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The Hindu : Right to review lawsN.C.S. RAGHAVANARVIND RAGHAVANThe fundamental rights and duties of a citizen of India have been dealt with earlier as part of an overall package of rights and duties of a citizen including the right to own and hold property without being interfered by the State except through due process of law and in public interest.The right to amend the Constitution under Article 368 was discussed at length as an individual’s fundamental rights could be abridged or taken away through an amendment to the Constitution.In this regard the case of Keshavananda Bharathi vs State of Kerala (AIR 1973 SC 1461) was discussed in detail which tried to protect the basic structure of the Constitution holding that the same cannot be nullified or taken away.To overcome the aforesaid restriction placed on Parliament to amend the Constitution in respect of the basic structure, the following sub-articles (4) and (5) to Article 368 were introduced through the Constitution (Forty Second Amendment) Act 1976.“No amendment of this Constitution (including the provisions of Part III) made or purporting to have been made under this Article {whether before or after the commencement of Section 55 of the Constitution (Forty Second Amendment) 1976} shall be called in question in any court on any ground”.“For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that there shall be no limitation whatever on the constituent power of Parliament to amend by way of addition, variation or repeal the provisions of this Constitution under this Article”.The above amendments were brought to protect the right of Parliament to amend the Constitution to take the powers of any court of law to question the aforesaid right of Parliament.However, in spite of the aforesaid amendments, the legal validity of these amendments themselves were called into question in the Supreme Court in Minerva Mills Ltd., vs Union of India, AIR 1980 SC 1789 (1980). The Supreme Court held in…More

The Hindu : Remote-controlled water closetsTimes are changing fast and even water closets are making a fashion statement. A proof is the recent reports about Hollywood celebrity Leonardo Di Caprio spending more than $1,600 on a remote-controlled toilet bowl as part of renovating his home.The Toto Neorest 500 toilet from Japan that fascinated the Titanic boy has features which minimise manual interference. “The CeFiONtect technology used in the WC precludes any possibility of bacteria remaining inside the bowl,” says Narinder Anand, the Managing Director of Value Line Trade (P) Ltd., at Banjara Hills, which deals in Toto toilet fittings in the city.Ion barrierCeFiONtect is the abbreviation of Ceramic Fine Ion Technology through which an ultra-smooth surface is obtained along with an ion barrier that repels dirt. As a result, the surface remains smooth and stain-resistant as long as it is in use.The seat of the toilet opens up automatically whenever the user approaches, thanks to the sensors it is equipped with. Also available is an option to warm up the toilet seat to the suitable temperature. The use of toilet paper can be done away with, as the bowl is equipped with auto-washing mechanism by which a nozzle springs out to splash water on the rear or the front portion of the body as per the need.As soon as the washing is done, the drier blows the body dry. Tornado, the advanced flushing system certified by the U.S. Association of Home Builders, renders the bowl sparkling by pumping the water in a uni-directional swirling action. The need of water outlets lining the rim is ruled out, thus making the bowl easy to clean.TemperatureApart from flushing and splashing, the remote control can perform the actions of adjusting the seat warmth, setting the water temperature and deciding the flow of water.“This is the fastest selling model across the world. Many Hollywood actors are placing orders and a hotel in Indonesia…More

The Hindu : Observation is vitalThe management of water on a large site involves hydro-geology and an understanding of the land’s characteristicsAs large sites are taken up for development, designing sustainable water systems becomes both an art and a science. While at the individual household level water management is relatively simple, involving such elements as installing water conserving devices, designing for water harvesting, arranging for water-efficient gardens, ensuring recharge of ground water, reusing grey water and possibly recycling sewage water, things are a bit more complex at layout levels or at development levels averaging over an acre.ScaleThe scale of the solution can be at the individual household level, at the community level and at the city scale.The term ‘community’ encompasses streets or wards, neighbourhoods or even gated communities of flats and apartments. Generally, try to find the solution at the lowest possible level of ownership. Escalate the solution only if it is inevitable.Community volunteersCommunity-level actions for water have been numerous and are worth emulating. In a small town close to Bangalore a community of volunteers got together to clean an old and large open well.This well had become a dumping ground for garbage and water seeping through this garbage was further contaminating the ground water.Citizens came together slowly and gradually, working on Sundays, and cleaned up the well.The process has moved on to other such open wells and these citizens are now engaging with the authorities to ensure the revival of as many such water bodies as possible. It was the observation power of one concerned citizen that lead to a town-wide movement.In Chennai, citizen groups have come together to revive many temple tanks aided by organisations such as Rotary and several civil society groups. In Jaipur, a multi-national corporation has come forward to help restore an old ‘bawdi’ — a step well dating back to centuries. All these examples are of individuals or groups thinking beyond self…More

The Hindu : It is boom time for furniture shops for sure. But have you ever seen more than 50 furniture showrooms in a row, that too on the roadside of a small village? Come to Chevoor in Thrissur and you will have a unique shopping experience in furniture. You will be spoilt for choice as a mind-boggling range of furniture, in varied designs and suiting different pockets, can be found here.Changing lifestyle, disposable incomes and increasing migration to cities have spurred the demand for furniture shops just as for restaurants, garment stores and malls. Though no one changes furniture like they do clothes, the spurt in the number of furniture shops is clearly an indication that there is enough demand in the market.Even though urban areas have plenty of furniture shops, we often fail to get the pieces that fit our taste and pockets. Here Chevoor stands out with its grand designs and lesser price.The sofas, chairs, tables and beds come in sleek designs and bright colours, are maintenance-free, and can be conveniently dismantled and packed in boxes and re-assembled.The furniture business of Chevoor is more than 100 years old. Almost all houses here own a manufacturing unit and a showroom. The people buy timber on auction, bring it to their manufacturing unit in the backyard of their houses, and display the finished furniture in the showroom in front of their houses. It sounds very simple.M.J. Jacob, owner, Mozhiparambil Showroom, is satisfied that he is able to get good business even amidst such competition.“A good number of people come here as we have sufficient choice and so many showrooms one after the other. This makes the buying easy too,” he adds.More than 10,000 workers are associated with the furniture business in Chevoor. The cutting of wood to the desired size is the first step. Rose wood and teak are mainly used here. Then the furniture is designed…More

The Hindu : These are houses that typically stretch over two streets, the front opening on to one street and the rear opening on to another. We are talking about houses of Chettinadu in the South of Tamil Nadu where colour and grandeur take on a new meaning.Of course, given our space constraints, building a house on the lines of Chettinad may be totally impractical. But the clever handling of architecture by the Chettiars to beat the heat and the practical yet picturesque interiors are certainly worth noting.The welcome platformsThe houses in Chettinad were invariably large with three to four courtyards. While most were single storeyed, the rich opted for double-storeyed structures.A common Nattukottai Chettiar’s house greets you with a thinnai or a platform at the entrance where male guests are received and also male members of the house relax.The front door is elaborately carved, usually depicting the deity Gajalakshmi and a kumbam with leaves.As you enter the house, the first thing that strikes you is the alignment of the courtyards in a straight line, giving you an unhindered view of the backdoor.The courtyards are flanked by pillared corridors that lead to rooms.Since these courtyards are open to sky light and the corridors are not, you can see the play of light, where the corridors are darker while the courtyards brightly lit.The open courtyards enable plenty of air circulation into the rooms.Says Architect Dinesh Verma of Ace Group, “The open courtyards served as very practical drying areas besides giving plenty of light while the rooms inside remained in cool shadow.” On either side of the thinnai are housed the granaries and the accountant’s room. This area also leads to the men’s well. The first courtyard has rooms for couples while the second accommodates the dining space. The third is assigned exclusively for the women while the fourth attends to the kitchen and utility sections.The Chettinad houses have high…More

The Hindu : Discovery Channel is presenting a portrait of the world’s greatest and unique nations seen through the lives of their extraordinary people in the premiere series – “Discovery Atlas”. The series provides exceptional narrative,stunning imagery and cutting-edge special effects and creates a complete visual record of the history, civilization, geography, industry, technology and people of the world. Each two-hour episode is narrated by a celebrity including actor Russell Crowe filmmaker Mira Nair, three-time Emmy award-winner James Spader, Italian actress and filmmaker Isabella Rossellini two-time Emmy Award-winning American actor Andre Braugher and Sela Ward – best known for her Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning television roles (Brazil Revealed).Discovery Atlas will premiere tonight on Discovery Channel at 9 p.m. with the episode ‘India Revealed’. Subsequent episodes on six other countries – Brazil, China, Italy, Australia, Mexico and South Africa – will air every Saturday at 9 p.m. The episodes will repeat the following Monday at 8 p.m….More