When the MP replied to his post
By Asha P Nair
11th August 2009 01:50 AM
It's one of those fulfilling moments for a blogger when his blog post gets noticed, receives comments and stirs a lot of animation. Brijesh Nair, a Malayali blogger settled in Arizona, had a taste of this excitement last week when a post of his received a reply from the office of Shashi Tharoor, MP of Thiruvananthapuram and Minister of State for External Affairs.
Tharoor, hailed as the ‘e-minister’, has been a favourite with bloggers, ever since he decided to contest from Thiruvananthapuram. Though, initially, there was a commotion in the blogs over his eligibility to fight an election from Kerala, Tharoor tided over the situation in his own e-style. Bloggers seem to have gotten over the past, and so does Tharoor. And he has been using the blogosphere to remain in the good books of the citizens ever since.
Brijesh, a native of Thiruvananthapuram, had published a post on May 28, ‘Monsoon Time is Disease Time in Kerala’, with apt photos attached.
The post can be read at Brijesh’s blog www.sonyvellayani.com under the masthead, ‘Scaling new heights, my thoughts about India and Kerala’. The post reads that the pollution in the capital, mainly pointing its fingers at Amayizhanjan canal and Parvathy Puthanar, is the reason why epidemics re-visit the city every monsoon.
Under the picture of a polluted canal, Brijesh writes, “Thiruvallam- where Karamana River meets another stream Parvathy Puthanar - is a holy place for the Hindus as it is on its bank the temple dedicated to Parasurama, the creator of Keralam, is situated. This is the exact location where during ‘Karkadaka Vavu’ thousands of people do ‘bali’ in memory of their ancestors. It is the place I have taken holy dip so many times. This was the place thousands of kids used to learn swimming. All these have become a thing of the past.’’
Lately, Brijesh received a reply from Tharoor’s team member Praveen Ram, saying Tharoor had wanted him to reply to Brijesh’s post, seeking solutions to a few matters raised in the post.
The reply, in capsule, agrees with Brijesh’s concerns of environmental pollution and concludes saying that the new sewerage treatment plant proposed by the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation under the JNNURM will go a long way in addressing the issue.
“The Rs 526-crore Central government-funded City Development Plan of TVM under JNNURM has provisions for sewage, waste management and canal waste management, which when implemented would solve the above issues. Dr Shashi Tharoor is following up the implementation of this scheme by Corporation of TVM,’’ the reply says.
The post has led to discussions too, as to how the capital must learn from Singapore or the US, where they know litters will end up in canals. And how strict laws must be put in place to check the issue.
Whatever be the case of the polluted canals, it’s a relief that a politician does have quality time for his citizens’ grievances. Mails, blogs or twitters, Tharoor and his team seem to put new age communication tools to the best use.
Brijesh, a native of Thiruvananthapuram, had published a post on May 28, ‘Monsoon Time is Disease Time in Kerala’, with apt photos attached.
The post can be read at Brijesh’s blog www.sonyvellayani.com under the masthead, ‘Scaling new heights, my thoughts about India and Kerala’. The post reads that the pollution in the capital, mainly pointing its fingers at Amayizhanjan canal and Parvathy Puthanar, is the reason why epidemics re-visit the city every monsoon.
Under the picture of a polluted canal, Brijesh writes, “Thiruvallam- where Karamana River meets another stream Parvathy Puthanar - is a holy place for the Hindus as it is on its bank the temple dedicated to Parasurama, the creator of Keralam, is situated. This is the exact location where during ‘Karkadaka Vavu’ thousands of people do ‘bali’ in memory of their ancestors. It is the place I have taken holy dip so many times. This was the place thousands of kids used to learn swimming. All these have become a thing of the past.’’
Lately, Brijesh received a reply from Tharoor’s team member Praveen Ram, saying Tharoor had wanted him to reply to Brijesh’s post, seeking solutions to a few matters raised in the post.
The reply, in capsule, agrees with Brijesh’s concerns of environmental pollution and concludes saying that the new sewerage treatment plant proposed by the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation under the JNNURM will go a long way in addressing the issue.
“The Rs 526-crore Central government-funded City Development Plan of TVM under JNNURM has provisions for sewage, waste management and canal waste management, which when implemented would solve the above issues. Dr Shashi Tharoor is following up the implementation of this scheme by Corporation of TVM,’’ the reply says.
The post has led to discussions too, as to how the capital must learn from Singapore or the US, where they know litters will end up in canals. And how strict laws must be put in place to check the issue.
Whatever be the case of the polluted canals, it’s a relief that a politician does have quality time for his citizens’ grievances. Mails, blogs or twitters, Tharoor and his team seem to put new age communication tools to the best use.
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