Ayesha Aleem wins short story contest organised by Deccan Herald

Ayesha Aleem, a Bangalore-based writer and journalist, has won the first prize in the fourth edition of the Sunday Herald short story competition organised by popular English daily, Deccan Herald. The young writer bagged the cash prize of Rs 30,000 for her story ‘In Search of Home’ which revolves around the character of a taxi driver of Indian origin in the United States.

The protagonist’s homecoming after 35 years is very different from what he expected and turns out to be not so comfortable after all. The entry “moved the judges with its subtle ending and original theme”. The story idea occurred to Ayesha last year. “I had started writing the story long ago but could not get a suitable climax. By the time I decided to enter the short story competition, I had finished my story,” Ayesha said.

Ayesha did MS (Journalism) at Boston University in 2010. Before that, she pursued PG Diploma in Journalism at the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media, Bangalore in 2008. She also holds a Diploma in Creative Writing from the Writer’s Bureau, Manchester, UK. At present, she is a correspondent with India Today in Bangalore. She has worked for Elle magazine, Lowe Worldwide and publications in the United States, where she briefly reported on US Congress in Washington, DC.

K N Tilak Kumar, Editor, Deccan Herald, gave away the award to Ayesha at a function held at Bangalore Club on July 29. More than 500 short stories were received for the contest. According to judges – writer and columnist Monideepa Sahu, short story writer Srinath Perur, and poet-writer Shefali Mehta – short-listing the names was a difficult exercise.

Sunday Herald is the eight-page weekly supplement of Deccan Herald that carries regular features on consumer issues, green subjects, animal welfare, gardening, bridge, crossword, book reviews, and offbeat travelogues.

Courtesy : Karnataka Muslims. Here

Devon's 'desi' delights

A delicious slice of the subcontinent, this microcosm of humanity packs in itself all that Chandini Chowk of Delhi, Nakhas of Lucknow, Lad Bazaar of Hyderabad, steamy T Nagar of Chennai and Anarkali of Lahore can offer.

Come evenings, Devon’s air gets filled with the irresistible aroma of tandoori chicken, seekh kabab and Hyderabadi haleem. Its grocery stores exude the familiar smell of hing, ginger, jaggery and other Indian spices and mannequins stand draped in lehenga, churdiars and sequined salwar-kameez. Once a habitat of Jewish diaspora, Devon has gradually metamorphosed into a desi bazaar with Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis rubbing shoulders with each other and conveniently feigning amnesia of the fractious past that is well nigh unforgettable. However, under competing claims from the desis, the nearly 5 km of the avenue has been trifurcated into stretches named after Mahatma Gandhi, Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Sheikh Mujeeb.

Businessmen from India today eye Devon as prime real estate, investing in each conceivable patch enticing the growing fat-wallet desi clientele. Four decades ago, India Sari Palace was the first to set up business introducing in the American market the most known piece of Indian attire. Then came eateries with their finger-licking fare. More textile shops joined them soon. Following them were bangle sellers with the elaborate inventory of knick-knacks.

Maqbool Ahmed Siraj in Deccan Herald. More Here

Killing two birds with one stone, isn’t it? But who cares?

Isn’t it shocking that after 63 years of Independence, only 12 per cent of the rural households have drinking water taps? This is despite the National Rural Drinking Water Programme being operative, for which Rs 8,000-crore was provided just in 2009-10.

What is more shocking is that while the drinking water taps are going dry, there is never a shortage of water supply from tankers? Not only Mumbai, cities across the country are under siege by tanker mafia. In the rural areas too, the water mafia has been continuously at work. If the water sources are drying up across the country, I wonder from where the tankers get water. Every one knows that the tanker mafia is leaving the countryside parched and dry, but who cares?

Well, the corporate sector certainly gives an impression that it cares. ITC for instance has launched a project in Gurgaon to teach housemaids on how to save water while cleaning the utensils. Teaching the maid servants on how to save one mug of water is surely some responsibility!

What the corporate sector refuses to point at is the recent decision of the Andhra Pradesh government to allocate 21.5 lakh litres per day from the Krishna River in Guntur district to Coca-Cola. While several hundred villages in Guntur district are grappling with acute drinking water shortage, the government perhaps thinks that rural poor can quench their thirst from drinking Coke instead. To justify its exploitation of water, Coca-Cola claims to be buying mangoes for its Maaza brand under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. Killing two birds with one stone, isn’t it? But who cares?

From the forceful pen of Devinder Sharma on mounting crisis of scarcity of water. In Deccan Herald.

To read the full article click here.

Is Madhya Pradesh a safe sancturary for Hindu outfits?

In fact, India has discovered to its horror that there is a network of Hindu Taliban as well. They are connected with the RSS and said to be responsible for the bomb blasts at Ajmer Dargah (2007), Mecca Masjid at Hyderabad (2007), Malegaon (2008) and Goa (2009).

Authoritative sources in Delhi suspect that Madhya Pradesh, where the BJP government is in power, has become a safe sanctuary for the Hindu outfits. Hindu Jagran Manch from Indore in the state is considered by the Maharashtra police responsible for the Malegaon blasts which killed 37 Muslims.

From Kuldip Nayar's article in Deccan Herald

To read the full article click here.

Is it the tip of the ice berg?

Meena Menon in a thought provoking, tiring article Nanded case: of lost leads and shoddy investigation in The Hindu asks:

For some time now, there is evidence that all the blasts in the country are not the handiwork of terror groups supported by Pakistan or Bangladesh.

What are the resources of this right wing terror network, its reach and implications?

Only a sustained and meticulous investigation can give results and it is time the government and investigation agencies have learnt some lesson from the slip ups in Nanded. Investigations into the terror activities which seem disparate right now have to be coherent.

Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it.

To read the full article, click here.
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