Raid takes green route
To reduce the carbon footprint of the Raid de Himalaya, some major changes have been introduced in the rally this year, writes H. Kishie Singh

The Raid de Himalaya will be running its 13th edition this year. From a humble beginning, the Raid has, over the years, built up an awesome reputation of being THE motor sports event in the country. Its claim to fame is that it is the longest, toughest, highest and coldest event in the world. It is also one of the best-organised events.

Every successive year has seen changes and improvements, based on competitor feedback and personal experience gained by the officials and, of course, updating systems to make use of the latest technology.

Even though the Raid has a very committed and loyal following, there are the usual detractors. One scribe complained that the Raiders on the Manali-Leh road kicked up a lot of dust. A very keen observation, but utterly irrelevant. Consider this: During the tourist season, which is about six months of the year, there are about 250 taxis, about 100 buses, 100 tankers, 150 Army vehicles plus private vehicles on the Manali-Leh road. These make 600 or more vehicles and these, too, on a daily basis. Add to this the Royal Enfield Club, which may not raise as much dust but its exhausts do raise the noise level to abominable levels.

The Raid uses the Manali-Leh road only one day of the year and that, too, in an orderly and highly organised way, with never more than 150 vehicles, which go to Leh from Manali and on to Srinagar. This is in October, when tourist traffic has petered off, tankers are off the road, with may be just the occasional Army convoy. The Raid thus inconveniences no one.

There are also concerns by vested interests that the Raid disturbs the wildlife. Not true. The birds are long gone from the lakes. Snow has not covered the higher reaches of the mountains, driving the wildlife to lower altitudes. So, the Raid does not disturb the wildlife either.

However, the Raid is concerned about all these things. This year, to reduce the Raid's carbon footprint some major changes have been made.

Since the road up to the Rohtang Pass is in a bad condition, only the Xtreme Raid will traverse Rohtang. Rohtang today is passable only by 4x4 vehicles, so only about 40 competitors in four wheelers, about 30 bikers, the real diehard Raiders and about 30 official cars will cross it. Leg One takes them from Shimla to Manali and Leg Two, Manali to Leh. They do not return on this road.

The adventure will loop around Shimla on Day 1 to make it a spectator event. Hybrid vehicles and vehicles using bio-fuels are being encouraged.

On Day 2, the Raid adventure route is Shimla to Dalhousie and then via Bhaderwah, Kishtwar, on the Mughul Road, to Srinagar.

Scrutiny for all vehicles will be more strict. The noise levels will be monitored. The sound level will be restricted to 82-86 decibels. All vehicles will be required to carry a 4' x 6' tarpaulin to spread under the car to prevent any spillage on the ground. A first-time offence will invite a fine, while a second-time violation means exclusion from the event.

Vijay Parmer, president of Himalayan-Motorsport, spent two months in the UK earlier this year studying the latest systems in the rallies being run in the UK. He was invited to be a stewart.

To further their commitment to the sport, the land and the people who contribute in making the Raid de Himalaya a success, Himalayan Motorsport and Maruti-Suzuki, the main sponsor of the event, are donating Rs 10 lakh to Leh's cloudburst victims.

The pre-event scrutiny for both events will be on October 9 and 10, 2011. Flag off will be from Shimla on October 11.

Write side
Subroto Sirkar

When Tiger Pataudi first played at Calcutta’s Eden Gardens, his attacking knock of 64 in the New Year Test of 1962 ended by Tony Lock’s diving catch at short-leg, I was a schoolboy in shorts. And I might never have got to know him had not the wise selectors omitted him for the first two Tests of another India-England series, 11 years later.

Little is known about Tiger Pataudi’s fleeting forays into journalism; he’s seen here (extreme right) in the Press box, Eden Gardens, 1972-73 Photo by the writer

As an option, Tiger accepted the offer to write a daily column for the Calcutta newspaper where I worked, our energetic owner-editor cementing his coup with the diktat that handling the expert’s copy should be my responsibility. In his later journalistic career, Tiger never really matched the quality of his debut. Crisp and perceptive, he was virtually writing right from the middle.

One day, I asked him how he had dealt with the handicap of practically losing the sight of his right eye. Tiger was quiet for a moment, then said: “At 20, it never occurred that my cricket career might be over. I had to work hard in the nets for some weeks, figure out my limitations and what technical adjustments were needed.”

Immediately after the Calcutta Test, Tiger — coming down from the Press box, so to speak — hit a century for South Zone against the tourists at Bangalore, was added to the Test squad and made his comeback at Madras. But, of course, he did not go to England in 1974: after that disastrous tour ended Ajit Wadekar’s run, Pataudi was back as captain against the West Indies.

His next spell in journalism was covering the 1976-77 England series for the news weekly Sunday, where I was chief sub. But that aside, I remember encounters at different sporting occasions: his dropping in at Delhi Gymkhana the day before the first Indian tennis Grand Prix began, in October 1973; or at Bombay in January 1982, at the hockey World Cup final. He had genuine interest in hockey.

On visits to Delhi, I was occasionally at the Dupleix Road bungalow for a chat. Some years ago, I whimsically wanted to do an interview of Sharmila Tagore, and Tiger indulgently told me how exactly to go about it!

Tiger died, we know, of an irreversible pulmonary disease. Suddenly, snatches of a conversation we once had came back to me. In the last quarter of 1987, I had met both Harold Larwood, the great Bodyline hero, and Gubby Allen, who never bowled that style, and found that both fast bowlers had been life-long smokers.

Never having smoked myself, I contended that, therefore, all this fuss about smoking being bad for sportsmen was wrong.

“Don’t talk rot!” Tiger shut me up: “I used to smoke. I know the difference it makes.”

Fitness mantra
Fit for fasting
Sunita Bhatti

Fasting is a good way to gain health benefits apart from receiving the divine blessings of the worshipped deity. It helps to cleanse and detoxify your body and gives rest to vital organs. This rest to the whole body system enables it to function in a better way. Navratri is the special religious festival celebrated in different parts of India. The Navratri fast goes on for nine days and during this period, the devotees need to fast with some restrictions in food intake. The food restrictions during the Navratra fast may promote good health but, at the same time, if the principles of balanced diet are not followed properly, it might lead to some health issues. It is believed that the fasting period is the right time to lose weight but it is only possible if healthy dietary patterns are followed during these nine days.

Fasting does not mean starving yourself. Prolonged fasts may lead to adverse health effects like weakness, acidity, fatigue and headaches that can interfere with your everyday chores. So, make sure you are not depriving your body of energy and other nutrients. Fasting means to eat restricted amounts of food to purify and cleanse the whole body system but the fact is that most of us end up fasting on high-calorie and oily foods. Fasting should be followed in such a way that at the end of this nine-day fast, you feel energised as well as detoxified instead of feeling very exhausted or low.

It is not a compulsion to keep fasts for devotees who have health problems. If you suffer from diabetes, hyperacidity or GERD (gastro oesophageal reflux disease), you should give fasting a miss. Pregnant women and children should avoid fasting, too.

The healthy Navratra foods should aim at maintaining the nutrition balance in the body. Food during fasting becomes a problem, especially for people who live outside the home, in hostels or in PGs etc. Here are some healthy tips so that you feel light, more energetic and not drained out during this nine-day fast.

Instead of binging on packaged foods like potato chips, fried snacks, and sweets, opt for healthier foods like more of vegetables and fruits. Roasted phul makhanas may be eaten along with milk as a nutritious breakfast cereal.

Instead of eating oily stuff like fried potatoes, one should try baked potatoes with skin. This is very healthy, as it is rich in minerals and fibre.

Instead of eating sweets, one should prefer preparations made from toned milk, vegetables and fruits like carrot kheer, ghia kheer and fruit raita etc to fulfill energy, protein and calcium requirements.

Make sure you drink a lot of water and fluids like buttermilk, lemon water, fruit juices and vegetable soups. You must eat something in the morning to avoid feeling low throughout the day. Add sufficient amount of toned milk (approx 400 ml) in your diet, as milk is a whole meal, rich in nutrients like protein, calcium and energy. So, it can be eaten in the form of cottage cheese or curd also. Even the water left after making cottage cheese may be used in the form of soup, as it is very beneficial for health.

Fruits have always been fast friendly. They are filling as well as a great body cleanser. Since they are a storehouse of vitamins, minerals and just the right amount of sugars, they keep you more energetic and healthy.

Acidity can be a common health problem during fasting. The best way to avoid or cure acidity is to have sips of cold milk after short intervals. This cures acidity instantly. You can also eat some fruits after every two hours to prevent acidity.

Nutritious chapattis can be made by adding methi leaves to kuttu ka atta. It can be eaten with a bowl of curd as a one-time meal.

The best energy food is sabudana. It is a rich source of carbohydrates and thus a great source of energy. It can be made more healthy by adding lots of vegetables and homemade paneer to it.

Let us have a look at some healthy and nutritious recipes which may be tried during fasting. Make sure to drink 1-2 glasses of water in between the meals to keep your body hydrated.

nutritious navratra menu Early morning  Roasted phool makhana - 1 bowl Toned milk - 1 glass OR Chapatti (kuttu atta+methi leaves) - 1 Curd - 1 bowl Mid-morning  Fruit (seasonal) - 1 to 2 bananas  with curd Lunch Sabudana khichri (with lots of  vegetables) - 1 bowl Fruit raita - 1 bowl Evening Tomato paneer soup - 1 cup OR Lemon water/ buttermilk - 1 glass Dinner Ghia kheer/carrot kheer - 1 bowl Baked potatoes with butter

carrot kheer Ingredients Carrot 125gm Milk 15gm Sugar 50gm  Cardamom 50gm Almonds 50gm Dry coconut 50gm Method n Boil milk. n Peel and grate carrot and add into the milk. n Cook it properly and add dry fruits. n Add sugar and stir it for 5 minutes. n Serve it cool.

The writer is a dietician with the Department of Dietetics, PGI