Ananda Sangbad 2012 Q3

Ananda Mandir 269 Cedar Grove Lane Somerset, NJ 08873 Return Service Requested

Ananda Sangbad

NON-PROFIT ORG US POSTAGE PAID NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ PERMIT NO. 1215

July 2012 A Quarterly Publication of Ananda Mandir, New Jersey

Ananda Mandir Expansion – An update

By Ashok Rakhit, Chair Construction Project

It is already summer of 2012 and many of you have been patiently waiting to see the start of the construction project for almost a year. I am happy to write that we are finally going to close the bank loan in about a week's time as of this write up in mid-June 2012. We are taking a loan of 3.5 million dollars that would also pay off the current mortgage of approximately $280,000.00. If everything goes well this week, we plan to have our last meeting with the Franklin Township in 2-3 weeks to receive the construction permit. Our goal is to start the construction on or before July 15th, 2012.

While we are excited to start the construction, we are aware of many challenges ahead. First, we have a commitment to our bank to raise a second installment of $400,000.00 by the end of the year 2012 in addition to our initial capital of $600,000.00 at the start of construction. We are planning to have our Annual Fund Raising Luncheon in 2-3 months in late summer or early fall. We would like to show you the beginning of construction as we come to you for

your kind donation to support this project. Our goal is to complete the construction of both buildings and development of the site including 225 cars of paved parking in 2 years.

During the period of construction, we have to keep our temple open with regular services. This will not be easy in spite of our best efforts in designing and planning the expansion of the temple. We beg your pardon for any inconveniences caused or for any lack of serenity inside the temple and in the surrounding areas during the construction period.

Please help us in any way you can to build our heritage center that will serve the community for generations to come.

Many members of various committees have been working tirelessly for last 2 years for planning the construction. Your help, support and encouragement would go a long way to ease all the painstaking work during the months ahead. May Ma bless you and your families.

Arsenic contaminated water in West Bengal: An Update Reported by Sushmita Dutta In the April 2012 issue of Ananda Sangbad, we had covered an in-depth report on an Arsenic Contaminated Water Conference held in Kolkata and related issues affecting people's lives in West Bengal. We had reported the statistical figures of areas affected in the state with arsenic contaminated water. We also reported the seriousness of the problem. Here is an update on that report highlighting current activities, to address arsenic contamination in West Bengal, under the leadership of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee –

●West Bengal Govt. ties up with German technology for help in Arsenic

2012 Durga Puja Celebrations at Ananda Mandir Durga Puja celebrations will begin on Sunday, October 14 with live performance of “Mahishasura Mardini” at 4:00 AM. The Puja Dates are: Maha Sasthi: Saturday October 20 Maha Saptami: Sunday, October 21 MahaAshtomi: Monday, October 22 MAHA SONDHI PUJA 12:17 am – 1:05 am Maha Nabomi: Tuesday, October 23 Maha Dashomi: Wednesday, October 24

Research.

●An Arsenic Contamination Research Center Institute will be set up in West

Kojagori Lakshmi Puja will be celebrated on Monday, October 29

Bengal on about 8.74 acres of free land allocated by the Government.

● The Central Government of India has earmarked Rs 50 Crore for the institute in West Bengal.

Turn to page 05

See Details of Puja timing on the far right column of Front page

Ananda Mandir Calendar of Events (Dates are subject to change)Please check our website frequently: www.anandamandir.org NOTE: If a particular puja time is not listed, please contact temple or visit our website : anandamandir.org JULY Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 01, 6:00 pm Shyama Puja Wednesday, 18, 6:00 pm Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 29, 6:00 pm Ananda Sandhya Friday, 20, 8:00 pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 20, 8:00 pm AUGUST Jhulan & Rakhi Purnima Thursday, 02, 7:30am – 10:00 am, 6:00 Sankirtan Janmastomi Thursday, 09,8:00 am – 9:30 pm Shri Krishna Utsav Friday, 10, 6:00 pm Aghor Chaturdashi Shiva Puja Thursday, 16, 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm Shyama Puja Friday, 17, 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 26, 6:00 pm Ananda Sandhya Friday, 10, 8:00 pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 17, 8:00 pm SEPTEMBER Shyama Puja Saturday, 15, 6:00 pm Viswakarma Puja Monday, 17, 10:15 am Ganesh Chaturthi Wednesday, 19 Puja 8:00 am – 11:30 am Stuti & Arati 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Satyanarayan Puja Sunday, 23, 5:30 pm Ananda Sandhya Friday, 14, 8:00 pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 21, 8:00 pm OCTOBER Mahishasura Mardini & Probhati Anusthan Sunday, 14, 4:00 am Shyama Puja Sunday, 14, 7:30 pm Tila Tarpana Monday, 15, 9:30 am – 1:00 pm Maha Sasthi Saturday, 20,Bodhan, Amontran O Adhibas, 4:30 pm Maha Saptomi Sunday, 21,Puja 9:15am, Pushpanjoli 11:45 am,Stuti & Sandhya Arati 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Maha Astomi M o n d a y, 2 2 , P u j a 9 : 1 5 a m , Pushpanjoli 12:15 pm, Stuti & Sandhya Arati 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm, MAHA SONDHI PUJA 12:17 am – 1:05 am Maha Nabomi Tu e s d a y, 2 3 , P u j a 9 : 1 5 a m , Pushpanjoli 11:45 am, Stuti & Sandhya Arati 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Maha Dashomi Wednesday, 24,Dashomi Krittyadi 10:00 am, Pushpanjoli 11:45 am, Sindoor Khela & Sandhya Arati 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm Kojagori Lakshmi Puja & Satyanarayan Puja Monday, 29, 5:30 pm – 9:00 pm Sahitya O Alochana Friday, 19, 8:00 pm

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July 2012

ANANDA SANGBAD A Periodical Newsletter Published By

ANANDA MANDIR (A Tax-Exempt, Non-Profit Organization)

269 Cedar Grove Lane Somerset, NJ 08873 Ph: 732-873-9821 Website: www.anandamandir.org

Editorial Board: Editor-in-Chief

Pronoy Chatterjee Assistant Editors

Guru Chakravarty Debajyoti Chatterji Co-Editors

Amitabha Bagchi Bhaswati Bhadra Biman Bhatta Subrata Bhaumik Jayashree Chatterjee Sushmita Dutta All queries, articles, news reports and letters should be directed to the Editorial Board:

Ananda Sangbad

E D I T O R I A L “Banga Sammelan” of North America: While we are getting ready with our publication of the July issue, the North American Bengali Conference (NABC), or more commonly known as “Banga Sammelan,” is in its final phase of preparation for a gala cultural festival at Las Vegas. It is scheduled for three days starting from July 6 and is expected to attract eight to ten thousands attendees. It's a massive gathering under one roof with a three-day performance by renowned artists from India, Bangladesh, England and North America as well as literary seminars, exhibitions and vendors' display from all participating countries. It's a huge fair-like environment where hotel full of guests are conversing in Bengali everywhere. It's one of its kind - cultural recreation, Bengali songs floating in the air, Bengali scholastic movies, debates on contemporary writers of Bengal, reunion with long lost friends, palatable Indian cuisine, Bangali's adda at every corner and browsing at sari, jewelry or book stalls, all in one location.

Banga Sammelan is a product of a visionary concept of a few leaders at the Cultural Association of Bengal or CAB in New York at late 60s. The conference was initiated thirty two years ago with only a couple of hundred attendees at the conference. In the next thirty two years, with the dedicated volunteering efforts from different parts of the United States and Canada, it continued to grow and made unbelievable progress in its size, quality and scope. The conference is still being controlled by CAB but directly organized each year by the organizations in different states of North America with a contract agreement and general guidance from CAB. It's like a franchise business, run by a nonprofit organization CAB, but not for anyone's material gain as in commercial business.

The most noteworthy aspect of Banga Sammelan is that it is run by volunteers across the Bengali community in North America who are holding professional career, raising family and meeting their daily chores in excess of twelve hours a day.

Still they manage to spare hundreds of hours of their precious time, day and night, raising millions of dollars for the conference, negotiating with facility providers and performers as well as multitude of other vendors. In return, no one expects any tangible material gain, it's all for the sake of doing something to advance and sustain our Bengali heritage and culture. Rather having any tangible gain of any sort for themselves, these volunteers, many of them, give out a substantial amount of their own money to subsidize the registration fee for attendees. This selfless work for a noble cause is commendable. We salute these volunteers for their dedication that helped bringing our community together. We also commend those leaders of CAB whose visionary idea has culminated the process with such a spectacular success for three decades.

This year, Banga Sammelan is being organized by the originator (CAB) itself, but is being held in Las, Vegas rather than in its home state. Also this year, CAB has changed its operational model; rather than handling all by one single organization, it formed a coalition partnership with scores of other organizations in US. So this year, Ananda Mandir is collaborating with CAB as a partner of the organizing committee of NABC. Hence this year's Banga Sammelan is somewhat special to Ananda Mandir. We also hope that this operational model will continue in the future, because it would further enhance the bond of the community.

Sincerely,

Pronoy Chatterjee Editor-in-Chief

PRESIDENT'S

I am pleased to give you an update of the current activities at Ananda Mandir.

Phone/Fax : 732-651-8802 We have recently lost two of our outstanding members, E-mail: pkc_usa@yahoo.com Dr. Lal Mohan Hore (Laluda) and Dr.Anil Raychaudhuri (Anilda).

Laluda was one of our founding members who helped in For general information, please strengthening this organization by paticipating in formulating our constitution and by serving in the advisory board. Anilda served contact the following as the vice president of Ananda Mandir, and also as a trustee of the Executives of Ananda Mandir: Ananda Mandir Board. Both contributed to our community greatly over many years and they will be deeply missed.

Our official year starts right after Ananda Mandir's Dipak Sarkar Annual General Meeting in April. We have had a great team of volunteers as trustees and members who served on various President committes to bring major growth to our organization over the Jaiprakash Biswas past two years. These include: purchasing of 267 Cedar Grove Lane property and obtaining approval of the Franklin Township for Vice President temple expansion and building a new community center; Suprasad Baidyaroy increasing our life-membership to 347 and total membership to about 1450; arranging monthly musical performances by local Vice President talents; distributing literary magazines and newsletters to our Chanu Das members; holding meetings on cultural and religious discussion and senior issues on a regular basis, recognizing two literary Treasurer talents by giving Gyatri GaMarsh Memorial Awards; and most Suranjan Choudhury importantly arranging Durga Puja, Kali Puja, Saraswati Puja, Shivaratri and other religious events like Janmasthami in Secretary accordance with the Bengali panjika to serve several thousands Chitra Mondal devotees.

We are excited in having five new members in the Assistant Secretary current Board of Trustees, since they would bring new expertise to the team. Suranjan Choudhury, an IT expert, who had been Acknowledgement involved in volunteering food services and cultural activities in The Board of Trustees of Ananda the Mandir, has now taken up the role of General Secretary and Assistant Chair of Cultural Committee. Sourav Ghosh, another IT Mandir expresses its appreciation to sector specialist, has taken the responsibility in overseeing Santosh and Ambalika Mukherjee Ananda Mandir office and building operations and membership for financially sponsoring this committee. Phalguni Ghosh, an academician, who had been involved in fund-raising events and food preparation at Ananda publication.

Mandir, is going to continue serving in these and other committees of Ananda Mandir. Chitra Mondal, another IT sector Designed & Printed by specialist, who had been involved in helping all puja activities, has now taken additional responsibilities for maintaining and NABADIGANTA PRAKASHANI updating the Ananda Mandir website. Utpal Sengupta, who Kolkata, West Bengal, India previously served on the Ananda Mandir Board in various ways, has returned to undertake multiple other duties. Ananda Mandir's

MESSAGE

current committee structure and the names of the other trustee members can be found in the website.

I would also like to report to you on various functions that our current team has been working on diligently. Our “Temple Expansion and Community Hall Building” project headed by Ashok Rakhit has made significant progress in not only completing the engineering drawings for construction but also arranging the bank loan. Our Puja Committee Chair, Krishna Dutta Roy and her team are working with our priest Biswabhai to provide the best religious services for the increasing number of devotees at our temple. Our website team brought a new look and rapid updated information to our Website (www.anandamandir.org).

Our communication committee, chaired by Chitra Mondal, is also working towards formulating faster distribution of information.

Our Award & Recognition Committee, under the leadership of Pronoy Chatterjee, has been working on establishing grants and awards for the community of Ananda Mandir. I request that, if you have not done so, please come to Ananda Mandir and enjoy all the local musical talents for our monthly Ananda Sandhya events organized by our cultural team headed by Arun Bhowmik. Our Publication Committee, led by Pronoy Chatterjee and his team, is working diligently to continue to provide our members free of cost Anandalipi and Ananda Sangbad. If you are interested in contributing to these publications, please get in touch with the editorial team. We also have started under the leadership of Debajyoti Chatterji a Seniors Forum to address in a systematic and coordinated way the many issues faced by those who are nearing retirement or have already retired. Additionally, we have initiated a summer internship program for the youth this year. We have given opportunity to three youths to work in research laboratories and at Ananda Mandir facilities.

We continue to need of more volunteers. I request that if you have some time to spare, please come to Ananda Mandir and give us an extra hand. Please send me an email at dipakksarkar@hotmail.com to let me know that you want to volunteer for Ananda Mandir. We are also in desperate need of more revenue for our continuing growth. Please consider becoming a life member by paying $1000 or a patron member by paying $5,000. Please join us to make Ananda Mandir strong so that this organization continues to provide religious and cultural services to our community in the tri-states area.

Dipak K. Sarkar President

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

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Remembering Laluda

By Guru Chakravarty The Indo-American community of New Jersey lost a giant of a man, a highly regarded leader of the Bengali community, the undisputed torchbearer of the largest Bengali organization in the tri-state area. Dr. Lal Mohan Hore, popularly known in the Bengali community as Laluda passed away on April 26, 2012 at the Somerset Medical Center in Somerville, New Jersey. Following cremation on Saturday, April 28, the last rites (Shraddha) was performed at Ananda Mandir on Sunday, May 06 in presence of his wife Prativa, his daughters Indrani and Shravani and many close relatives and friends. The news of his death was covered by India Abroad, the most widely circulated newspaper of its kind in the USA. A memorial service was organized by Ananda Mandir for this well respected man at its premises on Saturday, May 12. The funeral and the memorial services were attended by many prominent leaders of the community who were touched by Laluda's organizational ability and by his attractive personality. Since early 1970s, when the young Bengali community in New Jersey was trying to find its footing in this adopted land, Laluda was in the forefront of bringing them together to form a socio-cultural organization called Kallol, which now stands as one of the most prominent of such organizations in the USA. At the Memorial Service, Dipak Sarkar, Ananda Mandir's President opened the session citing Laluda's love and dedication for Ananda Mandir.

Indrani, his elder daughter fondly remembered his creative ideas of starting a hand written Bengali magazine where the two sisters got the opportunity to practice Bengali handwriting. Alex Kosnik spoke about how he was influenced by his father-in-law to get immersed in the Bengali culture. Author Alolika Mukherjee set the tone of the assembly to a lighter mode by announcing that this is not a get-together to feel sad, rather it is the occasion to talk about the good times we had with him, and she proceeded to describe an interesting story involving Laluda. Other speakers included Pronoy Chatterjee, Ashok Rakhit, Vishnupriya Dutta, Chandi Maitra, Debahuti Roy, Sunil De, Sumit Roy, Soumen Roy, Amitava Sen, Ajit Rakhit, Purna Bhattacharya and others.

Dr. Lal Mohan Hore (1930 - 2012) Excerpts from a few notable speakers are provided below, starting with a biographical write-up of Laluda by Alex Kosnik representing the family.

Born in 1930 in Chittagong, India, Dr. Hore studied electrical engineering and completed his doctorate in technology in Budapest, Hungary.

He immigrated to Canada in the late 1960s with his family and finally settled in New Jersey in 1972, where he served the telecommunications industry as a scientist specializing in coaxial cables. During his career he authored dozens of technology patents and published several dozen technical papers which became part of the cable technology literature. He was recognized internationally as an author of global standards in cable technology and was often invited to deliver lectures abroad.

In his spare time, Dr. Hore co-founded and led what is arguably the nation's most vibrant community of Bengali Indians (Bengal being India's easternmost state). Under his leadership, the nonprofit organization, “Kallol of New Jersey”, was launched in the early 1970s with a handful of close associates. Over the years it grew to dozens and then hundreds of families across New Jersey and surrounding states. Today Kallol numbers several thousand regular members and patrons, and hosts cultural and religious events that yearly draw thousands of attendees from the east coast. Twice, in 1988 and 2000, he served as Chairman of the North American Bengali Conference, a yearly congress attended by five thousand plus attendees. Over the last fifteen years of his life, Dr. Hore also co-founded an Indian temple and cultural center in Somerset named Ananda Mandir. He was an outstanding visionary leader whose work touched the lives of many and brought the Bengali community together.

Dr. Hore was known for his selflessness, his dedication to family, his drive for excellence and his enthusiasm for making Indian culture and art accessible to all. He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Prativa; his daughter Indrani Dhar with son-in-law Subrata Dhar and grandchildren Shumon and Monica Dhar; also by daughter Shravani Kosnik with son-in-law Alex Kosnik and grandchildren Tanuja and Katryna Kosnik, as well as a host of beloved extended family members in America numbering about 40 individuals.

Our beloved "Laluda" will be sorely missed by his family, his temple and the New Jersey Indian-American community.

By Alexander Kosnik A few persons I called dada with deep respect and Laluda topped in that category. It was because of his open hearted friendship, honesty and integrity. If I have to say in a few words that who Laluda was, I would say Laluda was bigger than his life. He was an “Institution,” who brought our Bengali

community together. He was a visionary leader, outstanding organizer and a compassionate friend.

I never saw him ever raising his voice or losing temper in any adverse situation. I remember in a meeting of Kallol, where everyone was excitedly arguing and differing on a new proposal from him, he remained calm but persuasive, never deviating from his objective. At the end, everyone agreed with him and followed his direction. This is called leadership.

Many of you may not know that he started the first Bengali magazine in New Jersey, a hand written one, meticulously writing pages after pages with his beautiful handwriting, copying, stapling and distributing to every member of Kallol, year after year. That effort eventually paved the way to the production of a high quality colorful literary magazine of today, Kallol Patrika.

Long before the concept of Ananda Mandir evolved, some of us formed an organization to raise money for building a community center. Again Laluda came forward to become the first President of the organization and prepared the first fund raising brochure for the community center.

I will miss Laluda, but never forget him.

By Pronoy Chatterjee My few words would not do justice speaking about Laluda's contribution to our community. His love for the community; his untiring work to promote our culture and heritage were exemplified by his leadership in creating Kallol in the '70s and Ananda Mandir in later years. More than a decade ago, he articulated his vision to build a heritage center for Bengali community that would nurture our culture through next generations of our children and grand children. He truly believed that we had to make large investment to build a center like Ananda Mandir. He knew this effort would require bringing Bengalis from all corners of our community. That was how I was invited in founding of Ananda Mandir.

Once Ananda Mandir was a reality, he wanted Kallol, the other organization that is close to his heart, to be closely associated with Ananda Mandir. He loved to talk about finding ways to bring all the Bengali organizations close to Ananda Mandir. It is most appropriate that we have gathered today to remember Laluda as a joint team of Ananda Mandir, Kallol, NJPA and ICC. If Laluda can hear us, I know, he would be very proud and happy to see us all together at this occasion to show our love and respect to memorialize him and his lifetime's work. Thank you Laluda for everything you did for the community you loved so dearly. You will live in our hearts forever.

By Ashok Rakhit Turn to page 04

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July 2012

Ananda Sangbad

Remembering Laluda

By Guru Chakravarty Continued from page 03

Thirty years ago at their Fanwood house, Laluda and Mejdi invited us,-- country bumpkins from Midwest ,-- fed us, sold us on Kallol. We got sold on Laluda and his assurance to take care of us, newbie in NJ. He delivered on that by becoming my neighbor, two houses down. Besides the great weekend dinners, it worked out quite well for us. I had a heart attack there; my wife called 911 and called Laluda. See, when you are having a heart attack, you could call Laluda. He would be there for you, he was that kind of a guy.

He chaired the 1988 Banga Sammelan and his vision took what was a then country carnival and gave it national proportions-forever. My respect for him grew by jumps. After that, Laluda kept moving on to bigger and better things. We tagged along. We were neighbors again, but next town this time.

And to bigger and better things yet-- like setting up a Kallol Up There for his beloved community. Laluda, I know I will not get there, I sinned way too much, but I will take your memory to my death. Fare thee well, Buddy!

By Sumit Roy I am going to say a few words on my personal interactions with Laluda since I knew him. I came to know Laluda 62 years ago when he came first time to our house in Tollygunj as a friend of my elder brother. Both studied at St.Xaviers College. Laluda was a debonair, charming and a soft spoken person. Although he was from Chittagong, he was known to his friends as a man who spoke Rabindric style Bengali. My mother in her first look, seemed to be

very happy with Laluda. Well, what do you expect of a mother with a marriageable daughter at home. The rest is history. Mejdi got married to Laluda in 1956. During this period, I got very close to Laluda. In fact, Laluda and my brother became my early mentors.

Laluda used to talk, about St. Xaviers, its professors, namely Prof. Goreux, Prof. Van Ness and others. He in fact convinced me to go for my I.Sc. at St. Xaviers which I did. Now, let me tell you a story.

While I was at Hindu School, I used to receive a scholarship from the Govt. of West Bengal. One of the conditions of this scholarship was that my father had to be a resident of West Bengal. Once an agent came to our house to verify that fact. What really happened on that day, Laluda was at our house and he met that gentleman. When the agent wanted to know residence of my father, Laluda being an honest person simply told him that my father did not live there and you could imagine that was the end of my scholarship money. Well, Laluda was very sorry for this. and he assured me a good treat at St.Xaviers Hindu Hostel which I enjoyed very much. On that day, I found out that Laluda was known to the junior students as Lolida.

Since I knew him already as Laluda I did'nt join the younger students. If I would have, I am sure he would have been known to you all as Lolida.

There are a lot more stories like these, which I would gladly share with you at another time. Today I would like to finish by praying to God for Laluda's happiness and eternal peace.

By Ajit Rakhit

L a l u d a - A Tr i b u t e “Cowards die many times before their death; the valiant never taste of death but once.� Julius Caesar, Shakespeare.

How true! Our beloved Laluda & Mesho to many was a truly valiant soul. Starved of icons, the ever- evolving Bengali community of New Jersey had a role model in him. If we were to look for a complete human being in our midst, here he was encompassing the very essence of the Renaissance man, multifaceted and multicultural, inspiring us with his diverse interests and numerous achievements, be they the founding of Kallol or the Kallol magazine or the NABC; the list goes on. He has shown us how a person can balance a successful career in science along with being a wonderful father, a loving and caring husband and a guardian angel to all who came to these distant shores leaving their homes and dear ones behind, mentoring many to reach their own personal and professional goals. Not only did he realise the American Dream for himself, but he helped countless others to realise the same. With unflagging spirit right till the end, he kept alive the Bangaliana in our hearts.

In the last couple of years, every time we would hear of his being unwell and being hospitalized, we would think the worst and our prayers would go out to him for a quick recovery. And before long, he would be there with his walking stick and the doting Prativadi by his side at Ananda Mandir, chuckling away any doubts that we might have had about his recovery. This was nothing but courage and grace in the face of torturous procedures and the accompanying agony.

His ability to enjoy the simple joys of an event like the winning of the World Cup by India last year was at once childlike and amazing. That he could enjoy this event at the Ananda Mandir basement, with many others sharing the same passion for cricket, absolutely delighted him. He was never tired of complementing my husband Sanjit for organising this for cricket lovers like him. In itself, it was no big deal, but he made it so special for both of us with his graciousness.

By Vishnupriya

I recall some time back when my friend Rina and I stopped by at their Fleming Drive home, where incidentally, everyday is open house for anyone who cares to stop by, and we got discussing some issue regarding State requirements, he immediately dug out copies of the relevant references with such promptness, that my heart skipped a beat. I came home to tell my husband how organised and systematic Laluda was even now, despite his infirmity. He was a veritable archive; whenever you were looking for questions to be answered, he could always help.

But my eulogy would be incomplete if I forget to pay my tribute to Prativadi or Mashi to most and New Jersey's very own Mejdi. Her devotion and unfailing love for Laluda despite her own failing health is something we all need to learn from. She was always there for him, and she gave him a hand for the last time when he needed it most.

We will miss him, but we also know that he will continue to live on at Ananda Mandir, a home he helped found for all of us. And Prativa di will pass on his legacy through her presence. May God give her and the family, both immediate and extended, the fortitude to bear the loss.

I would like to end with a prayer from the Gitanjali by Tagore: “When the heart is hard and parched up, come upon me with a shower of mercy.

When grace is lost from life, come with a burst of song, When tumultuous work raises its din on all sides shutting me out from beyond, Come to me, my Lord of silence, with thy peace and rest.

When my beggarly heart sits crouched, shut up in a corner, Break open the door, my king and Come with the ceremony of a king.

When desire blinds the mind with delusion and dust, O Thou holy One, Thou Wakeful, Come with Thy light and Thy thunder.

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

5

Arsenic contaminated water in West Bengal: An Update Reported by Sushmita Dutta Continued from page 01

A first of its kind institute is being set-up in West Bengal to research on arsenic contamination of water in West Bengal and largely in Eastern India belt. The institute will work in collaboration with an agency in Germany. West Bengal State minister Sri Subrata Mukherjee said the state has taken possession of about 8.74 acres of land adjacent to IIM Kolkata in Joka to build the institute. He said, “The state government will provide the land free. We have already taken possession of the land.”

A press report released on this issue states that The Union Rural Development Ministry, New Delhi, is co-coordinating with national and international agencies to set up the proposed International Institute of Excellence for Arsenic Studies and Research in West Bengal. The ministry has also tapped Finland for help in addition to the tie-up with a German agency named Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit.

The Central Govt. of India has earmarked Rs 50 crore for the institute in West Bengal. Under the leadership of S.R. Wate, the director of National Environment Engineering Research Institute, India, a committee has been assigned the task to prepare and submit a detailed project report with a list of programs that the West Bengal Arsenic Research Institute will work on including activities on research,

Code of Laws (As it emerged in an ancient civilization) By: Biman Bhatta It is amazing to comprehend how far back in our history the concept of the legal system that enfolds almost every aspect of our life today had seen the first light of the day. In a time that goes back to almost 3750 years, some really very significant event took place which gave birth to the fundamental elements of our civilization like: create ideas to organize the multifaceted government makeup, establish government's regulatory guidelines for effectively using and controlling the labor force, develop capacity to produce the vital tools from metals so that people could build colossal structures, and introduce means to institute writings.

A country called Mesopotamia, where the birth of this code of laws had happened, was inhabited by a group of people known as Sumerians until they were brought under the rule of the kings of an empire speaking a Semitic language called Akkadian. Actually Mesopotamia's geographical location used to be the expanse of the land belonging between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris that originate from the mountains of Armenia in modern-day Turkey. And in this land, the first real big empire developed as other cities were amalgamated by dethroning their individual rulers one by one.

By the time around 1700 BC, this Akkadian empire emerged as the most powerful force in Mesopotamia. Even though the Kingdom of Egypt was equally powerful at that time and remained so until the year 1400 BC, the Egyptian rulers never seemed to be too intent on conquering the rest of the areas which is now called the Middle Eastern region. However, Mesopotamians at that time always remained quite eager to enhance their kingdom's periphery and create a multicultural civilization. This multicultural and varied kingdom in fact had attained an elite level during the time of their king named Hammurabi from the city-state of Babylonia.

Hammurabi was a first dynasty king of Babylonia. The city of Babylon was one of the many ancient city-states that dotted the Mesopotamian plain and conducted wars on each other for control of the productive agricultural lands. By 1750 BC the splendor of the city of Babylon was at its crest, hosting huge pyramid-like structures that rose up to the great gods of Babylonia like the great Marduk, Shamash, and Ishtar.

But the most important creation made in Mesopotamia during that time of the Akkadian empire was a written code of laws that not only has lasted through centuries in almost every civilized society but it has also influenced people's everyday life almost everywhere in some way or other. And by far the most outstanding detailed code of laws was issued by Hammurabi in an attempt to rule the vast kingdom of Babylonia most effectively. Arranged in orderly groups so that people could read and be aware of what were expected out of them, this code was engraved upon a big black stone monument in a clear arena with complete visibility for the diktat of the public law. Hammurabi understood the significance of these laws in order for the empire to rule in a justly manner. Hammurabi claimed that he had received this code of laws from the great god Marduk who was considered to be the supreme god of Babylonia at that time. It is pretty similar to the story of Moses receiving the Ten Commandments from the hand of god as described in the Hebrew Bible.

Hammurabi had felt that he should make people identify the accountability of the government functioning under these rules because the rules came down directly from the supreme authority. It meant that following the laws the ruler was obliged to govern for the benefit of all of his subjects in proper terms. Dealing with a multicultural empire, this code of laws obligated the ruler to recognize that everyone, regardless of their status, was entitled to these rights that were set down which could not be altered. In fact Hammurabi had claimed that the code of laws were placed in every city of the vast Akkadian empire in order for every person to come, read, and

community participation and extension.

The German agency, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), works on technology development in water management, sustainable economic development, energy security, conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. The institute will extend support to the West Bengal Institute in research on arsenic contamination, technological assistance and training of the institute's personnel.

In a Telegraph news report emailed to me by Dr. Dipankar Chakraborty of Jadavpur University's School of Environment Studies, Dr, Chakraborty said, “Arsenic contamination was evident over a 6,000 sq km area of the Ganga-Brahmaputra plains covering Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam, Bengal and the Northeast”. Dr. Chakraborty reported to press that “arsenic-contaminated water could cause cancer and there is no data on how many people develop health problems every year because of this”. He said, “public awareness is very important. The West Bengal institute should focus on research as required by the state government, but it should also involve the communities and sensitize them not to consume contaminated water. Safe piped water has to be provided in affected areas, management of surface water is important and preservation and proper utilization of surface water should also get priority.” understand that they had written down rights that could not be violated to repress the ones who were puny. Hammurabi's code included essential ingredients that emphasized personal freedom for all. And even after surviving through all these centuries that have gone by, these fundamentals of individual liberty still clearly resonate in some country's governing constitution or book of laws, especially that much more in the United States.

The laws of Hammurabi had the essential concept that any assaulting or demeaning act committed by someone which would cause harm to another human being should make the offender suffer in the similar way, like an eye for an eye. In other words, it meant that the victim has a right to fight back.

The code also indicated clearly that judges are fully accountable and they should have proper schooling in order to carry out their duties. The laws stipulated that when a judge decrees a decision, that verdict will have to be written down for a future reference. So in later days if that well documented decision was to be found erroneous in any way, the judge could be removed from the bench for always and also be punished with substantial amount of fines.

The law to conduct businesses arose to a very high level in Babylon of Hammurabi. They had shaped a model of a free market economy in some ways.

Business men or their representatives used to travel across lands in order to reach other cities for conducting their businesses. But the law was clear enough to make people understand that if someone was acting as an agent for some businessman to execute a business in a different city on his behalf borrowing his money, as a trusted agent that person had the responsibility to return the loaned money on his return from the trip. The law also dictated that if any portion of the loaned sum was to be used as the agent's expense money, it was returnable in full by the agent when he came back, irrespective of the monetary outcome of that venture.

Contracts drawn between parties for doing any sort of businesses were also bounded by the commerce law in order to maintain the agreement's purity. Just like today, each such contract was to be written down and witnessed properly. And also like nowadays if a reimbursement was to be made toward a claimed expense under a signed contract, the requester was required to provide the receipts to support the demanded sum. On the other hand if a person had made a charge that money was taken from him by an individual under a dishonest ploy, then he was supposed to back up his accusation showing a written contract document or at least bring in two neutral witnesses who could swear to the fact that the contract was actually made. In failing to provide any of these supports, the accuser was to be commanded to pay court fines as well as appropriate compensations. Seemingly so inconceivable, all of these rules were part of a sophisticatedly developed commerce law at that ancient time.

Then there was the law that recognized the rights of the slaves. In those days slavery was quite widespread in the societies of Akkadian empire. Even though murdering a slave – just because the slave was not a free man – carried a much less severe punishment for the killer, the very act of killing still used to be considered as an indictable crime – meaning that the rights of a slave were also acknowledged to a certain degree. The law also included a provision to prohibit any rehiring option for the master of the same slave who was earlier freed under a signed freedom-by-contract document.

Also in Hammurabi's code of laws a kind of minimum wage notion existed which dealt with the appropriate sum of money that was to be paid to a labor for his work. And all these labor jobs that had assigned wages were held by poor people of the Babylonian society. The concept of the code was created to make sure that poor people were not exploited or taken advantage of.

There was also a kind a family law that required that children were to honor their parents. If a child had committed an act of aggression on any of his parents, that child was to be severely punished for that act. The law also dictated that if a contract was signed by a family to adopt a child, then that adopted child had the same claim to the inheritance as the other naturally born children of the family.

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July 2012

Seniors Information Sourcebook

Public Resources Available to Seniors: Senior Citizen Centers in Local Communities

By Debajyoti Chatterji (Editor's Note: Ananda Mandir Seniors Forum is developing an “information sourcebook”for use by the elder members of the community. When completed, this sourcebook will be made available on Ananda Mandir's website. In the meantime, we will publish chapters from this sourcebook in Ananda Sangbad) Boredom is one of the enemies of retired seniors. It is often caused by lack of organized activities. One way to fight boredom is to make good use of local senior citizen centers. Many towns have senior citizen centers with excellent amenities and numerous activities, specifically designed to address intellectual, physical and social needs of seniors. These are very useful places to meet people with similar interests or to develop new interests. For example, Franklin Township Senior Citizen Center (located behind the Township Offices on Demott Lane) offered the following activities during August 2011: Bridge Classes and Games Mahjong Classes and Games Ladies' Billiard Dance Lessons and Sessions (e.g., Line Dancing) Physical Fitness Classes (Aerobics, Zumba, Yoga and “Sit-and-Fit”) Health & Nutrition Discussion Sessions (“Healthy Bones”) Singing Group (“Swingin Singin Seniors”) Out-of-Town Bus Trips for Social Events If you are a resident of Franklin Township and are interested in learning more about the Township's programs and activities for seniors, please contact Ms. Shonda Sanchez, 732-873-1991, Extension 6347. You may also wish to visit the website www.franklintwpnj.org for an up-to-date list of seniors programs and activities.

If you live in another town/county, please look up the township's website to arrange a visit to your nearest senior citizens center to get a fuller understanding of available activities and resources.

Planning for the Future: Long Term Care Insurance & Longevity Insurance

By Debajyoti Chatterji (Editor's Note: Ananda Mandir Seniors Forum is developing an “information sourcebook”for use by the elder members of the community. When completed, this sourcebook will be made available on Ananda Mandir website. In the meantime we will publish chapters from this sourcebook in Ananda Sangbad) Long Term Care Insurance « Why Buy Long Term Care Insurance?

One of the biggest fears in the minds of most seniors is the possibility, at some stage in their lives, of a prolonged stay in an assisted living facility or a nursing home. Invariably such stays carry very significant cost burdens. In some parts of the United States the cost of a nursing home stay can be as much as $100,000/year, and individuals may have to incur such expenses for 3 to 5 years. Assisted living facility costs are often in the $60,000/year range while in-home nursing care can cost about $40,000/year. Faced with the future potential for such large financial burdens, many individuals opt to buy long term care insurance (LTCI) to cover a part of the financial risk. In exchange for annual premiums from the insured, the insurance company promises to pay the insured an agreed amount (say, $150/day) for each day of the insured's stay in a “covered facility” for a “covered cause” up to a certain period of time (say, 3 years max). Many LTCI policies now cover home health care for “covered causes” as well. « Who Should Buy Long Term Care Insurance?

A simple answer may be, “Everyone”. However, the correct answer is more complex and situation-specific. Having said that, an advertisement by the long term care insurance industry itself says that “In general, long-term care protection makes the most sense for people with a net worth of $100,000 to $2 million. Those with less will likely exhaust their assets and qualify for Medicaid; those with more can generally fund their own care if they choose to do so”. « Think Before You Buy! While the basic concept behind LTCI is fairly straightforward, these insurance contracts are complex financial products with many exclusions and limitations.

Additionally, LTCI policies offer many “optional riders” (e.g., inflation protection, benefits shared with spouse, varying lengths of “elimination period” or deductibles, etc.). Understanding the usefulness of these optional riders is not always easy, and comparing premium quotes from competing insurance companies can be quite frustrating. Also, buying LTCI involves significant financial commitment in the form of life-long payment of hefty premiums (typically several thousands of dollars a year – and the premium can rise suddenly by significant amounts). So, take your time to study the subject in some detail (articles mentioned below might be useful) -- and do not rush into buying LTCI from the first agent that contacts you. « Process to Follow Before Buying First, you should get quotes from at least three insurance companies and carefully compare their coverage and premiums. You should then seek unbiased expert advice from a financial planner who specializes in this area to get his opinion on each of the quotes. It may be in your best interest to look for a “fee-only” financial planner -- and avoid planners who make money by selling insurance products to you.

You can find such planners in your area from the website of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (www.napfa.org). « How Much Does Long Term Insurance Cost?

Ananda Sangbad

For a 65-year old female with elevated blood pressure and cholesterol and a prior heart attack (and taking various medications) was recently quoted an annual premium in the range of $4000 to $5000 for long term insurance with $160 per day benefit for the first year. Thereafter this per day benefit amount would be increased by 5% inflation factor each year. The daily benefit would start after the insured pays the first 90 days cost from his/her own funds. (Note: The annual premium is not fixed forever. It may be increased in the future by the insurance carrier). « Useful Articles to Read: A good general introduction to the subject of long term care insurance (LTCI) is given in the article, “Long Term Care Insurance” (www.elderlawanswers.com/Elder_Info/long-term-care-insurance.asp).

“What to look for in an LTC policy” (www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/retirement-planning/ways-to-pay-for-longterm-care/what-to-look-for-in-an-ltc-policy/index.htm ) focuses on important considerations to keep in mind when comparing policy proposals from several insurance companies.

Another article, “Ways to pay for Long Term Care” discusses the impending changes in long term care insurance area under the new Health Care Act (www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/retirement-planning/ways-to-pay-for-longterm-care/overview/index.htm ). These changes are scheduled to become effective in October, 2012 and are designed to make LTCI more accessible and affordable by individuals currently employed.

Longevity Insurance Seniors worry not only about the cost burden that can result from long term stays in nursing homes or assisted living facilities but also about the possibly of running out of their savings if they live very long. The insurance industry now offers a relatively new product, longevity insurance, to address that concern. It works in the following way.

In exchange for an up-front, lump-sum payment from the insured (say $100,000 at age 65), the insurance company promises to pay the insured a monthly amount (say $1500) – beginning on the 85th birthday of the insured and continuing as long as the insured lives. If the insured dies before age 85, his/her beneficiaries would get the unused portion of the premium. Longevity insurance is basically a deferred fixed annuity packaged as an insurance product.

If you are interested in longevity insurance, you should get quotes from a couple of insurance companies and review the proposals with your financial planner.

Remember: it may be wiser to work with a fee-only planner. Also remember that like other annuities, you may not be allowed to take your money out before you turn 85, or if you are allowed, you may have to pay a stiff “withdrawal” or “surrender” penalty.

Useful Article to Read: “Longevity Insurance” (www.Badmoneyadvice.com/2010/11/longevityinsurance.html) is a good article on pros and cons of this type of insurance.

Public Resources Available to Seniors: Local Libraries as Resource Centers

By Jayashree Chatterjee (Editor's Note: Ananda Mandir Seniors Forum is developing an “information sourcebook” for use by the elder members of the community. When completed, this sourcebook will be made available on Ananda Mandir's website. In the meantime, we will publish chapters from this sourcebook in Ananda Sangbad) Today's public library strives to be a community center for its patrons, and so there are many resources for seniors at local library. I am listing some of them.

Many libraries have a spot where they keep information like housing for seniors, information on assisted living etc. Here one can also find guides like Alternatives for Seniors: A preferred senior housing & services resource.

Look for reference books like Older Americans Information Directory.

The medical reference section has many useful books as such The Johns Hopkins Encyclopedia of Drugs or Best Doctors in America. Consult them for medications that you are taking or if you are looking for a specialist.

The Library of The Chathams has a very useful service that allows you to ask a medical librarian a health-related question. The librarian will email you articles from medical journals. Go to http://www.chatham-library.org/ Scroll down to “Do you have a health-related question” in the middle column; fill out the form (do not put more than 200 characters in the Please list the exact topic and Additional Comments boxes) and submit the form.

Many libraries have programs that are very informative for seniors, i.e. physicians' talks about medical conditions like Alzheimer's, etc.

Join the library book club! It's a great way to read new books and make friends in the community.

Check out Large Print books. Sometimes, it makes reading easier.

Check out audio books. Listen to an actor read a story out to you while you are doing your housework.

Download audio books or e-books from your library homepage. Many libraries subscribe to Overdrive, the company that makes books in these formats available to libraries and their patrons.

Finally, don't forget to ask at the Reference Desk for what other services your library has for seniors

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

Glimpses of an Exotic Region

By Preety Sengupta We are living in the North-East USA, right? Here I am going to tell you briefly about North-East India. It is a section of India that seems far from the main land of the country. The NE region is connected with the mainland India by a narrow stretch of land that always reminds me of a chicken-neck. This is because Bangladesh is carved out from underneath it. To go into NE from Kolkata by train, one has to go around Bangladesh, and it is a very long way around. Best way is to fly in, but many mountains on the way make it a somewhat risky flight.

The NE region of India is made of seven states - Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalay. Each one is just as exotic as their names are. Apart from Bangladesh nations like Thailand, Myanmar, China, Tibet, and Bhutan also border this region. Going to NE India is almost like having gone to another country; so different is their topography as well as their tribal population. Each state has its own language also, but Hindi, Bengali and English are used in varying degrees.

One needs to get a permit to visit any of these states.

No distances or differences deterred me from visiting this far-away land in my country. As always, I went there by myself, traveled extensively by public transportation - the always crowded mini-buses mostly, and still found the experience memorable and moving. I decided to skip Tripura and Mizoram this time, but included Sikkim, the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan, as well as the Northern parts of the State of W. Bengal. I had only 35 days to do this, and regretted having to rush sometimes. But then, it is better to have gone there than not, right?

In Manipur I stayed in Imphal, and took day trips. The country-side is always pretty - hills with small white clouds on top, fields full of lush green vegetation, and many pools of water like liquid mirrors. Lake Loktak is very large, and tall mountains surround it. It has many strips of land that are like floating farms, with huts made for the farmers who live on them.

In the nearby town of Moirang, the last battle for India's Independence was fought. The tri-colored flag was hoisted here for the first time in the country's history on April 14, 1944. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose established the Provisional Government of India here. In Nagaland, the mountains are higher and much more sharp-peaked. During the WWII, Kohima and its surroundings were part of the active war zone. Well maintained cemeteries immortalizing the fallen soldiers are witness to that. These were places of special historical pilgrimage for me.

The Kaziranga National Park in Assam is quite a wonder. Its thicket of Elephant Grass can really hide elephants. It is well-known for its herds of rhinos and wild buffalos. But then what catches one's eyes most in Assam is miles and miles of tea estates. I went to a market, and the varieties of tea that were piled up astonished me, excited me and totally confused me as to which kind to buy.

Arunachal Pradesh is full of densely forested mountains. There are many lakes and water-falls hidden deep within mysterious ravines. Itanagar is the urban centre, surrounded by raw nature. Tribal people live in wooden houses built on stilts. Men in one of the tribes there still wear a head-gear that is topped with a stuffed bird.

Meghalay literally means “the abode amidst clouds” – and so it is. Some decades ago Shilong, its main city, was compared to Scotland due to its wool industry. I took a trip to Cherrapunjee, the place where it rains the most in the world. Most of the water rushes off downhill on many steep slopes into Bangladesh, situated below, flooding its rivers.

Many interesting experiences filled my days in NE India, and many moments are etched in my memory for ever.

NOMINATIONS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED FOR 2012 Gayatri GaMarsh Memorial Awards For Literary Excellence Gayatri Memorial Awards have been established by Ananda Mandir (Somerset, NJ) to recognize authors who have demonstrated excellence in writing through their published essays, poems, short stories or plays. The awards have been made possible through a significant contribution from Jerry GaMarsh, husband of late Gayatri GaMarsh. Gayatri was an accomplished author and artist – and a key member of the editorial team of Ananda Sangbad and Anandalipi, publications of Ananda Mandir. The Gayatri Award is administered through the Awards & Recognition Subcommittee of Ananda Mandir.

Two cash awards will be given each year to recognize outstanding works published in North America-based literary magazines within the last five years.

One award will be given to an author of Bengali works, and another will be given to an author in English. Each award will consist of $500 in cash and a certificate The winners will be announced in the next issue. Stay tuned!

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Highlights of Recent Puja Activities Reported by Krishna Dutta Roy and Debajyoti Chatterji The past three months saw a busy puja calendar for Ananda Mandir.

Satyanarayan Pujas were held on March 4, April 1, April 29 and May 5, and monthly Shyama Pujas were celebrated on March 21, April 20, and May 20.

One of the big events in the month of March was Dol Yatra. Puja started around 9:00 am and ended at 12:00 noon. In the evening the deities of Krishna and Radha were placed on a decorated jhula (a swing). That part of the celebrations was a special attraction to all the children attending. The adults worshipped Radha and Krishna with aabir (colored powder). After the evening puja, stuti and arati, they enjoyed a brief round of aabir khela. The festivities ended with a delicious dinner.

The second big event in March was the Basanti Puja. The celebrations started on March 28 and ended on April 2. Although much of the puja was held on weekdays, many devotees attended the 4-day long festivities, some arriving as early as 7:00am every day when puja started. Just like Durga Puja, puspanjali and arati were performed daily. Kumari Puja was a special attraction on both Astami (March 31) and Nabami (April 1) days. Nabomi, also known as Ram Nabami, was a big day for many non-Bengali as well as Bengali devotees. Not surprisingly we had a very big gathering on that day.

Basanti Puja ended on April 2 with Dashami.

April was also a busy month for the temple. April 14 heralded Nababarsha, the Bengali New Year. To give everybody an opportunity to come to the temple to celebrate this special occasion, the temple was kept open all day. People started coming to the temple from early morning. Nababarsha was celebrated with puja, arati, and prasad. After offering their prayers, attendees wished each other a happy and healthy year ahead. Ladies got an opportunity to buy saris and jewelry from several vendors. The ambiance of the day was reminiscent of nababarsha back in Bengal. Last but not the least, an enjoyable dinner was served to all to mark the end of the day-long festivities Akshya Tritia, also known as Shri Krishna's Chandan Yatra, was celebrated on the morning of April 24. On April 29 Shri Ram Thakur Smaran Utsav was held as a daylong event. People paid their respects, arriving early in the morning. In the afternoon, a kirtania group from New York performed naam kirtan. In the evening, satyanarayan Puja was performed.

In the month of May, we celebrated Phalaharini Kali Puja on May 20 with a large attendance. And on May 30 we celebrated Ganga Puja and Dashahara in the morning.

Didn't Receive Your Copy of Ananda Sangbad?

If you are a Life Member or an Associate Member but didn't receive your copy of Ananda Sangbad, it may be because we do not have correct address on file for you. Please send an email to Guru Chakravarty (guruchakravarty@yahoo.com) with your correct address, and we will send you another copy.

Summer Internship Program for College Students And High School Seniors Ananda Mandir has launched Summer Internship for college students and high school seniors. This year it recruited three interns in biological science area. It will continue recruiting internships for the next year again. The program will include learning and helping research works in the areas of biological science, physical science and engineering at various laboratories in New Jersey. Additional internship opening will be in the area of pharmacy in New York City. Some internships are paid, others are voluntary. Paid interns have to be minimum 18 years old and US citizens or permanent residents. For the next year’s internship, application with resume indicating the area of internship interest should be sent to Dr. Pronoy Chatterjee, e-mail: pkc_usa@yahoo.com by December 1, 2012.

In case of questions, contact Pronoy Chatterjee (pkc_usa@yahoo.com) or Guru Chakravarty (gurucharavarty@yahoo.com)

Ananda Mandir will make best efforts to secure internship in a highly competitive environment with few available positions.

8

July 2012

Ananda Sangbad creature was headed towards Shelburne. By locating Champ's destination, Gordon could capture the monster for later use.

Believe It Or Not!

By Mandira Chattopdhyay I received a phone call from a colleague of my husband's at the University of Vermont. He said, “I have some exciting news! Come soon.” I knew Gordon Winslow for the last two years, the visiting professor from Scotland who, many a time, had told my children about the Loch Ness Monster and how he wanted to capture a picture of the monster in his childhood days. He was truly fascinated by the numerous accounts of sightings of this monster known as Nessie. He used to emphasize that no other monster was as tied in with a country's image as Nessie was with Scotland's, the part of the U.K. where Gordon grew up, and where Nessie was featured in hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles. The Nessie fanatic in him was now attracted to Champ, the Lake Champlain monster. In between the stories of Nessie and Champ that the children listened to, Gordon would show the movie “20,000 Leagues under the Sea,” which dealt with Captain Nemo's fight with sea monsters. Visiting Gordon was always an exciting experience. I made sure that I did not miss his tales, remembering my own childhood days when my mother, at the end of the day, stroked my hair and put oil in it, making braids with rainbow -colored ribbons, and then lulled me to sleep with stories of fairies and goblins from “Thakumar Jhuli.” I thanked Gordon on every visit for cementing these layers of imagination in the minds of my children through tales of these mysterious pre-historic creatures.

When Gordon moved to Vermont, he heard about the Lake Champlain monster, popularly known as Champ. He claimed that to get out of the monotony of everyday life one should have an obsession for something. He proudly announced that the only way to make his life interesting in the midst of his tiring teaching job in Vermont was to read the tales of Champ.

He found out that the earliest report on Champ sighting was in 1819, and that Champ was relatively quiet for the next 50 years until news started to surface in 1973.

Gordon would pick up all the old monster articles stacked up on his kitchen table and read them aloud to my children. He would tell them that Champ was a dinosaur- type of creature, ten to thirty feet long with a horse-shaped head, which lurked in the cool deep waters of Lake Champlain.

Gordon would call our children now and then and enquire “Did you see any part of the monster on your trip to Plattsburgh?”

Every weekend we used to take our children to Plattsburgh for violin lessons from a renowned violin teacher. It was a tiring trip for them but to make the trip more interesting, we used to take our binoculars and try to look for the legendary monster. From Burlington, Vermont we used to go by car for about half an hour, followed by the ferry ride to cross Lake Champlain, and another twenty minutes or so to reach the teacher in Plattsburgh, New York. Lake Champlain is a spectacular hundred mile long lake that stretches down from Canada, and running north and south between Vermont and New York, forms a natural border between them. It was a ritual every Friday for all of us; it was like taking them to their “Gurukul.” Since all our children were identified as gifted violinists, we had to find the best teacher for them. Some of the young prodigies of music in Burlington, Vermont would go all the way to Montreal to take lessons. During our trip to Plattsburgh, we used to talk about Champ. Our youngest son, Prince, would say to his older brother “Dada, Dada, look! I did see the monster.” Every now and then our children would call up their uncle Gordon and share their experience with him. Gordon would say to them, “One day I'll get that monster for you.”

On our way to Gordon's house after his phone call, we all started to wonder what Gordon had in store

for us. Our daughter, Parama, engrossed, as usual, in reading a book by Judy Blume remarked: “I think Uncle Gordon has caught the monster.” For the last three weeks, our elder son Somak had kept pestering us, saying that one day, like Gautam Uncle, his father's first cousin, he would like to be a marine engineer, and cruise all over the world to look for different monsters. The children were already making their plans: I heard them saying that they would bring the monster home, and keep it as a pet. They were reminded of Ramesh and Pooja, a wealthy couple they met in Palmdale, California during their summer visit there, and recalled how that couple played with their reptile; they all decided that they would play with Champ just the same way.

As soon as we all arrived at Gordon's place in Winooski, the children gathered around him and Gordon began to narrate his adventure.

It was a beautiful day. The sun projected its rays in the clear sky. The mountains were of the same color as Lake Champlain. Gordon parked the Mercedes near the bike trail at Battery Park. He strolled down to the information booth and purchased a ticket for the “Ethan Allen” ferry ride. The ferry was packed with tourists. Gordon boarded the ferry and tried to find an empty seat.

“Uh, excuse me. May I have your ticket, sir?” asked the captain.

“Oh, I almost forgot!” Gordon grinned.

After a few minutes had passed, the captain's voice came on the loudspeaker.

“Hello, ladies and gentlemen,” the voice began, “Welcome aboard the 'Ethan Allen.' I am sorry to inform you that there will be a slight delay. The waves are unusually high and it would be too dangerous to start the ride at the moment.”

A few hundred yards away, a cruising yacht sailed by. Its sails were flapping vigorously. It was on the verge of tipping over. The captain ran to the supply room and came back with lifebuoys. He tossed them to the two men aboard the sinking yacht.

The yacht sank inch by inch until the only part remaining above the water was the tip of a mast.

Meanwhile, the two men struggled to the ferry. Gordon knew very well what was waiting below the surface of the water.

There was commotion aboard the 'Ethan Allen.' By now, the waves were reaching a tremendous height. Water poured onto the decks and then it happened. A large brownish green mass of skin emerged out of the soaring waves. Gordon was waiting for this to happen.

The captain's voice came back on the speaker.

“Evacuate the ferry, I repeat, evacuate the premises!'

Gordon remained still while hordes of tourists tried to exit the ferry. Then a roar was heard that sounded so inhuman that the ferry started to vibrate.

The roar sounded like a creature in agony. There were no passengers left except Gordon. The captain yelled at him.

“Are you out of your mind? God knows what has come and you're standing like a total idiot! Get off the ferry now if you want to come out in one piece!”

Gordon ignored the captain's threat and walked down the stairway leading to the lower deck.

There was a large window where he could see the depths of Champlain. Gordon scanned the underwater view and spotted the same greenish brown mass cruising around in no particular direction.

The creature was the legendary Lake Champlain Monster known in the area as Champ.

He looked at the radar and tried to identify the spot where Champ was headed. By the looks of it, the

Finally, he left the ferry. Gordon drove the Mercedes home. He woke up at dawn. The sun was barely visible.

In the back of the car, he attached the boat trailer. He glanced at the fuel gage; the needle was leaning towards 'EMPTY.' He cautiously steered the car to an EXXON station. A man appeared holding a gas nozzle.

Gordon rolled down the window.

“How much do ya want?”

“Fill 'er up!” he yelled.

He turned the car towards Shelburne Farms.

The trailer followed, bumping unsteadily. He reached the Farms after a few minutes. He parked the car beside the lake and began unpacking his gear: binoculars, a snorkel, two scuba tanks, a pair of flippers, a sonar detector, and a hundred-yard rope. He unloaded the speedboat from the trailer heaving it to the shallow waters.

The motor started to groan, and began to cruise around. This being accomplished, he switched on the sonar. It indicated a strong vibration farther south. The propeller turned the vehicle and glided it towards the south. The sonar beeped continuously for a few seconds. This was the machine's way of saying that this was the spot.

It was time to capture this creature and start a new life. Gordon slipped into his scuba gear and held onto the rope. He took a deep breath, held his nose and plunged in. Suddenly a farmer appeared, waving a pitchfork in the air.

“Git out of there, you goshdarn trespasser or I'm goin' to call the police!” he threatened.

Gordon immediately disappeared under the cold, blue waves. He lowered himself to the floor of the Champlain. He glided past the marshy soil, fish of many kinds and near …….. Champ!

Gordon was dangerously close and if he didn't act fast, he'd be dinner. He quickly tied the rope to the bottom. The brownish green monster's distance grew closer by the minute.

The eyes glared and its tail was in a vertical position. Gordon began to swim towards the neck of Champ. With his hands clenched onto the rope, he reached the massive back.

If he had enough time, he could tie the rope around the creature's neck and waist. Champ's neck turned around and the monster stared at Gordon briefly and uttered a roar. Gordon swam in a circular motion and wrapped the rope several times around the long neck and the huge waist. Finally he curled the end into a complex sailor's knot. The rest would be easy, he thought. He swam to the other end of the rope and grabbed onto it. Suddenly, the rope went slack.

Gordon turned and found a policeman standing there. The policeman told him it was illegal to fish for Champ, the Lake Monster, but Gordon pointed out he hadn't anything on his line, and so couldn't be prosecuted for catching a beast that wasn't there.

The policeman started hollering: “Don't you know sir, that a law has been passed in Vermont legislature that this creature should be left alone?”

That was the end of Gordon's story. The children roared with laughter to hear the story and pictured the scene of Gordon's disheveled hair, dripping with lake water and the policeman's frustrated face.

My husband instantly hollered: “It is completely nonsense! There is no evidence that the creature exists at all.”

The children started to say in unison: “It does exist. Uncle Gordon should try to catch the monster again!”

I thought the policeman was right—the Lake Champlain monster should remain a mystery.

Inventing an imaginary creature is always fun.

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

Chess, India and Viswanathan Anand

By Amitabha Bagchi

Viswanathan Anand

It is a well-established fact that chess originated in India. Its earliest variant, known as Chaturanga, spread from India to Persia, where its name changed first to Chatrang and eventually to Shatranj.

After the Arab-Islamic conquest of Persia, the game was carried to all corners of the Muslim world and eventually through the Byzantine Empire to all of Europe. The word “Checkmate” apparently derives from the Farsi “Shah Maat” for the doomed king's fate. (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_chess for additional details.)

Chess evolved over time with many regional and country-specific variations (including those in India), but it slowly became standardized into an internationally accepted form. The first World Chess Championship was held in 1886, and organizing these championships eventually became the responsibility of the World Chess Federation (known by its acronym FIDE) which was established in Paris in 1924.

I grew up in India watching chess being played by highly competitive adults poring intently over boards and pieces on roadside patios. That passion for the game is captured well in Premchand's sardonic story, “Satranj ki Khilari” (“The Chess Player”), where the protagonists remain absorbed in chess in and around Lukhnow, the capital of Oudh, as that kingdom is gobbled up by Lord Dalhousie (and General Outram) on behalf of the British East India Company.

In spite of the interest and enthusiasm for the game that was so palpable around me, India did not do well in international chess competitions when I was young. The game was dominated in fact by players from the erstwhile Soviet Union, which provided virtually all the world chess champions since the time Alexander Alekhine defeated Jose Raul Capablanca in 1927. The Soviets were indeed so dominant that they would provide most of the runners-up as well. One of two exceptions to this long period of Soviet (and Russian) dominance was the brief reign of the American Bobby Fisher (1972-75). Fisher's match with Boris Spassky for the world championship in Reykjavik in 1972 was one occasion when chess entered the American consciousness in a major way.

After Bobby Fisher refused to defend his title in 1975 under terms set by FIDE, the Russian chess juggernaut was back again -- in the form of first Anatoly Karpov and then Gary Kasparov. But, in an amazing turn

of history, India finally asserted itself on the world chess scene as the Russian hegemony was broken in 2000 by an Iyer Brahmin from Tamilnadu, Vishwanathan Anand. He became the first non-Russian player since Bobby Fisher to win the FIDE world chess championship that year.

Anand, 42, retained his title as the undisputed World Chess Champion on 30 May this year when he defeated the challenger, Boris Gelfand of Israel, 2 ½ to 1 ½ in a four-game rapid chess tie-breaker in Moscow after their regular 12game match ended in a 6-6 tie.

This was his second successful defense of the unified title, which he had won in 2008 by defeating Vladimir Kramnik of Russia in Bonn. (His first successful defense was in 2010 against the Bulgarian grandmaster Veselin Topalov in Sofia.)

To reach this pinnacle of success, Anand had a steep mountain to climb. He was taught chess at the age of six by his mother, Susheela, who was his early mentor. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to the Philippines for a year. Anand and his mother won many prizes there solving chess problems and puzzles shown on a TV channel. His early career was meteoric, as he became the first Indian to win the World Junior Chess Championship in 1987 and became India's first grandmaster at the age of eighteen in 1988. In 1995, he had his first crack at the PCA World Chess Championship against Gary Kasparov. The games were played at the World Trade Center in New York City. After eight consecutive drawn games, Anand drew first blood by winning the ninth, but then lost four of the next five games and was ultimately vanquished by the lopsided score of 10 ½ to 7 ½. Three years later, in 1998, he was pitted against Anatoly Karpov for the FIDE World Chess title. (This was in the brief period of two competing world chess champions.) The regular match was tied at 3-3, but Anand lost, uncharacteristically, in the rapid playoff.

Anand's luck finally turned in 2000 when he won the FIDE World Chess Championship in Tehran. He lost the title defense match in 2002, but in 2007 regained the title in a tournament held in Mexico. Then finally, in 2008, he won the unified world chess crown by convincingly defeating Vladimit Kramnik in Bonn, Germany.

India cannot boast of many successes in individual sports. Anand is a great exception that makes his country proud. He has had a a profound impact on the Indian chess scene. Whereas he was India's first grandmaster in 1988, the country now has 26 grandmasters and 12 woman grandmasters! “Vishy”, as he is widely known, is universally respected for his friendly charm and gentlemanly behavior. Many believe that he is one of the most versatile of chess champions, given his prowess in all formats of the game. In a rare instance of public irritation, after his recent title defense, he blasted Gary Kasparov for opining that he was now old and lacking in “motivation.” Anand may not be as charismatic a champion as Mikhail Tal or Kasparov, but he may be steady and durable like Mikhail Botvinnik, who was the world chess champion off and on for 15 years (1948-63). After all, Anand has already had the crown, off and on and in one way or another, for some 12 years!

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Code of Laws (As it emerged in an ancient civilization) By: Biman Bhatta Continued from page 05

The rights of the women were also quite protected. A daughter choosing an unwanted profession could not be deprived of an inheritance. Her share of the heirloom was to be the same as the other children of the family who had stayed in honored careers. If a woman was not involved in any infidelity but still got divorced, she had the right to get a proper property settlement. On the other hand if a married man was entangled in an extramarital affair violating the Hammurabi's code of adultery, he was to be ordained to provide for the wife in case she chose to divorce and move out.

It appears that all these laws were officially established as Hammurabi's code to create a culture that was founded on the ideology of justice and rights for all humans inhabiting the Akkadian empire. And now after centuries of endurance, this code of laws still seems to be reverberating in our societies in many ways.

Ananda Mandir Board of Trustees has established a program to recognize

Outstanding Volunteers If you are a Life Member and believe that someone deserves this recognition, please feel free to e-mail nomination to

Pronoy Chatterji (pkc_usa@yahoo.com) Details of the program and the nomination form can be seen in our website www.anandamandir.org

Ananda Mandir Membership Recognition Ananda Mandir's membership category changes for the first quarter of 2012 New Grand Patron - Silver (1): Rajat & Devika Chakraborty New Patron (1): Jyotirmoy and Meena Dutta-Choudhury New Life Members (4): Ashok K. Khandelwal Panna L. Dutta Sanat and Indrani Chattopadhyay Satyajit and Sucheta Bhattacharya Please note that you can become an Associate Member of Ananda Mandir by donating a minimum of $50. Your subsequent donations of $50 or more are credited to your account. When your total cumulative donation reaches $1000, you become a Life Member.

Your support small or large, are most welcome and sincerely appreciated.

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July 2012

Ananda Sangbad

Ananda SandhyaA Monthly Evening Soiree Reported By Arun Bhowmik & Guru Chakravarty Among Puja and many other socio-cultural activities of Ananda Mandir, Ananda Sandhya aims at catering to the entertainment need of music-loving members of the community, generally focused on classical vocal and instrumental music. Usually, on the second Friday of each month, this musical program features not only the local musical talents, but also from time to time, visiting musicians from India.

Below is a narrative of various Ananda Sandhya programs during the March-June period.

On March 9th, a classical vocal program was presented by Ajay Divakaran. He was accompanied by Madhu Vora on Harmonium and by Dr. Arindam Chakraborti on Tabla.

Ajay Divakaran was born in Vellore, India. He was exposed to music in his family environment as he grew up in India and received some instruction. He has been learning Hindustani vocal music from Shrimati Kumkum Sanyal, the prominent Hindustani vocalist for the past nine years. He has performed at the H-K concert series in the Boston area and in India. He played the rhythm guitar and sang for various Indian light music bands including "The Melodies of RPI," "Rasika," Ajay Divakaran (Atlanta), and SurBahar (NJ).

Ajay has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and is a Fellow of the IEEE, and is known for his research on multimedia content analysis. He is currently a Technical Manager at SRI International Sarnoff. He lives in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey.

On April 8, an “Evening of Hindustani Vocal Classical Music” was organized

by Anasua Roy and her music students. The talented young vocalists are: Rupsa, Nandini, Rhea, Aheli, Janhvi, Aditi, Mansi, Tanaya, Isha, Shree, Sreya, Priya, Parama, Rohan, Rishav, Sonalika, Naveen, Sandeep, Aparajita, Seema, Sharmila, Shilpi, Mukul and Tarjani. The commendable performance was enhanced by the presence of our own Anirban Roychowdhury at Tabla.

Anasua Roy and her students

May 11th was the day of “Kabi JayantiRemembering Our Revered Poets”Some of our very well known community musicians presented a delightful evening of Rabindra Sangeet , Najrul Geeti, and compositions of other Bengali Poets. The timeless melodies were superbly presented by: Arundhati Mallik, Suranjan B Chowdhury, Partha Majumdar, Gayatree Sharma, Mahua Bose, Vaswati Mallik, Anindita Sikdar, Zafar Billah, Amitabha Sen Gupta, Keya Kamal a n d A r a t r i k a . T h e Ta b l a accompaniment was provided by “Kabi Jayanti – Remembering Our Revered Poets” our own Dr. Arindam Chakraborti.

On June 15th, Swagata Chakraborty presented another enchanted evening of her melodious voice. The recital started with her students, followed by her solo performance. They were accompanied by Madhu Vora on Harmonium and by Anirban Roychowdhury on Tabla.

Swagata is a recognized musical talent from Calcutta, West Bengal. She has been a regular performer for All India Radio and Doordarshan. She has performed extensively throughout India and in the US. Her talent has won her many awards from several reputed organizations and committees. Swagata received many years of training in Hindustani Classical Music under the tutelage of several famous performers. She specializes in vocal Hindustani classicals and light classicals such as Bhajans, Thumris, Hori, Jhula etc. She also performs Rabindra Sangeet, Najrul-geets and modern Hindi and Bengali songs.

VISIT HER WEBSITE www.swagatachakraborty.com

Recent Sahitya O Alochana Sessions at Ananda Mandir ReportedBy Subrata Bhaumik Sahitya O Alochana is a monthly literary and topical forum under the aegis of Ananda Mandir that endeavors to achieve its motto “Alochana Brings Good Things to Mind.” It held several exciting and thought-provoking sessions in the March – May 2012 period. Given below are some brief commentaries on those sessions.

March - This session was entitled “Gita for Commuters – Princeton to New York.” It was designed to provide the attendees a respite from the humdrum daily life, and attempted to refocus our minds to something that we always longed to know: the essence of life, the timeless and endless energy that we are a part of, etc. Aware of the fact that Gita in and of itself is an enormously profound body of knowledge and that it is a futile exercise to meaningfully discuss it in just one session, the discussion covered the first few chapters of Gita including Vishad Yoga, Shankhya Yoga, and parts of the all too important Karma Yoga. The genesis and the evolution of the Hindu scriptures including Vedanta were also touched upon in the discourse. The session was led by Gautam Goswami.

April - The April session was entitled “Urdu Adab II”, and was a follow-up on the first session on Urdu literature (Urdu Adab I) back in September 2011.

While the September session was a primer on Urdu poetry, the April session explored that fascinating world one more time with a special focus on the works of two legends of unparalleled repute: Mir Taqi Mir (18th century) and Mirza Ghalib (19th century).

Many Gazhals penned by these stalwarts were read, explained, and themes and grammar discussed in the meeting. The session also covered some of the social and political landscapes of the Indian subcontinent of the time that influenced the poets.

Siddartha Sahi who led the first Urdu session also led the April session.

May – the topic for this session was international affairs, which was a nice change from the usual literary and spiritual topics discussed in the Alochana meetings. It examined the roles that China and India would likely play in the changing world order of the coming decades, and was entitled “Beijing to Bangalore on Mobile.”

The presentation explored the growing domination of these two countries in the international political arena due to the enormous progresses made by them in the economic front. It also extrapolated the potential for increased influence that they would continue to exercise on the global stage in the foreseeable future and the interdependence of each country's progress, competition, and cooperation between them.

Rekha Datta, Professor of Political Science at Monmouth University, NJ, led this discussion.

Future sessions – Quite a few very exciting sessions are in the pipeline for the next few months including a review of Rohinton Mistry's work, a discussion on social media (Facebook), a presentation on comparison and universality of various world religions , a session on the unconventional role of a “Mother” in Bimal Kar's work, etc.

The friends of Sahitya O Alochana would like to thank Ananda Mandir for its continued support for the forum's contribution to the cultural enrichment of the local Bengali and Indian community.

Announcement Dear Members of Ananda Mandir, As you all know by now, the cultural events presented by Ananda Mandir (musical shows during Kali Puja, Durga Puja, Live Mahalaya to name a few) have gained great popularity in our community of music lovers. One such routine event is the monthly event ANANDA SANDHYA, presented usually on second Friday evenings. This is the wonderful platform where our community musicians get a chance to showcase their talents.

Are you interested to do an Ananda Sandhya program at Ananda Mandir as a solo artist, or present a group program? If you have attended any, you know that this is a 2 hour program of high quality. If you are “WILLING, ABLE, AND CAPABLE”, please contact our cultural secretary Arun Bhowmik at arun.bhowmik@hamonusa.com, or call him at 908-672-1452 for details. We look forward to hearing from you.”

Swagata Chakraborty

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

11

Forgotten Heroes of Bengal

By Rajat Chanda (Editor's Note: This is a continuing series of articles by the author. In the previous article, the author covered Derozio and several Derozians, viz, Radhanath Sikdar, Peary Chand Mitra, and Ramgopal Ghosh. In this article, the author continues with assorted individual pioneers) Introduction: Colonization of India by the British happened at a time when India was in a chaotic and weakened situation. The society had remained static for centuries. It was also subject to horrible oppression and tyranny by the rigid caste system, unacceptably low status of women, polygamy, child marriage, prevalence of “Sati-daho”, and all sorts of cruel practices and superstitions. The exploitative motive of colonial powers is well known. However, it also ushered in a revolution in thoughts and ideas in religion and society in the late 18th and early 19th century, soon after the British occupied Bengal, Bihar and Orissa (1764). The elimination of the terrible practices and synthesis of the desirable thoughts and deeds began to dramatically change the deplorable state - thanks to the leaders of the 19th century Renaissance in Bengal. The pioneer of this transformation was Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833).

Sarat Chandra Das (1849 – 1917): Sarat Chandra Das was one of the greatest pioneers of exploration, discovery and scholarship in Tibet. He graduated from Presidency College (Hindu College was renamed in 1855). His mentor, Sir A. W. Croft, helped him with his deep interest in Tibet. In 1874 he became the Headmaster of the Bhotia Boarding School in Darjeeling. A Sikkimese teacher there, who acted as a guide, and Das traveled extensively in Tibet in 1879 for six months and again in 1881-83 for a longer period.

He met many prominent people there, collected books and documents for his future work on Tibetology. He also compiled valuable information on Tibetan politics, their relations with Russia and China, culture, religion and geography. Some of this work was for the British 'Intelligence'. Some of the Tibetans who helped Das in the sensitive data gathering were later imprisoned. They were released after Colonel Younghusband's trip to Lhasa and the signing of the 1904 treaty with the British. Das crossed Jongsong La, a very high pass near Kanchanjangha. He named a lake after Sir Croft.

In later years he wrote several important books: Grammar of Tibetan Language Indian Pundits in the Land of Snow (1883) Journey to Lhasa and Central Tibet.

His masterwork, by which he is best known today, is Tibetan – English Dictionary with Sanskrit Synonyms (1902) In his later years he welcomed many Tibet scholars at his home 'Lhasa Vila' in Darjeeling. It is said that the character of Hari Mukherjee in Kipling's novel 'Kim' was inspired by Mr. S.C. Das. It may be mentioned that about 900 years earlier Atish Dipankar Srijnana (b. 980, d. 1054), a central figure in the history and religious study of Buddhism, spent his later years in Tibet continuing his writing and teaching. He was buried there.

Colonel Suresh Biswas (1861 – 1902): Recently two short biographies of Biswas, written around 1900, have been located in India Office, London [Indira Chaudhury, 6/2008 posting].

Suresh Biswas was born in 1861. A born adventurer, he traveled to England as a stowaway at age 15. He drifted through several professions before becoming an animal trainer in a circus in Kent, England. He traveled to Hamburg, Germany with the circus. Then he moved to Portugal where he taught himself magic, making a living as magician. He sailed to Brazil from Portugal in the mid 1880s. On board, he learned how to administer basic drugs to common ailments. At Rio he trained in medicine at the Army Hospital.

Brazil's then ruler emperor Pedro II was a brilliant man and quite popular after a long reign. But an opposition movement, called Republican, was gathering steam. They made it possible for Biswas to join the Brazilian army in 1887 as an officer.

For Biswas, who could not have joined the British Indian Army at a similar rank, this was a huge achievement. He sent a photograph of himself to his family in a Lieutenant's uniform.

There was a coup de'Etat in November 1889. Das fought heroically with a squadron of 50 soldiers, capturing some cannons of the imperial army at Niteroi. He was later promoted to be a Colonel. Suresh Biswas married the daughter of a Brazilian doctor and had two children from the marriage. He died in Rio in 1902, at age 41.The romance of his adventure in a distant land circulated in Bengal during a period of patriotic excitement. He became an inspiring figure. Biswas is still remembered in Brazil with gratitude.

Rakhaldas Bandyopadhyay (1885 – 1930): Rakhaldas discovered Mahenjodaro, the principal site of the Indus

civilization, which transformed the ancient history of India. His interpretations of this great civilization are of enormous importance. It is interesting that his first important publications in Archaeology were in the fields of paleography, an essential skill to decipher ancient writings and epigraphy, identification of fundamental units of written languages (ideogram, alphabet, digit, punctuation, etc.), their meanings and possible conclusions concerning the writing and the writers. His famous book 'The origin of the Bengali script' was published in 1919. He was an authority on ancient Indian coins. It is important to note that the Indus script has not yet been deciphered.

It is one of the biggest unsolved problems in archaeology today. A solution will end its 'Silent Civilization' status and will clarify its context and connections with Mesopotamia and other important centers.

Rakhaldas lost both of his parents at a young age. This interrupted his studies. He passed his B.A. (history, Presidency College) in 1907 and M.A. (history, Calcutta University) in 1910. He started his career at Indian Museum, Kolkata, and then joined Archaeological Survey of India in 1911. He had a brilliant career in field archaeology. He worked on the excavation of Paharpur, one of the 5 mahavihars (Buddhist monasteries/universities, now in Bangladesh) from the Pala era (circa 800 A.D.). Atish Dipankar Srignana worked and taught here for many years. Atish translated Maddhamika sutras, Nagarjuna's commentaries on Pragna Paramita, into Tibetan. Paharpur style influenced the architecture of Burma, Java and Cambodia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

Rakhaldas was a prolific writer. He authored the first scientific history of Bengal (2 volumes) and a number of other professional and textbooks, historical fictions and novels. His untimely death at 45 cut short a brilliant career.

In a major recent work on the Indus Civilization by J. M. Kenoyer, published

by Oxford University Press and American Institute of Pakistan Studies, the discoverer of Mohenjo-Daro gets a highly inadequate treatment.

Dipan Ray Honored as a Notable Indian American in NJ Reported by Guru Chakravarty On May 3, Dipan Ray, a well-known member of Ananda Nandir, was one of seven recipients of “Notable Indian Americans in New Jersey” awards presented at the East Brunswick Public Library. The citation in his honor said that the award was being “presented to Dr. Dipan Ray for his contributions to improve the health outcomes of the South Asians. Also, his efforts for bringing theater to Dipan Ray (Second From Right) the local community for over a decade are remarkable. He has worked effortlessly to build bridges between communities and generations through theater”.

The other recipients of the honor were Dr.Yogesh Jaluria, Dr.Saurabh W. Jha, NJ Assemblyman Upendra J. Chivukula, and Rohit Baxi. Two organizations, Manavi and the SouthAsian Total Health Initiative (SATHI), also received the awards. The event was sponsored by the India Association of Garden State, the Indian Cultural Society of East Brunswick, Agraj Seva Kendra and the East Brunswick Public Library.

Here is a brief biography of Dr. Dipan Ray Dr. Dipan Ray is a Pharmacist & Scientist by profession but theater is his passion. Even after a successful research career with three patents and several publications, he opted to work in an educational institute rather than working for the much more lucrative corporate world of pharmaceutical research, so as to have equal time to devote to his first love, 'theater'. Ray began his acting career in the seventies and eighties in Kolkata under the guidance of Debesh Chakroborty, a disciple of Utpal Dutta. He formed his own group Epic Actors' Workshop in 1988 after moving to United States. But his greatest contribution to the Indian Theatre in general and Bengali Theatre in particular has been his pioneering work in introducing the concept of South Asian Theater Festival in North America in 2006 that has become an annual event in New Jersey. In 2008, he developed a partnership of South Asian Theater Festival with New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the sixth largest cultural center in North America, that opened a new chapter in Indian Theater in USA. He also organized several theater workshops for Children and Youth with the help of Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission. He introduced ancient Indian classics in contemporary form to main stream American audience. He made overseas tours with his team to present “Pagla Ghora”, directed by Amol Palekar in 2008 and Tagore's “Sacrifice” in 2011 in many Cities in India.

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July 2012

Ananda Sangbad

Cassandra or Maybe a Chair's Tale A play by Sudipta Bhawmik For theater lovers in our community, it's like a breath of fresh air over a week-end evening to watch Sudipta Bhawmik's play.

Sudipta has been regularly staging plays written and some of them directed by him, with local talents from the community, at the Edison Valley Playhouse. His most recent play “Cassandra Othoba Hoyto Ekti Chair-er Kahini” (Cassandra or Maybe a Chair's Tale) was very well attended and applauded by the audience.

Here is a brief report on the play for Ananda Sangbad readers including a few questions I had which I relayed to Sudipta. Here is a recap of our conversation: Question: Sudipta, the play is very well written and well directed with a three dimensional visual impact created by characters enacting a scene behind a transparent screen creating an illusion of a TV show. Very nice indeed, in fact, such stage crafts are rare in Bengali theaters that we get to see here. Do you think some traditional theater lovers would view such visual effects gimmicky?

Answer: The technique used in the TV scene is nothing new. It uses a fabric called "scrim" that allows the effect and has been used in theater for ages. Bengali theaters here don't use it primarily because it requires some technical support that most theaters don't provide.

Gimmick is something that is beyond what the script demands and is used solely to awe the audience. In our case, the script demanded for a scene shown on TV (because it is a fantasy after all). This scene could have been implemented in many ways.

1. We could have used a real TV and showed a video recording of the scene.

Did not want to do that since I preferred live acting. Besides hauling in a TV or projecting a scene is also a major technical as well as logistic challenge.

2. We could have done live on stage in one side. This would not have brought the illusion effect that I was looking for. But this was our fall back option. If we have to do this show elsewhere, where we may not have the technical support, we may have to use this option.

3. Scrim offered the best theatrical treatment for this scene. Since EVP supported it technically we went for this option. Luckily the effect came out fine.

Question: Among all of your plays that I have seen so far, 'Cassandra or Maybe a Chair's Tale' stands apart for having an abstract plot yet very realistic in terms of “humans illusionary attachments” for material goodies, countless relationships and denial to the fact that future will probably be different. Every writer has a "thought provoking idea" which leads to a creative piece of writing. What prompted you to write this play?

Reported by Sushmita Dutta

Answer: I am kind of a person, whom someone may consider to be a pack-rat. I find it hard to throw away stuff. I find it difficult to throw away a perfectly functional chair just because it has gone out of fashion or have some nicks and cuts here and there. But I have also come to realize that I am not alone. There are many people like me who also develop a strong bond with their possessions. To throw away a piece of equipment that has served them for years, is like letting go a dear family member. But why do we think this way?

We have arrived at this juncture in our life where we are forced to look into our future and prepare ourselves to deal with it alone. And we can very well see our future, we very well know what's coming our way – but we deny it. We don't believe in our own clairvoyance. We tend to sit tight in our old little chair and hope that everything is going to be fine and dandy.

But was this all playing inside me when I started to write this play? I don't really know. I don't think any writer conjures up all these justifications before writing.

They start writing with, maybe, a “what if…” conjecture. What if one day this guy who had this old little chair…

Question: Characterization of the chair personified as Greek mythology beauty, Cassandra, who was able to know about the future and yet nobody would believe her for having a curse from Apollo, was somehow, I think, loosely plotted.

Those few dialogs from Shankar, like, “Oh! You are Cassandra, the daughter of the King Priam and Queen Hecuba of Troy and Apollo placed a curse on you…” could have been established better with some future predictions coming from Cassandra and Shankar not believing her or some such thing which would probably establish a linkage with Cassandra mythology. Your thoughts on this please?

Answer: I intentionally did not want to make the predictions come from Cassandra. My thought was that Cassandra lives within us. We can see our future, but we deny it, we disbelieve it. That's why, Shankar who was able to see his dreadful future, did not want to believe it. When he first got the chair, he knew he would never go back, but he denied. Now he can see his future in a nursing home far from his loved ones - but he denies it. He wants to live in the present forever. That's where he is stuck.

Psychologists use the term "Cassandra Complex" to refer to people who have this feeling that nobody believes what they say. Shankar does not suffer from this complex though. He himself does not believe what he knows would be inevitable. As Cassandra tells him, he tries to bury his head in the sand. And Shankar tells her, the fact that nobody believes Cassandra, is not her curse. Her curse is her urge to see the future. It's our curse too. We go to astrologers, we go to sooth sayers, to know what the future holds for us. We try to take preventative measures like stones etc. But we don't listen to our inner self. We do not listen to the Cassandra who lives in us. That's my take.

Ananda Mandir is pleased to announce the launch of a program to award financial grants to support

Community Service Projects aimed at helping the South Asian community in the Greater New Jersey area Project Proposals Are Welcome From Organizations and Individuals Please visit www.anandamandir.org for program details and application requirements or Contact: Pronoy Chatterjee (pkc_usa@yahoo.com) or Debajyoti Chatterji (debsmee572@gmail.com)

Ananda Sangbad

July 2012

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13

Ananda

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Please contact Debajyoti Chatterji (973-586-2505) If you are interested in volunteering your service.

14

July 2012

Community News

ICC Corner

By Prabir Sarkar Indian Community Center of Garden State (ICC) celebrated Baisakhi 2012 on 20th May at Church of the Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Ledgewood, NJ. 'Baisakh' is the first month of the Bengali Calendar, and we celebrated our 'Nabo Barsho' with much enthusiasm. Some of the highlights of the fun-filled evening were: Children's Variety Program Dance routines by Nanda Chakraborty's troupe Sangeet by a couple of renowned NJ Artists The evening program began with a short but eloquent introduction by Chitrali Ray Chaudhuri, ICC General Secretary, to Baisakhi and Kobiguru Rabindranath Thakur's 151st birth anniversary. The cultural program started with several songs by our own Bhabrabhi Chakraborty. She mesmerized the audience with her excellent voice and appropriate choice of songs. She was supported by Ranjan Ray Chaudhuri on guitar and Narayan Roy on tabla. Then the stage was given to our ICC kids to show their individual talents. Traditionally Baisakhi is the only platform where we encourage all our community kids to come up and show their talents in a “Jamon Khishi” (as you please) style. The ICC children presented a wide range of programs loaded with songs, poems, dance and musical instruments, both Indian and Western. The whole kids show was conceived and organized by Bidisha Sarkar.

The children's program was followed by memorable musical recitals by our guest artistes, Smt. Sucharita Das and Smt. Kakali Sinha. They presented some memorable songs that impressed the audience immensely. They were supported by Narayan Roy on table, Satyajit Bhattacharya on key board, Ranjan Ray Chaudhuri on guitar, Priyaranjan Das on percussion and Saugata Chatterjee on the acoustics. The whole cultural program was masterly choreographed by our Cultural Secretary, Baruna Haldar and aptly MC'd by Dipa Saha. This was another great event for ICC. The day could not be over without spicy great food. Our Recreation Secretary, Chaitali Sinha, made sure that “Jhal Muri” was made from fresh crispy muri and topped with Chola Bhaja. Later our guests moved over to the cafeteria window for

Kallol Corner

By Biman Bhatta Kallol's Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held on Sunday, April 1, 2012 at the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Somerset, New Jersey, and at that meeting a new Executive Committee was elected into the office by the club members. The members elected to the office were: Debahuti Roy (as President); Raj Majumdar (as Vice-President); Nilotpal Paul (as Treasurer) and Jayadhratha Bhowmick, Anupom Saha, Pinaki Datta, Baishali Chatterjee, Malini Banerjee, and Rajib Mukherjee (all as Members at Large). Quite a large number of members actually attended the meeting this year and they all overwhelmingly commended the newly elected young Executive Committee members for stepping forward to carry on the Kallol activities for the next two years.

At the meeting, status reports of Kallol's various events held during the year 2011 was presented by the outgoing Executive Committee members. Joint Secretary Sunanda Mitra, in absence of the General Secretary Poushali Mukherjee who could not be present, described in detail all the Kallol events such as the summer picnic, the Durga Puja, the Lakshmi Puja, and the New Year's Eve Party.

Then Treasurer Raj Majumdar gave the particulars of Kallol's financial performance through the year 2011. A few inquires were raised from the floor by the general members for further explanation of some line items in the spreadsheets that were handed out. With the help of a slide show, the Treasurer answered all the questions to everyone's satisfaction. These were followed with reports presented by the President Amal Paul and the Board of Trustees Chairman Biman Bhatta. The BOT Chairman also gave a vote of thanks to the departing Executive Committee lauding them for their efforts and performances throughout the year. He then introduced and congratulated each of the newly elected members of the 2012-2014 Executive Committee whilst wishing them good luck for their upcoming responsibilities. At the AGM meeting this year, everyone had a good time especially when one considers the delicious food that was served during the lunch break.

On June 3, Sunday, 2012 Kallol held a magnificent musical event called “An Evening with Kallol” at the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Somerset, New Jersey.

An excellent Classical Jugalbandi starring Ustad Alam Khan on Sarod and Anirban Roy Chowdhury on Tabla first molded a delightful milieu which later was made even more euphoric by the beautiful singing voice of Kavita Krisnamurthy delivering the contemporary songs of India. The house full of audience enjoyed every moment of these super performers until the very end.

Kallol's upcoming scheduled events are: the summer picnic on Saturday, August 18 at the beautiful settings of the Merrill Park Grove 3C in Woodbridge Township; the Durga Puja on Friday to Sunday, October 19 thru 21 at the Ukrainian Cultural Center in Somerset; the Lakshmi Puja on Saturday, October 27 at the John E. Toolan Kiddie Keep Well Camp, Roosevelt Park, Edison; and the New Year's Eve Party on Saturday, December 31 for which the venue is yet to be decided.

All updates on our future events will be regularly posted on the website www.kallol.com, so please periodically visit this link for more details on our activities. We will be looking forward to seeing you all at our upcoming events, and I wish you all the best.

Ananda Sangbad

dinner arranged by our food connoisseur, Social Secretary Sonali Nath and Communication Secretary Gargi Sinha. Our Treasurer, Arpita Gupta, and ICC stalwart, Rama Haldar, welcomed more than 35 families who attended the Baisakhi and enjoyed the food and the fun. The whole program could not have been successful without the active help from some of the spouses of our Executive Committee members.. My sincere thanks go to all of them.

Looking forward we are getting ready for two important events.

First of all ICC will have its Annual Summer Picnic on Sunday, 29th July, 2012 at Loantaka Brook Reservation near Morristown. The picnic is free for all ICC members.

Non-members can also join in the fun for a nominal entry fee. The next big event will be our main attraction of the year, “Durga Pujo 2012”. This year we are working to bring in a very well-known Bengali singer and a very talented dancer from Kolkata, India.

For now I leave you by saying “Subho Nabo Borsho”.

N J PA C o r n e r

By Kankana Sengupta On April 7 of this year a new Executive Committee for NJPA was formed. The new Committee consists of: President: Manideepa Ghose Vice President: Kankana Sengupta General Secretary: Sebika Basu Tresurer: Krishna Bhattacharya Members at Large: Avijit Sen, Lilabati Majumdar, Swati Ray. NJPA was founded over forty years ago and today it has thrived into one of the premier socio-cultural Indian organization in the United States. We are proud of our cultural diversity be it in language, literature, theatre, cinema, dance or art and much more. Culture is a shared heritage and NJPA is making a constant effort to preserve and help make it accessible to others. We hope that with your support we will succeed in taking NJPA to new levels of excellence and significant progress. NJPA is constantly bustling with activities. They are the focus of our efforts, during which we present our message in a concentrated and heartfelt manner. Here is glimpse of some of upcoming events: On July 21st, NJPA will be embarking upon a new and exciting venture. We will be hosting a musical competition dedicated to creating an environment where local, national and international talents of all levels will strive to achieve musical excellence.

On August 25, we will be having our annual picnic. This is one of the highpoints on our calendar of events, giving multiple generations the occasion to enjoy the great outdoors and, of course, fire up the charcoal and do some serious grilling.

On November 10th, we will be celebrating Kali puja. As other years, Kali puja will be followed by dinner and cultural activities.

Stay tuned to our website http://njpa.net for further announcements

UPCOMING NJPA ATTRACTIONS “MERI AAWAZ SUNO” SATURDAY, JULY 21 NJPA invites you to MERI AAWAZ SUNO: A musical event to remember where you are not just a spectator but a part of the action. The first part of our 2 part evening will feature a highly competitive, reality show style vocal musical competition complete with tension, drama, surprises, and triumphs. Let our expert panel of judges bring out the best in your talent, while you perform before a live audience.

Come compete for cash prizes, keepsake trophies and of course bragging rights!!! Not just this, get recognized by the major players in the tri state south East Asian communities and get invited to perform at their annual galas!

The excitement does not stop there. The next half of the evening features an explosive performance by a star on the Indian Idol stage. Come and be rocked off your seats by the sheer energy of a high voltage performance.

There is so much more!! Come see performances desi style, by our very own talent pool, raffles and more. Be a part of the evening of high drama, high voltage entertainment, and of course lots and lots of food to keep you going through the evening!! And with an absolutely minimal gate charge, it's fun at a steal!

Stay tuned to our website njpa.net for details forthcoming very soon...

ANNUAL PICNIC SATURDAY AUGUST 25, 2012 COME JOIN US AT OUR ANNUAL PICNIC BEECHWOODS PARK, SOUTH BRUNSWICK FROM NOON-DUSK ADMISSION $15 (SINGLE); $25 (FAMILY), KIDS COME FREE RSVP BY 17TH AUGUST CONTACT: MANIDEEPA GHOSE 732-605-9218; KANKANA SENGUPTA:732-816-5302; SEBIKA BASU: 908-208-6249, KRISHNA BHATTACHARYYA: 732-536-6325; LILABATI MAJUMDAR: 732-329-1039; SWATI RAY: 917-486-0083; AVIJIT SEN: 732-521-2253

NEWS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

Ananda Sangbad

Bengali Film-Maker Receives Audience Choice Award at NY Film Festival Reported By Guru Chakravarty Over Memorial Day weekend, Let's Be Out, The Sun Is Shining, by Brookyln filmmaker Bornila Chatterjee, premiered at the New York Indian Film Festival to a soldout audience. Starring New Jersey actress Lipica Shah in the lead role of Diya, the film is about a shy Indian-American receptionist who falls in love with a charismatic but arrogant Brooklyn bartender who rejects her for another woman. Instead of retreating back into her shell, Diya immerses herself in his world of struggling actors and musicians in Bushwick, Brooklyn and though her protective older brother and uncle do not understand her need to "change the pattern" of her life, the magnetism and passion of this new circle of bohemian friends teaches Diya a few important lessons about lust, love and staying true to oneself.

Heralded by the Wall Street Journal for its “strong local interest” (WSJ/Arts & Entertainment/05.24.2012) Let's Be Out, The Sun Is Shining is Bornila's first featurelength film. Born in Los Angeles and raised in Calcutta, she spent her teenage years on

July 2012

15

the Calcutta stage, acting in plays produced by the Seagull Foundation for the Arts and the Red Curtain Theater Company, learning from and working with Indian stage veterans Zarin Chaudhry, Katie Lai Roy and Jayant Kripalani. Bornila's theater roots sparked a curiosity about filmmaking - she came back to the United States and in 2008, graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Film and Television. Her short student film Dida Reema Anjana (starring New Jersey's very own Lily Majumdar, Gargi Mukherjee and Lipica Shah) was shot in Edison, New Jersey and received the Russell Hexter Filmmaker Grant.

The core filmmaking team on Dida Reema Anjana reunited in 2010 to film Let's Be Out, The Sun Is Shining, during the hottest summer in New York City - shooting scenes guerrilla style all over city streets and on the subways, in a tortilla factory in Bushwick, in muggy nightclubs in the East Village, underwater in the Hamptons, in large apartments, in small apartments and in tiny apartments. The film resonates with their passion and Lipica Shah's breakout performance captures the joyride of being young and in New York, garnering her a Best Actress nomination. “A truly American story about finding oneself” (Lavina Melwani for The Hindu/Magazine/Arts/06.02.2012), Let's Be Out, The Sun Is Shining won the Audience Choice Award at NYIFF and is a mustsee for anyone who has ever felt the pangs of being an outsider in a land of outsiders.

Source – Wall Street Journal

In His Grandfather's Footsteps

FALLING RUPEE MYSTERY

Reported By Guru Chakravarty

Reported by Guru Chakravarty

“For sixty years my grandfather Sahadeb Samantha has walked the same path: between his house to those of his patients and his humble health dispensary near Kolkata”. Said Victor Roy, an accomplished medical student at Northwestern University, social entrepreneur, and a tabla player.

“I spent many childhood summers in Rajhati, where he lives and serves to this day, observing his practices and hearing the stories of his journey. I observed Dadu's daily sense of duty, dharma as he calls it, to heal those suffering from a wide assortment of maladies. Until recently –he is now 87 years old – Dadu traveled by bicycle and foot to care for patients in their homes.” In Bridgewater, New Jersey, Roy grew up listening to the stories of his Dadu from his grandmother and mother.

“GlobeMed” which Roy founded a few years ago has engaged more than 1500 students at 46 universities and completed over 1500 projects worldwide. He deferred his medical education two years to give full attention to GlobeMed as its Executive Director. GlobeMed students have worked to develop rural health centers in Rwanda and Ghana, train community health workers in Liberia, and create chronic disease prevention programs for Detroit's uninsured, he said.

Source- India Abroad

Rupee's worth is at an all-time low! The US Dollar (USD) to Indian Rupee (INR) exchange rate on June 13, 2012 was highest ever: 55.69. India's GDP growth rate is steady and much higher compared to the rest of the world except China. What could be the reasons behind this fall?

Some have given reasons such as broad gains in dollar overseas due to the decay of euro, huge demand from domestic oil refiners with growing consumer demand for oil (though many argue that falling oil price could be advantageous to rupee). Other factors such as disinvestment ( foreign investment has gone down almost by 50% today compared to 2007-2008 period - perhaps due to the corrupt image of Indian economy), slowing down of export, growing current trade account deficit (it has grown almost 3 times since 2007-2008). All these could be valid reasons.

But can India do something about it? Some people sees it as a great opportunity for more cash-flow into India, especially from the expatriates and the investors.

Around 1750's when the British came to India, the exchange rate was around 1 Rupee = 2.8 pounds. By the time they left India in 1947, it was 1 pound = 5 rupees.

Exchange rate with US dollar was about the same at that time. Basically, they bled the nation's economy to near death by transferring massive amount of wealth to Great Britain after causing famines and millions of deaths in India. Is the history indicative of some serious wrongs of current crisis period?

Below is the historical data since

Phoenix-Area Man Hits $1 Million Jackpot Six Times Reported by Debajyoti Chatterji A suburban Phoenix man made a lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky guess in a recent multistate lottery game.

An Arizona Lottery spokeswoman says the Glendale man claimed six $1 million prizes after purchasing six Powerball tickets with the same winning numbers late last month. The tickets were good for a half dozen second-place prizes. And he picked up his $6 million in winnings over several visits to the Arizona Lottery's headquarters in Phoenix.

Lottery spokeswoman Karen Bach says the man doesn't want his identity released.

Source – NY Times

A Blue Lobster?

Rare Specimen Headed for National Aquarium in Washington, DC

Reported by Debajyoti Chatterji On June 16, USA TODAY reported that the crew of Pot Luck, a local fishing boat in Ocean City, MD caught a bright blue lobster two days ago, a 1-in-2 million exception within lobster population. This rare lobster is not going to any dinner table; instead it is headed for a special place in the National Aquarium in Washington, DC. The lobster has been named Toby, and Toby is currently enjoying a celebrity status in a nice tank in Martin's Fish Company. Toby is blue because of a genetic variation that shows up in about one of every 2 million born that causes the lobster to produce an excessive amount of a particular protein that gives it that pigmentation, according to the University of Maine Lobster Institute.

In early May, CNN.com had reported that a blue lobster was caught in Nova Scotia, Canada. Even more rare than blue lobsters are yellow lobsters, estimated to be a 1-in-30-million anomaly.

And the rarest of them all? Albino lobsters are 1-in-100-million occurrence, according to the Lobster Institute.

Source – USA Today

Source: Excerpted from NGI Magazine – December 2011

Special Religious Services: Upon request, the priest of Ananda Mandir offers services such as in-house Sradhyas, Rituals associated with Cremations (Anthesti Kriya), Death Anniversaries, Preweddng rituals (Nundimukh, Ashirwad, etc), Upanayan (Paitey), Annaprasan , Wedding Ceremonies & Wedding Anniversaries, Griha Prabesh (Bhumi Puja), Consecrations of new cars (New Car Pujas) and others.

If you have needs for any of the above or more, please feel free to contact Biswabhai @ 732-873-9821

16

July 2012

Ananda Sangbad

Outstanding Volunteer of Ananda Mandir The Award and Recognition Committee of the Board of Trustees of Ananda Mandir is pleased to announce that the board accepted and approved the committee's nomination of Prativa Hore as the “Outstanding Volunteer” for the second quarter of 2012.

Mrs. Prativa Hore started working for Ananda Mandir since its inception.

In reality along with a few others, she was working for the establishment of Ananda Mandir even before it was formally incorporated. After the current property was bought, she started spending considerable time on a variety of tasks for which she spontaneously volunteered. In the early days since the inception of Ananda Mandir, a major activity was fund-raising. On her own, Mrs. Hore opened a stall at every Durga Puja of Kallol and managed it with some help from like-minded ladies.

Mrs. Hore was able to donate the entire earning from that stall to the tune of around $1,000 to Ananda Mandir every year on behalf of Kallol. For the last several years, she has continued her volunteering by being an indispensable part of the Puja activities at Ananda Mandir. Mrs. Prativa Hore is a super volunteer bubbling with energy and commitment dedicated to the welfare and day-to-day functioning of Ananda Mandir. Prativa Hore's volunteering for Ananda Mandir has no parallel.

Mrs. Hore is an institution by herself in our community, particularly in Ananda Mandir, and all with hard selfless work, with love and care for Ananda Mandir and its members The Board will continue to recognize one or two “Outstanding Volunteers,” every quarter selected from the nominations received from the Life Members of Ananda Mandir. The application form for nomination is available at www.anandamandir.org (see announcement elsewhere in this newsletter) Mrs. Prativa Hore