Ananda Sangbad - Ananda Mandir

Ananda Mandir
269 Cedar Grove Lane
Somerset, NJ 08873
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Ananda Sangbad
NON-PROFIT ORG
US POSTAGE PAID
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ
PERMIT NO. 1215
January 2014
A Quarterly Publication of Ananda Mandir, New Jersey
India Utsav Rocks with Top Musicians from India
Reported By Sushmita Dutta
Ananda Mandir
Calendar of Events
(Dates are subject to Change)
Please check our website frequently
www.anandamandir.org)
Tel: 732-873-9821
NOTE: If a particular Puja time
is not listed, please contact
temple or visit our
website:anandamandir.org
Picture clock-wise Top row: Performer: Debojit, MC: Arun Bhowmik, Performer: Anwesha, Performer: Sreeradha. Bottom row: PC Chandra raffle winners with Ashok
Rakhit and Dipak Sarkar. India Utsav Chair, Surya Dutta receiving a plaque from Pronoy Chatterjee for his outstanding services. Also seen in the picture - Arun Bhowmik,
Dipak Sarkar, and Show Co-host: Rima Lahiri.
Co-sponsored by Ananda Mandir
in collaboration with PMG
Publications and P.C. Chandra
Jewelers, India Utsav, once
again this year, was a super
duper hit raising substantial
funds for the temple's new
Heritage Center construction. The
Midas touch of Ashok Rakhit,
chairman of construction
committee, dedicated efforts of
the Utsav support team – Chair,
Surya Dutta with dedicated
members and volunteers of
Ananda Mandir - Saurav
Ghosh, Dipanjan Paul,
Sanchoy Das, Chanu Das,
Anup Rakhit, Santosh
Mukherjee; untiring efforts of
Soumen Roy in managing
sound system and backstage
coordinating with performing
artists and musicians; and a
very well planned show
conducted by Ananda Mandir's
Chair for Cultural Committee
Arun Bhowmik; delivered
Turn to page 2
Ananda Mandir Expansion – An update
Reported By Ashok Rakhit, Chair, Construction Committee
After a short break in
construction during month of
October for Durga Puja and
Kali Puja, we have started
erecting structural steel for the
community center building.
We hope, in spite of inclement
weather during the winter
months, we can complete steel
structures for both the
community center and the
temple on schedule.
After a successful Annual fund
th
raising event on June 30 , we
celebrated Durga Puja and Kali
Puja with large
gathering of
members and
devotees in October.
Thanks to many of
you who sponsored
both pujas and
offered your services
for a smooth and
enjoyable celebration
by hundreds of attendees
during 5 days of Durga Puja
and 1 day of Kali Puja. Our
Bijoya Sammelan 'India Utsav'
in November, was a grand
success with packed
auditorium listening to
melodious voices of renowned
artists from Kolkata and
Bollywood.
The event,
sponsored in part by PC
Chandra Jewelers, PMG and
other businesses in Kolkata,
helped us raise much needed
funds in support of our
construction. It is an exciting
moment for our community as
we are continuing our cultural
and religious activities at
Ananda Mandir while
physically expanding the
facilities for a much coveted
Heritage Center for us in this
country.
Thank you for your valued
support!
January 2014
New Year's Day
Wednesday, 01,
Mandir will remain open
9:00am – 8:00pm
Satyanarayan Puja
Sunday, 12, 5:30pm
Makar & Pous Sankranti
Tuesday, 14, Call for time
Ratanti Kali Puja
Wednesday, 29, Call for time
Shyama Puja
Thursday, 30, 5:30pm
Sahitya O Alochana
Friday, 24
Ananda Sandhya
Friday, 10, 8pm
February
Saraswati Puja
Tuesday, 04, 8:30 – 10:30am
Bani Bandana
Sunday, 09, Puja 10am-12pm
Program 1-5pm
Satyanarayan Puja
Sunday, 09, 6pm
Shiva Ratri
Thursday, 27, 7 – 11pm
Shyama Puja
Friday, 28, 5:30pm
Sahitya O Alochana
Friday, 21, 8:00 pm
Ananda Sandhya
Friday, 14, 8:00 pm
March
Dol Purnima
Sunday, 16, 5:30 pm
Satyanarayan Puja
Sunday, 16, 5:30pm
Shyama Puja
Sunday, 30, 5:30pm
Sahitya O Alochana
Friday, 21, 8:00 pm
Ananda Sandhya
Friday, 14, 8:00 pm
April
Basanti Durga Puja
Saturday, 05 to
Wednesday, 09
(see details in center page)
Ram Nabami Puja
Tuesday, 08, 5:30pm
Nil Yatra
Sunday, 13, (call for time)
Satyanarayan Puja
Sunday, 13, 5:30pm
Chaitra Sankranti
Monday, 14, (call for time)
Nababarsha
Tuesday, 15, 5:30pm
Sahitya O Alochana
To be announced
Ananda Sandhya
To be announced
Special Religious Services:
Upon request, the priest of Ananda
Mandir offers services such as in-house
Sraddhas, Rituals associated with
Cremations (Antyesti Kriya), Death
Anniversaries, Pre-wedding rituals
(Naandimukh, Ashirwad, etc),
Upanayan (Paitey), Annaprasan ,
Wedding Ceremonies & Wedding
Anniversaries, Griha Prabesh (Bhumi
Puja), Consecrations of new cars (New
Car Pujas) and others.
If you have needs for any of the
above or more, please feel free to
contact Biswabhai @ 732-873-9821
2
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
ANANDA SANGBAD
E
A Periodical Newsletter
Published By
ANANDA MANDIR
(A Tax-Exempt, Non-Profit
Organization)
269 Cedar Grove Lane
Somerset, NJ 08873
Ph: 732-873-9821
Website:
www.anandamandir.org
Publications of Ananda Mandir
Editorial Board :
Chairperson:
Pronoy Chatterjee,
[email protected]
Assistant Chairperson:
Debajyoti Chatterji,
[email protected]
Editor-in-Chief:
Pronoy Chatterjee,
[email protected]
Editor, Ananda Sangbad:
Guru Chakravarty,
[email protected]
Editor, Anandalipi:
Amitabha Bagchi,
[email protected]
Co-Editors:
Subrata Bhaumik,
[email protected]
Jayashree Chatterjee,
[email protected]
Debajyoti Chatterji,
[email protected]
Sushmita Dutta,
[email protected]
Editorial Associate
Kamal Raychaudhuri,
[email protected]
Members-at-large:
Bhaswati Bhadra
Santosh Mukherjee
Ashok Rakhit
All queries, articles, news
reports and letters should be
directed to the Editorial Board:
Phone/Fax : 732-651-8802,
E-mail: [email protected].
For general information, please
contact the following executives of Ananda Mandir:
Dipak Sarkar,
President
Jaiprakash Biswas,
Vice President
Suprasad Baidyaroy,
Vice President
Chanu Das,
Treasurer
Suranjan Bhanja
Choudhury,
Secretary
Chitra Mondal,
Assistant Secretary
D
I
T
O
R
I
A L
A New Year's Welcome
We begin the New Year with a call to the
community to pay attention to the new
Ananda Sangbad. If you have been throwing it aside as another piece of unsolicited
news magazine, better have another look
at it. Meaningful progress has been made in
improving the quality of the news magazine
in many ways in 2013. The pool of writers
has broadened as a result of our constant
endeavor to attract new writers from the
local community as well as from other states.
As we try to keep true to our mission of
creating interest in the art of writing within
the readers of our community, we also engage well known writers outside of the community to produce a news magazine with
high standard. Ananda Sangbad remains the
flag bearer of Ananda Mandir, with reports
on its construction updates, information
about all upcoming puja activities and multitude of cultural events. Activities of other
Bengali communities are also included. The
Sahitya O Alochana report is a great example
of high level discussions in literature, science,
performing arts and businesses. A great number of high level performances in classical and
contemporary music during the "Ananda
Sandhyas" are also chronicled in the magazine.
The "Seniors Forum" reports provide many
useful insights to our aging community and
help to form a cohesive group. We are proud
to add a new "Medical and Health" column,
generally authored by medical professionals.
We try to blend in technology articles in this
rapidly advancing techno-age in non-technical
language so that people at all levels can find
interest in reading them. Environmental issues
like arsenic contaminated water in West Bengal drew attention of a lot of readers. Expert
gardening tips are always at hand for those
who are not afraid to soil their hands. The
improved printing quality of the paper with
the middle pages in color is evident.
Moving forward, our first and foremost concentration is focused on creating interest in
writing among new people, most importantly
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
First of all, our construction
project has been going forward,
slowly but steadily, and we hope
to complete it in two years. At
our annual fundraising event,
two hundred members attended with their families and
we collected about $200,000.
We organized "India Utsav" in
November along with PMG Publications from Kolkata. This was
a new cultural program that we
initiated last year. This cultural
event was a great success: over
650 people attended, and we
came out ahead of our expenses.
We continued to attract a large
number of devotees at our
temple during the various Pujas
at Ananda Mandir. At Durga
Puja, we had nearly a thousand
devotees in a single day. At Kali
puja, over 500 devotees attended in one evening. We also
organized all other pujas in accordance with the Bengali
panjika.
We continued to bring all the
local musical talents in our
monthly Ananda Sandhya
events. This year, Ananda
Mandir presented its international Literary Excellence Award
to three individuals, one for English composition and two for
Bengali compositions. The
monthly literary discussion
group, Sahitya O Alochana, continued to feature eminent writers from Bengal as well as prominent local writers. This year, our
first Community Service grant of
$2000 was given to Manavi to
refurbish Manavi's shelter for
needy women. We have continued to maintain our Seniors
Forum as an informal group
meeting where many senior issues aere being discussed. We
continued to provide our members free of cost with Anadalipi
and Ananda Sangbad containing
many outstanding literary works
and news about local news
events. Additionally, through our
summer internship program this
year, we have given the opportunity to three youths to work
in research laboratories and four
to do various works at Ananda
Mandir facilities. The youth group
also recently started a monthly
wall magazine, Kishaloy, which
displays their creative works on
the wall of Ananda Mandir Community Building.
As you know, we have undertaken an ambitious project to
construct a Community Center
and to expand the existing
temple. The budget for this
expansion project exceeds four
million dollars. We therefore solicit your generous donation so
that this project can be completed successfully. Please consider becoming a life member by
paying $1000 or a patron member by paying $5,000. I would
also request that if you have
some time to spare, please
come to Ananda Mandir and give
us an extra hand to keep our
organization running smoothly.
Please join us to make Ananda
Mandir a strong religious and
cultural center of our community in the tri-states area.
On behalf of the Board of Trustees of Ananda Mandir, I wish you
and your family a Happy and
Prosperous New Year!
Dipak K. Sarkar
President
the youth group. This can be done in various manners - by including reports on extra-curricular activities in schools, work experiences as interns in politics or in any other
professional fields, travel stories, or simply
essays on literature. We welcome news
about the achievements of our youth that
can be used as a motivation for others to
follow. Naturally, we are not in an illusive
environment to think that our youth would
be motivated by simply reading this editorial. Of course, we must depend on the
parents to participate in this endeavor. The
net gain for the family is that the youth
would learn about the efforts of the community to sustain a news magazine that is
interested in their stories, and that the
youth in turn would get interested in the
community events.
Here is to a constantly improving Ananda
Sangbad that stimulates a vibrant community!
Guru Chakravarty
Editor, Ananda Sangbad
India Utsav Rocks
Continued from page 1
another memorable musical
evening. Braving the chill on
November 23, 2013, the lovely
Nicholas Music Center at Rutgers
University Douglas Campus was
almost packed to full crowd enjoying the three and half hour
long show loaded with melodious old and new Bengali songs
and also foot-tapping Hindi popular hits.
The overall ambiance of the
show was truly that of an
“Utsav” (festival) filled with a
feeling of warmth and casualness. There were stalls on the
premises with names of vendors from Kolkata showcasing
traditional Bengali clothes and
jewelries. Food on the premises
from New Jersey's popular restaurant, Chopsticks, had traditional Bengali items like Shingara,
Chop, and Biriyani. Famous P.C.
Chandra Jewelers from Kolkata
had arranged a raffle to give
away gold ornaments. Randomly
chosen, there were 3 raffle winners – two from local New Jersey community and one from
Pennsylvania.
Ananda Mandir has a band of
super warm people who make
visitors feel at home. The culture was also visible at the India
Utsav show. Ananda Mandir's
Bandana Rakhit and Rita
Bhowmik, welcomed every person with a smile and occasional
exchange of greetings at the
very entrance to the auditorium.
These minute details, obviously,
were planned and spoke volumes about the efforts and caring that went into organizing the
show. Similarly, the opening of
the show was made short and
crisp. Ananda Mandir's President,
Dipak Sarkar welcomed the
guests. India Utsav Chair; Surya
Dutta was awarded a plaque for
his outstanding services to the
organization; and then, the master of the ceremony, Arun
Bhowmik took over to announce the first performer,
Sreeradha Bandopadhyay; and
the show began.
With a serene and calm presence, Sreeradha has given good
scores to the Bengali music
world like “Banshitar ektai dosh”
composed
by
Jatileswar
Mukherjee, “Jhiri, jhiri chaitali
batase” compoased by Sudhin
Dasgupta, “Chand kahe chameli
go” composed by Manabendra
Mukherjee, to name a few. Her
recorded numbers also include
popular Tagore songs like “Akash
jure shuninu oi baje” and “Ami
tomar sange bendhechhi amar
pran”. Nothing could be more
appropriate than opening the
India Utsav program with
Sreeradha singing “Yada, yada hi
dharmashya, Glanir bhavati
Bharata” the popular sloka from
Bhagavat Gita. Both Sreeradha's
rendering of the sloka and the
soft accompaniments of four live
musicians were just marvelous.
The entire audience was calmed
down in preparation for a dozen
songs that followed in
Sreeradha's melodious voice.
One after the other she sang
“Bansi tar ektai dosh”, “Bhalo laga
kokhon je” – a Hemanata
Mukherjee composition from
Puja album, “Kichhu to ami” and
“Kije kori dure jete hoi tai” – Salil
Chowdhury compositions. She
also sang super hit Bengali numbers like – “Ei sundar swarnali
sandhyay” by Gita Dutt and
Tagore's “Tumi robe nirobe,
hridaye momo.” Her closing number - “Bhalo achhi, bhalo theko”,
brought tears to many listeners.
A marvelous song penned by
Bangladesh
poet
Rudra
Muhammad Shahidullah is believed to be the poet's last poem
written to bid farewell to this
world just before his death in
1992. Very touchy closing by
Sreeradha indeed!
The next performer Anwesha
Datta Gupta, a gifted singer that
Bengal feels proud of, took the
Turn to page 3
Ananda Sangbad
India Utsav Rocks
Continued from page 2
crowd by storm. Anwesha was
just 13 years old when she appeared on Indian Television Reality Show - Amul Star Voice of
India where she was judged to
be the best voice found in the
reality show. Since then,
Anwesha is moving forward with
TV reality shows, live concerts
and recorded tracks. At India
Utsav, Anwesha began her show
with popular Lata Mangeshkar
Hindi number "Ishwar Satya Hai"
from Raj Kapoor's film Satyam
Shivam Sundaram. With a quick
turn to hit Bengali numbers like
"Ai Banglar Matite, Mago Janam
Amay
Diyo",
Sandhya
Mukherjee's all time popular song
"Mayaboti Megher Tondra" and
Gita Dutt's romantic rendering
"Tumi je Amar Ogo Tumi je
Amar", Anwesha kept the audience spell-bound. She proved
once again her versatility in rendering songs of various moods
and musical compositions.
In her Hindi list of songs she had
selected a very recent hit number "Balam pichkari" from film Yeh
Jawani Hai Diwani delivered by
two top Bengali talents in
Bollywood
today,
Ayan
Mukherjee (director of the film)
and Pritam Chakraborty a music
director and composer from
Kolkata now settled in Mumbai.
My head gets raised with a
sense of pride when I see the
number of Bengali talents we
have in Bollywood who are making Indian entertainment scene
rich and vibrant with superb
work. Shreya Ghosal is another
name who Anwesha says is her
mentor. At the India Utsav show
Anwesha received standing ovation on her rendering of Shreya
Ghosal's "Mere Dholna" in Hindi,
punched with "Ami je tomar" in
Bengali. In her short span of
career as a professional singer,
Anwesha has already sung for a
number of Bengali composers
apart from Bollywood composers. She has also sung two Tamil
songs and one Telugu song. For
her Bengali track "Boro ichha
korchhe dakte", Anwesha won
best female playback singer
award in 2011 Tele Cine Awards
held in Kolkata.
In remembrance of the legendary singer, Late Manna Dey, India Utsav's finale singer - Debojit
began his show with an old time
Bengali romantic hit sung by
Manna Dey - "Hoyto tomari
jonno hoyechi preme je
dhonno". Here is a brief bio of
Debojit Saha - a young, flamboyant singer whose series of performances on Indian Television
made him a popular singer.
Debojit won Zee TV's reality
show, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge
2005 and since then he has
performed regularly in Live Concerts, Star Plus reality shows and
sung for Hindi films like Tees Mar
Khan, Saheb Biwi aur Gangster,
88 Antop Hill and Jimmy and two
Assamese films - Jonda Iman
Gunda and Borolar Ghor.
Almost mimicking Kishore
Kumar's style of performance on
live stage, Debojit is a true performer. He dances, jumps out
3
January 2014
from stage to audience, runs to
the back rows to test sound
quality, and jokes with his accompanying musicians and the audience to keep the crowd
cheered. His list of songs included popular Hindi tracks like
"Ek Hasina thi, Ek Diwana tha"
the everlasting composition by
music director duo- Laxmikant
Pyarellal, "Tuhi mujhko bata de"
from recent hit Hindi film Ashiqi,
"Chand Sifarish jo Karta Hamari"
from film Fanna. He took his
jacket off to add foot-tapping
steps into the fast track Hindi
number
"Battameez
dil,
Battameez dil", which got the
audience dancing. Keeping pace
with his fast track Hindi songs,
Debojit switched to old Bengali
hits like "Jibone ki pabona,
bhulechhi she bhabona" adding
Bengali nostalgia to the show.
In his second half of breath-taking performance, Debojit was
joined by Anwesha for a number of duets. What could be
better to start with than Uttam
Kumar and Suchitra Sen's ever
soul-stirring duet "Ke prothom
kachhe eshechhi, ke prothom
bhalobeshechi…Tumi na Ami"?
The two singers then took the
crowd by storm with a number
of Hindi and Bengali duets closing on S.D. Burman's everlasting composition, a Lata/Rafi duet
rendered on screen by Amitabh
and Jaya - "Tere mere Milan ki
ye raina." On request from audience, the singers also sang the
original Bengali version of this
Hindi number - "Jodi tare nai
chini go sheki", composed by
none other than Tagore.
As the show was getting beyond scheduled time, closing
was forced upon repeated
"Once more, once more" requests from the audience. With
such well-attended, successful
shows around, it is clear that the
audience of New Jersey is hungry for good musical concerts.
Ananda Mandir's move in building a Heritage Center with a
Community Hall for performing
arts and cultural shows is a rightly
envisioned venture. Our community is in need of such centers,
which can be made available for
community events. It will bring
a sense of joy and pride to each
one of us from the community
when shows like India Utsav are
held in our own premises auditorium - dreamed, visioned, and
built by us. On construction status of the new temple and heritage center, committee chair
Ashok Rakhit said, "We just completed foundation of the expanded temple. It will be a challenge that we should be able
to meet with your earnest cooperation and understanding."
Come, join Ananda Mandir and
be a part of this proud venture.
Your participation will bring value
to our community and will deliver a sense of own heritage and
roots to our future generations.
Contact Ananda Mandir with
your desired plans for active participation. It's worth the effort.
And, by all means, it will be a
rewarding experience.
Has The Indian Rupee Lost Its Storage Value?
By Subrata Bhaumik
Author's note: The article is based on a recent "Sahitya O Alochana" discussion at
Ananda Mandir that the author led. Data used in the report has been gathered from
various sources including The Wall Street Journal, and the websites of The World
Bank and Reserve Bank of India.
Introduction
William Stanley Jevons, the eminent 19th century British Economist, first articulated the various functions of money, which were captured in
the following famous couplet.
"Money is a matter of functions four,
A Medium, a Measure, a Standard, a Store."
Jevons based his theory on the post Industrial
Revolution society of Western Europe when international commerce and market economy were
still in the nascent stage. A century and half on,
it seems as though the couplet would need to
be reworded to incorporate the effects of global
commerce and finance. A closer look at the contemporary international financial system reveals
that some of the functions, chiefly measure and
store, have undergone major changes in terms
of significance and applicability. "Measure" has
been replaced by "Unit of Account" while the
function "Store" completely lost the sense of
absoluteness that was implied in the couplet.
Thanks to inflation and foreign exchange market
fluctuations!
Sliding Store
Nowhere is it more evident than in the global
currency markets where some of the national
currencies recently endured a wild roller coaster
ride. Since the beginning of 2013, currencies of
emerging economies including India, Indonesia,
Brazil, Turkey, Malaysia, Thailand, etc. have
reached record or new lows against the US dollar. In the Fall of 2013, if an investor were to
move some of his/her assets from those currencies to let's say dollar, a loss of up to 25% would
surely have been in store - so much for money's
storage value. Should we call it a "sliding store?"
The Case of Indian Rupee
In this article, we will examine the specific case
of the Indian Rupee's unprecedented fall in value
in 2013 and the driving factors from an angle of
interconnectedness of the global economies.
Summary Situation
Against the US dollar, Indian rupee has been declining for quite some time: from a level of 48 a
relatively low level of 9.6% during the same period last year; the benchmark interest rate has
been inching upwards from a mid-year low of 7.25
to 7.75% in October; the Current Account Deficit
(CAD) reached an alarmingly high level of approximately 5% of the GDP; foreign investors have been
exiting Indian markets or freezing their investment
plans in India; driven by the declining value large
imports of oil, precious metal (gold), and other
commodities including manufactured goods are
fuelling further inflation; and finally, the combination of all of the above factors has been dampening the already sliding level of business activity,
growth, and buoyancy of the economy.
The "India Story" seems to be at a critical juncture, and is in a perilous situation that is unseen
since the financial crisis of 1991 when India had to
collateralize most of its gold reserve against an IMF
loan of $2.2 billion.
Mismanagement or the Flip Side of Globalization
How has India's economic trajectory gone afoul?
Why the rising Asian economic powerhouse of a
few years ago suddenly finds herself struggling to
stay afloat and pay bills for its imports? Is it sheer
mismanagement or it is (in part) the flip side the
interconnected global economy?
Pundits offer varying opinions and analyses that
run the whole gamut. Most of them suggest that
it is the sheer mismanagement of the growth
potential of an economy where policy makers often sacrifice national economic assets in favor of
partisan and political ones; growth-oriented reforms
get routinely stymied by bureaucracy and corruption; and the remnants of the arcane and unfriendly business climate and regulatory framework
still redirect international investments to more
friendly and financially rewarding destinations.
Yet a great many economists and analysts maintain while the above explanations is valid, the precipitous fall (the main spike downward) in mid2013 is a typical representation of the wrong side
of the gyrations in today's financial markets that
are flung across the world where losses in some
market(s) tend to be triggered by gains, or the
perception of it, in others, and vice versa.
Let's take a closer look at the factors that are
driving such a free fall in the value of the rupee.
Overall Economic Contraction
dollar in early Fall of 2011, it reached new low of
68 to a dollar in September 2013. The above
graph captures the fluctuations in the value of
rupee for 12 months ending October 2013.
It recorded a 16% decline in that period; fell 25%
over November 2012- September 2013 period;
dropped a whopping 18% during mid-June - September 2013 period; and finally recovered about
10% during late September - October 2013.
Major Impacts
The beleaguered currency has put the Indian
economy under severe stress: inflation (CPI) edged
over the annual rate of 11.1% in October from a
Poor economic growth across major sectors of the
economy including manufacturing, agricultural,
mining, and agricultural has dented investor confidence. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth has
been experiencing persistent slowdown in recent
years: from a double digit growth a few years ago
to less than 5% in 2012-13. Unless economic activities pick up significantly, perception of India as
a desirable investment destination and the outlook of rupee will stay shattered.
Worsening current account deficit
High Current Account Deficit (CAD) remains the
single most important factor that has persistently
fueled rupee's downward odyssey. Indian traditional export items are slowly losing their luster in
the global marketplace while demand for crude oil
in a growing economy remains very high. But what
propels the CAD most is probably India's insatiable
appetite for gold, which accounted for a whopping 27% of the total import bill, second only to
crude oil. The country posted a record current
Turn to page 4
4
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Continued from page 3
Has The Indian Rupee Lost Its Storage Value?
account deficit of 4.8 percent of GDP in 2012-13.
Insufficient Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) Inflows
Lured by the prospects of the "Tiger" economy, international investors began expanding their investments in plants and other
projects in India since the beginning of the last decade. But, the
trend started reversing in the last few years. As a matter of fact,
net FDIs (external investment in India less Indian investments overseas) are on a downward slope, sliding down from a 3.6% of GDP
in 2008 to 1.4% in 2010. In the recent times, India has witnessed
withdrawal of major projects by global steel giants like ArcelorMittal
of Luxembourg and Posco of South Korea. Posco pulled out of its
Rs 30,000 crore steel plant project in Karnataka followed by
ArcelorMittal who scrapped its $12 billion steel plant project, which
it was planning to set up in Odisha. Factors including inordinate
delays in government clearance, land acquisition problems, and lack
of targeted incentives contributed to the withdrawal.
Foreign Institutional Investment (FII) Outflows
Overseas portfolio investors have been routinely exiting the Indian
capital markets since the beginning of 2013. For example, investors sold rupee assets worth nearly $8 billion in June and $3 billion
in July, further deepening the currency's slide and completely negating some of the claw back efforts on the parts of the government.
Precipitous Fall in Spring/ Summer - Result of Interconnected
Financial System
In September 2013, Raghuram Rajan, the former Chief Economist
of the IMF who famously predicted the international financial crisis
of 2008 was appointed as the governor of the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI). In a press interview late summer, he observed that the
precipitous fall in the rupee value that occurred in the summer was
brought about by the US Fed's signaling a steady recovery of the
American economy. He was alluding to the May 2013 announcement by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke that the year-old monthly
$85 billion bond buying program, popularly known as "Quantitative
Easing", could be tapered off sooner than later.
It was around that time, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
warned in a report that if the U.S. Fed moved faster than the
markets expected it to, or before the U.S. economy recovered
enough, it could cause an estimated $2.3 trillion in bond losses
around the globe as borrowing costs would rise. The
interconnectedness of the global financial system means that such
an action by the Fed would have ripple effects worldwide resulting
in rate increases.
The Fed's signal had investors around the world scrambling to get
back into the U.S. markets for prospective higher returns in a recovering economy. Several emerging markets experienced voluminous flight of investors' capital after the Fed exit announcement.
It had weakened their currencies and threatened to fuel inflation,
forcing the many central banks around the world to raise interest
rates despite slowing growth rates in their respective economies.
Countries from Indonesia to South Africa, Brazil and Turkey also got
slammed, as investors betting on higher returns in the U.S., pulled
their money out.
Soon after the Fed started talking about an exit, the rupee's value
slid by about 15%; the IMF slashed its growth forecast for India;
and some economists questioned whether the country was in the
need for external financing. In the three months that followed,
rupee lost approximately 20% of its value.
It is intriguing to note here that the rupee recovered about 10%
of its value following another Fed announcement on September
18, 2013, which indicated that due to continued weaknesses in
the U.S. economy the central bank was reversing the intended
course and would continue the easing in the near future. It was
around this time, RBI announced two consecutive hikes in the
benchmark interest rate despite a slow economy; it also unveiled a
host of financial market reforms and some capital control measures
The Tree-Hugger
By Rahul Ray
A tree-hugger 'hugs' a tree like
a dear friend, and prevents it
from being felled by a logger's
chain saw, essentially representing an environment-friendly
'green' person. Ironically, treehuggers have been butt-ends
of many jokes - persons who are
a bit 'green' or immature or even
screw-balls who haven't got the
sense of reality in mind. As if to
say - trees are plentiful to be
chopped down undeterred, to
make room for humans to live,
designed to shore up the rupee. And the rupee bounced back probably piggybacking the Fed's change of plan and the RBI measures. The following graph shows the recovery.
Market Overreaction or Economic Abyss
For the foreseeable future, India's rupee crisis has muted any obsession with competing the economic might of China, but is it as
big a disaster as it is being played out to be? Again opinions vary
with some observers and economists giving up on the India story
due to her poor record and slow movement on long term reforms,
tackling corruption, investment in infrastructure, and decisive leadership. Yet many others think that India is nowhere near the panic
button as the market and media reactions suggest it is. It is not
unusual for developing countries to run a CAD of similar size until
their economies mature. India's CAD of 4.8% of GDP is a bit high
compared to the developed country average of 3% (US 2.8%),
but it is definitely within the 3% - 6% range of the CADs of
developing economies of similar nature - Turkey, Egypt, Brazil, etc.
The current situation appears less like a verdict of gloom and doom
on the economy and more like a case of CAD financing in the short
term. With India's foreign exchange reserve of $280+ billion and
Special Drawing Rights (SDR) and IMF credits approximately $10
billion, she could probably sustain the immediate need to finance
the monthly accretion in the CAD and servicing its moderate level
of international debt of $450 billion for about a year or so. Need for
large scale external financing doesn't seem to be knocking at the
door. Finally, some of the RBI reforms have started to pay dividends
in terms additional availability of foreign exchange deposits in the
country and lower level of overseas investment by Indian corporations and individuals.
A dire situation like 1991 may be far away from recurring!
Where Do We Go From Here
In a global financial system where markets will generally reflect investors' expectations and confidence in respective economies, some
amount of irrational reactions are bound to happen. But, a country's
economic fundamentals would still continue to be the most important factors influencing investors' behavior. Given that backdrop,
Indian rupee's sustained and long term recovery will depend on
many structural adjustments that India needs to pursue in the
coming months and years. Some of which have been discussed in
this article. And it started happening - one at a time: the markets
actually greeted the appointment of the new RBI governor
Raghuram Rajan.
If a decisive and hard charging government at the national level is
elected in the upcoming election, the country likely will follow up
on the economic reforms that began decades ago. Whether that
happens or not, pundits and policy makers will continue to debate
the tradeoff between true reforms and populist policies, but the
markets will still be influenced by factors that sometimes are beyond the control of government and will impact the well-being of
the nation in a way that may or may not be warranted by the
fundamentals.
If Jevon had lived long enough to experience the globalizations, he
would have for sure seriously considered updating his treatise.
to farm, and to build factories.
The march of human civilization
has done exactly that - forests
have vanished, along with the
unique eco-systems that are as
old as the mother earth. Large
swaths of pristine Amazon forest have been chain-sawed
down to make grazing pasture
for beef cows; so has all the
trees in Nepal's Himalayan region
leaving behind bare mountain
walls and serious soil-erosion in
the wake. The list goes on.
The trees that once lined
beaches to protect them from
erosion and flooding are no
longer there. In addition, with
falling trees, carbon dioxide, the
greenhouse gas is not being
trapped resulting in global
warming with devastating efTurn to page 7
Atho Puja
Kahini
By Guru Chakravarty
Puja, Bhajan, Kirtan and Katha
are very much a part of our lives,
all meant to create and instill
devotional feelings towards
God. Whereas pujas are conducted by a pujari with Sanskrit
slokas, the others are conducted in a group setting, generally in a local language. Bhajans
are popular songs about the
greatness of God that people
sing together. Kirtans, originally
popularized by Gauranga
Mahaprabhu, have had a rebirth
with the help of "Hare
Krishna"mantra chantings of
ISCKON, the Vaishnava society,
and many other groups. Bhajans
and Kirtans are essential parts of
worship rituals in north Indian
culture. Kathas were once highly
popular in a village setting where
one or more singers would
present devotional poems from
Ramayan or such other epics in
a theater like stage, but they
lost their glory to the modern
day versions of the same on
video screen. Today, puja is the
most accepted way to assemble
for religious celebrations, not
necessarily because of its devotional value, but because it is a
social event.
That is a true statement particularly applicable to the Bengalis,
who are known to love "addas",
Bengalis love to talk incessantly,
and a puja setting gives them
the opportunity to do just that.
Whereas a puja is being performed by a pujari, with his back
to the audience, the rest of the
people feel free to do anything.
After all, what better venue is
available at no or very little cost
to attend a get-together where
you can talk uninhibitedly, pass
any judgment, and best of all,
get the latest on whatever is
happening in the community. A
puja setting is a great event to
achieve all that, along with the
satisfaction that you offer a
"pushpanjali" to console your
soul that you have done something to please God. Ironically,
puja without "bhakti" (devotion) is not the best path for
earning God's blessings.
Let us see how a standard puja
is performed. A standard puja,
as prescribed in the "Purohit
Darpan" or such other books,
has logical and sequential steps
for the pujari. First, you state
your "sankalpa" (objective) of
the puja of a particular God or
Goddess, then take oath in the
name of and for the benefit of
a client who is paying for the
cost of the puja. You proceed
to purify yourself, the puja materials like the water, the flowers, and the milk products. You
establish the "Ghat" and welTurn to page 6
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Evolving Zero
Out Of The Blue On A Bright Day
A brief discussion on the
concept of zero, where did
it come from?
By Pronoy Chatterjee
It was a November afternoon;
the weather was wonderful with
bright sun, mild temperature,
and pleasant soothing breeze.
Red, tanned and yellow leaves
were dropping from trees, floating in the air before being gently laid on the ground.
I came out of the University
Radiology Group at East
Brunswick with a medical report
in my hand that I read and reread. The report indicated that
I was free from my deadly illness,
at least for the time being. I was
happy and I decided to celebrate it, but there was no one
with me at the time to share
my celebration, so I decided to
go to a special subsandwich
shop at the intersection of the
Milltown Road and Old Bridge
Turnpike, which had been my
favorite sandwich shop for many
years, since my active working
days and still to this day.
My LA Fitness center is located
within a mile from it. After the
workout, sauna, steam bath and
shower, I usually pick up a half
subsandwich from there with
my favorite cold cut meat, Swiss
cheese, mayonnaise, lettuce,
tomato, onion, oregano, and
light vinegar and oil. Coming
back to my personal office at
East Brunswick I enjoy eating
the sandwich with a glass of
coke and reading a book of my
choice, sitting by my round conference table in front of the
patio door.
I had not been in that sandwich
shop for months and maybe
more than a year, since I was
inflicted with that damn illness,
which slowed me down in every respect. So I wanted to
celebrate my happy moment,
relishing the sandwich while
reading a New York Time's best
seller novel, "The Maids" by
Katherinne Stocket, that a
friend of mine gave me a few
days ago. I finished almost three
fourth of the book, which talked
about how the colored maids
felt about their white women
household employers in the 60s.
At the time, in the early 60s, I
just landed in this country with
my wife Swapna and located in
the South. I saw many of those
colored maids whenever
Swapna and I were invited to a
dinner by my white colleagues,
but I never paid any attention
to them. I saw them with white
aprons, serving us food and
drink, stiff in their movements,
polite and courteous. I didn't
have the time to pay any attention to them, because I was too
busy to make an impression on
my white hosts, telling them
how great India was and its
people. Now that I read the
book, I see how heavy a heart
they carried in their chests, but
acted as everything normal. I
now feel that when they looked
at my eyes they wanted to express something, maybe they
thought that I being a foreigner
and from India I could understand their feelings. I don't
know, I didn't have that depth
of understanding for others in
those days as I have now; it was
fifty years ago, when I was only
twenty six years old, newly married and focused to move ahead
in this country.
Leaving aside all those memories of the past, this November
afternoon I wanted to get my
favorite subsandwich and go
back to my office, have a glass
of coke and open the book
where I left a book mark, sit
quietly and enjoy my lunch.
I drove down the Cranbury
Road while listening to a CD
which played a commentary on
Rabindranath's love story with
his sister-in-law, Kadambari and
how he remained insensitive to
his own wife, Mrinalini. The rendition was very good and I was
totally absorbed, listening and
driving.
I arrived at the parking lot of the
subsandwich shop and parked
my car. The parking lot was
empty, it was 2 o'clock in the
afternoon. I went inside the
shop and ordered a ham and
cheese sandwich with everything in it. I paid money and
turned back to leave but was
blocked by a tall heavyset
woman who stood next to me
at a narrow passageway. Somehow I managed to pass by her
holding my sandwich bag, entered into the car and started
ignition. I couldn't wait to get
back to my room and enjoy the
lunch while reading the book.
I was about to leave the parking lot when I heard a woman
was screaming, "You hit the car,
you hit the car." I rolled down
my window to see who hit
whom. Immediately a woman,
who was in a car parked at the
end of the lot, came out of the
car and advanced towards me,
repeating loudly, "You hit that
car."
"Which car?" I frowned.
"That car," she pointed out
showing another car at the lot,
apparently parked when I was
inside the shop.
I saw a big dent at the right
fender and a hole at the
bumper of that car. I stepped
down from my car while the
engine was running and said
dejectedly squeezing my eyebrows, "I didn't hit any car. Look
at my car, there is not a single
scratch anywhere. How could I
make that kind of damage without having any scratch in my
car?"
In the mean time that tall heavy
set woman who was by my side
inside the shop came out and
started screaming at the same
pitch as the other woman, "Oh
my God, you hit my car, you hit
my car." Then she started crying, drawing attention of the
traffic on the road. The store
owners also came out, but
stayed quiet. The first woman
was still screaming, "I saw you
hit that car."
I was perplexed, embarrassed
and confused. I tried to explain
if I had hit that car to make that
kind of heavy damage, wouldn't
I have some sort of dent or
even a scratch in my car?" But
who would listen to me in the
midst of that crying and scream-
ing of two well dressed white
women, one slim in her thirties
and another a heavy set middle
aged. I didn't know what to do,
I was dumbfounded.
I asked them to call police if
they thought that I really hit the
car, but none of them took out
their cell phone to call police.
However, they kept on screaming and accusing me, continuously, non stop.
Finally, I took out my cell phone
and pretended to take down
their license plate number and
said, "You wait here; I am going
to call the police. Let me find
out the local police number from
inside the shop."
I went inside, asked the Chinese
lady who was preparing the
sandwiches at the counter,
about the township we were in
and the phone number of the
local police station.
She said, "It's South Brunswick."
She took out her hand gloves
and turned the pages of her directory and gave me the number."
Quickly extending my thanks to
her, I rushed outside and found
that the parking lot was empty,
both women left. Only my car
was at the lot, its engine was
still running, I forgot to turn it
off.
While I stood at the parking lot,
bewildered, thinking what
should I do now, the Chinese
lady rushed outside and asked,
"did the woman leave?" I said,
"I don't see her."
She said, "The woman who was
inside bought fifty dollars worth
of sandwiches and gave me a
credit card. My machine was not
working properly at that time,
now when I entered the number, it was rejected. I don't
know what to do now."
I didn't know either what to do,
whether to report to the police
which may get me into another
hassle or just forget about the
whole incident. Then I thought,
Turn to page 9
Marriage plans in a fish market !
By Amrita Kangle
This is a story which is exactly one year and two months old.....
give or take a few days.
My son is now twenty seven years old, and as is normal. Ever since
he turned twenty five, well-meaning aunts, uncles and cousins
have all been enquiring as to when I intend getting him married.
My standard reply to them all is ' I am ready to do that tomorrow,
but the boy himself has to agree.'
The boy in question started the discussion and ended it just as
promptly by saying that he would marry who 'HE' chooses. This
was totally ok by me because honestly I am scared to go through
the 'girl choosing' process. I barely know myself so how on earth
will I know a nice, good, docile, educated girl who will be right for
him? I gave him the go ahead straight away and from that day on
looked very hopefully at every girl he was friends with....as a potential daughter-in-law.
My Dad of course was aghast at my attitude. He told me that he
5
would do the looking and grandson only had to do the marrying.
Just as firmly, my son told him that not only the looking; ..... he
(my Daddy) could do the marrying too. Now, don't get me wrong.
There was no feud here. Grandfather and grandson were the best
of pals! I was the person at fault.... because of my lax attitude.
But children - they are such horrible, contrary little monsters! I
swear, I sometimes wish that I had eaten him up as soon as he was
born. Having gotten all the freedom to choose a girl for himself he
turns around one day and tells me that if at all I want to get him
married I should look for a bride for him since it is my 'Motherly
Duty.' He would rather have a doggy anyway, which he had wanted
ever since he was five.
So, there I was, with this nice pickle on my plate. 'Why pickle?' did
you ask? I will tell you. I am a true blue Bengali and my husband is an
even truer bluer Maharashtrian. So, where do I look? Are you getting
the picture? Why can I never have simpler problems in my life?
Turn to page 6
By Ira Ganguly
Is zero just a place holder or
something greater? As far as or
as little as we know about zero
(0), it represents a nil value for
numeric grouping such as units,
tens, hundreds, etc. And, with
that understanding zero jumped
from the position of a place
holder to the representation of
a definite value. In some variations of old English language,
zero is also perceived as a
"Naught" meaning "No" in new
English. In Indian Vedic scriptures
zero is termed as "shunya"
which literally means "nothing"
or an "empty" state which has
abstract concepts. Such as,
"Maha Shunya" has been
termed as Nirakar Brahman
which is faceless, formless energy that sustains this creation.
We can only witness the manifestation of that energy. And
then, Indian Vedic scripture also
describes that "Sapta Kalpante"
comes "Proloy" - the end of time
- when all super nova are pulled
by the huge vortex of giant
black hole until the next awakening of Lord Vishnu (the great
big bang) re-generates creation
all over again, producing a new
universe. Then, does universe
end with zero and begins with
zero?
Hindu intellectual giants in the
Classical era were the first ones
to use zero as a numerical figure as we use it today. In their
quest for the unknown, Hindu
sages began discovering the
principles of astronomy for which
mathematics was created. In
520 A.D. Aryabhatta was the
first person of the Indian Classical era who delivered the concept of place-value numbering
system from 1 to 10 that marked
a giant leap for humanity. He
formalized arithmetic operation
using zero. He used dots underneath numbers to indicate zero.
These dots were named as
shunya which means empty
place. Later, in an collaborative
effort with Bramhagupta,
Aryabhatta developed the concept of zero as an actual independent number not just a place
holder. They developed the
mathematical rules of adding and
subtracting zero from other
numbers.
From the placeholder to the
driver of calculus, the concept
of zero stirred intellectual minds
across the continent for centuries. Then on, zero changed its
Turn to page 6
6
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Atho Puja Kahini
Continued from page 4
come God to use it as His seat.
Then there is reverence to
"Guru", and bathing of "Narayan
Shila." The actual puja starts
with
worship
of
"Panchadevata", first Ganesh
followed by Surya, Vishnu, Shiva,
and mother Durga. The main
puja of the particular God or
Goddess takes place after that,
followed by "arati" and
"pushpanjali". During all this time,
the pujari is the sole performer,
facing the God, his back to the
audience, uttering mantras in
Sanskrit. People do not have any
incentive to hold their concentration during that time. Devotion loses out to the natural tendency of a conversation with the
next guy. Talk about a "boring"
event!
As a pujari, I know that it is an
almost impossible task to get
Bengalis, particularly men, to sit
down quietly to pay attention
to the puja and to keep them
away from that "adda", which is
exerting a magnetic force to pull
them away. How to make the
Puja interesting so that people
are entertained emotionally is
beyond me. A concept of a
'modern puja", as a substantially
devotional event with sufficient
elements to hold the interest of
people, is yet to be developed.
Here are a few things that can
be helpful to hold the concentration of the audience in a puja.
First, a microphone is essential.
A loud sound of "mantra/ sloka"
can not only create forced concentration in the people to listen, but it also discourages talking. Then, there are explanations of the Sanskrit slokas that
can help the audience to understand what is going on. In between slokas, a line or two of
"bhajans" can be introduced
that breaks the monotony of
the slokas. The "bhajans" and
"kirtans" which are musically rendered are much more participatory in nature than pure pujas.
Sometimes, disciplinary steps like
a modest rebuke to those talkers in the crowd to keep quiet
so that the true devotees are
not disturbed, may work, albeit
temporarily. There are plenty of
slokas in the puja procedures
that are meant to strongly warn
the audience against talking
during puja for the fear of invoking God's wrath. But that
does not seem to work because
people are not inclined to believe that the ever-forgiving God
would turn against us!
The recent trend of puja attendance is showing a shift from the
association pujas to those held
in temples. Whereas people
used to be turned away at the
gate because of excessive
crowd in the big association
pujas like GSCA and Kallol, the
attendance seems to be com-
ing down in those pujas as the
crowd is growing at Ananda
Mandir and Bharat Sevashram.
Obviously, temples are better
equipped to hold puja events
because they have a building
facility. Whereas the community associations must cram a big
event like Durga Puja at a rental
place only during weekends,
the temples can hold pujas on
actual calendar days, for all four
days, as prescribed in a "panjika"
(a Hindu calendar). This has a
great sentimental value to many
in the community who strongly
believe in adhering to the "tithi"
in the calendar. Although the
temples do not have the capacity needed to hold a large musical program, people do not mind
that because many musical
events are organized by the
community outside of puja celebrations anyway, throughout
the year.
A looming problem for pujas in
future is attendance of the second generation Bengalis. There
is a noticeable absence of them,
be it in a temple or at a rental
hall. A tremendous concerted
effort is needed to attract and
motivate the second generation. The temples are better
equipped to do that because
now the children of the recent
immigrants are getting an opportunity to learn the language
and culture of Hinduism, which
did not exist previously. Hindu
heritage camps are being offered
at many temples for the
younger generation to learn the
basic principles of Hinduism. Unfortunately, Bengalis are far behind other Indian communities
in this matter, because we do
not have enough temples like
other communities do to facilitate the exposure of our children to our religious heritage.
Still there is time, and it will be
of great benefit to future
Bengalis if the recent immigrants
become active in exposing their
youngsters to Hindu religious
teachings. That will be the best
way for the future generations
to be interested in learning the
real meaning of pujas.
Puja's spiritual value has been
questioned by many, from average people to highly respectable
Sanskrit scholars. Whereas a puja
may be the first step for many
to think of God, devotion in the
form of meditation and repeated
chanting of mantras are regarded
as better ways to concentrate
on God. The Vedas have prescribed "Yagnas" as the method
of worship. In modern times,
great religious leaders like Swami
Vivekananda and Swami
Pranavananda have stressed
upon serving the poor and the
distressed as the best way to
serve God. Whether a puja is
celebrated to serve God or not,
Evolving Zero
Marriage plans in a fish market !
Continued from page 5
Continued from page 5
To tell you the truth, I want a
Bengali 'bahu.' Bengali girls are
so nice, so sweet, so cultured,
such great home makers.....so
perfect in every way! Well, just
look at me! Am I saying anything
wrong? This is the argument that
I put up to the Hubby. Do you
really see him contradicting me
on this one? One must always
know the right cards to play when
one is looking to win a point!
It was at this stage of our lives
that my son and I went to
Kolkata to spend a few days
with my Dad. It was magic from
the word 'go'. Long, lazy days
that began with an early morning cup of tea sitting in our magical balcony with the Palm fronds
swaying lazily; the Gulmohurs
majestically surveying the world
in all their fiery glory; the 'Shalik's
strutting about as if they owned
the world; and the brilliant blue
of the swimming pool rippling
with the laughter of kids splashing about. A huge breakfast followed accompanied by discussions about the lunch menu!
Lunch means fish. Fish means
the fish market.....the Maniktala
fish market to be precise, - the
Mecca of fish lovers. Grandfather
decided that grandson must be
educated about fish marketing,
and as the first step in this direction, he went and switched
off the AC in the room where
grandson was blissfully reposed
in the land of nod.
As I had expected, there occurred an uproar! Grandson felt
that he had been grossly ill
treated. How could Dunda be
so inconsiderate? Even cattle
were treated better! And all to
buy fish? Why, one could always
go and buy fish at a more human time, like about three in the
afternoon, when a human being was nice and fresh.
But, Granddad was not to be
pushed around! He got his way
and having mollified grandson
with a 'meager' breakfast of
eggs, sausages, bacon, fried
tomatoes, mushrooms and
chocolate pastries......the two
started off for Maniktala market.
As I have stated earlier, the two
were the best of pals. I merely
tagged along ......
My Dad was always impeccably
dressed. Never have I seen him
with so much as a hair out of
place. Now his grandson was
another matter altogether. Here
he was with tousled hair, jeans
rolled up to his knees, rubber
slippers on his feet, one arm protectively
on
my
Dad's
shoulders......both grandfather
and grandson, one 5'-5" and the
other 6'-4" walking in perfect
tandem into the fish market. Are
you getting the picture?
Now, for those who have never
seen the place let me describe
it for you. It is a huge market
devoted to selling fresh fish and
produce. The star of the show
however, being the fish!
And how?
Fish of all shapes and sizes and
hues! Fish so fresh that they literally jump out of the large tubs
they are housed in. Huge big
Rohus, Katlas, Bhetkis, Magurs,
and Kois all crying for your attention! Their shiny scales and
smiley faces (yes, you heard
right.....and no, I am not going
crazy, thank you very much!);
just tempt you to reach out and
touch them. And the fishmongers with their huge big 'Bontis',
which are actually deadly
enough
to
cut
up
a
human.....cry out their ware. It
is absolutely fascinating!
Into this fishy heaven.....we
it's value in bringing people together is indisputable. Wherever
in the world, a few Bengalis
gather, the first thing they think
of is performing a Saraswati Puja.
As the population grows, they
venture to take on a more challenging project of Durga Puja.
When they are secure with their
jobs and livelihood, they set their
eyes to build a temple. Moorties
of Gods and Goddesses are established in them. And so, we
now have Ananda Mandir and
Bharat Sevashram. We have a
place of our own to gather, to
mingle, and to feel at home. It
is our home of God, and the
pujas are performed on tithis, in
accordance with our Hindu religious heritage, but the most
important idea underneath all of
that is the intense passion to be
together with our fellow men
and women. Puja is at the core
of the community, attracting all
people to join in and holding
them together. The puja ceremony has never been an attractive spectacle for the
Bengalis. It's the assembly of
people, talking, exchanging
greetings, learning about each
other, smiling and sympathizing
- these are more important than
having to listen to the chanting
in Sanskrit that most of us do
not understand. The puja just
makes it happen!
entered. My sonny, his sleep
forgotten, eyes round with delight , got totally and wholeheartedly into learning the art
of fish purchase from a master my Dad.
Having bought up almost half the
market as we were walking towards our car, grandson announced, "Dunda, I will marry a
Bengali girl from Kolkata. That
way, I will always be able to
come to Maniktala market." The
Bengali in him had surfaced. He
had thought with his stomach,
and the argument was laid to
rest finally.
Grandfather was ecstatic. He
had killed two birds with one
stone. He had taught his grandson the finer nuances of fish
purchase, and in the traditions
of 'Buy one, get one free' had
sowed the seeds of a Bengali
wedding into his grandson's
mind. I was of course, a mere
fly on the wall..... just closed my
eyes and sent up a silent prayer
to the Fish God for having aided
me so beautifully.
Now I just have to break the
news to the son's father. He will
understand I am sure... he just
needs to start thinking with his
stomach.
form in many different ways.
Today, without zero calculus will
be nowhere; similarly, financial
accounting, arithmetic computation, and connected world of
computers would not be developed.
In 773 A.D. Arabian traders of
spices and silk brought the text
from India to Middle East and the
concept of zero thus travelled
from India to Middle East to Spain
and to Italy. Around 12th century it reached England. From
Aryabhatta, Bramhagupta to AlKhowarizmi to Fibonacci, Rene
Descartes, and, Newton and
Lebiniz, zero developed into
many different forms and it is still
evolving.
Being at the recent Sahitya O
Alochana at Ananda Mandir
where mathematics was discussed by host Amitabha Bagchi
and other participants, zero
started dancing in my head.
Even though this subject is vast,
still I could not resist myself from
briefly writing on this topic. Zero,
which is supposed to be nothing, is holding endless possibilities in the world of mathematics.
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Bye, Bye, Butler!
By Mandira Chattopadhyay
I was sad to hear that the Butler tract, with its barrack-like
units that have long housed the
married graduate students at
Princeton University, will be torn
down this coming spring. This
is where I spent the first couple
of years of my married life as a
young bride. I am planning to
take a sentimental trip to
Princeton to take one last look
at the Butler Apartments before
they tear the place down. The
scheduled demolition will end
the storied career of a property
where legendary scholars spent
their early lives.
My association with the Butler
apartments goes back quite a
few years, but I still remember
the first day I stepped into one
of the units from Suprasad
Baidyaroy's sputtering Mustang
convertible, decorated with
fresh bridal floras and a poster
announcing, Marry in a Hurry!,
on it. This was the morning after the night of our gorgeous
wedding at Dr. Paritosh
Chakrabarti's former residence,
a few miles away from
Princeton. The Bengali groom's
parents' rituals were strictly followed at our new abode, a unit
in Butler subleased in a hurry
from a graduate student who
would be abroad for the summer on an exchange mission. We
7
The Tree-Hugger
Continued from page 4
were extremely worried since
housing was so scarce and expensive in Princeton. Now we
were relieved that at least we
had a place, albeit for only the
next two months. That memorable morning the peach trees
all around Butler would greet me
as the new bride. The dandelion lawn around the unit was
covered with yards and yards of
saris all the way to the front door
to pave the way for the bride's
walk into her groom's place for
the first time. The atmosphere
was filled with the loud sounds
of the conch shells and the rolling sounds made by the ladies
(Uludhwani). The American
graduate students gathered to
watch with quiet curiosity and
even awe. The Late Bijanda
and Aratidi, acting as my new
in-laws, greeted me with a
bucket of fresh fish and I would
place my feet on a container of
Alta, dyed red water. All the
other rituals were adhered to
very strictly. No short-cuts allowed; everything authentically
followed.
Pronoyda and
Swapnadi, established members
of the small Bengali community,
ran around giving instructions to
everyone, while a handful of
other Bengalis started to make
humorous comments. Gayatridi,
our late editor, made her
Turn to page 10
Higher Education in India:
Recent Developments and
Emerging Issues
By Alok Chakrabarti
INTRODUCTION
India has a rich history in higher education dating back several millenniums. In the original Indian tradition of education, knowledge
was preserved and propagated mainly through oral teachings. Teachers, called gurus set up "residential schools" (Gurukuls) in their
own homes. Sanskrit was the language of the educated and the
texts were composed in this language. In time, a formal system of
higher education evolved in India, the best examples being the
centers of higher learning at Taxila (Takshasila, now in Pakistan,
probably around 7th century BC) and Nalanda (5th century AD).
After the Muslim conquest of India, Persian became the court language and the educated elites became conversant in Farsi and
Arabic. The dual traditions of Sanskrit and Farsi education were
kept alive till the colonization of India by the British. The British
established schools to teach English and the sciences. In 1857
they established three universities in three metropolitan cities,
Bombay, Calcutta and Madras, following Oxford and Cambridge
Universities as models. Another university was established by the
British in1887 in Allahabad. These universities imparted education
in the liberal arts and the sciences. The main objective was to
prepare people for careers in the civil service, legal profession, and
medicine.
Soon after the British introduced western education in India, Indian industrialists and philanthropists began to establish private universities and research institutes under non-governmental control.
Around 1875, a college was established in Aligarh by Sir Syed Ahmed
Khan primarily to educate Muslim students; this college later evolved
into Aligarh Muslim University. In 1876, the Indian Association for
Turn to page 11
fects. Earlier this year, in Northern India, a large land-mass in
Uttarakhand where trees were
sacrificed to make room for tourist hotels and other buildings was
washed away by flash-flood, taking along all the inhabitants and
their dwellings with it. The recent typhoon in Philippines is
the strongest ever recorded.
Lately, flash-floods, tsunamis,
typhoons have become too numerous almost to count. They
are taking on and wiping out
entire human settlements that
dared to fell the trees in the first
place.
I am a tree-hugger in the truest senses - an avid champion
of environmental issues, and a
liberal in social and economic
matters. As a routine, I recycle
every piece of paper, plastic and
everything else that is recyclable.
Though there is no need to
worry about soil-erosion, I have
planted saplings pretty much
indiscriminately in my yard. Over
the years these saplings have
grown into mature trees, filling
me with joy every spring with
blossoms. My eco-friendliness
has made me collect rain-water
to water my garden in the summer. I am also the one whom
colleagues secretly hate for posting signs in common areas that
read 'Conserve energy - turn off
lights when you leave the room.'
I vote for liberal candidates in
every town, state and national
elections. I also put my money
where my mouth is, i.e. I give
donations for environmental and
liberal causes. In essence, I am
a dyed-in-the-wool liberal and a
tree-hugger.
Here comes the dilemma. I
scratched my head in bewilderment when my friend Nilay, a
fellow member of the writer's
club that we both belong to,
scorned me for having a printout of an article instead of downloading it onto the computer
screen -
mental bend.
"Is this the way you are going
to save forests?"
I was clearly in a quandary.
Those tall trees have been there
probably close to a hundred
years. They have given shelter
to countless birds, chipmunks
and what not. And, I will have
to give OK to take them down!
I was in deep agony. But, soon
I found an escape- it will be a
very expensive affair, as far as
my knowledge goes. Therefore, cutting down those trees
will be impractical - my heart
leaped in joy!
While I sat there not knowing
quite what to say, Partha, another member of the club shot
back at Nilay "But, do you keep track of how
much coal or gas is burnt to produce electricity for your computer? Also, have you thought
of those people in the paperindustry who lost their jobs due
to less use of paper? Can you
be an environmentalist by hurting people?"
That night I went to bed confused. Next morning, those
questions of the last evening
were still dogging me, when I
received an e-mail in my i-phone
that Bruce, the solar panel guy
would like to meet with me this
evening to finalize the talk about
installing solar panels on the roof
of my house.
Bruce showed up at the appointed time with his laptop and
a folder in hand. It was an easy
sale in his part, because I have
always been a solar-enthusiast how much pollution-free electricity I will generate, how many
trees won't be cut down, how
much carbon foot-print will be
reduced by my action! A total
environmental bonanza! I was
enthusiastically chugging along
when Bruce pointed towards his
laptop screen and chimed "You know, your solar energy
production will go up significantly
if you get rid of those giant pine
trees to the right of your house.
They are partially blocking the
southern sun."
"You mean I need to cut those
trees down?"
"Well, I don't suggest anything,
but you will produce more guiltfree watts if you remove those
trees." He knew my environ-
Bruce was watching me intently
and quickly read my mind.
"There is a substantial rebate
from the state for removing
trees that come in the way of
increasing solar output."
Back to square one! I requested more time from Bruce
to think. Again, I didn't sleep
well that night - the scene in
the movie 'Sophie's choice'
where Meryl Streep had to
choose between her son and
daughter to be whisked away
by Nazis for good, kept creeping into my mind. Finally, I slept
and dreamt a very peculiar
dream. I dreamed that suddenly a forest has grown around
the house, much like 'Where
the wild things are' by Maurice
Sendak, and there I met with
those terrible animals who
gnashed their teeth and rolled
their eyes, and growled at me
for trying to take down those
tall pines! I woke up sweating!
Finally, my son who was visiting
from New York brought senses
back to me.
"Aren't you crazy to even think
about taking down those trees?
Have you lost your mind? Shame
on you!"
My son's rebuke brought me
back to my tree-hugging self.
But, what about those guilt-free
watts from my roof - I couldn't
help thinking!
Sahitya O Alochana
Reported by Subrata Bhaumik
Sahitya O Alochana is a monthly
literary and topical discussion
forum under the aegis of
Ananda Mandir that endeavors
to achieve its motto "Alochana
Brings Good Things to Mind." It
held several exciting sessions in
the September - December
2013 period. Note that there
was only one session for the
holiday period (late November
and December), which means
only three (3) sessions were held
in the 4th quarter of 2013.
It is interesting to note that the
scope and the reach of the discussions at the forum are ever
widening and deepening. Over
the last several years, these ses-
sions covered some very exciting and illuminating discussions
on a wide variety of topics including literature, theater and
movie, history, philosophy and
religion, science and mathematics, economics, social issues, and
finally sports. And the September - December period was no
exception with topics that are
very eclectic in nature including
immigration history, currency
economics, and cricket.
The September session featured
history of early Bengali immigration to the U.S., and provided a
detailed account of the genesis
of arrivals of Bengalis in the Land
of Liberty. It traced the initial
influx to a period that is indeed
much earlier than what we may
think it is. Conventional wisdom
has it that most of the influx of
Bengali people into the US followed the Immigration Act of
1965, with a handful of early
arrivals in the 1950s. But the
presentation provided findings
of recent researches by Vivek
Bald, a professor at MIT, documented in his book "Bengali
Harlem", which uncovered fascinating facts that trace tales
(more than a century old) of
thriving "Chikan Trade", and
growing communities of
"Chikandars", and "Laskars", in
Turn to page 13
8
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Sapta Tirtha
ANANDA SANDHYA
By Sushmita Dutta
Reported by Arun Bhowmik, Chair, Cultural Committee
Author's Note:A special series of reports on seven holy places prescribed in Hindu scriptures
Varanasi also called Benares and,
named Kashi in Hindu scriptures,
is one of the prescribed Sapta
Tirthas. Visiting Varanasi, at least
once in one's life time, is a cherished desire of Hindus, and,
some believe that breathing last
in Varanasi delivers moksha - liberation from the cycle of birth
and death. It is believed that,
at Manikarnika Ghat on the river
Ganges Lord Vishnu and Lord
Shiva together deliver moksha
to all those who die in Kashi.
Considered one of the oldest
cities in the world, Varanasi is
located in Northern India. Ideally positioned on the banks of
auspicious river Ganges, Varanasi
is breathtakingly beautiful at
dawn when the sun beams
through the eastern sky of the
river Ganges creating a celestial
glittering of sparkling water of
the river against the backdrop
of deep orange sky. The sounds
of temple bells, the chanting of
morning mantras, and the fra-
Panchami celebration. Faith matters for any worship, ritualistic
chores come later. With ardent
faith and belief that worshipping
snakes is a good religious act,
snakes are worshipped on the
Nag Panchami day. According to
Hindu scripture of Garuda Puran,
offering prayers to snake on Nag
Panchami is considered very auspicious and is believed to usher
goodies in one's life. In
Narasinghgarh akhara in Varanasi
there is a special shrine dedicated
to Naga Raja (the King of
Snakes) where milk is poured
over the deity as a part of the
ritualistic offerings. Om Bhujanga
Bhushanaya Namah - says one
of the 108 names of Lord Shiva,
meaning salute to the Lord who
is adorned by snakes. On Nag
Panchami day, therefore, worshiping Lord Shiva is considered
extremely auspicious. Being a
festival day, the temple was
thronged with people, but
somehow, I managed to offer
lieved to deliver desired happiness in life. Surrounded by many
other shrines, the courtyard of
Vishwanath temple has a "wisdom well" called Gyan Vapi and
a series of temples. There is a
temple having a cluster of five
lingas called Nilakantheshwar - a
Vishnu temple, Virupakshi Gauri
temple, Avimukta Vinayaka
temple, Shanishchara temple
and Virupaksha temple. A
temple at the entrance called
Avimukteshvara temple is disputed to be the original
Jyotirlinga. But then, there is a
controversy over the matter.
Kashi Vishwantah temple is built
like a "mandap" (Hindu temple
architectural form) having a sanctum, which has a square silver
altar that holds one of the 12
Jyotirlingas found in India. The
Jyotirlinga in Kashi Vishwanath
temple is of black stone decorated with "Bhashma" (ash).
One of the 108 names of Lord
Shiva includes "Om Bhashma
It was the proudest moment
of Ananda Sandhya when its
100th event was celebrated on
October 27th. It was a jubilant
occasion for many – obviously for
Arun Bhowmik, the creator of
this program with his fellow
musicians, for those music loving
people in the community with
their presence and their financial
support, and for the entire
Ananda Mandir organization. In
spite of lacking a good acoustical
friendly auditorium, and a
sophisticated sound system, the
program attracted talented
performers from the Tri-state as
well as some of the great names
in classical music from India. In
admiration of the dedication of
Arun, the Ananda Mandir
organization bestowed a special
service award, see boxed
announcement.
This day was reserved for a
performance by Pandit Kaivalya
Kumar Gurav. Kaivalya Kumar
hails from Dharwad, Karnataka.
He was initiated into classical
music by his father Pandit
Sangameshwar Gurav. Endowed
with a mellifluous, fluid and high
pitched tenor voice, he has
achieved much recognition with
awards -"Surmani", " Pt. Jasraj
Gaurav Puraskar” and "Sarva
Shreshta Kalakar" to name a
few. He has performed at
several prestigious music festivals
in India and has several albums
to his credit. Kaivalya Kumar was
assisted by Kedar Naphade on
Harmonium
and
Amod
Dandawate on tabla.
On November 2, the day of
Kali Puja celebration at Ananda
Mandir, Sandip Bhattacharya, a
scholar from the prestigious
"Sangeet Research Academy" in
Kolkata,
presented
Shyamasangeet, Bhaktigeeti
and light classical music. Born in
1980, Sandip was trained under
Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan at the
Sangeet Research Academy. He
also trained under Ustad
Mubarak Ali Khan. He has
participated in many major
concerts in India including the
famous Dover Lane Conference.
Sandip was assisted by our own
Anirban Roy Chowdhury on
Tabla.
Announcement
Dear Members of Ananda Mandir,
grance of "dhoop" (incense
sticks) scattered in the air, make
mornings in Varanasi a truly heavenly place unfolding legends
concomitant to Lord Shiva,
Parvati and, other Hindu Gods
and Goddesses.
my prayers. And, that was my
first puja at the famous Kashi
Vishwanath temple mentioned
in Hindu Purans (ancient scriptures) as the abode of Lord
Shiva together with his wife
Goddess Parvati.
My visit to Varanasi on the night
before Nag Panchami was not
planned, so, I wasn't really prepared for the ritualistic ceremonies that began from dawn,
which forced me to wake-up at
about 5 a.m. Looking out the
window of my hotel room facing the main street that leads
to Kashi Vishwanath temple, I
found people (mostly ladies)
carrying plates containing flowers, milk, fruits etc. to offer special Nag Panchami puja at the
temple. I had to take a quick
shower to join the crowd for Nag
Mythology has it that Kashi is
situated on the tip of Lord
Shiva's Trishul (trident), and the
place will not be destroyed even
at the final dissolution of the
world. To date, the air of Kashi
is probably jammed with the vibrating sound waves of "Om
Namah Shivaya" chanted by millions and almost all sages in India who lived there and meditated upon Lord Shiva for salvation.
Worshipping
Lord
Vishwanath at the Kashi
Vishwanath temple reciting the
mantra "Om Namah Shivaya"
with complete devotion is be-
dhulita Vigrahaya Namaha" meaning salutation to the Lord
whose murti (Vigraha) is decorated with bhashma or ash.
Jyotirlingas are extremely important shrines in Hinduism, found
in locations where Lord Shiva
appeared in person. Fourteen
Hindu scriptures including Rig
Veda mention the importance
of Kashi saying that Lord Shiva
himself declared the place as his
residence where he would live
with his wife Goddess Parvati.
Here, Goddess Parvati offered
food to one and all, and since
then she is worshipped as
Annapoorna. In Puran pictures,
Lord Shiva himself is seen holding a bowl to receive food from
Goddess Annapoorna. The
temple of Goddess Parvati is
Turn to page 12
As you all know by now, the cultural events presented by Ananda
Mandir (musical shows during Kali Puja, Durga Puja, Live Mahalaya
to name a few) have gained great popularity in our community
of music lovers. One such routine event is the monthly ANANDA
SANDHYA, presented usually on second Friday evening of the
month. This is a wonderful platform where our community
musicians get a chance to showcase their talents.
Are you interested in doing an Ananda Sandhya program at
Ananda Mandir as a solo artist, or presenting a group program?
If you have attended any, you know that this is a 2 hour program
of high quality. If you are “READY, WILLING AND ABLE”, please
contact our cultural secretary Arun Bhowmik at
[email protected], or call him at 908-672-1452 for
details. We look forward to hearing from you.
BASANTI
DURGA PUJA
SASTHI -5th APRIL, SATURDAY, 5:30 pm
SAPTAMI -6th APRIL, SUNDAY, 9:00 am to 11.30 am
ASTAMI-7th APRIL, MONDAY, 9:00am to 1:30am
SANDHI PUJA (Monday Midnight) - 2:53 am to 3:41 am
NABAMI & RAM NABAMI- 8th APRIL, TUESDAY,
9:00 am to 2:30 pm
DASHAMI-9th APRIL, WEDNESDAY, 10:30 am to11:30am
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
ANANDA PRABHAT
Reported By
9
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The most impressive musical program at Ananda Mandir, the
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was celebrated on 6th October,
2013. Year after year, we are
lucky to get the same impressive array of performers, who
have perfected their roles in a
cohesive presentation to the
delight of full capacity crowd at
5 AM in the morning. Against
the backdrop of the moorties of
Mother Durga and her family, the
assembly of all top vocalists in
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performers playing sarod,
harmonium, tabla, khol, dhak,
shankha, and kashor ghanta - all
dressed in festive attires- presents an extraordinary sight.
The superb presentation was
thoroughly enjoyed by everyone. Everything, starting with
the preamble narration, meticu-
lously selected songs and the inbetween Chandipath, went
flawlessly. The enchanting music and slokas, offered to Mother
Durga with heartfelt devotion
were surreal, as the Mother was
invited into our home for her
annual visit.
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Highlights of Recent Puja Activities
Reported By Krishna Dutta Roy, Chair, Puja Committee
September
Aghor Chaturdashi was celebrated on 3rd September. The
day is dedicated to the puja of
Lord Shiva. The following day
was "Amavasya". As scheduled,
the monthly Shyama Puja was
performed in the evening.
Ganesh Puja fell on Monday, 9th
September. Many devotees of
Ganeshji showed up to offer
puja during the whole day.
October
The biggest puja event at
Ananda Mandir, the "Sharadiya
Durgotsav" started off with
"Pitri Tarpan" on the Friday, the
4th. This is a popular event because many people like to avail
the opportunity to pay respect
to all departed "pitri" and "matri"
ancestors in the family. This
being the "Amavasya" day, the
usual Shyama Puja was performed in the evening. The precursor of Durga Puja, the
Mahalaya (Mahishasura Mardini)
was presented live, like previous years, on the morning of
Sunday, October 6 at 5 AM.
The long awaited Durga puja
started with Adhibas and
Bodhan (welcoming Goddess
Durga) to observe "Sashthi"on
October14th in the evening.
Saptami, Ashtomi and Nabami
pujas were performed on each
"tithi" as prescribed in the
"panjika" on each morning, followed by pushpanjali and prasad.
Prasad was also cooked for the
evening crowd. On Nabami, a
special "Kumari Puja" was performed. The Vedic rituals and
the "mantras" of puja filled the
environment with heightened
spiritual feelings. The reading of
"slokas" from "Chandi" by our
priest Biswabhai in his usual magnificent tone filled our hearts
with devotion. This is always a
great attraction for all attendees. The celebrations ended
with Bisarjan on the day of
Dashami. In the evening, ladies
held the ritual of Sindoor Khela
and Arati. Durga Puja is the
happy time to buy new clothes
and jewelry. Stalls were set up
to provide that opportunity in
the premises. Durga Puja always
needs massive amount of prepa-
rations, planning, and cooking.
The call for volunteers was met
with a great many of such
people, very willing to selflessly
give their time.
One week after Durgotsav, on
18th October, Ananda Mandir
celebrated Kojagari Lakshmi puja
on a moonlit night (Purnima).
Following the ritualistic puja of
our Goddess of wealth and prosperity; puspanjali and arati were
offered by the devotees. Prasad
was cooked for all.
November
On November 2nd, Ananda
Mandir celebrated Maha Kali
Puja. Goddess Kali is the main
deity at Ananda Mandir, therefore, this event is always a big
attraction for the Kali devotees
in the area. Over 600 people
showed up to attend the puja
and offer puspanjali. Although
the puja was not completed
until late in the evening, about
11 pm, the devotees stayed on
until the completion of puja, to
see arati, offer pushpanjali, and
get prasad. A program of devotional songs was also arranged.
Ananda Mandir celebrated
Jagaddhatri Puja from 9th to
11th November. The puja procedure is similar to Durga Puja,
and many devotees came to
participate.
Ananda Mandir celebrated its
ninth year of "Foundation Day"
with devotional songs and Havan
(yagna) on14th November.
Raas Yatra and Satyanarayan
Puja were celebrated on 17th
November. Our own Dr. Manisha
Chakravarty presented "Raas
Leela" Katha, sang devotional
songs and read from Bhagabat
Gita.
December
Monthly Shyama puja was performed in "Amavasya" on the
2nd. Satyanarayan puja was
performed in "Purnima" on the
15th. Another Shyama puja is
scheduled on the 31st. On the
New Years day, Ananda Mandir
will remain open from 9:00am to
8:00pm to usher in the New
Year. Please stop by.
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU
ON BEHALF OF ANANDA MANDIR
Out Of The Blue
Continued from page 5
I must go home first. I was feeling very tired and thirsty.
While driving back home, suddenly it struck me, what if they
call the police now and giving
my license plate number they
set me up on a "hit and run"
case?" I continued to drive for
a few miles thinking and worrying and then turned back taking a U-turn and went to the
parking lot of the shop again. I
thought for a while and then
dialed the South Brunswick police and reported the whole incident. At the other end, a
woman, identified herself as the
Dispatcher # 10, took down the
report and assured me that they
wouldn't take any report from
the other party without contacting me first.
I was finally relieved from my
three hour ordeal. It was already
5 PM, I lost my appetite, I lost
my euphoria of having a clear
medical report on a fatal illness
and gave up the idea of celebrating it by eating my favorite sandwich while reading the book
about the white women's treatment to their colored maids in
the 60s. I didn't like to eat that
sandwich any more, at least not
at that moment; I tossed it
aside.
10
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
Seniors Forum
Seniors Enjoy a Field Trip
Reported by Debajyoti Chatterji
entire garden. A few intrepid
souls decided to take the opposite approach, and armed with
maps, took off on solo expeditions. Two groups of four went
on team explorations. But before
the whole gang broke up into
groups, all agreed to meet at the
cafeteria around 4 pm for some
tea and snacks before heading
back to Ananda Mandir.
(Photo by Dwipen Sarkar)
September 15 was a bright and
sunny day. A group of men and
women from the Ananda Mandir
community gathered in the parking lot of the Community Center building, all looking forward
to the "field trip" planned for the
day - a joint effort by the Seniors Forum and the Women's
Forum. This field trip was a first
for the Ananda Mandir seniors
(and near-seniors), so there was
some apprehension mixed with
excitement. They were going to
spend the afternoon in the
"Grounds for Sculpture", in
Hamilton, NJ (near Trenton),
reputed to be a beautifully landscaped garden sprawling over fifty
acres and showcasing hundreds
of sculptures. All were wondering: Will it be worth the effort?
Will it involve a lot of walking?
Will the group be asked to follow a lock-step team routine? Will
there be facilities for rest and relaxation and snacks?
Soon the assembled group divided itself into sub-groups and
hopped into four cars and
headed for their destination (a
fifth car was going to meet up
there). From Ananda Mandir, it
took them a little over an hour
to get to the gates of the
Grounds for Sculpture, only to
find long lines of slow-moving cars
ahead of them. Once they paid
their entrance fees (reduced for
seniors, of course), they found
themselves in parking lots filled
to the edges! What was going
on? Was this place so popular to
attract several hundreds of cars
on an early autumn Sunday?
That day, they will learn later, the
normally quiet and serene place
was one of the sites for the annual state-wide "story-telling festival", and kids and adults alike
loved the idea of listening to
expert story-tellers in beautiful
surroundings.
Not surprisingly the five cars
ended up in different parking lots
but after a few frantic cell phone
calls, the group of fifteen gathered together and developed
their game plans. A group of
keen-sighted women spotted a
guided tour vehicle and smartly
managed to book themselves for
the hour-long ride around the
When the group gathered in the
cafeteria around 4 pm, all agreed
that the Grounds for Sculpture
was a truly impressive place to
spend an afternoon or a full day.
The park-like setting housed over
230 sculptures by well-known
American and foreign sculptors.
Some of the sculptures were
abstract in concept or fantastically whimsical while others were
more serene and traditional.
Some were gigantic in size while
some were less than a foot tall.
Some were towering over their
settings and some were half-buried and barely noticeable. The
garden itself was divided into
many alcoves and vistas by winding pathways, interspersed with
benches for visitors to sit, relax
and admire nearby sculptures.
Two beautiful ponds with blooming water lilies and several buildings with indoor displays of sculptures completed the picture.
When the group of fifteen gathered at the prescribed time in
the cafeteria, all agreed that the
day trip had been a huge success - and that more such trips
to "undiscovered fun places" in
New Jersey and neighboring
states should be organized.
The following members of
Ananda Mandir participated in this
field trip: Suprasad Baidyaroy,
Pronoy and Swapna Chatterjee,
Debajyoti and Sikha Chatterji,
Amal and Reeta De, Anjana
Dutta, Surya Dutta, Hirak and
Suparna Guha, Dwipen and
Nandita Sarkar, Bandana Rakhit,
and Utpal Sengupta.
If you are interested in joining
future field trips by seniors, please
contact Debajyoti Chatterji
([email protected]).
Ananda Mandir
Seniors Forum
("Seniors Helping Seniors")
Invites retirees and nearretirees
to participate actively in Forum
meetings and activities.
Seniors Forum usually meets on
the third Sunday of every month
at 1:00 PM. However, the date
may change because of conflict
with other Ananda Mandir events.
Please contact Debajyoti Chatterji
(Cell: 908-507-9640) for latest
updates on the meeting dates.
Bye, Bye, Butler!
Continued from page 7
presence felt with her ravishing
countenance. It was quite an
experience for everyone. Nobody had witnessed an Indian
wedding ceremony in Butler
before! My husband's best
friend Suprasad had relied on the
help of the Indian community to
make all the arrangements for a
reception by the groom's side
later that evening. A handful
of my husband's kins and other
friends arrived from New York
and other faraway places. The
reception was held in the Graduate College where unmarried
graduate students studied beneath a medieval hammer beam
ceiling. Soon the unmarried
graduate students would flock
to our new residence after their
studies to taste freshly cooked
Indian food. Events at Butler
were recorded by graduate student friends with a borrowed
movie camera, though in their
inexperience they set it at the
wrong speed. Consequently,
when we watched it later the
sequence sped by at breakneck
pace, like a silent comedy movie.
It really looked like a Marriage in
a Hurry!
The next day our household
goods would arrive at Butler in
Suprasad Baidyaroy's Mustang.
In the beginning I found the
units to be ugly, but soon happiness started to float around.
The Butler apartments rang with
laughter, potlucks and games of
crossword puzzles. Everyone
around us was poor but happy.
I laugh to remember how the
graduate student from whom
we subleased our first Butler
residence came back unexpectedly and was dismayed with our
crowded arrangements and the
smell of our Indian cooking. He
told us to leave the apartment
immediately. Fortunately, after
a number of unsuccessful attempts to rent other places
around Princeton (including one
where we had to go through
an hour-long interview with a
landlady), we were successful in
getting another unit in Butler.
This one was a newer unit but
substantially smaller than the
first. Still, we were so excited
to be able to remain there.
Later on we would move to a
Butler unit that was bigger but
older. I went to look over another graduate student's apartment to get an idea what lay
ahead for us. My eyes went
wide when I saw the entire
apartment was strewn with
books and no furniture. The
wife told me that they opened
up the folding cot only at night,
so that it won't take away
space for their studies. They
seemed to have nothing but
their books; so immersed were
they in their studies.
During daytime the men folks
were seldom seen. To financially
support the penniless graduate
students, the Butler wives
would work as secretaries,
school teachers, piano teachers.
I started to go to Drew University with a graduate student's
Japanese wife in her car, commuting for an hour or so. Later
during the day I took care of
the children of Professor
Rudenstine (later to become
the President of Harvard). His
wife was an accomplished lady
who worked as a curator for a
New York art museum. Occasionally, the Rudenstines would
call me to take care of their kids
at night. Some of the other professors would also call me from
time to time to watch their children. Every bit of cash was important to us and I never refused any offer. We even
housesat for a family who left
their kids and pets behind for a
weeklong trip to Italy.
The cramped unit allowed no
space for storage. We had piles
of books heaped up on the floor
of our apartment. All the furniture was pushed to the walls.
My husband still tells everybody,
"When I was in graduate school
I used to live in military barracks,"
because the Butler houses were
originally US army barracks hauled
to Princeton after World War II
as emergency overflow for married graduate students. The
partition walls were so flimsy I
could hear the neighbor next
door every afternoon when he
came home for lunch and played
his Stevie Wonder. If we caught
a cold, our neighbors asked
about our health, having heard
the sneezing and hacking
through the walls. When we
called India in the middle of the
night, they would come to ask
us to speak softer, so they could
get their sleep. Phones and blue
aerograms were our only contact with home.
The units were so cold and so
drafty all winter that we would
cover the windows with plastic.
A monstrous space heater stood
right in the middle of the apartment. This was the sole source
of heat during winter. This
heater was of course used
sometimes as a buffet table, and
sometimes as a study table. At
times the summer heat was so
unbearable that we had to make
a trip to the fountain by the
Woodrow Wilson School in the
campus to soak ourselves in.
During the daytime the husbands were away but you could
always see a number of bicycles
lashed to the front post of the
units. We were poor, but how
sweetly I remember the wonderful (but somewhat painful)
rides on my husband's bike to
the Graduate College lawn to
join the young professors and
graduate students in folk dancing.
I can never forget my first Christmas at Butler. The wife of our
host family read stories to her
children during the Christmas day
dinner to which we were invited.
The same Christmas Eve, Dr.
Chakrabarti arrived with a bag of
presents that included my very
first winter coat, a gift my sister
bought with her savings.
My sister's first baby shower was
held in the party room of Butler,
next to the Butler Laundromat.
My sister was anxious to have
me invite all her elite Bengali
friends, when I was just learning how to cook as a new wife.
That was the Laundromat
where I made trips with a basketful of soiled clothes and could
chat with other graduate wives
about our lives. I learned different ways of saving money by
hand-washing and drying our
things on clothesline. We also
learned to grow our own vegetables in the tiny plot assigned
to us. We Butler wives met
periodically to cut coupons from
the newspapers. We scanned
near the bulletin board in the
Butler yard where the rich
Princetonians would leave their
castoff clothing and other items
for us struggling students. Our
other best bet was to make a
trip to the exchange where secondhand furniture and other
items were available. I remember an incident where a single
student picked up a double bed
over a single bed. We bickered
with him, insisting that a couple
needs a double bed more than
a bachelor. He took exception
to the point, but eventually
traded beds with me. Many
times we would complain to the
housing department for repairs
but they would demur, stating
that the units would be demolished soon. Years would go by
and the Butler still stayed the
same. For the years that followed we would religiously bring
our own kids every year to show
them where their parents
started their lives.
At the time we couldn't wait to
join the other established Indian
families in larger, more comfortable suburban houses. Eventually, we did. But now I look back
to the time and wish I could
start there at Butler all over
again.
Ananda Sangbad
Continued from page 7
the Cultivation of Science (IACS)
was established in Kolkata by Dr.
Mohendra Lal Sircar for pursuit
of research in science. A couple
of decades later in 1909, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc)
was born in Bangalore under the
sponsorship of Sir Jamshedji Tata,
the father of the steel industry
in India, who wanted to advance
technical education in India.
The Maharaja of Mysore donated land needed for the institute under entreaties of Sir
Jamshedji. In 1916, Pandit
Madan Mohan Malavya established Banaras Hindu University
with 1300 acres of land donated
by the then ruler of Kashi. And
Rabindranath Tagore, India's
Nobel laureate poet, formally
launched Visva Bharati in 1921.
After India's independence from
the British in 1947, the Central
Government continued to support this public/private dual approach to higher education but
introduced several new elements as well. Although higher
education remained the responsibility primarily of the states, the
central government became
heavily involved in the planning
and operation of the university
system in India. Both Jawaharlal
Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, and Maulana Abul Kalam
Azad, India's first Minister of Education were ardent supporters
of technical and scientific education in India. The Nehru government established the first
Indian Institue of Technology
(IIT) in the early fifties in
Kharagpur, West Bengal followed by three more in Madras,
Bombay and Kanpur. As degreegranting institutions, the IITs
were given unprecedented
autonomy and flexibility. They
were kept outside the purview
of the University Grants Commission (UGC) that was established
in 1952 to oversee the operation of public universities and to
provide much of the needed
funds. The UGC was also responsible for the "maintenance of
standards" across India's universities. Although the central government launched a few other
initiatives during the 1960s and
1970s, the overall architecture
for higher education in India remained generally stable and coherent during these decades.
Most of the Indian immigrants
in the US who arrived before the
1990s were the products of this
architecture of the Indian higher
education system. However, beginning in the 1990s, the Indian
university system began to undergo rapid and significant
changes that many of us are
only vaguely aware of.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
Currently, there are four types
of universities in India: central
January 2014
11
Higher Education in India
universities (and centrally
funded "institutes of national
importance"), state universities,
private universities, and
"deemed universities". (There
are also "autonomous colleges"
with degree-granting powers
that are not considered universities.) As discussed above, central and state universities and
private universities have been in
existence in India for a long
time. It is in the sphere of private universities, "deemed universities" and autonomous colleges where rapid and significant
changes have taken place within
the last 20 to 25 years. Today,
private institutions account for
almost 59% of all students enrolled in colleges and universities
in India. The state universities
account for 38% while the central government institutions account for approximately 3% of
all enrolled students.
Many of the premier universities
in India are directly funded and
administered by the central government. Currently, there are 44
"central universities" in India at
this time, the largest numbers
being in Delhi (5) and Uttar
Pradesh (4). And the number
of "institutes of national importance" stands at 40. Generally
blessed with high (and stable)
levels of funding, these institutions attract high quality faculty,
which in turn, attract high quality students. Admissions to these
universities and institutes are
usually based on intensive, nationwide competitive tests, and
huge numbers of students vie
to get into these highly selective universities. IITs (16 in total), All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (7), Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) (8)
, National Institutes of Technology (21), and Indian Institutes
of Information Technology Management (8) fall in the category
of "institutes of national importance". Visva Bharati is the only
"central university" in West Bengal.
State-sponsored universities in
India have traditionally been the
workhorse of higher education
for most college-bound students
in India, especially for students
entering liberal arts programs.
The number of universities in a
state usually depends on the
population as well as resources
available to the state. Most of
the state universities have colleges affiliated with them. These
affiliated colleges provide undergraduate education while the
universities manage and conduct
undergraduate qualifying examinations, and are responsible for
granting of degrees. Universities
also conduct courses at postgraduate level awarding Masters
and Doctoral degrees. The doctoral program in a typical Indian
university is very much like that
in the United Kingdom where
little emphasis is put on course
work and is based solely on the
dissertation written under the
guidance of an approved "guide"
or professor. The total number
of state universities in India currently exceeds 300. In recent
years the number of private
universities has soared, but most
of these newly established private institutions have targeted
professional fields such as engineering, pharmacy, medicine,
architecture, etc. - not the liberal arts. There were only about
20 private universities in India in
2001. In 2012, there were 166
private universities in India, concentrated mostly in the western India. Most of these universities operate as non-profit arms
of non-governmental organizations. Interestingly, in 2012
West Bengal had 1 private university and Maharastra had
none, whereas Rajasthan had 33
and Uttar Pradesh 23! It may
be hard to believe, but in 20112012, 91% of students in engineering diploma programs in the
country were enrolled in private
universities. For pharmacy, the
figure was 95%, for medicine,
it was 50%, for management,
the percentage was 67, and so
on. Thus, not only has the number of private universities multiplied rapidly, education in professional fields has become privatized to a very significant extent.
"Deemed universities" are
unique to India. As mentioned
before, prior to independence,
several private institutions of
higher learning were developed
in India. The Education Commission headed by Dr S.
Radhakrishnan (a noted philosopher and the second President
of India) recommended in 1948
that some of these institutions
should be recognized as autonomous and given the authority to
grant degrees. Accordingly, the
Government of India made a
provision under the UGC Act of
1956 to recognize some institutions as "deemed to be universities". However, at the beginning such recognitions were
conferred on only a handful of
institutions of higher learning
(for example, Indian Institute of
Science in Bangalore was given
this recognition in 1958). Only
29 deemed universities were
recognized from 1956 to 1990.
But after 1990, the number of
"deemed universities" proliferated rapidly, with the total reaching 130 by 2008 (this number
does not include the regional
engineering colleges that were
given degree granting powers
in 2008). Of the total, 44%
are in the public sector while
56% are in the private sector.
The central government
stopped granting "deemed university" status in 2009. In fact,
it tried to strip 44 institutions off
their deemed university honor,
resulting in law suits before the
Supreme Court of India. The
matter is still not fully resolved.
Tamil Nadu boasts the highest
number of deemed universities,
29 in all, while West Bengal is
home of one such university
(Ramakrishna
Mission
Vivekananda University in Belur).
It should be noted that deemed
universities have one restriction:
they cannot operate "affiliated
colleges".
EMERGING ISSUES
Looking simply at the numbers,
India seems to have an impressive system of higher education.
Almost 17 million students are
enrolled in 634 universities with
over 33,000 affiliated and autonomous colleges, involving
some 817,000 faculty members.
True, India has one of the largest educational systems in the
world. Also true, higher education in India has expanded rapidly since independence, especially in the last 20 years or so,
and higher education is now
reaching the masses, not just an
elite few. However, the system
faces formidable challenges.
To understand how a country is
performing, the United Nations
uses a metric: Gross Enrollment
Ratio (GER). Simply, it is the ratio of actual number of students
attending colleges to the total
number college-age inhabitants
in the country. GER is highly
correlated with the economic
development of the country,
education being a major factor
in driving economic growth of a
country. Against this metric, India compares very unfavorably
with many nations including
China. The world average for
GER is 26%, China has it at 23%
while for India it is 13.8%. There is also wide disparity
among the states in terms of
GER. In the eastern Indian
states like Bihar, Orissa and West
Bengal the GER is around 11%,
while the Western Indian states
like Maharastra and Gujarat report GER of about 25%.
Although achieving excellence in
education has been the professed policy objective of the
Indian government for many
decades, the country lacks the
institutional framework needed
to achieve such excellence.
The major problem facing higher
education is the lack of properly
trained faculty resources. Most
of the private institutions are
not staffed with properly qualified people. The pay structure
is not adequate to attract the
best and the brightest to join
these institutions. Only a handful of centrally funded institutions
such as the IITs and the IIMs
are attractive places to work.
Many private universities in technical fields have inadequate laboratories and equipment.
From my personal experience of
working in several institutions in
India, I found that there is little
incentive for faculty and administrators to achieve excellence.
Here are some issues that hinder
the achievement of excellence
in public institutions.
1. There is no real evaluation
of faculty performance that has
any consequences.
2. There is little incentive to
work harder as the salary is determined by the Pay Commission.
3. Promotion is based on seniority, not performance.
4. The culture of equality
guides determination of pay
raises and other incentives,
rather than productivity.
5. Corruption in the form of
political influence prevents hiring of competent people. This
dangerous practice is the proverbial "elephant in the room"
that nobody talks about.
6. Most private institutions are
concerned about generating
"profit" or surplus. Education has
become a lucrative business.
Many politicians either in office
or out of office are crowned as
heads of private colleges and
universities and are paid generous salaries and perks. Although
colleges by definition are not-forprofit organizations, the promoters of such colleges do indeed
bilk the institutes in many ways
as I have noted in my experience in India. The central government control also has led to
institutionalization of corrupt
practices in many insidious ways.
Many people in India claim that
the open market system will
ensure quality because those
institutions that perform inadequately will be eliminated for
lack of customer demand. While
this argument is intellectually
compelling, it relies on the presence of an efficient market system where the customers are
fully knowledgeable about their
choices. Unfortunately, parents
of many students in the rural
areas of India have little knowledge about strengths and weaknesses of competing colleges.
And they spend their hardearned money for the education
of their children often on the
wrong choice. In order to make
significant economical and technological advances, India needs
to simplify its unnecessarily complex system of higher education,
establish a much stronger payfor-performance culture, weed
out corruption, and achieve a
greater uniformity in quality of
education across its colleges and
universities.
12
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
YOUTH SECTION
Stress, Beta-endorphins, and Cancer Growth
By: Ankush Rakhit
Editor's Note: An article titled "Stress, Beta-endorphins, and Cancer Growth" was published in the
October issue of Ananda Sangbad by Ankush Rakhit, a young high school student in our community.
This resulted from his work as an intern in the "Internship Program" initiated by Ananda Mandir. The
photos below show his certification of completion of the program under the director of the Endocrine
Lab, Dr. Dipak Sarkar, also President of Ananda Mandir.
KISHALOY
Kishaloy is a monthly wall magazine for the youth. When you come to Ananda Mandir, you will see it
hanging on the wall in the community building. Any youth member of Ananda Mandir can submit
poetry, short stories, scientific article, artwork, and photographs for the magazine. The youth group of
Ananda Mandir meets generally on Sunday afternoons. An email list of the youth group volunteers will
be published shortly. All youth group volunteers will receive official certificates from Ananda Mandir for
their volunteer services. For more information, contact Dipak Sarkar at email: [email protected];
Phone: 609.651.1023
Continued from page 8
within the close proximity of
Vishwanath temple. It is one of
the 51 Shakti Peethas. Shakti
Peethas, spread over Indian subcontinent, are places of worship
of the female principal of Hinduism - Shakti. At every Shakti
Peetha the Goddess has her
husband Lord Shiva accompanying her in different names as in
Kashi he is called Vishwanath the lord of the universe.
Sapta Tirtha
What are the Puja timings at
Kashi Vishwanath temple?
The temple on regular days remains open from 5:30 in the
morning to 12:00 noon. Then
it reopens at 4:00 p.m., and
closes after the last puja at 8:00
p.m. Aarati is rendered five times
each day. During the evening
Aarati known as "Shringar
Aarati", the Jyotirlinga is decorated with flowers and bel
Summer Internship
Program
for College Students And
High School Seniors
Ananda Mandir has launched Summer Internship for college students and high school seniors. This year it recruited three interns in biological science area . It will
continue recruiting for the internship program for the next
year again. The program will include learning and helping research works in the areas of biological science, physical science and engineering at various laboratories in New
Jersey. Additional internship opening will be in the area of
pharmacy in New York City. Some internships are paid,
others are voluntary. Paid interns have to be minimum 18
years old and US citizens or permanent residents. For the
next year's internship, application with resume indicating
the area of internship interest should be sent to Dr. Pronoy
Chatterjee, e-mail: [email protected] by March 31,
2014.
leaves.
How to visit Varanasi and get
around while in the city?
International flight to any major
metro in India - Kolkata, Mumbai,
Delhi, and Chennai has connecting flight to Varanasi Airport,
which is about 25km from the
city. Major local Indian carriers like
Indian Airlines, Jet Airways, Kingfisher and SpiceJet have direct
flights to Varanasi. Connecting
flights can be booked online
(makemytrip.com) from international locations and e-tickets
printouts will be conveniently
handy for international travelers planning to visit the holy
city of Varanasi. From Varanasi
airport, road transportations are
available including pre-paid
taxis. On an adventurous
mood, one can take an autorickshaw to Varanasi inhaling
the holy dust and air of Kashi
and having a closer look at the
soil and its habitants.
Varanasi is well connected
by trains:
Varanasi bound train tickets
from Kolkata, Delhi, Agra,
Lucknow and Mumbai are easily available from NRI quota tickets reserved by Indian Railways. For international travelers, it will be a worthwhile experience to get to know the
local crowds of Indian soil by
traveling in trains. The ride is
bit overcrowded but one desirous to get the flavor of the
soil may like traveling with local people, get to know their
beliefs and culture and feel the
warmth that flows from their
hearts for co-travelers heading
for destination Varanasi. I had
taken a train from Varanasi on
my way back to Mumbai. The
train ride through the first two
stations was extremely slow;
the train was literally crawling
through the tracks. There
were local villagers catching-up
with the train to sell bananas
freshly picked from banana
plantations running in the fields
beside the railway tracks. Passengers were delighted to
purchase low cost bananas
(green skin but ripe and
sweet) in dozens. I had purchased some as well and had
the tastiest bananas of my life.
Yes, testier than "Dole" or
"Chiquita". And I am not being prejudiced.
What else is unique about
Varanasi?
Well, I would definitely recommend two things - a boat ride
on the river Ganges covering
the length and breadth of the
ghats especially in the evening
when the Sun is about to set and
temple bells ring for evening
Aarati, and a rickshaw ride within
Varanasi. The city is very old and
has many tiny, narrow winding
alleys, which connect to many
places that are recommended
tourist spots. And, again, for
those who are adventurous,
there are bikes available exclusively for tourists. Just ride a bike
with a guided book of directions
to recommended spots in hand,
and you will experience a sense
of joy meandering through the
alleys of the old city, vibrant, and
displaying the religious pulse of
India.
A ride through the Banaras Hindu
University road shaded with tall
mango trees on both sides is another unique experience. Of
course, what is singularly unique
about Varanasi is that in the midst
of everything that is so full of life
seeking Lord Shiva's blessings for
healthy, prosperous living, there
is a parallel panel of people who
are desirous for death in this holy
place so that they attain
"moksha"- liberation from the
cycle of birth and death. So, on
the banks of river Ganges there
is Assi Ghat with lovely hotels,
restaurants and even Internet
Cafes. And, there is Kedar Ghat
which is beautifully painted reflecting the colors of life making
it a photographers' cherished
spot. Yet, there is Narad Ghat
where married couples are advised to bathe for harmony and
peace in life together. Finally, in
contrast, there are Harishchandra
Ghat and Manikarnika Ghat where
cremation takes place liberating
the soul from the bondage of
body. Such uniquely diverse is
Varanasi. Do plan a trip in the
name of "Om Namah Shivaya!"
With this series we have covered
four of seven Sapta Tirthas especially written for Ananda
Sangbad readers - Mathura, Puri,
Ayodhya and Varanasi. In our next
series we will cover Haridwar. Stay
tuned and stay blessed.
Ananda Mandir
is pleased to announce the launch of a program to
award financial grants to support
Community Service Projects
aimed at helping the South Asian community
in the Greater New Jersey area
----------Project Proposals Are Welcome
From Organizations and Individuals
Please visit www.anandamandir.org
for program details and
application requirements
or
Contact:
Pronoy Chatterjee ([email protected]) or
Debajyoti Chatterji ([email protected])
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SECTION
13
Sahitya O Alochana
Reported by Subrata Bhaumik
Continued from page 7
This column is prepared with the assistance of Dr. Rajat Bannerji (Member, Rutgers Cancer
Institute of New Jersey; Associate Professor of Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical
School).
Preventing Illness During
Travel to India
By Rachna Gupta MD, MPH
Are you planning a trip to
India?Pre-travel planning for preventing illness is often a neglected part of travel preparation. Whether traveling back
home to visit friends and family
or traveling for work, failing to
anticipate and recognize potential exposures and health risks
leads to high rates of travel related infectious diseases. Expatriates often underestimate
their own risk of illness and erroneously believe that living in
India in the past will protect
them from illness during visits
back home. Typhoid, malaria
and other mosquito borne illnesses are common and often
preventable causes of illness in
travelers returning from India.
Vaccines, certain prophylactic
medications, and educating
yourself are effective ways to
prevent illness during travel.
Typhoid fever is a bacterial illness
acquired by contaminated food
or water. The bacteria are ingested, invade through the
small bowel, and reach the
bloodstream causing fever, abdominal pain, rash, and in many
persons can lead to serious complications like intestinal hemorrhage, abscesses, coma and
death. According to the Centers
for Disease Control (CDC), almost
two thirds of typhoid fever cases
among returning US travelers are
imported from the Indian subcontinent; the number of new
cases is nearly 18 fold higher than
for persons returning from travel
to any other geographic region.
Also, due to increasing drug resistance to many oral antibiotics, treatment of the Typhoid
fever acquired in India now requires intravenous antibiotics. A
person who has had typhoid
fever in the past is not protected against reinfection in the
future.
Vaccination is an effective way
of preventing Typhoid fever. The
vaccine is available in oral form
(Ty21, Vivotif®), which can be
given to persons as young as age
6. It comes as a preparation of
4 capsules that must be refrigerated. One capsule is taken
every other day, and the schedule should be completed at least
one week before your departure
date. It protects against typhoid
for 5 years but is not recommended for persons who are
immunosuppressed or are taking
antibiotics. The intramuscular
injectable vaccine (Typhim Vi®)
can be given to children as
young as age 2. For best protection, immunization should be
received at least two weeks
prior to travel. Booster doses are
recommended every 2 years.
Neither vaccine provides absolute immunity, but the benefit
clearly outweighs the risk.
Receiving vaccine must be combined with exercising basic food
and water safety which protects
not only from typhoid but also
other gastrointestinal illnesses
including diarrhea, dysentery,
cholera, and some viral hepatitis. Suitable drinking water
should be bottled (obtained
from a reliable source), boiled
(CDC recommends a rolling boil
for one minute, then cooled),
or filtered. Avoid unpasteurized
milk, undercooked eggs and
meats, or salads. Raw vegetables should be washed with
clean drinking water and peeled,
preferably by the traveler, before being eaten. Remember,
only ice made with clean drinking water should be consumed.
Malaria is a life threatening infection caused by a microorganism
that can be injected into one's
blood during a mosquito bite.
Infection can initially manifest
with chills, high fevers, jaundice,
headache, vomiting and abdominal pain and requires prompt
evaluation and treatment. Some
species of malaria (Plasmodium
vivax and Plasmodium ovale) can
become dormant in the liver
during infection and cause relapse infection months, sometimes years after travel. Traveling through most of India, including the greater metropolitan
areas, at any the time of year is
risky for acquiring malaria, and
prevention using antimalarial
medication is recommended.
According to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation statistics, approximately 42,000 cases of
malaria in 2011 and 36,000
cases of malaria in 2012 were
diagnosed in the local municipality clinics. This number likely underestimates the actual burden
of malaria cases in Kolkata. Exception to the recommended
prophylaxis applies only for travel
to areas at altitudes over 2000
meters (6000 feet) in Himachal
Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir,
and Sikkim.
Due to drug resistant malaria in
India, medications used in pre-
vention include atovaquoneproguanil
(tradename
Malarone®), doxycycline, or
mefloquine
(tradename
Lariam®). When taken properly, these medications greatly
reduce the risk of acquiring malaria. Atovaquone-proguanil
must be taken daily starting 1-2
days before leaving for India and
should be continued for 7 days
after returning from India. Doxycycline must also be taken daily
starting 1-2 days before leaving
for India and should be continued for 4 weeks after returning
to the US. Mefloquine is taken
once weekly, starting at least 2
weeks before leaving for India
and MUST also be continued for
4 weeks after returning from
India. The choice of which medication to take should be discussed with your prescribing
physician and is usually based on
the duration of your trip, your
other medications and medical
conditions, convenience, and
tolerability of the medication.
Of note, people returning from
India and other countries where
malaria transmission occurs are
not permitted to donate blood
in the US for a period of time
(usually one year) after their
return.
In addition to malaria, other important mosquito-borne illnesses
encountered in India include
Dengue virus, Chikungunya virus,
and Japanese Encephalitis virus
infections. While the mosquitoes that transmit malaria bite
between dusk and dawn, these
illnesses can be spread by daytime biting mosquitoes and have
occurred as epidemics. There
is no specific antibiotic/ antiviral
treatment for each of these
beyond supportive medical care,
so protecting yourself from mosquito bites is the best prevention. The CDC recommends insect repellent sprays containing
DEET (at least 30-50%) and
wearing full sleeved clothing,
tucked in shirt, and long pants
to minimize exposed skin. The
sprays can last about 4 to 6 hours
and come off earlier with sweat
and rain, so should be reapplied
during the day. Clothing can also
be pre-treated with permethrin,
an insecticide, which is retained
in clothing and remains effective
even after several washings.
Sleeping under insecticide
impregnanted bed nets (available online or through sports/
camping supply stores) is highly
effective and often a novel experience for children. Staying
in air conditioned rooms and
the U.S., especially in Louisiana
and the Northeast. These researches clearly and convincingly
identified these groups as
Bengali Chikandars and Laskars
who hailed from what is presently Bangladesh vis-à-vis the
Lucknow Chikandars from North
India. The session was very informative and was well attended. The discussion leader
for this session was Debajyoti
Chatterji.
October was our international
economics and finance month.
Subrata Bhaumik led an animated and robustly attended
session focusing on an issue that
has impacted, and will continue
to do so, our lives in the South
Asian community in one way or
the other. And the topic was
entitled "What is happening to
the Indian Rupee?" The session
included a discussion on the
interconnectedness of the financial systems in a globalized
economy, a background of the
recent precipitous fall in the
value of the Indian Rupee and
the worsening affairs of the
country's economy, and what
are some of the ways that will
help boost the currency's value
in the short term. Two other
veterans of our alochana community, Gautam Goswami and
Aniruddha Sanyal, also assisted
Subrata in the discussion. An
article on the same topic
authored by Subrata also appears in the current issue of
Ananda Sangbad.
Finally the "holiday session" was
held in December. This session
was unique because it was our
tightly screened rooms, if available, also reduce exposure to
mosquitoes.
Before your trip, check with your
physician if your routine vaccinations are up to date. MeaslesMumps-Rubella (MMR), tetanusdiptheria-pertussis (Tdap), poliovirus, and seasonal influenza are
some vaccines that can be administered by your general physician. Some require a one-time
booster in adulthood, if previously immunized, while the Tdap
requires a booster vaccine every 10 years and the influenza
vaccine is given yearly. Hepatitis
A vaccine is an effective vaccine
for a preventable disease and
appears to confer lifelong immunity. Many adults who grew up
in India may already have natural immunity to Hepatitis A. Your
physician can check your Hepatitis A antibody levels in your
blood. If Hepatitis A antibody is
absent from the blood, vaccine
is recommended.
Depending on when and where
in India you are visiting, there
have been local outbreaks and
some persistent endemic illnesses.
These
include
Chikungunya virus (2005-2006),
Acute Encephalitis Syndrome in
first discussion on a sports topic.
The session featured a presentation on "The Cricketing Life of
Sachin Tendulkar."
It was a timely topic that coincided with the retirement of this
most celebrated icon of the
cricketing world. Attendees indulged in the intoxication of their
younger days; appreciated his
outstanding career; and paid
respect to arguably the best
ever cricketer. A healthy debate
ensued the presentation, which
addressed some of the noncricketing issues related to
Tendulkar including some of his
awards and accolades; his demigod status in India; and the obsessive fanfare that he enjoys
in the sports of cricketing world.
Rishi Bhattacharjee, the leader
of the session, enthralled the
participants with a vibrant, passionate, and informative audio/
video presentation.
Future sessions - Quite a few
interesting sessions are in the
pipeline for the next few
months including "Influence of
Indian Philosophy on Western
Literature" with specific references to the works of T.S. Eliot
and W. B. Yeats; a reading of
works of local writers; "Evolution
and Future Outlook of the Indian Outsourcing Industry in the
Global Market" and an intriguing
discussion on "Life After Death."
The friends of Sahitya O
Alochana would like to thank
Ananda Mandir for its continued
support for the forum's contribution to the cultural enrichment of the local Bengali and
Indian community.
Uttar Pradesh (since 2005),
Hepatitis E in Maharashtra
(2012), Dengue virus (nationwide), Japanese Encephalitis Virus, and Rabies. Some of these
are preventable with vaccine
(i.e. Japanese Encephalitis and
Rabies) taken prior to travel and
with precautions taken during
travel. Being aware of the latest news at your travel destination can help you better plan
prevention strategies.
Travel health information and the
latest health alerts are available
on the CDC website. Adults,
children, women who may be
pregnant, persons who are
immuno-suppressed or with
chronic illnesses should discuss
their travel plans with their physicians for individualized travel
advice who, if necessary, may
refer travelers to specialized infectious diseases/ travel medicine
clinics.
So, as you plan and pack for your
next trip to India, give consideration to the health risks and
learn about ways to reduce your
risk and to maintain your health
during travel. Safe Journey!
14
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
COMMUNITY NEWS
Survival Story of a Woman during
Typhoon in Philippines
Communicated by Partha Chatterjee
Editor's Note: Here is a mail
that crossed our desk depicting the survival of an eighty
seven years old (November
2013) typhoon in Philippines,
where several thousands perished and millions turned homeless. This was one of the worst
natural disasters recorded in
the recent history of the world.
We wanted to share with our
readers the demonstration of
courage and wisdom of this
eighty seven years old lady
while she fought with the
massive flood and devastation,
as well as her escape from the
scene. The following e-mail
was written by her daughter
to her relatives.
"Date of the incident:
November 8, 2013
Location:
Tacloban City, Leyte, Philippines
Hi everyone,
Louie came back last Tuesday
and I just arrived last Thursday
from Manila, tired and exhausted
from anxiety, all arrangements
and having a long travelling. The
end result though came out
very positive. Mama survived the
worst typhoon ever to hit
Tacloban City. She is safe and in
good health. She is currently in
Manila and will be flying back to
New Jersey on November 30th
with Bim. My sincere gratitude
to you for all your powerful
prayers, support and concerns.
Below is the detail of her unforgettable experience.
My mother survived the strong
typhoon and the dangers of
travelling out of Tacloban. I
would say the house was structurally strong and built on a
good foundation so it is still
standing, but only without roof
and with shattered windows.
Mama was all alone in the house
when the typhoon hit the area.
Water rose up to her neck in
the living room and up to her
waist in her bedroom. Things
floated including furniture and
bed mattresses. She would have
drowned if the water rose for
another few inches. However,
the good thing was, the water
subsided the same day. But,
the house remained muddy. She
said, "I didn't panic nor did I feel
any fear".
Two days later, on Tuesday, a
family friend of ours, who drove
from Manila with his son, went
to check on her and found her
in the living room, sitting on a
chair with an umbrella. He told
her to pack her things and he
would give her a ride to Manila.
He and his son had to carry her
out to the van. While driving out
of Tacloban, she saw dead bodies on the road side and the
place smelled real bad. They
drove via Catbalogan, then ran
out of gas in Calbayog and
waited in line for five hours for
gas. They had to stay overnight
at a hotel, where they had the
last available room. They left
early in the next morning, took
the cargo vessel, then drove
again to Legaspi City. Mama
along with the son of the family
friend planned to take the plane
to Manila. It took them one and
half days on the road to reach a
place where there was an available flight to Manila. It was a
risky escape from Tacloban, as
they were stopped several
times along the way by suspicious people. It was a good
thing that our family friend was
an ex-cop and had a gun with
him. He said it was really a life
and death situation.
My older sister, Gilda who arrived
at Manila from San Francisco early
Wednesday morning, booked
the Thursday flight for Mama and
her companion from Legaspi to
Manila. However, she called me
at 8 AM Thursday and said that
she just found out that her credit
card which she used to buy the
PAL tickets was denied. She
asked me to call PAL and square
it out. To make the long story
short, I couldn't do anything as
the flight was scheduled to depart in less than 4 hours. The
only way Mama could board the
plane was to pay the airfare
upon check- in. So I called our
family friend and told him the
scenario. Fortunately, Mama had
enough cash and she was able
to fly to Manila. She told us that
if she didn't have cash, it would
take them another day to drive
all the way to Manila.
When she got settled at my
uncle's house in Ayala Heights,
we asked her why she had so
much cash with her? Her reply
was that she withdrew money
a week before to treat her
friends for her birthday on November 14. Who would think
that money was going to be
used to get her out of Tacloban
- she had to pay extra for the
gas, hotel stay and the cargo
vessel ..."kailangan ng lagay,
lagay, lagay..." in order to move
fast.
We were really impressed with
her presence of mind during the
typhoon as she stated the following:
1. She made sure she had all her
medicines in a zip lock... and her
Oil of Olay!
2. She also placed 30k cash, her
ATMs and bank passbooks in a
plastic bag, though they got
wet.
3. She survived with chocolates,
vienna sausage and spam stored
in her bedroom and a water
bottle. She would take a sip of
the water little by little.
"Nakakasawa na daw kainin."
4. Three men entered the
house and were asking her to
leave due to danger, but her
response was "I am alone and
can barely walk. I will stay, just
stay here". The men left without taking anything. She assumed they felt sorry for her.
The day she arrived in Manila,
Thursday Nov 14, it was her
87th birthday. She was truly
blessed! We thought she would
be very tired, weak and we
were afraid of her getting pneumonia. But no, she was strong
and bubbly, excited to tell us her
unusual experience. She was
even mad at my sister for bringing her to the hospital for a
check-up, saying there's nothing wrong with her. However,
two days later, she complained
of pain on her right foot. Then
she confessed that she stepped
on something. My sister brought
her to UP clinic where she was
given an anti-tetanus shot, antibiotic and cream to prevent
infection.
She said that this was definitely
her memorable birthday ever.
As for your proposal for Christmas gifts to typhoon victims,
thank you. I will look into contact persons who will benefit
directly from your generous help
and will let you know. It really
makes a difference to have a
support group in times of need."
News You May Have Missed
End Of A Legend
Prabodh Chandra Dey (1 May
1919-24 October 2013), known
by his stage name Manna Dey,
a giant in Hindi film songs for
seven decades, and ever popular with the Bengali music lovers, is no more.. The Government of India honored him with
the Padma Shri in 1971, the
Padma Bhushan in 2005 and the
Dadasaheb Phalke Award in
2007. He was presented the
Filmfare Life Time Achievement
Award in 2011.
At the celebration of
50 years singing life
at Netaji Indoor Stadium, Kolkata.
Dey attended Scottish Church Collegiate
School and Scottish
Church College and
eventually graduated
from Vidyasagar College. Dey
started taking music lessons from
his famous uncle, classical singer
Krishna Chandra Dey and also
from Ustad Dabir Khan.
Upon moving to Mumbai with his
uncle for a career in films, he
debuted in the film Tamanna in
1942, and went on to record
more than 4000 songs from
1942 to 2013. He recorded his
duet song with Suraiya in
Tamanna, and then went on to
sing with Shamshad Begum, the
queen of film music at the time,
and eventually with Lata, Asha,
Geeta Dutt and many current
singers in the music industry today.
Dey sang many duets with male
singers too, notably with
Mohammed Rafi and Kishore
Kumar. An incident while singing "Ek Chatur Naar" in Padosan
(1965), with Kishore Kumar, got
wide publicity. Reportedly the
song was partly improvised by
Kishore Kumar at the time of recording and Manna Dey, determined to show Kishore
Kumar how he would
sing the duet better
(since Kishore had not
been trained classically), got into the
mood of the song and
thus immortalized the
song. Though Manna
Dey was disappointed
that he lost to Kishore on-screen
for the song at the time of film's
release, they became good
friends later. In an interview in
1987, Dey said about Kishore in
admiration that with the kind of
variety of songs - folk, pop,
western and classical based
songs sung by Kishore Kumar
from 1968 to 1987, he was definitely greater than Dey himself
and at par with Rafi and Mukesh.
Manna Dey will remain immortal
in the horizon of Indian Film
Music.
Reference: Wikipedia
News You May Have Missed
Parthasarathi Bhattacharya
Ananda Mandir Life Member - a film producer
Ananda Mandir’s Life Member has produced the only English language documentary, one hour long, for
sequicentennial brith anniversary of our beloved poet
Rabindranath.
Partha Bhattacharya, the Producer/Director is a professional engineer in New Jersey and New York with a life long interest in arts
and music. An ancestor of him worked with the poet and polymath
Rabindranath Tagore. This opened the door for him to meet the
core associates of the poet including professor Amiya Chakravarty
who last taught at SUNY, New Paltz, NY. Professor Chakravarty
took down by hand the conversations between Einstein and Tagore
which has come to be known as the East West Dialogue and left
the poet's legacy on a video tape. In addition, Partha procured a
copy of the rare tome The Golden Book of Rabindranath Tagore
sponsored by Gandhi, Einstein, Romain Rolland et al and published
in 1931.
When the United Nations observed in 2009 that the sesquicentennial birth anniversary of the poet would be celebrated world
over and UNESCO kicked off celebrations in Paris in May 2010, Partha
saw it appropriate to bind all the information in a film for the students and educational institutions all over the world. The movie
documents messages from renowned world leaders and displays
many celebrations around the world and provides a renewed platform for hope and inspiration through greatest songs and poems
of the poet amid wars and strife. The concept and creation of this
film by one family sans outside financial help, took about two and a
half years to accomplish. It is hoped that this will be a world class
heritage film and leave a permanent legacy for mankind to live in
peace and harmony, championing the poet's vision. Source: Author
Ananda Sangbad
January 2014
15
COMMUNITY NEWS
News You May Have Missed
Raj Mukherjee - A NJ State
Assemblyman
Democratic party nominee Raj Mukherji, a rising Indian-American
figure on the political scene of New Jersey, has won the State
Assembly polls in New Jersey, becoming one of the youngest to
be elected to the house. 29-year-old Mukherji, a first-time Democratic nominee for the 33rd Legislative District and former Jersey
City Deputy Mayor, had won the primary election in June by a 36point margin. According to the Office of County Clerk, Hudson
County, Mukherji got 18,586 votes and will represent the Legislative District, which covers Hoboken, Union City, Weehawken
and parts of Jersey City.
He is the son of Indian American immigrants and has had a stellar
rise in the political arena. According to information provided by
his 'Raj Mukherji for Assembly' website, Mukherji supported himself through high school, college and grad school as an emancipated minor when his parents were forced to return to India
due to economic constraints. His father Asim Mukherji was an
accountant who could not work because of health reasons and
could not afford health coverage without employment. "This
experience shaped Raj's perspective and interest in healthcare
and inspired much of his subsequent advocacy in that field," according to personal information about Mukherji posted on the
website.
From March 2012 through June 2013, Mukherji served as one of
the two Deputy Mayors of Jersey City, New Jersey's second largest city. He had also founded an internet consulting and software development company while in middle school, which he
later sold to a larger technology company.
Following the September 11 attacks in the city, Mukherji joined
the US Marines at age 17, where he served in military intelligence
for the Marine Corps Reserve. At 19, he co-founded a public
affairs firm that he grew into the state's third largest lawyerlobbying firm while learning the inner workings of the State House.
With clients ranging from social justice causes to higher education institutions to government agencies to Fortune 500 corporations, he advocated to abolish the death penalty in New Jersey
and replace it with life imprisonment without parole and lobbied
for equality for lesbians, gays and transgender community.
At age 24, Mukherji was appointed the youngest Commissioner
and Chairman in the history of the Jersey City Housing Authority
- the state's second largest housing authority - where his work
for various reforms at the USD 70 million agency serving over
16,000 residents and over 6,700 households was widely appreciated.
Source - Internet News
NJPA Corner
Reported By Prasenjit Baisya
This year, Ma Kali was truly benevolent to the NJPA folks. A year
back, the trials and tribulations of Sandy had led to sad last-minute
cancellations. The year before, a sudden and horribly inconvenient
snowstorm had led to a paltry audience for the Puja. Not so this year,
with the blessings of the Divine Mother !!! The weather, albeit cold,
did not stop a sizeable gathering at the Judd Elementary School.
The loyal lifers, young and old, some newcomers, some old-timers ,
all turned up to enjoy the NJPA Kali Puja 2013.
It is a strange yet benign coincidence that the NJPA Kali Puja still
remains the only "barowari" style Puja in New Jersey. There are others , of course, in the religious places of worship but none in our
beloved Bengali style where the music, fun, frolic and food are the
core ingredients to a memorable and enjoyable Puja. Thus the charm
of this one , still going strong at close to 40 years. This organization
prides itself on the food it serves to guests and this year was no
exception. Added to that ed this year. There was the precocious
talent of a young singer from a recent talent show, Malabika Guha's
dance troupe with their beautiful choreographed formations and the
local Bengali Band Oikataan, refreshingly different in their renditions.
To honor the recent and heartbreaking demise of a musical giant ,
our beloved Manna Da, some of NJPA's members performed a medley of his songs in remembrance. Finally, the immensely talented and
rising young musician Shamit Tyagi, took the stage, beginning with a
pleasantly surprising Shyamasangeet, moving onto many popular Bengali
and recent Hindi songs. Shamit literally brought the house down,
getting many of the audience on the floor dancing with him and to
crown it all, even had the two hall custodians dancing in the final
numbers !!! Please check out our website at : http://njpa.net for past
and upcoming events or connect with us on Facebook (NJPA Parivar).
ICC Corner
Reported By Soumyendra Seal
ICC Garden State celebrated its biggest event of the year, the 2013 Durga Puja, on the weekend of
October 5th and 6th at the Parsippany High School. This event had a special significance as the ICC
Durga Puja, also locally known as the Parsippany Durga Puja, was a 'home coming' for us in many
ways. I, on behalf of the rest of the ICC Executive Committee, take this opportunity to thank all
members and patrons who helped in making this a grand success.
ICC maintained its tradition of holding the Durga Pujas in a homely and cordial environment, with
active participation of all its members, all coming together and making it one huge extended family
event. For many, the event actually started on Friday evening, when they gathered to setup the
Protima, stage and the adjoining areas. The local performers also took this opportunity to do a final
stage rehearsal.
This year's event was in stark contrast from last year's, which was marred by Hurricane Sandy. The
two hundred and fifty odd families that attended the puja this year were all dressed in their festive
attire, and were treated to two days of solemn pujas, sumptuous food and great entertainment. A
large number of vendors also attended offering everything from dresses, jewelry, books, periodicals
and CD/DVDs, which provided the attendees with ample choices to complete their puja shopping.
There were also a couple of snack bars selling authentic Bengali cuisine and refreshments.
The Maha Saptami and Maha Ashtami Pujas were observed on the 5th with devotees offering their
Pushpanjali and then getting Prasad at its conclusion. A delicious Bengali dinner which included
traditional vegetarian dishes, goat curry and mishti - was served prior to the commencement of the
cultural program.
Rumeli Dutta Majumdar, an ICC member and an upcoming Dancer and Choreographer from Kolkata,
accompanied by other ICC Members opened the cultural program with a tantalizing performance of
'Mahishasura Mardini', directed and choreographed by herself. This was followed by a Shruti Natok 'Paka Dekha' performed by the renowned local couple - Jaya and Keshab Chatterjee. Neelanjana
Banerjee of RDM, also an ICC member and a prolific dancer, presented moods of sringar, choreographed by our own Mitra Purkayastha. The final dance program of the evening was by Debolina
Sanyal and her group, who performed a contemporary take on a traditional folk dance.
The main attraction of the evening was the famous Kolkata Band 'Robi o Nobin', featuring lead
vocalist Soumitra Ray with Robin Lai on violin and keyboard - both of 'Bhoomi' fame. The group also
consisted of Irene Sarkar on vocals, Arjyesh Ray on drums and Subhomoy Mitra on guitar. This, their
first program of this season, featured many contemporary, folk, Rabindra Sangeet as well as some
occasional English songs. They captivated the packed auditorium, many of whom moved up to the
front of the stage to dance to their tunes, and were often joined by Soumitra himself. The troupe
also organized a fund raiser for the Malala Fund for girls' education, to which the attending audience
gladly contributed.
Maha Nabami and Dashami were observed the following day, which was followed by 'Sindur Khela'
and dinner. The second day's cultural program was opened with a fusion rendition of the National
Anthems of the United States and India. This was performed by the ICC Junior Members Band
consisting of Subrata, Unmukt, Nitant, Portia, Kunal, Monisha, Ishan, Toto, Aditya and Sameer, and
directed by Sourav Seal. This was followed by a classical 'Raaga' performed by ICC Junior MembersUnmukt, Nitant, Sourin and Sourav. This was followed by a dance recital by Monisha. Then local
vocalist and member Tapasi Seal, presented a beautiful selection of Bengali and Hindi songs. The
main attraction was the captivating performance of Rabindranath Tagore's dance drama, 'Shaap
Mochan', presented by the 'Tathai' group from Connecticut. The final program was 'Abar Dekha
Hobe Ei Banglay', directed by Arpita Gupta and performed by many ICC members. The masters of
ceremonies were Bidisha Sarkar and Sanchita Deb.
Excerpts of all the cultural programs may be found at the ICC website www.icc-gs.org.
ICC also observed Lakshmi Puja on October 19th. It was attended by a number of members, who
also used this occasion as 'Bijoya Sammelani'. A light dinner was served at the conclusion of the
ceremony. Other events scheduled for the near future are ICC AGM in mid-December and the
Saraswati Puja in January.
I wish all readers Season's Greetings and a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year.
Acknowledgement
The Board of Trustees expresses its deep appreciation to
Suprasad and Rita Baidyaroy for their continued financial support to the publication of Ananadalipi.
Didn’t Receive Your Copy of Ananda Sangbad?
If you are a Life Member or an Associate Member, but didn't receive your copy of
Ananda Sangbad, it may be because we do not have the correct address on file
for you.
Please send an email to :
Guru Chakravarty
([email protected])
with your correct address, and we will send you another copy.
16
January 2014
Ananda Sangbad
Ananda Mandir (Somerset, NJ)
congratulates the
winners of 2013
Gayatri GaMarsh Memorial
Awards
for Literary Excellence
Gouri Datta of Massachusetts
(In English Publications Category)
Gouri Datta
Ivy Chatterjee of Jharkhand, India
(In Bengali Publications Category) and
Sumit Nag of Massachusetts
(In Bengali Publications Category)
and
wishes continued success
in their future literary activities
Ivy Chatterjee
***
Our special thanks go to the following judges
for their invaluable support
Surya Dutta has been
coordinating all large festivals of
Ananda Mandir, quietly but
efficiently, for a number of years.
At those festivals, he leads the
scores of volunteers
assigned to different
functions and remains
active, for sometime
eighteen hours a day, to
supervise and check each
and every function. He is
also seen everywhere,
throughout the year,
helping Treasurer to
balance the receipts,
negotiating with the post
office on our mailing
activities, checking the
membership criteria,
Surya Dutta on left receiving plaque
helping the publications and puja
The Board of Trustees of functions and many other. He
Ananda Mandir recognized spends an enormous amount of
Surya Dutta with a certificate time to oversee that Ananda
of appreciation at the India Mandir operates properly and
Utsav festival in November efficiently. The Board of Trustees
2013 for his outstanding of Ananda Mandir is grateful to
leadership . On behalf of the him ”
Board of Trustees, Dipak The citation plaque reads:
Sarkar, President and Pronoy Ananda Mandir is pleased to
Chatterjee, Chair, Awards and present this Certificate of
R e c o g n i t i o n C o m m i t t e e Appreciation to Surya Dutta for his
expressed the organization's outstanding dedication and
gratitude and made the service to the organization over
following statement at the many years and for establishing
event:
an admirable role model.”
Surya Dutta
Receives
Recognition For His
Leadership
in evaluating the submitted nominations:
For Bengali Award Category:
Sudipta Bhawmik, Alolika Mukherjee and Manisha Roy
For English Awards Category:
Sumit Roy, Arundhati Sanyal and
Sumit Nag
Arun Bhowmik
Recognized for
Outstanding
Service
Narasingha Sil
The Board of Trustees of Ananda Mandir recognizes
“Outstanding Volunteers,” selected from the
nominations received from the Life Members of Ananda
Mandir. The application form for nomination is available
at www.anandamandir.org.
If you are a Life Member and believe that someone
deserves this recognition,
please feel free to e-mail nomination to
Pronoy Chatterjee([email protected])
Arun Bhowmik on right
receiving plaque
The Board of Trustees
recognized Arun Bhowmik
with a certificate of
appreciation in at the
conclusion of the live
orchestral presentation of
Mahisasurmardini on October 6,
2013. Expressing the gratitude of
the organization, Dipak Sarkar,
President, explained that Arun
Bhowmik has been
singularly responsible for
leading cultural efforts
such as Ananda Sandhya
and Mahisarsurmardini for
ten long years without
interruption. In so doing,
Arun has established an
unenviable record and
created an admirable role
model.
The certificate of
appreciation presented to
Arun Bhowmik reads:
“Ananda Mandir is pleased
to present this Certificate
of Appreciation to Arun
Bhowmik for his creative and
dedicated leadership in organizing
Mahisasurmardini presentations
for the past ten years and for
organizing one hundred sessions
of Ananda Sandhya.”
Ananda Mandir's membership category changes for the 4th quarter of 2013
Benefactor:(1)
Paritosh and Srimati Chakraborty
Grand Patron: Gold (1)
Arun and Rita Bhowmik
Grand Patron:Silver (2)
Alakendra and Shikha Basu
Debashish and Srijata Sarkar
Patron:(4).
Nimai & Manideepa Ghose
Phalguni & Sutapa Ghosh
Swapan & Uma Roychowdhury
Utpal Sengupta
Life Member: (7)
Mandira Bose
Achintya k. Pal & Sangita Chakravarty
Please note that you can become an Associate
Indrani E. Ray
Member of Ananda Mandir by donating a minimum
Jayjit & Payal Roy
of $50. Your subsequent donations of $50 or more
are credited to your account. When your total
Krishna C. Sen
cumulative donation reaches $1000, you become a
Ericsson Matching Gift
Life Member. Your support small or large, are most
Lafontaine & Budd Inc.
welcome and sincerely appreciated.