Month: September 2014

By Pradip Phanjoubam

The United Naga Council, UNC’s ban on vehicular traffic along Manipur’s major lifelines has begun. The mood in the State, importantly in the capital, much to the consternation of many observers outside the State, is one of stoic acceptance of a periodic irritant, as if this is something written in the place’s destiny. In a way it is, given its peculiar geography. This must not however be mistaken for an attitude of resignation, for there is very much a volcano beneath the calm, quite capable of erupting with devastating violence, as the state has witnessed so many times before.

At least for the moment, a resignation does not seem to be the approach of the government either. It is seen gearing up to ensure the siege is not total, and from all appearances, it has won the support of the Central government as well. A team of senior Central government officials, including the MHA and Information Bureau, came visiting the state on the day the blockade began to take stock of the situation, and promised all necessary assistance to the State government.

This is encouraging, if not for anything else, than for the fact that this will be towards not allowing this ugly tussle and bitter venom to spread to the civil population. For if this does happen, it can be an extended nightmare for all for years and decades. The State had been on the verge of such a nightmare so many times before, but it does seem there are elements determined to push things precisely to such a limit.

Blockades and bandhs do happen frequently in the State, and this is bad enough, but this trend of indefinite blockades is a dangerous portend for all. In international law, and as so many commentators have said so many times before in very many situations all over the world, it is an act of war. We can only hope, regardless of what the provocation, public nerves do not snap on either side of the fence of the conflicting situation, and no destructive emotions explode.

But this is Manipur. The land where the abnormal can pass off with consummate ease as normal, and in the same breath and with equal unconcern, the incredible is accepted as routine. This is the picture which is unfolding before all of us again this time.

Here is an approximation of a slice of a single day in the life of Manipur as the broad pattern of morning newspaper headlines in the State would bear witness:

Irom Sharmila, is produced before the court in an exercise designed to perennially extend her detention without trial; She makes a remark laden with frustrated anxiety and sense of let down at the lack of public support; All the loud pledges of support and solidarity whenever the national media glare is on her are deafeningly silent this time; Elsewhere, a group of students at Wangoo demanding appointment of regular teachers in their school are fired upon with rubber bullets and mock bombs to disperse their rally, injuring several; An indefinite blockade of the state entered its second day, and there is no discernable outrage anywhere; Somewhere in a remote village on the Myanmar border, Army troops banish two families from their village for allegedly giving support to insurgents; In another corner of the state, women in dreary formal routine, take turns to squat daylong at designated spots with some ceremonial fruits in front of them to protest the non-implementation of the  Inner Line Permit System in the State; Many still insist this system was once in place in Manipur, though the Inner Line System was conceived and implemented in the Assam province of Bengal in 1873, by the Bengal Inner Line Regulation 1873; These same protestors would also with equal conviction continue to contend Manipur was an independent kingdom at the time and never a part of Bengal or India. Shouldn’t the self proclaimed intellectuals behind the movement for once make up their minds on the issue of whether this regulation meant for Bengal was promulgated in Manipur; Still elsewhere, grenade gifts are doled out on routine basis by extortionists as convincing messages to people from whom they seek their ‘donations’…

Picturing all these events on a single mental canvas surely would evoke surreal images such as those of the master of the genre, Salvador Dali, where madness is the defining norm, and the mind is allowed to violently yoke together radically dissimilar and unrelated ideas into a single thought, distorting reality and making the unreal real. Or perhaps the more accurate description of Manipur’s absurd theatre would be that of Lewis Carol’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’, with the Queen of Heart every now and then, without rhyme or reason, and at absolute random intervals, pronouncing her ridiculous and meaningless verdicts – ‘off with his head’ – at anybody in her vicinity.

In this absurd theatre that Manipur has become, people’s reactions to events are also more often than not counter intuitive. An indefinite blockade is announced, and rather than be outraged and scream blue murder, the first reaction is to wake up at unearthly hours and without a complaint and in total composure, as if this has been the routine all along, join miles long queue outside petrol pumps for their rationed quotas of 5 litres each.

Similarly, the chances on any given day are, somebody is gunned down by militants or State police, and the first demand by a quickly formed Joint Action Committee, JAC, is for suitable monitory compensation or government job for next of kin. A demand for fitting legal retribution would be only next in importance.

At least in the case of the just launched indefinite blockade, we do hope the confounding counter intuitive public response remains, and no violence breaks out on the streets. We have seen how terrifying this can be in the past. Nobody except the pathologically ill minds will crave for their repeat. The trouble is, in this absurd theatre, such psychopaths are also not in any shortfall, which is why the State is in a never ending boil.

On a more serious note, the indefinite blockade has once again awoken the State government to a reality it had, for whatever its reason, chosen to relegate into its now crowded deep freezer of public promises. In a knee jerk response after the current blockade was announced, it suddenly remembered there is another highway it can secure much more completely, the one which connects Imphal with Silchar in Assam. Why is that every time an economic blockade is announced, it finds itself caught with its pants down? The pattern has been for it to jolt itself awake once again to this reality, makes all kinds of promises that this highway would be upgraded and made heavy traffic worthy through all the seasons. Once the blockade is lifted, so would all the loud vaunts of upgrading this highway vanish into thin air. How we wish the government was able to see beyond the immediate. Had this been so, the State would be connected by many alternate highways to the world outside, thereby make even the most unscrupulous blockades much more manageable.

It is never too late. Let the government begin with the current emergency and give the project the energy and focus it deserve to develop and secure this highway once and for all. Even if there were never to be another indefinite blockade, which is unlikely knowing the ways of our firebrand street politicians, this is the highway of the future. The four-lane Silchar Expressway is nearing completion and once completed, road transportation is going to be simpler on this route. Again, if the Bangladesh-India border softens and is more formally regulated, as it would someday or the other, the Barak valley would climb in importance and so too the Imphal-Silchar highway.

It is no coincidence that even in the 19th Century, after Assam was annexed by the British in 1826 at the end of the First Anglo Burma War and the signing of the Treaty of Yandaboo,  and made a province of Bengal, there was a plan to connect Assam with Myanmar by railways, so as to give the extractive industries the British opened in the region more teeth. There were several routes marked out, all of them passed through Manipur, and one of them falls along the Imphal-Silchar mountain pass (L.W. Shakespear: ‘A History of Assam Rifles’).

Whatever may be said of oppression and exploitation of British colonialism, it must be also added the British colonialists’ sense of geography, and methods of exploiting this, was nothing but sublime. Long before the idea of ‘Look East Policy’ dawned and gained currency in India in the 1990s, colonial British India was already thinking of it for its own commercial benefits. The project was abandoned because of the growing militancy of Bengal towards the latter half of the century and also the peculiar linguistic politics in Assam.

Not only the currently used Imphal-Silchar road, the government must also develop the parallel road to Jiribam and thereafter Cachar – the historic Tongjei Marin. Throughout Manipur’s history as a Paddy State (in James Scott’s language), Tongjei Marin was vital as a commercial route as well as strategically. The Dimapur highway that we are more familiar with today is a post British phenomenon, and in particular the Second World War.

It is for this reason that to the older generation literates of Manipur, including incidentally Hijam Irabot, names of places such as Chittagong, Dhaka, Sylhet etc are so familiar, many of them having done their higher studies in Chittagong and Dacca Universities. Tongjei Marin falls in senior politician and State Home Minister, Gaikhangam’s constituency, so there can be no better moment than now for this road to be given its historical due of a major renovation.

Meanwhile, let the government also in all earnest try and bring those behind the blockade to the negotiating table for an amicable resolution to the issues involved. Let there be no doubt, nobody will end up winner in this unseemly and hostile contest.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/manipurs-theatre-of-the-absurd-once-again/

By Tinky Ningombam

Sometimes, not all things in life comes with a manual and that is why we have life-hacks. We call life hacks, those nifty tricks, tips and solutions that help make us do things easier in our everyday normal life. There are things that you need help for and there are things that you think you can handle and then land up calling for help. Starting from small innovative tricks for house-keeping to heavy duty chores such as repairing electric circuits or handling tools. Being a fix-it person around the house means having the improv skill and creativity to solve problems on the go.

It is funny when you come to think of it that every house has a designated Fix-it person, the one with in-borne skills for home solutions. Like how mothers always find your lost things. And as wise men say “it is not really lost, if your mom has not search for it.” Honestly, it is definitely a plus to be a fixer-upper especially if it is running chores around the house. Fixing an electric circuit, on the other hand, definitely requires a specialist. Let us be modest here, not every-one is a “born survivor” like Bear Grylls from Man Vs Wild. Talk about ultimate hacks!

These past few years, living on my own, I have come to realise the importance of how small hacks help save a lot of trouble. I am all in for DIY projects and have been scouring the internet for new things to try all the time. I am sure everyone have pulled a few at least once in their life-time and especially for people living alone, these things can actually truly be a great knack. Today, I will list few of the interesting tricks that can help save the day as well as help you make your claim as the quintessential life-hacker.

Here are my picks:

1.     If you have dropped your phone in water, put it in a zip-locked plastic bag filled with rice and keep for a couple of hours. The rice will absorb the moisture.

2.    New shoe pinches? Wear large socks and put on your new shoes and gently blow dry them where it is tight from outside for about 5 minutes.

3.    To check if your gas pipes are tight around the joints, put a little soapy water on the sides. If it bubbles, then there is a leak.

4.    If you run out of shoe polish. Peel off a banana and rub your leather shoes with the inside of the peel and wipe off with a soft cloth afterwards.

5.    Banana peels also works wonders to whiten your teeth, polish the scratches off a CD and to polish silverware. It also helps to cure bruises: just put the banana peel on the bruise for about 15 minutes.

6.    Use the airplane mode on your smart phone while charging to make it charge faster. Also, put it on while playing mobile games to turn off irritating in-between ads.

7.    Use a pencil eraser to rub off a scratch on your LCD screen. Rub alongside the long end of the scratch until it disappears.

8.    If you need to chill something really quick. Put ice in a zip lock plastic bag along with the can/bottle/packet that you need to chill and put a handful of salt. Take caution and handle with gloves or wrap a towel around it and shake.

9.    Use your mobile phone to take pictures before you dismantle something. For instance, if you are disconnecting wires from your electronic device, like a desktop computer, just refer to the picture to know which wire to go in where.

10.  Use the mobile camera to click a picture of the number of the bus/taxi/auto/vehicle you are getting on to and mail it to your spouse/friend/guardian if you are travelling long distance.

11.   If you are calling people over to your house for a party, click a picture of your house with your phone and send along with your address.

12.   Also, click a picture of the person and the item that they have borrowed from you. It will be easier to remember to collect them.

13.  If you are working out in the gym, prepare a playlist on your i-pod/ phone/ shuffle to last exactly the same time as your work-out regime. This will save you from constantly checking out the time on the machine (which can slow down your workout)

14.  To cool down a laptop while using, place it on top of an empty cardboard egg carton.

15.  To remove rust from iron tools/objects, soak overnight in a mixture of vinegar and salt

16.  To stop hiccups, eat a spoonful of sugar

17.  Dab an ice-cube on your eyebrows before you pluck them with tweezers, it numbs the pain

18.  If you like fresh flowers in your room. Put a tea spoon of baking soda or dash of soda water to keep your flowers fresher in the vase.

19.  If you are back-packing with dirty clothes in your luggage, open a small packet of scented soap and keep them in the bag, it will make your clothes smell fresher

20.   And the best for the last, keep your emergency numbers handy by writing it on a piece of paper and keeping it inside the back of your phone next to your phone battery. If your phone shuts down, these will help you contact your friends.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/life-hacks-creative-solutions-to-life-problems/

R.K. Shitaljit Singh

Translated by Chitra Ahanthem

“Who are you looking at? At your own self?”

Kombirei, who was seated in front of a mirror and combing her hair, was saying these words. There was no one nearby. There was just a striped cat with her on the wide verandah that spanned the length of three rooms. Perhaps sensing the sorry state of Kombirei who had no one to answer her query, the cat cried out “Meow, meow” and looked at her piteously. Hearing the cat, Kombirei looked at it and smiled softly. She felt content that there was at least this ‘petite being’ that felt a sense of relief for her.

Her combing over, she held the cat on her lap. Looking at it intently, she hugged it tight, “Arangbi, what makes you different from human being?”

The cat did not answer back but kept saying, “Meow, meow.”

Kombirei further continued, “You don’t know the difference? You know it but don’t know how to say it. Right? But the tone of your meow conveys your answer, Arangbi.”

Lost in her conversation with the cat, Kombirei was not aware of what was happening on the verandah. Looking on at the manner in which Kombirei was lost in her talks with the cat, the visitor did not dare to intrude. It seemed best that he remained silent, so he kept quiet.

Kombirei was asking the cat, “Why do you love me so, Arangbi? I don’t care enough for you.”

“It knows the reason, even if you don’t, Kombirei.” Hearing this, Kombirei turned to see who it was. Her face turned red when she saw the youth she had met on a few rare occasions and she turned towards the cat.

The youth asked, “Kombi, can you see your heart’s reflection in the cat’s eyes?”

With a soft smile, Kombirei said, “Yes, yes.”

“Do you know why?”

“No.”

“No?”

“Hmm.”

“Because of your closeness.”

Kombirei then sighed deeply and said to the cat, “Arangbi, go and play now. We will talk later after I finish my work.”

Hearing this, the youth said, “Kombirei, you really know how to let go easily.”

“How can I hold on just because I want to, Tada Subol?”

Subol did not reply. With a long drawn out “Hmm”, he turned his face slightly and looked at Kombirei.

Kombirei stood up and gave the mora she was sitting on to Subol. He sat on the mora and Kombirei sat down on the floor. Subol then said, “Kombirei, do you know why I have come?”

“No, I don’t.” All this while, tears fell from her eyes. She felt listless and did not bother to wipe her tears with her hands. The tears rolled down akin to a thin river flowing down a cliff.

Subol saw them but continued, “When will you ever understand me Kombirei? In which birth?”

“Not in this one, Tada.”

“Let me be off then.” And so Subol got up and went off. Kombirei stayed behind looking at him.

The next day, Subol’s mother Tharo was talking to her husband Choubhan as she sorted through and cleaned the vegetables for the meal. Choubhan was puffing away at a hookah as he lay on a mat. Tharo said, “Do you know? Our son does not see anything in this world except for Kombirei? I have cautioned him … said a lot but he does not listen … does not care. One day, we will surely pay for it if something happens.”

Choubhan did not reply. He merely listened and continued to smoke in contemplation. The hookah was big and made quite a noise. Tharo’s anger rose with Choubhan’s silence but the din raised by the hookah made it worse. Just as a dying person hates the noise of an engine, so also was her dislike for the noise emanating from the hookah. Her anger rising, she shouted abruptly, “Are you listening at all?”

Choubhan was startled by this outburst but calmed down and said, “Yes, I am.”

“Then why have you not said anything?”

“What if he brings the girl?”

“He is my son. You should not judge him wrongly.”

“I know he is your beloved son. But…?”

“It doesn’t matter, Tharo. Call Subol if he is around.”

Subol came at his mother’s bidding and stood with a subdued demeanor near his father.

Looking at Subol, Choubhan started, “Subol, has Kombirei agreed?”

Subol’s face flushed at the question. He remained quiet. Choubhan continued, “If it is OK, bring her once. Shall I go and meet her parents for their approval?”

Subol stayed quiet but Tharo, beating her chest with a clenched fist cried out, “Alas! All is lost! You both stay at this house … decide whom to bring as daughter-in-law!”

Choubhan looked at his wife calmly and said, “And you?”

“Rather than accept that uncultured girl as my daughter-in-law, I would …”

“Go back to your parental house?”

“Why not?”

“So you won’t agree with your husband? How can you expect your son to obey you when you don’t listen to your husband?”

Tharo bristled at the suggestion; she was at a loss to reply and remained quiet. Subol went off while Choubhan continued to smoke the hookah.

After a while, Choubhan said, “Tharo, listen. Have you not been able to know your son from the time he was a wee baby? He will marry the woman he desires and you cannot interfere. I did not marry you by choice. I saw your face the day I married you. The ones I desired, I had to leave behind because my elders did not agree. I married because I did not want to hear their taunts anymore. But I still feel the loss of giving up whom I wanted, to this day. So, you cannot speak more on this. I will go and meet Kombirei’s parents.”

A month has passed by since Kombirei became Tharo’s daughter-in-law. Tharo continued to think that Kombirei with her lowly family background would not be able to fit into the ways of the family and to serve the elders with the decorum that was needed.

Kombirei knew that her looks alone would not be able to please her mother-in-law. But she still had to live in close proximity with the one person she had thought she should stay far away from.

One day Tharo called in her daughter-in-law and said, “Kombi. Isn’t it true that I was the cause for your tears even while you stayed at your parents’ place?”

Kombirei did not reply but remained as mute as a pillar. Looking at her predicament, Tharo continued, “Be frank and don’t lie. Tell me, isn’t it true?”

“Yes.”

“Did you not say to Subol that you would have to go your separate ways for this lifetime?”

“Yes, I did.”

“And now?”

“That has not happened.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know.”

“It was your father-in-law. I constantly opposed it while Subol was caught in the middle. But Kombi, my feelings have changed. You have changed them. Your nature has impressed me, made me realize…”

Kombirei now knew she had been able to please her mother-in-law. Feeling a sense of contentment, she thought she would tell Subol of the development later in the day. After sometime, she asked if she could go.

Tharo stopped her with a “wait” and continued, “Listen, we women are immature. We stay confined to the house and stay ignorant. But we think that we are the cleverest in this world and do not pay heed to what our husbands say. We judge their words as mockery and make fun of what they say. You have corrected my wrong belief. Do not ignore your husband’s words only because you do not agree with it, but only if you know that they are wrong.”

She bade Kombirei to go and she went off to finish the household chores.

Choubhan came back and turned to Tharo, “Tharo, has your low born daughter-in-law still not managed to satisfy you with her conduct?”

“She has only exceeded my expectations.”

“I know. You only acted like you do not know. You believe that only you love your son while the father doesn’t. Isn’t it so?”

“Let it be. Now I realize.”

Subol who had come in while his parents were talking asked, “Why are you both shouting?”

“Oh! Your mother wants my daughter-in-law as her own. I heard that stealthily. I was only asking her over that.”

Tharo, “Eh! You listened stealthily? Isn’t that surprising?”

“Hmm, you will be surprised. You women will only live a life full of surprises. You will meet surprises at every step you take.”

Tharo then called her daughter in law to ask, “Ibemma, will you be your father-in-law’s daughter-in-law only? What about me?”

Kombirei listened with surprise but remained silent. Choubhan said then, “Ibemma, she was not part of it. I came to take you as my daughter-in-law. Do not be her daughter-in-law.”

Tharo spoke again, “Kombirei, don’t you have any affection for me? Will the anger you brought from your home still remain?”

Hearing her mother-in-law’s words, Kombirei bowed at Tharo’s feet and replied, “I am my father-in-law’s daughter-in-law and my mother-in-law is my most loved mother.”

At Kombirei’s words Subol asked her, “Kombi, do you know what made my mother say this?”

“From being close.”

(This translation of the short story written by the late RK Shitaljit has been recently published in Tamna, a half yearly journal brought out by the Manipur Chapter of the North East Writers’ Forum)

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/from-being-close-naknarubadagi/

Modern Inflation

By M.C. Linthoingambee

If we are asked to mention a period or phase of time when we took everything for granted, a majority of us would point out the time when we were children and when our parents and older family members looked after our needs and we just took things for granted. The same goes for me but now, living independently in another city has made me realize just how much the rates of modern inflation is hitting me.

The grocery rates keep on increasing at a pace far beyond our social strata in an unexpected rate while one cannot forget the monopoly of the *sabjiwala* presiding in a particular residential era. While the rate of tomatoes go far exceedingly to the context of Rs.100/kg, there were those times when we wouldn’t even bother if tomatoes laid exceedingly in our own households back home. But if asked of the rates back home in Manipur, I wouldn’t know. When we narrate these stories they are not to be taken lightly since a large portion of the economy are deeply affected by it. Looking into the perceptive lens, more than 60% of the population is mainly comprised of those who are still unable to afford the basic necessities of life. Doesn’t this general price expectancy every now and then affect these people more? While we sit in our homes lax about the concerns of inflation, there are many, who suffer from the cause of malnutrition while not having the capacity to afford the required amount of calorie intake they are need to be taking. While the Japanese investments ties recently with India acquired by our new Prime Minister continue to make headlines, things are the same back home. The temperamental stand of filling up foe cooking gas is also a huge issue in everyday life, while some are more inclined to use the pipeline system of receiving gas into their homes, there are also those who stand in long queues to acquire a tank of gas. Remembering how our family elders use to stand in those lines to acquire their gas slip at MM Gas, Hirangchal Gas Agency and so on. I recently learnt that we need to book gas cylinders days before they are actually delivered.

When many of these daily requirements are going on price rise, shouldn’t we be looking at the production rather than cutting down on un-acquired land? When a promise of development springs up there are always those talks of certain lands being acquired by government. And when the right to property has been exclusively removed from our fundamental rights, it becomes explicitly easier for authorities to strip away people of their homes. The meager amount of compensation is not enough to meet the new house hunt considering the price rise in acquiring a new land or a new home. While the deal of houses are valued not anywhere less than 60 lacs and above in the capital of India itself, where can we expect those people who are considered ‘poor’ to go for that matter if they are driven out of their homes. There are still villages existing, surviving even in the small corner of Delhi, “The New-Delhi” and while the government fail to look their way, we bear witness to corporate ambitions to acquire that land in the hope of building new corporations where they claim youths will have a further chance of employment. Seeing how both are needed, we are talking about life and job both being necessarily pickled and sandwiched to choose from. The public trust doctrine is something we often come across in spite of our ignorance. While the Ambani brothers very often wage law suits on many matters currently being that of natural gas, the judiciary has awarded them with the ratio of determining that natural gas is a naturally occurring substance, and it should not be the cause of feud between brothers. Those notably MBA degrees only seem to let them see only profits (money) over people. The social justice principles in our parent legislation of the Constitution seem to be taking fewer tolls on these heavily armed increases. As a matter of which, using gas or electricity for the purpose of cooking have not taken affect. A large number of families are forced to use *chullahs and firewood *which are naturally available. These uses produces a large amount of smoke which causes air pollution that result in producing a harmful effect to our environment whilst causing a large amount of carbon monoxide compounds to be released in air that further adds to the green-house effect and cause respiratory problems and other ill diseases to its end users. As a matter of which a large affect is cause on our public health which is in gross violation of fundamental right to live and exist in personal liberty.

And these are not the only fixated problems that need solving; there is also the issue of sanitation being a primary concern. A recent article on *Civic Sense* in The Times of India written by Jug Suraiya pointed out that in spite of the new government’s promises to build new sanitation systems for women who do not have the necessary input of disposing of their natural business at night, shouldn’t we be focusing more on correcting those men who seem to enjoy taking a dump in a busy street in view of the public. While certain public restrooms may charge a price for the purpose, perhaps building more public houses of sanitary needs without a price might change the outlook of these men, who believe that paying for natural relieve is an evil into their wallets.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/inflation-has-been-defined-as-the-general-issue-of-price-rise-in-our-economy-and-the-modern-developments-often-add-on-to-these-worry/

Malangba Bangormayum

Sometimes, thereare gaps between intent and action. This gap, for me, is most visible in the arts. We have ample exemplars of this phenomenon.A devout faithful can sing the glory of the Lord, but to the effect that the auditor runs away for her dear life. On the other hand, a sinner can sing the same glory, and you are transported, while your feet are firmly rooted to the ground you stand. I have been puzzled by this observation. Thinking about this reminds me of a story once told to me. It involves a cow.

There are some localities with a wee-bit more enthusiasm when it comes to the arts and performances, entertainmentand festivities. In one such locality, and knowing its tradition of patronage of the arts, a newly constituted theatre company, made up mostly of inexperienced artists approached the local club to have a premiere of their new production. A day and place for performance was fixed, the microphones and the mikes were put in place and the performance started. It was clear that the performance was a bad one from the first act, and there was a general apprehension that it might turn worse. The audience bore the performance with fortitude. Bad performances can make you weep. It can be a real torture. A youth, who could not take it anymore, released a cow tethered nearby, and made it charge towards the performance. The audience ran amok.The‘male actresses’ also ran with shouts of “mother”, I was told. When the melee settled, there was a real drama to follow. The owner of the cow, greatly peeved and humiliated, and in defense of the honour of his cow that has been blamed for the mischief, the abortion of the performance, challenged whoever released the cow to come forward and make himself known. He challenged the unknown miscreant to a manly fight. Though everyone had the fright of their lives, they must have secretly blessed the cow.

There are moments when one feels that there is more than what meets the eye. There are times when one feelsthat what we see may not be all to what there is.There could be a realm that is beyond us. This ‘transportation’happens. The first time I felt, if for just a moment, that there must be more than what meets the eye, was during the performance of a famous Requiem by a choir with a splendid orchestra, in a cathedral. It was magical. Closer home the feeling of an extraordinary dimension came at a performance of RasLeela many years ago. I had gone there to call someone, not to witness the performance, not to prostrate in devotion. But that single minute of watching it unfold, from a respectable distance, has had an impact which has outlasted the distance of time. No wonder then that art has been used to win over those who do not believe. Faith has been expressed, propagated, instilled by the ‘instrumentality’ of art. No wonder, it has also been used to make money.

Is art just an artifice? Is it something that befools you; throws dust upon your eyes? Is art an instrument to making profit to a point of vulgarity?Yet,this vulgaritypales in comparison to the vulgarity that is there in trying to hide the intention of profiting with pretension of authenticity. I would prefer works of art that says, I am here to make money and entertain you rather than art that says, I am not here to make money but to tell a story that has to be told, when the fact is writ large that it does not care anything but the money in your pocket.If money is the end for an art work, then it has to pander to popular taste. Then there has to be some sacrifice on art’s seeking its own end – the end to transport us perhaps; the end to say the unsayable; the end of speaking unspeakable silence.

Flies know what is good for them. There must be more flies than human beings. If worth is decided by number, then flies must be right. There can be nothing more worthy than rotten things.

There is this song called “Ave Maria”, a song in praise, in prayer to Mary, mother of god. A very popular song considering the genre to which it belongs. This is one of those songs, which can be cherished if performed well. It has a quality that seems to say “this is the real deal”.This song proves that you can have your art and your money too. But here money follows arts’ walk. And I believe that something is wrong if it is the other way round. It is just a feeling that I have. To those who think that this feeling cannot be entertained since I do not have justifications forit, I simply say -“Ave Maria”.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/ave-maria/

By Dr Khushboo Shah Sawant

Last week in this column, we discussed in detail about the most common form of cancer see in women which is ‘breast cancer’, and today as we continue to go a little further in detail of our current subject of cancer, we shall look at a few more forms of cancers seen in the field of gynaecology or commonly seen cancers in the female reproductive tract. As described earlier, cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in a body, which may be triggered due to various reasons. Such forms of growth can sometimes be the cancer in the various parts of the female reproductive tract. While there are various forms and types of cancers seen in many parts like the vagina, cervix, the exterior organs etc, the most commonly seen types of cancers in gynaecology are the cancer of the cervix, the endometrial and the ovaries. We will look at some basic info about each of these types today.
We start with cancer of the cervix. This is by far, one of the most common forms of gynaecological cancers. We first begin with the basic question, what is the cervix? The cervix is a part of a woman’s reproductive system. It is located inside the pelvis. It is the lower narrow part of the uterus (which is also known as the womb) and connects the exterior reproductive parts to the uterus which is in the interior part of the body. The cervix remains tightly closed during pregnancy so as to protect the foetal growth and keep the baby safely inside the womb.  During childbirth, the cervix opens up to allow the baby to pass through the vagina. Similar to other forms of cancer, even the exact cause for the cancer of cervix is not known, however some causes and risk factors have been identified as an infection of the human papilloma virus (also known as HPV), smoking, engaging in sexual activity very early in life, having multiple sex partners, taking birth control pills etc. It is still not known as to why a woman with certain risk factors is more likely to suffer as compared to another woman with same or similar risk factors. A risk factor is something that can increase the chances of developing the disease. It has been seen and noted that an infection of the virus HPV is cause of almost all the cervical cancers. However a HPV infection is a self clearing infection, meaning the infection can clear out on its own. So basically an HPV infection when affects a susceptible person with other positive risk factors, the probability of affection of the cancer of the cervix increases greatly. The most common symptoms and signs of cervical cancer are abnormal vaginal bleeding, increased vaginal discharge, bleeding in the middle of the menstrual cycle, bleeding in a post menopausal female, pain during sexual intercourse, and pain in the pelvic area. One of the most common and simplest methods of diagnosing cervical cancer is by performing a pap smear. Other methods of diagnosing may be by performing and MRI scan or a PET scan. Treatment options include radiation therapy, surgery and chemotherapy etc. while some pre-cancerous changes in the cervix may be treated by non invasive methods.
We now move on to the next form of cancer known as the endometrial cancer, a type of cancer, which begins in the uterus or the womb. The uterus is a pear shaped hollow structure inside the female reproductive tract where the development of the baby occurs during pregnancy. The endometrium is the lining which covers the walls of the uterus, which sheds during menstruation. Endometrial cancer begins as an abnormal growth in the lining around the uterus (endometrium). There are also some other forms of cancer in the uterus, though the cancer of the endometrium is most common. The exact cause of endometrial cancer is not known but there are certain risk factors like fluctuation in the hormonal balance of the body, due to any illness, medication etc. which may prove to be risky, increased years of menstruation due to early puberty and delayed menopause. Also, women who have never been pregnant have a higher risk when compared to women who have been pregnant. Increasing age is also a risk factor while excessive weight or obesity that alters the body’s hormonal balance can be a risk too. This type of cancer is often detected in the initial stages as it produces abnormal vaginal bleeding, which most often alarms women to seek the help of a doctor. The commonly seen symptoms are vaginal bleeding after menopause, bleeding between periods, an abnormal watery blood tinged vaginal bleeding, pain during intercourse and pelvic pain. If detected well in time, surgically removing the uterus often cures the patient.
Ovarian cancer, as the name suggests is the cancer of the ovaries. The causes of this are not known but a genetic predisposition towards ovarian cancer or breast cancer seems to play a vital role as a causative factor, age also plays a role. While this type of cancer can rear its head any age, it is most commonly seen between ages 50-60 years. Ovarian cancer often goes undetected until it has spread within the pelvis and abdomen. Early stages of ovarian cancer rarely causes any symptoms and even as the disease progresses, it produces many non specific symptoms which may be wrongly diagnosed as a irritable bowel syndrome. Signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer include abdominal bloating or swelling, easy satiety or feeling of fullness even after eating very small quantities of food, weight loss, discomfort in the pelvic area, changes in the bowel habits, frequent constipation, increased frequency of urination etc. Early stage ovarian cancer in which the disease may be confined to only one ovary are more likely to be treated successfully. Surgery and chemotherapy are other options used to treat ovarian cancer.
As we have discussed earlier, while most risk factors may not be in our control, the avoidable risks must be kept at bay. Also it is advisable for women over the age of 40 years or those who have attained menopause to go for an annual ‘pap smear’ test. This simple test can prevent dire consequences. Another way is to consult a doctor in case any of the signs and symptoms mentioned above makes its presence felt. It may not necessarily be cancer, but it is best to be on the safer side.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/common-gynaecological-cancers-in-women/