VIZAG matters - Sohan Hatangadi's Blog

The attack on NGOs based on a mysterious report from the Intelligence Bureau (IB) which no one appears to have read, appears to be a case of intimidation sponsored by vested interests! Little bits of the "report" are being leaked into the media implying that NGOs are "anti development" and "anti national". That they get money from abroad with the intention of destroying our country!  This part about foreign funding is a sham because a respected NGOs gets funds legitimately through normal financial channels and provide full data to the government about their sources. In fact the banking formalities for NGOs is much more stringent than those imposed on business houses.  In sharp contrast several dubious corporations and politicians channel vast amounts of money into their coffers by dubious means. Isn't the mining industry getting any foreign funding? How else do you explain companies like "ANRAK" (RAK stands for  Ras Al Khaimah) - a mid...

Hi, This article appeared in the Times of India on 27th April 2014. Please read it and leave a comment. Who will you vote for? The enigmatic middle aged taxi driver had been driving me for the third day in a row. On the last day of my road trip we were headed home. It was late evening and not having anyone to talk to; I addressed the back of his head. I started by asking him who he would vote for. The highest bidder He said quite matter-of-factly that he would vote for the party that gave him the most money. All of the men and women in his village, in the outskirts of Vizag, voted for parties that paid them the most. In the 2009 Elections when the State assembly and Lok Sabha elections were held concurrently, he said, that the INC had given Rs. 800 per voting member. The PRP had paid Rs. 600 per member and the TDP had paid only Rs. 400 per member. The party representative had all come around in the night, spreading out furtively in the narrow lanes of his village, visitin...

Hi, Click this link to read my article in TOI Tourist's dream? or read the original text here: The other day my neighbor Ram dropped in for tea and as happens quite often now days the discussions meandered to the subject of tourism. As we know Vizag has the largest number of experts on the subject of tourism and I was not to be left behind. He bit into a crisp vegetable puff, brushed away the crumbs from his shirt, and asked: “If you were coming to Vizag on a short vacation, how would you imagine an ideal holiday here?” I examined the bottom of my empty tea cup thoughtfully and started narrating my ideal Vizag holiday experience. Our arrival I have heard that Vizag has improved dramatically for the tourist and with a long weekend coming up I decide to take a short holiday there with my wife. We fly into Vizag on a crisp October morning; as we look outside our aircraft window we marvel at how clean the port area looks, no more black and brown shades of coal and iron or...

Hi, Click the link or read the document below. Please leave a comment when you have finished. Brickbats and bouquets are both welcome. Visakhapatnam's cannabis connection The newspapers are full of it. Several times a month there is a story of excise officials seizing Ganja while being transported. The funny thing is that there are always a couple of tribals getting caught and two or three others including the driver conveniently getting away. We city folk know a part of the Ganja story from the media and social context. It is a drug that gives its users a “high”. It is grown in cooler areas in the hills and is smuggled into the cities and sold there for hefty profits. What is Ganja? The Indian word Ganja is known as Cannabis  or Marijuana. It is also referred casually as “grass”, “weed”, “hemp” and so on. It includes three species,   sativa ,   indica and   ruderalis . Now days several hybrids are also cultivated. It is a green leafy plant which grow...

Auto rickshaws I have been in Vizag since the time Rickshaws were moved on human pedal power. We bargained in fractions of a rupee and having sealed the deal we clambered – four into the rickshaw and perched our posteriors precariously on the contraption as it crawled (or whizzed) depending on the topography of the area, to our destination. The rickshaw man sweated and strained, alighting from the seat many times to pull the rickshaw. Some passengers, moved by his efforts, would get off and give the man a hand. (No, they did not walk alongside clapping – they pushed). It was terrible labour and due to Vizag’s steep slopes and extreme weather the job was made even more difficult. Auto rickshaw pullers were a tough breed with sinuous legs and weather beaten faces. They smoked Chuttas and abused most colorfully. They labored all day, brawled all evening over bottles of arrack. And after a frugal meal they slept deeply, curled up on their rickshaw seats. Late at night, below the...

Vizag’s tourism paradigm Over the last several months I have been travelling out of Vizag often. Each time I return I am glad to be back. Not only because I am coming home to family and friends but because I come home to Vizag; my stunningly beautiful city.    It is natural that the residents of the city to be proud of Vizag. And from this pride comes the tendency to show off the city to others. That is why we Vizagite say “We should develop Vizag into a tourist spot”. The rationale for wanting tourists is that: tourism brings in visitors who spend gobs of money here and generate employment that makes Vizagites rich . Notice how a subliminal pride of the city is rationalized into what appears to be a good reason. But what is the truth about tourism? While there are several different types of tourists let us examine a few main segments MONEY BAGS Indian & western The rich five star hotel and cruise liner type. Generally well-heeled, b...

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/visakhapatnam/Hic-Hic--Happy-New-Year/articleshow/28072606.cms Happy New Year Time of joy This is that part of the year when a spirit of bonhomie, geniality and general joie de vivre permeates the air. Not to mention the spirit of … well spirits … that permeates our veins and puts us all in a particularly amenable mood. With joyous shouts of “Happy New Year” we greet complete strangers startling them and prompting them to shout back “same to you, same to you”. Ah, I love this part of the year. Planning where to go This is also that part of the year when socialites make plans for 31 st night. The plans are generally kept fluid till a couple of days before New Year’s Eve. For those going to hotels it’s straight forward. Dress up – sit there – watch the canned entertainment – drink – eat – burp - slur – stagger and or drive back home and sleep it off. Those going to “Clubs” also have little to plan. Dress – take your seat – w...

Click on this link to see the article in the Times of India Kurupam market vanishes Vizag’s amazing vanishing act 28.11.13 Appeared in the Times of India on 1st December 2013 Sohan Hatangadi Now you see it … now you don’t One night last week, Vizag’s imposing century old lady; the “King Edward VII Market” locally known as the “Kurupam Market” was erased from the face of the Earth. Poof! Like a great magician’s illusion she was gone. Only problem is that unlike an illusion the market was not hidden under a trapdoor or behind a screen, or clouded by smoke and mirrors. It was gone for good! Gone As it was in its heydays The beginning of the end Distraction and disappearance Magicians do their tricks when the audience is distracted, and as Vizag’s population was distracted by cyclones and cricket, a big JCB trundled in like a Jurassic monster and ruthlessly brought the iconic building down in a cloud of dust. Then, just to make sure it there...

My article in the Times of India about the wanton destruction of a beautiful heritage building in Vizag, India

It is with great sadness that I inform you that our beloved and historic Kurupam Market gateway towers have been demolished by GVMC last week.  The market was donated by Raja Vyricherla Veerabhadra Raju of Kurupam to the then Vizagapatam Municipality on September 1, 1914, to commemorate the coronation of King Edward VII. As it was Going Gone I am told that a new building is planned there. Only two weeks ago INTACH had offered to provide expertise to restore the iconic clock tower arch way but it appears to have fallen on deaf ears. It is very unfortunate that this monument was brought down without public consultation. Our uncouth city administration has driven another dagger into our city's rich heritage. No doubt a  monstrosity  will come up at the spot. It will be typical of Vizag's public buildings, no dignity, no class. No doubt that our heritage will die a little more.  One wonders who these ruthless, insensitive and heartless people a...

Of Rockets & Rubbish The link to Times of India article  Of rockets, reptiles and rubbish Of scientific temperament and snake feeding On 5th March a rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre launching a robotic satellite on its 200-million-kilometre journey to Mars . When asked why a poor, low literacy nation should be going to space, the learned men said that it was to demonstrate our capabilities, fill our hearts with pride and most importantly inculcate a scientific temperament  among  Indians. Two days after that, on C.V. Raman’s birthday, thousands of educated Vizagites, got all dressed up and fanned out into the bushes to find ant hills to feed eggs and milk to snakes! Split personality This is the quintessential split personality of India. One set of people reaching for the stars (a planet really) and the other group visiting our friendly neighbourhood Cobra which - they imagine - waits, mouth open inside an ant hill, for e...