yes, too bad that the victims of Thags couldn't come forwards to identify the perpetrators. Megan S. Mills PHD 198 St Helen's Toronto CDA M6H 4A1 > Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2010 21:06:51 +0700 > From: [email protected] > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [INDIA-BRITISH-RAJ] If they were crooks, wouldn't they be richer? > > Well, there's also a huge question mark against what William Sleeman did to/ > with the Thugs... > > Very, very, arguable, as to whether these were really criminal gangs, and > whether the people hanged were really deserving of the hanging - rather like > what happened in so many villages during the 'Mutiny...' > > It really is true when they say that history is the story of the Victor. > > On 29 April 2010 19:26, Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar <[email protected]>wrote: > > > Apr 22nd 2010 From The Economist print edition > > > > > > http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15955530&source=most_commented > > > > > > http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15955530&source=most_commented > > > > India's criminal tribes > > If they were crooks, wouldn't they be richer? Millions of poor > > Indians are considered criminal by tradition. Most are nothing > > of the sort > > > > | ASHTI, MAHARASHTRA | > > > > According to an 1880 report of the Bombay Presidency, an > > area dominated by the modern states of Maharashtra and > > Gujarat, members of a Pardhi sub-tribe are "always ragged > > and dirty, walking with a sneaking gait". > > > > To fix these vagabonds, the Raj introduced the 1871 Criminal > > Tribes Act, under which members of around 150 tribes were > > forced to register with the police, forbidden to move around > > freely and, in many cases, herded into barbed-wire camps. > > The law was scrapped soon after India won independence, > > and the criminal tribes were formally "de-notified" in 1952. > > Some have prospered: in Rajasthan, the Meenas dominate > > a preferential-treatment scheme to allocate government jobs > > to tribal people, which has let them become part of India's > > elite civil services. Yet the fortunes of many de-notified tribes > > (DNTs) have scarcely improved. [snip] > > > > --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without > > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

----- Original Message ----- From: "John Feltham" When I was at VS, we would listen to the "Binaca Hit Parade" broadcast from Radio Ceylon on a Sunday evening. ================= Don't - John, please don't get me started on the subject of Radio Ceylon - now known as SLBC or Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. I love it and can speak volumes. I was pleasantly surprised to read that you were a Binaca Geet Mala (song parade) fan. Sadly, SLBC's foreign service is no longer what it was a decade or so ago. TV and FM radios have brought down their listenership, advertisement revenues have gone down to nil and so the government in Colombo no longer seems much interested in financing SLBC to keep running the very popular Hindi service. A die-hard short-wave buff and an avid listener of SLBC's Hindi service like me feels disgusted and hurt while catching the very poor quality transmissions on 31 and 49 metre bands. I am not sure of my facts, but vaguely remember reading somewhere that the present-day transmitters of the SLBC once belonged to the Voice of America and set up there during the second World War. Their life is probably over by now but without governmental funding upgradation is not possible. So SLBC somehow still manages to show a smiling face to the world by relying on those aged machines. In the meantime, here is something on the history of Radio Ceylon (SLBC): Eighty Years of Broadcasting in Sri Lanka, by Ivan Corea The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation celebrates 80 years in 2005 - a historic landmark in the world of broadcasting. To this day the SLBC is the oldest and finest radio station in South Asia. http://www.dailynews.lk/2005/12/27/fea02.htm Oh, and just by the way, how many of you have heard the National Anthem of Sri Lanka? Its words and music are perhaps THE BEST amongst national anthems from the entire world. A beautiful, haunting, magical melody. --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar

http://milkmiracle.net/2010/04/27/india-by-lord-halifax/ --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar

----- Original Message ----- From: "Carol&PT" I have a photograph of my father sitting at a transmitter at Gondalpara Jute Mill, near Chandernagore, in 1937.. He was a 'radio ham' . It has the details of the transmitter written on the back of the photo, eg: Receiver - Eddystone 'Klyodine-4', 50 watts, frequency 14200 Kcs, Y100KCs and Y220Kcs, his call sign and so on. I don't know what I am talking about here - merely quoting some of the details on the back of the photo!! So presumably it was only half as powerful as your quoted "first 1-Kw transmitter" at Nagpur? ============================== Carol, hams and public broadcasting radios is a fascinating subject. However, going into their technical details would not only be outside the scope of this list but it would also amount to my speaking on something for which I am not qualified. Search the web or wikipaedia for more information on these two topics. Briefly, the power of a transmitter decides the range of its coverage. So a 1-KW transmitter has a very short range while a 1000-KW baby can be heard clearly over very long distances. Ham radios are mainly like telephones - operated by licensed amateurs. Obviously a powerful transmitter is going to cost a lot of money, so most ''hams'' prefer simple, low-key, short range transmitters as opposed to those used by public broadcasters. But in any case, they both have to work under strict rules and regulations. Hams and public radios were brought to India by the Raj people, and after all these years and despite the advent of cell phones and digital TVs, they still are popular to a large extent. According to the official records, radio broadcasting in India began on July 23, 1927, when the Indian Broadcasting Company, IBC, inaugurated its first radio station 7BY in Bombay. As time went by, 7BY became the more familiar VUB and the Indian Broadcasting Company was taken over by AIR, All India Radio. However, in the eight year period stretching from early 1920 until regular broadcasting was established in 1927, a dozen or more radio stations were established in several of the major cities in India. All of these stations were experimental in nature, and some were very temporary, lasting no more than a few days. The very first radio broadcast in India was made by Giandchand Motwane (GE-and-chund mot-WAH-nee) from Bombay in 1920. This low powered station was on the air for just one day under the callsign 2KC. [snip] http://www.radioheritage.net/Story23.asp The main public broadcasting radio and TV system is owned by the Government of India through a corporation known as Prasar Bharati. The radio system is entitled ''Akashwani'' [or Voice from the Skies] in Hindi and All India Radio in English. Rabindranath Tagore is supposed to have coined the name ''Akashwani''. More interesting history at: http://cluedin.in/component/content/article/169/169 Some other links for more information = Radio and the Raj: broadcasting in British India (1920-1940) http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract;jsessionid=A95D1B29553EC68E368323DD1E8CE5A6.tomcat1?fromPage=online&aid=5857552 http://www.hamradioindia.org/ http://allindiaradio.org/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transmitter --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar

G'day Ala, On 29/04/2010, at 5:18 AM, Alan Lane wrote: << Yes, the pages are deliberately left blank as when I last spoke to Hazel at a BACSA meeting three years ago, I asked her the same question, "Why are the pages missing for the chapter on "Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll"? - Hazel replied, "Because there wasn't any!!" - meaning at the schools. >> Yes, I had guessed that. An excellent spoof! ooroo

G'day Harshawardhan, On 29/04/2010, at 1:58 AM, Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar wrote: > No, no, this Buti (booty) refers to the family name of a very > illustrious ancient zemindar - landlord family from this area. large snip 8<....... << The next Buti - Raj connexion is in the form of the supremely otiose, supernumerary town planning authority called the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) we have for our city. >> another large snip 8<.... Thank you Harshawardhan for that interesting bit. I had once more to reach for my trusty built-in Apple Dictionary, for I had long ago forgotten what 'otiose' means. Probably because it has served no practical purpose in my life, for a long time. For those without a built-in dictionary on their computer, here is the Apple version of 'otiose'. otiose |ˈō sh ēˌōs; ˈōtēˌōs| adjective serving no practical purpose or result : he did fuss, uttering otiose explanations. • archaic indolent; idle. DERIVATIVES otiosely adverb ORIGIN late 18th cent.: from Latin otiosus, from otium ‘leisure.’ ooroo

Yes John would love to import one to Oz and display it - I have a bad memory of falling out of one as a child - the fork broke as we were going down hill and sent as mother and I sprawling into the street. Kind Regards Kerry IF YOU FORWARD MY EMAILS AS A COURTESY PLEASE REMOVE ALL ATTACHED EMAIL ADDRESSES OR BLIND COPY (bcc). ALSO NO CHAIN MAIL PLEASE On 28 April 2010 22:57, John Feltham <[email protected]> wrote: > G'day Kerry, > > On 28/04/2010, at 7:36 PM, Kerry Edwards wrote: > > > ALSO NO CHAIN MAIL PLEASE > > Why not? Its worth a fortune these days. > > Saw some on Antique Road Show the other day - top valuation given! IN the > thousands of UKP. > > > > ooroo > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

G'day John, On 28/04/2010, at 7:46 PM, [email protected] wrote: > Hi John, I have the 2005 reprint of the 1996 revision. Pp193-195 > are blank, and at the bottom of p196 is the single word, "Gotcha!". Wow! I've been short changed. Nothing but the page number on mine. Send for the manager please. ooroo

G'day Kerry, On 28/04/2010, at 7:36 PM, Kerry Edwards wrote: > ALSO NO CHAIN MAIL PLEASE Why not? Its worth a fortune these days. Saw some on Antique Road Show the other day - top valuation given! IN the thousands of UKP. ooroo

Hi John, I have the 2005 reprint of the 1996 revision. Pp193-195 are blank, and at the bottom of p196 is the single word, "Gotcha!". Cheers, John > G'day John, > > On 28/04/2010, at 5:53 AM, [email protected] wrote: > >> Hi all, See the bottom of page 196. I guess that's a >> "Gotcha" for some! > > Well, you got me! > > There's nothing at the bottom of page 196. > > Have you got the book? Which edition is it? > > > > ooroo > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

----- Original Message ----- From: "Arvind Kolhatkar" Somewhat off the List but I would think the curious-sounding name of Buti Bori must have been derived from a long-forgotten small (buti) jujube (bor) tree in that area. 'Bor' in Marathi or 'Ber' in Hindi is a short thorny tree that grows all over India. It requires very little water and usually grows wild. ============================== No, no, this Buti (booty) refers to the family name of a very illustrious ancient zemindar - landlord family from this area. They used to own this village in ''maal-guzhari'' rights - a revenue ownership concept, somewhat similar to the thanes and fiefs of England. Bori is of course the name of that place. There are many villages in these parts named Bori (derived, as you say, from the density of ber or bor - Ziziphus jujuba or Ziziphus plum - bushes). Since this Bori was owned by the Butis - it became Buti Bori. I am afraid someone is going to throw an egg at me soon for writing this off-topic stuff. So I'll bring it online. This Buti family of Nagpur has its own place in the history of British India. First, it was under the patronage of one of their 19th century ancestors the famous holy man (saint) Gajanan Maharaj of Shegaon near Akola (on the Nagpur-Bhusawal railway line) became wildely known. Nobody knows the exact origins of this saint - when he was born, what was his native place, etc. BUT there is a school of thought that maintains that he was none other than the famous/infamous Tantiya (Tatya) Tope hismself. These people believe that Tatya was NOT captured and hanged by the British after the 1857-8 Sepoy Mutiny - as claimed. They say he managed to escape the British dragnet and a dummy Tatya was caught and hanged when it was found that Tatya had indeed vanished. Some years thereafter, the real Tatya ''materialised'' at Shegaon in the avavatar of an adult St Gajanan Maharaj. I don't know if and how much of this is true. But it's an interesting theory. The next Buti - Raj connexion is in the form of the supremely otiose, supernumerary town planning authority called the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) we have for our city. In other cities this job is done (quite well) by their municipal councils or corporations. We too have our own City Corporation. It too is vested with town planning powers. So why do we need this NIT? How did it come into being in the first place? One of the reasons is the British officials manning the erstwhile C P and Berar state (of which Nagpur was the capital) were intensely jealous and fearful of the influence wielded by the Buti family. They owned vast tracts of land in and around Nagpur, were very rich and popular, generous donors, philanthropists - AND they used to help (openly or on the sly) those opposed to the British Raj and administration. However, since nothing could be proved against them, the smart sahibs cooked up a plan to clip their wings. They passed a law, established the NIT, and invoking the dreaded Land Acquisition Act, took over more than three-fourth of the Butis' estates from them for the alleged expansion and development of the city of Nagpur. As always, while I don't reject this view outright, I feel it advisable to add a pinch of salt to such speculations. --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar

My copy (2005 reprint) also has this "Gotcha!" on page 196. And the chapter is also listed on the Contents page. I think only the author herself can enlighten us. -- Harshawardhan ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Feltham" Wow! I've been short changed. Nothing but the page number on mine. Send for the manager please. > Hi John, I have the 2005 reprint of the 1996 revision. Pp193-195 > are blank, and at the bottom of p196 is the single word, "Gotcha!".

All Yes, the pages are deliberately left blank as when I last spoke to Hazel at a BACSA meeting three years ago, I asked her the same question, "Why are the pages missing for the chapter on "Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll"? - Hazel replied, "Because there wasn't any!!" - meaning at the schools. I have a copy of the 2001 reprint, and sure enough the pages are indeed blank. Regards Alan Lane > G'day John, > > On 28/04/2010, at 7:46 PM, [email protected] wrote: > >> Hi John, I have the 2005 reprint of the 1996 revision. Pp193-195 >> are blank, and at the bottom of p196 is the single word, "Gotcha!". > > Wow! I've been short changed. > > Nothing but the page number on mine. > > Send for the manager please. > > > ooroo

It's a wonder they haven't banned rickshaw-pullers on cruelty grounds alone...well I guess if they had, they'd be no *savaris* to the airports during *hartals*!!! All the rick-pullers in Hyderabad have progressed to auto-ricks (tuk-tuks)..cough!! cough!! Khudha Hafiz Kerry IF YOU FORWARD MY EMAILS AS A COURTESY PLEASE REMOVE ALL ATTACHED EMAIL ADDRESSES OR BLIND COPY (bcc). ALSO NO CHAIN MAIL PLEASE On 28 April 2010 18:34, John Feltham <[email protected]> wrote: > > > http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/18-km-rickshaw-run-to-catch-a-plane-/articleshow/5865681.cms > > > Off Topic - but worth the read! > > > :-) > > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/18-km-rickshaw-run-to-catch-a-plane-/articleshow/5865681.cms Off Topic - but worth the read! :-)

G'day John, On 28/04/2010, at 5:53 AM, [email protected] wrote: > Hi all, See the bottom of page 196. I guess that's a > "Gotcha" for some! Well, you got me! There's nothing at the bottom of page 196. Have you got the book? Which edition is it? ooroo

Dear Listers, While on the subject of rickshaw-pullers, I am reminded of the 1953 classic film called 'Do Bigha Zameen' (Two Bighas of Land, a bigha is about 1/3rd of an acre) by Bimal Roy. It is the story of a marginal farmer who comes to Calcutta to earn some money as a rickshaw-puller, so that he can get his land back from the money-lender, only to see his land gobbled up by an industry. The film won the Filmfare award, instituted from that very year. It also won awards at Cannes and Karlovy Vary. For more info, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Do_Bigha_Zameen It is available on youtube by typing the name in the search box. Incidentally, bicycle rickshaws, once common in many parts of India, were somehow never seen in Bombay, Poona and Western Maharashtra. They are generally disappearing and are replaced by autorickshaws. The areas of North India where they are still seen is sarcastically called the 'Rickshaw Belt' (like the more well-known Bible Belt of the southern parts of the US or the Cow Belt of Eastern UP and Bihar of India). Arvind Kolhatkar, Toronto, April 28, 2010.

I have a photograph of my father sitting at a transmitter at Gondalpara Jute Mill, near Chandernagore, in 1937.. He was a 'radio ham' . It has the details of the transmitter written on the back of the photo, eg: Receiver - Eddystone 'Klyodine-4', 50 watts, frequency 14200 Kcs, Y100KCs and Y220Kcs, his call sign and so on. I don't know what I am talking about here - merely quoting some of the details on the back of the photo!! So presumably it was only half as powerful as your quoted "first 1-Kw transmitter" at Nagpur? Carol T. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 2010 5:28 PM Subject: [INDIA-BRITISH-RAJ] Off topic - on topic Re: ''Under The Old SchoolTopee'' (re)visited > ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Feltham" > > I went to school in Kurseong, where the best tea comes from. > Even Prince Charles buys his char from Makaibari. > > Harshawardhan it is like saying that you live in Buti Bori! > ===================================== > > Wish it were true! A huge international air cargo complex catering to > the needs of entire India is coming up a few miles from the existing > airport in Nagpur - and Buti Bori (a small village 20 miles from Nagpur) > lies just beyond. It's also close to the newly-built cricket stadium. And > then there is this sprawling industrial area at Buti Bori, set up some > years ago by our state government for entrepreneurs who want to > move away from the traditional Bombay-Poona belt. ALL this has made > the property prices in and around that place zoom skywards - almost > all agricultural estates between Nagpur and Buti Bori have been sold > out, converted to residential or commercial use; and now you can get > a 3000 sq. ft. of plot there only for what previously we used to expect > from a prime piece of land in downtown Nagpur. So if you are a multi- > millionnaire and wish to make a fast buck, think of buying an acre of > land in Buti Bori. Guaranteed hundred per cent doubling in just one or > two years. Should I talk to a realtor I know? You can thank me, John, > by inviting me for a cup of the best Kurseong tea that is served to HRH. > > (GRIN) > > How did you find the name in the first place? > > Sorry, folks, for this off-topic chant. To bring this on-topic, it is > well-known > that Nagpur is considered the exact geographical centre of India and we > have a British-era stone pillar that marks the spot. Locally it's called > the > Zero Mile Stone. However, recent studies have indicated that the dead > centre of India is not in Nagpur, but some miles up north on the way to > Jabalpur (Jubbulpore) via Kamptee Cantt. But, interestingly, it's this > place > Buti Bori which marks the exact magnetic centre of India, and it is in the > south-westerly direction from Nagpur. Scientists working for the > Government > of India proved this some twenty-five years ago and that's why they > chose Buti Bori to house the government-owned radio station's (All India > Radio) most powerful medium-wave transmitter for an all-India broadcasting > coverage. A geo-stationary satellite hovers some twenty thirty miles up > in Space exactly above the Buti Bori transmitter's long antenna - and > catches the signals it beams up, for further relay throughout India. The > 1000-kw transmitter beast is so powerful that when it starts working every > evening for a 12-hour stint, you can feel its reverberations shaking the > earth in a three or four mile radius. > > What a long way we have travelled since the first one-KW radio transmitter > began working at Nagpur in 1948. And 'that' machine was imported from > Aurangabad which was till then in the Nizam of Hyderabad's domain. He > had imported it originally from England for setting up a radio station at > Aurangabad, much before 1947. It was shut down during the 1948 Police > Action to liberate Hyderabad and the machinery was moved on to Nagpur. > > --- Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar > > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without > the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

G'day Harshawardhan, On 28/04/2010, at 2:28 AM, Harshawardhan_Bosham Nimkhedkar wrote: > How did you find the name in the first place? A very mundane method these days, Harshawardhan. I to wanted find a place that was a similar distance away from Nagpore, as Darjeeling is from Kurseong. So it was off to Buti Bori, which was found on Google Earth! I went through Nagpore in July 1947 on my way from Bombay to Calcutta. That was the only time I was ever there. ooroo

Dear Listers, Somewhat off the List but I would think the curious-sounding name of Buti Bori must have been derived from a long-forgotten small (buti) jujube (bor) tree in that area. 'Bor' in Marathi or 'Ber' in Hindi is a short thorny tree that grows all over India. It requires very little water and usually grows wild. Some modified varieties are also commercially grown. It is one of the cheapest fruits in the market. Arvind Kolhatkar, Toronto, April 28, 2010.