After the full fledged drama yesterday today work on RPD road was on a snails pace and the bulldozers were busy demolishing the compound walls along the road till Patwardhan layout.
The main point of yesterdays drama the Gomatesh Vidyapeeth, compound wall of the Vidyapeeth and some parts of the building were also demolished.


A notable factor was a poster stuck opposite the RPD the main gate on a hoarding. It says it all.
As of today compound walls of major bunglows have been demolished. But the Gogte and RPD college compound walls still exist. Even the walls of a small shrine were seen untouched.
Even before majority works begins the MLA thought it better to put up a board at the site taking credit of it all.
Many readers would say that this blog is biased and always against development. But here the point of view is that no one on the road the residents, shop owners were happy in which the whole thing is being done.
As of today it is May 14 and within 15 days or a month we will have heavy rains and until then what work will happen on the road is the question.
New gutters will have to built on both sides, this will take a minimum of 2 months after reviewing the work at Phule road, which is in rags even after 6 months. So one could expect a similar time frame for this road to be back to its glory.
Development works are needed but the manner in which they are executed is the biggest question. Say the work is done on a war footing then what would be the standard of the work, another big question.

Sri Ram Sene chief Pramod Muthalik on Friday filed a complaint at Camp police station in Belgaum and sought an enquiry into the sting operation. This was after the Headlines Today-Tehelka expose.
He further said expose was an attempt to defame him alleging criminal intimidation and extortion.
Pramod Muthalik has called for Press conference at Hotel Milan at 12 noon to clarify his stand.
Pramod Muthalik, and top aides of his outfit, were caught on camera agreeing to vandalise an art exhibition in return for money in an undercover investigation by the magazineTehelkabroadcast on news channel Headlines Today on Thursday night.

Party workers said that this kind of act will deface the party image in the long run. It was the talk of the town in the past few days about the RPD road widening and what will happen to the Vidyapeeth on the same road.
Rivalry in between the BJP MLA's and MP is also well known. But this kind of occasion will arise when the elected MLA's will clash with each other was not expected in Belgaum atleast.

On May 15 the newly built Mysore airport is said to be inaugurated by the Union minister of state for civil aviation Praful Patel. But as an irony no airline is ready to fly from there. All major private airlines, including national carrier Air India, have declined invitations to fly to the newly-built airport in Mysore. Poor passenger load factor is the reason for the reluctance to operate flights to Karnataka’s second-largest city.


CM BSY recently wrote to the Secretary of civil aviation to look into the possibilities of resuming air traffic from Belgaum and Bidar.
The Karnataka government plans to develop airports in each district of the state and has sought private participation to develop this infrastructure.
 We Belgaumites will have keep dreaming of flying from here as major operators are unwilling to fly from Mysore then who will come to fly from Belgaum. The load factor is a major reason for not commencing operations. The Belgaum airport was recently renovated at a cost of Rs.3.57crores which now boasts of a fully AC terminal building. Mr. Praful Patel had said that by January 2010 air services would resume from Belgaum. But nothing has materialized.

In order to sensitize the cities administration as well as the citizens about the current state of sanitation and raise awareness about the need for improvement, Govt of India has announced a National Rating of Class 1 Cities on sanitation parameters.
 Releasing the rating Union Urban Development Minister, Shri Jaipal Reddy said that exercise for the rating initiated in 2009 is a part of National Urban Sanitation Policy to make Indian cities and towns totally sanitized, healthy and liveable i.e. they become Nirmal Shahars.
Belgaum with 40.510 points stood at 90^th position out of the 423 cities ranked in all and was under Black shade.
On the basis of their performance, cities have been kept in four categories that are - green, blue, black and red.
Other nearby cities to Belgaum and their ratings:
Bidar Rank 22 with 49.820 points
Udupi Rank 43 with 45.400 points
Chikmaglur Rank 46 with 45.020 points
Hospet Rank 71 with 41.820 points
Bijapur Rank 71 with 41.521 points
Belgaum Rank 90 with 40.510 points
Kolhapur Rank 136 with 38 points
Hubli-Dharwad Rank 196 with 35.230 points



See complete list here
http://pib.nic.in/archieve/others/2010/may/d2010051101.pdf
None of the local newspapers have given the Belgaum ratings. So sometimes AAB is good.

The most happening and talked about road in the recent week, RPD college road for the road widening work taken up, might not start as Gomatesh Vidyapeeth has taken a stay on the work and court has given an “As is” order.
People were speaking many things about what will happen of this building as about 17 feet needed to be demolished.
The district in charge minister had ordered a complete remarking on the road to exactly know how much space will go.
Others can also a get a Stay order now after the Vidyapeeth has got one and RPD college has already got a stay order long back. Cutting of trees is still in progress.
The CDP(city development plan) mentions the RPD corner to Old Dharwad road to be of 80 feet, and this particular widening is being done only till Patwardhan Layout. Residents of the area asked this question as to why only till Patwardhan layout and not the complete road till Dharwad road. But if it is extended further there are a number of houses in Vadagaon which could face the hammer and which is not feasible to keep a vote bank intact.
With these developments the future of the road widening is unknown. There is one JCB at the RPD corner which must have been kept to infuse some fright amongst the residents.
Many shop owners and residents on themselves have removed their walls or buildings as per the marking.
And even before some major work has been done a board mentioning MLA's name has been put up at the corner.
The Met department has observed that Monsoons will arrive in the first week of June, so it could be sensible for the authorities not to take the road widening work now. If they do that road will be a dirt track in the rains and the current hardships will turn into more misfortunes for the residents.

Chandigarh got 73.48 points out of 100
Belgaum scores less than 45 points
Chandigarh has been adjudged the best city in terms of quality sanitation under the National Rating and Award Scheme for Sanitation for Indian Cities by the Ministry of Urban Development.
According to a nationwide Union Urban Development Ministry exercise, called the National City Rating under the ambitious national urban sanitation policy, the rating task was conducted across 423 urban conglomerates, including 24 in Karnataka. Mysore was on second place while Bangalore and Mangalore have bagged the 8th and 12th place. The ministry’s policy initiative was part of an objective to create awareness on hygienic conditions in urban areas. In Karnataka, Mandya (15th) and Bidar (22nd ) have found place among the 25 cleanest cities.
Udupi, Chikmaglur, Hospet,Bijapur, Belgaum, Gangavathi, Hassan, Robertsonpet, Gulbarga, Kolar, Bellary, Badravathi, Tumkur, Hubli-Dhawad, Raichur and Gadag-Betigeri, received less than 45 on a scale of hundred.
The rating was carried out by three private agencies ––AC Nielsen-ORG Marg, Development and Research Services (DRS) and CEPT University.

The countryside around Belgaum is wonderfully green even in hot summer of May.... here is a landscape finished today in celebration of the beauty of Belgaum......:-) Look at those dramatic clouds in the sky..... It is done ballpoint pens on canvas.


Hope you all like it.
AAB is proud to have covered this wonderful artist long back.Shirish Deshpande gives the ballpoint pen a novel status
http://www.shirishdeshpande.com

Letter from Mona
 It amazes me that we have grown as a country and have all the latest technologies, etc but when it comes to the Rickshawwallah's how come they do not use the meter based system?
My parents are old and live in Belgaum by themselves. They do not have car or driver and are dependent on the public transportation system. They live in Jaddhav nagar. Neither is a Rickshaw stand close by nor do Rickshaws come frequently in their area so they have to walk to club road on the way they have to stop any passing rickshaw and ask them if he is willing to transport them. If he says yes, then they have to ask him how much he will charge as, inspite of having a meter based system they do not follow the system. They charge exhorbitantly. Mumbai is more expensive to live but with meter based system they charge Rs 20 for a distance of 2 or 3 kms but in Belgaum the same distance they charge 30 bucks or they will not take you. My parents have no choice as they have no energy to walk that much nor do they have to energy to argue so they have to cough up the money. This, when Belgaum is a cheaper place to live in than Mumbai?
My question is what is the RTO office doing? Are they blind to all this. Is there a nexus between the Rickshawwallah's and them? Why do the Rickshawwallahs have to put a meter if they dont have to follow the rule.
Will allaboutbelgaum.com please address this grievance. I am sure there are many people like my parents who are old and living by themselves and others who plainly know that they will be paying more which hurts their pocket and have no choice but to walk miles.
Appreciate if anyone there can start a movement on this which will help the citizens of Belgaum on the whole.
Thank you
Mona
 AAB on 15 February 2010 had made a similar kind of post.
http://allaboutbelgaum.com/lifestyle/travel/who-will-bell-the-auto-drivers/

After the decision on Ajmal Kasab was pronounced all over Mumbai people distributed sweets and busted crackers as if the daemon was killed and all is well now.
Mercy petitions of six, including the associates of Veerappan, have been pending with the President of India since 2004, two with the Karnataka Governor, appeals of 20 in Karnataka High Court, one in the Supreme Court and nine in the Dharwad circuit bench of the High Court.

Google Map view

The Hindalga jail was built by the British in 1923 and has three gallows. The last hanging was done in November 1983 of Hanumant Malla, convicted of five murders.
Siddappa Rayappa Kamble who has assisted in 11 hangings here is ready to hang Kasab, if given the duty. He has just one year in service but he is ready to do the job if he is called for.
The Hindalga Jail spreads over an area of 99 acres. It has a capacity to accommodate 1,162 prisoners.

Ahad Husain Tarde of GSS college secured the first rank in the district with 96.33%. 

Life of man is a pre-destined path, rightly designed by the supreme power. He firmly believed in this. Since childhood he had a dream of becoming a stage singer. And yes, at this stage of his life he Says, yes! Mission accomplished! He is Nandan G Herlekar of Belgaum.
The beginning:
Nandan still remembers the day when he sang for the first time in front of many people. He was a small boy of eight years and sang a patriotic song in a remote village in Nanded district of Maharashtra on the republic day. It was appreciated by one and all and was very halcyon and on the wings of ecstasy. From that day his desire to sing grew and he was in search of occasions to sing. He anxiously took part in the musical activities in the school and then in high school. Fortunately some staff members of the high school were musically talented and they encouraged Nandan to sing and act on the stage on every occasion. He learnt a lot from one Shahir Bilgoji. They went to many villages to sing Powadas, Lawnis and other folk songs. During those years they staged a musical drama (Waga-Natya) “Pudhari Pahije” written by Pu. La. Deshapande. Nandan sang all the songs in the drama though they belonged to different roles.
Nandan's college days were also wonderful. Prof. Arvind Yalgi, a very cultured man was the principal and he directed the same Waga Natya in college. Prof. Page, a Sanskrit scholar was the next principal. He sang “Geet Ramayan” beautifully. He encouraged Nandan a lot. He was very happy when he accompanied him on harmonium. They both used to sing on every occasion in college and also in private ‘mehfils’.

Shri Nandan Herlekar

Along with music, he began his career as a sub-editor in ‘Belgav-Varta’ and then became an assistant reporter for Belgaum for newly started edition of ‘Sakal’s Kolhapur edition. It was a nice experience in writing columns and music reviews. He has also written hundreds of reviews and articles on music in ‘Tarun Bharat’.
Nandan was a student of Pt. Nehru Vidyalaya of Shahapur-Belgaum during 1970-73 (SSLC in 1973)
PUC in Govt. Chintamanrao Jr. College in 1974-76, B.A. in RPD College during 1976-79.
Nandan has passed ‘Gayan Kala Visharad’ exam from Bharat Gayan Samaj, Pune in 1983 and passed ‘Sangeet Vidvat’ with first rank in Karnatak state in 1984. At the same time he completed M. A. in History and Archeology. This made him a qualified for teaching music. During this period, he composed dance dramas on various topics and presented them with help of Mrs. Sandhya Hosmani, a leading Bharatnatya exponent.
He began teaching music to Bhajan groups and took some of them to AIR Panaji for broadcast. This was the time when he founded his music class in 1982 and began teaching vocal music and instruments like Tabla and harmonium. Eventually his institution became an examination centre of A. B. Gandharva Maha Vidyalaya of Mumbai.
In 1983 he accepted a job as a music teacher in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Air Force Station, Sambra. In the span of almost twenty seven years in K. V., he has enjoyed his job with hundreds of his own compositions, skits, poems, group songs, dance dramas and many other genres. Heepresented Bangalore region with twenty five students to Indore in 1990 and to Assam in 1998 for Cultural Exchange Programmes. He also had an opportunity to be a resource person for the in-service courses for music teachers for three times so far. He also has been a facilitator for oracle’s Thinkquest.org to teach the teachers to use websites for teaching music.
Nandan always think of composing new ‘Bandishis’, Taranas, Dhrupads, Dhamars and Chaturangs for the aspirants of classical music. He has written three books on music – 1: The Beginners’ Book On Hindustani Music 1998, 2: Revised Edition of the same in 2005 and 3: Tabla-Principle and Art. The books are popular among the music lovers of the country and also in music institutions in the U.K. and the U.S.A.
 
 A small interview With Mr.Nandan Herlekar:
Tell us more about your initial training in music?
Nandan ----->In childhood my talent was tapped by my elder brother and sisters, who were good in singing. We belong to a heritage of traditional musicians. My great grandfather Pandit Damodarbuva Deulkar was a Dhrupad singer, a Pakhawaj player and a staunch devotee of Sant Manik Prabhu of Humnabad. He spent his whole life at his lotus feet. His son Vishubuva continued the tradition and I, as a child saw him chanting the ‘Gurumantra’ of Manik Prabhu and ‘Parans’ of Pakhawaj at an equal pace.
My father Govindrao Herlekar was a true lover of music. He took us to concerts where we enjoyed from the core of heart. He inherited the ‘Seva’ of music department at the Darbar of Maniknagar and we children were fortunate to listen to the great musicians of that time. Being Bapurao’s children (as he was popularly called!), we were treated with special attention by all at Maniknagar. The musical treat we received every year during Datta Jayanti festival of six days had been wonderful in our lives. I am immensely benefited by the music I listened there and have stuffed it in the inner part of my heart.
It was here that I met my first Guru in Tabla late Pt. Suryakant Gokhle, a talented Shishya of the great Ustad Ahmedjan Thirakwa. In presence of my father he taught me the first lesson at Maniknagar in 1973. Back in Belgaum I continued the ‘Riyaz’ and visited often Guruji’s house in Pune.
During that time I began taking lessons in vocal music from Pt. Sangameshwar Gurav in Vadgaon. After he went to Dharwad as a professor of music in Karnatak University, I was again in search of a Guru and I met Pt. Mrutyunjayabuva Puranikmath. Due to old age Buva was reluctant to accept anyone as a Shishya, but I was adamant and eager to learn from him. After a struggle of six months I could win his heart and he began to teach me. From 1979 to till his demise in 2002 he taught not only music, but the way of life.

Tell us more about your group during the Emergency days Madhav Vrunda?
Nandan ----->During emergency we formed a group called ‘Madhav Vrunda’ to spread the message of patriotism among the youth. Our group consisted of singers, orators, musicians and mimicry artists. Some names among them are Kishor Kakde, Avinash Vengurlekar, Dilip Deshpande, Bhalchandra Kalled, Ranvindra Karekar, Datta Jayade and many others. It was at this stage of life I began to compose music to the poems I liked. It was my duty to teach those songs to others and set music with musicians. I still wonder how I could compose hundreds of songs at that tender age. I have been doing the same till today with equal zeal.
 How do you break the barrier of non-support from media to Indian Classical music?
Nandan -----> Let there be any support or not,I have been working in the field, many times swam across, followed the line of Rabindra Nath Tagore-"Ekla Chalo Re". "Non-Support" is not at all a barrier to me.
 Do you think electronic music instruments affect natural music?
Nandan ----->It is the person behind the instrument who is important. Electronic instruments are very smart. One must make proper use of them - artistically and yes, with brains! I puzzle myself by the use of them. I do not categorize music into natural and otherwise.
What would be you advice to the young aspirants who plan to take up misuc?Nandan ----->"Go ahead, see, learn and conquer". Music is unfathomable.
Can you tell something about Nandan Herlekar that the world doesn't know?Nandan -----> I do not think world is interested in me otherwise of music. Yes, they do not know that I am a history-lover. I traveled a lot on bicycle for the historical places.
Has being in Belgaum helped you in your musical career or do you think otherwise?Nandan ----->Belgaum has made me whatever I am. Though the sphere is limited, I have done a lot (This is strictly confidential) musically and have done whatever has not been done by anyone earlier. So I am happy with my town.
What is that you wish Belgaum had for music lovers like you?Nandan -----> Since earlier days, Belgaum is a heaven for music lovers. Music toppers lived in Belgaum. The "Samskara" done by the stalwarts have proved to be useful. The greats in the field made their Shishyas worthy of something. With the help of modern amenities and techniques, today's artistes are achieving without much struggle. It is a very good thing. We, the old timers are happy about it, but sometimes are sad of lack of enthusiasm among the youngsters.
What is the best thing about Belgaum you like?Nandan -----> "North-South, East-West" My Belgaum is the best! After you return from any place to Belgaum during summer, the so called "hot" Belgaum feels "cold". YES! THAT IS BELGAUM!!!
What are your thoughts on this website?Nandan -----> I liked the caption! ALL ABOUT BELGAUM! I think any topic, any subject or anything that connects with Belgaum is about this website. You and your friends (whoever has inspired you to begin it) are worthy to be appreciated a lot for this modern day necessity!
THANKS!

 Two lads from Belgaum have passed Civil Services (Main) Examination 2009 MAITREY KULKARNI of Saraf Colony Belgaum and AKASH SHANKAR CHOUGULE of Belgundi have passed with flying colors. MAITREY KULKARNI is a gold medalist of VTU in Mechanical engineering and did his college engineering from GIT. His secured 103rd place and is interested in joining the IFS. Akash Chougule is from Belgundi and did his schooling from Marathi Vidyaniktean and later from Jyoti College. He is from Marathi medium and still he has achieved this fete, he secured 393rd rank.