In Brief – November 2019
A college in Karnataka was issued showcause notice for a weird experiment. When students of the Bhagat PU College in Haveri arrived for their midterm exam, they were given modified cartons to wear over their heads. The college administrator had devised this demeaning attempt to check copying among students. The cartons had opening on one side to enable the students to see their answer sheets and not on the sides. The administrator landed in trouble after he posted on WhatsApp a picture of the students writing their exams with these contraptions. When brought to the notice of the Deputy Director of Pre-University Education, he immediately visited the college and stopped the students’ torture.
Physically-challenged and on crutches, Neeraj George Baby (32), from Aluva in Kerala, recently conquered Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. His limbs were amputated following a cancerous tumour when he was nine. His baggage for the climb included multiple pair of crutches and a dozen bushes to replace the worn-out ones during the arduous climb. Neeraj, an employee at the Advocate General’s office in Kochi, had earlier trekked up the Pakshipathalam in Wayanad, and another peak between Munnar and Kodaikanal. He had won a gold in badminton doubles and silver in singles at the 2008 Asian Paralympics.
Running the marathon in traditional Indian attire is becoming popular now. Many women (and men) are now being found running in saris, salwar kameez and burqas. Kranti Salvi (50) and Jayanthi Sampathkumar (46) created world records by running wearing nine-yard saris, in 2018 and 2017. Recently, Mumbaikar Shaheda Karolia (31) ran the marathon in a burqa and Pune is even organising sari runs. The idea is to prioritise women’s health, without them having to worry about their attire. Jayanthi finds the Tamil madisar style of draping the most convenient for running!
Daisy-May Demetre (9) from Birmingham was born with fibular hemimelia, where part or all of the bone in her lower leg is missing. Her legs were amputated when she was just 18 months old, after which she learnt to walk with prosthetic legs. Daisy caught the attention of the fashion world as she walked the ramp at the Eiffel Tower in Paris for a luxury French children’s brand. This was her third catwalk, after two other fashion shows at New York and London.
Vandana Shah of Pune found her pet beagle Dottu missing after she got her food delivered by an online delivery boy. When the family could not find the dog for hours, Vandana went searching for it. Enquiries in the neighbourhood revealed that the delivery boy had carried the dog with him. Vandana called him on his mobile, and after several minutes of grilling, he confessed having picked up Dottu but said he had sent the dog to his village. After several rounds of complaining and shaming on the social media, the pup was finally reunited with its owners.
