AGNI and Andheri East

Hi

Came back after a long time.

Yesterday(22nd Feb2016) I attended a session of AGNI - Action for Governance and Networking In India - an organisation promoting good governance, the current buzzword  in India.

They are on a mission to ensure good governance in Andheri east through action. Action initiated by the common man. Volunteers leading from the front for change.

They have been working since past 9 years overseeing changes in Andheri East.

James John leads from the front. There are groups working on water, sewage, solid waste, storm water drains, etc.

James John enlightens the group about rights and duties. About the constitution and related for the common man's understanding.

India requires people like him in volumes. The do-gooders are small in number but they make significant changes in their neighbourhoods.

India is like a huge vortex of a universe. Whatever you do is only  a small advancement in this vortex.

Huge changes are required for a mass movement. A mass movement is required so that all of us have their lives touched by change.

For this the people needs to awaken. Right from the upper to the lower strata of society.

life has many things it can give us. But we need to work for that to achieve them. Work in the right direction. Together.

Volunteers need to be appreciated for their social work. This is the prime motive of this blog. To eulogize the doer. To inform the masses about the movement in progress.

lot of ideas but very less space. I will inform more when we do more about my journey within the movement.

This will clarify everything.

Its dangerous!!!! GSK caught exaggerating/diminishing the qualities of milk
http://moneylife.in/article/glaxosmithklines-manipulative-hype-in-repositioning-horlicks-in-india/34503.html
 

Andheri Station to get a makeover great !!!

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-12-04/mumbai/30474253_1_harbour-line-platform-panvel-harbour
 

How to detect Milk adulteration

Back After 5 years. Did lot of research on Problems in Mumbai and Andheri (East).
Now I have a test series right from the Diary board to detect Milk adulteration.

There are many methods known for detection of adulteration in milk but the methods discussed below are simple but rapid and sensitive methods to detect adulteration.

I. Detection of Neutralizers in milk

1) Rosalic acid test (Soda Test)

In milk neutralizers like hydrated lime, sodium hydroxide, sodium carbonate or sodium bicarbonate are added which are generally prohibited.

How to detect?

Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 5 ml alcohol followed by 4-5 drops of rosalic acid. If the colour of milk changes to pinkish red, then it is inferred that the milk is adulterated with sodium carbonate / sodium bicarbonate and hence unfit for human consumption.

This test will be effective only if the neutralizers are present in milk. If the added neutralizers are nullified by the developed acidity, then this test will be negative. In that case, the alkaline condition of the milk for the presence of soda ash has to be estimated.

How to proceed?

2) Take 20 ml of milk in a silica crucible and then the water is evaporated and the contents are burnt in a muffle furnace. The ash is dispersed in 10 ml distilled water and it is titrated against decinormal (N/10) hydrochloric acid using phenolphthalein as an indicator. If the titre value exceeds 1.2 ml, then it is construed that the milk is adulterated with neutralizers.

II. Test for detection of hydrogen peroxide

Take 5 ml milk in a test tube and then add 5 drops of paraphenylene diamine and shake it well. Change of the colour of milk to blue confirms that the milk is added with hydrogen peroxide.

III. Test for detection of formalin

Formalin (40%) is poisonous though it can preserve milk for a long time.
How to detect?

Take 10 ml of milk in test tube and 5 ml of conc. sulphuric acid is added on the sides of the test tube with out shaking. If a violet or blue ring appears at the intersection of the two layers, then it shows the presence of formalin.

IV. Test for detection of sugar in milk

Generally sugar is mixed in the milk to increase the solids not fat content of milk i.e. to increase the lactometer reading of milk, which was already diluted with water.

How to detect?

Take 10 ml of milk in a test tube and add 5 ml of hydrochloric acid along with 0.1 g of resorcinol. Then shake the test tube well and place the test tube in a boiling water bath for 5 min. Appearance of red colour indicates the presence of added sugar in milk.

V. Test for detection of starch

Addition of starch also increases the SNF content of milk. Apart from the starch, wheat flour, arrowroot, rice flour are also added.

How to detect?

Take 3 ml milk in a test tube and boil it thoroughly. Then milk is cooled to room temperature and added with 2 to 3 drops of 1% iodine solution. Change of colour to blue indicates that the milk is adulterated with starch.

VI. Test for detection of glucose

Usually poor quality glucose is added to milk to increase the lactometer reading. There are two tests available to detect the adulteration of milk with glucose.

How to proceed?

1. Phosphomolybdic or Barford Test

Take 3 ml of milk in a test tube and add 3 ml Barford’s reagent and mix it thoroughly. Then keep it in a boiling water bath for 3 min and then cool it for 2 min by immersing in tap water with out disturbance. Then add 1 ml of phosphomolybdic acid and shake. If blue colour is visible, then glucose is present in the milk sample.

2. Diacetic test

Take a strip of diacetic strip and dip it in the milk for 30 sec to 1 min. If the strip changes colour, then it shows that the sample of milk contains glucose. If there is no change in the colour of the strip, then glucose is absent. In this method the presence of glucose in milk can be quantified by comparing the colour developed with the chart strip.

VII. Test for detection of urea

1. Urea is generally added in the preparation of synthetic milk to raise the SNF value.

Five ml of milk is mixed well with 5 ml paradimethyl amino benzaldehyde (16%). If the solution turns yellow in colour, then the given sample of milk is added with urea.

2. Take 5 ml of milk in a test tube and add 0.2 ml of urease (20 mg / ml). Shake well at room temperature and then add 0.1 ml of bromothymol blue solution (0.5%). Appearance of blue colour after 10-15 min indicates the adulteration milk with urea.

 

Andheri - A Tourists Guide

Hi Friends,

I am a resident of Andheri East. I have been residing here since the past thirty years. I schooled and groomed here and was oblivious of the problerms that dogged our locality until, I started travelling to Engineering College in Airoli. That was the time I realised the rot we were living in. The traffic jams at Sakinaka, Powai and Chakala were real nightmares. The years from 1996-1999 were the ones when the roads were getting concretised and flyovers getting built. Not to mention the BMC and MTNL which would dig and dig and dig for God knows what !.
Then came MGL which started digging for its pipelines.

And imagine all of them during the monsoons with the numerous potholes on Saki-Vihar Road. We were no better than Congo and Somalia in Africa!!! !!! A Bus ride was no better than a Camel ride.

The entire effect was utter chaos. Like a Atom Bombed City - Virtually Standstill. Traffic snarls for atleast 3 hours were very common.

The railways were no better. Since there were hardly any flyovers connecting East and West suburbs, The phataks made life miserable for the already groaning Railway infrastructure. Rail-riots were very common. Western railway travellers were in a bad state. You can imagine the state of Central Railway. Which is pathetic even now - 10 years then on.

All this and the roads with the illegal shops encroached on government land and to add the icing on the cake the hawkers - standing, squatting and cart-driven. I say the middle class has suffered a lot due the un-symphathetic "system" called the government. Imagine the plight of the middle class mothers and wives, who after a gruelling session of up-down travelling have to come home to starving kids, hubbies and in-laws and start to serve them, thus imagine thier tyranny.

I have termed a phrase for the lethargic government officials and call them - Government Job .
The reason - these are the people who enter Government orgainisations with little or no qualifications suitable for thier post. They enter the government in search of a very less demanding position. Do little or no work and hence enjoy the pensions and other perks for actually doing nothing throughout thier lifetime.

I say Government Job is a very responsible job, much like joining a Military Service. You have to love your country and the people, before even thinking to get in to public service. The very phrase - Public Service - says everything.

So I am in the attempt to pool all intelligent people of Andheri (and suburbs of Mumbai) to get together and voice thier opinions about the different problems that dog Andheri (and even other areas).

I will forward your opinions to the responsible people who govern and manage Mumbai and try and force them to act and deliver results. I can help you in raising complains in your areas to the right authority.

This blog can be a record of the various problems that affect our socety as India move forward towards being a world power.

Tools such as RTI, DARPG etc, should be used effectively to see to it that our tax money reaches us in the form of effective governance.

Common problems dogging Andheri:
1. High traffic
2. Noise pollution
3. Too many Autorickshaws
4. llegal hawkers
5. Trees being felled
6. llegal encroachment of Aarey Colony greenery
7. Water wastage due to road concretisation
8. Water contamination
9. Milk Adulteration
10. Bad building construction standards
11. Lack of BEST buses to station during peak hours
12. Problems of women commuters
13. Security situation in Andheri.

We can discuss all of this in our blogs. All the views should be very mature and well researched.

I will be writing atleast one article on each topic over a period of time. Please do respond with your views.

I will provide links where you can get information on various topics concerning our region.

So All the Best for a better Andheri... :)

Lets Start Blogging

Warm Regards,
Sujit Menon
(Responsible Citizen Of Andheri)