Veerappan.. A man worthy of respect?

It was a drab morning assembly in school. Everything went on as usual until the Principal stepped on the podium. She made an announcement about something which had rocked the whole of TN, even India, the previous day. She said – “Did you see the news? Veerappan has been killed!” I thought this was another stupid attempt by the principal to make the morning assembly more relevant in the mind of the student. I thought everyone would see through this. I was wrong. Suddenly, the entire school burst out clapping. This was followed by congratulatory dialog from the principal and dismissal of assembly.

This incident left a deep mark on my mind however. So these were the people who had propounded the Mahatma’s ideas of ahimsa as if it was the very gospel. These were the people who told us about stories which had people turning the other cheek when slapped on one. People, who in my mind, had illusions that they were actually different from the man whose death they were celebrating.

It was actually a confirmation of something I had known all along. The 2 sided nature of morality. Or more appropriately, the beautifully illusory nature of qualities, which to my teachers, made us human: morality and kindness.

How exactly illusory, you may ask. The answer is simple. Self-preservation is actually the root for morality as well as immorality. Self-preservation, apart from sex, is one of the defining purposes of humankind which one can assert with reasonable certainty. These show us we are animals, no matter how much we try to deny it. Where exactly does morality fit into this idea of self-preservation? Morality comes in as a part of society, which itself is organization for self-preservation. Morality is thus a social code we have to follow to remain a secure member of the society.

Society itself, is a truly beautiful concept. A concept born out of necessity. Something which aids in self-preservation. Something which allows even weaker elements to survive without fighting each other. A concept which even other animals and insects implement. Through society, we all contribute to make each of our lives more secure, Also, no single person takes the blame for any “dirty work”, although the quantum of “dirty work” itself is significantly enhanced. Any form of dissent shown within society, can lead to your effective loss of freedom or even death. This is socially sanctioned. Citizens cannot be blamed individually.

The point being, Veerappan is one who does not conform to the rules and laws laid by society. He killed and hunted men and animals. Though he did it primarily for self-preservation. Does that make him any less a person? Does it make him different from us, who too are intent on self-preservation? I think not.

I think Veerappan is indeed an animal. But then, so are we. My schoolmates may not be capable of doing harm to others by themselves. But does it matter? They did celebrate the death of someone who they felt was against themselves. Which means they too are as much animals as Veerappan. What I am trying to get at is it is secondary whether you actually kill or not, if you can actually fathom or celebrate a killing. A more descriptive example would be the ferry scene in The Dark Knight. The citizens did vote to kill the ferry with prisoners by pressing the remote, but no one could muster up “courage” to push the button themselves. So are they animals for having decided to push the button or does not pushing the button due to a lack of courage make them “human”? I tend to agree with the Joker on this one. We are all animals. Veerappan kills for self-preservation. So would any of us, if it comes to it. Those who do not, will die.

What I have tried to show is I tend not to agree with the traditional hatred for Veerappan. I, in fact, respect him. I respect him for the very visible animalness in him. I respect him for his refusal to conform and his conviction in his ability to face the consequences for his decisions. I respect his animal instincts, his ability to survive in the wild, his ability to lead men who are as much animals as himself, and his natural cunning which he developed without reading anything of Machiavelli, Napoleon or Chanakya. The last point, especially, made him a genius, in the same light as Geronimo.

Let me try to describe his life story through my eyes. He was born in a poor village called Gopinatham in Karnataka, where probably the only source of livelihood where people also got to earn some respect was banditry. He chose the only lucrative livelihood in his village as a young boy and joined a gang. Sandalwood smuggling and Elephant poaching was their primary occupation. The gang grew wealthy and influential and had run-ins with the authorities. Veerappan soon became the leader of his own gang and gained a reputation. He was even arrested once, but probably managed to bribe his way out.

From then, he grew even more notorious killing numerous police and forest officials. (His various acts have been well chronicled and can be found in wiki also. No point in me writing about them) He literally lorded over entire stretches of forestland with his gang of dangerous men. In fact, when I went to Mudumalai, I was told trekking would be impossible as these were quite near the ranges Veerappan ruled. Another remarkable thing is the Robin Hood like image he cultivated with the locals. He did not touch common folk unless they were rival gangmembers or suspected to be informers. This local support was to play a crucial role in his lordship over the lands.

He soon began occupying center stage in Tamil Nadu politics. A joint Special Task Force was constituted by Karnataka and TN to nab him. They were unsuccessful for many years. Veerappan became a major thorn in the side of TN police, which was otherwise considered a highly efficient force, at least at the higher echelons. The most well publicized act of Veerappan was however the sensational kidnapping of Rajkumar. He captured pulic imagination like never before. He became so big that he started imagining himself as some sort of a pan-Tamil force and even started identifying with the Lankan Tamil cause. This was ultimately to prove his downfall.

What made Veerappan so successful? It was his animal instincts and natural cunning (as described above). He learnt from every attack the police made on him and he made on the police. He avoided making the same mistakes twice. He used guerilla tactics and ambushed many unsuspecting officers. He knew the forests in and out and this made it very difficult for the STF (who were mostly non-locals from the plains I suppose) to track him down. His name struck fear in the hearts of common folk and police alike.

In the winter of 2004, the STF launched an unbelievable operation that was to bring an end to Veerappan. (At this junction, I would like to confirm that I go by the official STF version. It seems to be too elaborate to be false anyway.) The STF were a dangerous bunch of men themselves. They had been unsuccessful so far. So they decided on a new approach, which was basically to use Veerappan’s own tactics against him. They first spent a lot of time on intelligence gathering. For this they even had policemen entering prisons parading as prisoners. They gathered information from prisoners and informants (some of whom were bought over). They learnt a lot about the gang. Most significantly, they learnt that Veerappan had a fully developed cataract in one eye and this was proving a severe setback to him. He was also involved in a leadership tussle with Sethukuli Govindan, his right hand.

A plan was hatched, primarily by SP Senthamaraiselvan (from what I have read) to use this to trap him. Extreme secrecy was maintained about the plan to avoid leaks. Only SP S and DGP VIjayakumar knew about the entire plan. Others were merely given instructions to follow. The STF set up an elaborate ruse to make Veerappan think they were still clueless about his whereabouts. They then managed to convince him that one of their own, SI Velladurai, was a Lankan extremist who could offer support to Veerappan and help him get rid of his cataract. This was done probably with the aid of informers. Then Velladurai and another STF man, Saravanan, ferried Veerappan and his most important gang members in a modified van to a spot where an STF ambush was waiting. Calls were made to surrender and upon refusal, the van was shot at and all its occupants were killed. (This is perhaps the only debatable part of the story. Vijayakumar has been known to cover Velladurai in his killing of Ayodhyakuppam Veeramani. So he could be doing a cover-up again.) Veerappan fell to a plan that would have done himself proud.

So on that day, 19th October 2004, a special man was killed. He had lived to a ripe old age of 60. He enjoyed a wild and free lifestyle which many would have envied. He was loved by some and hated by very many. Was he then a hero? I don’t know. I mean, what exactly is a hero anyway?

The bigger question is, is Veerappan a man worthy of respect? As I said, I am not prone to many illusory ideals of morality. I think the decisions Veerappan made were decisions anyone would have made for their own survival. So long as he killed and plundered for a reason as fundamental as self-preservation, he is still only an animal and not an irrational psycho. An animal like any one of us. An animal worthy of respect.

And just in case you were wondering, I am not a Vanniar canvassing support for a casteman. Veerappan was a Vanniar who enjoyed considerable support from his caste. In fact, on his death, some PMK offices reportedly flew their flags at half mast. There is even a television serial currently running on Makkal TV, Santhanakkadu, which depicts the life and times of Veerappan (he is of course portrayed as a hero).

The Dark Knight aka Karuppu Veerar

Tamil theriyadhoungalukku geth na “en mariyadhaiyai koovikkiren”. In other words, for non-tamils, geth=grudgingly respectworthy.

I have just completed a shitty 2.5 month long internship this summer and I could permit myself very few sources of entertainment this entire summer period. There were entirely only 2 significant events – Dasavatharam and The Dark Knight (FDFS). I also created Chokka Thangam and did some other worthwhile stuff such as watching anime. Now I am all set to leave for India after doing some punnaaku shopping. So this is probably going to be my last post for the next month at least.

In the past 2 years, I may well have watched over 200 Hollywood flicks. I’m so sick and tired of englipees movies that the very fact that I am writing a review must mean this movie is ommala gethu (fucking good). Chris Nolan is one total range director. The Prestige is one of the finest movies I have seen. Memento (the intellectual version of Gajini) was also a very interesting movie. The only mildly disappointing movie from his stable is, ironically, Batman Begins. Which itself was actually great, especially in the context of how pathetic Batman movies previously were.

The most important factor for this review is however, Rajeev Masand. The man is one total louse. He typifies (along with the Headlines Today pasanga) the film reviewers that everyone love to hate. His review of the movie was so fuckin fake. And the way he just vomits his words out one after the other is simply nauseating. Although, I grudgingly admit I agree with his final verdict. Rendu periya kattaverals up! (2 big thumbs up!)

I recount the scenes that struck me the most and more importantly, my weak memory has managed to retain. The fact that the movie is terribly long compounds my woes. (If you have not watched the movie, don’t tread further.)

The movie starts off gethaa. Bank robbery scene. And in the robbery itself, all the robbers kill each other and only one is left standing. This is (rather predictably) the Joker. Then he makes away in a truck loaded with cash and merges into other truckers who appear from everywhere. Geth.

Then there is this Chinese youth called Andy (I think) Lau. He is a crooked accountant from Hong Kong. He comes to do business with Wayne Corporation, but makes away with loads of money. Batman reaches a deal with the police and decides to bring back Lau from Hong Kong by himself so that all the mafioso can be brought to book with his evidence. He does this with the help of geth gadgetry, geth costumes, geth visual effects and geth style. On the whole, geth.

Around this time, Joker aka Heath Ledger (since he lives the role) enters a mafioso meeting. There he does a small trick where he stakes a pencil on the table. The mafioso members anticipate the trick. One fellow however is angry and rushes in to manhandle the Joker. Joker grabs the guy’s head and bangs it on the table driving the pencil through his head. This is geth cubed. He also asks the mafia thalayanga to approach him if they wished to kill batman.

Then Harvey Dent, the white knight (maskless do gooder), also Rachel Dawes latest love interest is introduced. He is a fearless good-intending district attorney and with the help of Lau, he manages to put all the mafia madayanga in the docks. The mafia mandainga decide to take the Joker’s offer, thus allowing the film to start.

From here Joker takes over. He basically tries to unmask the Batman by blackmailing him threatening to kill innocent prominent people if he does not comply. Batman, thinks about it and decides to give up himself. He conveys this message to Harvey Dent who arranges a press meeting. At the meeting, Harvey announces that the he himself is the Batman. This was an unexpected twist in the plot. Then Harvey is taken to the prison. On the way, the Joker tries to attack the van and take Harvey a prisoner. What follows is a totally exciting chase sequence in which Batman too decides to participate. The most notable aspect of the chase is a monster truck that flips back over front. Uber geth. Then a scene in which Joker challenges Batman to run him over on his bike where the B pulls out in the last second. Fucking cliched. Then the Joker is taken prisoner by the just-in-time cops (another cliche). This part of the movie, while being completely exciting, is also riddled with plotholes. Elaborated later. Also, this scene looks like a fitting climax scene. People invariably look at their watches at this time wondering if they found the movie so exciting that what felt like an hour was actually 2 and a half. It was only an hour though.

The Joker is taken prisoner. Simultaneously, Harvey is kidnapped as he goes home and Rachel Dawes is kidnapped from Bruce Wayne’s home. I was wondering, if it was so easy, why bother with the long protracted chase at all? Cinematic liberties I suppose. During a special interrogation by Batman, Joker reveals that Rachel and Harvey have been kidnapped and placed in 2 different places. He interchanges the location of the places when he tells the B and B rushes off thinking he will save Rachel. When he reaches, he ends up saving Dent just as he hears Rachel die (through a phone link) at the other end.

The plotholes: 1. I don’t see why other criminals could not have blackmailed Batman this way. I mean, just because Joker threatens to kill people, does it mean Batman should come out of his mask? Or should he focus on going after the Joker like he does to every other villain.

2. The police guy says the Joker plans to be arrested and hands himself over by letting Batman catch him. This sounds stupid. How could the Joker have possibly planned that the chase would go this way with the entrance of Batman and all.

3. After Batman makes an appearance, why the hell is Joker still going after Dent? What purpose does that serve?

4. How could he possibly find out the location of Rachel?

5. How could Joker possibly estimate while in prison with little knowledge of the kidnappings that it would take Batman just enough time to go to the place where Rachel and Harvey were kept and watch them die? (I will update any more plotholes if I come across any.)

Simultaneously, Joker plots an escape. He irritates his guard (a high ranking official actually) and asks him for a phonecall. The guard advances menacingly, but is surprised by the Joker who then uses him as a hostage. He then asks the other guys for a phone to make a call. The others agree to the request and give him one. Immediately, you realise it is to blow up some sort of bomb (I myself thought the one at Harvey’s place.) However, he actually blows up some explosives packed into a dead fellow prisoner’s stomach and escapes prison. (How the hell is smuggling weapons in a guy’s stomach so easy huh?)

This leads to the climax. Joker convinces Two Face (Harvey, now with half his face missing) to go on and exact revenge from the people around him who let him down and led to the death of Rachel. Harvey obliges and sets off. The Joker also spends the rest of his time usefully and blows up an entire hospital in a geth sequence, apart from making an attempt on the Mayor’s life and killing inspector Gordon instead.

Then B builds this new machine using microwave stuff to detect the presence of Joker through others’ mobile phones. Joker’s voice is identified. He is shown instructing a couple of ship passengers that the ships are bombed and the remote for the bombs lie in each other’s ships. He says the people who press the button first will survive while the others die. He says if they don’t press in half hours time, he will kill the people in both ships anyway. This is fundamental game theory based example and the Joker’s psycho purpose is to prove that we all are animals inside (like the Joker himself) and it is only a veneer of so called “humanity” that allows us to conceal our hidden animal instincts. Then B locates the Joker and goes after him. This while the ship’s passengers debate furiously if they should press the button. After some exciting fight sequences with the Joker’s men (who pose initially as hostages) the B finally reaches Joker. The ship with normal citizenry decide with a vote that they favor blowing up the other ship. Only, no one wants to press the button themselves. One man tries but “loses” heart and does not press in the end. The other ship, full of prisoners, has the guard holding the device pass it on to one of the prisoners so that he can do the dirty work. The prisoner takes the device in hand and throws it out. Unexpected. Geth. But it exploits another cliche. How many times indeed have we seen this concept of villains-are-bad-but-normal-people-are-badder on screen anyway? Then we hear some “awe-inspiring” dialog from Batman about how good is still left in the world. (Yeah right. When the only thing that prevented the citizen’s ferry from blowing up the other was a lack of courage in pressing the button!)

Also, the person who makes the arrest is none other than Gordon, who miraculously returns from the dead. Another major loophole. When Gordon falls down, the cops around him check his pulse and declare him dead. Was the operation to make him dead started right then anyway? What I am getting at is, did they decide to keep him undercover the moment he was shot, where he might have actually bled to death if he had not been taken to a hospital? It sounds absurd to say the least.

Then B fights the J and in the end, after some irritating dialogs which felt as if they were lifted straight out of Unbreakable, he manages to have J arrested once more. The B then sets off to find Dent. Dent was actually on a killing spree killing all those he felt responsible for the crime. He finally takes Gordon’s (whom he holds primarily responsible for Rachel’s death) family to the same spot as himself and Rachel. He calls Gordon over there and attempts to kill his family in front of his eyes. to make Gordon share his own experience. Enter Batman. After some interesting histrionics and emotional dialogs, Batman overpowers two-face and makes him fall to his death.

Then in a rather interesting twist, Batman decides to take the blame for Harvey’s murders as he is after all a anti-hero. He does this because if Harvey is convicted, the city will lose its one beacon of hope and the Joker’s plans would succeed completely. This is just about the only senti dialog I can empathize with. In the end, Harvey is given his maranaanjali and Batman becomes the villain. Ending was also geth, even if a bit long.

Talking about stuff like meesic, screenplay, cinematography etc.. is meaningless in a hollywood movie of this budget. And Nolan is ultimate geth. Bale does a great job. And odes can be written about Heath Ledger’s performance. This was one of the finest acting performances I have witnessed. Made me respect actors just a tad more (I normally don’t rate them very highly). I am almost certain he gon get a posthumous aascar for this. Unless somebody comes out with something better. In which case, I certainly am gonna go to theatre to watch it.

So overall, the movie is gethoo geth. Please take your family, yourself and your dog if possible and be prepared to have some ultimate fun.

About Sethusamudram and its Global Impact

This is a school project which was written before the canal became a major topic of debate. Let me also confirm that I think the current rounds of opposition to the project is stupid. This paper presents a somewhat optimistic analysis about the canal and its benefits. It is about Sethu Canal’s national and international impact (with specific focus on Singapore). I shall write about my views on the ongoing debate later on. But I am sure a lot of you will find this informative.

Sethusamudram and its National and Global Impact

Location

The canal is located along the South Eastern coastline of the Indian peninsula between the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and Northern Sri Lanka.

The proposed canal consists of two main sections. The first part connects The Gulf of Mannar to Palk Bay by cutting across the Adam’s Bridge or Rama’s Bridge. This is a shallow region between the Dhanushkodi on the Pamban island of India and Talaimannar on the Mannar island of Sri Lanka. The second part cuts through the shallow areas in the Palk straits towards the Coromandel Coast. The total length of the two channels is 89 kms.

Conception and Implementation of the Project

The first proposal to cut a canal across the Palk straits came from A.D.Taylor, a commander of the Indian Marines, in 1860. Apart from this, there were eight other proposals with various modifications suggested between 1860 and 1922 by the officers of the British colonists. They were never seriously considered as the project was thought to be unviable.

Since independence, there have been four official assessment reports on the feasibility of the project. They are:-

• The Sethusamudram Project Committee Report – 1956. Committee headed by Sir A. Ramaswamy Mudaliar.
• Nagendra Singh Committee Report – 1967. The committee was set up by the Union Government to examine the feasibility of the project.
• Lakshminarayan Committee Report – 1981
• Pallavan Transport Consultancy Services (PTCS) Report – 1996

Each of these reports found the project viable. The first three weren’t acted upon by the Government, possibly due to lack of sufficient funds for the project and lack of political will. During the 1990s, the Indian economy grew rapidly and the Government was generally optimistic about investing in the country. The PTCS was asked to submit a project feasibility report by the State Government in 1994. The report, apart from suggesting various changes to the proposed canal routes, made suggestions regarding improvement of infrastructure of the canal in order to facilitate easier movement of traffic. After studying the report, the Ministry of Surface Transport appointed the Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT) as the nodal agency to implement the project. The Ministry, in July 1997, asked the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), Nagpur, to prepare the Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) for the Project. The report from NEERI suggested the canal posed no significant threat to the environment. However, the report recommended a particular alignment of the canal along the Pamban Island in order to minimize the damage on the environment.

The project, as most other major ones in India, was really slow to kick off. In the Lok Sabha elections in 2004, the alliance led by the DMK completely whitewashed the opposition party in Tamil Nadu and became a key constituent of the Central Government. The DMK thus managed to garner many crucial ministries including the Ministry of Ports and Transport. With the DMK, a vociferous supporter of the project, controlling the ministry of Ports, the project really took off and the ground work for the project started at fever pitch. TPT hired M/s. L&T-Ramboll Consulting Engineers in 2004 to provide a detailed project report. The report made a strong case for the project. The Union Government mobilized a plan to implement the project and it was inaugurated on June 2, 2005 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The construction work is currently going on in full swing and the canal is all set to open in 2008.

Economic Benefits

The canal is slated to reduce the transit time between the west and east coast of India by 24 hours on an average. Currently, ships plying between the west and east coast have to circumnavigate Sri Lanka. Thus, the canal helps in reducing the transit distance by 335.3 nautical miles on an average. Ships using the canal will save around one day of transit time and fuel costs.

The canal, once completed, is expected to bring huge revenues to the Union and State Governments and transform the regional economy. The Government is investing heavily in the major ports of Chennai and Tuticorin and upgrading existing infrastructure anticipating increased traffic once the canal is completed. It is also developing 13 minor ports, including Ennore, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Thondi, Valinokam, Kolachel and Kanyakumari. This will lead to an overall improvement in infrastructure of the State and thus bolster international and domestic maritime trade and bring in greater foreign investment. There will be a great boost to local industries as export costs will be reduced.

The canal is also expected to benefit the fisheries industry of the state as fishing boats will be able to navigate through the Palk Strait which is not possible now. The State Government is building many fishing harbors along the coastline.

The canal is near the East-West International sea-route, one of the busiest navigation routes in the world. Ships sailing between the mid-east and Japan and China now pass between the Maldivian islands, circle the Sri Lankan coastline and then turn north east and sail through the Malacca straits. The canal would create a by-pass and thus divert the huge traffic of ships through India’s own waters. The revenue generated from the toll paid by these ships will be enormous and contribute greatly to the country’s revenue. The Tuticorin Port will become a major nodal port, similar to Colombo or Singapore.

Security and Strategic Benefits

Till recently, the Government largely ignored security of India’s naval waters due to lack of funds and persistent problems in the mainland. However, there is an increasing emphasis being given on controlling the waters of the Indian Ocean by the defense planners in New Delhi. This is largely due to reactionary thinking prompted by two major events : The acquisition of Diego Garcia by the US as a naval base in the Indian Ocean and the commissioning of an aircraft carrier by the US as a show of support for Pakistan during the Bangladesh War. Since the fall of the USSR, India could no longer rely on Soviet support in case of a showdown with US. Thus there was an urgent need to secure and control the country’s waters. The canal, along with planned forward bases in the Lakshadweep and Andaman islands, will play a key role in India’s plans to dominate the waters of the Indian Ocean. The canal helps by saving transit time between the west and east coasts and allows for easier and more secretive patrolling of the waters by the Navy.

The canal will also help negate the growing Chinese influence among South and South East Asian countries, most importantly, Sri Lanka. China, since the 1980s, has begun an ambitious project to build a series of naval bases extending from mid-east to its own coast in order to ensure its energy security. This project is popularly known as ‘The String of Pearls’. This involves building of forward bases and docks for Chinese ships in Pakistan, Maldives, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia. The first of these forward bases is the port of Gwadar in Pakistan. The port is located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf in the mouth of the strategically important Straits of Hormuz and right in India’s backyard. Chinese efforts to gain access to the Trincomalee port in Sri Lanka was thwarted due to Indian pressure on Colombo. The canal will allow India to guard it’s waters much more effectively, reduce Chinese influence in the region and give India a strategic leverage over China.

The canal will lead to a much greater and more effective Indian presence in the surrounding waters including around the crucial Straits of Malacca. The Government has invested heavily in building a forward marine command and developing a port in the Andaman and Nicobar anticipating the increase in maritime traffic in the region. The forward base will allow it to gain control over the Straits of Malacca. Over 80% of Japan’s oil needs and 60% of China’s is sourced through these straits. Thus, the building of the canal and the base in the Andaman and Nicobar islands will give India huge strategic muscle against China, Japan and the entire international community.

Finally, the increased security along the canal will help control the growing influence of the LTTE’s naval arm, the Sea Tigers, in the coast between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka and prevent any Sri Lankan Tamil nationalist elements from spreading their influence in Tamil Nadu. It would also provide cover for fishing boats from Tamil Nadu against attacks by the fast attack crafts of the Sea Tigers.

Opposition to the Project

The greatest amount of opposition to the project has come from the environmentalist quarters. The canal is located very near the Gulf of Mannar National Biosphere Reserve.

This reserve has an immense variety of sea life and corals and is one of the most important bio-diversity hotspots in the world. The proximity of the canal to the reserve puts the reserve under grave risk. Oil-spills or releasing of effluents into the waters by the ships would result in an environmental disaster of enormous proportions. Also, coral reefs are extremely sensitive to temperature changes in the water. Even if the water temperature were to change by 1degree Celsius, the entire reef would perish. The dredging of the canal and the ships passing through may possibly cause a temperature change and this, again, would be disastrous. There has been great concern about how the dredged sand and rubble will be disposed without damaging the environment. Also, the fishermen in the region have protested violently against the building of the canal as they fear the canal may affect the traditional migratory routes of the fish and damage their breeding habitats in the surrounding reefs.

The implementing company, Sethusamudram Corporation Limited (SSCL) sought to address these concerns by undertaking various Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Reports with the help of NEERI before the project work commenced. The EIAs recommended changes in the canal route to minimize the impact on the environment. These changes have been incorporated into the final blueprint. The result is that, the dredging work would cause the permanent loss of flora and fauna in about 6 sq. km of the region around Adam’s Bridge and 16-17 sq. km. in Palk Bay area. This is relatively insignificant when compared to the total reserve area of 10,500 sq. km. The report recommends disposing the dredged sand 25 km away from the reserve area to minimize environmental damage. There has also been a proposal to dump the sand in the degraded areas of Pamban Island to reclaim the land. This has not yet received approval from the Tamil Nadu Environment Ministry. Studies by NEERI show that there will not be any significant changes in current movement due to the canal and thus the migratory routes of fish wont be affected. The company also promises there will be only a temporary displacement of fishermen during construction period.

There are many who still raise questions about the viability of the project. According to them, the studies do not take into account the decreased speed of ships in the canal, the towing charges and various other operating costs. Thus the actual savings in terms of distance and time will be negligible and the ships won’t be sufficiently enthused to pay the heavy tolls that will be charged.

I personally feel that such theories are irrelevant as in the long run, the canal should definitely prove to be a financial and strategic asset. I think the country should make confident decisions based on well researched reports and shouldn’t hesitate to invest in its own future.

There is also a small group of people who oppose the canal as it damages the Rama’s Bridge, which they believe is a creation of God that should be left untouched.

Sri Lanka and Sethusamudram

The canal has raised a lot of concern in Sri Lanka. There were fears initially that the construction of the canal would cause some of the islands of Sri Lanka to submerge. Scientists, however, believe that there will be no significant geophysical changes caused due to the canal.

The maritime traffic around the southern Sri Lankan coastline is slated to reduce drastically once the canal is completed. It is estimated that Sri Lanka may lose up to 50% of its revenue from ports, including Colombo, due to the canal. Many suggest that the canal will seriously jeopardize the good relations between New Delhi and Colombo.

The proximity of the canal to LTTE controlled Northern Sri Lanka and Jaffna is another factor that cannot be ignored. Nobody really knows how this will affect either party, but both are equally anxious and suspicious.

Singapore and Sethusamudram

The Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) has leased out Berth 7 in the Tuticorin Port for 30 years and is operating it since 1999. There are plans to increase PSA’s investment in Tuticorin once the canal is completed. With the anticipated increase in traffic in the Tuticorin Port, the cooperation between PSA and TPT could prove mutually beneficial to both countries.

The canal could also host the ships plying the East-West International Sea Route which then touches Singapore in the Straits of Malacca. If this does indeed happen, Singapore and India could work together to coordinate the flow of traffic through the route and provide better service to these ships. Joint patrolling of the waters could also be taken up. This will reduce the threat of piracy that currently infests the waters around the Straits of Malacca.

On a more negative note, the canal will facilitate easier movement of Indian naval ships. With India bolstering its military presence in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, the threat of India blockading the mouth of the Straits of Malacca becomes even greater to Singapore and other countries that rely on the east-west sea route.

India has major plans to build a port in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, near the mouth of the Straits of Malacca. If the port can offer good berthing facilities and provide services at low costs, there is a chance that ships might forsake berthing at Singapore or other Malaysian ports.

The proposed port in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands assumes greater significance when viewed in the light of the Thai Canal. Thailand is very serious about building a canal through the southern part of the country, connecting Bandon Bay with Phangnga. Thailand can look forward to Chinese funding for the project as the canal would be another pearl in the ‘String of Pearls’ strategy, reducing China’s dependence on other western oriented countries for its energy security. If completed, the Thai Canal along with the Sethusamudram Canal would alter the current East West International Sea Route and completely obliterate the need for ships to sail through the Straits of Malacca. This would prove completely disastrous to the economy of Singapore which is essentially dependant on its port.

Bibliography

This essay has inputs from the following articles and sources:-

• Selected Writings by Dharmeratnam Sivaram (Taraki)

        Geo-Strategic Implications of Sethusamudram

          Daily Mirror, 6 October 2004

          http://www.tamilnation.org/forum/sivaram/041006.htm

• China’s pearl in Pakistan’s waters

          Sudha Ramachandran

          Asia Times, 4 March 2005

          http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/GC04Df06.html

• Official website of Sethusamudram Corporation Limited http://sethusamudram.gov.in/English_Index.asp

• Official website of Tuticorin Port Trust

          http://www.tuticorinport.gov.in/

 

Diplomatic relations between animals and brahmins

I have always looked back with curiosity at the relations between tamil brahmin people (a good majority of the people I interacted with until my school life were tambrams) and animals. All my life, I have never seen a single brahmin household with a pet. They seem to have this totally cool love-hate relationship with any non-human living creature and it always entertains to notice such things. And the way they preach vegetarianism as a stepping stone to enlightenment is another aspect of immense interest to me. I shall proceed to narrate related experiences I have had in chronological order:-

Early in school life, I used to face this standard question:- “Yuvaara brahmin aa or non brahminaa?“. My first reaction was – what are you talking about? They would clarify:- “You eat non-vegetarian food like chicken or muttonaa?‘. I would confirm their suspicions. Then they would promptly declare that I was a non-b with a victorious smile plastered on their face. I would of course have nothing to say. Inwardly I would think these show-offs use such complicated english terms such as “non-brahmins” when they could simply use non-vegetarian. But I soon got used to this nomenclature and would proudly proclaim myself a non-brahmin everytime I was asked. Then with a scowl on their faces they would ask stuff like “How can you touch stuff like meat?” “Don’t you think you are being cruel to animals?”, “Don’t you have any heart?”…

I was a very proud lad even then and hated having people advice me on how I should conduct my life. But, I did not quite know how to respond to such arguments. This was because I was, and remain, an animal lover. Influenced by their arguments, I read a lot of literature on the subject. I soon was convinced vegetarianism had its merits. So basically, at that time, the best rebuttals I could give my friends was:- “Why do you wear leather shoes, belts etc.. and talk as if you love animals? And you claim you vegetarians are superior because you cause no cruelty to animals. Then pray tell me why your poonal has deerskin on it? (This I got from a friend who had his upanayanam) Don’t these come under the purview of cruelty to animals?” These arguments were, I admit, totally inadequate to assuage my pride. But at least they kept my friends from making further wisecrack remarks.

Their arguments nevertheless did get to me. I even asked my mom to stop preparing n-v food. She did not of course. So I just ate all the n-v curries without the meat. (Starving was not an option now was it?) And I also ate seafood. Fish and prawns seemed like fauna that were devoid of feelings like we experienced them. So they were much lighter on the conscience.

It took me quite a while to recover from this anti non-vegetarianism feelings. I came to a lot of different convictions and also read a lot of counter arguments from non-vegetarians before I changed my ways once again. I had reconverted by the time I was in my fifth standard. So this whole vegetarian binge lasted for a couple of years which, if you know how good tamil n-v food is, you will appreciate is rather long.

My school, despite its claims to being secular and inclusive, is a suththa brahmana school and does its best to promote hinduism in general, vaishnavism in particular and fringe beliefs such as vegetarianism and sloka recitation with dead seriousness. One such evil mechanism was something called the Karuna Club. At that time, I had assumed that it was an important axillary of the school named after the CM of TN. Only later did I realise that it was a meaningless vegetarianism-promotion-organisation masquerading as an organisation that wishes to show karunai (kindness) to animals. I, like a regular fool, had payed my 10 Rs (damn them) for membership out of a misplaced belief that they intended to do good work to help the city’s not so well treated animals.

At the first meeting, the topic of discussion was “non-vegetarianism and the negative effects”. I heard a lot of people talk a lot of shit about how we should all show mercy on the animals as they too had feelings and so on. It was initiated by one of those omni-present self-righteous maamis who took up employment as teachers in the school (This is in fact quite a regular phenomenon in Chennai where the educated maamis in households are encouraged to become teachers so that they can make some extra pocket money to buy their own clothes and not trouble their husbands. It is a win-win mechanism. For the school as it has to dole out less, and for the maamis because they can buy new pattusaaris and also find out about the latest fashion trends from other such maamis).

I was extremely irritated by the proceedings and tried to induce some kalavaram (trouble). I asked the teachers if it would be all right if I refused to wear my belt and shoes to school from tomorrow citing concern regarding animal rights. The teachers were taken aback. Their sole purpose in this meeting had been to promote vegetarianism. Certainly not to achieve anything concrete. They told me that I should not break the rules as they were more important. They also said they were trying to convince the school authorities of the same and expected positive results soon (yeah right!). Using mindspeak, they told me “Enna nee! Pesardhunaa Vegetarianism pathi pesu. Illati vaaya pothindu gammunu iru!” (effectively, ” talk subject or shut up!”). I obliged and talked to them about how we humans were made to be carnivores, about the theory of natural selection and about how eating n-v food does not necessarily show an irreverence to animals.

The teacher maamis at the helm did a rapid round of mindspeak to each other this time. It was along the lines of “Ennadhidhu. Utta pesinde povaan pola irukku. Idhukku ippove oru full-stop vekkanum“. (“We need to shut him up!”) Then the main maami in charge presented a long lecture that basically plagiarised whatever the students had said earlier with a lot of big words thrown in hoping that we would simply accept whatever she said because of the complexity of the words she used.

I made one last ditch effort. I talked about how people in slums were selling a lot of chicks for a few rupees after dyeing their feathers in various hues. I told her we could do something about it by complaining to PFA or Bluecross or something. The head maami decided this was going nowhere. She tut-tutted with sympathy and said we should do something about it. She then said we might talk about it in the next meeting. They may well have. But I couldn’t possibly know as I never set foot in that damn place again.

After the above mentioned imbroglio, nothing of significance happened in school really. There were these random talks by these random prominent personalities who professed that their single path to success was their vegan diets. There were the “involuntary” pukes that the t.b. classmates made whenever the n.t.b. classmates brought meat for lunch (they actually brought n.v. food just to make the t-b classmates cringe a lot of the times). Then there were these random advice giving teachers who asked us to respect the sentiments of the vegetarian folks who filled the place and not bring n-v food even though it was not banned in school. Of course this only encouraged us to bring more such foods. Anyway, nothing of significance after K-club mess.

Except maybe for the time when a cat once entered the class. The whole classroom was evacuated and emergency squads (watchman/oddjobsman) were called to evict the intruder. And things like cockroaches resulted in the benches in its immediate vicinity cleared. But it made a hilarious sight, when right in the middle of class, all these girls started becoming paranoid and trooped out of class en-masse. The teacher, being more mature, would sit on the chair and keep her legs high above ground.

Another place where tambrams give totally cool reactions is when they visit homes having dogs. Hehe. Once, a group of my friends visited my house after playing cricket in somasundaram ground. Actually they just entered the gate. My dog, which believed in ozhachifying for its master who gave it salt, let out a bark. They closed the gate again and ran like a pack of dogs back to the ground. They never visited my home again.

My father had this acquaintance, who was short, wore soda-buddis, stuttered and was effeminate (sad i know). When he visited our house, he saw the dog and hid behind my father, holding his hand, bleating and pleading to my father to save him. (“ka-ka-kapathunga ******”). I can still vividly remember my father’s face. Priceless….

An even more curious character was a friend of mine. He was a tambram who lived down the street and would visit my house really frequently. He was the fellow I would turn to for help when it was time to give my dog a bath. His mom hated him doing this kind of work. She felt I was using him as a chela for doing my own work. She was entirely justified in thinking that way I suppose. Although, I myself had always felt that he was one of the few friends my mongrel dog had in this world. That was the primary reason I called him over. Besides, his mom’s disapproval was probably the biggest reason why my friend did come to bathe my dog in the first place. This was not, however, the funny part. The most curious aspect regarding the whole affair was my friend was partly an old-world brahmin guy who was actually shit-scared of my dog and even considered the touch of my dog mildly polluting.

The whole thing was a really complicated affair really. The first step would be baiting my dog. I never collared my dog as I was of the opinion that if women can have their rights in this world, then so can dogs. So it was extremely difficult to control my dog and his movements around the house. Also, he was simply disgusted at the idea of bathing and he had a sixth sense regarding our intentions of bathing him (He has successfully evaded capture many a time.) My friend and I would have to plan this elaborate ruse to convince the wily old mongrel that we were going to do nothing more than feed him the choicest delicacies and bait him all the way to the back garden with morsels of food. There, my friend would be waiting with bucket and soap. I would then catch my dog’s neck while he was still eating and we would proceed to do the honors. My friend would help me either pour water or rub soap or hold the dog by his underarms. But he would never venture anywhere near its muzzle or crotch.

Then, after bathing him, we would release him and watch him as he went ballistic. My friend at this point would be shivering with fear and would perch upon the motor room just to be safe. My dog would run up and down the place like a maddog, drooling saliva all over and rub its entire body on the dirty ground just to tell us that we could try to clean it all we want but never really succeed. It was only after lots of coaxing and the feeding-of-remaining-morsels that my dog would be mollified. And only then would my friend feel safe enough to come down from his perch. He would go warily to get on his bike and open the gate. Just to have some fun, I would let out a loud bark and watch my friend fall to the ground with his bike and curse me. He would soon be off to cleanse himself of the impurity (abishtu) he contracted and have his mother tell him what a worthless scoundrel he was. On the whole, it was simply a majaa event.

But when it comes to brahmin-dog relations, the following event takes the cake. We were on a school vacation to Coorg. (Beautiful place. Highly recommended.) There, our owners had a set of extremely boisterous dogs which looked like alsatians but were actually just Coorgi mongrels. Those dogs were just total fun. They used to lead the way on our treks and played the role of mentors and guardians to perfection. Once, after a long trek, we all returned to a grassy spot which was our meeting point. We all lay in the grass with the dogs amidst us. This friend of mine, who was ofc tambram, was petting one of the dogs. The dog suddenly started getting mildly excited and started rubbing himself on my friend. Then we noticed that its prick started growing, and then started becoming pinkish. If you did not get it already, this dog was trying to hump my friend. The dog, from that day on (till the next couple of days, when we all left) was christened Horny (there were some girls around, so we couldn’t get too creative). Of my friend, well, the less said the better. Amean, isn’t it sufficient insult to be mistaken for a faggot dog? Saying anything more would probably be adding salt to his wounds and evil though I may be, I still ain’t that evil.

p.s.: 98% of the incidents narrated above are in 98% of the ways true. Of course, the writer took some creative liberties. So if any of you actually know my identity, please forgive the few flourishes. I meant it in good spirit.

The trip to Mukurthi National Park

(This is a long post. But it has to do with my travel experience, my blog, and my feelings and I ain’t bloody well gonna let some darn reader’s perceptions on its length come in my way.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mukurthi

It was the summer after my eleventh standard. And I, unfortunately, was an IIT aspirant. That meant that the eleventh standard summer was the toughest phase of my academic life. There were classes in small cramped up rooms with a capacity of 40 people seating well over a hundred people (I am of course referring to Satyamurthy school near Sun theatre), classes in far-off uncivilized parts of the city (Adyar, ie.Raghavan) and classes in shady Alwarpet starting at 6 am in the morning every alternate day (with KSR ofc). There were more tests in a week than the number of days and you were never adequately prepared for even a single test. (That was the most sad part. The problems were all so beautiful, but you had no time to appreciate them because you had no idea what was going on.) All this coupled with the heat, the fact that I had to drive a TVS Excel to the places, the fact that I was a lazy ass who wouldn’t do ANY work unless it was totally necessary, meant that I was having a most hellish time. My health and peace of mind started to deteriorate. I was having health problems because of the extremely sultry environment, my large frame, the extremely crowded classes, and the wooden benches which never had enough space for more than one of my bums. And once, when I was traveling in Sarangapani street in T.Nagar, I met a few of my non-IIT classmates who were just returning from Eliots Beach where they had played footie, for one of the few times in my life, I felt a surge of jealousy. The classes would only end a week before my 12th standard began. I decided that if I intended on living through my last year in school, I had to take a holiday. This was just about the first time in my life that I actually wanted a holiday to soothe my nerves.

I told my parents about it. They agreed whole-heartedly. After all, this was the first thing that their son had asked them willingly ever since he had come out of kindergarten. Since I was still only 16, and not too experienced at traveling, it was decided my father would accompany me. The rest of my family had already gone on a tour of the north (Simla, Punjab, Kulu and Manali) without me and my mother and sisters were not interested in accompanying me. This suited me fine, because I considered them a completely unnecessary baggage. I was not really interested in doing these conventional trips. I wanted to do something like a trekking routine and my mother and sisters, being good tamil women, hated to exert themselves physically in any way. My father on the other hand, was an experienced traveler and also extremely fit for his age (close to 50). In fact, his stamina exceeded my own, and I am a sportsman. So his company was very welcome, in a way.

My father, to say the least, is a strange man. He really likes only 2 people who are alive in this world and they are not me or the rest of my immediate family. Even this fact can only be discerned from observing him as he walks much faster than normal to attend a phone-call from these people. He never shares his life with any of these people even and not even with my mother. He is always seen lying in the bed reading some cheap western by Louis L’amour, for which he has some kind of strange affliction. And he is arrogant to a fault. In fact, I am the only sane person I have seen who is more arrogant than him. (Maybe I will write about my father some time later.) This clash of egos was very visible in our house. Me and my father hardly shared anything except the food. He had his own life, his own room and his own time, and I had mine. We almost never involved each other in our work. We never spoke to each other of anything that need not be spoken of. In a certain way, I am slightly jealous of my classmates, most of whom had talkative parents. Not that I secretly wished to have more responsive parents or anything, but I love hearing those paati kadhais (grandmama’s stories), which I only get to hear from my single living paati who visits my house very rarely. In fact, very few relatives visit our house despite my father having 7 siblings. The reason is quite obvious. I mean, with characters like my father and myself in the house, who would want to? I personally am thankful we had very little of this relative thollai in our house. But my mother, being a woman and all, constantly accuses my father for the aura of complete quietness in our house which she intensely dislikes. The point to this rather dwindling paragraph being, I was actually quite apprehensive as to whether our ego-clash would spoil the trip.

The next thing to do was to decide on a place. I did not want to visit the north, simply because my frame of mind had not sufficiently deteriorated to consider such options. So it was decided that we visit the mountains in either TN or Kerala. One of my closer friends, who travels regularly to far flung places, suggested I visit Mukurthi National Park. He suggested it was far better than even the mountains of Coorg, which I had visited the previous summer. I did some wiki and google stuff and was immediately hooked. The choice had been between Thekkady, Top Slip and Mukurthi and we decided to take Mukurthi. Primarily because there was little information about the trekking opportunities available in Thekkady while my friend had assured me that Mukurthi forest officer would allow us to trek. Top Slip was discarded as there were many unresolved questions about our ability to even perform the basic functions of life there. My father then went ahead and prepared an itenary and made all the arrangements for the trip. (Of course he would, him being the experienced traveler and me being the spoilt stay at home brat.) A trip to Mudumalai was thrown into our 7 day tour as well.

I don’t recall much else leading up the trip. We were going to Mettupalayam and from there taking a bus up to Ooty. We landed up at the Central Station, me full of anticipation, and my father, characteristically emotionless. The train journey was uneventful. We had the company of a quiet tamil family and a not so quiet North Indian father-daughter duo who were intent on doing the we-fair n’ rare-you-all-black-full-of-flak routine and I watched them go on about for entertainment. We reached Mettupalayam early morn. The station is simply beautiful. Especially on a foggy chill morning with the blue-tinted Nilgiri peaks in the distant horizon. Makes you invariably think about all those english-school books that you read. We proceeded soon to the bus-stand to board a dinghy bus to Ooty.

Successful so far. We had reached Ooty in one piece. I was actually appalled by what I saw in Ooty. It was simply ghastly. Not at all the place I visited a few years back. There was this gigantic kaava (canal), with stagnant black liquid (water+lotsof-i-dunno-what) and plastic rubbish. There was not a single tree in sight except on the distant hills and the place was filled with really ugly buildings, bad roads and polluting vehicles. And unfortunately, the place we were going to stay in was very near this dump. Our accommodation was actually right opposite the race-course. It was the CPWD hotel (mother is a c.g. employee).The architecture (!) was really bad with angles jutting out everywhere and the entire structure not appearing very harmonious. It was also painted an ugly blue color. However, it was just out of view of the ugly town-centre. Also, the interiors were neat, the staff friendly, the prices cheap, the food acceptable and the location was quite convenient. So, on the whole, it was a very good deal.

After having parked ourselves, we went out for lunch at a small homely eatery in a back alley in the town. The place was rustic, run by a matronly lady and the food was suitably homely too. We had some mutton biriyani, then for dessert, some homemade chocolate from a nearby sweet shop. The homemade chocolates in Ooty are simply lovely. I had them at least twice a day. The weather was great. We decided to wile away the rest of the day. My father took up a L’amour (I imagine) and I, a Wodehouse in the balcony soaking in the sights from the nearby stable. Then a simple dinner and bed.

Next day we decided to approach the forest ranger for permission to visit Mukurthi. The ranger was out and we were asked to visit the next day. We had this whole day ahead of us and did not know what to do. My father asked me what whether we should go back. I of course said no. I had come here to see the place. Not to bloody read Wodehouses and L’amours! I looked around, pointed out the tallest mountain that I could spot and told my father we’ll go to the top of it. My father was game. So we walked and walked. Through tea gardens, through mini-bazaars, through settlements of garden workers, past stately (and very British) houses of retired government officers, through small scrubs and patches of woods etc.. etc.. and we finally reached the foot of the hill. My father decided to wait for me while I went up to get a better view. I went up close to the peak. But some locals came rushing and told me that the slopes were slippery and it was illegal to climb to the top. So much for that idea. But it was great fun while we did it. I met my father back at the foot. He was chatting with some old lady talking to her about real estate (thats where conversations with my pater invariably lead). We decided to return by bus as it was already getting dark and we were rather hungry. Dinner was a simple meal of barotta, biriyani and mutton curry (My father is a mutton purist. Rarely takes chicken willingly.) and we headed to our rooms for rest. My father’s age was telling as he was a bit sore from our walk.

Day 2 and we were off to the ranger’s office. This time we got to meet him. He was a large, sombre looking man. In fact, he looked like a Chennai maama. We requested permission to visit Mukurthi. He simply said the park was closed at this time and visitors will not be allowed. When pressed for a reason, he said they had closed the park for public ever since a gabtun film was shot in the place where they set off dynamite sticks and afflicted mental damage on the residents of the park. Damn the Vijayakanth (wiki him to find out more). This was something unexpected. I told him how my friend had visited the place earlier and how he had spoken in high regard of the forest department people (he didn’t of course). The officer appeared mollified and asked us to come back the next day to see if he could arrange something.

So another day of not knowing what to do. We found a local and asked him if there was a small walk that we could take to anywhere. He suggested Cairn Hill. This is a small hillock which an old Britisher named Cairn Whatever had owned and used probably as a hunting ground. He had also planted many trees native to Britain such as oaks and birches on this hill and it looked rather pleasant. There was a small path and we walked up. There was really nothing much to do except take in the sights and sounds. On top, there was this look out tower which gave us a good view of Ooty and also a small tribal temple where we, being atheists, did not pray of course. We managed to make our way down after losing our way twice. We spotted another group of people on the way down. They suggested that we visit the Dodabetta mountain (tallest in South India) which was quite nearby. We then took a jeep upto the base of Dodabetta. Then we managed to fit ourselves into the last batch of people allowed up the hill. There was nothing spectacular in the top. It was like a regular tourist spot with even a few eateries. Worse, the place was sullied with rubbish strewn all over. Nothing makes my blood boil more I tell you. It is so irritating that people do not see the beauty of the place. They simply had to build hotels, pathways, watch towers, throw rubbish etc..etc.. with complete disregard for the sanctity of the place. Continuing (I could go on fuming, but it wouldn’t be nice to read), it was late evening and the place was relatively empty. Then suddenly, we were asked to clear out by the officials. There was going to be a cloudburst (a rather dangerous phenomenon of sudden, heavy rains) and we were to be evacuated using jeeps and vans. However we could not find a ride back (all full). Our own driver had left, probably because someone had offered more money. We then decided to walk back. It was the twilight of the day and the sky was turning orange. There was a light drizzle. The trees were the lightest shade of green and brown (sounds of oohs and aahs expected). The roads were empty except for the occasional wild animal (monkeys). And me and my father were walking down for almost an hour. After this great walk, we reached the base where we asked the locals how we could get back. They directed us to the nearest bus stop in Kotagiri (I think) and told us to wait for a while as the bus would be late. While we were waiting, this lorry came up and offered us a lift back. So we rode in the darkness on the lorry’s open back through the winding forest roads. Best motorized journey of my life. When we reached Ooty, it was the dinner-at-dhaba-and-back-to-bed routine again.

The next day, again at the Forest Department office, we met the ranger for Mukurthi Park. He agreed to let us visit the place. He said he would send us with another ranger, who we were expected to compensate suitably. I am not very emotional, but I was almost happy at this turn of events. At last, we were going to do what we came for! So we went off to the taxi stand to hire a jeep to take us there. It was difficult as most of the drivers didn’t want to drive that long for the amount we were willing to pay. We finally found one and set off. The drive was simply SPECTACULAR. The whole place, as soon as we left town, appeared enchanted. We made small talk, stopped for a small tea and vadai (superb) break in a quaint local eatery and it was I guess 3 hours before we reached the place.The entrance to the park was manned by a group of forest officers who were hard men living a hard life with a tin shack to call home. I felt a surge of envy. They were living the life I always wanted to but could not afford thanks to the rather restrictive society I grew up in. At this place, we collected our guide, Mookaiah, (he did have a big nose) and we entered the grasslands of the national park.

We got out and it was raining and freezing cold. The place appeared exotically wild but c-o-l-d was the only thing on our minds. We decided to eat the dosai we had packed from the eatery earlier (the intense cold left us little choice). We walked up to a metal shelter on a small hillock. We did not have warm gear and we found we couldn’t open the food packets. Our fingers wouldn’t move! So we bit it open and ate like dogs. (Right then, I got a new-found respect for the animal and its ways.) By the time we finished, the weather had cleared somehow and we found our fingers could now move. I took in the sights. Simbly Bootiful. The mountains all around were covered with a light green cover of grass and there were occasional clusters of trees. Around half of the mountain range was covered with thick mist and only the remaining half was visible. All around you there were this misty shola mountains and we four were the only people in sight! It was quite a surreal feeling. Must be experienced to be comprehendable. We decided to set off in a random direction. We walked for about 3 hours up and down the mountain slopes making conversation with the ranger, Krishnamurthy, and Mookiah. We had by then given up on the idea of climbing Mukurthi peak and decided to visit the Western Catchment reservoir instead. We reached there about an hour later. It is simply the most beautiful, pristine body of water I have seen (I understand I am overusing the word ‘beautiful’, but if any of you visit Mukurthi, you’ll understand why.) It was a sparkling silver and appeared almost like a mirage. It reminded me of the beautiful scenes from the LOTR movies for some reason. We wallowed in the water and drank lots of it. It was sweet. We also spotted some rainbow trout (I think) which was introduced by the British here for fishing purposes. Then my father, who was already too tired to even say “superstar is god”, decided to head back with the ranger while me and Mookaiah decided to walk further and to try to climb one of the taller peaks nearby. We reached the top all right. But I started developing cramps by then and couldn’t take much more of the physical battery. (It was with some surprise and envy that I noted that the shrew-like Mookaiah was hardly tiring. Where do these villagers get there strength from anyway?) Because of my reduced physical state, and because it was approaching night-time, we decided to head back. We joined Krishnamurthy and my dad on the way back. We also spotted some tahr in the distance and a jackrabbit on the way. These were the only animals we spotted if you do not count elephant dung and tracks as “sighting animals”. The lack of fauna in this overwhelming amount of flora was indeed my only disappointment. We had a long walk back to the entrance where the driver was waiting. Along the way, I was trying to fill my mind with pictures with which I could cherish this unforgettable experience. This was because, I do not like to rape such experiences by clicking away photos incessantly. So no camera meant that all the pictures had to be stored in the mind. We then boarded the jeep and returned along another beautiful route back to Ooty. I could tell my father was pleased with the whole trip just from the amount he doled out to the driver, Krishnamurthy and Mookaiah. Then of course, dinner->room->sleep.

Next day, we took a bus to Masinagudi and from there to Mudumalai. There was nothing special about the drive (it was very pretty, but in a place like Nilgiris, beauty is a very relative concept). Except that we spotted far more animals including a leopard, a mouse deer, some wild boar and spotted deer along the way. Mudumalai was actually unspoilt and pristine. Unfortunately, no one was allowed to trek into the forest. A guide offered to take us for 1000Rs. around the place, but my father refused saying it could be too dangerous. I was a bit young then and did not have the courage to oppose my father. So we were basically stuck up in the hotel. I had to bide my time by taking small walks around the place, observing the monkeys which thronged the hotel’s premises, doing some fishing in the river with local boys, eating at local eateries, watching some peacocks as they came by our room, listening to a forest officer recount his exploits in the wild, watching some wild elephants as they ambled across the road in front of the hotel etc..etc.. Time passed quickly and we were soon on the bus back to Ooty. This bus, had to take 32 hairpin bends and I was allergic to buses. Without avomine that day, I would have nastied the bus, the people in it and left a trail on the road as if I were Hansel n Gretel’s elder brother. We reached Ooty in one piece, had dinner, went around the market and had our last night in the place.

In the morning, we packed our bags and took the town bus to Mettupalayam. Then the train to Chennai. Me and my father had our only fight of the trip before boarding the train. It was because of misplaced tickets. My father became extremely annoyed and abused me with a few peasant bad words. To show him I was older now and that I resented such step-fatherly treatment, I shouted a few swear words back at him. End Result: We didn’t speak to each other all the way back home and even sometime after. But I didn’t care. In fact, it felt a whole lot more familiar than having to share the bed with him and having to take meals with him in a hotel. And besides, I had my mother doting over me and feeding me with her choicest preparations and some fine Nilgiri tea. Even my sisters had gone off to my cousin’s place and the weather in the city wasn’t so bad. What more could I expect? It was from a Heaven to another Heaven.