I met Sri Tarun Gogoi ji probably in 2002 in Hyderabad where he came for National Games Meet. I was mesmerised by observing his simplicity and innocent smile.   He was born on 1st April 1936 in an ethnic Assamese Tai-Ahom family at Rangajan Tea Estate, erstwhile Sivasagar District, now under Jorhat district of Assam. His father, Dr Kamaleshwar Gogoi was a medical practitioner at Rangajan Tea Estate and mother, Smt. Usha Gogoi, younger sister of the renowned poet Sri Ganesh Gogoi. Sri Tarun Gogoi was ‘Tarun’ means young by heart and soul and fondly called Punakon by his parents.

He held important positions from his young age inter alia of which were- a) Member, Municipal Board, Jorhat, b) Served six terms as Member of Parliament (MP) in Lok Sabha, c) Became political leader with national stature after he was elected Joint Secretary of All India Congress Committee (AICC) in 1976 and that time Smt. Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister d) He later served as General Secretary of the AICC (1985–90) and that time Prime Minister was Sri Rajiv Gandhi, e) He also served in the Union Cabinet as Union Minister of State in Food and Food Processing Industry (1991–96) under the Prime Minister of Sri P. V. Narasimha  Rao, f) Sri Gogoi was elected Chief Minister of Assam in 2001 after that he led the Indian National Congress to victory in the state elections, g) He assumed the office of Chief  Minister, Assam first time on 18 May 2001, then on 14 May 2006 (second term) and for the third term on 18 May 2011. It is pertinent to mention that he completed 15 consecutive years as Chief Minister of Assam on 18 May 2016,  as the longest serving Chief Minister of the State. He was also Director, Vayudoot; Member, Bar Council of Assam and Chairman, Assam Small Industries Development Corporation. 

His educational qualifications included graduation from Jagannath Barooah College, Jorhat, Assam and L.L.B. from Gauhati University.   He was a visionary and had development attitude which is evident from this quote, “Our Government is making all-out effort for development of Guwahati city. Work is on feasibility study and preparation of a detailed project report for the metro rail project. A sewerage project for Rs. 1,700 crore, streetlights for all major roads, affordable houses for 10,000 urban poor are in the pipeline”. Sri Gogoi travelled many countries but his favourite pastime was reading and gardening. He had special interest in golf, cricket, football and tennis. He is survived by his wife Smt, Dolly Gogoi, a post-graduate in Zoology, Gauhati University. They have two children – daughter Ms. Chandrima Gogoi, MBA and son, Sri Gaurav Gogoi, presently, a Member of Parliament. Sri Gogoi always used to celebrate his birthday in a simple manner indicating simplicity of his life.

He although has passed away on 23 November 2020 but he will be in the heart of millions generation after generation. May his soul rest in peace and praying Almighty to give strength to the family members so that they can bear this great loss.  

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

The following websites have been consulted while writing the article:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarun_Gogoi
2. http://tarungogoi.in/pressrelease.php?displaytype
3. http://www.tarungogoi.in/biography.php

Based on the Report of 2020 Global Hunger Index GHI), few important findings are presented here. Also it is noteworthy to mention that for the 2020 GHI, data on the proportion of undernourished are for 2017–2019; data on child stunting and wasting are for the latest year in the period 2015–2019 for which data are available; and data on child mortality are for 2018. GHI scores could not be calculated for the countries for which data were not available, as mentioned in the Report.

1)    According to the 2020 Global Hunger Index, worldwide hunger is at moderate level.

2)    Around 690 million people are undernourished; 144 million children suffer from stunting, a sign of chronic under -nutrition; 47 million children suffer from wasting, a sign of acute under-nutrition; and in 2018, 5.3 million children died before their fifth birthdays, in many cases as a result of under- nutrition. It is evident that under-nutrition is a great issue in the world. In view of this, I suggest different organisations of the world also the organisations of different countries should see that this issue is tackled.

3)    According to 2020 GHI scores, three countries have alarming levels of hunger – Chad, Timor-Leste, and Madagascar. Hunger is also alarming in eight countries viz., Burundi, Central African Republic, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen.  

4)    It is evident from the Report that, in both Africa South of the Sahara and South Asia, one in three children was stunted in 2019. In other words, 32.7 percent of children in Africa South of the Sahara and 33.2 percent of children in South Asia were too short for their age, reflecting chronic under-nutrition.

5)    Unfortunately, child mortality in Africa South of the Sahara is awfully high. The region’s under-five mortality rate, at 7.8 percent in 2018 was highest among the regions of the world.

6)    South Asia’s child wasting rate is the highest of any world region. In 2019 the child wasting rate for South Asia was 14.8 percent, compared with 6.9 percent in Africa South of the Sahara. For the benefit of readers, it may be mentioned that wasting in this context means low weight for height, which is a strong predictor of mortality among children under five and is usually the result of acute significant food shortage.

7)    The high child stunting rate in South Asia is driven by multiple factors. South Asia’s child stunting rate in 2019 was 33.2 percent, down from 51.3 percent in 2000. The key factors that contribute to stunting in the region are poor infant and young child feeding practices, poor nutrition among women before and during pregnancy, and also poor sanitation practices.

8)    Although in recent years’ child mortality rate has declined in South Asia even then, the same in South Asia is very high. The mortality rate of children under age five in South Asia in 2018 was 4.1 percent, compared to 9.2 percent in 2000. In view of this, improvement in child nutrition is suggested.

Hope academicians and researchers will take up academic research study in our county based on the points presented here.

 The following websites have been consulted while writing the article in addition to the Report Global Hunger Index, 2020.                                

1. www.nourishscotland.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Nourish-Magazine-Issue-6-Boyd-Orr
2. https://health.gov/our-work/food-nutrition
3. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1949/orr/biographical/
4. https://www.globalhungerindex.org/results.html

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

No Indians can forget Azad Hind Fauj/ the Indian National Army’s (INA) contribution in the freedom movement (Founded on 21 October 1943) . While I was in some countries, many people of Pakistan and Bangladesh talked about the enormous contributions of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and INA/ Azad Hind Fauj. Honestly, writing many told me if Netaji Subhas would have been alive probably partition would not have taken place. Even Mahatma Gandhiji opposed the idea of ‘Two-nation Theory’. He declared, “If the Congress wishes to accept partition, it will be over my dead body. So long as I am alive, I will never agree to the partition of India. Nor will I, if I can help it, allow the Congress to accept it”.

  Indian National Army (INA/ Azad Hind Fauj) was formed by two  great persons Sri Rash Behari Bose and Sri Mohan Singh  in Southeast Asia during World War II. The main objective was to secure Indian independence from British rule. To attain the same Azad Hind Fauj/INA formed an alliance with the Empire of Japan in the latter’s campaign in the Southeast Asian theatre of WWII ( name given to the campaigns of the Pacific War in Burma, Ceylon, India, Thailand, the Philippines, Indochina, Malaya and Singapore).

  The first INA collapsed and was disbanded in December 1942 after differences between the INA leadership and the Japanese military over its role in Japan’s war in Asia. It is pertinent to mention that the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters in October, 1942 set up the Fujiwara Kikan, or the F-kikan, in Bangkok, headed by the Major Fujiwara Iwaichi, chief of intelligence of the 15^th army.  As an INA member, Mohan Singh had good relations with the members of Fujiwara Kikan, but he was soon disillusioned with the Japanese Army’s behaviour. It is believed that they wanted to use the Indian National Army only as a part of Japanese army to fulfil their own objectives. In the meantime, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose arrived in Japan in 1943 and INA was invigorated.

    More than 60,000 soldiers of Indian origin were associated with Azad Hind Fauj/Indian National Army who were prisoners of war in those days and because of the initiative of Sri Mohan Singh they joined in INA/Azad Hind Fauj to fight against the British.  Out of them about 26,000 soldiers sacrificed their lives so their sacrifice must be saluted.  It may be mentioned  that the I.N.A. brigades, named after Gandhi, Azad, Nehru and Subhas, distinguished themselves in several battles which they won because  of complete bravery, courage and discipline. The INA/Azad Hind Fauj’s first success was capturing Moirang of Manipur.  On 18 April 1944, the suicide squads led by Col. Shaukat Malik broke through the British defence and captured Moirang. After Moirang, INA penetrated the Kohima road, creating a threat to the British positions in both Silchar (presently in Assam) and Kohima (now capital of Nagaland state). Col. Gulzara Singh’s column had entered 250 miles into India. Anyway rest is history as Azad Hind Fauj/INA could not succeed to come up to Delhi. Azad Hind had diplomatic relations with nine countries. These  were  Nazi Germany, the Empire of Japan, Fascist Italy, the Independent State of Croatia, Wang Jingwei’s Government in Nanjing, Thailand, Burma, Manchukuo and the Philippines. On the declaration of its formation in Singapore, President Eamon de Valera of the Irish Free State sent a note of congratulations to Bose.

It has to be admitted that  INA’s activities influenced the decision to leave India by the British. In this  regard, the views of Mr. Clement Richard Attlee, who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 may be mentioned. Mr. Attlee cited several reasons, the most important of which were the INA activities of Subhas Chandra Bose, which weakened the very foundation of the British Empire in India, and the Royal Indian Navy Mutiny which made the British realise that the support of the Indian armed forces could no longer be relied upon.  It is pertinent to mention that former Army officer Sri G.D. Bakshi in his book “ Bose or Gandhi: Who Got India Her Freedom?” appreciated Netaji’s role in the freedom movement. He  wrote on Facebook, “They (British) were not in the least bothered by the Non-violent movement of the Congress. Indeed in 1942 Quit India movement had been decisively crushed with ease. The INA trials and Naval mutiny generated such serious alarm that contingency plans for evacuation of all British nationals and soldiers from India were drawn up by Commander in chief Fd Mshl Auchinleck. Wavell (Viceroy) clearly told London they had just 18 months to get out of India before they lost the power to shape events.”

  On this auspicious occasion of 21^st  October 2020, my great salute to the all INA/ Azad Hind Fauj  members. 

The following websites have been consulted to write the article

1.  www.aicc.org.in/indian_national_army.php  
2. https://enacademic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/618570
3. https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2020/01/24/bose-or-gandhi-who-won-india-freedom-g-d-bakshi-launches-hindi-book.
4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Indian_Navy_mutiny
5. https://www.mkgandhi.org/articles/gandhi-partition.html

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

I had the opportunity to visit the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 2009. In fact, I was invited to present my research paper on India’s self-help groups (SHGs) and closely observed FAO which I can mention quantitatively and qualitatively an asset for the people of the world. After coming from FAO, I felt delighted as that time Late Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Dr. Rajsekhar Reddy sir called me and greeted me.

On 16 October, World Food Day is celebrated every year as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was established in 1945. In the field of agricultural development, food etc., FAO has been doing commendable work. Few points on this auspicious occasion collected from FAO’s websites are presented here for the benefit of readers and researchers.

• One in five people in developing countries lives on less than US$1.9 a day, and most of them live in rural areas. For their subsistence they depend on small-scale farming, forest resources, livestock and fishing.
• Food is the essence of life and the bedrock of our cultures and communities. Preserving access to safe and nutritious food is and will continue to be an essential part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for poor and vulnerable communities, who are hit hardest by the pandemic and resulting economic shocks.
• Around 14% of food produced for human consumption is lost every year between the stages where it is grown or raised up to when it reaches the wholesale market. More food is wasted at the retail food and consumer stages.
• More than 3 billion people in the world lack access to internet and most of them live in rural and remote areas. Smallholder farmers need greater access to finance, training, innovation and technology to improve their livelihoods.
• Presently, only nine plant species account for 66 percent of total crop production, despite the fact that there are at least 30 000 edible plants. “We need to grow a variety of food to nourish people and sustain the planet. Nearly 690 million people are hungry, up 10 million since 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic could add between 83-132 million people to this number, depending on the economic growth scenario”.
• Over 2 billion people do not have regular access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food. The global population is expected to reach almost 10 billion by 2050.

It is pertinent to mention that FAO supports policies that enhance dialogue between small-scale producers, government agencies and private stakeholders. These policies strengthen the collective voice of farmers, pastoralists and fisher folk in local and national policy-making and increase access to agricultural markets, savings and credit facilities. Also, FAO aims to reduce rural poverty by supporting policies, which make it easier to self-manage land and productive resources, access social and financial services, as well as national and export markets. FAO supports equal access to technology, agricultural knowledge and market information through policies, which boost rural education for men and women using modern information technology and innovation in the provision of advisory services.

Lastly, FAO supports market and trade policies, which drive development, strengthen food security, reduce poverty and maximize environmental sustainability. Preserving flexibility in national policy options, allows developing countries to balance the needs of poor consumers and rural producers.

On this auspicious occasion wishing FAO more and more activities and praying Almighty “Long Live FAO”.

The following websites have been consulted while wrting the article:

1. http://www.fao.org/world-food-day/en/
2. http://www.fao.org/home/en/
3. https://www.google.com/search?q=world+food+day

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

Sri Sukanta Bhattacharya, a Bengali poet, about 80 years ago felt the sordid affairs of grass root level postal fellows and wrote a beautiful poem under the title of ‘Runner’. The poem has focussed on the fearful, lonely and brave life of a runner. Few lines in English version are presented here.

The Runner is running long
So at night the bell is ringing “ding-dong”.
With the burden of news at hand
The Runner is crossing land after land.
He is moving on the nocturnal road
Following no restriction, no code.
The Runner is running from horizon to horizon   

 Taking the task of bringing new information”.

  Undoubtedly postal persons across the world have been doing laudable works. When I was in Eritrea (North east Africa) for two years closely observed their arduous service particularly grass root level persons.  To commemorate the role played by the postal departments across the world, World Post Day is observed every year on October 9.  On the other hand, National Postal Day is celebrated in India on 10 October every year.  For the benefit of readers, I wish to mention that World Post is used and in case of India, National Postal Day is mentioned. Here few facts are presented in the context of both the celebrations.

1. World Post Day is celebrated on 9 October to commemorate, the anniversary of the establishment of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in 1874 in the Swiss Capital, Bern. It was declared World Post Day by the UPU Congress held in Tokyo, Japan in 1969. The proposal was submitted by Shri Anand Mohan Narula, a Member of the Indian delegation. Since then, World Post Day has been celebrated all over the world to highlight the importance of the postal services
2. In India, the National Postal Day is celebrated (10 October), as an extension of World Post Day. The Day objects to commemorate the role played by the Indian Postal Department which was established in 1854 by Lord Dalhousie.
3. It may be mentioned here that the first post office in India was established by the East India Company in 1774 in then Calcutta/Kolkata.
4. The Indian Post Office Act was first passed in the year 1898.
5. The highest post office in the world is at Hikkim in Himachal Pradesh located at an elevation of 4440 meters (14,567 feet above sea level).
6. PIN (Pincode) stands for Postal Index Number. The 6-digit PIN system was introduced by Shriram Bhikaji Velankar, an Additional Secretary in the Union Ministry of Communications on 15 August 1972.

I extend my grateful thanks on occasion of National Postal Day of India as during COVID19 they have been extending excellent service. The postal service men many times visited my home to deliver letters, books etc., without bothering their own lives. I extend my salute to them on this auspicious occasion.

Following websites were consulted while writing the article:

1. https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/world-post-day-2020-know-the-little-known-facts-about-postal-services-2307451
2. https://www.fresherslive.com/current-affairs/articles/national-postal-day-is-celebrated-in-india-on-10-october-22308
3. https://tapobantrio.com/english-version-of-sukanta-bhattacharyas-poem-runner/
4. https://www.thedailystar.net/city/meet-the-modern-day-runner-1470790

   I always feel joyous and excited  on occasion of National (5September) or World (5 October) Teachers’ Day,as I could complete school education to my top education i.e. Ph.D. because of my teachers and also happy that I started my carrier as College Teacher. 

   In India, from 1962, 5 September is celebrated as Teachers’ Day as on this day in 1888 a great scholar, philosopher, erudite person and statesman Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan was born. On the other hand, in the world 5 October is celebrated as World Teachers’ Day, which was initiated from 1994. It is pertinent to mention that   UNESCO celebrates World Teachers’ Day (WTD) to commemorate the anniversary of the signing of the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers. It sets forth the rights and responsibilities of teachers, and standards for their initial preparation, on-going professional development, recruitment, employment, teaching and learning conditions. It also contains numerous recommendations for teachers’ participation in educational decisions through social dialogue and negotiation with educational authorities. As per UNESCO, “this year’s World Teachers’ Day has an even greater significance in light of the challenges that teachers have faced during the COVID-19 crisis. As the pandemic has shown, they make a crucial contribution to ensuring continuity of learning and supporting the mental health and wellbeing of their students. Because of COVID-19, nearly 1.6 billion learners – more than 90% of the world’s total enrolled student population – have been affected by school closures. The COVID-19 crisis has also affected over 63 million teachers, highlighted persistent weaknesses in many education systems and exacerbated inequalities, with devastating consequences for the most marginalized. In this crisis, teachers have shown, as they have done so often, great leadership and innovation in ensuring that #LearningNeverStops that no learner is left behind. Around the world, they have worked individually and collectively to find solutions and create new learning environments for their students to allow education to continue. Their role advising on school reopening plans and supporting students with the return to school is just as important (en.unesco.org/news/)”.  Also it is observed that from the document that, “We now need to think beyond COVID-19 and work to build greater resilience in our education systems, so we can respond quickly and effectively to these and other such crises. This means protecting education financing, investing in high-quality initial teacher education, as well as continuing the professional development of the existing teacher workforce”.

 This year, (2020) World Teachers’ Day (WTD) is celebrated with the theme, “Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future.” According to Guy Ryder,  the International Labour Organization (ILO) Director-General, “Now is the time to recognize the role of teachers in helping to ensure a generation of students can reach their full potential, and the importance of education for short-term stimulus, economic growth and social cohesion, during and after COVID-19”. World is celebrating Teachers’ Day for their continued commitment to the students and for contributing to the achievement of the 2030 targets under Sustainable Development Goal 4.

  According to our former President Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam ji, “Teaching is a very noble profession that shapes the character, calibre, and future of an individual. If the people remember me as a good teacher, that will be the biggest honour for me”.

On occasion of World Teachers’ Day, my Pronam to all the teachers for their selfless service.

The following website and eBook have been consulted while writing the article:

1. https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/ed_dialogue/sector/documents/normativeinstrument/wcms_493315.pdf
2. UNESCO, 2020, “World Teachers’ Day 2020 Teachers: Leading in crisis, reimagining the future”
3. https://en.unesco.org/news/world-teachers-day-joint-statement-unesco-ilo-unicef-and-education-international
4. https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/statements-and-speeches/WCMS_757035/lang–en/index.htm

Food is most important for all human beings and that is why a baby immediately after his/her birth cries and mother gives her milk. After passing of time, we require different types of food including veg and non-veg as desired by the person, inter alia of which are carbohydrate, protein, vitamins, minerals etc.  In the world an organisation that has been doing research on eliminating hunger and improving nutrition is popularly known as FAO i.e.  Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), oldest permanent specialized agency of the United Nations, established in October 1945 with “the objective of eradicating hunger and scaling up of nutrition and standards of living by increasing agricultural productivity”. Recently, FAO has published a Report under the banner of “THE STATE OF FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION IN THE WORLD, 2020”. A few points based on the Report are presented here for the benefit of readers and for further academic research by the young researchers. In this context, I wish to mention that I visited FAO, Rome about 10 years ago as resource person and observed they have been doing praiseworthy work.

1. Let me first present the data and information about the Asia as I am from Asia.  Asia is the home to more than half of the total undernourished people in the world – an estimated 381 million people in 2019. Yet, the prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) in the population for the region is 8.3 percent, below the world average (8.9 percent), and less than half of that of Africa. Another highlighting point is that in Asia the number of hungry people in recent years, has scaled down by 8 million since 2015.
2. In Africa situation is not rosy. The prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) in Africa was 19.1 percent of the population in 2019, or more than 250 million undernourished people indicating increased percentage which was 17.6 percent in 2014. This prevalence is more than twice the world average (8.9 percent) and is the highest among all regions.

I was in some countries in Africa and observed there are some issues in many countries; one is lack of good governance.

• Another shuddering point is that as per the publication while in Asia there would be 330 million hungry people in 2030 indicating its share of the world’s hunger would shrink substantially. On the other hand, Africa would overtake Asia to become the region with the highest number of undernourished people (433 million), accounting for 51.5 percent of the total.
• In Latin America and the Caribbean region, the prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) was 7.4 percent in 2019, below the world prevalence of 8.9 percent indicating 48 million undernourished people. But it is noteworthy to mention that there was a rise in hunger in the past few years, with the number of undernourished people increased by 9 million between 2015 and 2019 in the region.
• According to the Report 9.7 percent of the world population (746 million people) was exposed to severe levels of food insecurity in 2019. In all regions of the world except Northern America and Europe, the prevalence of severe food insecurity has gone up from 2014 to 2019.
• While 746 million people facing severe food insecurity are of utmost concern, an additional 16 percent of the world population, or more than 1.25 billion people, have experienced food insecurity at moderate levels. People who are moderately food insecure do not have regular access to nutritious and sufficient food, even if not necessarily suffering from hunger.

  According to WHO, a healthy diet protects against malnutrition in all its forms, as well as non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer. Before conclusion, it is suggested that FAO and other organisations should see that people across the world should get minimum food and for this more research is sine qua non to increase production and productivity of food grains and production of tobacco like crop may be discarded or should be less. Also it is suggested that control of population growth is the need of the hour by adhering 2-Child norm across the world. Also it may be mentioned here that the 1943 Bengal famine, which is estimated to have caused over three million deaths, resulted not from a drought as is widely thought but from the British Government’s policy should not occur in the present world in any form anywhere.

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

For academic works, I had the opportunity to visit across the country (before my retirement on superannuation) and one of the names commonly I have heard mostly in the districts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana whenever discussion on story and novels were cropped up   was  the great writer Sri Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (Chatterjee), alternatively written as  Sarat Chandra Chatterjee. He was born on 15 September 1876, now in Hooghly district of present West Bengal and passed away on 16 January 1938 in Calcutta/Kolkata. Sri Chatterjee was a novelist and short story writer. Most of his works highlighted the lifestyle, tragedy, suffering and struggle of the people of then Bengal also on the contemporary social practices that prevailed in Bengal. Based on his novels many films were produced in different languages and among these one very popular is Devdas. Based on Devdas   in Hindi 17 times different movies were produced by the film makers because the novel is very favourite to them for making films. In 1937 Assamese film based on Devdas was produced and the film was directed by Sri Pramathesh Chandra Barua. It is pertinent to mention that Sri Barua was born on 24 October 1903 in Assam, (Brahmaputra valley) and passed away at comparatively early age, that is, on 29 November 1951. He was a brilliant actor, director, and screenwriter. Prior to Devdas Assamese film, Sri Barua produced Devdas in Bengali in 1935 and in 1936 in Hindi. Also based on Devdas in 1953 a film under the title of Devadasu was produced in Telugu and Tamil languages (the later on changed name to Devadas).      

   Sarat Chandra ji had to struggle in his life although he studied at a village school but was forced to drop out of college due to his economic issue. He spent most of his childhood with his mother at her family’s home in Bhagalpur, Bihar (in Bengali called Mamabari/maternal uncles’ house).

 After coming to Bhagalpur, Sarat Chandra ji was admitted to the scholarship class of ME school and by staying in Bhagalpur he wrote many stories. At the age of 27, he went to Rangoon (now Yangon, Myanmar) and joined as a clerk in a government office and published his first short story Mandir that won the Kuntolin Puraskar. He stayed in Rangoon for 13 years and after that he returned to Bengal, and started writing. He was a favourite among the readers for his publications in Jamuna and Bichitra. Among Sarat Chandra ji’s  many popular novels, few are mentioned here – Devdas (written in 1901 but published in 1917), Parineeta (1914), Biraj Bou (1914), Palli-Samaj (1916), Srikanta (in four parts; 1917, 1918, 1927, 1933), Charitraheen (1917), Grihadaha (1919), Pather-Dabi (1926), Shesh Prashno (1931), Bipradas (1935) etc. I wish to mention here among his other stories  Mejdidi has greatly touched me. Based on the story in Hindi and Bengali films have been produced under the title of Majhli Didi and Mejdidi respectively.

On this auspicious occasion of his birthday, great salute to respected Sri Sarat Chandra Chatterjee.  

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

This is wonderful news that “China and India have pledged to enhance mutual trust to ensure peace along their disputed borders in their first formal agreement since June, with Beijing saying the two nations were not a threat to each other. The pledge came as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met for the first time since their border stand-off turned deadly in June, leaving 20 Indian soldiers dead and an unknown number of casualties on the Chinese side” (South China Morning Post, 11/9/2020). Also as per news item, “the two foreign ministers agreed that the stand-off was “not in the interest of either side,” according to a joint statement released following their meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Moscow”.

No rational person in the world desires war as war causes mass destruction, loss of human lives etc. Anyway China is unpredictable as 1962 incident no Indians can forget. Pt. Nehru’s hands of friendship they repaid through war by killing many Indian soldiers. I feel China is dominated by Han (more than 90 percent) and not like Indian society which is totally pluralistic society. I feel so much diversity, as observed in India, in no country can be seen. Anyway, communist leaders of China never tolerate any criticism which many Chinese persons told me when I visited China. Against the back drop, Indian society is different, more liberal and fully democratic. For instance, Indian Communist leader, Late Jyoti   Basu immediately after the 1962 war, proclaimed publicly at a rally “China cannot be the aggressor” which cannot be from a leader.  Jyoti Basu was the son of a physician, and enjoyed an affluent childhood. He studied in Calcutta (now Kolkata), at St. Xavier’s School and Presidency College, before moving to London in 1935 to complete his law education. His only son is a big businessman. 

   Now the leaders of China should understand by their imperialist attitude many countries are against them “the United States Department of Commerce blacklisted 24 Chinese state-owned companies, including five CCCC dredging subsidiaries, for their roles in helping the Communist Party “militarise” outposts in the contested South China Sea” ( South China Morning Post, 31/8/2020).

The horrible behaviour of Chinese leaders towards Muslims of Uyghurs /Uigurs is known to all in the world. It is pertinent to mention that the Uyghurs are native to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China. They are one of China’s 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities. According to the website, http://www.wbur.org/ uighur-muslims-china-human-rights/15 July 2020, “The Trump administration imposed sanctions on three senior officials of the Chinese Communist Party over the alleged treatment of Uighurs, a Muslim ethnic minority”. “The U.S. State Department estimates at least 1 million Uighurs have been detained and forced to work in internment camps. There are also allegations that detained Uighurs are being forced to make products that U.S. consumers are buying, including 13 tons of human hair for weaves and wigs that were seized earlier this month”.

In present days we have been observing different Communist China, presently international community blaming China because of COVID-19, economy of China is in recession stage, unemployment has been scaling up etc. To justify the same, few lines from the newspaper, South China Morning Post (SCMP, 20/2/2020) are presented here,  “Coronavirus costs keep mounting for manufacturers, who are facing huge losses in sales and struggling to ramp up production. If such losses take place then there will be negative effect in the economy and poor Multiplier Effect meaning more unemployment, less purchasing power of the people, and finally a sort of “Vicious Circle of Poverty” qualitatively may operate”. 

Hope good sense will prevail among the leaders of China. And they will follow the theory of Hindi Chini Bhai Bhai.

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

Last few months I have completed, six courses launched by World Health Organisation (WHO) and thus I have received few videos, materials, links etc. from WHO.  Based on ‘World Health Statistics 2020: A visual summary’ published by WHO, few important points are presented here for the benefit of readers, academicians and scholars. Since this article is based on international publication so researchers can use for further research.  

   Before starting of the discussion, it is pertinent to mention that, all human beings desire to survive with healthy life. Long ago, Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore wrote a beautiful Bengali poem and from there one line I am quoting in English alphabet “Morite chahi na ami sundor bhubone…Manober majhe ami bachibare chai” (meaning in general is ‘in this beautiful world I don’t like to die, rather would like to survive among the human beings’). For leading a healthy life, all the Governments in the world have been trying their best for their citizens by spending a good amount from Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on health. In addition, World Health Organisation (WHO) has been doing excellent work in this area as we know its role during COVID19 crisis.

    In 2005 a new concept has been developed by the World Health Organisation known as the International Health Regulations (IHR, 2005), an agreement between 196 countries and territories to work together for global health security. They are a commitment to develop and improve public health capacities that make the world ready to respond to emerging public health emergencies. And for this purpose, 13 indicators have been prepared and for the benefit of readers I am presenting all:  Legislation and financing, Coordination and focal point, Zoonotic events, Food safety, Laboratory, Surveillance, Human resources, Health emergency framework, Health service provision, Risk communication, Points of entry, Chemical events and Radio nuclear emergencies. The IHR scoring system exists to measure a country’s ability to prepare for and respond to these health emergencies. Anyway, according to World Health Organisation, “the global outbreak of COVID-19 will have an unprecedented – and as yet unknown – effect on our work towards a healthier world”. “This year’s World Health Statistics report makes clear that the global efforts in recent decades have been fetching good result”.

 According to me first important point from the publication is concept of Healthy Life Expectancy (HALE).  Life expectancy gives an indication of how long a population is expected to live on average. But Healthy Life Expectancy (HALE) reveals the true health of a person. It’s about both length of life and quality of life. Not just the number of years the average person lives, but the number of years they can expect to live in good health. And the inspiring news is that, “between 2000 and 2016, HALE increased globally by 8% from 59 years to 63”.

Since 2000, the risk of a child dying before their fifth birthday has halved in the African region. This is due, in part, to gains made in vaccination coverage for specific diseases. From 2000 to 2018, global coverage of DTP3 (Diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis) immunization has increased from 72 percent to 86 percent. During the same period, MCV2 (Measles-containing-vaccine second-dose) immunization coverage has gone up from 18 percent to 69 percent. Also from 2008 to 2018, PCV3 (Pneumococcal conjugate 3rd dose) immunization coverage has scaled up from 4 percent to 47 percent.  But according to the publication under-5 mortality remains a major problem in Africa, where the rate is more than eight times higher than the European countries (in 2018). Another point is about the maternal death. The death of women as a result of complications during or following pregnancy and childbirth reflects the global inequalities in access to quality health care.  In the world, between 2014 and 2019, 81 percent of births were attended by skilled health personnel. The issue lies with African countries as Africa’s data is 525 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births which is seven times greater than the target.

Further, according to the publication, incidences of HIV, TB and malaria have decreased globally since 2000, yet they still pose a major threat. Indeed, progress in the fight against malaria has stalled in most regions since 2014 but HIV has increased in Europe and Eastern Mediterranean compared with 2000.

   Before conclusion, I wish to mention that, “the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for global cooperation to improve population health. In order to achieve the health targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is critical that we monitor progress on all fronts to reduce inequalities, address climate change and strengthen health systems, so that no one is left behind”.

Dr Shankar Chatterjee, Hyderabad

This book written by Abhijeeth Bhattacharjee (published in the year 2020 by Penman Books, Delhi) under the title of  “Event Management: A Zero Investment Start-up Business”, is a pioneering effort from a maven in the field of Event Management with little more than  4000 plus events to his credit. There are altogether 15 chapters including two case studies in this volume. The author was motivated in this area when present Hon’ble Prime Minister addressed the youths ‘Job Creators’ and ‘Not Job Seekers’. The author spent 25 years in developing the business, with zero capital, undoubtedly a praiseworthy concept. Because the author by quitting Government job has initiated the venture and subsequently has proved that “where there is a will there is a way”. During the course of developing his business, he has coined a new word ‘Eventpreneur ‘by combining two words – Event and Entrepreneur.
  The book presents a practical way of thinking about strategy and competition and addressing the issues on aspiring ‘Eventpreneurs’ and also presented with facts and figures dos and don’ts of  the existing Event Managers.  The author feels that every entrepreneur has the opportunity to shape their own destiny.
Keeping in mind of this, the volume covers the various facets of Event Management and elucidates how one can start their business journey in Event Management with Zero Capital. The book emphasises that money as a resource, is not much of a constraint but the entrepreneurial zeal to take risks and have a passion for the business, in that case an entrepreneur will be successful ‘Eventpreneur’.
 The volume deals with all the practical aspects of the business starting from conceptualisation and design of the event to actual execution. It is a road map to success through some important tips, tools, techniques, and pragmatic approach towards making a successful career in Event Management. The author has reiterated that one should not take the easy path and rather than to take the difficult and arduous path, and face challenges all the time.  According to the author, Event Management is an amazing business which gives absolute delight of achieving success, not only money-wise but also satisfaction. As an example, the author has cited the case of a propriety firm which can be started with zero investment and gradually it can be scaled up to a Private limited company later on may be  in the next 3-4 years.

 Also in social life, according to the author, ‘Events’ are the celebrations that provide an opportunity to meet and share happy moments with family members, relatives, colleagues, and friends. A family event is envisaged as an opportunity to meet old friends and relatives and develop new relationships through matrimonial alliances.

 Before winding up in nutshell, I wish to mention few lines. At the outset, I congratulate the author Abhijeeth Bhattacharjee for lucidly presenting important tips, tools, techniques, and pragmatic approach towards making a successful career in Event Management. In this book, he has narrated how one can start his/her journey in Event Management with Zero Investment which is really praiseworthy information. The book has added special flavour as two cases, one on – Event Designing of Factory Inauguration and Unveiling of the Foundation Stone and other one on Event Designing of a Social Event (Wedding Event), are stimulating.

Dr. Shankar Chatterjee

 Former Professor& Head (CPME)

NIRD &PR (Govt. of India),

Hyderabad-500 030

Telangana, India

Email <shankarjagu@gmail.com>

 Recently I have the opportunity to read an interesting book as mentioned in the title. The book is written By Dr Manik Kar, a Geo-morphologist and retired from Nowgong College as Head of the Department of Geography, Assam. It has been published by Global Publishing House (India), Vishakhapatnam. The essence of the book is that British by introducing and popularising ‘Cricket’ dominated in South Asia and Commonweal Countries which facts and figures have presented in ten different chapters as well as with rich references.

  The first is the introductory chapter where Cricket as a Socio Economic Disaster in South Asia and Commonweal Countries has been discussed. In the second chapter under the title of

‘Cricket is a Sport which is Detrimental for The Nation’; the author has highlighted hidden agenda of playing Cricket and according to the author, the British introduced cricket with the motive of keeping natives as steadfast. In the third chapter, ‘Past History of Cricket: The Birth and the Journey through Centuries’, the author, with his analysis and documents, has revealed that the first publish reference of Cricket was in the late 1600s century. In the fourth chapter the author has evaluated other sports like hockey, tennis, table tennis, baseball, sumo wrestling etc., and has come to the conclusion that these sports are better than ‘Cricket’. In the fifth chapter, author with evidences has presented because of the British rule, Zimbabwe has been facing many issues which prior to British Raj had egalitarian society. In the sixth chapter, by refereeing Norman Bury’s article the author in nutshell has highlighted whether Cricket is a gentleman’s game? Similarly in chapter seven, by referring Ehsan Masood’s article, the author has presented an overview of the Global Politics of Cricket. In Chapter eight, the author by referring from secondary sources, has presented some facts about the Politics of Cricket. In chapter nine, countries with their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and Per Capita Income (based on Purchasing Power Parity/PPP) has presented how Cricket has been spoiling the economy. So he feels albeit Cricket is popular in India but at the same time, lot of time is wasted and thus GDP is affected.

Lastly, in the context of the book many references, around 50, have been included, which is really praiseworthy.  

  By quoting the author, it may be mentioned that as far as “cricket is concerned, it is spread over the commonwealth countries where the British ruled their natives in the name of making them “gentlemen” from their so-called uncivilized state. But at that time the hidden agenda was to exploit the natives or Commonwealth countries in the name of making them “Gentle man” through a game called “Cricket”. This game in reality ruined the nations in their total development. If not what civilization we are learning from this game as they introduced it in commonwealth and South Asian countries,   is it the work of a civilized person that is match fixing for money, dancing of ladies in front of minors, old people, and others ?Is it our culture that players will spent their time in hotel with other lady”?  Further, the author has appealed to the then Hon’ble President of India Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam ji to introduce the games football and hockey, which takes only 90 to 120 minutes. In this context, the author has presented 20 points for kind consideration of then President mentioning how ‘Cricket’ has been spoiling the economy of India.  

Finally, the author has concluded with data that in the world football and cricket playing countries altogether were 84 percent against the cricket playing country only 16 percent as per 2016.

Dr. Shankar Chatterjee

Former Professor& Head (CPME)

NIRD &PR (Govt. of India),

Hyderabad-500 030

Telangana, India

Email <shankarjagu@gmail.com>

 Independence for all human being is sine qua non. No one would like to stay under the rule of the foreigners because foreigners occupy other country to exploit the natural, mineral, and other resources. British (including the East India Company)   ruled us about two hundred years and they came thousands miles away to exploit our rich resources, not to develop us. During British Raj many innocent Indians suffered in many ways. Although there are numerous cases but two cases wish to mention here. One is about the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, also known as the Amritsar massacre, which took place on 13 April 1919, when Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered personnel of the British Indian Army to fire bullets among the crowds who assembled there for Vaishakhi celebration. Unfortunately, 379 people were killed and more than 1,200 persons were injured and many of them were grievously and all were unarmed. Another example of British people’s hate towards Indians is Professor E.F. Otten’s remark against Indians.  For his remark, as a student of that time Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose thrashed the British Professor Otten and for this Subhas Chandra had to suffer also. However, with the intervention of Indian scholars and other stalwarts the matter was resolved.

   India’s independence was not an easy task as many sacrificed their lives.  Anyway this year, 74^th Independence Day was celebrated amid COVID19 pandemic, with observing social distancing guidelines. Keeping in mind of the guidelines, across the country from grass root level to top level celebration took place with full hype and hoopla.  A case as micro study from Hyderabad; capital city of Telangana is presented here. At Bandlaguda Jagir, a gated community consisting of villas is located which is spread over to an area of 17 acres of land having all facilities like indoor and  outdoor games, gym, park, swimming pool, function hall, cafeteria, saloon for ladies and gents etc. The villas have been constructed on a plot of land of different sizes and sizes are below 150 square yards- 7 numbers, exactly 150 square yards- 67 numbers, in between 150 and 200 square yards 84 numbers, 200 to 300 square yards 27 numbers and above 300 square yards 7 numbers. So altogether, 192 villas are available in the gated community and around 90 percent have been occupied. Also it is heartening to mention that residents are from across the country representing mini India and also belong to different castes and religions, a unique case of national integration. Every year Independence Day and Republic Day are celebrated with full gaiety. Also during Dewali, Ganesh Utssab, Eid, Christmas etc. sweets, fruits etc. are exchanged with neighbours. 

    In this year 74^th Independence Day celebration, in spite of inclement weather because of incessant rain from 12 August onwards as well as COVID 19 threat, programme was incredible as residents attended   by shielding their heads under the umbrella. The security personnel, out of 12, 11 are from Assam (Assamese persons) by wearing rain-coat/umbrella facilitated in flag hoisting function which was carried out by the President of the elected Association Sri T. Madhava Reddy assisted by Sri. Mahender Reddy, Vice President and          Dr. Vidya Sagar, Secretary of the Association. The Independence Day messages for the residents were not to come out from their respective villas unless it is required, wearing mask and maintaining social distancing. Another important event was distribution of prizes to the children for nurturing the plants. As time to time plantation programmes were taken up in the campus for keeping it ‘clean and green’ and to encourage children to sensitize and aware about utility of environment. Out of many children who participated in plantation programmes earlier, five were selected through lucky draw and organizers sent gifts to their respective villas. It may be mentioned here that planation programmes were successful because of the ladies particularly mother of the kids who enthusiastically encouraged them to participate. 

So, it is evident that the celebration has created many positive impacts among the residents (Dos and don’ts to counter COVID19) and children (awareness about environment).

The following websites have been consulted while writing the article:

1. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/my-view/netaji-subhas-chandra-bose-a-tribute-on-his-birth-anniversary-1453
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jallianwala_Bagh_massacre

Dr. Shankar Chatterjee

 Former Professor& Head (CPME)

NIRD &PR (Govt. of India),

Hyderabad-500 030

Telangana, India

Email <shankarjagu@gmail.com>

  Each year August 9, is celebrated as International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. In the year 2016, it was reported that about 2680 indigenous languages were in danger and on the verge of extinction. In view of this, UN selected 2019 (that is last year) as the International Year of Indigenous Languages to persuade, convince and create awareness to people about the indigenous languages which was undoubtedly a praiseworthy move. Protection of indigenous people and their rights are sine qua non as we Indians know suffering of Ekalavya who was indigenous. Ekalavya was very talented and humble and that is why he smilingly offered his best asset (required for archery), his right thumb as Guru Dakshina to Dronacharya.

   It is pertinent to mention that there are around 476 million indigenous people in 90 countries and they constitute little more than 6 percent of the global population and 15 percent are in  extreme poverty. Their territories are home to 80 percent of the world’s biodiversity. Still indigenous people are not advanced like other communities. In this regard, few points collected from un.org/en/observances/indigenous-day are presented for the benefit of readers.

• More than 86% of indigenous peoples globally work in the informal economy, compared to 66% for their non-indigenous counterparts
• Indigenous peoples are nearly three times as likely to be living in extreme poverty compared to their non-indigenous counterparts.
• Globally, 47% of all indigenous peoples in employment have no education, compared to 17% of their non-indigenous counterparts. This gap is even wider for women.

  This year International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples theme is COVID-19 and indigenous peoples’ resilience. The virtual commemoration will feature an interactive panel discussion on the innovative ways indigenous peoples continue demonstrating resilience and strength in the face of the pandemic while confronting grave threats to their survival. The aim is to highlight how the preservation and promotion of indigenous peoples’ traditional knowledge and practices can be leveraged more fully during this pandemic. Panellists (Monday, 10 August 9 AM to 11 AM) will share good practices with the audience through an interactive virtual event that will focus on building back stronger.

  As academician and researcher, I have the opportunity to visit across India and interacted many indigenous persons in the different states of north eastern region, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and West Bengal. The names of some communities are   Boro, Dimasa, Chutia, Karbi, Sonowal, Tiwa, Garo, Rabha, Hajong, Tripuri, Deori, Naga, Chakma, Jamatia, Noatia, Adi (Abor), Aka, Apatani, Tagin, Galo       and others. Also in West Bengal I have interacted with Rabha and Santhal and in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Chenchus, observed all indigenous persons were rational, erudite about local and traditional things and very careful to preserve nature. Not a single indigenous person will cut a tree for making money that is out of greed.   

  On this International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, I salute to all indigenous Peoples.  

The following websites have been consulted while writing the article.

1)wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Day_of_the_World’s_Indigenous_Peoples

2) www.un.org/en/observances/indigenous-day

3) https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/international-day-of-the-worlds-indigenous-peoples/2020-2.html

Dr. Shankar Chatterjee

 Former Professor& Head (CPME)

NIRD &PR (Govt. of India),

Hyderabad-500 030

Telangana, India

Email <shankarjagu@gmail.com>

 August   month is important to all Indians as on 15 August in 1947 we got our independence at the cost of sacrifice of millions of people. Also many memorable events took place in this month. Of the many events, one is birth of Kishore Kumar, popularly known as Kishore da, who was born on 4 August 1929, at Khandwa, present Madhya Pradesh as Abhas Kumar Ganguly. He was a versatile person and multifaceted calibre.  Although he was popular as playback singer, but equally, he was also popular as actor, music director, lyricist, writer, director, producer and screenwriter. He was not only popular in India but also in Asian and African countries. While I was in some countries of Asia and Africa many told about him, also they mentioned names of some of our film actors and actresses.

    As a singer, in addition to Hindi, Kishore-Da sang in many Indian languages including Bengali, Marathi, Assamese, Gujarati, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Malayalam Urdu etc. He also sang on private albums in several languages including Bengali. According to a Report,  Kishore Kumar sang around 3000 numbers of songs including Hindi and other languages.

 Kishore Kumar won eight times Filmfare Awards for best male playback singer and holds the record of winning the most Filmfare Awards in that category. He was also awarded the “Lata Mangeshkar Award” by the Madhya Pradesh Government in 1985–86. In 1997, the Madhya Pradesh Government introduced an award in his memory “Kishore Kumar Award” for his enormous contribution in Indian film The eight songs for which he got Filmfare awards are Roop Tera Mastana   (1970/film Aradhana) , Dil Aisa Kisi Ne Mera (1976/film Amanush     ), Khaike Paan Banaras Wala (1979/film  Don), Hazaar Raahen Mudke Dekheen(1981/film Thodisi Bewafaii), Pag Ghungroo Baandh(1983/film Namak Halaal ), Agar Tum Na Hote (1984/ Agar Tum Na Hote), Manzilein Apni Jagah Hain(1985/ film Sharaabi   ) and Saagar Kinaare (1986/film Saagar).  The Bengal Film Journalists’ Association Awards as best male playback singer were given to Kishore-Da four times- Aradhana (1971), Andaz(1972), Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1973) and Kora Kaga (1975).

  Kishore Kumar started his cinema as career as a chorus singer at Bombay Talkies, where his elder brother Ashok Kumar worked. He first acted in a film named Shikari (1946) where Ashok Kumar played the lead role. In 1948, music director Khemchand Prakash offered Kishore –Da a chance to sing the song Marne Ki Duayen Kyon Mangu for the film Ziddi directed by Shaheed Latif. It is pertinent to mention that in this film both the Melody Queen Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar sang first time their duet song Yeh Kaun Aaya Re. After that Lata ji sang with Kishore Kumar 327 songs as duet songs.   

           Kishore Kumar decided to retire from singing  and was planning to return to his birth place Khandwa, but he died of a heart attack in Bombay/Mumbai on 13 October 1987 , incidentally that was his brother Ashok Kumar’s 76 birthday. His body was taken to Khandwa for cremation.

    He recorded his last song, “Guru Guru”—a duet with Asha Bhosle for the film Waqt Ki Aawaz (wikipedia.org/wiki/Kishore_Kumar). Although he passed away at the age of 58 years but he will be in the heart of millions for his melodious songs and acting. 

Dr. Shankar Chatterjee

Former Professor& Head (CPME)

NIRD &PR (Govt. of India),

Hyderabad-500 030

Telangana, India

Email <shankarjagu@gmail.com>