Mother Teresa endowed with Holy Soul: A Glimpse of her humanitarian Service

 On 26 August 2021, the world celebrated the birthday of a great and holy soul, selfless lady, endowed with purity in heart, who is popularly known as Mother Teresa but born as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu.

Mother Teresa is a symbol of sacrifice for the service and caring of the downtrodden people. She was born on 26 August 1910 in present-day Skopje of North Macedonia. I will not discuss here about her religion etc. but I feel her greatest religion was love and affection to others particularly to the poor echelon of the society. On other days, we have seen on TV that innocent people were killed without any fault of theirs in Kabul but Mother Teresa has shown us how to nurture helpless children and others for survival. She left her home in 1928 when she was 18 years old and came to Ireland to learn English. And later on sent to India and on 24 May, 1931, she took her initial vows as a nun. Among her innumerable activities few are mentioned here so that young generations are motivated. 

From 1931 to 1948 Mother Teresa taught at St. Mary’s High School in Calcutta now Kolkata, but observing the suffering and poverty outside the convent walls, she changed her mind.  In 1948 she left the convent school with proper permission from the authority and devoted herself to working among the poor in the slums of Calcutta. Although she had no funds, she depended on Divine Providence, and started an open-air school for slum children. Soon she was joined by voluntary helpers, and financial support was also forthcoming. This made it possible for her to extend the scope of her work. She established a new sisterhood, Missionaries of Charity. Mother Teresa and her associates built homes for orphans, nursing homes for lepers and hospices for the terminally ill in Calcutta (now Kolkata). Mother Teresa's organization also engaged in aid work in other parts of the world. Also her role to serve the people, during Bengal Famine in 1943 and Direct Action Day, also known as the 1946 Calcutta Killings, was praiseworthy.

It may be mentioned here that, “The Missionaries of Charity, which began as a small order with 12 members in Calcutta, today has more than 4,000 nuns running orphanages, AIDS hospices, and charity centers worldwide, and caring for refugees, the blind, disabled, aged, alcoholics, the poor and homeless and victims of floods, epidemics and famine in Asia, Africa, Latin America, North America, Poland, and Australia. In 1965, by granting a Decree of Praise, Pope Paul VI granted Mother Teresa permission to expand her order to other countries. The order's first house outside India was in Venezuela. Presently, the "Missionaries of Charity" has presence in more than 100 countries” (awpc.cattcenter.iastate.edu/directory/mother-teresa).

Some of her activities across the world are: In 1982 during the Siege of Beirut Mother Teresa rescued 37 children trapped in a front-line hospital by brokering a temporary cease-fire between the Israeli army and Palestinian guerrillas. Accompanied by Red Cross workers, she travelled through the war zone to the hospital to evacuate the young patients.

Also she visited to help the hungry people in Ethiopia; radiation victims at Chernobyl and earthquake victims in Armenia.  In 1991 she went to Albania for the first time, opening a Missionaries of Charity Brothers home in (wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Teresa).  Mother Teresa’s work has been recognised and acclaimed throughout the world and she has received a number of awards and distinctions, including the Nobel Peace Prize, the Bharat Ratna, the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize etc.

Although Mother Teresa left for heavenly abode on 5 September 1997 (aged 87 in Calcutta/Kolkata) but because of her great humanitarian service she is in the heart of all in the world. I offer my Pronam to her.

 Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad , 27 August 2021

 

World Elephant Day, 12 August: Few Titbits

 In school days we were taught by the teachers while teaching general knowledge/ social science that ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ which is a Sanskrit phrase mentioned in the Maha Upanishad, meaning "the world is one family". So animals and other living beings have the right to survive in this beautiful world. On August 12, 2012, the World Elephant Day was launched to bring attention to the urgent plight of Asian and African elephants. The elephant is loved, and respected by people and cultures around the world.  They have been providing great service to human beings as ‘Elephant Safari’ is popular among the tourists in the world. The elephants are used to carry logs, heavy woods etc., in many places. And in many Hindu temples elephants are nurtured. Even then elephants are treated badly. According to Dr. Stephen Blake, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, “elephants are simply one more natural resource that is being caught up in human greed on the one hand and human need on the other.  We somehow need people to become reacquainted with nature or they can have no clue as to the interrelatedness of cause and effect.” It is observed from the website worldelephantday.org/about that ‘the escalation of poaching, habitat loss, human-elephant conflict and mistreatment in captivity are just some of the threats to both African and Asian elephants. Working towards better protection for wild elephants, improving enforcement policies to prevent the illegal poaching and trade of ivory, conserving elephant habitats, better treatment for captive elephants and, when appropriate, reintroducing captive elephants into natural, protected sanctuaries are the goals that numerous elephant conservation organizations are focusing on around the world.’                    While talking about Elephant Day, in the context of India it may be mentioned that the Government of India has notified a total of 32 Elephant Reserves. The total elephant population in India was 27312 (as per Census in 2017) (source: upsccolorfullnotes.com/32-elephant-reserves-in-india-in-2021-map). I visited some of the reserves and was charmed to see pachyderms and the pristine beauty of the places.   And one place of Sri Lanka I wish to mention here as it was a memorable place. During the course of Sri Lanka visit Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage must be visited (I visited in March 2018). It is located in the village Pinnawala in Kegalle district 90 kilometres away from Colombo. The orphanage also abandoned elephants and those injured) population of pachyderm was around 93, making it the world’s largest collection of captive elephants. It was established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka Wildlife Department adjoining the Maha Oya River. In 1978 the Orphanage was taken over by the National Zoological Gardens from the Department of Wildlife subsequently, a captive breeding program was launched in 1982. Since the inception of the programme more than 20 elephants were raised (bred) here and during the time of visit it was reported that altogether 93 elephants were staying. The objective of the Orphanage is to simulate a natural habitat to these elephants. The elephants are taken to the river twice a day for a bath, and all the babies less than three years of age are bottle fed by the mahouts and volunteers. While visiting the place, I purchased fruits from that place and put them in the mouth of an elephant (outside fruits are not allowed).                                                                                                 The theme for this year’s World Elephant Day has not been announced; however, last year it was ‘Haathi Hamara Saathi’(meaning elephants are our friends)

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad Dt. 12 August 2021

Brigadier Mohammad Usman: A Great Army Officer of India Born in July and Died in July

 For the common citizens’ peace and happiness and to keep our international border safe , time to time many army personnel of different cadres irrespective of caste , creed and religions have sacrificed their lives. I am presenting a case of a great army officer Brigadier Mohammad Usman who was born on 15 July 1912 in present Uttar Pradesh and died on 3 July 1948 while fighting with the enemies at Naushera in Jammu Kashmir. He was a great patriot as at the time of partition of India he along with many other Muslim officers declined to go to Pakistan to join in Pakistan Army. 

It is pertinent to mention that partition of India was the most unfortunate part in the history of India. The common people irrespective of caste, creed and religion fought against the British Raj but unfortunately few leaders supported by the British in those only to enjoy power were the architects of the partition at the cost of human lives. Unfortunately these power hungry leaders enjoyed the power because the partition displaced between 10 and 20 million people along religious lines, and 200,000 to 2 million deaths took place. And lakhs of women were assaulted and huge properties were damaged.  All were the common people of different religions. 

Anyway, Brigadier was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra and it is pertinent to mention that the Maha Vir Chakra (MVC, a great warrior medal) is the second highest military award  in India after the Param Vir Chakra. 

Brigadier Usman studied at Harish Chandra Bhai School in Varanasi. He had a great desire to join the army so with a lot of struggle got admission in the prestigious Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst (RMAS). He was commissioned as Second Lieutenant on 1 February 1934. Later on he was posted to the 5th battalion of 10th Baluch Regiment. For his great service, he was promoted as Lieutenant in April 1936 later on in August 1941 he was promoted as Captain. From February to July 1942, he attended the Indian Army Staff College at Ouetta (now in Pakistan). During partition, he was under great pressure from the Pakistani leadership to join in the Pakistani Army and it is now fact that Brigadier Usman had declined a request from Muhammad Ali Jinnah to settle in Pakistan. Also it is believed that he was promised in future as Pakistan's Army Chief. When the Baluch Regiment was allotted to Pakistan after partition, Brigadier was transferred to the Dogra Regiment in India.

 In January- February 1948 Brigadier Usman repulsed the attack from the Pakistan side in Naushera and Jhangar, both highly strategic locations in Jammu and Kashmir.  Indian forces inflicted around 2000 casualties on the Pakistani side (about 1000 dead and 1000 wounded) while Indian forces suffered only 33 dead and 102 wounded. For his bravery and skill and prowess, Pakistani forces announced a sum of Rs.50,000 for his  head. 

According to the Government of India, Press Information Bureau, “Late Brigadier Mohammad Usman, also known as the savior of Naushera, was responsible for the recapture of Jhangar & Naushera (Jammu & Kashmir) during the 1947-48 war with Pakistan. The gallant officer attained martyrdom on 03rd July 1948 when an enemy artillery shell landed close to him in Naushera”.

A great salute to the Brigadier as in July month he was born and also left for heavenly abode by saving our border. 

 The following websites and Press release have been consulted while writing the article:

1)    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammad_Usman

2)    Government of India. Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence, 03-July-2014

3)    https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/army-to-restore-defaced-jamia-grave-of-    war- hero/cid/1802136

   Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad Dt 20 July 2021

Case of a Valiant Rat Who Saved Lives of Many Human Beings: Awarded PDSA Gold Medal

 As a senior citizen from my school days, I have read in various newspapers and later on watched on TV that many stalwarts have received gold medals for their dedication whether for the development of science and technology or any other innovation or other noble activities even for the supreme great sacrifice made by the person. But here I am presenting a case of a special type of Rat named as 'Magawa' who was awarded the People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA), a veterinary charity in the United Kingdom Gold Medal in September, 2020. This Medal is also described as the George Cross for Animals. He was the first rat awarded with the medal in the charity's 77-year history. Many newspapers including foreign newspapers and also on TV channels highlighted the case of this rat.  I am presenting again so that many readers can get an idea about if anyone has missed. The rat, an African breed after its training named as ’Magawa’, has helped to find 39 landmines and 28 unexploded munitions in his lifetime after training in Cambodia. It is pertinent to mention that landmines are explosives. These mines have detonating systems that are triggered by the pressure of any person or bulky animals. There are two types of landmines- a) anti-personnel landmines, aimed at killing or injuring a person (or bulky animals may also die if foot touches), and b) anti-tank mines, designed to destroy or incapacitate vehicles.

The landmines were first used during World War I, but their deployment increased from 1960 onwards.  According to Landmine Monitor more than 120,000 people were killed or wounded by the landmines between 1999 and 2017. It is unfortunate to mention that about half of the victims were children. According to the mine-clearing NGO the HALO Trust, Cambodia has recorded more than 64,000 casualties and little more than 25,000 amputees due to landmines since 1979. Most of the landmines were laid during the country's civil war in the 1970s and 1980s. Anyway the special type of rats after imparting training are used to detect a chemical compound within the explosives which means they ignore scrap metal and can search for mines more quickly and thus lakhs of human lives were saved and now also these rats are in job. The rats are certified after training and normally the training period is one year. These specially trained rats detect landmines from 1990. As already mentioned ’Magawa’ was trained by the Belgium-registered charity organisation viz., APOPO, (Anti-Personnel Landmines Removal Product Development), in Tanzania that trains rats like 'Magawa' to find landmines. APOPO has been nurturing the rats - known as 'HeroRATs'. 

According to APOPO, Magawa was born and raised in Tanzania. Its weight after full development was 1.2 kilogram and was 70 centimetres long. So if Magawa walks over the mine but because of the lightweight mine does not blow.  According to the report 'Magawa' has discovered 39 landmines and 28 items of unexploded ordnance, making him the charity’s most successful ‘HeroRAT’. During his career he has helped to clear more than 141,000 square metres of land (the equivalent of twenty football grounds). ‘Magawa’ can search an area of a tennis court​(size) in 30 minutes, which for a person with a metal detector takes a minimum​ ​​of ​ one day.

These rats, if they survive, can extend service up to five years.  'Magawa' the heroic rat, has retired after sniffing out landmines for five years by saving the lives of thousands of people mainly in Cambodia (he is now around seven years old).  According to the website, (pdsa.org.uk/magawa), ‘He’ll spend his time playing and relaxing!’

My great salute to the valiant soul.

References:

1)      https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-49799292

2)      https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57345703

3)      https://www.newsbred.com/article/magwa-the-rat-is-hero-in-detecting-mines-explosives-as-long-as-peanuts-keep-coming

4)      https://www.pdsa.org.uk/what-we-do/animal-awards-programme/pdsa-gold-medal/magawa

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad Dt. 11 July 2021

 

1 July Celebrated Two Events in India: National Doctors’ Day & National Chartered Accountant Day

 Every year the first July in our country is celebrated as two famous events - one is Doctors’ Day and another is National Chartered Accountant Day. Both have importance in our life. All human beings required the service of medical doctors during their lifetime. My father was MBBS of Calcutta Medical College, served in Guwahati, Assam and I have observed the services rendered by him to all the echelons of the society. Similarly, accounting is important in our family life also as in the family particularly the earning member and the spouse based on the income spends money, a sort of budget is prepared. I am highlighting the importance of both the Days so that the young generation can get ideas. Also researchers can take up in-depth study in this regard. 

      National Doctors' Day is celebrated as recognition to the service rendered by the medical doctors in India the National Doctors' Day is celebrated on 1 July across India to honour the legendary physician and the second Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy popularly known as Dr. B.C. Roy. He was born on 1 July, 1882 in Patna and died on the same date (July 1) in 1962 in then Calcutta now Kolkata after treating some patients in morning hours. He was a follower of Brahmo Samaj and in those days many intellectuals in Bengal advocated Brahmo Samaj philosophy to counter evil practices of Hinduism such as Sati system etc. Dr. Roy led the Civil disobedience movement in Bengal and was later on elected as Mayor of Calcutta Corporation. He is still considered a greatest Chief Minister of West Bengal ( according to me best among the CMs of West Bengal) and a visionary of developing the State as after independence a lot of industrial development took place in the State. Medical institutions like Jadavpur TB Hospital, Chittaranjan Seva Sadan, Victoria Institution (college), Chittaranjan Cancer Hospital and the Chittaranjan Seva Sadan for women and children were set up during his regime. He was also referred to as the first medical consultant in the subcontinent of India and was more successful and dedicated than his contemporaries in several fields, mentioned British Medical Journal. It may be mentioned that many countries celebrate Doctors' Day based on their own situation. It has to be admitted that amid the pandemic, the role of medical staff and paramedical staff is commendable as at the cost of their own life they have been doing excellent work. Cheers to the spirit and dedication of the front line workers who immensely contributed in the hour of crisis.

National Chartered Accountant Day is observed in order to celebrate the formation of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) on 1 July, 1949. ICAI is the sole licensing and regulatory body for the financial audit and accounting profession in India. It is pertinent to mention that in 1913, the British Government passed the Companies Act that prescribed a list of books that every registered firm had to maintain. Accordingly, an auditor had to be appointed which had the power to audit these books. In 1918, a course named ‘Government Diploma in Accountancy’ was introduced in Bombay now Mumbai and after completing this course the person was eligible to work as an Auditor throughout India. After some years, the course was discontinued. In the year 1930, the British Government decided to maintain a Register called the Register of Accountants and head was Registered Accountant. After independence, in the year 1948, an expert committee was set up to examine the matters. The committee suggested a separate autonomous association of accountants should be set up to regulate. Accordingly, on 1 July 1949 Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) was formed.

 On this auspicious occasion my salute to all the Doctors, the supporting staff and also to all the Accountants. 

 Dr. Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad Dt. 1 July 2021

 

Tributes to ' Kalaguru Bishnu Rabha on ‘Bishnu Rabha Divash’

 Time to time across great personalities were born in undivided India also in present India who are still remembered and events are held as tribute to them. On 20 June 1969, a great human being, patriot, also an artist, actor, painter, music composer, poet and writer of Assam left for heavenly abodes, popularly known as Kalaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha. Such a talented person left for heavenly abode at the age of 60 years at Tezpur, Assam. In commemoration of his death, 20 June is celebrated in Assam as 'Bishnu Rabha Divash (Bishnu Rabha day)'.  Kalaguru (meaning Master of the Arts) was born on 31 January 1909 in ST family in Dhaka (now in Bangladesh), then Bengal Presidency of British India.

Bishnu Rabha’s schooling started at Tezpur Government High School, Assam and later on he went to Calcutta now Kolkata for pursuing higher study. From a young age he proved his talent through his writings. He was in the freedom movement and was influenced by leftist ideology  and ardent supporter of the Communist Party of India. However, when Germany attacked Soviet Union during the Second World War, the leaders of Indian communists decided to support the British Government which antagonised a section of the communist leaders and subsequently they formed the Revolutionary Communist Party of India (RCPI) in 1945 where he joined.    He was a multifaceted artist and revolutionary singer of Assam. His music today is known as Bishnu Rabha Sangeet.

He was associated very closely with theatre movement in Assam and there were many live performances at the Ban theatre in Tezpur which is famously connected to Kalaguru Bishnu Rabha.

     Kalaguru was a genius in creative activities and undoubtedly his enormous contribution no Indian can forget. His work Bano Kobang portrays the life of many indigenous Assamese communities. His other publications inter alia are Missing Coneng, Sonpahi, Axomiya Kristir Hamuh Abhakh, and Atit Axom. He had given music to most of his songs. He was a visionary, and through music, dance, acting, writing, etc., he endeavoured to realize his dream of a greater, prosperous Assamese society with every ethnic group as equal partners. He acted in a mobile theatre group of that time named 'Ban Theatre'. He directed an Assamese film 'Siraj', where he also composed the music. Further, he acted in the movie 'Era Baator Xur'. It may be mentioned  that he was awarded the title 'Kalaguru' by Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan at Varanasi for his enthralling ‘dance of Lord Shiva’. Kalaguru actively worked to popularize Vaishnavism initiated by Srimanata Sankardev (Saint and scholar) in Assam in 15^th century. Kalaguru painted portraits of both Sankardev and Madhavdev with water colours. He was a great human being also and always had feelings for the underprivileged and poor echelons of the society. It is pertinent to mention here that he had given about 2500 bighas (1 bigha is approximately equal to 0.40 acre) to the peasants. He popularised a slogan “Haal Jaar Maati Taar" means "those who cultivate, should own the land".

He passed away on 20 June 1969 but he will be in the hearts of millions for his brilliant activities.

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, 20 June 2021, Hyderabad

The International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021: Few Issues

 All living beings for their survival have to eat. For human beings tt may be vegetarian or non-vegetarian foods. Although vegetarian and non -vegetarian foods depend on individual perceptions. Few examples are presented here.  Many eat eggs (duck, chicken or other birds) but not fish or meat as according to them ‘egg is vegetarian’. For Bengali widows garlic, onion and red- gram dal (pulse) are prohibited. Earlier the Bengali widows even did not touch these also.  When I was in Eritrea as an academician many Orthodox Christians told me ‘Milk is non-vegetarian as it comes out of the blood of the animal’.  But for Hindus in general milk is not non-vegetarian. Anyway irrespective of any religious beliefs all across the world eat fruits and vegetables. Based on the publication “FRUIT AND VEGETABLES –YOUR DIETARY ESSENTIALS: The International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021 Background paper” published by  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations , Rome, this article has been written so that readers can get a general idea about the significance of the Year as well as importance of fruits and vegetables. The United Nations has declared 2021 as the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables with the aims to raise awareness of the nutritional and health benefits of consuming more fruits and vegetables as part of a diversified, balanced and healthy diet and lifestyle as well as to direct policy attention to reducing loss and waste of these highly perishable produce goods. The important point as found in the publication is that there is no widely accepted definition for either fruits or vegetables. The definition agreed to for the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables is as follows. The fruits and vegetables are considered edible parts of plants (e.g., seed bearing structures, flowers, buds, leaves, stems, shoots and roots), either cultivated or harvested wild, in their raw state or in a minimally processed form. The following items are excluded from the category of fruits and vegetables:

Ø   Starchy roots and tubers such as cassava, potato, sweet potato and yams (although leaves of these plants are consumed as vegetables).

Ø   Dry grain legumes (pulses) unless harvested when immature.

Ø   Cereals including maize (corn), unless harvested when immature.

Ø  Nuts, seeds and oilseeds such as coconuts, walnuts and sunflower seeds.

Ø  Medicinal or herbal plants and spices, unless used as vegetables.

Ø   Stimulants such as tea, cacao and coffee.

Ø   Processed and ultra-processed products made from fruits and vegetables such as alcoholic beverages (e.g. wine, spirits), plant-based meat substitutes, or fruit and vegetable products with added ingredients (e.g., packed fruit juices, ketchup).

It is observed from the publication that women produce much of the world’s fresh products, and "they are often responsible for the harvesting, marketing and processing. As consumers, they often choose what items to buy and how to cook them. But women face disadvantages at all stages in the chain – as producers in their ability to access land, inputs and advice, as entrepreneurs in getting finance to develop their businesses, as workers in terms of fair payment for their work, and as consumers in terms of education about food and nutrition". The high value of fruits and vegetables and the potential for innovation open exciting opportunities for young people to become involved in production and other aspects of the value chain as observed in the publication.

Before conclusion, the FAO Director-General may be quoted from the publication, “When we think of healthy eating, the first food items that often come to mind are fruits and vegetables – colourful, vitamin-, mineral- and fibre-rich, they are vital for the proper functioning of the human body. The benefits of consuming fruits and vegetables as part of a nutritious diet are vast. Fresh produce items are not only beneficial to consumers, but they also benefit the food system. The fruit and vegetable sector contributes to increasing biodiversity, generating environmental sustainability, and improving the livelihoods of farmers and employees operating along the value chains”.

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad, 11 June 2021

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