Issue No. 152   I April 2014

EDITORIAL

The nerve wracking stress of annual exams is over and this is apparent as one can see more people outdoors. The pretty winter flowers are giving way to the more hardy yellow Tacoma flowers bordering the boundary wall next to St. George's school. Unfortunately, the flowers in the lower reaches get plucked for prayer offerings and we are left to crane our necks to spot the flowers in the higher boughs. The grass in the park has turned verdant and lush, thanks to the untiring efforts of Mr. Krishnaswamy, a far cry from the barren, dry and wispy look of winter. Trees have shed their dry leaves and new tender and shiny leaves are springing on the Ashoka, Gulmohur and Frangipani trees. Mosquitoes have started making their presence unpleasantly felt.  In short, nature changes in more ways than one as winter transforms to spring and then into summer. There is good and not-so-good in all these changes. The Almighty has a way of telling us that the world is not white or black, good or bad but a mix of both. You cannot have one without the other.

The last of the cultural events before the summer recess was the screening of the movie, Hasee Toh Phasee. The choice fell on this movie as the first and second choice movies had not been released on video. It was a story of menage a trois. As expected, in the end, the right woman got hitched. There was no melodrama. Restrained acting by Pareeniti Chopra and Sidharth Malhotra was refreshing. The pot luck dinner afterwards was a foray into the subtle tastes of unfamiliar cuisine and the more standard fare. The Cholle made by Meera Varma was awesome. Everybody had a jolly good time.

There was a clamour for showing the World T 20 final on the big screen. India, the only unbeaten team until then was the favourite to lift the trophy, hence the adrenaline rush. But nobody was prepared for a lack lustre performance from Yuvraj Singh, who virtually handed the match on a platter to Sri Lanka. Yuvraj is well past the 'sell by' date and like Sehwag should have been put to pasture. One swallow does not make a summer and one good knock in between five failures was not a compelling reason to play him. In other words, we blew it. We probably had the best team with the right balance and this was perhaps the best chance for India to pick up the trophy. Unfortunately, it was not to be and the lads from the Emerald Isle added some silverware to their trophy shelf. The crowd just melted away, sorely disappointed at the way things turned out. The poster boy, Virat Kohli was the only man in shining armour in the enveloping gloom. Unfortunately, his valiant effort went in vain

At last the pavements in Alaknanda have been set right. Hitherto, a trip to the market was full of perils and one had to skirt the cars parked on the road to get to the market with danger lurking in the form of an errant driver running over you. The pavements are not without flaws but it is a major improvement over the shambolic pretence of a pavement that existed before. The current pavement is much wider and freer of obstacles, so that even if you have to avoid dog poop or other impediments, there is still room to work your way to the market. This is probably the only civic improvement I have seen since we moved to Alaknanda over thirty years ago.

We have been beset by an avalanche of negativism, that, it seems like we have a special talent to extract defeat from victory, misery from happiness and calamity from good news. It is only against the ink black night that light shines brightest and it is only against the backdrop of rancour and vitriol that we respond positively and eagerly to good news and tidings of the better side of human nature. We have much to look forward to. After a forgettable five year second innings of UPA we hope for better tidings. With nearly 20% of the adult franchise consisting of first time voters, this election is likely to usher in a new era. I do not wish to be partisan here, but all things considered, at this point of time only one party looks likely to form the government and that is the BJP. Whichever party wins should come with absolute majority for the sake of stability and reforms. A fragmented polity is a sure fire recipe for horse trading and bargaining which is what breeds corruption. Modi, despite his unsavoury role in the Gujarat riots seems the only person capable of delivering the goods. He is decisive and does not bring with him a baggage of relatives (a common predilection in Indian politics with an eye on the pie) We only hope he is able to keep the Hindutva elements, who stoke the communal cauldron, at bay. He should focus on job creation, governance and price stabilisation.

The Sadhana School of Arts organized a sarangi recital on 4th April, 2014 by the prodigiously talented and acclaimed Suhail Yusuf Khan, the grandson of Ustad Sabri Khan. He is the eighth generation in his family to continue the tradition. he hails from the Senia Moradabad gharana. He was accompanied on the tabla by Shariq Mustafa, the grandson of legendary tabla player ustad Ahmed Jaan Thirakwa. He hails from the Farukkhabad gharana. The performance was attended by a fair number of Yamuna residents who got to witness a classy performance, gratis.

IGL decided on a new route to lay the gas pipeline to Yamuna since permission from MCD to cross the Tughlaqabad road and Nilgiri-Yamuna road was not forthcoming. They applied for permission to MCD and deposited the money to cross from Shivalik Apartments to Ganga Apartments. After the elections got over they got the permission to cross the road and they have commenced the work to bring the pipeline to Ganga. From Ganga they hope to bring the trunk pipeline to Yamuna by end of May 2014, whereafter work inside the colony will begin. Let us keep our fingers crossed, as past promises of IGL have fallen by the wayside.

Nimble footed felons with an eye on easy booty and get away tactics, have targeted the cycles in Yamuna. Recently, two cycles had been stolen and the third was being targeted on 23rd April, 2014. This attempt came the day after a cycle had been spirited away and we had cautioned the guards. In an attempt to escape scrutiny, the thief tried to squeeze past the narrow space of the partially open gate and in the process, bumped into Sudha Eswaran who gave him a tongue lashing. Alerted by this commotion, the guard at the gate stopped the thief. Srilkanth who happened to be there, enquired from the cyclist where he was going, to which he gave an address and fled inside with the cycle. Srikanth checked with the resident and when he got the answer in the negative, he and the chowkidar went after him in hot pursuit. The thief braved the cuts he got from the concertina wire and leapt into Ganga Apartments. But since old habits die hard, he tried to make away with a bike in Ganga which slowed his escape. Srikanth took his motorcycle and at a speed which would do Valentino Rossi proud, rushed to the Ganga gate and apprehended the thief. He rained a few blows on him and was soon joined by the police and Ramabadhran, whose son Aryan’s cycle was stolen the previous day. Srikanth, who spent hours scanning the CCTV footage and pursued the thief in James Bond style deserves kudos for his efforts. Aryan's cycle was finally recovered by the police.

It is our firm belief that we cannot rely 100% on CCTV or the guards. There is a need for residents  to be vigilant. Part of the reason why thefts in Yamuna are few and far between compared to the colonies around,where thefts are a monthly feature, is because we are a close knit community and sufficient steps have been taken to bolster security with raising of fences, concertina wires etc. Whatever we may do will never be enough unless residents report to the office or the security guards of any untoward activity or movement of strangers. Several cases have been reported of people arriving at a resident’s apartment for some survey or sales call and instead of exiting after the call, going to other residences. If such people arrive at your doorstep, please inform the security guards or office bearers.

OBITUARY

Mrs. Sundari Nagan, a former resident of D-101 passed away in the wee hours of 10th April, 2014 in Coimbatore. Yamuna residents convey their heartfelt condolence to the bereaved family.

SNIPPETS

The Nathani's – Kishor, Radhika, Bhaskar and Kashish of A-301, who had made Yamuna their home for the better part of five years have vacated their flat and bid goodbye. They have moved into their own flat in Army Welfare Housing Complex in Greater Noida. We will miss Radhika's singing in Society functions.

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Anand Rao and Aditi Rao of C-205 did not want to bear the torrid effects of baking temperatures, living on the top floor for another season, and decided to move to F-003. Being just the two of them, the smaller confines just makes it cosier.

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Dr. Abhilash and Sreelakshmi had their wedding reception at Habitat Centre on 25th April, 2014 post their wedding in Kerala on 16th April, 2014. The comely lass has all the attributes to keep the happy go lucky Abhilash on a leash. Both were dressed regally, embellished with a lot of glitter a la Maharaja and Maharani. At the reception which saw a fair sprinkling of Yamuna residents and expatriates, Abhilash and Sreelakshmi delighted everybody with a waltz number complete with pirouettes. The reception was a tippler’s and gastronome's delight. The dance floor was filled with Yamuna regulars; Raghav and Seema crooned romantic numbers to get the couple in the mood, not that they needed it!

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Samiksha Nair of B-107 has been chosen the junior Head Girl of Indian School. It's a promising beginning for a potentially rewarding future. That's the way to go, girl.

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Netra Sundaresan has made it to Tata Institute of Social Studies (TISS), Mumbai, the dream of many a Humanities student and a sure-fire way to land a good job after passing out. Congratulations Netra!

MIRTH CORNER

Humour in A Professional Analysis

During a recent robbery in Hong Kong, the bank robber shouted to everyone in the bank: 
"Don't move. The money belongs to the Government. Your life belongs to you." Everyone in the bank laid down quietly.   This is called "Mind Changing Concept” , changing the conventional way of thinking.
When a lady lay on the table provocatively, the robber shouted at her:
"Please be civilised! This is a robbery and not a rape!"  

This is called "Being Professional” Focus only on what you are trained to do!
When the bank robbers returned home, the younger robber (MBA trained) told the older robber (who had only completed Year 6 in primary school): 

"Big brother, let's count how much we got."  

The older robber rebutted and said: "You are very stupid. There is so much money it will take us a long time to count. Tonight, the TV news will tell us how much we robbed from the bank!" 

This is called "Experience”  Nowadays, experience is more important than paper qualifications!
After the robbers had left, the bank manager told the bank supervisor to call the police quickly. But the supervisor said to him:  "Wait! Let us take out $10 million from the bank for ourselves and add it to the $70 million that we have previously embezzled from the bank”. 

This is called "Swim with the tide” Converting an unfavorable situation to your advantage!
The supervisor says: "It will be good if there is a robbery every month."   

This is called "Changing priority” Personal Happiness is more important than your job”.
The next day, the TV news reported that $100 million was taken from the bank. The robbers counted and counted and counted, but they could only count $20 million.  

The robbers were very angry and complained: 

"We risked our lives and only took $20 million. The bank manager took $80 million with a snap of his fingers. It looks like it is better to be educated than to be a thief!"  

This is called "Knowledge is worth as much as gold!"
The bank manager was smiling and happy because his losses in the share market were now covered by this robbery.   

This is called "Seizing the opportunity” Daring to take risks!  

So who are the real robbers here? 

Are our politicians doing this?

MAY 2014 - CALENDAR OF EVENTS

DATE	EVENT	TIME	VENUE
11.5.2014	SCREENING OF A ROCK MOVIE MUSICAL	6.30 PM	SADHANA