Read in : தமிழ்
Welcome to The Eighth Column, inmathi’s exclusive in-depth content. We hope to add more features such as a forum that will give serious readers a stake in the content. We seek your generous support to independent journalism through subscriptions for this section.
Lack of innovative technology could scuttle TN’s aims of enhanced ethanol production
India aims to reduce imports of fossil fuels by achieving 20% ethanol blending with gasoline from April 2023. A nationwide rollout is planned from 2025-26. At present, India’s ethanol production capacity is 426 crore litres from sugarcane-based distilleries and 258...
Better Tamil Nadu
A selfless act by teachers gets school new floors
It was a lesson in self-reliance taught by the teachers of a school, not through books but through action. One of the three buildings of the panchayat union middle school at Murugankudi in Cuddalore district had been functioning with badly damaged floors for a long time. It made things...
TN doctor cures 40 cattle diseases with Siddha medicine
Dr N Punniamurthy, 65, has demonstrated the efficacy of Siddha medicine in curing about 40 cattle diseases, setting an example for other states to consider and emulate. He has worked as the head of the Ethno Veterinary Medicine Training and Research Centre, Thanjavur, affiliated to the Tamil...
His resolve, sisters’ sacrifice make him the doctor he is
Government school, Tamil medium, poverty in family and marginalised social status…all these factors are seen as deterrents to success. Yet Aravindhraj triumphed over all the heavy odds stacked against his education, and finally donned the coat of a doctor. Born into a marginalised family in...
Parivadini honours flute-maker with Parlandu award this year
Parivadini has carved out a niche in the world of Carnatic music, webcasting live music concerts held at Raga Sudha, home to Nada Inbam in Mylapore, Chennai, so the connoisseurs of Carnatic music can relish classical notes from the cozy comfort of their home. The credit for this must go to Jaya...
Gokila’s grit does Ramanathapuram proud
Twenty-three-year-old Gokila is another beacon of hope and exemplifies the can-do spirit of TN youth today. Social marginalization and poverty did not stop this young woman from pursuing her dreams of becoming a doctor. She found encouragement not only in her parents but also in the teachers...
Opinion
Tamils must admit to, end bias against migrant workers
A Facebook post that came up recently featured a photo of film star Rajinikanth standing next to a shorter, scraggy looking man – purportedly a daily wage worker. The accompanying comment said both came from up north for survival and they should know their place and...
Why Governor Ravi’s use of ‘Thamizhagam’ is inaccurate
Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s open dislike of the words ‘Tamil Nadu’ and replacing it with ‘Thamizhagam’ has led to a political storm in the state. The ruling DMK and its allies are of course opposed to it, but so is the opposition AIADMK. The party declared it would...
‘Dravidian model created disparities in districts’ growth’
A recent report by the State Planning Commission of the Government of Tamil Nadu, titled “Regional Growth Pattern In Tamil Nadu” has revealed huge imbalances in growth between districts — the northern and western districts are doing significantly better than the...
Mathi Memes
Mathi Memes: He can’t act, he can’t dance. Yet Ajith’s Valimai is a smash hit
Actress Khushbu was referring to the reception to Ajith's film Valimai. In what seemed like a mix of admiration and envy, she tweeted in Tamil: “Only you [Ajith Kumar] draw such crowds.” On Wednesday (Feb 24) evening, at a theatre in Thoothukudi, there was a large...
Editor’s Pick
Will TN Budget be a banger, or squib of Centre’s neglect?
The Tamil Nadu government is set to present its Budget for the year 2023-2024 on March 20 amid expectations that it will keep electoral promises made by the DMK such as aid for women, and that it will announce a return to the Old Pension Scheme, despite constraints. The state, like many others,...
Demand to restore old pension scheme rising: union chief
Human beings serve society by engaging in economic production and distribution or by providing services, among other things. After decades of work, say, at age 60, one feels so tired as to withdraw from the services. Then it is for society to take care of his/her economic needs in old age. That...
At Pondy, Bharathi poured scorn on Dravidian movement
Dr. J.B. Prashant More, a Puducherry-born and Paris-based historian, is already a familiar face to the readers of inmathi.com as he has, in earlier interviews, spoken about various subjects including the Muslims emergence in South India, freedom struggle leader Subhas Chandra Bose’s death or...
Govt must stop officials’ misuse of Namma Chennai app
The Greater Chennai Corporation has sometimes faced stringent judicial strictures over allegations of corruption, one of the cases being H Lakshmi vs The Commissioner (2018), where the Madras High Court ordered it to transfer all its vigilance staff en masse in a case of encroachment of public...
Kerala, Karnataka promote menstrual cups for better periods
Kerala is abuzz with a ‘No to pads, opt for M-cups’ campaign, as the state government, various agencies and people’s representatives spread awareness about the use of menstrual cups for periods instead of sanitary napkins. The menstrual cup is a reusable and eco-friendly alternative to sanitary...
Politics
Will TN budget offer more than vague promises to Dalits?
P Sivakami, 65, is a Dalit-feminist writer, former IAS officer and also the leader of her own political party Samuga Samathuva Padai. One of the first Dalit women writers in Tamil, she is an author of six novels and over 60 short stories....
TN BJP chief Annamalai a hit in Karnataka too
Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai after being appointed as the co-president of Karnataka BJP in poll-bound Karnataka, is making his presence felt in the state too. Annamalai has written to the Chief Justice of Tamil Nadu, Justice Munishwar...
People must agitate, end ‘cash-for-votes’: Arappor Iyakkam
Arappor Iyakkam has written to the Election Commission of India alleging that the Erode East by-election is heavily marred by political parties bribing voters with freebies and cash for votes. The unfortunate trend set by the infamous...
Erode East by-election: No growth plans, only caste plays
The by-election to the Erode East Assembly constituency will be a testing ground for the DMK which has been in power in Tamil Nadu for two years, but it’s also equally important for the opposition AIADMK, which would be looking to win back the...
Why does PMK see red in NLC expansion plan?
The Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) is up in arms against the land acquisition move for the Neyveli Lignite Corporation's (NLC) third mine expansion project. The party has been insisting that land owners who part with their lands for the project, be given a guarantee...
Culture
Sangeetha Kalanidhi award for singer Bombay Jayashree
The Music Academy has announced awards for 2023 for some exponents of Carnatic music. There are scores of music aficionados and even general fans who eagerly wait for this award announcement every year. Bombay Jayashree has been chosen for this...
Whispering to elephants is part of tribal life in The Nilgiris
The Oscar award for The Elephant Whisperers, a documentary short film, is a global tribute to the tribal people living in harmony with nature and wildlife in the Nilgiris. The film tells the life story of the couple Bomman and Bellie of the...
Poor tribes get free houses, education thanks to Aid India
People of various marginalised scheduled tribes such as Irulars and Narikuravars, who find a place only on the peripheries of various towns, have been living in mud huts or makeshift tents, exposed to rain and shine, for generations. Their...
Padma Shri for two Irulars honours indigenous knowledge
Vadivel Gopal and Masi Sadaiyan were going about their routine work in Karur, catching snakes, when they heard the news that they had been awarded the fourth-highest civilian award of the country, the Padma Shri. The duo from one of the most...
Other states’ tribal folk forced into ‘bonded labour’ in TN
There has been a rising trend of tribal people from other states being brought into Tamil Nadu and forced to labour for long hours and low wages in work such as sugarcane harvesting. The Tamil Nadu government has been urged to act against bonded labour and provide...
Food
Drink water regularly; it does more than just quench thirst
Drinking enough water every day plays a great role in maintaining human health. Water accounts for 75 per cent of the substances our body is made up of, and drinking enough water aids digestion and regulates metabolism. How much water should you...
Have greens everyday to keep diseases at bay
Food in itself and of itself is medicine. So goes an old Tamil adage. Familiar with the medicinal properties of greens, our forefathers made them a part of their daily diet. Modern doctors too insist on taking greens regularly as they play a...
Drop it like a hot potato: Boiled good, french fries bad
Is potato good for health or not? Some vouch for the potato’s health benefits such as being able to prevent cancer. But others say the tuber is anything but healthy. So, which is it? Potato, one of the world’s important food crops, is a...
Keep your gut healthy to have a happy mind
Whether one is prone to illnesses or builds good immunity to fight them depends a lot on one’s gut health. Sounds strange? It is scientifically proven that a healthy intestinal tract can rein in diseases. Being alive and kicking, totally free...
GI tag for Vellore thorny brinjal, Ramnad rotund chilli
In recognition of Tamil Nadu’s indigenous varieties of brinjal and chillies, the thorny brinjal of Vellore and the rotund chilli of Ramanathapuram have been given the geographical indication or GI tag. ‘Mullu kaththarikaai’ (thorny brinjal) is endemic to Vellore...
Civic Issues
Raised FSI sans infra will make Chennai hard to live in
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin’s recent assurance to the real estate sector that Floor Space Index (FSI) in Chennai would be increased even along narrow roads buttresses regulator CMDA’s proposal to allow FSI of 6.5 around Chennai Metro and MRTS. The Chief...
How to commute in Chennai on a shoestring budget
Just how far can a tight travel budget take you in Chennai when the only choice you have is public transport? That depends on what kind of information you get about the ways to move around, switching from buses to suburban trains to Metro trains to share autos to...
Environment
Lack of innovative technology could scuttle TN’s aims of enhanced ethanol production
India aims to reduce imports of fossil fuels by achieving 20% ethanol blending with gasoline from April 2023. A nationwide rollout is planned from 2025-26. At present, India’s ethanol production capacity is 426 crore litres from sugarcane-based distilleries and 258...
TN Organic Farming Policy lacks vision and action plans
Before the industrial revolution and the large-scale production of chemicals opened up farming to synthetic inputs like fertilisers and pesticides, all farming had been organic farming. In India particularly, the need to become self-sufficient in food production in...
Sports
Skilled like Priya, these women footballers must get govt aid
The wrongful death of young football talent Priya is bringing attention to other young women footballers like her. They too come from meagre means and have overcome the stranglehold of social mores to follow their passion. For these women from North Chennai, a...
New TNCA chief a sign of N Srinivasan-DMK nexus
Dr. Ashok Sigamani, son of Higher Education Minister Ponmudi, has been elected president of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA). This was an unopposed election as his rival Prabhu had withdrawn his nomination and also the case he had filed in the Madras High...
Read in : தமிழ்
