Read all about Mangalore in two books

Read all about Mangalore in two books

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, April 24, 2014: An encyclopaedia-like two books providing insight into the historical, cultural, social life and growth of Mangalore will be ready in a year.

The work on the Rs. 50-lakh project — an initiative by the Mangalore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) and the Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) — would start from next month, said A.B. Ibrahim, Chairman, MUDA and Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada.

The scope of the project has been restricted to recording the past and growth of Mangalore in the jurisdiction of the corporation.

1,000 copies

About 1,000 copies of the two volumes would be printed. Each book would have 65 articles.

Speaking to presspersons after a meeting at MUDA office on Wednesday, Mr. Ibrahim said that the books would be called Mangalore Darshana Volume I and Volume II.

Scholar B.A. Vivek Rai, former Vice-Chancellor of Kannada University, Hampi, and Karnataka State Open University (KSOU), Mysore, would be the chief editor of the volumes.

Oral narrative

Mr. Rai said that the volumes would record the developments based on both memorate (an oral narrative from memory relating a personal experience) and evidences (documents). It would record the culture, economy, trade and commerce, education and lifestyle of people in Mangalore from prehistory to the 21st century. The books would have old photographs, some of them would be from the archives of Bassel Mission.

Mr. Rai said: “It is not that we record memorate of VIPs. We will also speak to common persons. They can be an old bus conductor, a fish seller, a vegetable seller and a farm labourer.”

He said that records reveal that Jews had trade links with Mangalore. According to records Abraham Ben Yiju, a Jew trader, lived in Mangalore from 1132 A.D. to 1149 A. D. and he had a factory of manufacturing utensils. The trader was exporting them to Egypt and Africa.

Records show that Mangalore was the capital of Alupa dynasty rulers who ruled Tulu Nadu from 567 A. D. to 1325 A.D.

Mr. Rai said that the two volumes would throw light on 20 major aspects comprising city administration, sports, industry, politics, arts, education, media, agriculture and traditions.

The former Vice-Chancellor said that the first printing press in Karnataka was set up in Mangalore and the first Kannada newspaper was published in Mangalore.

He said that the project is of one-year.

Vamana Nandavara, a retired principal and former president of the Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy, and Muddu Moodubelle, a writer and former senior programme executive in the All India Radio would be the assistant editors of the volumes. There would be a 14-member honorary advisory committee.

The Commissioner of MUDA Mohammed Nazir was present at the meeting.

 

Courtesy: The Hindu