Indian Civil Aviation Centenary (1911-2011) Commemorative Coin

To view high resolution image, click on the image above

To view high resolution image, click on the image above

The President of India Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil relaesed coins to commemorate 100 years of Civil Aviation in India, in the presence of Maharashtra Governor, K Sankarararayanan, Union Civil Aviation Minister Vyalar Ravi and President of the International Civil Aviation Organization, Roberto Kobeh Gonzales.

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Indian Civil Aviation is completing 100 years on 18th February, 2011. The year 2011-12 will be declared as the Civil Aviation Centenary Year, starting from 18th February, 2011 and ending on the same date in 2012. On this date in 1911, the first commercial plane flew in India between Allahabad and Naini. Since then, aviation in India has grown from strength to strength. Today, India is the 9th largest civil aviation market in the world and this forward march is likely to culminate in India becoming one of the three largest markets in the world by 2020.

International Year of Forests 2011

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On 13 October 2011, the United Nations Postal Administration issued three mini-sheets of eight stamps to commemorate the International Year of Forests.

The Designs

US$ 0.44 & US$ 0.98 FDC - Trees as Guardians of the Earth 

The stamp series illustrates a magical forest with its indigenous peoples and denizens. Forest people around the world have lived in harmony within these ecosystems. Indigenous art reflects their vision of the spiritual and natural worlds. "Civilized" societies are now aware that trees aid in the prevention of soil erosion, by air and water, and how they serve as natural barriers protecting our cities from harm during natural disasters, while also providing us with clean air. Some believe the earth itself is one living being, some call her Gaia, Mother Earth, Pacha Mama. You and I call her home. The artist has depicted her as a glowing ball of energy deep at our core.

F.s 0.85 & F.s 1.40 FDC - Migration and Purification 

The stamp series showcases forests not only above ground but also underwater, as in the vast kelp forests of the Pacific, in tandem with the subject of migration. Many animals, large and small, not only make their homes in our forests but also use them as way stations on their seasonal travels. Forests serve as points of navigation for birds, butterfl ies and other migratory species who use them to guide their way. Trees also play a vital role in keeping our bodies of water clean.

€ 0.62 & € 0.70 FDC - Pharmacies and Man 

The stamp series is meant to illustrate our forests as untapped pharmacies, where many medicines and botanicals have been discovered. Only a fraction of the world's forests have been analysed before being cut down. Sadly, we are squandering what could be a repository for cures to some of the world's ailments. The image continues in the lower area to depict the duality of man's interdependence with the natural world but also darkly on man imposing his will/shape in its subordination for personal gain.

Special First Day Cancellations

On 13 October 2011, first day cancellations for the "International Year of Forests " stamps were made available at United Nations Headquarters in New York, the Palais des Nations, Geneva and the Vienna International Centre as seen in the scanned FDCs' above.

First Day covers for the "International Year of Forests" stamps were made available in the following versions:

Single - a total of three covers, each with one se-tenant of two stamps of the values issued, appropriately cancelled 

Jumbo - a total of three covers, each with one miniature sheet of eight stamps of the values issued, appropriately cancelled Triple - one jumbo size cover with all three se-tenants of two stamps issued, appropriately cancelled New York, Geneva and Vienna

Stamp Specifications

Format: 32 mm horizontally x 40 mm vertically, perforation to perforation 

Perforation: 13 The horizontal sheets of eight stamps measure 200 mm horizontally by 100 mm vertically. There are four se-tenant pairs with two denominations on each sheet. 

The text "International Year of the Forests 2011" appears in the left tab of the sheet. There is also a quote on each sheet by Ralf Waldo Emerson "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn".


Marginal Inscription 

Each sheet has two marginal inscriptions, one in the top margin and one in the bottom margin. The marginal inscription consists of the United Nations emblem with the text "United" to the left of the emblem and "Nations" to the right of the emblem. The artist's signature appears in the lower right margin and one copyright symbol with the year 2011 appears in the lower left margin.

Printing 

The stamps were printed in offset in hexachrome plus foils by Lowe-Martin Group (Canada).

The Artist

The artist, Sergio Baradat, had the following to say about the stamp designs:

"Creating the IYOF stamp series has been a wonderful experience for me. Having grown up in Miami, Florida, I grew up very close to nature; whether it was snorkeling and developing an early appreciation for aquatic life, climbing mango and tamarind trees with my friends, or joining the Pan American Orchid Society at the age of 14. These experiences have made me very appreciative and respectful of all living things and sentient beings. My wish in creating the imagery for this series was to focus on a few points I thought were simple, but key to our understanding of the vital links that trees and forests provide to life on earth".

About the Issue

Designated by the United Nations General Assembly, 2011 is the International Year of Forests. During this Year, everyone from Governments and the United Nations system, to major groups and other forest-related organizations are coming together to raise awareness on strengthening the sustainable management, conservation and development of all types of forests for the benefit of current and future generations.

United Nations Secretary-General BAN Ki-moon said, "By declaring 2011 as the International Year of Forests, the United Nations General Assembly has created an important platform to educate the global community about the great value of forests - and the extreme social, economic and environmental costs of losing them".

The global observance of the Year comes at a time when there has been a much wider recognition of the role that sustainably managed forests play in everything from mitigating climate change to providing wood, medicines and livelihoods for people around the world.

The world's forests cover one third of the Earth's land surface. Forests help to maintain the fertility of agricultural land, protect water sources and reduce the risks of natural disasters. They provide subsistence and income to about 350 million people who live within or near forests. Close to 1.6 billion people depend to some extent on forests for their livelihood.

Millions of hectares of forests are lost every year due to deforestation and forest degradation which impacts watersheds and habitats and also accounts for up to 20 per cent of the global greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming.

The main theme for the International Year of Forests 2011 is "Forests for People". It highlights the dynamic relationship between forests and the people who depend on them. Everyone of us is connected to forests. Forests contribute to the balance of oxygen, carbon dioxide and humidity in the air. Over 40 % of the world's oxygen is produced from rainforests. A tree releases 8 to 10 times more moisture into the atmosphere than the equivalent area of the ocean. Forests protect watersheds which supply fresh water to rivers - a critical source of the water we drink and use in our daily lives.

Healthy forests sustain healthy people. Tropical forests provide a vast array of medicinal plants used in healing and health care. More than a quarter of modern medicines originate from tropical forest plants. Forests curb transmission of infectious diseases. Undisturbed tropical forests can have a moderating effect on the spread of insect- and animal-borne diseases.

Days 1, 2 & 3: Entering the rural heartlands of Bihar + Attempting to cross the border into Nepal + On the Google Internet Bus

I took off from Hyderabad on Saturday for Patna via Delhi. Loved Delhi's new T3 terminal. I would rate it as the second best airport in India after Shamshabad (I guess there is a bit of home state bias here). Flight to Patna was a good 90 minutes late. Finally landed in Patna. I disembarked from the plane and waited for the bus only to realise we have to walk across the tarmac to the terminal. A long time since I have done this at an airport. Once we got into the car, we had to head to the BSNL office in Patna to get some material for the bus. The first BSNL office we went to was the incorrect office and we finally found the correct office and collected the material. Patna is a different city altogether. You cannot make out it is a capital city. Did not see any fancy malls or a single sedan in the city. You see either small cars or mighty SUVs' but not a single sedan. The 'lal batti' cars are just like you see in the movies. The ambassadors have high beam lights on the top and antennas. A truly imposing stance. There seems to be a huge presence of women police in Patna. A lot of chowks were manned by a single male policeman and two policewomen. There was this sight in which a bike wanted to take a turn and a policewomen with a stern look told him to head straight and the driver goes 'yeah hai Bihar ki police.' If only Hyderabad police were as strict!

So now we were headed to Darbhanga. Google Maps showed the place to be 131 kilometres from Patna and so I figured it would be two hours. So you can imagine when my surprise when the driver said the travel would take a good 6 hours! We had to take the Mahatma Gandhi Setu over the Ganges to reach Darbhanga. Popularly known as Ganga Setu, it is the longest single river bridge in the world. As we crossed the Ganges, a river more than 8 kilometres in width, the Ganges was in short, beautiful. A sight to behold. Its just water but the width of the river and something in it just wants to make you stare at it forever. All through the journey over the bridge, I could not take my eyes off the Ganga. Coming back to the bridge, the bridge is made of some sort of suspension technology such that when you go over it and over certain connection sections, you can actually see the bridge move up and down as vehicles go over it. The bridge is under partial renovation and therefore only one lane was active, one of the reasons for the delayed length to Darbhagna. Another reason is that the National Highway was a complete mess. Hence it did take a good 6 hours before we reached Dharbanga. By this time it was around 10pm and we crashed to bed.

The next day was a holiday so we decided to cross the border into Nepal into a town called Janakpur. The most important historical reference to Janakpur is in the Hindu epic Ramayana, where Lord Rama's wife Sita Devi (also called Janaki) is said to have been the princess of Videha. There is a famed temple there called the Janaki Mandir and we decided to there for prayers. Now Google Maps showed Janakpur to be only 86 kilometres from Darbhanaga, a short 1 1/2 hours journey, so we were like why not? And so began the unforeseen adventure. As we approached State Highway 75, we were informed that the highway is flooded and cut off. So we had to turn back for a detour. All through the way, we saw sights of flooding due to ongoing heavy rains. Going back to Darbhanga, we decided to take National Highway 75, a much longer route. Half way through, there had been an accident between 2 trucks that had led to the highway being unusable. We then decided to take a detour through plenty of unknown villages to reach a place called Madhubani. From Madhubani we had to take State Highway 52 to take the road to Nepal. The state highways in Bihar are brilliantly maintained. A true testimony to the work Nitish Kumar has done. On the other hand, the national highways can barely be called roads, let alone highways, an example of the sorry state of the Central Government. So we sped along the State Highway all confident of reaching Nepal when suddenly we braked...the road ahead of us was cut off due to flooding....again! There were some armed security personnel along with Government officials surveying the damage. We asked them for an alternate route and they gave us a route via National Highway 104, a highway whose condition is so bad, we were unable to go over 20 kilometres per hour. All you see on National Highways are boards that say, 'Warning: Bridge in a dilapidated condition.' (pic attached). This is the short version. Using Google Maps, we navigated our way through the roads of rural Bihar. By the time we reached the Nepal border, it was 6:30pm. We had left Darbhanga at 10:30am. But we were relived we made it. The first check post was by Indian authorities. While they inspected the vehicles, I chatted with the guards to confirm if the main temple in Janakpur would be still open. They informed me that as it was Dussehra, the temple is open all throughout and in fact it is at night the main festivities and pujas would take place and Dussehra is the best time to be there. So after hearing this I was all pepped up. We approached the Nepal check post and only then did we learn that to cross the border, we needed the original vehicle registration papers to get the border crossing challan and we had only xerox papers with us. Strangely, the Nepal border force said that even though we didn't have the original papers, we could go ahead without registering the vehicle as every one does the same and they wouldn't stop us. However, we didn't want to do any thing unofficial and so chose to head back, much to the surprise of the Nepalese authorities.

As we headed back, we took the help of villagers to head back that saw us traveling on roads non-existent on Google Maps. These roads were not highways but interior village roads and the condition of these roads is praiseworthy. Nitish Kumar has constructed roads made of cement in the most remote areas of Bihar and in Hyderabad we still use tar roads that are far less reliable. As we headed back on these roads, we were cruising through the most rural parts of Bihar. We were surrounded by jungle with no man or vehicle in sight for miles together. It can get a bit scary when you find you are the only ones out there and you know you are in Bihar. However, when we did approach a village, as it is Dussehra, we found the village all decked up and all the villagers out on the street celebrating. The short cut roads saved us a good 4hrs and we reached Darbhanga back at around 11:00pm. The trip was not a waste as it showed me how the real India is living. As we passed villages inundated in floods, people with nothing to live by, you come to realise what a privileged class we are. We always do have that theoretical knowledge but when you see it in real life, it hits you hard.

Monday was our first day with the Google Internet Bus. The Internet Bus Project is an attempt to educate people in rural India about what the Internet is, and how it may be beneficial to their lives, by taking the Internet experience to them through a customised Internet-enabled bus. As I helped people get aware about the internet, the experience was a real eye opener for me. After educating people about the internet, we are to take a survey spanning a couple of questions. One of the questions is that if you have not used the internet so far, why? The answer seems so obvious. When I questioned one woman who had come with her three kids, she was like, I have three kids and getting food is difficult, how can I think about computers? Another old man around 75 years came to visit. He said that the previous regimes kept us so subdued and kept us away from education such that we never realised how the rest of the world has gone ahead. A lot of people when questioned how they would take this learning replied that though not for us, we will make sure our children start learning about the internet. There was this man who came with his two children with a very specific demand, teach my children how to use this internet. There was a teenager who came with an outdated Samsung handset with a request, I want to get Gmail on this phone. It took me some time but I was finally able to retrieve some article that explained me how I could achieve the same on his handset. The man was elated and could not thank me enough. Another incident was when a woman came with her daughter and spend considerable time hearing us out. Post the session, when I asked her how she would now use the internet, she was blank but her daughter of 15 shot back, 'business.' And just 5 minutes back, they didn't know what the internet was.

A man came up to me and said he was a clerk with the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). He wanted some information and his superior said the information was confidential. He wanted to file an RTI but was refused the form saying that it is not in stock. He wanted to reach the higher RTI authority. After a lot of searching, I was able to find a PDF document in Hindi that named the officer responsible for RTI applications for the zilla. The man noted the number down and was able to get through. He was very happy and later in the day came back with prasad from a nearby temple and was all praise for the work we were doing and how we were helping uplift the people of the area.

The most heart warming incident was when a blind man came up to the bus and asked us to explain to him about the internet. A couple of people were blank on what to show but I took him into the bus and explained to him every thing I could and told him how on Windows you now had accessibility options that could read out information to you. He later told me he knows that he cannot see, but he wanted to know what the internet is all about. I continued to speak to him to learn his story. He was born blind and in Darbhanga there is a Darbhanga Blind School. He completed his 10th and 12th from there and proceeded to Delhi to become a teacher through a special school for the blind. He came back to Darbhanga and teaches normal school going kids poetry and literature. He has Braille books to enable this. He was very happy with the fact that through a normal computer he could now listen to articles and his one request was that Google invent something that makes the internet accessible in an affordable way for the blind. It just made me so grateful that I had the gift of sight and over here, a man who has been born with such great challenges has gone through so much and even today cares for others.

It has been a great 3 days so far and I am looking to meet many more people in the next 2 days and doing my bit to empower my fellow citizens of the glorious Republic.