Prosopis juliflora

சீமைக் கருவேலம்

சீமைக் கருவேலம் என்றும், வேலிக்காத்தான் என்றும் பரவலாக அறியப்படும் இது வேளாண் நிலங்களையும், பிற வாழ்வாதாரங்களையும் நாசப்படுத்தக்கூடிய ஒரு கொடியத் தாவரமாகும். இதன் அறிவியல் பெயர் ப்ரோசோபிச் சூலிஃப்லோரா Prosopis juliflora என்பதாகும். இதை எசுப்பானிய மொழியில் bayahonda blanca எனக் கூறுவர். மெக்சிகோ, கரிபியன் தீவுகள் மற்றும் தென் அமெரிக்கா போன்றவற்றை தாயகமாகக் கொண்ட இவை, ஆசிய, ஆசுதிரேலியக் கண்டங்களில் மிகப்பெரும் நச்சுக் களைத் தாவரமாக உருவெடுத்துள்ளது.

பயிர்களுக்கு வேலியாகவும் சமையலுக்கு விறகாகவும் பயன்படும் என்ற நம்பிக்கையில், 1950களில் ஆசுத்திரேலியாவில் இருந்து சிறிதளவு விதையாக இது இந்தியாவுக்குக் கொண்டுவரப்பட்டது. இந்த அறுபது ஆண்டுகளில் வளர்ந்து பெருகிப் பரவி இன்று தமிழகம் முழுவதையுமே ஆக்கிரமித்து விட்டது. இந்த முள்மரம், அமெரிக்கா போன்ற பல வளர்ந்த நாடுகளில் வேளாண்மைக்கு எதிரான ஆபத்தான நச்சுத் தாவரமாக அறிவிக்கப்பட்டு வேளாண் கண்காட்சியில் மட்டும் வைக்கப்பட்டு வருகிறது.கேரளாவில் இவை வேறோடு பிடுங்கியெறியப்பட்டு இவை வளரா வண்ணம் பாதுகாக்கப்படுகிறது.

தன்மை

இதன் வேர், நிலத்தில் ஆழச்சென்று நிலத்தடி நீரையும் உறிஞ்சக்கூடியது. இதன் வேர் (53 மீட்டர்) 175 அடி நீளம் வளரக்கூடியதென பதிவிடப்பட்டுள்ளது. இதன் தண்டுப்பகுதிகளில் திரவ ஒழுக்கு காணப்படும்.எந்த வறட்சியிலும் வளரக்கூடிய தன்மை சீமைக் கருவேல மரங்களுக்கு உண்டு. மழை இல்லாமல் போனாலும் நிலத்தடி நீரை உறிஞ்சி , தனது இலைகளை வாடவிடாமல் பார்த்துக்கொள்கிறது. இவை ஆழ வேர் மட்டுமில்லாமல் உறுதியானப் பக்கவேர்களையும் கொண்டு வளர்வதால் இவை மழைநீரை உறிஞ்சி நிலத்தடிக்குச் செல்வதை தடைசெய்கிறது. எந்த நோயினாலும் பூச்சிகளாலும் தாக்க முடியாத, எந்த இடத்திலும் மற்ற தாவரங்களை அழித்துவிட்டு தான் மட்டும் செழித்துப் படருகின்ற தன்மை வேலிக்காத்தானுக்கு மட்டுமே உண்டு. இவை வாழும் இடத்தில் உற்பத்தி செய்யும் நச்சுப்பொருளால் நிலத்தில் பிற செடிகள் வளர்வதை அறவே தடுக்கிறது.

பாதிப்புகள்

வறட்சி காலங்களில் நிலத்தடி நீரை இம்மரம் உறிஞ்சிவிடுவதால் மற்ற தாவரங்களுக்கு போதிய நீர் கிடைப்பதில்லை. இவை நிலத்தில் பிற செடிகள் வளர்ப்பைத் தடுக்கிறது. நிழல் மரமாகவோ, கனி மரமாகவோ, கதவு சன்னல் என்று பயன்பாட்டிற்குரிய பொருள்களைச் செய்வதற்கோ எவ்வளவு பசுமையான தழையாக இருந்தாலும் அடியுரமாக இடுவதற்கோ, குறைந்தபட்சம் பறவைகள் அமர்ந்து கூடு கட்டுவதற்குக்கூட வேலிக்காத்தான் பயன்படுவதில்லை.^[1] இவைகளால் ஏற்படும் பாதிப்பு அளவிட முடியாதது.

பல்லாயிரம் பறவைகளின் சரணாலயமாகத் திகழும் வேடந்தாங்கல் ஏரியில் செழித்து வளர்ந்த வேலிக்காத்தான், பருவ காலத்திற்கு வந்து அந்த ஏரியில் நீந்த முனைந்த வெளிநாட்டுப் பறவைகளையெல்லாம் குத்திக் கிழித்துக் கொன்று, பின்பு வனத்துறையின் முயற்சியால் அந்த மரங்கள் பிடுங்கி எறியப்பட்டுள்ளன. அதன் முள் குத்தி இறந்துபோன விவசாயிகளும் நிறையபேர் உண்டு.^{[சான்று தேவை]} தாவரம் முழுமையுமே நஞ்சாக உள்ளது.

• விவசாயம் மற்றும் ஏனைய செடிகள் தழைக்கா வண்ணம் நிலத்தை வீணடிக்கிறது.
• அடர்ந்து வளர்ந்து பெரும் பகுதியே ஆக்கிரமிப்பு செய்துவிடக்கூடியது
• நஞ்சு மிகுந்த முட்கள் விலங்குகளுக்கும் மாந்தர்களுக்கும் ஆபத்தை ஏற்படுத்துபவை.
• புல்களை அடியோடு வளரவிடாமல் கால்நடைகளுக்கு பாதிப்பேற்படுத்துகிறது.
• நிலத்தடி நீரைக்குறைப்பதால் சில அரிய மூலிகைகளின் இழப்பு
• இவைகளின் வீரியத்தால் பிறத்தாவரங்களுடன் கலந்து உட்கொள்ளும் கால்நடைகள் உயிரிழப்பு மற்றும் வயிறு கோளாறுகள் அடைகின்றன

இதைப்போல் இதன் பட்டியல் நீண்டுக்கொண்டே செல்கின்றன. இறுதியில் விளைநிலங்கள் பாலைவனங்கள் ஆகின்றன.

அழிக்கும்முறை

ஆசிட் அல்லது வேறுவகையான முயற்சிகள் மனவளத்தை கெடுக்கும் என்பது சீமை கருவேலமரம் ஒழிப்பு இயக்கத்தினரின் கருத்து. மேலும், பயன்பாட்டில் இல்லாமல் இருக்கும் இடத்தில் மீண்டும் நல்ல மரங்களை நட்டு வளர்ப்பதன் மூலமாக மீண்டும் சீமை கருவேலமரங்கள் முளைத்துவிடாமல் அழிக்கப்படுகிறது. இந்த மரங்களை அழித்தாலும் மீண்டும் முளைத்துவிடுகிறது என்று பொதுவான கருத்து மக்களிடையே நிகழ்கிறது. ஆனால் இந்த மனநிலை முற்றிலும் தவறு. முறையாக அகற்றினால் இம்மரங்கள் வளர்வதை தவிர்க்கலாம்.

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மாற்றுவழி

இதன் விறகுகள் அதிக ஆற்றல் கொண்டவை என அறியப்பட்டுள்ளது. இவைகள் மின்சார உற்பத்தியில் பயன்படுத்தப்படுகிறது. ஆனால் இவை வளர்க்க வேண்டிய இடம் பாலைவனம், விளைநிலமல்ல.

AMRI continues to be target of people's seething anger

Kolkata, Dec 11 (IANS) The people's anger over the AMRI hospital fire tragedy which so far has claimed over 91 lives continued to rise with angry protestors Sunday putting up posters in the premises demanding exemplary punishment for its officials Local residents also demanded that a playground 'snatched forcibly' for setting up a park adjacent to the medical facility by the management be returned. 'The hospital, using police force, snatched the land. We want back this land which was a playground for us,' read some posters put up by some residents of Panchanantala in South Kolkata's Dhakuria where the hospital is located. Another poster shows locals holding several trophies they won playing on the said field and accusing the authorities of acquiring it 'forcibly in 2006'. Hospital officials were unavailable for comment. Several political parties including the Socialist Unity Centre of India-Communist (SUCI-C) pasted posters on the hospital walls demanding exemplary punishment for the wrongdoers along with scrapping the private-public partnership (PPP) modelled hospitals. Several political parties including the Socialist Unity Centre of India-Communist (SUCI-C) pasted posters on the hospital walls demanding exemplary punishment for the wrongdoers along with scrapping the private-public partnership (PPP) modelled hospitals.In the worst fire tragedy in any hospital in India, 91 patients and staffers were killed when a blaze started in the basement of the annexe building early Friday and quickly spread, trapping hundreds of people. While most nurses, doctors and other staffers were able to get away, many critically ill patients died in their hospital beds.

Parliament attack: 10 years on, any lessons learnt?

COIMBATORE: It's been 10 years since the attack on Parliament, which was the biggest attack on the Indian democracy. The attack left a trail of evidence behind, that pointed to Pakistan. A number stuck on the back of all the phones the terrorists used led to Afzal Guru who is a prime accused in the attack and now on death row. Twelve people died in the attack and the number of accused is also 12. The conspirators Md Afzal Guru has sought mercy pardon, Shaukat Hussain Guru, Afzal's cousin, was freed after completing his 10-year term in December 2010, Shaukat's wife, Afsan Guru, was acquitted and Delhi University Professor SAR Geelani was also acquitted. Maulana Masood Azhar and co-conspirator of the attack Tariq Ahmed is at large in Pakistan. The five terrorists who carried out the attack were killed in the counter attack and the main conspirator Ghazi Baba was shot dead in Kashmir in 2002. The question which still remains is whether India managed to retaliate finally? NIA officer Narendra Dubey said, "The attack did strengthen the security around Parliament but has that made India a more secure nation?" Dubey was shot at eight times as he fought and killed Ghazi Baba, the man who planned the attack on Parliament. The operation is till date the biggest counter-insurgency operation that was carried out in the Valley. Baba's plan was to assassinate the Prime Minister who was on a visit to Srinagar along with his Cabinet colleagues. "Actually we were expecting something very big from the terrorists because August 27 was the day when the Prime Minister of India, the Deputy Prime Minister of India and the complete Cabinet, few Chief Ministers of our country, were in the Srinagar city. We apprehended the person who was basically nailed the Gazhi Baba's coffin. He was the deputy chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed and ultimately culminated into killing of Ghazi Baba on the 29th/30th August 2003," Dubey said. Former director of Intelligence Bureau Ajit Doval said, "We did leverage our position diplomatically. Pakistan accused now of state sponsored terror but little else has changed domestically." The December 13 attack turned international opinion against Pakistan with parallels being drawn with 9/11. Ten years later, India might have managed to put the state sponsor of terror tag on Pakistan, but little has changed. Earlier this year, in the wake of news coming in that Afzal Guru could be hanged, came September's Delhi High Court blast. The message coming in from terrorists that they can strike at will whenever, wherever, world opinion not withstanding. #Parliament #Parliament #attack #Afzal Guru #Narendra Dubey #Maulana Masood Azhar #Pakistan #Terrorist

India's amazing railway bridges

The Indian Railways has 114,500 kilometres of total track over a route of 65,000 kilometres and 7,500 stations.

It has the world's fourth largest railway network after the United States, Russia and China.
The Indian Railways has some of the best railway bridges in the world.

Chenab Railway Bridge

Chenab River Railway Bridge is a 359 metres high arch bridge at Katra in Jammu-Kashmir.

It will be the tallest railway bridge in the world, after completion in 2015.
The 1.3-km-long bridge is a part of the 73-km-long Katra-Dharam section of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project being executed to provide rail connectivity to the Kashmir valley.

Vembanad Rail Bridge

Kerala has the longest rail bridge in India. Stretcing across a distance of 4.62 kilometres, the bridge is part of a 8.6-km railway link connecting Edapalli to the International Container Transhipment Terminal at Vallarpadam in Kochi.

Pamban Bridge

India's first sea bridge, the Pamban Bridge is a cantilever bridge on the Palk Strait. It connects Rameswaram on Pamban Island (Tamil Nadu) to mainland India.

It is the second longest sea bridge in India at a length of about 2.3 kilometres.

Saraighat bridge

Saraighat Bridge is the first rail-cum-road bridge constructed over the Brahmaputra river in Guwahati, Assam.

It was opened to passenger traffic in June 1963.

Godavari Arch Bridge

Also called the Kovvur-Rajahmundry Bridge, it is built across the Godavari River in Rajamundry in Andhra Pradesh.

The single-track railway bridge is designed to run trains at a speed of 160 miles (260 km) per hour.

Vivekananda Setu

Also called Willingdon Bridge, it is built over the Hooghly River in West Bengal.

It links the city of Howrah to Kolkata. Built in 1932, it is a multispan steel bridge built to provide road-cum-rail link between the Calcutta Port and its hinterland.

Jubilee Bridge

Jubilee Bridge is an important rail bridge over Hooghly River between Naihati and Bandel.

The bridge is flanked on either side by Garifa and Hooghly Ghat stations. The bridge was opened in February 1887 during the jubilee year of the reign of Queen Victoria.

Panvalnadi Bridge

Stretching across a length of 424 metres, the bridge on the Panval river in Ratnagiri district, Maharashtra is currently the tallest bridge in India.

The tallest pier of the bridge is 64 metres above bed level.

DISCOVERED: A second earth in our galax

A 'habitable' earth-like planet, which is orbiting around a sun-like star 600 light years away, has been discovered in our galaxy for the first time, researchers say.

A team of researchers from NASA's Kepler Mission has discovered what could be a large, rocky planet with a surface temperature of about 72 degrees Fahrenheit, comparable to a comfortable spring day on earth.

The discovery team, led by William Borucki of the NASA Ames Research Centre, used photometric data from the NASA Kepler space telescope, which monitors the brightness of 155,000 stars.

Earth-size planets whose orbital planes are aligned such that they periodically pass in front of their stars result in tiny dimmings of their host star's light dimmings that can only be measured by a highly specialized space telescope like Kepler.

The host star lies about 600 light-years away from us toward the constellations of Lyra and Cygnus.

The star, a G5 star, has a mass and a radius only slightly smaller than that of our sun, a G2 star. As a result, the host star is about 25 per cent less luminous than the sun.

This new exoplanet is the smallest-radius planet discovered in the habitable zone of any star to date. It is about 2.4 times larger than that of the earth, putting it in the class of exoplanets known as super-earths.

"This discovery supports the growing belief that we live in a universe crowded with life," Carnegie's Alan Boss said.

"Kepler is on the verge of determining the actual abundance of habitable, Earth-like planets in our galaxy," Boss added.

The study will be published in the Astrophysical Journal.

Dravid, Wadekar get top BCCI honours

Veteran India [ Images ] batsman Rahul Dravid [ Images ] and former captain Ajit Wadekar were on Saturday honoured with the Indian Cricket Board's (BCCI) top recognitions, the Polly Umrigar Award and the C K Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award, in Chennai

Dravid, who made 1,285 runs from 15 Tests at an average of over 53, including six centuries, during the period October 2010 to September 2011, said in a video message, "I think a lot of my good performance is down to the hard work I put in. I think it has all paid off this year."
"It was a mixed year, with the disappointment in South Africa and then the (stellar) series against England and the West Indies. But it is an honour to be recognised by your own board for being the best player of the year," he said.

Wadekar was honoured with the C K Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award on the 40th anniversary of the iconic tours of 1971, when he led the Indian team to series victories in the West Indies and England.
While collecting the award from BCCI president N Srinivasan, Wadekar dedicated the award to his teammates of the legendary tour.

"I am overwhelmed. I really don't know if I am worthy of this award, the BCCI's highest award. I was the 12th man in my college cricket team. I was carrying drinks for them, that's how I got into the team!"

Sachin Tendulkar, who is in Australia to prepare for the upcoming Test series Down Under, recalled Wadekar's stint in the Indian team as manager during his recorded video message.

"He understood the player's psyche. It's important for any coach to get the best out of players. He was good at man management. Thank you for everything you have done for me and the Indian team," Tendulkar said.

'Kolaveri Di' makes it to Time magazine

Anirudh, who is making his debut as a music director with '3', couldn't have asked for a better start to his Kollywood career. For, 'Kolaveri...', the very first song of his first film, has now started winning awards, after having taken the nation by storm.

Yes, 'Kolaveri' has just won the YouTube Gold award, which is presented to viral videos from across the world. Beams Anirudh, "It is true. The record label has received official intimation. I don't know if they will have a function to present the award but yes, 'Kolavari' has been chosen for the award."
And that's not all.
An article on the song, the lyrics of which have been penned by Dhanush, has also been featured in this edition of the Time magazine. Get Anirudh to react to this piece of information and he smiles yet again.
"I'm not sure about this fact but someone I know told me that it is after 20 years after it featured a story on Roja that the magazine is running such a story again," says Anirudh.
Roja?
The similarities are hard to miss. Will he turn out to be another Rahman and Anirudh responds immediately, "Oh no, Rahman sir is my inspiration. I will happily retire if I manage to accomplish even five percent of what Rahman sir has achieved. I'm just one song old and have a long way to go."
The song's success has lifted the spirits of the entire team of '3'.
Tweeted Dhanush, "To all my north Indian Kolaveri fans, thanks for receiving a Tamil song with a warm heart and making it a global song. God bless."
#Dhanush #Anirudh #Kolaveri #Tamil Films

Longest total lunar eclipse leaves enthusiasts spell bound

New Delhi: This year's last total lunar eclipse on Saturday presented a celestial spectacle for people all over the country, including those in the national capital, in the pre-dusk hours.
In a clear sky over the national capital, the full moon slowly slipped into the earth's darker shadow starting just after 5:02 pm.
"The lunar eclipse started at 5:02 pm and could be seen with naked eyes," Director of Nehru Planetarium, N Rathnasree said.

Astronomy enthusiasts and sky-gazers gathered at the Nehru Planetarium and India Gate to watch the moon's bright white glow giving way to a cerise red.
Amateur Astronomers Association, in association with the Nehru Planetarium, had set up telescopes and cameras to enable people watch and take photographs of the celestial phenomenon.
"It was a memorable experience. I saw the moon slipping into the darker shadow," Shreyansh, a school student, said.
The maximum eclipse was seen at 20:01:50 pm IST. The eclipse began at 5:02 pm and will end at 11:02 pm. While the noticeable Umbra phase began at 6:15 pm, it will end at 9:48 pm.
The sunlight passing through the Earth's atmosphere gave the lunar surface a deep reddish hue.
A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth in course of its orbit around the sun, comes between the moon and sun in such a way that moon is hidden in the shadow cast by earth.
This can occur only when the sun, earth and moon are aligned in a straight line, C B Devgun of Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators (SPACE) said.
People living in eastern Africa, the Middle East, central Asia and western Australia will also able to watch the entire eclipse, from beginning to end, Arvind Paranjpye, scientific officer of Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, said.
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Are you aware of 49-O Election Rule?

Did you know that there is a system in our constitution, as per the 1961 act ( The Conduct of Elections Rules), in section ” 49-O ” that a person can go to the polling booth, confirm his identity, get his finger marked, and convey the presiding election officer that he / she doesn’t want to vote anyone !

Yes, such a feature is available, but obviously these seemingly notorious leaders have never disclosed it. This is called ” 49-O “.

Rule 49-O, framed in 1961, gives you the right not to vote, but few know about it. It describes the procedure to be followed when a valid voter decides not to cast his vote, and decides to record this fact. The apparent purpose of this section is to prevent the election fraud or the misuse of votes.

If you are dissatisfied with the candidate of your area, then just don’t sit at home, instead voice your disapproval by registering your 49-O vote at the polling booth on V-day(April 13, 2011) which gives you a right to not to vote.
Procedure for registering 49-O Vote

“Though there is no such button (right not to vote) on an Electronic Voting Machine, there is a provision in the law to record the 49-0 vote manually at polling booths”.

Rule 49-O of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 states that if an elector decides not to record his vote, then the presiding officer shall make a remark to that effect against his name in the register of voters and obtain the latter’s signature or thumb impression against such remark.

Impact of 49-0

Why should you go and say “I VOTE NOBODY ” ? … Because, in a constituency, if a candidate wins, say by 300 votes, and that particular constituency has received ” 49-O” votes more than 300 , then that polling will be cancelled and will have to be re-polled. Not only that, but the candidature of the contestants will be removed and they cannot contest the re-polling, since people had already expressed their decision on them.

This would bring fear into parties and hence would look for genuine candidates to give out tickets.

So Lets make sure we do vote this time and if we don’t like the candidate then We can use 49-0 and say “I VOTE NOBODY”

Champions Chennai look to extend fairytale

Chennai Super Kings' exceptional run of form has been built on the principle of unity, a theme also visible in the other team led by MS Dhoni. While most sides used the 2011 auction as an opportunity to clean out the closet, Chennai focussed on minimising churn. The four best players were held back, and the franchise fought hard to repurchase the likes of R Ashwin, Doug Bollinger, Mike Hussey, Shadab Jakati and S Badrinath from the auction pool. With a solid bunch of performers at their disposal, and the added advantage of familiarity among their ranks, Chennai are primed for another good season.

On-field success is only one half of Chennai's story, though. Chennai is arguably the most successfully branded IPL franchises, with their PR campaign capturing the very essence of cricket on the streets and beaches of the city. Year after year, they come up with the most endearing promos, with everyone from Dhoni to Bollinger joining the Chennai layman in the "Whistle Podu" chorus. The party will resume in full force at Chepauk when they stride out in their yellow jerseys on Friday.

Key players

Until that famous bat-twirl after the winning six in the World Cup, the most enduring MS Dhoni image was the uppercut he landed on his own helmet after whacking Chennai into the 2010 IPL semi-finals. It was a rare show of emotion from a man who seldom loses his composure on the field. As wicketkeeper-captain, Dhoni is the team's brains and the nerve-centre rolled into one. His perceptive use of R Ashwin with the new ball, and positioning of a very straight mid-off to snare Kieron Pollard in the 2010 final are now part of IPL folklore.

Michael Hussey is an unusual choice at the top, yet Chennai's decision to open with him ensures stability and a solid foundation for the muscular middle order to launch from. After a personally fulfilling Ashes, Hussey was laid low by a serious hamstring injury that kept him out of the initial stages of the World Cup. With Matthew Hayden missing in action this year, Hussey should face no hindrance in resuming his alliance with M Vijay at the top of the order. He will, however, join the party a little late after Australia's one-day tour of Bangladesh.

R Ashwin's prowess with the new ball, bowling to fields that are pulled in, is based on his accuracy. He may not be able to bowl six different balls in an over, yet he can get each one of them to land them on the same spot, and get the odd one to surprise the batsman by going away. Having picked up the carom ball by watching Ajantha Mendis bowling in Chepauk before he became an international sensation, Ashwin has become as lethal in its use as the inventor himself. Ashwin's biggest strength, though, is not his variety, but his reluctance to over-use it.

Big name in

Chennai have picked wisely in including Nuwan Kulasekara and Tim Southee for the new season. Their bowling attack in past editions often included three spinners, but this time they have two high-quality seaming options to fall back on. Both Kulasekara and Southee rely on exemplary seam position, and while Southee's stock ball is the outswinger, Kulasekara specialises in mixing legcutters with huge induckers. Bollinger and Morkel are likely to be the first-choice fast bowlers, but Southee and Kulasekara could come into the picture as the tournament wears on.

Big name out

Twenty20 was clearly not Muttiah Muralitharan's format, yet he found a way to be effective, by going round the wicket and twirling his offspinners and doosras from the same spot around middle and off. He formed a formidable tweak-trio with Ashwin and Shadab Jakati, and Chennai - the team and the city - will miss his presence and personality, as much as his immense skills.

Below the radar

S Badrinath's India days might be behind him, but year after year he turns in stellar middle-order performances for Chennai. Badrinath's methods will not fill up the stands - his high elbow, straight bat and along-the-ground shots are incongruous in this format, but he is the kind of man Dhoni backs. Badrinath's domestic record speaks of a man whose appetite for runs borders on gluttony. He provides the stability in a middle order that features attackers like Raina, Morkel and Dhoni himself. Expect more of those typically unsung, unnoticed but invaluable gems from Badrinath this season.

Last three seasons

Chennai have been the most consistent IPL team, having made the semi-finals in each edition of the tournament. Not once was their passage into the last four straightforward - at one point in the 2010 season, they were languishing at seventh in a field of eight teams - but each time they managed to find a game-breaking performance to see them through trouble. In 2008, they had the upperhand for most of the final against Rajasthan before losing off the last ball. Their 2009 campaign was halted at the semi-final stage by Bangalore, powered by a cool innings from Manish Pandey. Chennai were unstoppable at the business end of the 2010 edition, and easily trumped a nervous Mumbai in the final.

winning moments

proud moments

Sachin Tendulkar celebrates with his India teammates after winning the #cwc2011

INDIA'S winning moments

Amitabh bachan gives Award to Vijay Asianet Awards 2011

Vijay Entering Politics Soon - Seeman & Sathyaraj

chennai crowd