Northern Lights Tourism to Finland

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Finland tour from India: LestacWorld Making Northern Lights Dreams Come True for Travel Enthusiasts

We must warn those visiting Finland to see the Northern  Lights, it is like playing Russian roulette. 

You may go around everywhere but you may not see them as they are not at the command of the tour operator.

Annikki and I have seen some spectacular  Northern Lights, but each  has been pure chance.

The Astronomy Department of Oulu University does give an update but the intensity has to be high enough to see a good phenomenon. 

Also, to have good visibilityyou should be well away from the City Lights. 

The Igloo Hotel in the Oulu Arctic is one such location.

The colours vary and it can be mundane to quite mind-blowing. Cloud cover may make the visibility poor.

We wish you good fortune but we are sure you will enjoy many other delights of Finnish culture during your visit.

I must recall here one story about the Northern Lights. 

Professor Ajeet Mathur, who lived in south Finland, had never seen the Notthern Lights. In 2000 he visited us and expressed his desire to see them. 

Annikki told us to go for a walk, which we did for about an hour, but no Northern Lights were visible.

On return, as we opened the front door, we saw.Annikki  standing with a glass bowl held up to the sky. 

 

Northern Lights Cake by Annikki

Annikki had created a cake which replicated the Notthern Lights.

Obituary Dr. K. C. Mammen, Paediatrician

27th November 2023

It is sad to restart our NEWS page with an obituary. 

Group picture at our family gathering in 2012. Dr. K. C. Mammen is in a red shirt in the front seated row.

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Dr. K. C. Mammen (far right) with his sister, Sarasukochamma.

Dr. (Mrs.) Annamma Mammen with her sister-in-law (Sarasukochamma)

Dr. (Mrs. ) Annamma Mammen with our 

cousin, Sen Philip.

It is with great sorrow that Annikki and I convey the news of the passing away of our oldest Kandathil immediate cousin, our elder brother, who with his wife, cared for us with diligence unmatchable. 

Paediatrician Dr. K. C. Mammen passed away in Kottayam on Sunday 25th of November 2023. He was born on 30th March 1930. He was 93 years old.

Padma Bhushan late K. M. Cherian, 

father of Dr. K. C. Mammen

Son of my mother's eldest brother, Padma  Bhushan late K. M. Cherian, he is survived by his wife, Dr. Annamma Mammen (Kunjuammakochamma), and his three daughters, Dr. Sarah, Anu and Mary, his sons-in-laws Christy, Thomas  and Kurien and his sister, Mrs. Sarasu Jacob (Sarasukochamma). 

His father called him Bapu as a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi.

Yesterday evening, I had a call from my cousin's wife, Prema, in Kottayam, telling me that he had passed away.

He was a wonderful loving personality. Whenever I had a problem, I could depend on his advice.

He attended the last moments when my maternal grandfather, late K. C. Mammen Mappillai, passed away on December 31st 1953. He was then just a young 23 year old. 

I still remember that young man and his sombre look when he told us that our grandfather was no more.

I was present at his wedding. in Kottayam 

Bapukuttychayan, as we called him, studied in the Madras Christian College School in Madras and the M. D. Seminary in Kottayam. He then joined the Madras Christian College in Madras. He moved the CMC College in Vellore in 1954 and did his MBBS from there. He did his DCH diploma from London and his MRCP degree from Edinburgh. 

He worked in Newcastle University for 2 years. before returning to CMC. From 1962 to 1970 he worked at Vellore Medical College. 

He was Professor of the Paediatrics Department in CMC, Vellore. His actions made the hospital one of the best medical colleges in India. A 100 bed hospital became a 1000 bed multi-speciality one.

He moved to the Medical Mission Hospital in Kolenchery. He worked for free in the hospital. He served as the Director from 1970 to 1980.

He was the President of the Kandathil Kudumbayogam. He was the school manager of Balikamaton in Tiruvalla. He served as the Board Member of Fellowship House and Chacko Houses in Aluva,

When we returned to India in 1969, his wife, also a graduate from the CMC, was our family doctor. Her calm and composed nature helped a worried foreigner, Annikki, to settle down in Madras to a secure life.

Their three girls are  beautiful young ladies, so loving like their parents.

I remember one instance when we were at family gathering in the Alwaye Palace, when our daughter developed high fever causing Annikki to be worried. Bapukuttychayan quickly put her mind at rest so all of us could enjoy the family gathering. He made us stay an extra day to ensure we could travel back to Madras with peace of mind.

When his wife moved away from Madras, my cousin introduced us to a student of his in Nungambakkam, Dr. Vishwanath, who became our family doctor. He was, like my cousin, one who did not prescribe antibiotics at the drop of a hat. He allowed the immunity to develop in the children so that Annikki never panicked, even in the most intense situations.

When a foreigner settles in India, the main thing one is concerned about is the health of the children. Annikki was totally reassured by her interaction with my cousin and his wife.

He remained the family doctor for my mother till her last. When I visited India in 2001, my mother went into a state of incoherence. Baspukuttychayan was there as soon as the first flight could get him there and put her right within the time I was in India, a few days so that my mother could enjoy celebrating my birthday. 

He would fly from Cochin to Chennai whenever she felt uncomfortable. 

Dr. K. C. Mammen with a niece, Namita, and her child.

He remained active till the very end. I have the above picture of him attending to a second cousins child just a few years ago.

Dr. K. C. Mammen (Photo Courtesy Malayala Manorama)

This article is also based on news report  carried in OnManorama, the Malayala Manorama online edition.

Gandhi’s Philosophy Webinar

 New Delhi, 22.09.2021

Below is a link to a Webinar organised on "Gandhi’s Philosophy: Its Relevance to the Contemporary World".

The YouTube link is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MPD3DD6fmE

The Webinar held at the India International Centre in New Delhi was chaired by Ambassador K. P. Fabian, former Ambassador to Finland. and is a conversation with Prof. K. P. Shankaran, former Associate Professor of Philosophy, St. Stephens College, University of Delhi, from 1985, who writes regularly on Mahatma Gandhi in The Indian Express, The Wire and The Beacon. Prtofg. Shankaran has written a book, “Marx and Freud on Religion” and many essays on Gandhi. 

The discussion was extremely controversial and lively with Ambassador Fabian leading the way with some hard questions about secularity in India.  

Prof. Shankaran compared the actions of Hitler and the British, as a colonial power, and in his opinion that the two, and the actions of several European powers as the Belgians in Congo or European South Africans in South Africa, they are only degrees of the same Western holocaustic domination of the South!

The central theme was that the Indian National Congress in 1909 ignored Gandhi's advice not to follow the Western Parliamentary. Democratic System, which is described as being Satanic and part of the Industrial Capitalistic system.  

Prof. Shankaran  tears apart the Indian Parliamentary system right from Independence in 1947 right up to the present day!

His statement that 50% of those serving in the Indian Parilamentary system have criminal records is well known and was indeed shocking.

Ambassadsor K., P. Fabian visiting the Microelectronics Laboratory at the University of Oulu in 1988. Jacob Matthan, Chief Engineer of the Laboratory is on the extreme left.

Going back over 30 years, Ambassador Fabian had given a speech in Oulu University on the "North-South Dialogue" which had highlighted, from a different perspective, the problems being faced by the developing countries around the world. 

"Seven Years Hard Labour in a Holiday Camp - A Finnish University" by Jacob Matthan carries the speech by Ambassador K. P. Fabian called "North-South Dialogue"

That article was published in the book “Seven Years Hard Labour in a Holiday Camp - A Finnish University” written by Jacob Matthan in 1994.

Most honest cities in the world

19th September 2021, Oulu, Finland

Was this an acceptable conclusion. Reader's Digest came up with Helsinki and Mumbai being the two most honest cities in the world. based on a Wallet Experiment 

Having lived in Mumbai and in Finland, and as people in all cities in Finland have the same basic character, the conclusions are as expected!

 

©Reader's Digest

In Finland, if one finds something on the streets, just drop it off at the nearest Police Station. If one find something in a bus or train, hand it over to the bus driver or conductor.  It will find its way to the owner 99% of the time.

Finland is keen to expand ties with eastern India

Kolkota, India, 16.09.2021

©Times of India

Finland is keen to expand ties with eastern India, especially West Berngal. The European nation is actively looking at the huge potential in consumer products in the city. This was disclosed by the Finnish Ambassador to India, Ritva Koukko-Ronde, on Wednesday here in the city.

A six-member delegation of the Finland Chamber of Commerece (Fincham) is also accompanying her in the city. The delegation is meeting different chambers in the city and assessing potential both ways.

The Finnish delegation has representatives from Finnish companies as Kone Elevators, Fortum, Linstrom, eAge Electronics and Cargoterch. These companies are operating in the area of smart city solutions, energy, electronics and other sectors. "We are keen to work with Indian companies for global markets," she added.

The Consul for Finland in Kolkota, Shashwat Goenka, said that he believes that a strong partnership between Finland and the region will be beneficial for both.

Finland win Davis Cup tie against India

 18.08.2021, Helsinki, Finlsnd

Indian Coffee Producers - Wake Up

 Finland: Wake Up and Smell the Cell-Cultured Coffee!

September 16, 2021

Elviira Kärkkäinen 

©VTT Research

Coffee cells have been successfully produced by scientists in Finland using cellular agriculture. The innovation, coming from the land that drinks the most coffee per capita in the world, could help make the future production of coffee considerably more sustainable.

Scientists at the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland produced the coffee cells in a bioreactor utilizing cellular agriculture – the process in which cell cultures floating in bioreactors can be filled with nutrient medium and used to produce various animal- and plant-based products. The team claims that the first batches produced smell and taste like conventional coffee.

Increasing demand, coupled with sustainability challenges and ethical concerns, is rendering traditional coffee agriculture wholly unsustainable. Development and market entry of such cellular agriculture, however, currently hinges on regulatory approval. At present, Singapore is the only state with advanced legislature, while Qatar is also not far behind. In the US, the USDA has called on stakeholders in the cell-cultured field to present comments and information while labeling legislation is reviewed.

“At VTT, this project has been part of our overall endeavor to develop the biotechnological production of daily and familiar commodities that are conventionally produced by agriculture. For this, we use many different hosts, such as microbes, but also plant cells,” stated Research Team Leader, Dr. Heiko Rischer from VTT.

“In terms of smell and taste, our trained sensory panel and analytical examination found the profile of the brew to bear similarity to ordinary coffee. However, coffee making is an art and involves iterative optimization under the supervision of specialists with dedicated equipment. Our work marks the basis for such work,” added Rischer.