K. KARUNAKARAN

Kannoth Karunakaran (Malayalam: കെ. കരുണാകരന്‍; July 5, 1918 - December 23, 2010) was a senior stalwart politician from Kerala,India belonging to Indian National Congress party and was a close lieutenant of former Prime Ministers of India Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

Kannoth Karunakaran was a former Chief Minister of Kerala, Home Minister of Government of Kerala, and Cabinet Minister for Industries ofGovernment of India. He was one of the most influential, prominent and controversial persons in Kerala politics for at least four decades and was affectionately called "Leader" by Congress activists. K. Karunakaran is often regarded a master tactician, the "king" of Kerala state politics, and political troubleshooter at national level, and the creator of United Democratic Front.

As a member of the Congress Party he was elected seven times to the Kerala Legislative assembly between 1965 and 1995 and served as Chief Minister three times. In 2005 owing to differences with Sonia Gandhi and then Kerala Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy he acrimoniously split from the Congress Party and formed a breakaway party called the Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran). Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran) played a significant role in Kerala politics during its brief history. As a partner of both the LDF and the UDF at different times, it has been a major factor in success and failure for the two coalitions. In November 2006 the party merged with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), a member of the LDF. Later, K. Karunakaran and his daughter Padmaja returned to Indian National Congress following a spilt. However his son K. Muraleedharan dissociated himself from his father and continued in NCP. Karunakaran died on 23 December 2010 aged 92 at Ananthapuri Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram.

He was often criticized for nepotism. Karunakaran’s dominating presence in the Congress party as well as other factors resulted in growing factionalism within the Kerala section of the Congress party. Karunakaran and A. K. Antony were dubbed as the political Tom and Jerryequivalents for their intra-party activities.

Karunakaran was noted for his steadfast devotion for god Krishna at the famous Guruvayoor Temple in Kerala state.

Early life and Education:

Karunakaran was born on 5 July 1918 at Chirackkal in Kannur District to Thekkedathu Ramunni Marar and Kannoth Kalyani Amma with birth star “Karthika". His father Ramunni Marar was a 'sirastadar', a government job under the then British Malabar state government. He had two elder brothers (Kunjiraman Marar and Balakrishnan Marar) and a younger brother (Damodaran Marar aka Appunni Marar). Their only sister Devaki died when she was merely 5 years old.

As a young boy, Karunakaran was passionate about swimming, football and volleyball. He also demonstrated ample interest in painting. During his early years, while being admitted to the lower primary school, he insisted not to add the caste name 'Marar' to his official name at the school unlike the normal practice of those days.

He started his school education in Vadakara LP School and continued through Andalloor and then Chirakkal Raja's School till eighth standard. Later, he had to undergo prolonged treatment due to an eye-related disorder, and was thus relocated (with his elder brother Kunjirama Marar) to the home of his uncle Puthenveettil Raghavan Nair at Vellanikkara, a village, ten kilometer away from Thrissur. The two brothers would later actively participate in the prevailing anti-British struggles since an early age. The stay at Thrissur would transform their life altogether and engulf them into the politics and trade union activism that was brewing up in the region.

After continuing the school at Sarkar High School, Thrissur (presently Govt. Model Boys High School, Thrissur), Karunakaran wanted to pursue his career in drawing and painting. He joined the Maharaja's Technical Institute (MTI), Thrissur for a Diploma in Design and Drawing. Although he earned the Diploma with a Gold Medal, except for a short stint at a Fine Arts Institute in Thrissur he did not take up painting as a profession and instead turned his attention completely towards the political issues. However, as an artist, he recalls in his biography, his paintings were appreciated well and many of them would fetch a price as good as Rs. 500 per piece.

As a Complete Politician:

In 1937, Karunakaran joined the flood relief camps that were conducted by V.R. Krishnan Ezhuthachan, C. Achyutha Menon, R.M. Manakkalath and other leaders of Prajamandalam, an early freedom struggle movement in Cochin State. He became a member of the Indian National Congress and began to wear Khadi. He also participated intensively in the trade union activities in the vast Thattil rubber estates where his uncle Raghavan Nair was a 'writer'. During this time, he would spare his artistic skills and labour in helping the workers' union (later INTUC) for their wall writings and campaigns. Gradually, he was picked up by Panampilly Govinda Menon as his most favourite follower. In due course, Karunakaran rose to a level of the senior-most Leader of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). The INTUC later became one of the largest trade unions in India having with over 4 million memberships today. He went on to become the Thrissur District Congress Committee President, after which he was elected to the Cochin Legislative Assembly twice before the formation of Kerala State.

He contested in the 1957 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections against a strong trade unionist and an ex. congressmen, Krishnan Menon, when no one in the state Congress party came up front to oppose Mr. Menon. When the results came, Karunakaran lost by less than one thousand votes, and Krishnan Menon was heard saying, "Nhan anu sarikku tottatu. (I am the one who really lost.)

Karunakaran in Power:

Karunakaran was denied a Congress ticket in the 1960 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections, after which he was allotted a ticket to contest from a strong Communist stronghold, Thrissur's Mala constituency in the 1965 Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections. Karunakaran surprised everyone by defeating the left front candidate by more than 3000 votes, and since represented the constituency in 1967, 1970, 1977, 1980, 1982, 1987, and 1991. He was first elected as the Congress Legislative Party leader in 1967 after the then leader A. J. John, Anaparambil resigned after saying, "itu Karunakarane konde nadattikkondu pokuvan pattu (only Karunakaran can run this)." He took over the State Congress Legislative Party's machinery when Congress was down to only 9 MLAs in the assembly.

Karunakaran with M. G. Ramachandran (left) and Panruti Ramachandran (right).

Karunakaran is the founder of United Democratic Front (UDF) in 1970. He evinced utmost care in ensuring cordiality, unity and understanding among the constituent parties, and he commanded absolute control and due respect from them.

His closeness to the Nehru family begins from Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and culminated and pinnacled during the tenure of Indira Gandhiand Rajiv Gandhi. Karunakaran played the role of "King Maker" in finding out a successor to Rajiv Gandhi. Being the senior mostensuing elections of 1977.

Karunakaran has been the Chief Minister of Kerala four times. He took charge as Chief Minister for the first time on 25-3-1977. However he tendered his resignation on 25-4-1977, immediately following certain references by the Kerala High Court in what came to be known asRajan case.

He took charge as Chief Minister again on December 28, 1981. However, this ministry did not last long. He resigned on 17 March 1982, following the withdrawal of support by a member of the Kerala Congress (M). Midterm elections to the 7th Kerala Legislative Assembly was held on May 19, 1982. The Ministry with Shri. K.Karunakaran as Chief Minister assumed office on 24 May 1982 and continued till 1987. On June 24, 1991, Shri.K.Karunakaran took charge again as Chief Minister of Kerala for the fourth term, and resigned on March 16, 1995, making way for A.K.Antony to take up the Chief Minister ship.

Later Career & Death:

After A. K. Antony was elected as Kerala chief minister in 2001, Karunakaran was on the warpath with the Government led by his own party and the party high command. After a series of unsuccessful attempts to regain supremacy in the Kerala wing of the Indian National Congress, the dissidents led by him landed up in the bad books of the Congress high command. With the sharp increase in factional meetings held all over Kerala, mostly led by his son K. Muraleedharan, Indian National Congress suspended Muraleedharan from the party.

As a veteran parliamentarian, whose career stretches over five decades, Karunakaran has been elected three times to Rajya Sabha and to Lok Sabha twice. He was a member of Rajya Sabha during 1995-97, 1997–98 and 2004-2005. He has been elected to Lok Sabha from Thiruvananthapuram in 1998 and from Mukundapuram constituency in 1999. Karunakaran served as the Minister for Industries in the Union Cabinet for one year in 1995.

With Muraleedharan being pushed to the verge of political orphanage, Karunakaran left his party and formed a new political outfit with him as the President. Thus, on 1 May 2005, Karunakaran formed a new party in Kerala National Congress (Indira). Later, the new party was renamed to Democratic Indira Congress (Karunakaran). Later, Karunakaran merged his party with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), despite opposition from many senior leaders like T. M. Jacob who has since left the party. K Karunakaran and his daughter Padmaja returned to their parent party (Indian National Congress) following a spilt. However his son K. Muraleedharan dissociated himself from his father and continued in NCP.

Karunakaran died on 23 December 2010 aged 92 at Ananthapuri Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. He was suffering from respiratory problems, fever and other age related diseases and was hospitalized on 21 October 2010. His condition worsened following a stroke and the death occurred when he had a cardiac arrest. His death was confirmed by doctors at 5:30 PM. It was coincidental that his death and Narasimha Rao's death was on same date. Karunakaran had played key role in backing the Rao Government and later Rao had dismissed Karunakaran from the chair of Chief Minister of Kerala. His funeral was attended by the prime minister Manmohan Singh and the AICC chief Sonia Gandhi.

PONMUDI

Ponmudi (Malayalam: പൊന്മുടി)(The Golden Peak) is a hillstation in the Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala in South India. Its located 61 km north-east of Trivandrum city at an altitude of 1100 m. It is a part of the Western Ghats mountain range that runs parallel to the Arabian Sea.

TOURISM:

Ponmudi is connected to Trivandrum by a narrow winding road offering scenic views on the way to Ponmudi. The climate is pleasant year-round. Trivandrum serves as a base for trekking and hiking. There are also tea gardens in the area.

Other attractions near Ponmudi include Golden Valley and a number of rivulets and rapids, some even across the road. The lush forest area has tropical vegetation. A variety of wildlife inhabit the hills. The Golden Valley offers vistas of the hills and access to theKallar River. Flowing though a wilderness area, it has rounded pebbles, cool water, fish, and lush green trees.



Another attraction in the region is Agasthyarkoodam, one of the highest peaks in the Western Ghats, with the highest peak at 1868 m. This peak is famous for its wilderness, and can be accessed only with the Forest Department's permission. Meenmutty Falls is also a famous attraction in the area.

Hotel Golden Peak in the upper sanitorium under Kerala Tourism Development Corporation(KTDC) is the only hotel available for stay in Ponmudi.Due to its proximity to the main city of Trivandrum and lack of accommodation options tourists usually prefer to stay in the city and make a one day trip to Ponmudi though the early morning scenery especially during the winter season is worth feeling.

DIRECTIONS:

• Nearest airport is Trivandrum International Airport.
• Nearest railway station is Trivandrum Central.
• Nearest Bus Stations Nedumangad and Vithura. KSTRC buses to Ponmudi from either Thiruvananthapuram (Thampanoor) or from Nedumangad (Ponmudi is the nearest hill station 65 km from Thiruvananthapuram^[1]).
• There are sign boards along the route from Trivandrum, which lead the traveler to Ponmudi.
• Ponmudi is near to Braimore, which is also a tourist place.
• In Ponmudi there are lots of peaks, one of which is Motta peak, which is a famous for trekking.
• Ponmudi is under Peringammala Village, around 36 km from Peringammala.
• A deer park and a wireless station is also there in Upper sanitorium.

KSRTC (Kerala State Road Transport Corporation) operates daily bus service from Trivandrum to Ponmudi.Some of the services go up to upper sanitorium and usually takes up to 4 hours to reach(one way).The services are sometimes disrupted by landslides and bad condition of roads.

SEE ALL:

• Western Ghats - Ponmudi is a part of Western Ghats
• Anamudi (ആനമുടി) - Highest peak in Kerala
• Agastya Mala (അഗസ്ത്യമല) - Second highest peak in Kerala
• Nedumangad - Nedumangad Taluk (Wikipedia)
• Nedumangad - Nedumangad Thaluk

DANCES OF KERALA

Dance and art forms are integral parts of a region’s culture. ‘God’s Own Country’ Kerala boasts of its several forms of dances and art. Some of the folk dances which are native to the state have gained popularity. They are performed during temple festivals and other ceremonious occasions. These folk dances are unique in their presentation and involve perfect expressions performed by very fine class of dancers. In Kerala, the folk dances are accompanied by splendid costumes and ornaments perfectly adorning the performers. There are nearly 50 dance forms performed in Kerala, out of which prominent ones are Thiruvathirakali, Theyyam, Koodiyattam, Chakyar Koothu and Ottamthullal. Kerala is renowned for its two indigenous forms of classical dances ‘Kathakali’ and ‘Mohiniyattam’.

Kerala Dances

Kathakali
Kerala is known worldwide for Kathakali, which is generally performed by male dancers. Usually staged on temple grounds, Kathakali is a classical dance form that utilizes detailed and stylized makeup and colorful costumes. The typical Kathakali costume includes a headgear, billowing skirt and plentiful ornaments. During a typical performance, the artists play the role of mythological characters from Hindu epics such as Ramayana and Mahabharata. The entire story or a scene from a mythological story is depicted by the artists, by making use of graceful movements of hands, eyes and legs. Props are used wherever necessary. Chenda (traditional drum) player is accompanied by one or two singers, who narrate the story in the form of song. This completes a typical Kathakali performance.

Mohiniyattam
Mohiniyattam is a sensual classical dance that involves graceful movements. Mohiniyattam is performed only by women. This dance includes elements belonging to other classical dances like Bharatanatyam and Kathakali. The dance movements are gentle and graceful, especially the eye movements which are mesmerizing.

Thirvathirakali
Thirvathirakali popular group dance is performed during Onam festival in Kerala. It is performed by women who move in circle and dance rhythmically to the tune of Thiruvathira songs.

Kolkalli
Kolkalli is highly rhythmic dance form. It is mainly performed by agrarian classes. It involves the use of wooden sticks as props. This dance is usually performed by a group of 24 dancers, who move in a circle beating the long sticks.

Ottamthullal
Ottamthullal is a popular dance form in Kerala. Famous Malayalam poet Kalakkaththu Kunchan Nambiar has been credited with the creation of this dance form, way back in the 18th century. Originally, this dance was performed by a single actor wearing make up and colorful costumes. Later it was staged as group dance involving many actors playing their character in the story. This art form is very popular among common man due to its satirical touch. During the performance, the dancer musically narrates a story, which may be based on mythological stories.

Koodiyattam
Koodiyattam is a part of Sanskrit theatre art. The popular dance form of Kerala is the only remaining proof of the ancient Sanskrit Theatre. Traditionally, it was being played in temples for centuries. The important musical instruments used in Koodiyattam are Mizhavu, Kuzhitalam, Kurumkuzhal and Sankhu.

Chakyar Koothu
Chakyar Koothu is an ancient dance form performed in Kerala. In this highly refined dance form, the performer narrates events from Hindu epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata. It is generally performed in temples during special occasions and festivals.

Theyyam
Theyyam is a popular dance form performed in Malabar region of Kerala. For thousands of years, Theyyam and its rituals are in practice in this region. It is a Dravidian art form and is quite popular due to its accessibility to lower castes.

GOLF

Golf is the sport game in which the players are using several types of clubs and hits a ball into each hole on the golf course in the lowest possible number of strokes. The first game of golf was played at Bruntsfield links, in Edinburgh, Scotland in A.D. 1456. Now the golf has become the worldwide sport, with a golf courses on the majority of countries.

Golf equipment basically encompasses into various items that are used to play the sport of golf. Players usually carry many types of clubs during the game. In this game, there are three types of club that is irons, woods and putters. Golf is played with in the area of land that is designated by a golf course.

Each game of golf is based on a number of holes and each hole is classified by its par as well as, the par of a hole is determined by the tree-to-green distance. The typical length of the par-three hole ranges between 91 and 224 meters and the length of the par-four hole ranges between 225 and 434 meters. A round is basically consists of 18 holes that are played in the order which is determined by the course layout. On a nine-hole course, a standard round consists of two successive nine hole round.

The clubs of the golf game are divided into six types such as woods, irons, wedges, hybrid woods and putters.In the golf games, the players are sinking the small ball with the few strokes into consecutive holes and the hole is divided into three primary areas like A putting green area, Flat starting point and A fairway.

The course is between 5000 to 7000 yards in the length which consists of 18 holes and the shapes of the holes are like a cup. The actual size of the cup is 4.5 inch in diameter. Golf balls are made of woods that were replaced in the 17th century.

BASKETBALL

Basketball is the game of five players between the two teams. Each player try to score the highest point. In this game, the players are throwing a ball through the 10 feet of high hoop under the some organized rules and it is the most popular sports in the world. Generally the games are played in four quarters of 10 (international) and 12 minutes (NBA). But the college games are used the two twenty minutes halves while the high school games used the eight minutes quarter.

Bottom of the basket was cut open to allow the ball to fall through in 1914, there by eliminating the need to poke out the ball every time when the goal was scored. There is also a one line which is called the arc. Today's the basketball is one of the most popular sport and the most entertainment part of the game in the Philippines, and it is widely reputed to be the national sport of the Philippines.

It was invented by Dr James Naismith in 1891 at the Springfield college in Massachusetts. This game is based on the one or two umpires or the referee and the table officials. The table officials are responsible for each teams scoring.

     In the basketball, most of the courts are made of wood. The conditions and rules of the basketball are:
 The ball may be batted and thrown in any condition with the one or both hands.
 Arms and body must not be used for holding the ball.
 The ball must be held by the hands.
 The umpire shall be judge of the men and shall note the fouls while the referee shall be the judge of the ball and shall decide weather the ball is inbounds, in play and shall keep the time
 A goal shall be made in that case when the ball is batted or thrown from the grounds into the basket.
 If the ball goes over the backboard and hits the top or side of the backboard, then the ball is out of play. Free Online Games At VFree Online Games. Vfreeonlinegames.com is perfect place for play thousands of free flash games.

HOCKEY

Hockey game is played on the natural grass, gravel, sand based and water based artificial turfs. It is played with the very small hard ball. This type of game was included in the modern Olympic games in 1908. It is the game of 11 players between two teams which is completely against with each other and using their 'hooked' sticks to hit, pass, push and dribble a small, hard, usually white, ball, with one aim in mind-to score the more points by getting their ball into a opponent's goal.

In this game all players used the sticks to play the ball where as in the football they used their feet to play the ball and the rules of hockey are similar to the rules of football. Hockey game is played by both men and women. The pitch also has an electronic scoreboard and permanent spectator seating for 350 peoples.

It is played between the two halves of 35 minutes each with a half time of 10 minutes and if you try to score a goal, then you keep the ball away from the other team. It is played outdoors on a grass and synthetic field. Hockey became an olympic sport in the 1908. It is the game of eleven players each on two teams.

It is the game of eleven players each on two teams. In this game you can use only the flat face of stick.

CRICKET

Cricket is a game of two teams between eleven players. It is played with the bat and ball as well as it is divided into six overs. Cricket game is established with the team sport. It is the most popular sport in the world.

In the cricket, there are three types of bawlers like fast bawlers, spin bawlers and medium pace bawler. The ball has bounces only one time before reaching the batsman. In the sport of cricket, the bawling is like a action of propelling the ball towards the wicket defended by a batsman. It is played on the grass field and roughly in the oval shape.

All batsman plays the ball with the wooden type of cricket bat and the remaining members of the bawler's team stand with the different positions. In this game if the batsman not out, then they run between the wickets and exchanging ends with the second batsman.

Two-on fields umpires preside over a match. One empire stands on the behind of the bawler's wicket and the other one stands with a side view of the batsman.

The cricket field consists of the large oval shaped with the grassy ground. Its diameter is usually between 450 feet to 500 feet. The parameter of the field is known as boundary and the boundary is marked with the painted line or with a rope.

The main purpose of the bawler's team is to get the each batsman out and the purpose of the batting team is to score as many runs.

FOOTBALL

Football is the game which is played on the rectangular grass. It is played with the ball. In this game, the goalkeeper is the only player who allowed to use their hands and arms to propel the ball. The main purpose of the game is to score by manoeuvring the ball into the opposing goal and the remaining members of the goalkeeper are use their feet to kick the ball into a position. The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins.

The width of the fields for the non-international matches is in the range of 50-100 yards and the length is in the range of 100-130 yards. The international adult matches may be 64-75 meters in width and the 100-110 meters in length. In the front of each goal, there is also a one area for the penalty.

Football game has been established with the team sport and it is played by two teams of 11 players. It is one of the most popular game in the world. In this game, the points are scored in a variety of ways, by throwing the ball to another player, including carrying the ball over the goal line or kicking the ball through the goal posts on the opposing side.

The main object of the game is to score a point by just clicking the ball into the goal of the other team. There is also a one referee and the two assistant referees.

The basic equipment for the players are required to wear a footwear, shorts, socks, shirt and adequate shin guards. But the goalkeeper must wear the clothing for the easily distinguishable from that worn by the other players and the match officials.

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MAHATMA GANDHI

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi Date of Birth : Oct 2, 1869 Date of Death : Jan 30, 1948 Place of Birth : Gujarat

Biography of Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi (Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi) was born into a Hindu Modh family in Porbandar, Gujarat, India in 1869. He was the son of Karamchand Gandhi, the diwan (Chief Minister) of Porbandar, and Putlibai, Karamchand's fourth wife (his previous three wives had died in childbirth), a Hindu of the Pranami Vaishnava order. Growing up with a devout mother and surrounded by the Jain influences of Gujarat, Gandhi learned from an early age the tenets of non-injury to living beings, vegetarianism, fasting for self-purification, and mutual tolerance between members of various creeds and sects. He was born into the vaishya, or business, caste. 
In May 1883, at the age of 13, Gandhi was married through his parents' arrangement to Kasturba Makhanji (also spelled "Kasturbai" or known as "Ba"), who was the same age as he. They had four sons: Harilal Gandhi, born in 1888; Manilal Gandhi, born in 1892; Ramdas Gandhi, born in 1897; and Devdas Gandhi, born in 1900. Gandhi was a mediocre student in his youth at Porbandar and later Rajkot. He barely passed the matriculation exam for the University of Bombay in 1887, where he joined Samaldas College. He was also unhappy at the college, because his family wanted him to become a barrister. He leapt at the opportunity to study in England, which he viewed as "a land of philosophers and poets, the very centre of civilization." Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was a major political and spiritual leader of India, and the Indian independence movement. He was the pioneer and perfector of Satyagraha - the resistance of tyranny through mass civil disobedience strongly founded upon ahimsa (total non-violence) - which led India to independence, and has inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. 

Gandhi is commonly known and addressed in India and across the world as Mahatma Gandhi and as Bapu. Though his elders objected, Gandhi could not be prevented from leaving; and it is said that his mother, a devout woman, made him promise that he would keep away from wine, women, and meat during his stay abroad. Gandhi left behind his son Harilal, then a few months old. In London, Gandhi encountered theosophists, vegetarians, and others who were disenchanted not only with industrialism, but with the legacy of Enlightenment thought. They themselves represented the fringe elements of English society. Gandhi was powerfully attracted to them, as he was to the texts of the major religious traditions; and ironically it is in London that he was introduced to the Bhagavad Gita. Here, too, Gandhi showed determination and single-minded pursuit of his purpose, and accomplished his objective of finishing his degree from the Inner Temple. 

He was called to the bar in 1891, and even enrolled in the High Court of London; but later that year he left for India. After one year of a none too successful law practice, Gandhi decided to accept an offer from an Indian businessman in South Africa, Dada Abdulla, to join him as a legal adviser. Unbeknown to him, this was to become an exceedingly lengthy stay, and altogether Gandhi was to stay in South Africa for over twenty years. The Indians who had been living in South Africa were without political rights, and were generally known by the derogatory name of 'coolies'. Gandhi himself came to an awareness of the frightening force and fury of European racism, and how far Indians were from being considered full human beings, when he thrown out of a first-class railway compartment car, though he held a first-class ticket, at Pietermaritzburg. From this political awakening Gandhi was to emerge as the leader of the Indian community, and it is in South Africa that he first coined the term satyagraha to signify his theory and practice of non-violent resistance. Gandhi was to describe himself preeminently as a votary or seeker of satya (truth), which could not be attained other than through ahimsa (non-violence, love) and brahmacharya (celibacy, striving towards God). Gandhi conceived of his own life as a series of experiments to forge the use of satyagraha in such a manner as to make the oppressor and the oppressed alike recognize their common bonding and humanity: as he recognized, freedom is only freedom when it is indivisible. In his book 'Satyagraha in South Africa' he was to detail the struggles of the Indians to claim their rights, and their resistance to oppressive legislation and executive measures, such as the imposition of a poll tax on them, or the declaration by the government that all non-Christian marriages were to be construed as invalid. In 1909, on a trip back to India, Gandhi authored a short treatise entitled 'Hind Swaraj' or Indian Home Rule, where he all but initiated the critique, not only of industrial civilization, but of modernity in all its aspects.

Gandhi returned to India in early 1915, and was never to leave the country again except for a short trip that took him to Europe in 1931. Though he was not completely unknown in India, Gandhi followed the advice of his political mentor, Gokhale, and took it upon himself to acquire a familiarity with Indian conditions. He traveled widely for one year. Over the next few years, he was to become involved in numerous local struggles, such as at Champaran in Bihar, where workers on indigo plantations complained of oppressive working conditions, and at Ahmedabad, where a dispute had broken out between management and workers at textile mills. His interventions earned Gandhi a considerable reputation, and his rapid ascendancy to the helm of nationalist politics is signified by his leadership of the opposition to repressive legislation (known as the "Rowlatt Acts") in 1919. 

His saintliness was not uncommon, except in someone like him who immersed himself in politics, and by this time he had earned from no less a person than Rabindranath Tagore, India's most well-known writer, the title of Mahatma, or 'Great Soul'. When 'disturbances' broke out in the Punjab, leading to the massacre of a large crowd of unarmed Indians at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar and other atrocities, Gandhi wrote the report of the Punjab Congress Inquiry Committee. Over the next two years, Gandhi initiated the non-cooperation movement, which called upon Indians to withdraw from British institutions, to return honors conferred by the British, and to learn the art of self-reliance; though the British administration was at places paralyzed, the movement was suspended in February 1922 when a score of Indian policemen were brutally killed by a large crowd at Chauri Chaura, a small market town in the United Provinces. 

Gandhi himself was arrested shortly thereafter, tried on charges of sedition, and sentenced to imprisonment for six years. At The Great Trial, as it is known to his biographers, Gandhi delivered a masterful indictment of British rule. Owing to his poor health, Gandhi was released from prison in 1925. Over the following years, he worked hard to preserve Hindu-Muslim relations, and in 1924 he observed, from his prison cell, a 21-day fast when Hindu-Muslim riots broke out at Kohat, a military barracks on the Northwest Frontier. This was to be of his many major public fasts, and in 1932 he was to commence the so-called Epic Fast unto death, since he thought of "separate electorates" for the oppressed class of what were then called untouchables (or Harijans in Gandhi's vocabulary, and dalits in today's language) as a retrograde measure meant to produce permanent divisions within Hindu society. Gandhi earned the hostility of Ambedkar, the leader of the untouchables, but few doubted that Gandhi was genuinely interested in removing the serious disabilities from which they suffered, just as no one doubt that Gandhi never accepted the argument that Hindus and Muslims constituted two separate elements in Indian society. 

These were some of the concerns most prominent in Gandhi's mind, but he was also to initiate a constructive programme for social reform. Gandhi had ideas -- mostly sound -- on every subject, from hygiene and nutrition to education and labor, and he relentlessly pursued his ideas in one of the many newspapers which he founded. Indeed, were Gandhi known for nothing else in India, he would still be remembered as one of the principal figures in the history of Indian journalism. In early 1930, as the nationalist movement was revived, the Indian National Congress, the preeminent body of nationalist opinion, declared that it would now be satisfied with nothing short of complete independence (purna swaraj). Once the clarion call had been issued, it was perforce necessary to launch a movement of resistance against British rule. On March 2, Gandhi addressed a letter to the Viceroy, Lord Irwin, informing him that unless Indian demands were met, he would be compelled to break the "salt laws". 

Predictably, his letter was received with bewildered amusement, and accordingly Gandhi set off, on the early morning of March 12, with a small group of followers towards Dandi on the sea. They arrived there on April 5th: Gandhi picked up a small lump of natural salt, and so gave the signal to hundreds of thousands of people to similarly defy the law, since the British exercised a monopoly on the production and sale of salt. This was the beginning of the civil disobedience movement: Gandhi himself was arrested, and thousands of others were also hauled into jail. It is to break this deadlock that Irwin agreed to hold talks with Gandhi, and subsequently the British agreed to hold a Round Table Conference in London to negotiate the possible terms of Indian independence. Gandhi went to London in 1931 and met some of his admirers in Europe, but the negotiations proved inconclusive. On his return to India, he was once again arrested. For the next few years, Gandhi would be engaged mainly in the constructive reform of Indian society. 

He had vowed upon undertaking the salt march that he would not return to Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, where he had made his home, if India did not attain its independence, and in the mid-1930s he established himself in a remote village, in the dead center of India, by the name of Segaon (known as Sevagram). It is to this obscure village, which was without electricity or running water, that India's political leaders made their way to engage in discussions with Gandhi about the future of the independence movement, and it is here that he received visitors such as Margaret Sanger, the well-known American proponent of birth-control. Gandhi also continued to travel throughout the country, taking him wherever his services were required. One such visit was to the Northwest Frontier, where he had in the imposing Pathan, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (known by the endearing term of "Frontier Gandhi", and at other times as Badshah Khan), a fervent disciple. At the outset of World War II, Gandhi and the Congress leadership assumed a position of neutrality: while clearly critical of fascism, they could not find it in themselves to support British imperialism. Gandhi was opposed by Subhas Chandra Bose, who had served as President of the Congress, and who took to the view that Britain's moment of weakness was India's moment of opportunity. When Bose ran for President of the Congress against Gandhi's wishes and triumphed against Gandhi's own candidate, he found that Gandhi still exercised influence over the Congress Working Committee, and that it was near impossible to run the Congress if the cooperation of Gandhi and his followers could not be procured. Bose tendered his resignation, and shortly thereafter was to make a dramatic escape from India to find support among the Japanese and the Nazis for his plans to liberate India. In 1942, Gandhi issued the last call for independence from British rule. On the grounds of what is now known as August Kranti Maidan, he delivered a stirring speech, asking every Indian to lay down their life, if necessary, in the cause of freedom. 

He gave them this mantra: "Do or Die"; at the same time, he asked the British to 'Quit India'. The response of the British government was to place Gandhi under arrest, and virtually the entire Congress leadership was to find itself behind bars, not to be released until after the conclusion of the war. A few months after Gandhi and Kasturba had been placed in confinement in the Aga Khan's Palace in Pune, Kasturba passed away: this was a terrible blow to Gandhi, following closely on the heels of the death of his private secretary of many years, the gifted Mahadev Desai. In the period from 1942 to 1945, the Muslim League, which represented the interest of certain Muslims and by now advocated the creation of a separate homeland for Muslims, increasingly gained the attention of the British, and supported them in their war effort. The new government that came to power in Britain under Clement Atlee was committed to the independence of India, and negotiations for India's future began in earnest. Sensing that the political leaders were now craving for power, Gandhi largely distanced himself from the negotiations. He declared his opposition to the vivisection of India. 

It is generally conceded, even by his detractors, that the last years of his life were in some respects his finest. He walked from village to village in riot-torn Noakhali, where Hindus were being killed in retaliation for the killing of Muslims in Bihar, and nursed the wounded and consoled the widowed; and in Calcutta he came to constitute, in the famous words of the last viceroy, Mountbatten, a "one-man boundary force" between Hindus and Muslims. The ferocious fighting in Calcutta came to a halt, almost entirely on account of Gandhi's efforts, and even his critics were wont to speak of the Gandhi's 'miracle of Calcutta'. When the moment of freedom came, on 15 August 1947, Gandhi was nowhere to be seen in the capital, though Nehru and the entire Constituent Assembly were to salute him as the architect of Indian independence, as the 'father of the nation'. The last few months of Gandhi's life were to be spent mainly in the capital city of Delhi. There he divided his time between the 'Bhangi colony', where the sweepers and the lowest of the low stayed, and Birla House, the residence of one of the wealthiest men in India and one of the benefactors of Gandhi's ashrams. Hindu and Sikh refugees had streamed into the capital from what had become Pakistan, and there was much resentment, which easily translated into violence, against Muslims. It was partly in an attempt to put an end to the killings in Delhi, and more generally to the bloodshed following the partition, which may have taken the lives of as many as 1 million people, besides causing the dislocation of no fewer than 11 million, that Gandhi was to commence the last fast unto death of his life. The fast was terminated when representatives of all the communities signed a statement that they were prepared to live in "perfect amity", and that the lives, property, and faith of the Muslims would be safeguarded. 

A few days later, a bomb exploded in Birla House where Gandhi was holding his evening prayers, but it caused no injuries. However, his assassin, a Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin by the name of Nathuram Godse, was not so easily deterred. Gandhi, quite characteristically, refused additional security, and no one could defy his wish to be allowed to move around unhindered. In the early evening hours of 30 January 1948, Gandhi met with India's Deputy Prime Minister and his close associate in the freedom struggle, Vallabhai Patel, and then proceeded to his prayers. That evening, as Gandhi's time-piece, which hung from one of the folds of his dhoti (loin-cloth), was to reveal to him, he was uncharacteristically late to his prayers, and he fretted about his inability to be punctual. At 10 minutes past 5 o'clock, with one hand each on the shoulders of Abha and Manu, who were known as his 'walking sticks', Gandhi commenced his walk towards the garden where the prayer meeting was held. As he was about to mount the steps of the podium, Gandhi folded his hands and greeted his audience with a namaskar; at that moment, a young man came up to him and roughly pushed aside Manu. Nathuram Godse bent down in the gesture of an obeisance, took a revolver out of his pocket, and shot Gandhi three times in his chest. Bloodstains appeared over Gandhi's white woolen shawl; his hands still folded in a greeting, Gandhi blessed his assassin: He Ram! He Ram! As Gandhi fell, his faithful time-piece struck the ground, and the hands of the watch came to a standstill. 

NETAJI SUBHASH CHANDRA BOSE

Born: January 23, 1897
Death: Not known

Contributions
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was a freedom fighter of India. He was the founder of the Indian National Army. During pre-independence period Netaji had visited London to discuss the future of India, with the members of the Labor party. His sudden disappearance from Taiwan, led to surfacing of various theories, concerning the possibilities of his survival.

Life
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was born on 23 January, 1897 in Cuttack (Orissa) to Janakinath Bose and Prabhavati Devi. Subhash was the ninth child among eight brothers and six sisters. His father, Janakinath Bose, was an affluent and successful lawyer in Cuttack and received the title of "Rai Bahadur". He, later became a member of the Bengal Legislative Council.

Subhash Chandra Bose was a very intelligent and sincere student but never had much interest in sports. He passed his B.A. in Philosophy from the Presidency College in Calcutta. He was strongly influenced by Swami Vivekananda's teachingsand was known for his patriotic zeal as a student. He also adored Vivekananda as his spiritual Guru.

British Professor Thrashed
After reading so many incidents about the exploitation of the fellow Indians by the British, Subhash decided to take revenge. In 1916, Subhash reportedly beat and thrashed one of his British teachers E F Otten. The professor made a racist remark against the Indian students. As a result, Bose was expelled from the Presidency College and banished from Calcutta University. The incident brought Subhash in the list of rebel-Indians. In December 1921, Bose was arrested and imprisoned for organizing a boycott of the celebrations to mark the Prince of Wales's visit to India.

Indian Civil Service
His father wanted Netaji to become a civil servant and therefore, sent him to England to appear for the Indian Civil ServiceExamination. Bose was placed fourth with highest marks in English. But his urge for participating in the freedom movement was intense that in April 1921, Bose resigned from the coveted Indian Civil Service and came back to India. Soon, he left home to become an active member of India's independence movement. He, later joined the Indian National Congress, and also elected as the president of the party.

Subhash with Congress
Initially, Subhash Chandra Bose worked under the leadership of Chittaranjan Das, an active member of Congress in Calcutta. It was Chittaranjan Das, who along with Motilal Nehru, left Congress and founded the Swaraj Party in 1922. Subhash would regard Chittaranjan Das as his political guru.

While Chittaranjan Das was busy in developing the national strategy, Subhash Chandra Bose played a major role in enlightening the students, youths and labors of Calcutta. He was eagerly waiting to see India, as an independent, federal and republic nation.

Dispute in the Congress
People began to recognize Bose by his name and associated him with the freedom movement. Bose had emerged as a popular youth leader. He was admired for his great skills in organization development.

In 1928, during the Guwahati Session of the Congress, a difference in the opinion between the old and new members surfaced. The young leaders, as against the traditional leadership, wanted a "complete self-rule and without any compromise". The senior leaders were in favor of the "dominion status for India within the British rule".

The differences were between moderate Gandhi and aggressive Subhash Chandra Bose was swelling. The state was so intense that Subhash Chandra Bose had to defeat Pattabhi Sitaramayya, a presidential candidate, nominated by Gandhiji himself. Bose had won the election but without any second thought he resigned from the party. He, then formed the Forward Bloc in 1939.

Formation of INA
During the Second World War in September, 1939, Subhash Chandra Bose decided to initiate a mass movement. He started uniting people from all over the country. There was a tremendous response to his call and the British promptly imprisoned him. In jail, he refused to accept food for around two weeks. When his health condition deteriorated, fearing violent reactions across the country, the authority put him under house-arrest.

During his house-arrest, in January, 1941, Subhash made a planned escape. He first went to Gomoh in Bihar and from there he went on to Peshawar (now, Pakistan). He finally reached Germany and met Hitler. Bose had been living together with his wife Emilie Schenkl in Berlin. In 1943, Bose left for south-east Asia and raised the army. The group was later named by Bose, as the Indian National Army (INA).

Visit to England
During his sojourn to England, he met with the leaders of British Labor Party and political thinkers including Clement Attlee, Arthur Greenwood, Harold Laski, G.D.H. Cole, and Sir Stafford Cripps. Bose also discuss with them about the future of India. It must also be noted that it was during the regime of the Labor Party (1945-1951), with Attlee as the Prime Minister, that India gained independence.

Disappearance
Although it was believed that Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose died in a plane crash, his body was never recovered. There have so many theories been put forward regarding his abrupt desertion. The government of India set up a number of committees to investigate the case and come out with truth.

In May 1956, the Shah Nawaz Committee visited Japan to look into the situation of Bose's assumed death. Citing their lack of political relations with Taiwan, the Centre, did not seek for the assistance from their government. The reports of Justice Mukherjee Commission, tabled in Parliament on 17 May, 2006 said, "Bose did not die in the plane crash and the ashes at Renkoji temple are not his". However, the findings were rejected by the government of India.

DR RAJENDRA PRASAD

Born: December 3, 1884
Passed Away: February 28, 1963

Contributions
Rajendra Prasad was a great leader of the Indian Nationalist Movement and also one of the architects of the Indian Constitution. He was elected as the first President of Republic of India. Rajendra Prasad was a crucial leader of the Indian Independence Movement, who left his lucrative profession to participatein the nationalist movement of India. He was also awarded with Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award. on 28 February, 1963, following a brief illness, the great soul passed away.

Life
Dr. Rajendra Prasad was born into a big joint family of Mahadev Sahay in the Siwan district of Bihar, near Chhapra. His father, Mahadev Sahay was a scholar of Persian and Sanskrit language while his mother Kamleshwari Devi was a religious lady.

When Rajendra Prasad was five years old, his parents put him under a Maulavi learn Persian language followed by Hindi and arithmetic. After the completion of traditional elementary education, Rajendra Prasad was sent to the Chhapra District School. At the age of 12, Rajendra Prasad was married to Rajavanshi Devi. He, along with his elder brother Mahendra Prasad, then went on to study at R.K. Ghosh's Academy in Patna. Mahendra was eight years older than him.

Since childhood, Rajendra Prasad was a brilliant student. He stood first in the entrance examination to the University of Calcutta and was awarded Rs.30 per month as scholarship. In 1902, Rajendra Prasad joined the Presidency College. He was initially a student of science and his teachers included J.C.Bose and Prafulla Chandra Roy. Later he decided to switch his focus to the arts. Prasad lived with his brother in the Eden Hindu Hostel. A plaque still commemorates his stay in that room. Dr. Rajendra Prasad was instrumental in the formation of the Bihari Students' Conference in 1908. It was the first organization of its kind in the whole of India. The move produced the entire political leadership of the twenties in Bihar

In 1915, Rajendra Prasad passed with a Gold medal in Masters in Law examination with honors. He then went on to complete his Doctorate in Law. Rajendra Prasad used to practice his Law & studies at Bhagalpur in Bihar and eventually emerged as a popular and eminent figure of the entire region. In 1916, Rajendra Prasad joined the High Court of Bihar and Orissa. Such was his intellect and his integrity, that often when his adversary failed to cite a precedent, the judges asked Rajendra Prasad to cite a precedent against himself.

Nationalist Movement
In 1911, during his stay in Calcutta (now Kolkata) as a legal practitioner, Rajendra Prasad joined the Indian National Congress Party and was subsequently elected to the AICC. During the Champaran movement, Mahatma Gandhi asked Rajendra Prasad to visit Champaran along with the other volunteers and partisans of the Indian National Congress. Initially Rajendra Prasad was not impressed with Gandhiji's appearance and conversation but deeply moved by the dedication, conviction and courage of Gandhi.

Rajendra Prasad also responded to the call of Mahatma Gandhi to boycott Western education. He asked his son Mrityunjaya Prasad, a brilliant student to leave the University and enroll himself in Bihar Vidyapeeth. He would write articles for magazines like "Searchlight" and "Desh". When the earthquake of Bihar occurred on January 15, 1934, Rajendra Prasad was in jail. He was released two days later. He set himself for the task of raising funds and collected over Rs 38 Lakhs. Nationalist India expressed its admiration by electing Rajendra Prasad as the President of the Bombay session of the Indian National Congress Party in October 1934.

In July 1946, when the Constituent Assembly was established to frame the Constitution of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected its President. And, eventually he was also elected as the first President of Republic of India. Unfortunately, on the night of 25 January 1950, a day before the Republic Day of India, his sister Bhagwati Devi passed away. He set about the cremation but only after his return from the parade ground.

Death
In September 1962, Rajendra Prasad's wife Rajavanshi Devi passed away. The incident helped in the deterioration of his health and after suffering from brief illness for around six months on February 28, 1963, Dr. Prasad expired. Rajendra Prasad spent the last few months of his life in retirement at the Sadaqat Ashram in Patna. Rajendra Prasad was awarded with "Bharat Ratna", the nation's highest civilian award.