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Blog pic
S. Srinivas

05 August, 2016

Issue No. 179 I July 2016

                                                                                     
EDITORIAL
The weather has been the biggest cause of complaint for most of us. When it is too hot we wish it would rain and when it rains heavily we have other concerns and wish it would stop. Many ground floor flats including mine got flooded, thereby damaging the furniture and other odds and ends. In the neighbour's flat they had to dismantle the wooden flooring as it got completely soaked. Some of the ground floor flats closer to the main gate face this problem year after year. The water comes in both from the shaft and the rear veranda.

The Gulmohur tree near A Block gate collapsed and posed a danger to passersby. It required Seetha's persistent follow-up with Mr. Kasana and MCD to have the tree cut and removed. Gulmohur trees have very fragile branches and tend to snap with very little wind velocity. In this case the roots snapped and the tree collapsed. We should not plant Gulmohur trees anymore and the remaining two trees in Yamuna should be trimmed before the monsoon.

In the Wimbledon Championship, the number one seed, Djokovic who has gained a reputation as a player who cannot lose, took a nasty tumble as big serving Sam Query aced him out of the court. Djokovic was playing some great tennis alongside some inexplicably unfocused dross. He was distracted for worryingly long stretches until the unfancied Sam Query relieved him of his discomfort by showing him the door. Djokovic has this uncanny ability to wear down the opponent with his relentless returning game but against Query he could not get the racket to the ball to bring his A-game into play. Despite this loss, Djokovic will notch his name amongst the greatest who played the game, although I am not fond of his style of tennis. Gone are the artists of the game like Rod Laver, John McEnroe, Tony Roche and Ilie Nastase who have been such a joy to watch. In recent times only Roger Federer has come close to recreating that magic.

The propensity to play ear splitting music at functions is gaining ground. I was subject to furious assault on my eardrums on four successive days. One was a sangeet ceremony, the second was a landmark birthday, the third was the inauguration of a library by the local MLC Mr. Saurabh Bharadwaj in DDA apartments and the fourth, a wedding reception. I suspect most people are not aware of the possibility of permanent damage to their ear drums. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has given alarming statistical data of noise induced hearing loss amongst Americans of various age groups. Similar statistics are not available for India but I suspect it would be more considering that the ambient noise in Indian cities is much more than American cities. Noise induced hearing loss can be immediate or it can take a long time to be noticeable. It can be temporary or permanent, and it can affect one ear or both ears. Even if you can’t tell that you are damaging your hearing, you could have trouble hearing in the future, such as not being able to understand other people when they talk, especially on the phone or in a noisy room. Why would anyone subject oneself to such personal harm? Maybe they play music so loud because they can't hear very well if the volume is lower, thereby proving this theory.

The perimeter road has caved in several times in places where trenches were dug to lay the gas pipeline. Repeated repairs have not solved the problem. The initial filling and compacting was not done properly by the contractor. While the expenses for these repairs are not being borne by the Society it has proved to be a nuisance for pedestrians and car owners. In a way it's good that due to heavy rains all the vulnerable areas have got settled while the contractor is still here. Had they completed all the connections and vacated the premises we would have had to get the job done at our cost. Talking of gas pipelines, our civic authorities need a medal for irresponsibility. A PWD worker in Kalkaji, while digging for something damaged IGL's trunk pipeline,  thereby depriving residents of several colonies of much needed cooking gas. While it may have been an excuse for eating out for some, for most it was a nuisance they could do without. It just reinforces one's belief that one should retain one gas cylinder or get an induction cooker for such emergencies.

Amongst the several ways of losing your car, please add one more. Julius Samson of A-201 had given his Volkswagen Jetta for servicing to the authorised service station. When he went to collect the car it had vanished into thin air. The agency washed their hands off and Julius was left to twiddle his thumbs. Apparently, the agency guard spirited away the car. Julius wrote to VW and they have made him an offer which he is considering. The timing was brilliant though. His parking slot in the colony was usurped by the fallen tree which left a big crater.

Deepak Varma of H-208 became the first member in Yamuna to get his freehold papers. Congratulations, Deepak! His nightmarish stories of the murky ways of DDA shows that despite repeated political proclamations to the contrary, things haven't changed. Mr. P. K. K. Nair informs me that several others have got freehold status since. Whilst on the subject it would not be out of place to mention the efforts put in by Mercy Nair and Victor Thomas in preparing various documents required for individuals who are applying for converting their flats to freehold. This is not part of their scope of work. A gratuity box with a slot has been placed in the Society Office where Members who are getting their flats converted could drop their contributions which will be distributed to both the aforementioned office staff.

A new submersible pump of KSB make has been installed and commissioned. Mr. P. K. K. Nair supervised the work. It is working very well and currently it is this pump that is pumping the water.

OBITUARY

Jamuna Sanyal of A-304, expired in the morning of 19th July, 2016. She was ailing. Only about ten days ago she was standing between A&B blocks and planning to go to her flat in the 3rd floor to fetch something. I offered to help but she politely declined. Such a rapid deterioration, I think, even she did not expect as she was enquiring about her gas connection and complained about lack of natural light in her temporary ground floor abode. Fate definitely has dealt a cruel blow to her. Her brother who lives in the US came to perform the last rites. May God give her peace in the other world.

SNIPPETS

Shashvath Arun of G-306 auditioned and was selected for the Government's national campaign on Swachh Bharat. Indeed, a proud moment for him. I am going to make him the monitor for ensuring that the kids of Yamuna do not litter. Shashvath, you are an inspiration for other kids.

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Shankar Ananthanarayanan Mahadevan (Sam),  son of Geetha and Ramani Mahadevan (H-102) got engaged  to Vibha, daughter of Bhuvana and S, Chandrashekar of Hyderabad on June 26th, 2016. Sam is working as a Production Supervisor  in Auckland, New Zealand. Vibha  works as  a Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) in Hyderabad. They are getting married in Hyderabad on 11th November, 2016.

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Mr. V. Sundaram (a.k.a. Rajan) has moved into A-202 with his wife Bhanu. This couple who had to live separately due to their professional commitments, have decided to get back together, with Bhanu resigning from her HDFC Bank job in Kochi. Rajan is a gemmologist and works for MBJ Group. He plays badminton and loves music. Bhanu writes poems and articles, loves music and is fond of reading. Rajan can be reached on 9810731950 and Bhanu on 9999568779. We welcome them to Yamuna.

Plot for the second biggest Mall in Delhi was auctioned by DDA in conflict with the Master Plan. It is slated to come up in Alaknanda. To know the implications of this decision please see the detailed report on it in the portal.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS UNTIL DECEMBER, 2016



CALENDAR OF EVENTS AUGUST-DECEMBER 2016

DATE
TIME
EVENT
VENUE
15.8.16
9.00 AM
INDEPENDENCE DAY FLAG HOISTING,
BADMINTON COURT


SINGING OF PATRIOTIC SONGS, DISTRIBUTION OF SWEETS





25.8.16
6.30 PM
JANMASHTAMI-VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT & EATS
BADMINTON COURT
10.9.16
7.30 PM
POOKOLAM AND ONAM FEAST
COMMUNITY HALL




24.9.16
6.30 PM
MOVIE SCREENING & POT LUCK DINNER
BADMINTON COURT




8.10.16
6.30 PM
DANDIA, MUSIC AND FOOD EVENING
BADMINTON COURT




11.10.16
4.30 PM
RAMLILA AND BURNING OF RAVAN  EFFIGY  
MAIN LAWN




29.10.16
6.00 PM
DIWALI MELA/JUMBLE SALE/JAM SESSION/RIDES/FOOD
BOTH BADMINTON


FORTUNE TELLING/GAMES AND LOTS MORE
COURTS




30.10.16
6.30 PM
DIWALI ILLUMINATION COMPETITION
BETWEEN THE BLOCKS




1ST -7TH
6.30 PM
BADMINTON & TT TOURNAMENTS
BADMINTON COURT
NOV,16







5.11.16
6.30 PM
QUIZ COMPETITION WITH SUMATHI
BADMINTON COURT




13.11.16
9.00 AM
SPORTS DAY
MAIN LAWN




10.12.16
4.30 PM
ANNUAL DAY-REFRESHMENTS, PRIZE DISTRIBUTION,
MAIN LAWN


VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT AND DINNER





11.12.16
12 NOON
THE GREAT COOKERY CONTEST
BADMINTON COURT




18.12.16
10.30 AM
HERITAGE WALK
FROM A BLOCK GATE




24.12.16
6.00 PM
CHRISTMAS CARNIVAL/CAROL SINGING/WINTER RAMP WALK
BADMINTON COURT


MUSIC/DANCE/FOOD STALLS





31.12.16
MIDNIGHT
CAKE CUTTING AND USHERING IN THE NEW YEAR
COMMUNITY HALL

The Yamuna Chronicle is a monthly newsletter published by The Yamuna Co-operative Group Housing Society, Alaknanda, New Delhi - 110019, India. Editor: Mohan Narayanan (B-002) e-mail:mohan.narayanan7@gmail.com. Phone: 9810153501 URL: www.theyamunachronicle.blogspot.in