seven pars and bogeyed the 14th for a round of 68 to come home in second place.
Kang Kyung-nam made eight birdies in his round, but two bogeys and a double bogey gave him a four-under round of 67 to share second place with Poulter.
Northern Irishman McDowell after a round of 68 looks poised to eat into German Martin Kaymer's lead in the European Tour's Race to Dubai with the German well off the pace on seven-under. The co-sanctioned tournament offers a first prize of $1 million.
U.S. Masters champion Phil Mickelson looked out of sorts, taking a three-over par eight at the last hole to finish with a four-over round of 75, 12 strokes behind Scott.
Scott, who won back-to-back Singapore titles in 2005 and 2006, was steady rather than spectacular on a hot, sunny Saturday at the Serapong course, making four birdies and two bogeys in a two-under-par round of 69.
Poulter, dressed conservatively in cream trousers and white golf shirt to match his unusual all-white driver, had leapfrogged Scott at the top of the leaderboard after birdies at the second and tenth and an eagle at the fourth, but that was as good as it would get for the Englishman after the turn.
The 34-year-old Ryder Cup player carded seven pars and bogeyed the 14th for a round of 68 to come home in second place.
Kang Kyung-nam made eight birdies in his round, but two bogeys and a double bogey gave him a four-under round of 67 to share second place with Poulter.
Northern Irishman McDowell after a round of 68 looks poised to eat into German Martin Kaymer's lead in the European Tour's Race to Dubai with the German well off the pace on seven-under. The co-sanctioned tournament offers a first prize of $1 million.
U.S. Masters champion Phil Mickelson looked out of sorts, taking a three-over par eight at the last hole to finish with a four-over round of 75, 12 strokes behind Scott.
Girls from India's southern state of Kerala, who often opted for nursing and teaching as their career options, are now entering the fashion world as models generally get lured by fame and income prospects in this industry. The girls have been attending grooming classes to sharpen their skills.
The grooming sessions consists of yoga, meditation, personality development, beauty tips, photo shoot, interaction and finally talent search for which the sponsors claim they do not charge fees.
According to an estimate, this year more than 50 girls have taken part in various fashion shows to be held in and around the city.
Various companies have started to come in search of fresh faces to launch their products giving an opportunity to these aspiring young models.
"Lot of corporate companies is coming in and trading is happening. So, outsiders are coming in over here. See any new companies coming in need a launch. So when it comes to a launch automatically like there will be an entertainment and fashion show and new products. Whenever a product launch is happening definitely there will be a fashion show. So now when you are looking to it Cochin is becoming a fashion hub of Kerala," said Dallu, a choreographer.
The recent beauty contests held in Kochi were the Miss Kerala and Le Mannequins paving an opportunity to the young models who are passionate for walking on the ramp.
"Modelling is my passion. So I am very much interested in this field. So, like the ramp, the walking, and the red carpet it's like to set fire on the ramp is really interesting. So that's the reason I am here like with the support from my family everything, together…" said Paulantina K, a contestant.
Miss Kerala pageant was designed to discover the freedom of expression and talent of South India women.
Le Mannequins was to select models for forthcoming shows in which international models will participate.
The title winner of the event received a cash prize of Rs 100 thousand, while the first and second runners up got gifts worth Rs 50,000 and Rs 25, 0000 respectively.
The forthcoming events are Miss south India and Navy Ball which are scheduled to take place later this month.
The grooming sessions consists of yoga, meditation, personality development, beauty tips, photo shoot, interaction and finally talent search for which the sponsors claim they do not charge fees.
According to an estimate, this year more than 50 girls have taken part in various fashion shows to be held in and around the city.
Various companies have started to come in search of fresh faces to launch their products giving an opportunity to these aspiring young models.
"Lot of corporate companies is coming in and trading is happening. So, outsiders are coming in over here. See any new companies coming in need a launch. So when it comes to a launch automatically like there will be an entertainment and fashion show and new products. Whenever a product launch is happening definitely there will be a fashion show. So now when you are looking to it Cochin is becoming a fashion hub of Kerala," said Dallu, a choreographer.
The recent beauty contests held in Kochi were the Miss Kerala and Le Mannequins paving an opportunity to the young models who are passionate for walking on the ramp.
"Modelling is my passion. So I am very much interested in this field. So, like the ramp, the walking, and the red carpet it's like to set fire on the ramp is really interesting. So that's the reason I am here like with the support from my family everything, together…" said Paulantina K, a contestant.
Miss Kerala pageant was designed to discover the freedom of expression and talent of South India women.
Le Mannequins was to select models for forthcoming shows in which international models will participate.
The title winner of the event received a cash prize of Rs 100 thousand, while the first and second runners up got gifts worth Rs 50,000 and Rs 25, 0000 respectively.
The forthcoming events are Miss south India and Navy Ball which are scheduled to take place later this month.
A sandstorm blankets much of northern China covering cities in unhealthy dust and grit.
Strong winds moved across the north bringing the sand from the northwestern desert.
Thick pollution now covers many major cities on the eastern coast.
Authorities blame the sandstorm on cold weather and lack of rain.
"After two rounds of cold air hit northern China, plants have withered, which made it easier for sand to fly up in the air. But the main reason is that there were few rainfalls in early days."
Many other factors have contributed to the increase in sandstorms in recent years.
Overgrazing, deforestation, urban sprawl, and drought helped expand deserts in the west and north -- now covering one-third of the country.
Tausende Schaulustige säumten am Freitagabend die rund 40 Kilometer lange Strecke, um das Spektakel zu verfolgen.
"Wir können hier an der Ems nichts weiter machen als davon träumen, von der großen weiten See und dem Ozean. Und das ist vielleicht mit dem Disney Dream nochmal so dargestellt", sagte eine Frau zu Reuters TV.
Pro Fahrt können rund 4.000 Passagiere ihre Sehnsucht nach der großen, weiten Welt stillen. Hinzu kommen über 1.400 Mann Besatzung. Diese werden sich dann um die Reisenden kümmern, die hauptsächlich aus Familien mit Kindern bestehen sollen. Entsprechend sind auch die Unterhaltungsangebote auf der Disney Dream, allen voran die erste Wildwasserbahn auf einem Kreuzfahrtschiff sowie diverse Kinderbereiche.
Mit einem Feuerwerk nahm die Disney Dream Abschied von ihren Konstrukteuren. Das Schiff soll in Bremerhaven offiziell von der Reederei Disney Cruise Line in den Dienst gestellt werden und wird dann zu ihrem Heimathafen Port Canaveral in Flordia überführt. Die Jungfernfahrt des Luxusliner ist für den 26. Januar angesetzt.
Ablauf
In Myanmar, dem früheren Birma, gibt es Anzeichen dafür, dass der langjährige Hausarrest von Oppositionsführerin Suu Kyi zu Ende geht. Die Militärmachthaber sollen die Freilassung der Friedensnobelpreisträgerin genehmigt haben. Zahlreiche Anhänger und Journalisten warteten am Haus der 65-jährigen. Suu Kyi verbrachte 15 der vergangenen 21 Jahre im Gefängnis oder im Hausarrest.
Attacke
In Afghanistan haben Sicherheitskräfte einen Angriff radikal-islamischer Taliban auf einen Flughafen und einen Stützpunkt ausländischer Truppen abwehren können. Sie lieferten sich ein Gefecht mit den Extremisten. Laut Augenzeugen wurden mindestens drei Angreifer getötet. Den Taliban zufolge waren an der Attacke in Dschalalabad im Osten des Landes mehrere Selbstmordattentäter beteiligt.
Überführung
Das Kreuzfahrtschiff "Disney Dream" hat am Abend die Meyer-Werft in Papenburg in Richtung Nordsee verlassen. Zahlreiche Schaulustige verfolgten das Spektakel, als der Ozeanriese die extra zu diesem Zweck angestaute Ems langsam flussabwärts manövrierte. Ihre Jungfernfahrt soll die "Disney Dream" am 26. Januar antreten.
The four-day International Lavi Fair kicked-off in Rampur region of India's northern Himachal Pradesh state on Thursday (November 11), where people from Tibet, China and Afghanistan took part. The fair is held at the onset of winter season on the bank of Satluj River. It is a blend of business and culture. With this fair the traders are benefited while the rich culture and tradition of the state is promoted."International Lavi Fair will be held from 11-14 November. Many people from Kinnaur, Lahul- Spiti and Tibet come for trade here. This fair is being organised from past 200-250 years. This fair is being organised with the help of local administration and city council," said B. R. Negi, organiser of International Lavi Fair.
Pashmina is one of the biggest draws at the fair, along with agriculture products like dry fruits and nuts being sold in a large numbers.
"Tibetan goods and Chinese items are on sale here in this fair, and nuts from Kinnaur are also being sold here. Though they are costly because of inflation but we have to buy, so we are buying," said Usha Chauhan, a visitor.
The fair is named after 'lovi' (woolen long coat), which is a traditional dress that people wear during winters in the state's Shimla and Kinnaur districts.
This fair is symbol of the trade relationship between China and Tibet, and it has been celebrated since the time of Raja Kesar Singh of Rampur.
Leaders from 21 Asia-Pacific economies are expected to pledge to work toward creating a vast free trade area at a weekend summit, but frictions over currencies and geopolitical rivalries will also dominate their weekend gathering in Yokohama. After all that heated debate in Seoul over currencies and global imbalances, Asia-Pacific leaders are being treated to "Cool Japan" at the summit this weekend in Yokohama.
The 21 leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum -- nine of whom were in Seoul for the Group of 20 summit -- have gathered in Japan's port city of Yokohama, just south of Tokyo, to talk about a new growth strategy and a giant free trade zone.
They are being made to sit in plush arm chairs around around a "digital pond" - a video screen shaped like a fish pond - in which virtual koi swim, and virtual leaves fall around a virtual stand of bamboo.
It is meant to make the leaders feel like they are in a retreat in the autumn woods, a media handout says.
In the anteroom of this retreat, the leaders will view a showcase of traditional items as well as exhibits representing modern, high-tech Japan.
Borrowing a slogan used for promoting Britain, it is being called "Cool Japan".
Perhaps the atmosphere will be an antidote to the sometimes heated discussions at the G20 meeting in Seoul this week, where sharp divisions between China and the United States about their respective currencies were on display.
The 21 leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum -- nine of whom were in Seoul for the Group of 20 summit -- have gathered in Japan's port city of Yokohama, just south of Tokyo, to talk about a new growth strategy and a giant free trade zone.
They are being made to sit in plush arm chairs around around a "digital pond" - a video screen shaped like a fish pond - in which virtual koi swim, and virtual leaves fall around a virtual stand of bamboo.
It is meant to make the leaders feel like they are in a retreat in the autumn woods, a media handout says.
In the anteroom of this retreat, the leaders will view a showcase of traditional items as well as exhibits representing modern, high-tech Japan.
Borrowing a slogan used for promoting Britain, it is being called "Cool Japan".
Perhaps the atmosphere will be an antidote to the sometimes heated discussions at the G20 meeting in Seoul this week, where sharp divisions between China and the United States about their respective currencies were on display.
All three actors will be performing on December 31 at different venues.
Celina Jaitley who would be performing in Mumbai is ecstatic to welcome New Year with fans and family.
"It is a special feeling to perform on 31st and also when you have your family along with you. Very few experience welcoming it in such a way. I am really looking forward to it," said Jaitley.
Oberoi, who would be performing for the first time on New Year's eve, said he felt both nervous and excited when he will perform in Dubai.
"It is for the first time that I will be performing on New Year. Therefore it is very special for me. I have received a lot of love from the people of Dubai. My films also do extremely well in Dubai, so I am really looking forward to it," said Oberoi.
Govinda also shared similar feelings, adding that it gave him immense pleasure to celebrate special occasions with fans.
"To share with yourself and your fans what you are feeling on such a special occasion is a beautiful experience," he said
Govinda will be performing in New Delhi.
Bollywood celebrity performances on New Year eves have become an annual affair. The actors demand huge sums of money to perform at such events.
Activists of the Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) on Friday (November 12) kicked off a motorcycle rally from Dharamsala in India's northern state of Himachal Pradesh to New Delhi to protest the Asian Games being hosted by China. Tibetans and pro-Tibet activists gathered in good numbers in the city to support the rally.
A leader of the TYC said that China does is not worthy of hosting the prestigious Asian Games.
"When we talk about Olympics, those have to do with great human rights issues, you know human values, and all that and China does not respect human rights in any form or shape anywhere. Not inside China, in Tibet, not anywhere else. If you look at China, they have so many relations with regimes all over the world so if you look at that, they are indirectly assisting these other nations also. That's why we strongly believe that China does not deserve Asian Games and we are organizing this bike rally," said Tsewang Rigzin, President of the Tibetan Youth Congress.
The XVIth Asian Games got off to a colourful start at Haixinsha Island in the Pearl River of southern Guangdong Province in China on Friday (November 12).
The fortnight-long sporting extravaganza will conclude on November 27, in which around 10,000 athletes from 45 countries are taking part in 42 disciplines.
A group of ten bikers on six motorcycles would reach the national capital on the 15th of November.
One of the members of the bike rally said that since China violates human rights, it does not have the moral right to host such prestigious events.
"In Tibet there are no human rights. Human rights violation is still going inside the Tibet. So many brothers and sisters are being cracked down because the all the world has witnessed in 2008, March 10th. So we are conveying message to Chinese people that they have no rights to host this Olympics and Asian Games," said Yeshi, a biker.
The Tibet issue has been a topic of concern to India, as thousands of Tibetans have made India their adopted home after they fled their homeland. An estimated 80,000 Tibetans along with the Dalai Lama arrived in India in 1959 after an unsuccessful uprising against the Chinese rule.
China maintains tight control over the Tibet Autonomous Region but gives greater leeway to the larger Tibetan population in neighbouring provinces, such as Qinghai.
The struggle for 'Free Tibet' has gained momentum and the demands for it as an autonomous region has also received significant support from people across the globe.
Many Tibetans demand complete independence from China, even though in recent years the Dalai Lama has advocated for limited autonomy.
The car market in India's western Gujarat state has been booming in the last few months as more than 1,800 cars have been sold in Rajkot city itself.Automobile dealers say that they are happy with the record sales, and impute the trend to the festival season.
"The business has been good since this financial year. As far as I think, in the last 10 years we have not seen such a market. If we talk about last month then we have sold approximately 1,800 plus vehicles as against 775 last year," said Rajni Patel, owner of an automobile dealership.
The sales figure has doubled against all monthly figures of the last decade.
Small and medium cars received the highest number of customers.
"Last month, Gujarat broke all the retail records, especially Maruti Suzuki sold 10,000 cars in Gujarat. The reasons are that the market has been very good. Rains have been good and rural penetration has been good, especially in Saurashtra region. In Gujarat, the Sensex has crossed 21,000 mark and also the increment in salaries of government employees, and the perks that they have got. Their buying capacity has increased. All these factors contributed to the good car market," said Vikas Gehlot, General Manager or a car dealership.
Rains in the region have also contributed to the spending capacity of locals.
The year 2008-2009 was bad for the automobile industry due to economic recession but most markets have come out of that situation.
On the first day of Navratri, Ford sold 111 cars in a day.
The dealers also say that the increase in car sales is also due to the living standards of people.
Most say car dealers say that they are hopeful of such a market in the coming months.
Farmers of Junagadh district in India's western state of Gujarat have incurred losses as heavy rains have devastated the crops in the province. The continuous rainfall in the area has caused huge crop damage pushing farmers in a dilapidated condition.
"The first rainfall was good for the crop. We sprayed fertilisers in the field. We even took loans from the bank to grow crop but the rains ruined it completely. Now we are left with nothing, we are almost unemployed now," said Vinod Parmar, a farmer.Now, the farmers are praying gods to be generous and further seek help from the government.
"In field cultivation, there are quite a lot of crops of groundnuts and sugarcane, which has damaged that, will have an effect on the farmers' income. Hopefully, if the rain gods are generous enough, they (farmers) might make good with the current season of the groundnuts. But what about the losses? I pray somebody takes care of that," said Jerey Fernandez, another farmer.
The monsoons this year have been particularly heavy across India, causing floods in many areas and devastation of property worth hundreds of millions of rupees.
India is basically an agriculture economy and about 600 million of the billion-plus population depends on agriculture for their livelihood
In a candid interaction with reporters in national capital New Delhi, Prithviraj Chavan, Chief Minster of India's western Maharashtra state, defended himself over allegations of involvement in a major housing scam on Saturday (November 13).Prithviraj Chavan took over the reins of Maharashtra from Ashok Chavan, who was forced to resign a couple of days ago by Sonia Gandhi, the chief of federal ruling Congress party, due to his links with the Adarsh Housing Society scam in provincial capital Mumbai.
It was reported that Ashok Chavan's relations owned flats in the Adarsh Housing Society meant for war widows and armed forces veterans.
But latest media reports have also disclosed that one of the flats in the society belongs to Prithviraj Chavan, ruffling feathers within party circles.
Visibly miffed at being dragged into the simmering row, the newly appointed state chief asserted there was nothing illegal about him owning a flat in the controversial society.
"The fact is there is nothing to hide. The flat was taken by me in my name. It is not a 'benaami' (a land which is not mentioned under anyone's name) thing. It is under the existing guidelines of giving flats to Members of Parliament (lawmaker). I took it as a Member of Parliament. I do not think there is anything illegal about it. If there is anything illegal about it I will look into it. I have shown all my details," said Prithviraj Chavan.
The new state chief has the onerous task of salvaging the image of the party, which has taken a severe beating due to the Adarsh Housing Society scam.
However, Prithviraj Chavan maintained his government would support the inquiry by the federal probe agency to bring the guilty officials to book.
"There are some matters, some people have gone to court…there are cases. But we are just going by the CBI inquiry which is ordered. The CBI has already started working, they have already collected papers. It is not a departmental inquiry or something. It is a CBI inquiry," added Chavan.
The Adarsh Housing scam in western Maharashtra hogged headlines after it was revealed that some top serving officers from the armed forces and former chiefs were allotted units in the cooperative housing complex, flouting several Indian laws.
The flats were meant for disabled veterans and widows of the martyrs of the 1999 Kargil conflict with Pakistan.
Farmers of India's northwestern Rajasthan state are a happy lot with the bumper crop of groundnuts this year.
Rainfall in northern and northwestern parts of India has contributed significantly to the good quality and quantity of the produce.
"Last year it was seven-eight quintals (700 to 800 Kg) but this year the average is 10 quintals. The harvest this year has been better than the last four-five years. Even the quality of the groundnuts is good," said Aidaan, a farmer.
Farmers are hoping for a better yield by the end of this year.
"The harvest of groundnut has been very good this year. For the last few years, the percentage of groundnuts has been high. Rain has been good, and because of that the soil became fertile and have got good harvest. This year the average of groundnuts is 8-12 quintals (800-1,200 Kg) per 'bigha' (one-fifth of an acre). And in this market, by December, we are expecting a good total," said Motilal Sethia, Director of the Bikaner Farmer Grains Branch.
Farmers say they earn about Rs 2,500-2,700 rupees per quintal.
The June-September monsoon rains are a major influence on the economy, as two-thirds of Indians depend on agriculture.
Rainfall in northern and northwestern parts of India has contributed significantly to the good quality and quantity of the produce.
"Last year it was seven-eight quintals (700 to 800 Kg) but this year the average is 10 quintals. The harvest this year has been better than the last four-five years. Even the quality of the groundnuts is good," said Aidaan, a farmer.
Farmers are hoping for a better yield by the end of this year.
"The harvest of groundnut has been very good this year. For the last few years, the percentage of groundnuts has been high. Rain has been good, and because of that the soil became fertile and have got good harvest. This year the average of groundnuts is 8-12 quintals (800-1,200 Kg) per 'bigha' (one-fifth of an acre). And in this market, by December, we are expecting a good total," said Motilal Sethia, Director of the Bikaner Farmer Grains Branch.
Farmers say they earn about Rs 2,500-2,700 rupees per quintal.
The June-September monsoon rains are a major influence on the economy, as two-thirds of Indians depend on agriculture.
SHRAVAN : The Holy Month A time of rain storms and rain-drenched earth, Shravan is the holiest month of the year for Hindus. Each Monday of this month, known as Shravan Somvar, is a special day in Shiva temples where the dharanatra hangs over the linga or the idol to bathe it with water, day and night. Devotees pile the lmga high with Bel leaves and flowers and fast till sundown, eating only root vegetables and'fruit. The nanda deep, Only a 24 hour lamp, burns steadily in the temples signifying the eternal prayers of devotees ascending to heaven. NAGAPANCHAMI : The Snake Festival On the fifth day of the bright half of Shravan, Nagapanchan the festival of snakes is celebrated. Snake worship is more common in peninsular India than in the north. In Maharashtra, snake charmers go from house to house with dormant cobras ense nced in cane baskets, asking for alms and clothing. RAKSHABANDHAN : Celebration Of Fraternal Love Multi-hued rakhis present a festive appearance. A platter offered to a brother contains sweets, vermilhon and rakhis. The most widely celebrated festival of the month of Shravan occurs on its full moon day and is called Narali Purnima (Coconut Day) or Rakshabandhan. In the cycle of seasons, this full moon day marks the receding path of the monsoons. As the rains abate, sailors and fisherfolk worship a calmer sea, offering coconuts, flowers and sweets to it. In some parts of India, this day is reserved for changing the yagnyopavitor the sacred thread, when young boys discard their old yagnopavit and don a new one ritualistically. JANMASHTAMI : The Birthday Of Krishna Eight days after the full moon of Shravan, falls the festival of Janmashtami, the birthday of Krishna. For centuries this story has been relived every year on this dark, rainy night. Krishna, the divine son of Devaki and Vasudeva was born on a stormy night in a prison because his parents were imprisoned by Karnsa, the wicked king of Mathura. Karnsa, who was the brother of Devaki, killed all her children at birth because he had been warned that her eighth child would kill him. ONAM : Kerala’s Secular Pageant In the coconut tree lined backwaters of Kerala, boat races are an event of great pageantry. Artistic flower pattern are made in front of each home on Onam. Among the most colourful community festivals of India is Onam, specific to Kerala. It is celebrated as a secular state event by all the people whichever religion they may belong to. Coming at the end of the monsoons, in the month of Shravan, it commemorates the return of king Mahabali, a powerful mythical ruler of Kerala, once again to his kingdom and his adoring subjects. Bah resides in the netherworld as ordained by Vamana, the fifth incarnation of Vishnu. PATETI AND KHORDAD SAL : New Beginnings The older sect of Parsis celebrates the first day of the month of Farvardm as their New Year. On this day the Parsis review their actions in the past year, make resolutions for the new year, recite Patet or the prayer of repentance, hence the name Pateti, and promise to live in the righteous manner prescribed by their religious teaching. PARYUSHAN : Jams Remember Their Tirthankara Once again in the month of August, Jains celebrate the birth of the 24th tirthankara Mahavir, during Paryushan, an eight-day festival. |
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| Diwali lights |
Celebrated To Mark The Triumph of Good Over Evil
Before his final return to Ayodhya, not only was Lord Rama required to spend 14 years in exile, but he had to slay Ravana, the ten-headed ruler of Lanka, who abducted his wife, in order to rescue her. Thus the festival is also celebrated to mark the triumph of Good over Evil, light over darkness, sunshine after rain, laughter after pain.
Diwali is celebrated in the Hindu month of Kartik (around November) on Amavas, or the new moon right after Dussehra. Today Diwali is also dedicated to Ganesha (the elephant-headed God of Wisdom and Prosperity) and Lakshmi (the Goddess of Wealth).
The Mythological Story
The mythological story of Sagar Manthan or ‘churning the ocean’ may help us understand why Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth, is worshipped during Diwali. Legend has it that once all the devtas, or demigods were under a curse that made them weak in body and mind. They were advised by Brahma (Creator in the Hindu Holy Trinity of Creator-Preserver-Destroyer) to drink amrit, or the elixir of life. But amrit could only be obtained by the churning of the ocean, which, needless to add, was no mean feat. Now the question arose as to how to go about churning the gargantuan ocean. Lord Vishnu (the Hindu Preserver of the Universe) came up with a solution saying that Mount Meru could act as the churning stick, while Vasuki (the mythical serpent) could be used as the coil around Meru. Pleased with the suggestion, the devtas went to the asuras, or demons and sought their help in accomplishing the formidable task. The devtas’ promise to share the amrit with the asuras tricked the latter into consenting to tug Vasuki from one end.
Thus ensued a phenomenal churning that, however, threatened to destroy the three worlds (Heaven, Earth and Hell). The gods simply could not let that happen, so Vishnu appeared in the guise of a giant tortoise or Kurma (Vishnu's second incarnation) and stabilised the churning by acting as a base under Mount Meru. It is said that eventually, spectacular treasures emerged from the great ocean including Laksmi the Goddess of Prosperity and Wealth, Sura the Goddess of Wine, Chandra, or the moon, Apsaras, the celestial nymphs, Kaustabha, the precious gem of Vishnu, Uchchaishravas, the divine horse, Parijata, the wishing coral tree, Kamdhenu, the wish-fulfilling Divine Cow, Airavata, the four-tusked white elephant, Panchajanya, or the conch, Sharanga, the invincible bow, and Dhanvantri, Nimi and Bharadwaj - the physicians and surgeons.
The Distribution of Poison and The Nector
Then appeared Halahala, the deadly poison, that had to be extracted before it could spell doom across the universe, and finally emerged the Amrit Kumbh, or pitcher of amrit. The mighty Shiva (the Destroyer of the Universe) stepped in to consume the poison as he was the only one who had the capacity to contain Halahala. Shiva drank the poison but kept it in his neck, perhaps to prevent the poison from entering his stomach. Ever since, he has been nicknamed Neelkantha or the blackneck. Meanwhile, in order to prevent the asuras from consuming the amrit, the devtas took the priceless pot and fled, with the asuras trailing behind in pursuit. Eventually the asuras caught up with the devtas who, in turn, decided to take on the asuras. It is believed that in all this melee, a few drops of amrit fell from the pot on spots that are the present-day towns of Nasik, Ujjain, Haridwar and Allahabad, rendering indestructible and sacred for all times to come.
Goddess Lakshmi -The Main Deity
Since Goddess Lakshmi was amongst the spectacular treasures that emerged from the great ocean, hence, along with Ganesha, who is customarily invoked before ceremonies are performed, Lakshmi presides over all the ceremonies that are performed during Diwali.
Days before Diwali, people get into a veritable tailspin, what with all the planning and shopping to be done for the ceremonies, especially for the grand Diwali night.
They wash, clean and even whitewash their homes and shops – it seems no god or goddess blesses a mess! The women folk especially in South India decorate their homes and doorsteps with colourful rangolis (patterns made on the floor by using various coloured powders). Dhan Teras Celebrations
Diwali
Two days before Diwali is called dhan teras (dhan is wealth in Hindi and teras is 13th, to signify the 13th day after the full moon).
This day is devoted to Goddess Lakshmi as it is believed that she pays each house a visit on this day of the year. People hold a Lakshmi puja (prayer ceremony) in their homes. This day is especially significant for the merchant class, and quite understandably so. Traditionally this day marked the commencement of the new financial year and is still considered to do so by some people. In urban India, many business deals are finalised around this time and business houses give a Diwali bonus and gifts to their employees on the occasion.
Chhoti Diwali
The day before Diwali is celebrated as Chhoti Diwali (small Diwali). This is the day when Hanuman reached Ayodhya to deliver the long-awaited message of Lord Rama’s return. On Chhoti Diwali, people socialise and exchange sweets and gifts. There is a puja in the evening, and the puja sthan (most Indian homes have a special room or corner with a little temple in which they pray) is decorated with empty earthen lamps and newly purchased idols that are to be worshipped in it. In Bengal, people celebrate the Kali puja on this day. Kali is the Goddess of War and is highly revered by the Bengalis. In South India, an oil massage followed by a bath before dawn on this day is equated to taking a dip in the holy River Ganga. and a dip in the Ganga (the holy river of India supposed to absolve one of all sins) on this day is also considered to be an act of piety.
The Shopping Day
The day is also chalked out for shopping. Markets are piled up with goodies and decorated to the hilt. Every year, there is an array of new things on display. Shopkeepers offer mega Diwali discounts to allure customers.
Firecracker stalls have every conceivable cracker and ‘bomb’, from rockets to sparklers to fire snakes, burning trains and what have you, covered in shiny golden and silver paper, for children and adults alike.
Children look forward to their shopping binge primarily for this reason. Hordes of families throng the markets of their towns and villages for the Diwali shopping spree. Clothes are bought for all members of the family.
Buying utensils on dhan teras is also a must, as doing so is considered auspicious. Lamps, candles, festoons, animal-shaped sugar candies, sweets covered with silver foil and packed in bright cardboard boxes, colourful earthen idols of various important gods and goddesses and other things adorn endless rows of shelves.
The Mass Celebration of Diwali Festival
Finally the big day arrives and the excitement reaches fever pitch, especially for the children, as they can hardly wait for the night to get their hands on the crackers! But the day itself is not without its share of delightful moments.
The women of the house get their culinary act together to turn out an elaborate feast. An extensive fare is laid out for the household, and certain sweets are especially made during this festival, as Diwali is also the festival of sweets and feasting. In the evening, lamps and candles are placed all around the house after which the entire family assembles for the puja. A big earthen diya (lamp) is lit and later taken around the house to light all the candles and diyas.
Every house – big or small – participates in this ritual. Even the most modest shacks are transformed into bright households with a few diyas. Every little village and town glitters on this night. The sky is set ablaze with thousands of crackers bursting and diffusing coloured lights high into the sky.
A number of rituals are performed during the ten days of Onam, which starts on the Attam nakshatram of Chingam. Rituals such as Maveli Puja, Onathallu, Onakazhcha are rooted in the ancient legends and are followed in many parts of the state, since a long time. Apart from the rituals, enthralling games are played during the ten days, wherein small children, men and women take part with equal enthusiasm. Games such as 'Thumbi Thullal (folk dance performed by women), Kaikotti Kali, Pulikkali form a prominent part of the celebrations of Onam. In addition to this, sporting events such as Uthratadhi Vallamkali (snake boat race) are organized with zeal.
Onasadya is an inevitable part of Onam festival. Thiruvonam is the important day of Onam, wherein the lavish feast is organized. Lip-smacking recipes are prepared by the women in every Malayalee household. Intricate designs of 'rangolis' (with colored rice paste) and 'pookkalam' (with flowers) in front of the homes. There is a tradition of bestowing Onakkodi (new clothes especially purchased for Onam) upon the younger members of family by the elder ones. All the traditions and rituals of Onam attract thousands of tourists from across the country and the world, to Kerala, during the festival of Onam.
The chaste bond of love between a brother and a sister is one of the deepest and noblest of human emotions. 'Raksha Bandhan' or 'Rakhi' is a special occasion to celebrate this emotional bonding by tying a holy thread around the wrist. This thread, which pulsates with sisterly love and sublime sentiments, is rightly called the ‘Rakhi’. It means 'a bond of protection', and Raksha Bandhan signifies that the strong must protect the weak from all that’s evil. The ritual is observed on the full moon day of the Hindu month of Shravan, on which sisters tie the sacred Rakhi string on their brothers' right wrists, and pray for their long life. Rakhis are ideally made of silk with gold and silver threads, beautifully crafted embroidered sequins, and studded with semi precious stones.
The Social Binding
This ritual not only strengthens the bond of love between brothers and sisters, but also transcends the confines of the family. When a Rakhi is tied on the wrists of close friends and neighbors, it underscores the need for a harmonious social life, where every individual co-exist peacefully as brothers and sisters. All members of the community commit to protect each other and the society in such congregational Rakhi Utsavs, popularized by the Nobel laureate Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore.The Friendly Knot
It won’t be wrong to say the fashionable friendship band in vogue today is an extension of the Rakhi custom. When a girl feels a friend of the opposite sex has developed a kind of love too strong for her to reciprocate, she sends the guy a Rakhi and turns the relationship into a sisterly one. This is one way of saying, "let’s just be friends", without hurting the other person's soft feelings for her.The Auspicious Full Moon
In Northern India, Rakhi Purnima is also called Kajri Purnima or Kajri Navami, when wheat or barley is sown, and goddess Bhagwati is worshipped. In Western states, the festival is called Nariyal Purnima or the Coconut Full Moon. In Southern India, Shravan Purnima is an important religious occasion, especially for the Brahmins. Raksha Bandhan is known by various names: Vish Tarak - the destroyer of venom, Punya Pradayak - the bestower of boons, and Pap Nashak - the destroyer of sins.Rakhi in History
The strong bond represented by Rakhi has resulted in innumerable political ties among kingdoms and princely states. The pages of Indian history testify that the Rajput and Maratha queens have sent Rakhis even to Mughal kings who, despite their differences, have assuaged their Rakhi-sisters by offering help and protection at critical moments and honoured the fraternal bond. Even matrimonial alliances have been established between kingdoms through the exchange of Rakhis. History has it that the great Hindu King Porus refrained from striking Alexander, the Great because the latter’s wife had approached this mighty adversary and tied a Rakhi on his hand, prior to the battle, urging him not to hurt her husband.Rakhi Myths & Legends
According to one mythological allusion, Rakhi was intended to be the worship of the sea-god Varuna. Hence, offerings of coconut to Varuna, ceremonial bathing and fairs at waterfronts accompany this festival. There are also myths that describe the ritual as observed by Indrani and Yamuna for their respective brothers Indra and Yama.
Once, Lord Indra stood almost vanquished in a long-drawn battle against the demons. Full of remorse, he sought the advice of Guru Brihaspati, who suggested for his sortie the auspicious day of Shravan Purnima (fullmoon day of the month of Shravan). On that day, Indra's wife and Brihaspati tied a sacred thread on the wrist of Indra, who then attacked the demon with renewed force and routed him.
Thus the Raksha Bhandhan symbolizes all aspects of protection of the good from evil forces. Even in the great epic Mahabharata, we find Krishna advising Yudhishtthir to tie the puissant Rakhi to guard himself against impending evils.
In the ancient Puranik scriptures, it is said that King Bali's stronghold had been the Raakhi. Hence while tying the rakhi this couplet is usually recited:
Yena baddho Balee raajaa daanavendro mahaabalah
tena twaam anubadhnaami rakshe maa chala maa chala
tena twaam anubadhnaami rakshe maa chala maa chala
"I am tying a Rakhi on you, like the one on mighty demon king Bali. Be firm, O Rakhi, do not falter."
Why Rakhi?
Rituals like Rakhi, there is no doubt, help ease out various societal strains, induce fellow-feeling, open up channels of expression, give us an opportunity to rework on our role as human beings and, most importantly, bring joy in our mundane lives. “May all be happy
May all be free from ills
May all behold only the good
May none be in distress.”
May all be free from ills
May all behold only the good
May none be in distress.”
This has always been the idea of an ideal Hindu society.
DEVALAYALU MAGZAINE
Hinduism as a religion is many-sided yet bound by a common search for Truth and to Hindus it means a way of life and a fellowship of faiths. With the advent of the Aryans, it originated as a simple form of worship of the forces of Nature, drawing in its system action in social organisations, local cults, deities’ diverse beliefs and modes of worship.Nag-Panchami is an important all-India festival and is celebrated on the fifth day of the moonlit-fortnight in the month of Shravan (July /August). This is the time when serpents invariably come out of their holes that get inundated with rain-water to seek shelter in gardens and many times in houses. As such they pose a great danger to man.
May be theref
ore, snakes are worshiped on this day. Right from the times when mankind started acquiring some sort of culture, Sun and Snake have been invoked with prayers and ritual worship in most of the countries. In India even before the Vedic times, the tradition of snake-worship was in vogue.The Legend
In ancient India, there lived a clan by the name of "NAGAS" whose culture was highly developed. The Indus Valley civilisation of 3000 B.C. gives ample proof of the popularity of snake-worship amongst the Nagas, whose culture was fairly wide-spread in India even before the Aryans came. After the Naga culture got incorporated into Hinduism, the Indo-Aryans themselves accepted many of the snake deities of the Nagas in their pantheon and some of them even enjoyed a pride of place in the Puranic Hinduism.
The prominent Cobra snakes mentioned in the Puranas are Anant, Vasuki, Shesh, Padma, Kanwal, Karkotak, Kalia, Aswatar, Takshak, Sankhpal, Dhritarashtra and Pingal. Some historians state that these were not snakes but Naga Kings of various regions with immerse power.
The thousand-headed Shesh Nag who symbolises Eternity is the couch of Lord Vishnu. It is on this couch that the Lord reclines between the time of the dissolution of one Universe and creation of another. Hindus believe in the immortality of the snake because of its habit of sloughing its skin. As such Eternity in Hinduism is often represented by a serpent eating its own tail.
In Jainism and Buddhism snake is regarded as sacred having divine qualities. It is believed that a Cobra snake saved the life of Buddha and another protected the Jain Muni Parshwanath. To-day as an evidence of this belief, we find a huge serpent carved above the head of the statue of Muni Parshwanath. In medieval India figures of snakes were carved or painted on the walls of many Hindu temples. In the carves at Ajanta images of the rituals of snake worship are found. Kautilya, in his "Arthashastra" has given detailed description of the cobra snakes.
Fascinating, frightening, sleek and virtually death-less, the cobra snake has always held a peculiar charm of its own since the time when man and snake confronted each other. As the cobra unfolded its qualities, extra-ordinary legends grew around it enveloping it in the garble of divinity. Most of these legends are in relation with Lord Vishnu, Shiv and Subramanyam.
The most popular legend is about Lord Krishna when he was just a young boy. When playing the game of throwing the ball with his cowherd friends, the legend goes to tell how the ball fell into Yamuna River and how Krishna vanquished Kalia Serpent and saved the people from drinking the poisonous water by forcing Kalia to go away.
It is an age-old religious belief that serpents are loved and blessed by Lord Shiv. May be therefore, he always wears them as ornamentation around his neck. Most of the festivals that fall in the month of Shravan are celebrated in honour of Lord Shiv, whose blessings are sought by devotees, and along with the Lord, snakes are also worshiped. Particularly on the Nag-Panchami day live cobras or their pictures are revered and religious rights are performed to seek their good will. To seek immunity from snake bites, they are bathed with milk, haldi-kumkum is sprinkled on their heads and milk and rice are offered as "naivedya". The Brahmin who is called to do the religious ritual is given "dakshina" in silver or gold coins some times, even a cow is given away as gift.
EFFACED LEGACY: (Clockwise frtop left): The prakara wall of the Vyagrapurisvara temple at Tiruppulivanam sans its frescoes that were sandblasted recently; one of the Chola frescoes as it existed, in a file image provided by the Archaeological Survey of India; pillars with sculptures at the temple, also sandblasted and disfigu 1,200-year-old Siva temple of the Pallava period at Tiruppulivanam village in Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu, has been wiped clean of its beautiful Chola-period paintings. The frescoes, about 975 years old, have been sand-blasted out of existence.
Ironically, at a seminar organised on the temple premises on August 27, 2007, archaeologists, epigraphists and artists had decided on measures to preserve the paintings and inscriptions in the temple.
Two 16-pillared mantapas are among the temple’s treasures that have been destroyed. One of the mantapas, which was commonly called ‘madapalli’ or kitchen, had Tamil inscriptions dating back to Kulotunga Chola III (1215 A.D.), the Telugu Chola Vijayakanda Gopaladeva, Rajanarayana Sambuvaraya and others. The other mantapa, called Alankara Mantapa, belonged to the 16th century Vijayanagara period.
This destruction has taken place during “renovation” that the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR and CE) Department officials are undertaking. As part of this exercise, they plan to pull down a 100-pillared mantapa just outside the temple and “rebuild it.”
The Vyagrapurisvara temple at Tiruppulivanam, near Uttraramerur, 95 km from Chennai, was one of the three temples in Tamil Nadu where Chola paintings existed. The others where they still exist are the Brihadeesvara temple in Thanjavur and the Vijayalaya Cholisvara temple near Pudukottai.
Earthmover at work
In the main temple itself, sandblasting had been done on the southern, northern and western walls of the prakara, on the sculptures on pillars and on the ancient Tamil inscriptions — in violation of a State government directive against sandblasting for renovating temples. The inscriptions on the outer wall of the sanctum sanctorum and the sculptures stand disfigured.
The temple existed during the reign of the Pallava king Nandivarman II in the 8th century A.D. The Rashtrakuta king Krishna III, the Chola kings Parantaka I, Rajendra I and Kulotunga I, the Sambuvaraya chieftain Rajanarayana and the Vijayanagara rulers added structures to it.
What stood out were the Chola frescoes, painted perhaps during the rule of Rajendra I, on the northern prakara wall. Dr. A. Padmavathy, retired Senior Epigraphist, Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department, said the paintings were of Siva as Tripurantaka (riding a chariot and armed with a bow and arrows to kill the demons of the three worlds) and Nataraja, and of Dakshinamurti, Narasimha, and Vishnu in “ananthasayana” posture. There were murals of Raja Raja Chola’s teacher Karuvur Thevar and of princes, princesses, dancing girls, ponds with lily and lotus flowers and wild animals. These frescoes do not exist today. The mantapas, one with ancient inscriptions, are gone.
When contacted, the temple’s executive officer, S. Senthil Kumar, of the HR & CE Department, said that “no paintings ever existed in the temple” and “no structure called Alankara Mantapa ever existed.”
He added that the ‘madapalli’ mantapa was demolished long before he took charge of the temple eight months ago. He said that “no sandblasting was ever done” and that only “water-wash and air-wash” were done.
However, informed sources asserted that the frescoes were sandblasted four months ago, the ‘madapalli’ mantapa demolished about six months ago and the Alankara Mantapa brought down a year ago.
Both India and America are secular democracies in the sense that both have constitutions that prohibit the government from establishing a state religion or interfering with religious organizations. But there the similarity ends. While America more or less scrupulously adheres to the separation of church and state, in India the picture is dramatically different.
Not too many Indians are aware that even though India is officially a secular democracy, state governments in India can take over Hindu temples and their properties, can appoint the people who will run temple committees and operations, and can take away hundi collections and other donations from temples and use them even for non-Hindu purposes. And they have been doing this for almost six decades now all over India.
Not too many Indians are aware that even though India is officially a secular democracy, state governments in India can take over Hindu temples and their properties, can appoint the people who will run temple committees and operations, and can take away hundi collections and other donations from temples and use them even for non-Hindu purposes. And they have been doing this for almost six decades now all over India.
Such government interference does not occur with churches or mosques or gurudwaras or other places of worship of non-Hindu faiths. They are left alone by the government, and are allowed to own and operate their institutions autonomously, without state interference. In secular India, with an 83% majority of her citizens being Hindus, Hindu temples are singled out for government control and management. A comparable analogy would be if the secular US government were to exercise full control over the finances and collection plates of Christian churches and dictate who could be ordained as a priest or minister, and dictate the hiring and firing of Church elders. That India’s state governments routinely indulge in such practices with regard to Hindu temples, but not with the institutions of other religions, is a telling commentary on the state of religious freedom and secularism in India today.
Status of Hindu Temples
This astounding fact of a supposedly secular government operating, selling the assets of, distributing the collections of, and in other ways imposing state control -- often with appointees who are non-Hindu, and even anti-Hindu, bureaucrats or politicians -- over Hindu temples, is directly responsible for the pathetic condition of many Hindu temples in India. Many magnificent, old temple buildings are deteriorating; and even the daily cleaning of the precincts is often neglected. Some temples don’t even have oil for their lamps because the paltry rupees the government promised when it took over the temple seldom come on time, and priests on miserly salaries are reduced to poverty and asking for money from devotees. These are all too common sights at many Hindu temples today.
While there are many causes for the problems faced by temples, chief among them is the misappropriation of temples’ lands and monies during the last century, starting even before our Independence. For instance, the British government in collusion with local leaders in Orissa took over the properties of the famed Puri Jagannath temple in 1878. Continuing the stance of the British regime and its proxies towards the appropriation and looting of Hindu temples, Indian politicians after Independence in 1947 concocted the fatally flawed, and the blatantly anti-secular, Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Act (HRCE Act) in 1951 to “provincialise the administration of Hindu Religious Institutions.” Under its aegis, variously amended and often challenged by Hindu groups over the years, the state governments have taken over thousands of temples, generally under the pretext of preventing “mismanagement” by Hindus. In other words, Hindus, and only Hindus, are not considered capable of managing their places of worship without government oversight.
Thousands of small and medium temples, in addition to nationally and historically important temples such as Jagannath in Puri, Tirupati, Kashi Vishwanath, Vaishno Devi, Shirdi, Guruvayoor, Chamundi Devi, Dattapeeth, Kali Mandir of Patiala, Amarnath, Badrinath, and Kedarnath, are already under government control, and have been so for decades in many cases.
Examples and Effects of Government Interference
The devastation caused to Hindu temples and other institutions, as a direct result and consequence of the HRCE act, can be illustrated by a few examples:
Maharashtra
- The famous Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai was “nationalized”, i.e. the state government took over its previously independent board of trustees, in 1981.
- Various political and government appointees have siphoned off crores of rupees out of the temple’s coffers. Some of this money is given out as ‘donations’ -- of Rs. 50 lakhs or more -- to other non-profit institutions, selected on the basis of political connections. These organizations may not serve Hinduism or Hindu devotees at all. Such donations continued even after the Bombay High Court issued a prohibitory order stopping them.
- During 2004-2005 alone, seven crore rupees were paid out to such beneficiaries out of the temple’s inflow.
- The government appointed trustees of this temple also spent over Rs. 24 lakhs of the temple’s money in two days on a lavish marketing event held at a seven star hotel to discuss how to promote temples as tourist attractions! In other words, the hard-earned money that devotees offer out of love and a sense of duty to a Hindu religious institution, is being used not for the benefit of the Hindu community, or to promote Hindu religious activities, but for other purposes.
Karnataka
- In 2002, from the 2,07,000 temples in Karnataka the government took in revenues of Rs. 72 crores, returned Rs. 10 crores for temple maintenance, and granted Rs. 50 crores for madrasas, and Rs. 10 crores for churches. The fundamental question to be asked is: Why is money from Hindu temples disappearing into government accounts in the first place, to be distributed to other third party interests, be it non-Hindu or otherwise? Why did only six crores make it back to the temples that generated the Rs. 72 crores?
- An estimated 50,000 temples have shut down during the last five years in Karnataka due to lack of resources.
- How can this happen if there is a surplus Rs. 66 crores of Hindu temple money in the hands of the government?
Andhra Pradesh
- Under the openly Christian evangelical regime of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. Samuel Rajsekar Reddy, the Tirumala Tirupati Devaswom (TTD) authority, which is controlled by his state, frontal assaults have been made on the very hills of the beloved temple of Lord Balaji in Tirupati.
- In March 2006, the government demolished a centuries old, 1000 pillar mantapam in the Tirumala complex.
- The state government has not denied a charge that 85% percent of revenues from the TTD, which collects over Rs. 3,100 crores every year as the richest temple in India, are transferred to the state exchequer.
- The non-temple use of this colossal amount of money is not fully accounted for by the government.
- Temple watchdog groups have alleged that the government has allocated Rs. 7.6 crores of TTD money towards repairs and renovations of mosques and churches in a recent year.
- JRG Wealth Management Limited, a Christian owned organization, was given a lucrative contract to procure materials for the prasadam that is given to temple devotees.
- On January 21, the Chief Minister announced the sponsorship, using TTD money, of a hockey tournament in his parents’ name.
- An attempt to take over five of the seven hills that belong to Lord Venkateswara, according to legal deeds, and hand them to Christian institutions, was thwarted last year only when Hindu religious leaders, under the aegis of the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha united to lodge strong, and unprecedented, protests.
- TTD wealth is being distributed as gold bars “for the poor”, with no transparency as to who the “poor” are who will get the temple’s riches.
- There are plans to build a ropeway to the hills to make it a more appealing commercial tourist attraction.
- While owing the TTD Rs. 1,500 crores already from various earlier proceeds, the government is trying to take away another Rs 500 crores from TTD for state irrigation projects!
- There have been allegations of TTD appointees being non-Hindus, but these are hard to verify since many Hindus who convert to other religions keep their original names for various benefits.
- TTD's medical and educational institutions have also been turned into centers for proselytization by Christian missionaries.
- Elsewhere in Andhra Pradesh, out of 420,028 acres owned by temples in Vishakhapatnam, Kakinada, Guntur, Kurnool, Warangal, and Hyderabad, 60,843 acres were allowed to be occupied illegally by professional land grabbers. The state government, the inheritor of the responsibility under the HRCE Act to prevent such actions, did nothing to prevent these incursions, even though it has a staff of over 77,000 people (paid from a 15% charge on temple revenues) to look after temple interests.
- In August 2005, the state decided to sell 100,000 acres of the Sri Narasimha Swamy Temple in Simhachalam and other nearby temples.
- On March 14, 2006, the government auctioned 3,000 acres of temple lands in East Godavari district. Proceeds from these sales rarely reach the temples, which have to depend on the same government for doles to light their lamps and pay their priests.
- 884 acres of endowment lands of the famous Sri Rama temple at Bhadrachalam have been allocated to Christian institutions by the current government.
- In Simhachalam, 300 acres belonging to the temple have been allocated for churches and convent schools, who even exercise an illegal authority to stop devotees from visiting the temple atop the hill!
- There is also an attempt afoot to take over the 500 year old Chilkur Balaji temple.
Kerala
· In Sabarimala, the forested hill with the famous temple of Lord Ayyappa in Kerala, 2,500 acres of temple property have been sold by the Communist government controlled Travancore Devasvom Board to a non-Hindu group. Even though this Board gets about Rs. 250 crores every year in income, it is almost bankrupt today, after years of government diversion of funds. Rs 24 crores from the Guruvayoor Devasvom have been spent on a drinking water project in ten nearby panchayats, which include 40 churches and mosques. Some of these non-Hindu places of worship have larger revenues than the Devasvom, but none of them have been asked to pay towards the project, even though their members will be beneficiaries.
· In Bihar, government control over the temples through its Hindu Endowments department has resulted, according to the Religious Trust Administrator, in the loss of temple properties worth Rs. 2000 crores.
More Government Control on the Horizon
While these tales of the terrible fate of Hindu temples under government control can be multiplied a thousand fold, and the collapse of the Hindu religious infrastructure as a direct result of government control can be documented in painful detail, it is more important at this point to pay attention to the even more ominous threats of assault that are now on the horizon.
The Maharashtra government, literally bankrupt due to profligacy (including an Indian Enron scandal of mammoth proportions) and bad economic policies, is moving forward with a bill that would enable it to take over the 4.5 lakh Hindu temples in the state. The outpouring of contributions to temples by millions of Hindus is seen as a huge cash flow opportunity by politicians of all stripes all around India. In Kerala, the communist state government has promulgated an ordinance on February 4, 2007 to disband the Travancore and Cochin Autonomous Devaswom Boards (TCDB) and usurp their already limited independent authority over 1800 Hindu temples. In Orissa, the NDA state government is on its way to sell some 70,000 acres of Jagannath temple endowment lands due to a financial crunch brought about by its own mismanagement of the temple’s assets. The BJP government in Rajasthan is planning to auction off temples and transfer their control to the highest bidders, even if they are from the other religions. Under the 'Apna Dham, Apna Kam, Apna Nam' scheme, a 30-year lease would be signed between the state government and private bidders on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis, similar to national highway construction projects! Many other outrageous proposals of the same kind abound across many states.
Response from the Hindu Community
The Hindu community, after decades of apathy, disunity, and sporadic court fights to secure their rights to practice their religion without government control, has now belatedly woken up to address these fresh assaults. Local leaders have formed coalitions to take matters to court to prevent new takeovers and the sales of temple properties. The existence of the HRCE Act makes it an uphill legal battle to challenge and overturn the government’s stranglehold over Hindu temples and their assets. Recent court victories in Karnataka and Rajasthan are encouraging in this regard.
Online petitions and signature campaigns, often led by NRI Hindus who seem to be more aware and concerned about this issue than Hindus in India, have become a standard tool of the newly awakened Hindu community. Most of the mainstream media in India, especially the English TV and press, have a covert or overt anti-Hindu position, and stories of government atrocities against Hindu temples rarely make it into the news pages. Appeals often have to be made to the President of India himself for relief from open aggression against Hindu interests by state and district level government authorities. The collusion between missionary and communal forces and political parties hostile to Hindus, such as the communists and the Congress party, have further complicated the equation of elements that work against the religious freedom of Hindus. Thanks to blogs, websites, bulletin boards, and email forums that have recently sprung up, awareness about these issues is now starting to proliferate. Even as Hindu awareness grows, and the call for action mounts, the media and political parties are quick to slap on a Hindutva or fundamentalist label to discredit these grassroots efforts of Hindus to claim the same basic religious rights as Indian Christians and Muslims.
The attack on Hindu temples is an attack on the body and soul of Hinduism, because temples are the sacred and sanctified places where most Hindus practice their faith. Others may not understand our ways of worship, but to the practicing Hindu all deities represent the One Supreme Reality and Being in diverse ways and forms that make the divine accessible to all levels of religious and spiritual temperaments. The images of our gods and goddesses are not just stone or metal idols. They are profound symbols and splendorous representations of the One in its many manifestations, they are holy reminders of the divine being everywhere, they are aids to meditation and worship, and they are also ceremonially sanctified centers of spiritual energy and divine grace. Our priests should not be reduced to the status of government servants who have to depend on miserly salaries from the state that has usurped their traditional means of sustenance, and who are thereby forced to demand money, sometimes so aggressively, from devotees. Our acharyas should not be sidelined to being helpless observers even as the institutions they are vested with leading are being reduced to insolvency.
The Way Forward
Through the millennia, Hindus have found in their temples succor for all their religious and spiritual needs, and vital sense of community with their fellow devotees. The sanctity of temples is diluted by turning them into commercial tourist attractions, their integrity as Hindu institutions is compromised when non-Hindus, or anti-Hinduism elements, are allowed to run them, and their very survival is threatened when the money of devotees is taken away by government appointees or politicians and diverted to fund external causes.
Even if there had been some rationale for the HRCE Act to improve the administration of Hindu temples in the early days after India’s independence, the exclusive way that only Hindu organizations are so targeted is a blatant violation of the concept of secularism and the religious rights and freedoms of Hindus. If Hindu temples are mismanaged or corrupt, as often alleged to justify their takeover, the sad record of Indian state governments with regard to governance and corruption in general, and their sorry record with the temples they already control in particular, hardly makes them a better candidate to look after the welfare of yet more temples! If Hindu temples need better management, the communities which support them should form the independent bodies to do so. If the traditional administrations of our temples need revamping for modern times, such reforms and reorganization should be led by practicing Hindus and their leaders, and not by outsiders from the government or non-Hindu constituencies.
The diversion of the wealth of Hindu temples by the states in the first place, and their use to fund non-Hindu purposes, is a flagrant travesty of the principle of separation of religion and state. Government officials looking to take over and exploit yet more Hindu temples should instead consider appropriating some non-Hindu religious organizations first, to restore some balance and equality to their strange brand of secularism. If they dare not do so, they should immediately cease and desist from controlling Hindu institutions and liquidating their assets, even if there be misguided statutes that are in place that give them the legal right to do so. And full reparations should be made to all the temples that have been devastated over the decades through a combination of the HRCE Act and various land reforms that have selectively annexed only Hindu properties in so many states.
A major breakthrough towards obtaining the freedom of Hindu temples from government control has been made with the establishment of the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha in 2003. The convener of the meeting, Pujya Swami Dayananda Saraswati, emphasized the need for Hindu religious leaders to have one common, united voice to speak for Hindus and their institutions. 125 Hindu religious leaders -- peethadipatis, mathadipatis, jeers, acharyas, and mahamandaleshwars -- representing major traditions of Hinduism from all parts of India have since come together under this platform to free temples and other Hindu institutions from the clutches of the government. The Tirupati Declaration of 2006, spearheaded by the Sabha, was an effective voice to prevent various TTD malpractices and imminent anti-Hindu moves.
Currently the Hindu Dharma Acharya Sabha is pioneering a movement to challenge the constitutional validity of the HRCE Act and its derivatives, and to prevent further government incursions into Hindu religious affairs. Through the Forum for Religious Freedom (FRF), incorporated as a US non-profit organization, efforts are under way to support the Acharya Sabha with the financial resources needed to mount a legal challenge to overturn the HRCE Act, and to take other measures to prevent further annexation by the states of our religious infrastructure. The viability of Hinduism rests in the health and vitality of our temples. All Hindus should consider it their dharma – their duty and responsibility -- to make sure that this important mission of the Acharya Sabha is properly funded towards accomplishing this crucial objective.
The reverse discrimination against Hindus and our institutions by a supposedly secular government cannot be allowed to continue any more. The time has come to secure for the majority Hindus of India the same secular rights and religious freedom that the followers of all minority religions already enjoy.
Om
Sources:
Sources:
Sidhivinayak Temple, Bombay:
1. Litigation papers filed in Bombay High Court by Shri Keval Semlani, 2003.
2. Donations Fund the Temple Extravaganza!, Hindi Janajagruti Samiti, 2006.
Karnataka temples:
3. Nationalization of Hindu Temples, Sandhya Jain, Daily Pioneer, October 7, 2003.
