UP gasping for breath
UP is gasping for breath yet again. Most of the major cities are reeling under ‘very poor’ air quality. Ghaziabad, with an average Air Quality Index (AQI) of 394, topped the list. In Noida, Greater Noida, Baghpat, Kanpur and Varanasi, the AQI has been languishing in the range of 300 to 400. Even Lucknow has been breathing foul air, with the AQI hovering around 297. It is believed that rampant vehicular and industrial emissions have rendered the air unworthy of inhaling. It is a trail continuing since October and there has not been a single day when the AQI was recorded below 100, which is considered ‘good’.
Bareilly finds its ‘Jhumka’
The ‘jhumka’ (earring), made famous by Sadhna, the Bollywood craze of the 60s, which had been lost in the bazaars of Bareilly, has reclaimed its pride of place. A huge custom-made replica of the earring, made of brass, is being installed at a roundabout in Parsa Khera zero point of Lucknow to draw more visitors to the City of Nawabs. Once a popular accessory for women, the ‘jhumka’ became synonymous with peppy number ‘Jhumka Gira Re’ from the film ‘Mera Saya’ in 1966. The district administration hit upon this idea to cash in on the popularity of this song. While the custom-made jhumka has been installed on a platform at a prominent roundabout in the city, work on a selfie point is still underway.
Lucknow not a city, but a ‘soul’
Lucknow is not just a city, nor an idea. It is the soul that resides in every native and even in those who do not have Awadhi roots. This was the common refrain at a free-flowing discussion at a session titled ‘Lucknow Ek Khayal’ on the inaugural day of the Metaphor Literary Festival. The panellists — filmmaker Muzaffar Ali, actor-director Salim Arif and noted dialogue and script writer Javed Siddiqui — elaborated on the theme by sharing their experiences and anecdotes about Lucknow. The session was moderated by veteran actor-writer Atul Tiwari, a Lucknowite.
Hospital in soup after patient death
Family members of a patient, who underwent liver transplant at the King George’s Medical University in September and died recently, have asked the KGMU to return the money they spent in the procedure. In a letter to the vice-chancellor’s office, the family alleged that the patient died due to medical negligence by the staff. KGMU authorities claimed that the patient died after a heart attack. According to the letter, the report of the liver test conducted a day before the patient’s death had been normal. The family claimed that when they came for a follow-up procedure, the medical staff did not pay attention.
Namita Bajpai
Our correspondent in Uttar Pradesh
namita.bajpai@newindianexpress