Venkateswara temple is 'sinking'

Venkateswara temple is 'sinking'

• TIRUPATI: In the wake of collapse of Rajagopuram of Srikalahasti temple, a team from Hindu Devalaya Parirakshana Samithi (HDPS) has inspected various temples in Chittoor district. After examining the strength of ancient temple structures, it has come up with some suggestions to protect them.In a letter written to TTD executive officer IYR Krishna Rao, a copy of which was released to the media here today, HDPS State president Kamalakar Swamy said the north western side of Venkateswara temple at Tirumala from where devotees worship Vimana Venkateswara, was slowly sinking. Hence, there is an urgent need to study the reasons and take remedial action. The vegetation that grew on Galigopuram of Venkateswara temple should be removed.Golla Mandapam which is in dilapidated condition, should be reconstructed.Veyikalla Mandapam should also be reconstructed as suggested by the PVRK Prasad Committee. Steps should also be taken to check pollution on Tirumala Hills, he said. The Samithi urged the TTD to get the court stay on Peruru Banda land vacated to facilitate renovation of Vakulamatha temple. It was not proper on the part of the TTD to use temple lands for employees’ housing. A solar fencing should be erected around the Seven Hills to further strengthen security,he said.

Common funeral held for the twelve unidentified victims of Air crash

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• Mangalore
• The curtain has finally come down on the tragedy of Air India Express Dubai-Mangalore IX-812 flight that crashed at the Bajpe airport on 22nd May 2010 that had resulted in the death of 158 of 166 on board, when the bodies of the last twelve victims of the disaster including that of Ignatius D’Souza of Manibettu, Moodubelle were accorded a common funeral on Wednesday, 2nd June 2010 at 4.30 pm on the bank of the Kulur River on the Panamboor side.  The site was prepared in advance with 12 graves dug in three lines having four graves each.

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• With the arrival of the unidentified bodies to the burial ground they were laid by the side of the allotted graves by volunteers. Thereafter priests representing three religions, Islam, Roman Catholicism and Hindu recited their respective prayers for the eternal rest of the souls of the deceased.
• The unidentified mortal remains that were finally laid to  rest by the side of the Kulur River on the side of Panamboor were those of : Ignatius D’Souza of Shaktinagar, Mohammed Ismail Hassan of Jeppu, K K Shetty of Kodialbail, Vaman Prabhu of Ashoknagar, all hailing from Mangalore; Aboobakker Siddiq, Abdul Aziz, brothers from Uppala;  Abdul Basheer from Bekal, Sukumar from Mailatti, Sujatha Survase-Air India crew member, Naveed Ibrahim, Malpe, Zainab Mohammed Ziyad and Mohammed Zubair from Udupi,both children.

Man throws acid on daughter for love outside faith | EuropeNews

Man throws acid on daughter for love outside faith | EuropeNews

• Bulandshahr - June 01:In an alleged attempted "honour killing", a man poured acid on his daughter and threw her into a canal for planning to marry a man from another religion Tuesday, police said. The girl is in critical condition in hospital. Gulistan, 18, daughter of Asghar Ali of Charaura village in Bulandshahr district, 350 km from Lucknow, fell in love with Ravinder, 20, who ran a medical store in the village and often came to their house to deliver medicines. The couple eloped 10 days back but were traced to Delhi and Gulistan was taken back to the village. Her parents then pretended that they had agreed to let her marry Ravinder and asked her to come with them to Delhi to buy clothes for the marriage. The girl left with her father and brother. When they reached near the upper Ganges canal on Grand Trunk Road, they stopped and dragged her out. First they poured acid on her face, strangulated her and then threw her in the canal. Assuming that she had died, they left the place. However, Gulistan revived in the water and shouted for help. Some local boys of nearby villages, playing there, rescued her and informed police, who admitted her to hospital. Asghar has been arrested and a search is on for his son, Superintendent of Police (City) J.K. Sahi said. "On the spot from where the girl was rescued, she said her father was annoyed over her love affair with the local Hindu boy but when her statement was recorded before the magistrate in the hospital, she shifted from her original statement made before the police and said after getting angry at her father’s objection, she poured the acid on herself," Sahi said

Temples in Kerala are like orphanages, notes HC

Temples in Kerala are like orphanages, notes HC

• Thiruvananthapuram:  The Kerala high court in a landmark judgment on Tuesday came out heavily against the Travancore Dewasom board and said that the temples in Kerala are like orphanages, and even the day-to-day activities of the temples are not being carried out properly.The division bench of the high court while admitting a petition filed by the Dewaswom employees confederation against the mass transfer of employees, remarked that the Travancore Dewaswom board has failed in every aspect in running the temples.The division bench comprising of Justice C S Ramachandran Nair and P S Gopinath said that the temples coming under the administration of Travancore Dewaswom board finds it difficult to even conduct  the routine festivals. The court also observed that the local people have to resorted to court to even conduct  the annual temple festivals, and remarked that this was as indeed owing to the pathetic management of the temple board.

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• The court also observed that some political nominees in the director board of the Travancore Dewaswom board have not risen to the expectations of the people and called upon the government to try and select honest people to such crucial posts.

India wants UK to return Kohinoor, other artifacts | DesPardes.com

India wants UK to return Kohinoor, other artifacts | DesPardes.com
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• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has joined an international network for the return of priceless artifacts taken away during British rule, including the Kohinoor diamond and the Sultanganj Buddha. The Kohinoor also spelled Koh-i Nur and Koh-e-Noor means “Mountain of Light” in Persian. It is a 105 carat diamond that was once the largest known diamond in the world. The Kohinoor originated at Kollur, Guntur district in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. It has belonged to various Hindu, Mughal, Persian, Afghan, Sikh and British rulers who fought bitterly over it at various points in Indian history and seized it as a spoil of war time and again. Kohinoor was finally seized by the East India Company and became part of the British Crown Jewels when Queen Victoria was proclaimed Empress of India in 1877. ASI’s Director General Gautam Sengupta said the list of India’s treasures held abroad was “too long to handle” and there was a need for a “diplomatic and legal campaign” for their restitution from institutions, including the British Museum, the Royal Collection and the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.
• The Sultanganj Buddha is the largest complete bronze figure of its kind in the world. It was found in the North Indian town of Sultanganj, Bhagalpur district, Bihar. The Sultanganj Buddha was discovered during railway construction in Sultanganj in 1862 by the East India Company. The statue is dated by archaelogists at between 500 to 700 AD. It is 2.3m high and 1m wide, and was made using the lost wax technique. It is now part of a collection at the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery
• According to the newspaper report, the British Museum said it was satisfied that the objects highlighted by the Indian authorities had been acquired legitimately.