budget 2011-12...ing indian history, cuture and mythology through our iconic comics, amar chitra...

PUBLICATION OF THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF INDIA IN DUBAI VOL.3 ISSUE 1 | FEBRUARY 2011

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee unveiled the Budget on February 28, providing tax relief

for the common man and promising more economic reforms

BUDGET 2011-12

Congratulations!

FROM THE CONSUL GENERAL’S DESK

septeMber 200902 IndiaMatters|February 2011

Dear Reader,

Welcome to the February edition of IndiaMatters. At the Consulate, we had the privilege ofhosting an impressive folk song and dance per-formance by Jaipu Khan Langa and his group.

The Consulate and the Indian CommunityWelfare Committee extended full support to theCommunity Development Authority of Dubai,helping them to register Indian associations and clubs.

This month, we were saddened to hear thatAnant Pai, lovingly nicknamed ‘Uncle Pai’, passedaway. Pai played an important role in popularis-ing Indian history, cuture and mythology throughour iconic comics, Amar Chitra Katha.

Our main feature, this month is theNational Budget for 2011-2012. The planfavours more allocations to health, infrastructure, education, farming and defencesectors.

Happy Reading!

INDIA MATTERS ON AIRThe Consulate General of India in Dubai will now

bring to you its weekly radio programme ‘IndiaMatters’ to Suno 102.4 FM. The purpose of theshow is to highlight the services provided by theConsulate and talk about the events and news related to India and the Indian community in UAE. India Matters is aired every Friday between 5 and

6 pm on Suno 102.4 FM and repeated everySaturday between 12 and 1 pm. For more details visit www.suno1024.com

The winner of the January 2011 monthly quiz contest is Mr. Kailash Sajnani

He wins a gift hamper.

Sanjay Verma

CONTEN

TS

India Matters is a monthly publication of the Consulate General of India (CGI) in Dubai. All rights reserved. No part of this journal may be produced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the permission of the CGI Dubai.

Editorial correspondence and manuscripts can be addressed to [email protected]

Content and design by IANS (www.ianspublishing.com) on behalf of Consulate General of India in Dubai.

TRENDS

INNOVATIONin Rural India

14

SUPERBRANDS

Bharat Electronics10

COMMUNITY/ESSAY CONTEST

India Fest 2011 in Abu Dhabi Showcasing the arts, culture, traditions and

cuisines of India, the three-day festival

attracted thousands of people

8

Rural India has emerged as a significantlylarge market that has the potential to drive both business and prosperity

Budget 2011-12 unveiledFinance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presents India’s Budget on February 28, providing tax relief for the common man and corporates alike, while looking to deepen economic reforms

BOOKS

A ‘Tinkle’ of life16

Anant ‘Uncle’ Pai who popularised Indian culture through comics passes away inMumbai at the age of 81

septeMber 2009February 2011 |IndiaMatters 03

4

IndiaMatters|February 201104

India’s `12.58 lakh crore (`12.58trillion or $280 billion) UnionBudget for 2011-12 on February28 sought to address every

stakeholder with tax reliefs to cheerhouseholds and corporates alikewhile also promising reforms on sub-sidies and foreign investment alongwith measures to curb inflation andpush growth.

Finance Minister PranabMukherjee also laid out more alloca-tion for health, infrastructure, educa-tion, farming and defence.

In a 110-minute Budget Speech in

the Lok Sabha, the lower house ofParliament, Mukherjee said he pro-posed to enhance the income taxexemption limit to `1.8 lakh(`180,000 or $4,000) for the nextfinancial year, from `1.6 lakh, andsaid corporate tax surcharge would belowered to 5 percent from 7.5 percent

Mukherjee also proposed a “verysenior” category of income tax payers,above the age of 80, for whom the taxexemption will be up to `5 lakh. Inaddition, he lowered the qualifyingage limit for senior citizens to avail oftax cuts to 60 years from 65 years.

Budget to spurgrowth, curbinflation

BUDGET

Provides tax relief tocheer households andcorporates alike,Finance MinisterPranab Mukherjee haspromised reforms too

Mukherjee also promised to bringdown fiscal deficit to 4.6 percent ofIndia’s gross domestic product (GDP)from 5.1 percent of GDP in the revisedestimates, while hiking allocation foreducation by 24 percent, health by 20percent, infrastructure by 23 percentand defence by 11 percent.

The Finance Minister’s proposals fora new subsidy regime on farm nutrientsand direct cash transfers to the users offertilisers and kerosene addressed along-pending reform, aimed to ensurethese doles reach the needy.

At the same time, the FinanceMinister’s proposals could push upthe costs of domestic and overseas airtravel, dining at air-conditionedrestaurants, stay in hotels that chargeover `1,000 per day, and healthcheck-ups in hospitals with air-condi-tioning and more than 25 beds.

“As an emerging economy, with avoice on the global stage, India standsat the threshold of a decade whichpresents immense possibilities. Wemust not let the recent strains andtensions hold us back from convert-ing these possibilities into realities,”the Finance Minister said.

Broad-based growthMukherjee set the tone for what

was his sixth Budget by stating thatIndia had bounced back after theglobal financial crisis with broad-based growth even as inflationremained a matter of concern, espe-cially food prices, even though it haddipped from over 20 percent toaround 7 percent now.

This apart, he said the foreigndirect investment policy was beingrevamped, which may result in theentry of multinational firms in thecountry’s $300 billion retail tradeindustry, apart from promising to lib-eralise norms for pension, insuranceand banking sectors. “We are reach-

ing the end of a remarkable fiscalyear. In a globalised world, with itsshare of uncertainties and rapidchanges, this year brought us someopportunities and many challenges aswe moved ahead with steady steps onthe chosen path of fiscal consolida-tion and high economic growth,”Mukherjee added.

“Our growth in 2010-11 has beenswift and broad-based. The economyis back to its pre-crisis growth trajectory. While agriculture hasshown a rebound, industry is regaining its earlier momentum.Services sector continues its neardouble-digit run. Fiscal consolidationhas been impressive,” he said.

The proposals drew immediatepraise from Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh, who was particu-larly pleased with the decision to hiketax income tax limit. “The FinanceMinister deserves congratulations formaintaining a high growth ratedespite the adverse international eco-nomic climate.”

Mukherjee also laid significantemphasis on the institutional frame-work in rural and semi-urban areas by

February 2011 |IndiaMatters 05

Finance Minister PranabMukherjee arrives in ParliamentHouse to present the GeneralBudget 2011-12, in New Delhi, on February 28. Ministers of Stateof Finance S. S. Palanimanickamand Namo Narain Meena are also seen.

HIGHLIGHTSl Growth at 8.75 percent to 9.25

percent in 2011-12. Economycould have performed better in2010-11.

l Goods and Services Tax rollouton April 1, 2012; bill for this inparliament this year;

l Tax exemption limit raised from`160,000 to `180,000; for sen-ior citizens, qualifying agereduced from 65 to 60 years.

l 164,415 crore for defense; morewill be given if required.

l Twenty-four percent increase ineducational outlay; `21,000crore for Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.

l 58,000 crore for Bharat Nirman;increase of `10,000 crore.

l Mahatma Gandhi NationalRural Employment GuaranteeScheme wage rates linked toconsumer price index; will risefrom existing `100 per day.

l Infrastructure: 23 percent higherallocation in 2011-12.


BUDGET

hiking outlays for rural banks and micro-finance units, while promising 11 foodparks and major initiatives for cold chains.

Stock Markets The Finance Minister also allowed all

registered mutual funds to accept moneyfrom foreign investors and hiked the cap oninvestments in infrastructure bonds andintra-fund trading during lock-in period.

The markets, cheered the proposals, lift-ing the sensitive index (Sensex) of the

Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) by over500 points, before it settled an hour before closing bell at 17,832.12 points, with a gainof 131.21 percent, or 0.74 percent.

TaxesOn the tax front, the Finance Minister

proposed to keep the excise duty rates vir-tually unchanged, even as 130 items wereincluded in for a nominal duty of 1 percent.The customs duty rates, however, wereretained at existing levels.

Senior citizens in India had real rea-sons to smile. Finance MinisterPranab Mukherjee proposed a spe-

cial category of very senior citizens ofthose above 80, giving them an exemp-tion limit of `5 lakh per annum. Thethreshold age for senior citizens whoenjoy a tax-exemption limit of `2.4 lakhwas lowered from 65 to 60 years.

“I am very happy with the proposal. Atthis stage of my life, when I have to payfor my medical expenses which is morethan my total expense every month, thismeasure comes as a boon to me,” 82-year-old Alok Kumar Srivastava said.

T.V. Venkitachalam, 82, former editorof the National Herald, said: “This is a

very good move, a major relief for seniorcitizens like me.”

Sophie Verghese, 81, a former nurse ata government hospital in Kerala, said:“Unlike those in their prime of life, ourincomes are static. A higher exemptionentails greater breathing space and a fewmore comforts. I won’t have to pinch pen-nies to support myself.”

For most octogenarian citizens, “it wasthe best gesture that the governmentcould have shown to a segment that wasoften neglected and shrugged off as socie-tal burden”.

“This move by the finance minister is awelcome step,” Ashok Kumar, a 72-year-old retired IAS officer, said.

Now tax sops

for ‘super’ senior

citizens

India’s art fraternity is elated, forthe Budget is expected to freeimported art and antiquities

from the shackles of customs dutiesand help bring more works fromabroad to the country.

In a statement, Culture MinisterKumari Selja said the concession bythe government would encourage“more and more private, corporateand philanthropic organisations andindividuals, to promote and popu-larise Indian art”.

Private parties also welcomed thebudget, which removed customsduties on works of art and antiqui-

ties imported for exhibition by private promoters. Until now, thisexemption was available only topublic institutions.

The Government’s move will“internationalise art in India”, saidNeha Kirpal, director of the India ArtSummit, the country’s biggest art fair.

Nidhi Jain, who manages GalleryRagini, said “the government’smove showed that someone wasactually thinking of us”.

In his Budget speech, FinanceMinister Pranab Mukherjee said: “Inrecent years, many organisationshave joined the cause of promoting

Art ‘free’ from customs’ shackles

February 2011|IndiaMatters 07

Indian mutual funds have wel-comed Finance Minister PranabMukherjee’s proposal to allow

foreign investors to invest in theirequity schemes though they say regis-tering their funds overseas is going tobe a challenge.

“It is a positive move. Now foreigninvestors can directly invest in Indianmutual funds schemes,” SandeshKirkire, chief executive officer ofKotak Mutual, said.

Presenting the budget for the fiscal

2011-12, Mukherjee said: “To liber-alise the portfolio investment route,it has been decided to permit SEBI(Securities and Exchange Board ofIndia) registered mutual funds toaccept subscriptions from foreigninvestors who meet the KYC (knowyour customer) requirements forequity schemes. This would enableIndian mutual funds to have directaccess to foreign investors andwiden the class of foreign investorsin Indian equity market.”

Currently, only foreign institu-tional investors (FII) and sub-accounts registered with the SEBIand Non-Resident Indians (NRIs)are allowed to invest in mutual fundschemes.

According to Kirkire, foreigninvestors would get units in Indianrupees while investments in dedicat-ed India funds would get the units inU.S. dollars.

Welcoming the Government’smove, the managing director ofSundaram Mutual, T.P. Raman, said:“The proposal would give necessarydepth to the Indian equity market.”

Pinaki Bhadury, vice-president ofFrost and Sullivan, said theGovernment’s proposal would proveto be a growth driver.

Portfolioinvestment liberalised

and popularising both traditionaland contemporary art. Some of them have been active in locatingheritage works of Indian origin inforeign countries and bringing themback home.”

“To encourage such initiatives, Ipropose to expand the scope of theexemption for works of art andantiquities to also apply to importsfor exhibition or display in privateart galleries or similar premises thatare open to the general public.”

Kirpal added: “The single largesthindrance in the internationalisationof art in India was the customs andimport duty on objects of art and ifthere was a shift in reality, it wouldfacilitate a more brisk artistic

exchange between India and the restof the world. The “easing of customslevies was happening at an amazingtime when India was getting readyand economically capable to cultur-ally appreciate art”.

One of the major bottlenecks inimporting art and objects of heritagevalue to India was the “poor cost viability caused by high customsduties”. For private promoters andexhibitors of art with tight resources,the exorbitant cost incurred in bring-ing art to India made such exhibi-tions “commercially unviable”.

“It is a very good move not only forthe community of private promoters,but also for the country’s artistic her-itage. We encountered several proce-

dural and economic difficulties inimporting national heritage artlocated abroad to India,” Ajay Seth,chairman of Copal Art, a leading artpromotion platform, said.

“The move will help bring heritageback to the country and also encour-age display of good foreign art inIndia,” said Seth, who is planning anexhibition of Rabindranath Tagore’sart in 2012.

“Several of Tagore’s important artworks are located abroad and theremoval of customs duty fromimported art and antiquities for display will make it easy for us to buy some of his art and bring themback to India for a major exhibition,”Seth said.


G.K Chesterton once wrote,“We make friends, we makeenemies; but God makesour next door neighbours.”

These words fill my heart withextreme grief and the sight of myArabic textbook often brings backfond memories from the not so dis-tant past. “Why is uncle Ghazi notwith me today?” I sob. My mothercomes to my rescue, “Don’t cry mychild, what would Ghazi think if hesees you crying?” She was right. Ishouldn’t belittle the great soul withmy tears. So when the topic for thecompetition was first written on theschool board, it struck my mind, “Yes!This is the right way to pay tribute tomy uncle Ghazi.”

Mr. Ghazi Bakhoor is none otherthan my late neighbour. I recall thefirst time we met around 3 years ago.Our family friends were coming tomeet us at home. Suddenly the bellrang. ‘So early!’ We cried. Expectingthem, I spontaneously opened thedoor. I got the scare of my life when Isaw a hefty old man instead. A voicefrom the body boomed, “Hello! I amGhazi, your neighbour. Some guestswere supposed to come to my housebut they haven’t turned up. If youdon’t mind, will you share the mealfrom Pizza Hut with me?” We werestill in a daze from the unexpectedoffer. We wondered if he was a fraud,for we had never seen him before. Inthat moment of dilemma, arrived ourguests, my uncle and his family. Weinformed our neighbour that wewould get back to him and quietly shutthe door. On hearing about our neigh-bour’s invitation, my uncle warned usagainst entertaining strangers.

We continued discussing Ghaziuntil we decided, “Let’s not disap-point him. Let’s share the pizza.”When we opened the door, the oldman was still standing there! At thesame instance the delivery manappeared with the pizzas!!

Ghazi brought the pizza into ourhouse and started sharing all themajor portions. Feeling guilty aboutour behaviour we thanked him for thetreat and displayed true hospitality.

As the days went by, a period of

great tension gripped our family.Arabic was its root cause. I was hav-ing extreme difficulty in learning thelanguage. It was then that UncleGhazi came to my rescue. He startedgiving Arabic classes without charg-ing anything for the tuitions!

His determination to make me per-fect in the subject was appreciated.Almost every alternate day he wouldarrive at our doorstep asking if anyhelp was required. He even taught mespecifications, which were easilyunderstandable and explained manytopics of Arab history. No one taughtme with so much patience and dedi-cation as this uncle Ghazi did.

This kandura clad Lebanese manwas multilingual. At times he taughtme French with as much enthusiasmas Arabic. According to him, ‘Themore number of languages a manknew, the better he becomes.’

But good things do not last forever.The old man suffered from hearingimpairment. But he had so muchdetermination that despite havingdifficulty with his earpiece, he used toput it on so that he would not miss-interpret me and I do not suffer.

Though he was a chain smoker, hecursed himself for being addicted tothis evil. He used to say, “Do whatev-er wrong you want to do, but prom-ise me, never, take drugs or a ciga-rette in your hand.”

As time passed, a certain changecame over him. From a man who didnot believe in God, he became a reli-gious and philosophical man. He wasdeeply grieved by his father’s deathand was not able to emerge from hisremorse. It was during that time heinspired me the most. It was a timewhen I was so attached to him that Iused to show all my progress cards,my certificate and all the achieve-ments to him. He was very proud ofme, and would say,’’ My children aremy precious gems, and you are oneamong them. In my grave, I will smileseeing you at the top of the world.”

Not only did he encourage me, butalso motivated my parents to believe inmy competency. My parents acknowl-edged my potential and encouragedme to take up different activities.

Who isthat,why andhow?

COMMUNITY/ESSAY CONTEST

Swagata Saha, of theAbu Dhabi IndianSchool, won the second prize in an essay writing contest, conductedby the Kerala YouthCultural Club

This man though having all the pos-sessions anyone could desire, camedown to help us. He selflessly ven-tured to not only help me but be abeacon light to my future. I regardhim as, ‘An angel from heaven’.

But we, humans never acknowledgewhat we get for free until it is takenfrom us. One afternoon, when Ireturned home, I saw Ghazi’s bestfriend, standing outside knocking athis door. I was scared by the sceneand requested my father to immedi-ately help the old man out.

After 3 hours, when the lock of thedoor was opened, Ghazi was foundlying on the sofa. His wife and daugh-ter were summoned immediately toAbu Dhabi. The old man stayed withGhazi as we tended to his needs. Thatnight his family took him to Al Rashidhospital for consultation. We had nonews about him for a while. Afterabout a week, we found out that hehad undergone two strokes; his lungshad turned black due to smoking andall his organs were failing. The nextday we hurried to meet him. But whenwe saw him, we were in utter despair.My uncle Ghazi was not the same per-son anymore. His body was bloated,and pierced by syringes.

As his portrait hovered before me,the good thoughts about him werealso flashing before my eyes, whichmade me burst out into tears. Herewas Ghazi — my benefactor, my moti-vator, my well-wisher and my lovingangel, lying helplessly on the deathbed! I was unable to withstand mygrief and ran out of the ICU. Howcould God take away Ghazi from me?If he had to take him, why did Godsend him to me?’ I could see the samefeelings in the eyes of my parents. Butwhat could we do? We had to carry onin our life. After about a month of suf-fering the pain of dialysis, ventilatorand anesthesia, the great soulbreathed his last!

Ghazi — my angel might not havegiven me the basic things that my par-ents provided. But for me, his role willremain as an important chapter of mylife and it will always be preserved ina core of my heart, be a part of mysoul and conscience.


Indian community registers with CDA

ACommunity Development Authority (CDA) was set up by the Dubaigovernment to reach out to all communities, licensing and regulat-ing social organisations operating in Dubai. An outreach

programme was designed to register Indian associations affiliated with theIndian Community Welfare Committee (ICWC).

Consul General of India in Dubai, Sanjay Verma said, “The ICWC and its constituent members will extend their full support to all CDA initiatives aimed at our mutual benefit and the development of theEmirate of Dubai”.

“The CDA has invested in a range of welfare programmes for differentsections of the society, including “Al Kayt”, an initiative to facilitateemployment for people with disabilities. The organisations will benefitfrom the resources and initiative of the CDA by registering with us free ofcost”, Khalid Al Kamda, director-general of the CDA, said.

Kalbelia performers entertain NRIs

The Consulate of India, Dubai, hosted the Jaipu Khan Langa’s folk,song, and dance group Kalbelia, in February. Hailing from thewestern parts of Rajasthan, the Langas are the second-largest

troupe of musicians of the region. Jaipu Khan Langa is one of the mostwell-known singers and percussionists of the Langa community. Khanheaded a twelve-member group that performed before lovers of tradi-tional art from the Indian community in Dubai. The event was comperedby Sayed Arshad and was organised by the Indian Embassy, Abu Dhabi.

Abu Dhabi played host to a three-day India Fest 2011. Beginning on

February 17, the event, attended by over 6,000 guests, showcased

Indian art, culture, and cuisine. Ambassador M.K Lokesh opened the

festival while filmmaker Priyadarshan was the goodwill ambassador.

Thomas Varghese, president of the Indian Social and Cultural centre, said

that it was for the first time the centre had organised an event portraying

the vibrant cultural facets of India. The highlight was a performance by

Indian musical maestro Balabhaskar and his team.

Ahealth camp was held at the Indian Consulate on February 11,

organised by the India Ladies Association, Dubai. Every three

months, the camp aids needy members of the community, whose

income is below 2000 dirham, and who are without Medical insurance.

In collaboration with the Getwell Medical Centre, Dubai, and the Indian

Pharmaceutical Professionals Councils (IPPC), the camp was led by Dr.

Ashok Kapoor and Dr. Sarita Kapoor, the team of doctors offered

medical services and medicines free of cost to the workers. This was the

10th medical camp.

Flavours of India!

Free medical camp for labourers

MarketIndependent India’s founding fathershad the foresight to see that self-sufficiency was the key to survival.Everything they did — from settingup steel plants to mining coal, fromencouraging the use of fertiliser forincreasing agricultural produce tosetting up institutes of higher learn-ing — the objective was single-minded: self-reliance.Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) is

a product of this far-sighted mind set.Dictated by realpolitik and circum-

stances India is, today, one of theworld’s largest spenders on defence.In 2006, with spends of US$ 23.96billion (`95,600 crore) it rankedtenth in the world listing. (Source: Stockholm InternationalPeace Research Institute)Defence is an imperative; it is

also a subject which attracts bothclose scrutiny and strictures. As aresult, there often is technologydenial by countries who own them.The solution obviously lies in indige-nous research, development andproduction. In 1948, one year after gaining

independence, the Government ofIndia announced a comprehensive

industrial policy. It empowered theGovernment to set up an infrastruc-ture to create facilities to manufac-ture a host of critical products. Thetask of establishing a radar andelectronics factory was given to theMinistry of Defence. It was fromthis authority that BharatElectronics Limited was instituted inBangalore in 1954.The strategic electronics industry

in India has since grown to encom-pass several key areas. In 2006/07the sector registered production of

approximately `4500 crore (US$1.12 billion) (Source: Department ofInformation Technology, Governmentof India). Of this, BEL aloneaccounted for `3952 crore (US$988 million) representing 87 per-cent of total output by value. In thesame year, it recorded profit beforetax of `1052 crore (US$ 263 mil-lion) with a 180 percent dividend.

AchievementsThere are a handful of public sectorundertakings in India which havecreated an exceptional record forthemselves. The Government hasconferred upon them the title ofNavratna. BEL is one of them. This outstanding company has

made significant contributions tomeet India’s defence electronicsneeds. PLAN AREN communicationsystem, for instance, for the Army,PLAN ADGES (Air Defence GroundEnvironment System) for the AirForce and the Navy’s modernisationprogrammes have all been support-ed by BEL technology. The spin-offs from these have

manifested themselves in scores ofproducts for civilian use. Few wouldknow that the bulk of the infrastruc-ture for radio and TV broadcastinghas been supplied by BEL. The com-pany has also supplied transmissionand switching equipment to BharatSanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL)while its air surveillance radarshave served to upgrade several air-ports in the country.BEL has also pioneered the

growth of the electronic compo-nents industry in India by manufac-turing electron tubes, semiconduc-tor devices, integrated circuits andhybrid micro circuits, liquid crystaldisplays and solar cells and sys-tems. For India’s ambitious spaceprogramme, BEL has supplied sever-al space-qualified components tothe Indian Space ResearchOrganisation (ISRO). International recognition was not

An India Matters-Superbrands Presentation


far in coming. For two years in arow — 2004 and 2005 — AviationWeek and Space Technology rankedBEL first among medium-sized aero-space/defence companies world-wide. BEL was also ranked as thetop Indian company in the Electricaland Electronic Equipment sector byDun & Bradstreet in 2006. In thefollowing year, the US-based maga-zine Defense News, ranked BEL58th in its list of the top 100 globaldefence companies. BEL has also been felicitated with

several national awards: theBusiness Standard Star PSU Awardin 2004/05; the DSIR NationalAward for Research andDevelopment in 2005; the SCOPEAward for Excellence andOutstanding Contribution to PublicSector Management in 2005/06;the Raksha Mantri’s InstitutionalAward for Excellence inPerformance presented in 2005; thenational award for Excellence inCost Management from theInstitute of Cost and WorksAccountants of India (ICWAI) in2005; the Commendation forBusiness Excellence from CII for tenof its units/strategic business unitsand the British Safety Council’sNational Safety Award given to BEL,ten years in a row, have all added toBEL’s stature.

History Starting from a single unit inJalahalli, Bangalore in 1954, thecompany now has a pan-India pres-ence with units in Ghaziabad,Panchkula, Kotdwara, Navi Mumbai,Pune, Hyderabad, Machilipatnamand Chennai. It also has a networkof offices and service centresacross the country. BEL currentlyemploys 12,357 people includingmore than 3000 engineers.Driven by its commitment to self

reliance, R&D has always been apriority at BEL; the company spendsnearly 5 percent of its turnover onresearch. Products developed withindigenous technology accountedfor nearly 81 percent of the compa-ny’s turnover during 2006/07. Thetwo Central Research Laboratoriesat Bangalore and Delhi are engaged

in advanced research dedicated toBEL product profiles. The companyhas the distinction of engaging withDRDO labs for radars, sonars, navalsystems, communication equip-ment, electro optics, command andcontrol systems and electronic war-fare systems.BEL’s first joint venture company,

BE DELFT, with Delft of Holland wasset up in 1990. Recently, this hasbecome a subsidiary of BEL and hasbeen renamed BEL Optronic DevicesLimited. A joint venture withGeneral Electric of the US for themanufacture of X-Ray Tubes formedical electronics has met withimmense success.

ProductBEL manufactures a wide range ofequipment in the areas of militarycommunication, radars and sonars,naval systems, telecom and broad-cast, electronic warfare, tank elec-tronics, electro optics, professionalelectronic components and solarphotovoltaic systems. The companyalso undertakes turn-key systemsolutions.

BEL’s products for the armyinclude battery level radars,advanced land navigation systemsand intelligent message terminals.Command information decision sup-port systems manufactured by BELhelp commanders assess the battlesituation and take real time deci-sions; for securing battle communi-cations BEL offers a compact, hand-held radio system with built-in high-grade digital secrecy for voice, inclear/secure mode; the companyalso manufactures broadband trans-mitting equipment which can beeffectively used for jamming hostilereceivers. To train gunners to trackand engage moving targets in simu-lated battlefield conditions, BELmanufactures an anti-tank guidedmissile simulator. From BEL the Navy receives

radars and launch preparation andcentralised real time control sys-tems for advanced technology vehi-cles. New generation sonars for sub-marines, electronic warfare systemsand fire control systems are all manufactured and supplied by BEL. For the Air Force BEL manufac-


tures radars, communication sys-tems, high accuracy direction find-ers, radar warning receivers andcommand and control systems. Between 80 and 85 percent of

the company’s turnover comes fromproducts supplied to the defenceservices. To maintain its market share in

the civilian segment, the company isdiversifying into products like settop boxes and broadband modems.BEL has also begun the manufactureof a range of solar photovoltaic sys-tems for domestic, industrial, agri-cultural and community applications.BEL’s Electronic Voting Machines

(EVMs) redefined voting in India.The EVMs replaced ballot paper andfacilitated free and fair elections inthe country. The new EVMs areBraille compliant.

Recent Developments BEL perceives competition as anopportunity for consolidation, innova-tion and growth. The company is,today, providing greater focus toexports, strengthening its R&Dbase, enhancing product quality toSix Sigma levels, continuously seek-ing ways to reduce cost, developinghuman resources, creating strategicalliances and joint ventures andseeking diversification opportunities. BEL’s new business initiatives

include MoUs signed with aero-space majors and global defencecompanies to exploit opportunitiesarising out of offsets, for working onvarious airborne electronic warfareprogrammes and in the field ofUnmanned Aerial Vehicles. A termsheet has been signed with Rafael,Israel, which is expected to lead to

the formation of a joint venture formissile electronics and guidancetechnologies. BEL is also exploringbusiness avenues in the field of e-governance.To maintain its leadership posi-

tion, BEL as a strategy initiative, isshifting its focus from reactive R&Dto proactive R&D. Major R&D initiatives at BEL

include development of capabilitiesin its core business areas such asradars, electronic warfare and elec-tro optics. BEL has completed implementa-

tion of SAP, an integrated EnterpriseResources Planning solution, in allits nine units.

PromotionThe defence preparedness of India’sarmed forces is the best promotionfor BEL.In commercial terms, however,

BEL has maintained a low profilebecause of its largely defence-ori-ented product base. But increasingproduct diversification — and theneed to gain visibility in the interna-tional markets — has prompted thecompany to become more attentiveto its brand profile. In 2006, BELlaunched a corporate campaign withthe objective of registering thebrand in the minds of informedIndians and to showcase its cus-tomer orientation.In an attempt to display its

products and its capabilities BELundertakes a number of below-the-line activities. These include


participation in product expos andin symposiums and seminars. From the perspective of garneringgreater mindshare, BEL finds veryrewarding its sponsorship of variousscientific and professional eventsand publications.BEL has initiated an industry-

academia collaboration under whichit organises student visits to its factories and also facilitates stu-dent summer projects. It supportstech related activities in collegesand has instituted several scholar-ships and awards for students. BELalso invites industry captains andmanagement gurus to deliver lec-tures, associates luminaries in itsendeavours and is active in variousnational forums.

Brand ValuesBrand BEL stands for quality, tech-nology and innovation. The valuesthat drive the company place cus-tomers ahead of everything else.Necessarily, this means workingwith transparency and integrity. Thecompany places teamwork andemployee satisfaction very high inits priorities. It encourages peopleto think out of the box, for out ofthis, it believes, comes innovation.As a responsible corporate citi-

zen, BEL has been actively servingthe community in general and theunderprivileged in particular. BEL’scontributions include setting up andmanaging educational institutions,hospitals and a school for specialchildren.

www.bel-india.com

n BEL has more than 350 products,ranging from small componentsthat cost a few rupees to hugesystems costing more than `60crore (US$ 15 million).

n Using solar home lighting, BEL ishelping illuminate the homes ofpeople in inaccessible areas ofthe Sunderbans, Nilgiris and theThar Desert.

n In 1981/82, BEL was setting upone TV transmitter every dayacross the country to bring televi-sion coverage to Indian homes

n BEL created the Police Networkwhich connects all district head-quarters to State capitals and thecentre via satellite.

n BEL manufactures the ReceiveOnly Terminals that make dis-tance education possible in ruralschools of Kerala, Karnataka,Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthanunder the EDUSAT programme.

n To harness renewable energy, BEL commissioned a 2.5 MWwind energy power plant inDavangere district and a 3 MWwind energy power plant nearHassan in Karnataka. The totalenergy generated so far is over 4 million units.

THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT BHARAT ELECTRONICS

(Reproduced with the permission of Superbrands India

Private Limited — copyright owners)


TRENDS

The Bottom of the Pyramid (BoP) hasemerged as a dominant concept inbusiness, much encouraged by theLate Dr. C K Prahalad, one of the

world’s foremost management thinkers andDistinguished Professor, Ross School ofBusiness, University of Michigan. His work,The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid,demonstrates the growing importance of thebottom of the pyramid, which is undergoing arapid transformation in terms of income level,awareness, and propensity to consume.

The Indian rural economy is growingstronger and rural consumer demand is on therise. The bottom of the pyramid thus is made upof the mass and needs to be addressed to ensuresustainable growth.

The BoP is the largest, but poorest socio-economic group. India has made a mark on the

global map with the concept and has been suc-cessful in changing its image-perception froma manufacturing and back-end processing hubinto a research and innovation hub. It’s worthnoting that rural India contributes to morethan 54 percent of India’s GDP (GrossDomestic Product) has 64 percent of its con-sumption expenditure and accounts for 33percent of the national savings.

It’s interesting to note that lower incomeclass has reduced by almost 67 percent in thelast 15 years, according to the NationalCouncil of Applied Economic Research(NCAER) estimates.

In rural India, there is now a growing mid-dle-class earning a monthly income independ-ent of the monsoon or cropping season, thusensuring a definite growth in the prosperity lev-els, and a sustainable periodic expenditure.

Rural India: The trickleup story...Rural India has emerged as a key driver of growth, prosperity and disposable incomeswith urban goods and solutions making deep inroads in the country’s villages


A solar and windpowered portablegreenhouse equipment ‘incubating’ cornand maize saplings.The equipment hasbeen promoted byGreenfieldFoundation, a non-profit, working in Gujarat

KEY DRIVERSChanges in occupation pattern (reduceddependence on farming), is ensuring steadyand regular income. Better infrastructure,increased investment, a good monsoon, farm-loan waivers and improved income levels arestimulating activity in rural India.Consumerism is on the rise and the propensityto spend is quite visible.

The Government of India is funding ruraldevelopment and fuelling its growth throughvarious sponsored schemes like National RuralEmployment Guarantee Act (NREGA), andSampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY)etc — the Government has allocated a total of$11.78 billion in 2009-10 and has also providedwide-ranging subsidies for rural initiatives.

NGOs are working on income generatingactivities in rural India through various initia-tives including the establishment of Self HelpGroups. Better connectivity by road is improv-ing the employability quotient of rural popula-tion. This is allowing them to earn more andtherefore have a slightly higher disposableincome, especially in non-harvest seasons.

MULTINATIONAL INITIATIVESIndian and multinational corporations havenot limited their innovative solutions forIndian markets only. They are actually takingthese innovations to international platformsand are treating India as a BoP Innovation andResearch Hub.

SECTOR SPECIFIC MILESTONES: FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS(FMCG)In the FMCG sector, the rural share is 3 per-cent of national FMCG sales and growing at afaster pace than urban India — 18 percent ver-sus 12 percent in cities. In categories such assoap, washing soaps and powder, rural Indiaaccounts for more than 55 percent of the over-all market. According to a study by researchfirm The Nielson Company, the FMCG marketin rural India is definite to touch $100 billionmark by 2025 on the back of “unrelenting”demand driven by rising income levels.

CONSUMER DURABLESThe growth of the consumer durables marketis much larger in rural areas as compared tothe semi-urban or urban markets.

According to a study Rise of ConsumerDurables in Rural India by an industry body,India’s rural consumer durable market istipped to attain an annual growth of 40 per-cent in the next fiscal 2011-12, as against thecurrent pace of 30 percent.

TELECOMMUNICATIONThe rural markets are expected to be the propellers of the Indian telecom sector as well.Rural users account for at least 50 percent ofnew subscribers for some of India’s leadingtelecom providers.

BANKINGThe number of rural bank account holders ishigher than urban bank account holders.Banks have come up with specific programmesto cater to rural banking requirements. Kisancredit cards, launched jointly by RBI,NABARD and nationalised banks, for thefarmer community, aim to address short-termcredit needs of farmers for cultivation of crops.

RECENT TREND: THE SOCIAL ASPECTIt would be wrong to assume that companies

think of approaching the rural market byreducing the goods to their bare minimum anddelivering them at a large scale. The sachetstory, or the recharge cards of mobile phonesor the micro finance story is not just a story ofbare bone product with low cost. Large corpo-rations are not only approaching these mar-kets to improve their bottom line, but also toimprove consumers’ lifestyles. Following aresome of the examples to corroborate this:

Project Shakti of Unilevers: While theShakti Ammas’ help in promoting range ofLever products, they also work towardsimproving the general well being of the villagethey work in. For instance, the Scojo founda-tion of the U.S. works with Shakti Ammas in providing reading glasses to the poor at veryaffordable costs.

The Nokia Life Tools Programme: Byproviding its farmer subscribers with latestcrop rates in the mandi, or teaching themEnglish, Nokia is ensuring that customersimprove their standard of living and do not getexploited. Microcredit is an Asian inventionthat comes directly from understanding theneeds of BoP consumers in India. IFFCO Tokioleverages its association with IFFCO and sellsmicro crop insurance at a premium of Re. 1.

CONCLUSIONA high potential in the rural segment does notmean rushing with initiatives to capitalise onthe opportunity. Greater emphasis should begiven on identifying the important productsthat have great significance in a rural consumer’s life. They need to focus their effortson empowering the rural consumer with thelatest trends and technology and teach themways to improve their standards of living.

(Courtesy: Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre)


AAnant V. Pai, a chemical engineer whobrought home Indian culture, traditionand ethos to millions through the Amar

Chitra Katha comics series, passed awayrecently. Popularly known as ‘Uncle Pai’, he issurvived by his wife Lalitha and elder sisterSumati Prabhu.

Born on September 17, 1929, in a modestfamily to Venkataraya Pai and Susheela inKarkala in Karnataka, the young Anant com-pleted his primary education in the only schoolin his village. Orphaned at the age of two,Anant moved to Mumbai when he was 12 topursue secondary school and higher education.A bright student, Pai went on to become achemical engineer from the prestigiousUniversity Institute of Chemical Technology,formerly UDCT, University of Mumbai.

Prabhu said that since his school days, Paiwas deeply interested in the Vedas, Puranasand other ancient Indian literature, besidesreligious, cultural studies and the languages.

At a relatively young age, Pai masteredSanskrit and the ancient Indian languages ofPali and Ardhimagadhi, which are no longerused and have been ‘relegated’ to the ancientlanguage departments of a few universities in

India. With his deep knowledge of the ancientIndian scriptures, Pai could recite shlokas andverses impromptu.

In the 1950s, he joined The Times of Indiagroup as an executive in its publications divi-sion, where he handled the Indrajal Comics,which produced several popular titles likePhantom and Mandrake The Magician.

It was in early 1967 that Pai was shockedwhen in a Doordarshan quiz show, the partic-ipants could not reply to a question, “Who wasRama’s mother in Ramayana?” Pai left his joband started the publication of comic booksdedicated to Indian mythology, ancient cul-ture, folk tales and contemporary history.After several rejections, Pai finally partneredIndia Book House’s G. L. Mirchandani tolaunch the Amar Chitra Katha (translated asImmortal Pictorial Tales) in 1967. Around thattime, Prabhu said that he experimented as awriter and published a Hindi novel Beech Ki

Kadi as he was proficient in over dozen lan-guages, including Urdu.

For Amar Chitra Katha, Pai donned severalhats as the editor, graphics master, writer, pub-lisher, educator, and historian. He presentedthe first original Indian brand of comics featur-ing all that was native to the sub-continent’sculture and traditions. It proved to be aninstant hit among the masses and soon wentinto translation in over 20 languages.

Till date, it has published around 440 titlesand sold nearly 100 million copies, includingKrishna, its top-selling title, which went intoseveral re-prints and independently sold sever-al million copies. Its current annual sales are inthe range of around 3 million copies.

Two years after creating publishing historywith Amar Chitra Katha, Pai launched theRang Rekha Features, the country’s firstcomics and cartoons syndicate and followed itup with the Tinkle children’s magazine in 1980.

Five years ago, when this writer met himand commented on his youthful agility, Paisaid: “I am still a child, hungry for knowledgeof my country’s ancient culture. Only my bodygrows old, but my mind is forever young, justlike my immortal stories.” — Quaid Najmi


A ‘Tinkle’ of life

BOOKS

Anant ‘Uncle’ Pai who popularised Indian culture through comics passes away inMumbai at the age of 81


Tinderbox: ThePast and Future ofPakistanAuthor: M.J. AkbarPublisher: HarperCollinsPrice: `499.00

"Makers ofModern India"Author:Ramachandra GuhaPublisher:Penguin/VikingPrice: `799.00

"The Emperor ofAll Maladies"Author: SiddharthaMukherjeePublisher: FourthEstatePrice: `499.00

"Home Boy"Author: H.M. NaqviPublisher: HarperCollinsPrice: `250.00

"Chanakya'sChant"Author: AshwinSanghiPublisher:WestlandPrice: `195

"How Much Should APerson Consume?"Author: RamachandraGuhaPublisher: HachettePrice: `350.00

"Tender Hooks"Author: MoniMohsinPublisher: RandomHousePrice: `199.00

"ShadowPrincess"Author: InduSundarersanPublisher: HarperCollinsPrice: `399

Non-Fiction Fiction

TOP TEN

(Source: Bahri Sons, New Delhi, www.booksatbahri.com. All the books listed above are available online)

The seemingly fading world ofcomics came alive with a differ-ence — as comics on tablets and

on iPads reached out to the widestpossible audience.

‘Dilli Haat’ in south Delhi, the pop-ular junction for expats and shoppers— was thronged by comics enthusi-asts of all age-groups at the two-daycomics convention that concluded inNew Delhi on February 20.

The first ever convention in thecountry by Comic Con India sawgraphic designers, artists, writers andpublishers coming together to openthe world of comics to young readers,and also to the old world that stillcherishes the picture-story days ofchildhood.

“It is true that comics have nowentered the internet age, but theyhave not really lost their identity. Theworld of comics had slowed down,but I think they are coming backagain,” Jatin Varma, organiser fromTwenty Onwards Media, said.

“The response we have seen here isphenomenal. This will surely have animpact on the world of comics,” saidVarma.

While there were colours galorefrom the comic world, what kept thecomics lovers busy was the idea ofhaving comics on iPads andAndroids.

“In the Internet age, comics ontablets and social platforms reach outto a wider audience. The cost of print-ing is not there, and the ideas spreadfaster,” Adhiraj Singh, a comicswriter, said.

First timers set the ball rolling asthe platform turned out to be the per-fect hunt for publishers, illustratorsand artists.

For Atish Chalke, the 30-year-oldarts student from Mumbai and anillustrator for comics, coming to theconvention helped him see the worldof comics “through a new prism”.

“I think such conventions are thehubs of business and creativity. As anillustrator, I am all set to come outwith my own comics,” Chalke said.

For young comic-lovers who hadlong left the world of comics behindafter the kids-entertainment chan-nels took over, the convention was atrip down the memory lane.

“I remember hiding comics in myschool bags. Somehow it’s not thatpopular now. But this convention wasunique,” said 15-year-old ManishChoudhury, a school-goer.

The fair included over 50 publish-ers, such as Magna, Marvel, Archie and DC comics, along with thepopular Indian brigade of AmarChitra Katha, Vimanika, DiamondComics and National Book Trustamong others.

New-age fare at comic convention

India: A Portrait"Author: PatrickFrenchPublisher: PenguinBooksPrice: `699.00

"Tick Tock"Author: JamesPattersonPublisher: CenturyPrice: `550

CINEMA

An Indian American talentmanager in Hollywood, whomanages actors like IrrfanKhan in the US, is on a

mission to rope in top Bollywood starsand promote films to be shot in India.

“I don’t see it as a challenge butmore so as a creative interest,” JaiKhanna, manager at BrillsteinEntertainment Partners, a Hollywoodtalent management film and television production company, said.

“Both industries are thriving withtalented artistes, technicians and stories,” he said. But “I have a specialaffinity with Indian cinema and talent,as a first generation Indo-Americanexposed to the best of both worlds.

“With select talent from India, the‘challenge’ will be to bring them interesting material and have a creative and fruitful conversationabout the benefits and negatives toengaging in such a project.”

Khanna, who booked Irrfan Khanon Sony’s new big-budget 3D Spider-Man film, Ang Lee’s Life of Pi andHBO’s In Treatment, is now looking toget more big names from Bollywoodinto established Hollywood projects.

“We have to recognise the stature ofactors in India, for being at the top of

their game, with an enormous body ofwork under their belt,” he says.

“There is no rush or urgency forIndian actors to work in Hollywood.There is never a sense of needingHollywood to validate their work. I recognise and respect this,” says Khanna.

“As a result, it’s on a case-by-casebasis on carefully looking at interestingopportunities in Hollywood, present-ing them to our clients, then embarkingon our next ‘challenge’, which is to educate Hollywood on why such actoris the best selection for this role.”

“There is an illusion about‘Bollywood’, based on a naivety thatit’s all song and dance,” says Khanna,who himself does not care much for that label.

“An education is needed forHollywood to watch the Indian filmsin its entirety, so there is a much deeper level of respect and admirationfor the acting that surrounds suchsong and dance.

“Again, the distribution and mar-keting of films can use improvement,here in the United States,” he says.“They fly below the radar and tend totarget the NRIs only. There would beno challenge for any actor, if a wider

audience was not exposed to theircraft.”

On booking Irrfan Khan for the newSpiderman film, Khanna said Sonyexecutives were impressed by theoverwhelming response to the actor’swork in In Treatment, “a highlyrespected show in Hollywood”.

“Director Marc Webb reached outto personally express his enthusiasmfor creating an interesting role forIrrfan, and making it worth his time,”he recalled.

“With regard to Life Of Pi, we werefortunate that Ang Lee is a student ofworld cinema. He was always a fan,and when Life of Pi finally cametogether at Fox, it was an opportunityfor both artistes to finally collaborate.”

“Out of respect to Ang, Irrfan wasvery helpful in casting the young malelead and lending support for the production to be done in India.”

However, in general, managingBollywood stars is very different frommanaging Hollywood stars, saysKhanna. “Because of the distance oftwo cultures, there needs to be anextra level of education on our part to fully understand their stature inIndia. Again, we are dealing with thebest of the best,” he added. �

Talent huntAn Indian AmericanHollywood headhunter,Jai Khanna, looking fortop Bollywood stars forHollywood — interested?


CINEMA

Chalk up an absolute winnerfor the Vishal Bhardwaj-Priyanka Chopra team. Theymake a coherent vision out of

an inconceivable marital crisis.How do you make sense of a woman

who’s an incorrigible potentially-loathsome serial spouse-killer whowhen challenged about her weird pas-sion for changing husbands by divinedecree rather than the law of the land,turns around and says, “This heart ofmine, it’s to blame.” Wicked laughterfollows. And dammit, we are amused!

How does one make head or ‘tale’of such a woman? Well, the first thinga director with a canny sense and sensibility does is sign PriyankaChopra to play the wretchedly unfulfilled, genetically incompletewoman — a living, throbbing warningagainst the institution of marriage!

Priyanka, not for the first time,proves she is leagues ahead of allcompetition. She approaches thisstrange and sensual creature of thenight from the outside and then qui-etly makes inroads into the woman’sheart and soul. We can actually seethe character’s snarled inner-worldon Priyanka’s face! We don’t even

know when and how she does it.Priyanka is that kind of a player.

Bhardwaj has earlier made filmsabout gangs and gangsterism. Everytime the dark brooding atmosphericsurface seemed to suggest a life of sin-ister suppressions. Those unspoken,intangible thoughts and visions thatoften guide a human being to his orher doom are outlined in 7 KhoonMaaf with supreme poetic elegance.

This is Bhardwaj’s most fluidly-nar-rated film to date. Of course, havingGulzar on board helps. He pens Urdupoetry for Irrfan Khan and rock forJohn Abraham. For Priyanka poetry isnot needed. She creates a kind of inde-cipherable poetic statement for herdeeply dysfunctional character whokills six husbands and moves to the7th at the end of the film with the profound satirical grief of a womanwho has discovered that this world hasno true love to offer her.

At heart Vishal’s dark elegiac film isabout the search for true love. Therelationship that Sussanna (Priyanka)forms with a young boy (VivaanShah) as she goes from one husbandto another remains at the core of thefilm. The husbands are all played byactors who have no qualms in strip-ping away their vanity to become thekind of suave but duplicitous untrust-worthy spouses who cheat and betrayfor the sake of the opposite emotionto love. Irrfan Khan as a wolf in poet’sclothing, Naseeruddin Shah as theaffable old Bengali dietician and JohnAbraham as a stereotypical rockmusician gone to poppy-seed, arepitch-perfect in their creating adrama of the callous for Priyanka’scharacter. But it’s Neil Nitin Mukeshas her first legless army-man hus-band whose display of clenched men-ace jolts you.

She is not a victim. But neither isshe the hero of the bizarre web ofdestruction and delusion that hercharacter weaves around her.�

— Subhash K. Jha

Dark, moving, weird...Film: 7 Khoon Maaf;

Starring: Priyanka Chopra,

Naseeruddin Shah, Irrfan Khan,

Anu Kapoor, Alexandr Dyachenko,

John Abraham, Neil Nitin Mukesh,

Vivaan Shah

Directed by: Vishal Bhardwaj


TRAVEL

Afine blend of serenity and spiri-tual aura, Puducherry rests in asmall enclave surrounded byTamil Nadu. A Union Territory,

Puducherry possesses a charm of its own,a gentle laid back charm that soothes yoursenses. Situated 200 kms from the south-ern part of Chennai, Puducherry is animportant travel destination where thequiet beaches are bound to take yourbreath away. The word ‘Puducherry’ hasbeen derived from the Tamil language,which means ‘New Town’. A small townwhich possesses a cosmopolitan flair of

many nationalities. Walking on a busystreet, one can hear snatches of conversa-tion in English, French, German, Tamil,Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi. A placewhere people from diverse cultural back-grounds live together.

Puducherry was a Portuguese colony,having been first occupied by them in the16th century. Later, the French took overthe territory in the 17th century. Knownas ‘The French Riviera of The East’,Puducherry still smells of the Frencharoma, the structure of the buildings, theperpendicular streets carrying Frenchnames, restaurants serving Franco-Tamilfood, policeman wearing French kepis,red military style caps, in a nutshell,India’s very own little France.

Aurobindo AshramThink Puducherry and the first thing thatstrikes you is the Aurobindo Ashram. ShriAurobindo Ghosh was an accomplishedlinguist, philosopher, scholar and an

FrenchRivieraA quaint fragment of French history, memory and aroma lingers on in a tiny enclave calledPuducherry. Meld it with beauty and it takes you into another era...


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ardent advocate of Indian independence.The Ashram was founded in 1920 uponhis arrival. There are no rituals or obliga-tory practices to be followed here. Everyyear, thousands of tourists visit the placefor spiritual peace and harmony. Today,the ashram houses the ‘samadhi’ ofAurobindo Ghosh and the ‘Mother’, hisFrench disciple Mirra Alfassa.

Auroville, the City of Dawn Founded in 1968, this unique township isone of the major tourist attractions ofPuducherry. At its centre standsMatrimandir built in the form of a globe.It is a place for quiet meditation. Thereare 80 settlements and over 1,500 peopleengaged in reforestation, organic agricul-ture, health care and village development.

Puducherry beach, PromenadePromenade street, a 5-km scenic stretchalongside the main Puducherry beach, theRock beach, is a huge attraction. A statue

of the Mahatma and a 150 year old lighthouse are a visual treat.

The churches It is the churches that lend Puducherry itsEuropean flavour. The church of OurLady of the Immaculate Conception orNotre dame de la Conception is almost300 years old. The church of Our Lady ofAngels is known for an oil painting thatwas gifted by Napoleon-III. The mostawesome, however, is the grand gothicSacred Heart Church with three stainedglass panels portraying the life of Christ.

TemplesAmong other places of interest are thetemples which reflect the Indian style ofarchitecture. The oldest one dates back tothe 10th century Ad Chola dynasty. TheVinaynagar Manakula temple has a gold-en dome and a collection of 40 beautifulidols. The best time to visit Puducherry isbetween July and February.�

MAHE: SEPARATEdAT bIRTHMahe, which is part ofPuducherry, is ironical-ly situated in Kerala, onthe west coast, wherethe Mahe river meetsthe Arabian sea. Thistiny ‘Heaven on Earth’,has a character of itsown, with its serenebeaches from whereone can have a goodview of the dharmadamislands luring you withits placid ambience. A visit to Puducherryand one cannot affordto give Mahe a miss.Well connected byroads, other means ofreaching Mahe is theCalicut Airport and theKozhikode RailwayStation.


1. The Rock Beach ofPuducherry; 2. The famousPromenade Street alongside the Rock Beach;3. The 300 year old Notre Dame de laConception Church; 4. Puducherry is a hugetourist attraction amongforeigners; 5. Matrimandir,at Auroville, the ‘City ofDawn’

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1. Which Indian city manufactures footballsfor FIFA World Cups?

2. From which animal is the valuable Pashmina woolobtained?

3. In 1798, Tipu Sultan signed a secret agree-ment with a legendary French leader thatthe French would provide military assis-tance to Tipu against the British? Who washe?

4. What is the Manipuri version of hockeycalled?

5. Who was the first Indian to win the WorldAmateur Billiards title?

6. Which legendary actress who starred oppo-site Clark Gable in Gone With the Wind wasborn in India — Darjeeling to be precise —and later lived much of her life in London?

7. The Ochterlony Monument was built in1848 by Sir David Ochterlony to commemorate his victory in the Nepal War(1814-1816). What was it renamed asafter India achieved independence?

8. Dhanushkodi is the meeting point of...?

9. On which spacecraft did Rakesh Sharma,the first Indian in space, make his historictrip to Space?

This magazine will

accept contributions

from readers in the

form of Q&As, factoids,

quiz news and

announcements of

upcoming quiz events

and also photographs.

You can write in to

[email protected]

THE PICTURE

QUESTION

Identify thisbeautiful andimposing mosquesituated in themiddle of the sea.

1.Hundred thousand islands 2.Calico, named after the anglicised name of Kozhikode — Calicut 3.Sutlej 4.Land of Temples

5.Mulligatawny 6.Thirty-six forts 7.Jaishankar Prasad 8.Kashmir 9.Kerala 10.Humayun’s Tomb

ANSWERS TO THE LAST CONTEST

KALEIDOSCOPE

Crimson shores...Fishing has existed as a means of obtaining food since the Mesolithic period or the Stone Age. For some com-munities, fishing provides not only asource of food and work but also commu-nity and cultural identity. In India, thecoastal states of Kerala, Karnataka, Goa,and Maharashtra on the western coast,

and Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh,Orissa and West Bengal on the easterncoast are home to large fish-eating com-munities. In the hinterlands, fresh waterfish is much prized. The coastal statesare, however, a fisherman’s haven andindeed the connoisseur’s heaven.

(Photo courtesy: Incredibleindia.org)

Photo courtesy: Incredible India!

septeMber 2009February 2011|IndiaMatters 23

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MAHA SHIVARATRI

Devotees conduct a traditional ‘aarti’ on the occasion of Maha Shivaratri. The festival is marked by special

prayers and a day-long fast offered to invoke Lord Shiva.

budget 2011-12...ing indian history, cuture and mythology through our iconic comics, amar chitra...

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