The biggest problem in Chennai relates to vehicle-parking. It is most acute in T Nagar. It is indeed heartening that the Chennai Corporation is thinking of having an underground multi-level car parking facility at the Venkatnarayana Road playground in T.Nagar.

A tender has already been floated for this purpose. This is bound to decongest T Nagar. Happy news to sports lovers! The proposed underground parking would not affect the playground that has a basketball court.

Some years ago, we were told that a multi-level parking lot would be constructed in the Panagal Park. Since the ecologists felt that it would disturb the major lung space of the area, that project was dropped.

At least some of us have the tendency to dismiss a convict as a hopeless case.  A convict serving a life sentence at the Central jail in Vellore has chanted all the 1330 couplets of the Tamil treatise 'Tirukkural' in one hour and won a cash prize of Rs 10,000.  Munuswamy completed his 10th standard while in prison and is now doing Bsc (computer applications).  The jail superintendent gave him three months to learn the couplets. But the convict did so in two months. A function was arranged in the prison recently  to showcase his talent. The Chancellor of the Vellore Institute of Technoolgy,  G Viswanathan,  presented him the cash award. After all, as Lily Fairchilde says, “Deep down even the most hardened criminal is starving for the same thing that motivates  the innocent baby: Love and acceptance.”

‘Sanipeyarchi' festival is known as the 'Kumbh Mela of Puducherry'. This year, Lord Saturn transits from 'Simha Rasi' (Leo) to 'Kanni' (Virgo) on Sep 26 at 3.27 p.m. Gearing up for the “Sanipeyarchi" festival (transit of Lord Saturn) at the famous Lord Dharbharanyeshwara Swami temple in  Tirunallar, the district administration has come up with a new queue management system for the event which would attract a large number of devotees from across the country. Barricades are being erected in the famous 'Nalan Kulam', where devotees will gather for the holy dip.
The temple at Tirunallar in the Union Territory of Puducherry is the main shrine dedicated to Lord Saneeswara in the country.

You must have come across the most ancient definition of news. ‘When a dog bites a man, it is no news. But when a man bites a dog, it is news.’ Recently near Salem, a fifty-one year old woman was arrested for allegedly poisoning to death 25 dogs after one of her goats was fatally bitten by a dog.

The goat of Sournammal of Keeripapampadiputhur was bitten to death by a stray dog.  Enraged, she cut the goat into pieces, mixed poison with it and threw them around her house. About 25 dogs and seven crows which ate the meat died. We have heard that revenge is sweet, but this is by any standard too much!!

Whoever told you that Guru Bhakthi is waning?  In Namakkal district, the old students of Sengunthar Mahajana Higher Secondary School at Gurusamypalayam village chose to show their gratefulness to their 83-year-old former Tamil teacher V. Venkataraman  by building and donating a two-storey house to him. After marrying off his daughters the teacher was going through hard times. Over two hundred and fifty former students donated nearly ten lakh rupees for this noble cause.

I am proud of Abhinaya. “Her expressive eyes and cool demeanour conceal the inherent 'shortcoming' that she has had to brave in life and land in 'Kollywood' - tinseltown - nurturing the dreams of many a star aspirant and now well and truly on her way to fame.
Lady luck indeed seems to have smiled on teenager Abhinaya, who has overcome her speech and hearing impairment, to not only easily essay her debut character in the latest Tamil hit 'Nadodigal', directed by Samudrakani, but also landing herself a plum role as the female lead in acclaimed Tamil director Sasi's forthcoming film. “

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“If I could live again my life,
In the next - I'll try,
- to make more mistakes,
I won't try to be so perfect,
I'll be more relaxed,
I'll be more full - than I am now,
In fact, I'll take fewer things seriously.....

I'll have more real problems - and less imaginary
ones,
I was one of those people who live
prudent and prolific lives -
each minute of his life,
Of course that I had moments of joy - but,
if I could go back I'll try to have only good moments,

If you don't know – that’s what life is made of,
Don't lose the now! ...

....,

If I could live again - I will travel light,
If I could live again - I'll try to work bare feet
at the beginning of spring till
the end of autumn,
I'll ride more carts,
I'll watch more sunrises and play with more children,
If I have the life to live - but now I am 85,
- and I know that I am dying ...

--Jorge Luis Borges