Categories
Lifestyle

Resolutions: Welcome 2012

Days passed, months ended and here we are about to bid goodbye to 2011 . Yes! Its high NEW YEAR TIME guys and apart from celebrations, hangouts and shopping, everyone wants to get the best out of them in the upcoming year 😀 The first thing that clicks every individual’s mind is WHAT changes they want in them, WHAT new they intend to bring in their life :O. As we all are aware that human wants and zests are unlimited, so the identification of immediate longing plays an enormous role. This is what defines a resolution.

Whenever I see New Year approaching, the first thought in my mind (of course after deciding the New Year gift) is what to resolve for the next year. One should adjudicate their goals according to their capabilities. To share old memories, in our School times, every girl (GIRLS CONVENT SCHOOL) had to resolve the best thing she aspires. Though we never followed what we resolved, but it was fun knowing what everyone wanted to achieve. Funny upshots came up like “I WOULD DATE THE BEST GUY OF THE CITY”, “I WOULD MAKE MYSELF A PERFECT ZERO FIGURE”  and many more ( trust me, girls don’t miss a single chance to prove themselves SILLY). One of the toppers of the class suggested providing lunch to the poor children (TO MENTION-the children coming to our very own school for free education). That soon became the resolution of our whole class, and believe me, that CHARITY gave the best of the feel deep down the heart.

Coming back to the concerned topic, there are many resolutions one can take to make himself, his family, and even the entire city happier and a joy to live in 2012. To give a start, I can see almost all the youngsters, despite knowing about the disadvantages and the health issues that may arise in the future are addicted to consumption of drugs, liquor, and most of all, Hukkah. A local paper of Udaipur dated 21st December 2011, reads out that Udaipurites have resolved to fight against the consumption of anti-social consumables like Liquor, Cigarettes, Hukkah, etc, which is a statement of pride in itself. Surveys also state and swear that Hukka is being banned in Udaipur from the very first day of 2012 itself. With the rising drug addiction and high stream of money, it’s high time to make everyone aware about the pros and cons of these drugs.

With high number of poverty stuck illiterate people, it’s our responsibility to raise voice against expanding social issues like child marriage, female infanticide/feticide (Both are at its highest peak in Rajasthan). It is the duty of Youth to resolve to scrap out these problems as well as ameliorate them among the ignorant. This can be the next resolution in one’s life if someone really wants to help the society as well.

Huge numbers of accidents are taking place in the city because of rash driving. Recently the cover story in a local daily reported against a boy aged 16 years riding his bike at 120 plus kmph, and hitting a herd (group of cattle) that came on the same way. So everyone should resolve to prove to be good citizen and prove to be a better human. Let no animal be injured, but most important, be responsible while driving on the roads, as you are even responsible for the traffic that move around you.

Bringing the most important topic into concern and admiring my own city-the city of lakes. We all know its beauty has made it the favourite tourism spot in whole of the Rajasthan, and even the world. So, resolving to keep the city clean and being eco friendly will be a great contribution. It is in our hands to take Udaipur to a new height. There are many points one can just start up with. So Udaipurites- think innovative, give a chance to yourself, resolve high and achieve big.

For the cessation, I would just end up saying that do something which brings a positive alteration because WE, THE YOUTH CAN CREATE A DIFFERENCE 😀

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone in advance. 🙂

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Guest Article by: Geetanjali Khatri

Categories
News

Three Day National Seminar IPMC 2011 began yesterday

The 27th National Convention of Electronics and Communication Engineers and National Seminar on IP Multimedia Communications (NC-IPMC) 2011 began yesterday at the Institution of Engineers (India) centre at Sec. 11, Udaipur. This is being organized by the Institution of Engineers (India), under the aegis of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering Division Board in association with College of Technology and Engineering (CTAE), Techno India NJR Institute of Technology, Special Interest Groups-Wireless Networks (SIG-WN) and e-Agriculture, Computer Society of India (CSI), and with academic collaboration with the International Journal of Computer Applications (IJCA), Foundation of Computer Science, New York (USA) from 14th-16th Oct 2011.

In the inaugural ceremony of the conference, the welcome address was given by Dr. Y.C. Bhatt, where he welcomed all the eminent guests for their gracious presence at the IPMC-2011. Then, Dr. Dharm Singh informed about the National Convention.  He told that in total 91 papers were received for consideration and after reviews, 35 papers have been selected for the presentation in the conference. The presented papers will also be published with ICJA, USA.

Next to it, the guests of honor, as well as presiding chairman gave their thoughts about the importance of the conference, and role of student phase throughout one’s life. Later, Mr. P.N. Goswami gave a motivational speech, sharing his life experiences. After that, Prof. S.K. Mitra Memorial Lecture was given by Prof O.P.N. Calla. He emphasized on the use of microwaves, and explained its wide applications in many fields such as communication, industrial, medical, remote sensing, etc. Vote of thanks was given by Er. Syed Irshad Ali, later followed by sessions of paper presentations.

Given below is a glimpse of the event that took place yesterday. the conference will be continuing for 15th as well as 16th of October too.

Categories
Photos and Videos

[Pictures] Farewell to the Goddess with Invitation for the Next Year

Vijaya Dashmi is the tenth day from Navratri Sthapna. It is symbolized as the victory of good over evil, as Dusshera, when Ram won over Ravan and freed Seeta from Lanka. This day is also celebrated for Goddess Durga, who is worshipped during these nine days, is given a grand farewell by the devotees. Every year all the devotees of Goddess Durga become a part of grand procession, and with great enthusiasm, endeavor and devotion, the idols of the Goddess are immersed in water bodies.

Visarjan | Durga Pooja | UdaipurBlog.com

It is believed that during Navratri, Goddess Durga and her kids visit us, at her home, or Maayka from her in-law home place (Sasural), and goes back from our world to her Sasural on the 10th day. Hence on the 10th day, the procession is similar to any farewell celebrations which happen after all marriages. After the deity is immersed, people wish each other with the greetings of Vijaya Dashmi, and return to their homes.

This year, I became a part of the Vijaya Dashmi celebration at Bengali Kalibadi Society, Hiran Magri Sec. 4. I could see crowd gathering and everyone preparing for the farewell to the Goddess.Women were beautifully dressed in traditional white Sarees with red borders.  The ceremony was started by a ritual called Darpan Visarjan, followed by Sindur Khela, a ceremony only for women where they worship Goddess Durga, and then play with Sindoor. After that, the idols were loaded onto a truck, and the entire procession followed shouting slogans, with Dhols, Nagaadas, and huge amount of fireworks. Slowly and slowly the procession reached Swaroop Sagar, where keeping in mind the eco-friendly tradition,  the non-biodegradable/plastic items were stripped off the idols, and with full devotion the deity was immersed into water, with an invitation to shower the blessings on us and come again in the next year.

Check out the pictures of the event, captured by (in alphabetical order) Aniket John, Gaurav Bhattacharya, Mujtaba RG, Prasun Bannerjee, and Sanjay Das.

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Categories
Photos

Dusshera: Victory over the Evil symbolized at Gandhi Ground

The victory of good over evil was again symbolized at Gandhi Ground yesterday, where a huge crowd gathered in the evening to celebrate the moment. There were processions and events from the afternoon, which concluded with the entry of Ram, played by Mr. Vijay Kasturi, Lakshman played by Amit Khathuria, and Hanuman played by Kishor Lalwani entered the ground.

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The structures were standing tall at about 60 feet. There was a lot of effort done on the preparations. After the Tilak of Ram, the scene came into action with fireworks, and Hanuman set the Golden Lanka on Fire. Following this moment, Ram set the structures of Ravan, Meghnad, and Kumbhkaran on fire, with his fiery arrow. The awesome fireworks wowed the entire crowd present at the moment. The Chief guests present at the ceremony were Mrs. Rajni Dangi, Mr. Gulabchand Kataria, Dr. Girija Vyas, Mr. Raghuveer Meena, Mrs. Kiran Maheshwari, etc.

Ravan was burnt, but we all still have many evils around us, such as crime, illiteracy, poverty, etc, most prominent among them being corruption. With the burning Ravan, which symbolizes the evil, we just hope that the “trending” Ravans among us burn away from our society.

Check out the pictures below shot by Mujtaba RG

 

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Categories
Photos

[Pictures] Nine days of Navratri Finally Concluded with Zeal

Navratri means nine days of full fun, frolic, devotion, as well as enthusiasm. This year during Navratri, one had many options for enjoying the same with friends, family, or even alone. First of all, the rocking environment of Garba, or Dandiya shall not be forgotten. Huge populations have poured in huge amount of money for arranging passes and getting inside for enjoying the Garba. Here are few photographs of the Our Real Estate Dandiya Raas 2011 event by Mujtaba RG

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Other than the Garba, there was also the Durga Puja Celebration held by Bengali communities over different places in Udaipur. Devotees of Goddess Durga celebrated the Durga-ashtami on the 8th day of Navratri, majority of devotees observed fasts. The Bengalis worshipped the Goddess Durga at the Sandhi Puja with 108 lotus flowers and 108 lamps at late night, which is the Sandhi, or the joining period of the going 8th day, and the coming 9th day. The photos below show few of the rituals such as Sandhi Puja, Dhunuchi dance, etc. The Dhunuchi is a clay pot filled with burning incense; devotees of the Goddess Durga dance with these – hop across to the nearest Durga Puja pandal this evening, it’s breathtaking, and too much of fun as well. Photos are shot by Gaurav Bhattacharya, Mujtaba RG, and Prasun Bannerjee 😀

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Decoration and arrangement at Sutharwada

 

 

Cultural events being held at the pooja communities
Scene from Arti in the evening from Bindu Bhawan, Ashok Nagar
Devotees performing the Dhunuchi Dance

Categories
Social

Durga Pooja: Following an Eco-Friendly Tradition

We all see too many colorful idols around us at the time of Navratri, Ganesh Chaturthi, etc. But a really true fact behind all of them is the concern to our ecology. Now a day the idols are made from Plaster of Paris (PoP), which get a nice finish due to the easy and handy spray paint, distinct shine, and easy for mass productions, as the PoP rapid hardening material, as well as casted in moulds.

But an utter truth behind the scene is that the PoP idols do nothing but harm our environment and ecosystem. As after every festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, or the Durga Pooja, the idols are immersed in water body on the last day, Plaster of Paris does not dissolve easily in water and hence the idol floats on water after immersion. Since the idol is not immersed properly, in a way it amounts to dishonouring the deity. Talking about the health factors, PoP idols may take anywhere between several months to years to fully dissolve. In addition, when chemical paints are used to decorate the idols, these paints contain heavy metals such as mercury and lead, which seep into the water as the idol dissolves. Seems I need not elaborate more on the harm that it may cause to our health, as the same water is used for consuming by people of our city.

Durga Puja | UdaipurBlog
Idols being Prepared at Bang Samaj, Udaipur

The Bengali Community, sets forth an example of following a tradition from long time, which is eco-friendly and doesn’t harm the environment. The Bengalis celebrate the Durga Pooja primarily at four places in the city, which I have already mentioned in a post few days back. Special artists and sculptors are called every year from Kolkata, situated thousands of miles away, who spend many weeks in Udaipur, and create very beautiful idols of Goddess Durga with all the bio-degradable material like mud, chaff, jute, bamboos etc. Even the colours they use are water colours. So the water where the idol is immersed neither gets polluted nor it is an environmental hazard to immerse the idol in the lakes.

“I am indeed concerned for the safety of lakes. The idols made of PoP do not dissolve in water and thus pose serious problem for the lakes. Our family has been celebrating Duga Puja in this city more than five decades ago at Bindu Bhavan, but we follow the same traditions for rituals as well as preparation of idols, as was followed since 1956. The sculptors we call from West Bengal for the same purpose put in lots of efforts and spend a lot of time in carving out each and every minute detail of the idols, which is impossible to do with the PoP idols, as it hardens too fast. Hence mud is the primary constituent of the idols prepared. Putting this on record is essential, because every year the question comes up whether the idol should be allowed to be immersed in the lake or not.”

-Apurva Bhattacharya

Bindu Bhawan

 

“We have been celebrating Durga Pooja since past 20 years, and we have always been celebrating according to the traditions. It is always an idol made from mud which is worshipped, and we spend a major portion of our annual Pooja Budget for idols itself, to ensure that they are eco-friendly.  People must learn to preserve their environment, and shall take an oath to avoid immersing the idols made from PoP in our lakes. PoP idols must not be immersed, or shall be sprinkled with water and kept.”

-Dipankar Chakravarty

President, Bangali Kalibadi Society

We all must learn a lesson from the community, and must take considerable steps to preserve our environment. Afterall we never own our nature, but we owe it.

Categories
Festivals Photos

[Pictures] Durga Puja 2011: Celebration by the Bengali Community began today

Heartiest Greetings on the occasion of Navratri! Today is the 6th day of the Navratri, and as many of you all might know, the Bengali community begin their celebration of the year long awaited festival, Durga Pooja from today. In Udaipur, this occasion is being celebrated from more than 5 decades by the people from Bengali community who are proud residents of this wonderful City of Lakes.

I, being a Bengali, remain too excited for the arrival of the season throughout the year. And now when the season has arrived, the adrenaline rush is to the extreme, and so is the enthusiasm and happiness of all the Bengalis. The celebration will continue till the 9th day of Navratri, followed by Visarjan on the day of Dusshera, or Vijaya Dashmi.

For the first day, I bring you few clicks from the prime locations of celebration of Durga Pooja in Udaipur by the Bengali community. Every idol carved magnificently, every decoration was just spectacular. Do not miss to witness the culture and see the holy idols in the season of Navratri.  There’s still a lot more coming from your very own UdaipurBlog.com on the occasion of Navratri, so stay tuned.

I would also like to wish you on behalf of Team UdaipurBlog.com a very  ‘Happy Navratri‘ and may Goddess Durga shower her blessings on all of us 🙂

Pictures From Bang Samaj, Bhupalpura

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Pictures From Bindu Bhawan, Ashok Nagar

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Pictures From Swarnkar Samiti, Town Hall

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Pictures From Hiran Magri Sec. 4

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Categories
News Photos

Hello Udaipur: Says Chetan Bhagat

Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

As we informed you all that the most famous Indian authors among the youth, Mr. Chetan Bhagat is in Udaipur. His stellar education and diverse professional background makes him the ideal person to share his thoughts and experiences on topics such as leadership, passion, values, team building, motivation, achieving goals etc. Yesterday, on 1st Oct 2011 he was there to speak at the Gandhi Ground, where he spoke about his success story and delivered an inspiring motivational speech in front of the huge audience, most of which comprised of the students from Udaipur.

He spoke that most of us want to get success in our life, but we do realize in older ages that success is the not only requirement, but happiness is the utmost requirement one must earn from his life. Speaking about his story, he said that his efforts were constantly crushed by the publication houses, etc, when a time came that even his family lost belief in him. He said that one must always keep a faith on himself. One must try and try till the success is achieved.

He also said that a student can be comparatively more successful if he learns a few things.

  • English, for better language skills, as it is preferred worldwide
  • Good communication skills
  • Marketing
  • Finance

In the end he said that a person owes his society, his nation. Therefore, one must give a payback to the society, and contribute to it, for better development of tomorrow. It is not only our voluntary will but also our duty.

The entire evening was greatly inspiring. A number of guests were present at the moment, including Mr. Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar, Prof. I.V. Trivedi, Mr. R.S. Vyas, Mr. Rahul Agrawal, etc. As his new book, Revolution 2020 is rolling out by next week in the market, and is awaiting a launch, Team UdaipurBlog wishes him All the Best. May his book once again be a bestseller and rule the hearts worldwide.

Check out few snaps of the awesome evening by Mujtaba R.G. and Yash Sharma

Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

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Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

Chetan Bhagat in Udaipur

Categories
Events

The Grand Dandiya Competition at The Celebration Mall

Great Dandiya Celebration

Navratri season is approaching and so are the excitement of so many Udaipies. Many of you would like to join any grand dandia celebration in the city, and to show everyone your charm, caliber and talent. And if you think you are one of them, then you are reading exactly the right article. The Celebration Mall, Udaipur has planned a special Dandiya Competition to add more joy to your Navratri Celebration.

In this event you will get a chance to learn Dandiya/Garba on 24th-25th September, 2011. If you think you can use Dandiya as a prop, and yourself as the ultimate dancer then register yourself for ‘The Great Dandiya Competition’. The  auditions for the same will take place on 1-2Oct, 2011.

The Grand finale will be held on 5 Oct, 2011 and shall be Judged by Vishal Singh.

call 0294 6608801 or sms TCMU to 56677  to know more details about the competition. So what are you waiting for Udaipies! Join the ‘Celebration‘ and celebrate the season.

More Details:

Dandiya Competition Udaipur

Categories
Events Photos

BooOming Freshto: Freshers Party of Pacific Institute of Technology celebrated

Fresher’s party of Pacific Institute Of Technology, “BooOming Freshto” was held on the 6th of September, 2011. This welcome party was held in the PIT auditorium and was attended by the Fresher’s and the second year students along with the faculty members. The programme included a series of some outstanding singing and dance performances by the freshers, and a fantastic drama by Nishant and group of second year. The freshers walked on the ramp, introduced themselves and showed their talents in the four rounds of the FRESHER HUNT. Saif Ali Khan was selected as Mr. Fresher 2011 and Upasna Bhati as Ms.Fresher 2011 by the Jury Members. Director Sir Mr. R.K Aeron gave away the memento to the winners.

Here are few glimpses from of “BooOming Freshto” :-

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Pacific Freshers

Pacific Freshers

Pacific Freshers

Pacific Freshers

 A Post contributed by : Varun Dashora