The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

london latitude
Maharaja Dalip Singh’s dinner plate up for auction
shyam bhatia

Collectors of Maharaja Dalip Singh memorabilia will be thrilled at the prospect of bidding for a dinner plate that once belonged to the last independent ruler of the Punjab.

The plate being put up for auction by Mullock's auctioneers in the English county of Shropshire is valued at between £2,000 and £3000 (Rs 1.5 to Rs 2.5 lakh). It was manufactured by ceramics manufacturer Mintons who also supplied china tableware to Queen Victoria.

The plate is nowhere as valuable as other items from Dalip Singh's estate, such as the Kohinoor diamond, which now lodges in one of the crowns belonging to the British royal family, or the golden throne of Ranjit Singh currently in a London museum, but it is till a reminder of the glory of the Sikh empire that stretched from Afghanistan to Kashmir.

Inked on the back of the plate is a black ink certificate of provenance which reads, 'From the collection of late Maharaja Dhuleep Singh.'

Dalip Singh was only 11-year old when he was removed from his throne by the East India Company. He was subsequently baptized as a Christian and sent to England where he was induced to 'gift' the Kohinoor to the Queen.

Since his death other family heirlooms have surfaced from time to time and are immediately snatched up by eager collectors. Such was the case with the 12 bore hammer gun made by J.P urdey and Sons that was offered for sale by Bonhams auctioneers last April.

The gun commissioned for Dalip Singh's 15-year-old son, Prince Victor, is thought to have been used for many of the shooting parties that were hosted by the exiled Maharaja at his country estate of Elveden in Norfolk.

At least as much interest was generated more recently by a gold coin minted during the reign of Dalip Singh's father, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, which was purchased for more than £10,000 by a mystery buyer from India.

Although the provenance of the coin is not known, there was speculation that it came from the estate of the late Dr John Login, a Scottish doctor who was appointed by the East India Company as Dalip Singh's guardian in the mid 19th century.

Indian-origin doc cleared of manslaughter charges

The Leeds Crown Court has acquitted Dr Rajendra Nayak Kokkarne on two counts of manslaughter by gross negligence of 78-year-old Beryl Barber and 86-year-old Eric Watson

A British court has cleared an Indian-origin doctor who was accused of killing two elderly patients by prescribing high doses of painkiller while he was allegedly checking emails and cricket scores on his computer.

Leeds Crown Court has acquitted Dr Rajendra Nayak Kokkarne on two counts of manslaughter by gross negligence of 78-year-old Beryl Barber and 86-year-old Eric Watson. Both died after they were prescribed 10 times the normal starting dose of morphine sulphate.

Kokkarne told the police he had made a mistake, but he rejected prosecution charges of manslaughter by gross negligence because he allegedly prescribed the painkiller drugs in between surfing the Internet

In his prepared statement to the police Kokkarne explained how he intended to prescribe a lower dose and was unaware that he had made an error in prescribing medication for the two patients who were living at a care home in West Yorkshire.

During the subsequent trial prosecutor Robert Smith QC told the court how records allegedly showed that the doctor attached to the Victoria Medical Centre in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, was using the computer to access cricket results from India, as well as to access news, emails and personal banking details.

Smith alleged that Kokkarne failed to make a clinical assessment of each patient and the nurse who administered the drugs, as well as the chemist who dispensed them, did not question the accuracy of the prescription. "Criticism can properly be leveled at all of them", the prosecutor added.

"The prosecution recognised Kokkarne was not alone in making mistakes but they submit the primary responsibility lay with him in his position as a medical practitioner, with detailed and specialist knowledge of the effect of such drugs on patients of this age and who no established tolerance to the drug."

A spokesman for the medical practice to which Kokkarne is currently assigned said: This incident occurred in February 2008 before our involvement in the surgery. Following the charge, Dr Kokkarne was suspended by us and the GMC and we have continued to support him throughout these legal proceedings."

He continued: "All of our patients can be assured that we are not aware of any complaints or concerns about Dr Kokkarne's work as a GP here. No problems with his clinical practice were found, in fact, he brought high standards of patient care to the surgery and helped improve services available to them. We have and continue to keep in regular touch with him, with his full cooperation."

16-year-old NRI ‘genius’ invites experts’ wrath

Kolkata-born Shouryya Ray is said to have solved two fundamental particle dynamics theories that physicists have only managed to calculate with the help of powerful computers

A 16-year-old NRI school boy who supposedly solved 350-year-old maths puzzles set by Sir Isaac Newton is not the genius he is supposed to be. At least that is the view of some physicists and mathematicians who have been looking at his work.

Kolkata-born Shouryya Ray, currently a school boy in the German city of Dresden, was also said to have solved two fundamental particle dynamics theories which physicists have only managed to calculate with the help of powerful computers.

But the publicity generated by Ray, who won second prize in a German national science exhibition for his essay entitled, 'Analytic solution of two unsolved fundamental particle dynamics problems', has attracted the critical wrath of older scientists.

One physicist commented, 'What science journalists neglected to ask is why, if this is such a breakthrough, the youth only received second prize. And in any case what on earth did he actually do?'

Taking his cue from an equation that the young Ray held up at a press conference, the same physicist comments, "The formula is correct, and is certainly an impressive result for a 16 year old, worthy of a second prize. But no more. This is not a breakthrough."

In similar vein Swedish IT professor Thore Husfeldt commenting on Ray's work disputes his genius status, which he puts down to poor journalism, while agreeing that he is very bright. "This is awesome for a 16-year old high school student, far above what I would have done at that age. Clearly university-level calculus."

Husfeldt adds about Ray, "He fell victim to wanton publicity, scientifically illiterate journalists and people who decide what's newsworthy with their heart instead of their brain. I dearly wish this does not hurt or discourage him."

When Ray first hit the headlines, he is said to have been on a school trip to Dresden University where he come across two unsolved fundamental particle dynamics that professors claimed were uncrackable.

Ray was quoted as saying, " I just asked myself, Why not. I think it was just schoolboy naivety. I didn't believe there could be a solution."

South Asian teens pushed into forced marriages

The vast majority of young women from London who are being pressed into forced marriages are from South Asia, according to newly released UK government statistics.

UK Home Office figures reveal that nearly 50 per cent of the cases involved women of Pakistani origin, 9 per cent were of Bangladeshi origin, another 9 per cent were from the UK and 3 per cent were from Afghanistan.

Many of the victims were teenagers, including dozens under the age of 15. The statistics were published after British Prime Minister David Cameron described forced marriage as 'little more than slavery', adding that his government had plans to criminalise forced marriage.

In the first six months of this year, the UK government's Forced Marriage Unit offered advice to some 580 cases where the youngest victim was aged five and the oldest was aged 89.

Some of the victims have been advised that they can rely on protection orders to stop harassment that will also help them start criminal proceedings against their parents in civil courts.

Prime Minister Cameron commented, "To force anyone into marriage against their will is simply wrong and that is why we have taken decisive action to make it illegal."

He added, "I have listened to concerns that criminalisation could force this most distressing issue underground.That is why we have a new comprehensive package to identify possible victims, support those who have suffered first-hand and, indeed, prevent criminality wherever possible."

Among those supporting the forthcoming legislation against forced marriages is the former co chair of the British Conservative Party, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, who is herself of Pakistani ethnic origin and says in some worst case scenarios young girls have been drugged and taken overseas to get married.

"It's now time to say no", Warsi commented. "The tragedy of these stories is long term. People are trapped in loveless marriages for a long, long, long time.There is often no relationship and they live as strangers in the same home. Forced marriage is akin to slavery and it is going on in Britain today. But it is time to draw a line in the sand and say enough. This is not acceptable."

in brief

Film fury: Obama talks tough

dubai: As anti-American violence continued unabated across Muslim nations, President Barack Obama on Saturday warned that the US would not "tolerate" attacks on its citizens, with his administration mulling sending more specially-trained marines to the region to respond to the growing unrest. PTI

Finally, Xi shows up

Beijing: China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping made his first public appearance on Saturday after two weeks of a much-talked-about absence, putting to rest for the time being rumours about the Vice-President's illness. PTI

China-Japan island row

Beijing: Thousands of Chinese besieged the Japanese Embassy in Beijing on Saturday, hurling rocks, eggs and bottles as protests broke out in other major cities in China amid growing tension between Asia's two biggest economies over a group of islands. Reuters

N-technology transfer

Islamabad: Pakistan's nuclear scientist AQ Khan has claimed that he had transferred nuclear technology to ‘two countries’ on the orders of Benazir Bhutto. "Benazir summoned me and named the two countries which were to be assisted and issued clear directions in this regard," Khan said. TNS

Stay on temple demolition

Islamabad: The Sindh HC has restrained the Karachi Port Trust and other respondents from demolishing the structure of Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir, a temple constructed about 200 years ago at the Native Jetty Bridge in West Wharf. TNS