Terrace Gardening: The New Buzzword of City Folk

Urban agriculture, indoor agriculture, city farming, metropolitan agriculture and terrace gardening are the new buzzwords being heard today by the urban dwellers. It is a well-known fact that the world is undergoing climate change in many places as a result of which floods and droughts have become the recurring phenomena. Impacts of climate change on agriculture are now real and palpable. It is reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) that ‘global hunger may worsen in 2008 amid increasing food prices and reduced crop production in poor countries caused, partly, by drought and flood associated with climate change’. India, China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Korea, Indonesia and Philippines were witnesses to the floods, storms and droughts during 2006 as a result of climate change and the trend is likely continue in the future. According to UNO, the proportion of urban population rose to 47% in 2007 and is expected to touch a level of 60% by 2030. This would, no doubt, have a telling impact on the global warming and climate change. It is in this context, roof gardening, container gardening or terrace gardening has assumed added significance.

Terrace gardening refers to the cultivation of vegetables, fruit crops, flowers and medicinal plants on the terraces of dwelling houses, in pots, trays, cement boxes or containers. Any family having a terrace above their dwelling unit could undertake this activity for profit as well as pleasure. There are many terrace gardens in Bangalore in which different kinds of vegetables are raised in pots of 12” inner diameter, that meet the domestic needs of vegetables for the family throughout the year. This avoids the hassle of going to the market every day to fetch vegetables for cooking. Moreover, the vegetables that we buy from the market are grown around the city using pesticides, fungicides, inorganic fertilizers and water from the effluents containing toxic substances, which pose a serious health hazard to the people. It is now possible to raise quality vegetables using organic home wastes and converting them into compost with the help of earthworms. According to Dr B.N.Viswanath, author of “A Handbook of Organic Terrace Gardening”, producer of documentaries on agriculture, and a pioneer of terrace gardening in Bangalore, one can grow at least “six vegetables per season and can get an yield of about 10 kg per week which will be around 40 kg per month and 480 kg per year, provided he has a space of 600 sq.feet on the terrace”. He is being practical when he says it as he has been working in this field since 1994, and is now engaged in conducting training programmes/workshops for city-dwellers in and around Bangalore. It is heartening to note that he has trained and motivated more than 2000 housewives so far on terrace gardening, who are successfully practising terrace gardening now.


(Dr B.N.Viswanath conducting a workshop on Terrace Gardening at AME, Bangalore, on 7th June 2008)

There is a need to popularise terrace gardening in all cities across the country as it offers many benefits to its practioners like supply of chemical-free, fresh fruits and vegetables for the family, utilisation of household organic waste as manure, and reduction of pollution in the micro-climate, apart from providing all members of the family with a healthy hobby that promotes not only love of plants in them but also a general concern for the natural environment. Besides, such terrace gardens in big cities could help reduce global warming to certain extent. Adds Dr Viswanath, “Leafy vegetables like amaranthus, coriander, fenugreek, and Indian spinach, gourds like pumpkin, ash gourd, bitter gourd, ridge gourd, little gourd, cucumber, water melon, musk melon, root vegetables like radish, carrot, beetroot, onion, and garlic and many other vegetables like brinjal, bhendi, tomato, cabbage, cauliflower, capsicum, cluster bean, cowpea, French bean, peas, chillies, etc., could be successfully grown by the residents of Bangalore city”.

For free guidance, organising workshops on terrace gardening, information on inputs required for terrace gardening, etc., Dr B.N.Viswanath could be contacted on his mobile phone: +91-9845627217.

ADIEU, SRI RAJIV SAXENA!

As an HR trainer, I met Sri Rajiv Saxena, Principal, Konkan Railway Institute of Staff Training (KRIST), in 2001. Over a period of one-and-a half years, I had numerous occasions to interact with him on many topics, both academic and general and, in the process, to learn of his sterling qualities of head and heart. He was always friendly with his guest faculty, but his concern for the trainees was down- to-earth and palpable in all his discussions with them. I have often observed him taking active interest in providing the trainees with relevant and adequate inputs through various sources so that their hunger for knowledge was always satisfied.

Sri Rajiv Saxena is a gentle personality with a deep commitment to his profession. Though a top-ranking executive in Konkan Raiway (KR), he felt humble enough to mingle with the employees of even the lowest cadre, i.e., the Station House Keeping Staff (SHKH). In all the training programmes organized by KRIST, he ensured that he provided not only the technical inputs to the trainees, but also something extra which contributed to the personal growth of the employees.

I, often, wondered how he found time and patience to sit through the entire sessions of the external guest faculty, sometimes, which, according to me, shows his humility and the desire to learn something from every human being.

To KR employees, Sri Saxena was a friend-philosopher-and guide. In course of his duties, he befriended a wide spectrum of local VIPs and assiduously built up goodwill for KR. Once, when I was talking to Sri S.I.Sajjan, his immediate next colleague in the institute, about what his tenure in KRIST under Sri Saxena meant to him, he said: ‘ I have come to a conclusion that there is no need for me to attend any training programme, lectures, or workshops, nor do I need to consult any books on management. All that I want to know and need to know to come up in my life and career are available to me from one source, i.e., my boss who is a walking encyclopaedia.’ Perhaps, this statement best sums up Sri Rajiv’s personality.

Over a period of one-and-a half years, my friendship with Sri Rajiv has blossomed and bloomed. How unlucky I feel in being deprived of his company, as he leaves for Jabalpur, his new place of work! I only wish him and the members of his family a happy and prosperous life in the days to come. May the new Railway zone be enriched by his dedicated service! I pay my humble tribute to him by quoting one of the Shakespeare soliloquies, on this gloomy occasion:

‘His life was gentle,
and the elements
So mixed in him, that
Nature might stand up
And say to all the world,
this was a man.’

Adieu, Sri Rajiv Saxena!


K.V.Venkataramana

PR is a Sustained and Deliberate Effort

Public relations (PR), though primarily, a management function, involves participation of every employee in an organization. The main thrust of PR is to ‘identify, establish and maintain mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and the various publics on whom its success or future depends’. However, in the Indian context, we often come across situations where a few employees and/ or managers do something contrary to the interests of public relations, wittingly or unwittingly. In the succeeding paragraphs are quoted a few typical instances or lapses which could contribute to unfavourable PR image of an organization caused by its own employees / managerial personnel.

Once I went to an ISO 9002 company to impart training to a batch of its employees. I stayed at their official guesthouse for two days. On the first night, I requested the caretaker of the guesthouse in the evening to give me a wakeup call at 5 A.M. the next day to enable me to revise my notes for the training programme, but I was surprised to be told by him that as the breakfast at the guesthouse was generally served to guests at 8 A.M., the caretaker and his staff woke up usually at 6 A.M. and that the telephone operator who works during night shift was the right person to help me in the matter. Accordingly, I rang up to the telephone operator and sought his help. He came to know that I was a newcomer to the guesthouse, and assured me to give me a wakeup call at 5 A.M. the next day. However, he resented the attitude of the caretaker and commented:’ Sir, this is, in fact, the duty of the guesthouse staff and not of me. They are an irresponsible lot. Why don’t you bring this to the notice of the Personnel Manager tomorrow so that he could mend their behaviour?’ True, the telephone operator was right, but was it not wrong on his part to bring to the notice of a guest the deficiencies in service of his own company? After all, was he not unconsciously denting the image of his company which believes in PR as a mechanism to promote goodwill and mutual understanding between the organization and the public?

In one more instance, when I went to a government office to meet the chief officer at 11 A.M., I was informed by an attender that the boss had gone out and that he was not available for some time. Then I thought of meeting his deputy to seek information as to when his boss would be available. The deputy said: “Sir, I don’t know where he has gone. He never keeps me informed when he goes out.’ This, sadly, reflects the state of unsatisfactory human relations prevailing in that office, besides indicating a lack of public relations efforts on the part of a responsible person in that office.

Incidents of the above nature which have a bearing on the public image of the organizations (or the nature of public relations practised by them) could be kept at bay by adopting the following measures:
1. Training in PR should be imparted to different levels of employees in an organization, on a continuous basis, who come face to face with customers.
2. A short course on Image-building should be conducted for the benefit of all employees in an organization by the management, as there is a misconception on the part of most employees that image-building exercise is the function of CEO of the company and has got nothing to do with the individual employees.
3. Strengthening of employee communication is the need of the hour. The basics of communication -- what to speak and what not to speak in specific contexts- in relation to the organization or its leaders, that would run counter to the interests and PR policy of the company should be explained to all the employees in workshops on communication to be organized for them.
4. Each employee is an integral part of the organization and its culture. Workshops on Ethics and Organisational Culture may also be organized for employees, which could contribute to strengthening the PR efforts of the company.

The above measures are only illustrative which, if adopted by the organizations, could go a long way in returning values to them in the form of enhanced public image through the honed PR skills of the employees. Needless to say PR is a sustained and deliberate effort.

K.V.Venkataramana

Talacauvery—A Place Of Pilgrimage And Popular Destination For Lovers Of Nature

In a span of two years, I had visited Talacauvery, the birthplace of river Cauvery twice. Cauvery evokes different feelings for different people. people in Coorg (now called Kodagu) district literally worship river Cauvery as goddess. They consider her the bestower of prosperity, plenty, and peace; others treat her as the symbol of sacrifice quenching the thirst of people, cattle, wild animals, birds, and cultivated crops all along the way from Brahmagiri to the Bay of Bengal. Many temples which lie on her banks as she flows through Karnataka and Tamilnadu have a special significance for devotees, as Cauvery’s waters wash the feet of gods in those temples.
Talacauvery is at the foot of Brahmagiri hills. It is about 44 kms from Madikeri, the district headquarters of Kodagu. The road to Talacauvery passes through zigzag route on either side of which you can see coffee plantations interspersed with pepper and orange crops, paddy fields, banana and cardamom crops. On the way to Talacauvery, we come across another holy place, a small village, called Bhagamandala where Sri Bhagandeshwara temple is situated. According to Skanda Purana, this temple is named after Bhagandamuni who installed a Shivalinga at this site. This is also the place where Agastya Rishi is said to have meditated. The king Dodda Veerarajendra renovated this temple which had been partially damaged in a bitter battle in 1790. On the main door of the temple, ‘V’ in Kannada is found inscribed to indicate that the king Dodda Veerarajendra had renovated it.
Bhagamandala is also known for its famous ‘Triveni Sangam’ which is the confluence of three rivers, Cauvery, Kannike and the imaginary (invisible) Sujyothi. Cauvery is called the ‘Ganga of South’ and is one of the seven holy rivers of India, the others being Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Saraswati, Narmada and Sindhu. A dip in the ‘Triveni Sangam’ completes the Hindu ‘shraddha’ (a ritual performed for the deceased parents) rites for the departed soul. It is a common sight to see people from various southern states coming to Bhagamandala for tonsuring of their heads as a part of ‘shraddha’ ritual and taking a dip in the holy sangam.
From Bhagamandala, the road to Talacauvery passes through steep hills with sharp curves. (Distance from Bhagamandala to Talacauvery is 8 kms.) Along the way, we encounter a spot called ‘viewpoint’ where one could enjoy the breathtaking view of overlapping hills and valleys. This spot is at a height of 3700’ from the mean sea level.
Talacauvery is the place where river Cauvery originates. Here, we see a ‘kundike’ (a perennial water-pot or a tiny pond) which is the source of the river, at the foot of the Brahmagiri hill. Every year, on October 17/18, (on the day of Tula or Kaveri Sankramana) at an auspicious moment, water from this ‘kundike’ gushes forth, and people in lakhs throng this place to witness this event. In front of the ‘kundike’, is a bigger pond where devotees dip their heads in water and move near the ‘kundike’ where a priest pours the sacred water from the ‘kundike’ in a copper tumbler on their heads. Then a puja is performed on behalf of the devotees by the priest to the ‘kundike’ (or Goddess Cauvery).
If we climb a few steps from one corner of the ‘kundike’, we can see two small shrines dedicated to Lord Ganapathi and Lord Agasthyeshwara. To the right of these shrines is Brahmagiri Dwara (Gateway to Brahmagiri hill) which leads to Brahmagiri hill. The peak of Brahmagiri hill (three hundred feet from the source of the river) can be reached by devotees by climbing steep stone steps. According to legend, seven sages had meditated at the peak ages ago. One can enjoy the panoramic view of the blue hills, clouds and valleys from this peak. Cool, incessant breeze keeps company of the tourists as they savour the beauty of the distant horizon hugged by layers and layers of hills.
Talacauvery is not only a place of pilgrimage but also a popular destination for lovers of nature.

K.V.Venkataramana

Poem -- A Safer And More Peaceful World


Look at the eagle flying three palms high
Looking down below at man's pathetic slide
From his position of nobility to the abyss of immorality
Over centuries of time and tide.

He says civilization is on the move
From savagery to glorious culture
While, in fact, there is expanding terrorism,
Leading to genocide and torture.

Man says he is happy with the modern gadgets
And all things invented to provide him creature comforts;
But where is Peace within and without
When starved and suffering souls, for a basic living, exert?

Man has polluted everything -- land, water and air
And made them unsafe for all beings
And he has exploited his own fellow-beings
To amass wealth for his ostentatious living.

Will man ever learn to lead a virtuous path
By following the policy of 'Live and let live'
And leave behind him, at the end of his journey,
A safer and more peaceful world that outlives?

K.V.Venkataramana

To read more of author's poems, readers are requested to go through the following link:

http://www.poemhunter.com/i/ebooks/pdf/k_v_venkataramana_2008_3.pdf

An Evening At Colva Beach, Goa

An Evening At Colva Beach, Goa

Madgaon is one of the prominent stations on Konkan Rail route. It is situated 437 kms from Mangalore. It is also an important commercial hub of Goa. About 11 kms from the station is located the famous beach called Colva, one of the several picturesque beaches, found in Goa. It is a great joy watching people strolling along the beach, and surfing in the sea, when the evening sky becomes the wide canvas of Master-artist. Couples display their best romantic moods, children enjoy the greatest fun of their lives, old people glow with enthusiasm and energy, women are flush with youthfulness and sprightliness, girls literally turn into social butterflies, and poets and artists derive their inspiration for renewed creative spurts, as they stroll along the glistening beach. Tall coconut palms do not lag behind in waltzing to the sound of the passing breeze and to express their excitement before the sea of humanity. I feel I am only an infinitesimal creature when I stand before the vastness of sea. I get a feeling that God’s stature and status to humans is more eloquently conveyed by the giant, surging waves than by the imperceptibly shaking blades of a grass in the countryside. Whatever the children or even adults scribble on the wet sands of the beach, expressing their feelings of joy, is not taken note of by God at these moments when the sun is beginning to dip into the sea, but a silent moment on the part of one thanking Him for allowing to witness that unfolding drama second by second is only recognized. I feel it requires a lifetime of effort to learn to remain still even for a moment, in the flux of happenings and occurrences being witnessed in the surroundings, when Colva is transforming itself into a paradise.

K.V.Venkataramana

Spring

SPRING
“If winter comes, can spring be far behind? –Shakespeare.
Spring, everywhere, is enchanting. It casts a deep influence on human mind. In fact, man’s (includes woman’s as well) tendency to look good, beautiful and attractive is copied from Nature. Nature always takes care to look its best during spring. Perhaps, it has a message to humanity not to destroy the trees and shrubs which not only bear colourful flowers but also provide refuge to animals, birds, butterflies and humans during their lifetime. Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the air and, during photosynthesis, emit oxygen into the atmosphere which is necessary for the survival of mankind.

During spring, even if only one tree blossoms, it sends waves of joy and thrill to those living in its neighbourhood. Children, women and men marvel at the colourful robe the tree is wearing and also tend to wear new dresses themselves to match the mood of spring. Imagine, if trees over a vast area blossom at the same time, what it would look like? Needless to say it would be nothing short of a Paradise on Earth! Here is a simple poem on the glory of spring by K.V.Venkataramana:

Spring
Leaves green
Are hardly seen,
When buds and blossoms
Mark the scene.

Trees everywhere,
Big and small,
Are clad gaudily
To fascinate all.

Each tree is
Like a bride
Who doesn’t blush,
But looks with pride.

Birds and butterflies,
Scattered in air,
Are living jewels
God made with care.

© K.V.Venkataramana

Author's other articles could be seen on http://www.shvoong.com/ Please type K.V.Venkataramana in the Searchbox of the website. You are free to leave your comments/rate individual articles on the concerned pages of the website. Author can be contacted at:kvven2001@gmail.com