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Banned
SIMI launched jihad on Net
The
banned Students Islamic Movement of India continues to fire a
salvo through its web site, inciting Indian Muslim youths to leave
‘unIslamic’ India and ‘liberate India to an Islamic land’. The
Simi’s website continues to exist despite the ban. Interpreting
Quranic verses to serve its ends, Simi calls for jihad against
India as part of its grand aim to establish Dar-ul-Islam (land
of Islam).
It’s welcome message is: “Allah our Lord, Prophet Mohammed our
commander, Quran our constitution, jihad our path, Shahadat (martyrdom)
our desire and divine guidance”. Then it goes on ridiculing Indian
Muslims for living in an ‘unIslamic’ land and incites them to
‘migrate to the land of Islam and thus enjoy a full Islamic life’.Quoting
a Quranic verse (Chapter Al-Nisa, verse 97), the banned organisation
mocks at the Indian Muslims. “They are satisfied with a life made
up of a blend of Islamic and un-Islamic elements ... ease and
comfort, their excessive attachment to their kith and kin and
to their properties and worldly interests.
These
concerns had exceeded reasonable limits and had even taken precedence
over their concern for their religion”. The website warns Indian
Muslims of a strong divine punishment for “willingly submitting
themselves to live under an un-Islamic order, which would be called
to account by God”.
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Philatelist
leaves a stamp on city's past
We
knowa little that Hyderabad was one of the few States in pre-Independence
India which printed its own stamps. And you can get to know all
about these stamps and more from the book — Stamps of Hyderabad
— written by Mohammad Badruddin Khan which is to be released on
October 5 at the general post office by the chief postmaster-general.
Badruddin Khan has been collecting stamps for the last 45 years
and has painstakingly put together pictures and other details
of 60 stamps of Hyderabad State, issued between 1869 and 1948.
Khan’s
book contains stamps depicting the monuments of those times —
Charminar, the Unani General Hospital, the Osmania General Hospital,
Osmania University, Power House, Kakatiya Arch at Warangal and
so on. This is the first time that all the 60 stamps are covered
in one book, and the stamps have been taken from the collections
of philatelists of Hyderabad.
The
book, aimed as a simple hand book, is priced at Rs 100 and carries
colour pictures. Stamps were printed at Mint Compound with dyes
imported from England and other places. Other States which used
postage stamps got it printed abroad. The members of Hyderabad
Philatelic and Hobbies Society, met presspersons on Wednesday
and shared details of the postal system of Hyderabad State.
For instance, in the early days of the rule of Asaf Jah I from
1724, firman and administrative messages were transmitted through
people who were called “runners”, who were supposed to cover a
distance of 40 kos (roughly 80 km), in six hours. These runners
were used initially for administrative purposes and also espionage.
During the reign of Asaf Jah III, a regular postal system was
introduced with licensed carriers to carry mail within the State
and to and from Calcutta, Madras and Pune.
Private
mails could also be carried for a dear price — a letter weighing
4 tola was charged 4 anna (25 paise) in 1820s, through a contractor.
One Girdharilal was given the Jagir of Dhamuri and got an annual
income of Rs 18,000 to carry the official mail. The first adhesive
stamp of Hyderabad was issued on September 8, 1869 and it was
price at 1 anna each. In 1948, after Hyderabad State became a
part of the Indian Union, the postal system was taken over by
the Government of India.
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AP
is now keen on Travel & Tourism
Labour
and Employment Minister C Krishna Yadav said the state was keen
on developing tourism as it generated employment and revenue to
the state.
Addressing the valedictory function of the India International
Travel Mart (IITM-2001) at Necklace Road here on Tuesday, the
minister said despite the fallout of the terrorist attacks on
United States, the Travel Mart had been a success with 68 stalls
put up by more than 40 participants from the states and abroad.
Apart from local exhibitors from the city and states like Rajasthan
and Uttar Pradesh, the international participants from Dubai,
Malaysia, Singapore and Kenya attracted the audience, he said.
Appreciating the efforts of the state government, Chairman of
Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation, Rajiv Arora said, though
there has been a decrease in the number of countries which participated
in the travel mart, the mart was well received. Joint Secretary
of Tourism Shiv Nagakumari said the aim of such fairs and festivals
was to attract tourists to the state.
Director India International Travel Mart Anurag Gupta congratulated
the participants at the mart. The Labour and Employment Minister
C Krishna Yadav gave away the awards to the best participants
at the travel mart. Andhra Pradesh Tourism was adjudged the best
stall for the decoration, and the Dubai stall the best among international
participants.
Among the private participants, Dhola-Ri-Dhani Resorts from Medak
won the first prize and Aalankrita from Shameerpet, Rangareddy
district stood second. The Country representative of Dubai Tourism
Carl Vaz said that with the signing of the memorandum of understanding
between the two countries, there would be mutual exchange programmes
to encourage tourism. The state government is also planning to
set up an Institute of travel and Tourism Managament in Hyderaba.
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Theatre
only Naam Ke vaste
An
exclusive body for promotion of theatre -Andhra Pradesh Theatre
Institute Repertoire - exists in the state but only for namesake.
A
group of people interested in promotion of theatre came together
and sought the help of the then chief minister M Channa Reddy
who agreed to the proposal to set up an exclusive body for the
promotion of theatre. Subsequently, a government order was issued
in 1981 and it came into being in January 1982.
Noted
persons in the field of theatre A R Krishna, Eranki Seetaramaiah
and others contributed to making it popular. For the hundreds
of artistes who depended on theatre for their livelihood the institute
came in as a boon. Some of the popular dramas the institute produced
include -Ma Nanna Kavali, Abignanashankuntalam, and Ramadasu.
Subsequently
during the regime of former chief minister N T Rama Rao, the Sahitya,
Nritya and Nataka Academies were merged to form the Telugu University.
The funds for the theatre institute repertoire were reduced and
the teaching and research of theatre was given to the Telugu University.
Now the theatre institute repertoire has neither adequate staff
nor funds and is virtually inactive now. The repertoire has become
almost defunct from 1985-86.
Some
years ago, it used to stage at least 15 to 20 plays per month
at Ravindra Bharati competing with other private drama companies
with funds to the tune of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh per year. Some
of the officials in the department of culture are of the view,
if revived the repertoire would provide some relief to the genuine
theatre workers.
When
contacted, Director of Department of Culture, authorities said
the department proposes to conduct a series of theatre workshops
soon. "We are not giving money to any private drama companies.
The programmes are being conducted through the government departments
only".
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study centre ready to shut
The
city has the largest repository of American books outside the
United States. But lack of funds is forcing the centre to shut
up shop. The Indo-American Centre for International Studies (IACIS),
formerly American Studies Research Centre (ASRC), on the Osmania
University campus here will be closed down in April next year.
The IACIS management has served retrenchment notices to its 60-odd
staff informing the decision of the management to wind up the
centre.
In
the notice dated October 1, 2001, IACIS acting director Prof Isaac
Sequeira stated: "The management due to financial and administration
reasons has decided to retrench all the employees from service
with effect from March 31, 2001. The employees who are retrenched
from service are herewith given six months notice to effect the
termination of service."
The
ASRC, as the present IACIS was known a couple of year ago, was
started by the Unites States in April 1964 to provide an opportunity
to Indian scholars to pursue research in the field of American
literature, social studies and other allied subjects.
The
centre, which was earlier in the OU library building, moved to
the present sprawling 5-acre campus in the Osmania University
in the early 1970s. It has got a rich collection of over 1.5 lakh
books, hundreds of microfilms, movies and other reading material.
After the end of the cold war, the Unites States, acting under
its changed geo-political interests, stopped funding the centre
in 1997.
After
much persuasion by both Indian and foreign scholars, the Ford
Foundation agreed to fund the centre for a period of three years,
which ended recently. The efforts of a group of senior IACIS members
to revive the centre by taking the help of corporate groups has
also failed. According to a senior IACIS staff member, after the
closure, the centre is likely to go into the hands of the Osmania
University, which agreed to run the library by employing skeletal
staff .
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