VIZAG matters - Sohan Hatangadi's Blog

Recently in the hills near Vizag, a Blue Mormon butterfly feasted on the nectar of hibiscus. It flitted from flower to flower drinking for an hour or so. The Hibiscus gave the butterfly its nectar and in return the butterfly carried out its pollination duties diligently. It drank so much I wondered how it could still fly. I was hoping I had a bigger camera at hand but I did not. The sight was so pretty that I had to record it. I gave it a go with my phone camera and it seems to have come out all right. Thankfully the butterfly was quite focused on its task and did not bother to fly away even when I crept closer. As I left, I contemplated whether I would see this fluttering nectar guzzler again the next morning. What was its life span, as a butterfly, I wondered. Anyway I was overjoyed to watch this elegant little creature and am glad to share this little footage with you. SOHAN HATANGADI VIZAG

Just had some fun as I sat in a verandah observing nature unfolding

Faith is important and celebrating festivals is a tradition that we all enjoy. We will certainly miss the atmosphere and beauty of decorated outdoor pandals this Ganesh Chaturthi because of COVID-19. #WHATWEWILLNOTMISS is the profusion of synthetic, lead based paint coated, plaster of Paris (POP) idols that will be dumped in our sea and water bodies. We will not miss the thousands of plastic bags and assorted rubbish washed up on our beach after the immersions. Too bad the idol crafting workers are still using POP. Too bad they use dangerous synthetic enamel paints. Too bad they did not shift to clay based idols and natural colours. Too bad that our local administration are not paying them a stipend to exit this highly polluting activity or encouraging migrating to clay. And worse still is the misplaced sympathy that the print press displays for these workers every year. Don't you have any sympathy for our local ecosystem, our beautiful beach and sea and for plane...

You may remember Amit Dasgupta , a former diplomat, who was in Vizag during 2015-18. His spouse Deepa Dasgupta served in Vizag as Chief Commissioner of Customs, and Central Excise. During his stay here and afterwards too, he was in great demand as a speaker. Every talk was riveting, informative and a pleasure to hear. Vizagites would eagerly attend each one of them and come back inspired. This book "Stories of human spirit" is edited and compiled by Amit. There is much to discover in the book and every story is thought provoking and enjoyable. My story, "Three Lockdown Lessons", is on page 106. Order your copy of the E-book today, it is guaranteed to lift anyone out of the lockdown blues in a jiffy. Happy reading!

We know where it is but where is the sign?

Andhra Pradesh is below the national average on the governance of the environment. Let us not ignore the decline. The government and the citizens must be aware and vocal about protecting our environment.