An interview with V P Gangadhran (Leading oncologist in the country)

 It seems that everything is not fair with the fairer sex as the malady of breast cancer is increasing at an alarming rate in the state. Lack of proper awareness among the patients and the professionals who treat them is cited as one of the major reasons for not being able to take any precautionary step, says Dr V P Gangadharan, who is a leading oncologist in the country.

“The public are not aware of the fact that breast cancer is curable. Despite waiting to investigate the stage which they are in, most of the patients opt for the removal of the breast which is a major blunder,” he says. Most of the breast cancer patients do not know that the diseased organ can be conserved. There is no need to remove the breast unless the cancer is spread to other parts of the body. “There are times when I really felt very bad that many of the patients who had undergone breast removal has not taken any basic tests. The saddest part of it is that there are many professionals who still resort to this conventional way of treatment,” he says.

The best way to detect breast cancer at an early stage is ‘self examination.’ It has to be done by every woman who is above 25 years, Gangadharan says. “Once in three years is advisable for those who belong to the age group 25-35 and monthly check-up is a must for every woman who is above 40,” he says.

Dr Gangadharan says that the costly and the most-sophisticated tool for self-examination is one’s own hand. “Self-examination has become the need of the hour. In the earlier days, such cancer was expected to happen only among women who are above 45 years of age. But today women are alarmingly prone to breast cancer from a very young age.” There are many risk factors which have highly contributed to the present scenario. Hormonal changes, using oral contraceptives, lack of breast feeding are some of the high risk factors. “Infertility treatment is yet another cause as it can bring about a lot of hormonal changes in the female body. Nipple retraction, painless swelling, nipple discharge, colour changes are some of the main symptoms of breast cancer,” he says.

Gangadharan also says that though the technical modalities have increased manifold, the lack of fixed strategy in the hospitals have augmented the trouble. “This disease is detectable, can be screened, partly prevented and of course curable. But the lack of strategy is a major problem.

When you go to a hospital, what they check is just the lipid profile, blood pressure, sugar level and ECG which cannot solve your problem,” he says. Dr Gangadharan gives a message that never jump into a major surgery when you are diagnosed with breast cancer.

by Shalet Jimmy

published in the New Indian Express

An interview with Ashtamoorthu - Malayalam Short story writer

 

Ashtamoorthi K V has become a name to conjure with, though when pursuing his passion quietly through the years, he had little thoughts of winning accolades. This short story writer, hailing from the cultural capital of Kerala, commenced his writing career as a novelist. But it was in the genre of short story writing that he made his own mark. Ashtamoorthi started writing at a very young age and was much of a dabbler in poetry in his formative years. “Though I started writing at a very young age, I glossed over my passion for writing for long years. My stories first got published in the college magazine,” he says. It came as a surprise to him, when one of his short stories was published in Mathrubhumi weekly in 1981 without any hassles, which also proved to be a turning point in his life as a writer. In 2010, his collected works was released by M T Vasudevan Nair. A new work, ‘Ayal Kathayezhuthan Pokukayanu’ is set to be published soon.

Ashtamoorthi, who lives with his wife at Arattupuzha, Thrissur, was quite nostalgic while talking about his first published novel, ‘Rehearsal Camp’ where he had narrated the lives of drama artistes, who had come to perform for a festival, in the temple near his home. “They had come for a short stay in my out house and their lives intrigued me for a while, which soon transformed into a novel, the only novel I have written so far,” he says. He won the Kumkumam award for the same novel in 1982. When asked why he had given up novel writing, he says he got stuck in the craft of short story writing too deeply and applauds also came to him much easily in that medium that he got “apprehensive about treading the long winding path of novel writing”.

Ashtamoorthi has no regrets about not having created any character that has made a lasting impression on the readers’ mind. “It was always the situations that had a sway in my stories and not characters,” he says. He has always preferred to write in a simple way. “My writing is not confusing for I never believed in complicating the readers’ experience or giving them any unwanted strain to comprehend what I have to say to them,” he says. Talking about the inspirations for his writing, he says he was amazed by the impact the city of ‘Bombay’ had on his life, during his stay there. In later times, it proved to be a fertile ground for his writing. “I grew up reading M T Vasudevan Nair’s works and it was definitely a source of inspiration,” he says.

The writer also confides that he is quite apprehensive now a days as he feels he is repeating himself. “When many of my readers call me to appreciate my works, they would say that they could identify the author of the story from the style. They did not even have to look who has written the story. Though they say it as a compliment, I am afraid of typecasting myself,” he says. Though he has two awards to his credit, he says he was not awed by them. For him, winning the awards were sheer accidents. He remembered that there were many instances when an award-winning author’s works did not reach the readers. Ashtamoorthi bagged Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for ‘Avan Veedu Vittu Pokunnu’ in 1992. ‘La Patha Kathakal’, ‘Kathasaaram’, ‘Pakal Veedu’, ‘Marana Siksha’ etc. are some of his other works. During his busy schedules, he has never forgotten to maintain a good circle of friends - Ashokan Cheruvil, another well-known writer in Malayalam whose camaraderie and works he enjoys, being the author’s dearest friend as well as trusted critic.

His columns for Janayugam news paper has had a wide readership. His blog www.ashtamoorthi.blogspot.com (Vicharam) has almost all of his works. Now that he has retired from SNA Oushadhasala Pvt. Ltd, where he was working as an accountant, Ashtamoorthi feels he can finally have ample time for his writings.

by Shalet Jimmy

(published in the New Indian Express)

An interview with Kumar Sahani- renowned film maker

  For Kumar Shahani, one of the country’s most respected directors, life is a celebration and he feelsconfident that he has made use of every single drop of that wine called life.
However, he views that Indian cinema today lacks  the same emotional
audacity and artistic instinct.  “Globalisation has started taking a heavy toll on original art. Money is the prime emotion that drives everything. ‘Shringar’, the 'rasa' of creativity has been reduced to prostitution. When you have  shunned all your creativity,  how would you expect to understand good cinema?,” he asks.

He believes that manufactured emotions are being thrust on the audience as everyone is looking for instant gratification these days.  “Patience and aesthetic sense are completely lost. The portrayal of sensuality and attraction should always be on a higher plane, not brought down to the level of vulgarity,” he says.

He fondly remembers his close associates and friends. “I was all in awe of the late Chandralekha, the renowned danseuse, who choreographed for my first film,’ Mahadarpan’. She was a person who celebrated her passion- dance. She got a lot of flak for being herself,” he says.

He also painfully remembers his long lost friend M F Hussain. “Hussain was somebody who was always true to himself and his art. He was seriously misunderstood, and banished from his motherland.  We tried our best to bring him back. But the Indian Government was not ready to give him protection. It was painful to see his plight.”

About Malayalam films, he says there is a dearth of committed actors. “With heroines, talent goes out of the window after ‘ kalyanam’. I really do not understand the hue and cry caused over marriage. If it works, it’s okay. Otherwise leave it. Why should you sacrifice your talent for it?” he asks.

Though Shahani did his BA(honours) in political science and history, it was in films where he saw his ‘karma’ calling.  " It happened as a sheer coincidence.” he says. He fondly remembers that it was his routine walks with his father that led him onto the path of film making. "Though I accompanied my father on his walks, I was too little to cover such greater distances with him. So he used to put me in any random movie theatre on the way and would  pick me up when he returns.That’s how the wonderful world of cinema happened to me.”

Kumar Shahani was one among those who created ripples in the 60s. Sahani was also under the tutelage of the renowned filmmaker Ritwik Ghatak. “We used to fondly call him ‘dada’. Though he was an anarchist, he was full of passion for  films,” he remembers.
“There was this incident which I still remember. Once he came to the classroom wearing an eye patch on one eye.

It seems he had got too drunk and had hurt himself. In his drunken state, he did not know how to get to the hospital. So he went to police and asked to be arrested.
The policeman said he couldn’t do that. Someone then ended up taking him to the hospital,” he says, remembering his mentor with great affection.

Kumar Shahani lives in London with his two daughters and sons -in-law. Shahani also have a Kerala connection, as his son-in -law is a Keralite from Thrissur. He says he loves the place and has plenty of hopes from it.

by Shalet Jimmy
published in the ' The New Indian Express'

Mayor fails to keep his word

KOCHI: Mayor Tony Chammany had promised umpteen times that the issue of waste treatment will be sorted out. Immediately after each promise, he would turn up with some lame excuses for not keeping his word. The latest in the series of gimmicks by the Mayor is the one on the construction of a new waste treatment plant at Brahmapuram.

Alas! All these gimmicks were not good enough to lift Kochi from its pathos.

It has been a year since the plant became defunct. But what the Mayor and his team did was just planning. And planning alone...

Around 40,000 tonnes of waste, including heavy metals like cadmium, mercury and plastic dumped by the Kochi Corporation at the Brahamapuram Solid Waste Treatment Plant has been posing a threat to the people living in and around the area.

The waste dumped by the civic body in the plant situated on the shores of the Kadambrayar leaks into the river causing severe pollution. The situation is getting worse day-by-day.  But the civic body has not taken any steps to mitigate the issue. The local body seems to be completely ambiguous about the setting up of a new plant. It seems that they are yet to decide on which plant they should start- the sewage plant or the solid waste treatment plant. That was why the delegation headed by the Mayor visited the Coimbatore waste treatment plant.

But the confusion still prevails.

When the City Express contacted Health Standing Committee chairman T K Ashraf  he confirmed that they were going to start a solid waste treatment plant. “We will soon invite express of interest for constructing the new plant. We will decide the agency to fix the conditions for submitting expression of interest on Wednesday,”  Ashraf said.

In an effort to know how the solid waste treatment plant can be successfully operated, the Corporation team visited a sewage treatment plant at Coimbatore! After the visit, they even submitted a report to the Chief Minister based on which the latter has given the nod to set up a new plant.

Aggravating the war between the Corporation and the people, the latter has made it clear that they would not allow a new plant at any cost. “Our beautiful village has already been ravaged owing to the existing plant. We won’t allow them to set up a new one here. The colour of the flag is not our concern,” said Abdul Basheer, a member of the Brahmapuram Action Council.

by Shalet Jimmy ( published in The New Indian Express)

13 years on, NGO quarters yet to be alloted

KOCHI: Getting an accommodation in the NGO quarters still remains a distant reality for many government employees.
Though the district administration has started evicting unauthorised occupants, the list of those seeking an accommodation in the NGO quarters has been pending since 1998.
A source said, “I submitted my application in 2007. There are slight chances for me to get quarters, as I belong to the reservation category.”
When asked about the pending list, Harikumar, head clerk, General Administration, said, “We are helpless as many occupants had acquired the quarters by giving a special request to the government.”
“Though the District Collector is vested with the power to allot the quarters, the State Government can overrule it, at any time, as per the provision that existed till 2010. Seniority, which is a major factor in acquiring government quarters, was also frequently overruled. About 95 percent of the occupants has acquired the quarters in this manner and most of them are high court staff,” he said.
“Although the district administration has started evicting unauthorised occupants, the task of allocating quarters is going to be nerve-wracking for the authorities concerned until the Public Works Department shows green light in the matter,” General Administration sources said.
“As some of the quarters are in a dilapidated stage, these could not be allocated by the PWD,” they added.
“The quarters are usually allocated to Class I, II, III and IV. Usually, the Class I category is in the
habit of breaking rules. As per the rule, a retired government employee has to vacate quarters the very first day he retires. But that
does not happen. The District Collector has the power to extend the stipulated
time to six months. But
there are many who have exceeded the time limit,” Harikumar said.
“We evicted 10 unauthorised occupants, out of which three of them were staying for the past two years. An occupant who was staying alone, too, was evicted, as these quarters are meant for families,” he said. As many as 38 other occupants were under close scrutiny and procedures were on to evict them, he added.


published in THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS

Lazy corporation blames punctual monsoon

KOCHI: It seems that the efforts by the Corporation to ward off severe water-logging in the city stand thwarted, owing to the inordinate delay in the completion of the precautionary measures before the onset of monsoon.
The canal desilting work that began a few days ago has been stuck up with the timely arrival of monsoon. The scooped-up silt was not removed before the onset of monsoon and this has aggravated the problem.
"The cleaning of the canal was supposed to be completed by the end of May. The silt that has been accumulated on the fringes of the roads has already caused trouble to pedestrians. This scooped-up silt has reentered the canal which has destroyed the whole purpose of desilting," Elamakkara councillor Anil Kumar said.
He also alleged that the present council has not taken any steps to proceed with the procedures that were almost completed by the previous council.
"We have taken painstaking efforts to complete the procedures to clean the drains. The plans devised under the Esteem project have gone awry. This council did nothing but sitting on it," he said.
On the status of the ongoing drain works, Works Committee Chairperson Soumini Jain said, "We tried our level best to complete them on time. But it was all spoiled with the timely arrival of monsoon. Besides, the election code of conduct was another factor."
It is learnt that there are 18 projects to construct adequate drains only in the Central zone. Only four have been completed so far.
The construction of a major drain from MG Road to Flower Junction a month ago has completed its first phase. "As this drain passes through the Market Road, which is a busy area, we are rethinking on the plan," she said.

published in The NEW INDIAN EXPRESS

Rain lands city in troubled waters

South Monsoon has hit Kerala on time. But the authorities are blind to what is happening in the city.This situation prevails not only in Kochi but all other districts.

KOCHI: The threat of an epidemic outbreak is looming large over the city due to severe water-logging and overflowing drains at several places.

   Many roads in the city and suburbs remain waterlogged as there is no proper facility to drain stagnant water. Though monsoon has hit Kerala, the district health authorities have not come up with any substantial steps to alleviate the woes of the people.

Health Standing Committee chairman T K Ashraff said, "We are convening a meeting on Friday. A decision will be taken to form a squad that would be responsible to deal with any situation arising in the wake of an epidemic outbreak. Health inspectors and junior inspectors will be members of the squad and they will strictly monitor the situation." K J Jacob, councillor, Gandhinagar, said, "A meeting was convened a few days ago to take preventive measures. Since then, no steps have been taken to prevent an epidemic outbreak."

"Water-logging is a common phenomenon during rainy season. But the water should drain out within an hour. If this does not happen, the risk of catching diseases is high as the stagnant water will get mixed with the sewage water. In my division, there is severe water-logging," he said.

He also said that as the district administration has not come up with a substantial plan, people are depending on homeo clinics for preventive medicines.

However, Dr Amritha Kumari, District Medical Officer (DMO), Homeo, said, "We are also giving medicines to boost the immunity level of a person."

Dr Sudhakaran, District Medical Officer (DMO), said, "We have come up with many awareness programmes that would educate the people. Information, Education and Communication (IEC) is one such programme. We have also put up many hoardings in several parts of the city to create awareness among  the people."

published in The New Indian Express

published in THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS

Althatara is a residential area in Thiruvananthapuram, which is the capital of God's own country - Kerala

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: The hue and cry over waste-dumping is not something new in the city. Althara, a residential area, has unwillingly followed suit. A vacant plot in Althara has now been transformed into an unauthorised trash dump much to the horror of the residents.

“Coping with the stench arising out of this waste deposit every day is not an easy task,” said C X Antony, whose house is close to this property.

When asked who should be held responsible for the dumping,  he said: “It is not easy to find out who is actually doing this, as there are not one but many.”

People who are not ready to pay money to the Kudumbashree units to pick wastes dump their wastes here, sometimes early in the morning or late in the night, which makes it difficult to identify them, he said. There were times, when his house was constantly haunted by snakes.

“Fish mongers also worsen the situation as they dump the waste here. If there is any maintenance work going on in any of the houses in that area, they too dump their wastes here. People are reluctant to dump even drainage wastes. When a dog or cat dies, it would be wrapped in a plastic cover and thrown here,” he said.

Pedestrians are also bearing the brunt as the waste often spills on to the road. Shanthini Jayadevan, a veterinary doctor and also a resident who lives at the other end of the property, said: “The people are not cooperative and that makes it all the more difficult to find a solution to this common problem. The plot has become a grazing field for snakes, stray dogs and other creatures."

The stray dogs pose another threat, she said, especially to her two school-going children.
A fire broke out on the plot thrice and the residents believe that it was done deliberately by those who were depositing waste as the mound of garbage was increasing beyond limits.

Two years ago, the residents had filed complaints with the Health Department as well as with the City Corporation through their Residents’ Association. But the situation still remains the same. When contacted, G Mohan, the then Residents’ Association president, said that he had brought the matter to the attention of the authorities and measures were taken to clean the property.  “We were also able to make the authorities conduct intermittent inspections then.” He said that fining those persons who dump the waste could be a solution.
Althara councillor K Suresh Kumar said that arrangements were made to clean the road whenever he spotted waste spilling on to the road from this property. “But as this is a private property, the Corporation has its own limitations. Fining the persons who dump waste is not an ideal option as they must be doing it in the wee hours,” he said.

When contacted, Pushpalatha, Chairperson, Health Standing Committee, said that so far nobody had brought the matter to her attention and that the Committee would soon look into the matter

by Shalet Jimmy

Incredible India

 This is the text I received on my mobile...I do not think I should clarify further.

What is India??? " 

A nation where Pizza  reaches home faster than Ambulance and Police.

Where you get car loan at 8% but education loan at 10%.

Where rice is Rs.20/- and sim card is free.

Where people worships Goddess Durga and kills brutally the female foetus.

Where Olympic shooter wins gold, govt gives 3 crore (30 million) and another shooter dies fighting the terrorists, the govt gives 1 lakhs ( 100 000).

Really an Incredible India

This is life. Don't be blind to it

I came across this video accidentally and I cursed myself for being too self indulgent. I am from a country (India) ,where you can see wealth and poverty together. Sometimes this utter poverty strikes straight on your face. Since we are self indulgent we always shove the truth into the back burner. But how long can we be blind to the harsh realities of life. How can we wake up our humanity from its slumber ?

" Humanity" is what today the world needs. It is shocking to learn that there exists a lot of people all around the world who is struggling to have a square meal. As an ordinary citizen of the world, I can only make an attempt to share this horrendous plight all around the globe.

Talaq (divorce) on cellphone valid

This post is based on a news that is published in a leading newspaper in India. The headlines goes like this " Talaq on cellphone is valid, says Deoband.

I really do not know what to make out of this news. It says if the husband utters 'talaq' thrice on a mobile phone will be considered valid, even if the wife on the other end does not hear it due to network or any other sort of problems. The news also talk about a man who is working abroad typed talaq playfully to his wife. In his query he said he really does not know how the talaq is executed.

Do you really want to know what happened next?

The Darul Ifta( the office of Islamic jurisprudence /)in its reply said if the talaq is uttered thrice it will amount to divorce. Hence as per the ruling, the wife is required to complete the iddat (3 months) period and if she wants to be with her husband, she is supposed to marry someone else and divorce him and again observe the iddat period. If she does all these, she can marry her former husband.

Is this a joke. No ! It is a truth that happened.

A reminder from 2010

 

This  picture  shocked the entire world...

Aiysha was just 12 when she was married off to a Taliban fighter.  She was subjected to many atrocities. She was made to sleep in a stable with animals. She was caught while she was trying to escape the clutches of her husband. The punishment meted out for her mistake was horrendous. Her nose and ears was sliced off mercilessly and she was left to bleed and die in the mountains. But life gave her a second chance.When she gathered her consciousness, she somehow managed to reach her grandfather’s house from where she was taken to an American military hospital.

She also received an Enduring Heart Award for enduring  the worst ordeal of her life.

Food for thought

This is something that I came across as a sheer coincidence and every such coincidences offered a lot of things to ruminate. A news  was published in an online paper almost one year ago and it was like this.

Eight year old Saudi girl divorces her 5o year old husband - definitely a food for thought. 

Her mother applied for a divorce twice and was rejected .One judge ruled out the divorce citing that she could apply for it only when she reaches her puberty. The girl was coerced into marriage by her father for 50,000 Saudi riyals (around $13, 300). The divorce happened months after hearing and also by the uproar created by International media and the human rights associations.

A big curse on those people whose thoughts are marred beyond recognition. I could not understand that state of mind that really wanted to get married to a girl child who hasn't attained her puberty. When someone makes a furore about it, they come up with their bogus excuses. A bud can blossom, only when it is allowed to grow.

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