7 UP cities among top 10 ‘most polluted’
In an alarming reflection of poor air quality in the state, seven out of 10 most polluted cities of the country were from UP. In all these cities, the air quality was found to be ‘poor’ with pollution levels recorded above 200 units.
The air quality of 115 cities was monitored in which 21 cities figured in poor air quality list - 11 of them were from UP. The CPCB said top three most polluted cities were from the state, with Moradabad being on top of the list with an AQI of 296, followed by Meerut and Baghpat with AQI of 286 and 284 respectively.
Virtual Ramlila in the time of corona
With Sharadiya Navratri at the doorstep, Ramlila committees in the city have decided to go digital this year and have virtual Ramlila in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic. To avoid large gatherings, the audience can enjoy the performances on their mobile phone or TV screens.
The 58-year-old Mahanagar Ramlila Samiti, known for its musical events, will live-stream the performance on its official Facebook page. Artistes will enact the Ramlila in ordinary clothes, without make-up or disguising themselves into the characters of Lord Ram, Sita, the demon king Ravana, and others. Adhering to Covid-19 protocols, artistes will avoid a change of clothes or make-up. The scenes will be enacted by them in their ordinary clothes with a face mask on.
Dastango’s tribute to Amir Khusrau
Himanshu Bajpai, the first modern dastango of the city of Nawabs gave a virtual tribute to Sufi saint Amir Khusrau through a performance at the platform of Harvard University. Bajpai, who was representing India at the US-based university’s event 24 Hours of Harvard, was joined by artistes of Pakistan-origin Ali Sethi.
The session was moderated by Ali Asani, professor of middle eastern studies and Indo-Muslim and Islamic religion and cultures at Harvard University. Decked up in a typical Lakhnawi chikan angrakha and ‘dopalli’ topi, Bajpai performed a dastangoi on Khusrau which was interspersed with the rendition of Sufi poetry by Sethi.
Hindu man makes first donation for mosque
In a reiteration of UP’s ‘Ganga-Jamni tehzeeb’, the first donation to the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation responsible for the Dhannipur Mosque Project has been made by a Hindu. Rohit Srivastava, a Lucknow resident, has donated Rs 21,000.
Srivastava said it was only when he handed over the cheque Srivastava got to know that he was the first to do so. Ikram Ullah, chief financial officer of the foundation, said the trust’s account was opened in the last week of August. Since then, whatever deposits have been made have come from the trustees and have been used for legal purposes, registry etc.