EK215

Interesting flight route: Dubai to Los Angeles straight across the North Pole.

Note of caution: 

This post, like it's predecessor, does not talk about any shopping in Dubai nor about actors in Hollywood. Feminine people can skip this post.

The flight below, EK215 from Dubai to Los Angeles, flies straight up from Dubai over Kara sea, Russia (about 70E, 80N) and then over North Pole and then down the other side (about 120W, 80N) and then down Canada to LA. I tracked the flight from about 6PM IST to 7:30PM IST. The lat-long values during that period are given above. In both cases the latitude is about 80N. At the start of tracking, I saw it on this side of the pole in flightradar24. At the end of the period it was on the Canadian side (having crossed the North pole - while I was having my dinner). Amazing. But the more interesting part was that the flightradar24 route tracking isn't good beyond 80N. It's unable to rotate the earth and zoom into 80deg+ latitudes and locate/show polar flights. 

I was irritated. So I googled and figured that Google Earth could do just that and downloaded it. So in the picture below in the 3rd and 4th parts I marked the the starting point and the final destination (which goes over the 2nd lat-long) in Google Earth. Turned out to be a lovely way to track EK215. I wish flightradar24 could do this. The starting point shown in the 3rd picture is Dubai: you can see Saudi Arabia. The point 6395km from Dubai is where the flight was when at 6PM. The points marked off in Google Earth are approximate. In the 4th part of the picture, I have tracked the route on Google Earth till LA. You need to zoom in to the 3rd and 4th parts in the picture to understand better.

The 1st and 2nd parts show the flight route on flightradar24 at 7:30PM IST just after it had crossed the North pole. The 2nd picture is just a zoomed out picture of the first. Unfortunately I don't have the 6PM flightradar24 picture when the flight was near Kara sea on the Russian side.

(You can also click this link to see the same 4part picture.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EsJ02lM20ErH7qOnh56WpuQb-A8uG99O/view?usp=drivesdk)

For the first part of this article on interesting flight routes read https://vbala99.blogspot.com/2015/05/interesting-flight-routes.html

The flight stats for this flight are here: https://www.radarbox.com/data/flights/EK215/1549352072/log

USA Strike Against Iran

https://www.dawn.com/news/1526605 - "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been leading the backlash against Trump's decision to authorise a drone strike against Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad, an operation that Trump only officially informed Congress about on Saturday — nearly 48 hours after the event."

This decision to take out the Iranian general and the intimation of the event to Congress in the weekend and the surprise all around in the USA makes me wonder if Trump (or some of his associates) didn't do insider trading and short the market on Thursday and Friday in order to make a killing. 

Only time will tell if my suspicion is justified.

Coming closer to home Pakistan is stumbling to determine if it should take the side of religion (Iran) or economy / FATF (USA). When you have to put bread on the table, it's difficult to stick to your values (in this case aligning with Islam). 

Bhutan And Sasural

A woman I know lost her husband some time back. Her euphoria knew no bounds and she is now vacationing in Bhutan with her kids.

Another friend I know discarded her husband and she is now in Bhutan.

Why do they all go to Bhutan?

Now Bhutan is the land of happiness and it's no wonder women gravitate there when they lose or discard their husbands.

What then is the land of unhappiness? Sasural?

FATFat Improvement

https://www.dawn.com/news/1511895/fatfs-concerns

The link above acknowledges the grave concern the newspaper sees.

The same newspaper 2 weeks back had mentioned how Pak was largely compliant in 20 out of 27 points. 

What happened in 2 weeks? Does one believe that Pak was largely compliant solely based on friendship with China, Turkey and Malaysia? 

Only a final decision from Paris makes one see reality? 

What exactly is Pak going to do now? How much brainpower is it going to deploy to address it before the next FATF meet in Feb 2020? What will make Pak realize that its obsession with religion is the cause of terrorism?

I understand India isn't much sensible either. But the state of affairs in Pak seems to be so awful it pains. 

After all Pak is just like us. Why CAN'T they improve?

Why can't India and Pak be like Canada and USA or like Ireland and Northern Ireland?

When will we forget religion? Hum bas ek jaise hi toh the?

An article which echoes similar sentiments: https://www.livemint.com/opinion/columns/fatf-meet-verdict-pakistan-s-people-deserve-better-11571591868763.html

Sense becoming visible: https://www.dawn.com/news/1512237/sensationalism-draws-attention-away-from-what-pakistan-must-do-in-order-to-come-off-the-fatf-list

The Other Salman Al Beckett

The usual routine:

1. Denial. It never happened. "We know Khashoggi left the embassy alive." https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/10/17/17989244/trump-ap-interview-saudi-khashoggi-kavanaugh

2. Deny personal accountability. "I didn't do it. It was some ogues whodunnit (innocent babies can't pronounce "R") ". 
https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2018/oct/15/turkey-jamal-khashoggi-granted-permission-search-saudi-arabia-consulate-istanbul and https://wapo.st/2EyS7PH

3. When evidence gets to be overwhelming, pick some people and hold them responsible after doing what-if analysis. "Who are the cheapest set of men or things you can sacrifice" decides whom you scuttle.

Saudis arrest 18, fire 5 officials after confirming Khashoggi was killed

https://wapo.st/2R0yXTY

And now Kavanaugh is relatively safe because the cartoon has "ensured that Justice has prevailed".

What happened was that the prince said in despair to the knights "won't someone rid me of this turbulent journalist."
And the knights flew to Toykey and brought back the head for the pince.
There endeth the story.

The fiancee may get some reimbursement for her troubles provided that she or someone close to her emigrate to KSA so the royal family can hold the fiancee to ransom.

Cartoon's hotels will continue to be patronized by Saudis. Business will be as usual for USA and KSA. Read: Saudi Arabia not fully cooperating with Khashoggi investigation, Turkish official says

Or will it?
Saudi Arabia says Khashoggi’s killing was premeditated, reversing earlier statement that the journalist had died in fistfight
What's happening here? What exactly does Erdogan have? How come KSA is dancing to his tune? Or was the premeditated murder going to be unauthorized by rogues?

Additional Reading:

1. CIA director briefs Trump on audio purportedly capturing journalist’s killing
2. Long Struggle for Supremacy in the Muslim World

Minorities In Pakistan - Census Statistics

I had always thought minorities get a raw deal especially in Muslim countries and hence they are usually converted into the local religion or killed or forced to emigrate. 

I got into discussion with a friend who said I was completely wrong. As an example she told me that the treatment of Hindus in Pakistan was fine considering that Pakistan is primarily an Islamic country.

I was shocked by this assertion. So we decided that I will look up some statistics about minority population growth / decline in Pakistan over a decade or few decades. If there was a substantial decline it might indicate that minorities weren't treated well.

So I started googling.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduism_in_Pakistan

According to Pew Research, the Hindu population will reach 5.6 million and Hindus will constitute 2.47% of the Pakistan population by 2050.However, Hindus in Pakistan feel that they are treated as second-class citizens and many have continued to migrate to India. Hindus comprised 15% of Pakistan's population in the year 1947 while Sikhs comprised 5% of the total population. After Pakistan gained independence from British India on 14 August 1947, 4.7 million of West Pakistan's Hindus and Sikhs migrated to India while 6.5 million Muslims moved from India to live in West Pakistan.

The above provides a historical perspective and a prediction about the future.  

From the same link the population of Hindus in Pakistan is 3,231,220 million (2011) which is 2.12% of the Pakistani population.

Next we come to the Hindu population in 1998 which is given to be 2.443 million. And we look here to look at the overall population of Pakistan in the same year 1998 - we get a value of 132.3 million from the graph

The Hindu population in 1998 as a percentage of overall Pakistan population is 2.442/132.3 = 1.8%.

Thus the Hindu population percentage in Pakistan seems to have gone up from 1.8% in 1998 to 2.12% in 2011. (Incidentally the Hindu population was 15% of Pak population in 1947. There was a good amount of migration of and carnage of the minorities on both sides of the border).

Assuming the statistics are reliable, I guess my friend was right. Hindu population has increased as a percentage of overall population in Pakistan from 1998 till 2011.

As on Aug 5, 2020
I read an article in New York Times which threw more light on this topic. The New York Times: Poor and Desperate, Pakistani Hindus Accept Islam to Get By.

"At independence in 1947, Hindus composed 20.5 percent of the population of the areas that now form Pakistan. In the following decades, the percentage shrank rapidly, and by 1998 — the last government census to classify people by religion — Hindus were just 1.6 percent of Pakistan’s population. Most estimates say it has further dwindled in the past two decades."

So, yes the percentage of Hindus is largely same from 1980 till now. Between considering 1947 as the base, the story is different. Well what one can expect from a nation that is thrilled primarily about its religion and has little else to talk about.

Additional reading

• https://www.dawn.com/news/1515863/the-strange-case-of-the-silent-women
• Sewer Cleaners Wanted in Pakistan: Only Christians Need Apply.

Roman Urdu - English Dictionary

My vocabulary in most languages is pretty low. Urdu is a language I love. And it was painful not understanding dialogs in movies. So I started this post a couple of years back. Every time I came across a word that I didn't know I would add it here along with the meaning and a hyperlink to where I got the meaning from. I should say it was a sweet exercise. 
While native speakers of Hindi, Urdu would find most of these words to be rather elementary, it was not so for me. As I mentioned my vocabulary in vernacular languages is abysmally low.

https://urduwallahs.wordpress.com: This seems especially good.

I got an online "Roman Urdu" - English dictionary here and here

Meanings of some words (mostly Urdu):

1. Aabroo: Honor, Fame, Dignity
2. Aab E Haayat: Fountain of life
3. Aahat: A feeling of someone or something  is close by when usually when one is alone, Approach, Sound. Noise
4. Aarop: Accusation
5. Aarzoo: Desire
6. Aas: Desire, Faith, Hope
7. Aafat: Evil, Disaster, Misfortune
8. Aamdani: Faaida, Profit
9. Aaqil: Intellectual, Wise, Discerning
10. Aarakshan: Reservation
11. Aashiaana: Home, Shelter
12. Aazmaana: Prove, Tempt, Test, Try
13. Abhari: Obliged
14. Ada: Style
15. Albeli: Charming Young Woman
16. Alfaaz: Words
17. Anokhi: Extraordinary
18. Anushaasan: Discipline
19. Afsaana: Fiction, Romance
20. Afzal: Superior
21. Ahl-e-siyaasat: Politician
22. Ahtaraq: To light up, inflame something
23. Alhamdulillah: Praise be to Allah 
24. Ahmaq: Fool, madman
25. Ahmiyat: Importance
26. Akdu: Stubborn
27. Alfaaz: Exotic
28. Amantran: Informal Invitation
29. Anivarya: Unavoidable, Compulsory
30. Anushaasan: Discipline as in which discipline
31. Aib: Culturally inappropriate
32. Ajooba: Miracle
33. Akad as in Akad ko: Putting on air, Fastidious
34. Amaanat: Something precious given to a person for safe keeping
35. Anhonee: Impossible (Honee: Possible)
36. Apaahij: Incapacitated or disabled person as Sanjay Dutt was in Saajan, handicapped person
37. Arj: Esteem
38. Ashk or Ashq: Tears
39. Astitva: Identity
40. Atal: Unswerving, Adamant, Consistent
41. Ayadat: To go to meet someone when they are facing troubling times
42. Ayat: Sign, Clue, Proof, Holy verse
43. Ayyash: Debauchery
44. Baaghbaan: Gardener
45. Baariki: Close
46. Badaulat: By the grace of, Through
47. Badchalan: Ill mannered, immoral
48. Badgumaani: Not having good thoughts about another person
49. Bahumat: Majority (as in election) 
50. Bajaaye: Instead
51. Balma: Lover
52. Bataur: As a 
53. Behnoi: Sister's husband
54. Behuda: Frivolous
55. Bebas: Helpless
56. Beghairat: Without esteem or honor or empathy or Shameless
57. Bekas: Friendless, Lonely
58. Bekhudi: State of being hopelessly in love, forgetting other things, senselessness
59. Bemisaal, Apoorv, Anokha: Unprecedented (or unsurpassed)
60. Berahm: Merciless
61. Berukhi: Callousness, aloofness caused by anger, indifference
62. Betaab: Impatient
63. Bewas: Beware
64. Bewasi: Not in one's control
65. Bhatak: To wander in search of something
66. Bheja: Brain
67. Bikhra: Scattered
68. Chaman: Garden
69. Chand: Some (as in few)
70. Chataee: Mat, Paai (Tamil)
71. Chetavani: Warning, Admonition
72. Chhutkaara: Relief, Exemption, Acquittal, Disengagement
73. Chipkali: Lizard
74. Chunauti: Challenge
75. Churail: Witch or female ghost
76. Daagabaaz: Someone who betrays,  Daaga means to betray
77. Daakhil: Enter (as in enter data)
78. Daaman: Skirt
79. Daaroga: Inspector, Superintendent, Governor
80. Darasal: Actually, In fact
81. Darj Karaana: Enter same as Daakhil
82. Darkhwaast: Request, Appeal
83. Darmiyaan: In the middle of
84. Dastak: Knock
85. Dastaras (mein aa jaaye): At hand
86. Dastur: Law (as practiced not theory)
87. Dayaar: Placehttps://urduwallahs.wordpress.com/2012/09/25/habib-raqeeb/
88. Dauraan: During the course of discussion
89. Deedaar: Pleasure of seeing someone, glimpse
90. Dhong: Pretense, Hypocrisy
91. Dilnawaaz: Attractive, Beloved, Mistress
92. Dushwaar: Difficult
93. Faasle: Distance
94. Fakr: Pride (as in Mujhe fakr hai)
95. Falak: Sky
96. Faaqa: State of living without food
97. Faraar: Absconding
98. Fareb: Deceit, Fraud
99. Farig: Free, not busy
100. Farishta: Messenger of God
101. Fariyaad: Plead, Shout, Scream, Request, Complain
102. Fasaana: Tale, Romance, Afsaana
103. Fitrat: Nature as in behavior
104. Fitur: Madness or obsession
105. Fiza: Atmosphere
106. Furqat: Separation (as in Teri furqat ne pareeshaan kiya mujh ko in the song Mere Mehboob)
107. Gadar: Upsurge or Rebellion
108. Gagan: Sky as in Neele Gagan Ke Tale
109. Gaigar: Self-respect, Honor, Shame
110. Gesu: Hair, Strand, Tress
111. Ghan Chakkar: Person with a fickle mind, Crazy person
112. Ghatak: Lethal
113. Girah: Knot
114. Gulfaam: Rose color, Rose like, Metaphorically a mistress
115. Gulshan: Flower, rose garden
116. Gumaan: Pride, Feeling of love
117. Gumshuda: Lost person
118. Guzarish: Request
119. Gumraah: To pervert or distort
120. Guroor: Pride
122. Habeeb: Lover
123. Hallaat o Waqiaat: Circumstances
124. Hairaan: Confused, Amazed
125. Hairat: Surprised, Amazed, Astonished
126. Hakim: Doctor
127. Haraam: religiously prohibited
128. Hasrat: Unfulfilled desire or wish
129. Havaadis: Misfortune
130. Hawas: Lust, Desire
131. Hosla: Courage, Spirit
132. Humdum: Partner in a journey, soulmate, conformity or like mindedness
133. Humnawaaz: Friend
134. Ibadaat: Worship, Devotion to God, Penance
135. Inaayat: Kindness, Obligation, Favor
136. Inteqaal: Means dead. But in literal sense, inteqaal is to get transferred. From Islamic perspective, it means transferred to hereafter
137. Inteqaam: Revenge
138. Iqbal: Blessed or Fortunate
139. Iqraar: Pledge, Promise, Confess
140. Iqtiaar: Haq, Right
141. Izhaar karna: To express
142. Iztiraab: Painful anxiety, anguish, trouble, tortured/agitated
143. Jaahil: Ignorant person or disbeliever (of Islam) - see usage here: https://www.quora.com/What-is-your-review-of-Jolly-LLB-2-2017-movie
144. Jaanib: Taraf, Towards
145. Jaagrukta: Sensitization
146. Jalwa: Charisma/ Lustre/ Splendor 
147. Jasbaat: Emotions (Jasbaati: Emotional)
148. Jashn: Feast, Celebration
149. Jehd-e-Musalsal: Continuous effort
150. Jigar: Kind Hearted, symbolizing love and affection, Liver
151. Jugaad: Innovative fix or a nice workaround
152. Jugnu: Glow worm
153. Junooniyat: Obsession
154. Justajoo: Connection, Curiosity, Desire to achieve something
155. Kaarnama: Miracle
156. Kaayar: Coward
157. Kaifiyat: Explanation
158. Kajra: A woman with kaajal
159. Kambakht: Damned, Cursed
160. Kankar: Pebble
161. Kaleja: Heart, Liver - Metaphorically Courage
162. Karishma: Miracle
163. Kasak: Continous pain
164. Kasauti: A stone to determine purity of gold, An ordeal
165. Kashish: Sensation, Reflection, Emotion
166. Kashmakash: Dilemma
167. Kathhai: Brown, (Absolutely? As in kathhai pasand nahi)
168. Khaalish: Unease
169. Khafa: Displeased, Angry
170. Khairiyat: Well, fine as in Everything is well, I am fine
171. Khanjar: Knife
172. Khaleja: Liver - Metaphorically: Courage, Spirit
173. Khata: Mistake, Slip, Oversight (as in Huzoor kya Khata hui)
174. Khauf: Fear
175. Khidmat: Service
176. Khokla: Empty
177. Khuddar: Self respecting
178. Khud Numaayi: Ostentation
179. Kirdaar: Role
180. Kosna: Damn
181. Kukkad: New target (as in murga)
182. Laalach: Greed
183. Laachaar: forlorn = pitiful
184. Laanat: Shame
185. Laazim: Necessary,  Compulsory,  Important
186. Lakeer: Line
187. Lalkaariye Mat: Do not challenge
188. Lehsaan: Garlic
189. Lihaaz: Regard, Consideration, Respect
190. Maajra: Incident, Condition
191. Maansik Tanaav: Tension, Psychosomatic disorders 
192. Maayoos: Despondent
193. Maazrat (Ke Saath): With Apology
194. Madbhari: Heady as in heady breeze (Madbhari yeh Hawaayein)
195. Majaal: Strength, Power
196. Mansooba: Iraada=Intent
197. Maqaam: Place, Location, spiritual stages
198. Masla: Problem, Complication
199. Masroof: Busy, The root word is “srf” which means spending or consuming. So In Arabic Masroof means: 1) something that is/has been/to be spent 2) someone busy i.e a person’s energy and time is being spent in something
200. Mauj: Waves of a sea, wave, surge, enjoyment
201. Mazhab: Doctrine, Faith, Religion
202. Mazloom: Victim, Downtrodden
203. Mehfoos: Safe, Secure
204. Misaal Dena: To give an example, To compare
205. Mithhaas: Sweetness
206. Mohtaj: Wanting, Lacking
207. Muddat: Long time
208. Mukammal: Complete, Finish
209. Mulzim: Accused
210. Mujahida: This word has been maligned severely since it comes from root JHD, which reads jihad. It means facing hardships to progress spiritually. However, more commonly, it is used to refer to state of hardships in general
211. Munaseeb: Appropriate
212. Muqammal: Unblemished
213. Muqtasar: BriefMusht-e-gubaar: A handful of dust
214. Naajaayaz: Illegitimate
215. Nafas/Nafs: Comes from Arabic and denotes self. Also used colloquially in Hindi as nabz/nafs to refer to heartbeat. However, the original term popular in Urdu is pretty complicated and is spirit of life
216. Nafsiyati: People who love everyone, Psychotic
217. Namuna: Specimen, Sample
218. Nargis: Beautiful white flower, sweet and soft
219. Nasihat: Edification
220. Nau Do Gyara Ho Jaana: To run away from a scene
221. Nawaasi: Resident, Granddaughter
222. Nauj: Seek protection or preservation
223. Nawaaza: Prince, Kind, Generous
224. Nawaazi: Hospitality
225. Nawaazish: Thanks
226. Nazaaqat: Nice, Softness, Delicacy, Neatness
227. Nazar Andaaz: Ignore
228. Nazraana: Fine (penalty) or a forced contribution
229. Nehooda: Crass, Course, Indecent, Stupid
230. Nek: Good Natured
231. Nichaawar: Shower (as in Nichaawar karna = shower you with)
232. Nichorna: Squeeze
233. Nigaahen: Eyes
234. Nimantran: Formal Invitation
235. Nisaar: Submit, Sacrifice
236. Nishpaksh: Impartial
237. Niyat: Intention, Purpose, Will
238. Nochna: Scratch
239. Numaaish: Exhibition, Fair, Pretentious
240. Osool: Doctrine, Principle, Essentials
241. Paighaam: Advice, Message, News
242. Paleet: Soiled or likely to soil with dirt or grime; "dirty unswept sidewalks"; "a child in dirty overalls"; "dirty slums"; "piles of dirty dishes";
243. Palkhein: Eyes, eyelashes (as in jhuki palkhein)
244. Palkon: Eyelids
245. Panoti: Difficulty, bad omen, disgrace
246. Parakh: Test
247. Pari: Fairy
248. Parinda: Bird
249. Paryaavaran: Environment
250. Pehar (as in Is Peher): At this HOUR
251. Pehlu: Side or shadow
252. Prakratik: Natural or Innate
253. Prashasan: Administration
254. Prashansha: Compliment
255. Pratibandh: Committed, Restraint, Forced
256. Prerna: Inspiration, Stimulation
257. Qaatil: KillerQaraar: Peace
258. Qaayam: Subsist, Dwell
259. Raahein, Raahon (Raah: singular): Paths
260. Rafa Dafa Karna: To get rid of something
261. Ran Neeti: Strategy
262. Rasiya: A man of emotions - pleasure seeker
263. Raqeeb: Rival in love
264. Rawaaiyaan: Attitude, Stance, Behavior
265. Riqqat: (Almost) beg softly
266. Riyaasat: Estate
267. Rochak as in Rochak aadmi: Interesting
268. Rongte Khare Hona: Goosebumps
269. Rukhsat: Same as Ijazat, Permission, leave, indulgence
270. Saahil: Beach, Coast
271. Saangdil: Merciless, Zaalim
272. Sahaafat: Journalism or press
273. Sailaab: Flood
274. Sajjan: Good person
275. Samet: Rolling up, Gathering together
276. Sarfarosh (also here): Revolution, fearless, traders of head
277. Saaya: Shadow
278. Samarthan: Support
279. Sammedhhaan: Constitution
280. Sarguzasht: Autobiography
281. Saudaagar: Merchant or trader
282. Seerat: Inner beauty, Quality, Nature, Disposition
283. Sehra: Shore (Desert?), "a poem sung at a nikah (Muslim wedding) in praise of the groom, praying to God for his future wedded life. Sehra (headdress), a headdress worn by the groom during Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi weddings."
284. Shab Bakhair: Good Night
285. Shabaab: Youth, Jawaani
286. Shabe Intezaar: Night of waiting
287. Shaita: Polite
288. Shaulat: Power, Dignity
289. Sheen: Beautiful, good
290. Sheetal: Cool
291. Shiddat: Intensity
292. Shistachaar: Etiquette
293. Siyasat: Politics 
294. Siaasat e Madani: Politics of a city or state
295. Siddhaant: Canon, Theory, Dogma, Philosophy
296. Sirphire: Mad
297. Taalim: Nurture, Educate
298. Tabaahi: Disaster / Destruction
299. Tabdeeli: Change, Translation
300. Tabela as in Tabela Banna: Stable
301. Tajurba: Experience
302. Tale: Beneath as in Neele Gagan Ke Tale
303. Takalluf: Ceremonious, Formal
304. Tanqeed (as in Tanqeed nahi karte): Criticism
305. Taraana: Harmony, Symphony, a kind of song
306. Taras: Pity
307. Tarqueeb: Solution, Plan, Method
308. Tasleem: Submission, Salutation
309. Tauheen: Disgrace, Dishonor
310. Tehzeeb: Good in something, Well mannered, Humble
311. Thoom: Garlic sauce
312. Vidhaata: God
313. Viraasat: Legacy, InheritanceUjad gaya: Ruined
314. Ukhaad: Dislocate
315. Ulfat: Love, affection
316. Unsiyyat: Acceptance or state of neutrality or mild acquaintance
317. Upaasana: Worship, Devotion
318. Uttejit: http://dict.hinkhoj.com/उत्तेजित-meaning-in-english.words
319. Vaardaat: Instance
320. Vipul: Plenteous
321. Viraasat: Inheritance
322. Waadiyaan: Valleys
323. Wahdut al wajood: Unity of being
324. Wajood: Existence
325. Waqif: To be aware, familiar
326. Watan: Country (a patriotic word)
327. Zaalim: Cruel, Sangdil
328. Zaahir: Visible, Present, Fact, (Someone or something which, once we have come into contact with them or it, gradually occupies our every thought, until we can think of nothing else.), (Zaahir si baar means Obvious)
329. Zameer: Mind, Heart, Thought
330. Zariye: By way of, equivalent words in Hindi: Dwaara / Madhyam se
331. Zehen: Acumen, Wit, Sagacity, Memory
332. Zehmat: Inconvenience / Trouble
333. Zehreela: Poisonous
334. Zikr: Memory, Reminder

Additional reading:

1. https://rekhta.org/ghazals/gulshan-ko-bahaaron-ne-is-tarah-navaazaa-hai-saghar-azmi-ghazals
2. Different colors: https://urduwallahs.wordpress.com/2013/05/17/colours-in-urdu/

Flight Schedule Puzzle

This is from the newspaper today. Indigo has announced flights to Doha in Oman. Usually flights spend no more an 20 minutes to 2 hours before getting on the air again, otherwise they won't make money.

If you look at the TT (timetable) below, the flight from Chennai arrives at 2:45PM at Doha and leaves Doha  at 14:30 - almost 12 hours later. Does this violate the max 2 hr wait mentioned above?

All times are local times.

Gayatri Mantra And Geeta Chanting

Muslims reciting Hindu Shlokas.

https://yourstory.com/2017/03/meet-5-year-old-firdaus-bhagwad-gita/

See also this video that a friend sent me. (the girl has a lovely voice. and see the person in the podium)

I am reminded of the song Hari Om Man Tadpat - Raag Malkauns - from the 1952 movie Baiju Bawra. The beautiful "Hindu" song was written by Shakeel Badayuni, set to tune by Naushad and sung by Rafi. Now what do you say about that? 

Movie songs in the Raag Malkauns based on its Wiki: 

Man Tarpat Hari Darshan Ko Aaj' (film Baiju Bawra, performed by Mohammad Rafi), 'Aadha Hai Chandrama Raat Aadhi' (film Navrang, performed by Mahendar Kapoor and Asha Bhosle), 'Chham Chham Ghunghroo Bole' (film Kaajal, performed by Asha Bhosle), 'Ankhiyan Sang Ankhiyaan Laagi Aaj (film Bada Aadmi)', 'Balma Maane Na' (film Opera House),  'Gori tera gaon bada pyara' (film Chitchor, performed by K.J. Yesudas). It is rather surprising that I can't seem to identify that all these songs have a common raga and even stranger is the fact that I love most of these songs. The Opera House song and the Kaajal song do seem to have the same tune. Both are dance songs.