Mystical Nakki Lake laid Bare Mount Abu

Nakki Lake laid Bare Mount Abu 

Nakki Lake Viewed  from Toad rock.

Nakki Lake 

This mystical and serene lake with its mysteries of being a lake with an unfathomable depth today stands bare with the latest survey conducted on it by limnological observations. No-where is it mentioned in the report that the lake is over 10.5 meters or more precisely 35 feet in depth? I never questioned the depth of the lake as I thought it was a few 100 feet or more than it’s an extinct volcanic crater, it was assumed that at various points the depth would be gauged according to the shaft that spewed volcanic rocks thousands of years ago, today’s technology boom sure has put speculation in its place.

When someone talks about the lake, it is generally accepted that it’s the main attraction of Abu and the tourists at large look forward to having a boat ride around the lake when they visit this lovely hill station of ours. Alas, the report is frightening. The lake now seen in its new vein after this report sends cold shivers down my very being. Is it going to be like many water bodies in different parts of the country that have turned into cesspools of filth? Rapid urbanization, unchecked discharge of domestic effluents, area of encroachment around the periphery of the lake, dumping of solid wastes, immersing of idols are also threatening the very existence of this calm lake.

Could a non-experienced "every day" citizen actually go head-to-head with an established Municipality and win, if position and power held by these individuals is not a factor? With the lethargic state of Municipal politics today, the answer is: absolutely. To save this life giving water resource, originator of life, and indicator of our overall health of the people of Abu, the Abuites are needed to goad these very officials they have voted into power to take a firm and lasting policy to see that the lake is preserved like the Kohinoor diamond. The lake is FAR more precious than any diamond in the world, as it is the root of all living beings. We cannot ignore the water of the lake as some common, worthless commodity. Our drive as responsible citizens should be to make an all out effort to save our own precious bowl of water if we and the future generations of this hill station are to live healthier.

My personal appeal to all Abuites are to come forward and try to save this Mystical lake of ours that has provided us with its life-giving waters, entertained the tourists and habitat to so many varieties of other creatures.DO GO THROUGH THE REPORT ATTACHED IT SHOULD BE A WARNING AND HARBINGER TO WHAT THE FATE OF THE LAKE HOLDS FOR US ABUITES.

http://ainsleyster.googlepages.com/nakkilakelimnologicalreport.pdf

ARBUDANCHAL UTSAV MOUNT ABU

I reached the Hilltone conference hall in the nick of time; The Governor of Rajasthan His Eminence Mr. Sheelandra Kumar Singh, Professor Bhasker Mehta, Commissioner for Physical Disabilities, Colonel Rajesh Kaswan of the 1st Sikh Light Infantry Regiment at Mount Abu , His Highness Maharo Raguveer Singhji of Sirohi , the Heads of all major schools and prominent Abuites were present for the occasion of the promotion of the release of The book of songs (Arbudh Geet) written and composed by our very own Dr. A.K.Sharma; All Rounder and the essence of controversy, in our one horse town. The credit and arrangements for this occasion goes to the younger generation of Agarwals of the Hillock family, their efforts and spontaneous action made it possible for this prestigious and memorable get-together to produce an insight into the awareness of what is needed for the betterment of this semi- hill station of ours.
The presentation on this occasion was conducted by Dr. Sharma; his introduction short and sweet, followed by a rendition of a song from his book by the students of the blind school; whom he calls his children and to whom he has pledged his legacy.

The Governor‘s speech was also inspirational and he made it a point to thank the Merwanji family for their contributions and continuous untiring efforts toward the support of the blind school which their fore- fathers had initiated by donating one of their biggest and most prime property in Abu .
Poetry for Awareness is not about making poems like a poet, it is about using the process of making poetry to generate more self awarenesss. Our good Doctor uses his poetry to enable the person reading it to share their inner thoughts and feelings and to experience a personal transformation of well being. He’s trying to promote personal empowerment where people are actively involved and find a meaning for their actions.
The book was a huge success; the thousand copies that were printed were sold in the blink of an eye. Everyone- even students or charitable intuitions interests in buying this book for a worthy cause may contact the Blind Centre .All proceeds from the sale of these books will go to the blind centre. There will be a short delay as the second edition of the book is under print. “Actions speak louder than words”, Mr. Mukesh Modi Chairman of Mahadav bank has denoted Rs Five Lakhs to the blind school, 2.5 lakhs have been released with immediate effect for a recording studio to be set up at the Blind School Centre.

A rendition of the song आदमी को आदमी से प्यार करना होगा sung by students of the Blind School Abu.My apologies for the poor quality of video output, I recorded this in subdued lighting

CROAK- CROAK Abu's Monsoons

Took this beauty with my Nokia last evening

The weather has been playing truant throughout the year, we had a prolonged cold and bitter winter, our summer season has been swamped with constant winds making it a heaven for us residents as there haven't been any remarkable hot days except for one or two days that I can recall. We have had quite a few days of unpredicted rainfall over the past few weeks. We do get the occasional May showers every year but this year it’s far from normal.
Last Saturday when I woke up and had a look at my mug while brushing my teeth I saw a few strands of my flaxen hair( my sentinels) all kinked up I knew the monsoons were around the corner. I yelled to my bitter half to get her house in order as the monsoons this year were going to be early, she answered back sarcastically, “Yea you Heathen have you gone and hung the statue of St.Anthony upside down”, early rains my foot. Some foot, the first official monsoon shower last evening pounded the hillside with a vengeance. The rain came down in torrents it was intense and within minutes the bare streams were full of gushing water. If only I had my camera with me I would have documented the filth and plastic debris that flowed past my house. There was also an awful stench for quite some time, the shower did not last very long but it was a blessing at least the place got cleaned up. I only hope this early shower isn’t a harbinger of dread that our monsoon is going to be short lived. The element of uncertainty in our monsoon season over the years has always left us in a quandary. We in Abu depend exclusively on the monsoons for our drinking water. We have precisely two water reservoirs, Upper Kodhra Dam and the lower Kodhra Dam, in dire emergency the water from the lake is utilized, if we have a poor monsoon we in Abu have water rationing, i.e. depending on the severity of water in our reservoirs we get water every alternate day . OH Global Warming see to it that the Rain Gods be kind to this Abode of the Gods and shower her with rain. I think we can add one more God to our list, the modern God “Global Warming”

Srishti Art Exhibition Trevor's Oval Abu

I had been invited by the chief organizer Dr.A.K.Sharma in Abu to view the ‘Srishti “ Art Exhibition held at Trevor’s Oval Mount Abu. I am no art buff, but when I see paintings related to nature and Rajasthani folklore, I kind of visualize them through my third eye, you know the eye stashed away between port and starboard, the mind’s eye, the gateway to personification. The exhibition, though small was a treasure trove of information on artists all around Rajasthan. The opening ceremony was flagged off by the Honorable Governor of Rajasthan Mr Sheelandra Kumar Singh and his troupe of ardent officials.
Being Environment Day, The Collector, his wife, the Div. Commisssioner Jodhpur, Kiran Soni Gupta and the collector Siddharth Mahajan did the honours of planting trees on the periphery of the polo-ground, before proceeding to the art exhibition sponsored by BSNL, RSNA, UIT and Amrit Sansthan.

The elite, the children from Sophia High School, St.Joseph’s High School and Rotary School along with civil and army personnel were there to lend their support to the artists and encourage the younger generation to partake in the exhibition by contributing their creative works of art. The exhibits on display at the Trevor’s Oval are of promising artists from the pristine desert state of Rajasthan. The paintings from this desert state are of matchless beauty and are the essence of artistry. I was hoping to see some miniature paintings for which this state is renowned, but regrettably, there were none to be seen.
Yesterday when I visited the art gallery for the second time I met Dr Narendra Lalas, one of the chief Organizers. He told me the paintings were for sale and the proceeds from the sales would be distributed in such a way that the artist would receive 70%, 20% would go to the C.M Relief fund, 5% to the Abu Municipal Corporation and the remaining 5% to the Organization. Sincere thanks to all the organizers and people who supported this art exhibition. Abu should go out of its way to hold an open art exhibition for the public at large and also to encourage foreign tourists to participate in an Annual art fair around October, where even the gods would smile down on seeing the creation of the human spirit embodied in canvas.

Rajasthan Governor S.K.Singh

Div. Commissioner,Jodhpur K.S.Gupta

Mrs.Manju Singh

The organizer on the podium Dr Narendra Lalas

Anyone wanting to buy paintings may contact the following address
AMRIT SANSTHAN, 97, Laxmi Nagar, Jodhpur-342010 India
Tel: 91-291-2549447 Mob: 91-9828295080
Email: amritsansthan@gmail.com

CONDOMIZE YOUR PECKER

I recall with nostalgia my college days when randy lyrics were sung on picnics and get-togethers. To get the ball rolling ‘one’ only had to mouth these words “Lay your pistol down mama, lay your pistol down” and the chorus would be taken up with innovative and creative lyrics. So here goes
Lay your pistol down mama lay your pistol down
The green condom box hanging on the tree,
It contains Nirodhs and its Free
Boys and girls who feel randy use me
Keep AIDS and unwanted pregnancies locked up in me.
I am the Nirodh, people look out for me
You’ll find me packed in green boxes fixed on some tree.
Don’t feel shy just reach out for me, no questions asked I’m FREE.
Lay your pistol down mama lay your pistol down
Mount Abu, in its drive to get its AIDS message across to all the locals and the lakhs of tourists who visit here, encourages the use of these free condoms which are placed at strategic and calculated places all around Abu. Even the most timid person who cannot muster the courage to pick up condoms from the chemists or the grocer's shop can safely reach into one of these green boxes and help himself to the free condoms placed in it.
Hats off to the authorities for having come up with this innovative idea. So folks whether you are a man, woman, or a gay use the friendly and free Nirodh to protect your life from AIDS and other STD related diseases. My appeal to users , please be responsible in disposing of used ones in a discreet manner and remember flushing them down a toilet could lead to clogging.
So my merry countrymen remember to cover your gilly to protect the billy.

BSNL Open House Session Mount Abu

Mount Abu, on the 30th May 2008 had its first ever “Open house session” in the history of this town. The venue itself was the ground in front of the exchange. A shamiyana was set up for the purpose. The meeting was to begin by 3.pm, I reached the ground along with my brother-in-law sharp at the appointed time, we were greeted by a few of the BSNL agents, the exchange staff and the officials who were going to conduct the open house session.

Indian standard time, or rather Indian Stretchable time, is the norm here. I can’t remember a single meeting run by any government or semi government office ever starting on time. The meeting did get underway finally around 4pm, several Abuites and some personnel from Abu Road were present for the meeting. From my point of view quite a few of the natives had come to the meeting out of a sense of curiosity.

I suppose they were there to see some action, like mud slugging, for after all it was an invitation to OPEN House session. Generally the public at large are not too happy with the services provided by this giant corporation. For some BSNL means “Do not go for this Connection even by mistake, in Hindi it means Bhool SE Na Lena” Why then do Lakhs of people opt for this service, if this service is not up to the mark, why don’t they go for more satisfactory services such as Tata Indicom, Vodaphone, Airtel etc. There is only one explanation for these customers, it’s better to go with a known devil than with an unknown one. For some others it’s their loyalty to the Giant Corporation for having served their fathers and fore-fathers.

The meeting was addressed by by the General Manager B.K.Kaarecha, his speech was to the point and he admitted that a lot more had to be done to better the service all over Rajasthan. The Chairman of the Municipality Jalam Giri along with quite a few senior citizens were the first to be handed the mike to air their grievances and to make suggestions for a more positive outlook. Some serious recommendations were made, one that the “linemen “should be increased as they are the crucial point of contact between BSNL and its end users. There were some hilarious remarks made by some of the audience, one complaint claimed he had made a thousand phone calls to the department for a refund of Rs 2000/- due to him, over a period of four years. I wish him luck and hope this open session discussion refunds this loyal customer his dues.

The mindset of the BSNL staff needs to be changed, via conferences, discussions and seminars, if the message is carried over and they adhere to the adage “The Customer is Right’ the reputation and integrity of the company would expand and Bsnl would rule the roost, otherwise with their present attitude they will go to the dogs in years to come. To be fair to them the quality of service provided has improved significantly over the past few years after the introduction of private operators. We in Abu did have our share of disappointments over the years but today with marked improvement and broadband facility we Abuites are quite contented with the BSNL services I do not vouch for the rest of the country.