Surat lensman snaps up gold medal at Japanese contest

SURAT: An unknown Surti wedding photographer won a gold medal in a photography competition held by All Japan Association of Photographic Society (AJAPS) for his snaps taken during the 2006 floods in the city.

Jayesh Vinjuda (32), father of two kids, who teaches traditional dodiya during Navratri to supplement his income, had never participated in any contest till September this year. "I did a lot of offbeat photography for fun, but kept my work to myself, fearing criticism. I entered this contest after much persuasion from my photographer friends and sent a series of 10 pictures from the collection of Flood Ravaged Cities," he said.

A matriculate, Vinjuda is a lensman for the last 13 years and has worked as a helper in Saiyedpura area of the city earlier.

This year, 9,140 photographers from 42 countries sent their entries and 130 photographers were selected for the final and were awarded. Eleven entries were sent from India and 10 of them were from Gujarat; six from Vadodara. A Vadodara lensman Dimple Pancholi has been awarded a special prize in the same contest.

The photograph that won the gold medal was taken at Pandole (Near Boricha Gas Agency) on Ved Road of the city in 2006.

In their letter to Vinjuda, AJAPS said that the winning works will be displayed in all the major cities of Japan during International Photographic Salon Exhibition and they can also be seen on the home page of the website. Vinjuda will receive his gold medal and certificate in April, 2012.

Dhirubhai Ambani's family re-joined with dandiya

JUNAGADH: The Ambanis resembled every other happy family a day before patriarch Dhirubhai Ambani's 80th birth anniversary, as they congregated at his birthplace and appeared at ease, eating and praying together, and in a scene unimaginable not so long ago, even dancing with each other at the local temple.

After prayers at the local Chorwadi Bhawani temple, Mukesh and Anil joined their wives, mother Kokilaben, sister Nina, their children and other family members, all beaming and dressed up, to dance to the beats of Gujarati dance forms dandiya and sanedo.
The spirited dandiya between Nita Ambani and Tina Ambani, the general bonhomie, Anil's vigorous steps, Mukesh's characteristically shy but happy dandiya steps, the happy vibes between the generations, all seemed too true to be forced. The divided Ambani family doesn't appear so divided anymore.

The images of the estranged brothers talking to each other, their wives dancing and families mingling will reinforce perceptions that the two, prodded by their mother, have put a line under one of India's most high-profile sibling rivalries and set the stage for greater cooperation.
ANIL GROUP SHARES REFLECT MOOD

Shares in some Anil Ambani group companies reflected that optimism, rising in a weak market. Flagship Reliance Communications ended 5% higher while Reliance Media Works closed 3% up. The stage for the tectonic shift in perceptions about India's first business family was set by matriarch Kokilaben's dramatic intervention on Monday with her declaration "There is love between the brothers... We are all united".

As markets and business pundits parsed her comments, the entire Ambani family reached Chorwad, a small coastal village 420 kilometres from Ahmedabad, and immersed itself in a series of mostly closeddoor family engagements. The family is here to celebrate Dhirubhai Ambani's birthday on Wednesday, and inaugurate a memorial built for him at the housing compound where he was born in 1932.

He built Reliance Industries into India's most valuable private company during his lifetime. The bonhomie that was on display on Tuesday night appears to have been the fruit of years of struggle by Kokilaben to keep her family together. Mukesh and Anil were consumed by a bitter and longstanding rivalry not so long ago, and were known for the extent to which the billionaires would go to avoid running into each other.

Their mother has been working hard behind the scenes to end the acrimony and bring the brothers closer. One of her initiatives has been to ask her sons to have lunch with her at home every Sunday. Kokilaben confirmed to ET on Monday that the brothers have been lunching with her for weeks now.

Cold wave grips Saurashtra, Kutch

BHUJ/RAJKOT: Cold wave is sweeping across Saurashtra and Kutch with temperature dipping as low as 3.8 degrees Celsius at Naliya in Kutch on Monday. However, the cold wave hit Bhuj with somewhat lesser intensity with minimum temperature being recorded at 9.4 degrees Celsius.

In Saurashtra, where temperature has been oscillating between 9 degrees Celsius and 10 degrees Celsius, the temperature was recorded at 8.7 degrees Celsius on Monday morning. In Junagadh, the minimum temperature was recorded at 9.8 degrees Celsius with wind blowing at 4.6 km per hour speed and humidity being recorded 79%.

Porbandar recorded the maximum temperature at 29 degrees Celsius and minimum at 9.4 degrees Celsius.

Meanwhile, the minimum temperature in Mount Abu on Monday dropped to O degrees Celsius. There were thin layers of ice on leaves of the trees and on the surface of Nakki lake as well.

Saurashtra would rue Jadeja's decision to rest

Mumbai, December 26, 2011

Ravindra Jadeja's decision to rest against Rajasthan has probably cost Saurashtra a slot in the Ranji Trophy knock-out phase.

The team has thus been denied a chance to have a shot at the title as well as an attractive prize money of Rs. 2 crore.

At the conclusion of the league stage on Saturday, both Rajasthan and Saurashtra, with two wins from seven matches, finished at 16 points and the defending champion advanced to the quarterfinals with a superior run quotient.

Rajasthan defeated Saurashtra in the league, but the BCCI removed the ‘result against each other' clause a few years ago to identify the side that would proceed to the knock-out in the event of teams being tied on points.

It was during the course of the five-match ODI series against the West Indies that the 23-year-old all-rounder conveyed to his association that he need not be considered for Saurashtra's penultimate league game against Rajasthan at Jaipur from December 13 to 16.

This match was played just two days after the fifth and final ODI at Chennai.

Showing commitment

While Bengal's Manoj Tiwary reached Kolkata in time for the match against Delhi, Suresh Raina made it to Lucknow for Uttar Pradesh's encounter against Mumbai. Punjab's Rahul Sharma, too, made it to Bangalore for the match against Karnataka while Parthiv Patel went to Ahmedabad for Gujarat's game against Tamil Nadu.

Jadeja, however, asked for a ‘much-needed' rest after he had scored 68 runs in five matches (four innings), and bowled 49 overs and taken nine wickets against the West Indies. If Jadeja had played that match, he would have probably made a big difference against a side (Rajasthan) that was occupying the bottom half of the Elite Group A table with five points from as many games.

As it turned out, Rajasthan scored 396 and 241 for four declared and dismissed Saurashtra for 265 and 143 to score a resounding victory.

Rajasthan's seam bowlers Pankaj Singh (five for 64 and two for 49) and Sumit Mathur (two for 51 and six for 33) proved too hot to handle for Saurashtra, but a player of Jadeja's calibre would have performed better and made a big difference to the final outcome.

In excellent touch

In most cases, a team advances with its main player in form. Jadeja has been in excellent touch after being recalled to the Indian side for the ODI series against England in England.

Shocking decision

Jadeja smashed a triple hundred against Odisha (314), played against Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, and missed two league matches (Karnataka and Mumbai) as he was busy with the Indian team.

He made 28 and 45 and took six for 23 and four for 42 in the final league match as Saurashtra registered a big victory in a low-scoring game against Railways. Jadeja went on to top the batting and bowling charts for Saurashtra with 433 runs and 18 wickets.

Shah's opinion

“He asked for rest and it was given to him. We cannot force anyone to play.

“But, his absence alone cannot be the reason for Saurashtra's defeat against Rajasthan. The other boys should have played well,'' said Niranjan Shah, Secretary, Saurashtra Cricket Association and vice-president of the BCCI, when asked about Jadeja's decision to miss the match against Rajasthan.

After the victory against Saurashtra, Rajasthan trounced bottom-placed Odisha to gain six points, including a bonus, to be on par with Saurashtra and Uttar Pradesh, which took the first innings lead against Karnataka at Shimoga.

Boost from Bist

Rajasthan picked up 11 points in the last two matches. This was made possible by the superb efforts of Robin Bist (829 runs with four centuries and two half-centuries).

He had good support from the others, including captain Hrishikesh Kanitkar.

Seamer Mathur, too, figured prominently, taking 13 of his 19 wickets in the last two games.

Rising to the occasion

The experienced Pankaj and newcomer Rituraj Singh rose to the occasion while leg-spinner Vivek Yadav also chipped in.

Mumbai, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana from the Elite league and Maharashtra and Hyderabad from the Plate league will figure in the knock-out stage while Saurashtra and Jadeja will have to watch from the sidelines.

Mirrorored fabric and birthday cake in Bhuj

We had been lucky enough to go to the Calico Textile Museum in Ahmedabad not once, but twice so we'd had plenty of time to be convinced of the wonders of Gujarati textiles which, according to our rather scary guide, would die out unless we went to Bhuj. Gosh.

We also quite liked the description in our guide book of a little-visited town that contained several palaces in various states of ruination after the 2001 earthquake alongside cute bazaars and friendly people. Gujarat is an earthquake zone and there have been regular earthquakes throughout the state over the years but in 2001 Bhuj was particularly unlucky to be at the centre of a rather large one which knocked down most of its buildings and killed 10% of its population. What a jolly place, we thought, let's go!

Arriving in Bhuj off the overnight train from Ahmedabad we checked into the Hotel Gangaram

. It was one of three places recommended in Lonely Planet and the only one that sounded nice. It being very early in the morning we couldn't be bothered to look for alternatives. This turned out to be a very good move as the hotel actually deserved its good write-up (unusual for LP) and as we wandered around the town we didn't really see many alternatives.

The first day was spent sleeping (long journeys seem to give me a headache, so I'd not slept that well on the train) and mooching about. We looked around one of the old, mostly ruined palaces, which was very scary. I've never been somewhere before where I've been so convinced I was surrounded by ghosts - we had a horrid crawling creepy feeling wherever we went. The palace has been left to further ruin after the earthquake so in addition to the crumbling walls and broken windows there are decaying stuffed lions and deer, frayed furniture, dusty vases, discoloured mirrors and paintings that are gradually flaking away. Pigeons flutter in and out of the sunbeams filtering through the windows making you jump out of your skin at every turn (and worry you're about to get pooed on...). We walked around pretty quickly...

The second day we arranged to go and visit some local villages that produced the famous textiles

. This turned out to be pretty much a day of shopping by tuk-tuk in the desert. We'd pull into a village to be welcomed by a bloke, or sometimes a woman in tribal dress, who'd show us into their house. This (lo and behold!) doubled as a shop. They would then show us a rediculous amount of blankets, shawls and other fabric-based things. We would often then buy some. Sometimes before the shop and sometimes afterwards we'd be briefly shown how they were made - with impressive hand looms, block printing or girls embroidering (finally, something women seemed to do in addition to cooking and cleaning and having babies!). We would probably have found out lots of interesting in-depth information about the crafts, but unfortunately didn't speak the language. This seemed to come as some surprise to the villagers - 'you no speak Gujerati? no Kutchi even?'. Now how we'd have learnt Kutchi - the local language that doesn't even have a written form - I have no idea, but we were clearly a bit of a disappointment. Oops.

The next day, which happened - in spite of me trying my hardest to forget - to be my birthday, we had decided to go to the seaside to do Not Much and have a nice lunch. We'd hoped to get away with that being the only thing we'd have to do. However, it was not to be. 1) we had to work out how to get to Udaipur the next day, which turned out to need two buses and took several hours to convince the travel agents that we didn't want to go somewhere else and 2) the hotel had noticed from my passport that it was my birthday and I was congratulated heartily by all the staff who insisted I be back at the hotel that evening

. Uh oh....

We got to Mandvi for a late lunch and headed to a posh beach resort. It was really really (really really) quiet - just a few maharajah-goes-camping style tents and a palm-leaf thatched hut for the restaurant, right on the beach. There were a couple of other people finishing off their lunch when we arrived, but for most of the time we were there on our own, looking out at the most pristine, deserted stretch of sand we'd encountered on our trip. Which is very surprising for India - where we'd seen an article in the paper in Mumbai arguing that rubbish bins were unsightly and should be banned. We were then informed that if we wanted to sit on the beach we'd have to pay 150 rupees each. Ah ha, that'd be why it's pristine and quiet then! We were happy sitting on the comfy chairs in the restaurant...

So, rather in trepidation I must say, we arrived back at the hotel and scuttled back up to our room to freshen up and steel ourselves for whatever over-exuberance awaited. There was a big Swedish group staying who had taken all the seats in the restaurant area (about 12) so we hung about in the courtyard wondering what we should do. Eventually we were noticed by the proprieter - a very jolly man who got quite excited that I'd arrived. Turns out they'd ordered a cake with my name on it! He rounded up the Swedes and after the most awful bout of singing you've ever encountered (no one knew my name, and the Indians didn't seem to know any more than the first line of 'Happy Birthday To You', which they just repeated over and over again with growing uncertainty and out of key until Hugh took the initiative and finished it off!) I blew out the candle, dished up cake for everyone (I was fed some by the owner, in the Indian way - thank goodness I knew about this tradition or I'd have wondered what on earth he was trying to do!) and the ordeal was over. Phew. Still, such a sweet thing for a hotel to have done!

Little Rann no longer worth its salt?

SURENDRANAGAR: It is the area that produces more than 25% of India's total salt. Little Rann of Kutch is among the major areas where salt pans exist in the desert and not on sea shore, thanks to high salinity in water. The industry, however, is now experiencing a setback due to shortage of water that has led the salt pan owners to start digging deeper and farther in the Rann.

Vijay Patel, 43, a salt pan owner at Satapar village near the Rann, said that earlier the water was available around 10 kilometers in desert and they had to dig up 10 to 20 feet to get the water deposits that could be used for the salt production. "However today, we have to go as far as 40 kilometers in search of underground saline water and the dig as deep as 55 feet. Yet, there is no guarantee of finding water," he said.

Patel is not alone. Salt industry is the biggest employment generator for the area for the past 40 years. Around 13,000 workers get direct employment and other fringe industries such as transportation and packaging generate 15,000 more jobs. The areas around the Rann had more than 1,200 saltpans functioning five years ago. However, the number has gone down to 750 since.

Salt pan owners had formed an association last year for negotiation with the buyers and government. Dharamshi Thakor, president of the association, told TOI that one bore well used to be sufficient for a saltpan that produces 400 to 500 tons of salt.

"Today, we require four bore wells to produce the same quantity. As we have to depend on generators to bring water to surface from such a depth, the cost works against the industry. Today we are selling a ton of salt at Rs 2,500. The price will soon shoot up if the problem persists," he said. Ambubhai Patel, a community member from Kharaghoda village and expert on saltpan workers, said that the problem partially lies in the overuse of saline water.

"I remember that saline water used to be found at four feet in 1972. A pair of bullocks was enough to get the water for business. Today, many have jumped in the fray and it has resulted in the decrease of water level," he said.

Patel said that simple measures can solve the issue. "We've been urging the state government for years to provide us with a canal from Malia Hati village, the starting point of Little Rann near gulf of Kutch that brings water in the desert. The canal will solve problem of the saline water in the area. However, the proposal has been gathering dust in the government files," he said.

According to industry sources, earlier Surendranagar ranked first in production of salt, thanks to Kharaghoda area. However, over the years, areas in Kutch and Saurashtra have raced ahead of the district.

Mumbai-Bhuj private train in the pipeline

 

AHMEDABAD — After a prominent businessman recently submitted to the railway ministry his plans for a private train between Mumbai and Shirdi, a popular religious shrine 300km away, a study is being conducted on the feasibility of a proposal to start a private train between India’s commercial capital and Bhuj in Kutch district of Gujarat.

The demand for a Mumbai-Bhuj private train was raised by a group of Mumbai-based wealthy Kutchi businessman when they went to New Delhi and met Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi, also a Gujarati and technocrat Sam Piroda, adviser to the railways.
A local railway official told Khaleej Times that there had been scattered efforts and proposals in the past from various businessmen and individuals, but it was the first time that the ministry is exploring various options with Pitroda having already asked railway experts to prepare a detailed project on the 860km route.

2 Pakistanis held from near Indo-Pak border in Kutch

Two Pakistani nationals have been apprehended from near the Sir Creek area in west coast of Kutch district adjoining the international border for illegally entering Indian territory, Border Security Force (BSF) officials said on Monday.
The two men identified as Hasan and Liyakat, both in their early thirties, had entered five kilometres into Indian territory on Sunday, before they were apprehended by the BSF unit patrolling the region, they said.
According to BSF officials, the duo, who claim to be from Thatta region of Sindh province of Pakistan, had come for fishing in a boat, which dropped them off and went back.
They have been taken to a primary health centre at Dayapar for health check-up from where they would be taken to the joint interrogation centre in Bhuj for questioning by various intelligence agencies, they added

Modi’s itinerary at Rann utsav and at Dhordo tent city

Bhuj, 10 December, 2011

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will reach Dhordo today at 1.30 pm through a helicopter. He will visit Khawda and go to Kalo dungar(black hills) to seek blessings of Shri Dattatreya.

From here, Modi will visit Dhordo tent city and will open Kutch rann utsav at 3.45 pm. In the evening, he will reach white surface of rann sitting on a camel cart. After attending cultural event inside the greater rann of Kutch, he will stay in Dhordo tent city for a night and will return back to Gandhinagar on Sunday morning. Modi will visit an art gallery and other exhibitions inside the tent city during his visit.

A special V-Sat facility has been created in the tent city for Modi and other dignitaries to avail them a live video of Khadir flamingo city. According to sources, Modi is keen to develop bird-watching tourism in Gujarat and especially in Kutch. Yesterday evening in his speech Modi said that bird-watchers are highly rewarding tourists.”Bird watchers are high-end class tourists who stay longer. If they don’t spot the bird they are willing to watch, they extend their stay and return back only after successful click,” Modi said. As Khadir flamingo city is far away from Dhordo tent city, Mr. Modi has arranged live view through satellite in tent city itself according to sources.

The making of the American Gandhi

 

AHMEDABAD: Joseph Mungra's Gujarati has a strong Saurashtrian twang, giving you no indication that this Hollywood filmmaker was brought up in Seattle.

His farmer father had migrated to the US from Rampur village in Jamnagar when he was young. But Joseph's heart is still in Gujarat and is now discreetly shooting his pet project 'American Gandhi' here. The film's lead role is played by James Patrick Stuart, a star of a number of TV serials, like CSI.

Joseph says the plot is about how India needs another Gandhi and this time he is coming from the US. "It is about how people from abroad come here and make a mess of things in their pursuit for wealth," he said.

'American Gandhi's' plot revolves around Mark Martin, played by Stuart, who is a skilled but unemployed mining analyst. His billionaire friend sends him on a job to India to manage and upgrade metal mines. Corruption, blatant disregard for law and uncooperative local population put him in an ethical dilemma - to follow success or serve the poor. The story is set in the backdrop of a nomadic tribe of Gujarat and tells of the hardships faced by villagers in India.

Tell him the villages of Gujarat are well-off compared to other parts of the country and he says in chaste Gujarati, "I know exactly how poor my village is. You have all the facilities in urban areas and you can't even get drinking water in the villages. I came back to Gujarat for the film because it is my home."

Part of the film has been shot near Mandvi in Kutch with a mixed crew from Americans and locals. At present, he is busy shooting in villages of Holmadh and Jalsika near Wankaner.

Mungra has worked on various Hollywood films in different positions including 'Something Wicked', which he had scripted.

The film starred well-known actress Brittany Murphy of hits like 'Clueless', 'Just Married', 'Girl Interrupted', 'Uptown Girls' and 'Happy Feet' and was released after her death.

38-day-long Rannotsav to begin from December 9

The Great Rann of Kutch will start buzzing with tourists from December 9 when this year’s 38-day- long Rannotsav begins near Dhordo village. The festival in the white Rann will be set into motion with display of artistic performances at colourful ‘Kutch Carnival’ on the banks of historic Hamirsar Lake in Bhuj on December 9.
On Wednesday, the state government announced that this year’s festival will begin on December 9, 2011 and end on January 15, 2012. This year’s attractions will be hot-air balloons and all-terrain vehicles, and some stars and film crew from Bollywood.
State tourism minister Jay Narayan Vyas said, “The response from tourists from all over the world this year is overwhelming. All the tents for the first three days have been booked while for the rest of the days, 80% of booking has already been done.”
“Last year, some 800 tourists visited Kutch while this year about 32,000 visitors have visited the place,” the minister said.
Talking about the plans to make Kutch a preferred location for film shooting, principal secretary of tourism department, Vipul Mitra, said: “We have received calls from actors like Suniel Shetty and Gulshan Grover expressing their keenness to visit Kutch during the festival. Shetty has been to Kutch earlier for his films like ‘Border’ and ‘Refugee’. Further, the crew of film-maker Vishal Bharadwaj will also be visiting the festival to explore the location for their next film.”
Apart from hot-air balloons and all-terrain vehicles, there will be other attractions like camel safari, desert car rally, horse ride and food court. Cultural programmes showcasing the culture of Kutch will also be there.
The government has announced a special package keeping in mind Christmas and New Year celebrations. As many as 440 AC and non-AC tents have been erected at Dhordo. The traditional eco-friendly houses of Kutch known as ‘Bhunga’ will also be made available to tourists. The government will organise beach festival on the seashore of Mandvi and a special kite festival will be organised in the white Rann.
At ‘Kutch Carnival’ in Bhuj, about 32 artiste-groups will perform on the banks of Hamirsar Lake.

Narendra Modi pays tribute to Dev Anand,recollecting emergency days

Gandhinagar, 4 December, 2011
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi paid homage to veteran bollywood actor Dev Anand remembering his role in emergency period.
On demise of Hindi film actor Dev Anand(88) in London on Saturday night due to cardiac arrest, Gujarat Chief Minister on Sunday morning tweeted, “the guide of entertainment industry, Dev sahab has passed away. Our tributes to him….May his soul rest in peace.”
Modi further tweeted: “during the 1975-77 emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi, Dev Sahab was the one who stood up in favour of democracy with most conviction.”
It should be mentioned that Modi was active underground worker against emergency imposed by then Prime Minister and Congress leader Indira Gandhi. Modi has also written a book about his activities in emergency period.

Sadbhavna mission is giving sleepless nights to anti-Gujarat elements:Narendra Modi in Kutch

By our political desk, Bhuj, 19 November, 2011

As many as 10,000 people from Kutch today voluntarily fasted with the Chief Minister Narendra Modi when he took upon a day-long fast today at Bhachau of Kutch district as a part of Sadbhavna mission.

Rounding up his fast Chief Minister said that all-round growth of the people of Gujarat is the indicator of the strength of unity and peace, which is the only way to development.

Because of Sadbhavna mission, Chief Minister said, the anti-Gujarat elements are now facing sleepless nights, which itself suggests the power of Sadbhavna that is prevailing in Gujarat from the last one decade. People of Gujarat never pay heed to the conspiracies and lies devised by the anti-Gujarat elements. Gujarat will never bow down despite a thousand try by the rulers of Delhi Sultanate.

Mr. Modi thanked the large gathering that came from the four talukas of Kutch – Bachau, Anjar, Rapar and Gandhidham to support the Chief Minister and the objectives of the Sadbhavna mission.

The venom of communalism was not there in India before independence but it was spread by some who played vote-bank politics to grill their political bread. Gujarat, for the first time, has raised voice against it and showed a way to bring a change, Mr. Modi said.

People of other state would also have to take the path of unity and peace if they want growth as it is happening in Gujarat. With the prevalence of Sadbhana, growth will come automatically, he said.

He also said how the Centre in indifferent towards the conservation of cow-progeny even after the directives of Supreme Court. Contrary to it, he said, Gujarat has organized over 3000 cattle health fair and eliminated some 112 diseases related to the animals.

Chief Minister also urged people to identify the growth-hurdling people who are out to hinder the development works of the state government.

Retailers across Saurashtra observe bandh

RAJKOT: Many shop-keepers across Saurashtra observed a bandh on Thursday as part of a nationwide stir against the central government's move to introduce foreign direct investment (FDI) into the retail sector.

Many markets in Rajkot wore a deserted look. Shop-keepers of Sangnva Chowk, Para Bazar, Danapith, Marketing Yard, Dharmendra Road, Lakahjiraj Road, Raiya Road, Yagnik Road, Gundavadi, Bhaktinagar Circle and Canal Road had voluntarily closed their shops. Traders of Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Surendrnagar and many other towns in Saurashtra too observed a bandh to register their protest against the government's move. The ruling BJP had supported the bandh even as many party workers moved around the streets of Rajkot shouting slogans against the UPA government.

"Small time retail business is going to be affected across the country if FDI is allowed in the sector. We are already in deep trouble because of entry of big players in the business," a retailer from Rajkot said. However, medical stores remained open and so were government offices and educational institutes.