Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Kumrahar Palibothra, Patliputra, Patna

Urbanization is an important subject in itself. In making of history of any region, country and social group, urbanization and its process determine the contours of the development effecting every aspect of the life of inhabitants.

Similarly, to know the history in right order is as important as making of nation and its existence. This statement may not be comprehensible to many people and nor it is going to be further dilated upon here. However, there is need to emphasis that there are some cities which are more important for remembering the history and heritage of ones own country than remembering and establishing the title of the property papers of your plots in which you have indulgently invested your hard earned or luck earned money. One of such city is Kumrahar and Rajgriha.

It is Kumrahar, from where the very political identity of India as a nation has started emerging. That is other thing, many scholars will object to this statement because there is a group of scholars who believe that the very concept nation is nineteenth century concept and in India, the India as a nation started emerging only after 1870. There is need of debating on Euro-Centric and Euro-Defined and Euro-Oriented paradigm and I am ready to debate on what I have said here. This very Kumrahar then became the Patliputra of Ajatsatru, then of Sungas, Dhana Nanda, Vishnu Gupta and finally of Chandragupta Maurya. It was the same Patliputra, which was Palibothra of Sandrocotus in the Indica of Magasthense as referred to in the writing of Strabo. It is the same Pataliputra which later became the Patna.

In a news item of Times of India, it is being announced that the Bihar Government is about to bring out a book titled ‘Patna: A Monumental History’. It is coming out at a time when Bihar is suffering from the curse of Kosi. Any how, some of the extracts of the news item is reproduced below.

“Patna is pioneer among selected towns of India having run horse-drawn trams as urban mode of transport.”

“Now trams run only in Kolkata.”

“The founder of Kolkata Job Charnock spent more than a decade as the chief of Patna factory before founding the city of Kolkata in 1699 AD by integrating three adjoining villages — Sutanati, Kolikata and Govindpur.”

“The present day Patna Saheb is the oldest station of Patna. Its name changed several times, starting from Begampur, to Patna, to Patna City and now Patna Saheb.”

“The Danapur railway station, just outside Khagaul, later became the headquarters of the then `Company of East Indian Railway Volunteers.”

Stonehenge a Prehistoric monuments was a Healing Centre

The Associated Press: UK experts say Stonehenge was place of healing

The same news with minor extra details can be accessed at Guardian.

From the evidences gathered from the site by the archaeologists for the last forty years, they have come to the conclusion that it could be possible that the place was a healing centre. They have inferred it from the rocks samples and bones recovered from the place. In a revised dating, the place is now attributed 2300 BC as the time of existence making it contemporary of Indus Valley period.




Source of Photograph: guardian.co.uk

Reality lapses into History

Moneycontrol >> News >> Business >> State Bank of Saurashtra merges with SBI

It was difficult to choose this post for this blog. However, I am convinced about my policy of selecting a news item for this blog. I will definitely write a separate post on policy of this blog but here this news is also a history in the news.

State Bank of Saurashtra merges with SBI. There are news since long that all the subsidiaries will merge with SBI. However, it is the first merger of that sort and now there remains six subsidiaries of the SBI.

However, State Bank of Saurashtra had a history. An extract from the moneycontrol.com has been reproduced below which has affinity with the nature of this blog.

"State Bank of Saurashtra traces its history to the princely Bhavnagar Darbar Bank, which was established in 1902. When the princely states were integrated to form Saurashtra in 1948, the four Darbar Banks - Rajkot State Bank, Porbandar State Bank, Palitana Darbar Bank and Vadia State Bank - were merged, and on July 1, 1950, when State Bank of Saurashtra was born.

In 1960, SBS became a subsidiary of SBI at the suggestion of the All-India Rural Credit Survey Committee."

Monday, September 22, 2008

Jantar Mantar renovation disturbs past, present and future

Jaipur astrologers irked over Jantar Mantar renovation

"Jantar Mantar is an open-air observatory complex of astronomical gadgets and was built by Maharaja Jai Singh, the second. He constructed a total of five such labs at different locations, including the ones at Delhi and Jaipur. The Jaipur observatory is the largest of these."

"The observatory consists of 14 major geometric devices for measuring time, predicting eclipses, tracking stars in their orbits, ascertaining the declinations of planets, and determining the celestial altitudes and related ephemerides."

"The Samrat Jantar, the largest instrument, is 90 feet (27 m) high, its shadow carefully plotted to tell the time of day. Its face is angled at 27 degrees, the latitude of Jaipur. The Hindu chhatri (small domed cupola) on top is used as a platform for announcing eclipses and the arrival of monsoons."

The Archaeological Monument, which is a pride of Indian heritage, was earlier renovated in 1901. It was declared national monument in 1948. Now another renovation has started in January 2007. However, it has raised a controversy. The controversy can be read in the above mentioned link sify news.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Churchill was AOL: Arrogant, Offensive and Loud

Churchill wanted 'bad man' Gandhi to be 'eliminated'

Churchill had once complaint to Smuts for the problems which Britain was facing due to the political activities of Mahatama Gandhi.

The World War II archives are being explored further and some skeletons are falling out. It may create some more heat. Some governments will begin a course of justifications and clarifications which makes a good news when History makes a news.

The above link has been taken from Sify News which seems to be referring to the ANI news items.

It has projected Churchill in bit racist colour also.

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