ISSUES AND CONCERNS

Friends, Yes, we are truly into the 10th year of our publication. This is the 2nd issue of the year. But we are not celebrating. Wonder why! Yes, you guessed right. Our paid readers, that is our subscribers are not as much to feel good. It is true that every month, the number of copies mailed increases. Some new subscribers, but some free mailed, to create awareness. Yes, it is the free mailed readers who are neither saying, that they are not keen to receive it nor they are becoming regular paid readers. While we must reiterate that this is an effort at awareness and there is cost implication in the exercise. This request is for all our readers, subscribers to help us sustain. Ours is a non-profit movement. For the larger good, do become subscribers. India is indeed a happening place, from heart warming to heart rending, from bizzare to incredible. Month began with the continuing Karnataka circus. "He who pays the piper has the right to call the tune" is an old English adage,...

Vandey Maataram and Mahanagar In fact some years ago, it was Shaista Ambar, a member of All Indian Muslim Women's Personal Law Board (AIMWPLB), had gone on record saying "There should be no objection in singing the song written in the praise of motherland. We love our country and we support the rendition of the song". Here it is very pertinent to note that this very news paper had relegated an important news during this raging controversy into the 7th page in an obscure corner, as if it is just another news. Then there was this remark by Salman Khurshid, a practicing Muslim and a Union Minister, "Fatwa against Vande Mataram unacceptable", published by the same news paper on page 11. Talking to Karan Thapar on the Devil's Advocate programme in the CNN/IBN, Salman Khurshid reportedly stated "The resolution in unacceptable. It is counter productive. It is not good for our Muslims!!" Why are our media friends being ostrich like? Or are some of them hav...

GANG LEADER FOR A DAY A Book by : Sudhir Venkatesh First Days on Federal Street J.T. was a little cool towards me the next few times I saw him. So to warm things up, I stopped going to the club and spent nearly all my time in and around J.T.’s building. I was unhappy to be missing the opportunity to see how autry worked with other people behind the scenes on important community issues, but I didn’t want to further anger J.T. I just told Autry that I’d be busy for a few weeks but I’d be back once I got settled in with my course work in the coming fall semester. Soon after the school years began, a young boy and girl in Robert Taylor were shot, accidental victims of a drive-by gang shooting. The boy was eight, the girl nine. They both spent time in the hospital, and the girl died. The shooting occurred at the border of Taylor A and Taylor B. J.T’s gang had been on the receiving end of the shooting, with several members injured. The shooters were from the disciples, who operated out of th...

Boy dies after being beaten up by principal Varnasi: stepping out of school during lunch time proved deadly for an eight-year-old boy who w as brutally beaten up by the school principal. The incident that took place in Vindhyachal area of Mirzapur district heerre triggered protests by locals who staged demonstrations outside the school and made the institution shut down. ASP Mirzapur Sripati Mishra said the principal of Pt Ramchandra Mishra Inter College Sunil Kumar Dube allegedly beaten up class II student Ajay Majhi when he was going out of the school premises during lunch time. The child suffered multiple fractures due to the beating and was sent home by college authorities. The child was then taken to Mirzapur district where he succumbed to injuries. An FIR has been lodged against the principal who is absconding.

SACHIN TENDULKAR- WHO IS HE?! This article was published in the Sept. 2003, edition of ISSUES & CONCERNS. On completion of his 20 years in cricket there have been justifiable brouhaha. One English news paper dedicating its editorial on his spendid blemishless record as a cricketer, qualified it by stating, quote "The one black hole in Ten dulkar’s otherwise glittering career is his two brief stints at captaincy". However, this article was written at different point of time for its relevance at that time. We request the readers to take it in the same spirit. This reproduction is certainly not to take away from him his multi faceted greatness. -Editor Sachin Tendulkar, who is he? What a stupid question to ask? That too in India where he is almost a demigod, every young cricketers dream and the dream man of every young girl and not to so young, but young at heart. A talent in batting that not many can match, even remotely, either in India or in the entire cricketing world. H...

HC ruling on insurance claim Chennai: Holding that non-disclosure of certain facts in the proposal for insurance coverage will not amount to suppression of material facts, a division bench of the Madras high Court upheld the orders of a single judge directing the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India to pay Rs 5 lakh to a woman. J Chezhian (32), an engineer and doing business, had taken a life insurance policy for Rs 10 lakh and the policy, commencing from January 28, 2003, was issued on February 10, 2003. He died of a heart attack on February 21, 2003. When his wife C Hemalatha claimed the insured amount, the LIC contended that it was a case of suppression of material facts. Contending that it was just a case of suppression of facts, the Ombudsman ordered the payment of Rs 5 lakh to Hemalatha. However, the LIC moved the Madras HC and a single judge in June 2009, upheld the orders of the ombudsman. Hence the present appeal from the LIC. The LIC submitted that Chezhian met with an ...

FIRST ANNIVERSARY SERIES Ombale didn’t want daughters to be cops Martyred cop had many dreams. His daughter vows to fulfill them Neither me nor any of my three sisters would join the police force respecting our dad’s wish Mumbai: Tukaram Ombale, assistant sub-inspector, whose valour led to the capture of Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab during the 26/11 terror attacks, did not want his daughter to join the police force. "Neither me nor any of my sisters would join the police force respecting our father’s wish," Ombale’s third daughter Vaishali said. Ombale, who was courage personified as he grappled unarmed with AK 47-wielding Kasab at Garaum Chowpatty in south Mumbai on 26-27 night, made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty, but not before he had ensured the capture of at least one of the Pakistani terrorists on their diabolic mission alive. "My father did not want us girl to join the police force. He had his own reasons. All he wished for us was to be happy," ...

Obama & Nobel Peace prize I am an Indian, never visited America (U.S.). Not sure if I shall ever visit America. My knowledge of the country has been only from the books and from the media. All that I have read have always evoked mixed and sometime very strong responses for whatever I surmised as just, fair, unjust or unfair. However by and large, I believe U.S. is an inspiring country. Of course, it has its share of wrong doings, and some of its actions caused sufferings in different parts of the world, due to its innate desire to influence its own thinking of what constitutes ‘rig ht’. However, the fact remains, it is the leader of the democratic world and by extention the President of U.S.A. is looked up as the global leader of leaders. But U.S.A. for all its democratic way of life of over 230 years could never really elect a non-white as the president of the country despite having a huge coloured population by birth. In a white majority U.S., it was really unthinkable that it co...

Future athletes go hungry & no beds to sleep Bangalore: It was a nightmare for nearly 300 State Kendriya Vidyalaya students of various age groups who were headed for a national sports meet in New Delhi. They were literally starved for 24 hours and forced to spend the night without mattresses, at the KVSchool (Railways). The students did not protest as they did not want to jeopardise their trip to the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan’s National Sports Meet, which was held from November 16 to 20. Without a word of complaint, they slept on benches. The students assembled here on November 12 to proceed to Chennai to take the New Delhi-bound Tamil Nadu Express. On Thursday morning they arrived at the school near the City railway station, realising little the horrors that awaited them. The matter came to light when parents went to railway station to see off their wards, who wailed before them, revealing they had spent the entire day on empty stomachs. They also complained that they were not ...

GO for broccoli, it can save your life! MELBOURNE : SCIENTISTS hope that the harvesting of what they call "booster broccoli"- containing more vitamins and nutrients than other vegetables- will soon begin. Bred from strains of the vegetable naturally high in antioxidants, it joins a growing crop of "super foods" that are believed to be good enough to prevent heart diseases like Alzheimer’s and help weight control. Vital Vegetables chairman John says that capsicums with extra vitamins A, C and E levels, and tomatoes that can reduce risks of prostrate cancer will be released in the next 12 months . According to him, supermarkets will soon stock foods "boasting higher levels of goodness" for the time poor. "Our lifestyles seem to get faster all the time. If you can get the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables through eating less, isn’t that kind of the way we are going in the world these days," the Age quoted him as saying. "I thin...