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3*tft ifs^T - ira^n i8is» - Pratichi Patrika - Fall 2012
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- Contents
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StoryLine Of Fire - Subrata Mazumdar - - Page - 51
Poems /Translation Pages 48-49Bhasweti Gewhas, Nibedita Banerjee, Hillol Roy
EssayThe Ultimate Quest - Booma Venkataraman - Pg 56
A Note on Gita - Dilip Das - Page 37
Ranjit Ganguly 57-59Dealing With Feelings
The psycho-physical paranormal powers of mindScience of Desire
TravelMangalore - Kaustav Nath - Page 43
TributeOeuvres of Universal validity - Hillol Ray' - Pg 62
Travel Quiz (3), Quips (50), Gurukul Academy (68)Arts Corner (Inner back)
Cover Design - Rajarshi GhoshBack Cover Photographs - Gurukul performance
Illustrations - Jayshri Saha
All opinions are of respective authors and the publisher is not responsible for any consequences, real or perceived.
Published on behalf of Pratichi Club Of Kansas City,a non-profit Indian Arts and Cultural institution of greater Kansas City Area
Editor- Udayan Mukherjee, Publisher-Arun Saha14557 S.Hagan Street, Olathe, Kansas 66062
T iT / Page 1
Hft l - - PratichiPatrika- Fall 2012
Hillol Ray and His Poems:Oeuvres of Universal Validity
A Biopic and a Tribute
Pratichi Club of Kansas City, Kansas, USA
In a dark, cold, misty October past mid-night,1954, a pregnant widow with her five and threeyear old sons, were thrown out of their home.She didn't have a penny, nowhere to go, andnothing to keep her little boys warm. In the twoweeks after her husband died, his brothersmaneuvered her out of the simple adobe theycalled home.
It cannot be described and can barely beimagined the abject situation they were in. It isthe sheer grit of the mother, who managed tosurvive, gave birth to a third son a few monthslater and yet managed to raise them all asthree established engineers. Their childhooddepravations like studying under the moon andstreet lights, practicing homework andhandwriting on the dirt before transferring thefinal on a piece of paper, or acquiring the firstpair of shoes only before boarding a plane toUnited States of America are now legendary.This is as much a tribute to the amazing lady,Mrs. Angur Lata Ray, (85), who has lived tosee her sacrifices and tribulations finallybearing fruits.
And what fruits they are. Although both hisyounger brothers are well established Civilengineers in their own rights, the eldest one,Hillol Ray, has risen to a height where thewhole world has recognized and praised histalents. From the then President of the UnitedStates to numerous universities, academia,corporations, government agencies, and, ofcourse, proud Bengali clubs like Pratichi, fromaround the world have showered him withaccolades, honors, awards and tributes (For acomplete list check International WarVeterans' Poetry Archives websitehttp://iwvpa.net/ravh/index-hra.php). A mosttelling one is from a 104 year old villager from
his native village Hijalpukur in 24 Parganas,West Bengal, India, who recently wrote in theAsian American Star (May 2012): "TheIncorruptible Sculptor of Success from GroundZero"..
And why wouldn't that be? Hillol Ray,affectionately known as "Hi-Ray" (from hisinitials, pronounced "HeeRay", meaning"diamond" in Berngali, hard and ever shining,arising from within the black coal) hasaccomplished a lot. In his early childhood,without a childhood, he supported his family bybeing a "rakhal-balok" (cattle keeper), farmerand menial labor, and still found time tocompose poems, and help others with theirhomework, or later in life, work extensivelywith Mother Teresa and her organization inKolkata, India, when he was a student inBengal Engineering College. And by the way,throughout this all, he managed to top in allclasses and could afford to continue studiesonly with the help of merit scholarships (minus,of course any shoes, decent or warm clothesfor winter). While studying Civil Engineering,he published an original "Crossword Puzzle onRoad Engineering" in "Science Reporter"(Jan1971), published by the Council of Scientificand Industrial Research (CISR) of New Delhi,India, which attracted global attention. He wasthen accepted at North Dakota StateUniversity, USA, with a National ScienceFoundation Fellowship and completed his MSdegree in Environmental Engineering. Again,his graduate paper on "A PreliminaryApproach to Investigation of Coal WashedWastewater and Sludge Characteristics withAn Emphasis on the Variable Effects ofClimatic Influence on Sludge Disposal" drewnational and international attention. He was
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- Prattchi Patrika-Fall 2012
invited to read it at the 50th annualconference of the Water PollutionControl Federation (WPCF).Again, throughout this, he took oddjobs to support himself and to sendmoney home. He then accepted aprivate sector job with Brown &Root, in Houston, TX, but laterjoined the U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA), where,quite appropriately he currentlymanages Drinking Water SupplyEnforcement Program.
But the real genius of Hillol is hiscreative side. Pratichi has beenhonored to publish his poems overthe years. A prodigious andprolific author, his poems areregularly published in Asia,Europe, Canada, Sweden, Southand North America, and translatedinto Swedish, Spanish, German,Italian, and French. He writes inEnglish as well. His poem "EarthDay" (see Pratichi Patrika, Fall2006 issue) has been praised byformer U.S. President Clinton,former Vice President and NobelPeace Laureate, Al Gore, Jr.,received personal appreciationletters from Siddhartha ShankarRay (no relation), former Indianambassador to USA, MadameFrancine Cousteau, President ofthe Cousteau Society, in Paris,France, (and wife of worldrenowned OceanographerJacques-Yves Cousteau), andfrom Mother Teresa of Kolkata,India. Alas, this place is too shortto give a list of places where hispoems have been publishedand/or displayed, but someprominent names are: J C Penny,Inc., UC of San Francisco, CA,Southern Methodist University inDallas, TX, Rangsit University inThailand, Bangkok; ColegioJefferson of Caracas, Venezuela;Shanghai Jiao Tong University(SJTU) in Shanghai, China;NetFriends of Tibet Site in
Stockholm, Sweden; "ChinaCampus" from Beijing, China, andthe list goes on and on....
Hillol has influenced Hollywood aswell. Amerecord song album "StarRoute U.S.A." used lyrics from hispoem "Diversity'1. He is frequentlyinvited as a Guest Poet, KeynoteSpeaker, and Seminar Moderator,by the various culturalorganizations, educationalinstitutions, public and universitylibraries, and has been interviewedby numerous television and radiostations in USA and abroad. Hewas the winner of Bronze Medalfor Commendable Service inimplementing a ConsumerConfidence Rule (CCR) Strategyin 2001 and Excellence inRegional Customer Service Awardin 2002 - both from the EPA. Hisbiography has appeared in theSpecial Commemorative Edition of"500 Leaders of Science", inInternational Directory ofDistinguished Leadership (Eighthand Ninth Editions) - bothpublished by the AmericanBiographical Institute Inc. fromRaleigh, NC. His poems haveappeared in many popularanthologies such as The CrystalPrism" (CGS Communications,Fort Worth, TX); "Edge of Twilight","Best Poems of the 90s", "ADelicate Balance", "Best Poems of1995", "Of Sunshine andDaydreams", "Essence of aDream", Through the LookingGlass", "Best Poems of 1997","Chambers of Time", "Beneath ARainbow", " Chasing the Wind", "APainted Garden", "Melodies of TheSoul", "Verdant Lands of Spring","Best Poems of 1998", "Fabric ofLife", The Rustling Leaves", "OfSummer's Passing", The PeaceWe Knew", The Promise ofDawn", and "Outstanding Poets of1998", published by the National
Library of Poetry in Owir
Maryland. In
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As an apostle for a Slh
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/ Page 63
Author’s Note: Dr. Bimal K. Bose was one of my professors in 1971 at the Undergraduate Classes at Bengal Engineering College, Shibpur, under Calcutta University (currently known as Bengal Engineering and Science University – BESU). He obtained his Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Electrical Engineering from the same college in 1956. This was so surprising to me to receive an e---mail from him after 42 years (1971 till 2013). I am deeply humbled and honored for his request to keep him appraised about my accomplishments.
From: Ray, HillolSent: Monday, May 20, 2013 8:44 AMTo: 'Bimal Bose'Subject: RE: Accomplishments
Hello Bimalda: As per your request below, here’s the web link (displaying a partial listing of accomplishments):
http://iwvpa.net/rayh/index-‐hra.php
When the above link opens, please click on the year with a description next to it, to view the details (along with envelops, postage stamps and postal seals). To view my academic performance (in 1958, 1959, 1960, etc. my formative childhood days), please go to last page, and look for “Academic Excellence” Section. As one of your students at Bengal Engineering College,(Electro-‐Technology Class in 971), I am still striving to excel continuously, to keep up the reputation of you and my alma mater.
For additional information about my latest accomplishments, you may use www.google.com search engine, or any other search engine as well. Have a nice day !!
Regards and thanks, Hillol 1973 Civil Engineering, B.E. College Office: 214 665 7502
To: Ray, HillolSubject: Accomplishments
Dear Hillol: What an inspiring tale of life and a tribute to you. From now and onwards, please send me the information about your accomplishments regularly by e-mail. I always enjoy reading and sharing them, and feel so proud of you.
Best wishes. Bimalda
Dr. Bimal K. Bose, Life Fellow, IEEE Condra Chaired Professor/Emeritus in Power Electronics 610 Min Kao, 1520 Middle Drive Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN 37996-2100, USA [email protected] http://web.eecs.utk.edu/~bose http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bimal_Kumar_Bose
From: Bimal Bose [mailto:[email protected]]Sent: Friday, May 17, 2013 2:53 PM
