TRIBUTE TO THE VISIONARY JRD TATA

TRIBUTE TO THE VISIONARY 

JRD TATA

The contribution of the Tata group to the building of modern India is beyond estimation. Both Jamsetji and JRD Tata have been largely instrumental in changing the face of industrial India. JRD Tata is aptly named as the Father of civil aviation in India.

Some of the milestones in Bharat Ratna (Jewel of India) JRD Tata’s life in the field of civil aviation are as follows. [Courtesy: Beyond the Last Blue Mountain-A Life of JRD Tata –by R.M. Lala]

In 1932, he pioneered civil aviation in India by piloting the inaugural flight from Karachi to Bombay. JRD again performed his solo Karachi-Bombay flight to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Air India. From 1948 to 1978 JRD was the Chairman of Air India. He was also the President of IATA (International Air Transport Association) from 1958 to 1959. In 1980, JRD was reappointed to the Boards of Air India and Indian Airlines. In 1982, the Commemorative Golden Jubilee Flight from Karachi to Bombay was piloted by JRD, then 78 years young!

JRD has been the recipient of several national as well as international awards. He was awarded Tony Jannus Award in recognition of his contribution to the development of scheduled and commercial aviation. He received the Padma Vibhushan Award in 1955. In 1985 he was awarded Federation Aeronatique Internationale’s Gold Medal. He was also the recipient of Edward Warner Award by ICAO [International Civil Aviation Organization] in 1986. In 1988, JRD received the Daniel Guggenheim Medal for distinguished service to aviation. The nation’s highest award – the Bharat Ratna – was conferred on him in 1992.

This was the message of his former company Air India:

He touched the sky and it smiled.
He stretched out his arms and they encircled the globe.
His vision made giants of men and organizations.

What could be a better tribute to JRD Tata than naming the proposed Pune International Airport after him? With several Tata group organizations, including the flagship and truly global Tata Motors Ltd. based in Pune, it will be a fitting acknowledgment of JRD’s yeoman services to the nation for the cause of civil aviation in India. It will also be an honour for the cultural capital of Maharashtra, the seat of education – the Oxford of the Orient, also the industrial, automotive and fast growing IT and BT hub, and citizens of Pune.      

Team India's Sweet Victory

TEAM INDIA'S SWEET VICTORY

Team India has done it again!!! First the Twenty 20 World Cup; then the under 19 World Cup; and now the Senior Team, having already proved themselves in the longer version of the game [though the records say otherwise], today hit the last nail in the coffin, when they beat the so called ‘invincible and mighty’ Aussies on their own soil.

The Aussies were handed over a taste of their own medicine. They were harbouring apprehensions of the potential and the unbridled talent of the Indian team and each of its players, which led the Aussies to continue the sledging against our players in a bid to unnerve our team. But our team got its act together consistently throughout the Tri-Series and played as a fighting unit. Ponting had not much to say, except to accept Dhoni’s team’s supremacy in all departments of the game.

Sweeter than the Indian victory, every Indian will be proud of the fact that India has been able to counter effectively, the constant sledging of the Kangaroos and the hostile Australian media, by its team’s performance on the field and its demeanour off it as well.

The credit for these triumphs goes not only to Dhoni and his musketeers, but also to Kumble [for his dignified and towering presence in handling the situation during the Tests] and his team, the Manager Lalchand Rajput and the support staff, Vengsarkar and the Selection Committee, and last but not the least Sharad Pawar and the BCCI team for their mature and diplomatic approach in the management of the crisis midway in the Test Series and the unstinted support to the Indian team.

Due credit must also be given to the Aussies [the devils must get their due] who, through their vitriolic attacks on the Indians and their unsporting approach in the games, provoked and inspired Team India to perform to the best of their ability.

Lots in a Name

LOTS IN A NAME

Indians are well known for the ease with which they can pronounce names of foreign countries, cities and people. But when it comes to pronouncing Indian names, even newscasters, anchors and announcers do not bother to know whether the names are being spelt and/or pronounced correctly.

A glaring error by the private English news channels is the pronounciation of 'Chakan' - the fast growing auto hub of India, near Pune - wrongly as 'Chakaan'. The news channels are advised to do the bare essential research on the pronounciation, to avoid making such bloomers.

Another example is the name Raman. In Madhya Pradesh it may be correctly pronounced, but the same name in the South should be rightly pronounced as 'Raaman'.

Even my surname, though clearly written by me in bold caps on documents is wrongly spelt many times as Attawar or even Attarwar. It is also wrongly pronounced as Avtar or Atwar or Attar.

People just do not make the effort to read the proper noun, as it is written. They also do not think it worthwhile to ask the person whose name is being mispronounced or disfigured.

A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but a person whose name has been spelt or pronounced wrongly, would sound bitter.

Such spelling errors are very commonly found in Govt. documents, correspondence and important identity documents such as Pan Card, Passport, Voter I-D Card, Driving Licence and Gas Agency Card, among others.Why can't people especially in Govt. departments, banks and corporation offices get their basic spellings right? This is not due to the clerical staff's limited knowledge of English, but their attitude and approach to their work. The officers are equally to be blamed as they are supposed to scrutinize and verify the documents before signing. A little bit of care and caution would go a long way in eliminating such blunders. The citizens would then not have to undergo the hardship of running from pillar to post, to get their names/spellings changed on the documents, for no fault of theirs.The consequences of wrong spellings on documents would be - entirely avoidable delays for citizens in getting their work done.