Magazine - Indian Friends of Atlanta

Transcription

INDIAN FRIENDS OF ATLANTA (IFA)
Unity is Diversity, Sathyameva Jayathe...
15th Aug, 2015
FREEDOM IN THE MIND
FAITH IN THE WORDS
PRIDE IN OUR SOULS
69th
Indian Independence Day
Celebrations
Indian Friends of Atlanta (IFA)
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• To create awareness of the rich Indian heritage among the
general public and especially within the younger members of
the Indo American community.
Our Vision
• To promote Goodwill, Friendship and Unity among the Indo
American community.
IFA concerns itself with social welfare. Our main
motive is “unity in diversity and service to the
community”.
• The IFA promotes educational, socio-economic and
technological initiatives to empower the Indian-American
community in the United States.
Our Mission
• It facilitates networks and forums for citizens--resident and/
or immigrants through which they can exchange expertise,
share resources, offer global perspectives and accept
opportunities for leadership in the mainstream community.
The mission of the IFA is to foster and promote
cultural and social interactions among the
members and all those interested in Indian culture
and heritage. The IFA will also strive to raise
political awareness among its members and others
regarding issues relevant to India and the people
of Indian origin.
• The IFA designs, develops, implements, monitors and
evaluates programs and projects which will identify, foster
and strengthen the community and enhance domestic
partnerships or global initiatives.
• The organization will document, disseminate, and develop
an information database to equip community leaders and
grassroots activists to identify and fulfill their civic, economic,
& socio-cultural objectives.
• The IFA will forge alliances with mainstream organizations,
civil rights groups and/or ethnic associations to promote
social responsibility, seek economic equity, and support
community action through education and advocacy.
• The organizational leadership will identify Indian Americans
who have leadership abilities and support them to be future
leaders.
Our History
The IFA, which only a year ago was a fledgling group with a
handful members, has now established itself as a dynamic and
influential body that provides a strong voice for the Indian
community in Georgia.It was founded in 2014, IFA continue
to recognize people with exceptional qualities. IFA represents
the hopes and aspirations of those immigrants who are united
by their common bond of Indian Heritage and American
Commitment.
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Contents
Message - Consul General of India
5
Message - Georgia State Governor
7
Supporting Organizations
8
IFA Founding Members
11
IFA Advisory Council
12
Indian Independence
14
Freedom Fighters of India
18
IFA Immigration Seminar
26
Poems by Subramanya Bharathi
28
Indian Diaspora in USA
30
Statue of Equality by Jeeyar Swamiji
34
Learning from India’s Independence Struggle
38
IFA College Seminar
42
KERALA - God’s Own Country
45
A Big Salaam to Dr. Kalam
46
About Gujarat
51
About GATS / Tamilnadu 53
About Telangana
55
About Andhra Pradesh
56
About Karnataka
58
About Maharastra
59
About Odisha
61
About Punjab
63
About Jammu & Kashmir
65
About Rajasthan
67
About West Bengal
68
2015 Freedom Mela Volunteers
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NAGESH SINGH
Consul General of India
5549 Glenridge Drive NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30342
United States of America (USA)
Tel: 404-549-8358
Fax: 678-935-7054
E-mail: cg.atlanta@mea.gov.in
MESSAGE
I am happy to learn that the Indian Friends of Atlanta (IFA) is
organizing ‘Freedom Mela 2015’ to celebrate India’s 69th Independence
Day on August 15, 2015, at Newtown Park, Johns Creek.
This event, with unity in diversity as its theme, is a fine example of all
the good that can be attained through a collective effort, transcending
narrow divisions which we tend to create amongst ourselves. It also
attests the important role of the Indian diaspora in promoting a better
understanding of our rich and diverse culture in the United States.
I compliment the IFA for their laudable initiative, which is a manifestation
of their deep attachment to their roots. I extend my best wishes for a
highly successful and enjoyable ‘Freedom Mela 2015’.
I also convey my warm greetings to all our citizens, the India-American
community and our friends in the United States on the auspicious
occasion of India’s 69th Independence Day.
(Nagesh Singh)
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STATE OF GEORGIA
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
ATLANTA 30334-0900
Nathan Deal
Governor
August 15, 2015
To: Indian Friends of Atlanta
GREETINGS:
I am pleased to extend my warmest regards to Indian Friends of Atlanta. On behalf of the
State of Georgia, it is a pleasure to be a small part of your Freedom Mela.
Please allow me to welcome your distinguished guests and other attendees. I am proud that
the State of Geogrgia has become a home for numerous individuals of varying backgrounds and
cultures. It is important to our developement as a community to join our neighbors in celebrating
significant cultural holidays, and Indian Independence Day is an important marker for many citizens
of this state. I join my fellow Georgians in celebrating this special day, and thank you for your many
contributions to our state.
I commend the Indian Friends of Atlanta for organizing this event and send my best wishes
for a successful and enjoyable Indian Independence Day celebration.
Sincerely,
Nathan Deal
ND:bt
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INDIAN
INDEPENDENCE
Before the Indian Independence Movement in the early 1900’s,
India had been under the influence of a foreign ruler for its
entire history. It was never in control of its own political destiny,
nor was it ever considered a legitimate country. By the time the
British took over the area, the citizens of India were beginning
to grow restless with having no say in any political decisions.
There was turmoil beneath the surface that the British were not
really aware of, nor threatened by. This turmoil was evident in
the minor rebellion of 1857, which was led by Indian soldiers.
However, not until Mohandas Gandhi arrived in 1914 did the
masses unite in their unhappiness and show Britain that they
were capable of an uprising. Britain did not willingly accept this
disloyalty, and it passed many legislative acts to try to suppress
the masses and, more importantly, Gandhi. The spirit of the
Indian people and its leader was not crushed, however, and
they continued on in their search of independence. Not until
only about 1947 did their perseverance pay off, and it was a
long and hard battle against their oppressors to finally achieve
freedom.
Prior to its search for independence, India had never enjoyed
the privilege of deciding its own political fate. Even before the
British arrived, there were many foreign rulers. However, there
were elements that made the British rule different than the
previous inhabitants. The earlier foreign rulers had slowly
integrated themselves into the Indian society; adopting their
language, religion, social habits, and customs. The British, on
the other hand, were determined to remain foreign. They did
not want to become a part of the Indian nation, they were
simply in the country to become wealthy and exercise
their political influence, causing resentment on the side
of the natives. They resented the fact that the British
did not even attempt to adopt some of
their beliefs, and in fact, they
denounced
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most of them. As time passed, the gulf between the British
people in India and the natives of the country widened. It is
understandable that the Indians were bothered by this British
condescendence because these foreigners on their land were
critical of beliefs that were embedded in the Indian heritage.
The people of India had always been proud of their rich culture
and Hindu practices. The rejection of Hinduism was a major
reason for unhappiness. The Indians were alarmed by the
introduction of Christianity. They also experienced racism on a
very high level, and it is natural that the natives began to
ferment. Although this turmoil remained beneath the surface,
some of the British were aware that if they did not tone the
racism down, the Indians would begin an uprising. Many British
were afraid that the natives would realize that they all had
common grievances and unite against the British, which would
be disastrous for their power over the foreigners. Other
Britishers thought it was simply a matter of time until India won
its independence; the natives just needed the right motivation
and guidance. The first surge of nationalism that occurred in
India was the Minor Rebellion of 1857. This mutiny was sparked
by angry sepoys, or Indian soldiers serving in the Bengal army
of the British East India Company. They were forced by the
British soldiers to use a certain type of cartridge that needed to
bitten off, but they refused because they took this as evidence
that the British thought of themselves as superior. The Indian
sepoys were severely punished for their defiance, but they did
not stand for this, and raised arms against their superiors. This
was a very minor unplanned revolt; however, it symbolized
what the rest of the natives were feeling. The sepoys were
ahead of the rest of the country because the others did not
seriously rebel until many years later. Since
this rebellion was repressed, it
actually had negative affects
for the Indians: The
localized character of
the revolt, its failure
to throw up any
outstanding
national
leader
confirmed many British in their old belief that the people of
India had no conception of national independence or
patriotism. The British now believed more that they could
control the Indians, as they had no capacity for selfgovernment. They thought the natives were incapable of
uniting and starting a threatening mutiny. These classic British
cliches only grew stronger after 1857. However, the Indians
now realized that they shared common grievances on a
national scale. From this concern with the new ideological
invasion which could not be evaded arose the phenomenon
which we call Indian nationalism. Despite the British resurgence
of confidence in their ability to suppress the Indians, the natives
were now very aware of the fact that the entire nation was
looking for a way to free themselves from British rule. It is
interesting to consider why, after hundreds of years of foreign
rule, the natives of India suddenly had this strong surge of
nationalism beginning in 1857 and carried it through to the
20th century. The important thing that brought this on was the
change in ideologies, the groupings, and the technologies of
both protest and acceptance. The influence of the Western
world changed how Indians communicated with each other.
With the installment of newspapers, postal system, and
railways, the various parts of India could now share ideas.
Previously, two Indian towns on opposite sides of the country
could not talk to each other. With these new Western tools,
natives from all over realized that they shared common
grievances and hatred toward the British. Before the
introduction of these technologies, the Indians had lacked
solidarity, which is vital in creating a country-wide sense of
patriotism. These technologies, however, were a double-edged
sword. They were an important reason why the British did not
integrate themselves into Indian society. Before the invention
of the steamer and railway, the British that came to India
planned to stay there for a while, and had no choice to but to
allow their social habits and customs to be affected by the
natives in India. The steamers and railways made for easy travel
between Britain and India. No longer did British live many years
in India, now, they simply came to get rich and leave as quickly
as possible. This caused resentment on the side of the natives,
and the gap between the two sides continued to grow. The
response on the side of the Indians was to use the technology
to their advantage and unite under one common goal: to fight
for their freedom. The first major step toward Indian
independence was the formation of the Indian National
Congress (INC). The first meeting was in December 1885 in
Bombay; among those who attended were many future leaders
of the movement. At first the congress professed empire
loyalty, western technology, and British liberties while trying to
promote national interest. The INC was concerned with the
elite’s responsibility to the rest of the
nation and began to have its
meetings at various
locations in India and
started to gather
a following
of mostly
businessmen and
professionals. However, World
War I broke out in 1914, and dragged
on until 1920. By the end of this time, the
political scene in India had changed, and so
had the INC. After 1920, it became a permanent
opponent to the British government. It now sought
participation from the masses of natives and was better
organized. It was also more uncompromising in its demands
toward Britain. After 1920, the INC quickly became the forum
for the hopes and wants of the Indian people. The British were
alarmed because the members of the congress were a new
breed of Indians. They criticized, they carped, and they claimed
rights. The INC represented the numerous forces of the country
coming together. There were strong feelings of unity and
patriotism at the meetings of the congress, and from the first
meeting, the progress toward Indian independence rapidly
sped up. The First World War brought about many changes in
the Indian political scene. The British had promised India their
independence numerous times, but no real changes had taken
place. The Indians grew more frustrated as the war went on. By
the time the war ended, Indian nationalism was extremely
strong. The war contributed to this nationalism because
post-war, the Indians realized that the British were not as
mighty as they had previously thought. They realized that there
were many superpowers of the world besides Britain and even
the power of the mighty British navy was challenged on the
seas. They looked more negatively at European tactics and
ideas in general after World War I. More importantly, this
change of the political situation in India paved the way for
Mahatma Gandhi, the eventual head of the fight toward
independence. It [WWI] provoked a revolution in the Indian
consciousness which in turn found expression in the
ascendance of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi migrated to India in
1914 from South Africa, where he had fought for social
injustices against immigrant Indians. Once in India, Indian
political independence became his priority. Gandhi adopted an
ethical system that rejected Western ideals of the greatest
good for the greatest number of people. He believed in social
justice that pertained to the individual, especially the
underprivileged. Above all Gandhi practiced nonviolence and
empathy for others over individual pursuit of happiness. Gandhi
wanted to gain the support of the masses. He led week-long
fasts and marches as a form of protest against the British. These
had a significant impact and he soon had the entire country of
India following him and looking to him as a leader. In 1921 he
decided to begin living like the masses; he dressed, ate, and
lived like the average Indian native. They felt that despite his
financial means, as he had a good amount of money, he was
truly practicing what he preached and rejecting Western beliefs
of putting self-interest over social justice. The natives thought
of Gandhi as being on the same social level as them, which is
why they listened to his preaching and united under
him. Gandhi was causing serious rebellion of the
masses against British rule, and they did
not just sit back and
watch.
They passed many
legislative
acts to try to suppress the mutiny of the natives. The first of
these was the Rowlatt Bills in 1919. These Bills allowed for the
incarceration of dangerous persons in India without trial or
legal representation. Gandhi strongly opposed this because it
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was just another way that the British flaunted their political
dominance, so he fasted for three weeks to show his
disagreement. Second was the 1919 Government Act of India,
which stated that a commission would be created after ten
years to decide whether India had the capacity for more
self-rule. This commission was called the Simon Commission,
which reported in 1930 and had no Indians on it. The ruling was
self-government for the provinces, but nothing else. The INC
was outraged because it wanted dominion status, which is a
self-governing commonwealth while being one of a number of
such territories united in a community of nations. While the
Simon Commission was reporting, Gandhi led a civil
disobedience crusade. He marched 250 miles to the sea to
produce in his own salt as a way of protesting the newly
imposed salt tax, and was eventually arrested because of this.
Next came the Round Table Conferences of 1930 and 1931. A
sympathetic Viceroy, Lord Irwin, was appointed, who believed
that India deserved dominion status. The first conference failed
because neither INC members nor Gandhi were present.
However, Irwin convinced Gandhi to attend the second one
and he agreed to end the civil disobedience campaign, but this
conference also failed because an agreement over religion
could not be achieved. Finally came the 1935 Government Act
of India, which proposed that an elected Indian assembly
would have a political say in everything, except defense and
foreign affairs, and that the eleven provincial assemblies would
have full control over only local affairs. Nationalists in India were
not pleased with this because they wanted dominion status
granted immediately. Once again, it also failed to take on the
age-old religious issues between Muslims and Hindu’s. The
Muslim League actually wanted a split from India after the
Hindu’s dominated Congress in 1937. Gandhi, however, was
opposed to this idea because he felt a united India was a
stronger India.
World War II broke out in 1939 and halted the Indian issue
temporarily, at least in Britain’s eyes. During the war, the British
promised dominion status for India at war’s end because many
Indians fought for Britain against Japan. In 1945, after the
war had ended, attempts to draw up a constitution that was
satisfactory failed yet again because of the quarrel between the
Muslims and Hindu’s. The Muslim League took direct action in
1946 to try to get an Independent Muslim state, which caused
India to break out in civil war. Once again in 1947,
Britain promised India their freedom. This time, there
was more merit to this promise. The 1947 Indian
Independence Act was written in August of that year.
It created Pakistan, which was a Muslim state that
was separate from India. Both countries were granted
their independence, and all of Gandhi’s hard work
as well as the undying support of the Indian people
had finally paid off. It is only natural for a nation of
people who have been oppressed for their entire
history to have an uprising and demand freedom.
The Indians were no different in this aspect. They
dealt with British rule for decades and slowly built up
a strong sense of nationalism. The rebellion of 1857
was symbolic of how the country was feeling and
showed that the natives of India did hope to have
political freedom one day. The reorganization of the
Indian National Congress after the First World War
was a breakthrough for the people of India. It gave
them a chance to express their political goals and
find more efficient ways to achieve political freedom.
World War I also led to the ascendance of Mohandas
Gandhi, who showed the masses what needed to
be done to show the British that the Indians were
capable of achieving political freedom. Despite the
many legislative acts that were passed by the British
to try to repress this rebellion, the natives were
persistent in their struggle and eventually came out
on top. They survived two World Wars and many
empty promises for freedom. Eventually, all this hard
work and belief in their cause paid off. The Indian
Independence Movement shows that determination
and faith can help achieve goals, which is why it has
been called by historians one of the most important
and significant advances of an oppressed people in
modern history.
Mohandas Karamchand
Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi popularly known
as ‘Father of the Nation’ was one
of the charismatic Indian leaders
who fought for the freedom of the
country. This great leader was born in Porbandar, Gujarat
on Oct 2, 1869. He was the youngest of the three sons
of Putlibai and Karamchand Gandhi. He completed his
primary studies in Rajkot and was married to Kasturba at
the age of 13.
Indian Freedom Fighters had fought against the
British Empire and continued the Indian freedom
struggle with their undying spirit and bravery. The
valorous Freedom Fighters of India sacrificed their
lives to achieve independence for the nation.
The indian freedom fighters faced several tortures,
hardships and exploitations to earn national freedom.
Independent India was the dream of each and every
Indian who lived under the British rule in india. Every
individual, during the British rule, fought in some or
other way having a common aim of abolishing the
British and various other colonial authorities ruling
over different parts of India. A century of struggle,
revolution, blood shedding, sacrifices and battles
followed and finally India became independent on
the 15th of August, 1947.
India secured independence from the British rule
but the nation lost a large number of men and
women who possessed immense bravery and spirit
of patriotism. These great people are honoured
with the title of Freedom Fighters. The Indian
Independence Movement comprised mainly the
efforts by Indians to secure political independence
from the rule of the British, the Portuguese and
the French. This involved a broad range of Indian
political organisations, rebellions and philosophies
between 1857 and the independence of India on
15th of August, 1947.
Some of the famous Indian freedom fighters were
Mangal Pandey, Rani of Jhansi, Tantya Tope and the
famous leader Mahatma Gandhi who brought in the
weapon of non-violence to fight against the enemy.
Some of the other major freedom fighters of India
include Lala Lajpat Rai, Annie Besant, Bal Gangadhar
Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev,
Chandrashekhar Azad, Sarojini Naidu, Gopal
Krishna Gokhale, Dadabhai Naoroji, Chakravarti
Rajagopalachari, Sucheta Kriplani etc. There are
a large number of women and men who fought
daringly for the Independence of India.
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In 1891, Gandhi went to London to study Law but after
having admitted to Britisah bar he returned to India and
began law practice in Bombay. After a span of two years he
was called by an Indian company in South Africa to work as
a legal advisor. There he found that he was ill-treated and
abused because of inferior race and color discrimination.
This was a common problem with all Indians. He then
decided to throw himself into the freedom struggle to
secure rights for Indian people. For this cause, Gandhi
stayed in South Africa for almost 25 years.
Influenced by the Bhagvad Gita and Hindu beliefs, the Jain
religion and the Christian teachings of Leo Tolstoy, Gandhi
moved on the path of Satya and Ahimsa. ‘Satya’ meaning
‘truth’ and ‘ahimsa’ meaning ‘non-violence’ were the two
weapons that Gandhi used to fight the enemy. He led the
campaign in South Africa with the principle of Satyagraha
for Indian rights and was arrested many times for his
political activities. In 1914, many of Gandhi’s demands
were accepted by the Government of the Union of South
Africa. After his struggle in South Africa he returned to
India and started Non-Cooperation movement there.
Gandhi, after returning to India inspired people to boycott
British goods. This movement was known as Swaraj
and was economically significant because Indian home
industries were virtually destructed by British industrialists.
He advocated renewal of native Indian industries and
began to use a spinning wheel as a token of return
to simple village life. Thereafter, he constantly began
promoting satyagraha, non-violence, non-cooperation
and swaraj to achieve independence. Finally, in August
1947, the British were forced to leave India.
Mahatma Gandhi, symbol of Free India, was assassinated
by Nathuram Godse in January 1948. His mortal frame
has already turned into ashes years ago but he still lives
in the hearts of millions of people. Mahatma Gandhi,
an embodiment of eternal love and truth, will live for
immortal ages.
Jawaharlal Nehru
Born on November 14, 1889 in
Allahabad, Jawaharlal Nehru was the
first Prime Minister of India. The only
son of Motilal Nehru and Swarup Rani
was a patriot, a freedom fighter and the
most highly respected personality. He completed his early
education in a boarding school in England. For higher studies
he went to Cambridge University and returned to India in 1912
as a barrister. Just after his studies, in 1916 he got married to
Kamala Kaul.
Nehru was an intellectual with strong feelings of patriotism,
liberty and unity. Being highly influenced by Gandhiji, he
wanted to join the freedom struggle. During the struggle he
was imprisoned several times. He had spent almost 14 years of
his life in prison. For 5 times consequently he was elected as the
President of Indian National Congress and under his influence
Congress adopted the goal of complete independence. After
centuries of struggle, India became independent in 1947 and
soon after that Nehru was appointed as the first Prime Minister
of the country.
Even after independence he had served the country that had
left a profound influence on the social structure, intellectual
development and overall development of the country. He is
said to be the architect, the maker of modern India. On May 27,
1964 India lost its architect.
Mangal Pandey
Born on July 19, 1827 in the village of
Nagwa, district Ballia, Uttar Pradesh,
Mangal Pandey was introduced to Indian
history as the first freedom fighter and
martyr of 1857. He is popularly named
‘Shaheed Mangal Pandey’ because ‘Shaheed’ means martyr
in Urdu and he was the first Indian sepoy who woke up the
Indian masses to fight for the nation.
Mangal Pandey, at the age of 22 joined the British East India
Company as a soldier in the 34th Regiment of Bengal Native
Infantry. He was a true freedom fighter who gave a spark to
the First War of Indian Independence. The British termed it as
Sepoy Mutiny 1857 as it was a mass revolt of Indian soldiers in
the British Army.
The main reason of Sepoy Mutiny was the Pattern 1853 Enfield
rifled musket. To load a new rifle, the soldiers had to bite the
cartridge and open to pour gunpowder into the rifle’s muzzle.
There was a widespread rumor that these cartridges were
greased with lard or tallow. Lard is the pork fat which the
Muslims regarded as unclean and tallow is the beef fat which
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the Hindus regarded as sacred. The British army constituted 96%
of Indians and so both the Hindus and the Muslims refused to
accept these cartridges. Everyone had a firm belief that this was
done intentionally and this discontent turned into a major revolt.
Mass revolt forced Pandey to attack his British sergeant on the
parade ground, besides wounding an adjutant. A native soldier
stopped him from killing them. The officer in charge ordered a
Jamadaar of the troop to arrest Pandey but he refused to do so.
Mangal tried to commit suicide to light the flame of nationalism
in the hearts of millions of Indians but he failed to do so. He
was then captured and sentenced to death on April 8, 1857 in
Barrackpore. March 29, 1857 is considered to be a day when
Mangal Pandey sowed the seed for a struggle which gave India
her freedom.
Chandrasekhar Azad
Chandrashekhar,
a
fearless
revolutionary and a great freedom
fighter, was born on July 23, 1906 in
Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh.
He was the son of Pandit Sita Ram
Tiwari and Jagrani Devi. He started his education in
Bhavra and at the age of 14 he went to Varanasi where
he was taught to live the austere life of a Brahamachari.
During his stay in Varanasi he was highly inspired by
the Non-Cooperation movement of Mahatma Gandhi.
He actively participated in the movement for which he
was sentenced to fifteen lashes of logging at the age of
15. In the court he addressed himself as ‘Azad’, and gave
his father’s name as ‘Swadhin’ and his mother’s name
Bhagat Singh
Bhagat Singh, a symbol of heroism, was
born in a Sikh family in Layalpur, Punjab on
September 27, 1907. He was a national hero
who gave a new wave to the revolutionary
movement in India. His only goal in life was
the destruction of the British Empire.
as ‘Dhart Ma’. With endurance, courage and fortitude he
tolerated all the lashes. With each stroke of the whip he
shouted ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’. From then, he was honored
and titled as ‘Azad’ by the local Indians. Thereafter, he got
the name Chandrashekhar Azad. When he was released,
he took a pledge that he would never be arrested by the
Britishers and will die as a free man.
Bhagat started his education in DAV School in Lahore but was
not able to complete his studies because he was highly disturbed
and influenced by the Jalianwala Bagh massacre at the age of 12.
His desire to drive British out from India became stronger and
he joined the Non-Cooperation Movement called by Gandhiji in
1921. The incidence of Chauri-Chaura in Gorakhpur made Bhagat
violent and he decided to earn freedom with armed revolution
rather than non-violence. He then joined the National College in
Lahore, a center of revolutionary activities.
When the Non-Cooperation Movement was suspended
To spread message of revolution in Punjab, Bhagat formed a
union of revolutionaries by the name ‘Naujavan Bharat Sabha’
and gave a call for mass mobilization. In 1928, he went to
Delhi to attend a meeting of revolutionaries’ and there he
came in contact with Chandrashekhar Azad. With a common
aim to establish republic in India they both formed ‘Hindustan
Samajvadi Prajatantra Sangha’. There were protests against of
Simon Commission visit to India and in this protest Lala Lajpat
Rai was brutally lathi charged and later on he died. This added
to the anger and discontent of Bhagat and he was determined
to kill the British official and Deputy Inspector General Scott
responsible for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. By mistake, he killed
assistant superintendent Saunders and ran from Lahore to
escape punishment. He threw a bomb in the Central Legislative
Assembly on April 18, 1929 and was sentenced to death on
March 23, 1931.
to avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai.
Though dead, Bhagat Singh is still living in the history of humanity
and remembered as a prominent face of the freedom struggle.
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due to Chauri-Chaura incidence, Azad switched over
to armed revolution and formed ‘Hindustan Socialist
Republican Association’ with other revolutionaries to
spread the message of complete independence. He
actively participated in revolutionary activities and was
involved in Kakori Train Robbery and the attempt to blow
up the Viceroy’s train in 1926. For British Government, he
was a terrorist because he killed John Poyantz Saunders
On 27th February 1931, Azad was betrayed by one of
the associates who informed the British Police. In Alfred
Park, Allahabad he was besieged by the British police.
Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Born in a well-cultured Brahmin
family on July 23, 1856 in Ratangari,
Maharashtra, Bal Gangadhar Tilak
was a multifacet personality. He
is considered to be the ‘Father of
Indian Unrest’. He was a scholar of Indian history, Sanskrit,
mathematics, astronomy and Hinduism.
He had imbibed values, cultures and intelligence from
his father Gangadhar Ramchandra Tilak who was a
Sanskrit scholar and a famous teacher. At the age of 10,
Bal Gangadhar went to Pune with his family as his father
was transferred. In Pune, he was educated in an AngloVernacular school. After some years he lost his mother and
at the age of 16 his father too he got married to a 10-yearold girl named Satyabhama while he was studying in
Matriculation. In 1877, Tilak completed his studies and
continued with studying Law.
With an aim to impart teachings about Indian culture and
national ideals to India’s youth, Tilak along with Agarkar
and Vishnushstry founded the ‘Deccan Education Society’.
Soon after that Tilak started two weeklies, ‘Kesari’ and
‘Marathi’ to highlight plight of Indians. He also started
the celebrations of Ganapati Festival and Shivaji Jayanti
to bring people close together and join the nationalist
movement against British.
In fighting for people’s cause, twice he was sentenced to
imprisonment. He launched Swadeshi Movenment and
believed that ‘Swaraj is my birth right and I shall have it’.
This quote inspired millions of Indians to join the freedom
struggle. With the goal of Swaraj, he also built ‘Home Rule
League’. Tilak constantly traveled across the country to
inspire and convince people to believe in Swaraj and fight
for freedom. He was constantly fighting against injustice
and one sad day on August 1, 1920, he died.
Bal Gangadhar Tilak was one of the prime architects of
modern India and is still living in the hearts of millions of
India.
He fought bravely for quite some time but seeing no
other way he shot himself and fulfilled his desire to
die a ‘free man’. A great Indian leader, Chandrashekhar
Azad was the heart of all revolutionary leaders and his
poetic composition, ‘Dushman ki goliyon ka hum samna
karenge, Azad hee rahein hain, azad hee rahenge’ is still
recited by Indian soldiers fighting for free India.
Dr. Rajendra Prasad
Dr. Rajendra Prasad, first President
of independent India, was born on
December 3, 1884 in Ziradevi village
in Bihar’s Siwan district.
He was the youngest son of Mahadev
Sahay and Kamleshwari Devi. As per their custom, he was
put under a Maulavi to learn Persian at the age of 5. Later
on, he also learnt Hindi and arithmetic. He got married to
Rajvanshi Devi at the age of 12. After marriage, he gave
the entrance examination for Calcutta University and got
scholarship there. He was a brilliant student and earned
Masters Degree in Law.
In 1905, Dr Rajendra Prasad plunged a headlong into the
Swadeshi Movement and later on joined the Dawn Society
run by Satish Chandra Mukherjee and Sister Nivedita.
A new awareness was dawning into him under the influence
of Mahatma Gandhi. Highly impressed by Gandhiji’s
dedication, courage and conviction, he joined him in the
freedom struggle. He was actively involved in the NonCooperation Movement, Salt Stayagraha and Champaran
Agrarian Agitation.
In 1934, while Prasad was in jail, a devastating earthquake
struck Bihar. Prasad was soon released after that and he
completely dedicated himself to raise funds for the victims
of earthquake. He was successful in doing so and further to
it in 1935 during the Quetta earthquake he had set up relief
committees.
In 1934, he was elected as the President of Indian National
Congress and in 1950 as President of independent India. As
a President, he served the country for twelve years and was
retired in 1962.
In the subsequent year he was honored with the Bharat
Ratna Award, the nation’s highest civilian award. He lived for
almost a year after that and then left for his heavenly abode
on February 28, 1963.
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, popularly
known as ‘Rajaji’ or ‘C.R.’, was born in
a Tamil Brahmin family on December
10, 1878 in a village of Salem district.
He was a great patriot, astute politician,
incisive thinker, and one of the greatest statesmen.
C.R. completed his graduation from central Hindu College of
Madras and took a Law Degree from Madras Law College. In
1900, he shifted his interest form law to politics.
Rajaji actively participated in Home League Rule under Bal
Gangadhar Tilak. Later in 1919, he was highly influenced by
the work of Gandhi Ji and chose to join him in the freedom
struggle. Thereafter, he came into contact with Nehru,
Patel, Annie Besant, Rajendra Prasad and Maulana Azad. In
1921, under Mahatma Gandhi, he was selected as General
Secretary of Congress Party and soon after that his daughter
got married in the Gandhi family.
21
Later, in 1937 he was selected as the Chief Minister of
Madras. He maintained his position as the top leaders of
the Congress until independence. In 1946, he became
minister in the interim government and finally in 1947, after
independence, he was appointed as the governor of West
Bengal. In 1948, he was honored with the title ‘First Indian
Governor General of India’.
In 1957, Rajaji found the Swatantra Party with an aim to
oppose the license system required to set up a business
in India. He also published the Hindu epic Mahabharata
that was translated from Sanskrit to Tamil and then to
Hindi. Till his last breath that he took on December 26,
1992, he constantly had served the country and worked for
betterment.
Gopal Krishna Gokhale
Gopal Krishna Gokhale, a pioneer
of Indian National Movement, was
born on May 9, 1866 in Kothapur,
Maharashtra.
This great son of Krishna Rao and
Valubai was the political guru of Gandhi Ji. He received his
early education at Rajaram High School in Kothapur and later
on moved to Bombay in 1884 to receive higher education.
It is said that Gokhale was one of the first Indians who
completed graduation. Higher education made him
understand the importance of liberty, democracy and
parliamentary system. He wanted to spread the knowledge
he gained and so moved on to teaching. With strong
command over English he was able to communicate with
the Britishers but he also wanted local Indians to speak in a
way that their voices are heard.
In 1885, Gokhale along with his Deccan Education Society
colleagues founded the Fergusson College in Pune. In
the subsequent year he met a great scholar and a social
reformer Mahadev Govind Rane. Being highly influenced
by the social works of Ranade, Gokhale called him guru and
started moving on the path of social reforms. He founded
the Servants of India Society in 1905. The main objective
of this society was to train Indians to raise their voices and
serve their country.
Gokhale was actively involved in the Morley-Minto reforms
of 1909 that gave Indians right to access highest posts in the
government. He also wrote articles for Tilak’s weekly paper.
Through his articles he tried to awaken the lost voices, latent
patriotism and the feeling of liberty.
Gokhale had greatly contributed to India’s independence
and development in all spheres. He was a patient of diabetes
and asthma and unfortunately died on February 19, 1915.
22
Jhansi Ki Rani
Lakshmibai, The Rani Queen of Jhansi 19
November 1835 – 17 June 1858 known
as Jhansi Ki Rani, was the queen of the
Maratha-ruled princely state of Jhansi,
was one of the leading figures of the
Indian Rebellion of 1857, and a symbol of
resistance to British rule in India. She has gone down in Indian
history as a legendary figure, as India’s “Joan of Arc. she was called
by the name Manikarnika. Affectionately, her family members
called her Manu. At a tender age of four, she lost her mother. As a
result, the responsibility of raising her fell upon her father. While
pursuing studies, she also took formal training in martial arts,
which included horse riding, shooting and fencing.
Originally named Manikarnika at birth nicknamed Manu, she was
born on 19 November 1835 at Kashi Varanasi to a Maharashtrian
Karhade Brahmin family from Dwadashi, District Satara. She lost
her mother at the age of four. She was educated at home. Her
father Moropant Tambey worked at the court of Peshwa Baji Rao
II at Bithur and then travelled to the court of Raja Gangadhar Rao
Newalkar, the Maharaja of Jhansi, when Manu was thirteen years
old. She was married to Gangadhar Rao, the Raja of Jhansi, at the
age of 14.
During that period, Lord Dalhousie was the Governor General
of British India. The adopted child was named Damodar Rao.
As per the Hindu tradition, he was their legal heir. However, the
British rulers refused to accept him as the legal heir. As per the
Doctrine of Lapse, Lord Dalhousie decided to seize the state of
Jhansi. Rani Lakshmibai went to a British lawyer and consulted
him. Thereafter, she filed an appeal for the hearing of her case
in London. But, her plea was rejected. The British authorities
confiscated the state jewels. Also, an order was passed asking the
Rani to leave Jhansi fort and move to the Rani Mahal in Jhansi.
Laxmibai was firm about protecting the state of Jhansi
After her marriage, she was given the name Lakshmi Bai. Because
of her father’s influence at court, Rani Lakshmi Bai had more
independence than most women, who were normally restricted
to the zenana: she studied self defense, horsemanship, archery,
and even formed her own army out of her female friends at court.
Rani Lakshmi Bai gave birth to a son in 1851, however this child
died when he was about four months old. After the death of their
son, the Raja and Rani of Jhansi adopted Damodar Rao. However,
it is said that her husband the Raja never recovered from his son’s
death, and he died on 21 November 1853 of a broken heart.
Because Damodar Rao was adopted and not biologically related
to the Raja, the East India Company, under Governor-General
Lord Dalhousie, was able to install the Doctrine of Lapse, rejecting
Rao’s rightful claim to the throne. Dalhousie then annexed Jhansi,
saying that the throne had become “lapsed” and thus put Jhansi
under his “protection”. In March 1854, the Rani was given a
pension of 60,000 rupees and ordered to leave the palace at the
Jhansi fort.
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose was a most famous
legendary figure and brave freedom fighter
in the Indian history. His great contributions
of freedom struggle are unforgettable in
the history of India. He was a real brave
hero of the India who had left his home and comfort forever for
his motherland. He always believed in violence and chose way of
an armed rebellion to get independence from British rule.
He was born in Cuttack, Orissa on 23rd of January in 1897 in the
rich Hindu family. His father was Janaki Nath Bose who was a
successful barrister and mother was Prabhabati Devi. One he was
expelled from the Presidency College Calcutta because of being
involved on the attack of British Principal. He brilliantly qualified
I.C.S Examination but gave up and joined Non-Co-operation
Movement in 1921 to fight for freedom of India.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was born in 1875
at Karamsad, a village in Kaira district in
Gujarat. He was a farmer coming from a
farmer’s family. At school, he was a naughty
and mischievous boy. In due course, he
passed his matriculation examination and after some years he
passed the Law examination. He practiced as a lawyer at Godhra.
He carried on a roaring legal practice. As he was ambitious,
he went to England and became a barister-at-law. In 1923, he
became the leader of Bardoli Satyagraha. Since then, he came to
be called Sardar Patel. His elder brother, Mr. Vithalbhai Patel, was
the President of the Indian Legislative Assembly.
He was jailed several times in connection with the freedom
movement. He was the right hand man of Mahatma Gandhi
and his most trusted lieutenant. It was Patel who maintained
discipline in the Congress ranks. In 1936, the Congress at the
General Election won the majority of seats in seven provinces of
British India.
Sardar Patel, as the most important member of the Central
Parliamentary Board, controlled with a firm hand the Congress
Ministries in the seven provinces. In 1947, India was partitioned
into Pakistan and free India. Sardar Patel became free India’s first
deputy Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru being the first
Prime Minister. He was in charge of the Home Department and
administered law and order.
Future historians will marvel at his organizing capacity and
superhuman ability. The integration of 600 Princely States and
He left Congress even after being a president of Congress in
1939 because of some political differences with the Mahatma
Gandhi. One day he made his own Indian National powerful party
called Azad Hind Fauj as he believed that non-violence policy of
Gandhiji was not capable enough to make India an independent
country. He finally prepared a big and powerful Azad Hind Fauj
to fight with the British rule.
He went to Germany and founded Indian National Army with the
help of some Indian Prisoners of war and Indian residents there.
After lots of disappointment by Hitler he went to Japan and gave
a famous slogan of “Delhi Chalo” (means March to Delhi) to his
Indian National Army where a violent fight took place between
Azad Hind Fauj and Anglo-American Forces. Unfortunately, they
forced to be surrendered including Netaji. Soon, Netaji left for
Tokyo in the plane however plane got crash at Inland of Formosa.
It was reported that Netaji was killed in that plane accident. The
adventurous works of Netaji is still inspires millions of Indian
youths to do something for country.
the elimination of autocratic rule of the Maharajas and Nawabs
will ever stand out as his unique and greatest achievement. He
did it without bloodshed and in the short span of two years.
Was it not a miracle? To him rightly goes the credit of completely
changing the map of India. Tribal raiders and Pakistani troops
attacked Kashmir and tried to secure accession by force. He saw
the writing on the wall. The Indian armies landed in Kashmir by
air.
The tide was stemmed, the tables were turned. The tribal
raiders and Pakistani troops were made to flee. Cease-fire was
proclaimed in January 1949. The police action against the Nizam
of Hyderabad showed his iron will to see a thing through, no
matter how insurmountable the difficulties and how great the
opposition.
He was essentially a man of action. He was India’s man of destiny.
He was the Steel Man of India. He was the brightest luminary on
the home front. He was a walking volcano with fires raging in
his heart. He was not a man to be ignored or trifled with. Defeat
he never knew, weakness he never felt and indiscipline he never
tolerated.
He was a pillar of fire and enthusiasm, but like a practical
statesman, he was also calm and unfathomable. He never
hesitated to take a decisive step. He combined quickness of
decision with resourcefulness.
He was the greatest administrator and the best statesman that
India has ever produced. His death on 15th December 1950, left
India poorer. By his death free India has suffered a loss in political
leadership that is difficult to repair.
23
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
Born in Mecca in 1888, Maulana came to
India in 1890 as a child. The best part of his
formative years were spent in Calcutta. In
1916, he was to meet Gandhiji in Calcutta,
and was greatly influenced by his speeches.
Azad joined the freedom movement of India, and was arrested by
the British for his seditious writings, and detained in jail at Ranchi
for four years. On his release in January, 1920 he met Gandhiji in
the latter’s Sabarmati Ashrama, and became his ardent follower.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad was a profound scholar, a great
patriot and a veteran statesman. He was an outstanding Muslim
whom no provocation and no pressure could deflect from the
path of nationalism. He became the symbol of Hindu-Muslim
Tantya Tope
Tantya Tope (1814 - 1859)(pronounced
Toh-pey), also known as Ram Chandra
Pandurang, was an Indian leader in the
Indian rebellion of 1857.
Born in at village Yeola in Maharashtra, he
was the son of Pandurang Rao Tope, an important noble at the
court of the Maratha Peshwa Baji Rao II. His father shifted his
family with the ill-fated Peshwa to Bithur where his son became
the most intimate friend of the Peshwa’s adopted son, Nana
Dhondu Pant (known as Nana Sahib) and Maharaja Madhav
Singhji.
In 1851, when Lord Dalhousie deprived Nana Sahib of his father’s
pension, Tantya Tope also became a sworn enemy of the British.
In May 1857, when the political storm was gaining momentum,
he won over the Indian troops of the East India Company,
stvationed at Kanpur (Cawnpore), established Nana Sahib’s
authority and became the Commander-in-Chief of his forces.
After the reoccupation of Kanpur and separation from Nana
Sahib, Tantya Tope shifted his headquarters to Kalpi to join
hands with the Rani Lakshmi Bai and led a revolt in Bundelkhand.
He was routed at Betwa, Koonch, and Kalpi, but reached Gwalior
and declared Nana Sahib as Peshwa with the support of the
Gwalior contingent. Before he could consolidate his position
he was defeated by Hugh Henry Rose, 1st Baron Strathnairn in a
memorable battle in which Rani Lakshmi Bai was killed leading
her forces against the British assault on Gwailor.
After losing Gwalior to the British, he launched a successful
guerrilla campaign in the Sagar and Narmada regions and in
Khandesh and Rajasthan. The British forces failed to subdue
24
unity, enjoying in a large measure the confidence of both the
communities even on trying occasions.
Azad was highly respected by the Muslims, even when he was
very young, as he was a great scholar of merit. He was a reputed
scholar of the Quran. As an orator in Urdu, he was unrivalled. He
edited the famous paper Liasanus Side at the age of fifteen. Poet
Hali described Azad as ‘an old head on young shoulders’.
Azad took part in all the Congress movements launched by
Gandhiji, and was jailed number of times as a freedom fighter.
Azad became the President of the Congress Party in 1940, as
a prominent member of the Congress. But his dream of one
composite nation was shattered, when India was divided on the
eve of her independence. He became a sad man.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad died on 22 February, 1958.
him for over a year. He was, however, betrayed into the hands
of the British by his trusted friend Man Singh, Chief of Narwar,
while asleep in his camp in the Paron forest. He was captured
and taken to Shivpuri where he was tried by a military court and
executed at the gallows on April 18, 1859. There is a statue of
Tantya Tope at the site of his execution near present collectorate
in Shivpuri town in Madhya Pradesh.
Ashfaqulla Khan
Ashfaqulla Khan was born on October
22, 1900 in Shahjahanpur, Uttar
Pradesh. He was the youngest of the
six children of Shafiqur Rahman and
Mazharunissa. His father worked in
the police department. Ashfaqulla was school student
when Mahatma Gandhi called for the Non-Cooperation
Movement. This had a great influence on him and shaped
him to become a freedom fighter. He was labeled as a
terrorist by the British Government for his active participation
in the train robbery at Kakori.
After the Chauri Chaura incident, Mahatma Gandhi’s
withdrawal of the Non-Cooperation Movement left the
youth of India very much depressed. Ashfaqulla was one of
them. He felt the urge to free India as soon as possible and
joined the extremists.
He made friendship with Ram Prasad Bismil who was a
famous revolutionary of Shahjahanpur and a member of
the Arya Samaj. In spite of their differences of faith, their
common objective to free India from the shackles of the
British rule.
A meeting was organized by the revolutionaries on August 8,
1925 in Shahjahanpur. They decided to rob the Government
treasury carried in the train to buy arms. So on August 9, 1925
the group of extremists comprising of Ram Prasad Bismil,
Ashfaqulla, Rajendra Lahiri, Thakur Roshan Singh, Sachindra
Bakshi, Chandrashekar Azad, Keshab Chakravarthy, Banwari Lal,
Mukundi Lal, Manmathnath Gupta robbed the train carrying
government money in Kakori village. This event is known as the
famous Kakori Train Robbery in history.
Ram Prasad Bismil was arrested by the police on the morning of
September 26, 1925. Ashfaqulla was still absconding. He went
to Banaras from Bihar and started working in an engineering
Bipin Chadra Pal
Described as “one of the mightiest
prophets of nationalism,” Bipin Chandra
Pal was associated with India’s political
history during its phase of the struggle for
freedom with Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Lala
Lajpat Rai. The trio was termed the “extremists” as they stood for
the ideal of Swaraj or complete political freedom to be achieved
through courage, self-help and self-sacrifice
Teacher, journalist, writer and librarian, Bipin Chandra Pal started
as a supporter of Brahmo Samaj, turned to Vedanta and ended
up as an upholder of the Vaishnava philosophy of Sri Chaitanya.
He was ardent social reformer-he married a widow of a higher
caste twice in his life and gave his powerful support to the Age of
Consent Bill of 1891. He wrote a series of studies on the makers of
modern India such as Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Keshab Chandra Sen,
Sri Aurobindo Ghosh, Rabindranath Tagore, Ashutosh Mukerjee
and Annie Besant. He preached a “composite patriotism” that
implied a universal outlook.
company. He worked there for 10 months. Now he wanted to
go abroad to study engineering which would further help him
in the freedom struggle. He went to Delhi for this purpose. He
trusted one of his Pathan friends who pretended to help him but
in turn handed him over to the police. Ashfaqulla was confined
in the Faizabad jail. His brother Riyasatullah was his counsel who
fought the case. The case for the Kakori train decoity ended
with the awarding of the death sentence to Ram Prasad Bismil,
Ashfaqulla Khan, Rajendra Lahiri and Roshan. The others were
given life sentences.
Ashfaqulla Khan was hanged on December 19, 1927.
“Paridarsak” (1886-Bengali weekly), “New India: (1902-English
weekly) and “Bande Mataram” (1906-Bengali daily) are some of
the journals started by him.
Born on November 7, 1858, in a village in Sylhet (now Bangladesh),
of well-to-do parents, Pal had to cut short his education at the
Intermediate stage. He came under the influence of eminent
Bengali leaders of his time such as Keshab Chandra Sen and
Pandit Sivanath Sastri. He was imprisoned for six months on the
grounds of his refusal to give evidence against Sri Aurobindo
in the Bande Mataram sedition case. He visited England (three
times) and America.
Pal opposed Gandhiji’s non-cooperation Movement of 1920.
The first Congress session he attended was in 1886 as a delegate
from Sylhet.
Pal virtually retired from politics from 1920 though he expressed
his views on national questions till his death on May 20, 1932.
N
O
I
T
A
R
A IMMIG
IF
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A
N
I
SEM
Indian Friends of Atlanta organized an informative seminar on
immigration at Taste of India at Alpharetta, Georgia. Lakshmi Naram
Reddy, and Kranthi Madineni received over 200 members of Atlanta
Indian community and solicited their immigration related questions to be
submitted to the attorneys.
Shyam Mallavarapu and Sunil Savili welcomed the guests and attorneys
Lucy Lu and Romy Kapoor to the seminar. The attorneys spent over 2 hours
interacting with the attendees over the new US immigration laws and
implications to Indian diaspora in Atlanta.
Romy Kapoor opened the seminar spending by talking about the
intricacies of New Immigration Laws and ins and outs of US immigration
law. Lucy Lu followed Romy Kapoor by elaborating on commonly asked
questions about employment based immigration and applying for US
permanent residency. Ravi Ponagi conducted an interactive question and
answer session with the attorneys. This session was very informative to the
audience and below topics were discussed in detail.
• Analyze & Express views on Immigration Reform:
Attorneys shared information on the new immigration
reform introduced in 2015 and how it impacts the
dependent spouses.
• F1, OPT, H1, H4 Statuses (“to do” and “not to do”): We
also discussed different visa statuses and explaining
differences between them. Attorneys discussed the
do and donts in processed these types of Visas.
•
Agencies involved with Immigration: Attorneys
explained in detail the different agencies involved
in immigration matters like Department Of Labor,
Department of Home Land Security, USCIS. This
discussion went in detail to make audience
understand the agencies and best practices in
working with these agencies.
• Family & Business Based Immigration: Session also
covered the Family and Business based immigration,
investment opportunities for foreigners in USA.
• Green Card Processing: This is one of the important
areas for the immigrants who wants to get Permanent
Resident status. We discussed the best practices,
different categories like EB1, EB2, EB3 and Green Card
processing under other categories.
• Guidance to Small Businesses: This session was more
focused on guiding the small business in immigration
matters and employment status. It covered the hiring
requirements from USCIS, DHL, DOL departments.
26
Unicorn Technologies, Rapid IT, Talent9 graciously sponsored
the events. Sunil has commended the attorneys for spending
their valuable time in helping the Indian community. IFA team
felicitated attorneys and sponsors by presenting them with
commemorative plaques.
Sunil Savili introduced IFA team and its purpose. He articulated
the intent and the objectives of the organization and expressed
the need for an organization that serves the Indian community
in all aspects including immigration, legal, career growth and
social support. He further elaborated on future IFA events
including
• Free training to the community on topics including
Quickbooks, Microsoft Office training, and Quality Training.
• Seminars and workshops to develop leadership skills.
• Free medical clinic
• CPR and First Aid training for Youth
Sunil Savili has recognized IFA organizing team members
Shyam Mallavarapu, Anil Bodireddy, Srinivas Peddi, Kiran
Gogineni, Subu, Gopi and Sreekanth Uppala who have spent
tireless hours in organizing and making the event successful.
Sanjeev Akula, Bhushan Kalla, and Samba Siva Reddy lent
their time and made the event successful. Srinivas Durgam
provided audio facilities. TV5 and TV9 correspondent Sridhar of
Vakiti Creations have covered the events with their professional
photography and videography.
National and Atlanta Indian organizations ATA, GATA, GAMA,
GATS, IACA, TANA, and NATA have not only actively supported
the seminar but also lent their support for future IFA events
and seminars and expressed the need for IFA to Atlanta.
Several attendees have expressed appreciation towards IFA for
organizing the event and how valuable it has been for them.
Please provide feedback and comments to info@ifaworld.org
27
Poems by
SUBRAMANYA BHARATHI
Chinnaswami Subramania Bharathiyar (11 December 1882 - 11 September 1921) was an Indian writer, poet, journalist, Indian
independence activist and social reformer from Tamil Nadu, India. Popularly known as “Mahakavi Bharathiyar”, he is a pioneer
of modern Tamil poetry and is considered one among the greatest of Tamil literary figures of all time. His numerous works were
fiery songs kindling patriotism and nationalism during the Indian Independence movement.
There is No Fear
A Jewel of Stars
The people of this world, if against they stand,
There is no fear, there is no fear, nothing like fear.
Although, we are counted cheap and rebuked,
There is no fear , there is no fear , nothing like fear.
Moonlight, the stars and the wind,
By placing them in front
And drinking the honey thereofA poetic frenzy seizes us;
That atomic thing called Mind-
If to beg for food, would be a life attained,
Loveable possessions if, are lost,
We shall let it roam free.
Should one wonder at the bee that sings
While imbedded in a tasty fruit?
2. If clothed bosomed damsels, cast their eyes
Oh, Mind! Go hence to join
The jewel of stars.
Poison in the mouth, if fed by friends
Shielded armies, if to attack approach
Our Eternal Himayalas
The eternal Himalaya is our very own asset.
There’s nothing else to equal it as yet !
On the acme of my head, if the sky did crash and
plummet down
The sweetly nourishing Ganges flows here dancing.
Is there a river on earth so entrancing ?
The expository Upanishads are our prized treasure
The entire world doesn’t have any work of that measure.
Oh,the Golden Bharath is verily our own land
Hail our land, we are of a matchless brand!!
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Indian Diaspora in the US.
Soaring to New Heights...
So why do Indian Americans perform so
well? A natural answer is self-selection.
Someone willing to pull up roots
and move halfway around the world
will tend to be more ambitious and
hardworking than the average person.
But people want to come to the US for
many reasons, some of which being
reunited with other family members,
for example have little to do with
industriousness. Ultimately, immigration
policy decides which kinds of qualities
our immigrants possess.
Compiled by Viju Chiluveru from various sources
Under our current immigration policy,
a majority of legal immigrants to the
US obtain green cards (permanent
residency) because they have family
ties to US citizens, but a small number
(15% in 2007) are selected specifically
for their labor market value. The
proportion of Indian immigrants given
an employment-related green card is
one of the highest of any nationality.
Consequently, it is mainly Indians
educated elite and their families who
come to the US.
The success of Indian Americans is also
often ascribed to the culture they bring
with them, which places strong some
Indian Americans: The New Model Minority
Most Americans know only one thing about
Indians; they are really good at spelling bees.
When Sameer Mishra correctly spelled guerdon
last May to win the 2008 Scripps National Spelling
Bee, he became the sixth Indian-American winner
in the past 10 years. Finishing second was Sidharth
Chand. Kavya Shivashankar took fourth place,
and Janhnavi Iyer grabbed the eighth spot. And
this was not even the banner year for Indian
Americans in 2005, the top four finishers were all
of Indian descent.
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It’s tempting to dismiss Indian-American dominance of
the spelling bee as just a cultural idiosyncrasy. But Indian
success in more important fields is just as eye-catching.
Despite constituting less than 1% of the U.S. population,
Indian-Americans are 3% of the nationís engineers, 7% of
its IT workers and 8% of its physicians and surgeons. The
overrepresentation of Indians in these fields is striking in
practical terms, your doctor is nine times more likely to be an
Indian-American than is a random passerby on the street.
Indian Americans are in fact a new model minority. This term
dates back to the 1960s, when East Asians - Americans of
Chinese, Japanese and Korean descent were noted for their
advanced education and high earnings.
would even say obsessive emphasis on
academic achievement. Exhibit A is the
spelling bee, which requires long hours
of studying etymology and memorizing
word lists, all for little expected benefit
other than the thrill of intellectual
competition.
But education and culture can take
people only so far. To be a great speller
or, more importantly, a great doctor or
IT manager you have to be smart. Just
how smart are Indian Americans? We
don’t know with much certainty. Most
data sets with information on ethnic
groups do not include IQ scores, and
the few that do rarely include enough
cases to provide interpretable results for
such a small portion of the population.
The only direct evidence we have
comes from the 2003 New Immigrant
Survey, in which a basic cognitive test
called digit span was administered
to a sample of newly arrived
immigrant children. It is an excellent
test for comparing people with
disparate language and educational
backgrounds, since the test taker need
only repeat lengthening sequences of
digits read by the examiner. Repeating
the digits forward is simply a test of
East Asians continue to excel in the U.S,
but among minority groups, Indians
are clearly the latest and greatest
model. In 2007, the median income
of households headed by an Indian
American was approximately $83,000,
compared with $61,000 for East Asians
and $55,000 for whites.
About 69% of Indian Americans aged
25 and over have four-year college
degrees, which dwarfs the rates of 51%
and 30% achieved by East Asians and
whites, respectively. Indian Americans
are also less likely to be poor or in
prison, compared with whites.
31
short-term memory, but repeating them backward is much
more mentally taxing, hence a rough measure of intelligence.
When statistical adjustments are used to convert the backward
digit span results to full-scale IQ scores, Indian Americans
place at about 112 on a bell-shaped IQ distribution, with white
Americans at 100. 112 is the 79th percentile of the white
distribution. For more context, consider that Ashkenazi Jews
are a famously intelligent ethnic group, and their mean IQ is
somewhere around 110.
Given the small sample size, the rough IQ measure and the lack
of corroborating data sets, this finding of lofty Indian-American
intelligence must be taken cautiously. Nevertheless, it is entirely
consistent with their observed achievement.
The superior educational attainment, academic culture and
likely high IQ of Indian Americans has already made them an
economic force in the US, and that strength can only grow.
Does this continuing success imply they will become a political
force? Here, Gov. Jindal is actually a rarity. Indians are still
underrepresented in politics, and they do not specialize in the
kinds of fields (law and finance) most conducive to political
careers. Time will tell if they are able to convert economic
power into serious political influence, as a Jindal presidency
could.
A much clearer implication of Indian-American success is that
immigrants need not be unskilled, nor must their economic
integration take generations to achieve. In sharp contrast to
Indian Americans, most US immigrants, especially Mexicans, are
much less wealthy and educated than US natives, even after
many years in the country.
A new immigration policy that prioritizes skills over family
reunification could bring more successful immigrants to the
U.S. By emphasizing education, work experience and IQ in our
immigration policy, immigrant groups from other national
backgrounds could join the list of model minorities.
There is nothing inevitable about immigration. Who immigrates
each year is a policy decision, free to be modified at any time
by Congress. Constructing new legislation is always difficult,
but I propose a simple starting point for immigration selection:
Anyone who can spell guerdon is in!
In Technology
Earlier this year, Satya Nadella replaced Steve Ballmer as
Microsoft’s CEO, underlining the rise of Indians and IndianAmericans in the US tech world.
Today, around 15% of startups in Silicon Valley are founded by
Indians, according to the research of Professor Vivek Wadhwa,
himself a seasoned entrepreneur.
We’ve put together a list of some of the brightest minds,
innovative dreamers, and most accomplished leaders.
“It’s just one more symbolic thing that validates that our world
is becoming much more global and is crossing boundaries,”
Padmasree Warrior, Chief Technology Officer of Cisco Systems,
told the LA Times, after Microsoft announced Nadella’s new
position. “It suggests that it’s execution and results that matter
in the end, regardless of where you come from.”
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Sri Ramanuja Sahasrabdi
-Statue of Equality!
We would like to extend our Thanks to the
following people, without whom the event
wouldn’t be a success. Kathy Pinnika for the
Wonderful Stage decoration, Swamiji himself
appreciated the decoration. Srinivas Duram for
providing the quality sound, Naveen Voleti for
the Photography. We have some great volunteers
from IFA who supported us throughout the event,
Amarnath, Sashi Vemula, Saibabu Maddineni,
Srikanth Nistala, Sanjeev Akula, Gowri Banavathula.
Indian Friends of Atlanta (IFA) was privileged to host Sri Sri
Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji in Atlanta on 4th April, 2015 and we
hope you all had blessed time on this day. There were over
700 people gathered to learn about the “Statue Of Equality Samatha Murthi”, a prestigious project to commemorate Sri
Ramanuja Sahasrabdi.
The program started with Vishwaksena Aaradhana and
Jyothi Prajwalana by Swamiji, then followed by introduction
of JET by Ravi Gourisetti, he talked about different activities
that JETUSA Atlanta chapter will be doing this year and
recognized all the volunteers. There were some cultural
programs which included keerthanas, devotional songs,
Kuchupudi and Bharathanaatyam dances. We thank Pragna
kids, Darshini Natyalaya, Bharathakala Dance Academy for
the performances. These programs were coordinated by
Jyotsna with emcees Divya and Harika.
Phani Madhav talked about the Pragna programs and the
plans to expand the programs in Atlanta area. In the same
lines, Phani Iruku talked about the VT Seva and the programs
they are focused for this year.
34
Subu Bhagavathi along with IFA and JET members Welcomed
Sri Swamiji on to stage and the program continued with the
talk from Swamiji for two and half hours. Swamiji explained
the importance of Vishnu Sahasranamam and Ramanuja
vaibhavam, then he explained the “Statue Of Equality Samatha Murthi” project which is being built in Hyderabad
with a budget of about 18 Millions USD. Swamiji asked all the
devotees to be part of this project in some means, either by
sponsoring money or sponsoring talent or time etc. Swamiji
personally invited all the devotees for the grand inauguration
of this project in 2017.
Swamiji appreciated the efforts of IFA and JET teams for
conducting such a big event in Atlanta. Ravi Gourisetti
recognized the important role IFA played in hosting this
event and he thanked and mentioned Sunil Shavele, Shyam
Mallavarapu, Sreekanth Uppala, Subu Bhagavathi, Sairam
Pamulapati from IFA team for the dedication to make this
event a big success.
35
Learning from
India’s
Independence
Struggle
1. Walk the talk
3. Brand building
Mahatma Gandhi’s personal brand has lasted 60 years after his
death without any investment. He created a brand of a simple
moral man living life on the principle of Ahimsa (non-violence).
His home spun cotton clothes, wooden shaft, leather slippers,
vegetarian meals and home at the ashram all embodied his
personal brand. His character and communication depicted
his core values to the masses. We must acknowledge that fact
that very few leaders in history have as strong a brand image as
Gandhi.
The corporate world is spending huge sums on advertising
to build the corporate brand. We hear Tom Peters and other
management gurus talking about building the “Brand You”. The
focus now is on developing a personal brand.
Mahatma Gandhi preached the concept of simple
living and high thinking, although he came from an
affluent Indian family. He came up with various austere
living standards and requested his followers to adopt
them.
He kept his life open to public scrutiny. People may
debate regarding his personal choices but no one
would raise questions on his ethics and integrity.
Irrespective of the difficulty involved, he always
was able to take the high moral ground and never
compromised on his personal values.
In the present corporate world we respect the leaders
who are able to walk the talk, demonstrate ethical and
principled behavior, and lead by example.
2. Think out of the box
The strategy and tactics adopted during the Indian
independence struggle were unlike any other country’s
revolution. Some of the concepts were:
●
●
●
4. Competitor’s size doesn’t matter
The Indian freedom struggle gained ground with the idea of a
few committed individuals who wished to bring about a change.
They envisaged taking on the might of British Empire which
had the resources, funds, weapons and management capability.
The Indian leadership team acknowledged the strengths of the
British Empire and devised a strategy which minimized those
strengths. They built a strategy on the following:
●
●
●
Using a similar strategy, Barack Obama won the American
presidential elections when he had no funds and support.
Recently corporate world has witnessed small IT companies (e.g.
hotmail) developing into big names just by pioneering a unique
product and leveraging the market properly.
Non-violence - A war fought on the basis of
principles without any bloodshed.
Civil disobedience - Court arrest if the British officials
are threatening imprisonment for demanding your
rights.
Non-cooperation- The message given was maintain
your jobs with the British empire, however do not
support it regarding its practices against Indian
people.
Management pundits today are advocating out of
the box thinking and competing strategically. The
organization which implements a unique strategy
generally wins the market.
Non-violence which required no weapons;
Asked masses to contribute for the independence and live
frugally, hence survived on minimal resources;
Developed local leadership across all regions under Congress
banner.
On the eve of India’s Independence Day on 15 August, we cherish the freedom
and celebrate India’s growth towards global recognition. Going back in history,
Indian freedom struggle lasted nearly a century. The last 25 years of the
struggle was led by Mahatma Gandhi on the concept of non-violence. India is
one of the unique countries which gained freedom without much bloodshed.
There are lot of management lessons which corporate world is implementing
presently which were prevalent in the freedom struggle. In this article we shall
explore Mahatma Gandhi’s leadership and management style, and linking it to
the current management practices.
38
39
5. Build dream teams
Indian Congress Party besides Gandhi had a number of
other accomplished leaders. Namely, C. Rajagopalachari,
Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Subhash Chandra Bose
and others. These leaders all had different personalities and
ideologies, however worked for a common cause. Gandhi
and Nehru complemented each other tremendously and
mostly operated as two in a box. Senior leaders acted as
mentors for the younger generation. The party had leaders
at grass root level, and people were encouraged to develop
leadership traits.
Business world is focusing on building dream teams with
leadership at all levels. The Human Resource Departments
are focused on concepts of two in a box, alternate leaders,
chief mentors and succession planning.
8. Don’t make it personal
In the Quit India speech in 1942, Mahatma Gandhi stated“Then, there is the question of your attitude towards the
British. I have noticed that there is hatred towards the British
among the people. The people say they are disgusted with
their behavior. The people make no distinction between
British imperialism and the British people”.
Deal with the issue and not the person; this is the corporate
mandate today. Mahatma Gandhi pioneered this thought
process. In all his communication and dealings he stood
up against British Imperialism. He however, had friendly
relationships with Britishers and never made a personal
attack in his speeches. On the other hand, he continuously
advocated decent and humane behavior even towards
one’s enemy. His thought process was- address the issue at
hand and keep a positive attitude towards a person from
the competing camp.
In a nutshell, there is a lot to learn from the Indian freedom
struggle for the corporate world. It had unique dimensions
which are gaining hold now as corporate best practices.
History is the best teacher, if we are willing to learn from
other people’s successes and failures.
6. Engage and empower people
Mahatma Gandhi in his speech on the eve of Dandi March
said -“Wherever there are local leaders, their orders should
be obeyed by the people. Where there are no leaders and
only a handful of men have faith in the programme, they
may do what they can, if they have enough self-confidence”.
He encouraged common man to show leadership and
commitment under the overall umbrella of Congress. He
united the people by specifying the mission, vision and
code of conduct of Congress. The masses were committed
to the cause and in all his symbolic protests he involved
people participation.
The corporate world’s biggest challenge is of
disengaged employees due to actual or perceived lack of
empowerment. It is becoming apparent that success or
failure of the organization is increasingly dependent on a
healthy organization culture which encourages employee
participation.
7. Accept and encourage diversity
The British are generally blamed for implementing “divide
and rule policy” in India. On the contrary, India already was
already divided into various regions, religions and castes
before the British rule.
Mahatma Gandhi in his struggle for independence
attempted to unify the country. He encouraged the princely
states to join hands, brought Hindus and Muslims on the
same platform and removed caste barriers for joining
the freedom moment. He supported gender equality
and encouraged women to actively participate in the
movement. His wife, Kasturba Gandhi played a pivotal role
in getting women’s participation.
40
With less than 10% women in senior management positions
in the corporate world, the mantra today is to bring more
women on board. With globalization the concept of
accepting and encouraging diversity has taken hold.
IFA’S COLLEGE
PLANNING SEMINAR
Indian Friends Of Atlanta has designed a College Planning workshop for
high freshmen and sophomores and their parents who are starting to think
about college planning, and want to make the right choices now to prepare
themselves for the process. There was huge response to the College Seminar hosted by Team IFA.
Our speaker Eric Chan (with support from Chandra Sivalingham) talked about the some important
things to keep in mind while getting ready to college and how to apply for colleges and the timelines.
When should I start the college admissions process?
Some of the topics discussed include:
Many families and students start the college application process
around September of their senior year. While this is the norm,
more and more families are starting earlier. There are students
that have started drafting up their college admissions essays
during the summer. In fact, some applications are already live
for students to start applying. There are even some families in
which students start preparing as early as the summer after
middle school! Our Seminar Speaker recommends families start
preparing the actual application process the summer entering
their senior year of high school and the actual admissions
process as a freshman in high school.
• Stay on track with your classes and grades.
What are the benefits of starting early?
If college is four years away and deadlines for applications
are months away, why start working on them now? First of
all, college applications take time. Not all schools utilize the
Common Application, especially many state schools. The other
reason is that essays and supplemental essays alone can take
up significant resources. Depending on the amount of schools
you are applying to, you can end up writing 10 to 15 essays or
more! If you have a full course load, especially many AP classes,
you will want to free up some time so that you can still do well
in school. Starting the actual admissions process early on not
only helps free up resources and time, but it also offers you
more opportunity to plan out the types of activities you want
to be a part of. Remember, it is quality over quantity. Leadership
positions can be important and take time to earn, so you will
want to try and figure out what you are interested in being
involved in for the majority of your high school career. Starting
early will also give you more time to understand what interests
and majors appeal to you and also more time to research which
schools are best suited for you based on your preferences.
42
• Take the PSAT: Taking the test qualifies you for the National
Merit Scholarship program, which means you could earn
money for college.
• Evaluate your education options: Now is the time to follow
a more specific path. Decide whether you want to pursue
full-time employment, further education or training (such as
a vocational-technical school, career college, or two-year or
four-year college), or a military career.
• Make a college list: Your list of colleges should include
schools that meet your most important criteria (for example,
size, location, cost, academic majors, or special programs).
• Continue gathering college information: Go to college fairs,
attend college nights, and speak with college representatives
who visit your high school; use an online college finder and
search top college lists.
• Organize a testing plan: Figure out when you’ll be taking
important tests like the SAT, ACT, SAT Subject Tests, and AP
exams, and mark the dates on your calendar.
• Make sure you’re meeting any special requirements.
We thank Taste Of India restaurant people for giving the venue
for the College Seminar. We thank the entire IFA team Sunil
Savili, Anil Bodireddy, Shyam Mallavarapu, Kiran Gogeneni, Srini
Peddi, Sreekanth Uppala, Sairam Pamulapati, Swapna Kaswa
who worked hard to arrange this seminar. We also thank the
Indian Organizations who took part and supported this seminar
in different capacities, thank you American Telugu Association,
North America Telugu Association, Telangana Telugu
Association, Greater Atlanta Telugu Association, Greater Atlanta
Tamil Association, and Malayalee Association.
43
KERALA
God’s Own Country
Kerala is a coastal state in the south-west region of India on the
Arabian Sea coast. Kerala is spread over 15,000 Square Miles and
has over 34 Million inhabitants who mainly speak Malayalam - the
official language of the state.
the southern end being one of the most famous, attracting a lot of
international tourists. There are three existing international airports
- Thiruvanthapuram, Cochin and Kozhikode. There is also a fourth
one proposed at Kannur.
There are many stories of how
the name Kerala (actually,
Keralam in Malayalam) came
about. The historic
version says that the word is
derived from the
Tamil reference ‘chera alam’ or the
‘Land of Cheras’
being one of the oldest dynasties of
Kerala Kings.
However the geographic version
attributes
it to being ‘alam’ of ‘kera’ i.e. ‘the land’
of
‘coconut palm tree’.
Kerala, known for its spices, has been a prominent spice exporter
from 3,000 BC to 14th Century AD, particularly black pepper and
cardamom. The region attracted ancient Babylonians, Assyrians
and Egyptians to the Malabar Coast in the 3rd and 2nd millennia
BC. Arabs and Phoenicians also established their prominence in the
Kerala trade during this early period. This made Kerala a prime port
for the maritime spice trade between Europe, Middle East and the
South East Asian countries, culminating with the arrival of Vasco da
Gama at the port of Kozhikode in 1498.
Kerala is the state with many special
and notable credentials within the Indian
subcontinent. Kerala has the highest Human
Development Index (HDI) in the country according
to the Human Development Report (2011) and the
highest literacy rate of 93.91%. This helps the state have
the lowest positive population growth rate in India at
3.44%; the nation’s highest life expectancy of 77 years
and the highest sex ratio; 1,084 women per 1000 men. In
addition to the above, the state also has the highest media
exposure in India with newspapers originating from Kerala
being published in nine different languages; even though
mainly in English and Malayalam.
Over the past few decades, Kerala has become a major tourist
destination, with its backwaters, beaches, and tropical greenery
among its major attractions as well as the growing interest in
Ayurvedic tourism. The state is wedged between the Lakshadweep
Sea and the Western Ghats, providing it a great expanse of natural,
pristine beauty. The state also prides in its hill stations and tea
estates of Munnar, Wayanaad and Ponmudi, and the wildlife
sanctuaries of Periyar Tiger Reserve, Thekkady Wildlife Sanctuary,
Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary, and Silent
Valley National Park. Being a coastal state, you will find many
beautiful beaches along the western coastline, with Kovalam in
Hinduism is practiced by more than half of the population,
followed by Islam and Christianity.
Among the festivals celebrated in Kerala, Onam is the most
well-known as it is celebrated across the whole state and
religions with equal fervor. Some other prominent Hindu
festivals include ‘Vishu’ - the Malayalam New Year and
‘Thrissur Pooram’ - a competition of art, music and
devotion between two temples with the highlight
being a demonstration of 30 bedecked elephants.
Kerala has a significant population of Muslims and
Christians and therefore an amazing number of
churches and mosques. Easter and Christmas
as well as the Islamic festivals of Ramzan
and Id are also celebrated across the state
with peaceful camaraderie and secular
devotion.
Aren’t these enough reasons then that
this wonderful, peaceful, beautiful,
coastal state is nicknamed “God’s Own
Country”?
Greater Atlanta Malayali Association
(GAMA)
Founded in 1981, Greater Atlanta
Malayalee Association (GAMA) is one
of the
oldest and largest Indian expatriate
organizations in the United States.
GAMA strives
to preserve and promote the Malayalee’s
social, cultural,
educational, literary and artistic heritage
through it’s programs and initiatives across Greater Atlanta region.
We welcome all Malayalee families who are present in the Greater
Atlanta area to join us! www.gamaonline.org.
By Ranjit Gangadharan (Board Member - GAMA)
45
A BIG SALAAM
TO
DR. KALAM
By Viju Chiluveru
To begin this article, I would like to borrow few words
from a story my classmate-friend, who is now the Editor
of India’s leading Newspaper, ‘The Hindu’s Businessline’,
wrote on the day Dr. Kalam passed away. ‘The story of Dr.
Abdul Kalam is not a classic rags to riches story, but a rare
odyssey of rags to fame’.
A down-to-earth, simple and eversmiling Dr. Kalam left a legacy behind
and joined the Hall of Fame of
Extraordinary Indians. For centuries to
come, Indians living all over the world
will remember his deeds and words.
People’s President
For one thing, he made himself, the Rashtrapati Bhavan,
and the institution of the presidency itself far more
accessible to his fellow citizens than any other president
has. Before him, who even saw our president except on
TV? Who knew the president as anything but an august
presence somewhere behind those imposing walls,
separated from his people by that stern security? But here
was a president who actually wanted to mingle with us,
to remain one among us rather than an unapproachable
exaltation on a pedestal. Who would not respond to that?
But we believe his appeal came from something even
deeper. This man, remember, was a boatman’s son from
Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu; from there, he grew up to
be a scientist and engineer. His is a nation, after all, in
which generations of parents have sought to turn their
children into engineers (to be fair, doctors too). It remains
46
Yet, it’s true: not this Indian. Several Indians believe he was
a man who appreciated frankness, so let me be frank now. I
never could see, as he did, that India needed the nuclear bomb
to turn into a developed nation. Among other things, to me
his aphorisms bore the stamp those long-ago stories did, of
something almost banal. Many welcomed his recent statement
to the law commission criticising the death penalty. Yet, why
did he not say so as president, when it could have mattered?
Especially when it was while he was president that he learned,
to my surprise, that almost all the cases which were pending
had a social and economic bias?
Celebrate the Indian
And while it’s hardly his fault that he is being hailed on his
death as a Muslim who grew up in a Hindu ethos, this speaks
to me of an essential Indian conundrum. Sure, it’s an admirable
upbringing, given how much mistrust there is between our
various Indian faiths. But still, a cynic like me would like to see a
president of all people celebrated above all for being Indian.
Celebrate this president, in particular, for being Indian. Period.
Being Indian, with everything that means. With the intricate and
multi-hued, bleakly shaded but also hopeful, often ripped yet
splendidly woven tapestry that is the heritage we can be proud
of, unique in the world.
Man of Simplicity
Abdul Kalam was also, unusually for an Indian who
occupied the high positions he did, a man of great
simplicity.
During his 25 years as a scientist based in
Thiruvananthapuram, he endeared himself to ordinary
people everywhere.
Legion are the recollections of his waiting patiently for a
bus, having breakfast at his favourite tea shop, talking to
people from backgrounds as humble as that which he
had outgrown. In this simplicity lay the secret of his ability
to connect with people, across the boundaries of age,
class, religion and region.
In his life and his work, APJ Abdul Kalam embodied the
best of what India can be.
India has never had a more beloved president. Active till
the end, he left the world in mid-speech, as if to remind
us that he still had something more to say.
The shock of his sudden passing has left a nation
bereaved. India mourns his death, but will long celebrate
his life.
a profession revered like few others. Only its practitioners, we
believe, can and will transform India into that promised land
so many yearn for: powerful, developed, filled with skyscrapers
and expressways and gleaming airports.
And President Kalam was one such practitioner.
In a long line of politicians who have occupied the presidency,
this man of science stood out. Simply by doing so, he stood for
a nation’s aspirations. How could he not capture hearts? And
when he went on to write books like Ignited Minds and Wings
of Fire, when he offered us aphorisms aplenty about progress
and dreaming and thinking, when he so often had simple
advice that resonated how could he not have Indians thronging
to catch a glimpse of him?
We never could see, as he did, that India needed the nuclear
bomb to turn into a developed nation.
47
Light Combat Aircraft, Nuclear Submarine, Main Battle Tank
(Arjun) to the production stage, he mentored a string of
motivated leaders to continue the work.
A decade ago, while speaking to BusinessLine on leadership
qualities, Kalam narrated the example of Satish Dhawan the
eminent space scientist and one of his gurus.
Leading by Example
“I got to work with him closely. I have lost an uttam marg
darshak. The country has lost a son who worked for the
strength of India. He had spent every moment for the youth of
India. No person will be able to fill the gap left by him. His work
will inspire us to work for the development of the nation,” said
Prime Minister Modi.
Kalam endeared himself with crisp and clear responses to
questions posed by reporters. When asked, if the Agni missile
could launch nuclear bombs, he explained in his inimitable
style, how it was possible to send a bouquets of flowers
or a packet of samosas onboard the missile to the desired
destination (mentioning its nuclear capabilities was out of
question, as India was faced with sanctions then).
When someone probed him on why missiles were named Agni,
Prithvi, Nag, Trishul and Akash under the Integrated Guided
Missile Development Programme (IGMDP), Kalam said, to
the surprise of many, that the names were inspired by Indian
mythology and that he was well versed in the scriptures. He
cemented that claim when a reporter inquired Kalam of his
responsibility as a technologist to have developed a weapon of
mass destruction. Quoting the Bhagavad Gita, he said, “I am like
Arjuna in the Mahabharata. I do my job for the good of people.”
Kalam was fully and truly ‘Made in India.’ He studied
aeronautical engineering in Tamil Nadu, joined ISRO and
moved on to DRDO. He was never trained abroad, but
completely dedicated himself to his passion - his Vision 2020 of
transforming India from a developing to a developed nation.
New Heights
Kalam’s journey became more impressive, as he grew in stature
to become the Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister and
later to the Prime Minister to guide the path of self-reliance.
Though he fell short of his goal of 60 per cent indigenous
development and could not follow through the projects like
48
“I was the leader of the first development flight of the Satellite
Launch Vehicle (SLV). After all preparations, the launch failed.
There was hushed silence as we had to face the media. As
Chairman of ISRO, Satish Dhawan took all the blame. A few
months later we succeeded in launching it. At that point,
Dhawan gave all the credit to me and the team. Real leaders are
those who credit the right people in success, own up to failures
and defend their colleagues”, he said.
His commitment to transform India is best illustrated by two
instances. First through a collaborative exercise involving the
Technology Information Forecasting and Assessment Council
(TIFAC) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), 17
areas were identified in 1996-97 to make India self-reliant in
technologies under Vision 2020. Many developmental projects
in states utilise the finer elements from these documents.
The second, and perhaps one of his biggest contributions, is of
forging team spirit or building consortia in taking up national
challenges and solving them. The ‘Pokhran-2’ nuclear blasts in
May 11, 1998 illustrate this rare quality as be brought together
the DRDO, DAE and the armed forces to beat the watchful eyes
of the US and make Operation Shakthi successful.
A week later on May 18 along with Dr R Chidambaram, the
Atomic Energy Chief, he was present at an international media
conference in Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi. A journalist from
US asked Kalam, what was the rationale behind India, a poor
nation with compelling challenges of hunger, sanitation and
education to conduct nuclear explosions and what was the
threat perception?
Kalam in his typical manner said “Gentleman, let me refresh you
about India’s history. In thousands of years, it never enjoyed
a good period of peace, as it was continuously attacked.
Even after Independence, there have been four wars. Our
neighbourhood is hostile. In contrast, the US has hardly been
attacked and it does not face a threat nearby. So, he countered,
does India require nuclear weapons or the US which possesses
a stockpile. Strength respects strength, he argued.
Acknowledgements: The Hindu Business Line and other articles
Vibrant
Gujarat
Gujarat has seen a succession of races, settlers as well as
conquerors, and amalgamated their cultures into its own. The
result has been a wonderful fusion of new ideas and old world
traditions.
Gujarat is situated on the western coast of the Indian Peninsula.
The state is bound by the Arabian Sea on the west, Pakistan and
Rajasthan in the north and northeast, Madhya Pradesh in the
southeast and Maharashtra in the south. Based on physiology
and culture, Gujarat can be divided into several regions like
Kutch, Saurashtra, Kathiawad, and Northeast Gujarat.
Gujarat is the most industrialized states in India. It attracts the
cream of domestic and multinational investment in the leading
sectors of the economy. The important minerals produced into
the state are agate, bauxite, dolomite, fireclay, fluorite, fuller’s
earth, kaolin, lignite, limestone, chalk, calcareous sea sand,
perlite, petroleum and natural gas, and silica sand.
Gujarat has given great leaders to India starting from Mahatma
Gandhi, Sardar Patel, Morarji Desai and our current Prime
Minister Narenra Modi.
Gujarat was placed under the political authority of the Bombay
Presidency, with the exception of Baroda state, which had a
direct relationship with the Governor-General of India. From
1818 to 1947, most of present-day Gujarat, including Kathiawar,
Kutch, and northern and eastern Gujarat were divided into
dozens of princely states, but several districts in central and
southern Gujarat, namely Ahmedabad, Broach (Bharuch), Kaira,
Panch Mahals, and Surat, were ruled directly by British officials.
After gaining independence in 1947, the Indian National
Congress party (INC) ruled the Bombay State (which included
present-day Gujarat and Maharashtra). Congress continued to
govern Gujarat after the state’s creation in 1960. During and
after India’s State of Emergency of 1975-1977, public support
for the Congress Party eroded, but Congress continued to hold
government until 1995.
51
Greater Atlanta
Tamil Sangam (GATS)
Enchanting Tamilnadu.
Greater Atlanta Tamil Sangam (GATS) is devoted to
preserving and promoting our rich Tamil heritage and
fostering understanding, friendship, goodwill and
appreciation between Tamil-speaking people and
various cross-sections of the people of Georgia and the
rest of the world. Tamil, one of the oldest languages in
the world, is spoken by more than 60 million people
around the world.
Three pillars of GATS are:
1. Foster charities
2. Promote cultural events
3. Nurture Tamil education
GATS is a non-profit organization founded in 1981.
It has approximately 4000 patrons and more than 300
life time members. It has five Tamil schools (four in
metro Atlanta and one in Columbus, GA) with nearly
1000 students. GATS organizes at least five major
functions in a year (Pongal, Tamil School Annual Day,
Muthamiz Vizha, Tamil New Year and Diwali).
If you would like to learn more about GATS or become
a member, please visit our website at
www.gatamilsangam.org
Telangana
- It’s all in it
Telangana is a state in southern India. It has an area of 114,840
km and is the twelfth largest state in India. Most of it was
part of the princely state of Hyderabad (Medak and Warangal
Divisions), ruled by the Nizam of Hyderabad during the British
Raj, joining the Union of India in 1948. In 1956, the Hyderabad
state was dissolved as part of the linguistic reorganisation of
states, and the Telugu speaking part of Hyderabad state, known
as Telangana, was merged with former Andhra State to form
Andhra Pradesh. On 2 June 2014, Telangana was formed as a
new 29th state of India, with the city of Hyderabad as its capital.
Hyderabad will continue to serve as the joint capital city for
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for a period of not more than
ten years.
Telangana is bordered by the states of Maharashtra,
Chhattisgarh to the north, Karnataka to the west, and Andhra
Pradesh to the south, east and north east. It shares small border
with Orissa too. Telangana has an area of 114,840 square
kilometres (44,340 sqmi), and a population of 35,286,757
(2011 census). Its major cities include Hyderabad, Warangal,
Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Ramagundam and Khammam.
Etymology
The name Telangana is thought to have been derived from
the word Trilinga, as in the TrilingaDesa, which translates to
“the country of the three lingas”. According to a Hindu legend,
Shiva descended in the lingam form on three mountains,
Kaleshwaram, Srisailam and Draksharama, which marked the
boundaries of the Trilingadesa, later called Telinga, Telunga or
Telugu.
The word “Telinga” changed over time to “Telangana” and
the name “Telangana” was designated to distinguish the
predominantly Telugu-speaking region of the erstwhile
Hyderabad State from its predominantly Marathi-speaking one,
Marathwada.
One of the earliest uses of a word similar to Telangana can also
be seen in a name of Malik Maqbul (14th century C.E.), who was
called the Tilangani, which implies that he was from Tilangana.
He was the commander of the Warangal Fort (KatakaPāludu).
Culture
Telangana culture combines cultural customs from Persian
traditions, embedded during rule of the region by the Moghuls,
QutubShahis and Nizams, with prominent and predominantly
south Indian traditions and customs. The State has a rich
tradition in classical music, painting and folk arts such as
Burrakatha, shadow puppet show, and perini Shiva Tandavam,
Gusadi Dance, Kolatam.
Monuments
Kakatiya Kala Thoranam Warangal, Charminar, Golconda Fort,
QutbShahi Tombs, Chowmahalla Palace, Falaknuma Palace,
Birla Mandir and Bhongir Fort, Warangal Fort are some of the
monuments in and around Hyderabad.
55
56
57
Karnataka -
‘One State, Many Worlds
Karnataka is a state in south western region of India. It
was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage
the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as the
State of Mysore, it was renamed Karnataka in 1973. The
capital and largest city is Bangalore (Bengaluru).
Karnataka is bordered by the Arabian
Sea and the Laccadive Sea to the west,
Goa to the north west, Maharashtra to
the north, Telangana to the North
east, Andhra Pradesh to the east,
Tamil Nadu to the south east, and
Kerala to the south west. The state
covers an area of 191,976 square
kilometres (74,122 sq mi), or 5.83
per cent of the total geographical
area of India. It is the seventh largest
Indian state by area. With 61,130,704
inhabitants at the 2011 census, Karnataka
is the eighth largest state by population,
comprising 30 districts. Kannada is the most
widely spoken and official language of the
state.
of
The two main river systems of the state are the
Krishna and its tributaries, the Bhima, Ghataprabha,
Vedavathi, Malaprabha, and Tungabhadra, in the north,
and the Kaveri and its tributaries, the Hemavati, Shimsha,
Arkavati, LakshmanaThirtha and Kabini, in the south. Both these
rivers flow out of Karnataka eastward into the Bay of Bengal.
Though several etymologies have been suggested for the
name Karnataka, the generally accepted one is that Karnataka
is derived from the Kannada words karu and nādu, meaning
“elevated land”. Karunadu may also be read as karu, meaning
“black”, and nadu, meaning “region”, as a reference to the black
cotton soil found in the BayaluSeeme region of the state. The
British used the word Carnatic, sometimes Karnatak, to describe
both sides of peninsular India, south of the Krishna.
58
With an antiquity that dates to the
paleolithic, Karnataka has been home to
some of the most powerful empires of
ancient and medieval India. The philosophers
and musical bards patronised by these
empires launched socio-religious and literary
movements which have endured to the
present day. Karnataka has contributed
significantly to both forms of Indian classical
music, the Carnatic and Hindustani traditions.
Writers in the Kannada language have received the
most number of Jnanpith awards in India.
Culture
The diverse linguistic and religious ethnicities
that are native to Karnataka, combined with
their long histories, have contributed
immensely to the varied cultural
heritage of the state. Apart from
Kannadigas, Karnataka is
home to Tuluvas, Kodavas and
Konkanis. Minor populations of
Tibetan Buddhists and tribes like
the Soligas, Yeravas, Todas and Siddhis also
live in Karnataka. The traditional folk arts
cover the entire gamut of music, dance,
drama, storytelling by itinerant troupes, etc.
Karnataka also has a special place in the world of
Indian classical music, with both Karnataka (Carnatic)
and Hindustani styles finding place in the state, and
Karnataka has produced a number of stalwarts in
both styles. The Haridasa movement of the sixteenth
century contributed significantly to the development
of Karnataka (Carnatic) music as a performing art form.
PurandaraDasa, one of the most revered Haridasas, is
known as the Karnataka SangeetaPitamaha (‘Father of
Karnataka a.k.a. Carnatic music’).
59
Crossword Puzzle - Indian Festivals
Down
1. Harvest festival celebrated by Punjab and other
states in North India
2. New Year celebrated in the states of Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
3. Nine nights and ten days of celebration and
devotion to Goddess Durga or Shakti
6. Spring festival of Colors
7. Harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu
8. Harvest festival of Kerala when King Mahabali is
said to visit his loving subjects
9. Some roll eggs and other eat sweet bunnies to
celebrate the return of the Lord
Across
4. A funny old man from Finland in red and white spreads cheer and gifts to kids around the world
5. Brother vows to protect his sister in return for a decorative thread that she tieson his wrist
10. Maharashtrian New Year
11. Festivals of lights that also brings with it lot of sweets and crackers
12. The ninth month of Islam - a month of fasting
60
Created by SmaranRanjit
61
63
Jammu & Kashmir -
Chalo Kashmir / Heaven on Earth
Jammu and Kashmir is a state in northern India. It is located
mostly in the Himalayan mountains, and shares a border
with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south.
Jammu and Kashmir has an international border with China in
the north and east, and the Line of Control separates it from
the Pakistani-controlled territories of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit–
Baltistan in the west and northwest respectively. The state has
special autonomy under Article 370 of the Indian constitution.
A part of the erstwhile Princely State
Kashmir and Jammu, the region
is the subject of a territorial
conflict among China, India
and Pakistan. The western districts of
the former princely state known as Azad
Kashmir and the northern territories known
as Gilgit-Baltistan have been under
Pakistani control since 1947. The Aksai
Chin region in the east, bordering Tibet,
has been under Chinese control since
1962.
of
Jammu and Kashmir consists of three
regions: Jammu, the Kashmir Valley and
Ladakh. Srinagar is the summer capital, and
Jammu is the winter capital. The Kashmir valley is
famous for its beautiful mountainous landscape, and Jammu’s
numerous shrines attract tens of thousands of Hindu pilgrims
every year. Ladakh, also known as “Little Tibet”, is renowned for
its remote mountain beauty and Buddhist culture. It is the only
state in India with a Muslim-majority population.
Culture
Ladakh is famous for its unique Indo-Tibetan culture. Chanting
in Sanskrit and Tibetan language forms an integral part of
Ladakh’s Buddhist lifestyle. Annual masked dance festivals,
weaving and archery are an important part of traditional life
in Ladakh. Ladakhi food has much in common with Tibetan
food, the most prominent foods being thukpa, noodle soup;
and tsampa, known in Ladakhi as Ngampe, roasted barley
flour. Typical garb includes gonchas of velvet, elaborately
embroidered waistcoats and boots, and gonads or hats.
People adorned with gold and silver ornaments and turquoise
headgears throng the streets during Ladakhi festivals.
Shikaras are a common feature in lakes and rivers across the
Kashmir valley.
The Dumhal is a famous dance in the Kashmir Valley, performed
by men of the Wattal region. The women perform the Rouff,
another traditional folk dance. Kashmir has been noted for
its fine arts for centuries, including poetry and handicrafts.
Shikaras, traditional small wooden boats, and houseboats are a
common feature in lakes and rivers across the Valley.
The Constitution of India does not allow people from regions
other than Jammu and Kashmir to purchase land in the state.
As a consequence,
houseboats became popular
among those who were
unable to purchase land
in the Valley and has now
become an integral part of
the Kashmiri lifestyle.
Ladakh
influenced
architecture.
Kawa, traditional green tea with
spices and almond, is consumed all
through the day in the chilly winter
climate of Kashmir. Most of the
buildings in the Valley and
are made from softwood and are
by Indian, Tibetan, and Islamic
Jammu’s Dogra culture and tradition is very similar to that
of neighbouring Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. Traditional
Punjabi festivals such as Lohri and Vaisakhi are celebrated
with great zeal and enthusiasm throughout the region, along
with Accession Day, an annual holiday which commemorates
the accession of Jammu & Kashmir to the Dominion of India.
After Dogras, Gujjars form the second-largest ethnic group in
Jammu. Known for their semi-nomadic lifestyle, Gujjars are also
found in large numbers in the Kashmir Valley. Similar to Gujjars,
Gaddis are primarily herdsmen who hail from the Chamba
region in Himachal Pradesh. Gaddis are generally associated
with emotive music played on the flute. The Bakkarwalas found
both in Jammu and the Valley of Kashmir are wholly nomadic
pastoral people who move along the Himalayan slopes in
search for pastures for their huge flocks of goats and sheep.
65
67
2015 Freedom Mela
Volunteers
68
Abhishek Ranjan
Karunakar Asireddy
Abhishek Srivastava
Kathyayani Pinnika
Aditi Buche
Kavitha Narisetty
Aditya Koneru
King Koduru
Ajay Bhojame
Kiran Gogeneni
Aluwal Reddy
Kiran Kandula
Amarnath Panyam
Kishore Mehrotra
Anand Murty
Kishore Mellacheruvu
Anant Tiwari
Kishore Patel
Anil Boddireddy
Kranthi Madineni
Anvi Peddi
Lakshmi Manoj Kumar
Aparna narendra
Laxma Reddy Julakanti
Arun Darepally
Laxmi Naramreddy
Bhadraben Bhatt
Madhavi Korrapati
Bikhipta Panda
Madhu Tata
Bimal Kothari
Madhu Yarlagadda
Bushan Kalla
Manoj Mothy
CK Rao Uppala
Margaret Samuel
Darshan Kaur
Maruthi Rayala
Devanand Konduru
Marykutty Eapen
Devaraj
Meher Lanka
Deven Gharpande
Murali Kakumani
Diven Ghatpande
Murali Nareddy
Geetanjali Talukdar
Nagamani Yeluri
Goutham Goli
Narendra Gore
Hari Gaddam
Neelima Gaddamanugu
Harikrishna Sikkoli
Niha Savili
HARSHA RG
Nikhil Naik
Hema Shilpa
Olena Kostenko
Jamaludheen Masthankhan
Omkar sangem
Janardhan Pannela
Pinak Raodeo
JAYESH MISTRY
Pradeep Reddy
Jogy Jose
Prakash Thondepu
Justifus Asir
Prashanth Podduturi
69
Praveen Chanda
Shiva Gaddamanugu
Priya Deshmukh
Shriraj Deshmukh
Pushpa Gogineni
Shweta Dhawan
Rahul Chikyala
Shyam Mallavarapu
Rahul Koneru
Sid Leo
Raj Jamadagni
Sirish Reddy Nallabolu
Rajani Vootla
Sohini Ayinala
Rajesh Polati
Sravan Dantu
Rajesh Tadikamalla
Sreedevi Dadithota
Rajitha Boddireddy
Sreekanth Uppala
Raju Kotak
Sreevalli Mellacheruvu
Rakesh Raj
Sridhar Korrapati
Rakesh Raj
Sridhar Palley
Ramesh Kotike
Sridhar Vakiti
Ramesh Meda
Srikanth Nistala
Ranjit Gangadharan
Srinivas Avula
Ravi Ponangi
Srinivas Gupta Mylarapu
Rina Gupta
Srinivas Mylarapu
Roli Jain
Srinivas Peddi
Sabhthi Boddireddy
Subbareddy Obili
Sabitha Pamulapati
Sunil Savili
Sagar Amirineni
Surendra Chatakondu
Saibabu Maddineni
Suresh Karotu
Sairam Pamulapati
Suresh Volam
Sajal Patel
Surya Sankla
Samba Madumadakala
Sushma Rai
Sameeksha Boddireddy
Suyog Buche
Sandhya Yellapragada
Swapna kaswa
Sanjeev Akula
Tejotham Bajepally
Sashidhar Vemula
Thomas Rayalu
Satish Srikakulapu
Udaya Eetooru
Satya Karnati
Vasu Patel
Saveen Edulakanti
Venu Pisike
Sebastian Sebastian
Vijayendar Garlapati
Shaloo Sawhney
Viju Chiluvuru
Shankar Gandra
Vishal Pawar
Shashidhar Vemula
Note: Please excuse us in case we missed any volunteers. We
appreciate all your HELP.
Shital Srivastava
70

Magazine - Indian Friends of Atlanta

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