Mumbai 26/11: A year later, the city comes out to mourn and pray

As India remembers 26/11, in Mumbai the day began with memorial services at hotels Taj and Trident and at CST station, sites that were attacked on that Wednesday last year.

People from all walks of life paid homage to the victims of 26/11. At the CST station, with the Railway Police standing by, people can come and pay their respects through the day. A blood donation camp was also held at the CST. Prayers have begun at the station in memory.

CST station was one of the first sites that Ajmal Kasab and his now dead partner Abu Ismail attacked on 26/11. Fifty two people died here at their hands.

At the other site of the attacks, the Taj Mahal Hotel, children gathered to pay tribute to the innocent lives lost in the attacks.

But Mumbaikars gave an impressive show strength by the Mumbai Police a miss. Armed with its latest acquisitions - from AK47s, to amphibious vehicles and much more, Mumbai Police marched down Mumbai's Marine Drive - from the Trident Hotel to Girgaum Chowpatty. Rs 126 crore has been spent in the last one-year for the upgradation of the police infrastructure and it was all brought out to allay fears of security men being ill-equipped ever again.

Joining the police were the newly-created elite Force One commandos raised in the aftermath of 26/11 and trained along the lines of the National security Guard. The early morning parade was spectacular, but few turned up to watch it.

In Kanpur, the Indian cricket team observed a two-minute silence in memory of those who lost their lives a year ago, before play began on the third day of the Test match against Sri Lanka.

Parliament too observed a two-minute silence.

Tonight at 9 pm, people are gathering to join NDTV's hands together for India campaign and observe a two-minute silence in memory across cities.


Source by NDTV

Auto unions to go on 3-day strike from November 30

Ahmedabad Autorickshaw driver unions in Ahmedabad have decided to go on a 72-hour strike from November 30. There are nearly 70,000 auto rickshaws in the city with over a lakh drivers under the aegis of 13 unions.

This decision was taken after the union members held a meeting on Tuesday over their demands of fare hike and roll back of gas price. Ashok Panjabi, convener of their joint action committee, said if no solution was brought to the issue, they will be forced to resort to a statewide strike for one day, which will be followed by an indefinite strike in Ahmedabad.

He said the memorandum was sent to the Chief Minister’s Office and the Minister of State for Home on November 20 but they did not receive any reply. Following which, they decided to go on a strike. Earlier on November 8, the auto drivers had gone on a 24-hour strike. “I have spoken to officials of HPCL and Adani Energy Ltd, which supply CNG in Ahmedabad, on the arbitrary hiking of gas price. They told me that these companies were compelled to raise the prices because of increase in their overhead costs,” Panjabi said. Adani and HPCL sell gas at Rs 30.68 per kg in Ahmedabad, whereas GSPC sells it at Rs 28.68 in Vadodara and GGCL at Rs 27.50 in Surat.

He said the unions have also resolved to go for a jail bharo stir later.

Source: Express India

Energy savers reduce AMC's electricity bill

Ahmedabad: In an initiative towards arming the city with environment-friendly technology, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has installed energy-saver machines at five streetlights in the city. These are expected to reduction consumption of electricity by around 35 per cent as compared to normal levels at these posts.

According to officials of the AMC, the civic body spends around Rs1.1 crore every month towards the payment of electricity bills. The new energy-saver machines will, hence, contribute to a reduction in the civic body's expenditure in this direction.

"We had earlier planned on getting the energy savers from the US. But we got the machines manufactured by the Indian branch of the same firm," a senior AMC official said. Each of the five energy savers, one of each installed in the five zones of the city, costs Rs5 lakh. "The machines have been installed in Ahmedabad on a trial basis. We are keeping a watch on the energy being saved. If we find them efficient, we will go ahead and install more such energy-saver machines," the official said.

Officials of the civic body have observed that the energy savers have reduced consumption at the streetlights, which were selected for the trial because of the long hours that they are in use, by around 35 per cent. In addition, the energy savers are eliminating the need for officials of the AMC to frequently check for faults in the streetlights.

"The machines have a GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) system installed, so that the officials can keep a watch while sitting in their offices. If any fault is observed in the streetlights, we can send officials to find out the exact cause of the same. And the event of sending officials to check out the faults will be quick work," the AMC official said.

Source: DnaIndia

1857 revolt etched on this temple's walls

AHMEDABAD: The first uprising of 1857 against the British has been immortalized in the walled city of Ahmedabad. Kalupur Swaminarayan Temple, located in the heart of the old city, has wooden carvings and figurines of Hindu deities.

The colourful wooden carvings on various pillars depict history. Nagpur-based archaeologist Onkar Chauhan studied the carvings and found that different pillars had different meanings. The 12 pillars of temple's meeting hall are all historical emblems depicting the first war of independence.

Be it a Maratha soldier under the leadership of Goddess Durga or Rani of Jhansi, the relevance of these figures can be found in Chauhan's book Carved Wooden Pillars at Shri Swaminarayan Temple, Ahmedabad: A Testimony to the First War of Indian Independence'.

The meeting hall was constructed between 1856 and 1871, soon after the revolt of 1857, when Rani of Jhansi had led her army against the British. A number of parrots in the sixth pillar depict the mood of that era. Another pillar is a depiction of Tatya Tope in the face of lion-Narsimha. The artists probably felt that they would be doing a great disservice to the nation if they did not carve incidents related with the rising, writes Chauhan.

Source: TimesofIndia

Aamir-Kareena starrer may showcase city NGO's innovations

AHMEDABAD: The much-awaited film 3 Idiots' may feature innovations by Ahmedabad-based Society for Research and Initiatives for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions (SRISTI), founded by prof Anil Gupta of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

The film by Rajkumar Hirani of Munnabhai' fame from Vinod Chopra's stable, is a satire on the education system. The innovations expected to be featured are coconut tree climber, pedal-operated washing machine and bicycle boat. These were earlier featured on television channels with their innovators, but in the film the protagonists are Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor.

The credit for these innovations goes to Remya Jose, MJ Joseph alias Appachan and Md Saidullah.

The film deals with education and creative environment. "The production house read about our innovations and wants to include some which highlight creativity of students and teachers. The film might use these three innovations because they are made using basic common sense. These innovations are also amusing and enchanting from the perspective of the viewer," says a member of SRISTI. For instance, the amphibian bicycle turns into a boat in water and the washing machine can double up as a fitness equipment while the climber helps you scale coconut palms like Spiderman, says this source.

These innovations were discovered during the course of various shodh yatras across the nation conducted by SRISTI. These yatras are attempts by the NGO to reach out to remotest corners of the country with the belief that hardship and challenges of natural surroundings are the prime motivators of innovation. The film's unit is tight-lipped and not disclosing any detail.

Source: TimesofIndia