Water-logging in the city a sight during every monsoon

This study of Delhi’s Drainage System was last published in 2017 and earlier in 2010. It gets revised after each major development. Why the need to revise it? Please read below.

A city like Delhi which draws its water from the river, follows a cycle similar to the Hydrological Cycle of Nature.  Water is supplied by the municipalities to the residents.  Some of the water is utilized for drinking purposes, some for watering the gardens and some for cleaning, washing and bathing and some for flushing the toilets.  The latter two ideally enter the sewage system.  The rain that falls over the city enters the storm water drains which empty into huge nullahs, which in turn empty into the river Yamuna.

This system can also enable rain water harvesting because the storm water drains can be utilized for water harvesting in an organized fashion.  But the storm water drainage system of Delhi is complex owing to a combination of natural and man made drainage systems – drainage basins which naturally drain, storm water drains along the roads and a new phenomenon of combined sewer cum storm water drains created as a bypass arrangement for blockage sewer lines.  It is this that has resulted in polluting the storm water drainage system.  As a result, the nullahs which used to run with rain water during monsoons now carry only sewage.

What was also being done, using Commonwealth Games as a shield, was to cover up the nullahs.  Now, this is really like putting dirt under the carpet.  This reminds me of a fable, in which, when a rabbit is confronted by pointing a gun at it, all it does is to cover its eyes with its ears.  The rabbit thus thinks that the threat no longer exists, but, it gets shot in any case! When you hide the threat you don’t necessarily solve the problem you only ignore it … until it becomes bigger.  Even if some sewage was reaching the nullahs, the rain water used to ensure that the viscous or solid waste content was appropriately diluted and thus the effluent reaching the river would not be as heavily polluted as it is today.

When residents cover or even fill up the storm water drains outside their houses to help park their cars or when the sweepers  also dump garbage into the open drains, it prevents rain water from reaching the nullahs and ultimately the river.  Blocking a drain should be treated as an offence, because it is equivalent to sabotaging a public utility on which tax payers money has been spent. Historically it is said that the drainage system of Old Delhi was largely developed by the Mughals whereas of New Delhi by the British. It used to work fine until it was vandalized by us humans.

However about 4 years ago a young Municipal Councillor, a debutante, Shikha Rai, took an initiative in all of the blocks in Greater Kailash-1, which appeared to have worked. She developed a new workable storm water drainage system which has worked flawlessly in the last 4 years.

This experiment was so successful that it was further extended and replicated in her entire constituency to Kailash Colony, East of Kailash etc. That’s saying a lot, considering that no earlier government had succeeded. Every year drains were desilted before monsoons. Gradually it became a losing game because desilting became less regular and also, as explained earlier, not feasible.

Shikha Rai re-dug and re-built the entire drainage system. It was specially tricky because the crossover bridges built by residents to enter their driveways, had to be cut and new crossover ramps were built by SDMC on each driveway of each house. The storm water drains were covered by porous RCC slabs, so that cars can be parked and rain water can flow into the drains and road muck was restrained. The effect was really dramatic. Every monsoon the streets, which were ankle or knee deep with water earlier, got drained away much faster.

The Simplistic looking RCC Perforated Tiles Interspersed with removable lid for de-siltation

If that is the case, then why did one wait so long to report this. The reason is caution. Firstly I did not want to give a thumbs up without seeing the system work. Secondly one had to wait for the desilting to take place, to ascertain that the Porous tiles are removable and silt can be extracted. This exercise was done partially by SDMC at a few places and silt was removed a few days ago.

De-silting of Drainage System in Greater Kailash 1 done by SDMC in October 2021

However, one would like to caution the authorities, that like all successful arrangements the system needs to be maintained regularly for it to work properly. Desilting must be done as an when required and the Porous tiles replaced whenever they break. Also it was observed that the drain holes in many of the tiles had got blocked with the silt and muck. The whole system will fail if these holes are not cleared periodically. The plus points are:

As a footnote, one would like to explain that this technical analysis should be treated just so – an evaluation based on observation over 4 years. It is important to acknowledge a successful initiative because while we point out flaws in public utilities, we will be failing in our duty if we don’t give the good news.

Another interesting phenomenon, prevalent not only in Delhi but in most cities, is, that garbage is always dumped near the river.  Therefore, when the rains come, that garbage too finds its way into the river.  Now the river in Delhi does not spring out at the city itself but comes down from the Himalayas collecting water and effluent along the way.  For the river to flow smoothly, the unobstructed route through which it flows ensures how much water can pass.  Silting of course reduces the depth and the width of the river. But the problem is compounded by man. The tragedy of Yamuna is that when the city was faced with constraints of space, the authorities that be, allowed construction in the river bed, thus reducing the cross section of the river and creating the situation for future disaster.

Earlier in the river bed, during the non monsoon period, agricultural farming used to take place. This was in no way harmful; because when the rivers ran full during the monsoons; it used to leave a coat of fertile silt on the farm beds and the greenery thus grown also acted as a lung for the city.  Now, the infrastructure developments on the river front, with Akshardham temple and games village coming up, will encourage others to encroach into the river and ultimately destroy the hydrological cycle of the city.

The matter is not closed, Jury is still out regarding the Sewage System and Garbage Handling. One would request the readers to read the earlier article in this journal to understand the issue. Please do so at the link below

Copyright Manohar Khushalani and OneVorld.org Oct 4, 2021

Bibliography:

• Irrigation Practice and Design, (Volumes I, II,III, IV & V) K.B. Khushalani & Manohar Khushalani Pub; Oxford & IBH (Sponsored by National Book Trust)
• Control of Urban Pollution Series:CUPS/ / 2003-2004, CPCB
• City Development Plan , Department of Urban Development, Govt. of Delhi / IL&FS/October 2006,
• Why is Delhi Water Logged It’s Drains and Sewers Clogged

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many of us to change the way we go about our daily lives. With those changes, some of us are experiencing a wave of losses: economic, social, physical and emotional. For some, these losses may build up and lead to feelings of grief.

So this time we’re going to talk about Grief – a natural response to loss. It’s the emotional suffering you feel when something or someone you love is taken away. Often, the pain of loss can feel overwhelming. you may experience all kinds of difficult and unexpected emotions, from shock or anger to disbelief, guilt and profound sadness. The pain of grief can also disrupt your physical health, making it difficult to sleep, eat, or even think straight.

Coping with the loss of someone or something you love is one of life’s biggest challenges. You may associate grieving with the death of a loved one – which is often the cause of the most intense type of grief – but any other loss can also cause grief. For example, divorce or relationship breakup, loss of health, losing a job, a miscarriage, loss of a friendship, a loved one’s serious illness etc.

Whatever your loss is, it’s your personal thing and you shouldn’t feel embarrassed about how you feel, or believe that it’s somehow only appropriate to grieve for certain things. If something or someone was significant to you, it’s normal to grieve the loss you’re experiencing.Just because you cannot see the emotional wounds like physical wounds, doesn’t mean you aren’t suffering. 

Symptoms of grieving:

While loss affects people in different ways, many people experience the following symptoms when they’re grieving. Just remember that almost anything that you experience in the early stages of grief is normal—including feeling like you’re going crazy, feeling like you’re in a bad dream, or questioning your religious or spiritual beliefs.

Shock and disbelief: Right after the loss, it can be hard to accept what has happened or one can even deny the truth. You may keep expecting the lost one to show up, even though you know they’re gone.

Sadness: You may experience profound sadness, feelings of emptiness, despair, loneliness. You may also feel emotionally unstable.

Guilt: You may regret or feel guilty about things you did or didn’t say or do. You may even feel guilty for not doing more to prevent your loss, even if it was completely out of your hands.

Anger and Fear: Even if the loss was nobody’s fault, you may feel angry with yourself, God, the doctors, or even with the person who left for abandoning you. A significant loss can trigger a host of worries and fears. You may feel anxious, helpless, or insecure.

 So there is no right or wrong way to grieve, but there are healthy ways to deal with this. And to have a better understanding let’s get to know about few Myths and Facts about grieving:^​*​

Myth: The pain will go away faster if you ignore it.

Fact:  Ignorance will only make it worse. For real healing, it is necessary to face the grief and actively deal with it.

Myth: Be strong in the face of loss.

Fact:  Feeling sad, frightened, or lonely is a normal reaction to loss. Crying doesn’t mean you’re weak.

Myth: If you don’t cry, it means you aren’t sorry about the loss.

Fact: Crying is a normal response to sadness, but it’s not the only one.

Myth: Grieving should or shouldn’t last for a long time.

Fact: Every individual is different and so is their healing period. So there is no specific time frame for grief.

Myth: Moving on with your life means forgetting your loss.

Fact: Moving on means you’ve accepted your loss- but that’s not the same as forgetting. You can move on with your life and keep the memories.

Ways to Cope

While grieving a loss is an inevitable part of life, there are ways to cope with the pain, come to terms with your grief, and eventually, find a way to pick up the pieces and move on with your life.

• Acknowledge your pain. Denial will not help. You can try to suppress your grief, but you can’t avoid it forever.
• Accept that grief can trigger many different and unexpected emotions and you having any kind of emotion is absolutely ok.
• Understand that your grieving process will be unique to you. Don’t be hard on yourself and please avoid comparing. It’s easy to compare ourselves to individuals who are coping differently with the current situation. Especially when we’re already feeling low, it can drain us of our limited energy and can lead to resentment towards others and towards ourselves. Instead, focus on your own strengths and coping strategies. Listing your strengths and issues you have overcome is an effective way of highlighting and celebrating your own ability to cope.
• Cry it out if you want to. Express your emotions. Talk about your loss, the happy and unhappy memories.
• Accept that many people feel awkward when trying to comfort someone who is grieving. Grief can be confusing, sometimes frightening emotion for many, especially if they haven’t experienced a similar loss themselves. So it’s ok if someone doesn’t understand it. But don’t use that as an excuse to retreat into your shell and avoid social contact. If a friend or loved one reaches out to you, it’s because they care.

• Express your feelings in a tangible or creative way. Even if you’re not able to talk about your loss with others, it can help to write down your thoughts and feelings in a journal, for example. Or you could release your emotions by making a scrapbook or volunteering for a cause related to your loss.
• Fix your routine. At a time when life feels particularly chaotic, setting a routine is important and ensures we have a mixture of social, physical and educational activities in our day. Routine doesn’t mean rigidity, but it can offer a sense of control.
• Support yourself emotionally by taking care of yourself physically. Little bit of body movement through yoga or any kind of physical workout will help you.
• Try to maintain your hobbies and interests. There’s comfort in routine and getting back to the activities that bring you joy and connect you closer to others can help you come to terms with your loss and aid the grieving process
• Draw comfort from your faith. If you follow a religious tradition, embrace the comfort its mourning rituals can provide. Spiritual activities that are meaningful to you—such as praying, meditating.
• Seek out support from the people in family and friends who care about you or even you can go for professional support.

“All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.” – Havelock Ellis

International funds are equity funds that invest in stocks of companies listed outside of India. These funds help you invest in some of the biggest companies in the world. International Mutual Funds offer exposure to certain assets classes like foreign companies which otherwise may not be easily possible for investors through existing mutual fund schemes. Since the Indian market has a very low correlation with some of the overseas markets, having global exposure ensures healthy diversification and gives exposure to foreign currency as an asset class.

Why International Funds

• Get exposure to global leaders like Facebook and Google
• Good way to reduce portfolio risk as markets around the world rarely go down together
• Suitable for goals which are at least 5 years away

INTERNATIONAL  MUTUAL FUNDS CAN FOLLOW TWO WAYS TO INVEST

• Purchase stocks directly & build portfolio –  ICICI Prudential US Bluechip Equity Fund ( Create own portfolio )
• Invest in an existing global fund – PGIM India Global Equities Opportunities Fund ( Invest in PGIM Jennison Global Equity Opportunities Fund )

CATEGERISATION OF INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL FUNDS

1. Thematic International Mutual Funds –  Follow theme based investing approach and invest in foreign companies that belong to the concerned theme . Themes could be along the lines of Mining , Natural Resources or Real Estate for example DSP World Mining Fund invest in mining companies like Rio Tinto , BHP or BARRICK.  In a similar manner Aditya Birla Sun Life Global Real Estate Fund invest in Real Estate Companies in foreign .

2. Region or Country Specific Funds – These funds invest specific in particular region or country specific stock market . The AIM is to generate returns through available opportunities in the target market. Example- Motilal Oswal S&P 500 Index Fund invest in companies that are part of S&P 500 index or Greater China Equity Off-shore Fund which invests primarily in a diversified portfolio of companies incorporated or which have their registered office located in, or derive the predominant part of their economic activity from, a country in the Greater China region.

3. Global Markets – This funds invest in global and do not restrict themselves to A specific region or A country. If you invest in these funds then you get diversified portfolio with stocks from across the world. Example- ICICI Prudential Global Stable Equity Fund (FOF) or Sundaram Global Brand Fund

BENEFITS OF INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL FUNDS

• Diversification – When investors buy stocks for an international portfolio, they are also effectively buying the currencies in which the stocks are quoted.

Economies of different countries simultaneously go through different growth cycles which maybe unrelated but studies have indicated that correlation reduces in the long term. Thus when you invest in other economies through mutual funds you can manage risks better and support overall gains even if your primary market underperforms. This balance ensures your portfolio volatility is maintained at the right levels your overall returns are not impacted drastically when the Indian economy may not be doing so well but others could be. There have been periods when Indian Benchmark indices have significantly underperformed global indices like S&P 500. 

• Become owner of Big Global Businesses-  Example – Apple , Facebook , Google , Nike , Adidas , Coca Cola , Mc Donalds, Visa , P&G etc

• Currency Diversification- The Indian rupee has been depreciating over the last few years, there are various reasons for this depreciation—from political instability to rising inflation levels to weak fiscal policies. One can take advantage of this situation by investing in international funds. When an investment is made in international funds, investors get exposure in foreign currency through investing in rupees. Any appreciation in the value of the foreign currency or any depreciation in the home currency will increase the returns.

In year 2000 $ 1 = INR 45 which in 2020 was $1= INR 75

RISKS OF INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL FUNDS

1. Economic & Political Risk: As international funds invest in other countries or regions, the change in the economic or political condition of the country can impact the performance of the country and, subsequently, this can affect the fund’s performance.   

2. Currency Risk :  Exchange rate movements could either enhance or diminish the return of that security. Currency risk, or exchange rate risk, comes from the chance that exchange rate movements could negatively impact an investment’s total return.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

 An investment horizon of over 5 years or more is ideal in international mutual funds as it will flatten the risk of short term geopolitical events. It will also be beneficial from the perspective of taxation as these funds are taxed like debt funds and you can reap the benefit of indexation through long term capital gains tax.

Our desires and emotions – happiness, anger, sadness, greed, etc. come to us as thoughts only. Life comes to us in form of thoughts. Everything is related to thoughts and the mind.

As the mind and thoughts are so important, we got to take good care of them like other parts of the body. As we need to shut down the computer system for a few minutes when it gets hang up, likewise the mind.

You might say sleeping at night does that job. That is true, but the subconscious mind is always working. It is mostly our physical body which is resting during sleep. The mind can only be peaceful by making a conscious effort.

An image can be seen in still water clearly, not when it has many ripples and disturbances.

When I was young, people used to advise me to think positively and to be a good listener. It always puzzled me! Are they asking me to pretend? Because I don’t feel in the same way.  

Yet, I thought everyone cannot be wrong so I tried hard to hear others attentively but I got a headache. I started reading a lot of books on practical physiology. It mainly mentioned outer behavior, which seemed to be theoretical to me. Be open-minded, patient, calm, balanced, etc. I thought these all are inner qualities, not chocolate, you give me and I enjoy.

It also mentioned some simple breathing techniques, count 10, reverse the counts, etc. Mediation is not a side subject either. It is the main subject as we lack peace of mind, and inner love mostly. It needs our effort in an isolated way.

Mediation is much more than just breathing techniques. Kriya mediation technique provides a combination involving breath, awareness, mantras, energy centers (chakras) and observing own thoughts.

Gradually, it helps us to break our thought patterns in a natural way and takes the mind to non duality (and beyond) from where life came to existence.

The taste of the beyond brings the qualities of Him. The techniques make it all easy. The techniques are designed according to the nature of our complex minds. Techniques take care of all the elements in the most simple way. A practitioner just has to sit in one place with closed eyes and rest is done by the techniques.

Guided meditation is provided to initiate disciples. A step-by-step process, such as, when to breathe consciously, when to relax, where to take attention. All is done in such a simple way that 20 minutes are gone within no time.

The simplicity and effectiveness of the techniques make it remarkable. One can feel peace just after a single practice, and that is the motivation to continue the practice. No difficult postures and no hard pranayama.

By practicing consistently, inner struggles evaporate more naturally. Gradually one becomes independent to deal with inner conflicts. The absence of inner conflict makes the inner room clean and one can experience stillness. A calm mind becomes a natural listener, open-minded, receptive, and enjoys daily life and all its aspects. The mind has more space for creativity now, earlier it was occupied with many hidden conflicts.

The real knowledge flows inside out, not outside in. If it gets clear to us then the desire to mediate intensifies.

In mediation the knowledge of self is revealed; who we are, the purpose of life, and our existence. All these are experienced in mediation. One might not have heard anywhere else. It is beyond words and theories. Self- realization makes us fall in love with ourselves at first. Patience, tolerance, forgiveness, good listener, etc. are the product of growing inner love. This experience fills life with the light of happiness, contentment, and peace. All questions are answered, no more questions are left. Imagine the state of mind.

One gets knowledge from inside about the nature of mind, body, and purpose of thoughts, how to deal with them. One starts living in harmony with life and enjoys all aspects related to it.

At the end why talk about the taste of Ladoo better eat and know it for yourself.

Everyone is talking about oxygen concentrators now. Most of us had not heard of them before. Many know about distillers which extract water from air, yet very few realised that even oxygen can be extracted from air. So what is an Oxygen Concentrator and how do you choose the right one?

The most important is to understand that Covid patients require 90% Oxygen concentration at 1to 5Litre flow and above to 10L

Tips on Selecting the right oxygen concentrator.

The most important is to understand Covid patients require 90% Oxygen concentration at 1to 5Litre flow and above to 10L when they are suffering with acute respiratory discomfort.

90% oxygen concentration is the most important point here.

1. We can break down oxygen concentrator into small (5 to 10 kg) oxygen concentrator suitable for COPD patients, medium (15 to 19kg) and large (20kg and above) oxygen concentrators are suitable for critical care and for COVID patients.
2. Small oxygen concentrators can have options from 1 Litre to 9 Litre Flow but this does not mean you get 90% oxygen at higher flow like at 5 litre. On small oxygen concentrators 90% oxygen contration is achieved only at lower flows of 1litre to 2 litre. on higher flows the oxygen concentration drops to 30% as you increase the flow. Suitable for COPD patients but not for COVID patients.
3. Check the specs of the oxygen concentrator and if you see 90% – 30% or ( 1L/min , 2L/min) means 90% oxygen is available only at 1Litre flow or 2Litre flow respectively and on higher flows oxygen drops to 30%. The air we breathing is with 29% oxygen. So small (5kg to 10kg ) oxygen concentrator at higher flows gives output of 30% oxygen means its just blowing air.
4. weight is the best indicator to understand the oxygen production capacity.

A 5kg to 10kg oxygen concentrator means a small compressor which will only mange to give an output of 90% oxygen at 1 litre to max 2 Litre

A 15kg to 19kg Oxygen Concentrator will have a compressor that can easily give an output of 90% oxygen at flows from 1 Litre to 5 Litre Oxygen (Ideal for COVID patients and critical care patients)

A 20 kg and above oxygen concentrator will have a large compressor which can give an output of 90% oxygen from 1Litre to 10Litre flow. (Ideal for COVID patients and critical care patients and for dual patients to use same machine with accessories)

Please do not only see the output flow of an oxygen concentrator like 5litre, 10litre or so. the most important is to make sure you get 90% Oxygen at highest flow level.

For a small family with no senior citizens a 5 litre at 90% oxygen concentration should be good enough.

For 2 senior citizens or for a big family 10 litre at 90% oxygen concentration should be good enough as it can support 2 patients at once if the need arises. And can assist senior citizens during home critical care if the need arises.

Please do not get fooled and pay big money for small oxygen concentrator sold by highlighting 5 Litre and 8 Litre and do not give an output of 90% concentration of oxygen at higher flows which is the need of the hour.

Please read the specs well and if required please ask your supplier to show you the oxygen output on an oxygen analyzer at higher flow of 5 Litre or 10 Litre.

they are suffering with acute respiratory discomfort.

90% oxygen concentration is the most important point here.

1. We can break down oxygen concentrator into small (5 to 10 kg) oxygen concentrator suitable for COPD patients, medium (15 to 19kg) and large (20kg and above) oxygen concentrators are suitable for critical care and for COVID patients.
2. Small oxygen concentrators can have options from 1 Litre to 9 Litre Flow but this does not mean you get 90% oxygen at higher flow like at 5 litre. On small oxygen concentrators 90% oxygen contration is achieved only at lower flows of 1litre to 2 litre. on higher flows the oxygen concentration drops to 30% as you increase the flow. Suitable for COPD patients but not for COVID patients.
3. Check the specs of the oxygen concentrator and if you see 90% – 30% or ( 1L/min , 2L/min) means 90% oxygen is available only at 1Litre flow or 2Litre flow respectively and on higher flows oxygen drops to 30%. The air we breathing is with 29% oxygen. So small (5kg to 10kg ) oxygen concentrator at higher flows gives output of 30% oxygen means its just blowing air.
4. weight is the best indicator to understand the oxygen production capacity.

A 5kg to 10kg oxygen concentrator means a small compressor which will only manage to give an output of 90% oxygen at 1 litre to max 2 Litre

A 15kg to 19kg Oxygen Concentrator will have a compressor that can easily give an output of 90% oxygen at flows from 1 Litre to 5 Litre Oxygen (Ideal for COVID patients and critical care patients)

A 20 kg and above oxygen concentrator will have a large compressor which can give an output of 90% oxygen from 1Litre to 10Litre flow. (Ideal for COVID patients and critical care patients and for dual patients to use same machine with accessories)

Please do not only see the output flow of an oxygen concentrator like 5litre, 10litre or so. the most important is to make sure you get 90% Oxygen at highest flow level.

For a small family with no senior citizens a 5 litre at 90% oxygen concentration should be good enough.

For 2 senior citizens or for a big family 10 litre at 90% oxygen concentration should be good enough as it can support 2 patients at once if the need arises. And can assist senior citizens during home critical care if the need arises.

Please do not get fooled and pay big money for small oxygen concentrators sold by highlighting 5 Litre and 8 Litre and do not give an output of 90% concentration of oxygen at higher flows which is the need of the hour.

Please read the specs well and if required please ask your supplier to show you the oxygen output on an oxygen analyzer at higher flow of 5 Litre or 10 Litre.

Also most importantly consult a doctor before you invest your hard earned money in the device. Right now, because of a shortage of oxygen supplies, the concentrators are overpriced. As soon as supply meets demand, the price of concentrators will come down.

Shri Suresh Chandra, who headed Central Water Commission, from 31st January to 31st October, 2002, passed away on 25th April 2021.

S. Masood Husain, Ex Chairman, CWC, said, “Deeply saddened to know about the demise of Shri Suresh Chandra, former Chairman, CWC today. A very gentle, ever smiling and loving personality. I had a long and very warm and affectionate association with him. It is indeed a great loss to CWC family. Our heartfelt condolences. May Almighty rest his soul in peace and give courage and strength to the bereaved family to bear the irreparable loss.

CWES officer, Avinash Tyagi adds, “I am deeply saddened to know that Mr Suresh Chandra has left for his heavenly journey. All know about his work in CWC rising up to the coveted post of Chairman
But I am also witness to his technical capabilities that he showed at International level. He represented India and chaired the Special Working Group (if I remember the nomenclature correctly) of ISO on Sedimentation.

He also lead a team of international experts on compiling the Chapter on “Methods of Hydrological Measurements” of Guide to Hydrological Practices WMO no 168. His guidance was highly appreciated by the international group of experts”.

Mr. V. K. Malhotra, informed, that, he was a learned engineer and felt it is a great loss to this country and CWC.

Post Retirement, he was appointed as a Senior Consultant to Government of Goa on Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal. He was also a Consultant in the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal. He graduated as a Civil Engineer from Aligarh Muslim University in 1964

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Known to have an ever smiling countenance, Shri K.P.Singh, Former Chief Engineer, Central Water Commission, passed away on 21st of April due to Covid. He leaves behind his son, daughter-in-law and grandson.

Shri K P Singh had also worked as Chief Engineer (North) in NWDA and was responsible for carrying out various studies of the link projects of National Perspective Plan.

Amongst numerous responsibilities held by him in his career, he was in the Resource Sub-Group-II – for Kosi-Ghaghra, Ghaghra-Yamuna, Gandak-Ganga, Sarda-Yamuna links originating from Nepal. Which had the following Terms of Reference:
 
To review Feasibility/other relevant Reports, identify main issues and suggest probable approach/solution in respect of following link projects:
 
Kosi – Ghaghara Link
Ghaghara-Yamuna Link
Gandak-Ganga Link
Sarda-Yamuna Link
 
To prepare technical notes as may be required by Interactive Group for discussions with concerned States in respect of above links

Shri Masood Hussain, former Chairman of Central Water Commission said: “Very sad to know about the demise of Shri K P Singh. I had the good fortune to have been associated with him when he worked as Consulatnt for some period in NWDA, when I headed it. He was an extremely nice and gentle person.
Our deep condolences.
May Almighty rest his soul in peace and give courage and strength to the bereaved family.

Mr. Avinash Tyagi, a Central Water Engg. Services officer, said “It’s a matter of deep grief that Shri Singh, has left us for the heavenly abode. He was one of the brilliant practical hydrologist in CWC. His knowledge of discharge measurements, River behaviour and sediment transport therein was outstanding. I had the good opportunity of working with him in Patna where he was EE in Discharge Measuring Division (belonging to erstwhile Ganga Basin W R Organization) and I was posted in Flood Forecasting Division. Later, the two were merged which gave us opportunity to technically interact very closely.

Tyagi adds, “Krishna Pal Singh was very soft spoken but administratively a very firm and upright officer. He had to deal with Labour strikes because of merger, which he dealt very firmly. His knowledge of scriptures was excellent. He could impromptu quote from Ramayan befitting his point of discussions”.

“His only son Shailesh who is working with an MNC recently completed his PhD from Norway.”

“His last posting was in Lucknow. The untimely demise of Shri Singh due to COVID is a personal loss to me and my family.”

“I pray to the Allmighty to accept Soul in HIS Lotus Feet”

A. S. Dhingra, CWES, adds, “Very sad to learn demise of Sh K P Singh. We worked together in SWARA in UP Irrigation dept. after our retirement.”

It may be a common sense assumption that when someone enters the world of treatment for their emotional or mental health issues their intention is to be relieved of their suffering, emerge healed and whole from the treatment. But does it really happen? Is there any way to know how many people actually exit the (mental health) system? Is anything going on in the treatment process that can actually lead to someone’s recovery?

By and large experiences of vast numbers of people are that once they enter into the system they are told by psy-professionals (and other medical professionals) of all hues that they would now have to rely on psychiatric medication for the rest of their lives. This insistence on medication, which is borne out of the agreed upon knowledge which all psy-professions draw from, invalidates the day-to-day suffering of people into a predetermined ‘illness’ category, complete with a diagnosis and prognosis. In 2019, I wrote this article which can be downloaded or read here or here which problematizes this aspect of treatment and questions what the goals of such treatment are.

It may be common sense assumption that when someone enters the world of treatment for their emotional or mental health issues their intention is to be relieved of their suffering, and emerge healed and whole. But does it really happen? Is there any way to know how many people actually exit the (mental health) system? Is there anything going on in the treatment process that can actually lead to someone’s recovery?

Research suggests that recovery is mostly not a goal psy-professionals target when they start treating people for their mental health issues. For most people the starting of treatment itself is ‘recovery’ because according to professionals the fact that people’s suffering has been recognized is itself a great victory over their ignorance: of being a mere suffering, while it is actually a real ‘illness’. However the truth from a ‘patient’s’ perspective is that until people take pharmacological treatments they believe themselves to be ‘ill’ or ‘sick’ and therefore not quite recovered. From the ‘patients’ ‘ position it is the ending of the treatment process and exiting psychiatry that counts as real recovery, not interminable treatments. Whether or not mental illness is a real illness is itself a topic of big discussion and debate, which I postpone for another location as of now.

Knowledge about recovery missing

When there is a gap in the social knowledge about a situation it has consequences; both for individuals, families and society as a whole. For example until penicillin was discovered by Alexander Flemming, a number of people would die for reasons as simple as flu or pneumonia. Antibiotics gave a new lease of life to people around the world and heralded a new era which cumulatively brought newer efforts that prolonged human life expectancy.

In the context of mental health when people are not aware that they can recover and they choose instead of continue taking medication, their lack of information is a knowledge or information gap. Instead of recovery their bodies become sites for testing newer drugs, yet no advancement produces the desired ‘cure’. When drug treatments continue for decades people not only become chronic patients, they also slowly develop  co-morbid conditions such as thyroid malfunctions, liver damage, akathisia (I have written about it here), seizures, lupus and scores of other conditions, not to mention the ‘regular’ issues of hypertension, diabetes etc.

A lack of information about the possibility of recovery, which leads to never ending treatments is the issue  addressed here. This knowledge or the lack of it, also called epistemic ignorance in research, becomes an issue of justice first of all. When people have unequal access to information in society, even though we  live in the information age: the internet having created unprecedented possibilities for diffusion of ideas, only the idea of rising incidence of mental health issues are widely publicized, especially by the media and myriad psy-professionals. Treatments that do not end and progressively disable people, making them socially outcast and confined to their domestic spheres become an issue of justice- for what then are these treatments intended for?    

Why human rights issue

When a patient or their caregiver is told by a psy-professional that their treatment is for life more often than not they do not question it, but accept the ‘diagnosis’ as a truth or fact. Treating people and the inability to produce a healing or cure, or letting them exit psychiatry by supporting drug withdrawal is not common or heard of. Long periods of remaining on these drugs makes people more and more disabled and socially marooned   for they lose the confidence to deal with life, situations and other people.

The information of recovery is a right to knowledge about the idea of recovery. It is a   right of every person who is on drug treatments to know how long their treatments would be and what alternatives exist. Until people do not realize that their interests and rights are being compromised if they continue taking drugs passively it will not help them, while pharma corporations will keep making steady incomes and rising profits. This is a gap of knowledge which can only be filled by people who have taken the path of recovery or who understand the injustice of denying people the knowledge about their mind and body. In one of my future pieces I will write about how the new Mental Healthcare Act of 2017 also does NOT support recovery and ensures people remain ‘patients’ ad infinitum, once they enter into the mental health system (that being the work I did for my doctorate)

Thank you for reading. If there is something more you would like to know about recovery from mental health challenges, or have a personal concern, you are welcome to post a query or comment in the comment box below. Prateeksha would be happy to respond to it, if necessary, even with a new blog post.

Thoughts on Easter and Pesach by Raj Ayyar

First, a beautiful quote from that wise Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh:

Some people live as if they are already dead. There are people moving all around us, who are consumed by their past, terrified of the future, and stuck in emotions like anger and jealousy.
They are not alive–they are just walking corpses!
If you look around, you will see people going around like zombies.
We must practice resurrection. With an in-breath, bring yourself back to your body.
Joy, peace, and happiness are possible. You have an appointment with life, and that life is always in the here and now.

If one enters into the archetype of Easter, viewing the Resurrection story as great mytho-poetry, there is no conflict with scientific paradigms and language games. It’s only when religions assert their propositional truth (ex. the creationist dogma), literally that they embark on a collision course with science.

In that spirit, after the great bluesiness of Good Friday when there is a great emptying of the Christ, the immanent Logos on the cross (‘kenosis’ in Greek), there comes the light climax of the resurrection story.

On Good Friday, the Christian God incarnate is literally dead, and it is ironic that the great atheist Nietzsche (the child of a strongly Lutheran family), echoes the Good Friday motif when he declared in The Gay Science: ‘Have you not heard? God is dead.’

On Easter, Yeshua joins the pantheon of resurrected gods and heroes. including the Egyptian Osiris and the Greek Dionysus.
I think we all go through symbolic deaths and resurrections many times in one’s life–the loss of a relationship, a job, deep depression, and feelings of abandonment.

Resurrection is the symbolic transcendence of all that dead and deadening stuff, a new awakening of hope and joy.
Pesach or Passover is a Jewish festival that celebrates liberation from bondage, oppression, and dependency. In the great story of deliverance (Exodus in the Torah),

Whether you are Jewish or not, you may want to take inventory of all the circumstances in your life–connected to your job, relationships, career, academics, etc., that you find oppressive. What is the one toddler step you can take here and now to free yourself?