Whatever the Aviation Fuel!

Yesterday, SpiceJet operated our country's first biojet fuel flight from Dehradun to Delhi. It was a 43 minutes flight in Spicejet’s Bombardier Q-400 aircraft with 20 officials and 5 crew members on board. The flight was powered by a blend of 75% air turbine fuel (ATF) and 25% biojet fuel -A blend of oil from Jatropha seeds and aviation turbine fuel.

As of now the main advantage of biojet fuel is its potential to reduce harmful emissions. However, due to limited production of biojet fuel, its cost is prohibitive. But in future, if produced commercially on a large scale it may turn out to be more economical than imported aviation fuel, thereby making flights environment-friendly and cheaper!

Whatever the Aviation Fuel!

Flights are meant for speedy travel,

Safe and comfortable journey,

With wholesome entertainment,

And some carefree sleep!

Fossil Aviation Fuel,

And homegrown Bio-jet Fuel,

In a mix of any amount,

When entirely safe for the flight,

And better for the environment,

And beneficial to our farmers,

And in lowering airfares,

Is a welcome invention!

I hope you would ensure,

That no fertilizer,

Or pesticide,

Would creep,

Into the fuel,

As is normal,

With our Vegetables,

And Fruits,

And goes uncontrolled,

Causing untold problems.

In remembrance of my paternal-aunt, Smt. Sarojini, and her unique and personalized gift.

This blog post is in remembrance and appreciation of a unique personalized gift from my paternal-aunt, Smt. Sarojini, to my wife, in November’ 1983, two months after the birth of our eldest son.

My father had three sisters all younger to him and Smt. Sarojini aunt was the eldest of them. She was a very affectionate person; my siblings, me and all my cousins fondly addressed her as sister – calling her Sarojini akkaiah instead of atthaiah. She outlived all her seven siblings and passed away recently.

Her gift is a notebook with 32 pages of several Mangala Harathi songs, Keerthanalu and some excerpts from our scriptures like Bhagavad-Gita which she recollected and very affectionately wrote down for my wife. This is a precious gift for us.

With the passage of time, almost 35 years, the pages have browned a little and are becoming fragile. To preserve the rare content in the book - in my aunt’s handwriting and in remembrance of my aunt, I recently scanned all the pages. Today I am posting it to my journal - my blog post, for posterity.

Note: To know about Mangala Harathi, you may click on this word appearing anywhere in this article and to read the manuscripts below, you may click on the scanned images to zoom in.

Pushpanjali/Shradhanjali to Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ji.

We have lost Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, an outstanding leader of our Country on 16th August. He was laid to rest yesterday, 17th August, with full State honors. As a father figure of his party, and for many politicians he shall serve as a guiding light forever and ever. My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone grieving and missing him.

Shri Vajpayee ’s contributions to our Nation are innumerable. He was a very active member of our Parliament for over four decades. He was our Prime Minister thrice, for two shorter terms and for one full term. He was a prolific poet, an extraordinary orator, a great parliamentarian, a great statesman and above all a giant leader. He will be remembered and admired by the entire Country including politicians belonging to different political parties.

May his soul rest in peace. 

Words of caution this Naga Panchami…

All Indian snakes are believed to be harmless as long as we do not harm them, and Cobras are worthy of worship as per age-old traditions. But I am now informed by a section of people that two varieties of venomous and wicked snakes have taken birth in our country and they are tirelessly spreading havoc and poison even in the air!  

I am informed that these snakes are active individually or together during daytime…and become much more aggressive and destructive as it gets dark, especially after 9 pm.

Take care, watch out and keep away from them.

Happy Independence Day! – May this Crab mentality among politicians and trouble makers’ end.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Seventy-one years ago on this day we won our freedom and became an Independent Nation and are quite happy…

But misuse of freedom by senseless troublemakers and the Crab Mentality or Crabs in a Bucket behavior by losing politicians and political parties is not good for our Country. These crab-like politicians are constantly fighting and through their actions and speeches and through the senseless support of the media, involving haters and critics of each and everything happening in our country with the sole intention of corrupting the minds of people and to topple popular Governments is not good for the Country.

We are free people, we must think intelligently, realize the game plan of such villains and defeat their evil intentions and help our country grow to be much more united, happier and prosperous.

Today on the occasion of our Independence Day let me express some views on Freedom:

Freedom is an innate right which humans have since their birth. Freedom is not something that can be touched, seen, felt or reached. All this gives a vague idea about freedom. What exactly does freedom mean?

Different people have different opinion, definition and thoughts about the idea of freedom. Some talk about freedom in political sense, some talk about social freedom, some about personal independence and some define it as religious freedom. But the fact that everyone wants to be free, holds true in all cases.

Freedom is the choice to live one’s life doing what one wants, live where one wants, eat by own choice and learn what one’s heart desires. This means that freedom can apply to different aspects of life and freedom is not an absolute term.

Freedom is to ensure respect and not just live free. All societies define freedom in their own respect. Different cultures see freedom in their own light and thus people living in different cultures enjoy freedom in ways that they feel appropriate.

Enjoying our freedom does not mean that we disregard the rights of others and live the way we feel right. We have to consider the rights and the feelings of people around us when living our freedom.

Similarly, a free person does not have to fear when expressing his opinion ensuring that others respect and feelings are not hurt. Societies which encourage freedom of opinion, thoughts, beliefs, expression, choice etc. are the ones where creative minds flourish.

Freedom does not come with independence. Freedom is also about appreciating the enchanting beauty of nature and environment around us. A person who is worried and anxious cannot be free at mind and hence cannot enjoy the scenic beauty of a lovely moonlit sky or the pleasant music of the singing birds at the sunset.

Hence, freedom is all a state of your mind. It implies that your mind is under no fear or compulsion of safety in life. The feeling of having social recognition, of being praised and of being safe does not mean freedom. Our Aspirations and ambitions of being somebody are absurd and do not suggest freedom.

Education or preaching does not make us free. Following an ideal person or an example of a master is not a sign of freedom of a person. Freedom is the absence of any pressure from the social, political and religious environment that we live in.

Freedom has certainly no particular definition. While some think of it as the opportunity to act freely and personify ideas, others are of the view that it is about the possibility of doing what you want to do regardless of the impact on the other people.

For a prisoner, being out of the prison means freedom. But from social perspective, freedom is definitely something that a person is free to do while abiding by social customs and law of the country. No societies can guarantee absolute freedom to all social creatures. This is because it will be a complete chaos if we try understanding what everyone in the society wants to do.

Thus, freedom is not an absolute right, and it too has some constraints. A freedom that poses threat to the society and the nation we dwell in is not freedom in real sense. One cannot kill people, violate laws, smuggle drugs or doing anything detrimental to the society and call it freedom. A popular saying goes: “Your freedom ends where mine begins”. All of us have our own thoughts and ideas of being free.

Freedom is non-denial of our basic rights as humans. Some freedom is specific to the age group that we fall into. A child is free to be loved and cared by parents and other members of the family and play around. So this nurturing may be the idea of freedom to a child. Living in a crime-free society in safe surroundings may mean freedom to a bit grown up child.

Similarly to a youngster or a teen, freedom may be about hanging out with friends, enjoying group activities. Some teens may want to involve in social service and contribute freely to the cause of underprivileged or poor. It may mean freedom to them. Old people may seek security of health and life, spend good time with grandchildren, involve in religious and social activities and believe it to be their freedom.

Thus freedom is about belief more than a concept. Deprivation of freedom is like a punishment to a human being.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! –

May this crab mentality among politicians

and trouble makers’ end!...

"If I can’t have it, neither can you."

"If I can’t do it, neither can you."

"If I can’t see the bigger picture, neither can you."

"If I can’t be successful, neither can you."

"If I can’t achieve more, neither can you."

Dhanushkodi visit stirred up mixed feelings and remains a very memorable one.

AT DHANUSHKODI AND RAMA SETU, AND FACTS ABOUT RAMA SETU – VIDEO:

THE RUINS OF DHANUSHKODI…THE GHOST TOWN – VIDEO:

KOTHANDARAMAR/KOTHANDARAMASWAMY TEMPLE, NEAR DHANUSHKODI – VIDEO:

Dhanushkodi was the last place of our visit during our three days pilgrimage to Rameswaram/Pamban Island. Rameswaram and Dhanushkodi are associated with so many Temples, Theerthams and memorials of Lord Rama’s movements and stay on this Island. Being at these places associated with Lord Rama, Sita Devi, Lakshmana, Lord Hanuman and so many other personalities of Ramayana was very gratifying.  

I shall write about the Temples and other prominent and interesting places we visited at Rameswaram sometime soon. Now, this article is about Dhanushkodi which stirred up lots of mixed feelings in me, reverential, adventurous, thrilling, joyful, and appetizing and for some time sorrowful with a flash of fear.

Dhanushkodi is approximately 21 km from ‘Jiwan Residency’ - our hotel in Rameswaram. Dhanushkodi is at the southern end, at the end of the long narrow strip of Pamban Island as you can see in the topmost two pictures.  Dhanushkodi means an end of a bow and the shape of entire Dhanushkodi resembles like the end of a bow. The tip of Dhanushkodi is just 30 km from Talaimannar in Sri Lanka. As a matter of fact, as we approached Dhanushkodi, Airtel India was no longer available and Airtel Sri Lanka welcomed us! I have attached this interesting welcome message from Airtel Sri Lanka for your amusement, towards the end of this article.

Before reaching Dhanushkodi Beach Point we visited Kothandaramaswamy Temple in Dhanushkodi which is situated towards another narrow end of the Island. You can see the location of this Temple in the fourth and fifth maps from the top. This Temple is the only structure which remained intact during the destruction of Dhanushkodi by the 1964 cyclonic storm which washed away everything in Dhanushkodi and turned the place into a Ghost Town, unsuitable for human habitation. This Temple has the deities of Rama, Lakshmana, Sita, Hanuman, and Vibhishana - the younger brother of Ravana. The main idol of Lord Rama is depicted as having a bow (Kothandam), and hence the name Kothandaramaswamy for the idol and the Temple. This Temple is believed to be the place where Vibhishana asked Rama and his Vanara army for refuge. According to this legend, after the abduction of Sita, Vibhishana advised Ravana to return her to Rama. However, Ravana did not listen to the advice, which led Vibhishana to flee from Lanka and join Rama's army. When Vibhishana surrendered to Rama, the Vanara army urged Rama not to accept Vibhishana believing him to be a spy. However, Rama accepted Vibhishana under the insistence of Hanuman stating that it is his duty to protect those who surrender to him. It is also said that after the slaying of Ravana, Rama performed the "Pattabhishekam" (ascension to the throne of Lanka) for Vibhishana at this place. This entire story is depicted in paintings across the walls inside this shrine. I shall write an elaborate article on this with pictures of the Temple, the paintings and a video on it soon, titled Kothandaramaswamy/Kothandaramar Temple, Rameswaram.

All along our way to Dhanushkodi, on the recently laid good road, we were able to see the calm and silent Bay of Bengal on our left, and the rough and roaring Indian Ocean on our right. This is a new road inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27th July 2017. This road is up to the end point of Dhanushkodi where both the Seas meet. It is actually NH49 connecting Dhanushkodi to Kochi. Further fortification of the road on either side with huge rocks to protect it from both the Seas is still in progress.  An Ashoka Pillar is erected at the end point of the road where the island ends and both the Seas meet. It is from here that Lord Rama instructed his army to build a bridge using rocks like floating rocks to Lanka (Sri Lanka) to wage war against Ravana the king of Lanka and bring back Sita Devi. This bridge is popularly known as Rama Setu. It is now partially submerged, however satellite images clearly show this bridge, this can be seen in the third picture at the top. We spent a long time here facing the two Seas and the submerged Rama Setu also known as Adam’s Bridge…moving along this area where both, the Sea and the Ocean meet, the calm waters of the Bay of Bengal and the rough and roaring Indian Ocean! You can view all this in the attached videos and photographs. 

Rama Setu is 30 km long and 3 km wide bridge from Dhanushkodi to Sri Lanka’s Mannar Island. As you can see in the above maps it separates the Gulf of Mannar in the south-west from the Palk Strait in the north-east. The sea in the area is very shallow, being only 1 to 10 metres (3 to 30 ft) deep in places. It was reportedly passable on foot up to the 15th century until storms deepened the channel: temple records say that Rama Setu was completely above sea level until it broke in a cyclone in 1480 AD. The combined name for both the Sea and the Ocean that meet here is Sethusamudram meaning "Sea of the Bridge".

The ride to this end of our country viewing these two mighty seas, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean to our left and right and to be moving in this prominent place of Ramayana was quite adventurous and thrilling. And to be in this land associated with Lord Rama, Sita Devi and Hanuman was a joyous and extremely fulfilling experience.

Prior to 1964, Dhanushkodi was a busy Port Town since 1914 with a Railway Station and a Jetty service to transport travelers to Talaimannar in Sri Lanka. However everything changed, on the night of 22nd December 1964, a super cyclone with a wind velocity of 270 km/hr hit Dhanushkodi. And on 23rd December, an estimated 7.6 m (25 ft) storm surge struck the town of Dhanushkodi on the south-eastern edge of the island, submerging the town and overturning the Pamban-Dhanushkodi passenger train killing all 150 passengers on board. The town, an important transit point between India and Ceylon, was completely destroyed and has not been rebuilt since. Prior to the cyclone, the town had been an important commercial center with a Railway Station, a Customs Office, Post and Telegraphs Office, two medical institutions, one railway hospital, a Panchayat union dispensary, a higher elementary school and port offices. All this was destroyed. At least 800 people were killed in Dhanushkodi alone and another 1000 at other places on Rameswaram Island. Connectivity back then was not as advanced as it is today. There was no Internet connection and the Pamban Bridge was the only way to reach Dhanushkodi other than waterways. As a result, the little town which was once a tourist spot with several pilgrims and fishermen was reduced to ruins. Standing at the place of this catastrophe and tragedy and witnessing the ruins brought about feelings of sorrow, and the possibility of another such storm surge as we were standing there was frightening.

With so many tourists visiting Dhanushkodi and everybody in such a joyful mood at the adjoining beaches of the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean soon changed our momentary negative feelings into wholesome enjoyment.

On our way to Rama Setu we saw a number of shops selling sea shells, trinkets and other memorabilia and fish fry stalls. These were all tempting and appetizing in the back of our mind! So on our way back to Rameswaram we made some purchases and enjoyed a good meal of fish.

Anyone visiting Temples and Theerthams in Rameswaram should certainly find time to visit Dhanushkodi which is not very far, only then I think their pilgrimage will be complete and all the more memorable.