Sampath-Musings

From Sampath’s Desk:       STANISLAV PETROV WHO PREVENTED WORLD WAR III ( 7 September 1939- 19 May 2017)     The departure of Stanislav Petrov (77), a former lieutenant colonel of the erstwhile Soviet Union, who helped to avert a possible outbreak of US-USSR Nuclear War on September 26, 1983, when the Cold War was at its peak, is an irreparable loss to the right-thinking people and peace-loving world besides marking the end of a great saga of a military officer with humaneness. Thus, he prevented a human disaster and mass destruction a war was fraught with. He had categorically refused to be guilty of starting what would have otherwise been the World War III. Without getting emotionally aroused, he decided not to act when he heard an alarm in his military control room which indicated that the U.S. had fired ballistic missiles against the Soviet Union. He kept his courageous decision secret for eight long years before it was revealed in 1991 w...

FROM SAMPATH’S DESK: FIT THE BILL (FILL THE BILL) and WALK THE PLANK (WALK THE GANGPLANK):   FIT THE BILL (FILL THE BILL): Meaning: If someone or something FITS THE BILL, they are exactly the right person or thing that is needed for a particular job or in a particular situation. You can also say that someone or something FILLS THE BILL. தமிழில் - (இது, அது) சரி தான், சரியாக இருக்கிறது / இருக்கும் /  பொருந்தும் / பொருந்துகிறது Example sentences:   For such a long road journey, only a Maruti Suzuki Eeco would only FIT THE BILL. I have to find out which piece of plywood will FIT THE BILL for the proposed decoration. A top flight soldier with diplomatic skills would FIT THE BILL for this task. We wanted an experienced Marketing Manager and Mr. Ram FILLED THE BILL. Does this restaurant FIT THE BILL for our celebrations? Tea? Coffee? – No, just water would FILL THE BILL.   WALK THE PLANK (WALK THE GANGPLANK): Meaning: If something goes wrong...

From Sampath’s Desk:         BASANT KUMAR BIRLA (12 January 1921-3 July 2019) An Indi an Industry doyen is no more! A long real success story of an exemplary and outstanding industrial stalwart that started at age 15 which saw many a milestone achievement to his credit has come to an end.   Yes, Basant Kumar Birla (BK Birla), the Birla Group patriarch, a towering  Indian business magnet, Good Samaritan, noble philanthropist, patron of arts, active promoter and supporter of the rich artistic and cultural traditions of India - all rolled into one - has passed away at the ripe age of 98. The youngest son of a yesteryear philanthropist Ghanshyam Das Birla, he was actively associated with a number of companies and eventually became the Chairman of KESORAM Industries. He focused  on industries such as cotton, viscose, polyester and nylon yarns, refractory, paper, shipping, tyrecord, transparent paper, spun pipe, cement, tea, coffee, cardamom, ...

From Sampath’s Desk:         MATHS LEGEND CS SESHADRI (29 February 1932-17 July 2020)   A mathematics legend and human-computer of India, CONJEEVARAM SRIRANGACHARI SESHADRI (CS SESHADRI)  was a brainy giant. He had to his credit many great intellectual mathematical works.   CS Seshadri founded the Chennai Mathematical Institute (CMI) as part of the SPIC Science Foundation in 1989 and was its director-emeritus until his demise. The mathematician was known for his work in algebraic geometry - the Seshadri Constant - named after him. CSS will always be remembered for his ‘Narasimhan–Seshadri theorem’ which he proved along with fellow Mathematician MS Narasimhan in 1965.   Kancheepuram-born Seshadri received his degree B.A. (Hons) in Mathematics from Madras University in 1953 and PhD from Bombay University in 1958. He was elected Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1971. Bet...

From Sampath’s Desk:           PUJYA SREE KESAVANANDA BHARATI-JI ( 9 December 1940-6 September 2020) (This is not any spiritual story of a seer but a legal battle won by His Holiness  for upholding a fundamental  right guaranteed by the Constitution of India) While paying tribute to Pujya Sree Kesavananda Bharati, who passed away on 6.9.2020, we have to necessarily recall that he was the one to achieve a distinction managing to win despite losing his case. Needless to say, a defeat borne with pride, honour, and recognition is also a victory. To quote Wendell Phillips, "What is defeat? Nothing but education, nothing but the first step to something better."   Kesavananda Bharati Swami - appointed the Chief Pontiff of Edneer Mutt in Kasaragod District, Kerala, in 1961 at the age of 19 - was a rare blend of philosopher, classical singer, and cultural icon. He was known all over the country because of one of the most importa...

FROM SAMPATH’S DESK: BELLY UP and SNAKE IN THE GRASS:   BELLY UP:   Meaning:   Hopelessly ruined or defeated – to break or malfunction or fail or come to an end – to fall apart, cease to work, or die - If you say that a company GOES BELLY-UP, it fails and does not have enough money to pay its debts    It can also be hyphenated thus – belly-up   Example sentences:   Factories and farms WENT BELLY UP because of the debt crisis.   The way this business is run, it is just a matter of time before it goes BELLY-UP.   His business WENT BELLY UP.   My laptop WENT BELLY-UP after it fell to the ground a few times.   If the company invests money without proper returns, it will go BELLY-UP one day.   After years of barely surviving on donations, the Social Club finally went BELLY-UP.   One of these magazines will go BELLY-UP by the end of 2022 unable to withstand the cut-throat competi...

  FROM SAMPATH’S DESK :         INDIA COMES OF AGE IN THE 2020 TOKYO OYMPICS HELD IN 2021     At the outset, Japan should be appreciated for holding the Olympic Games originally scheduled for 2020 but postponed to 2021, beginning 23.7.2021 even amid the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic without hiccups or hitches and got it through smoothly.   India sent 119-member contingent to compete in 85 medal events with the following takeaway:   India finished the event bagging 1 Gold, 2 Silver ad 4 Bronze medals, a record performance for at least four decades.   India started its tally on 7 th August 2021 when Haryana’s Golden Guy Neeraj Chopra scripted history by clinching  the first gold for India in Javelin  throw.   The other six (2 silver and 4 bronze) medal winners were –  Silver by Haryana’s Mirabhai Chanu in Weight Lifting (49 kg women)  Silver by Haryana’s Ravi Kumar Dahiya in Wrestling (...