AS MY DAUGHTER AND BOTH my sons went to The Lawrence School, Lovedale, it gave Bina and me an excuse to visit a place we adore—the Wellington cantonment in the Nilgiris. We have always felt that the cantonment board did an excellent job there, keeping it clean and making it much more desirable than the neighbouring Ooty and Coonoor. Little wonder that Field Marshal S.H.F.J. Manekshaw chose to settle there.
Of course, there is the Defence Services Staff College and the regimental centre of The Madras Regiment. Not to mention the charming Nilgiri Mountain Railway—with what is arguably the steepest railway gradient in Asia. The heritage train with its blue-and-butter colour scheme stops in Lovedale and Wellington.
During my Delhi days, I would pass through cantonments like Meerut and Ambala and appreciate their quiet charm. With cantonments being disbanded, these charming enclaves all over India will disappear. Things must change as time goes by, but for the good. I hope the public spaces provided by cantonments remain even after the boards are gone. This week’s issue of your favourite newsmagazine carries a last snapshot of cantonments written by Resident Editor R. Prasannan and Senior Special Correspondents Sanjib Kr Baruah, Puja Awasthi and Nachiket Kelkar.
The cover story though is a bigger article written by Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam (retd) on the ultimate high ground in warfare—space. Subramaniam has interviewed Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari, who spoke about everything from India’s space game to the need for at least five more fighter squadrons in the immediate future. The air vice marshal’s experience as assistant chief of air staff (space and doctrine) and as a military historian and author shines through in this Republic Day Special cover story.
No, it is not all defence. Deputy Chief of Bureau (Sports) Neeru Bhatia met badminton ace P.V. Sindhu and her coach Prakash Padukone in Bengaluru to seek out the Olympic silver medallist’s plans for Paris 2024 and about her new home at the Padukone–Dravid Centre for Sports Excellence. The joint interview is on Page 60.
Deputy Chief of Bureau Mandira Nayar spoke to Ajay Bisaria, former high commissioner to Pakistan and Canada, on his book, Anger Management. I could not think of a better title for a book about our relationship with Pakistan. But then again, I could be partial because he is a Stephanian.
Dilip Jose, CEO and managing director of Manipal Hospitals, spoke to Principal Correspondent Abhinav Singh about the group’s expansion plans from Raipur to the NCR, Pune, the northeast, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Kerala. Quite a large canvas that! He also talked about why there might not be space for 600- to 700-bed hospitals anymore.
Special Correspondent Anjuly Mathai spoke to chef Garima Arora, who just earned her second Michelin star for her restaurant Gaa in Bangkok—making her the only Indian woman with two Michelin stars. She said that chef Rene Redzepi of Copenhagen’s Noma told her that it was easier to find a good life partner than a good business partner. That is so very true. Most partnerships go belly-up when the unseen sides of partners come out.