Celebrate life at Ampa Mall in Chennai

In taking the ethos  of ‘Jiyo Life’ forward, we bring you the Jiyo Life Zone, on 26th & 27^th of June at Ampa Mall in Chennai.  We will be setting up a Jiyo Life Zone at Ampa Mall specifically for all those people and their families who have had their Jiyo Life moments and would like to share them with us.

There are many exciting events planned. There will be fun family oriented contests. You can also share a picture with us, which describes your ‘Jiyo Life’ moment. These pictures will be displayed on the Jiyo Life Moment Wall . Also, there will be a ‘Wish’ wall where everyone can share the ideal Jiyo Life moment they are wishing for. The best entries in these contests will receive attractive prizes.

So, everyone in Chennai, come hither at Ampa Mall to celebrate life to its fullest. Help make this weekend, a one you will remember.

Gross National Happiness

 Our nation is progressing by leaps and bounds. Our progress is measured by Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Well, of-course it is a good indicator of the economy of the country but I believe it is not a complete system. Economists have long known that GDP is not a perfect system. What if there existed a system which can better judge a nation’s economical progress with better means than the GDP.

Well, such a method exists and is currently followed by Bhutan. It is called Gross National Happiness(GNH). The term was coined in 1972 by Bhutan's former King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who had opened up Bhutan to the age of modernization, soon after the demise of his father, King Jigme Dorji Wangchuk. He used the phrase to signal his commitment to building an economy that would serve Bhutan's unique culture based on Buddhist spiritual values. Of-course, Bhutan is the only country which uses this method but research is on into whether we can switch from our current GDP system to GNH so we as country can plan our economic wellbeing based solely on the citizen’s happiness rather huge profit margins.

 As we all know that a nation’s economic well-being depends largely on the happiness of the people. If people are satisfied with the salary they make, then probably it can be inferred that that the economy is doing well.  As economic development on the planet approaches or surpasses the limits of ecosystems to provide resources and absorb human effluents, calling into question the ability of the planet to continue to support civilization, many people have called for getting "Beyond GDP" (the title of a recent EU conference) in order to measure progress not as the mere increase in commercial transactions, nor as an increase in specifically economic well-being, but as an increase in general well-being as people themselves subjectively report it. GNH is a strong contributor to this movement to discard measurements of commercial transactions as a key indicator and to instead directly assess changes in the social and psychological well-being of populations.

GNH value largely depends upon:

1.     Economic Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of economic metrics such as consumer debt, average income to consumer price index ratio and income distribution

2.     Environmental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of environmental metrics such as pollution, noise and traffic

3.     Physical Wellness: Indicated via statistical measurement of physical health metrics such as severe illnesses

4.     Mental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of mental health metrics such as usage of antidepressants and rise or decline of psychotherapy patients

5.     Workplace Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of labor metrics such as jobless claims, job change, workplace complaints and lawsuits

6.     Social Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of social metrics such as discrimination, safety, divorce rates, complaints of domestic conflicts and family lawsuits, public lawsuits, crime rates

7.     Political Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of political metrics such as the quality of local democracy, individual freedom, and foreign conflicts.

Hopefully, we will witness this paradigm shift in the near future where the economy will be more suited to the social needs of the people.

The Queen of the Nilgiris, Jiyo life in Ooty this Monsoon!

It has begun pouring cats and dogs everywhere. Everyone is stuck in this mad rush of getting up, going to office and then coming back home drenched late at night. Slowly we begin grumbling about the rain and how it affects our daily commute and dampens our life. But no one realizes how beautiful the rains are! You just need to break away from your stressful lives and go to a place where you can experience the rain from a very natural perspective, away from our big and polluted cities. And when it comes to such places, Ooty is heaven on earth.

Ooty or Ootacamund is a popular hill station located in the Nilgiri Hills. Udhagamandalam is the official Tamil name for the town. Ooty stands at an approximate height of 7,500 feet (2, 286 m) above sea level. Its stunning beauty and splendid green deep valleys made the British name it "Queen of Hill Stations".

Ooty is well connected with rail and road routes. It is situated within a day’s journey from Chennai, Bangalore, Coimbatore and Mysore. The town also has direct bus services to various cities and towns of  TamilNadu,namely Tirupur,Erode, Salem, Sathyamangalam, Karur, Dindigul, Chennai, Thiruchirapalli, Madurai, Thanjavur and Kanyakumari. Trains towards Ooty are also very well established but they are very few since there is a track change involved. Also, there is no civilian airport in Ooty, the nearest being at Coimbatore. So the best way to get there is to get to Coimbatore and then carry on to Ooty.

The main attractions of Ooty besides the idyllic natural existence and life changing vistas are:

Ooty Botanical Gardens:

The Botanical Garden is a lush green and well maintained Botanical garden. A flower show along with an exhibition of rare plant species is held every year at this garden. The garden also has a 20 million year old fossilized tree. One can find a diverse variety of flora, ranging from rare trees like the cork tree, the paper bark tree, and the monkey puzzle tree, flowering bushes and plants, fern house consists of ferns and orchids.

Ooty Lake & Boat House:

This is an artificial lake. It used to be much larger than its present size of 4 km² and is 2.5 km in length, and encompassed the present bus stand and race course as well as much of the present market. Boating is the major attraction at the lake. The boat rise allows visitors to enjoy the serene environs at a laid-back pace.

Stone House

This was the first "Pukka" house in Ooty. It is situated inside the premises of the Government Arts College. It now houses the government office.

Toda Huts

There are a few number of Toda Huts up in the hills of Botanical Garden were Todas still dwell.

Railway Station

This is a important junction for The Nilgiri Railways. It is very clean and well maintained.

St. Stephen's Church

This one of the oldest churches in the town, it architecture is essentially old style with tall spires. It is located near the District Court house building.

Wax World, Ooty

A wax museum that houses life-size look-alike wax statues of personalities of Indian history, culture and heritage housed in a 142 year old bungalow.

Ooty Golf Links

It is a forested and grassy area, partially home to a golf course.

So what are you waiting for? Get out there now and stay a week or two and experience bliss like never before. Please post your ‘Jiyo Life Moments’ stories and share with the rest of the world so that they too can experience this heaven on earth.

Jiyo Life this monsoon in Munnar

The monsoons are here & we should all be out there trying to make the most of it. Some of you will play football in the rains, while some will go trekking . There are some who enjoy having a cup of tea with some hot bhajiyas. Now we will tell how to make this monsoon more special by visiting one of the beautiful places we have here in India. The place is Munnar. Now don’t tell us that you have never heard of this place!

The name Munnar is derived from the words munnu aar . Munnu meaning three while aar meaning rivers. Situated at the confluence of three mountain streams - Mudrapuzha, Nallathanni and Kundala in Idukki district of Kerala, the place has become one of the hottest tourist destinations in India. Placed at height of 2000 to 2600 meters above sea level, the climate here is fantastic. The air is crisp, clear and unpolluted & the temperature normally hovers between 0°C - 25° Celsius. The place was once a summer destination of the erstwhile British Government in South India.

Munnar is full of greenery and mist and once you visit there you will be greeted by miles and miles of tea gardens. It has the highest peak in South India, Anamudi. Towering over 2695 meters the place is an ideal location for trekkers. An exotic flower, Neelakurinji blooms every 12  years & bathes the hill in blue color. The Nilgiris, which means the blue mountain received its name from this flower.

Here are some of the must visit places in Munnar this monsoon:

Rajamala: This place is situated 2695 meters above sea level & is about 15 kms from Munnar. It is famous for the Nilgiri Tahrs which is the state animal of Tamil Nadu. An endangered species, more than half of these thars or goats, about 1300, can be found over here.

Eravikulam National Park:
Situated in Devikulam taluka of Idukki district, this 97 sq.km. park is home of the Nilgiri Tahrs. The Anamudi peak is situated in the southern part of this park. The place is covered with evergreen trees which makes it beautiful and is one of the best mountain ranges that we have in India.

Pothamedu:  This place offers an excellent view of the vast tea, cardamom and coffee plantations in Munnar. It is ideal for mountain walk as it offers a view of the lush green beautiful hills and mountains. Nature at its best.

Matutupetty: Around 13 kms from Munnar & 1700 meters from sea level this place is famous for the Indo-Swiss live stock project. Visitors are allowed into three of the eleven cattle sheds where you will find over 100 varieties of high yielding cattle being reared. There is also the Mattupetty Lake & Dam which is a favorite picnic spot.

 Nyayamakad:
Located between Munnar and Rajamala, Nyayamakad has some beautiful and breathtaking waterfalls some of which are at a height of 1600 meters. The scenic surroundings will make you mesmerize in natures wonder.

Pallivasal :
Again a place with some awesome scenery, this place also has the first Hydro Electric Project in Kerala.

Attukal :
Located between Munnar and Pallivasal, the place has some of the best views of the waterfalls. Watch the Attukkal waterfalls where white foaming water descends down from a great height and creates cloud of mist. Attukal is also one of the most photographed attractions of Munnar. 

Chithirapuram:
Home to the Pallivasal Hydel Power Project, this is a sleepy town with old cottages and bunglows which gives it a distinct charm. There are also spice nurseries owned by the Kerala Spice Board.

Lock Heart Gap:
Located 13 km from Munnar this place is famous for adventure tourism and trekking. If you want to spend some priceless moments of solitude this is the place to be.

Devikulam:
Located 7 km from Munnar this place is famous for the Sita Devi Lake, where it is believed that Lord Rama and Goddess Sita took bath thus consecrating the water with curative powers. You can also find bluish and red rubber trees here.

That’s all about Munnar. Do visit, enjoy your monsoon and Jiyo Life.


image courtesy: binbrain.com/wikimedia commons

Be the change this WE Day & Jiyo Life

Our mother earth takes care of us in her own way & is it not our moral and social duty to protect her?
Yes it is. That is why we want you to be the change & bring the change this World Environmental Day (WED) which will be celebrated on June 5 across the world.

What is WED?
Our planet has been annually celebrating World Environmental Day (WED) since 1972. World Environmental Day is organized by the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) with a different theme every year & selecting a host country which is setting an example by its green initiatives.

The theme for WED 2010 is, “Many Species, One Planet, One Future” & the host country is the East African nation, Rwanda. There are more than 10 million species in this world out of which only 2 million have been identified yet. Out of this 2 million, about 17,291 species are on the verge of extinction from little insects to rare mammals. Some even get extinct before they are discovered.

What You Can Do: World Environment Day may be just other day in the calendar that passes of like all other days. But in a technologically advanced world like today, people are getting isolated it is a good opportunity to connect with others and our own planet.

You Can,

•   Plant trees with your family or local community members.
•   Stop unnecessary wastage of fuel. Start using scooters or walk to your office at least twice a day. This way you will not only reduce carbon emissions but also improve your health too!
•   Rely on energy efficient bulbs in your home.
•   Stop using plastic bags & start using recyclable bags or make your own bag with your old cloths.
•   Save water. Water has become so precious these days; it is said that the next world war will be fought for cause of water.
• Stop throwing garbage in public places and make the environment clean.

These are some basic tips. There are lots more which you can do it yourself.
Jiyo Life this World Environment Day people. Cheers.

image courtesy: Wikimedia commons