Co-existence or Struggle for Existence

Often we experience failure and rejection and often, those who succeed are oblivious of the contribution they make  in the success of those who have achieved what they could not.  


All of us completely focused on our own goals and on how to achieve it. Little are we aware of all those who have similar dreams and are striving to live them too. Only if we use this thread to bind us together, then the struggle to achieve our goals and objectives will transform into a concerted effort to co-exist.  This also reduces the animosity and ill will the struggle generates and we harbour resentment which only makes us feel that we have struggled to achieve our goal and have come out triumphant.


It was a track and field event of Annual Sports and all the sprinters had taken their positions on the start line and were waiting for the crack of the pistol to sprint five hundred meters to victory. When. Atul, the front runner was at his final lap of the race, found that Raghu, who began first, but was lagging behind suddenly tumbled and fell with hardly a couple of yards away from the Finish line. He immediately ran back to him nd picked him up on his shoulder and reached the Finish line. When the judges reached the duo and where about to raise Atul's hand to proclaim him to be the victor of the sporting event, he immediately grabbed Raghu's hand and placed it in the judge's hand said, Sir, he is has won the event, not I.


 

With Care

We all are so obsessed with ourselves that we tend to overlook ourselves considering a part of us being alien to us and that is what I term as garbage. Garbage is a personification of the part of ourselves we no longer desire and that was once used by use. This only hints at our selfish trait of character and that we are cannibalizing the natural resources all around us and reducing it to mere garbage, so what are we eventually, part of what we no longer desire: The Grabage.

We tend to overlook fundamental fact that if we are able to be a little more imaginative, creative and resourceful we can transform the garbage into a pot of gold!

We junk most of the tin cans and botlles and also the rexine bags that can be used in the following way:

• The distributors of the manufacuters supplying their ware in glass containers can use the same network to retrieve the container and reuse it. This will reduce the manufacuring cost and also the resources utilized in further making new glass containers.
• The tin cans also can be recycled instead of junking them as garbage and yet another novel use of the tin cans is to beat them into sheets, weld them and use them as sheets used for shade roofing and also for creative partitions, frames and many household fixttures that are made from aluminium and tin foil sheets.
• The rexine and gunny bags too can be the medium of retail creativity with joining the sheets to make covers such as covers for automobiles and also as a covering for makeshift greenhouse frames that you can erect in your apartment balcony or on the terrace of your haouse. There is no limit to creativity as we say, "Sky is definitely the limit!" Just a novice feat of innovtion that I have personally tried is, have grown balcony vegetable garden in rexine bags, The gunny bags lovinly hold the tomato, chilli, garlic, onion, and many such plants that are in full bloom and fruition, that is what I am told as I am miles away from the garden.
• All the materials mentioned above can also be used for making the frames and fixtures for adobe homes that can be an economical and ecological solution to the housing problem most of the urban and rural underprivileged experience.  
• The bio degradable garbage is used for generating electricity and also for making compost, insecticides, bio gas too, so why not we have such waste utilities in the residential localities so that the localites can reutilize the garbage to their benefit and also refurbish the planet of its resources as it is pointed out that the rate at which humans consume resources is nearly 70% faster than the rate at which Nature is able to replensih the resources consumed by us. So, it is time for all of us to reflect upon how we are utilizing the bounties of Nature and above all, how selfishly considering the generations to come, our progenies, what will they think of us, there predecessors.

Have you given it a considerable thought? I think I need to do so myself.

Set the Family Right to Set the World Right

On a Sunday morning after church, Sam’s Father sat in his arm chair reading the morning paper patiently answering each and every question Sam asked him time and again.



After some time, Sam’s father tore a portion of the morning paper which had a picture of the globe on it and tore it into pieces. He then handed over the pieces of the picture to Sam and said, “Son, please set the picture of the World and show it to me.” He was glad that he had succeeded in keeping his son busy so that he could read the newspaper without any interruptions.


Within a couple of minutes Sam tugged at his Father’s arm and said, “Papa, I have set the picture, you can see it”.


Sam’s Father then looked away from the paper in towards the floor his son was pointing at and saw the pieces of news paper neatly arranged on the floor, but instead of the picture of the world was the picture of a family and said, “Sam, but I had given you the picture of the world to set?”


To this his son replied, “Papa, if you turn the page you will find your world, I saw it when I was setting the picture and so I set the family to set the world for you.”




This was narrated by Fr. Cyril at an Orientation session.

Adam, Eve and the Forbidden Fruit

When I read the news that Dr. Craig Venter with his team of twenty four researchers  has been able to create artificial genome or self replicating cells after more than fifteen years of research , it reminded me of the religious myth of Adam and Eve, who were warned of the forbidden fruit, also called the fruit of knowledge that would bring misery upon them, but their curiosity took the better of them making them relent to the enticement to taste the fruit. The knowledge they gained from eating the fruit made them learn what unhappiness means. 

Why God prevented Adam and Eve from gaining knowledge and why did they disobey God? These are the questions I am trying to answer:

"Adam and Eve" is the bipolar concept of the world and the harmony between them is the crux of the existence of the world. The ultimate truth therefore in harmonious existence is to be aware of "True Knowledge", in other words, wise use of knowledge. The wisdom of true knowledge is imperative for harmonious existence and unscrupulous use of knowledge disturbs harmony of bipolar existence, thus leading to unhappiness and causing imbalance in existential harmony.  

Therefore, it is pertinent to have the wisdom to use knowledge in maintaining the existential harmony.  

The answer to how we gain wisdom from religious point of view is through the spiritual aspect of the religion and not the material practice of religious dogmas and rituals. Through spirituality we can appreciate and understand all that is around us that we are an integral part of and this helps us to inquire about the unknown as an extension of what we know. This also means learning through association and not dissociation, because when we try to find out about the unknown to "acquire" knowledge then we alienate it from the absolute whole it is part of ignoring the very essence of its existence and try to develop our knowledge of it on our preconceived ideas and notions. This only encourages us to replicate it artificially, rather than understand and appreciate its natural existence as an integral part of very nature, the macrocosm. This process of dissociated learning has added to human plastic or artificial knowledge that only reflects our desire to master nature and the macrocosm and not to to accentuate our awareness of its integrity by associating ourselves with it. 

So, God prevented Adam and Eve from gaining knowledge without the wisdom of appreciating it. Knowledge without wisdom culminates to existential imbalance therefore disturbing the natural harmony. What we mean by disobeying God is acquiring knowledge through dissociation and this is an act of defying nature, the macrocosm and trying to master what we are a part of. 


This is the question that society at large is asking after learning about the human feat of creating artificial genome. Will this not lead to biological warfare? Will this not lead to unethical practices of genetic engineering? How can we prevent the misuse of such material knowledge in the vested interest of powerful few?

City Life, Mobile Phones and the Environment

I was visiting my uncle living in the remote area of Orissa, India and the first morning at his home I woke up early at bird call. I went up to the terrace to see many beautiful birds flocking on the trees skirting around the house. I was thrilled to see the house sparrows and Indian Mynahs that have literally disappeared from Bangalore's cityscape. I filled my sense with the sight and sound of the birds that are my childhood friends. As a child, I would gaze at them freely flitting around in the sky and would observe them build nest in the corners of turrets of our house to raise their young and every morning, chirp from the tree by my bedroom window. My struggle for existence in the city had made me forget my childhood friends, these little birds and even the dear old garden lizard. 

To find the reason for their disappearance I checked the internet and came up with some rather shocking information that I am sharing with you.

The garden lizards are disappearing due to global warming and if we do not save them then there will be an unprecedented increase in insect population. Therefore, we need to drastically reduce carbon emission to curb global warming. The first step we city dwellers need to take to save our cold blooded friends, the garden lizards is by stopping indiscriminate felling of trees and planting more trees to ensure abode for them. You can get more information on this from: Jack Times
Deccan Herald 

Then I tried to find out the reason why my feathery friends have done the vanishing act from the cities. This is what I found out: House sparrow is a seed eating bird supposed to be found all over India. Some scientists reason their decline in the cities due to lack of breeding and nesting space, lack of availability of food due to indiscriminate rise in concrete structures that are replacing the cities' green cover and even kitchen gardens. In the rural areas, it is due to the rampant use of pesticides in agriculture, which is taking its toll on these poor creatures.
The scientists also observe that air pollution caused by use of unleaded petrol and the fossil fuel fumes too have affected the bird population. India, unlike the other countries has taken its bird population for granted and has never counted and regularly documented the dynamics of their population so that we can take timely action to control the factors causing the decline in their numbers.
A study conducted by Kerala Environmental Researchers Association (KERA ) reports that towers emit a very low frequency of  900 or 1,800 MHz. Continuous penetration of EMR through the body of birds would affect their nervous system. They become incapable for navigation and foraging.  In young birds, EMR could prove highly dangerous for their entire nervous system. The birds which nests near towers are found to leave the nest within one week. One to eight eggs can be present in a clutch.  Incubation lasts for 10 to 14 days. But the eggs which are laid in nests near towers failed to hatch even after 30 days. 
You can get more information on this from:
House Sparrow
India Together
India Environment Portal

This prompted me to find out how much does mobile phone radiation affect human life?
It is said that mobile towers, constantly transmit electromagnetic signals that can cause health hazards such as: cancer and also cause neurological, cardiac, respiratory and ophthalmological disorders. To prevent it, the base stations should comply to certain safety norms. According to WHO, the electromagnetic radiation does not directly affect the humans as it does the other animals. It is said that exposure to the electromagnetic rays beyond a certain limit can harm the humans too. How is it possible, you may ask. The response to it is that a living or biological tissuecan absorb the Radio Frequency (RF) energy emitted by the mobile phones and their base tower antennae. This capacity of a living tissue to absorb RF energy is marked by “specific absorption rate” (SAR) and it is measured in units of watts per kg (W/kg) of tissue. Absorption beyond the safe limit increases the temperature of the tissue thus damaging it. This is the major cause of various health problems such as: headaches, migraine, tumor, blood brain barrier, brain hemorrhage and even cancer.

In order to protect the population living around base stations and users of mobile handsets, governments and regulatory bodies adopt safety standards, which translate to limits on exposure levels below a certain value. There are many proposed national and international standards, but that of the International Commission for Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) is the most respected one, and has been adopted so far by more than 80 countries. ^{India is one of them.}

Mobile telephone service providers are, required to obtain construction licenses, provide certification of antenna emission levels and assure compliance to ICNIRP standards and/or to other environmental legislation.

Following are highlights of the guidelines that all of us must be aware of:

• The DoT (Department of Telecommunication, Government of India) has set up a Telecom Engineering Center (TEC)  to look into the technical issues arising from the adoption of the ICNIRP guidelines.
• All mobile handsets in India will compulsorily need a certification from manufacturers that they meet standards on transmission.
• Custom Authority of India to check all the mobile handsets being imported to India for the manufacturer's certification.
• Mobile phone operators should file in audit reports of their mobile phone base station antennae for certification that the base stations meet the operating standards and norms.
• TEC is working out in a detailed system of audit and certification of the base station antennae through a third party.
• cellphones cannot be officially sold without specifying SAR level.
• The ICNIRP has recommended RF exposure levels for general public, in terms of power densities, as 4.5 W/m2 and 9.0 W/m2 respectively for the 900 and 1800 MHZ frequency radiations. Exposures below these levels are harmless. This is in terms of mobile phone base stations.
• In terms of the base stations, The ICNIRP stipulates to keep the exposure below harmful levels, the peak power level should not result in a SAR of over 2 W/kg of the brain tissue.

It is for each one of us to realise how important each one of us is in maintaining the ecological balance and have we apply our wisdom and knowledge to maintain the natural harmony to save the environment from permanent damage, eventually harming our selves.

Hazards Caused By Domestic Garbage (Garbage Management - 1)

The axiom "Cleanliness is next to Godliness" means, to be healthy and wealthy of health and mind, we need to keep ourselves and our surroundings clean. I am sorry to say, my neighbourhood is in a sordid state with the residents spitting while walking up and down the road in front of the residential apartment block I live in. any vacant plot of land or even on the roadside one will find piles of domestic garbage stuffed in plastic/polythene bags. often we have to clean our window panes as our immediate neighbours through tufts of hair out of their window that invariably stick to our window panes.Often empty packets of soap, mouth fresheners are carelessly thrown out by the people living in the apartment above ours invariably land up in our balcony. They even go to the extent of throwing out bucket full of dirty water out of their balcony, which transforms into "showers of blessing" in our balcony. Little do they realise the inconvenience they are causing not only to themselves but also to the neighbourhood.

The vacant plot of land beside our apartment block is the discuss and short-put throw practice ground for, all the houses around the vacant plot generously dump their garbage bags with a heave and a ho and off the bag is hurled into the vacant plot. If only these residents could represent India in Discuss and Short-put throw in the up coming Commonwealth Games (How true to the nomenclature "Commonwealth": garbage, if disposed properly can become a wealth for the entire neighbourhood.)

Impact on Health

• The garbage decomposes into dirt and dust is easily dispersed by the wind, back into our homes to contaminate our food we cook and the work we drink. The dust also mingles with the water stored in the sump of the houses close to the garbage dumping area.
• These garbage dumps also are breeding grounds of rats, and other vermins, mosquitoes and flies, known to be the carriers of diseases like malaria, typhoid, dengue, filaria, and above all, cholera.
• The decomposed garbage also contaminates the underground water, which becomes the sources of microbial germs.
• Such garbage dumps are high risk areas for children and rag pickers who play in or around the garbage area due to the hazardous chemicals generated by the decomposing domestic garbage dump.
  
• Burning the garbage in the immediate neighbourhood is the most dangerous way of disposing it as many of the plastic and polythene emanates hazardous chemical gases that are dangerous for the health of the residents.
• The strays living on the garbage dumps too are susceptible to the infections and diseases and invariably transfer it to the unsuspecting children and residents coming in contact with them.
  

Diseases and In Caused by Garbage

• Skin and blood infections due to direct contact with waste.
• Eye, respiratory and gastro-enteric problems caused due to exposure to air or wind borne microbes.
• Fumes from incineration of garbage are main cause of cancer too.
• Sputum and nose discharge on the street makes the residents susceptible to the infection and disease like: TB, Swine Flu, etc the person maybe suffering from.
  

Acknowledgement:

Some of the information taken from: UNEP report, 1996

India's Endangered Animal Species - I

Indian Elephant


Indian Elephants are predominantly nomadic in nature and in a herd in or around a jungle. They prefer areas with abundance vegetation and water.

The global population of elephants is 55,000, of which 15,000-16,000 are in captivity. There are approximately 25,000 elephants in India and 28% of them live in captivity.

Indian elephants are losing their habitat due to:

1. Illegal encroaching by farmers, miners, timber merchants and villagers (pre-dominantly cultivators) on the natural habitat in the form of forest areas reserved for the elephants.
2. Poachers, illegally kill the elephants for the great value of elephant tusks/ivory, bones, skins etc in the market
3. Migration an annual phenomenon, in which the elephants move to places with favourable environmental conditions. Usually they follow the same route annually, but due to human encroachment or such obstacles become inevitable cause of harm to the animals.
4. Pollution and diseases due to introduction of exotic species of other animals in their habitat.

Migration(VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION)

1.	Both Asian and African elephants migrate and generally follow the same migratory routes annually. Migration distances vary considerably depending on environmental conditions. Studies documenting Asian elephants in deciduous forests of southern India, with numerous water sources, reported elephant migration to extend between 20 and 50 km (12 and 31 mi.).
2.	Elephants usually migrate at the beginning of the dry season, heading toward more hospitable locations near rivers and water sources that are not prone to drying. When the rainy season arrives,elephant herds return to native regions to feed on the lush, green vegetation the rains helped regenerate. Elephant migration allows time for the re—growth of vegetation in exhausted grazing areas.
3.	Elephant migrations occur in one of the following three ways. The migration method depends on environmental conditions.
	• Individual family groups separate themselves from the larger herd. This method may be used in response to limited food supplies encountered during a dry season migration. If food sources are scarce along the migratory route, it is more efficient to travel as individual families, rather than large herds. Family groups traveling in this manner are generally led by a dominant female at the front of the group and another at the back, to guard the rear. The young travel between the dominant females for protection and supervision. • Several family groups, usually between two and five, may form a larger group called bond groups for migration. Bond groups provide additional security due to more sets of watchful eyes. Females share leadership and supervisory responsibilities based on age, experience, and temperament. These groups require more food resources along the migratory route but benefit from increased protection. • Occasionally, entire populations of elephant herds join together in mass migration, with estimates as high as 500 individuals reported. This method provides maximum protection for herds but food resources must be present along the migratory route in sufficient quantity. Kingdom: Animalia Scientific Name: Elephas maximus indicus Class: Mammalia Family: Elephantidae Species: E. maximus Subspecies: E. m. indicus Length: 216 inches to 252 inches Weight: 7000 lbs to 11000 lbs Age of Maturity: Twelve years Gestation Period: 630 days to 660 days Number of Offspring: One Lifespan: 60 years to 80 years Maximum Speed: 25 mph Vision: 30 ft to 60 ft Length of Tusks: Upto 5 ft National Parks: Periyar National Park (Kerala) Bandipur National Park and Nagarhole National Park(Karnataka, Tamil Nadu) Organizations Working to Save Indian Elephants India Tiger Welfare Society (ITWS) http://www.indiantiger.org/contact-us.html People for Animals http://forum.peopleforanimalsindia.org/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=72 Wildlife Trust of India http://www.wti.org.in/ International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFWA) http://www.wti.org.in/pages/ifaw.htm World Wildlife Fund (WWF) www.wwf.org India Project for Animaks and Nature (IPAN) http://www.gcci.org/ipan/loki/save_loki.html Acknowledgement: Wikipedia http://www.seaworld.org/animal-info/info-books/elephants/habitat-&-distribution.htm http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/node/19903 Wildlife Conservation India (WCI) http://www.indianwildlifetours.com/wildlife-conservation-india/wildlife-conservation-india.html CUPA, Bangalore

Planetarium and its Significance I

On a public holiday, I decided to visit the Planetarium in Bangalore, but unfortunately found it closed as it was too observing the public holiday. While walking back home, I wondered how many planetariums are there in India and what is its significance in today's world of Malls, Fast Food Corners and Amusement Parks? Does it still help an average Indian both in the urban and rural area admire the natural wonders and phenomena or we have begun to take nature and universe for granted? This prompted me to ask this question to members of social media site: LinkedIn and following are the responses:

• Shumit Das, Aerospace Engineer, France: Planetariums... or Planetaria should in my view be a launching pad for outreach projects that enlighten children and adults alike to the benefits of space technology and aerospace research into peoples' lives. It should have the usual night sky and educational films, but it should also host knowledge days run by volunteers from aero societies and university degrees (maybe with sponsorship from engineering companies like TATA and Infosys) where people get to do hands-on practical tasks such as building and launching water filled rockets and learning about basic astro physics and maths using games and practical displays. This could also be the hub for lectures or space nights (e.g. In Toulouse France, they have a yearly night of the stars where astronomers gather in the Cité de Éspàce (space city) which is a big space centric theme park, and have lectures, free entry for all, and also themed displays and events purely to encourage people to learn and appreciate space and the world around them). Free interesting events will encourage the future generations of children to want to go to work in aerospace and push forward the nation's technology when the time comes in 15 years or so. Investing in their future now will result in massive return at the right moment in 10-15 years or so and may put India at the top of the space race.
• Mark Strauss, President/CEO at TOGO Media, LLC, U.S.A.:As, in the United States, the majority of facilities (such as planetaria and museums) receive little if any federal funding, I would suggest there may not be any need to wait for formal sponsorship. While federal sponsorship generally entails a long campaign of lobbying and communication, I believe you will find that commercial sponsorship often spontaneously follows institution programming and news. If necessary, facilities can charge a nominal "suggested" fee to help offset expenses while not turning away all who may be interested. As the Indian culture, if you will allow me, places an important focus on education, I believe you will have success in attracting visitors. In addition to "in-house" programs, I would immediately form a series outreach programs that may be taken to local schools, etc. I believe these efforts will then put you in a significantly better position to attract further commercial sponsorship and support.
• Krishna Barad, Manager-EXIM at Essar Steel Limited, India: Definitely such institutions should have all information including the latest happening. The information should be made available as per NASA, ISRO who are the key organizations on such matters. Should take up the matter with concerned ministry or minister who is the administrative in-charge.
• Luan Vu, Software Developer at MyVuStyle (Sole Proprietorship), U.S.A.: In the united states, the place we goto for information about current astronomical events are callled "Observatories", located at most universities and free to the public. As active research groups, they tend to operate at night when it's best suited for using of telescopes. We could ask anything and they would not only give the answer, but they would also allow us to look through their research telescope on the very topic being discussed. Planetarium are like libraries, mostly as reference resources on astronomy "as a topic", not as a news and timely advice site. Observatories tours are free, but you would have to dress warmly for the night time variation in weather and temperature since it's always "open air" in the observatory labs where the telescopes are used ( e.g. the roof are mobile and opens up into the night sky .) Take your children to the observatory, since they'll be more excited than going to a boring planetarium where the same show is presented day-after-day for years on end.
• John Pout, Head of Public Sector at Arval - BNP Paribas Group , UK: think they have lost the sense of wonder about the universe and the creative and mathematical genius behind it - and the sense that we are a part - a fantastic and amazing part of life, nature and creation. Maybe if we had more respect for it we might look after it better.

Following are some suggestions based on the facts and statistics provided in Planetarium and its Significance II

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1. Use of the Social media Like LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. to form discussion groups to generate awareness of and disseminate the Planetarium's and Science Centre programmes and other activities. The platform can also be used by the other members of social media to share their ideas and support your activities too.
2. Support of ISRO for some interactive programmes with the students, where the scientists can have live interaction and discussions with the students of schools and colleges of urban areas to begin with. This can then be extended to rural areas with the Mobile Services of the Planetariums or through satellite facility it can also be extended to rural areas by ISRO with the support of Government of India’s infrastructure.
3. Formation of functional network of all Planetariums and Science Centres in India with the support of the Government of India through its telecommunication network support along with the technical support of ISRO and other Institutions that can help in disseminate the recent scientific achievements along with the scientific concepts mostly in the semi-urban and rural India too; who will benefit from the knowledge. We may be able develop many future scientists from these areas through your motivational activities!
4. Provide the planetary activities time table viz. the date and timings of solar and lunar eclipse on your website with broad messages to break the myths that are prevalent in not only the illiterate but also the educated Indians.
5. Through the science Centres, request you to enlighten the young minds on wise use of the environmental resources such as air, water, sunlight, flora and fauna. This should not only be for the students but also for their parents. This service will benefit the rural India more than the Urban India.
6.  We had been to Bangalore Planetarium on January 26, 2010, only to find it closed on the occasion of Republic Day holiday, it was rather unfortunate for many of us, who only can make it to the planetarium on public holidays or on Sundays. So, request you to solve our problem too. Science Centres and Planetariums will draw more interested people to benefit from their services on Public holidays.
7.  How about reaching out to localities through municipal corporations for local sponsorships for the corporation schools to spend a day at the planetarium to learn the use of telescope and how to make it. Then they can follow the sky map you publish in your website to then to effectively use the telescope with your constant guidance.

Planetriums & Science Centres and their Significance II

Planetarium	Website & Address	Working hours (Coloured entries indicate facilities unique to the Planetarium)	Activities & Services (Coloured entries indicate facilities unique to the Planetarium)	Mgmt.	Publications	Facilities (Coloured entries indicate facilities unique to the Planetarium)
JN Planetarium, Mumbai	http://www.nehru-centre.org/planetarium.html Dr. Annie Besant Road, Worli, Mumbai - 400018 India Tel : 91 22 2496 4676 - 80 Fax : 91 22 2497 3827	11 AM to 5 PM Not open on public holidays	Science quiz contests, Astro-painting, Science elocution, Astro-poetry and Astro-quiz competitions. Special arrangements are made to watch, study and photograph Solar & Lunar eclipses, and many such other events. Telescopes are installed outside the Planetarium to enable eager visitors to watch these phenomena."Hide & Seek in the Sky " Regular Shows 12:00 noon - Hindi 01:30 p.m. - Marathi 03:00 p.m. - English 04:30 p.m. - Hindi Booking Hours 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.		Online News letter, Discovery of India, Indian Astronomy a source-book, Impact of the West and Exploring the Universe: the Planetarium Way, and colourful catalogue on Indian Master painters and sculptors. Videocassettes on Discovery of India, periodically published reports on seminars and symposia, Newsletter, which highlights the programmes for that month.	Culture Wing, Art Gallery, Exhibition hall, Auditorium Mobile Exhibition   Library	No Evening Shows and shows on public holidays. No observatory facilities
Birla Planetarium, Chennai	Tamilnadu Science & Technology Centre Gandhi Mandapam Road (Behind CLRI) Chennai- 600 025 Phone: 91-44 - 24410025 / 24416751 / 24915250	10 AM to 5:45PM Not open on public holidays	from 10 a.m. to 5.45 p.m. Timings for cosmic shows in the planetarium (English) are 10.45 a.m., 1.15 p.m. and 3.45 p.m. In Tamil, the show timings are 12 noon and 2.30 p.m. Solar and planetary and other heavenly phenomena, system, nature, ecology , meteorology			Science park, ecological park, Mobile Science Exhibition, Traffic park	No Evening Shows and shows on public holidays. No observatory facilities No Eclipse calendar with timings
JN Planetarium, Bangalore	http://www.taralaya.org/planetarium.htm Sri. T. Chowdaiah Road, High Grounds,  Bangalore-560001, Karnataka, India. 91 -080- 22203234/ 2226 6084/ 22379725	10 AM to 5:30 PM Not open on public holidays	Solar System:                    11:30am and 2:00pm Kannada . 12:45pm and 3:45pm English. Wonder World of Stars 2:45 pm Kannada. 4:30 pm English."Mirror dome+ shows. Acharya Jagdish Chandra Bose  on request 10:30am school booking Spl. Film shows. No shows on Tuesdays and Wednesdays Activity Calendar for 2010 yet to be published	Initially Bangalore Municipal Corpn. Now autonomous body: BASE: Bangalore Assn. For Science Edu. Invite Corporate, individual and group sponsors.	Illustrated booklet on Eclipses (Rs.25.00) in Kannada   DVD “Eye on the Sky” with kannada sub-titles.	Exhibition halls, Science Park, ABAA (Assn. Of Bangalore Amateur Astronomers), REAP (Research Education & Advancement Programme), Bio-REAP	No Evening shows and shows on public holidays. No observatory facility No Eclipse calendar with timings
JN Planetarium, Delhi	http://www.nehruplanetarium.org/ Teen Murti House, New Delhi - 110011, India Telephone - 91-011-23014504,                     91-011-23012994. Fax - 91-011- 23016936 email - nehruplanetarium@gmail.com	10 am to 5:30 pm	The regular programmes of the Planetarium include public shows at 11:30 AM (English), 1:30 PM (Hindi), 3:00 PM (English) and 4:00 PM (Hindi) Special School Shows	Nehru Memorial Museum & Library		Auditorium, Exhibition halls Wiki Farm AAAD(Association of Amateur Astrologers) YAHOO Group	Annual Activity Calendar to be updated for 2010.  No Evening shows and shows on public holidays. No observatory facility
BM Birla Planetarium, Hyderabad	http://www.birlasciencecentre.org/planetarium/planetaruim.html phone: 91-040-23235081/232441067 FAX: 91-040-23237266	11:30am to 7:30pm and spl. Show at 8:15pm on holidays	Cosmic presentations highlighting various mysteries of the universe viz. Halley’s comet, Black Hole, etc. Spl. Interactive sessions for students. Popular courses on Astronomy and Astrophysics	Regd. Society of "Birla Institute of Scientific Research		Part of Science Centre: Museum, archaeology, dinosaurium, art gallery, Exhibition gallery, IIAMIS (International Instt. For Applicable Maths and Information Sc.) Live Remote Show from Birla Science Centre	No Monthly night sky chart or info on activities like eclipses, etc.
Birla Planetarium, Jaipur	http://www.bisr.res.in/bisr_home.php The Head, B M Birla Planetarium, Birla Insitute of Scientific Research Statue Circle, Jaipur-302001 Rajasthan, INDIA PHONE +91-141-2385367, 2385094, 5108162 FAX +91-141-2385121 EMAIL planet@bisr.res.in	The planetarium remains closed on last Wednesday of every month and visiting hours are 12.00 pm to 7.00 pm on all other days.	sky-shows to dispel the heavenly myths, propagate the basic concepts of astronomy and also train the amateurs to appreciate the grandeur of the night sky. The topics include evolution of earth, mysteries of cosmos, exploration of Mars and other planets. Interactive sessions are held following the sky-shows. A special live session has been designed and being regularly presented to higher classes to supplement their science syllabi.	Regd. Society of "Birla Institute of Scientific Research		Coordinates the activities of Amateur Astronomers Association which include telescope fabrication, astro-photography and organising evening sky-watch sessions.  Research, Auditorium, Bio-Informatics Centre, Museum	No Monthly night sky chart or info on activities like eclipses, etc.
Birla Planetarium, Kolkata India’s first and Asia’s largest planetarium	Situated at the junction of Shakespeare Sarani and Cathedral Road,	Visiting hours of the Planetarium: 1230hrs - 1830hrs   -  Preferred Timings: It is best to visit the museum in the evening; between 1500hrs - 1700hrs	Sundays & holidays - Two additional shows at 10.30 a.m. (Hindi) and 11.30 a.m. (Bengali). shows on Zodiac signs and stars, Journey to Antarctic, and New View of the Solar System Attend free discourses on astronomy M.P. Birla Planetarium conducts a 3-semester M. Phil course in Astronomy and Planetarium Sciences. In addition, it holds free evening course in Astronomy for sky gazers and enthusiasts.	Regd. Society of "Birla Institute of Fundamental Research".	Publish yearly astronomical pocket-calendars and picture post-cards etc have also been taken up. "Bust Stories" and "A Brief Introduction of Astronomy" are some of the astronomical publications lately by the Birla planetarium. 'Journal of the MP Birla Planetarium'.	an astronomical observatory that is furnished with a Celestron C-14 Telescope, accessorized with ST6 CCD Camera, Solar Filter and so on. There is also an Electronics Laboratory for designing and production of scientific equipments. For producing special effects during a show the planetarium has come up with an automatic system for better visual and other special effects.	Open on Sundays and public holidays No Evening shows. Does not have a website.
Indira Gandhi Planetarium, Patna	Website: http://patna.bih.nic.in/html/planetarium.htm Site 2: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patna_Planetarium Email:  Phone: 235264 http://patna.bih.nic.in/html/planetarium.htm		regular film shows on subjects related to astronomy. It also holds exhibitions, which attracts lots of visitors.[	Bihar Council on Science & Technology			Does not have a website with necessary details
Allahabad Planetarium, Allahabad	Phone no. is +91-532-2467093. Located by the side of the Anand Bhawan	Note that children below 5 years are not allowed. It is closed on Mondays and central government holidays	here are five shows on any day. Each show is a celestial journey. Each show features interesting and intriguing aspects related to space and astronomy. There is a moon model on display. Visitors can find their weights on Moon and Jupiter, too. The planetarium is also called Jawaharlal Planetarium.				Does not have a website with necessary details
Pathani Samanta  Planetarium, Bhubaneswar	JL Nehru Marg, city centre Phone: 2581613	The Planetarium offers regular shows about outer space on all days except Mondays from 2 00pm to 5 00 pm.	night sky watch, audio visual programs, poster shows and display of astronomical instruments. offers them financial help and also provides them with a bigger platform where they get the opportunity to interact in the conferences of international repute.			Auditorium, exhibition halls and library	Does not have a website with necessary details
Lucknow Planetarium				Council of Science and Research, UP			No information available
Calicut Planetarium	www.rscpcalicut.8m.com	10:30am to 6:30pm. Center remains closed on every Mondays and on the occasion of Onam and Diwali.					No website and access to detailed information on the
Priyadarshini Planetarium, Trivandrum	www.kstmuseum.com www.stedk.org	10:30am, 12:00pm, 3:00pm, 5:00pm	MAN AND THE UNIVERSE" "MYRIAD SUNS" School or any organization to pay Rs.1000.00 for Centre’s mobile display service.			Conference hall, Workshops, Sound - studio etc Exhibition Galleries, Children's science park, Mobile Science Exhibition.	Website inaccessible. Not much information available
Sardar V. Patel Plaentatium, Surat	http://www.suratmunicipal.gov.in/content/planetarium/main.shtml		The Planetarium runs a show on the universe, in Gujarati, from 11:15am -1:45pm, Wednesday-Saturday and from 2:45pm-5:45pm, Sunday and Tuesday. It is closed on Monday.	Surat Municipal Corpn.	Zodiac, Constellations, Planets, Monthly maps of Akash Darshan		Does not operate on public holidays
State	Total	Rural (R)	Urban (U)	City	% R population	%U population	States providing preliminary mobile exhibitions to Rural Areas
Maharashtra	96,752,247	55,732,513	41,019,734	Mumbai	57.60	42.40	Yes
Delhi	13,782,976	963,215	12,819,761	Delhi	06.99	93.01	Yes
West Bengal	80,221,171	57,734,690	22,486,481	Kolkata	71.97	28.03	No
Tamil Nadu	62,110,839	34,869,286	27,241,553	Chennai	56.14	43.86	Yes
Andhra Pradesh	75,727,541	55,223,944	20,503,597	Hyderabad	72.92	27.08	No
Bihar	82,878,796	74,199,596	8,679,200	Patna	89.53	10.47	No
UP	166,052,859	131,540,230	34,512,629	Allahabad	79.22	20.78	No
Rajasthan	56,473,122	43,267,678	13,205,444	Jaipur	76.62	23.38	No
Karnataka	52,733,958	34,814,100	17,919,858	Bangalore	61.02	33.98	No
Orissa	36,706,920	31,210,602	5,496,318	Bhubaneswar	85.03	14.97	No
Gujarat	50,596,992	31,697,615	18,899,377	Surat	62.64	59.52	No
Kerala	31,838,619	23,571,484	8,267,135	Trivandrum	74.03	25.96	Yes