Shubho Nobo Barsho!

In the pre-dawn darkness, long before the sun was scheduled to rise – at 5:56 am – devotees had started gathering on the lawns of Chittaranjan Park Kali Mandir. Everyone stood in orderly lines facing east. It was Nabo Barsho – 15^th April, Bengali New Year’s Day. We were waiting to catch the first auspicious glimpse of the Sun God, the giver of Life and ruling deity of our oldest scripture, the Rig Veda. We held palm leaf bowls with rose petals, til and Ganga jal, which we would offer the God as soon as he made his appearance through the verdant tree tops that surround the temple. Since there remained a good half hour before sun rise, we listened to a rendition of Tagore’s “Aguner Parashmani”, about the light that touches  our vision and dispels the darkness. 

The Chief functionaries welcomed all devotees who numbered in the hundreds by now. A priest recited verses from the Rig Veda, in praise of that most ancient of worshiped beings – the Sun, who was about to appear before us in its everyday , glorious form. Is there anything more breath-taking than that first sight of the newly risen sun? We raised our flowers to him and prayed for a serene, peaceful and happy New Year.

At the end of the prayers, the palm-leaf bowls were collected for orderly disposal – the lawn remained pristine, except for the thousand or so devotees embracing each other with New Year greetings.

And the Bengali year 1425 had begun.

May it bring happiness, good health and peace to all our neighbours.

By Chitra Sarkar ,J Block CR Park, New Delhi

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Spring and Summer Playing Hide And Seek

The back to back weather progression is getting surprising every year. Seasons seem to merge into each other almost seamlessly, in the same breath. By the time we begin to savor one season, almost immediately, the next bounces in front of us, as if telling us- ah, enough now, look at me, here I come! The exit of winter and the impatience of Spring to arrive and then, the quick exit of spring with the onset of summer, also happened the same way this year.

However, the sweet and cool mornings and the extremely pleasant evenings still tell us that spring is reluctant to leave us! It has not allowed summer to beat down upon Delhi as yet! Summer is restlessly edging its way in, with warm afternoons, giving off warning signs that this time, its going to stay long and become unbearably hot! So beware people!

All around, trees have merrily shed their old and dead leaves and have welcomed with outstretched branches, tender, green and shy leaves which are busy befriending the myriad flowers resplendent in their riot of colours, adding dashes of colors to the trees and the bright sky. Equally bright and colorful butterflies are making the most of this weather and time, to suck in as much nector as possible. Birds of astonishing sizes and colours are sighted all around the green trees, busy making their nests. Evenings see them driving us happily crazy with their incessant and chirpy cacophany, which has so much become a rarity in today’s times. The animal world is busy with “make hay while the sun shines”, creating its store of food and shelter, before the off springs arrive!

Lots of lessons to learn from the animal world and the green world.- to realise how important it is for us - supposedly the more intelligent animal, to conserve and preserve our environment and ecosystem for a secure co-habitation of all species on this planet - and stop the mindless destruction that human beings are doing to nature on a daily basis.

Time to turn the tide with immediate urgency – to save our planet before its too late! Lot of species are becoming extinct due to the immense change in the climate and ecosystem. Time to stop and think!

Lets save our rivers and water bodies, reduce carbon footprint, plant more trees and recycle waste. Lets keep reminding ourselves how critical this time is to restore nature for peaceful co-existences of all species.

Lets recycle, restore and recover!

by Jaya Ray ( ray.jaya72@gmail.com)

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‘NATURAL AND ORGANIC' IS THE BUZZ WORD IN DELHI AND NCR

NCR RESIDENTS  GROWING THEIR OWN ORGANIC VEGETABLES AT BACKYARD OR BALCONIES

The growing awareness about health and wellness ,eating natural and organic food is becoming essential part of our lifestyle. The ‘Organic ‘ has become a buzzword among residents of National Capital Region in last couple of years.

“Despite urban space constraints cultivating a garden for pesticide-free vegetables and fruit may seem like a far-fetched idea. But now  growing and owning an organic kitchen garden is actually utterly becoming achievable and house wives are growing organic vegetables and herbs in back yard, balconies and even bath tubs” said Ms Bella Gupta, Secretary, All India Kitchen Garden Association,(AIKGA)  an all India apex body  having branches all over India .

“The process of growing organic vegetables and herbs is  cost-effective, and low-maintenance. The only requirements are a lot of patience and perseverance. You do not need much space , one can use windowsill to grow some vegetables. One of the biggest requirements to grow fruits and veggies is sunlight, something the city is amply blessed with.” said Ms Gupta.

“Recycle and reuse at the outset, you don’t need to invest in fancy or earthen pots. You can even make use of plastic bottles, buckets and bathtubs to grow vegetables. Take a medium sized bathtub; fill it with soil and home compost to grow cabbages, cauliflowers, capsicums, radish and onions. Start with what you have. There’s no need to buy earthworms or any other stuff. Simply convert your kitchen waste into resource,” said Ms Gupta.

“One can source the seeds for as cheap as Rs 10 from any of the nurseries in the city, Always go for open pollinated seeds, not hybrid. You can start by growing basic vegetables like basil (tulsi), mint leaves (pudina), kadi pata, chillies, lemon grass and different varieties of spinach. “They are one of the simplest to grow. Since they don’t require too much sunlight the plant can be kept in a living room or placed near the window, Once you are well-versed with simple plants, graduate to growing cabbage, cauliflower, capsicum, radish, onions and tomatoes.” She added.

“The demand for organic is huge especially in the younger generation, which means people are taking ownership of what they eat and where their produce comes from and that’s very important. It’s the 25-40 age group that’s driving the change,” Ms Gupta Said.

“Consumer demand for locally produced, natural foods and organic products is no longer just a trend. There is a paradigm shift towards produce that boosts health and wellness”. She added.

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