EDITORIAL
The month of April starts on ‘Fools’ Day’, but at the end of the month you are none the wiser. With the blazing heat vapourising what is left of our brains everybody could be excused for their incoherent thoughts. With searing temperatures breaking hundred year record, we should brace ourselves up for worse times in the coming months. The Chief Ministers’ statement a month ago, that Delhi has adequate power to take care of the summer demand, already begins to ring hollow, with many areas in the Capital having power outage. One resource which we in Yamuna take for granted is water. It will probably be the scarcest commodity going forward. We should all exercise restraint while consuming water. Please replace the seals in dripping taps, plug seepages and leakages, reduce the water reservoir size in the commodes, and use fixed quantity of water for baths instead of endlessly running the shower.
With barely ten days left for schools to close for the summer recess, there is a need to plan for activities for children to keep them occupied, lest they get into their parents' hair. I would request older children in the colony to get together and plan the younger children’s activities. This will not only keep them occupied but will also give them good exposure to creative pursuits and hone their organising skills. These could include social work like teaching the children of maids in the colony, craft skills, dramatics, making posters for water conservation, “Don’t Litter” posters etc.
All the trees in the colony got infested with white flies this month. We had summoned the services of a pest control agency to eradicate them. However, the flies disappeared as mysteriously as they appeared even before the Pest Control Agency could get their act together.
The debonair MP from Kerala and Minister of State for External Affairs, Shashi Tharoor at last met his nemesis in Lalit Modi. He has been shown the door after Lalit Modi revealed some unsavoury dealings relating to the Kochi franchisee. The very articulate and erudite Tharoor’s fate, had been hanging from a slender thread ever since he had been tweeting on Twitter on matters which make other politicians squirm in their seats. For the gaffe a week Tharoor, it has always been a case of when, rather than if the hatchet will fall. Now that the deed is done, the Press will have to look for other juicy news. Now, the heat is on Lalit Modi. Will he come off unscathed?
Talking of other newsy bits, Sania and Shoaib had their time in the sun. The ménage a trois involving Shoaib, Ayesha and Sania had all the makings of a Bollywood thriller with Ayesha claiming that she was already married to Shoaib and would not let the marriage between Sania and Shoaib happen until he divorced her. It all got sorted out in the nick of time, although, it cost the couple a whopping Rs.15 crores to get Ayesha’s acquiescence. What baffles me, however, is what our sporting queen saw in the country bumpkin from Sialkot, Pakistan. Shoaib has no education to speak of, nor does he have the sophistication of the Hyderabadi lass. Clearly, love is blind! The question is, will it stand the test of time? Is Sania destined to spend the rest of her life under a burkha and saying, ji huzoor ?
Recently, a mishap in Yamuna nearly cost a life when a glass pane got dislodged from the steel frame on a balcony and landed on the hand of Mr. Kunal Savarkar’s father leaving a deep gash that needed 18 stitches. Fortunately, it missed his neck. Residents are advised to replace their steel frame glazing in their balconies with aluminium glazing. In the case of steel glazing, the glass pane is secured with putty. Due to the temperature variance between summer and winter, the putty develops cracks and eventually gives way. This does not happen in the case of aluminium glazing, where the glass pane is in an extruded groove, obviating the need to secure it with putty. After the mishap, I surveyed the colony and noticed that in many places where steel glazing has been done, several glass panes were missing. It is only good fortune that nobody was standing below when these glass panes got dislodged.
The Society Office has received complaints that some people who are undertaking the renovation of their flats are breaking the floors in order to affix marble flooring. Since the hammering and chipping of the floors can cause structural damage resulting in cracks, it is advised that anybody who wishes to have an alternate flooring should opt for vitrified tiles or parquet flooring, both of which can be affixed to the existing flooring without having to damage it. Besides, the constant hammering of the floor is a source of great annoyance to the immediate neighbours.
Many residents have stated that their plumbing, electric or civil complaints are not attended to without constantly chasing the concerned staff, who are supposed to attend to such jobs. In order to effectively redress such complaints we would request residents to enter the complaints in the complaint registration cards placed in the Society office. This way the Society can monitor whether the complaints are attended to on time or not and take appropriate action in case of apathy from the staff.
Residents are being hereby informed that giving advance payment to any Society staff members for work in their flats is entirely at their risk. The Office has received several complaints from residents that some staff members have taken advance and not attending to their work despite repeated reminders. Please note that the Society will not entertain such complaints and residents are requested to exercise adequate caution when they advance money.
New Look Blog!
As you would no doubt have noticed, we have altered the look of the Yamuna blog. The tagline is The monthly newsletter of Yamuna Apartments. Does anyone have more interesting suggestions? It would be nice to have a line or phrase in Sanskrit that expresses the sense of community we share in Yamuna. Other than Vasudaiva Kutumbhakam, which is a tad commonplace, do send in your ideas.
Obituary
Mrs. Rajammal, mother of Mr. N. V. Seshan (H-103) passed away in Patparganj on 28th April, 2010. She was also the grandmother of Mr. N. S. Venkatachalam (G-103) and Savita Kumar (E-301). Yamuna’s residents convey their hearteelt condolences to the bereaved families.
SNIPPETS
Dr. Anjali and Dr. Rajeev Masodkar of E-102 have reasons to cheer up. Their darling daughter, Kanaklakshmi is engaged to be married to Nilesh in Nagpur on 23rd May, 2010. What a pity Yamuna lawns will not be the sacred ground for holy matrimony. Everybody in Yamuna wishes the couple an exciting and fulfilling married life.
Mrs. Revathi Krishnan, on tenancy at H-205 has become a Member after purchasing the flat. We welcome her and hope she can contribute more to the activities of the Society.
Mr. S. S. Ishwaran of A-002 has vacated his flat and is moving to Chennai to join his wife and daughter. We wish Mr. Ishwaran and family happy memories.
As a consequence, Mr. Madhu Nair of A-003 has taken the flat on rent, thereby reducing the number of residents in A-Block, which is already woefully short of hands for the Diwali illumination competition.
Mr. V. Jagadeesan, brother of V. Muralikrishnan of E-005 has moved into A-204 from Mumbai. However, his wife and children are still in Mumbai and have not joined him in his new abode. That is another case of depletion of population of A Block.
Mr. N. Venkatachalam who was in a transit flat in A-006 has found a permanent parking bay, having taken F-003 on rent. His family has joined him from Mumbai. He is a full time consultant with Stoneman Royale Ltd (importers of tiles and marbles). A lover of old Hindi songs and vintage Carnatic music, he has passed on his passion to both his sons who are learning this music form. His wife Janaki after having done a stint as senior software engineer now stays at home and keeps the males in the house in good cheer. Their sons Vijay of Class V and Vivek of Class I have integrated well into the Society. We welcome them to the Yamuna fold.
YAMUNA’S TREES
Tree of the Month – Neem Tree (Azadirachta indica)
Common names: Neem (Hindi, Bengali), Nimm (Punjabi), Arya Veppu (Malayalam), Azad Dirakht - literally, free or noble tree (Persian), Nimba (Sanskrit and Marathi), Margosa, Neeb (Arabic), Vepu, Vempu, Vepa (Telugu), Bevu (Kannada), Vembu (Tamil), and Indian Lilac (English)
Neem belongs to the mahogany family and is native to SE Asia. In Swahili (East Africa) it is also known as Muarubaini, or tree of the 40, as it is said to treat 40 different diseases ! It is a fast-growing evergreen tree that can reach a height of 15-20 metres . The branches are wide spread and adult trees have a beautiful oval canopy , but in severe drought or severe cold/ frost it sheds most of its leaves. I saw this sad sight during the cold months of January 2007 when all the neem trees in Race Course Road (Off Aurobindo Marg, alongside Safdarjung Tomb) were bare and “burnt”.
The Amman festivals in Andhra and Tamil Nadu extensively use neem flowers and leaves. During Gudhi Padwa, Maharashtrian families make chutney from neem flowers and leaves. There’s a good social reason for the festival being celebrated in summer because measles, chicken pox, prickly heat disorders spread faster in hot weather. In order to avoid these diseases, people started using neem leaves and neem bark. Neem leaves are gently rubbed over the body to ensure a quick recovery effective cure for chicken pox. Hindus believe that the goddess of the chickenpox, Sithala lives in the neem tree. This traditional treatment is still used in many rural areas of India, north and east parts of Sri Lanka. New born babies are laid upon a bed of Neem leaves to keep their skins germfree. Neem leaves are strung on door steps to keep evil spirits away. Ayurvedic medicine has utilized neem for over 4000 years.
- Neem oil extracted from its seeds is used in medicines, pest control and cosmetics.
- Neem tea is usually taken to reduce headache and fever.
- Its flowers are used to cure intestinal problems.
- Neem bark acts as an analgesic and can cure high fever (as in malaria).
- Its twigs make an effective toothbrush!
- Neem cake is widely used in India as fertilizer for crops like sugarcane and vegetables.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS – MAY 2010
RAIN DANCE
15 May Venue. Main Lawn
Time: 6.30 pm
