Independence Day

By Rahul Das
John Martyn Memorial School
Our country got freedom on 15 August 1947 from Britishers. Our freedom fighers were Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh, Jawahar lal Nehru, Chandra Shekhar Azad, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Lala Lajpat Rai etc. they gave their lives to set free India. That is why we are celebrating Independence Day on 15 August every year. In our school Independence Day is celebrated very happily. Firstly we say the prayers. Then we do some programs on Independence Day. Then we hoist the National flag. After that we sing our national anthem. I am proud to be an Indian because India is a developing country. I love my country very much. Jai Hind.

Happy Janmashtami to all

By Babita Chilwal,(X),Himjyoti School

Happy Independence day

By Uday Singh, John Martyn Memorial School

Aasth

Hi kids,
Oww! As I write this (actually dictate this), I am lying in bed in hospital with injuries all over my body and a tiny fracture in my right knee, doped to the gills with medicine and being poked with needles every now and then. And, awfully, a scratch on my face. My scooty skidded on gravel left on the road by an inconsiderate somebody. I am in considerable – terrible - pain and can’t even type. I am not in worse condition simply because I was driving slow. My poor scooty is damaged even though it was not its fault.
As a journalist, my scooty represents my freedom. However, it can also be the cause of suffering if I can’t handle it. Learning how to ride a two or four wheeler is not just being able to go from one place to another, but to do so safely. This requires skill, particularly in India, where there is such a variety of traffic, awful road sense and hazards of the kind that did me in.
It is the same with Independence. Our country became independent after hundreds of years of foreign rule. This does not mean that we can take it to rack and ruin. Our responsibility is all the greater. It means liberty for us, but what good is liberty if we end up suffering because of our lack of skill or understanding of our duty?
On Independence Day, let us resolve to become deserving of our great country and the freedom it gives us. Let us stop asking, and like the great heroes, start serving it in right earnest.
See ya next week. (Ouch).

Our “Incredible India…….”!!

From our very own ‘queen of hills’ Mussoorie to stunning back waters of Kerela, India is a unique country in many respects, its sights, sounds and smell makes world spell bound, right from the rich cultural heritage to our amazing architect our country is truly amazing!
Five things that makes India ‘toast of the world’:
1. Taj Mahal: Agra, once the capital of the Mughal Empire during the 16th and early 18th centuries, is one and a half hours by express train from New Delhi. Tourists from all over the world visit Agra to make a pilgrimage to Taj Mahal, India’s most famous architectural wonder, in a land where magnificent temples and edifices abound to remind visitors about the rich civilization of a country that is slowly but surely lifting itself into an industrialized society.
The first time a saw this mesmerizing marvel, I stood there transfixed for a few minutes, even forgetting to blink! The postcard picture of Taj Mahal does not adequately convey the legend, the poetry and the romance that shroud what Rabindranath Tagore calls "a teardrop on the cheek of time". Taj Mahal means "Crown Palace" and is in fact the most well preserved and architecturally beautiful tomb in the world. It is best described by the English poet, Sir Edwin Arnold, as "Not a piece of architecture, as other buildings are, but the proud passions of an emperor’s love wrought in living stones." It is a celebration of woman built in marble and that’s the way to appreciate it. It is a "symbol of eternal love".
2. Indian food: Food, glorious food...The way to a man's heart is through his stomach...and so many other clichés that all centre around one of life's necessities - eating. Without exception we aim to introduce you into a truly unique, unforgettable cuisine experience. We combine the ancient with the modern and take you down the path to losing yourself in the exotic flavors of INDIA.
The Indian snacks are temptingly delicious and mouth watering. Rajpur road is full of joints selling yummy snacks like samosas, aloo tikki etc. This is comprised of recipes which have been passed on for generation together in Indian homes. The crispness and tempting tastes of Indian snacks is liked by young and old alike. These can be easily prepared at any time. It is ideal to serve snacks before coffee or tea.
Now where else in the world would you find mouth watering stuff like ‘gol gappas, chole baturey, bhel puris etc, forget ‘mcdonalds’ go for mai-ka-lal’s bread pakoda’s!
3. Cricket: The passion for cricket just goes from parents to children as if it were a part of our culture and tradition. When I was young we used to stay glued to transistors for ball by ball commentary. Whistles and claps for every Indian boundary and opposition wickets, boos for Indian failures, the involvement is amazing and mind boggling. When India defeated Pakistan in finals a few years back to win 20-20 world cup, we got stuck in the jam near clock tower, till well past midnight, the celebrations put even Diwali festivities pale in comparison.
4. Yoga: This ancient art of various body postures is timeless and has taken the world by storm, yoga is not just an exercise routine but some thing that keeps mind as well as body in harmony, there is hardly any affliction or disease that cannot be cured by these stretching exercises, right from the grand old man of yoga Sh: B.K.S. Iyenger to Baba Ramdev, India’s contribution in this field is incredible.
5. Spirtualism: Spirituality and mystical charm have always drawn people from all over the world to India. Names like ‘Osho’ and Swami Ravi, Ravi Shankar are part of global quest for peace. As the world becomes increasingly capitalistic and materialist, the quest and urgency for spirituality grows more and more. The traditional Indian way of life has helped in the evolution and growth of Spiritualism.
At different points in the history of our civilization numerous spiritual leaders and saints have delivered the message of peace, brotherhood and co existence that is so very well rooted in our culture.
Arts like Yoga and Ayurveda coupled with religion have played an important role in the evolution and existence of spirituality in India. Through the ages, various Ashrams and centers of excellence came up in different parts of India.
Indian spirituality is all about showing respect to all living beings-animals trees, rocks and even water and lead a positive and healthy life. It is believed that the supreme Creator has put each one of us in this world for a purpose and that purpose is to be compassionate, caring and loving to one-another. As mentioned earlier, the great Indian spiritual personalities and gurus have played an important role in spreading the message of love, care and the need for positive living all over the world.
On this 62nd ‘Independence day’ we salute our ‘Incredible India"!!

The flowers of doon

Photographs By
Anant Aggarwal, (XI) St.Joseph's Academy

The plains are decorated with
My beautiful colors, and the air
Is scented with my fragrance

Would the world be happier without a judiciary?

Chaitali Sinha, XI, SJA
In a world where the glamorous actor may be a serial rapist by night, and the boy-next-door may be a adrenaline junkie, the lines between the clearly defined "good" and "bad" are blurring every moment. In such a time, I suggest the most outrageous thing -
Remove rules. Remove the judiciary.
Your probable reaction at this moment would be, "Back to a primitive society, bub?"
and my answer would be, yes.
From the early Roman and Greek times, it has been instated into our minds and our mythology that someone needs to judge the world. First, we gave the job in the hands of an unsuspecting God, and now it's Man. 117,369 words in the Indian Constitution dictate our behavior today. Right from making homosexuality criminal, to deciding exactly how much punishment would make murder avenged, this piece of parchment has definitely defined civilization.
The question I raise today is - Is not our entire system being based on vengeance?
What our society does consider "just" and "fair" today, is to kill a man for killing another. Has no one repeated the saying, "Two wrong don't make a right." to the forefather and 'wise' men of this world?
We consider the 21st century society, the one living in societies to be much ahead of people earlier. The ones who did not have computers and texting machines, people like the Native Americans and Indians. They are the ones who forgive a person who hurts another person, or make him understand what he did, but of course, they are primitive.
Man is considered greater, superior because we can think compared to the lesser animals. Yet, everyday, all our systems, all our actions give into our instinct, and not our thought. All of our "progressive" economic/social/judicial systems are based on the need for equality. Revenge.
If Al Qaeda bombed our towers, let's bomb some country they like.
If Germany dominated us before World War I, let us allow them to starve now.
To think these decisions were made by some great thinkers, and the wise men of our world.
The question budding in your mind right now is probably taking the form of, "So, what you're trying to say here is to allow the guy who robbed my house to roam free ?" My answer would still be, Yes.
The question, my dear friend is, that if that guy isn't robbing you tomorrow because he's locked up - he'll rob you five years later. Never has the judicial system reformed anyone, nor will it ever. We are always caught in this quagmire of fear - anger - revenge, thus never allowing the other man to change. Perhaps my perspective is different due to my involvement with spirituality in which I actually saw how people remain caught up in each life just trying to avenge wrongs.
The questions are - What had we intended to achieve by making countries?
Have we achieved it?