Herd on the rampage

• The Statesman
• 30 Dec 2013

Tourists click photos; farmers watch helplessly
Biswabrata Goswami
biswabrata@thestatesman.net
Midnapore, 29 December
While tourists brought out their cameras to take pictures of a herd of about 100 elephants, farmers stood helplessly as the animals devoured their standing crops at the Salboni forest area in Junglemahal.
Some people from nearby places even hired vehicles to reach the spot. Several people carried coconuts and bananas to feed the elephants while others took pictures with their cameras.
A forest official said: “Crowd control has become a major problem. We keep telling people the elephants can get violent. It is always safer to watch them in silence from a safe distance without disturbing them.”
The herd that included about 10 calves had come from Dalma range in Jharkhand and was now settled near Deulkunda village under Salboni police station. The animals damaged 18 houses, destroyed standing crops on over 25 acres of land and killed two buffaloes and seven goats, sources said. The entire village stayed away out of fear, they said, adding the herd continued to stay near the village.
Since the late 1980's, elephants from Bihar (now Jharkhand) have been entering Bengal during the monsoon. The number of elephants and the duration of their stay in south Bengal has gone up over the years, worsening man-animal conflict in the densely populated districts of Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia. On an average, five people and an elephant die and hundreds of hectares of crops are destroyed each year.
Forest officials said several night patrolling teams had been organised in the area, each team armed with crackers, torch, siren, fireball and a vehicle to drive away the elephants in case they attacked villages close to the forests.
“We asked people not to prepare handia (a local brew using mahul flower) during the period, because its smell attracts elephants the most,” the official said.

HDA holds out hope for Mayachar

• The Statesman
• 27 Dec 2013

As the mighty Rupnarayan continues to gobble up homes
Biswabrata Goswami
biswabrata@thestatesman.net
Tamluk, 26 December
Thousands of villagers living in Mayachar, an erosion-prone island in East Midnapore, are now relieved after the Haldia Development Authority (HDA) announced a slew of development projects.
For the past two decades, thousands of islanders have been spending sleepless nights as the mighty Rupnarayan continues to gobble up homes. But after taking charge as the chairman of HDA, Mr Subhendu Adhikari had formulated plans to undertake an overall development plan at Mayachar and he announced the projects at a function in Mayachar in the presence of villagers yesterday. According to the plans, the HDA will undertake to develop roads, a concrete bridge across the Rupnarayan, school buildings, a flood shelter and erosion checking work.
For setting up a concrete bridge over the Rupnarayan, the HDA has already allotted around Rs 3 crore and the work will begin by the end of February.
The village, spread over 2 sq km, is on the district's border with Howrah. The river flow is a little rough in this part. Both banks are bereft of houses and have a thick screen of trees. Only the chimneys of brick kilns indicate the presence of human beings. In the first part of the twentieth century, a large portion of Mayachar was under the Rupnarayan.
The river gradually shifted to the northwest, though, and large tracts emerged from under the water. Villagers still talk about a flood half a century ago that had put the entire area under water. Maybe that’s the reason why the people of Mayachar, in Amritberia gram panchayat, Mahisadal, want to forget that it is among the most threatened inhabited islands in the district.
Just before the last panchayat election, about 2,000 voters were all supporters of the CPI-M. They later switched to the TMC, though, hoping that if it came to power, their problems would at least be recognised.
While addressing a rally, Mr Adhikari said: “For additional classrooms of Mayachar High School, I have already given Rs 10 lakh. This apart, I have plans to set up buildings of primary schools which were demolished in the erosion. The HDA has taken an elaborate plan to check erosion here with the help of the state irrigation department.” A senior teacher of the Mayachar high school, said: “A 90-foot stretch of land at Palpara and a 10-foot stretch near the Kheya ghat have already eroded.
About a 1.5-kilometre stretch along the Mayachar land is also under threat of severe erosion and this land will submerge in the coming monsoon if work is not taken up immediately. 

Chance of a lifetime, still unrecognised

• The Statesman
• 26 Dec 2013

kalyani doctor selected for master’s study in netherlands
Biswabrata Goswami
biswabratagoswami@gmail.com
Krishnagar, 25 December
At a time when vitality and growing old for the elderly are being seen as a new way of integral treatment strategy across the world, including India, a young doctor of Gandhi Memorial Hospital in Kalyani, who has received several international awards, has been selected to study the Masters programme on this field from Leiden University, the oldest university of the Netherlands in greater Europe and the twin university of Oxford.
Dr Ashok Kumar Biswas, a Junior Resident (Cardiology & Chest Medicine) of Gandhi Memorial Hospital, who graduated from Midnapore Medical College and Hospital, was recently selected as the first Indian student to study the Masters programme on vitality and ageing from Leiden University.But, neither the state government nor the Central government has recommended his name yet.
Masters programme in vitality and ageing is a very unique course offered by Leiden University and Leiden Academy only for 20 students around the globe each year. They usually select the creme-de-la-creme from a country and this is the first time that any Indian student got such an offer.
Dr Biswas had received the international undergraduate research best prize in 2009 but that was also not recognised by the governments or the health university. “Every country takes honour in this course. Usually, the selected student gets money from the government for the course. Leiden university  expects respective governments to come forward and provide the scholarship. The Centre may help me if the same is forwarded by the Chief Minister,” Dr Biswas said.
While responding to questions, Dr Biswas said care for the elderly differs from that of children and adults, as it often involves the treatment of multiple, concurrent diseases. Therefore, the elderly require a different, integral treatment strategy. This essential new way of thinking and operating is not sufficiently incorporated in current academic and clinical practice yet. To address this specific gaps, Leiden University and Leyden Academy developed the Vitality and Ageing master programme, he said.
“We are now experiencing an unprecedented senior population growth, which means that older people and related ageing issues are more prominent than ever. So, the ageing process can be (partially) avoided and extended if sufficient energy is invested into maintenance and repair. We can anticipate ongoing improvements in the length and quality of our lives and expect a future with more years lived in good health.”
But despite best efforts, life often ends with a period of poor health and disabilities. Care for the elderly differs from that of children and adults, as it often involves the treatment of multiple, concurrent diseases (multi-morbidity) which leads to under-and over-treatment. Above all, not only purely biomedical aspects need to be considered but other influencing factors such as the impact of healthcare structures and the social position of the elderly need to be taken into account.