PRAKASH KARAT-THE GENTLE HARDLINER OF INDIAN POLITICS

Prakash Karat is a communist politician from India. He is the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) – CPI (M). He was born on October 19, 1947 in Myanmar.

Karat finished his education from Madras Christian College. He has also studied at the University of Edinburgh. He was rusticated for anti-apartheid protests but was taken back on good behavior.

Karat retuned to India in 1970 and joined the Communist Party of India - CPI (M). He was involved with the student politics and was elected the President of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Student's Union. He was also the first President of the Students Federation of India between 1974 to 1979. He was spotted and noticed by E.M.S Namboodiripad, the first Chief Minister of Kerala. He had also worked with A.K Gopalan, CPM leader in the Lok-Sabha. He was elected as Secretary of the Delhi State Committee of the party in 1985, to the Central Committee in 1985 and the Politburo in 1992.

Karat is the managing director of LeftWord Books, a publishing house. He has authored books such as Language, Nationality and Politics in India (1992), A World to Win (1999) and Across Time and Continents (2003).

He married Brinda Karat in November 1975. Brinda is also a member of the CPI (M) Politburo. She had been the general secretary of the All India Democratic Women's Association for 10 years.

ARUNDHATI ROY-SOME FACTFILES

Arundhati Roy-Indian-English Writer

Born: 24 November 1959
Birthplace: Shillong, Meghalaya, India
Best known as: The author of the novel -The God of Small Things
Name at birth: Suzanna Arundhati Roy

Arundhati Roy is the Indian social activist and author whose novel The God of Small Things won the prestigious Booker Prize for literature in 1997. Roy is a unusual blend of artist and activist; she has yet to publish a second novel. She left home at 16 and attended the Delhi School of Architecture. In 1984 she met her future husband, film director Pradip Krishen. She went on to write the TV movie In Which Annie Gives it Those Ones (1989, in which she also starred), and Electric Moon (1992). After souring on the film industry she turned to writing fiction; her first effort was the remarkable The God of Small Things, a tragic story of Indian twins Estha and Rahel and a family entangled in the rigid Indian caste system. It sold six million copies and made her famous. She spent the next decade writing and speaking on political topics like India's nuclear weapons programs, the Narmada Dam, and the war in Iraq. Her non-fiction books include The Cost of Living (1999), Power Politics (2002), and War Talk (2003). She announced in 2007 that she was beginning work on a second novel.

CHRISTIANITY IN KERALA-A DEEPLY ROOTED AFFAIR

Christianity took root on the Malabar coast (now Kerala) in the first century AD around the seven churches that St. Thomas established there. Christian faith has since flourished across the land, coexisting with other religions. Now 11 of the 23 dioceses in India are in Kerala.

Kerala is a narrow stretch of lush green territory that lies on the southwest coast of the Indian subcontinent. Hindu legends claim that Kerala rose from the sea as a gift of God. The name Kerala means "the land of coconuts". The scenic beauty of Kerala is one of the most outstanding in India. The entire land is interlaced with rivers, placid lagoons, paddy fields and coconut palms. Plantations of rubber, tea, coffee, pepper, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and other spices cover the highlands in the east, earning Kerala the nickname of "the spice coast of India".

The lure of spices attracted traders from the Middle East and Europe to the many trading ports - Calicut, Cranganore, Cochin, Alleppey and Quilon - long before the time of Christ. And it was on a trading vessel plying between Alexandria and the Malabar coast that St. Thomas the Apostle arrived in Cranganore in 52 AD.

There he began preaching the Gospel. His teachings were accepted not only by those who chose to become Christians but also by those who chose to remain Hindus. The teachings eventually got integrated into the beliefs and traditions of the local communities, into their family history, into their songs and dances. St. Thomas established seven Christian communities or churches in Kerala. They are in Cranganore, Paravur(Kottakavu), Palayoor, Kokkamangalam, Malayattoor, Niranam, Chayal (Nilackal) and Kollam (Quilon). Throughout Kerala, one can find Christian families that are proud to claim descent from ancestors who were baptized by Apostle Thomas. Sankarapuri, Pakalomattom and Maliekal are the prominent ones. Some details of this combined tradition may be found in songs - the "Rabban Pattu", the "Veeradyan Pattu", the "Margam Kali Pattu" and others that now exist in written records.

The Church in Kerala had a high missionary spirit. Christians from Malabar spread their faith as far as Maldives and Indonesia.

St. Thomas Christians were considered high caste, along the Hindu tradition, with special privileges granted by the kings. The archdeacon was the head of the Church, and Palliyogams (Parish Councils) were in charge of temporal affairs. There were women deacons. They had a liturgy-centered life with days of fasting and abstinence. Their devotion to the St. Thomas Cross was absolute. Their churches were modelled after Hindu temples. In short, the St. Thomas Christians of Kerala had blended well the ecclesiastical world of the East Syrian Church with the socio-cultural environment of their homeland. Thus, the East Syrian Church was Hindu in culture, Christian in religion and Syro-Oriental in worship.

In 1498, when the Portugese navigator Vasco da Gama landed on the Malabar coast, there were an estimated two million Christian souls across the land, and they had 1,500 churches under the jurisdiction of a single Metropolitan who lived in Angamale. Besides, the Church had, by then, expanded to the neighbouring Mylapore and Nilgiris as well as northward along the Arabian Sea coast to Goa, Saimur (Chual), Thana, Sopara, Gujarat and as far as Sind, now a part of Pakistan. This, indeed, was the Golden Age of the East Syrian Church.

The arrival of Vasco da Gama, however, marked the start of a turning point and heralded a new struggle for the East Syrian Church. Because the Portugese, who later established trading posts in Goa, Daman and Diu north of Kerala, moved against the East Syrian Church leading to tragic, ecclesiastical incidents.

According to Joas de Castro, the Portugese Viceroy in Goa in 1548, the sword of the Portugese was wielded "mainly against the centuries-old Christians of Kerala". This was because only in Kerala did the laity stand steadfast against Western colonization, and maybe the Portugese, who were under the Roman Church, considered everything outside Roman as heretic.

The move against the Syrian Church was followed by Western Church establishing a European diocese in Goa in 1534. In 1557, Pope Paul IV declared Goa an archdiocese with its supremacy extending from the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa to China, and all Christians, including the East Syrian Church, brought under its jurisdiction. The East Syrian Archdiocese of Angamali then became a dependent of Goa.

This Europeanization process led to divisions in the Church, as there was considerable resistance against Western domination. The Christian communities then split into many groups - East Syrian Catholics, West Syrian Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Jacobite Syrian Orthodox, Marthoma (those who accepted the Anglican Church but with the Eastern Liturgy), Church of the East (those who accepted the Nestorian Patriarch), and the Latin Church.

In 1887 Pope Leo XIII issued the bull of "Quod Jam Pridem", which liberated the Syrians from the jurisdiction of the Latin prelate of Verapoly and placed them under two Eparchies - one in Trichur and the other in Kottayam (both in Kerala). More recently, on January 23, 1993, a papal declaration again upgraded Ernakulam to major Arch Episcopal Church with the title of Ernakulam Angamaly.

Today, there are 23 dioceses in India. Eleven of them are in Kerala with a number of priests from Kerala working in many parts of the world. Kerala has one vocation (priest brother, sister) for every 70 Catholics. No other community in the world has so many vocations. Most of the Syrian families have a priest, a religious guide and mentor.

SABARIMALA PILGRIMAGE-SOME USEFUL INFORMATION FOR DEVOTEES

Sabarimala
The World famous Sastha temple at Sabarimala located on the slope of the Western Ghats. The pilgrimage begins in the month of Vruchikam (November) and ends in Makaram-Makara Samkranthi(January).

Sabarimala is the most famous pilgrim centre in Kerala. This temple is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. It is believed to be the place where Lord Ayyapa meditated soon after killing the powerful demon, Mahishi. It is situated on a hilltop and is surrounded by mountains and dense forest. This temple is unique in many respects. One is that the temple is open to all irrespective of caste, creed or religion. There is a place near the temple (east to Sannidhanam) dedicated to the Vavar called "Vavarunada".This is an epitome of religious harmony. Another fact is that it is not open throughout the year. It is open for worship, only during the days of Mandalapooja, Makaravilakku and Chitra Vishu. The pilgrims have to follow fasting for many days and the journey to the temple is to be taken through difficult paths in the forest as the vehicles can go only up to Pampa.

Nearest Railway stations to Sabarimala are Kottayam and Chengannur.

Three important routes to Sabarimala are :

1.Kottayam to Pamba (via) Erumeli and from Pamba to Sabarimala (by foot) - total 136Kms
Kottayam to Pamba (via) Manimala and there to Sabarimala by foot - total 116 Kms

2.Erumeli to Sabarimala (via) Kalaketty, Azhutha, Inchippara, Karimala, Pamba 45 Kms. There to Sabarimala by foot.

3.Vandiperiyar to Mount Estate by vehicle and there by walking to Sabarimala

4.Climb down to Sabarimala from Vandiperiyar to Kozhikkanam 15 Kms. Kozhikkanam to Uppupura 10 Kms. Uppupura to Sabarimala 3.5 Kms. (Upto Uppupura vechicle-jeep or bus- is available

DISTANCE TO PAMBA FROM VARIOUS CENTRES

Thiruvananthapuram -Pumba
(Via Adoor-Pathanaamthitta) 175 Kms.
Punalur - Pamba 105 Kms.
Chengannur - Pamba (Via Aranmula) 93 Kms.
Kottayam - Erumeli 56 Kms.
Kumily - Vandiperiyar 20 Kms.
Vandiperiyar - Mount Sathram 08 Kms
Mount Sathram - Sannidhanam (By foot) 12 Kms.
Kumily - Erumeli 70 Kms.
ACCOMODATION AT SANNIDHANAM & PAMBA
Devaswom Guest House at Sannidhanam
(Guest House)
( No. of Rooms)
(Rent)
(Phone)

Maramath – Complex 22
04735-202027

Donor House I 24

04735-202041

Donor House II 16


Hall 2



Donor House III 24

Donor House IV 24



Donor House V 19



Pilgrim Centre I 103



Pilgrim Centre II 115



G.K.D. Charity Trust Hall 2



Poorna Pushkala Hall 1



Cottages (5) 51



Malikappuram Building 16



Hall 1



Sabari Nivas 64

202321


Accomodation For 3 Persons 375 Remit

4 Persons 600 Rs.50/- for

5 Persons 700 Extra bed

For Advance booking for accomodation in Devaswom guest houses contact:

Commissioner, Travancore Devaswom Board, Nanthancode,
Thiruvananthapuram. Phone: 0471-2315156, 2316963, 2317983

For Booking from Sabarimala Contact:

Accomodation Office at Sannidhanam Phone:04735-202049
Pilgrims can book rooms in advance in the guest house of Forest Department and Kerala State Electricity Board:

Sannidhanam Forest IB Phone: 202074 / 202075
6 Room Rs.300 per day
Contact:Field Director, Project Tiger Kottayam, Kerala Phone:0481-2565940
RATE OF OFFERINGS AT SABARIMALA (in Rupees)
ARAVANA
50.00

APPAM (ONE PACKET)
20.00
PANCHAMRUTHAM 250ml
3.00
PANCHAMRUTHAM 500ml
5.00

NEYYABHISHEKAM 5.00
VIBOOTHI PRASADAM
7.00

VELLA NIVEDYAM 5.00
SHARKARA PAYASAM 500M 3.00
PUSHPABHISHEKAM
1001.00

PADIPOOJA
30001.00 IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS AT PAMBA AND SANNIDHANAM

PAMBA

STD CODE: 04735
SANNIDHANAM

STD CODE: 04735

District Information Office
Pathanamthitta
0468- 2222657
Matrubhumi Bureau
202255

Police Station 202412 Police Station
202014

Police Control Room 203386 Police Control Room
202016

Police Special Officer 203523 Police Special Officer 202029
Fire force
202333
Govt.Hospital
202101

K.S.R.T.C
203445
Ayurveda hospital
202102

K.S.E.B
202424
Homoeo Hospital
202843

Post Office
202330
Sahas hospital
202080

Devaswom Information Centre
202339
N.S.S. Hospital
202010

Ayyappa Seva Sanghom
203407
Postoffice 202130
Govt.Hospital
203318
Fire force 202033
Govt. Aurveda Hospital 202536 Devaswom information Centre 202048
Homoeo Hospital 203537 Devaswom guest house 202056
Sahas hospital 203350 Kerala Water Authority 202111
guest house 202441 K.S.E.B
202024

Kerala Water Authority
202360

Sabari Sanitation Society 202336


Railway Station, Kottayam ----------------------------- 0481-2563535
Railway Station, Chengannur--------------------------- 0479-2452340
Pamba Railway Enquiry Counter------------------------ 04735-203605



RATE OF OFFERINGS AT SABARIMALA CONTD.


UDAYASTHAMAYA POOJA
20001.00

LAKSHARRCHANA
1001.00

GANAPATHIHOMAM
61.00

USHAPOOJA
501.00

NITHYAPOOJA
2501.00

UCHAPOOJA
2001.00

UTHSAVABALI
5001.00

MUZHUKAPPU
301.00

THULABHARAM 51.00
ASHTOTHARARCHANA 15.00
SAHASRANAMARCHANA 15.00
ADIYASHISHTAM NEYY 100ml
25.00



Note: Booking Facility available for udayasthamaya pooja, Sahasra kalasam, Kalabhabhishekam, Laksharchana, Uthsavbali, Pushpabhishekam.

For Booking: -

The Executive Officer, Sabarimala Devaswom,
Travancore,
Devaswom Board Office,
Nanthancode,
Thiruvananthapuram-3

PAMBA GANAPATHY TEMPLE -RATE OF OFFERINGS
GANAPATHIHOMAM
61.00

MODAKAM (PACKET)
10.00

AVIL
10.00

VADAMALA
(For Hanuman)
65.00

KETTUNIRA 160.00
THIRUMUTTAM KETTUNIRA 10.00
VIDHYARAMBHAM 101.00
MUZHUKAPPU 301.00
CHOROONU 61.00
NEERAJANAM 61.00
ARCHANA 15.00
PUSHPABISHEKAM
1001.00

MALIKAPPURAM TEMPLE-RATE OF OFFERINGS
BHAGAVATHISEVA
151.00

MALAR NIVEDYAM
3.00

AVIL
10.00

SOYAMBARARCHANA 15.00
PARAYIDAL 65.00
SAHASRAKALASHAM 10001.00
THANKAYANKI CHARTHU 6001.00
VELLIYANKICHARTHU 2501.00
ASHTABISHEKAM 751.00
NAMAKARANAM 61.00
CHOROONU 61.00
ADIMAKIDATHU 61.00
VIDHYARABAM 101.00
SHASRANEYYVILAKKU 3.00
MALAPADIPOOJA 4.00
AYYAPPACHAKRAM 50.00
MODHAKAM 10.00
VALSAN NIVEDHYAM 15.00
NAVAGRAHAPOOJA 61.00
MANJAL-KUMKUMAM 3.00
POOJICHAMANI 60.00
UDAYADACHARTHU 7.00
NEERAJANAM

61.00




Sannidhanam KSEB IB Phone: 202024


3 Rooms Rs.20/- per person. 1 Hall: Rs.10/- Per person
Contact: Board Secretary, Vaidyuthi Bhavan
Thiruvananthapuram, Phone:0471-2448989

Forest Department has also an IB Dormitary at Pambaorest. IB has 3

Rooms (Rs.300 per day). Accomodation is available in the Dormitary for Rs.50 per person.

OTHER INFORMATION

Buses Operated by Kerala State Road Transport Corporation, Travencore Devaswom Board, Private vehicles are available to pamba.
Dolly service is available from Pamba to Sannidhanam for those who are unable to scale the heights. Dolly fare Rs. 660/- (Rs. 330/- for one way)
Pilgrims can seek the help of Cardiology centres at Appachimedu (Phone No. 04735202319) and Sannidhanam (Phone No. 04735202080)
Sabarimala is No Smoking area and a smoking prohibited zone
Using plastic materials, containers, carry bags etc., are totally prohibited
As Sabarimala ayyappa is 'Nithya Brahmachari' women between the 10-50 age group are not allowed to enter Sabarimala. Such women who try to enter Sabarimala will be prevented by authorities.

PROJECT REPORT ON AGRO-FOOD BASED SMALL SCALE INDUSTRIAL UNITS

PROJECT ON FOOD BASED PRODUCTS
TOMATO SAUCE
1. Introduction - Tomato Sauce is being increasingly used with snacks like rolls, cutlets, Samosas. Tomato is a highly perishable commodity; its conversion to sauce indirectly increases the shelf life and confers substantial value addition.
2. Raw Materials - Tomato, Sugar, Spices, Salt, Vinegar, Sodium benzoate.
3. Manufacturing Process :-
The main process steps are : -
I. Selection of fully ripe tomatoes.
II. Washing and Slicing, crushing
III. Heating in stem jacketed kettle
IV. Pulping and slicing
V. Heating juice with ground spice, chopped onions and garlic (as per formulation),loosely suspended in a muslin bag.

VI. Adding sugar, salt, vinegar acetic acid.
VII. Concentrating juice as required.
VIII. Removing muslin bag.
IX. Adding sodium benzoate.
X. Filling into washed bottles.
XI. Cooling the bottle and labeling.
4. Manpower requirement : 6
5. Project Cost :-
Fixed Cost(Expected cost in Rupees) :
i. Gas Stove -Rs. 2500
ii. Cooking gas with cylinder for
commercial connection -Rs. 4,200
iii. Utensils and Stainless steel sieve - Rs.2,500
iv. Mixer Grinder -Rs.3,500
v. Gloves, Mask, Apron, Stainless steel knife, basins, bucket, Saucepan, Mug,
Spoon, Fork, Pressure Cooker, Pre-operation
expenses and miscellaneous-Rs.10000
vi. Electronic weighing machine -Rs.5,000
vii. Refrigerator -Rs.20,000
viii. Sealing machine -Rs.2,000
ix. Preparation tables -Rs.2,500
Total fixed cast -Rs.52,200/-
6. Variable Cast
i. Raw material -Rs.6000
ii. Packing material _Rs. 5000
iii. Labeling Charges -Rs. 1000
Total Variable Cost -Rs. 12,000/-
7. Profitability
Annual Sales realisation -Rs.16,000
Annual operating expenses -Rs. 12,000
Annual profit (Pre-tax) -Rs.4,000
8. Market potential
There would be significant demand of the product by hotels, restaurants, tourist resorts in the nearby locality etc. The product can also be marketed and sold through agencies like retail outlets of of private entrepreneurs in the retail sector,local vendors etc. There is ample scope for venturing into the production of other fruits and vegetable based processed food items like ketchups, squashes, jams, jellies, pickles etc. using the infrastructure facilities that may comeup with the proposed unit. Considering the capacity of unit as 0.2 ton per year along with the product diversification possibilities, there is ample scope for establishing the unit .
9. Production Capacity:-
Annual production capacity : 0.2 ton

Indian food is often flavoured with the non-scalding spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves garlic, cumin, coriander and turmeric. Spices are used in India to tone up the system the way wines aid the digestion of Western Cuisine.
As for the Cuisine of Kerala, it is mildly flavoured, gently cooked and has a certain genteel delicacy on the stomach. An example is the rich biriyanis of the northern parts of Kerala- The Malabar Biriyanis.

Pulaos, pilaffs and biriyanis are meats spices and onions slowly steam cooked in boiled rice. Malabar biriyani was brought across the Indian Ocean by Arab Seafarers. It should be eaten hot with crispy, crunchy pappads.

PUTTU:
A favourite breakfast dish is Puttu. Rice flour dough is lagered with grated coconut and steamed in hollow bamboo cylinder. It is eaten sprinkled with sugar or with mashed bananas or with a spicy curry made of channa or chic peas.

IDDLI & DOSA:
Iddlis or fluffy white steamed cakes and dosas which are thin golden pancakes are popular in Kerala. They are made up of yeasty rice and lentil batter. They are not strictly Malayali Cuisine. They came across from the vegetarian kitchens next door in the State of Tamil Nadu.

Kerala does have its own well developed vegetarian cuisine. If you visit the State during post harvest Onam season lunch with thoran or kaalan or pachadi or olen.

Thorans are gravy-less dishes of finely chopped boiled vegetables and possibly meet and sea food. The mustard seed used in thorans gives them a pleasantly assertive flavour, while the lightly fried grated coconut adds the church.

Avial, on the other hand, is mixed vegetable gravy dish thickened with coconut and yoghurt. Drumsticks, jack fruit seeds and slices of mango are often used.

Olen is also a very gravy dish made of ash gourd and drum beans where the predominant flavour is that of coconut milk. It is a fairly thick liquid squeezed out from the white flesh of a fresh coconut.

Bananas are very popular in Kerala Cuisine. Sliced finely and deep fried as chips, they are chewy snacks. Cut into bits, fried and dipped in jaggerey or sugar syrup, they are sweets. Cooked in thick yoghurt and seasoned with chilly, turmeric ,cumin seed and curry leaves, they become Kaalan accompainment to the main meal.

Malayalee Pachadi is a fairly thick sauce made of sugar, yoghurt, grated coconut, mustard seed and a wide spectrum range of spices including green and red chillies.

Sambar is a cross between a sauce and a broth. It contains smashed lentils, cooked vegetables and spices including the exotic and edible resin -asafetida. For desert, there is the :-

Pradhman or Payasam, porridge like sweets with a vermicelli of rice base, cooked in milk and sugar or jaggery.

stew:A favorite dish of Syrian Christians residing at Kottayam is stew. Chicken and potatoes are simmered gently in a creamy white sauce flavoured with black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, green chillies, lime juice, shallots and coconut milk.

Appams: The stew is eaten with Appams. Appams /Kallappams or Vellayappams are rice flour pancakes which have soft, thick white spongy centres and thin golden crip lace like edge.

Meen vevichathu or fish in fiery red chilly sauce is also another favourite item. Besides the chicken and fish there is also red meat:-

erachi orlarthiathu. Beef (or lamb) is boiled with roasted coriander seeds, red chilles, cloves, onions, cummins, garlic, ginger, fried coconut chips and a little vinegar. Then with the water reduced, the, meat is almost fried dry in a little oil that has been flavoured with sliced shallots and highly aromatic curry leaves.

O N V KURUP-MALAYALAM POET SANS PAR

O N V Kurup born on May 27, 1931 at Chavara , a coastal village in Kerala is one of the greatest poets Kerala has seen. He spent his childhood in an environment where a peaceful agrarian culture was in constant confrontation with industrialisation.

Poetry, according to O N V, was a drop of light that came to him in the dark solitude of his childhood. His first published poem was 'Munnottu' (Forward) which appeared in a local weekly in 1946. It was only an outburst of his exuberant patriotic sentiments, but it marked the beginning of a long poetic career.

In every poem, the poet assumes the role of the spokesman of millions who are languishing in darkness and poses questions to the reader. He is not bothered about 'isms' in literature, but he writes poetry as it comes to him. His poems purveys the message to fight the battle of life against tyranny, desecration and destruction.