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Consumerism:Impact On Climate Change

2010-10-10T00:17:00.000-07:00

This article was posted on www.readersquotient.com on August 28th 2010. It was written exclusively for Readers Quotient and the rights are reserved by the magazine and the author - Pranav Patel

“Rohan! Switch off the air conditioner and fan”, shouted Rohan’s mother. Rohan, a 14 year old, had just woken up and was busy brushing his teeth when his mother asked him to switch off the air conditioner and the fan in his bedroom. As he started walking towards his bedroom he heard his mom shout again. “Rohan, who do you think will turn off the tap in the washbasin? Stop wasting electricity and water, will you!” This is the way a day usually starts for Rohan. This in fact is the way a day usually starts for millions of children who have lived a life of luxury and comfort. Keeping fans, air conditioners, coolers and water taps turned on does not pinch their pockets or prick their conscience. They don’t realize the importance of money due to their naïveté. But, they certainly do need to know the impact their actions have on the ecology and environment. Their present actions will determine their future standard of living and quality of life on this planet, not just for them but all of humanity.

So how exactly does this sort of consumption pattern affect the ecological balance and climate? To begin with, consumption of energy (electricity) may not have any direct visible impact on nature and its surroundings. But, it surely has a huge impact on the environment due to the way it is generated. Most of the electricity produced today comes from thermal (coal) power plants. The greater the amount of coal we burn to produce electricity, the greater will be the carbon emission in the atmosphere. This carbon emission will then remain in the atmosphere in case they are not inhaled by natural vegetation (Trees inhale CO2 and exhale Oxygen). Most of the thick rainforests of Brazil, South East Asia and Africa are known carbon reservoirs. However, deforestation, industrialization and globalization have greatly reduced their efficiency to store carbon emission, which now is left above the earth’s atmosphere. Due to this, the oxygen content in atmosphere is greatly reduced. This is a result of the symbiotic relationship between humans and the plant kingdom. Plants inhale CO2 and exhale oxygen. Humans on the other hand, inhale Oxygen and exhale CO2. If the plant population reduces, the amount of available oxygen will reduce and CO2 content will increase. The proportion of CO2 and Oxygen will be impacted as a result of this deforestation. The ability to reflect sunlight is affected (diminished in this case) and as a result the overall temperature of the earth increases. This phenomenon is better known as global warming. The impact of rise in temperature will lead to great water scarcity (fresh water sources are around 3% of total available water sources of the world), floods (mainly due to melting of glaciers), and reduction in foodgrain production. The ever increasing temperature also will seriously threaten the flora and fauna present on earth. The polar bear population has reduced dramatically due to the melting of glaciers. The world faces the prospect of losing the polar bears forever.

The phenomenon of global warming dates back to the early days of the industrial revolution, when man started releasing toxic gases like Carbon dioxide and methane into the earth’s atmosphere. What they did not know at that time was that the atmosphere could absorb only a limited amount of Carbon Dioxide. The atmosphere basically is similar to a parking lot where only a fixed number of cars can be parked. One can play around with the arrangement of cars but the overall parking strength would more or less remain the same. If the capacity of the parking lot is 100 cars, then we have already parked around 90 cars over the last 150 years. There is space left for only 10 more cars. (The analogy here is between cars and CO2 content) The countries of the world are now fighting over how many cars they can park (rather the amount of CO2 they can emit). International negotiations are pretty much stuck at who owns more responsibility in cutting emissions. It is more of a developed nation’s v/s developing nation’s debate. This is the status quo on climate change and global warming talks. The Cop-15 summit held at Copenhagen last year failed due to this tussle between the developed and developing countries.

A question which might come to mind is why not move away from Carbon based fossil fuels to the conventional energy sources and nuclear, hydro based power. This transition is easier said than done. Thermal power is the cheapest source of power available today. Nuclear power is almost 8 times costlier than thermal power and solar power cost goes even higher than that. Solar power has other problems like dependence on available sunlight. Hydro power certainly seems a good option but it has many other ethical and environmental problems like deforestation and displacement.The India’s Narmada Bachao Andolan is a glaring example of the issues governments and companies face with big hydro-power projects. Developing countries like India might start making a transition to nuclear power but this would be a very expensive solution which may have political repercussions for the ruling party. At the end of the day the government would always be concerned about higher GDP and growth rates. No President or PM would risk going to the polls with lower growth rates. So as of now everyone is happy with thermal power plants, notwithstanding all the talk of energy conservation and climate change. Also the potential risks attached with Nuclear power are very high. The Chernobyl disaster still rankles in the minds of people when they think of the repercussions of a nuclear disaster.

Coming back to Rohan and millions of other kids like him who might wonder how cutting electricity consumption would reduce global warming, well it certainly would not reduce global warming but would at least delay the inevitable. This would certainly give to the world’s scientists, engineers, leaders and policy makers more time to arrive at a feasible solution to deal with this potent threat.

Organisations and Events on climate change –

The Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN) is a network uniting Indian youth and youth oriented organizations who are concerned about climate change & environment issues. IYCN is inviting applications for CoP 16, the climate change summit to be held in Cancun, Mexico.

For more details visit – www.iycn.in

Bhopal Verdict : A Different Perspective

2010-08-13T21:57:00.000-07:00

This article was posted By Reader's Quotient On Wednesday, June 30th 2010 In Society
http://readersquotient.com/2010/06/30/bhopal-verdict-a-different-perspective/

Finally managed to get published !!! Yipeeeeeee

Today I saw

2010-04-07T11:47:00.000-07:00

I just happened to walk on the road opposite my school.As I walked across, I saw a young girl carrying her bag, walk towards the school gate.Along with her I saw many children waving goodbye to their parents as they entered the school.Suddenly amongst the crowd of children I saw a familiar face.A face I had grown up seeing all my life.I saw a much younger Pranav walk towards the gate.This Pranav was much more energetic and full of life.I could see him playing around with a group of kids.It was probably during the spare time we always had before the early morning prayers. Then, I also saw my buddies from school - Ritesh,Priyanka,Sourabha,Ramprasad,Archana,Shweta,Resham,Hardik. These were the faces I grew up with during my school days.It felt nice to revisit those innocent times of life when life revolved around school,friends,homework,play,family dinners and sleep.Those were carefree times when I was unaware of what a career meant and what salaries and pay-packets were.Today life seems to have taken a 360 degree turn because here I am sitting all alone in my room writing this post.As I write about my school days, my mind goes back to those lovely times we all had in school.Truly,those were the best days of my life.

My visit to India Gate

2010-03-01T09:47:00.000-08:00

Recently I went on a trip to Delhi.India Gate was topmost in my list of places to visit,which included some historical monuments like Red Fort,Rashtrapati Bhavan,Qutub Minar and Parliament.
India Gate was built by the British,the erstwhile colonial rulers of India, as a war memorial to the Indian soldiers who had fought alongside the British troops in World War I and the Afghan wars.After India gained independence from the British, India Gate became the site of the Indian Army’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or the Amar Jawan Jyoti(Flame of the Immortal Soldier),which burns in a shrine under the arch of India Gate.The shrine is made of black marble and is a cenotaph,with a rifle placed on it.On the rifle sits a soldiers helmet.On all four sides of the cenotaph are inscribed the words Amar Jawan(Immortal Soldier).The names of gallantry award winners are mentioned on the bricks of India Gate.
I had seen the India Gate on TV but that day I stood right in front of it. I could feel a sense of pride when I saw the names of the Indian soldiers on its walls.These were the soldiers who had fought many a war against oppressive regimes and invaders. They had sacrificed their lives for the idea of freedom and liberty during the maddening days of World War I, when humanity was kicked around at the cost of millions of lives.I could only bow my head in respect to the great heroes of India who had sacrificed their lives to ensure a better tomorrow for future generations.Standing alongside me were hundreds of other tourists, who too were thrilled to see this historical monument. Young children were giggling and dancing. Some of them were local school children, who had probably come over on a day trip. Most of the tourists, who were from the post World War II generation, had only heard of the mayhem and destruction caused during the two great wars. They all had come to see this magnificent structure, which today stands as a symbol of a nation’s gratitude to its soldiers who fought in World War I.
In front of the India Gate are three flags, each signifying the three armed forces of Independent India. I also saw soldiers marching around the memorial. Some of the soldiers were generous enough to pose for pictures with the ecstatic children. They were aware of the excitement their guns had created amongst the little ones.
It was soon time for me to leave. Before leaving I had a last look at the names on the Gate. A silent thank you was followed by a salute. As I left, I promised myself that I would come back soon. I await the day when I shall go back to visit this symbol of sacrifice and bravery.

What If

2009-09-17T11:27:00.000-07:00

"What If" actually is a beautiful song written by Coldplay- one of my favourite bands.It starts off with the words - "What is there was no Life.Nothing wrong.Nothing right.What if there was no time.And no reason or rhyme."
I was just hearing the song all over again and realised that the song had a lot of depth in it.The lyrics somehow make a lot of sense.They probably are written from personal experience.
I am sure we all at some point in our lives come at a phase where the most logical and sensible of things just don't make any sense to us.We realise that the feelings we are going through at that time are probably momentary and those too shall pass but somehow deep inside,we just wish or probably hope to hold on.In this life we meet so many people.We go through so many emotions and feelings of joy as well as sorrow.Our family,friends,colleagues,relatives as well as strangers are invariably a part of some of the happiest as well as saddest moments of our lives. At some point in our lives when we look back at those moments we end up asking ourselves a question - "What If". This question generally pops up in our mind at times when we are down and out. The last few months have been those times for me where I have ended up asking myself this question umpteen number of times. This has mainly been due to the loss of someone for whom I always had a lot of warmth and respect.Emotionally I had lost touch with him almost 3 years back due to a disease which couldn't be cured and was slowly taking away every moment of his life.I lost touch with him physically just a few months back. Whenever this question pops up in my mind it ends up making me angry with myself for having been so insensitive at times and for not having done more than I should have to spend more time with that person.What If I had met him atleast once in 4 months whenever I used to go home in Bombay.What If I had called him up regularly when his mind and body was holding on against the onslaught of the disease.I would atleast have had many more memories of him with me.I would have managed to bring a smile or two on his face.The point I am trying to make is how we all end up getting tied up with our daily routine and become machines. Then one fine day due to a particular incident we just realise we have become machines without any emotions and feelings.I guess, most of us have forgotten to live. We are just breathing air,eating food,drinking water and working-to earn money. In between all of this do we ever think of calling up an old friend,talking to our uncles and aunts,meeting up with the neighbour who has been living alone since years,taking care of a relative who has been sick for quite some time ? These are just few things which we can do in a day. The list is just endless. I am sure we all would want to avoid coming across this one question -What If ? The only way to avoid this is to follow your heart. If you ever feel like hugging your parents without any reason just go ahead and do it.Don't think twice. You wish to talk to an old friend with whom you haven't spoken to in ages then just go ahead and call up or drop an email. Trust me he/she won't sue you for doing that! You have been sitting at home just wasting your time doing nothing and wish someone was around so that you could talk.Well, then just get up and go to meet your cousin/friend/relative or just anyone who wouldn't mind welcoming you in his/her home for a day. Life is too short for us to get entangled in routine work and ego problems. So just take time out and follow your heart. You will rarely come across those two painful words - What If.

The human mind

2009-08-28T09:37:00.000-07:00

The brain - the CPU of the human body.It bloody well weighs not more than 1.6 - 1.8 kgs but can store tonnes and tonnes(or nanobytes,terabytes or any other form of byte) of information. I would call it god's most precious gift to mankind.My apologies to all feminists for using the word mankind but being the traditionalist that I am,I will prefer to stick to this word.
At times I do wonder what all this magnificent little devil can do if it is used in the proper way.We all have seen what it forces evil to do if they start using their brains in the wrong way.A look at recent history would give us glaring examples like Hitler,Stalin,Polpot,Osama and many others.The point here is what exactly goes on in a human mind and what is it that gives it the fuel and fodder to do things that it makes us do.I,for example, do keep using my brain continuously but its output usually isn't of much relevance to the world or to my immediate near and dear ones!!! Some people have also given me an alias called "Lost World".My mind generally makes me travel places where I have never been.At one moment I am in places like Kashmir,North East India,Goa and at the next moment I would be thinking about my family,career,friends and the good old times,though not necessarily in that order.In times when the heart comes out stronger over the brain,I generally go into a completely different zone and think about some special people who might actually be standing next to me at times!
The point here is not what all I think but what is it that makes the brain think or do all the things it makes us do.I am sure different people have much better control over their lives and also over their thoughts.But, this surely doesn't mean that they wouldn't be thinking about some vague things.At times I do feel like getting into the minds of some of my friends to get to know what exactly they think about me or others.Okay,okay,I know it would amount to spying but what the heck.It might make my life less complicated and easier as I would know who are my well wishers and who are just part time companions enjoying my company in their journey of life.

India's new age heroes

2009-08-14T21:44:00.000-07:00

Today on the 15th of August I feel a sense of fulfillment as well as sorrow.A feeling of pride makes my heart swell with pride over all the achievements this great nation has made over the last 60 years.These years have given us a new set of heroes to look up to.I prefer to call them the new age heroes for the present generation. It has taken years of hardwork and dedication on the part of lakhs of people due to which we are at the cusp of being a dominant player on the world stage.About 15 years back this would have been unimaginable.The new age heroes of India have made the unthinkable very much possible.
One of the first heroes to come to my mind is the Indian soldier. I am talking about the guy who carries a heavy haversack on his back with that huge rifle in his hands to shoot at his enemies.This soldier has been guarding the borders of India right from the Kashmir valley to the terrains in North-East and the desert of Rajasthan.We can also find him in the jungles of interior India fighting the naxalties,maoists and other extremist outfits. Hats off to all the soldiers of our armed forces who have been doing their duty with utmost sincerity dedication. The people of India will forever be indebted to the soldiers who lost their lives in the wars which India has fought against external as well as internal enemies.
N R Narayanamurty is a household name in India today.His is a success story of middle class India.Today, Infosys holds a special place in the hearts of all its shareholders,employees and customers due to the hard work put in by N R Narayanamurhty and his team of co-founders.Their success story has proved that success can be achieved without resorting to corrupt,dishonest and shortcut practices.No wonder Infosys is held in high esteem by its competitors too.
Anna Hazare is another name which is synonimous in the battle against corruption and exploitation.The battle against the move to curb the provisions in the RTI(Right to Information) Act was won due to the unitiring efforts of men like Anna Hazare.One can associate his name with innumerable anit-corruption crusades against the government machinery.
Sheila Dikshit is a name which comes to mind when one thinks of development and peformance.One can find very few people from her field making an entry into the good books of the common man!This in itself is a compliment for any politician.She has won 3 consecutive terms as the CM of Delhi a state which is notrorious for its criminal activities and wayward ways of the babus who run it.Her presence in politics shows a glimmer of hope for young India which is looking for development driven politics.She is a beacon of hope for middle class India.
Ratan Tata is a name which immediately evokes the legacy of the Tata's. The fact that he took over as chairman of Tata Sons from his legendary uncle-JRD Tata meant he had to live upto the highest standards. Today after more than a 100 years the Tata's have built a presense in almost every possible sector.Their success story is no mean feat in a country where cutting corners and adopting malpractices to earn has become a norm.The Tata's have been successful inspite of not resorting to such practices.The acquisition of Corus steel(UK based steel giant) and the Jaguar-Land Rover brands were a feather in the cap for corporate India.These acquisitions were an indication of India's arrival on the world stage.
The list does not end here.There are many other countless Indians like the judges,doctors,teachers and farmers who work tirelessly for the betterment of India.They are the unheard and unsung heroes who have not been given their due by history.Hopefully our future generations will realise that the precious gift of freedom given to us by our forefathers would have been snatched away from us had it not been for the untiring efforts of these wondeful men and women.

Moving on

2009-06-21T09:50:00.000-07:00

The last 2.5 years have been one of the best and most enriching years of my life.
I spent those in the IT city of India - Bangalore. Destiny and luck got me in touch with some of the best possible roommates I could have got. Luck got me in touch with someone who in turn introduced me to some really great friends. Time just flew by in the company of these wonderful friends. I possibly couldn't have asked for more from anyone. Today I have got a transfer to Pune which is very much near Bombay,my hometown. The decision to take this transfer was a very conscious one taken after some deep thought.I had to move on in life at some point of time. I am not sure when I will meet those wonderful friends I still have in Bangalore. The only thing I am sure about is that they will always be a very important part of my life whom I will never forget.
I do have this mild feeling of sadness in my heart. I know I will overcome it in some time.However, I pray to God that he doesn't let me overcome the feeling of warmth that we all have for each other.

A must read

2008-12-22T09:54:00.000-08:00

Some time back around last year I came across a book based on a true story.The title of the book read "The Sinking of the INS Khukri".It was written by a former Indian army major - Ian Cardoza(if I'm not wrong). This book is based on the 1971 Indo-Pak war which resulted in the birth of Bangladesh.I went through the back cover of the book and I just had to buy it as it was based on the true story of a few brave Navy Officers who lost their lives when an Indian war ship was sunk by the Pakistan Navy.
The captain of the ship was Mahendra Nath Mulla,a charismatic officer who led from the front.This is one of the best war stories I have ever read.It teaches us a lot about team work,leadership qualities,humanity and most importantly our duty towards the nation.Mr. Mahendra Nath Mulla was literally the last man standing on the ship as Naval traditions expect the captain of the ship not to leave it alone when it is sinking even if all the others on board have been saved.Mr. Mulla left behind his wife and two young daughters when he died.The book is a very poignant description of the lives of almost all the naval officers who lost their lives on board the vessel.It also speaks about the families that these officers left behind in the hope that they would be cared for by the insitutions they had served throught their lifetime and the country for which they sacrificed their lives.Not much has been written about these officers since their death.Towards the end of the book, General Cardoza does mention that Captain Mulla's daughters are now married and have children who are in their late teens and 20's.After I finished reading the book I actually felt like meeting them just to pay homage to this great soldier and his fellow officers who lost their lives in that war.I am sure others too will feel the same after reading the book.

A Nation introspects

2008-12-11T10:07:00.000-08:00

November 26 will always be remembered as a black day in India.The nation suffered one of the most audacious terror attacks carried out in any part of the world. For the next 3 days the business hub of South Bombay was turned into a war zone.A lot happened during those 3 days and afterwards.People were out on the streets shouting slogans against the terrorists,the system,politicians and almost anyone responsible for the mess we found ourselves in.The lives of one of the brightest and most efficient police officers and commandos were blighted.Around 200 innocent civilian lives were lost in the madness of those 3 days.
Many heads have rolled since then.A lot has been said and written about in the media and other circles.More importantly,people have started demanding the much needed change in the political and bureaucratic system.This talk of change till now was only restricted to political rallies and election speeches.This time things seem to be different.Now the people are demanding and the politicians are on the backfoot.This situation has been created not just due to the loss of those 200 lives in those dreadful attacks.It is a situation which has been created due to the loss of the lives of thousands of soldiers along the borders of India in the past 60 years and those in the paramiltary and police force.The loss of innocent civilians in Kashmir,North Eastern states of India,Punjab and many other states have only added to the body count.The nation always was a mute spectator to this madness.The wayward ways of the political class were seldom questioned which always led to more bloodshed.November 26th was a catalyst to all this madness around us.It has awakened us from our slumber as now the enemy is not just at our doorstep but is inside our homes.The anger and outrage of the people over the system is totally justified.The terrorists not only attacked our homes but also our lifestyle,our history and our freedom.They need to be stopped immediately.The resolve shown by the people after the attacks has been very heartening.This show of strength and unity wouldn't have been possible had it not been for the meaningless loss of lives of the civilians and security forces.We will not be able to get back those who are no more with us.The people we lost on the borders, Kashmir,Punjab,North East and umpteen number of places can never be brought back.But we surely can pledge to ensure that the November 26 attacks will never be repeated.In case they do,we will come out on the streets and demand our basic rights of freedom and security even if the attacks occur in a nondescript village of India.Most importantly, let us pray for those we lost to the madness of violence over the last 60 years.India owes a lot to each and every one of them-civilians as well as soldiers.Let us pray that we as a nation do not fail to protect our citizens.We can only say sorry to the one's who are no more with us.As for those who are with us,let us ask ourselves if we care.I'm sure the answer would be an overwhelming yes.Let this answer be the beginning of a new democratic but firm resolution.This unity should go out as a warning to our enemies both within and oustide the country.The message for our political class is very clear- perform or perish.As for our enemies,we have only one thing to say - Don't you dare!

A Nation mourns the loss of its brave sons

2008-11-27T09:12:00.000-08:00

Terror has struck the financial capital of India yet again.The figures give a better idea about the scale and audacity of this attack- 125 dead, 325 injured,25 hours of intense gun fighting and the battle is still not over as I write about the loss of lives! Amidst all this madness and mayhem,there is one thing common with all other terrorist attacks.It was the people and hapless security forces who had to face the fire while our politicians and leaders sat in their air-conditioned offices with Z + security.
I don't even feel like wasting my time and energy to write about our shameless politicians from the government as well as opposition parties.The entire political class should be thrown in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal.I'm sure the contamination levels would only increase manyfold!
What I do care about, like many other fellow Indians, is the lives of innocent citizens and security officers.Three IPS officers ended up losing their lives in the last 24 hours.Hemant Karkare,Vijay Salaskar and Ashok Kamte are no more.Hemant Karkare,the Mumbai ATS chief,had come under fire from the right wing Hindu organisations and political parties after the ATS arrested "Sadhvi" Pragya, Lt. Col Srikant Purohit and some other members of Abhinav Bharat for their alleged role in the Malegaon blasts. He was also called a traitor by many of these organisations for arresting "Hindu's"! Ironically he died a hero's death fighting Islamic terrorists who had opened indiscriminate fire in Mumbai in the late hours of 26 November 2008. At the time of this encounter none of the leaders of these so called nationalist organisations were out on the streets to protect the common man.They probably were busy hatching another plot to forment communal violence between our own countrymen while the government turns a blind eye to everything going on around it to appease the minority. This country sure has a motley bunch of leaders to choose from! It is difficult to judge which group is the worst of the lot!
Along with Hemant Karkare,Mumbai police also lost encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar and Ashok Kamte,former commissioner of Solapur who was always known to be in the thick of action. These officers were supposed to be one of the best in their profession.Hemant Karkare was the kind of leader who led from the front.As chief of the ATS he was never expected to go out on the battlefield with a gun in his hands.Yet,he just did that.Have we ever seen any politician do something of this sort? In a nation like ours where the political class is just not bothered about the plight of the citizens and the state of the country,we can confidently say that the loss of these 3 brave men and their colleagues will not bring any kind of change in attitude of the political leaders.It is with deep anguish and resentment that I say the loss of these 3 officers is just the beginning of many such losses.We have in the past lost many brilliant officers due to the spineless and selfish approach of politicians.We will continue to lose many more officers in the future unless all these politicians are kicked on their bums and booted out by the people of the country.Till then we unfortunately will have to write many such blogs in memory of the Karkare's,Salaskar's and Kamte's.

Heroes of Independent India

2008-09-28T01:26:00.000-07:00

The year 1947 was a watershed in the history of India.The colonial rulers exited India and in the process,British ruled India was split into two nations.It has been more than 60 years since India's colonial rulers left the shores of India.In the last 60 years,India has definitely gone through a lot of ups and downs. She has been through the highs of the patriotic fervour of the 1940's and early 50's,the glorious victory of 1971 against her perennial neighbour Pakistan,the economic independence of the early 90's which followed the start of the liberalisation of the mid 80's and also its very own industrial revolution through the IT boom of the late 90's.In the very same period, she has lost many of her son's in the secessionist movements that started as early as the 60's in the North-East,Punjab in the late 70's to the early 90's and Kashmir from the early 90's onwards.India also had to go through a humiliating loss to China in the 1962 border war which had threatened to blow up into a full blown war,till the Chinese unilaterally withdrew(not before it consolidated its hold on NEFA and parts of Ladakh which it still continues to hold).One cannot forget the dark days of emergency which threatened to kill India's dreams of being a democratic nation with a strong and independent judiciary and civil services or the Ayodhya movement of the late 80's and early 90's which threatened to destroy the secular fabric of the country. Admidst all of this,India has managed to move on and march ahead on the path towards progress and development.Surely it is not just the gods who have smiled upon India all these years.Many heroes did emerge through the turbulent period of the early years who not only challenged the system but also emerged victorious and removed many of the loopholes and flaws in the system.These heroes showed the nation a path to move ahead and achieve success without fear and trepidition.They emerged as the real heroes of the common man and not just mere poster boys propped up by the media.
J P Narayan was one such hero who emerged on the political landscape a couple of years before emergency was clamped down by Indira Gandhi's Congress party. J P Narayan arguably was the only leader after Mahatma Gandhi who had the stature and respect among his contemporaries who managed to bring them all together on a common platform.He emereged as the leader of an eclectic group of political parties which had a common goal of defeating Indira Gandhi and bring an end to her tyrannical rule in the country.She had successfully de-institutionalised the Congress party by removing all the strong leaders in the Congress who could have emerged as a threat to her dominance and was being pushed to do the same throughout the civil services and judiciary by her infamous younger son Sanjay Gandhi who in most of the cases was running the show within the party and the government.The movements launched by J P Narayan in Bihar against corruption led to the dismissal of the state government and also shook the centres of power in Delhi.The movement launched by him spread to the neighbouring states and also to Gujarat and were the major reasons for emergency to be clamped down by an anxious central government.
Former Chief Election Commissioner of India T N Seshan was another hero who changed the way IAS officers and the office of the Election Commission functioned. T N Seshan was one officer who always stood up against the government and political elite for taking unilateral decisions. T N Seshan took over as India's CEC at a time when the electoral spending by political parties had reached a mammoth sum.He was arguably the first CEC who made the political elite realise that the office of the CEC could not be taken for granted. Some of the decisions taken by him like holding elections in phases over a period of 15-30 days were momentous and faced a lot of opposition from the political parties who always wanted elections to be held on the same day all over the country and state for their own petty purposes.T N Seshan also imposed strict rules like campaign timings and spending limits per candidate which previously were never implemented by former CEC's who either didn't have the spirit or character to take on the political class of the country. Some of T N Seshan's policies have had far reaching consequences even after his retirement from office.India has been able to conduct free and fair elections in regions like the North-East and leftist violence affected regions of Jharkhand,Bihar and Andhra Pradesh due to honest and upright IAS officers like him.Most of T N Seshan's contemporaries have followed his ideas and policies while conducting elections.T N Seshan was one officer who managed to bring the respect and dignity that the office of the Election Commission deserves.The Election Commission deserves all the accolades that come its way for ensuring that India's dream of being a democratic nation with an electoral franchise is not killed by selfish and self serving politicians who only care about their positions of power and not about the country's progress.

To be contd...

The 'N' Factor

2008-07-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

The last 15 days have seen a making and breaking of alliances at the regional and national level. The UPA-Left divorce is almost final, after the UPA govt's decision to go ahead with the nuclear deal. The deal has brought together two bitter foes,Congress and Samajwadi Party(SP) together. The Nuclear deal has obviously acted as a catalyst and is not the main reason for this alliance. The BJP led NDA is sticking to the BJP line of opposing everything since they are in opposition! The most surprising and disgusting(if I may say so) sight is to see the BJP leadership crying hoarse over India's sovereign foreign policy being compromised by signing this treaty, when the whole world knows that it was the BJP led NDA which had initiated the dialogue between India and US and former PM A B Vajpayee had gone on record in the UN General Assembly, stating that India would no longer test any Nuclear weapons after the successful tests conducted in 1998!The BJP led NDA was in fact, ready to settle for much less than what is presently being offered by the US to the Indian govt. This sadly, is one of the lowest ebb's in India's democracy. It show's the desperation of the opposition parties to come to power, even after being ousted by the people in an election. A responsible opposition's duty is to keep a check on the misdeeds of a government and support it in its honest endeavours which will help the common man in general and take the country forward. Indian politics over the last 20 years has had three power blocks,the centrist Congress party,the so called "rightists", led by the BJP and the leftists led by the CPI(M) and CPI.
An alliance with the western powers led by the USA will be music to the ears of any party which calls itself rightist and anti-left.But the same does not hold true of the BJP which is rubbing its hands gleefully at each and every turn,gladly watching the unfolding events and desperately waiting for the UPA government to fall at the cost of a nuclear deal which will end India's nuclear isolation and open the doors to a strategic alliance with not just the USA but also other major powers like Russia,UK and France. The nuclear deal will also help in the exchange of technology and open up new avenues in the field of energy, computers and also help reduce dependence on oil. The job opportunities and research potential of the nuclear deal are immense. This treaty will be one of the pillars which help India realise its aspirations of being a developed nation. Any political party which opposes this deal in its present form can only do so for its own personal and opportunistic or selfish interests.
The left's opposition to this deal is expected as they take orders from Beijing which is naurally uncomfortable and becoming increasingly edgy over the rise of India's economic might which is a major threat to its aspirations of being the only super-power in the South Asian region. The stand taken by the left has exposed them in front of the people of the nation,and made it clear that given a choice bewteen the nation and ideology they will gladly choose the latter. This has clearly shown the entire nation that the leftists are an instrument of China's communist party and their support to the UPA was to ensure that the government never got a free hand in implementing the major economic reforms program needed to take the liberalisation process initiated by the Narasimha Rao govt to its logical next step.This is the second time after the 1962 war, that the left parties have chosen to stand by their ideological masters in China against the greater cause of national interest.The Indian nation and people can definitely do better if this lot of politicians is shown the door by the people in the next elections.
On the other end of the political spectrum,the NDA comprising of anti Congress parties,led by the BJP are opposing the deal just because it is being pushed by their man political adverseries.What is most surprising is the fact that the BJP aspires to be the natural pan-Indian alternative to the Congress.The statements being made by the BJP leaders only indicate their desperation to come back to power and do not in any way give a reason for their opposition to the nuke deal or the alternatives which they propose to meet the ever increasing demands of India's energy needs. Regional outfits like the TDP led by Chandrababu Naidu,which are pro-market and reforms oriented have also opposed the deal just because they do not want to be seen on the same side as the Congress party.One may recall,how Chandrababu Naidu went out of his way to welcome investments from various US based companies in the state of Andhra Pradesh during his 9 year tenure as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.The problem his party has with the deal is not ideological but political. The TDP believes supporting the deal will not be beneficial politically, as it will possibly send out a signal to the voters that they are on the same side as the Congress, their principal opponent in their home state. The same can be said of other regional outfits in India who have sided with the BJP only because the Congress is their principle opponent in their respective states. This type of naïve and short sighted thinking shows our political parties and their leaders in poor light. The nuclear deal could have been one of the turning points in Indian politics if most of the political parties cutting across the political spectrum had actually come forward to wholeheartedly support the deal with a brute majority. This would have shown India's adversaries that no matter how much our political parties fight for power,when it comes to national interest, political parties will stand shoulder to shoulder and support each other for the greater good of the nation.
One could never have imagined a few years back, that a treaty with a recognized international organization like the IAEA and the NSG would bring about a realignment of political forces and probably may also end a government’s tenure. Eminent scientists and even a former President (H.E Abdul Kalam) have gone on record saying that the deal is beneficial for the nation. The Atomic Energy commission chairman Mr. Anil Kakodkar is still lobbying hard for the deal to be pushed through.The same can be said of India’s ambassadors to the US,UK,Russia and France. This deal has come India’s way without India pushing and lobbying hard for it. If at this crucial juncture the government is not able to complete the last few remaining laps of this marathon run, future generations will never forgive the government as well as the opposition parties.

Getting nostalgic

2007-06-26T05:04:00.000-07:00

I haven't written something for quiet sometime.It was due to various reason's like writer's block as well as lack of time(actually more of the former).Finally I've decided to scribble something so that I can write some sensible article after 2-3 crap posts.Its been around 7 months since I joined infy and abt 5 months in Bangalore.I've had a pretty good experience over here when it comes to interacting with people,making friends,roaming around and just about doing anything that I would get time to do.But, still there are times when one feels a void somewhere deep within.Right now I am going through the same kind of feeling.(It also may have something to do with the fact that I lost my mobile phone from right under my nose.Actually from my pocket).Coming back to the main point,I am having ambivalent feelings about staying away from home and friends(not that I don't have any over here).Sometimes one just feels like this is the best thing to have happened but at times you just hope to get done with everything and move back to where your heart is(in this case home and with old friends).There are times when we remember the good old days of sharing a cuppa tea with buddies,the bird watching sessions at hang out places,the assignments which we always cribbed about(yeah and I kinda miss all that now),the eating sessions on the last benches with friends in the middle of the lectures,the rose day celebrations.... its just about endless.Sadly all these things will never come back.Its only the memories which will stay with us forever.To quote a dialogue from the movie Bluffmaster "tumhe aise kitne din yaad hain-first job,pehli salary,jab pehli baar tumhaara dil dhadka,jab pehli baar tumne kisi ladki ko chhua".I mean these were very small and minor things in our life at that time but now we actually realise how significant they were.
Sometimes we just wish that life should always be the same,just the way it was in college,with friends and family.The ups and downs,the happiness of forcing the birthday boy/girl to give a treat,the fun times during DJ nites in college festivals,the nite-outs during exams,the planning sessions for vacations which always started a night before the last exam.Am I getting too nostalgic.Well thats the way I'm-emotional,sentimental,foolish and crazy to a certain extent.Even today when I see a group of college students hanging around in the malls and multiplexes it reminds me of my own college days,the way we bunked lectures to run away for a movie,the way we played cricket during the college fests,the crushes,the many proposals and equal number of rejections,how hearts broke sometimes(sadly) and came together many times(to live happily),the drinking sessions after a soured relationship or a lost championship trophy(which for us was nothing less than the world cup).I know life has to move one.Everybody moves on but its just that you always feel like asking God to give back one such day of our life so that we can undo many of the mistakes that we made and also relive those magical moments.

Virginia massacre-An inevitable tragedy

2007-04-21T02:45:00.000-07:00

The Virginia massacres have shocked the international community and brought back the focus to ethnicity and race.But,the crux of the problem is not "outsiders" or terrorists.It lies deep within the policies of the American government.A part of the blame also lies on the media which has irresponsibly showed video garbs of the killer-Cho giving out hate speeches and posing in front of the camera with horrifying gestures.This kind of irresponsible behaviour will only send out the wrong messages to many more such Cho's who live in America and elsewhere in the world.
The entire world has prayed for the inncoent victimes killed due to a moment of frenzied madness by a mentally disturbed youth.However,we tend to forget that this isn't the first time something of this sort has happend in the US.In fact one could count it as a "normal" incident had it not been for the huge number of innocent victims(32 in this case).The point of concern is the social fabric of a country like the US and more importantly the arms lobby.The arms lobby has been influencing American foreign policy since the advent of World War-II.Billions of dollars are spent by them to ensure that their products are sold all over the world.In fact its an open secret that the American economy is completely dependent on the arms industry.No wonder guns and pistols are so easily available over there.If such things are sold to teenagers who come from a background which has no value for human life(can't blame them either because they have seen movies like Terminator and many more such gruesome action films where the value of human life is next to zilch).We also tend to forget the fact that these kids have never exactly been brought up in a family type of environment.In fact many of them have seen marriages crumbling like a pack of cards.No wonder psychiatrists are in high demand in the US.I'm by no means trying to genaralise the case but this is something which has been observed over the last 3-4 decades.People have been blindly running after money and have lost out on a lot of other things like happiness,relations and more importantly a happy family life.This part though is being addressed slowly and people have started making a conscious effort to mend their wild ways and move towards a nuclear family structure.But,the arms lobbly is still ruling the roost not just in the US but the entire world.This problem cannot be solved easily since the US Presidential elections too depend on the support of the arms lobbly!No wonder George W Bush has been crying out hoarse over terrorism,national security and enemies of USA.He has definitely managed to scare an already paranoid people to believe that war and billions of dollars of investment in arms are the only way to save America.This might save Amreica from the external enemy.But,what about the enemy within?What about the direct and indirect effects of this policy ?Actors like Sean Penn have openly written against the republican party policies and the arms lobby.The people however have not realised that overdependence on the arms lobbly may make them rich but it can never make them happy.They will only continue to live in fear of many such Cho's unless a president comes who puts an end to this hogwash and bans arms distribution completely.

Adious "jumbo"

2007-04-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

The curtains are finally down on the glittering ODI career of India's greatest matchwinner.Anil "jumbo" Kumble formally announced his retirement from the shorter version of the game in a sombre mood.The announcement was always expected,in fact probably delayed considering the treatment which had been meted out to him over the last 4-5 years by former captain Saurav Ganguly and present captain Rahul Dravid.
It was really sad to see that Anil Kumble had to bow out without the kind of farewell which he actually deserved.Inspite of winning umpteen number of matches for India,he had to warm the bench for most of the time after his shoulder surgery in 2001.What is more disturbing is the fact that his replacement Harbhajan Singh wasn't exactly picking up wickets by the dozen nor was he economical.But,Indian cricket has never gone by logic.Even seniors like Tendulkar,Dravid(during Ganguly's tenure as captain),Srinath and the selectors never said spoke a word against the shabby treatment meted out to this brilliant sportsman and above all complete team-man.The gentleman that Anil is,he too never spoke out.He just bided his time,waiting for whatever opportunity came his way to perform and give his 100 percent for the team.
One can never forget his metch-winning 6/12 against the West Indies in the hero cup final.Neither can we forget the sight of a completely bandaged and badly injured Kumble coming back to bowl an try to win a test match for India against the Windies in West Indies.He almost succeeded in helping India win.The phrase "gave his sweat and blood for the team" suits him to the T. The sight of him spitting out blood after almost every over and disregarding the physio's advice to go back to the dressing room will always remain etched in every cricket lovers's memory.No wonder he got a standing ovation from the crowd after he completed his spell of 14 harrowing overs which got us the wicket of Lara and almost had Carl Hooper(only to be denied by the umpire this time).
What really pains me is that a player like Kumble would have been treated like a gem had he played for a country like Sri Lanka,New Zealand,West Indies or South Africa.We are a country of a billion crciket crazy fans who make demi gods out of a Dhoni,Yuvraj,Saurav or Pathan and relegate playesr like Kumble to the backburner.Critics might say that Kumble had slowed down in the field,could'nt bat much and his bowling wasn't as potent as it used to be.My answer to that is "How many wickets did his replacements pick up? How many more half centuries did they score?How many matches did they win for India?".The outcome of the matches against Bangladesh and Lanka could have been different had Anil been a part of the playing eleven.Even the finals of World cup 2003 might have been different.Anil's fighting attitude and dedication was what made him stand out in a team which boasted of a plethora of stars and demi-gods.A person of his stature could have contributed to Indian cricket in more qualitative terms than he was allowed to.Thankfully though he still has the urge to play test cricket for the team.Any other player in his place might have quit in disgust at the way things have unfolded over the last 4-5 years.But,Anil has never been like that.The team man in him would never allow him to speak out against the team management.The fact that he defended his teammates even after the world cup dream was shattered only shows how his heart beats for the good of Indian cricket and his teammates.

Kashmir and the AFSPA

2007-03-01T02:48:00.000-08:00

The last month saw a lot of mud slinging amongst the allies of the ruling parties in Kashmir.The bone of contention this time was the contentious AFSPA(Armed forces special powers act) in Kashmir.Regional parties of Kashmir like the PDP and hurriyat have always been opposed to the implementation of this act in Kashmir citing excesses by the security forces especially the army.However,the ruling center has always implicitly stated that it is not in favour of removal of the act under the present situation.The seriousness of this issue can be gauged by the fact that all the PDP leaders including Mr. Mufti Mohammed Sayeed and his daughter have refused to accept the security being provided to them.
I have always felt that the Indian government is to be blamed equally for the rise of terrorism in Kashmir.The people of Kashmir have always been a peace loving community.However,certain political situations created by the Indian government and excesses by the security forces forced them to take up arms against the union.No separatist movement can survive for a period of more than 15 years without any internal support from the locals.The Indian govenment has always failed to address this issue.Blindly pointing fingers at our neighbours is of no use unless we clean up our act.The policy of "the healing touch" cannot succeed if the black sheep amongst our own security forces are not reigned in by the government.It is an open secret that many innocents have lost their lives due to misuse of this draconian act.By no means do I intend to put the entire blame on the security forces which has been working day and night for the last 15 years in an environment of uncertainty and hostility from the locals.However,that was at the beginning of the separatist movement which thankfully, is on its last legs.Most of the people have realised the futility of an armed revolt and slowly the backbone of Kashmir's economy-tourism is picking up steam.At this juncture it is important for the government to win the support of the people who are still sitting on the fence.The removal of the AFSPA will go a long way in ensuring their support.Once the AFSPA is removed the locals can move about without fear of being threatened with "dire consequences" if they do not pay up money or women can move around freely without being molested and raped by irresponsible security personnel who have sullied the name of our great armed forces.
The removal of this act will not only assure us support of the misguided youth of Kashmir but will also shut the trap of our neighbours who have been harping over security excesses and misuse of law in what they call "Occupied Kashmir".

Educated or just sheer luck

2007-02-18T05:15:00.000-08:00

Its been a few months since I started working in the IT industry.I must admit I never thought I would be an engineer or work in an MNC but here I'm in the silicon valley of India with roommates and friends working hard or rather trying to work hard.From my personal experience and what I've seen throughout my college as well as school days I can definitely say one thing-luck or rather opportunity plays a big role in any person's career.I consider myself to be plain lucky to have been born in an educated family which did all it could to get a bum like me educated.I need to thank my stars,God,parents and many other people for that.I'm sure others might agree with what I say.I mean getting a decent job in any industry is no big deal.What matters is being given the right opportunity at the appropriate time which unfortunately many do not get.
Just a few days back I was travelling by bus to some place in Bangalore where I met these two really nice guys who were the same age as me but were economically not as well off.Speaking to them made me realise that there really wasn't much of a difference between those who are educated and those who aren't(not in the literal sense).One of the guys seemed to rue the lack of opportunity which people like him never got.We were speaking about the development of bangalore and other cities all over India and suddenly he just said "The rich keep getting richer and the poor just keep getting poorer" which is sad but unfortunately is also the truth.India certainly seems to be going global with every passing day but the downtrodden and poor are still a neglected lot which are increasing in numbers everyday.The disparity between the rich and the poor seems to be widening at an exponential rate.Sometimes I wonder how luck plays such an important part in a person's life.The street urchin,the beggars,the filthy children and the people who earn a measly 20 Rs per day haven't done anything wrong to be in the position that they find themselves in.Likewise,youngsters like us haven't done anything great or pathbreaking to be earning pretty decent money at the beginning of our careers(not that I'm grumbling about it).The point I'm trying to make is that if we hadn't been given this wonderful opportuniity to get decent education we too would have found ourselves in their places which isn't really a great feeling.
I guess every Indian(especially corporate houses and youngsters) needs to think about this amazing opportunity given to him/her by this beautiful country and give back something to the society which in a way which can brighten the lives of these people and give them an opportunity to live with the kind of dignity which each and every Indian deserves

Anne Frank and her diary

2007-02-10T21:48:00.000-08:00

I have been reading up Anne Frank's diary of late.I haven't yet completed the book but it surely makes for interesting reading.The book or rather the diary tells us the tale of a wonderful and courageous 13 year old girl who has a very positive outlook to life even during the barbaric times of WW-II.To be a Jew in Hitler's Europe was a the biggest crime in those days and the punishment was nothing less than a slow and painful death.Yet,this girl managed to look forward to a new day in the "secret annexe" where she stayed along with 7 others(including her family) until the hideout was discovered by the Nazi's.One can't even dream of staying locked in a house with all the facilities for more than 2 days and here was this brave girl who did go through these trials and tribulations for two whole years just because of no fault of hers.The poignant incidents mentioned in the diary only make us realise how lucky we are to live in a much better world(it definitely is better than WW-II as of now) and how thankful we should be to god for giving us this beautiful gift of life which everyone should learn to spend with family,friends and neighbours in a peaceful way so that humanity can live on.

Bombay meri jaan

2006-11-09T02:55:00.000-08:00

Bombay-the city of dreams.The city that never sleeps.The city which never stops...just a few examples of the way bombay is described by people.For me bombay has always been an enigmatic city.The plush residential areas of south bombay,the hip n happening cafe's and hang out places in bandra,the by lanes of central bombay,the suburbs have all contributed to the charm and variety that bombay offers to everyone.The concept of "cutting chai", the bambaiyaa hindi,the metropolitan culture of the city,various irani restaurants,bakery's of bandra...will always be an indigenous part of bombay.
I'm sure each and every bombayite will have his/her own favourite roadside food stall,chaiwallah,hangout place,discotheque.What gives bombay its unique charm is its diversity.No where else can u find a city which serves u all kinds of food rite from delhi chat to the ubiquitous dosas,chinese,japanese,lebanese and all such unheard of dishes.People may compare bombay to the best European cities,New Yorks,Shanghai's but none of the above places have the warmth,history and an equal share of dark secrets.The most surprising part of bombay is that it never ceases to surprise you.It has its equal share of gujju bhai's,madrasi anna's,UPites,Biharis,sardarji's,parsi's,gurkha's(at least one in every building) and ofcourse the marathi manoos along with the highly respected(by some) or despised bhailog.
No matter how much a bombayite earns in any other city or any corner of the world he/she'll always miss the social outings,the chit chats with neighbours,the katta's where friends always hung out,the neighbourhood ice creamwallah,the filthy beaches(I'm sure you'll miss juhu beach even if you go to hawaii for a holiday),the chicks and babes,his old(probly dilapidated) school building,the local zoo(yeah I'm talking about jijamata udayan),nariman point,worli sea face and many such beautiful and secluded places where lovers meet up to spend a few silent moments to mutter sweet nothings in each others' ears.
I can very proudly say "Bombay meri jaan".

Many moments.....one lifetime

2006-10-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

Some say life is beautiful,some say its a roller coaster ride,others say its too complicated.However,one thing is very common in all these interpretations-moments.There are so many wonderful,ecstatic,poignant and topsy turvy moments in everyone's life to write about.In the end,it'll be these moments which will always stay with us forever.People will come and go,material happiness doesn't last too long,money will be there one day and gone the next,but moments will always stay with us till the end.How can one ever forget the moment when his/her heart went "thud thud" after seeing a beautiful face.The first chat with that special someone,the first time the yes met.
The fun-filled moments spent in class with friends,shouting,hooting,the secrets being shared will be treasured by everyone.Guys like me will never forget exam times especially the prelims.The profanities being exchanged before exams,baseless allegations like "yeh patty toh sab padhke aaya hoga","shree tu saale zyaada copy mat karna","sahul aur froila ka paper toh same hoga","kameene log half an hour main nikal jaana mast main tp karenge baadme".,"Patty(Thats what they call me in college) gandu agar pass hua naa toh dekhna saale(as if passing is a crime)"The "night outs" are another source of exchanging various stories and information about the various things happening in college/class.
Life is full of many firsts-first salary,first outing with friends,first beer,first kiss,first date,first marriage(and hopefully the only marriage).The feeling of happiness and ecstacy on buying something for our parents from our first salary is something which can only be understood once we get this wonderful opportunity.The cherishable moments of bonding with friends and collegues,colleagues from office,roommates and just anyone who would have crosses paths with us at some point in our lives will probly stay ethched in our minds for eternity.

SEZ's- A boon or a curse

2006-10-13T21:11:00.000-07:00

The recent controversy surrounding the governments policy towards SEZ's and the subsequent protests by farmers has once again highlighted the huge gap between devoloping India and the large majority of places still grappling with poverty,unemployment and other social issues.The government needs to put a lid on the number of SEZ's that will come up on farm lands and also compensate the farmers for the loss of land.However it isn't as simple as it sounds.Firstly the government has to stop hobnobbing with the builder lobby and start doing things the legal way.The sale of government owned mill-lands in Bombay to builders for building shopping malls,multiplexes and the likes is an example of blatant exploitation(of mill wokers' rights)and money laundering between the builder lobby and politicians.Why is development always equated with the number of shopping malls,multiplexes and other such business ventures.Hasn't the goverment ever heard of the concept of a "state of the art city",something on the lines of the amby valley built by sahara.How much revenue will the goverment(not the politicians) get by allowing 5-10 separate shopping malls mushroom in and around the same locality.Think about the revenue a city with all such amenities can generate.Not to forget the huge skyscrapers(without any goverment ceiling on FSI) which will save a huge amount of space.The FSI issue is one of the most crucial issues which can turn into a monster if the government doesn't deal with it very soon.Why can't our state governments follow the norms being followed all over the world.Cities like Bombay,Bangalore and Delhi are already cramped up due to lack of space.On top of that there are restrictions over the number of stories a new structure can have.It is absurd,to say the least!A very simple solution to most of the problems being faced by the farmers as well as the industry is removal or rather raising the FSI cap to the general norms followed all over the world.
As for the SEZ's,the industry has to ask itself how much it returns to the society in return for the concessions doled out to them.Agreed,that the IT sector has really driven the economy over the last 5-6 years,still it needs to give back something to the society.Why not adopt government owned schools and colleges in the remote villages all over India?This will also be beneficial to the industry after a period of say 10-15 years.It will produce a generation of english speaking educated youth.As for the farmers,they have to understand that the days of freebies are over.Free electricity,tax concessions,free land are days of yore.The government also needs to put a check on deforestation.Developing India needs to bridge this ever growing divide between the rich and the poor.We need to balance industrial growth with social equality.Only then will vison 2020 be a successful venture.

Freedom and democracy

2006-08-16T09:17:00.000-07:00

A "new" India was born 59 years ago on 15th August 1947.India was declared a "free","independent" and "democratic" republic.Our elders and forefathers who took part in the "freedom struggle" thought India's time had finally come.I guess their descendents are still waiting for that time to come ! I'm not talking about the India which we see in Bombay(I prefer to call it that),Bangalore,Delhi or Madras.I'm talking about the India which lives in the villages.The rural India,which constitutes about more than 70% of the countries population.
Whenever I hear about villages which have never heard of "independence", not having any electricity,not having any water supply it makes me shudder.I guess our great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi,Sardar Patel,Maulana Azad,Lal Bahadur Shastri must be turning in their graves!When I say this I am by no means trying to be critical.I'm just tryin' to give a reality check.What exactly is freedom?Instead of whites ruling us,we have "our own countrymen" ruling us.Is this freedom?Are we free just because we are being ruled by Indians? Even today we can't criticize any leader openly due to the fear of being pounded by goons of political parties.At the most this can be done in the cities.The concept of constructive criticism is still missing in large parts of India.Try criticising the left parties openly in W.Bengal,Kerala or say a top BJP leader in Gujarat,or any Dravidian party in Tamil Nadu.You'll get the point I'm trying to make.If we are unable to do this inspite of being in a "vibrant","functioning" and "functioning democrary" then what is all this celebration for ! The only people who are enjoying the fruits of democracy,liberty and freedom are the rulers themselves.
We do have some achievements to show off in the last 59 years.I am by no means trying to downplay those achievements.But,do those achievements suffice to cater to a population of more than a billion?Of course not.It really makes me feel ashamed that we still have people dying of hunger and being forced to eat caracasses of animals due to poverty.Naxalism(which is the biggest internal threat to the county at present),poverty,lack of electricity,lack of infratructure,farmer suicides,terrorism,seperatist movements by some of our own people-the list is endless.Is this independence?I don't think so.But,definitely there is a section of the society which is independent.The rulers,kings(I'm sorry they are now called "leaders" who are elected by the people),the goons,criminals and families of the politicians are the ones who enjoy the fruits of independence.
Inspite of having so many problems we still find our leaders fighting and arguing in parliament over quota implementation(staggered or implmentation in one go being the two options acc to them),Indo-US nuclear deal(which is more important than all the other problems), portraits and statues being "insulted"(whatever that means),security cover of politicians being beefed up!Oh god!What kind of freedom is this.
I'm sure I'm a fool to write all this a day after celebrating independence day.What the hell am I complaining about?God,India is and independent and free country whose time will definitely come due to the vision of its leaders.Happy independence day.Jai Hind!

I like.....

2006-07-07T23:14:00.000-07:00

We always have some person whom we look upto.We all need motivation,inspiration etc.We all look upto someone in times of crisis.Someone we all take inspiration from when the chips are down.I have my own list of persons whom I look upto when I need to charge myself,when I'm down and need motivation.
I like Steve Waugh not just because of the grit,determination and leadership he showed on the field but also because of his off-field work.I like him because unlike Sachin,he'll never auction his pads,bats,gloves and announce to world that he does "his bit" for charity.He'll never ask for a Ferrari without paying the tax like "poor" crciketers from India.I like him because of the work he has done for "Udayan" a childrens home for lepors and the destitute.
I like J.M Lyngdoh because of the truth,honesty and conviction he showed when it came to elections in Kashmir and Gujarat, after the state sponsored riots.He had the courage to take o the administration not just in the state but also the centre.He did not leave his job for greener better opportunities which were offered to him because of his reluctance to toe the governments line of conducting elections as early as possible.Hats off tou Mr. Lyngdoh.
I like Rahul Dravid because of his grit,the character he shows while batting in difficult situations,his team spirit,his modesty.More than that,I like him because he will never "get injured" on the morning of a test match after seeing a green top, or a terror of a pitch unlike his predecessors.I like him because he will never fiegn an injury whenever there is a possibility of India losing a series,so that he can escape the axe.The great "Wall of India" is too good.A big thumbs up to him.
I like Javed Akhtar fot the courage,grit,wit and honesty he shows when he expresses his opinions.I like him because he is a true Indian.He is not a hypocrite.He opposes the maulvis and hardliners from his community with the same defiance and "don't care attitude" as he does when he opposes their Hindu counterparts like the "Sangh parivar".
I like Sunil Gavaskar because of the modesty he shows.He is one of the all time greats of cricket.Even the great Sir Garfield Sobers announced that Sunil Gavaskar was one of the greatest batsmen of all time.I guess thats the biggest honour someone can get.The man has scored 34 Test centuries as an opening batsman in test cricket,at a time when there were no helmets,no rules of limited bouncers per over,green tops,bowler helpful pitches unlike the "dead as a dodo" pitches of modern day cricket.
He has faced some of the firecest bowlers of all time.Yet he never misses an opportunity to declare another Indian as the greatest batsman of India.
I like Aamir Khan since he brought alive his "on screen" RDB character in real life.He sat with the villagers of Gujarat,the tribals and opposed the building of the dam without resettling the affected people.He has clearly said that he was not against the dam but,he wanted the affected people to be compensated first.He could easily have sat at home and counted the profits of his films instead of burning his hands over this issue.But,he used his celebrity status for something constructive.
I like Mani Ratnam and Ram Gopal Varma because they will never make a film like "Kabhie Khushi Kabhi ghum".Ouch!

Terrorism in the N-E

2006-06-26T04:41:00.000-07:00

The government of India is contemplating whether they should bring ULFA to the dialogue table inspite of the recent blasts in Guwahati which were allegedly triggered off by the ULFA.The ULFA's representative in the talks with the government Ms. Indira Goswami has already threatened to pull out of the talks if they continue with their violent ways.Everyone knows that the ULFA enjoys support amongst the backward classes of Assam.The poorest of the poor,who sadly,are in a large majority in the North East,thanks largely to the lack of development efforts on the part f the union government over the last 50 years, do support the insurgents to a certain extent.No insurgent movement can last for as long as 20-25 years without any grassroot or local support.The government cannot hide behind the hogwash that the ULFA is supportd by China,Bangladesh,ISI in a clandestine manner.Yes,it is true that they are supported by the enemies of India who many times are disguised as friends.But, India has itself to blame for this mess.There were hardly any developmental efforts in the N-E after independence.Some of the factories which were set up by our erstwhile colonial rulers in that region,were blowm up by the patriots led by Netaji Subhash Chandra.These short sighetd measures have only caused harm to the Indian public.Our foreign policy has been a complete failure to say the least.Bangladesh,which once upon a time was an ally,after the 1971 liberation from Pakistan,has turned hostile due to the lack of vision on the part of the government.The Indian government like the US likes to act like th big brother in the subcontinent.We already have a lot of enemies within the country.The last thing we need is hostile neighbours.Thanks to our foreign policy,or should I say the lack of it,even that gap has been filled.
We need to win back the trust of the people of the N-E if we are to win this battle against the terrorists.The Indian army alone can't tackle terrorism in places like Kashmir,N-E etc.We have no doubt over their capabilities,but there has to be a realistic view over this.The army is doing the job of the police.The army is always for fighting an external enemy either on foreign land or on the homeland against foreigners.In this case they are being forced to fight against their own people.
The people of the N-E have lived in abject poverty for many years.They are our own people.We need to win back their hearts.This can't be done by guns alone.The government has to remove the enemy from within- which in this case is poverty.Once this is taken care of the external enemy can be taken care of either by dialogue or by force,if necessary.

Sanctions on Palestine

2006-05-09T23:58:00.000-07:00

Uncle sam and his jing-bang is at it again.This time the target is palestine.Recently the palestinians held general elections and Hamas which contested elections for the first time, clinched power.However, since the Israeli government has been at loggerheads with the Hamas- the US,EU and Israel have decided not to recognise the Hamas government and have imposed sanctions on Palestine.The issue over here is not whether Hamas has fudged the results,manipulated and come to power but of human values.If the US can give billions of dollars to countries like Pakistan,Egypt,Saudi Arabia,Kuwait which have their own "democratically" elected leaders then why not have the same benevolence for Palestine.Everybody agrees that the Hamas is a violent organistaion whose sole purpose is the destruction of Israel.However ,by imposing sanctions on Palestine,the US and Israel will not cripple the Hamas.It will only create problems for the citizens of Palestine.
The issue over here is not of any holy land or right of existence of a country.Israel,like any other country of the world has a right to exist peacefully with the rest of the world.Similarly,Palestine also has to be given its share of land.Both the countries need to live together without any acrimony for each other.However,such steps taken by the US and its allies will only further aggravate the situaion.If hamas has come to power through elections,then the US and Israel should respect the decision of the Palestinians and not try to impose their views over people of other countries.By doing such things,the US and Israelis are indirectly responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent children,women and men who have been starving since the government has been unable to pay them wages for the last 2 months.These steps will only cause more strife and suffering for the people.
This kind of behaviour is not expected of countries like the US which prides itself on its democratic setup,freedom and liberty.

Democracy in India

2006-04-20T06:21:00.000-07:00

The government of India has once again blown the bugle of reservation.This time its the IITs and the IIMs which will benefit from this genuine move for the upliftment of the backward classes.What a wonderful gesture it is on the part of the government!However,some wise and educated people like N R Narayanamurthy,Rahul Bajaj,alumnii from the IITs and IIMs think otherwise.Why don't these "businessmen" understand that such steps have to be taken by the government in the interests of the people in particular and the nation in general.After all successive governments in India have always ensured that the common man's needs are always addressed.Keeping in mind the policy of reservation over the last 50 years the government has just decided to extend it to the higher educational institutions like the IITs and IIMs.After all democracy is basically a rule of the people,by the people and for the people.How can the government refuse to pay heed to the needs of middle class India?After all reservations in the IITs and IIMs is the only way to ensure social equality.The primary or basic needs of the backward class people today is reservations in the private sectors and elite institutions.Secondary issues like health,food,primary education,child marriage,female infantcide etc can always wait.Once the reservation bill is passed all the other secondary issues will be solved automatically.It will all fall into place at the appropriate time.This is the first step towards a vison of a united and powerful India.After all democracy is all about peoples rule.According to government logic even people from the backward catses will agree that they are eagerly waiting for admissions in the elite institutions for years,since they have already got used to living in social inequality,without proper food,access to water,spiralling death rates etc.Now they no longer care about primary education,food,health as they have got used to life without all of this.
People from all castes and communities have a right to live in equality and unity.Everyone should live a life with dignity and honour.Reservations are the appropriate step in that direction.The basic functions that a government has to carry out are ensuring admissions for everyone from the backward caste to the general category people in the various governmental and and educational isntitutions.Law and order,rising unepmloyment,widening divide between the rich and the poor,spiralling population and other such needs can always wait.The government first has to ensure that it unites the people from various castes and communities for the progress of India.Vision 2020 can never be achieved without ensuring reservation in all the sectors.After all the common man,wheter form the general category of the backward category has always wanted this.The government cannot refuse the demands of modern India.Hail democracy.

4 years of togetherness

2006-04-05T05:33:00.000-07:00

Finally the beginning of the end of our college life has started.I'm sure most of us have been waiting for this moment from our 2nd year of enginerring,due to the frustration of journals,assignments,vivas etc.Now that the moment is finally here,I feel I was really wrong when I thought that life as a graduate would be fun,exciting and stress free.How foolish I was to think that journals,assignments and exams were one of the most boring things in engineering.Now,that we don't have much to write and no journals to borrow,I have realized that I will miss out on the oppurtunity to sit my pals,classmates in the lectures and write those useless assignments.No more borrowing of assignments from Froila,Kanchan,Aparna,Sahul.No more of submitting assignments with friends like Shreedhar,Gigith,Sunil etc.

We have no lectures to attend anymore.Does make me happy? Of course not.It makes me feel like kicking myself since I had been waiting for the last term to end so eagerly.Now,I have realized that we won't be able to pull each other's leg in the classroom,no flirting with the girls,no more of shouting in the classroom(which is basically what our class is famous for),no more proxy attendances,no more bunking.Its all come to an end.I'll miss sitting in college after lectures with my friends.I'll miss hanging out with my classmates in the lawn outside the canteen where we just about teased all the girls who went to the canteen.I'll miss hanging around with my friends from Extc and Comps class.

Most importantly,I'm gonna miss hanging around with the juniors,girls and friends during the festival.Gosh! No more festivals guys! Now,that will really make me cry.The times I've spent with almost everyone from my class and other friends from different classes will stay in my memory for a long time.The cheering as a part of the audience,the dancing,the jam sessions,the hooting,just about everything we did in the festivals will stay with me as one of the most cherished memories of my college life.
Thinking about the last four years in college itself makes me nostalgic.I can unhesitatingly say that I had one of the best times of my life during my engineering college days.

Kashmir-A paradise on earth

2006-02-24T03:33:00.000-08:00

A poet once described Kashmir as "Paradise on earth".I never really could figure out how he could point out that only Kashmir could be a paradise and no other place.Two years back,after the semester IV exams I had gone to Kashmir along with some of my school friends for 14 days.After seeing Kashmir with my own eyes,I understood what the poet meant when he said "Paradise on earth".I consider myself to be lucky to have toured a large part of India in my short life(I must thank my stars and parents for that).However, I would say that of all the beautiful places in India,Kashmir is something really special.There are the Himalayas in Himachal pradesh,Uttaranchal,the backwaters in Kerala,the temple towns of South India,the desert of Rajashtan,the Himalays of North-East and then there is Kashmir.All these places have their own characteristic beauty.But,by no means am I trying to downplay their beauty when I say that Kashmir is a place which God has made with special attention.

What can I say about the house boats on the Dal lake which are as big as a normal 3BHK flat in hip suburban Mumbai.I would anyday trade a ride in a luxury car for a long ride on the lovely shikara .The daily rides that I had in the shikara's when I had been there made me feel like a prince.The beautiful lake city on the dal lake with house boats surrounded by the great Himalayas on all sides was truly a sight that I'll never forget. The view that we get of Srinagar atop the Shankaracharya temple is simply breathtaking.I had heard stories about the dal lake being polluted over the years,the market place being destroyed during the period of insurgency,places like Gulmarg (which is not far away from PoK) being soft targets for the extremists.Inspite of all these drawbacks,I found Kashmir to be a cery beautiful place.In fact it would be an understatement to say that Kashmir is a beautiful place. There are just no words to describe the beauty of the dal lake,the picturesque highway between Jammu and Kashmir valley,the roadway that passes through the sanctuary in Gulmarg,the snow capped peaks of Sonmarg,Gulmarg and Srinagar.The mughal gardens are an added attraction.I must admit that I've never been a plants and flower enthusiast,but there is no doubt about the fact that the Mughal gardens are one of the best gardens in India.
I have just been to some of the places in Kashmir valley.The locals over there told me that the Kashmir we see today is not even 10-20% of what it was before the separatist movement started.My dad also vouched for it.No wonder he has been to Kashmir umpteen number of times.I must admit one thing though.Inspite of living in the terrorised valley for the last 16 years the people of Kashmir still haven't lost the warmth they are so well known for.I could see them smiling at all tourists.The children over there have experienced and seen violence that we have seen only in the movies.Yet,they still are as innocent as any other child from any other place in India.The people of Kashmir have really played an important part in makin Kashmir a "Paradise on earth".Locals of famous tourist spots are always known for their honesty.The same goes for Kashmir.But,what is truly great is that they are still honest inspite of having not earned much in the last 16 years of insurgency.There was a period between 1989-1998 when almost no tourists went to Kashmir.Kashmir is a state where the locals have always survived on the tourism and handicrafts industry.I shudder when I even think about the sleepless nights these innocent people must have spent inside their houses with children crying for food and a curfew imposed outside(which was a daily routine).Hats off to the people of Kashmir for having a smiling and cheerful face inspite of losing their sons,daughters,mothers,fathers,brothers and other relatives.

What is Love?

2006-02-21T21:05:00.000-08:00

Love- That's one word which has always made me search for answers.I'm yet to find an appropriate answer for it.Love can manifest in various forms.Friendship,respect for parents,idolizing someone,being inspired from someone.These are all different forms of love.But,one form of love which I still haven't been able to understand clearly is the one between opposite sexes.What is it that makes us realize that a person X is made for us, or a person Y is the one who can really make us smile when we are in a poignant mood,make us ecstatic when we are down.What is it that makes our hearts go thud thud when we see that special someone.I am safely assuming that this happens to everyone purely on my personal experience.Why do we always have that glow,that happiness,that sheepish smile when we see the perfect someone who we always feel is made for us? I'm still trying to find out answers to all these questions.

I guess one of the reasons for it is God's very beautiful and enigmatic creation-woman.Its not that we always get attracted to every other woman who crosses our path(thank god for that) otherwise the world would have been full of dreamers(or shall I say men of vision).Whenever a cute,sweet face somes in front of me I always go into a trance.It makes me wonder how god must have taken time out from his busy schedule to create someone with so much attention.But,the very next moment a close friend of mine on seeing my object of attraction,will on most occasions advise me to go in for an eye check up.Am I sounding too confused?Well love itself is so complicated.Isn't it?

India's vote against Iran-a right step

2006-02-14T06:21:00.000-08:00

Before the US's push could turn into a shove the UPA government took a stand on the Iran issue at the UN meet.Without bowing to pressure from its main allies like the left parties the UPA government finally took a correct decision which was in the interests of the people of the subcontinent.It is an open secret that Iran has covertly been trying to build a N-bomb of its own for the past few years.We already have two "friendly" nuclear neighbours on either sides of the border.A third nation-that too a rogue state like Iran would have been a nightmare.Obviously we have never been a threat for Iran and vice versa.That still doesn't qualify any support for Iran from the Indian establishment.The knowledge of making the bomb has been exported from China to Pakistan which in turn has been really generous in helping out N.Korea and Iran with their weapons programme.A N-Bomb in the hands of irrersponsible states like Pakistan,N.Korea and Iran is a threat to world peace.We could leave out Pakistan as of now since big daddy is in control of its nuclear war heads(We can surmise that since US forces are in control of a sizeable part of the N-W frontier province which is the main hideout of the Jihadi elements) and the whole world knows that the sole superpower of the world never brings in ground forces unless it is sure about their safety.However, if countries like Iran and N.Korea have their own N-bomb it could trigger a third world war.Iran has always spoken against the Zeonist state of Israel.The same can be said vis-s-vis N.Korea and S.Korea.Israel already is surrounded by hostile neighbours on all sides.One can't really expect them to restrain military activities against their neighbours.Israel and Iran have already engaged each other in a war of words since the conservatives led by Ahmednijad seized power in the elections held last year.
Now that the Iran issue has been referred to the UNSC,we can avoid having an irresponsible country like Iran counted amongst the (in)famous group of Nuclear states.

Rose day celebrations

2006-01-29T01:34:00.000-08:00

We had the annual tie day,sari day and rose day celebrations in college on 28th January 2006.I must say that almost everyone came dressed in the best possible way.The girls had these beautiful sarees with psychedelic colours, and they were all looking at their radiant best.The 9 yard cloth does have its own charm.The guys were all looking like managers.Everyone was dressed in a full sleeved shirt,formal pants,tie and all that.It was definitely a great sight to see people who always move around in round collared t's in a formal attire.

Next up was probly the main event of the day.The roses were distributed and dedications were read out in the respective classes.Some of the best dedications were read out in the auditorium where all the proffesors and principle had gathered to watch the ceremony.There were some really great messages from the guys to the gals and vice versa.I'm sure most of the dedications were proxy.Ha ha.That's the fun in having all these days, right? There were some really nasty messages though.I thought they were all in really bad taste.But, I do hope that the genuine messages are taken in the spirit of the rose day celebrations and strike the right chord in the hearts of the recepients.After all words speak much more than actions.While I could see ecstacy,blithe and excitement on many faces I also saw some heart broken faces.I guess that's life.What is one man's food is another man's poison.What can I say about the poignant mood one of my closest friends was in?He still managed to put up a great act I must say.Smiles and all that show.Anyways,enough of all the gloomy incidents and happenings.

Personally, it sure was a rare day for me.Getting 7 roses was a first one for me.Two of them were anonymous dedications.Well,I guess someone's keeping a close watch on me.It feels great to be noticed by someone unknown.There were some really great dedications from some of my close friends.Thanks a lot people.I guess its all about the thoughts and good wishes.Yesterday, was a day of many firsts for me.First time I got a rose from a gal(s). A count of 7 is not bad for a beginner. For the first time I saw this really cute girl in F.E. I didn't know that such a cute and pretty face existed in the college.Impromptu,I just went over to her and gave her a rose.We also got a few snaps with her.It was really nice of her to come and agree to a few snaps inspite of all my friends screaming and hooting.Gr8 spirit gal.I just feel that I missed out on some gr8 rose day celebrations in the last 3 years.But, what the heck.It's better late than never.

Remembering the modern day Chanakya

2006-01-13T21:49:00.000-08:00

It's been almost more than 6 months since former PM Narasimha Rao passed away.He was one of the chief architects of the bubbling economy that we have right now.The transition from Nehruvian socialism to centre-right capitalist economy took place in his term as the PM.
However, as we all revel in the emerging economic status of India, greater job prospects, an ever growing IT sector, it seems like no one now has the time to spare a few pages, some ink and a moment or two for the man who made all of this possible.The steps taken by him from 1991-1996 as the PM were severely criticized by almost all the political parties including people from within the Congress.Inspite of the scathing attacks on his blueprint of the economic policies he went ahead and implemented these policies. This was done at a time when the country was in an economic crises which almost had gone out of control.It was a period of downswing for the economy.People were fed up of government monopoly in almost all the sectors.Inspite of living in a democratic country we had almost no choice when it came to buying goods,commodities,cars or just about anything.All these things came with the "Made in India" tag which were always overpriced since they had no competition and people had no choice but to buy the goods from these companies. Only 2-3 cars could be seen on the Indian roads.The Fiat,Ambassador an the classy Maruti 800(in comparison to the former).
Cameras,phones,tape recorders, TV's every electronic item was either manufactured by the now defunct Crown,Orion or the still running Videocon.Did we have a leftist government in power all these years? No dahling.We had centrist Congress ruling us all these years which was busy protecting these local industries without giving a second thought to the common man. But then again it was a Congress government which got us out of this mess.I guess it all evens out in the end.
Now that we have started enjoying the benefits of a free market with tie ups between big global brands and the local "pehelwans" everyone is clamouring to have a piece of the pie.The Congress which had till 2003 disassociated itself from Rao's policies has started taking credit for the liberalisation process.The NDA government led by "statesman" A B Vajpayee prided itself in pushing forward the reforms process.It is another issue that the privatisation of most of the cos from 1998-2004 was done in the profit making units and not the loss making ones.Also, most of the "auctioning" was done not on the basis of highest bidder or a particular roadmap but....! Tch tch we are not supposed to speak about these things baby.
The reason for remembering P V Narasimha Rao is that he was one of the few courageous leaders in India who had a vision for the future. He went ahead with his policies knowing very well that the repercussions of these would be a setback to his political career.No other politician in his place would have dared to open up the markets to the world the way he did.Initially it was expected that the small scale industries would be badly hit by this step.It also led to the closing down of thousands of small scale factories and industries.But,in the end it is the consumer who has emerged as the winner. Things now look brighter with every passing day. All this has been made possible due to the foresight of one man-P V Narasimha Rao. I guess it is high time all of us Indians give this man his right place in history instead of wasting our time on good for nothing Bardhan's,Advani's,Natwar's,Mahajan's,Bharti's....The list is endless.

Apaharan-A sincere attempt at realistic cinema

2005-12-26T22:50:00.000-08:00

Just saw Apaharan at a cinema hall in Mumbai with a friend in the middle of exams few days back.Firstly, there was a big discussion on whether to go for Home Delivery or Apaharan with Mr. talkative as that friend likes to call me vouching for Apaharan. At the end of the 3 hours of the show I must say after a long time my choice of a movie made sense.The movie although a very intriguing and dark portrayal of the kidnappings in Bihar(mainly) made us feel happy about our (or shall I say my) choice of the movie.
What can you expect from a movie which has not one or two but 3 National award winners
(Director Prakash Jha,actors Nana Patekar and Ajay Devgan) as a part of the movie.The 3 did deliver a knockout.The movie was gripping right from the beginning.We did miss the first 20 mins of the movie since buses to the far flung places of Mumbai are few.But,once we sat down to watch the movie we were completely engrossed in the movie.Nana Patekar provided us one of his best performances in recent times.His role wasn't the one we usually associate with him-that of an angry, frustrated man but of a shrewd,mafia don who also has a strong political base in the state and dreams of being the CM ala Mohd. Shahabuddin.
On the other end is a young ,unemployed graduate Ajay Shastri played by Ajay Devgan.This man is at a cross roads in his life where he is unable to stick to his father's Gandhian principles and at the same time has to hide the fact from his father that he has paid a bribe to be selected as a police officer after many unsuccessful attempts inspite of being amongst the best of the candidates.
The movie then shows how today's educated,deserving and qualified youth like Ajay Shastri are forced to take up the wrong methods and ways to earn money in India especially states like U.P,Bihar and Jharkhand where people are willing to kill for a measly sum like Rs.5000.
Within the first 45 minutes of the film we find our hero at the centre of the kidnapping industry and as a vital part of the baddie Nana Patekar's gang.
One place where the direction was a bit lax was in the second half of the film.Here I felt the director moved away from the main theme like the kidnapping industry and its implications on the lives of the common man in Bihar to the tug of war between Ajay Devgan and Nana's character.Probly the director could have focussed more on the overall picture instead of the two lead characters.
Having said that I would still give Prakash Jha a lot of credit for coming out with a film on such a topic which if not dealt with now will have serious implications on the country's law and order situation.
The performances by both Nana Patekar and Ajay Devgan are top notch.Nana Patekar definitely surprised me with this performance.I always thought that he was only good for the serious loud roles of a protagonist who is always frustrated with the silence of the people around him inspite of all the corruption,violence and inefficient administration.This one definitely was a much more subdued yet powerful performance.Ajay Devgan as always has portayed the role with utmost sincerity.His eyes show much more emotion than his face.The scene where he breaks down in front of his father (played by Mohan Agashe) made me numb for a moment.I just exclaimed "looks like its another National award for Ajay Devgan" to my friend who could just muster a grim smile.
One of the biggest compliments for me that day was when my friend told me that it was a good movie.I mean that was something I was always afraid of.Knowing my friends eagerness to watch Home delivery or any other fun and froth movie instaed of Apaharan,I knew I would have to face the prospect of never going out on a movie of my choice with that friend if this one fell flat on my face.The comment "It was a really good movie" just bought a sigh of relief to me.Otherwise I probly would have cursed myself for taking a person who has grown up on a diet of films like DDLJ,DTPH,KKHH,Veer Zaara and such romantic-comedies(that's what they prefer to call them) to a serious movie like Apaharan which doesn't have much of comedy(or shall I say buffoonery).
Mr. Jha I am eagerly awaiting your next one.Please take your time,but dish out another masterpiece like Gangaajal and Apaharan.

Bihar elections-A feather in the cap for the EC

2005-11-24T08:13:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks have been really a testing time for many people including the political big wigs(Life for the common man has always been difficult in post independence India).Elections in Bihar were just round the corner.That too for the second time in a year.I mean,things can hardly get worse than this for the hapless people.But along with this one must also spare a thought for the Election Commission.The people at the head of the EC really deserve all the credit for conducting free and fair elections in a state which is plagued with innumerable problems.Lack of development in Bihar was just one of the issues of the elections.The much bigger issues were the ones concerning Maoists who are now in control of a sizeable part of the state having established their own "government" in these parts,the entry of a number of mafia dons in these elections(from all the political parties),the possibility of violence between the different political parties(did I just say possibility),ensuring that no booth capturing took place.The list is just endless.Conducting elections in a state like Bihar which is plunged in complete anarchy is a mammoth task.The EC truly deserves much more than a pat on its back.
The two pillars of democracy in India which are still doing their job honestly in a silent way are the judiciary and the EC.The other pillars like the administrative services and the security forces have just gone to the dogs(pun intended).If the common man can have any hopes of justice then the higher judiciary is still there for him.Likewise, the EC has always strived to ensure that the common man gets to excercise his right to vote and the people get the government they want.One can never forget the trying times that the EC had to go through during the elections in states like J&K and Gujarat(after the riots in 2002).The list will just go on increasing if one counts elections in Punjab after the Khalistan movement,W.Bengal after the Naxalburi uprising,Maharashtra after the Bombay riots and the elections to the Lok Sabha after the Ram Mandir movement.These were trying times for the country.On each of these occasions the EC did complete justice to its job.Many times the EC had to intervene in affairs that were not strictly within their jurisdiction,because things were being done in a way which were against the welfare of the common man.One of the most glaring examples were the elections in Gujarat where the NDA government led by "statesman" A B Vajpayee wanted elections as soon as possible(for obvious reasons).The leaders of the ruling party like Arun Jaitley went so far as to claim that 98% of the state had returned to normalcy.The state adminitration also echoed the same opinion.It was a different issue that thousands of people had been rendered homeless and the names of many people had been missing from the voting list.It was made out as if the people living in the refugee camps were refugees in the real sense of the word and had come from some other planet.
But,the EC saw through all this hogwash and did not conduct the elections until the state had returned returned to complete normalcy.I still remember the words that then CEC J M Lyngdoh used when he ticked off many of the IAS officers from the state administration.He very famously stated in front of the TV cameras "What kind of stories were you people telling us over there about things being under control.Aren't you ashamed of yourself?"These are the kind of people who have actually done their job with complete honesty and integrity,without bowing to pressure from any quarter.These are the kind of people and institutions who make me proud of being an Indian.These are the institutions which still leave a glimmer of hope for the people.The day these pillars of democracy collapse it won't take long for the country and the polity to be led by thugs and goons who have already entered mainstream politics.

Kashmir quake-a binding factor

2005-10-30T23:31:00.000-08:00

Human behaviour is really strange. Almost 6 years back the security forces of India and Pakistan were engaged in a conflict in the picturesque hills of Kargil in Jammu & Kashmir(the territory of the disputed Kashmir valley under Indian control). This was one issue which had snowballed into 4 separate wars between the 2 countries. The loser in all instances being humanity and the comman man.Thousands of people have been killed in the shelling on both sides of the LOC. Billions of dollars have been invested in the defence sector by both the sides to guard the territories under their control.Billions of dollars invested in almost futile attempts by both sides to take control of the other's territory.It nothing but an irony that while these countries were spending so much on guns,missiles,fighter planes and all such kinds of ammunition,there were farmers commiting suicide and children dying of poverty.
However things do seem to be changing albeit very slowly.The peace process is chugging along at a good pace.
However,one incident which seems to have made a big impact on this peace process is the recent earthquake on both sides of the LOC.The devastation was massive especially in PoK(Pakistan occupied Kashmir).The response to this calamity from the world community also was very swift.The Government of India, surprisingly was very fast in dispatching the relief materials and supplies on the other side of the LOC.After 1971,for the first time,an IAF helicopter was allowed to fly over the other side of the LOC with relief materials.The earthquake has left behind a trail of death,destruction and a lot of misery.But, if I may try to take out some positives from this devastation,it has brought the people on both sides of the LOC together in grief.In Muzaffarabad and NWFP(North West Frontier Province) almost a generation is lost!The extremist outfits also have been hit badly.The devastaion has also led to close co-operation between the governments of India and Pakistan.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issued a communique that India would provide the Government of Pakistan with all the required supplies.The security forces on both sides of the LOC after a long time dropped the guns they held to help the victims and distribute aid to all the affected people.It is very strange that something which coildn't be achieved by diplomacy,war and a lot of backroom politics has been achieved by a natural disaster! If only the rulers were wise enough to understand that fighting over a piece of land is of no use as these boundaries are only recognised by humans and not by nature which always acts like there is only one world out there with human beings inhabiting it and not an American,Indian,Pakistani or anybody from any country.
Hope this natural disaster helps us to achieve something friutful which will help in the progress of the people of India and Pakistan.

Oral exams- one step completed

2005-10-28T00:39:00.000-07:00

So, finally friends we have finished the oral exams.Well almost if you leave out the project presentation and vivas.Well I must say that we all had a great time,literally.The best vivas though were the ADBMS vivas.Most of us as usual were clueless.Yours truly the nervous wreck that he is,tried very hard to cram in as much as possible in less than a day.Then as usual there were the ritual missed calls at night to friends and some frequent messaging like "Abe gandu kya padh raha hai","Man I'm completely burnt out", "Hey bhunti pls teach me XML tomorrow in the train"?????? God save our IT industry.With such brilliant engineers-in-the-making one can only pray for the country in general and the industry in particular.Later there will be late night calls from my pal Sunil.An hour's discussion on the SimCAT would later be followed by some exchange of important questions for the next days vivas.Gosh.The topic is vivas and not my conversations with friends and details of my missed calls.Next day yours truly and Gigith do some imminent discusscussions on the crucial topics.Then in the train yours truly would study for 5-10 minutes very seriously till Kurla station.Why just till Kurla? C'mon yaar after Kurla there are a lot of gals jumping onto the train.Have to pay some respect to God's beautiful creation.On some good days I never got to study from GTB Nagar station.Ha ha.
Later in college bhunti's like Shreedhar,Sahul and the rest would ask g***u kitna hua.Yours truly's reply being "khaas nahi". This would be followed by some curses from Shreedhar."Saale sab kuch padhke aaya hoga". This msiconception could probly be because he is unaware of the travails of travelling by train.Ha ha.
Anyways there were many common questions asked in the vivas yet most of us were clueless.Probly because we had less time to prepare.Huh.As if I would have studied more had we got more time to prepare.In the last vivas many funny things happened.The external tells us to write everything and most of us were blank.We just gave him that sly smile.In whispered tones asking the neighbours "abe kya likhoo","Kuch toh bata". Luckily for me I did give a few (wrong) answers. Some of my friends read(bhunti) were so unlucky that they knew the answer but didn't undrestand the question to answer the same.Quiet tragic.
Anyways now it's all over and we can look forward to some serious work in the month long leave.Just go for it guys.

Those were the days

2005-10-08T10:13:00.000-07:00

Few years back when I was in school I always had a jonesing to be a part of the "hip n happening" college life.That craving just went on rising in my 10th std days.I literally dreamt of being in a cool college where I could wear anything,go in at any time and move around anywhere without anybody's permission. But now I feel as if my life has come a full circle,literally.It is only now that I realise that school days are one of the best days of any person's life.That personal attention given to students like "Pranav I would like to meet your parents as I have received some complaints from your teachers regarding your (mis)behaviour", "Pranav you are one of the most notorious students in class" is something which I literally miss whenever I look back on my days in school.I always cursed some of my teachers whenever they hit me in front of the class.Come on yaar izzat ka sawaal hai.How could someone hit an innocent guy like me.There was one particular ma'am who caught me thrice in the same week for different reasons.The end result in all three cases being compete humiliation in front of the whole class.Sob.But strangely I miss all that.I miss being with my last bench friends.I miss playing those sports or games where our P.T sir told us to play a game of dodge ball where the guys got a chance to run in the middle and the girls had to get us out by throwing the ball at our bodies.Well,who wouldn't miss all that.Man those were the days when we all guys used to hang around in the toilets(I guess washroom would sound more appropriate) doing all kinds of things that shouldn't be done by school guys(Don't allow your imagination to run wild).Those moments when we all got a chance to sit on the same benches as the girls whom we had a crush on were really great.Those moments of friendly banter on the last benches in the middle of the periods (yes that's what they were called in school).Then suddenly the ma'am would shout "no whispering in the class" and we all would burst into peals of laughter.I miss teasing all my school pals and chums with literally any girl from the class.I miss that eagerness of going to school to sit with my pals and concentrate(not on what was taught in the class) but on the girls.Not that I can't do it now.But,still those were the days when it was really fun doing such things with school pals and all the chappri,tapori and useless guys(which incidentally also included yours truly).
Strangely I now feel a deep chasm within me when I think about those great days.I feel as if I wouldn't mind being slapped,cursed and chastised by my school teachers.I really would love to go back to that lovely place in one corner of my neighbourhood called school.I miss being with those guys who were always typecast as good for nothings.I really wish that we all should never have grown up.Life would have been really great had we been in school all our lives.What say friends?

The Mahatma and his legacy

2005-10-02T14:19:00.000-07:00

October 2,1869.This day will remain one the most important days in the annals of history.On this very day one of the most important figures in world history was born in a middle class family of India.Born,Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi,he was lovingly called bapu and respectfully known as Mahatma or "The Great soul".I consider myself and all my fellow Indians to be proud inheritors of his legacy of ahimsa or non-viloence and satya (truth) although very few of us put his teachings into practise.I however am proud of the fact that such a great man was born in my country-India.One can never doubt his integrity and commitment to his teachings. However,the events that have occured in India and the whole world after his death does put a question mark over his philosophy of non-viloence.Fundamentalism in the name of religion,class,race has begun to reach its apex.Religious intolerance has increased manyfold.Albert Einstein's prediction in the late 1940's that "there would come a day in the next 100 years when people would find it hard to believe that a man of the stature of Mahatma Gandhi once walked on this earth" is slowly but surely coming true.
Even in Gandhiji's motherland-India his name is usually taken with a lot of contempt especially the misled new generation.People have started believing that the Bhagat Singh's,Savarkar's and Mangal Pandey's were bigger freedom fighters than Gandhiji.But,the point is not who was a bigger freedom fighter or who did more for the country.The point is whose teachings hold more importance in today's world.In today's world which is filled with corruption,viloence,religious intolerance,casteism and racism the need to keep his legacy alive is of utmost importance especially in India which is a country consisting of various ethnic minorities,castes and religions.
It is very unfortunate,that India,inspite of having such a great man as it's leader at the time of Independence has not been able to live up to its potential.I guess that is probly because we were not ready for Independence at that time,or because we had the wrong and innefecient dynasties ruling us for most of the last 50 years.But, I sincerely pray to God that people try to understand bapu's teachings with complete attention instead of reading it just for the sake of reading.Perhaps we might rediscover his teachings,his philospohy of life and his vision of not just India but the whole world.Perhaps,people might be forced to drop their arms in Palestine,Kashmir,Iraq,Ireland,Russia just about any corner of the world,the way they did just a few months before Independence in the hamlets of Bengal in 1947 at the height of the communal frenzy that had spread throughout the whole of North,North West and East of undivided India.Perhaps we may finally succeed in making the world a better place to live in.Perhaps...... this dream may finally come true after aeons.

Thank you God

2005-09-21T04:21:00.000-07:00

I must admit,like many people I too have a habit of cribbing about insignificant things. "Mom why is the dal cold today?". "Why have you made so and so dish today?". "Why can't we go abroad on a holiday?". These are some of my oft repeated complaints.
I guess I have started valueing the things I have (or rather given to me by God) more over the past few months.Well,I sincerely hope,I do value them.
I guess that's probably because I have started realizing that I have been far more privilged and lucky than many of the others in this world.I still remember my dad telling me to think about those who were less fortunate than me.
I can no longer crib about not being given a permission to go on a trip abroad as I have seen people struggle to travel to office,college everyday due to lack of money.I can no longer complain about not being given my favourite dish as there are many people out there in the World who are forced to eat the caracass of animals as they have nothing else to eat.I can no longer complain about not being given enough pocket money as there are many people(esp. students) who are unable to study due to lack of money,while I am studying something by paying a fair amount of money without getting the required results.

I don't know what good I have done to get all these things.I really don't know why the other's are not equally blessed by God.I really have no answers why people are dying due to hunger and starvation while many of us don't even think twice before throwing away a large part of food from our dishes. I have no idea who can answer these questions.

But,I do know one thing. Someone up there loves me and is taking care of me and my loved ones.When I meet that someone, up there,I will thank him profusely for giving me so many things which I have never worked for.

Comrades-Patriots or traitors

2005-09-11T09:34:00.000-07:00

The left parties especially the CPM and CPI were 2 parties who I really beleived were good and honest.But,that adulation probly had something to do with what had happened in Gujarat in 2003 and the vehement oppositon of the Left to the ruling BJP and it's parent organistion the fundamentalist RSS.Circa 2005.TheLeft's belligerent attitude to the disinvestment policies and clandestine support to the Maoists makes me wonder if they are any better than the funadmetalist right.
I guess one of the very few plusses that the Communists in India have is their secular outlook and their very simple lifestyle.Never will you find any Communist move around in a car with hundreds of securitymen around him.Infact,even while going to Parliament usually the walk from their home to the parliament.
One can never forget what kind of a man former Union Minsiter Indrajit Gupta was.When he was the Home Minister in 1996-1997 he lived in a modest 3 bedroom flat in the MLA's hostel in Delhi!Not only that,his wife used to go to the market in an autrorickshaw,unlike the family members of other politicians who live like Kings and behave as if the comman man(or should I say the lesser mortals) are their servants.
But, their economic policies are very harmful to the country.It's just a case of selecting the lesser evil when it comes to a choice between the Right wing BJP,RSS and our leftist commies led by the CPM amd CPI.Take your pick people. every passing day makes me more disillusioned with the Left especially the CPM which is based on Marx's philosophy of violence.The right fights in the name of religion whereas the Left fights in the na,e of class.They beleive that they are the sole guardians of the poor.Their clandestine support for the Maoists who are a major security threat to India is a serious matter as this puts them in the same bracket as China which has given rise to Maoism and still supports them to create instability in the neighbouring regions(namely India)
I would like to see the Communists fight against corruption,judicial reforms and rising prices with the same zeal that they fight the smallest of economic reforms.I would like to see them fight against the blatant sell off of seats in various educationa institutions.I would love to se them fight against the actual oppression of the weaker sections of the society.I guess, it is time they live upto their populist image ala Robin Hood.Even if they do 10% of all this it will make a big difference to the country.More importantly it will make people like me who are very easily impressed by their ideology give them a second look.
I'll definitely advocate a leftist rule if all this is dealt with in an honest way.Also Mr.Karat and Mr.Yechury,I would love to join your party if all this happens.I promise.

College and attendance

2005-09-02T03:22:00.000-07:00

Nowadays going to the college has become so important.Teachers come to the class after every 15 lectures armed with a list of attendance record.The Final year is very important they say.Your attendance should be above 75%.If you don't attend how will you pass!!!!(haa haa haa)
The professors advice us to score very good marks in the final year."A first class in the final year will help you a lot",says one of the profs.The other says "try to get 70% so that your overall aggregate crosses 60%".With due respect to our professors,I say,"jo 3 saal main nahi kar paya woh 2 sem main kya karega".
Every passing day just makes me happier. Just one more year left now,I say to myself.Only one year among these labs,journals,technology,programs,code and what not.Great! Meanwhile,attending lectures as usual is a mixed bag of fun and boredom.Fun because I can sit on the backbenches and talk to my friends.Boredom because,it's just a waste of time to travel all the way from Sion just for some lectures and pracs which I don't think I'll ever need in the future.But,I guess,this is the price one pays for getting decent marks in 12th and not listening to dad's advice.No problem.I've taken it all in my stride.The only silver lining is meeting some great new friends in the last four years and some great experiences regarding what technology is all about(Did I just say great?).

It's time to leave now.Looking forward to hearing from you all.
Good bye

Mangal Pandey-Real hero or just reel hero.

2005-08-17T05:01:00.000-07:00

Aamir Khan's latest movie Mangal Pandey-The Rising has definitely managed to create a lot of curiosity among the audience.But,it still remains to be seen whether the curiosity is due to the subject or because it is Aamir Khan's first film after the twin success of Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai.From the initial reviews of the film it sems like the filmmaker has taken a lot of liberties and added a lot of fictional elements in the film.This could prove to backfire for a film which promises to be a historical film.
But,the director can be excused for this as very little is actually known about Mangal Pandey and his "revolt".The only true fact that we all know about him is that he killed a British Officer of his regiment.But,this I feel,does not qualify him to be called as a revolutionary.Revolution I feel,is not just about killing the enemy.It is much more than that.Revolution is the actual awakening of the masses.Again revolutionaries need not have positive shades.Any person who really evokes a feeling of patriotism or pride in one's race,community or society is a true revolutionary.By that defintion I feel,Hitler,Lenin,Martin Luther King,Mahatma Gandhi can all be counted in the same breadth as revolutionaries.These people had the real support of the masses although their methods and practices were very much different(No one can imagine putting Hitler and Stalin in the same bracket as M.K.Gandhi)
But,I guess the Indian Freedom Struggle had only one real revolutionary whose pinciples and teachings are not followed anymore in his own country.How can we expect the others to follow his teachings then?
But,I feel that in these very difficult times it is very important to remember The Mahatma's teaching.His teachings are very important for today's disillusioned youth.

I do hope that today's filmmakers try to portray his teachings and struggles on celluloid instead of showing revolutionaries who actually did not do much in their lifetime.