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A Message from the President

2010 HATS Volunteers

Beena Krishnamurthy, Sivakumar Muthu, Dr.Pratheesh Viswanathan (General Board of Directors)

Dr. Ray kathiresan (President)

Prabakaran Seshan (Vice President)

Srinivasan Subramanian(Secretary)

Ramkumar Duraiswamy(Joint Secretary)

Ravi Venkatasubramanian(Treasurer)

Srinivas Venkatakrishnan (Joint Treasurer)

Bharathi Pratheesh (Communication Director)

Deepa Swaminathan(Entertainment Director)

Nirmala Prabakaran (Food Director)

Krishnamurthy Varadha (Youth Director)

Communication Committee: Shanmu Ramkumar , Bharane

Entertainment Committee: Apsara Madapoosi, Kasthuri Sankar Damodharan, Subramanian Muniasamy

Food Committee: Padmini saiganesh, Latha Ram, Anu Mukundan

Youth Committee: Rajit Krishnamurthy


ENNAI THERIYUMA? _ DO YOU KNOW ME?

Perunthalaivar Kamarasar Great Leader Kamarajar

- Meena Ravi

Dear readers:

Welcome to the new series Ennai Theriyuma? Let us all get in to the HATS time machine and

punch in a date from the past that we would like to visit. It does not matter even if we pick a random date. The

great land of Thamizh Nadu has gifted the world with numerous inspirational leaders that we could find a few at

any given time.

When I first stepped in to the machine, I could not come up with a date. I just decided to go with

the date on the calendar - April 13. It was Thamizh Puththandu naal (Tamil New Year‟s day) and it was

auspicious enough for me to start on my new venture – time travel! I punched in the numbers and decided to be

very logical and used eenie meenie mynie mo to pick “YYYY”!

1954?

FLASH …ZOOM…BOOOM… I was in front of the St.George Fort Chennai Tamil Nadu. It took me a while to

recognize the place with so many green trees and less number of buildings yet the stature of the building

unfailingly told me it housed the chief of the state and his assembly.

I could clearly see that I did not pick an ordinary day to try my flying machine. There were

hundreds of people going in and out of the building. More and more people were arriving and gathering around

the capitol building.

A big procession of men clad in white “khadi” shirt and “veshti” passed me. They were all

shouting “Thennattu Gandhi Vazhga!” (Long live Gandhi of the South) and “Padikkaadha medahi vaazhga!”

(Long live the uneducated (!) genius).

I became curious. I started querying my brain‟s database to find the significance of the day. My

brain flashed my history grades in front of my eyes and advised me to ask someone instead.

“Ayya vanakkam”

“Amma Vakakkam” – the gentle man looked at me up and down. I started was hoping I was not

looking very odd and made a mental note to myself to do my research and wear time appropriate costume

before I punched those dates.

“Ayya, innikku yedhavadhu visheshangalaa?” (Sir, Is anything special going on today?”) – I bet

his eyebrows would not have risen higher if he had seen an alien.


“Amma, innikku pudhu varusham porakkudhu! Aththoda namakkellam nalla kaalamum

porakkudhamma! Namma periya ayya mudhalamaichar agiraaramma!” (Madam today is not only our New Year day

but also we are all stepping in to a prosperous future! Our leader is becoming the “Chief Minister” today)

The conviction in his voice and the dream in his eyes told me that these words were from the bottom of his heart.

These were not flattery for personal gains. Hmmm…

“Perunthalavar Kamarasar Vazhga!” the next passing group cleared all the cob webs from my

brain and I was subjected to instant elation! It was the swearing-in ceremony of the new chief

minister of Tamil Nadu Thiru. Kamarajar. It was a historic moment just for the reason that Thiru.

Kamaraj nominated C. Subramaniam and M. Bhakthavatsalam, who had contested his leadership,

to the newly formed cabinet . Do you want to know the portfolio offered to these two ministers?

M. Bhaktavatsalam: Minister in charge of Agriculture, Forests, Fisheries, Cinchona, Rural Welfare,

Community Projects, National Extension Scheme, Women‟s Welfare, Industries and Labour and Animal

Husbandry and Veterinary.

C. Subramaniam: Minister in charge of Finance, Food, Education, Elections and Information and Publicity

and Law (Courts and Prisons)

Thiru. Kamaraj, who only received formal education upto sixth grade, possessed the wisdom to evaluate great

scholors and give them the responsibility that fits their capacity. He was able to set aside their principle differences

that he had with others and exploit the expertise that the people of his country can benefit from them. No wonder he

was known as the “King Maker”.

I decided to move away from the thronging crowd and approach Thiru. Kamaraj‟s mother Thirumathi. Sivakami

Ammal. Whether it was the elation that her son is becoming the Chief Minister of the state of Madras or the tears of

joy that filled her eyes, I did not receive the look that branded me “weird” from her. Following is an interesting

interview I managed to extract out of her.

Me: Vanakkam Amma!

Sivakami Ammal: Vanakam!

Me: Could you kindly tell me a little bit about your son?

Sivakami Ammal: (After a moment of silence, she heaved a big sigh) Where do you want me to start? My Raja -

that is how I always called him- was born in Viruduppatti (Virudunagar). July 15, 1903 is when he was born. My

husband (she hesitated to say her husband‟s name. So her relative beside her help her by saying “ uncle‟s name

was Kumarasamy”).

Sivakami Ammal: (continued) He was a coconut wholesale dealer. My mother in law fondly named our child

Kamatchi. When our son was about to go to school my husband put both the names together and registered him as

Kamaraju. He was a very brillian student. It was just a “Thinnai Pallikudam”(A school run in the veranda of a

teacher‟s house). Yet my Raja was very ineterested in learning about everything. Later he even went to high school.

But, when his father passed away suddenly, my Raja took the responsibility of the family on his shoulders and

dropped out of school. He went to work in his uncle‟s clothes shop in Viruduppatti. In those days India was shocked

by the cruelty with which hundrends of innocent public were massacred at the JalianWala Bhag incident. Congress

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Bhakthavatsalam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Bhaktavatsalam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._Subramaniam


decided not to stop until we got our freedom. Many great leaders conducted meetings all over India and pleaded

people to wake up and join the struggle for freedom. My Raja always had an avid interest in what was going on

with the country. He was influenced by these pleas and joined Congress as a full time worker at the age of 16!

Me: (While she stopped to reminisce, I talked to the relative) So how long have you been associated with Smt.

Sivakami Ammal?

Relative: Not for long. She is a very self sufficient and hard working lady. Just like Ayya (Thiru.Kamarajar) is. Ayya

has been in politics since 1919. He was offered many positions all through his life. He never wanted to hold a

position that he thought he could not do justice to it. He always says “A person who holds a post even if it is a

honorary one, should act properly. If he is not able to function properly he should not hold that post." He was the

leader of the Congress party itself. Yet he has not bought one cent (measure of land) of land in his name or any of

his relatives‟ name!

Me: Wow! You have No idea how impressed I am. In the time period I live, politicians occupy unclaimed lands.

They send henchmen to grab lands owned by others by force.

Relative: (Looked at me dubiously) what do you mean?

Me: Oh, forget it. I am just a story writer. I got carried away. You please continue.

Sivakami Ammal: (Returning back from a short break) He underwent all the cruel punishments of the British

regime. He was jailed in every jail through out Tamil Nadu. He was undeterred. It was obvious he wanted to

dedicate his life for the service of the public. My brother and I tried to get him married a couple of times. We

thought a family would tie him down. He bluntly refused. He stayed single!

Me: (I could see the disappointment in her tone) I understand your feelings amma. Yet, the nation thanks you for

giving us such a great son.

Sivakami Ammal: Yes. I get that a lot. I am proud of him too. Did you know my Raja, who only studied up to First

Form (6th grade) educated himself while he was imprisoned? He actually knows about every inch of this state,

every small lake to every nook and corner? He promised me to give our Tamil children, every possible opportunity

to education and be what they can be!

I noticed that the relative was coming towards us accompanied by two policemen wearing Khaki shirt and Khaki

shorts with very pointy hats. I knew it was time I made a move. I took leave of the beaming mother and quickly

hurried towards my time machine.

Once back in time, I decided to complete my research on Thiru. Kamarajar using web resources. Did you know

the “Uneducated Genius” opened nearly 15000 schools through out Tamizh Nadu ensuring education for all the

children? Did you know he brought „Free Education‟ for poor children? He restructured the number of school days

and enforced a set syllabus and curriculum for the schools. He did all he could do to fulfill the educational needs

of Tamil Nadu and its children. IIT Madras was started during his time!

He also concentrated on the Agriculture of the state. He built many dams and increased the amount of agriculture

lands in the state. Irrigation facilities were arranged for a vast number of cultivation areas.

Major industries like BHEL, Neyveli Lignite Corporation and Manali Petroleum Refineries were started in his time!


I realized, the more I read about him, the more I wanted to tell about him to the whole world. He became the

president of Indian National Congress in 1963. The entire nation and every one of its leaders realized that Thiru.

Kamaraj was a man of common sense and pragmatism. Everyone wanted his support, his advice, his opinion! He

usually said “Aagattum Paarkallam!” (Let us see).

To know or write everything about this great man is like trying to measure the amount of water in the sea. Yet, if

this information you have in your hands is enough to ignite your thirst to learn more about Thiru. Kamaraj then I will

consider my job here is done!

References: http://www.kamaraj.com/chap1-life1.htm

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~~~~

2010 Upcoming Events

Saturday, Jan 30, 2010 Pongal Celebration

Saturday, Apr 17, 2010 Tamil New Year Celebration

Saturday, May 15, 2010 Excursion to Longwood Garden

Memorial weekend May 29 -31 TNF Convention at Philadelphia

(www.tnfusa.org/convention)

Saturday, Jul 24, 2010 Picnic --arranged by Youth committee

Aug India Day / HATS participation

Oct Sangamam Day / HATS participation

Saturday, Nov 13, 2010 Festival Celebration


- Bharathi Pratheesh


We’re off to a good start after the holidays. During our first meeting of the year, we discussed our new

budget, planned activities for this year, and had fun!

This year, we’ll continue to volunteer at the Cleve J. Fredricksen Library one Saturday morning per

month as well as the West Shore YMCA whenever events are held. We’re also hoping to expand our

volunteering activities outside of these as time allows.

The Youth Committee’s current funds have all been raised by previous Youth Committee fundraisers.

We’re also planning on raising more funds this year, starting by babysitting at the January 30th Tamil

Sangam. We’ll use this money to fund the endeavors of the Youth Committee such as the annual senior

graduation party, documentation of volunteering, and other operational costs.

The annual HATS picnic will be organized entirely by the Youth Committee this year. This is a great

way for us to get leadership experience with tangible results.

We welcome new members to learn, work, and grow with us!

HATS YOUTH COMMITTEE

A Brief Report

2010 Youth Committee

Members Rajit Krishnamurthy (President)

Nikhita Sundar (Vice President)

Sreeram Ravi (Secretary)

Sabariah Siraj (Newsletter Editor)

Harish Saiganesh (Treasurer)

Pooja Saiganesh

Adrusht Madapoosi

Kalkini Durai

Pragnya Prabakaran

Varsha Srinivas

Bushra Siraj

Megha Subramanian

Joyce Abraham

Arun Kumar


A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE TAMIL PEOPLES.

(Continuation) Dr.Byravan Viswanathan. KINGS AND PERSONALITIES OF TAMIL NADU. All the four great dynasties of kings had men and women of exemplary character. Among the Cholas, easily the greatest was RAJARAJA CHOLAN. He ruled the Chola territory along the eastern peninsula from his capital Tanjore. His kingdom was rich, verdant with crops and produce and the people loved him. He was great worshipper of Lord Siva and built the magnificent Brihadeesvara Temple in Tanjore that stands till today. It is vast and five times as large as the Taj Mahal. The main diety in the temple is the nine foot tall granite lingam or representation of Siva. It is the site of daily abhishekam and pooja from the time of his reign from 985 to 1014 A.D. and continues to this day. He was very powerful and resourceful, subjugating the Pandya kingdom to the south, the Chera to the west and parts of present day Karnataka. He conquered the Maldives islands in the Arabian Sea and northern Sri Lanka and had trade and cultural relations with the far away island of Sumatra which was called Sri Vijaya. RajaRaja‟s son was RAJENDRA CHOLAN, who took territories as far north as the Ganges river north of Orissa and was known as Gangaikonda Cholan. We Tamils have the right to be proud of this monarch. Just to think that his temple is the site of continuous worship for a thousand years is a fact that is astounding. Among the Pallavas, ruling near present day Chennai , there was NARASIMHAVARMAN II the greatest Pallava king. He ruled from 630 to 668 A.D. during which time there was peace and prosperity. He built the Kailasanatha Temple in Kanchipuram and the shore temple at Mamallapuram near Chennai. He sent ambassadors to China and he was a patron of arts and literature. The Kailasanatha Temple is still used for elaborate rituals and worship of Lord Siva. One of the greatest Pandyan rulers was PARANTAKA PANDYAN. He ruled from Madurai and his kingdom extended to the north to the Pallava country and west to the borders of the Chera kingdom . He expanded the confines of the great Meenakshi Temple at Madurai a temple known all over the world for its vastness and beauty and no less than the Chola temple, Brihadeesvara at Tanjore. The Pandyan kings ruling from Madurai had two periods of glory. One was between 710 and 885 A.D. and the next between 1216 and 1280 A.D. VEERA PANDYAN KATTABOMMAN is known to all Tamils as the man of boundless courage who took on the mighty British and almost defeated them in their efforts to subjugate Tamil nadu. MARAVARMAN KULASEKHARAN was another great Pandyan king whose general invaded Sri Lanka and

captured the famous tooth relic of Buddha and brought it to Tamil nadu. But the king had the large heart to return it soon afterwards and that relic is to this day a treasure of the Sri Lankan government. The Sri Lankan Singhalese would not have that tooth relic if was not for the magnanimity of this great Pandyan king. Among the great religious scholars produced by Tamil people are RAMANUJACHARIAR, SANKARACHARIAR, APPAR, GYANASAMBANDAR and SUNDARAMURTHY. In addition there were twelve great Vaishnavite wandering medicants, the Alvars and 63 Saivite gurus, the Nayanmars. The teachings of these sages is considered a Hindu revival in the south which was significantly influenced by Jain philosophy. TIRUVALLUVAR is easily the most respected and well known Tamil saint. His period in history is not clear but believed to have been between the 3rd. Century B.C.E. and the 5th. Century A.D. More and recent information puts his life more before than after the Christian era. He is the author of the TIRUKKURAL, a treatise consisting of 1330 couplets of wisdom arranged in three chapters . It is the most widely translated piece of literature in the world; greater than the Bible. It was translated first into Latin in the 18th. Century and since then in almost all European and other languages. In modern times many more great Tamilians made their mark on society and most of them would be treated to short biographies in the future issues of the

Newsletter. Tamilians have excelled to fame in all matters of human activity. The whole concept of the classical dance, Bharatha Natyam and a good deal of Carnatic music has been developed by Tamilians. In addition to these two aspects of high art, Tamilians have shown the world their intellect and capacity to perform in science, philosophy, religion and politics. Their achievements have been given world recognition.

TAMIL NADU AND THE IMPACT OF THE

MUSLIM INVASIONS: In the eleventh century A.D., northern India was repeatedly invaded by Muslims from Central Asia and the Arab world. They established what is called the Sultanate in Delhi that lasted through several dynasties till they were conquered and replaced by the Moghuls in 1526. Southern India was relatively free of plunder by Muslim foreigners until about mid 14th century when the Bahamani sultans started to invade the ancient and prosperous kingdoms of the south. The Vijayanagar kingdom based in that city was the major rulers of all of the south including Tamil nadu. The Vijayanagar dynasties engaged the foreigners in many wars until finally, they were defeated by a coalition of sultans in or


Following Independence in 1947, the Congress government from New Delhi, had their leaders running the

Tamil country. The Governor was called the Chief

Minister who, with his/her cabinet and legislature, enacted laws, raised money by taxes and attended to all public needs. Madras Presidency became Tamil Nadu by a change of name in the sixties. After several Chief Ministers of the Congress Party the leadership changed to the parties of Dravida Kazhagam, then Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and finally as of now we have two factions of the latter party each vying for the position of Chief Minister. Among the top leaders the names of Rajagopalachariar, Kamaraj Nadar, Annadurai, M.G.Ramachandran, Karunanidhi and Jayalalitha come to mind. In the late 1950‟s and early 1960‟s there was sectional and caste based strife encouraged by some leaders and the result was migration of Tamil upper class members to other regions for seek education and positions. Upper class Tamils, especially Brahmins had enjoyed greater privileges over other castes for centuries including during British India and they suffered the backlash in decades after Independence. Tamil people also vigorously resisted the imposition of Hindi as the language of administration and medium of instruction in schools and colleges and succeeded in repelling that idea. The common language for these functions became Tamil in the fifties and early sixties, until finally, English has once again become the medium of instruction in schools and colleges with Tamil being given pride of place as well. For the past 30-35 years these divisive tendencies have largely disappeared and regardless of the ruling party, one can get equal opportunity. But political corruption and mismanagement is wide spread in Tamil Nadu and distinctions between the rich and poor are very severe and obvious.

TAMILIANS OUTSIDE INDIA. It is truly amazing that Tamilians have settled and brought productivity in every Continent except Antartica. The Tamil diaspora has been continuous for over a thousand years. First it was to neighboring Sri Lanka which was in effect a Tamil colony during the time of the Cholas and the later Pandyas as mentioned earlier in this text. They have formed the cultural framework of Buddhist Sri Lanka and amalgamated it with Hindu ideas and ideals. Tamils from these very ancient times practically ruled the northern areas around Jaffna. They are referred to as the Jaffna Tamils as distinct from those who were brought to the island from Tamil country in India during British colonial times. Even these new arrivals have been distinguished by two emigrations; first a, known as Hill Tamils who settled in various professions and trade and live around Colombo in the south and the second set of émigrés from India who were employed solely as laborers in tea plantations. These have been the most recent arrivals there. There has been free associations and inter-marriages between the Jaffna Tamils of old times and the two more recent arrivals. It is extremely sad that since the early 1980‟s there has been extreme violence and bloodshed directed towards all Tamils in Sri Lanka engineered by fanatic and chauvinistic Sinhalese

about 1568. About this same time, Madurai and Tanjore territories began to be ruled by Tamilian kings again, who had become independent of Vijayanagar. These rulers were called the Nayaks and the greatest of them was THIRUMALA NAYAK who had Madurai as his capital. He greatly expanded and patronized the Meenakshi Temple at Madurai and at the same time by diplomacy and intrigue, kept the Muslims from occupying and ruling Tamil territories. In essence Tamil nadu never had a foreign monarch or ruler until the 19h. Century when the British East India Company finally took over all of India by defeating the warring kings , nawabs and the French and declared India as a British dominion in the year 1857. Even at this late stage in history, Veera Pandyan Kattabomman,a significant rajah of the Tamils, confronted and tried to keep the mighty British empire from taking over Tamil country. The result of these happenings in history has kept the culture of the Tamils relatively unchanged or unaltered by foreign cultures.

TAMIL NADU UNDER THE BRITISH: Along with the rest of India, Tamil nadu gradually came under British rule. When the rebellion against the British took place in 1857 which is commonly referred to as the sepoy mutiny, it was mainly to reestablish the old Moghul ruler in Delhi and return the country back to the Indians. As we all know that attempt failed because of the superior arms of Britain. Had it succeeded and the English returned to just trading and not take over the governing of India, it would have been worse for us all. There was no sense in going back to feudal India with rajahs, nawabs and landlords answering only to the decrepit ruler in Delhi. It just so happened that as we became an English colony we acquired a nationality if being Indian from north to south and west to east. We Indians learned the English language , mode of government, western standards and industry and thus entered the 20th. Century without the need for learning everything ourselves. Of course the price we paid was not cheap. We realized that Britain cared for itself much more than the subjects it ruled, it exploited India and white racism was rampant everywhere. Province by province willingly or unwillingly, all the southern kingdoms succumbed. There were some among the rulers who resisted Britain such as Tippu Sultan of Mysore who almost succeeded. Tamilians had their own hero, VEERAPANDYAN KATTABOMMAN. He fought against them valiantly but lost. Britain imposed the same rules on all of their subjects in the Indian subcontinent, be they of Punjab, Central India or the south. Tamilians learnt the skills of western governance rapidly and in their own province, called Madras Presidency, they held many offices of distinction. Tamilians along with the Bengalis were among the foremost in mastering the English language. Many were sent to Britain to obtain degrees in administration and science and come back and serve India along side the British. When finally, after 150 or so years, Indians wanted to get the English out of India and the quit India movement started around the 1920‟s under great leaders such as Gandhi, Tilak, Gokhle and others, many Tamilians gave of their hearts, minds and bodies for the motherland. SUBRAMANYA BHARATIAR, V.V.S.AIYAR, RAJAGOPALACHARIAR and many others played great roles in advancing the idea of Independence. At that time all distinctions of language, religion or geographic region was of no consequence to the men and women of India. Tamilians had only one thing on mind and that was to be free of any foreign domination.


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One can trace the origin of the current

economic crisis back to one thing-greed. Mortgage

lenders jumped on the opportunity to profit by lending

money to people who simply couldn‟t afford to pay it

back; even if they default, the lenders could seize their

houses and sell them at high prices, and this was

inevitable given the high interest rates attached to

these loans. This seemingly foolproof plan soon

backfired.

This system clearly didn‟t work, but why? It

seems as though lenders are the culprits. These

lenders craved more money, so they established

incentives for borrowers, the demand for loans,

increasing the number of borrowers, and by extension,

lent funds due to the ease of getting a loan. This

created a higher demand for loans, so house values

increased. These higher house values allowed lenders

to give out larger mortgages.

Flaws in the system caught up to

borrowers when their adjustable mortgages were

finally adjusted. Too many borrowers couldn‟t afford

their mortgage payments, so lenders foreclosed

their houses. They couldn‟t sell the foreclosures as

fast as they were getting them, however. The value

of mortgage-backed securities dropped as they

became riskier, causing investment firms and

insurers to suffer, and this generated problems that

trickled down throughout our economy as well as

those of other nations around the world due to the

devaluation of the United States Dollar.

What can be done in the future to prevent

another economic meltdown? To prevent another

disaster in the housing market, the government

could force the conversion of bad mortgages into

30-year fixed rate mortgages. Although the lenders

wouldn‟t profit as much, the mortgages wouldn‟t be

as risky.

This might seem a bit lofty for young

adults, but it isn‟t impossible. Young people can

influence government policy quite effectively when

organized and in large numbers, and this can be

accomplished through linkage institutions such as

the media, interest groups, lobbyists, Political Action

Committees, or even 527s. Word can be spread

through the media while interest groups organize

large groups of people with similar ideals. Lobbyists

can then attempt to persuade politicians while PACs

and 527s fund the group‟s efforts.

It has been noted that the current financial crisis

resembles the Great Depression, but we may not

bounce back this time. In theory, it is quite possible,

but in reality, it will only happen if we organize and

mobilize.

The Financial Crisis

Rajit Krishnamurthy

government. The Sinhalese follow the Buddhist religion that teaches above all, tolerance and non-violence and it is a shame that they have abandoned their religion in its most salient aspects. In this horrific strife, it is also a shame that the government of India and that of Tamil Nadu have been more of a hindrance or even a facilitator to the Sinhalese government, instead of taking the lead in supporting its own bretheren on the island and bringing about peace and amity. Tamils live in small or large communities in all the European countries , Russia, many African nations, all of S.E.Asia, the Far East, Australasia, the Mid-East and very tiny islands like the Maldives, Mauritius and Reunion, in the Arabian Sea. So far we know of no Tamils settled in Iceland or Greenland. Everywhere they are highly independent and contribute to their society wholeheartedly and their host nations have only praise for them.

CONCLUSION. The purpose of this very brief text is to give an overview of

who and where we Tamils are and what has brought us to the

modern world. It is a fact that when it comes to preserving in

an unchanged manner a culture that goes back 2000 years,

we Tamils are in the forefront. Egypt, Greece and Rome have

all but given up their ancient roots and adopted new religions,

new mores and even cuisine. There is a great deal more to

learn about us and interested persons can get detailed and

interesting facts from so many sources which we can now

obtain from the Internet and books.


Announces 2010 NSF Regional Contests in Harrisburg, PA

Online registration for 2010 Spelling, Vocabulary, Math contests is now open. For Information & Online Registration,

please visit http://www.northsouth.org

The regional Contests are held every year during the months of March-April. These contests are held in about 65

centers across the country. All money collected from the registrations will be used by North South foundation for the

purpose of providing educational scholarships to needy children in India. This is a good opportunity to encourage your

children to participate for educational excellence as well as help a noble cause of reaching out to deserving poor

children in India.

Regional winners will be invited to the National Championship Finals. 1st, 2

nd & 3rd place winners at the Finals will

receive scholarships: $1000, $500 and $250.

The following table shows the details of the different contests and their eligibility criteria.

Contest Level Grades* Registration Fee

Spelling

Junior (JSB) 1, 2 & 3 $30

Senior (SSB) 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8

Vocabulary

Junior (JVB) 1, 2 & 3

$30 Intermediate (IVB) 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8

Math

MB1 (Level 1) 1 & 2

$30 MB2 (Level 2) 3, 4 & 5

MB3 (Level 3) 6, 7 & 8

as of Feb 2010

http://www.northsouth.org/


Center

Contest Date/Time Venue

Contact

Name Email & Phone

Harrisburg, PA 03/27/2010 9:00 AM Harrisburg Area

Community College

(HACC)

Priya

Venkatesh

717-732-0649

Dolly 717-671-5343

Email : [email protected]

If this is of interest to you and your family, please send in an email to [email protected] ASAP expressing

your interest to be included in the future mails about the upcoming event. Future information about the contests will be

sent only to interested/registered participants.

North South Foundation was established in 1989 as a non-profit and tax-exempt entity to award scholarships to exceptionally

qualified and needy students in India entering colleges regardless of religion, gender, caste or geographic origin. To date, the

Foundation has awarded 2,000+ scholarships for students in India. In addition, the Foundation organizes spelling bee and

vocabulary contests for children of Indian origin living in USA.

mailto:[email protected]


Editor : Bharathi Pratheesh Joint Editor : Shanmu Ramkumar

2009 Tamil Sangam Picture

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