Monthly Archives: September 2015

Vrindavan widows to be called ‘Krishna Vadhus’

Arts, Culture & Entertainment

Lucknow :

Hundreds of widows living a neglected life in the ashrams of Vrindavan will take another step back to the mainstream of the society on November 18 when they will get a new name – ‘Krishna Vadhus’. The rechristening would be done on the occasion of the 500th birth anniversary of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

The two socio-religious organisations behind the effort – the Earth Voice of Vrindavan and the Shri Dharmik Lila Samiti of Delhi – have confirmed that chief minister Akhilesh Yadav would inaugurate the devotional do. The week-long celebration will not only see chanting of devotional songs from 28 states in 15 languages but also a strong resolve to free the widows living in the holy town from all kinds of stigmas.

“By renaming them as ‘Krishna Vadhus’, we are making a small bid to unite them with Lord Krishna. These widows have lost their husband physically and not spiritually, if one goes by the Hindu mythology. Even the philosophy of Lord Krishna says that ‘atma'( soul) is immortal and reunites with ‘parmatma’ (divine),” explains Vaishnavacharya Shree Abhishek Goswami of Shree Ram Temple, Vrindavan, who is coordinating the event.

The chief minister will inaugurate the week-long celebration called ‘Vrindavan Prakash Utsav’ on November 18 and has extended his full support to the effort to bring the widows into the mainstream, says Goswami. A senior officer of the state government also confirmed that the CM would be the chiefguest on the first day of the function.

Goswami said that the effort is not only limited to renaming their status, but the two organisers with support from UP government, would create a corpus fund for the widows and involve them to earn their livelihood and live respectfully instead of just waiting for death at the ashrams.

Organisations like Sulabh International have already been working on the betterment of these widows’ lives by making them participate in festivals like Holi and Diwali. The move to give them a recognition, says Goswami, will not only set them free from stigma, but also hit out at orthodox minds in the society.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Lucknow / by Subhash Mishra, TNN / September 30th, 2015

Maharajas’ Express bags global luxury award

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Travel, World Opinion

Allahabad :

Maharaja Express, the luxury train that offers royal tour on five routes, including Agra and Varanasi, was recently conferred the coveted ‘Seven Star Global Luxury Award’ in Indonesia. The award, launched in 2013, is given for excellence in the field of hospitality. The train is operated by Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

Maharajas’ Express beat internationally renowned luxury trains like The Deccan Odyssey (India), the Rocky Mountaineer (Canada), Rovos Rail (South Africa) and other brands such as Ferrari World in Abu Dhabi, Bali Food Safari and the Luxury Charter Yacht to win the award.

It also has the distinction of being voted as ‘The World’s Leading Luxury Train’ at The World Travel Awards for three consecutive years 2012, 2013 and 2014.

North-Central Region (NCR) public relations manager Pradeep Dutta said, “By bagging the Seven Star Luxury Award, Maharajas’ Express has cemented its brand and reputation as ‘The World’s Leading Luxury Train’. It is truly a special award that will bolster the reputation of the train internationally.”

Maharajas’ Express currently runs on five circuits across north-west and central India, covering a dozen destinations, mainly in Rajasthan, between the tourist months of October and April.

The Luxury Tour Circuits on wheels, allows one to explore exotic locales including trip to one of the largest dinosaur fossil parks at Balasinor with opportunity to meet one of the Indian royal family, a trip to erotic temples of Khajuraho, to participate in the exhibition elephant polo match at Jaipur, cocktail & barbeque sundowner on the sand dunes at Bikaner, champagne breakfast overlooking the immortal beauty of the Taj Mahal in Agra and boat trip on the Ganges at the Holy City of Varanasi.

Since its inaugural run in 2010, Maharajas’ Express has been redefining elegance and opulence, luxury and comfort, recreating lifestyle of the princely era and showcasing Incredible India.

All its carriages are equipped with an array of top notch facilities such as live television, DVD player and wifi. All coaches are equipped with individual temperature control, attached bathroom and water filtration plant. Besides round-the-clock valet service and a paramedic is available throughout the journey.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Allahabad / by Ashraf Jamal, TNN / September 29th, 2015

On foot and two wheels, city finds its legacy

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Historical Links / Pre-Independence, Records, All, Travel

Luknow :

Nearly 200 citizens took part in Lucknow Heritage Walk-Kaiserbagh and Lucknow On Cycle (LOC), organised on the occasion of World Tourism day by the state department of tourism along with The Times of India and NBT with support from NGO Itihas which is working in the field of heritage conservation. Old and the young evinced special interest to know more about Lucknow.

Major General R S Malave who participated in the cycling event termed it as a good and timely beginning. “We are trying to create a similar heritage circuit in Lucknow Cantonment, which has heritage buildings such as Dilkusha and will co-ordinate with the district administration for the project,” said Malave.

Retired bank employee P K Shinde was of the view that such events must be held at frequent intervals. Shinde said, “Cycling on roads of Lucknow and on a Sunday was a fantastic experience. There were many things we came to know. Such events will help even tourists and visitors learn something about the city.” Ramkrishna from Hyderabad, along with Telugu speaking Lucknowites Satish and Satya Narayan said, “The Biryani link between Hyderabad and Lucknow is there, but events like this would attract people from far and wide.”

Conducting the walk, Smita Vats highlighted the cooling features of Taikhana. Meanwhile, a monkey hopped from a banyan tree and sat on a participant’s cycle for five minutes, giving all opportunity click pictures.

Buoyed by the availability of cycle tracks, Lucknow district administration is mulling some in Old City, especially in the Hussainabad area. District magistrate Raj Shekhar said, “We are proposing cycle tracks around Bada Imambara, Chhota Imambara, Clock Tower, Picture Gallery, KGMU, Tile Wale Masjid, etc. Once the cycle track is in place, Hussainabad Trust will start a free cycle kiosk with 100 bicycles for tourists at Bada Imambara, free of cost for 2-3 hours on deposit of photocopy of ID card.”

The DM went to Bada and Chhota Imambaras, Clock Tower, Rumi Gate, Satkhanda and Kaiserbagh. The DM said such events should be made a part of Lucknow’s annual tourism calendar. “It was a ride of around 6-7 kilometres. It was a great fun and also rare learning experience for us. It is a healthy tourism practice which will save lot of time, parking space and have added health advantage. But it needs more coordination with tourist police, co-ordination with LMC, traffic police, an escort vehicle with loud hailer and need of cycle track in the above areas. Once stabilised it will be a special attraction of Lucknow tourism,” the DM added.

Cold, filtered water 500 litres each at Bara and Chhota Imambara and 200 litres at Picture Gallery are also being planned. DG tourism Amrit Abhijat complained about the lack of cleanliness on Kaiserb

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / September 28th, 2015

SP committed to honour Social Heroes

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Inspiration / Positive News and Features, Records, All

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said that one needs to search his role model from the society he comes from as they can be the guiding light for the generation to come and the government on its part should honor those personalities.

“Samajwadi Party (SP) government is committed for honoring these personalities because a small encouragement could send a positive signal among the masses,” Yadav said in a function held at his official residence where different personalities who contributed for the betterment of society were honoured.

Yadav said that, he expects that people will draw inspiration from these people. “The SP government is committed to provide an opportunity to these people and the youths of state, who have the will to struggle and work for the society,” he said.

“We always try to find fault among others. We never try to see goodness among the people around us. There are many who are struggling to make both ends meet. Their success story could be inspiring for the next generation,” he said.

The Chief Minister provided a monetary cheque to many of these ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, including the 13-years-old Harendra Singh of Noida, 15-year-old girl Sushma of Lucknow and an elderly typist of Lucknow, Krishna Kumar whose typewriter was broken by a policeman during an anti-encroachment drive.

The 13-year-old boy Harendra Singh has drawn global attention for his commitment towards his studies. He studies in the morning in a school and at night earns livelihood at Noida Metro station. His commitment has gone viral in the social media. CM gave him a cheque of Rs 5 lakh.

Earlier, Yadav had honoured eight personalities that includes photo journalist Ashutosh Tripathi, whose photo of police beating up typist Krishna Kumar became viral in the social media.

Other awardees were Ramjit Yadav of Mirzapur who recently saved 10 children from drowning in Ganga and was given Rs 10 lakh. Rajkumar, Sanjay and Pintu Sahani of Ballia were awarded Rs 1 each for saving public from crocodile.

CM also honoured noted urdu shayar Wasim Bareilvi, who was present on the occasion.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rajendra Chaudhry and ICDS Minister Kailesh Chaurasi were also present in the meeting.

source: http://www.dailypioneer.com / The Pioneer / Home> State editions> Lucknow / PNS, Lucknow / Monday – September 28th, 2015

CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CSIR-CIMAP), Lucknow Wins the CSIR Award for S&T Innovations for Rural Development – 2014

Records, All, Science & Technology

DG, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Dr. Girish Sahni, on the occasion of CSIR Foundation Day, today announced bestowing of CSIR Award for S&T Innovations for Rural Development (CAIRD) – 2014 upon CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CSIR-CIMAP), Lucknow for “Enhancing incomes of farm communities through Vetiver based Technological Interventions”.

CSIR had instituted the “CSIR Award for S&T Innovations for Rural Development” in the year 2006 to recognize and honour S&T innovations that have helped transform the lives of rural people.

The effort through this award, in a way, is also to give a boost to rural development through intrinsic innovation and its implementation at ground level.

The award, which has emerged as a very prestigious one, carries a cash prize of Rs.10 lakh, a citation and a shield.

source: http://www.pib.nic.in / Press Informaion Bureau, Government of Indai, Ministry of Science & Technology / by KSP / September 26th, 2015