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Tuesday, Jan 22, 2008
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New Delhi

New Delhi

Inside delhi

Special children

Thanks to Bollywood actor Aamir Khan’s sensitive and thought-provoking film “Taare Zameen Par”, the problems faced by children suffering from dyslexia are now better understood by many who were unaware so far about this slow learning disability.

According to Raajeev Bhatt, director of non-government organisation “Action Dyslexia”, the issue has come into focus in a big way after the movie hit the screens: ``Dyslexia is a difficulty in learning to read, speak or write. Present at birth, it results in a struggle when trying to learn, remember or express information. It is a learning disability that alters the way the brain processes written material. The effects of the disorder vary from person to person. In fact, the only common trait among people with dyslexia is that they read at levels significantly lower than typical for people of their age and intelligence.”

Stating that his NGO has been dealing with dyslexia for the past eight years, Mr. Bhatt adds: ``We have been successful in teaching and improving this particular disability to a very good extent. One of our students, Aditya Bawa, who was dyslexic cleared his Class XII examination conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education with flying colours. He is now working with a reputed hotel as a senior manager.”

To sort out the problems of dyslexic children, Mr. Bhatt says his NGO is using various memory techniques and scientific teaching methods so that they do not face any complexities and also acquire self-confidence. “We have many examples of such students who have overcome this problem and have proved their potential in different spheres of life,” he adds.

Madhur Tankha

Ups and downs

True to the behavioural circuitry that nature apparently has programmed their genes with, feral pigeons across the Capital gravitate naturally towards high-rise ledges and airy lofts for nesting.

A disused balcony at a friend’s apartment on Pandara Road this past month was home to a pair of these feathered bipeds who in an attempt to shield their offspring from predatory felines and ravenous crows had laid a solitary white egg in a scraggy nest in a shaded corner.

Taking turns to incubate the egg, the birds cooed and cajoled each other through the short winter afternoons. While one warmed the off-white sphere by squatting over it, the other carried out a guarded vigil on the rail, ever on the lookout for any apparent danger.

Their labour bore fruit when this sallow sphere cracked open over a weekend and a wobbly and sticky mass emerged out.

Too weak to even balance itself on its immature feet, the fledgling waddled about the nest poking its beak into a parent each time its tummy sent hunger signals up its brain. The adult birds in turn kept their progeny well nourished with crop milk regurgitated from their very gut.

Arising early one Sunday morning, the friend — as had become his usual practice — went out to the balcony to catch the avian threesome perform their familial antics. But though the nest was still in place, the birds were nowhere to be found. A few drops of blood around the twigs and twine confirmed the concerned observer’s worst fears: the chick had fallen prey to one of several predators on the prowl.

Dejected, the friend went about his business and forgot all about the matter. A few days later making his way again to the balcony out of habit, he was surprised to notice yet another egg in the same place. The pigeons had apparently come back to attempt what the primary purpose of all life forms is — the propagation of their species.

Kunal Diwan

Half-asleep

Trust the civic authorities to do a well-intentioned job half-heartedly. During a recent drive to clean up clogged drains for carrying sewerage as well as rainwater in New Ashok Nagar locality of East Delhi, the authorities did a rather good job of ensuring a smooth flow.

But in doing so they left the other half of the job incomplete: clearing the muck extracted from the drains from the road.

Without doubt, what came out from those drains -- that virtually criss-cross the lower-middle class locality -- reflected that people indeed lacked civic sense. There were the ubiquitous polythene bags, other types of garbage, and even a large number of broken bricks. Add to that the fact that these are covered drains, open only at a few points. But they were probably big enough to “pollute” the drains.

As a result, all the dirt from the drains is now lying in huge heaps out in the open making the locality look like a neglected garage dump. Also, this is the place where vegetables and other eats are sold during the weekly bazaar on Friday.

One possible reason could be that while one agency was responsible for cleaning the drain, it was the job of another to clear the dirt from the road.

In that case, better coordination between the two agencies would have ensured that the roads stayed clean and a potential health hazard was also eliminated. Maybe somebody acts now?

Prashant Pandey

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