I took these photos (copyright reserved) of ‘chembu’ (Colocasia) at the residence of Mr. AL Thomas at Cochin. I wonder how big its roots would be when harvested.
The leaves and roots of this tropical tuber are widely used for culinary purposes in many parts of the world. According to UN statistics, Nigeria, Ghana, China, Cote d’ lvoire and Papua New Guinea are the major producers with a combined output of 9.2 million metric tons in 2005.
Taro leaves are a good source of vitamins and minerals. They contain Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Niacin, manganese, potassium and copper. The corms contain high portion of starch and dietary fiber.
The range of recipes using taro is vast – from snacks to curries to burgers. Some of the sites which provide details are given below:
In the last two days the CBI has arrested two senior Catholic priests and a nun for the murder of another nun, Sr. Abhaya.
Sixteen years back the body of Sr. Abhaya, a Pre-degree student then, was found in the well of the convent where she was staying. The investigation into the incident, first by the local police and subsequently by the Crime Branch, lasted ten months. The finding was that the young nun had committed suicide.
Abhaya’s relatives and the Action Council that had been formed to ensure justice in the case did not accept this conclusion. The Kerala High Court endorsed their view and referred the case to the CBI.
The CBI officer who handled the investigation was of the opinion that the nun had been murdered. Shortly he resigned from the service alleging that he was being pressurized by his superior officers to accept the suicide theory mooted by the Kerala Police.
Since then, several CBI teams have investigated the Abhaya case. The two priests now arrested were subjected to modern tests like narco-analysis earlier. Nothing conclusive emerged from that. A few times the CBI approached the Kerala High Court for permission to close the case stating that the evidence was insufficient to proceed against the suspects.
This move attracted severe criticism by the Court, which directed that a new team be entrusted with the investigation of the Abhaya case. This was done on the 28th of last month. The new batch of sleuths made the arrests within three weeks claiming that they had gathered sufficient proof against the accused.
Several questions arise from this development. Does the new group consist of super detectives? They seem to have unearthed clinching evidence within a few days. This is something their predecessors could not do in nearly fifteen years!
Or, was the evidence suppressed for unknown reasons all theses years and the new batch of investigators merely went ahead boldly and acted on it? A third possibility is that the CBI team has knocked together a weak case. If that is so, the accused would walk free.
The answers to these questions should be available in the near future.
In the meantime, there is, apart from the legal angle, an important aspect to the Abhaya case. In Kerala the Christian community is strong and influential. But, by and large, the attitude of the community seems to be that the law should take its own course no matter whether god-men and women are involved or not.
So far no political party seems to have attempted to take mileage from the new turn in the Abhaya case.
Ylang Ylang (cananga odorata) is a nice tree to have near a house. The fragrance of the greenish yellow flowers is so rich and deep and exotic and lingers in the air for a long time.
Ylang Ylang is considered to be a native of Malaysia and Indonesia, but one can find them at many places in the tropics. We have one at Olavipe which is on coastal Kerala. It is a spindly tree that grows very fast and reaches a height of 40 ft. or more. Propagation is by seeds.
The ylang ylang flowers are widely used in the cosmetic industry. They also have an important role in aromatherapy because of the medicinal properties. The range includes use as aphrodisiac and treatment of sexual problems, stress reduction, digestive problems, palpitation and abnormally fast breathing, healing wounds, emotional stability and so on. It is a long list.
The image reproduced above is from Wikimedia. Here are some photographs of Ylang Ylang I took at Olavipe. Copyright reserved. Click on them to enlarge.
The records of each family form a part of the history of the country.
For some reason, the practice of maintaining a family tree has not been prevalent in India. Usually, information is passed down the generations through oral tradition. In the process some details could be lost. Perhaps it is time that you draw your family tree, if it has not been done already, with the information currently available to you
The image of a classic family tree is given below:
It is a beautiful work of art by my brother Anthony Tharakan, on a wall at Thekkanattu Parayil, our ancestral home. Our earliest known forefather is marked at the base of the tree. As it branches out, the descendants come into the picture.
This example of a family tree is difficult to follow, unless you are artistically inclined and have a lot of free time. There is a much easier way – make a simple chart, a kind of upside down family tree. The requirements for starting the work are large sheets of good quality paper, pencils, eraser, pencil sharpener and ruler. Keep all these along with your notes within easy reach on a large enough table.
Tell your family members what you are up to. Even better than that would be to have the children actively participate in the project. It would induce them to develop a sense of history.
At the top of the first sheet, write the name of your earliest known ancestor in the center. Under that enter the dates of his birth, marriage, and death (b.— m. — d.—). Next come the name, dates of birth and death of his spouse. Underline the last line of the entry or encase the whole entry in a box.
Draw a short line, say half an inch, from the center of the first entry and link it to a horizontal line for the second generation. If the first ancestor had three children, draw three short lines again from the horizontal line and enter the details, starting with the eldest in the left. Repeat the process till you reach the present generation.
In the process, you will have to make a decision as to whether you want a comprehensive family tree or one that is confined to your line of descendants only.
The final product would look like a corporate organization chart, with the CEO at the top. This would be a basic family tree. A sample of males only genealogy chart is given below:
You can make it more elaborate by giving codes for each family member, symbols (say for male/female) and historic notes. Leave blank spaces where relevant information is not available. Finally, overwrite the chart with indelible ink.
It would be much easier to make the family tree on a computer. Free software for the job can be downloaded at http://www.myheritage.com/family-tree and similar sites.
Images: Top, KO Isaac. Copyright reserved. Bottom, Wikipedia commons.
This story is about what happened to me during the last few days:
-Nov 6. At a relative’s house I take a step without noticing the difference in floor levels and lose balance. I turn sharply on my left foot and avoid a fall.
-Next day. Slight pain and swelling on the left foot.
-Day 3, Saturday. Heavy swelling and pain. I go to a major hospital in Chennai. The top ortho doctor not available. A junior takes a look at the foot and says the ankle is fractured and/or twisted and it has to be in a cast for three weeks. Then he sends me for an X-ray.
-The (Rs.500) X-ray does not show any fracture, says the doctor. He adds that ligaments must be torn and that would show only on MRI. He does not insist on a scan but decides to go ahead with the cast.
-We buy the materials the doctor wants and the cast is done. Actually it is a ten minutes job for a good paramedic.
-The doctor prescribes some medicines and tells me to buy a pair of special boots from a particular shop.
-I am billed Rs.2500 for the Chief Doctor’s time. That man was not present!
-On Tuesday I meet a leading Ortho of Chennai at his new hospital. He looks at the X-ray and points out to what appeared to be a fracture. It was at a corner of the image. A new X-ray (Rs.150) confirms the fracture at the base of the small toe.
-The doctor tells me to keep the cast anyway because it was already on and happens to protect the affected part also. His charge is Rs.250.
What the glamour hospital did was criminal. The young doctor was incompetent and negligent. He was signing in the name of his boss. I was charged for the services of the Senior Doctor who was not even there. The amount was exorbitant.
I have to keep my feet up for a few days and no computer work. My mailbox is piling up. For publishing posts I have to take help from others. Really, I feel the need for a laptop now.
Lessons learned: 1. Always find out the charges before agreeing to a medical procedure. 2. With some hospitals and doctors making money seems to be the primary objective. Healing is incidental.
Srirangapatna (Srirangapattana) is about 13kms from Mysore City. In modern history the town is mostly known as the former capital of Hyder Ali and and his son Tippu Sultan. Tippu was killed there during the Forth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799.
Sriranganathaswamy Temple
The place is named after the Sriranganathaswamy (Lord Vishnu) temple which is believed to have been built by the Ganga Dynasty in the 9th century CE. Subsequently the Hoysala and Vijayanagara rulers made improvements to this famous Vaishnavite shrine.
Carvings on the temple rath.
Maharaja Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar had built a church for his Catholic subjects in 1843. As the congregation grew with the passage of time the need for a larger building was felt. Therefore, it was decided to construct a new church at the same location.
The foundation stone for the present St. Philomena’s Church was laid by the then Maharaja of Mysore, Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, on October 28th, 1933. The church was consecrated in 1936.
St. Philomena's Church
This shrine is believed to be the only one in the world which has the relic of St. Philomena. It was obtained for the church by Thambu Chetty, Secretary to the Maharaja of Mysore.
The photographs were taken by Binita Kuruvilla last month. Copyright reserved.
An addenda:
The image below is Temple near Bangalore (Mysore), with Savandrug in the distance. – a pencil, wash, and water-colour drawing by Thomas (1749-1840) and William (1769-1837) Daniell. Source: The British Library, Asia, Pacific and Africa Collections, reproduced from Wikimedia Commons. Public Domain.
All the pictures can be enlarged by clicking on them.
Click on photos to enlarge
Taro root.
