There was a cross country race and the only one during my stay at NIT in early 1984. I was party to it trying to explore my running skills and stamina. Nityananda Kamath who now owns a hero honda show-room at calicut and a senior at NIT was one of the organisers.
The track for the cross country race was as follows. Starting from the main building the track would exit into the main road from D hostel gate into Kettangal from where you take a left turn to papachan and left again at papachan straight into the main road to the temple to the LH (ladies hostel) to the guest house to the farther end of the mini valley down through the valley and back to the Main building through the canteen gate. Should be some 5 kilometers in all.
I was dressed in a shorts and T-shirt and there must have been some 100 runners in all and behold the race began and I ran as fast as I could only to realise before long that I have embarked on a difficult venture. At papachan I had a small stop over for few glasses of water. Many of the more spirited runners were already much ahead in the race. I realized early that even getting the tenth position would be a distant dream. The reality drew on me quite early and the focus shifted to completing the race in right earnest. There were few others who had resigned like myself to this reality and we had almost formed a truce and were running in unison and one of them to my consolation was the deputy to the physical instruction director.
I did complete the race walking sometimes to gather steam and bolting in front of the Ladies Hostel to show that I was something and slowing down again into a walk. Nithyananda kamath who was supervising the race on a motor-bike offered me a lift but I politely refused. Nityananda kamath was a gentle man and met him once in his office at Calicut much later. The best part of the race was descending into the mini valley from the faculty quarters through ferns and bushes and ascending again into the main road in a quick sprint but behold when I finished the race I was one of the last few but I was happy that I completed it.
One of my juniors Binod Ramakrishnan Nair was one of the victors and i dont remember the names of the other winners. I have always tried to follow the philosophy of completing things even though it takes extra time and may be that is what being persistent is all about.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
china and global manufacturers
Is China Still Competitive for Global Manufacturers?
Having served the world as a manufacturing base for decades, is China still competitive for manufacturers? A number of factors indicate that its competitive lead will be chipped away, not least if the renminbi is allowed to appreciate against the U.S. dollar and costs rise. Some experts predict that low-value-added exporters may be driven elsewhere while manufacturers of high-value-added, complex products for domestic consumption will face even stiffer competition to thrive. Against this backdrop, as a new survey suggests, manufacturers in China are learning quickly about staying competitive in this ever-shifting landscape.
It certainly doesn't help matters much that there's uncertainty and tensions brewing on a number of fronts. Among the foreign IT industry, for example, the ugly exchange between Google and China, and a new rule that stipulates sellers of high-tech goods must contain Chinese intellectual property as part of an "indigenous innovation" campaign, have rattled nerves.
Yet despite all this, experts say there's much that's working in China's favor. Costs are still low and the skills level is high. Meanwhile, the pent-up demand of a potentially huge domestic market combined with improving IT, infrastructure and regulatory regimes all put China well ahead of other low-cost countries.
While the recent announcement of China’s first trade deficit since 2004 makes it unlikely that the renminbi will be allowed to appreciate against the U.S. dollar much soon, March's $7.24 billion deficit is also a sign of the fast expansion of China’s domestic market. The auto sector, for example, was up 170% in March from the previous month.
China's burgeoning domestic market is indeed a very important allure for many firms, according to the latest China Manufacturing Competitiveness Study published by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) and management consultants at Booz & Company. More than 80% of 202 manufacturers surveyed said their primary motive for being in China is to provide products for the Chinese marketplace, up from 71% two years ago.
While booming local markets are key, there are other reasons for China's appeal, including political stability. A couple of years ago, companies were hedging their bets and adopted a "China plus one" strategy, so that they set up operations in China and in one other nearby country. Many chose Thailand as the second country and the current strife is bad news for businesses there.The stable currency has also been helpful, adding an element of predictability to budgeting and keeping costs down. Two years ago, the AmCham study found that the rising RMB was the most serious worry for the companies surveyed, but since then government policy has calmed those fears. The AmCham study also notes that “although factories in China are generally still in the early stages of implementing innovative manufacturing practices, these lean techniques and processes are even less prevalent in surrounding low-cost countries.”
Lian Hoon Lim, partner and manufacturing expert at AT Kearney consultants, says companies are benefitting from what he calls "the cluster effect,” The big three clusters in China are the Yangtze River Delta region around Shanghai, the Pearl River Delta region running from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, and the region around Beijing and its neighbor Tianjin. In these areas companies have access to a “skilled labor, an experienced local managerial workforce, material and component supply, and good infrastructure,” says Lim. “If you took those four factors and looked at the countries in Asia, including in the subcontinent, you would find that quite a lot of them lack one or more of these four points.”
People Power
Yet China continues to grapple with one of its trickiest growth challenges: Attracting and retaining top employees. The drop in global demand for exports from China during the economic crisis meant layoffs and a softened labor market. But by the end of 2009, as China’s economy re-accelerated, labor was again in short supply. In the fourth quarter of 2009, labor demand growth in major cities outpaced supply for the first time since the second quarter of 2008, according to JP Morgan Global Watch Data. As a result, manufacturers have had to hike wages to attract workers.
“The increasing costs and tightened labor market are driving companies to consider other options for their lower cost, export-driven operations,” observes Stephen Li, a principal at Booz.
The AmCham study found that in 2009, the costs of labor and logistics as well as labor availability were viewed as less competitive in China than they were than two years ago. Yet 28% of the companies surveyed last year said they plan to move or expand within China in the next five years, compared to 17% in 2008. Cities in southwest and central China, such as Chongqing, Chengdu, Wuhan and Zhengzhou, are among the new destinations cited. For companies considering moving outside China, more than half said they wanted to stay in Asia, identifying India and Vietnam as their top choices. Latin America and Eastern Europe ranked a distant second and third.
But for companies staying in China, the study shows that they are readjusting their arsenal of tools to attract and retain staff, offering higher pay and training. Most respondents -- 79% -- said they are providing training and career development rather than relying on compensation to attract and retain workers. “Leading companies are recognizing that attracting and retaining talent in the post-downturn [environment] will mean refreshed value propositions incorporating growth and development opportunities,” says Li.
Case by Case
But despite all of China's appeal, foreign companies are right to exercise caution, weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of being based in the country accordingly. AT Kearney's Lim says that of the six clients he has worked with over the past three years, only two gave the country a vote of confidence.
Lim reckons that the business case for investing in China has changed for many companies in recent years. “If a firm wanted to expand in 2007, it was a 'no brainer' to go to China.” Along with the rising costs, he notes the “viability of long-distance supply chains” as having “prompted a rethink” in how firms view China as a potential manufacturing location.
One of the six -- an industrial-goods firm -- wanted to set up a joint venture but couldn’t agree on the terms with the potential partner so did not go ahead. Another -- an aerospace components manufacturer -- set up shop elsewhere due to intellectual property concerns in China. A third client, who was in the medical industry, decided the return on investment in China would not be worth the effort, while a fourth didn't go ahead with an investment in China, for undisclosed reasons. However, a plastics manufacturer did because of the high demand for its goods in China, as did a maker of industrial equipment because it expects China to be a hub for its sector in the future.
China is competitive for textiles, says Lim, but less so where the value-added and complexity is low, such as bed linen. Men’s shirts, on the other hand, are "quite complex; you need to cut many different pieces, the stitching and sewing is complex, and you have cuffs, buttons and collars, and many different sizes.”
Then there are white goods and consumer electronics. According to Lim, the competitiveness is a function of the combination of labor costs that are relatively low but at skills level that is relatively high. “A company could set up elsewhere -- say, Cambodia -- where the cost of labor is very low," says Lim. "But the productivity and familiarity with the industry is not there, and most of the raw materials would have to be imported."
Made in China
The catalyst causing many companies to re-thing their China strategies started when oil went from $40 to $150 a barrel. Suddenly, transportation costs for goods from China to Europe and America became markedly more significant. Despite the fact that the price of oil has stabilized, “people are more sensitive to the risk of it spiking again” says Lim.
To address the challenges, companies are devising “long-term strategies, which focus on product competitiveness and their supply chain,” says Li.
But whatever the sector or supply chain, another on-going challenge, meanwhile, will be to please China's consumers, who are unpredictable and have varied tastes. As Edward Tse, chairman of Greater China at Booz, writes in the analysis of the study, “Although China’s markets are open to global products, they are also extraordinarily local, rooted in traditional customs and tastes, with extreme variations from one region to the next…. With markets and tastes continuing to change, it is difficult to predict what kind of path China’s consumers will follow.”
The result, he says, means that “companies seeking to take advantage of the Chinese market cannot be complacent but must upgrade processes, retain talent, keep a tight reign on costs and get to know their customer.”
Having served the world as a manufacturing base for decades, is China still competitive for manufacturers? A number of factors indicate that its competitive lead will be chipped away, not least if the renminbi is allowed to appreciate against the U.S. dollar and costs rise. Some experts predict that low-value-added exporters may be driven elsewhere while manufacturers of high-value-added, complex products for domestic consumption will face even stiffer competition to thrive. Against this backdrop, as a new survey suggests, manufacturers in China are learning quickly about staying competitive in this ever-shifting landscape.
It certainly doesn't help matters much that there's uncertainty and tensions brewing on a number of fronts. Among the foreign IT industry, for example, the ugly exchange between Google and China, and a new rule that stipulates sellers of high-tech goods must contain Chinese intellectual property as part of an "indigenous innovation" campaign, have rattled nerves.
Yet despite all this, experts say there's much that's working in China's favor. Costs are still low and the skills level is high. Meanwhile, the pent-up demand of a potentially huge domestic market combined with improving IT, infrastructure and regulatory regimes all put China well ahead of other low-cost countries.
While the recent announcement of China’s first trade deficit since 2004 makes it unlikely that the renminbi will be allowed to appreciate against the U.S. dollar much soon, March's $7.24 billion deficit is also a sign of the fast expansion of China’s domestic market. The auto sector, for example, was up 170% in March from the previous month.
China's burgeoning domestic market is indeed a very important allure for many firms, according to the latest China Manufacturing Competitiveness Study published by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) and management consultants at Booz & Company. More than 80% of 202 manufacturers surveyed said their primary motive for being in China is to provide products for the Chinese marketplace, up from 71% two years ago.
While booming local markets are key, there are other reasons for China's appeal, including political stability. A couple of years ago, companies were hedging their bets and adopted a "China plus one" strategy, so that they set up operations in China and in one other nearby country. Many chose Thailand as the second country and the current strife is bad news for businesses there.The stable currency has also been helpful, adding an element of predictability to budgeting and keeping costs down. Two years ago, the AmCham study found that the rising RMB was the most serious worry for the companies surveyed, but since then government policy has calmed those fears. The AmCham study also notes that “although factories in China are generally still in the early stages of implementing innovative manufacturing practices, these lean techniques and processes are even less prevalent in surrounding low-cost countries.”
Lian Hoon Lim, partner and manufacturing expert at AT Kearney consultants, says companies are benefitting from what he calls "the cluster effect,” The big three clusters in China are the Yangtze River Delta region around Shanghai, the Pearl River Delta region running from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, and the region around Beijing and its neighbor Tianjin. In these areas companies have access to a “skilled labor, an experienced local managerial workforce, material and component supply, and good infrastructure,” says Lim. “If you took those four factors and looked at the countries in Asia, including in the subcontinent, you would find that quite a lot of them lack one or more of these four points.”
People Power
Yet China continues to grapple with one of its trickiest growth challenges: Attracting and retaining top employees. The drop in global demand for exports from China during the economic crisis meant layoffs and a softened labor market. But by the end of 2009, as China’s economy re-accelerated, labor was again in short supply. In the fourth quarter of 2009, labor demand growth in major cities outpaced supply for the first time since the second quarter of 2008, according to JP Morgan Global Watch Data. As a result, manufacturers have had to hike wages to attract workers.
“The increasing costs and tightened labor market are driving companies to consider other options for their lower cost, export-driven operations,” observes Stephen Li, a principal at Booz.
The AmCham study found that in 2009, the costs of labor and logistics as well as labor availability were viewed as less competitive in China than they were than two years ago. Yet 28% of the companies surveyed last year said they plan to move or expand within China in the next five years, compared to 17% in 2008. Cities in southwest and central China, such as Chongqing, Chengdu, Wuhan and Zhengzhou, are among the new destinations cited. For companies considering moving outside China, more than half said they wanted to stay in Asia, identifying India and Vietnam as their top choices. Latin America and Eastern Europe ranked a distant second and third.
But for companies staying in China, the study shows that they are readjusting their arsenal of tools to attract and retain staff, offering higher pay and training. Most respondents -- 79% -- said they are providing training and career development rather than relying on compensation to attract and retain workers. “Leading companies are recognizing that attracting and retaining talent in the post-downturn [environment] will mean refreshed value propositions incorporating growth and development opportunities,” says Li.
Case by Case
But despite all of China's appeal, foreign companies are right to exercise caution, weighing up the advantages and disadvantages of being based in the country accordingly. AT Kearney's Lim says that of the six clients he has worked with over the past three years, only two gave the country a vote of confidence.
Lim reckons that the business case for investing in China has changed for many companies in recent years. “If a firm wanted to expand in 2007, it was a 'no brainer' to go to China.” Along with the rising costs, he notes the “viability of long-distance supply chains” as having “prompted a rethink” in how firms view China as a potential manufacturing location.
One of the six -- an industrial-goods firm -- wanted to set up a joint venture but couldn’t agree on the terms with the potential partner so did not go ahead. Another -- an aerospace components manufacturer -- set up shop elsewhere due to intellectual property concerns in China. A third client, who was in the medical industry, decided the return on investment in China would not be worth the effort, while a fourth didn't go ahead with an investment in China, for undisclosed reasons. However, a plastics manufacturer did because of the high demand for its goods in China, as did a maker of industrial equipment because it expects China to be a hub for its sector in the future.
China is competitive for textiles, says Lim, but less so where the value-added and complexity is low, such as bed linen. Men’s shirts, on the other hand, are "quite complex; you need to cut many different pieces, the stitching and sewing is complex, and you have cuffs, buttons and collars, and many different sizes.”
Then there are white goods and consumer electronics. According to Lim, the competitiveness is a function of the combination of labor costs that are relatively low but at skills level that is relatively high. “A company could set up elsewhere -- say, Cambodia -- where the cost of labor is very low," says Lim. "But the productivity and familiarity with the industry is not there, and most of the raw materials would have to be imported."
Made in China
The catalyst causing many companies to re-thing their China strategies started when oil went from $40 to $150 a barrel. Suddenly, transportation costs for goods from China to Europe and America became markedly more significant. Despite the fact that the price of oil has stabilized, “people are more sensitive to the risk of it spiking again” says Lim.
To address the challenges, companies are devising “long-term strategies, which focus on product competitiveness and their supply chain,” says Li.
But whatever the sector or supply chain, another on-going challenge, meanwhile, will be to please China's consumers, who are unpredictable and have varied tastes. As Edward Tse, chairman of Greater China at Booz, writes in the analysis of the study, “Although China’s markets are open to global products, they are also extraordinarily local, rooted in traditional customs and tastes, with extreme variations from one region to the next…. With markets and tastes continuing to change, it is difficult to predict what kind of path China’s consumers will follow.”
The result, he says, means that “companies seeking to take advantage of the Chinese market cannot be complacent but must upgrade processes, retain talent, keep a tight reign on costs and get to know their customer.”
Monday, April 12, 2010
NIT -REC- CALICUT
I spent more than four years of my life here and became a man from a teen-ager. I count myself fortunate for having been given an opportunity to study at this place and thank heavens for the same every other day. I liked this place and to a large extent a life full of fun ,games and frolic - away from the binds of home. I must thank my father for having sent me all the way from Bangalore to this place to study which not many a parent would endeavour.
REC presently re-christened as NIT was culturally very very different both an advantage and a disadvantage. It is a socially different place as we find students from all over the country and abroad. Social learning is a challenge to an intelligent mind as much as technical learning. The setting is simply different from any other institute. Recently the government has done away with this policy of admitting students from various states and has gone into a national merit list and the NIT of today will be a totally different place from the REC of yesteryears. There were many tanzanian students during our days. The International hostel at REC was inaguarated in 1983 by the then chief minister of Kerala Shri K Karunakaran. He started his speech in Malayalam and with the hindi crowd uncomfortable with the language switched over to English. The foundation for the F hostel was laid in 1985 by the then Education minister Shri T M Jacob. At the place where the F hostel stands used to be a tract with bushes on either sides leading to the Mini-Canteen. The Mini-canteen was thence shifted to the present location to give way for the construction of the F hostel.
I believe somewhere NIT Calicut has a problem called the "crisis of entry point". Even today I have not been able to perfectly pin-point the main gate of the institute.Technically the institution's confines starts at the temple towards the end of the chathamanagalam hills and runs all the way to the edge of the E hostel at Kattangal which should be around 3 to 4 kilometers. At both these points there are no gates that should prevent extraneous elements from making an entry into the institute. For all practical purposes the institute's main gate is the one seen near the canteen leading to the main building and other key structures further leading to the hostels. This could well be called the student zone or the academic zone. This area in its entirety must be around 10 acres of land including the sports feilds which are for practical purposes used by students. I have not been to NIT of-late but have come to know from several quarters that many more buildings have come up in this zone. The irony of the situation is that though the campus is on 400 acres the effective student area is as mentioned thereby the area per student is effectively much lesser than what could be.
The best view of NIT Calicut is the one from Papachan hotel ;especially the true majesty of the departmental building appears from this angle and view. Many a visitor to the institute returns without a view of NIT which is truly majestic. When we approach the Departmental building from the Main building we encounter a land surface which is in a downward gradient and the true majesty of the departmental building lies camouflaged so to mention due to this uneven nature of land.
The class rooms at NIT are very spacious. We used to have our first year classes in the left wing of the Main Building on the first floor; the III sem classes in the ground floor of the main building and most of the other semester classes in the various floors of the Departmental building except for the V semester where we came back to the ground floor of the Main Building.
From a strategic view point I beleive that the entire land mass of NIT must be put to better use through some process of fundamental redesign. The good and bad aspect of NIT is the road that winds through the campus with many private vehicles finding a thoroughfare. The next generation NIT should be able to stop this in some way which protects the interests of the institute and at the same time does not put the public to inconvenience. As a initial recourse to such a situation the road could atleast be made a one way road. Vehicles approaching NIT from Calicut could take a deviation at 12th mile towards the left and use the stretch to reach kattangal. In the long run a fly-over would be one of the possible solutions from the temple point to kattangal thereby bypassing the institute aerially and serving long term purposes. Even other wise no mode of transport other than college buses must be let beyond 12th mile. This could create inconvenience to lady students who would like to reach their hostel but a diagonal road could connect 12th mile to the lady hostels forming a short-cut.
When I visit IISc at Bangalore I witness a very novel venture in the form of an underpass that links the institute to the JRD Tata auditorium. To me this is an unique civil engineering effort and very effectively links and integrates both the parts of the institute. Right away one such link could be considered at NIT too which links the hostels to some point near the guest house making the yonder part of NIT easily accessible to student community bringing the kind of synergy that is needed and at the same time increasing the land area per student that was being discussed. The residential area of faculty could be fenced and made a private area with minimum trespass from students if necessary .
The beauty of NIT is the two valleys. One yonder to the faculty quarters and the other seen behind the guest-house. When we were students in the first year the valley behind the guest house was accessible to us. One fine day when we returned from vacation we found the entire patch of land sealed by the forest department for afforestation. During our first year we used to walk down into this valley the corner of which had a ground with the resemblance of a cricket field and have played some cricket matches there. What a good feeling? I think this patch of land must be re-opened for students if it has not been done so.
Iam concerned that the breath-taking view of Departmental Building as seen from papachan be fully tapped as one of the measures of making NIT look even more formidable. A full fledged gate could be constructed at this point. I have walked down the road one evening from papachan towards the river which at that time was a desolate stretch but now must be more occupied and utilised. By constructing such a gate a parallel joint like kattangal could come up in the vicinity in some form thereby reducing the dependence of students on kattangal for various reasons. At all open points around the boundary of NIT barbed fences must be constructed.If possible the exit at Kattangal must also be sealed fully or partially.
To my observation the library at REC of our times was congested and condensed.Though it is a majestic building with books housed in the ground floor and the upper floors used for administrative purposes.But it seemed microscopic for a large student populace that engulfed the institute.Students will feel like using a library only if it is well lit, spacious,has some ambience,silence,seating comfort and properly trained and oriented staff.Note that an Engineering college there are multiple branches and it is sometimes like many independent colleges functioning under one roof.If a college does not have an endearing library students will spend time in non -productive activities.Preferably boys and girls must have separate seating enclosures.It must be centrally located and must definitely have an audio-visual section for imaginative learning.One such library must be envisaged for NIT and the present library converted into a museum with one of the sections displaying the photographs of key contributors to the growth of the institute since inception.Visitors to the campus must have an opportunity to see the musuem. It would not be totally in congruent if a photo of Rajan is displayed in the museum for good or for bad..for at the end of the day he was also one of the student flock who fell into unfortunate circumstances with the law and vanished.
NIT I beleive needs to strategically redefine itself as it enters the new era. Note that when we were students communication facilities like telephones were non-existent. We could hardly make phone calls to our homes and there were no STD booths and writing letters were the only source of communication. Compared today we are in the mobile and internet age where any one could be got on demand at point of time and at any place, What a transformation. As a precursor to development at NIT an accurate high altitude geographic re-modelling of NIT must be done in some form so that it is accurately positioned to provide high quality services and at he same time gallop into upcoming avenues with ease and least discomfort.
Friday, April 9, 2010
TRAVELLING TO CALICUT
From the year 1982 I have been associated with Calicut also called Kozhikode and is an important city in Kerala so to say. Since I did my graduation from this place and spent a very formative part of my life here, Calicut has a special place in my life though I might not say the years spent here have been the best.
The journey from Bangalore to Calicut needs explanation . During that time it used to take 09 hours to complete the journey which must have reduced by about an hour now due to better motoring conditions. Strictly speaking the journey fro Bangalore to Calicut can be split into three phases that take 03 hours each namely Bangalore - Mysore ; Mysore-Sultanbattery; SultanBattery - Calicut. Sultan Battery was known as Ganapattivattom in earlier times.
Something about Calicut. Calicut seems to have a priced past and is not a city to be tken in the passing. It was the head-quarters of the Malabar district under the Madras presidency. Vasco-Da - Gama landed here in 1498 thereby establishing a sea link between Europe and the Indian mainland and key claim to fame for Calicut in world history. It was an important trading post of medeival times and a centre for art and culture. The calicut port is mentioned in many manuscripts of the past. Many british officials were posted at Calicut during the Raj days and had their initial exoposure to Indian socio-polity here and many of them travelled to calicut from Britain as an entry point into India.
During the early 1980's the Bangalore -Mysore stretch of road was a narrow state highway. In the early 1970's vehicles plying on this road were sparse. The film Sholay was shot in the hilly terrains that skirt this road. The traffic began to increase indiscriminately in the 1980's through the 1990's making accidents an every day affair and at present there is a world class two lane road. It used to take 03 hours to cover this stretch of road and even today motwithstanding the new road the journey takes almost the same time. Ramanagaram ,Mandya and Srirangapattana are key towns that present itself on this highway. There were many ghasty accidents on this road even in the 70's. A bus overladen with people fell into the visweshwaraya canal near Mandya not to mention the many isolated incidents involving personal transport. Due to public fury the road was broadened and divided for to and fro traffic arresting the wanton occurrence of accidents. The Bangalore -Mysore road is a key stretch of highway with enoromous significance as it serves as one of the links to the two adjoining states of Kerala and Tamil nadu and almost jets straight into the vast expanse of the Western Ghats. Some kind of an overhead flyover must be built between the two cities to reduce the travelling time by atleast half.
The next leg of journey between Bangalore and Calicut is from Mysore to Sultanbattery and a promising and fascinating one. The most important hub on this stretch of road is Gundlupet. In the past it used to be a cemented road and a very narrow one at that with many trees swinging down dangerously over the highway. Things have changed now with the roads and bridges broadened and tarred. Mysore to Gundlupet takes around an hour and a half and Gundlupet to Sultanbattery also takes almost the same time. From the checkpost at Gundlupet you turn right to hit upon the Calicut route and you get to see many hills and mountains in the back-drop. (When you travel staight you reach bandipur , Gudalur and thereafter Ooty). Gundlupet to Sultanbattery is the most fascinating part of the journey because before-long one enters the Bandipur forests and on either stretch of the road is unending forests and once in a while you catch herds of elephants not far from the road. I was witness to many such scenarios during my vast experience travelling on these roads. Once in 1986 there was a tusker stationed aggressively on the sidewalks creating commotion in many a driver on the route warning the advancing vehicles of the menace. Almost around this time I saw a bull with her calf not to mention many sitiations where elephant herds were crossing these roads at various points. A day time travel on this road is soothing and is pure driving pleasure. The Karn ataka - Kerala border post is within this forest and before long you hit upon human civilization in Sultanbattery.
The most challenging part of the journey between these two cities is at the western ghats which one encounters almost an hours drive from Sultan-battery. (Ganapativattom is the original name of Sultan battery which was changed by Tippu Sultan as he stationed a battery of soldiers here for a considerable period.). The entire Ghat section is 12 kms in displacement and takes around 3/4 th of an hour to complete because of the various hair-pin bends ;nine of them to be precise. The ghats are a bottle neck and the kind of swirling of roads seen and the gradeints are rarely encountered except in very few situations and this being one. In the 80's the roads were ill-kempt, narrow with potholes and irregularities abound. The govt of Kerala has made a concerted effort in transforming this road over the past few decades using civil engineering skills to broaden them in an otherwise forsaken terrain and location. It must be pointed out with haste that these roads and their initial framework was laid by european traders who used them for their pepper trade. There are many such arteries so to say hidden in the this place called Wayanad and many of them put to use connecting the heights of Wayanad to the depths of the coast. Had these roads and their initial nurturing not been done motoring through them today may not have happenned at all. Thank god that some initial design has been bequeathed to posterity which only needs to be developed and fine tuned.
Once the ghats are crossed the road opens into a flat and even stretch at Adivaram. Adivaram to Calicut must be about 75 minutes drive and at some places the roads forming a sudden curvature.
IIMK and NITC come on this last stretch of road. Kunnamangalam is the nodal point for both these institutions. IIMK (Indian Institute of management Kozhikode) is in Kunnamangalam itself and NITC (National Institute of Technology Calicut) is at chathamangalam aroung 07 kms from this node.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
HINDU MUSLIM TENSIONS OF 1973 IN VIJANAPURA
They were not tensions but for all practical purposes riots. I am not very very sure if the year was 1973 but could be an year or two more on the leading side.
All the temples in our vicinity held chariot processions regularly. This was a treat to watch but has diminished in quantity now. A typical chariot procession called theru in the local language had a well decked tractor trolley carrying a diety some times with wonderful decorations illuminated by bulbs of various colours powered by a generator that went along with the entourage. What a treat to watch. Some times many such processions would be slated for a given night with each one competing with the other in decor and design. Streets would be full with spectators even at 2:00 am an unearythly hour by people who woke from their sleep to catch as glimpse of this parade. Such was the dynamism and enthusiasm hidden in the generation of people at our place. Occassionally electric lines would obstruct the progress of a chariot and the wire was carefully pushed upwards with a specially designed staff created for the situation.
One such procession I was told as a child came to be attacked by some rival group triggerring tensions gradually erupting into sporadic violence of a serious nature the aftermath of which lasted for nearly three months. Work within the Indian Telephone Industries were disrupted and every one began to feel insecure as to what the night could bring forth. Some of the smaller shops near my house were burnt down and I was a witness of one. Curfew was passed by the police and the streets wore a deserted look with shops closed and a general feel of disarray.
I remember my father's friend Nizamuddin whom we helped in right earnest. This person used to work with my father and expressed the idea of leaving Bangalore for atleast a month until order was restored but was in a quandry. He had some valuables and lots of utensils which he wanted to deposit with some one who could keep them safe until his return. We agreed to be of help and in the thick of the night had them all transported to our house and a barely eight year old boy like me was caught busy in his own way sensing the gravity of the situation to help transfer some utensils into our house. The entire activity was completed without incident and Mr. Nizamuddin took possession of the articles after a month or so.
The crpf was called in and the trouble makers from all sides rounded up and the crpf conducted a flag march sending the right signals. Thus ended a riot which lasted for a few months and never happened again in our place to my memory and would never ever in the future. People of Vijanapura have evolved well in the right directions and continue to do so.
Friday, March 26, 2010
OUR DOG GYPSY
Through these columns Iam happy that I can pay tribute to our dog Gypsy that was part of our lives for around five years. My brother and myself had some fascination for puppies and would bring some country puppy found wandering somewhere in the streets home only to be admonished by people at home and we let the puppy back on the street from whence it came. This happenned several times; but for once when we could retain a puppy at home.
This was of an exalted breed probably an american breed which we got from our school and the home of Mr. Robert our physical education trainer who was more than eager to part with it and from then on this puppy was both our ecstasy and agony. It grew into a full grown hound before long and was tied to our mango tree which formed part of our house. We never trained it and hence had its own mannerisms. Some times it used to bark at us when we tried to enter our house and ly quiet when some stranger made an entry. We were very protective about our dog and had named it gypsy. I dont know if our dog ever knew its name as it would respond to many names. We were very protective about gypsy anyway.
I used to go to the mutton shops in our vicinity and fetch bones for this mammal once in a while. That used to be special feild day for it. I could see it wagging its tail from afar sensing what I was carrying and would be highly impatient until emptied into its bin.
I think gypsy died one morning in 1979. We kept it tied to our tree most of the times and did not know the other possible yearnings of our dog. We never let it go out and have a stroll and free time in the sun which our dog probably wanted. We used to chase away many other dogs in the vicinity that used to take a menacing glance into our compound once in a while . I think we were unjust to Gypsy and not our mistake as we were to get a hang of many things letting alone the hidden aspirations of our beloved bitch. Sorry my dear Gypsy please pardon our ignorance.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
PUSHPANJALI TALKIES OFF NH 4
National Highway 4 winds through our residential area and is an important highway in the country. The stretch of highway from Bangalore to Chennai (Madras) is called the OMR meaning Old Madras Road. Off the highway near the K R Puram railway station came the Pushpanjali Talkies somewhere in 1973. Almost during the same time another talkies came up in Ramamurthy nagar called the Laxmi talkies. Pushpanjali talkies is on a busy stretch of road making it more accessible and hence had more visitors.
What is a Talkies ? 007 Talkies is a slightly impoverished version of a Theatre which used to be some 300ft in length and 150 ft in width. It had pucca walls almost like a fence covered by a tatched roof. It had two sections almost divided at the middle . The front section had no chairs and one had to squat on the floor and the rear section which had benches and chairs. Largely tamil movies used to be shown at this talkies. A rare feature of the talkies is that the sound track of the movies can be heard as vividly outside as in the inside and many a people would assemble outside too to listen to their favourite dialogues and predict the future scenes.
There is none in the area who have not been to this talkies atleast once. Families used to make advanced planning to watch a movie not to mention many children who sneaked away from their homes with few coins collected over the past few weeks to be at the talkies. During show time the roads leading to the talkies wore a frenzied look with a sense of urgency filled with prospective cinema goers rushing to be at the talkies on time. Children were rebuked by the elderly to be faster and the older ones too doing their best to prove vigorous. this was the influence the talkies had on the public living in the vicinity. In the sporting feilds most of the time was whiled away discussing the stories of the movies and some children pretending to be heroes and others imitating the villains --- not to mention the lady folk for whom the discussions ranged from the locales seen in the movies to the attires of the heroines. Some times in a whisper they used to discuss the more romantic scenes and other escapades at the movie attracting the special attention of the children who wanted to be explained the reasons for the secrecy and the occassional giggling only to be driven away and silenced under some pretext.
In 1980 Shivananda theatre came up close to this venue to some extent damaging the fortune of the talkies. Pushpanjali talkies was converted into a theatre somewhere in the early 1990's leading to the closure of Shivananda theatre in 1995 or so. Shivananda theatre is the only theatre in the world where stray dogs would be found seated in some corners of the hall staring at the screen proving a point that they understood everything that transpired. They were driven out only if they ganged together and created some raucus.
The very important aspect of the Pushpanjali talkies is the peculiar entry schemes in practice at the talkies. You can enter the talkies even after one hour after the show has begun by tipping the gate keeper. Depending upon the time elapsed the rates were negotiated. The children never had the money in full to buy a full fledged ticket but were short of some specified sum but could see a part of the movie depending upon the mood of the keeper. I have sneaked into the talkies on several occassions to only see few climax scenes of the movie.
I cant forget Pushpanjali Talkies for one important reason- it taught me a very important lesson in financial and risk management. The setting was an MGR movie the posters of which were stuck everywhere in the neighbourhood and the heroines in the background attired in peculiar dresses were enough to unsettle a young mind fuelled further by the narration of the movie and its attractions by peers. I was debating with myself for several days and could not sum up the courage to make a venture to see this movie.
However one saturday afternoon with 40 paise clamped tight in the pocket of my half-pants and with a sense of guilt I sneaked out of the backdoor one afternoon sensing my mother was fast asleep to the talkies to be there on time; crossing the railway line with care and the national highway thereafer very carefully implementing the principles of executing these tasks as indoctrinated by my mother and reinforced year after year. Reaching the talkies was a mission accomplished. The entry fee was 60 paise and I was 20 paise short which means I have to adopt the unofficial entry procedure of tipping the keeper. I knew I was not very good at the task but with 40 paise I approached the attender or gate keeper whatever we would call him but the amount didnt seem impressive to him and he signalled me to wait. The movie had started and roars of laughter and appaluse could be heard by any one and I felt I was missing something and I approached the keeper again only to be turned down. There was nothing much I could do but to beesech his grace which never seemed to be forthcoming; added to this I was apprehensive that one of my father's friends would show up somewhere and inform my household about my mis - adventure and uncertainty and gloom filled the air. The gate keeper seemed peculiarly difficult on the day and none of my approaches could get the better of his fastidious nature. At school I was taught to pray when in trouble and I tried that too but lo my prayer seemed to have been answered when my class mate Mohan showed up at the scene and I explained the situation to him. He could not reconcile to the fact that a decent lad like me should be caught waiting at an unearthly place seeking the grace of a semi clad and unschooled being who was making full use and dominance and importance of being cast as a gatekeeper of Pushpanjali talkies.
At school Mohan was known for notorities and did not gave a good track record, a reason enough for me not to have trusted him. But he seemed more than eager to help me and the forty paise in my pocket seemed particularly attractive to him. He tried to negotiate on my behalf with the keeper but to no avail ;a job I think today Mohan did not do earnestly and by now my 40 paise was firmly entrenched in his hands and he being physically more astout I could not rip it off my hands.
Mohan gave me an idea-- There are many gambling dens in the vicinity and he would invest my forty paise there and with the spoils both of us could make a royal entry into the talkies. I was hesitant but had no other go and before long found myself in the company of vagabonds and uncouth people playing some kind of money game the modus-operandi of which I could not very well understand.My friend Mohan was in the thick of things and put my 20 paise first and another 20 later only to emerge a winner with almost two rupees. I was happy and signalled to Mohan to quit because our purpose was served but this rascal as I should call him now never relented and he went about playing with the two rupees to loose everything. My face was becoming red with every loss that was being incurred but nothing could prevent this man from calling it quits so that I could atleast have my forty paise back. Today I think Mohan was all day at this venue and must have lost lot of money and was using my forty paise to salvage his own damages. In no time my friend vanished leaving me alone deprived of my capital and in the midst of people quarelling with each other with the most combinations of foul languages the meaning of which I could comprehend only in isolation.
God seemed to have answered my prayers - never undertake such missions in the future. I was neither sobbing or smiling but was caught some where in between. I trudged back home in dissapointment and despair. My mother asked me where I had been only mutely to give an evasive answer.
When I look back at this incident I learnt a very valuable lesson for sure- never to give your money to a third party to play with it. Many modern day comapnies come to me with many plans to multiply money some at the stock market and few others with some queer schemes. I remember Mohan; the Pushpanjali talkies; the MGR movie and its heroines and the gambling dens. I conciously refrain from any involvement what so ever. Pushpanjali talkies near my home defanitely game me a million dollar lesson.
What is a Talkies ? 007 Talkies is a slightly impoverished version of a Theatre which used to be some 300ft in length and 150 ft in width. It had pucca walls almost like a fence covered by a tatched roof. It had two sections almost divided at the middle . The front section had no chairs and one had to squat on the floor and the rear section which had benches and chairs. Largely tamil movies used to be shown at this talkies. A rare feature of the talkies is that the sound track of the movies can be heard as vividly outside as in the inside and many a people would assemble outside too to listen to their favourite dialogues and predict the future scenes.
There is none in the area who have not been to this talkies atleast once. Families used to make advanced planning to watch a movie not to mention many children who sneaked away from their homes with few coins collected over the past few weeks to be at the talkies. During show time the roads leading to the talkies wore a frenzied look with a sense of urgency filled with prospective cinema goers rushing to be at the talkies on time. Children were rebuked by the elderly to be faster and the older ones too doing their best to prove vigorous. this was the influence the talkies had on the public living in the vicinity. In the sporting feilds most of the time was whiled away discussing the stories of the movies and some children pretending to be heroes and others imitating the villains --- not to mention the lady folk for whom the discussions ranged from the locales seen in the movies to the attires of the heroines. Some times in a whisper they used to discuss the more romantic scenes and other escapades at the movie attracting the special attention of the children who wanted to be explained the reasons for the secrecy and the occassional giggling only to be driven away and silenced under some pretext.
In 1980 Shivananda theatre came up close to this venue to some extent damaging the fortune of the talkies. Pushpanjali talkies was converted into a theatre somewhere in the early 1990's leading to the closure of Shivananda theatre in 1995 or so. Shivananda theatre is the only theatre in the world where stray dogs would be found seated in some corners of the hall staring at the screen proving a point that they understood everything that transpired. They were driven out only if they ganged together and created some raucus.
The very important aspect of the Pushpanjali talkies is the peculiar entry schemes in practice at the talkies. You can enter the talkies even after one hour after the show has begun by tipping the gate keeper. Depending upon the time elapsed the rates were negotiated. The children never had the money in full to buy a full fledged ticket but were short of some specified sum but could see a part of the movie depending upon the mood of the keeper. I have sneaked into the talkies on several occassions to only see few climax scenes of the movie.
I cant forget Pushpanjali Talkies for one important reason- it taught me a very important lesson in financial and risk management. The setting was an MGR movie the posters of which were stuck everywhere in the neighbourhood and the heroines in the background attired in peculiar dresses were enough to unsettle a young mind fuelled further by the narration of the movie and its attractions by peers. I was debating with myself for several days and could not sum up the courage to make a venture to see this movie.
However one saturday afternoon with 40 paise clamped tight in the pocket of my half-pants and with a sense of guilt I sneaked out of the backdoor one afternoon sensing my mother was fast asleep to the talkies to be there on time; crossing the railway line with care and the national highway thereafer very carefully implementing the principles of executing these tasks as indoctrinated by my mother and reinforced year after year. Reaching the talkies was a mission accomplished. The entry fee was 60 paise and I was 20 paise short which means I have to adopt the unofficial entry procedure of tipping the keeper. I knew I was not very good at the task but with 40 paise I approached the attender or gate keeper whatever we would call him but the amount didnt seem impressive to him and he signalled me to wait. The movie had started and roars of laughter and appaluse could be heard by any one and I felt I was missing something and I approached the keeper again only to be turned down. There was nothing much I could do but to beesech his grace which never seemed to be forthcoming; added to this I was apprehensive that one of my father's friends would show up somewhere and inform my household about my mis - adventure and uncertainty and gloom filled the air. The gate keeper seemed peculiarly difficult on the day and none of my approaches could get the better of his fastidious nature. At school I was taught to pray when in trouble and I tried that too but lo my prayer seemed to have been answered when my class mate Mohan showed up at the scene and I explained the situation to him. He could not reconcile to the fact that a decent lad like me should be caught waiting at an unearthly place seeking the grace of a semi clad and unschooled being who was making full use and dominance and importance of being cast as a gatekeeper of Pushpanjali talkies.
At school Mohan was known for notorities and did not gave a good track record, a reason enough for me not to have trusted him. But he seemed more than eager to help me and the forty paise in my pocket seemed particularly attractive to him. He tried to negotiate on my behalf with the keeper but to no avail ;a job I think today Mohan did not do earnestly and by now my 40 paise was firmly entrenched in his hands and he being physically more astout I could not rip it off my hands.
Mohan gave me an idea-- There are many gambling dens in the vicinity and he would invest my forty paise there and with the spoils both of us could make a royal entry into the talkies. I was hesitant but had no other go and before long found myself in the company of vagabonds and uncouth people playing some kind of money game the modus-operandi of which I could not very well understand.My friend Mohan was in the thick of things and put my 20 paise first and another 20 later only to emerge a winner with almost two rupees. I was happy and signalled to Mohan to quit because our purpose was served but this rascal as I should call him now never relented and he went about playing with the two rupees to loose everything. My face was becoming red with every loss that was being incurred but nothing could prevent this man from calling it quits so that I could atleast have my forty paise back. Today I think Mohan was all day at this venue and must have lost lot of money and was using my forty paise to salvage his own damages. In no time my friend vanished leaving me alone deprived of my capital and in the midst of people quarelling with each other with the most combinations of foul languages the meaning of which I could comprehend only in isolation.
God seemed to have answered my prayers - never undertake such missions in the future. I was neither sobbing or smiling but was caught some where in between. I trudged back home in dissapointment and despair. My mother asked me where I had been only mutely to give an evasive answer.
When I look back at this incident I learnt a very valuable lesson for sure- never to give your money to a third party to play with it. Many modern day comapnies come to me with many plans to multiply money some at the stock market and few others with some queer schemes. I remember Mohan; the Pushpanjali talkies; the MGR movie and its heroines and the gambling dens. I conciously refrain from any involvement what so ever. Pushpanjali talkies near my home defanitely game me a million dollar lesson.
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