ए री मैं तो प्रेम दीवानी 

मेरा दर्द ना जाने कोई 

ए री मैं तो प्रेम दीवानी 

मेरा दर्द ना जाने कोई 

ना मैं जानूं आरती वंदन 

ना पूजा की रीत 

है अनजानी दरस दीवानी 

मेरी पागल प्रीत 

लिए रे मैंने दो नैनों के दीपक लिए सँजोय

 ए री मैं तो प्रेम दीवानी मेरा दर्द ना जाने कोई 

आशा के फूलों की माला 

साँसों का सँगीत 

इन पर फूली चली रिझाने

 अपने मन का मीत 

ऐ री मैंने नैन डोर में

 सपने लिए पिरोए 

ए री मैं तो प्रेम दीवानी मेरा दर्द ना जाने कोई 

ए री मैं तो प्रेम दीवानी मेरा दर्द ना जाने कोई

Love crazy I am, O my dear

None knows the pain that I bear

Love crazy I am, O my dear

None knows the pain that I bear

The art of worship or bow I know not

The tune of prayer’s ritual I blow not

Naive and crazy is my love divine

That madly seeks His sight sublime

 I have my eyes like two lamps lit, bright and clear

Love crazy I am,  O my dear

Dear hope’s garland of flowers I carry

Love songs, from my life-breaths I ferry

Blossom-like I go in an elated mental state

To woe my heart’s lover and my soulmate

O dear, the dreams that I collect and gather

In the thread of my eyes I string together

Love crazy I am, O my dear

None knows the pain that I bear

***

Dharamsala: why have a MC shorn of powers?

When Dharamsala town was made into a Municipal Corporation (MC) and Palampur was not, some of us had heartburn for ignoring Palampur. But by and large, we were  happy for Dharamsala for getting this elevated status. Similar emotions came to the fore when Dharamsala got another gift: a smart city status. We were pleased that if not Palampur, at least a neighbouring town which houses our district headquarters and is home for the saintly, His Holiness the Dalai Lama to boast and feel proud of – and justly so - will now be on the march towards rapid and ‘smart’ development. But then loud proclamations and grand rhetoric are one thing and executing proper developmental reforms on the ground quite another.

I was horrified to read a news item in the Tribune last week about how the MC is being emasculated and stripped of its powers. It is common knowledge how the powerful lobby of hoteliers have flouted rules with impunity to usurp government lands to raise illegal structures, cut down trees and made transgressions of several kinds. Shimla, Solan, Kasauli, Manali all have paid heavy environmental costs for this reckless land grab by unscrupulous, greedy elements. And Dharamsala is therefore no exception. Once such a charming hill down, the land-grabbers in cahoots with the politicians have over the years robbed it of its natural assets and contributed to the pollution, congestion and urban chaos. McLeodganj, such a delightful tourist hub, has been the worst sufferer.

Therefore, not surprisingly, when the well-meaning MC under its CEO Mr Lalit Jain tried to stem the rot and rein in the offending law breaking hoteliers by initiating punitive measures, their hackles were raised. Alarmed and upset, they ganged up against the MC. After all they are powerful people. Some of them are politicians and therefore, in fact, ‘power’ itself. How could a new MC and its chief have the temerity to upset their applecart? Using their clout and power they pulled the strings. Result? Acting with great speed and alacrity the MC was stripped of its powers. And now according to the new dispensation the powers to check illegal constructions, encroachments, tree felling and such like misdeeds have instead been vested with the government’s very own department: Town and country Planning (TCP). And about the functioning of this department you know as well as I do. Now those hoteliers can breathe easy, celebrate, keep going with their illegalities and cock a snook at Mr Jain and the MC. The only power that the poor MC has been left with is… ha, ha, ha… garbage disposal. And as the news item goes, the MC says that it hardly has the necessary manpower to deliver on this assignment even. If the MC were to be turned into a cripple, powerless body as it stands now, what was the blessed, mighty need to create one, may I please ask?

So dear Palampurwallas, don’t feel any sense of loss for our town not coming under the ambit of a MC, if the MCs are to function like zombies as the above case amply demonstrates. As I have stated earlier, if the citizenry is sensitive, alert, vigilant and takes active interest in the wholesome development of the town, we can make Palampur both ‘smart’ as well as beautiful by striking a fine balance between modernisation and ecology, for:

‘Development’ is a must,
But environment should come first.'

                                

A view of McLeodganj 

                               

*   

Quotes of the week

Human race is doomed if we do not colonise the Moon and the Mars: Astrophysicist Stephan Hawking (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Not enough fighter jets is akin to playing cricket with just 7 players: Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa ( The Indian express; gnews)

Saw father die in front of my eyes: Sabira, daughter of man lynched in Rajasthan:The Indian Express (gnews)

                                              
                                          *

Random headlines

NASA launches world's lightest satellite designed by 18-yr-old TN student (Times of India; gnews)

NASA wants to colonise Mars soon, says US Space scientist (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Asteroid collision with Earth inevitable:experts (The Hindu; gnews)

66 million displaced people: Human cost of war in 2016 (India Today; gnews)

A third of the world's  people already face deadly heat waves. It could be nearly three-quarters by 2100 (Washington Post; gnews)

Huge forest fire kills 62, injures 50 in Portugal (NDTV; gnews)

Governments using Facebook, Twitter for promoting lies, propaganda:report (Business Standard; gnews)

Bengaluru cops heroes for allowing ambulance ahead of Presidnet's convoy (NDTV; gnews)

Palampur provides the perfect setting to undertake a series of volunteer sessions (Economic Times; gnews)

New 3-in-1 blood test for precision prostate cancer therapies (The Indian Express; gnews)

Yoga, meditation reduce risk of cancer and depression by reversing DNA (Deccan Chronicle; gnews)

Coconut oil 'as unhealthy as beef fat and butter' (BBC News; gnews)

                                               ***

  

               

Come visiting Khajjiar/Chamba this summer

Stressed out? Bored? Sick and tired of the rough and tumble of this business of life? Or simply choked by the heat, dust, grime, smog and particulate matter-saturated air of the plains? If that is so, why not head to the salubrious, deodar-studded Khajjiar, some 25 kilometres from Dalhousie in the beautiful Chamba district? My Wikipedia search reveals that Khajjiar is one of the 160 locations in the world that bears topographical resemblance with Switzerland, and it was one Mr Willy T. Blazer, Vice Counsellor and Head of Chancery of Switzerland, who on July 7, 1992 gave Khajjiar an international status by calling it a “mini Switzerland”.  
Tucked away in a quiet corner on a sloping hill and providing a panoramic view of Khajjiar’s lush green meadow skirted by pure stands of stately deodars in the far distance, is a PWD rest house. If you have books to read, a diary to scribble your thoughts and binoculars to bird watch, well then you are on an unforgettable life-enriching journey. You will return with all your batteries recharged, I bet. Of course Khajjiar has other places for stay to offer. HP tourism’s cottages, for instance. Maybe with commerce having become the guiding mantra of our present-day lives, quite a good number of private lodges and resorts too might have come up now: it has been years since I visited it last. But nothing to beat the quiet charm and sensuous elegance of the PWD rest house built in the old, traditional Pahari architectural style.

Your  couple of nights’ stay at Khajjiar  will include relaxing walks all over the meadow, some quiet moments simply sitting in the lap of nature, and watching children let loose themselves on its gentle slopes. You could also enjoy going on treks. And the bird lovers would love moving around the forested wildernesses for birdwatching. After the Khajjiar stint you would of course not miss visiting Chamba 24 kilometres from Khajjiar by a narrow, serpentine road. A small but bustling hill town, it is steeped in history, art, legend and folklore. Chamba has the world famous Bhuri Singh museum for you to feast on some finest artefacts. There is the sprawling Chowgan to relax and loiter around. You could also visit various temples, including the famous Laxmi Narayan temple. The Akhand Chandi palace, now a college, is another attraction. And you could easily bump into craftsmen and women and marvel at the fine, delicate embroidery of the ‘Chamba rumal’ and other kinds of art work. If you like you can buy some of these and make them a feature of special attraction in your drawing room. Likewise, you can look for bronze, copper plaques with exquisite carvings mostly depicitng images from our rich mythology to pick and buy for your wall decoration. Hand-made, pure leather ‘Chamba chappal’ is yet another unique Chamba speciality which you will not miss to own.

In a nutshell, a lot to see, do and buy, and return home rewarded, relaxed and happy.

So, before the monsoon strikes these northern parts of our motherland and outpaces you, do your own online research for more info, make your bookings, pack your bags and hurry to Khajiiar and Chamba to detox. Happy journey to this many-splendoured land!

The bewtiching Khajjiar meadow

Isn't it charming? The PWD rest house

Bird watching at Khajjiar

                                             

The famous Laxmi Narayann temple at Chamba

                                           *

Quotes of the week

Never give up on dreams is what this win taught me: Rohan Bopanna after his first grand slam win (DH)

Send warmongers to the front: Salman Khan (DH)

No meat, no sex, pure thoughts : Ayush  ministry advice to would-be moms for healthy baby (HT: google news)

Note ban impact on economy to continue: SBI (google news)

                                            *

Random news headlines

300000 year-old "early Homo sapiens" sparks debate over evolution

                   - Ars Technica (Google news)

Worm regenerates into rare 2-headed creature in space

                   - (DH)

Humans will find alien life in 2 decades:expert

                   - (DH)

Jupiter is the oldest planet in solar system:study

                   - (DH)

Woman cop (in  Bihar) sacked for falling in love with most wanted criminal

                   - (DH)

Vit C and antibiotics 100 times powerful at killing cancer

                   - (DH)

High carb breakfast helps you make better decisions

                    - (DH)

Lonliness makes people more selfish:study

                    - (DH)

Snake venom may replace aspirin for heart disease patients

                    - (DH)

Home blood pressure monitors wrong 70 per cent of time

                    - (DH)

                                            ***

My sombre musings post World Environment Day

It was of course feared - but not hoped - that the US of A with visionless Donald Trump as its president would pull out of the Paris Climate Pact. He has. In one shocking, fell stroke he has turned the entire Pact on its head. What a gift to the choking, gasping world barely a few days  prior to the World Environment Day! What a slap on the face of the hard-at-work environmentalists the world over! What a setback to the global endeavour to curtail CO2 emissions and heal the wounds of our planet bleeding, wilting and dying from anthropogenic transgressions! By the country notorious for being the highest polluter of earth after China. The Great Barrier Reef, with the corals bleaching rapidly, is under threat. Antarctica’s huge iceberg is separating off from the main body under the singeing heat of global warming. Massive forest fires, devastating cyclones and hurricanes, storms and floods have become more rampant and destructive than ever before. Every summer is breaking the last summer’s record of rise in temperatures that increasing number of cities and countries are sizzling with. Quite naturally, all sane and sensible people are worried; for, at this rate the end of this blue planet is nearer than ever before.

Look at the geopolitical scene. Like some extra-terrestrial demon unleashed upon the earth from above, unconcerned about serious climate change and other existential threats we face, North Korea's Kim is going gaga over launching one missile after another. Doesn’t he look like a crazy, arrogant adolescent rather than a mature, responsible Head of State, treating the deadly nuclear weapons as if they were mere toys? And who in the big, wide world is this rogue country’s trusted long-time friend? None else but our big neighbour China!

China, drunk with power and arrogance of success, is in mad hurry to establish its hegemony over the world and is muscling its way by investing billions in nuclear missiles, submarines, warships and what not. In its bid to gain control over the South China Sea it is intimidating smaller countries:  keep shut, fall in line or else…is the message. With its formidable military might, it is even not unafraid to gnash its teeth and take on the USA. 

 Nearer home, this same country is posing the gravest threat to India also with its unholy and sinister alliance with Pakistan, another rogue country like North Korea. It is America and China that have armed Pakistan to its teeth against India. China has provided it nuclear knowhow, the submarines and missiles brazenly flouting all International codes and norms. Cunningly, it has taken over chunks of land from Pak on the Indo-Pak borders to gain a strategic advantage for a two-pronged war against India should the occasion arise. Ignoring India’s protests it has built its OBOR through POK. It might establish an army base in Pakistan, says Penatgon.

Terrorism is now a global phenomenon. Even Europe, considered relatively safe and less vulnerable earlier, has become its favoured target.

Syria burns. Afghanistan explodes. Iraq, once a cradle of one of the oldest civilizations, is now a sad, dismal war-ravaged wasteland- thanks to Bush and Blair. West Asia is turbulent. Blisters of conflict, mutual hostilities and violence are erupting in the Arab world. In Yemen, even in this 21st century, 100,000 people are stricken with cholera; thousands have already died.

Where are the leaders of vision, optimism, inspiration, catholicity, love, compassion and understanding to guide the destinies of nations and make this globe pulsating with such a wonderful diversity of life a paradise of peace and happiness for all?

Whither are we headed? Perhaps the question now is not WHETHER Mother Earth will survive this multi-pronged onslaught. The question is WHEN and how long before it turns into the lifeless expanse akin to the crater-ridden moonscape where Homo sapiens once walked.

                                  *

Some alarming Climate change facts

* Global warming will rise 2 degrees Celsius  above preindustrial levels by 2036.

* Water, food, health, energy, agriculture, economy will be most adversely affected by this change.

* Climate change will displace 250 million people by 2050:UNHCR

* Global flooding could triple by 2030 

* Earth could warm by 6 degrees this century

* Two thirds of Polar bears could be gone by 2050 and completely vanish by 2100

* Coral bleaching has spread over 900 miles  of  the Great Barrier Reef

* Typhoons and hurricanes are getting stronger because of climate change

* There has been terrible flooding in the UK, Myanmar, Spain,         Argentina,Indonesia, Egypt and other countries.

* Simultaneous flooding and heat waves occured in Australia

* Crazy hot weather conditions prevailed in India and the Middle East

* Incredible heat wave in the Arctic has led to lowest ever wintertime ice ever recorded there.

                                   *

Quotes of the week

Protecting environment (is) an article of faith for us: PM  Modi (ToI)

Let's judge Priyanka (Chopra) for her actions not clothes: Sunny Leone (DH)

Hope they will kill us, not rape: Former IS sex slave after her return to Iraq village (HT)

                                                   *

Random headlines

Ancient lake on Mars harboured diverse microbial life:study (DH)

Massive Antarctica iceberg at brink of breaking off (DH)

Trump describes US as cleanest nation: facts muddy the claim (DH)

Playing guitar may protect brain health: study (DH)

Malaria infection may cause brain loss too: study (DH)

New 'promising' ovarian cancer treatment developed (DH)

Washing hands in cold water as good as hot: study (DH)

New AI system can predict your life span: study (The Hindu)

Gun of UP minister's guard gets stuck in Rs 5 crore MRI unit, ruins it (ToI)

                                           ***

      

ICJ for Kulbhushan Jadhav. Good.

Why not for Capt Saurabh Kalia?

That was his first posting and the very first assignment…and no mean one! Brimming with courage, suffused with patriotic fervour, this, barely-past-his-teens Braveheart was in fact on his maiden though challenging mission on that ill-fated day of 14 May 1999. He was leading a batch of 5 jawans climbing the icy Kargil heights as a patrol party on a recce to verify and ascertain stray, casual reports about the enemy intrusion into our territory that had trickled in. Not anticipating any big mischief, if at all any, the party was however taken by rude surprise; for, while India slept, the enemy infiltration had gone on on a massive scale on the sly. He and his party were ambushed. They fought till the last bullet but were subsequently overpowered and captured by the enemy. What happened in the 22-odd days that followed is the blood-curdling story of barbarism, brutality, beastliness that is too terrible and horrendous even to imagine: something that will always remain an ugly stain on the face of humanity. Those young men were subjected to such extreme, slow, protracted, spine-chilling torture that even the words to pen it shiver, shudder and turn bloody. This small party was none other than the one that had at its head one of Palampur’s Kargil heroes: Capt Saurabh Kalia.

This sad saga is known to us all. But what makes this story sadder still, as also annoying and disgusting, is the shameful silence of the governments in power. This inhuman treatment meted out to Captain Saurabh and his team by the Pakistan army was a brazen, blatant violation of human rights and was indubitably a case of a gross war crime. Captain Saurabh’s anguished parents have fought long and hard and tried all means (including a petition to PM Modi through change.org) to move the government(s) at the centre to take the case to the International Court of Justice (ICJ); to hold the perpetrators of this torture accountable and ensure deterrent punishment.  They have even knocked at the Supreme Court’s door but in view of government’s apathy and dillydallying, they haven’t been able to make much headway as yet.

But now the Kulbhushan Jadhav case has made the present government shed its old, habitual pusillanimity, lethargy and lassitude and jolted it into moving the ICJ.  The positive results are there for all to see.

Quite justifiably therefore, there are some voices asking that Saurabh Kalia case too should likewise  be taken to the ICJ by the Modi government without any more delay. Major Vijai Singh Mankotia has rightly asked for it and the HP’s ex-servicemen too have joined hands with pleas to help make it happen.

It is indeed a just, noble and a fitting cause and we all must support it whole-heartedly and do our bit in building up the momentum for it. It has already suffered inordinate delay at the hands of weak-kneed politicians. “We have already lost the edge because of this delay,” says Vaibhav Kalia, the martyr’s suave brother. Therefore any more procrastination would only weaken it further before the ICJ. Nothing would please the countrymen more than if those insane wolves in men’s clothing are exposed before the world and brought to justice. That would be some consolation at least to the grieving parents and family members of Capt Saurabh and his team who all nurse the pain and sadness deep in their hearts. In fact the world will laud and applaud the government for bringing to light this dastardly act of torture by the Pakistan army and the nether depths to which they can stoop and sink; the limits they can cross. It will be a resounding slap on the face of Pakistan army and as Vaibhav says so rightly, “A timely action at the ICJ level in the Saurabh Kalia case would have served as a deterrent against subsequent inhuman transgressions by the Pak army such as the frequent cases of beheadings of our men." In a broader context it will be a victory of the intrinsic goodness of humankind against the evil of vile demons who masquerade as humans.

Can’t we make it a mass movement? Let’s do it.

                                                      *

A delightful read indeed

Another book I finished reading two weeks ago was ‘My Mountain and My Valley’ by Parmananda Sharma. It is a slim, 141-page autobiographical account by this erudite scholar of our own Kangra valley. He, as many of you might know, retired as Principal of Government College at Dharamsala and lives in the sylvan environs of its suburb, Shamnagar.

The book is an engaging story of Prof Sharma’s life’s journey from a village in Punjab right up to the present day. There are interesting details of his struggles, his highs and lows in life, the subtle workings of destiny, and his encounters with some of the great leaders including those who were engaged in the freedom struggle. He delves at quite a length into his spiritual forays and his deep and abiding association with Sai Baba and his other religious/spiritual experiences. His long and rewarding association with His Holiness the Dalai Lama is also a part of this narrative and makes for a rewarding read. A scholar that he is, he has translated many great religious Tibetan texts into English.

I have had the privilege and pleasure of meeting Prof P N Sharma more than two decades back and found him self-effacing and unassuming. His scholarship and  mastery over the English language as also his accomplishments as a writer sit lightly on his shoulders. I have since that day adored him and held him in high respect.

It was therefore a greater pleasure to read his autobiography in this backdrop. But if I were to wear a critic’s hat then I dare say that the account of religious and spiritual dimension of his life running into very many pages - no doubt mostly quite enlightening - proved to be a bit of an overdose for a poor agnostic like me. I would instead have loved to read some more intimate details and anecdotes relating to other aspects of his personal life. But on the whole, a wholesome, absorbing read.

*

Quotes of the week

Ultimately the aim of human existence, as His Holiness always emphasises, is to become a good human being with a good heart, to be compassionate, to be loving with a sense of universal responsibility
                                - P N Sharma in 'My mountain and my valley'

When man fails you God helps
                                 - As above

The Dhaludhar is my mountain and the Kangra valley is my valley
                                 - As above

"Be your own lamps" (atta deepo vihartha) 
                               - Buddha's  words quoted by P N Sharma

"Amour vincent omnia" ('love conquers everything')
                               - A quote in P N Sharma's  book  

                                     *

Random headlines 

World leaders vow to defend  Climate Pact after Donald Trump pull-out (Economic Times)

Smoking claims 2200 Indians everyday (Deccan Chronicle)

HIV infected woman thrashed by doctors at Gorakhpur med college hospital (Deccan Herald)

Excessive texting may cause 'smartphone thumb': experts (Deccan Chronicle)

Fruit your way to glowing skin and luscious tresses this summer (Economic Times)

Action against illegal hotels in Mc Leodganj area (The Tribune)

Rain damages 100 houses in Palampur (The Tribune)

                                                ***