Veez Global Illustrated English Weekly e-Magazine. Published from Chicago, USA.

Thrilling Emcee of Mangaluru

Komal Jenifer DSouza

1. Background, schooling and what went intoshapingme. Born, brought up and schooled in the picturesque village of Kallianpur, I come from a middle class family – both, paternal and maternal side. To begin with, I wouldn’t trade my hometown or school for the world because these two elements along with the unending support of the family has shaped me to be what I am today.

Among all the memories growing up, the fondest of all are my times with “Maai” my late maternal grandma. She was the best cook, the best grandparent, and the most loving and purest soul I have ever come across. After my early education at Milagres School, Kallianpur, I completed my Pre University and B. Com at Milagres college, Kallianpur. My school bringsbackfondmemoriesof12

incredible years tugging at the loving helm of Sr. Juliana Mary and allthewarm teachers. Although not

the brightest in class, my mother always made sure I participated in all the competitions in school ranging from essay to elocution, debatestosports.Withthedepthof

exposure to everything, I realized that sports and mathematics were not my cup of tea. After my 10th, commerce was my call and post completion of B. Com having debated between moving overseas for higher studies and staying back, amid raised eyebrows and frowns from many – I decided to shift my focus to MAHE, Manipal where I completed my Masters in Logistics and Supply Chain a decision that was set to change the course of my lifeforever.

Immediatelyafterthecompletionof my masters, I joined MAHE as a facultyandworkedtherefor3years. While in my masters, I knew what I wanted to do next – A Ph.D. And that is exactly what I went for after quitting my job and in 2021, enrolled as a full time scholar at MAHE. It certainly has been a journey with lots of ups and down, sleepless nights and long days, tiny triumphs,andgoodtimes. MyPh.D. is in Sustainable Agri Tourism, an areaIhavebeenfascinatedwithand passionateabout.

2. AlittleaboutTheShoeHostess I have always been a talker. In schoolandathome.Atschool,Iwas either the MC for most events or I

wouldwritescriptsforothers.Itwas when I was in my 11th that my paternal twin uncles (baple) asked me to master their sons’ cradling ceremony. Although a little nervous andskepticatfirst,Ibattledmyfear of hosting the first ever event in Konkani,wrotethescriptfromword to word and did the best I could. Everyoneseemedproudandhappy. The next event again was at home when my godfather (also mavlo) askedmetohosthishousewarming ceremony. This time, I did not think twice. And from then on, there was no stopping. I moved from my family functions to church events, events within my friend’s circle to strangersapproachingmewiththeir event enquiries. My wobbly journey started in 2011. And since then, I have learnt from every event and grown beyond imagination. And somewhere during this phase, Komal Jenifer DSouza became The Shoe Hostess. The Shoe Hostess because I don sneakers for events nomattertheoutfit.FromSareesto gownsanddressestoskirts.

3. More about Daijiworld, the journey, support, andmore. I was in the kitchen with the family, ready to have dinner, when my

phonerangaround8o’clock.Turns out I was talking to a person whose name I read on most programs I watched on Daijiworld Mr. Stany Bela. Hewasdirect in askingifI was willing to host a television program forthechannelandwithoutmissing abeatIsaidYes.FromhostingDuet Singing Stars to Jigibigi Taram, I have come a long way and if my Konkani sounds any better than it did 2 years back, the credit goes to this phase of my life. It is overwhelming when guests at any oftheeventsIhost,tellmethatthey watchmeonTVandthattheyenjoy watching the shows. The love, appreciation, and affection I have received till date from viewers is incredible. None of this would materialize without the caller from that day Stany Sir, who transformed as my mentor, critic, andconstantmotivator.

4. Challengesandfuture. Over the years, I realized that knowledge and education is somethingthatcanneverdriftaway fromme,andIcanberootedtothis part of my life only through the art of teaching and academics. In the long, run, I plan on building my profile as a good researcher and an

even better teacher. Parallel to this, I don’t see why I should not continue to hone my talents as The ShoeHostessbecausethatverypart of me has taken me places, made me confident, helped me achieve my dreams as an independent woman, and made my family, especiallymymother – proud. Thislifehascomewithitsownsetof sacrifices. I don’t remember the last time I went on a long vacation or enjoyed a relaxed weekend. Some days are so busy that I and my mother get too see each other for about 30 minutes before I leave for work and come back home during the dead of the night. I have probablynotlivedmy20’slikemost myage,butIhavealsolivedmy20’s like most people my age haven’t. I would be lying if I said that this life is the best because honestly, sometimes I wish the hustle would not have to be so hard. But then I wonder if I would ever be able to unleash my potential if it wasn’t for hustle.Iwouldn’tbelookingbackat my accomplishments with a smile on myfaceanda twinkle in myeye. Some days are hard but what is life without afewhiccups. 5. Mybiggest support.

Needless to say, it has always been my mother. She is not kindthe who would show visible signs of affectionorbevocalaboutlove,but she has her own ways of telling me thatshewillalwayshavemyback. It isfromherthatIlearnttoignorethe stereotypes and be my own self. As a single parent, she has been my loudest motivator without ever actually uttering a word from the stands. Additionally, it has been my circle of friends, my extended family, people who have seen me hostorheardaboutme,fellowMCs, DJs, event planners, musicians and so many others who have pushed me beyond my limits and encouraged me to touch the skies. It is also them who keep me grounded. Andforallthat everyone has ever done, be it big or small, I am forevergratefultoall.

KomalJeniferD'Souza

FatherAndMother,ILoveYou.Take the initials of every word, you have FAMILY! There is a father, for sure there is the mother, and the child too. The question that nags is, where is love? Buried deep down into the sands of time? Maybe. Shoved away by more important matters like work, kitty parties, virtualworld, peergroup?That’sfor you toanswer.

Joint families are now a history that tothemostwillbeembodiedonthe lips of our grandparents, in social science textbooks, debates, statistics, articles, maximised to a bunch of a very few joint families scattered like dots in the universe. Theseveryjointfamilieswherethere were at least twelve to fifteen members that could go up to even fifty or more where there was love pouring out of the brim, share no matterhowbigtheplatterand how meagre the food, care to wipe off even a small trickle of tear, quarrels that ushered them more closer

tightening the bond, laughter that echoed across the hallway and into the kitchen where food smelled as heavenlyasmudfrom thefirst rains with platters making noises terribly loud yet joyous, children shouting and playing with falls and cries in thecourtyard.

As time ticked on, families started breaking down into half of what they used to be before further breaking down into a family of just the kids and the parents whereas now what we get to see is just one kid and the parents. Here is where the kid drifts away into just another world while the parents are busy planning a ‘secure future’ for their ‘only’ child. Amidst all this, all the child lacks is personal attention, personal care while love gushes out in theform ofhigh endcellphones, laptops, PS’s, cool outfits, more than required pocket money, unquestionedfreedom whichat the end of the day leads towards nothingbut doom.

The fact remains that even today but limited to very little, we do get to see closely bonded families where the child still loves to be

cuddled by daddy on his lap, where the child loves to talk endlessly to mommy about all the things that happened in school, the fights, the moments light, the teacher’s scowls while the children hooted and howled, where the child still wants to snuggle into bed with mom and dadoneithersides,wheretelevision seems to have taken a quiet and isolated spot in some corner of the house flickering once in a while if daddywantstowatchsomenewsor mommysomecookeriesasthelittle onecomesbyonceawhiletowatch ‘my’favouritecartoonbecausemost ofthetimehe/sheisalwaysbasking in sun playing with ‘my’ neighbour friends or doing homework. No matter what, but always busy. If nothing,gopestermommy.Lifecan often be beautiful if you want to makeit so, seeit so, feelit so.

Then why? Why is that the families are splitting up like molecules and atoms,whyisthatthechildnomore careswhat’shappeningintheworld outthereforitissoimmersedinthe virtual world that it is hard to shake it awake from its disastrous sleep, why is that despite having all the money and luxuries of life there

seems to be no peace of mind or words kind? The answer lies within us if for a moment we are ready to steal time and peep into our own lives,ponderoveritandmakesense of what’s happening and where it is leading to. The spouse has no time for the other, the child has no time toevensayhi totheparent, wetalk to people across the globe yet do notknowwholivesnextdoor,there is skype and facebook with people from schoolwhomwetag‘buddies’ n ‘dudes’ but walk by the same ‘virtual peer’ without a hi now isn’t that rude? But they say it’s cool. I wonder, ‘what fools.’

As the past cherishes its good ole’ days, it sits away in a corner with lines of worries on its forehead as it imagines the near future of what it might turn into as it looks from close fractions at the present with things in such disarray muddled with artificiality from top to toe except for a few trails of realism on the sands by the beach, which, catastrophically are already fading away as soft waves of destruction peddle steadily up the shore line whileitsmilesatuswickedlycasting itsspellontheworldjustlikecancer.

As the adage goes, prevention is betterthan cure, I addup, thistime it’syourfamily, donotget lured.

Dementia& Alzheimer's Celebration2022

-IvanSaldanha-Shet.

September 21 is observed actively as the "World Alzheimer's Day 2022” after a lull of two years, the awareness and highlights are on going and being reported from all parts of the world, in India too it is active. InMangaloreandthisregion particularly, it is noteworthy that this vital awareness is being celebrated in its own articulate manner. Today, Friday September 23, 2022, a full-fledged forenoon programme was held at the city’s premier 'Town Hall' with many elderlies presents to celebrate and

causeawarenessamongallsections ofsociety.

Thisprogrammewasorchestrated by 'PAGE People's Association for Geriatric Empowerment'. This is a conglomerate of many divergent organisations to make a 'difference to the lives of elders'. To enrich the natural ageing process a wide cross section of elders and youth, togetherasonebodyandmindand a tremendous effort and force emerges in society. PAGE is people joining together to make 'Namma

Mangaluru'Dementiafreeandelder friendly. The key persons in this effort currently Mr. Jerardin D'Souza, Dr. Prabha Adhikari, Mr. Mohan Raj, there have been many generous, kind and active institutions, groups and people in this effort consistently and all of them are to be remembered and admired now and in the future. At this juncture it is apt to recall the late Ms. Olinda Periera who has been the backbone of the yeoman efforts to uplift the elders and sick in thecity.

thelargegatheringat 'TownHall'in the heart of Mangaluru generated. Amongthosepresentonthedaisat a virtual symposium apart from the three trustees of PAGE named above were dignitaries Sri. Sashi Kumar IPS, Fr. Richard Coelho, director Fr. Muller's, Dr. Vijaya Kumar Vice Chancellor Yenepoya deemed uni., Dr. B Unnikrishnan Dean KMC, Dr. Kishore Kumar District health Officer and several other extempore invitees who shared their experiences and made suggestions. After the lighting of the ceremonial lamp there was a very well chalked out programme by various groups of 'Caregivers’, ‘Senior Citizens', Students' and 'Institutions. This was indeed an exercise which brought out a lot of useful information and a roadmap for the immediate future mitigation of this traumatising age related illness.

At this celebration of the aged several knowledgeable professionals shared their expertise on "Dementia & Alzheimer's" that

September is a month dedicated to awareness about one of the devastating forms of Dementia, caused by Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Named after Dr Alois Alzheimer, to document it. AD is progressive and irreversible because symptoms worsen over time and correction is not known. Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a neuro-degenerative condition which gradually damages brain cells causing problems in memory and thinking. It has been estimatedthatmorethan50million people are diagnosed with AD worldwide and it is the most common cause of Dementia accounting for 60 70% of all dementia cases. The gist of the disease and discussions can be summarized in the following information:

Memory Chaos: in memory are the earlysymptomsofADwithdifficulty registering/recalling new information, forgetting recent events and conversations. Short

term and immediate memory are thefirsttobeaffected.Thismemory loss often results in arguments with familyasthepersonmayaccusethe loved ones of not feeding them, stealing their valuables and so on. The disease progresses, and severe memory impairment with problems to carry out simple daily tasks or recognize loved one’s results commonly. People with AD may move aimlessly, get lost in familiar surroundings, or forget where common things are. They may wanderawayfromhomeandnotbe able to find the way back. The family/caregivershavetobe alerted allthetimeastherisksaregreat.

Duetoalterationsofthebrainzones which are directly responsible for thoughtprocessing,peoplewithAD have difficulty finding words to identify things, and converse. They have difficulty with numbers and finditchallengingtohandlemoney,

pay bills. Everyday tasks like turning off the stove, dressing, bathing, or grooming may not be handled.Becauseoftheirinabilityto communicate with clarity, family/caregivers' efforts to understand what they wantwhether they are hungry, thirsty, wanttousethewashroomorifthey areinpainandrespondaccordingly isachallenge.

Behavioral and personality issues develop in AD (Alzhimer's Disease) patients. Temporal lobe involvement leads to emotional reactions like anxiety, sadness, and apathy, lack of trust, anger, and aggression.“SundownSyndrome”is seen, they are more agitated and irritable after the sun goes down, i.e., in the late evening hours. Their sleep patterns drastically alter; they want to sleep during the day and

keep awake at night, confusing the circadianclock.Psychoticsymptoms likedelusionsaresometimesseenin people during the later stages of AD. They may accuse loved ones/caregivers of poisoning their food, stealing their valuables, plotting to harm them and so on. The persecutory content of their thought processes may mislead others into believing the accusations if they are unfamiliar with the symptoms. Hoarding paper cuttings, fruit peels, match sticks or other junk and treating them as items of immense value is seen in some. When family caregivers take them away, they becomeveryagitatedoraggressive. Onrareoccasionstheymaybecome violentifothersdonotgowiththeir thinking and argue otherwise. Sometimes it is best to leave them alone and not monitor every move of theirs if they do not harm themselves or others. Losing their inhibitions, undressing in public, urinating, ordefecatingin theliving room are noticed in the advanced stagesofAD.

Improving the quality of life, with Dancing, singing, playing an instrument, handicrafts, reminiscing (tellingstories)aresomeoftheskills which are preserved for a longer time and by keeping the person with AD engaged and cognitively occupied,itispossibletoslowdown cognitive decline to a great extent. Researchevidencesuggeststhatthe above mentioned skills are controlled by parts of the brain which are not affected by Alzheimer’s Disease for a longer time.

What can family and caregivers do? Caring for a person with AD is a challenge indeed, can be quite foxing. Each day poses new challenges as the disease progresses. Each person is unique, and the families must learn to deal with new options every day. Few

generalguidingpointstobekeptin mind are: • Place personal belongingsvisiblesotheycaneasily be found. • Keep emergency contact numbers on them so someone can contact you if they wander away. Identity cards, Bracelets with phone numbers etched on them also help. • Keep medications out of their reach to prevent overdosing by mistake. • Calendars, clocks must be on hand so by themselves they can find out what time/day/month it is. If they think it is Monday, and you know it is not, don't insist they are wrong. Don’t force yourself to prove you’re right and they are wrong. • Most peoplewith ADhaveproblemswith balance. Comfortablefootwearwith goodtractionwillhelpinmobility. • Remove excess furniture, clutter from therooms, too much furniture can be confusing. Rearranging furniturecouldbeveryconfusingso trytoavoidit. •Handrailsareuseful in corridors and bathrooms. Bath time is sometimes a challenge, and it is important to schedule a bath accordingtoconveniencenotyours.

Doitwhentheyareinabetterframe of mind. • Removemirrors from the roomsastheimagesaresometimes frightening to them. • Finally, do not ask them repeatedly if they know who you are and what your relationshipwiththepersonis.They have dementia, you don’t have to prove.

Some vital points to note: The causes of mental confusion in the elderly, are not usually “Tumors in the head" nor early signs of Alzhimer's.Thethreemostcommon causes: uncontrolled diabetes. urinary infection. dehydration. When no one is around to remind theagedtodrinkfluids,theyquickly dehydrate. Dehydration is serious and affects the entire body. It may cause abrupt mental confusion, a drop in blood pressure, increased heart palpitations, angina (chest pain), coma and even death. This habit of forgetting to drink fluids,

beginsatage60,whenwehavejust over 50% of the water we should have in our bodies. People over 60 have a lower water reserve. This is part of the natural aging process. But there are more complications. Although they are dehydrated, they don't feel like drinking water, because their internal balance mechanisms don't work very well. People over 60 years old dehydrate easily, not onlybecausetheyhavea smaller water supply; but also, becausetheydonot feelthelack of waterinthebody. Althoughpeople over 60 may look healthy, the performance of reactions and chemical functions can damage their entire body. Declining brain health is not a compulsory part of aging, recent studies show that dementia cases can be linked to 12 lifestyle factors mostly within our control: Physical inactivity, Alcohol consumption, Obesity, Smoking, Hypertension, diabetes, Depression, brain trauma, Hearing loss, social isolation, Air Pollution, self education.

Finally,notethateveninthecaseof

Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away just weeks ago at 96yrs; experts say loneliness and heartache may have contributed to the Queen’s declining health, apart from age. GP Dr Deb Cohen Jones explained, it’s more about “losing yourwillthanitisaboutyourhealth, in some ways”. “From a physiological point of view, the loss of Prince Philip would have caused her severe stress, peaked her cortisol levels, and left her body to deal with that.” Meanwhile, heart surgeon NikkiStampsaidthedeath

of a spouse can trigger a stress related “chain reaction” that can lead to declining health. Royal commentator Angela Levin posed a questiontoTwitter. “Whatweknow isthatforsomepeoplethestress of losing a loved one, or any kind of stressful event in your life, does precipitate a whole bunch of reactions in the physical body as well as in your mind that can cause disease and sometimes cause someone to pass away, it’s certainly something that we’re discovering moreandmorelately.” So, withthe rising population of the aged and higher life expectancy due to advancementofscience,thepeople must take mental well being grasped in both hands and rise to make life a better routine from day to day in the future without undue tensions and frustrations for happiness, joy, and peace as life's sunsets.

ATributetoGEM

Diaspora-Pioneers

PhilomenaLawrenceandGilbert Lawrence,

Authors:InsightsintoColonial Goa,

Published viaAmazonin paperbackand e-book. x11”is330 e-book is635pages InsightsintoColonial Goa

The stories of the Silent and Depression era Generations

those who were born in the early 20thcentury(1901-1927)--needto bepublicizedfortheirhistoricaland inspiring value. These age groups were set in motion by the Lost Generation (1883 1900). The recent demiseofQueenElizabethIIisasad reminder that many of her age cohorts have passed away, and so thenarrativealsoservesasatribute to these forward-thinking people whoestablishedstrongfoundations forfuturegenerations.Thisarticle is not designed to write the story of the GEM diaspora pioneers but to

fill in some missing pieces and highlight some features from which we could learn important lessons. That illustrious generation succeededinbreakingtherulesand achieved much more than they aspiredto.

Background to Immigration

It is fitting that Goan, East Indian, and Mangalorean (GEM) members of the Silent Generation and their progeny, referred to as the Great Generation, are honored as Diaspora Pioneers. In Europe, many ofthemfought inWorldWarII; and in theWest, and in the Asian subcontinent, they participated in the Quit India Movement. Later in the West and India, they were great role models for the Baby Boomers (post World War II cohorts). As parents and grandparents, they made their dreams and bold ideas a reality for themselves and their children, who faced life’s challenges with a similar positive, can do attitude. From our perspective, those generations spearheaded the blossoming of the worldwide GEM diaspora. Like the men at Normandy Beach, these innovators established a

beachhead, a stronghold on which many of us have relied or soared from.

With limited job openings in Overseas Territories (OT) of the Portuguese Empire, which traditionally went to those fluent in the Portuguese language and colonials who lived the life of privilege, many natives opted to venture into the unknown in search of a better economic life. From the dawn of the 20th century, the forerunnersofthediasporabecame trailblazers, rule breakers, and progress-makers, who aimed to get ahead in a highly competitive environment. These émigrés were oftentimes the sole breadwinners for their families. Many were the second sons in their respective families, had no progenitor status and were always in the shadow of their older brothers. The families themselves were conservative and came from modest homes. In the case of my father, who lost his dad atage9 years;hisprogenitorstatus earned him the family debt and the careofhismotherandtwoyounger sisters. He likely was not an exception in Goa and other OTs of

1910s. He made his way to Bombay by boat in the 1930s as a teenager, hoping to support the rest of his family armed with a high school degreeanda short stint teachingat MontedeGuirimhigh.Thewordfor my father and other boys from Bardezwas"go"eveniftheydidnot know where they were going and where they would end up landing. My maternal grandfather from Salcete came to Bombay by train in the 1915s with ten Rupees in his pocket, which he parlayed into Excelsior Trading Company (import business) with HQ in Bombay and a branch in Calcutta. The émigrés bravely penned cheerful letters to folks back home, but the loneliness theyfacedcannotbedisputed.They took a giant leap of faith, and after arriving in a “foreign land,” they were forced to rapidly adjust to the newmilieu. It wasachoicebetween swimming and sinking. During the transit, every émigré made himself over; by the time he settled in the new land, he became a new man. Before leaving the OT, he/ she lacked the zest for savvy competition, which they soon acquired on landing their first 9 5 job.

FactorsleadingtoEmigration

The early part of colonialism brought forth (imposed) land hungry men, who arrived in droves. The OTs of the empire were prey to foreign settlers as the king conferredlandgrantstohissoldiers, knights, and bureaucrats. The new landlords were not bound by tradition; their approach to agriculture was dynamic. They introduced more commercialized agricultural methods such as crop selection and rotation, as well as efficient husbandry. In addition, the government encouraged urban development and road building, which felicitated the arrival of merchants, artisans, and other craftsmen. The adoption of “scientificagriculture”ledtoarising middleclass.Increasedexportsfrom OT meant an expanding native commercial economy and more money in circulation, which in turn, increased employment opportunities and purchasing power. Initially, there was territorial fragmentation, political disunity, and the lack of either economic or political cohesion. The governor and his junta were concerned with more pressing problems, including

the very survival of the OTs, who were threatened by various native and other colonial powers. In addition, religious, economic, colonial (military and bureaucracy), and cultural segregation were practiced. Social practices were parochial rather than dictated by established laws and directed socioeconomic and political relationships.

The native economy was largely agricultural and subsistence oriented; the farmers faced poverty as the land yielded only one annual crop; that, too, was weather dependent. Prayers were routinely offered to keep plant or grain diseases at bay and “save the harvest.” The economy and religion fed into the in built fatalism, which dominated an agricultural society and sporadically resurfaced, depending on the circumstances. Sometimes,thesesituationsbeyond the farmer’s control, served as excusestolamentandremaininthe OT. The lack of an inheritance almost always resulted in a loss in social status. Laws, religious doctrines, and proverbs provided unalterable wisdom and governed

rules of behavior. In addition, coercionsinsomeformortheother werethenorm. Strict complex and rigid social stratification based on caste and traditional occupation as well as property holdings defined an individual’s and family’s status. Hence family membership was crucial, and knowledge of family genealogy was essential to prove privilege and lineage. The preeminence of family, which was authoritarian and patriarchal, diminished the importance of the individual. The weight of custom was paramount. As one would expect, the guardians of the archaic social structure (aka caste) were members of the upper strata. They maintainedandenforcedstrictrules and distinctions, which, with the passage of time (centuries), had decreasing relevance to social reality. Religion, education, economic success, and migration (internal or external) hastened the demise of the antiquated social strata. The new religion had little impact on the well preserved caste system, which made the residents “imperfect Christians”at best.

Wars, civil strife within the local population, epidemics, and poor harvests decimated the colonizers, and despite laws to proscribe and restrict native influence, they were of little avail. Given the distance from Europe and the disinterest of the royal court (located in Portugal or Brazil), the colonizers were assimilated into the native population after a few generations. They adopted the local language, laws, and customs. Inter marriage was common, spurred by government incentives. Economic development brought relative prosperity to some classes of natives, enabling them to enjoy unprecedented prosperity and presentedopportunitiesforupward mobilityandmaterialcomforts.Asa result of the 19th century Industrial Revolution, work, commerce, and competition had become central values. However, the uneven distribution of job prospects and economic security left emigration within the Indian subcontinent or overseas as the only option for the majority of the impoverished native population extending into the 19th andearly20th centuries.

Most natives lived in the same mannerastheirancestorshaddone foreons. Theywerepart ofthejoint family system, which was economically based on woefully inefficient subsistence farming as well as the barter system for goods and services. Initially, commercializationanditsdisruptive effectson societywere positive. But as agricultural land was diverted towards cash (exportable) crops, there was less land available for the growing of staples, including rice. Famine and epidemics occurred frequently due to bad weather or plant disease. Understandably, the farmers experienced a brew of conflicting emotions. This was certainly not peculiar to GEM émigrés. Similar stories have applied to all migrants worldwide since timeimmemorial.

Upward mobility was possible but uncommon without an education. Cohesion between the different castes was largely nominal and ceremonial. Despite proclamations from Lisbon, voting rights and employment in offices were reserved for the upper and middle

classes (most whites and mestizos). Thenatives,ontheotherhand,lived in perilousfinancialconditions. One thing was certain: these early GEM diaspora pioneers were not driven by wanderlust; their impetus to emigrate was purely a matter of economicsurvival. Asaresult ofthe population explosion, the poor became poorer, and the land they owned decreased in size as properties were divided between family members. Life was, at best, hard. The untenable economic circumstanceshadforcedpeopleto leave. Their dire situation matched thegreatriskstheytooktotravelvia anuncleartransportation routetoa newplacewith neitherjobnor support system in place.

There was no industrialization to speak of, except for mining. Even in the larger GEM towns, there was little urbanization. The Industrial Revolution never reached the OTs, so there was no urban growth to attract rural migrants. In the 20th century,OTnativeswerechildrenof the soil, sons and daughters of farmers, fisher folks, and artisans. Fortunately, they were not directly affected by the Wall Street crash of

October 1929, or the Depression experiencedbytheWest.Bythelate 20th century, emigration was a permanent institution, and many left eagerly without protest or regret. By age15, the GEMs were getting the Bombay Bug, an appetite for Africa, a passion for Karachi and other cities in colonial India, or fervor for Rangoon. Most GEMs had barely more than life’s necessities; and for many, emigrating was the equivalent of economic exile. These people served as ayahs, butlers, and cooks, (ABC), aswellastailors, waiters, and washer men who worked on land and at sea. They went abroad because they had nothing to begin with and nothing to lose. Relocation was an “escape” for individuals,theirfamilies,fortheOT, and the state. Those left behind were the economically stable workers, who were fortunate enough tobeself employedmostly in a family run business, or those working for the government, or in related secure service jobs aka empregado. The rest of the population included those who lackedmoney, skill, orambition. next week)

It’s not Your Fault

-Sonal Lobo,Bengaluru

Silently when thenightturnsdark,shegazes thoughthesky andbegins tosearch.

Her eyesrollupanddownandpeoplebegin towonderwhy, Afterabriefmomentofsilence,they realize It’s herlittleBabe intheskyshelooks for. The onewhobarelysurvived inher wombformonths, Butwillremainin thecornerofher heartforever.

Shewipeshertearsandsmilesandsitswithherfamilyandlooksallfine. They knewitwas hardforherandbegintomurmur, WhyGodWhy? When days drift into months, her heartbegins to settleand sodoes her mind.

Shebegins togather thebrokenpieces And takeastep tostrideahead.

Onceagainthereis laughterandfun There is joy but, in her heart,somewhere she struggled withtheburden ofguiltandponderedWhy? Wasshenotgoodenoughto carry herbabe,

Whendidshesawothermotherscarryingaroundtheirchildrenproudly?

Months passed into years and once again her heart yearned for a little babe.

And asananswer to herprayer

Her womb wasblessedagain. She was excitedandhappy,sowas herspouseandfamily

As wordsof cautionbegantoflowfromeverywhere, She minded her thoughts and words and decided for this little one she wouldgive herbest.

Monthsbegantopass,andherhopesswelled She knewthis timeit wasallwell

She began to dream about the days ahead and could not wait to hold her littleone inherarms

Everydayshe whisperedaprayer

Then likeablastoftornado

Herstomachbegan toswirl Andshe criedaloudinpain

And within afew hoursonceagain her littleonewasdead.

Her worldcamecrashingdownandso were hersenses Shebegantowonder whatshehaddonetodeservethis. Was it allherfault?

Two ofherlittlebabies hadbiddengoodbyeevenbeforeagentle hello. She couldnotevenholdtheminherarms Orproudlyspell outtheirnames.

She thought itwas theendandshe longedfornonewbeginning.

Familystoodby her And herhusbandgently cared. Butwho couldheal thebruises in her heart and thehopeshe had lost?

Slowlypeoplebegantopointfingers Andsomeoftheirwords were louder thanthe thunder. Day andnight,shecriedandwonderedwhy?

She looked for comfort in different ways, but alas the pain in her heart wasspread. Nearanddearones saiditwasjustafetus Butsheknewthey weremore thanpartofheruterus.

Shebegantoseekthe Almightyandbegantolookaround And that’s whensherealizedno,shewasnotthe onlyone She began to understand many around her had lost their little ones in the womb Butchosetoremainquietandswallowthepain. That’s whenshe realizedstayingquietwasnoone’sgain. Because itwasnevertheir fault.

She combed herhair and washed herface She kneltdown and soughtGod’sgrace. Andsteppedoutside withfaith.

Miscarrying wasnotherchoice Butit waspartof thedevil’splan. Blaming herself woulddonogood

Andshedecidedtofaceit.

Shespoke loudlyaboutlosingherbabe And toldthe worldshe wasstilla mom

No matter themonthsshe carried her babiesin her womb She wasstillprivilegedtocarryand lovethem.

Shedecidedtolive again,withjoy and hope. SheknewherGodwasallpowerfulandonedayherhomeandherheart wouldbefull.

Her tearsshe wipedforever To herdespairshebidfarewell Withfriends andfamily,shebegan to mingle And hersmilebegantosparkle.

She knewitwasnotthe end

Anddecidedtoenteranewdoor

She knewbeinga mother hadnothing todowithwhatisseen Butwasabout whatisfelt

Todaysheliveswithhopeandfaith Hopefor abeautifulfuture ahead. Shestandsbythose whohavegonethroughherpain Andshowsthemit’snot theend.

Onceinawhileshestillslooksup atthesky Plants invisiblekissesonthe cheeks of her littleboys Andsmileswithtearsinhereyes. Hopingtomeet themoneday And holdthemtight

The Wily Master

Stealthily and silently sneaks into your brains Breaking into your memory bank and draining everything within Leaving one confused and lost in a world so new No clue as to who is family or who it is my foe

Please don't get upset with me if i don't respond on time trying hard but there's no foothold to find Out of this mire and void so bleek wherein I'm trapped Searching to find a spark in this dark to show me some light

I'm more confused than you my friend You know me but i have no clue to who i am Trying hard to hold fast to duties and obligations Every day a new adventure finding my feet an arduous exploit

The author Ms. Molly M

Pinto: Socially concerned personality of Mangaluru. With a God given poetic license and working on several humane activities - She is clear on love for country, nature, and animals. Her poems with accompanying pictures which she does herself reflect a depth of purpose and service.

Forum’sNational Convention callsfor Radical Discipleship

The ‘Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace’ held its XVII National Convention at the Montfort Social Institute, Hyderabad, Telangana from 22 to 24 September 2022. The theme of the Convention was “Deepening our Identity as Religious: Responding to the SignsoftheTimes”. More than sixty women and men Religious, from sixteen States and representing twenty Religious Congregations participated in the Convention. At the Inaugural Programme, Sr. M. Nirmalini A.C., the National

President of the Conference of Religious India (CRI) and the Superior General of the Apostolic Carmel Congregation gave the keynote address on the theme of theConvention.Settingthetonefor the Convention Sr Nirmalini’s address was insightful and

challenging, calling upon the participants to respond to the signs ofthetimesthroughadeepeningof one’s spirituality beginning with self transformation. She said, “we needtogoonaninnerjourneyto rediscoverinteriorityandcapacity toappreciatewhatisimportantand toliveitwithpassion,enthusiasm, andenergy.Eachofuswillhaveto go through a personal transformationandthisisnotmagic butaslowintentionalprocess.We willbeaskedtoshift,adapt,change, andliveintothefuturethatwillnot lookthesameasweseeitnow.This processisagiftfromGod,andwe must beopenbydeepeningour prayer,listeninganddiscerningand practicingradicalavailabilitytothe signsofthetimes”

exhorted them to continue playing a prophetic role in the Church. ReferringtoPopeFrancis’homilyon the Good Samaritan, he said that many in the Church today put the emphasis on the ‘cultic’ and conveniently forget about being ‘prophetic’. He appreciated the significant role that the participants play for the cause of justice in the Church andin theCountrytoday.

Earlier, Buddhist monk Tashi Chodup, led the assembly in a meditation. The National Convener oftheForum,SrDorothyFernandes welcomed the dignitaries (which alsoincludedafewlocalProvincials) and the participants. Br Varghese Theckanath SG, the host as Director of the MSI and a veteran of the Forum traced the history of the Forum since its inception and explained the dynamics of the Convention. The other highlights of the Inaugural Session included the release of a booklet ‘The Kuravilangad Case: A Critical Study’ which has been published by the Forum; and a very meaningful interaction by the participants with SrNirmalini.

BishopRaphaelThattilofthe

Shamshabad Diocese also addressed the gathering and

Another resource person at the Convention was Meera Sanghamitra, a well known activist who is actively involved with feminist, civil liberties, transgender rights issues as well as in the National Alliance of Peoples Movements (NAPM. She provided the participants with an incisive picture of the many issues which grip the poor and marginalised today.

The Convention was marked with some deep and contextual sharing in groups and in the plenary sessions.Themembersre-electedSr Dorothy Fernandes PBVM(Convener), Fr Antony F

Thekkiniyath Ofm Cap (Secretary), and Fr Anand IMS (Treasurer), the other members of the Core Team

are Fr Cedric Prakash SJ, Fr John Bosco SJ, Sr Julie George SSps, Br Varghese Theckanath SG, Sr Ancy CJ, Fr Devassay Kadaparambil SDB andSrAnithaChettiarDHM

A meaningful and contextual Statement (attached) unanimously passed by the participants before the conclusion of the Convention callsforradical discipleship! 25September 2022

(*ThisnoteisbyCedricPrakashSJ {cedricprakash@gmail.com} on behalfoftheForumCoreTeam)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ForumofReligiousforJusticeand Peace XVII National Convention (September 22-24, 2022), Hyderabad

STATEMENT

We, members (63 women and men Religious, from 16 states representing 20 Congregations) of

the Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace, came together for three days (22 - 24 September 2022) at the Montfort Social Institute, Hyderabad, Telangana for our XVII National Convention. We deliberated on the theme, ‘Deepening our identity as Religious: Responding to the Signs of the Times’, in mutual respect for oneanother’sopinions,inprofound moments of prayer and meditation,

with valuable inputs and a shared lifetogetherin solidarity.

Bishop Raphael Thattil of the Shamshabad Diocese, participating in the inaugural session reminded usthatwearepropheticpeopleina Church that is often defaced by the predominance of cult and ritualism. Further, he invited us, to be steadfast during tribulations that necessarily come from one’s stand alongside the poor and the oppressed.

We were privileged to have in our midst, Sr. M. Nirmalini A.C. the National President of the Conference of Religious India (CRI) who gave us an insightful and challenging keynote address on the theme. Referring to Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter ‘To all Consecrated People’ (21 November 2014) she said, “in 2014 Pope Francis asked consecrated life ‘to wake up the world’, to witness to the world that thereisanotherwayofbeing,acting andliving,apropheticwayoflife.To wakeuptheworld,religiousneedto beawaketothejoysandcriesofthe world around us and to God’s call.

Where we stand, what we see, and how we listen, all matters. A prophetic way calls because when we look at the world, we will not only see incredible love, goodness, beauty, and generosity, we will also see people and earth suffering needlessly, begging for a response. Weare calledtorespond.” Meera Sanghamitra, a well-known activistwhoisactivelyinvolvedwith feminist, civil liberties, transgender rights issues as well as in the National Alliance of Peoples Movements (NAPM) provided us with an incisive picture of the many issues which grip our people today. The possible way forward, she said, should be in Hope, Healing and Harmony, along with Struggle, Solidarity and Sustained engagement in the present socio, political, economic, cultural, and religiouscontext.

As religious committed to justice and peace, we express our concern at the deteriorating situation of our nation on every front. Fascism seems to have come to stay. We have reached abysmal depths on

every parameter be it social, economic, and political. Recently, the‘GlobalHumanIndex’put India at a pathetic low rank of 132 out of 191 countries evaluated. There are several other global indices today whichput Indiaat rockbottom. The poor in India become poorer every day; the rich and powerful continue to profiteer at their expense and amass scandalous amounts of wealth. The Adivasis are robbed of their jal, jungle and jameen. The Dalits and OBCs and other sub altern groups, are still denied the dignity, equality, and justice, which are legitimately theirs. The minorities (particularly the Muslims and Christians) are targeted with hate speech and persecution, by a regime which systematically and continuously denigrates and demonizes them with a divisive and violentagenda.Intoleranceisonthe rise. Unconstitutional anti conversion laws are centre stage today. The four labour codes go against therightsoftheworkersandclearly favour the profiteering big

corporates. The pitiable conditions of the migrant workers came to the fore when the lockdown was announced in March 2020. The fisher workers of Kerala and other part of the country are fighting against corporates who intend destroying their livelihood. Unemployment and spiralling inflation have greatly impacted on thelivesofthepoor.

The new National Education Policy (NEP) which has been pushed through, is clearly anti poor and anti-minority and caters only to a small section of the rich and the elite. Corruption is mainstreamed, crony capitalism is rampant. India hasbeenplacedlast(180outof180 countries) in the ‘Environmental Performance Index (EPI) 2022.’ Freedom of Speech and Expression is in the doldrums. Human rights defenders (HRDs), (including some organisations)andmanyothers like those incarcerated in the Bhima Koregaon conspiracy case who takeastandagainst theregimeare

hauledup,falsecasesarefoistedon them, they are attacked, incarcerated, andeven killed(aswe have painfully experienced in the death of our brother Stan Swamy who died whilst still in police custody) …. We are aware of much more!

We are also deeply pained at the silence of the Church: bishops, priestsandreligiousonissueswhich are destroying the democratic, pluralistic, and secular fabric of our country. When we talk of ‘Synodality’ today, Church leadership in India, has still not shown signs of shedding its clerical and patriarchal mentality. Caste discrimination isstillpracticed withintheChurch; besides, Church leadership has not demonstrated the courage and transparency to address some critical issues involving bishops, priests and religious. It is therefore, for good reason,wehavereleasedduringthis Convention a booklet entitled, ‘The Kuravilangad Case: A Critical Study’ which we hope will open the eyes and hearts of some and be read by

many, with objectivity and compassion. We, the members of the Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace, therefore, resolve that we continually deepen our identity as radical disciples of Jesus andhavetheprophetic courage to respond to the signs of thetimes that we realise and shall ensure personal transformation is the first steptowardssocial transformation that we internalise and actualise the values enshrined in the ‘ConstitutionofIndia’givingit due place in our formation, catechesisandin allourministries. that we will continue to strive to build more inclusive communities, transcending the religious, caste, gender, andethnicdivisionsand everyform ofsectarianism Further, We urge our Congregational Leadership and the Conference of ReligiousofIndia(CRI)v toensure the mainstreaming and implementation of all General/Provincial Chapter

documents and Catholic Social Teachings, which emphasize our accompanying and involvement in the life of the poor and the marginalized, the excluded, the exploited and the vulnerable. This will enable us to respond to the signs of the effectively and prophetically times for a more just andpeacefulsociety to conduct programmes on the Constitution of India and Social Analysiswith thenecessary exposuretotherealitiesofthepoor, at allstagesofformation to take an unequivocal, visible, and vocal stand and to accompany the victims of abuse both within Church andin societyat large Finally, We members of the Forum of Religious for Justice and Peace pledge to encourage more and younger women and men Religious, committed to issues of justice and peace, to join and be active membersofthisForum. toleavenostoneunturnedin

playing a prophetic role in respondingtothesignsofthetimes 24September2022 Hyderabad (The above Statement was unanimously passed by the Forum ofReligiousforJusticeandPeace members who participated in the XVII National Convention held in Hyderabad). 

PMModi’s tacticalshift towoothe ruralvoters.

(PhilipMudartha)

AfterthethenGujaratCMNarendra Modi was elected to the parliament in May 2014, and formed his BJP government with a thumping majority, he realized that India still lived in the villages. Only at his own peril, he could ignore the rural voters. Hence, these two central government legislations were the focusoftheUnionBudgetfor201617 presented in Lok Sabha by FM Arun Jaitley on Monday, 29th February2016.

MahatmaGandhiNationalRural EmploymentGuarantee Act2005 (MNREGA)

“

MNREGA is the epitome of Congress' failure,” PM Narendra ModihadsaidinaspeechtotheLok Sabhain February2015.

“My political sense says never end MNREGA, because it is a reminder of your failure,” he had sneered pointedly at the Congress lawmakers on the opposition benches, especially directed towards Congress President and erstwhile UPA Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi, who is credited with the flagship social security program of PM Modi’s predecessor government ledbyPMMan Mohan Singh. “Doyouthink, I willput anendto

the scheme? My political wisdom does not allow me to do it. This is a living monument to your failure to tackle poverty in 60 years. With songanddanceanddrumbeat,Iwill continue with the scheme,” he had said and sneered, “the world could see what India has done after so many years of Congress rule," looking at Sonia Gandhi, who sat stone faced listening patiently to himwithoutanyoutwardlyemotion. WhatisMNREGA?WhywasModiso opposed to it? What changed in a year so much that his government increased allocation to MNREGA to a historic record of Rs 38,500 crore in theUnion Budget of2016 17? MNREGA is a labor law that guarantees at least 100 days of wage employment to every household whose adult members volunteered to do unskilled manual work.Thelawcameintoforcein200 districts in February 2006 and covered all of India in April 2008. It was hailed by the Ministry of Rural Development as the “largest and most ambitious social security and

public works program in the world” in 2012. In its World Development Report 2014, the World Bank termed it a "stellar example of rural development.”

Modi had long opposed the law as costly and inefficient and sought to restrict itscoveragetothecountry’s poorest 200 districts after he assumed office of Prime Minister. His Rural Development Minister, Nitin Gadkari, with his well known bias towards contractors and construction material suppliers, triedtoamendtheprovisionsaimed at diluting the labor component in the development project undertaken under MNREGA by gramapanchayat.

A group of India’s leading economists opposed this move. Theysaidthelawhadbroughtwork to millions of impoverished villagers.Theysentanopenletterto Modiurgingthegovernmentnotto restrict ordilutetheprogram.

Aweeklater,inNovember2014,PM Modi handed charge of Rural Development, Panchayati Raj,

DrinkingWaterandSanitationtoan oldandseniorCongressman. Chaudhary Birender Singh, the new minister in PM Modi’s cabinet was poached into BJP in late August 2014, after his parent party (INC) was decimated in Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. While under Nitin Gadkari, MNREGA allocation was reduced by Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 31,000 crore (from UPA’s interim budget ofRs34,000crorefor2014 15), his successor Chaudhary coaxed Arun Jaitley to raise it to Rs 34,699 in 2015-16 and even demanded an additional Rs 5,000 crore on the basis of actual money spent tillDecember2015.

Chaudhary Birender Singh, apart from being an ex Congressman is a Jat from Haryana, a descendant of rich and influential zamindar clan, and a powerful politician who managed the “political wisdom” of PM Modi aptly. Among his three junior ministers through whom much of this money will be spent is a colorful politician, Ram Kripal

Yadav, a bother in law of Laloo PrasadYadavofRJD,whocameover totheBJPcamponlymonthsbefore LS elections. He is overseeing drinking water and sanitation departments under whose watch mostvillageleveltasksareexecuted using MNREGA labor. The department of Panchayat Raj is under MoS Nihalchand who a BJP loyalist from Vasundhara Raje’s is stable. The department of Rural Development is under MoS Sudarshan Bhagat of whom not much isknown.

If PM Modi has been persuaded by the political pragmatism of Chaudhary, opportunism of Yadav and youthful commitment of two other junior ministers to put his money where it matters most in winning back the rural and poorer voters, it is likely that the electoral setbacksin DelhiandBiharbrought home theurgency. Low level corruption has plagued the implementation of MNREGA since its inception a decade ago. At apexlevel,formerUPAministerslike

Jairam Ramesh have displayed utmost commitment to the uplift of rural poor but have not been successfulin pluggingtheleakages, delays in payments to the genuine workers, bogus payments to unauthorized workers, fraudulent paymentstotasksnotactuallytaken up, and a host of creative means of corrupt localfunctionariesandtheir political patrons at Zilla panchayat and panchayat bodies reporting to it. Corruption in these bodies has beenthebaneofthisnobleinitiative oftheerstwhile UPAgovernment. PM Modi seized on the historic opportunity to show that he can succeedwhereaccordingtohim,his predecessor failed: in rooting out low level corruption. The local bodieswerealwayscontrolledbyan assortment of political parties, including BJP throughout this scheme. It would be fair to say that all small leaders of all political parties, including BJP, were equally responsible in pilfering away the MNREGA funds. Sooner, the challenge to confront his own party

men wouldtest hisresolvetobattle corruption. Pradhan Mantri Grama Sadak Yojana(PMGSY) This centrally sponsored program was introduced on 25th December 2000 by PMAtal Bihari Vajpayee on his birthday. It is the flagship program of his NDA government which was voted out in May 2004. His successor, PM Man Mohan Singh continued the commitment under the Ministry of Rural Development. In fifteen years of its existence, new roads were built in remote villages and existing intervillageroads were upgraded. BJP upon returning to government in May 2014 accused erstwhile UPA government of going slow on this program during its ten years in office. However, official statistics availableon Online Management, Monitoring and Accounting System (OMMAS) of PMGSY website shows that3,30,687Kmofroadswerebuilt duringthe ten yearperiodbetween 2004 and 2013. The update dated 29 February 2016 shows that 4,

56,288 Km of roads at an expenditure of Rs 1, 33,163 crores have been completed since inception. An unbiased analysis showsthepreviousgovernmentdid not waver in its commitment to the ruralsectors.

Much political hype about these programs in the Union Budget 2016-17

TheUnionGovernmentallocatedRs 19,78,060croresduringFY2016 17. The allocation to MNREGA is only 1.94%. It is like a joint family household handing out 2 paisa out ofeachrupeeonitslesserprivileged members asking them in return to do some household value creation like painting the house, digging a water well, leveling the fields, servicing, and repairing domestic appliances and agricultural tools etc.Whyissuchahueandcryraised by the right-wing experts advising PMNarendraModi?

TheallocationofRs19,000croresto PMGSYisonly0.96%.Thestatesare said to be contributing 40% from FY2016 17 onwards, because the

14th Finance Commission has forced the central government to give a higher share in central taxes. Even with Rs 28,000 crores, the allocation is like spending 1.5 paisa on connecting villages which have no roads. The rural all weather roads will provide our citizens with access to essential services like primary school, health centre, local clinic, post office and local market. Once again, from a national perspective, it is small but very important for the lives that these projectstouch.

Opposition leaders and senior commentators in the mainstream mediatermedthisbudgetapolitical budget, and a tactical shift in PM Modi’s strategy of urban based development.PMModihimselfisto beblamedfortheperceptionwhich he created during the UPA rule when he was CM of Gujarat, during his election speeches including thoseinBiharandintheParliament. Ifindeed,thereisachangeofheart, it isawelcomemove.

Latest Update on these epochmakingschemes:

India is marking 75 years of its independence with “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” celebrations. On this occasion, it is desirable to update the status of these two centrally sponsoredepoch makingschemes. FY2020 21wasacrisisyearwith the COVID 19 pandemic raging even in rural communities despite stringent lockdown imposed on one and all. But theharshest effectswerefelt by both the urban and rural poor. The urban poor trekked their way back home to their native villages. Thankfully, the MNREGA scheme cametotheirrescue.Otherwise,the extreme poor people would have

died of starvation. The central government spent Rs 1, 11, 170 crores under MNREGA. The country-sidedestitutionissuchthat the central government is forced to allocate Rs 73,000 crores to the schemeduringFY2022 23.Thissure is the lifeline to unemployed adults in rural households, including those whohavereturnedfromtheirurban domiciles.

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana receivedRs13,688croresinFY2020 21 to spend on rural roads. This centrally sponsored scheme is estimated to receive Rs 19,000 crores during the current FY2022 23. This is the legacy of Sonia Gandhi, an Italian by birth but more Indian than most of our political leadership. She proved to be a beacon of hope for the destitute of ourcountry.

Smitha Raphael of Mangalore origin shines in the 'Big Apple'

Smitha Raphael, Chief Product & Delivery Officer, Synergy North America

Supply & Demand Chain Executive a dedicated publication USA/worldwide, in its third annual Women in Supply Chain Awards, introduced the recipients. Prominent among them is the shiningIndian Lady Smitha Raphael. Sheindeedbringspridetothe worldwide trendof great people of Indian origin who are making huge waves in all spheres. This great Indian lady born in India; partly

brought up at home and in the Middle East is a multi cultural product. HerFatherRaphaelJoseph (Parambi) hails from Kochi in Kerala and was educated in several institutions and finished at XLRI Tatanagar. He has been a senior Marketing Exec at home and overseas. Smita's Mother Zeena is from a prominent 'Suares Prabhu' family of Mangalore ( Her father Crispin Suares is a well-known professionalofCalcuttaandMother Fernandes of prominent Thonse origin). Many members of all these families have been in the forefront of Indian affairs and it is a pride for alltonote andrecognize.

Supply & Demand Chain Executive media highlights Smitha asfollows: "SmithaRaphaelisaglass ceiling breaker, with over 20 years of experience in the supply chain and technology sectors, including 15 years of delivering and implementing warehouse

Smitha with her parents and her brother&familyinthe USA. management systems (WMS). She was already among a select few when she went to the Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, graduating as the only womanelectricalengineerin aclass of 40. She began her career as a software engineer, then technical analyst and then systems analyst, where she developed a reputation for being a hands on problem solver. In her 11 years at Synergy North America (SnapFulfil), Raphael hasprogressedthroughpositionsof increasing responsibility to serve as adomain expert in theWMS sector, with a deep understanding of supplychain challengesand howto drive value for customers. At SnapFulfil, Raphael has served as a projectmanager,VPofU.S.projects, EVP of project implementation

services, andwas promotedin 2021 to her current role as chief product and delivery officer. Raphael establishedtwospecificinnovations in service delivery helping to shape the supply chain now and for the future. The first was a remote implementation initiative for SnapFulfil’s cloud-based WMS that went full speed ahead during the COVID 19 crisis. The second was a self implementation approach, which provides clients with greater control, more independence and the development of internal system expertise."

“Smitha is a customer- and outcome-focused leader, with intellectual curiosity, domain expertiseandproblem solvingskills to deliver exceptional results for customers and partners in the supply chain sector. Her broad career and global experiences from living in four countries and 13 cities hashelpedhertoadapt tothe nuances of leading technical and businessresourceson site, remote and offshore,” says SnapFulfil. “The solution that Smitha and her team deploy is implemented in an average of 45 60 days for a customer. Thisisoneofthemost

Smitha's maternal family in an old pictureinIndia. rapid deployment cycles in the WMS sector, and it takes a

tremendous level of leadership, communication, and coordination to deliver value in a short period of time in a very demanding customer environment.”

VEEZ Weekly, published from Chicago by Dr. Austin Prabhu is pleased to project the news here.

-Compiled: IvanSaldanha-Shet.

Kaveri Kannada Association

CelebratesGoldenJubilee

By V James Dante, Kaveri Executive Committee member, WashingtonDC

I am a Mangalorean by birth, but also a Kannadiga because I was born and raised in Karnataka State. We have a large Kannadigas Association in the tri-state area of Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia and known as ‘Kaveri Kannada Association’. This year the Association completed 50 years after initiation in 1972 and it was decided to celebrate the Golden event in spectacular fashion. As being one of the key members of the Kaveri Executive Committee, it was my duty to contribute to the successoftheevent byallmeans. The dates for the mega event were decided as August 26-27, 2022, nearly a 2-day event. From initial planningtilltheexecution,ittookus over 8 months of time. Finally, the event took place at the Convention

Center of North Bethesda Marriott Hotel in Maryland, in grand style as planned. It was attended by over 1,000 people, that included Kaveri members with family, dignitaries, visitors, artists, as well as several celebrities and singers invited from India.

Apart from the main Committee, I was part of several sub committees that were created for the event.

There were over 27 subcommittees, andit wasmy pleasure to server in some of the key committees, such as, Food Committee, Souvenir (Literary) Committee, Web Committee and Publicity & Communication Committee. The work of building the Souvenir was interesting but at the same time involved a lot of coordination, editing and publishing work, often spending late hours at night to bring it to a good shape. Finally, we had a 200

page plus Souvenir printed and ready for the Golden event, that stoodupat theentirefunction. I came up with the concept of the Theme based Food for the entire event and every segment was named according to the theme. We had ‘Meet n Greet’ chat session where people enjoyed snacks, sweets, mango lassi, juices, tea and coffee as they arrived on Friday evening on 26th August 2022 and registered/checked-in to the hotel. The next popular Theme was the ‘Karavali’ theme, where the food items belonged to Coastal Karnataka and people enjoyed, South Canara appetizers such as ‘Goli Baje with chutney’ followed by dinner with ‘Poori Kurma’, ‘Karavali style beans and carrot’, ‘Pineapple gojju’, ‘Mangalore southekayi majjige huli’, ‘Jackfruit papad’, ‘badam puri sweet’,‘Chicken Sukka’, ‘Karavali chicken curry’ and more. For Saturday, 27th August morning, it was typical Udupi Style Breakfast with Udupi specialties. For lunch, it was the ‘North Karnataka theme’ and we had so many Uttara

Kannada delicacies, made here at JSS temple and also shipped from India.Interestingitemswere,‘Jolada rotti’, ‘Sajje rotti’, ‘Bili Holige’, ‘Masala methi thepla’, ‘Badane ennagayi palya’, ‘Pundi Mudde palya’, ‘Hesaru Kalu Usuli’, ‘Pudina bhath/mango chitranna and raita’, and several complementary ingredients that always go with North Karnataka food. For sweets, there were ‘Obbattu’,’Seekarane’ and ‘Antina Unde’ which were savored and liked by everyone. For the evening tea, there was ‘Maddur Vade’, ‘Dharwad Peda’ with Tea/Mysore Coffee. On the night of Saturday, there was grand dinner, and included mix of South Indian and North Indian food to show the inclusiveness of the program to all attendees. The special items were, ‘Mysore Bonda’, ‘Raagi Mudde’, ‘Bassaru’, ‘Butter Naan’, ‘Puliogare’, ‘Vegetable Kootu’, ‘Curd rice’, ‘Nucchina Unde’, ‘Chicken Tikka’, ‘Butter Chicken’, ‘Chicken dum biryani’ and sweets ‘Badam milk’ and‘Chiroti’.Theentirefoodline up wasplannedbytheFood

Committee and the management was handled by Hotel Woodlands and Jewel of India with excellent coordination with the Food Committee. It wasagreat success. For the programs, there were various committees involved in

organizing the various line up of events, that included dramas, comedyshowbyDr.KrishneGowda, fashion show, dances, ‘memories down the lane’ show providing the history of events of 50 years, recognitions and awards,

AllPerformers

TheKodeLineup

The other highlight of the program were the achievements of the Decoration team that prepared from scratch the ‘Kode’ (Umbrellas) withvariousdesignsbuiltby‘Chatri’ (umbrella) team as well as the replica of Hampi Chariot (Ratha) built by the ‘Raltha’ team. It took nearly over 4 months to build the Ratha from scratch by volunteers whoworkedonseveralweekendsat afactorysite. Afewpictureshere

Vijay Prakash/Anuradha Bhat

HampiRatha

Mangaluru:Sangeet VisharadaRoshan Martistobefelicitated atKalangan Daijiworld Media Network Mangaluru(EP)

Mangaluru, Sep 26: Music scholar and trainer Roshan Francis Martis, Kadri has been selected for the felicitation on International Music Day 2022 by Mandd Sobhann and Sumel music team. He will b e felicitated during the 250th repertory programme at Kalangann on October2.

Martis secured Sangeeth Visharada degreeinHindustaniclassicalmusic in 1994. He has left his stamp as a music teacher, author, and music performer. He started ‘Sur Rang’ music school at Kadri and has been trainingstudents.

HehastrainedstudentsatBharatiya Vidya Bhavan, NITK Surathkal, Padua and Alvas institutes. He has held music programmes in India and abroad. His music and art performance reviews have been publishedin newspapers. Martis has also participated as a judgein‘JigibigiTaran’ofDaijiworld TV, ‘Duet singing star’ TV reality shows and other music competitions held by the government and private organizations.

Fr Franklin D'Souza and Bro. T. K. George led the Healing AdorationsatHariharBasilica

Hehasbeenselectedforthehonour considering his valuable contribution to the music sector. ‘Novin Motyan’, a music concert based on his newly created songs will be held in the 250th monthly repertory. The organizers said that the programme will begin at 6.30 PM. Entryisfree.

September 8, 2022: Fr Franklin D'Souza and Bro. T. K. George led the Healing Adorations at Our Lady ofHealth, MinorBasilicaofHarihar.

On September7th from 8pm to

9pm and on Sept 8th from 3pm to 4pm. Special healing Adorations for the pilgrims were organised by the Rector of Basilica Rev. Dr Anthony Peter.

Both adorations witnessed a large numberofpilgrimspraying in tears. Both FrFranklin D'Souza and Bro.T.

K. George led the adoration with biblical promises. Fr Franklin D'Souzaledthebenediction. Rector Rev. Fr Anthony Peter thanked the Yesusparsha team for the meaningfuladorations.

OnSeptember7that6pmMostRev. Dr Thomasappa Anthony Swamy,

Bishop of Diocese of Chikmagalur celebratedHolyEucharist.

Mass, Novena, andadoration link: https://youtu.be/HPYInwdpz U

On September 8th Most Rev. Dr Francis Serrao Sj Bishop of Diocese of Shimoga celebrated festal mass at 11am. Masses in Kannada, Telugu, Malyalam, Tamil and Konkani were organised for the pilgrims.

Mass link : https://youtu.be/uQK1MbODduc

You canclickforthelinksof Adorations: September7th: https://fb.watch/fopZbnzrZn/ September8th: https://youtu.be/IQ8R5hCSnJs

SafeSea Campaign'in association with Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt. of India, Vigyan Prasar, New Delhi, Karnataka Science and Technology Academy, Bengaluru, and Pilikula Regional Science

Centre, Mangaluru at Panambur Beach on 11 09 2022 in collaboration with the Indian Coast Guard Mangaluru. Volunteers from NCC, NSS, Centre for Social Concern, Youth Red Cross, and Eco Warriors of the College will join handsin cleaningtheSeaCoast. Rev. Dr Praveen Martis SJ, Principal of St Aloysius College will flag off the activities at 8.00 am. Officers from Indian Coast Guard, Dr K.V. Rao Director, Pilikula Regional

Science, NCC Officers and NSS Coordiantors will be present during the occasion. A large number of student volunteers and faculty memberswillbeparticipatinginthe activity.

We take this opportunity to invite you to the programme and request you to give wide coverage for the same.

Dr Chandra Shekhara Shetty (94482 49153)

Convenerof theprogram

MonthiFest:StLawrenceChurch,Bondel

September 8, 2022 : The feast of Mother Mary’s Nativity was celebrated with great pomp by St Lawrence Church Bondel parishioners

The Novena prayers were conducted at 7.30 a.m. near Church Hall The celebration was coupled with the blessing of new corn,

beautiful age old tradition of showering of flowers on Mother Mary's statue by children was performed to the accompaniment ofhymns& band.

Rev Fr Santhosh Rodrigues, Director, Pastoral Institute was the main celebrant. Parish Priest Rev Fr Andrew Leo D’Souza, Rev Fr Arul Betharam, Rev Fr Lancy D’Souza, Rev Fr Melwin Pinto MSIJ, Rev Fr Theo Pinto concelebrated the Eucharist

In his Homily Fr Santhosh highlightedthemainfeaturesofthe Feast Mary’s Flowers: Humility,

Patience, Gratitude, Thoughtfulness & Sacrifice and focused on the role of the family in the Church. He also said how Mother Mary is a model for our families and how we can follow in her footsteps by being obedient to God’s will and accept the challenges in upbringing our childrenasGod’s gift.

Hence he concluded that the celebration of Monti Fest also knownas‘kutmachenfest’, includes the fellowship meal known as ‘Noven Jevan’ which is important in building and maintaining strong bonds of togetherness within familiesandin society.

After mass, Parish Priest Rev Fr Andrew Leo D’Souza thanked everyone for their wholehearted support which led to the success of the feast. The Liturgy & choir by children was surely the highlight of the celebration. New grains and sugarcane were distributed to the parishioners.

MCCBank convenes

Annual General Meeting

M.C.C.BankLtd.hasperformedwell under all the financial parameters during the Financial Year 2021 22 andhasdeclared a dividend of10% to its shareholders. The Bank has earnedanunprecedentednet profit ofRs.8.27Crore(138%growth),first timein thehistoryoftheBank.

The Bank has convened its 104th Annual General Meeting at Loyola Hall, St Aloysius P.U. College, Kodialbail, Mangalore, on Sunday, the 25th of September 2022 at 11 am.

The meeting began with a prayer led by the staff. Tributes were paid to the late D.J. Patrao, ex-director, whopassedawayon23.12.2021and alsothememberswhopassedaway in thepreviousyear.

TheChairmanoftheBank,AnilLobo presided over the meeting and welcomed the directors and the memberstothemeeting. While addressing the meeting he said that “The bank has earned a

record net profit of Rs.8.27 crore, with a total deposit of Rs.532.08 crore recording an increase of 16.47% over the previous year; the total advances of Rs.328.56 crore recordinganincreaseof 7.16% over thepreviousyear;workingcapitalof Rs.615.06 crore (growth of 14.00%) and share capital of Rs.18.43 crore

as on 31.03.2022. Moreover, the NPA of the Bank has been reduced to 1.60% compared to the NPA percentage of 2020 21 at 3.23%. The provision coverage ratio stood at 77.61% of the total NPAs. The Return on Assets (ROA) of the Bank stood at 1.34%, a substantial improvementoverthepreviousyear

appreciated by the members and customers. The Bank has been making efforts to bring more innovative products and has introduced Education Loan scheme ataverycompetitiverateofinterest to assist the students who want to pursue higher studies both in India and abroad. The main motto of the

Bank is to serve the customers in a transparent manner by understanding their financial requirementsandtherebyscalenew heights in the years to come. The progressoftheBankwillcreatenew employment opportunities for the youth in the community. He thanked all the members and

customerswhofirmlystoodwiththe Bank and supported during its difficult times when some misguided members started spreading canards against the Bank withanulteriormotiveoftarnishing theimageoftheBank. While thanking all the members for participatinginthemeetinginlarge

numbers, he invited them for the ensuing Post Centenary Decennial Celebration scheduled on 27th November,2022 at Milagres PU Collegegrounds.

Vice chairman Jerald Jude D’Silva readtheminutesofthe103rdAGM.

The audited financials of 2021 22, audit report and compliance, programme of activities for the financial year 2022 23 and budget for the year 2022 23, amendments to the byelaws of the bank, were presented before the AGM and

were approved. The Chairman clarifiedallthequeriesraisedbythe members during the meeting and assured that the efforts would be made to implement their suggestionsmadebythem.

On this occasion, Sunil Menezes, General Manager of the Bank, who is celebrating his birthday was felicitated.

Directors Andrew D’Souza, Marcel D’Souza, J.P.Rodrigues, Elroy Kiran Crasto,RoshanD’Souza,AnilPatrao, Herald Monteiro, David D’souza, Dr Gerald Pinto, Irene Rebello, Dr Freeda D’Souza, Professional Directors C.G.Pinto, Sushanth Saldanha, Board of Management members Sharmila Menezes, Alwyn P. Monteiro, Felix Dcruz, General Manager Sunil Menezes, Deputy GeneralManagerRajMenezeswere present at the meeting. General Manager, Sunil Menezes comperedandproposedthevoteof thanks.Themeetingconcludedwith theNationalAnthem.

-SambramDigital

The Capuchins of Mangalore celebrated the Annual Feast of the most popular saint of the present times St Padre Pio on 23rd September 2022 at St. Padre Pio's Shrine, St. Anne's Friary, Bejai, Mangalore

A grand procession of St. Pio's relic was taken around the streets of Kodialbail. Rev. Fr. Eugene D'silva.CssR (at present Rector of Seminary at Goa) presided over the festal Eucharist along with other concelebrants. He preached on St. Pio: The great dispenser of divine mercy.Hehighlightedinhishomily, the great human as well as gospel values which St. Pio lived during his

mercy of God through his miracles.

St. Piopopularly known forcarrying the wounds of Christ, the Stigmata

nowmost sought aftersaint.

A large number of devotees took part in the celebration. As a preparation, nine days of Novena were conducted with adoration and HolyEucharist.DevoteesofStPadre Pio participated in great numbers. TheloveandattractionforSt.Padre Pio is increasing day by day among the youth. The saint draws numerous people towards Christ who by repenting their sins turn towardsHim.

A festal meal was served for all the devotees after the Eucharist. The devotion of St. Padre Pio is

celebrated every Wednesday at Pio'sShrine,Bejai.Theseraphicsaint of the Capuchins who is known as the second St. Francis of Assisi, is a modelforall.

Another festal Eucharist in English was celebrated presided over by Fr. ChetanLobo,DirectorofAssisiPress at6p.matSt.Pio'sShrinewhichwas attendedbyalargegathering.

About StPadrePio Padre Pio, original name Francesco Forgione, also called St. Pio of Pietrelcina, (born May 25, 1887, Pietrelcina,Italy diedSeptember23, 1968, San Giovanni Rotondo; canonized June 16, 2002; feast day September 23), Italian priest and saint oftheCatholicChurch. Born into a devout Roman Catholic family, he consecrated himself to Jesus at age 5. At age 15 he joined the Capuchin order and took the name Pio in honour of St. Pius I. Eight years after his priestly ordination,hereceivedtheStigmata (bodily marks corresponding to the wounds suffered by the crucified Jesus) which remained until his death. These and other signs of his

holiness drew growing numbers of pilgrims to him. He was noted for his charity and piety and was canonized in 2002 by Pope John PaulII.

SanGiovanniRotondoinItalywhere thesaintlivedamajorpartofhislife

and died, is a pilgrimage center which draws the maximum number of devotees among all shrines. In Mangalore, St Pio Shrine, Bejai, Mangalore is drawing huge crowds fortheblessingsandintercessionof saints. We had a very joyful event of Monthi Fest yesterday (Saturday, September 17, 2022), to celebrate thebirthofMotherMary.Thiswasa repeat event at St. Mary Star of the SeaCatholicChurchat IndianHead, MD.

I think this was yet another successful event this year to boast for as per the feedback we have received. The veneration of Mother Mary started on time with children lined up with basketful of flowers from their gardens. Fr. Brian Coelho and Fr. Tony D’Souza led the Moriyek Fr. Brian blessed prayed for a bountifulharvest thisyear.

The group moved over to the Church in procession for the festive mass, which was done partly in Konkani and partly in English. Everyone participated and sung several Konkani hymns during the mass. Before the conclusion of the mass, thePresident, V JamesDante, thanked the various coordinators and volunteers involved in successfullyorganizingthemass.He thanked the choir team who have spent many days to practice

Konkani and English hymns, and was led by Clint Almeida, Reynel Castellino and Malin Noronha and consisted of several adults and children. Fr. Brian expressed his sincere thanks to our community and wanted more of such Mangalorean events held in his Parish to bring back childhood memoriesofMangalore.

After the mass, everyone gathered foragroupphotoshootjustoutside the Church in front of Mother Mary’s statue. Then everyone moved to the Parish Hall for lunch and light entertainment put on by our own families and children. The dining table has already been decorated by our ladies and the food tables were decorated with banana leaves and other traditional native display items under the guidance of Anil and Priscilla D’Souza.

Once everyone settled down, our MC/Vice President Clint Almeida took over and started the event. He welcomed the President to do a formal welcome. It was time for lunchandthePresidentcalledupon Fr. Tony D’Souza to do the prayer

before the meals and to bless the rocewithnoven.Therewasplentyof food with various Mangalorean home made delicacies prepared by our own Mangalorean families for peopletosavorandenjoy.

This year, while people were interacting with others in the hall after the meals, we had planned a surprises entertainment for everyone. We had a team of four girls who were trained dancers led by Esther Smitha performing Bollywood dances to the applause of all present. ThePresident offered them Certificates of Appreciation. Then we had a line up of competitions such as the Fashion Walk for children under 6 years as well as 6 years and above led by Clintwithtwojudgesfromaudience to score their walk and talk to decide the winners. We also held the Mangalorean Culture Trivia contest developed by Merlyn Mathias for adults and over 12 adults participated in the contest. The questions were a bit hard, and theparticipantswereallowedtouse anyhelpfromtheirfriends,usetheir phone to google et. There was a lot of enthusiasm among the

contestants to win. We had a tie of twowinnerswhoscoredtheperfect 10. All the winners were awarded theprizes.

We had special snacks for Teatime sponsored by Woodlands Restaurant, Maryland and our own Mangalorean Philip Furtado. Everyone enjoyed the snacks and tea. Then it was time for participating in Zumba dancing led by Esther Smitha and her friends, that was well participated by everyone.

Asexpected,aftertheeventmanyof the families went to nearby popular Fishing pier to spend the evening time with friends and families beforereturninghome.

Overall, it was a grand event attended and enjoyed by everyone. Many thanks to our wonderful committee and their families and thevolunteerswhocameforwardto help with everything. starting with veneration of Mother Mary, coordination during the mass, kitchen management before/during/after the mass, and

finally staying back to clean up the placespriorto departure. Excellent photography coverage by none other than our own Brian D’Souzaduringtheentireevent.The pictures are shared here for you to enjoy and cherish the memories. You are welcome to upload your ownpicturesorvideostosharewith others on the Dropbox shared here under OTHER folder-->

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/tl 3k9hjr51ehnqej99xmb/h?dl=0&rlke y=iex5dsa49g8u68n895su0cjht

We are now preparing to celebrate another memorable event, Christmas 2022 that has been planned for Saturday, December 10, 2022.Please mark your calendars so that you do not miss out on the last and most important event ofthisyear.

Onbehalfofourcommitteeandour families,Iwanttogivebigthanksto all the families who made it to the event to support the association to makeit yet anothersuccessstoryto tell..!

Thankyou again

V JamesDante President

Hindi Day celebration

Hindi Day was celebrated at St Agnes PU College with much pomp and gaiety. A programme was organised on the 15 September 2022 to mark the occasion. Starting

with a prayer song, the programme comprised of dances from various states and PPT presentations depicting the litterateurs from the fieldofHindi.

Dr K V Umashankar, Professor from Govt. PU College, Kanyana was the

guest of honour. He spoke on the importance of learning Hindi while following Unity in Diversity. He also quotedafewworksofHindiwriters.

Ms Khathijath Almaas and Ms Sehla Abdul compered the programme, Ms Viya Sequeira and Ms Manvitha Naik rendered the welcome and words of gratitude respectively. Mr Jeevan BR, HOD, Hindi offered bouquet and Sr Norine DSouza, the Principal presented a memento to him.

SrJanetSequeira,theVicePrincipal, Staff members of the Hindi Department, the teaching, non teaching faculty and the II PUC students were present on the occasion.

Sampram Digital

leaves, one sliced onion, cumin and saute well. Add chopped tomato andbafat powder. Fryfewmins.

3.

Once fried spices cool transfer it to mixer. Add almonds, Kashmiri cli, tamarindpasteandmakefinepaste.

4. Takecookingkadaiwithoil,heat, add bay leaf, cinnamon stick and one sliced onion. Saute well. Now add ginger garlic paste and stirr

well. Add masala paste and keep frying until little oil seperates from the paste. Mix marinated chicken and saute on high flame for few mins. Add required water, & salt to taste. Close and cook until half done.