Tuesday, 22 February 2011

No 10084, Tuesday 22 Feb 11, Sankalak

ACROSS
1   - Reform Bala with love, more than anything else (5,3) - ABOVE ALL*
5   - Behind time, an afterthought, they are put on the front and rear of the vehicle (6) - {P{LATE}S}
10 - City with an atmosphere immersed in business (5) - {C{AIR}O}
11 - Offering at the altar (9) - SACRIFICE [CD]
12 - He has porcine responsibilities! (9) - SWINEHERD [E]
13 - For all to see, a craft feared by the allies in WWII (1-4) - {U}-{BOAT}
14 - Top gear for a race (5) - DERBY [DD]
16 - Suffering severe strain from preparing desserts (8) - STRESSED*
18 - Unfairness in shareholding (8) - {IN}{EQUITY}
20 - Long for a period of time, starting now (5) - {YEAR}{N}
24 - Gesture that makes for a gush — about right (5) - {SH{R}UG*}
25 - Pill abuse cured? That can be believed (9) - PLAUSIBLE*
27 - Surgery to treat advancing years absorbs abstainer (9) - {CURE}{TT}{AGE}
28 - Use sense — get a whiff of that! (5) - SMELL [DD]
29 - One from Belgrade perhaps, going round Indian state finds it very great (6) - {S{UP}ERB}
30 - They doubtless have dreams of making it to the games village (8) - ATHLETES [CD]
DOWN
1   - A Conservative caught, exploited and charged (7) - {A}{C}{C}{USED}
2   - I was accepted by a Dickens character as an actor (7) - {OL{I}VIER}
3   - TN town to which the English travelled (5) - {E}{RODE} rides again!
4   - Scientist on a roll, making a mistake, losing ring (6) - {LIST}{ERr}
6   - Taking plenty of time over a garland? Of course (9) - {LEI}{SURELY}
7   - They work to keep us covered (7) - TAILORS [CD]
8   - Having a fragrance reportedly transported editor (7) - (~sent){SCENT}{ED}
9   - That burning in the tummy (7) - ACIDITY [CD]
15 - He won't be what he is after some years (9) - YOUNGSTER [CD]
17 - Temporary measure — to plug a leak? (7) - {STOP}{GAP}
18 - Creatures found in groups (7) - {IN}{SECTS} My COD
19 - An ornament which could make the audio receiver go down (7) - {EAR}{DROP}
21 - Enveloping one in an admission of being corrupt (7) - {AM)(B{I}ENT}
22 - Want the French to get things that can tingle? (7) - {NEED}{LES}
23 - A warning to vacate, perhaps (6) - CAVEAT*
26 - Fibre got from plants is also used in rope-making (5) - SISAL [T]



37 comments:

  1. Hi

    Another SUPERB one from Sankalak.

    My word of the day (not cod) is from the first page of the Bangalore Ed. The reporter (probably a synonym enthusiast!) wrote “He led a sybaritic life...” which made me extend my arm to the dictionary.
    My cod is CURE-TT-AGE, though DERBY brought a smile.

    Loved the dentist threat.

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  2. The meeting on Mon, Feb 22, 2011, was a roaring success with all those who had agreed to come having turned up.

    Organised so we will have a chance of meeting a respected solver and setter of special crossword on the Col's blog, Bhavan of Pune, on a visit to Chennai from Australia, this took place yesterday at Hotel New Woodlands in Mylapore.

    I was the first to go the Reception hall. The second person to come was N. Rengaswamy, who joined the Orkut community only the other day. Other trickled in one by one. From time to time I was keeping a watch on people entering the premises and trying to spot some whom I had not before. In under an hour from 6 p.m. all but a couple had come.

    The sofas in the Reception hall, arranged in a most unimaginative manner, were not conducive to interaction but we didn't mind it and were exchanging pleasantries amidst guffaws.

    Around 7 p.m. we adjourned to the restaurant where all of us were seated.

    This meeting assumes significance because it lived up to the title of the association Sloggers and Bloggers - for this was the first where two sloggers were present - Sankalak and Chaturvasi.

    All of us enjoyed the conversation. Bhargav, just back from his Dubai trip, took some photos. These I will upload on my blog when that becomes possible.

    ***Aravindhan goes by the alias Navin Radha. Some of you might have realised it's an anagram of his first handle.

    ***I have asked Bhavan to come home today so there can be one-to-one.

    I avoid the use of the phrase "one-on-one" as it always makes me suspect of the intentions of people who are said to have such encounters.
    (reproduced from the author's postings in the Orkut community: The Hindu Crossword Solutions)

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  3. Kishore
    I being a Spartan don't care for Sybarites.

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  4. The doctors at yesterday's meeting said Sankalak uses many medical terms in his crosswords: truly, today we have some.

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  5. CV: :-)

    I brought it up because after a long time a word in the news made me flex my upper appendage for the lexicon. The reporter, of course, is unidentified.

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  6. Last evening Sankalak, while answering a question from Bhavan, mentioned MIOCENE. How would you clue it? Sometimes we have to think awhile to tackle a difficult word.
    Most of us thought it was Myosin - some medical term - until Sankalak spelt it out.
    None offered any clue as we had pieces of dahi vada, sambar vadai or onion rava dosai in the mouth.
    Now, let me try offhand:
    Laid-back Mantra catches Gridman in church quarter for a certain period (7)

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  7. Spin me on ice for a period (7)

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  8. Enjoyed yesterday's meet immensely.A big thanks to CV.Thiruvalluvar said something for the stomach will be given when you don't have good thought provoking words to hear.Gridman provided us both in full measure.We had nothing to loose and everything to gain.Should I say 14a's off to you to have relevance to today's grid?

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  9. Nice coverage on the meeting. Missed it.

    Another neat one from Sankalak. My cOd is curettage..ofcourse thats the one of the two eluded me. another one is ambient.

    Good day

    Economic reforms without other copy gives us the epoch.

    Mathu

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  10. My clue for MIOCENE

    Economise not so long ago! (7)

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  11. When I was young I had come across a nice clue for U-BOAT i.e.

    About to break a craft (1,4)

    It was simple but a difficult anagram to spot at that age.

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  12. Satya's clue can stand as it is!

    **I am not sure Mathu's works. Does it?

    ***Rengaswamy's is plausible. To improve surface reading we may change the fodder to Economies. Of course, we need an anag ind too.

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  13. Re U-BOAT. When we first come across a device for a clue, we are thrilled. That may be when we were young or old! But over the years you are apt to see it again and again!

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  14. How about "Bad economies not so long ago"

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  15. or "Poor economies not so long ago"

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  16. There may be criticism that the del fodder SO is scattered in the fodder. But we may ignore strict rules in these clue-writing exercises. The clue as revised is neat!

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  17. Long ago, I heard my officer commanding say,"67.5 degrees" (7)

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  18. The army engineer in Deepak shows!

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  19. It took a while for me to decipher 57.5 degrees-east-northeast,right?

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  20. "CEO is mine? confused ages ago"

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  21. I'm not able to decipher this. Need help on this pls

    Laid-back Mantra catches Gridman in church quarter for a certain period (7)

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  22. certain period-def-"miocene"

    back mantra- om

    gridman -I

    church - ce

    quarter - ne

    laid- anind

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  23. Correct.
    A more proper representation would be
    M(I)O< CE NE
    A charade with a c/c component, where content is in a container that is reversed.

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  24. Where there's a false capitalisation. Mantra is a girl's name (no, I am not thinking of the seasonal celebrity famous for noodle-strap blouses) in surface reading but the Sanskrit word that means 'text used for incantation'.

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  25. Padmanabhan @ 12:33

    That's right, 67.5 Degrees is ENE

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  26. and by the same token 22.5 will be NNE.

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  27. Thoroughly enjoyable crossword today, Thank you, Mr. Sankalak!

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  28. thank you Padmanabhan for the explanation

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  29. 26D is also an &lit, isn't it?

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  30. Indian Oil Corporation beginners and Eastern men got together for a time. (7)

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  31. Married Indians initially love money and energy - not time period (7)

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  32. Times of poor income beginning to end (7)

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  33. Kishore's: Wordplay and surface reading OK. Quite acceptable.
    Ajeesh's: Wordplay works, surface reading not too attractive
    Sumit's: Good wordplay and good surface reading.

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  34. See photo here:

    http://dailydozen.blogspot.com/2011/02/blog-post.html

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