Latest news with #Muharram
Business Recorder
3 days ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Lesco: CEO Butt highlights organisation performance
LAHORE: Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) CEO Ramzan Butt stated that during the successful operation 'Bunyan al-Marsus' in response to Indian aggression, Lesco stood alongside national security institutions. Under the directives of federal government, the Lesco established a special war room to ensure electricity supply to sensitive locations. The Lesco not only achieved record recoveries in these 100 days but also uncovered significant electricity theft scandals. The Lesco demonstrated outstanding performance last year by reducing losses of PKR 60 billion and exposing major electricity theft scandals, which is commendable. The Lesco took action against electricity theft, seizing 22,694,400 units valued at PKR 893,937,712. Of this, PKR 244,669,693 recovered, with 30,747 FIRs filed, 18,102 registered, and 716 individuals arrested. The Lesco also recovered Rs 1.895 billion from 42,588 defaulters. To address public complaints promptly, 13,744 court sessions were held, resolving 558 out of 585 overbilling complaints. Additionally, 1,088 complaints regarding faulty meters were resolved immediately, and 432 out of 444 transformer fault complaints were addressed. All 3,738 complaints regarding new connections were also resolved promptly. The longstanding issue of overbilling complaints has been diligently addressed, which was considered impossible just a few months ago. The Lesco successfully completed the annual maintenance of 123 grid stations. This maintenance work has proven crucial not only for enhancing the system's consistent performance but also for preventing overloads and faults, resulting in improved system performance and a reduction in complaints during the monsoon season. With the arrival of the monsoon season and Muharram, the Lesco has put all offices and operational teams on high alert. Additional materials were provided to ensure continuous electricity supply during Ashura. The Lesco has signed a historic agreement with CISNR aimed at digitizing the distribution network, reducing line losses, and promoting effective integration of solar energy. This agreement reflects Lesco's commitment to a digital and environmentally friendly future. New uniforms have been issued for line staff to enhance safety and identification, new mobile devices have been provided for meter readers, and a 'Lesco Safety Book' has been released for the protection of field staff. The Lesco has invited all vendors and manufacturers to register on the E-PADs digital portal to make the procurement system transparent, efficient, and modern. Special training programmes for female employees have been organized at Lesco's Regional Training Center (RTC), focusing on technical skills, safety measures, and administrative matters. These training programmes reflect Lesco's vision of promoting gender equality and inclusion. To ensure timely resolution of consumer complaints, 12 mini trucks have been provided to various offices for operational teams to ensure immediate response. The Lesco has successfully completed the project of undergrounding electricity wires around the Lahore Fort and Mall Road, aimed at enhancing the beauty of the city and preserving historical sites. This initiative is a significant step towards environmental and technical improvement. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Indian Express
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Why so many MF Husain paintings have horses: Flying across horizons, ‘from Karbala to Ashwamedh'
(This is part of a series on Indian masters and the motifs that appear repeatedly in their works. Next: SH Raza's Bindu) Maqbool Fida Husain, one of India's most recognised and revered artists, is known for his bold and striking depictions that drew inspiration from a multitude of sources, from Indian mythology and folk traditions to Western art movements. The motif most associated with Husain is his horses. These majestic creatures feature across Husain's oeuvre: he was painting horses in the 1930s, while still making a living as a cinema-hoarding maker in Bombay (now Mumbai), as he was in the late 2000s, while in a self-imposed exile from India. Diverse influences Growing up in Indore, where his father was a timekeeper in a textile mill, Husain often shared fond memories of playing with clay horses as a child and riding carousel horses at village fairs. A friend of his grandfather, who worked as a farrier (someone who takes care of horses' hooves), gave young Husain close access to the agile animals, allowing the budding artist to study their anatomy in detail. The artist was also inspired by the papier-mâché replicas of Duldul — Prophet Muhammad's white mule — that were paraded in the streets during Muharram processions. 'My horses, like lightning, cut across many horizons. Seldom their hooves shown. They hop around the spaces. From the battlefield of 'Karbala' to Bankura terracotta, from the Chinese Tse pei Hung horse to St. Marco horse, from ornate armoured 'Duldul' to challenging white of 'Ashwamedh' […] the cavalcade of my horses is multidimensional,' Husain had said in 1987, according to a note on the Christie's website. While the artist's dynamic lines were guided by the works of German expressionist Franz Marc and Italian sculptor Marino Marini, the fragmented, angular forms reflected a cubist vocabulary. Diverse depictions Rarely static, Husain's horses are powerful creatures that exude immense grace. 'The horse, to [Husain], represented masculinity, and he painted them singly, in pairs, or in herds. Strangely, he never painted their hooves. His horses were depicted in motion, capturing their elegance and speed,' Ashish Anand, managing director and CEO of DAG art gallery, told The Indian Express. Passage of Time, painted in neutral shades in 1954, was one of Husain's early major canvases featuring the horse as the central figure. He painted several untitled works depicting horses in the 1950s and 1960s, before creating Duldul in 1967 with thick impasto and fractured lines. 'Sometimes he also represented them alongside female nudes, as in his wonderful painting of the Three Graces (1990). One of his largest paintings titled Lightning (1975), is entirely made up of galloping horses. Later, his Raj series (1980s) showed maharajas and viceroys playing polo mounted on horses,' Anand said. In 1991, Husain depicted Zuljanah, Imam Husayn's loyal horse, celebrated for his valour in the Battle of Karbala. Karbala Horse (Zuljinah) shows the dark equine striding across the River Euphrates. Painted in the late 1990s, Seven Horses alluded to the Hindu mythological depiction of Surya, the sun god, whose chariot is pulled by seven horses. Husain's very last series, meant to be an ode to diversity and pluralism in India, also featured horses. Commissioned in 2008 by Usha Mittal, the wife of steel baron Lakshmi Mittal, the series remained incomplete due to the artist's demise in 2011. Appreciated & critiqued Globally recognised as his signature motif, Husain's horses have drawn both criticism and acclaim over the years. Among others, author Mulk Raj Anand reportedly described them as 'bourgeois subject matter'. Some art critics also feel that Husain repeated the motif rather too often, particularly after the 1970s. For Husain, however, horses remained an inherent part of his artistic vocabulary and symbolism, one he never shied away from, regardless of how critics felt. 'Horses have always been a part of Indian art but it was Husain saab who made them a specific subject all his own. The only other artist who painted horses with as much zeal throughout his career was Sunil Das, but he depicted them realistically while Husain's work was expressionistic,' Anand said. 'Representing horses' energy and dynamism, Husain's paintings, often massive, command attention in any room where they are displayed.'
Time of India
4 days ago
- General
- Time of India
‘Hunar-e-Aza' tells Awadh's Muharram story
Lucknow: Lucknow Bioscope opened its fourth exhibit, 'Hunar-e-Aza – The Handmade Language of Grief', on Saturday. The exhibition showcases the traditional crafts behind Muharram artefacts such as tazias, alams, and jhoolas. The display features craft elements, tools, photographs, and videos that document the work and stories of local artisans. The launch event included a talk by scholar Prof Nadeem Hasnain, titled 'Muharram of Awadh – Observations Over the Last 50 Years'. He explained key terms like Muharram, Azadaari, Karbala, and Ashura, offering historical context around the tragedy of Karbala. He also compared the mourning traditions of Lucknow and Hyderabad. "Our team interacted with artisans, recorded processions, and documented the entire process of crafting these ceremonial items. The exhibit is now open to the public," said a Lucknow Bioscope spokesperson. TNN
Time of India
4 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
BJP using hate to deflect focus from real issues, says Akhilesh
Lucknow: Accusing the BJP of using discrimination and hate to further its politics at the cost of dividing people, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said people sitting on constitutional posts are deliberately using undemocratic means to shift focus of discourse from poor governance. SP's attack comes a day after Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath described allegations of hooliganism by Kanwariyas as fake news being spread by vested interests and said that Muharram processions featured "violence and arson" before he wielded the iron fist. "In order to shift the focus of the people from the failures of the govt, people occupying constitutional posts are using a language that is against the Constitution of India and the spirit of democracy. People are no longer interested in tolerating such politics of the BJP and will vote them out in 2027 assembly elections to put an end to their politics of hate once and for all," Akhilesh said in a statement. The conduct of the BJP govt and its leaders has been discriminatory and undemocratic. The deprived, neglected and discriminated sections of the society will join hands under SP's PDA to vote the BJP out in 2027 state polls, Akhilesh said. The SP chief said in 9 years of govt the BJP has failed the farmers, unemployed youth and women. "Youth are unemployed because BJP has outsourced vacancies in govt and ended reservation. The BJP does not want the youth to talk about this. The farmers are the worst hit in the absence of proper supply of quality seeds, fertilizers and free power for irrigation of crops. BJP promised to double the income of farmers by 2022. BJP does not want people to talk about these issues," Akhilesh said. Senior SP functionary Sudhir Panwar took on the BJP for the kanwariya–Muharram jibe and questioned BJP govt's response towards news reports of kanwariyas resorting to violence. He also questioned BJP's charge that Muharram processions featured violence and arson till the present govt acted tough on such issues. SP functionaries alleged that the BJP leadership wanted to raise the dispute to drag the opposition into a "communal discourse". "The opposition in general and Samajwadi Party in particular will not play to the tunes of the BJP. We will not fall into this trap," said a senior party functionary.
Time of India
4 days ago
- General
- Time of India
Rituals for Wayanad landslide victims to be held on Sunday, many families left with sole survivors to perform the rites
1 2 3 4 Kozhikode: Many of the disaster-hit families at Chooralmala and Mundakkai in Wayanad will perform death anniversary rites and offer prayers for their beloved departed on Sunday although the tragedy's first anniversary falls only on July 30. According to both Malayalam and Arabic calendars, the death anniversary day falls on Sunday, which corresponds to Karthika and Muharram 24, the very day when the catastrophe struck. Underscoring the scale of the tragedy, many families are left with sole survivors who have to perform the rites for the rest of the departed family members. For instance, Punchirimattom native Abhijith, who lost his entire family in the landslide, will find the moments all the more poignant. He will be performing bali tharpan for five members of his family — father Subramanian (50), mother Babitha (45), sister Greeshma (25), elder brother Girijith (22) and grandmother Thayikuttty (84), all of whom were swept away by the landslide. "The tragedy left me completely alone. It's now my responsibility to perform bali for them. We will perform the rites at Thirunelly temple early Sunday morning and go to the Puthumala burial site in the evening where I will light a lamp at the grave," said Abhijith, who is living in the house along with his aunt and uncle. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like No annual fees for life UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo Abhijith was away in Thiruvananthapuram, where he was studying hotel management, when the disaster struck. Like Abhijith, many others are left as the sole survivors in their families while hundreds more continue to mourn loved ones lost in the disaster. Kalathingal Noufal from Mundakkai, who lost 11 members of the family including his wife Sajna, their two children, his parents and his brother's family, said he would spend the day with children at an orphanage at Gudalur in Tamil Nadu. "I plan to spend time with the orphans there, share a meal with them and offer prayers later," he said. Sajna and children Mohammed Nihal and Isha are buried at the Puthumala burial ground. The landslide that tore through the twin villages of Chooralmala and Mundakkai on July 30, 2024, claimed 298 lives, including 32 people initially reported missing and later declared dead, and left hundreds of families homeless.
