No. 215 I July 2019

EDITORIAL

The first Budget of the second term of the Modi government seemed like a treatise on economic reforms and fiscal prudence. There were barely any specifics that a common person could grasp and take delight from. Indira Gandhi was the first lady to present the Budget in 1971. She held the Finance portfolio in addition to being the Prime Minister.  Nirmala Sitharaman who became the first woman Finance Minister to present the Union Budget played Agatha Christie to the hilt. The Budget speech was like a mystery novel for most. In that sense the Budget was more a vision document and not the handout that we are all accustomed to. She eschewed the clamour for a stimulus. It is a kind of budget I have never seen before. For the non-economists amongst us, unless you earn upwards of Rs. 2 crores per annum, there is no need to fret over it.

No country owes so much to the occurence of the monsoon for precipitation as India does. Due to global warming, the ocean over the East Pacific, off the coast of Peru and Chile in South America, becomes warmer. This phenomenon called El-Nino adversely affects the rainfall over the Indian subcontinent. This is globalisation in its true form. Reverse of this phenomenon is called La Nina and brings bountiful rains. How the alphabet ‘a’ or ‘o’ can determine the fortune of millions of farmers and the economic well being of India seems hard to comprehend.

Another negative downer of global warming is the severity with which it rains when it does. Therefore, both sides of the coin have their negative fallouts as Mumbai and Pune witnessed  recently, when an entire month’s rainfall fell in the space of just two days. Roads and houses got flooded and several people lost their lives. As the adage goes, “when it rains, it pours”. However, as I witnessed recently, this is not always true. The other day, it started drizzling when I was taking a walk. A senior citizen walking ahead of me summoned someone on the phone to fetch an umbrella. Before, a member of the household could rush over with the brolly, it stopped raining. The rain had merely dampened the surface.

After enduring a particularly enervating summer recess when social and cultural events take a breather, we are entering that phase of the year which most of us eagerly look forward to. The period between August and December has the most number of holidays and peaks in religious festivals, cultural events and weddings. The temperate climatic conditions in the last quarter of the year allows for more outdoor activities when people temporarily give up on their digital addiction to social media, like Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and TV serials, and come out to mingle. Accordingly, we at Yamuna have planned a calendar of events to whet your appetite for the ‘real’ from the ‘surreal’ existence we lead most of the year. I suggest you plan your outstation visits in such a manner that you are able to attend all the Yamuna activities. Please see below and block your dates to have the time of your life.

		CALENDAR OF EVENTS AUGUST-DECEMBER 2019
DATE	TIME	EVENT	VENUE
15.8.19	9.00 AM	INDEPENDENCE DAY FLAG HOISTING,	BADMINTON COURT
		SINGING OF PATRIOTIC SONGS, DISTRIBUTION OF SWEETS
24.8.19	6.30 PM	JANMASHTAMI VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMME,	BADMINTON COURT
		BREAKING OF DAHI HANDI AND FOOD STALLS
8.9.19	12.30-2.00	POOKALAM & ONAM FEAST(LUNCH)	COMMUNITY HALL
	PM
7.10.19	6.30 PM	RAMLILA & DANDIYA,	BADMINTON COURT
		VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT & FOOD STALLS
19.10.19	6.30 PM	QUIZ COMPETITION WITH SUMATHI	BADMINTON COURT
27.10.19	6.30 PM	DIWALI ILLUMINATION COMPETITION	BETWEEN THE BLOCKS
3.11.19	11 AM-6 PM	VARNAM AND KEERTANAM  COMPETITION	COMMUNITY HALL
		FOR ALL AGE GROUPS FOLLOWED BY SCREENING OF RARE CONCERT BY A TOP ARTISTE & DIKSHITAR ARADHANA
3-9.11.19	6.30 PM	BADMINTON & TT TOURNAMENTS	BADMINTON COURT
17.11.18	9.30 AM	SPORTS DAY	MAIN LAWN
7.12,19	4.30 PM	ANNUAL DAY-REFRESHMENTS, PRIZE DISTRIBUTION,	MAIN LAWN
		VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT AND DINNER
15,12,19	10.30 AM	HERITAGE WALK/NATURE WALK	FROM A BLOCK GATE
24.12.18	6.00 PM	CHRISTMAS CARNIVAL/CAROL SINGING/WINTER RAMP WALK	BADMINTON COURT
		MUSIC/DANCE/FOOD STALLS
31.12.18	MIDNIGHT	CAKE CUTTING AND USHERING IN THE NEW YEAR	COMMUNITY HALL

More than any other time in the past, including the years that we actually won the World Cup in cricket, all of India were hopeful that Virat and the boys would bring home the Cup this time. The belief was further bolstered when India topped the Group in the league stage and were pitted against a relatively milder opposition, New Zealand in the semi-final. The game went according to plan as the Kiwis were bundled out for a paltry 239 runs. It was supposed to be a walk in the park for the famed India batting line-up. What happened however, on the morning of the 10^th July, 2019 was nothing short of a nightmare. In the space of a few overs, the backbone of the Indian batting line-up were back in the pavilion unable to counter the Kiwi swing bowling, in conditions aided by overnight rain. It was meant to be a swansong for M.S. Dhoni, who wanted to retire in a blaze of glory, and he tried till the end, until a direct throw to the wicket by Martin Guptil put paid his plans. The entire nation went into mourning as cricket is a religion for most in India. They will now have to cool their heels for another four years and wait for new heroes to emerge.

It would not be fair to end the chapter here without a mention of Dhoni, the charismatic wicket-keeper batsman who enviably holds one of the highest averages in one-day cricket. The phlegmatic and totally unflappable gloveman of Indian cricket never gets fazed in the gravest of situations. Although, he takes his time to settle down these days, his calming influence at the crease helps the batsman at the other end not to panic. This quality of his, I have not found in any other cricketer in the world. He is also lightning quick behind the stumps and runs like a hare between the wickets. He was recently timed as the fastest runner between the wickets in the Indian team. Despite his level of fitness, I have my doubts if he will play another World Cup for India. With Dhoni as a skipper for India we won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, the 2010 and 2016 Asia Cups, the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. Raise a salute to our hero who has served Indian cricket well over the years.

This month there were two sporting extravaganzas and both the results did not go down well with the public. I am talking of Cricket World Cup and Wimbledon Tennis Championship. In the pinnacle event in cricket, the World Cup which comes once in four years, the finals between England and New Zealand ended in a tie and the Superover taken to end the deadlock also ended in a tie. However, England were declared the winners because they had scored more boundaries although New Zealand lost fewer wickets. In former times, in such a scenario, the side which lost lesser number of wickets used to be declared the winner. Even as per the new rules, had there not been an umpiring glitch, the match would have gone in New Zealand’s favour. It certainly looks like the Kiwis were gypped of the World Cup for which they will be mourning over  a long time.

In the Wimbledon Men’s Singles Finals between eight time winner Roger Federer and four time winner, Novak Djokovic, the 37-year-old Federer who played sublime tennis and won more number of games and points, lost in a marathon match which ended in five sets in favour of the the 32-year-old, very mechanical returning machine, Djokovic. The crowd favourite Federer and all of us watching the match were gutted. It was certainly an unpopular result. With age catching up, Federer will definitely rue his missed opportunity.

The rains arrived in Delhi very late, yet, when it rained it caused a deluge. Because of the preponderant use of plastic bags which end up in the drains and clog them, even a mild shower leads to flooding in many areas. We can do our bit to help the environment by shunning plastic bags. When you go out shopping, please make it a point to carry a cloth bag. If you are loath to carrying a bag, please keep a foldable bag which is available online in your pocket or handbag. Every small measure will help.

Bappi, the cable operator handyman who has been serving Yamuna residents for many years, unfortunately passed away a couple of months ago. What caused his untimely demise is not very clear. He was always available on call and served the residents well. He will be missed.

Three time Delhi Chief Mnister Mrs. Sheila Dikshit breathed her last on 20^th July, 2019. She is widely perceived as a builder of modern Delhi. She was instrumental in the building of flyovers, elegant signboards, privatisation of power distribution from DESU to BSES. Under DESU power supply problems were a regular affair. She introduced CNG for all commercial vehicles like buses, three-wheelers, taxis etc. to combat pollution. She was well respected even by the Opposition and  managed to get many bi-partisan bills passed during her tenure. Delhi needs a CM like her who gets things done without ruffling feathers. She will be remembered fondly for a long time.

The Hansaveena recital by Ramanan and Odissi recital by Radhika Samson on 7^th July, the Hindustani music recital by Shubham Modi on 13^th July, the Carnatic Fusion rendition by the Iyer Project on 21^st July and a recital by a Chilian duo featuring a flautist and a guitarist on 28th July were all rendered beautifully in Sadhana. Unfortunately, many in Yamuna did not take advantage of viewing these free concerts.

OBITUARY

Mr. W. D. Kotwal of A-201 passed away on 13^th July, 2019 at 7.30 am in his house. Mr. Kotwal was an original member of the colony and led a very active life until age took a toll of his health. He was a great sportsperson who loved swimming, playing badminton, bridge, tennis and billiards among other things. Even in his late fifties he was a great touch player in badminton in the mould of Prakash Padukone and used to beat us with his deft placements. He was a lover of Hindustani Classical Music and also has many beautiful paintings to his credit. He liked his evening tipple and a game of bridge till almost his final days. Fortunately, all his children and grandchildren were by his side when he breathed his last. We will miss him.

Yamuna residents convey their heartfelt condolence to the bereaved family.

SNIPPETS

Mr. B. Hema Sundar has moved into C-008 with his wife Sandhya from Hyderabad. Mr. Sundar works for Desein, a company offering consultancy services for thermal and gas based power plants. In his spare time he likes to watch movies and sports on TV. Sandhya does the honourable job of looking after the house. She is fond of kitty parties and bit incongruously, spiritual communions. Their elder son Abhinav is working in the US as a Business Analyst with American Insurance Company and their younger son Akshay has just graduated in Computer Science from George Mason University in Fairfax, USA. They can be reached on 9652323123 and 9701849995. We welcome them to Yamuna.

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Poorvaja Ganapathi of G-206 now has her own YouTube channel. She has sung the song “Lovely” by Billie Eilish and Khalid.  Congratulations to the aspiring singer.

		CALENDAR OF EVENTS FOR AUGUST 2019
DATE	TIME	ITEM	VENUE
4.8.19	7.00 PM	WESTERN ACOUSTIC SET-SAXOPHONE PLAYER SHEEL SAGAR	SADHANA
11.8.19	7.00 PM	ODISSI DANCE BY DAKSHINA RAGHAVENDRA	SADHANA
15.8.19	9.00 AM	INDEPENDENCE DAY FLAG HOISTING,	BADMINTON COURT
		SINGING OF PATRIOTIC SONGS, DISTRIBUTION OF SWEETS
18.8.19	7.00 PM	INDO WESTERN SET- DAFTAR ZILD (FOLK, FUSION, SEMI-CLASSICAL	SADHANA
24.8.19	6.30 PM	JANMASHTAMI VARIETY ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMME,	BADMINTON COURT
		BREAKING OF DAHI HANDI AND FOOD STALLS	SADHANA
25.8.19	7.00 PM	BANSURI RECITAL-SHUBRADEEP PAUL	SADHANA