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SEQUEL TO ‘FLOOD CONTROL IN THE VALE OF KASHMIR’ by Joseph Thomas

Editor’s Note. My friend, Joseph Thomas, is an intense human being. When he feels strongly about something, he is a man possessed. Last year, when Srinagar valley was inundated by the Jhelum waters, he said that this disaster was unnecessary. Having been posted in J&K in 1962-64, having flown over the valley and done aerial survey, he knows the terrain …

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THE LAWRENCE SCHOOLS – By Joseph Thomas

 A word about Joseph Thomas At the age of 9, Thomas got a Govt of India merit scholarship to study at the Lawrence School, Lovedale. He was first in academics throughout. Completed his Senior Cambridge in 1957, setting a school record and was awarded the President’s Medal for best all round student. Joined NDA three weeks later. Continued to retain his top …

Joseph Thomas

SIR HENRY LAWRENCE – By Joseph Thomas

   Editor’s Note, When I was a child, a house on the Lawrence Roads, both in Lahore and Amritsar, was considered to be a prestigious address. Later I discovered that there was a road named after Sir Henry Lawrence in Delhi, too. And then when I grew up, some of my friends joined Lawrence School, Sanawar (Shimla Hills) At the …

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JUSTICE CRAWLS By Rashmi Oberoi

The Editor’s Note In war, truth is the first casualty. The same happens when a road accident occurs. And, ‘Truth does not prevail’. Neither in battle nor in the courts of law, do the righteous triumph. Might is right, in both cases. In this post, we have the story of a brave young lady who went through a traumatic road accident. …

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FLOOD PREVENTION IN THE VALE OF KASHMIR -by Joseph Thomas

    A satellite image of Srinagar, as viewed on Google Crisis Maps. September 2014. The flood channel dug in 1904 exits from a bend in the Jhelum and goes to the left of the picture.   The Vale of Kashmir is an  intermontane valley, flanked by the main range of the Himalayas on the northeast and the Pir Panjal …

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DOES THE SUN RISE IN THE EAST AND SET IN WEST?

Does the Sun rise from the East? If the answer is an unqualified yes, then this story would not be worth reading. And if it is in the negative, it fouls with our primary school teaching. Permit me to mention that direction of the Sunrise and the Sunset varies with the latitude and changes with the seasons. The extreme deviations are …

TIME TO BE ASHAMED by Bani Kaur

Bani is  fifteen year old. Her father is an engineer-turned-farmer, and her mother is a highly talented architect. She has travelled to nearly all parts of this country, since her parents are very fond of exploring new places.  She has a hyper sensitive mind and the ability to express her joy and anguish in appropriate words. The December 2012 incident left her moved beyond tears, and …

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A TALE OF TWO SONS

A ‘Shravan Kumar’ in the Present Day Most of us have heard the story of the devoted young lad who carried his old parents in baskets for a pilgrimage.  I was filled with awe when I read the tale of a young man who has been carrying his old and visually challenged mother in a similar manner in this century; …

Science Competitions for Students in the USA, by J Thomas

Introduction  Every year, more than 9 million school students enter a science competition. Of those, several thousand students in classes 9–12 participate in the topmost levels of competition. These prestigious competitions include: Google Science Fair  https://www.googlesciencefair.com/#!/en/2013/   The Google Science Fair is an online science competition open to students ages 13-18 from around the globe. Top prize is a $50,000 scholarship. …

Major Balwant Singh (1911-2004)

FRIENDS AND FOES

When, at last, the War ended, “Peace broke out”! I was born in June 1941. The Great War had been raging for nearly two years, but since the bloodshed was confined to Europe, it did not affect us. Then, on 7 December ’41, the Japanese attacked the Pearl Harbor, and two odd months later they stormed and captured Singapore. Their …