A bridegroom caught unawares

Jisha Surya
First Published : 20 Apr 2010

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Not in his wildest dreams would Satish have dreamt that `Eyjafjallajokull’ will have an impact on his marriage.
As the eruption of volcano under the glacier `Eyjafjallajokull’ in Iceland hit the headlines, the ash from the volcano has clouded the nuptial dreams of this Thiruvananthapuram native. Satish, who is an IT professional in London, is among the over two lakh passengers held up in Europe owing to the indefinite suspension of air traffic. His marriage which was scheduled to take place in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday, has been indefinitely postponed.
The unprecedented development has shattered the plans of the families of the bride and bridegroom, who are trying to reach out to invitees over phone and newspaper ads.
“Though, we have postponed the marriage, we couldn’t fix a new date as there is no clarity on the date of his arrival. We are following news reports. Still, there is no development on the issue,’’ says Satish’s father Sasikumar R Nair.
Another Thiruvananthapuram- based employee is also caught in a difficult situation. Unnikrishnan, who is among a 20- member team from the Technopark- based Allianz Cornhill, has been stranded in Europe owing to disruption of flights. Unnikrishnan’s marriage is scheduled to be held April 28.
The visas of all the 20 would expire this week and the company is taking steps to renew it for another one month as the uncertainty over flights continues.
CEO of Toonz Animations P Jayakumar, who went to France on a business trip, is another victim of the Icelandic volcano. Jayakumar was planning to reach Geneva via London and return to Thiruvananthapuram on April 17. He reached London on April 14 and was stranded there. Not ready to give up, he took a train to Geneva from London on April 17. From there, he went to Italy using a cab.
From Rome, he used a flight to reach Dubai and is on his way back to Thiruvananthapuram.
In a similar case, a team of IBS staff from UK was unable to attend a conference at Technopark here in view of the disruption of air flights.
A group of 10 travel industry personnel from various parts of the country, including Keralites, are also stranded at the Glasgow airport. They have send a memorandum to Union Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi on Monday requesting that the Minister contact German and French consulates in Edinburgh to issue Schengen visas for them, so that they could travel by ferry from Glasgow to a European city where flights are operating intermittently.
The volcanic eruption has also had an impact on the travel agencies.

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Is anyone listening?

Jisha Surya
First Published : 22 Mar 2010

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It seems the deadline set by PWD Minister P J Joseph for the road works under the City Road Improvement Project (CRIP) was not final.
A reality check by ‘Expresso’ has found that the Kuravankonam-Kowdiar Road and the Kowdiar-Narmada Road require a fresh deadline, as it could not meet the official deadline.
A look into the status of both the roads repaired by the private consortium Thiruvananthapuram Road Development Company Ltd (TRDCL).
Current status: Drainage works are nearing completion on either sides. Even though road works on one side have shown some progress, the other side remains untouched. Levelling has been completed in one-third portion on the one side of the road and now the workers have started applying the wetmix. However, tarring can begin only after the completion of works on both sides. The contractor we met at the work site expressed hope that the works would be over by this month-end.
Official version: Both PWD Chief Engineer Joseph Mathew and vice-president of TRDCL Anil Kumar Pandala said that the work would be completed in March itself.
Expresso verdict: It is impossible to finish the works by March end. The work on one side is yet to begin. When ‘Expresso’ contacted them on March 3, the officials said that the works would be completed before March 15, five days ahead of the official deadline. Now, the deadline has been shifted to March 31. Even though the works are in full-swing, it cannot be completed in just 10 days.
Current Status: Levelling works have started at one end of the road. Digging works ahead of levelling is taking place at the other end. However, there is no work on the other side of the road. Only drainage works have been completed. The contractor at the site said the wetmix would be applied soon and rest of the works, including tarring, would be over by April 10. He said that the non-availability and high cost of raw materials were the reasons for the delay.
Official version: Officials of TRDCL and PWD said that the works would be over by March-end. TRDCL authorities said tarring would take place soon after applying the wetmix and the whole work would be completed within March.
Expresso Verdict: It is impossible to complete the works by March-end. It would take another
20-plus days to complete the work.
jisha@expressbuzz.com

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Iranian in God's own country, and he likes it

Jisha Surya
First Published : 15 Mar 2010

For Seyed Amirali Raeisosadat, climate is one of the things that troubles him in Kerala. “I find hard to adjust with the humidity. But the friendly nature of the people, low cost of living and similarity in culture make me feel comfortable,” says this PhD sudent from Iran.  Amirali was a medicinal practitioner in Iran before discovering his interest in teaching. “I heard from one of my friends that India was offering inexpensive and excellent research facility in the field of biotechnology, so I took the plunge,” he says.
Amirali is the first foreign student in research in the department of biotechnology. “At first, English was a bit hard for me. Now I can easily communicate. In Iran, the universities are offering only five or six seats. That is the reason why Iranian
students choose other countries. India is turning to be the most
favourite destination.”   Amirali, who wants to be a teacher, says he learned basic teaching technique from the faculty of the biotechnology department. “Make it simple. That is what I get from them. Their method helped me in generating more interest in biotechnology.”  Amirali’s wife too was a PG student in the university. “She went back to Iran after completing the PG. Now she has applied for visa again to pursue PhD in the department of bio-informatics here,” he says. He loves to travel and the itinerary includes Kanyakumari, Varkala, Kochi and Kasargod.  Amirali says Iranian students find it difficult to procure Indian visas. He has been here for two years and plans to complete research in another eight months. After that? “Well, I will go back to my passion, teaching,” he quipped.

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She was more a social activist than a nun

Jisha Surya
First Published : 11 Mar 2010

The Bajaj M80 moped, the companion of Sister Annie Punnose for many years, was there at the corner of the St Roch’s Convent. It was on this moped that the Sister used to go out of the convent walls, fight for the poor, visit their houses and lead them to the mainstream.
 When Sr Annie Punnose, 72, died at 3 a.m. on Wednesday after a prolonged illness, it was not only the moped that had been orphaned. Hundreds of men and women who live at Shangumugham and Valiyathura also lost their trusted friend and guide.
 Sr Annie was more a social activist than a nun. Her activities were not confined to the walls of the convent. Even though Sr Annie became the superior of the St Roch’s convent in 1978, she became active in the social arena in the 1980s with the advent of the Literacy Mission. The anti-liquor campaign led by the sister had a great impact at the grass-root level.
 “Sr Annie’s work went beyond religion and politics. She organised a forum, ‘Cherureshmi’, at Valiyathura in 1982. It was meant to empower women and children irrespective of their religion. She had worked with organisations like Sasthra Sahitya Parishat, Sakhi and Streevedi, among others,’’ said Sr Selin, who had been an associate of Sr Annie since 1996.
 Sr Annie might be the first woman to use a moped in the city. Way back in 1976, she bought a moped and drove around the city and outskirts. People were so curious to see a woman, that too a nun, riding a moped.
 “Sister, who was a polio victim and had a difficulty in walking, used the moped to reach places in time. She learned driving during a mission in Congo. Even after she was diagnosed with cancer, she used to take a pain killer pill and go out on the moped,’’ Sr Selin said.
 In 2000, Sr Annie formed the Srothus Trust for various social activities for the poor. Later, Srothus gathered support from people of various walks of life. They were so active in giving free education to students, vocational training to women, English coaching to the local people etc.
 “Sr Annie was a woman of self-respect. She also wanted other women to be so. She wanted them to be independent. Actually, her thoughts inspired the Sasthra Sahitya Parishat to develop its programmes for women,’’ said Renjith, a member of the Srothus Trust, who was at the convent to pay his last respects to the Sister.
 “She always demanded new ideas from us. I have never seen a nun like her. She was so active and inspiring. Anticipating the protests of  conservatives, she formed Trusts outside the nunnery. Nothing could limit her within the walls of the convent,’’ he added.
 Sr Annie brilliantly used media as a tool in her fight against corruption.
 In 1997, when the sister was upset with corruption over the appointment of teachers in a government-aided school, she took up the issue with the media. Finally, the then Secretary of the General Education Department Lida Jacob intervened and solved the issue.
 “Cancer had gripped her by the time she was diagnosed with it in 2007. But she was so active and her strong will power guided her until she became totally bedridden six months ago,’’ Sr Selin said.
 While on bed, she scribbled some messages for her friends as a way to kill time. Those messages were promptly displayed near the hall at the St Roch’s School, where her body was laid for people to pay homage. On Thursday, Sister’s body will be buried at the cemetery of St Antony’s Church, Thoppu.
 As she promised in one of her writings in the final days, Sister Annie will “continue to send Divine blessings to all here’.
jisha@expressbuzz.com

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A divide yet be bridged

Jisha Surya
First Published : 04 Mar 2010

The Thiruvananthapuram Road Development Company Limited (TRDCL), a private consortium executing the road development projects in the city, is seeing the devil and the deep sea on either side of two bridges in the city.
The construction works are often getting stalled as the headload workers’ unions on both sides of the KIMS bridge and Chackai bridge are demanding an equal share of ‘nokkukooli’ and unloading charges.
 If the Venpalavattom and Anamukham units are fighting for their pie at the KIMS bridge, the Airport and Chackai units are causing a headache for the TRDCL regarding the Chackai bridge work.
 “There was a strange demand in the beginning. Unload material equally on both sides of the bridge,’’ said a source. Later, it was modified in such a way that the unloading work and charges need to be equally distributed to workers on both sides. The workers’ union will intervene even when the unloaded materials are manually transported to the other side of the bridge. That is, if a piece of stone needs to be taken to Venpalavattom side from its storage point on Anamukham side, only workers belonging to Venpalavattom units can do that and vice versa.
 Sources said the practice of ‘nokkukooli’ still exists here. The contractors have to pay ‘nokkukooli’ for these unions even when the materials are unloaded using cranes.
 Last April, the KIMS bridge works were stalled for two months over a dispute related to the unloading of readymix supplied by the Poabs Group. Even though the mix could be supplied through pumps, the union did not allow the Group to deliver it. The dispute reached the labour court and was finally settled with the intervention of various political leaders.
 Pro-CITU headload workers’ Anamukham unit convenor Mohan said there was nothing wrong in dividing the work equally among all. ``There are two groups in Chackai and KIMS sites. Our area has five units. The Venpalavattom area has four units. In order to avoid disputes within these units, works must be divided among all. There is no ‘nokkukooli’ now,’’ he added.
 Recently, the Kuravankonam-Kowdiar road works were stalled for two weeks when ‘nokkukooli’ was demanded for the unloading of large cement blocks for the construction of drains.
 According to an official who we met at the site, the trail of corruption would lead to the top politicians. ``The CITU, INTUC, BMS etc are all involved in this issue. They are abusing the onsite workers. The police won’t intervene as it is a labour dispute. Nobody is there to question this injustice. Companies like Punj Lloyd have  declared that they won’t take up road works in Kerala again,’’ he said.
 Fed up with the union issues, the company has purposefully avoided local workers in the construction. Workers from Ernakulam, Kollam and Kozhikode, who are experts in bridge construction, are working round-the-clock to meet the deadline.
jisha@expressbuzz.com

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An urgent call answered

Jisha Surya
First Published : 23 Feb 2010

Finally, Attukal Amma has answered the prayer thousands of devotees had been making all these years. From this year’s Pongala onwards, portable toilets will be available within a 6-km radius of the temple for the use of women devotees who come to offer pongala.
 Last year, the Temple Trust had promised to introduce mobile toilets for devotees. The promise is being fulfilled with the help of Garden Enviro Fabs, which has the distinction of providing toilet facilities at the Kumbh Mela.
 ``This year, 60 new mobile toilet services will be available, apart from the newly-constructed 50 permanent toilets for the 25 lakh women who are expected to come to the city on Sunday for offering pongala. The portable telephone booth-like toilets will have all facilities, including a wash basin,’’ said R. Gopinathan Nair, president of the Attukal Temple Trust, on Monday.
 The arrangement, provided by Garden Enviro, consists of a portable toilet and a septic tank cleaning facility. ``We know sixty toilets are not enough. However, only six septic tanks are available to store the waste from these toilets. Hence, we had to limit the number to sixty,’’ Gopinathan Nair said.
 The Trust needs to pay a rent of Rs 3,000 per day per toilet. Industrial Sewing Syndicate, the Kochi arm of Garden Enviro, will be responsible for arranging the facilities at the temple. The portable toilets will be ready to use on February 26 and continue their service till the evening of Pongala Day.
 There will be a caretaker woman for each toilet. The toilet facility will be available within 6 km of the temple. The toilets have built-in water and waste storage facility.
 Apart from the portable toilets, the devotees can also use the 50 new permanent toilets on the temple premises. The facilities at the Thampanoor bus station and the public comfort station just outside the bus stand can also be used by devotees.

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Admirer of India’s ‘inner treasure’

Jisha Surya
First Published : 01 Mar 2010

This is the third Pongala for Catherine Lee, 74, who has accepted Thiruvananthapuram as her home. A former US journalist, Catherine has a rich knowledge of Indian culture, history and spirituality.
 She has been to major religious centres in India, including Haridwar, Dharamsala and Rishikesh, and has attended religious events like the Kumbh Mela in 2001. However, Catherine still feels that the Pongala is unique as it offers a special feeling of togetherness.
 ‘‘Kumbh Mela takes place once in 12 years and the Maha Kumbh Mela comes in 144 years. But, the Attukal Pongala is amazing as it takes place every year with not much flaws. The local people are making all arrangements for the event. We can’t see such a strong feeling of togetherness anywhere else,’’ she said before offering the Pongala at her friend’s house in Sreekanteswaram on Sunday.
 Catherine first came to India in 1970 as the editor of renowned Indian writer Raja Rao. After a series of Indian tours, she finally bought a flat in the city and has been staying here since 2003.
 ‘‘Pongala is special since every community is working in unison for the event. It is not necessary for you to be a Hindu to offer Pongala,’’ she said.
 ‘‘The specialty of Kerala, particularly Travancore, is the ability to imbibe and respect other cultures. Like, for example, the Tamil community in Thiruvananthapuram was invited here 400 years ago by the then Travancore ruler as priests in temples. Also, where else in the world can you see Communism and religion going hand-in-hand,’’ she asked.
 Catherine said that the failure to recognise the treasure of rich culture was the main problem with Kerala. ‘‘Here, the spiritual energy is so strong that it is visible on occasions like the Pongala. But, the people fail to recognise that,’’ she said.
‘‘People used to ask me what I hate in India. I would say Indians do not realise the treasure they have, the inner treasure. They are looking at the West, forgetting the rich tradition, culture and spiritual energy you have here,’’ she said. People must take the initiative to conduct further studies on the Vedas, she added.
 Catherine’s five children, eight grandchildren and two great grandchildren are all staying in the US. Her sister Sylvia, a yoga teacher, is staying with her. Catherine, though having travelled to many parts of the world, feels Thiruvananthapuram as the best place to live.
Even at this age, Catherine does a lot of reading, studies and editing and is an active member of NGOs like Thanal. She is a strong advocate of yoga and ayurveda.
jisha@expressbuzz.com

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