Sania Mirza’s name was today officially approved for the coveted Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, becoming only the second tennis player to be nominated for the highest sporting honour.
The government also named the winners of the 2015 Arjuna Awards. The list has 17 sports-persons including cricketer Rohit Sharma and shooter Jitu Rai. Gymnast Dipa Karmakar, hockey player P R Sreejesh, wrestling duo of Bajrang and Babita, athlete M R Poovamma, shuttler K Srikanth and boxer Mandeep Jangra are among those who won the Arjuna.
“It’s a tremendous honour for me to be conferred the Khel Ratna award and I feel humbled with the love and respect showered on me by my country,” Sania told PTIfrom Toronto.
“Representing my country in all corners of the world has been my great privilege for so many years and this recognition of my efforts by the government of India is certain to inspire me to earn more laurels for our country. I would like to wish all my fellow Indians a happy independence day,” she said.
Sania, currently ranked world number one in women’s doubles, scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win a women’s doubles Grand Slam title when she and Martina Hingis clinched the Wimbledon trophy earlier this year.
Sania is only the second tennis player after Leander Paes to be named for the top award. Paes had been bestowed the honour way back in 1996 after his bronze medal in the Atlanta Olympics.
The 28-year-old, who has won three mixed doubles Grand Slams in her career, beat competition from squash player Deepika Pallikal, discus thrower Vikas Gowda, track and field star Tintu Luka, rising shuttler P V Sindhu, and hockey captain Sardar Singh for the coveted honour.
The awards will be conferred by the President Pranab Mukherjee on August 29, the National Sports Day.
The Khel Ratna carries a prize money of Rs 7.5 lakh along with a citation, while the Arjuna awards come with a cash prize of Rs 5 lakh and a citation.
Besides doing well on the professional circuit, Sania had also won the gold medal and the bronze medal in the mixed and women’s doubles categories of the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
The Hyderabadi girl had won the Arjuna award in 2004 and was the favourite for the top award this year. In 2006, she was bestowed the Padma Shri — the country’s fourth highest civilian honour.
Sania’s mixed doubles trophies had come in the Australian Open (2009), French Open (2012) and US Open (2014).
Rohit has been India’s batting mainstay in the ODIs and became the highest individual scorer with a knock of 264 against Sri Lanka last year.
Jitu, on the other hand, has been in splendid form, winning seven international medals in the last one year besides an Olympic quota berth.
Sreejesh was recommended for his outstanding show as India’s goalkeeper. He was part of the team that won the Asian Games gold medal last year, which also fetched the side a direct qualification for next year’s Olympics.
Dipa has been rewarded for becoming the first Indian woman gymnast to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games, while boxer Mandeep has been recommended for his silver medals in the Asian Championships and the Commonwealth Games.
Srikanth has been one of India’s top performers on the badminton court, winning three titles this year.
The list of sportspersons recommended for Arjuna awards: P R Sreejesh (hockey), Dipa Karmakar (gymnastics), Jitu Rai (shooting), Sandeep Kumar (archery), Mandeep Jangra (boxing), Babita (wrestling), Bajrang (wrestling), Rohit Sharma (cricket), K Srikanth (badminton), Swarn Singh Virk (rowing), Satish Sivalingam (weightlifting), Yumnam Santhoi Devi (wushu), Sharath Gaekwad (para-sailing), M R Poovamma (athletics), Manjeet Chhillar (kabaddi), Abhilasha Mhatre (kabaddi), Anup Kumar Yama (rollerskating).
source: http://www.outlookindia.com / Outlook / Home> News / New Delhi – August 14th, 2015
An antique Quran dating back to the Mughal era has been seized by the police from a 10-member gang at K R Nagar town in the district. The gang claimed to have got the book from Hyderabad and was planning to sell it for Rs 5 crore, the police said.
The district police came to know about the gang a week ago when they came across a video which had details of the book. The video was made to find potential buyers. After showing the book to historian and former vice-chancellor of Goa Univeristy and Mangalore University, Prof Sheikh Ali, who confirmed its authenticity, the police followed up the case. On Monday night, the police received a tip-off about the gang’s whereabouts in K R Nagar town.
The police officers approached four members of the gang on the pretext of buying the book and arrested them. The remaining six members were arrested in Mysuru city.
The arrested are Nagaraju S (39) and A Muralikrishna (30) of Raichur district, Kanakappa (40) of Gadag district, Kallappa (40) of Kalburgi, Sanath (27), Ravindra (33) and Raghu (30) of Udupi district, Vijayendra (30) and Prasad (43) of Shivamogga district and Bhaskar (31) of Bengaluru rural district. Kallappa is an SDA in the Food and Civil Supplies Department. Prof Ali said going by the date mentioned on the last page of the 604-page book based on lunar calendar, the book belongs to the 17th century and is 398 years old. The pages are gold-coated and the calligraphy is in Arabic.
The pages have decorative borders, he added. He said the ink used in the book is not an ordinary one but a chemically treated one and hence the writings are still intact.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by ENS / August 12th, 2015
Syed Usman Taqui of Mysuru has been awarded Erasmus Mundus Fellowship amounting to 1,29,900 Euros (almost equivalent to rupees one crore) to pursue his Doctoral Programme in Membrane Engineering for a period of three years beginning November 2015.
He is the youngest to top the Global Ranking List. The Erasmus Mundus doctorate in Membrane Engineering (EUDIME) is a prestigious European Fellowship programme designed to implement at international level — excellence, innovation, mobility and multidisciplinary in investigation approaches related to membrane science and technology. The consortium includes six leading partner institutions from Portugal, Netherlands, Czech Republic, France, Belgium and Italy.
Syed Usman Taqui pursued his Master Degree in Membrane Engineering under the Erasmus Mundus Master’s Scholarship amounting to 48,000 euros (rupees thirty-four lakh) during 2012-14, then the youngest to be selected among fourteen from all over the world.
Usman’s elder brother Syed Raihan Taqui was the youngest and one among the three from Asia to be awarded Erasmus Mundus Scholarship from European Union to pursue his Master’s Degree majoring in Education Management in 2007.
Usman Taqui is the son of Ayesha Nasreen and Prof. Syed Akheel Ahmed, former VC of Yenepoya University and former Dean and Syndicate Member of University of Mysore.
Usman carried out his project at the Department of Chemical Engineering Technology (IIT), Mumbai, during his undergraduate days. He has bagged numerous prizes and awards from the institutions he studied.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Saturday – August 08th, 2015
Ten-member gang trying to sell it for Rs.5 crore arrested
Mysuru :
In a meticulously planned and precisely executed operation, sleuths attached to the District Police, seized a 410 year-old Quran, written during Mughal ruler Akbar’s period in the district and also arrested a gang of 10 members who were allegedly trying to sell it for Rs.5crore.
Police have also seized a Ford Ikon car (MH02 AK-4967) from the gang
The nabbed have been identified as S. Nagaraju of Sindhanur, A. Muralikrishna of Sasalamai Camp, Kanakappa Kambli of Yerebeleri village in Gadag district, Kallappa Kambali o Kalaburgi and Sanath of Kollur in Udupi taluk, Ravindra, Vijayendra of Hosanagar in Shivamogga district, Prasad of Heggodu in Sagar taluk, Bhaskar of Sindhanur and Raghu of Karwar.
Addressing a press conference at his office in city yesterday, SP Abhinav Khare said that Police, who came across a video on the antique Quran that the gang was sharing with prospective buyers formed a team to trap the gang.
The Police team, posing as prospective buyers approached five members of the gang near the Railway Station in Hosa Agrahara in K.R.Nagar taluk in the district and nabbed them before nabbing the remaining members in Mysuru city, he said and added that the accused had confessed to have got the antique from some persons in Hyderabad promising to share the proceeds of the sale with them.
Additional SP Kala Krishnaswamy, Rural Dy.SP Vikram Amte led K.R.Nagar Inspector H.N.Siddaiah, DCIB Inspector Gopalakrishna, Saligrama SI Poonacha in the nabbing and seizing operations.
Meanwhile, noted historian and former Vice-Chancellor of Mangalore and Goa Universities Prof. B. Sheikh Ali, who was present at the press conference described the calligraphy as a 604-page book, each separated by a butter paper for better preservation as a piece of Exquisite Art adding that writing in the Quran is legible.
Continuing, Prof. Sheikh Ali said ‘It was written in 1959 of the Hijri calendar, which works out to 1605 A.D. This was around the period when Mughal rule was at its peak in India and the time when Akbar was succeeded by Jahangir.”
He further said that though there is no other information on the last page other than the year in which it is written, there is a sentence that says that the calligraphy is dedicated to the saints.
Interestingly, SP Khare removed his footwear while holding the Quran to pose for photograph before the Quran was carefully placed in a carved wooden stand and covered with a cloth.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / Wednesday – August 12th, 2015
Here we publish the full text of the convocation address delivered by Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, the then Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri and Secretary, Department of Defence, Research & Development, at the 75th Convocation of University of Mysore on Feb. 25, 1995. — Ed.
Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam (second from right) seen with the then Governor-Chancellor Khurshed Alam Khan, the then Higher Education Minister and Pro-Chancellor D. Manjunath and the then Vice-Chancellor Prof. M. Madaiah during the 75th Convocation of University of Mysore on Feb.25, 1995.
by Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam
Dare to Dream: I am indeed delighted and honoured to participate in this 75th Convocation of University of Mysore. I have been thinking about what to share with you on this important occasion when you are entering the most eventful phase of your life after years of learning. I know that for the past twenty-years or so you have been continuously taught various aspects by teachers. I am, therefore, not going to extend this process. Instead, I would like to share with you a few of my experiences, one at a place very close to you and others at Trivandrum and Hyderabad.
These are the experiences where people have dared to dream and met with success. Of course, we have to recognise that success is always the result of sweat of individuals and also coupled with many failures. The place close to you is the site of pilgrimage not only for me but for every one who practices rocketry in our country. Let me first tell you something about this.
First War Rocket: When I was studying in school and college, Srirangapatna interested me for two reasons — the place was the scene of battle against foreign rule and also there was a reference to a new weapon introduced. In 1960, when I visited Srirangapatna with my friends, we were thrilled to walk around this historical town. We searched for the Turukhan-hally Fort built during Hyder Ali – Tipu Sultan times and used for making rockets, way back in 1794. I had a tremendous disappointment when I did not see any permanent evidence or historical recordings in Srirangapatna regarding creation or development of first war rocket in the world.
Later, in 1963, I was at Wallop’s Island, the rocket launch facility of NASA in USA, in connection with a collaborative programme of launching of sounding meteorological rockets for research of upper atmosphere. In the lobby of their command-control centre, I saw a prominently displayed picture. The war dress and the colour of the soldiers’ skin attracted my attention. Some dark complexioned soldiers were firing rockets on their white skinned opponents. The label on the painting read, “The world’s first war rocket.” It was indeed a great pleasure to see an Indian feat acknowledged on the other side of the planet. I felt excited with happiness.
I started reading the history of rockets. I had a dream I must see Tipu’s rockets. Time continued to pass. Rocket technology engulfed me and India’s first Satellite Launch Vehicle SLV-3 was launched. In 1980, we had an opportunity to visit London. There, I saw two of the war rockets captured by British at Srirangapatna, displayed at Museum of Artillery at Woolwich in London with the heading “India’s War Rocket.” Probably, Europe learnt rocketry from our Srirangapatna rocket in the eighteenth century! It was a great thrill to see an Indian innovation on a foreign soil, well-preserved and with facts not distorted.
I got the performance of these 2 kg rockets, 50 mm in dia. and about 250 mm in length analysed by our designers. What a simple and elegant design, effectively used in war ! Surely, Hyder – Tipu Sultan would have had talented men who could look at propulsion, material, ignition and build rockets and fly them for war operations. In fact, when we look back to eighteenth century ambience, it is a technology marvel.
I would like to declare today that this land is the birth place of war rockets in the world and offer it my reverence and respect. The tradition continues.
Prof. Vikram Sarabhai – Man of Vision: Nations advance along the course charted by great dreamers. Let me narrate to you an incidence which occurred in 1968. We were working on the configuration of India’s satellite launch vehicle in Thumba. One day, Prof. Vikram Sarabhai, the then Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), brought Prof. Curien, President, CNES, France, to our laboratory. France was developing Diamont satellite launch vehicles at that time. After focussing on our planned efforts, as an almost spontaneous reaction, Prof. Sarabhai proposed that we should fly India’s fourth stage of SLV-3 as the Diamont’s fourth stage. We had not flown even a meteorological rocket by that time, but Prof. Sarabhai was aware of the possibilities and trusted the capabilities of his team. His dream of SLV-3 fourth stage getting into a French launch vehicle finally came true in the form of apogee boost motor for APPLE satellite, flown by ARI
ANE, the European launch vehicle. This is the vision ! He gave us a 15-year jump in our efforts. With three experimental Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Satellites in orbit and their images being received in the USA, Satellite Ground Stations with Indian Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV launching our own satellite from our own land, his dream visualised in 1965 has taken form through the people born at different times. Nations are thus built by men of vision who dream and prepare ground for the coming generations.
Super Computer and Parallel Processing: In 1986, Dr. V.S. Arunachalam and myself went to US to buy a Super Computer with 400 mega flop speed. The Deputy Secretary in the Department of Defence at Pentagon first put us into long series of technical discussions and then regretted the sale on the pretext that we will use it to develop long range missiles detrimental to the security interests of the world. Travelling back disappointed, Dr. Arunachalam said, “Let us make our own Super Computer.” Today, India has a 32 node 1000 M Flops PACE SPARC 10 machine available for other countries to buy. Once we decide, we work and realise even tough dreams. That is what India expects from you.
A team of young scientists and engineers under the leadership of Dr.G.Venkataraman formed ANURAG, that is, Advanced Numerical Research and Analysis Group, to develop a parallel processing computer specially for aircraft design. At that time, AGNI also was taking shape. The payload of AGNI would re-enter the atmosphere at 15 times the speed of sound. Even at this speed, we had to keep the vehicle under control and while the payload outer temperature goes to 3000 degrees centigrade, inside of payload the ambient has to be less than 30 degrees centigrade. We have in India supersonic wind tunnel. We needed hypersonic wind tunnel for designing the AGNI payload. Various wind tunnel data could provide the loads experienced during the re-entry phase of the system. There were tunnels abroad but once they knew the application, they were refused.
This time our high-tech academic institutions rose to the occasion. Prof. S.M. Deshpande of Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) with five young bright fresh scientists from DRDL with background of mathematics and fluid dynamics, developed Computational Fluid Dynamics Software for Hypersonic Regimes in just six months. This software is the original contribution with minimum computational facility available in the world. No country would have given us this type of software. But it was done through optimum partitioning, sequencing and paralleling the task. This software solution has established that brain-power excels man-made machines, even super-computers.
I have seen that India can build her own super-computer; India can fly its own rocket system within and outside the country. Both the dreams have come out of visions. This convocation ambience, where hundreds of young graduates are entering their professional lives, is ideal for thinking about the need of visions for the next two decades. What could they be?
Vision for the Nation: With the growing population, increasing unemployment, unaffordable medical care and changing value system, our society is going through certain turbulent situation. The society looks forward to prosperity. In a decade or two, prosperity and good life is possible if the nation has the vision. Vision generates progress. As an example, we can study the period between 1857 and 1947; it was the vision of freedom which not only got us independence but during the same period in India, vision of independence generated many leaders of excellence in politics, philosophy, history, science and technology and industry. Again, can we dream for a vision to make this nation great — a nation with prosperity and peace?
Enlightened Citizens: The vision of “Enlightened Citizens” calls for a mission of integrating education, occupation and health care as one single entity. For development of self, society and nation, it is essential that hundreds of clusters of villages are divided into multiple blocks of 20,000 families. And each block can be considered as a progress group with certain number of hospitals, schools and agriculture farms which could be growing cash crops, aromatic plants or fish farms.
The experience in Kerala and Tamil Nadu indicates that integration of education and occupation resulted in small families, in addition to promoting self- sustained good life. This enlightened citizen package can be extended to the whole country.
Networking of Major Rivers: We recently conducted a workshop on the subject based on Dr. K.L. Rao’s report “National Water Grid” and Capt. Dastur’s proposal of “Garland Canal.” This has all the dimensions of becoming an important vision for the nation. Nation can aim at linking multiple rivers resulting in water distribution, flood and drought control, navigation and power generation.
Above all, this will bring together the country as it happened during the independence movement, with potential revolution in agricultural output and employment generation. Experts have indicated that this is the right time to take this as a major programme as technology exists today and the country has the capability to finance such a programme.
Today we have: satellite mapping of water resources and river flow aspects; capability to use nuclear energy for large tunnelling in mountains to direct the river flows and technological strength in mechanical, civil and communication engineering. It may be a 20-year programme for the nation.
Energy Everywhere: Similarly, the third area is “Energy Everywhere.” We believe by year 2000-plus, we will have to generate almost 50% more power. Probably, we will have to look for environment clean power. In addition to hydro and thermal energy, the non-conventional energy and nuclear energy has to contribute to power generation for which technological innovation is essential. Even hydro and thermal energy would need newer technologies so that they can provide affordable electrical energy.
Conclusion: Friends! Vision for the nation is in front of you. These dreams are bigger than the individual or group of people. Great things do not just occur; you have to dream about them and work to realise them. You can be a partner to the visions for the country and begin to experience dreams coming true. What you are is God’s gift to you. What you make out of yourself will be your gift to God. I wish you a challenging profession in your respective fields and recall the famous lines:
“The chances have just begun
The best jobs haven’t been started,
the best work hasn’t been done.”
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Feature Articles / Saturday – August 01st, 2015
Describing him as one of the most “exuberant boosters” of India’s nuclear capabilities, the US media on Tuesday highlighted the contribution of ‘missile man’ A P J Abdul Kalam to the country’s atomic and space programme.
Kalam, who would have turned 84 in October died after suffering a massive cardiac arrest during a lecture at the IIM Shillong on Monday, plunging his country into overwhelming grief.
Describing him as one of the most “exuberant boosters” of India’s nuclear capabilities, the US media on Tuesday highlighted the contribution of ‘missile man’ A P J Abdul Kalam to the country’s atomic and space programme.
“He was one of the most exuberant boosters of the country’s nuclear program,” The New York Times wrote in a rare obituary for Kalam.
“He used the spotlight to urge India to build up its military strength and to free itself from the threat of domination by outside forces,” the daily said.
The Times said that Kalam spent little time outside India. “For him, it was a point of pride that India had developed its bomb without much help from foreign powers. And he described himself as thoroughly Indian,” it said.
Kalam has been credited with helping develop his country’s first space satellites. In the 1980s, he helped design the nuclear-capable ‘Prithvi’ and ‘Agni’ ballistic missiles, The Washington Post said.
“He played a crucial role when India tested its nuclear weapons in 1998. The test resulted in sanctions against the country but helped elevate Mr Kalam to the status of folk hero in his country,” the Post said in its obituary.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Kalam, who was born into a poor Muslim family in Tamil Nadu, was at the forefront of the country’s efforts to develop a space programme and a strong advocate for India’s self-reliance in defence technologies.
“He encouraged the development of India’s first indigenous satellite launch vehicle that brought the country into an elite club of space-faring nations and guided India’s missile-development programme,” the daily said.
“Dr. Kalam also played a key role in boosting India’s nuclear capabilities, leading to nuclear tests in 1998, a technological achievement seen as pivotal in asserting the country’s place in global politics,” the WSJ said.
“He was the first scientist to hold the office, and was widely viewed as an apolitical figure,” the CNN said.
source: http://www.ibnlive.com / IBN LIVE / IBN Live> World / Press Trust of India / July 28th, 2015
The wind-catcher at the Takht Mahal in Bidar fort.— photo: gopichand t.
This natural cooling system is in existence in the old Bidar fort
What is the warranty period on your air-conditioning system — five, seven or at the most 12 years? How about a system that has a warranty of 550 years?
Bidar fort houses this system. The Gagan Mahal, or the grand palace that has the takht (throne), has just such a natural cooling structure.
Local guides call it the ‘Bahmani AC’. Built by the Bahmani kings in the 15th century, it still functions.
Cool air gushes out from the bottom of the twin tunnels that are connected to towers on the ceiling. However, the roof of the building has collapsed, depriving visitors of a real air-conditioned experience.
The technique involved is simple. Hot air, sucked in from the surroundings, moves up a quadrangular pillar. It gets cooled, gains weight and comes down. Air is thus cooled by convection and evaporation.
The walls of the tower, exposed to the sun, attract cool humid air towards them. This happens through multiple vents, providing ample supply of cool air. Two such pillars are fixed in each room, on opposite sides of the hall.
These structures, called Badgeer, Malqaf or Hawa Khamba (wind-catcher), are also found in other buildings, including the Rangeen Mahal, Turkash Mahal or Queen’s Palace, and the Diwan-e-Khas or VIP enclosure.
There are some such structures inside the city too. Havelis of zamindars and the rich had these structures. “I had saw them while growing up in the old city,” says historian Abdul Samad Bharati.
V. Govindan Kutty, groundwater expert who has worked on the Surang Bavi system of medieval era aqua ducts in Bidar, said the method of cooling buildings involved both wind tunnels and underground water canals.
“There were several wind-catchers along the Jamuna Mori or the Shukla Teertha channels originating in the old city and ending in the Bidar fort. Some houses had basements where people would collect water. The combination of wind-catchers and underground channels led to general cooling of these houses,” Mr. Kutty said. He points out that this system is used extensively in Iran, where multiple wind-catchers are built over cisterns to chill water.
“The government should take steps to conserve these structures” says Digambar Thakur, heritage enthusiast.
This natural cooling system is in existence in the old Bidar fort
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Rishikesh Bahadur Desai / Bidar – July 31st, 2015
The Rampur Raza Library is renowned globally for its collection of ancient manuscripts from South Asia. The library has now organised an exhibition of Qurans, inviting scholars to view ancient manuscripts of the holy Quran in the month of Ramzan.
Some of the manuscripts on display are among the oldest pieces of Arabic calligraphy. A 7th century Quran written on parchment in the early Kufic script, attributed to Hazrat Ali (d. AD 661) is on display. Viewers are lining up to see this rare manuscript.
An 8th century manuscript of the Quran is attributed to Imam Jafar Sadiq, whose unique penmanship is widely appreciated.
A 9th century script is attributed to Imam Abul Hasan Musa, who served as prime minister to three caliphs of Baghdad. He died on July 20, 941 AD. His Quran is in the early Naskh style, popular in the 10th century. This form of calligraphy continues to be in vogue, with some changes.
Maulana Mohammad Irshad Nadvi, who is coordinating the exhibition, said, “The library also has a copy of a Quran written by master calligrapher of the 13th century Baghdad, Yaqut-al Musta Simi. It is decorated in gold and precious lapis lazuli.”
Nadvi said another masterpiece of Arabic manuscript by this calligrapher, titled Diwan-al-Hadira and dating to 1221 AD is part of the royal library of Sultan Ibrahim Adil Shah of Bijapur.
The exhibition also displays calligraphy in Arabic that created its own pseudo-geography, with exquisite and richly illustrated figures of human beings, animals and birds. Some of this came from the pen of 13th century calligrapher Zakaria bin Mahmud al-Qazvini.
Among the assets of the library on display is the Arabic manuscript Sharhal-Kafia of Razi. It bears marginal notes by Nawab Sadullah Khan, prime minister of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. Among the many seals on this manuscript is one of emperor Aurangzeb.
Jacob Thorek Jensen, who is visiting the exhibition from Denmark and serves as advisor to a Danish culture agency, said, “This is a brilliant show of the elaborate calligraphy of writers of the Quran.”
Library spokesman Himanshu Singh said visitors to the library and the exhibition come from different faiths.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Bareilly / by Nazar Abbas, TNN / July 16th, 2015
Special Camaraderie: “Throughout, Mandela retained hope, confident that sooner or later, the battle for equality would will be won.” Picture shows Nelson Mandela and Ahmed Kathrada. / by Special Arrangement / The Hindu
Ahmed Kathrada, who was on Robben Island with Nelson Mandela, recalls his famous co-prisoner’s eternal optimism.
As the world celebrated Nelson Mandela International Day on July 18 — Mandela’s birth anniversary — the air of mystery surrounding his long years of imprisonment is slowly being lifted. Mandela once called his time in prison “a long holiday”, a picture belying a life of denial and discrimination. For 10 years, Mandela was denied bread, his food was rationed, and he had to wear a humiliating uniform. Yet, according to new accounts of his time at Robben Island, where he spent 18 years in detention, Mandela was a picture of positivity.
Ahmed Kathrada was his fellow prisoner for 26 years. Prisoners with brown skin, many of whom were of Indian descent, were given preferential treatment over black prisoners. For instance, they wore trousers, while Mandela was only permitted to wear shorts. Yet, there was a sense of common cause and camaraderie. Mr. Kathrada and other prisoners would happily share their bread with Mandela and rejoiced when, three years into detention, Mandela was allowed to wear trousers. Throughout, Mandela retained hope, confident that sooner or later the battle for equality would be won.
These and other moments of joy and companionship were shared by Mr. Kathrada in a telephonic conversation with The Hindu. Mr. Kathrada also spoke of his latest book Triumph of the Human Spirit, in which he has written about his 300 visits to Robben Island as a tour guide since his release in 1990.
He is also updating his book No Bread for Nelson Mandela. “I am writing about our prison days. I was there for 26 years, Mandela for 27. I know him from 1962,” he says.
Mr. Kathrada, whose ancestors hailed from Surat, says Mandela’s personality came to the fore when hostilities were at their peak. “Mandela remained optimistic all along. When the Defiance Campaign and other movements of boycott were launched, it was with the sense that they would be successful. One does not expect immediate results. Success takes time. As an Indian you would know freedom cannot be attained in a matter of a year or two. We took heart and inspiration from the Indian struggle,” he says. “We understood that the protest had to be continuous. In South Africa, the Defiance Campaign helped in rousing public opinion. For instance, before the campaign, African National Congress had 5,000 members but following the campaign the numbers rose to over 1,00,000 members.”
Mr. Kathrada and others were arrested in July 1963 in Rivonia, Johannesburg, after which the famous Rivonia Trial began in October that year. The accused were charged with sabotage and attempts to overthrow the government by violent means. The trial ended a year later, after which Mr. Kathrada was sentenced to life imprisonment along with Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Govan Mbeki, Andrew Mlangeni, Billy Nair and others.
“For 26 years, eight of us of were together. We were sentenced to life imprisonment. When we reached the prison, Mandela was already there. As we interacted, I realised that he was a natural leader of leaders. He had already emerged as a force to reckon with in the early 60s,” he says. In the Defiance Campaign, whose aim was to get rid of six unjust laws, Mandela was the chief leader, Mr. Kathrada explains. “Thousands of volunteers were taken prisoners. It made no difference to the Apartheid government. In a prison trial, most were found not guilty. The case went to the Supreme Court. Mandela went underground and continued his political work. He was arrested in 1962 on a tour of African countries and England for mobilising support for our struggle. He continued his work underground for a year, got solidarity and financial support in England.”
Mr. Kathrada reveals that when all the important leaders were in jail in South Africa, the African National Congress policy was to continue the struggle with the support of the world, especially India and other countries. “The aim was to force the government to come to the negotiating table. Mandela started talking to the government from prison. One of his demands was to release all political prisoners, legalise the urban spots, and allow exiles to come back. The government acceded to all the requests. The ANC was allowed to function. It was in the 60s and was a big moment for us back then.”
Looking to India
Mandela and other leaders drew inspiration from India’s non-violent path to freedom, he says. “The enemy does not concede anything in a hurry. Our struggle took a long time. Contrary to what many people believed, we had a peaceful transition from apartheid to democracy.”
Mr. Kathrada left school when he was 17 to join the Transvaal Passive Resistance Council to work against the Asiatic Land Tenure and Indian Representation Act, which was popularly called the Ghetto Act. The Act, like many piecemeal concessions given by the British to Indians during the freedom movement, sought to give Indians limited political representation and defined the areas where Indians could live, trade, and own land. It was during the phase of increasing association between the African Congress and the Indian Congress that Mandela became close to Indian leaders.
Mr. Kathrada is hopeful that the path shown by Mandela is the one that South Africa will follow in the years to come. “We are only 20 years old as a democracy, but we have made considerable progress. Most of the children are now in schools; clinics and hospitals have been established. Electricity and sanitation have reached a majority of the population. Yes, challenges remain: we have hunger and poverty. But at the level of ideology, yes, it has percolated down to everybody.”
ziya.salam@thehindu.co.in
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Opinion> Comment / by Zia Us Salam / July 21st, 2015
We interview S.N. Mohammed Salahuddin, a young Triple Jump athlete from Tamil Nadu. He is the son of Mr. K.S. Mohammed Nizamuddin (1991 Colombo South Asian Games Triple Jump Gold medalist), and recently represented India at the Gwangju World University Games:-
Triple jumper S.N. Mohammed Salahuddin with his father and coach K.S. Mohammed Nizamuddin
1. Congratulations for your performance at the Universiade (World University Games), held at Gwangju, South Korea. How special is your feeling? How was your experience there, during the games?
A: I feel very happy about getting the chance to participate in the World University Games, which is one of the most important world-level tournaments. I feel I’ve started touching my achievements list, by this. And I acquired very good experience there, as I watched how the champions get trained over for the events and I’ve got an idea about what I must have to go through, to do something big next time. 2. Why did you choose athletics as your aim in life?
Ans:- My first active participation in the sports was at my school Sports Day, and I bagged some prizes initially. Once during the 8th standard, I was chosen for a meet, but was removed from it on the final day and told that I should improve my performance.
My parents, who were present there to watch me run were disappointed, came up to me and asked what had taken place. My father reassured me and suggested that I should start specialized training from the next day. So that was my start as a determined athlete. 3. Your father, Mr. K.S. Mohammed Nizamuddin, won the gold medal at the 1991 Colombo SAF Games for the nation. Did you want to become an athlete yourself or were you inspired by him?
Ans:- It’s not really like that, it all started after that mentioned incident took place, I took athletics seriously and achieved more and more. It’s good to be an achiever, and I went to achieve a lot, and that’s what made me into the game. Athletics is a game which requires only my effort – it’s not a team game, like cricket or football. So, I like it to win with the help of my own effort. Apart from my dad, Jonathan David Edwards, the triple jump World record holder, from Great Britain, inspired me a lot. He is awesome!
4. How old were you when you first developed an interest in athletics? How has your journey been till now?
Ans:- I started developing an interest in this sport at the age of 14. The journey till now is going quite good, but it has been hard in parts. The life of an athlete is very hard. There are some injuries, pains and similar sort of things, but an achievement can fade these instantly as well. I hope it gets better by the Olympic Games. 5. How did you feel when you realised you had broken your father’s record of 14.89 m (which he set in 1987) at the Nehru Stadium, in 2011?
Ans:- Ah, it’s a good question (smiles). Actually, during 2010, I read about my father’s record in a book, and imagined I would break it. I was confident that I’d make it by next year. I kept telling my dad to watch for my name to replace his. After I broke the record in 2011, I was very excited and proud, because the record stood for 24 years – a long time. He was extremely proud to know it was I who had broken his record. I also wanted to make him happy, and I was successful in doing so.
Salahuddin doing the triple jump
6. In a country obsessed very much with cricket and football, how difficult it is to claim a name in athletics?
A:- In India, people give too much importance to cricket, and the authorities spend a lot of money on it, but they don’t do the same for the sake of athletics. Just twenty countries in the world take part in cricket, but more than 200 countries participate in athletics, so it’s one of toughest sports in the world. If people show some interest and provide encouragement in the field of athletics, India can bag many gold medals in the coming Olympics. 7. So how do you manage both academics and athletics together?
A:- Academics are not at all a problem for me. Both my school teachers and college teachers support me a lot, and I always manage to get more than 60% marks in the exams, so it’s not difficult for me to handle both at the same time. 8. How does your educational institutes help you building you as a sportsman?
Ans:- My educational institutes are easy with me, and they support me a lot. They provide me enough time to train hard for the sports, and so balancing between studies and games is not hard for me. 9. Are you preparing hard for the 2016 Olympic Games?
Ans:- I’m currently not aiming for the 2016 Olympics in Rio, but I’m training hard with the aim of representing India in the 2020 Olympics as well as in the 2024 Olympics from now on. 10. Apart from athletics, which other sports do you like to play and watch? Who is your favourite in that sport?
Ans:- I’m mad about football. Cristiano Ronaldo and Frank Lampard are my favourite footballers. 11. What is your message for the young athletes of India who are hesitating to pursue sport as a career?
A:- Believe in hard work. Hard work can gift you achievements a bit late, but it can take you to new heights. Always be disciplined. And those who hesitate, should have an intense interest in the sport. Guys who have no interest in a particular sport, yet they are playing it, will not achieve success in it. Love for the sport helps a sportsman achieve a lot.
We also had Mr. K.S. Mohammed Nizamuddin (1991 Colombo SAF Games Triple Jump Gold medalist), say a few words about his son, Salahuddin:-
“It’s great to see that Salahuddin was selected to represent India in the World University Games, where he’d definitely gain a great experience. This is the fourth international competition he participated in, till date. His performance was quite satisfying in it, but still he would have done better as per my coaching view. He will certainly become an outstanding Triple jumper in the international field in coming years.”
Thank you Mr. Salahuddin, for giving his precious time for the interview session. We hope he wins many medals for India in future and make our country proud. We would like to see more Salahuddins emerging and making our country proud in Athletics. All the best for his future.
source: http://www.sportskeeda.com / SportsKeeda.com / Home> SK Athletics> World University Games> Interview / by Resham Das / July 14th, 2015
