Category Archives: World Opinion

Doha: Ashwini Nachappa attends Tipu Sultan cricket tourney final

Community Involvement / Social Issues, NRI's / PIO's, Sports, World Opinion

Doha :

The very first cricket tournament ‘Tipu Sultan Cricket Cup 2014′ organized by Karnataka Muslim Cultural Association (KMCA) at old Ideal Indian School playground was won by Coorg Charges Cricket team with a thrilling finish.

The colourful closing ceremony which was held on Thursday May 22 was witnessed by a huge enthusiastic crowd. The special guest was Indian athlete and Arjuna Awardee Ashwini Nachappa who came all the way from India.

The function started with the recitation of the verses of the Quran by Ahmad Shakir, followed by the rendition of the Qatar and Indian national anthems. KMCA which focuses more on special needs donated funds to a charity, which was handed over by the guest of honour Ashwini Nachappa to the special needs head of KMCA M Iqbal Manna.

President of KMCA Niyaz Ahmed welcomed the gathering. Chief guest of the finals Azim Abbas addressed the gathering and appreciated KMCA for organizing the first-of-its-kind cricket tournament in Qatar. Ashfaq introduced Ashwini Nachappa, who was then felicitated by KMCA and later jointly by Karnataka Sangha Qatar, Tulu Koota Qatar, Bunts Qatar, MCC, SKMWA and Qatar Billawas. Ravi Shetty, president of Bunts Qatar also spoke on this occasion.

Addressing the gathering the Arjuna Award winner Ashwini Nachappa congratulated KMCA on a well-organized sports event and said it has brought all communities and Karnataka-based organizations on one platform. She thanked KMCA for giving her an opportunity to attend such a remarkable event.

The prizes for runners-up KMCA and champions Coorg Charges were then distributed by chief guest Azim Abbas, guest of honour Ashwini Nachappa, presidents of Karnataka-based forums and KMCA former committee members. M Iqbal Manna proposed the vote of thanks.

The MCs of the event were Munjunath, Saquib Raza Khan and Saeed Assadi. The event was co-ordinated by Milan Arun and Arun Kumar. The commentators Habibul Nabi and Ijaz entertained the crowd with live updates. Match umpires were Dr Sanjay and Imthiyaz, and scorers were Amjad and Anand. The music was managed by Anil and Krish.

The crowd was thrilled to witness the grand procession welcoming the replica of Tipu Sultan along with the guests in an open motorcade to the playing arena in a unique style.

Earlier in the opening ceremony on Tuesday May 20, the blind athlete from Karnataka Shaavad was the guest of honour. M I Farid was the chief guest. President Niyaz Ahmed welcomed the gathering. Saquib Raza Khan and Manjunath were the MCs. KMCA and all Karnataka-based forums felicitated the athlete while Ibraz Khan, the general secretary proposed the vote of thanks.

Imran of Coorg Charges won the man of the match award, Rauf, best batsman of the tournament, while Imran was adjudged best bowler and man of the tournament.

Champions Coorg Charges team: Khader (captain) Anil, Parvez, Rauf, Nasir, Nazeer, Zamir, Imran, Zahir, Shakeel and Jaleel.

Runners-up KMCA team: Shahid (captain) Mubin, Sandeep, Sameer, Mehfooz, Waheed, Farooq, Arif, Nisar, Anis, Irfan.

Coorg Charges scored 130 runs losing 6 wickets in 12 overs while KMCA lost early wickets and ended up with just 69 runs, losing all wickets in 11.3 overs.

source: http://www.daijiworld.com / DaijiWorld.com / Home> Top Stories / Report by Iqbal Manna / Doha (Qatar) – Friday, May 3rd, 2014

Ebrahim nominated to FIA Council

Leaders, Sports, World Opinion

The Governing Council of the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of  India  (FMSCI) has nominated Akbar Ebrahim, a renowned driver coach and former Formula race driver, as India’s deputy representative at the Federation Internationale de L’Automobile (FIA).

FMSCI Chairman Vijay Mallya endorsed the decision and the FIA was informed about this, according to a FMSCI Media release here Saturday.

Mallya is the Titular Delegate of India and a member of the prestigious World Motor Sports Council of the FIA, which is responsible for all aspects of international motorsport at every level from karting to Formula One.

Ebrahim has replaced Vicky Chandhok in the role and will represent the FMSCI to lend a hand to Mallya in the FIA, the release added.

Ebrahim said: “While my predecessor worked hard to get F1 to India, my priority now would be to get more Indians into F1 and its likes. We are going to work hard to create opportunities for our sportspersons to step out and take on the world.

“We will make sincere efforts to align with global best practices and avail all possible assistance from international associates.

“India has all that is required for our kids and our sport to unleash, and what we need to do now is to package and present our case to the world. To start the campaign, we need to lead the charge in the Asian Region.”

Ebrahim had recently met FIA President Jean Todt at the FIA Asia Pacific Region Motor Sport Forum in Sri Lanka, where Todt had drawn everyone’s attention to FIA’s taskforce that is currently in operation in the Asia Pacific region.

“The idea behind this initiative is to interact, assist and coordinate between motor sports federations in this region,” said Ebrahim.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> News-IANS> Sports / by IANS /  Chennai  – May 17th, 2014

Motorsports: Two podiums for Armaan Ebrahim

Sports, World Opinion

India ‘s   Armaan Ebrahim finished on podium in both the races in the second round of the Blancpain FIA GT Series here Sunday, marking a successful return after having suffered a high speed crash in the opening round in Nogaro (France) last month.

Driving for Fortec Motorsports in the Silver Cup Class, the Chennai driver finished an identical third in both the outings, less than a month after suffering a dislocated collar bone and a cracked rib in the qualifying of the sprint race.

In Sunday’s second race, Armaan’s car was hit from the rear early on, forcing him to drop behind, but recovered solidly to finish third. A stewards hearing later could see Armaan move up to the second spot in his class in Race 2 in which he finished 13th overall.

As the original car was completely written off and the new car due to arrive in another two weeks, Armaan drove the teams second car along with a new teammate, Miguel Torel.

The two one-hour tests was spent mainly on getting to grips with Mercedes SLS AMG as due to the crash in Round 1, no pre race tests were possible.

The grid being one of the most competitive in GT Racing with as close to six F1 drivers and most others being Platinum and Gold category drivers representing Factory teams, the top 14 cars were all within a second in Qualifying.

“Two podiums in the Silver Cup is a dream start after a bad crash in the last round in France. It takes a bit of time to get back in the groove especially when you have to contend with acute pain in the collar bone and ribs which makes it very difficult to be aggressive with the steering wheel in the high speed corners.

“Also, as this is the first time I am driving the Mercedes SLS AMG, it does require quite a bit of pre-season testing, and unfortunately we have not been fortunate to have that,” said Armaan.

source: http://www.business-standard.com / Business Standard / Home> News-IANS> Sports / by IANS / Fawkham (Britain) / May 18th, 2014

UK Remarkable Lives Stamps Includes Muslim Woman

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, NRI's / PIO's, World Opinion

by   Farrukh  I. Younus  ,  Freelance Writer – United Kingdom

 In line with commemorating the centenary year for the start of World War I, the UK’s Royal Mail has announced the release of ten stamps, each of which recognizes the accomplishments of seven men and three women born in 1914.

The ‘Remarkable Lives’ stamp series includes Dylan Thomas, the famous Welsh poet, Roy Plomley, the BBC radio broadcaster who created Desert Island Discs, and Barbara Ward, an economist who urged governments to share their wealth with the poor.

NoorInayatMPOs23may2014

An Obscure Muslim Heroine

Also in this new set of stamps is a lesser-known personality: Noor Inayat Khan. Khan is the only Muslim included in the list. She was born in Moscow to an American mother and an Indian father.

A descendant of Indian royalty, her family fist moved to England and then to Paris. They returned to London when the city was occupied in 1940. Here she joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force and was then recruited in 1942 to the Special Operations Executive (SOE), an elite spy squad.

Initially known as Nora Baker Khan, Noor was given the code name Madeleine and in 1943, she was the first female radio operator to be flown secretly into Nazi-occupied Paris; this despite an SOE report stating she was “unsuited to work in her field.”From Paris, she transmitted numerous messages back to London saving many lives. For a period of time, she was the only link between the UK and the French Resistance.

Aged just 30, Khan managed to evade capture for three months but was eventually betrayed by French collaborators and arrested. She tried to escape twice while in Paris and, being considered too difficult, was eventually moved to Germany.

Despite being tortured, Khan revealed nothing of her mission or even of her real name. She was eventually executed in 1944 by the German Gestapo in the Dachau concentration camp. Before her execution by a shot in the back of her head, her last word was, “Liberté!”Britain awarded Khan the George Cross and France awarded her the Croix de Guerre.

Commemorating Noor Inayat Khan

Author Shrabani Basu wrote a book about Khan entitled, “Spy Princess: The Life of Noor Inayat Khan”. Basu campaigned for a memorial in honor of Khan’s efforts, unveiled by Princess Anne in London’s Gordon Square Gardens in November 2012.

It is said that Khan’s decision to be involved in the war efforts was not specifically due to a love of Britain (though this was a part of it). Her involvement was largely on account of the values of religious tolerance and non-violence that she was taught as a child by her father who was a musician and a Sufi teacher. As her biographer Basu said, she “couldn’t bear to see an occupied country.”

The National Archives reveal that Khan had studied both medicine and music. She was also an accomplished writer with a collection of traditional Indian children’s stories published in the French newspaper, Le Figaro.

Unity Productions Foundation has produced a documentary on the life of Khan. The world premiere of the documentary, “Enemy of the Reich”, was held on February 15, 2014 at the prestigious Warner Theater in Washington DC. It was attended by a full house of more than 1400 people.

Khan’s example demonstrates how an individual, particularly an empowered Muslim woman, can support her country. At a time when Muslim women in general suffer the image of being weak and uninvolved in society, Khan demonstrates that a person can be at ease with their faith, gender, heritage and culture without questioning their identity.

I recently returned from a World War I and II memorial tour in Belgium where I visited the resting places of soldiers. The one that stood out most to me was the Ploeg steert Memorial to the Missing. We owe a great debt of gratitude to the men and women who fought for the freedoms that we enjoy today.

Each of the ten people featured in the Royal Mail ‘Remarkable Lives’ stamp set contributed in their own way to the benefit of society. As a British-born Muslim of Pakistani heritage, I am encouraged to find a British-Indian Muslim woman recognized in our stamps and to know that all who contribute to our betterment will be recognized, irrespective of faith or gender.

source: http://www.onislam.net / On Islam / Home> Culture / Sunday – March 30th, 2014

World’s largest diamond, Mughal necklace in Geneva auction

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, Travel & Tourism, World Opinion
A staff member poses with 'The Blue' diamond during an auction preview for Christie's in Geneva. (Reuters photo)
A staff member poses with ‘The Blue’ diamond during an auction preview for Christie’s in Geneva. (Reuters photo)

New Delhi :

A rare necklace, engraved with names of Mughal emperors Akbar and Jahangir goes under the hammer in Geneva tomorrow by Christie’s, which is also auctioning the world’s largest flawless blue diamond, in a sale expected to total $80 million.

Dating 17th century, the seven Mughal engraved spinel bead necklace is estimated to fetch between $1,500,00 to $2,000,000 at ‘Magnificent Jewels’ sale, auctioneers said.

Mughal emperors were known for their love of precious stones. The tradition of engraving titles and names on stones began with the Timurids, who were the ancestors of Mughals. They did their engraving on diamonds, emeralds and other outstanding quality stones with large spinel beads considered to be their favourites.

As much as these gems were a symbol of the opulence and dignity of the empire, they were also treasured as protective talismans.

The Museum of Islamic Art in Qatar exhibits an important necklace with eleven Mughal spinel beads with a total weight of 877.23 carats. Three of them engraved with names of Emperor Jahangir and one with that of Emperor Shah Jahan.

Leading the ‘Magnificent Jewels’ sale is world’s largest flawless vivid blue diamond ‘The Blue’ estimated to fetch between $21,000,000- $25,000,000.

The diamond leads the 250 lot strong sale, estimated to mop up a total in the region of $80 million, Christie’s said.

Six months earlier, Christie’s Geneva sold ‘The Orange’ the largest fancy vivid orange diamond in the world for $35.5 million, a global record for an orange diamond and a world auction record price per carat for any diamond at $2.4 million.

The sale will also feature many important coloured and colourless diamonds such as the 5.50 carat ‘The Ocean Dream’, the largest fancy vivid blue-green diamond in the world to come to auction, with an estimate of $7,500,00- $9,500,000.

‘The Rajah Diamond’ a 26.14 carat old-mine brilliant-cut diamond of is among 14 jewels that are being auctioned under ‘A Passion for Jewels: Collection of an European Gentleman’. The diamond is estimated to go for $3,000,00-5,000,000.

Another section of the sale ‘Noble Jewels’ features a natural pearl and diamond necklace estimated at $550,000-700,000 and was orginally in the personal jewellery casket of Queen Elizabeth of Prussia.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> India / PTI / May 13th, 2014

MELANGE : Royal treat for bibliophiles

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Education, Travel & Tourism, World Opinion
Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ Photos: Nagara Gopal / The Hindu
Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ Photos: Nagara Gopal / The Hindu

The Mehtab Mahal library at Chowmahalla Palace throws open a treasure trove from the Nizam’s era

The Nizams, it turns out, had an eye for everything exquisite. From the jewellery they wore to the silks that adorned their wardrobe, the cars they rode in, and the cuisine they partook, everything simply spelt royalty. While these indicate their lavish lifestyle, their interest in books and literature is less known.

Throwing light on their urge to discover and relate to the world around is the Royal Library in Chowmahalla Palace; its collection of books includes The Life of Samuel Johnson, History of Don Quixote, John F Kennedy – Portrait of a President, Glimpses of India,The Princes of India and an array of Encyclopaedias and much more .

Situated in the Mehtab Mahal of the Chowmahalla, the Royal Library houses more than 10,000 books and “is a haven for researchers and book lovers.”

The library that was thrown open to book lovers last year has been digitized recently, not only to help book lovers but also ensure safety of the royal treasure.

The idea of the library is to protect and preserve the valuable collection of the Asaf Jahi kings. The collection mostly belonged to the Mir Mahboob Ali Khan (VI Nizam), Mir Osman Ali Khan (VII Nizam) and Nizam Mukarram Jah. The books have been sourced from different Asaf Jahi palaces like the Nazri Bagh, Chiran Palace and Chowmahalla to be housed in the Royal Library here.

The books thus collected were sorted and segregated into various categories.

Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ The Hindu
Books restored from different Asaf Jahi dynasties are in the Chowmahallah Palace library./ The Hindu

“A lot of work went into making them ready to be put in the cases for readers to read them in the library. Various professionals worked to clean, bind and make the books fit for reading. We have applied all preservation techniques, including fumigation, to protect the books,” informs G. Kishan Rao. He adds, “The collection of books range from history, literature, poetry, philosophy, geography, culture and religion. This library also houses the exclusive collection of Qurans by the Nizams which was inaugurated recently.” A few books also hint at the Nizam’s passion to learn languages. The number of English books is close to 3000, followed by Urdu, Persian and Arabic.

“There is also a good number of Persian manuscripts containing the firmans issued by the Asaf Jahis as well as several volumes of Mir Osman Ali Khan’s poetry,” informs the librarian. Qurans of different sizes are in the process of being restored and will find place in the library after that.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus / by Prabalika M. Borah / Hyderabad – April 25th, 2014

Low quality Omani Frankincense just as good as high quality variety : Study

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Science & Technology, World Opinion, ,
Muscat : 

People generally go by sellers’ claims on the quality of Omani frankincense. However, a Sultan Qaboos University study has found that there is nothing such as ‘high quality’ or ‘low quality’ frankincense – all varieties are equally good and have the same antibacterial properties.

Commonly known as frankincense worldwide and luban in Jebeli and Dhofari Arabic, the resin is an extract of the Boswellia Sacra tree and has various medicinal and aromatherapy applications.

Omani frankincense is commercially available in four grades under the names hoojri, najdi, shathari and shaabi, based on four geographic locations in Dhofar from where the resins are harvested.

“Our study has found that hoojri – the first grade luban – and shaabi – the fourth grade luban – which greatly differed in price, closely resembled each other in essential oil composition, yield and physiochemical characteristics, except colour and texture,” said Dr Hisham Abdul Khader, associate professor of chemistry in the College of Sciences at Sultan Qaboos University.

The market price of the four grades varies considerably according to their colour, clump size and texture. Resin value is determined not only by fragrance but also by colour and clump size, with lighter colours and larger clumps being priced higher.

Hoojri, a first grade resin, which has the lightest colour and a large clump size, is collected from trees in the north of the Samhan mountains in Dhofar, and costs RO32 per kg. Najdi, a second grade resin with a pale yellow colour, is collected from a plateau behind the Dhofar mountains and costs around RO26 per kg.

Shathari, a third grade resin which is darker in colour and collected from the northwest of Dhofar, costs RO12 per kg while shaabi, a fourth grade luban of a darker colour that is collected from valleys, costs RO6 per kg.

Khader said, “As per our study, hoojri, the first grade luban, had the highest oil content of 8.5 per cent whereas the yield of the second and third grade samples – najdi and shathari – were 5.5 and five per cent respectively.

“The oil yield of the fourth grade shaabi was seven per cent, which was higher than that of the second and third grade and closer to that of the first grade, thereby indicating an inconsistency between the oil yield and grade.”

Titled ‘Composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oils of four commercial grades of Omani luban, the oleo gum resin of Boswellia Sacra flueck’, the study also tested frankincense oil for effectiveness of its anti-bacterial properties.

“All four grades were tested for their anti-bacterial properties and showed pronounced activity against a panel of bacteria. The oil killed all the bacteria irrespective of the grade it belonged to, in varying extent. The antibacterial activity of the oils suggests their potential use in food preservation,” Khader said.

“If you go to Salalah, you will notice that the prices are different. The best variety is sold for around RO36 while the lowest grade is sold for RO6. So this study is an eye opener. It will be of use to industries who have so far gone in for the high quality luban. They can now get the same benefits from a less expensive and low quality luban.”

Salim al Saidi, K B Ramesh Kumar, Nallusamy Sivakumar and Salma al Kindy also participated in the study.

source: http://www.muscatdaily.com / MuscatDaily.com / Home / Muscat Daily Staff Writer / December 30th, 2012

Indian Found Dead in Oman Was Brilliant Scientist: Colleague

Education, Science & Technology, World Opinion, ,

The award-winning Indian professor who was found dead in his residence on a university campus in Oman Friday, was a brilliant student, teacher and a scientist, his former colleague said.

M.Kabir, a visiting professor at the Centre for Development Studies here, told IANS that it was only last week that Hisham Abdul-Khader visited here for a day to attend his niece’s wedding.

“It was about 13 years back he left the state government service here and joined at the Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in Muscat,” Kabir said.

“Two years back he got the UAE award for the best scientist. He was a brilliant student, teacher and a scientist,” he added.

Hisham Abdul-Khader, an associate professor in the chemistry department, was found dead at his residence on the SQU campus Friday night. He was not keeping well, said the former colleague of the scientist.

“We spent some time together as we were former colleagues and friends and he told me that he was having some health issues. We got the sad news Friday night and his wife (a retired professor here) has reached Oman Saturday,” Kabir said.

Abdul-Khader, who was in his late 50s, taught Chemistry at various State-run government colleges here before he went to Oman.

“We are expecting the body to arrive here tomorrow (Monday), or day after,” Kabir said.

The scientist was staying alone at the SQU campus and people saw him last Friday evening when he was out taking a stroll in Muscat. He later also spoke to his wife, reports from Oman said

Abdul-Khader’s grandfather was the legendary Vakkom Moulavi – a social reformer, teacher, Muslim scholar, journalist and a freedom fighter.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Nation / by IANS – Thiruvananthapuram / April 27th, 2014

Region’s earliest interface with Islam was here

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Travel & Tourism, World Opinion

Madurai :

The wide Kazimar Street, which branches off from the busy TPK Road near Periyar Bus stand, is one of the oldest settlements of Muslims in Madurai. Historical legends state that Hazrat Kazi Syed Tajuddin came to Madurai from Oman in the 13th century and established the Kazimar Big Mosque on a land given to him by a Pandya monarch.

Till date, the descendants of Syed Tajuddin, who is believed to be a descendant of Prophet Mohammed, live on the Kazimar Street. They are hereditarily elected as the town kazis.

Syed Ahja Mueenudeen, the current town kazi, said that the Kazimar Big Mosque, which was constructed by Tajuddin as a thatched structure initially, was the first place of worship for Muslims in Madurai. The street has had Muslims settlement for over 700 years, he said. Thus, Islam arrived in Madurai even before Malik Kafur’s invasion of Madurai in the 14th century.

History professor R Venkataraman opines King Maravarman Sundarapandian might have been the contemporary of Tajuddin. Even before the advent of Islam, Arabs maintained trade links with South India, especially for the pearls Madurai Pandya Kingdom was famous for. “Sufis, Muslim saints, started coming to Tamil Nadu by 900 AD. The entry of Islam to the region was peaceful as Sufis conceived God as love,” he said.

The short-lived Madurai Sultanate and Islamic influence did have their impact on the city, especially on warfare and town planning. “Muslim rulers introduced arch construction they learnt from the Romans. It changed the style of architecture here in a significant way,” Venkataraman remarked.

The Big Mosque, which is an architectural attraction, accommodates Madurai Maqbara which is the dargah of sufi saints Hazrat Meer Ahamad Ibrahim, Hazrat Meer Amjad Ibrahim and Hazrat Syed Abdus Salaam Ibrahim Rahmatullahi Alaihim.

Syed Ali Hussaini, the renowned Chennai-based stunt artist, is originally from Kazimar Street. Recalling the legend of Tajuddin, he said: “It is believed that Tajuddin came from Arabia to Kerala and reached Madurai where he established a mosque. He became popular for divine healing powers. The Pandya king was irked with his fame, but Tajuddin cured the king himself when he suffered from a stomach ailment. The king gave away a land for mosque in gratitude,” he said. “Even today Tajuddin’s descendents, numbering more than 2,000, are annually given a customary nominal share of the income from the waqf lands originally donated by the king,” he added.

Till the 1980s, the residents of the street were engaged in rearing horses, rams, cocks and pigeons. “People were crazy about horses and many raised them. Rekla or bull cart race and pigeon racing were popular when I grew up in the area in the 1960s,” Hussaini recalled.

However, the face of the area has changed since then with many moving out for education and jobs, he said.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Madurai / by J. Arockiaraj, TNN / April 27th, 2014

Remembering a titan of Hyderabad’s heritage

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, Travel & Tourism, World Opinion
Remembering a titan of Hyderabad’s heritage
Remembering a titan of Hyderabad’s heritage

He played cricket and football for St Stephen’s Delhi with distinction. He did his masters in English as well as Arabic and he topped Punjab University in Persian. And if you are to name a saviour of the cave art of Ajanta and Ellora it is him:   Ghulam Yazdani,   a Padma Bhushan awardee as well as a recipient of OBE (Order of British Empire). 

As the Archaeology Department of Andhra Pradesh marks its 100 years the coming Friday, it is time to remember the man who created the department out of nothing.

If Hyderabad has a vestige of its heritage left, it is thanks to him. Deputed to Hyderabad as a Superintendent in 1914, he brought with him his expertise, energy and accountability. Not for him the claptrap of archaeology department doing the job of cataloguing and executing conservation work, Yazdani was a hands on man who got a road laid between Hyderabad and Bidar to protect the Bahamani heritage of Bidar and also between Toli Masjid and Golconda.

A man of sharp wit, he dismisses the decorative motifs of Toli Masjid as: “The impression made by such buildings overloaded with decorations is like the impression left by the ostentatious and lavish display of personal adornment, generally favoured by lowly persons suddenly become rich.”

For the restoration of the Ellora cave art, he tried to get Luigi Cavenaghi, the man linked to restoration of Leonardo’s Last Supper, to work on the paintings. Unfortunately, he could get only Lorenzo Cecconi, who applied shellac on the paintings, ruining them further. Ghulam Yazdani published a series of photographs and reproductions of the cave art with his explanations.

And by the way, Ghulam Yazdani’s salary was ` 560 per month. And just recently, the Archeology Department found it fit to name its museum after YS Rajasekhara Reddy!

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> Life & Style> People / by Serish Nanisetti, TNN / April 21st, 2014