Copenhagen

Hi All,

I am back after quite a hiatus. I was watching skeptically the circus going in a faraway land called Copenhagen and as if God had implemented my thoughts, the conference ended with no solid result to show. After all the attention and hype this conference received, we certainly deserved better, much better.

We had expected some sort of a legally binding agreement which would mitigate climate change and incentivise migration to greener technologies. Something that would put the brakes on development that damaged the environment irreversibly. Something that would scorn on usurping resources without any consideration for sustainability. But that something never came. If the leaked draft is to be believed, it is never going to come either.

So at the end of Copen[Hope]Hagen, what we have is loads of world leaders who had a gala time at the expense of taxpayer's money and worst still emitted tonnes of pollutants during their stay. [Limousine rentals companies were on a roll during the conference period, so much so that some had brought in cars from other cities.]

As I suspected Copenhagen became an exercise of geo political influence, convenient acronyms[BASIC...Brazil, SA, India and China!] and wasted time. Rich countries intentionally flaunting their wealth, the powerful arm twisting their meek counterparts and the poor hoping to grab whatever is thrown at them.

So this is what I saying. Let’s have more of these useless conferences. Let’s keep fighting among ourselves. Let’s come up with some arcane law which exists only on paper. Lets have more of these silly acronyms[How about RACE, Romania, Afghanistan, Canada, Egypt]. Let’s ignore the fact that we all share the same environment. Let’s keep polluting our environment and consuming natural resources as if there was no tomorrow. Let’s put the onus of fighting climate change on our children, who will pass it on to their kids. [Hey there are just following our diligent footsteps!]

The Kingdom...a compelling watch

Hi All,

I had watched the movie 'The Kingdom' on TV a couple of weeks back and since then I have been itching to write a review/post about it. The movie started close to midnight and went on well past 1 am. The fact that I was glued to the idiot box all that time and didn’t even dare to switch channels, lest I miss a few seconds of the film, should be sufficient to convey the intensity of the movie.




'The Kingdom' is based on a semi fictional plot on the bombings of the residential quarters of foreign workers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The blast leaves the many dead and several more injured. The America Diaspora is devastated and furious. It doesn’t help that the atrocity was carried out by men masquerading as Saudi policemen. The monarchy, understanding the gravity of the situation, promises action but at the same time utilizes ambiguous laws to prevent American sleuths from investigating this carnage.

But remember this is an American movie and the Americans always win...:). So in comes the FBI with all their men [and women] and their gear only to find that the maximum role they will be allowed to play will be that of mute spectators to the whole spectacle. During a dinner with the Saudi prince, the FBI lead successfully persuades the prince to allow them to play a more proactive role. From this point onwards, the team realizes apart from the burden of collecting and deciphering evidence they also have become soft targets themselves.

The movie is action packed pretty much throughout the entire duration. The car chases are pretty exhilarating and will certainly ensure adrenalin courses through your body the same way blood does. Exchanges with terrorists are decent enough to satiate the goriness quotient of any typical Hollywood movie.

The film doesn’t leave you wanting from the emotional aspect as well. The scene where a father narrates to the visiting FBI team on how his son was trying to put back his mother jaws using a band-aids tugs your heart and touches the sorrowful aspect of terrorism. For a moment you are able to relate this to the loss of innocent lives as 26/11 unfolded. The film also smacks the conservative attitude of the monarchy through the example of a female character being denied invitation from the prince due to her gender.

The movie ends with promise of more revenge from both the sides. I would certainly recommend this movie any weekend watch.

P.S. I have taken the liberty to describe a good portion of the film in this post as it was released 2 years back and hence any description would not amount to a 'spoiler'.

My 2 cents worth on ‘2 States’

Hi All,

I recently finished reading Chetan Bhagat’s [CB] latest book ‘2 States’ and boy it has been one good read. Chetan in his typical style has rendered yet another book in first person narrative. This genre of writing is usually considered not as interesting as third person narratives. But Chetan has repeatedly proven us wrong.

The book is by and large a realistic account of what lovers have to go through in India (Though I am not one myself, I have enough friends who vouch by this book). So I really liked the realistic tone of this book. Many conversations between key characters are very much stuck to the ground and showed how typical Indian family conversations would be.

CB has taken the liberty of dramatic license and exaggerated the gimmickry performed by the lovers to convince their other half’s parents but still he has been careful enough to keep it within conceivable reach of imagination. From taking tuitions for his lover’s brother to preparing business proposals for her father, our hero seems to be doing everything and anything to win over the bride’s family. His lover proves she is no lesser when she ensures the smooth function of her lover’s cousin sister’s marriage.

But many arguments among key characters are not taken to their logical conclusion. CB has ,intentionally i believe, shied away emotional outbursts of older characters which you would normally expect given the gravity of the situation the characters find themselves in. Probably he has done this keeping in mind commercial considerations, after all he is writing for a young audience and we dont want to read about oldies crying and screaming at each other.

Overall, a good book to read and ponder over.

There is no I in TEAM

Hi All,

Last night's ODI match against Australia was just electrifying to say the least. We saw fortunes fluctuate within a span of few overs which again reminded us that the ODI format of the game can entertain us just as equally as the slam - bam T20. (I am digressing here.) It was a run feast for the spectators and they lapped it up in typical Indian style; by drowning out the stadium with their sonorous chanting.

We also witnessed the master blaster Sachin in one of his best displays of batting prowess and genius. The end result was disappointing nevertheless but there are lessons to be carried away from this outing.

The most prominent lesson we can learn is that there is no 'I' in team. A team needs each and every member to fire on all cylinders. Yesterday Sachin was in his elements, scoring boundaries at will and running sensibly between the wickets. But it takes 2 hands to clap and likewise it takes a team effort to overcome a humongous total of 350. While Sachin was making every possible effort to take India to the finish line, his own compatriots were sabotaging him in every way possible. The famed Indian top order collapsed like a flimsy cardboard structure. Wicket after wicket fell and we were almost half down before Sachin could find a reliable partner in Raina. So it's clear, even a great like Sachin can't win matches single handedly. We need the whole team to give their best.

Another take away for the Indian team....Temperament is important in crunch scenarios like the one yesterday. The nerves started showing when Raina got out. Jadeja was trying to scamper across for every delivery when there was clearly no run in it. It came as no surprise that he was run out, mostly due to his own undoing. As if we have had not enough of run outs, the nerves showed up at the fag end of the match with an unnecessary 2nd run which eventually led to India's demise. The match was still winnable even with just one wicket in hand but lack of temperament did us in.

Alas, the jinx still stands....whenever Sachin gets a ton India tends to lose...:(

P.S. It took a couple of hours for me to digest India's loss yesterday esp. after seeing such a magnificent batting display. This post is dedicated to the world's best batsman, Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

The cult of James Bond movies

Hi All,

I recently read an article about the demise of an actor who played the villain character in Dr No. That triggered me to start thinking about how even villain characters played in James Bond films become so famous...( I know some of you might be tempted to argue with me that villain characters can be equally popular but let’s leave that argument for some other day)

James Bond movies have become a cult in the big screen space in modern times. At many times they were considered mile stones for the entertainment industry. They showcased to the world what the future held for the audience. From the gadgetry to the swanky sea side villas, JB movies really transported the viewers to another world. It was the vicarious thrill of watching Mr. Bond shoot down the baddies and romp around with damsels which captivated the attention of the common man.

The ever increasing arsenal at Bond's hands created an aura of anticipation among the viewers in every consequent film and more importantly sustain interest in the series. This demand was to a large extent quenched by the producers of the movies. But in recent times, this trend is being reversed. Bond is increasingly being shown as a character with deep emotional connections with his companions and the emphasis on his gadgetry seems to have been given a miss.

We all grew up watching James Bond as the ultra high tech guy with great guns [pun unintended...:)] and driving swanky cars in dangerous curves[again pun unintended]. The latest JB movies had an element of absence in them. Or at least that’s me. How do you guys feel about this latest trend?

China: Is the dragon just breathing fire?

Hi All,

China’s recent protest to Indian PM’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh (AP) sparked off a flurry of diplomatic activity in New Delhi. The Chinese ambassador was summoned to clarify his government’s stand and to understand India’s position on the issue. Indian ministers also wasted no time in asserting that AP was an ‘integral and inalienable’ part of India.

In light of this incident and various others that have happened, I just wonder what is China’s ultimate aim in claiming territory that is clearly not hers. It also puzzles me where does this atrocious claim lie in the ‘peaceful rise’ strategy that China is purportedly following.

A few nagging questions remain…

1. Is this claim a ploy to keep India ‘under check’?
2. Is it advisable to maintain relations with people who threaten your own existence?
3. With the military option being ruled out by our own armed forces chiefs, what other alternatives do we have?

We should try to find answers to the above questions; the faster the better!

Are we being PENNY WISE and POUND FOOLISH?

Hi All,

The government's recent directive to all its ministers to shed luxury and lead an austere life jolted most ministers out of their comfort zones. Some gave defiant interviews while others just twittered away. But when the message was reinforced, one by one fell into place. Suddenly, being austere became the latest fad. Minister after minister 'voluntarily' gave up all of his luxuries. Flying economy became the order of the day and taking Re 1 salary was just something that was ordinary. Now for those of you who haven’t been watching the news and wondering where this is all happening guess what. It’s all happening right here in India. [No I am not kidding...:)]



As comforting as it might sound, the government's latest directive may not really make any difference. I read an article on CNN IBN today which showed in numbers that a Key Figure is just saving Rs10000 by flying economy. Considerably nothing! I would say this directive is mere tokenism; to avoid the wrath of the people at a time of severe drought and mind boggling rise in prices.

It would be wiser to indulge in real cost cutting measures like weeding out government schemes that stink of wasteful expenditure. Removing subsidies from quarters that don’t require it will help as well. Government ads in newspapers every time a power station or a bridge is christened are a gross waste of taxpayer money and have to be stopped if the government wishes to give its latest directive any real credibility.

So what do you people think of the government's latest austerity drive. Is it just mere tokenism or something concrete?

Class 10 exams optional

Hi All,

The decision to make Class 10 exams optional has caught most of us by surprise. After years and years of practically stagnant educational policies, we finally have something that at least smells of change and that too refreshing at that. Though I tend to agree with this decision on the policy level, I am a little anxious on how much actual change is there going to be on the ground. Moreover, the proposed change itself and the consequent discourse has been very urban centric.

First, this decision applies only to CBSE students. One wonders what happens to large swathes of students who are affiliated to other boards esp. the state boards. There is no talk about a similar arrangement for them. Why doesn’t the central government want to bat for these kids too? Paraphrasing the education minister, don’t these kids deserve to be de-traumatized as well?

Apart from making exams optional, other venues of making education more enjoyable and stress free could have been ventured. How about a greater percentage of classes conducted using audio visual aids? Or even tweaking the examination pattern to make assessments application oriented rather than ones that test memory power. How about incorporating achievements in extracurricular activities into the core system so that more children will be encouraged to take up these activities?

As we all know government schools in this country are in a pathetic shape and can be best described as tokens of government presence in the education sector. If the government was truly interested in revolutionalizing education, then it should pour in more money for constructing AND maintaining primary and secondary schools.

So for the reasons mentioned above, I feel that the proposed changes will only benefit a section of the society and will not bring out the real and necessary changes in the existing system.

Inner party democracy, anyone?

Hi all,

We always pride ourselves with the fact that we are the world's largest democracy. Every five years when we go out to vote, we leave the rest of the world in awe. We make them wonder how such a staggering exercise is being conducted without major hiccups. The statistics alone is sufficient to rattle any planner and put him/her out of sleep for days.

For all the chest beating that we indulge in, there is a darker side to our democracy that we usually don't visit that often and would certainly like to keep it under the wraps from prying outsiders' eyes. Probably you would have guessed what I am talking about right now.

Inner party democracy has not been on the agenda of many political parties for a long time. They, conveniently, forget the fact that charity starts at home and that being propagators of democracy also means that they themselves have to practice it both in letter and in spirit first. Most of the political parties today somehow give inner democracy a miss. Dynastic politics seems to be the order of the day. If not that then it is a single strong man whose whims and fancies decide who and how the party is run.

Is this what democracy is all about? We all know it wasn't meant to be this way. Why are our political parties behaving in a manner that can be best described as being devoid of democracy? And whose responsibility is it to put the house under order? Where do we draw the line between democracy and indiscipline? Should academic exercises like writing a book come under the purview of a party's ideology?

p.s. I didn't want to get into the gory details of dynastic politics and strong men who control their parties with an iron grip...we all know it too well don't we...:)

So What?

Hi All,

A national calamity has befallen our nation. We have been wronged and humiliated. Our existence has been questioned and eminent citizens of our country, all of a sudden, suffer from trust deficit.

This would be the conclusion anyone would have come to if he/she had watched the media coverage following SRK's 'detention' at Newark Airport on Saturday. It was as if his detention was as important,if not more, as the day itself. Clippings of Independence day celebrations took a back seat to SRK's 'ordeal' speech! As all of you are aware the issue is still raging on with some celebrities and many politicians coming in support of SRK while the rest dismissing it as yet another publicity stunt for his latest movie. (Coincidentally(?) his upcoming movie also deals with similar incidents).

Now let me come straight to the point. I am angry and disappointed in equal measure with the media and the person in question,SRK. The media went into frenzy mode when the news first broke out and many channels started airing voice clippings of SRK speaking out on the issue. The constant barrage of the 'sufferings' of SRK made me feel obnoxious enough to switch off the idiot box and let the dust settle. After portraying SRK as a fallen hero, now some sections of the media wish to occupy the moral high ground and question the reactions subsequent to SRK's detention and ask what is all the fuss about!

SRK on his part did all he could to make this incident into that of racial profiling and garnered, to a great extent, lots of sympathies from the general public who probably saw this as yet another attempt of humiliation of one of their kind. To make matters worse, he even disclosed the reasons provided by the authorities for detaining him knowing fully well that these very reasons could flare up emotions back home. The least he could have done, in my opinion, is to downplay the incident and brush it aside like Abdul Kalam.

Now i ask, SO WHAT? So what if SRK is questioned. So what if he made to sit in a room for a couple of hours and made to answer a few uncomfortable questions. Is he above the law? Couldn't he have been the one of those randomly chosen people to undergo further screening? What about all those Indians who have been subject to outright profiling? Why hasn't the Indian media spoken up against this practice,with the same amount of intensity shown for this incident, in the past?

I wish to clarify that i am not condoning racial profiling. On the other hand, like all good people of this country, i condemn it outright. But we(media, public and the concerned persons) should stop reacting in a knee jerk manner every time an Indian is questioned or frisked and put all sorts of theory behind the incident. Rather we should look at it objectively.

Media’s role during troubling times

HI all,

Love them or hate them, you just can’t ignore them goes an adage. This couldn’t apply more to the media than anything else today. Print, electronic or any other form of media pervades every aspect of our life; informing us and determining, to a reasonable extent, the formation of views and our response to developing situations.

The ongoing Swine Flu Pandemic has highlighted the media’s role yet again in informing, educating, spreading information and awareness among the masses. In fact, I reckon, without the proactive media we have today in this country, the flu could have posed a much bigger threat than it currently does.

Having said this, there are proponents of the argument that media is primarily doing this for the sake of TRPs. Undoubtedly there is great public interest surrounding this flu and media outlets just want to cash in on this frenzy. They point out that we experience greater numbers of mortality just due to preventable diseases like malaria etc. So where was the media all this while, they ask. Fair argument by any measure!

So what are your thoughts on media’s role in this pandemic and in troubling times in general?

Amendment to the 'Public Office Act circa 2009'...:)

Election Commission [EC] Circular:

The following 'rules' have been added to the already existing criteria for filing nominations to run for office.

• Ability to shout down opposing views. It is mandatory that prospective member clear the prescribed 'decibel-o-meter' test with flying colours.

• Should be strong enough to yank the speaker's microphone out in case the speaker asks you to stop speaking or says anything that is not in your favour.

• Ability to fall asleep while serious discussion is going on. Candidates with snoring that amounts to just a whisper will be preferred over the rest.

• Compulsory absenting on Fridays so as to take an extended weekend holiday. Punitive action will taken against members who insist on attending sessions on Friday.

• Ability to smuggle in wads of currency notes and display it in the well of the house at the most opportune moment in the full glare of the cameras. Conceiving unique smuggling ideas will attract incentives such as 'black money limit' extended to 10 crores and relaxation in the 'less than 5 years' in prison rule by another 2 years.

• Asking ONLY questions for which members have been paid for. Extra questions will be charged at 420/question.

P.S: This post was never meant to demean anybody or any country... :)

Amendment to the 'Public Office Act circa 2009'...:)

Election Commission [EC] Circular:

The following 'rules' have been added to the already existing criteria for filing nominations to run for office.

• Ability to shout down opposing views. It is mandatory that prospective member clear the prescribed 'decibel-o-meter' test with flying colours.

• Should be strong enough to yank the speaker's microphone out in case the speaker asks you to stop speaking or says anything that is not in your favour.

• Ability to fall asleep while serious discussion is going on. Candidates with snoring that amounts to just a whisper will be preferred over the rest.

• Compulsory absenting on Fridays so as to take an extended weekend holiday. Punitive action will taken against members who insist on attending sessions on Friday.

• Ability to smuggle in wads of currency notes and display it in the well of the house at the most opportune moment in the full glare of the cameras. Conceiving unique smuggling ideas will attract incentives such as 'black money limit' extended to 10 crores and relaxation in the 'less than 5 years' in prison rule by another 2 years.

• Asking ONLY questions for which members have been paid for. Extra questions will be charged at 420/question.

P.S: This post was never meant to demean anybody or any country... :)

Reality TV...taking it too far?

Hi all,

There has been a huge uproar in Parliament over the controversy generated by reality shows like Such Ka Saamna [Face the Truth]. While this session of Parliament is for debating the budget, our politicians are doing what they do best; digressing from arcane and not-so-people related topics to ones that can be easily identified by their constituents. While their actions are not pardonable, they seem to have raised a valid point.

Reality TV shows in general seems to be catering to our dark sides. From encouraging people to 'voluntarily' disclose sleazy facts about themselves to blatantly showing how different individuals feel about each other(and in the process getting them to spew out a few vulgarities!) to clearly placing the participants in harm's way, anything goes for reality TV. It is this perversion for catching as many eyeballs as possible is what has seemed to create all the furore.

Now big question is where do we draw the line and who does it? Who should be the regulator? What should he/she/they do? What should be considered as matters within the private realm and what can be made public/aired? We find ourselves in a familiar situation. So many questions and so little answers.

I am personally for self regulation. The onus of restricting what should and what should not be shown should lie on the broadcasters themselves. In fact, I am sure that this is what these organisations would want too. Now that they have been used to so much freedom, they certainly would not like 'Big Brother' looking over their shoulders, would they? [Off course these organisations would be dead set against even self regulation but somehow we have to convince them that it is the way forward] Moreover, i am certain that there will be at least one good human being among the thousands in those organisations whose wiser sense will prevail and sanity restored with respect to content of reality TV. This will also encourage responsible content generation and will pave the way for a independent yet responsible broadcasting.

Off course, the government could take the role of a 2nd class regulator and step in and take on these broadcasters if things go too far. Or we could have a independent body, consisting of all sections of the media, play regulator. But the downside of this is that vested interest might creep in and play spoilsport.

What are your thoughts on this?

Kargil: 10 years on....

Hi All,

It has been 10 years since the Kargil war (skirmish?). So I thought it would be nice to have a post to commemorate the 10 yrs and pay our respects to the men and women who laid down their lives to protect the territorial integrity of India.

To those martyrs who laid down their lives and their bereaving families, no amount of consoling words will be sufficient and no amount of financial compensation will be enough. Loss of live will always be hard to reconcile and we all sincerely hope that those families, in the past decade, have reached closure.

It has been 10 years and it is time to move forward, both for the individuals and the country as whole. We have to learn our lessons from the past and not commit them again. Even a slight lapse of vigil might be enough motive for intruders to attempt Kargil2.

That said and done, i strongly believe that dialogue is the way forward for resolution of any conflict, ours in no exception. Too many lives have been lost and too much money, time and energy have been expended on fighting. We should engage in military conflict only if it thrust upon us (like Kargil). Continuous engagement of neighbours, to resolve disputes, through composite dialogues will help rather than contemplating military solutions for them.

What are your thoughts on this....

Craziest/Wildest thing you have ever done?

Hi All,

This one isn’t my usual type of a post, where I discuss serious issues related to society. It’s just one of those posts that is meant to send you down the memory lane and recollect the wildest/wackiest/funniest/craziest things you have ever done in your life. It could have been an intentional action or more of an accident. An event when you were a kid and consequently narrated by your family members when you grew up. Anything goes, people.

As for me, I have had my share of doing crazy things. For starters, my mom used to tell me that I used to stare into the holes found in the back of TV sets hoping to find people inside. And when I couldn’t find any I would go and ask her how come they are not there but they appear on screen. Hiding biscuits in boxes and totally forgetting where I kept them or forgetting that I had hid them in the first place!

So what are your funny moments...share them here....

Direct Cash Transfer

Hi All,

Direct Cash Transfer(DCT) is a term that i came across in Nandan Nilekani's Imagining India and it has caught my imagination since then. It refers to the practice of government placing some amount of cash, based on requirement, into an individuals bank account in order to help him/her tide over a certain difficulty or to offset the removal of government subsidy that had been in place till then.

DCT has been experimented ,with varying levels of success ,all around the world and on the whole the beneficiaries of this concept have given it a big thumbs up. DCT tends to have a whole lot of advantages associated with it. I will state some of them here.

1.) Targeted Subsidies - Only a fraction of the subsidies today actually reach the intended audience. With DCT, subsidies can be targeted and made to reach only the people they were meant for. For ex. LPG cylinders being supplied to rich households are subsidised to the same extent as the ones beings sent to middle/poor households. This clearly doesn't make sense.

2.) Massive Savings- Apart from making perfect logic, DCT will also translate into good savings for the government. The cash transfer is going to be made only to families which need them and not to everyone by default, which is how the present system works.

3.) Responsible/Reduced Usage - Because DCT will only compensate for a finite amount of resources consumed, it will encourage beneficiaries reduce their usage of these resources. For the sake of continuity, lets again take the case of LPG:

Actual cost of one cylinder - 550

Cost to consumer - 350

Subsidy - 200

If the government sets the cylinder limit at 8/family/year then it would need to deposit 8*200=1600 into the accounts of the families and carry on and sell each cylinder at actual cost price.

Advantage 1: Subsidy provided to people who don't need it(read Ambanis' and the likes) will be eliminated.

Advantage 2: If families use more than their stipulated amount of cylinders, they would have to do so at actual cost of the cylinder.

Now that we have seen the merits of this system, i would like to highlight the challenges this system poses.

1. Mammoth Task - Creating bank accounts for millions of house holds across India will be no easy task and will require many changes/simplifications in the procedures for account creation. Orientation and acquaintance courses must be held to make the masses more familiar with banking terms/formalities etc.

Silver Lining - The banking system in this country is quite strong and that banks and their ATMs are spread across the width and the breadth of India.

2. Unwillingness - People might not be, initially, so receptive to the the idea of universal subsidy being removed and a more targeted system being brought in to replace it. Stiff resistance might be encountered from families which are large in number(5 or more) as they certainly would need more of these resources.

Silver Lining - This concept is politically "sell-able" due to its obvious benefits. Some Indian politicians were even making some noise about this in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. So for once, we can actually confide in our politicians to get the convincing job done!

So what do you guys think about this concept of subsidy delivery. Please share your thoughts.

Imagining India: A good read

Hi all,

I recently finished reading the book called Imagining India, written by Nandan Nilekani. To be frank, i took a couple of months to read it and moreover i was "two-timing" the book with my favourite English fiction authors..:) But at the end of it all, i must say the book made for a compelling read.

As Tom Friedman rightly points out, Nandan is a great explainer. Arcane issues are discussed threadbare and in a manner that even lay men can understand. Issues have been separated into broad categories and solutions have been suggested both at the macro and micro level. The ideas are fresh, innovative & even sometimes revolutionary. So revolutionary that,as Nandan himself agrees, it is going to take quite a bit of political will to implement the tough measures that this country so needs. It must be noted here that he has also dealt with the most thorniest of topics and given recommendations on how to go about solving them.

Something bizarre struck me after reading this book. We should make all our politicians read this book to make them realize the dire straits our country is in now and how to work towards making our society more progressive and peaceful. In fact we must have a test based on this book and many others of this ilk. Only if they ace the tests, should they be allowed into Parliament!

Coming back to the book, i certainly recommend this book for anyone regardless of your exposure to issues affecting Indian society. I also sincerely hope that the predictions Nandan has made in favour of India come true ASAP.

SriLanka: Battle Won, the war lost?

Hi All,

I am sure you would have heard about the recent events in SriLanka and how the war against rebels came to an end and the developing humanitarian crisis got countries world over anxious. The general secretary of the UN has described the scenes he witnessed of the war ravaged regions as "appalling".

I don't wish to take sides in this recently concluded battle. My post here is to highlight the plight of the civilians who were caught between a ruthless militia claiming to fight for their rights and an equally brutal military hell bent on "freeing" them from the clutches of terrorists. The blame for the heavy civilian casualty must be placed on both the government and the rebel forces. But i believe the SL govt must be apportioned a greater percentage of blame than the rebels.

The govt forces were using heavy artillery even at the fag end of the war knowing fully well that the rebels were using civilians as human shields and that the tigers were in no position of bouncing back. The government, even now, is restricting access to humanitarian agencies wanting to go into the war savaged areas. Close 2 hundred thousand civilians have been put under 24 hours of armed guard into a space that
is meant for a fraction of that of population .

While the SL might have won the battle, the fear is that it might have lost the war.
It has failed to cease the opportunity to impress upon the Tamil population that they have been "freed" from the hands of the LTTE. If recent events are any testimony to what is to come, I wouldn’t be surprised if an armed uprising, god forbid, is in the offing.

I am back...:)

HI all,

I know it has been a long time and I would pardon you if you had thought I was dead or something. No, I am very much alive and kicking!

A couple of delightful things happened over the course of this month. The 9th being my birthday and 11th was the day of our house warming. Though the events were spaced just two days apart, they offered me completely different experiences. I celebrated my birthday for the first time, with ONLY in the company of my friends (Really missed my mother's tasty vadai's and sweets). The house warming, on the other hand was held in the presence of a swarm of our relatives and well-wishers.

We (read my colleagues and I) were in attendance at the Lemon Grass, Bangalore on the evening of the 9th. Dinner was on me and Swapnil, colleague and friend on mine (His b'day was on the 6th...so we decided might as well give the b'day treats together.save some money..recession time u see). The customary cake cutting preceded the sequence of events for that evening. After helping myself and others to generous portions of the cake, we laid our hands on the gastronomic spread and i particular showed lots of commitment[read gobbled up food..:)]

Thank you Jagan, Anu and Prakash for the evening...

Inequality: A neccessary Evil?

Hi All,

Inequality has been a phenomenon that has been plaguing mankind time immemorial. It has crystallized into violent revolutions in the past and is threatening civil society in many countries today. India seems to be no exception to this trend. Our politicians seem to be hell bent on abolishing inequality, at least on paper. Great thinkers rue the fact that it still exist in our society and keep warning us on the continuance of inequality in civil society.

Though i couldnt agree more with the above mentioned people for the need of eliminating inequality, i ponder what a “inequality-less” society will be like. Why would our house maids work for us if they had the same amount of resources, opportunities as us. Why would we be working for our present employers if we have what they already possess. As you probably would agree with me, it is the inequality,in a perverse way, that keeps society ticking.

Combine that with human desire for continual improvement, we have a human populace that works for each other makes us all interdependent and paving the way for a more unified society. All well and good unless you are at the receiving end of the inequality you would say. Again i couldnt agree more.

But what if even at the receiving end, people had reasonable access to education, employment, affordable housing and nutrition. Would that kind of inequality be such a bad thing after all? So what if a small minority among us are filthily rich and probably having earnings multiple times as the rest of the population as long as the majority can survive and sustain better modest lifestyles.

Instead of viewing inequality as an evil, we should probably have fresher perspectives on this issue.

Religion

Hi all,

Religion has been an issue that has evoked eternal debate and it is this issue that i wish to talk about. There have numerous discussions on religious extremism, communalism etc in this space and elsewhere. But what i wish to discuss is something different and distanced from the above mentioned.

Something about religion has irked me quite a bit. It is our brazen display of our religious affiliations that leave me perturbed. Be it the kumkum on Hindu women or the white cap on Muslim men or the turbans of Sikhs, we seem to have no qualms about wearing our religion up our sleeves and other hand we seem to be proud of displaying these religious articles.

Before you pounce on me and accuse me of being an atheist, i must say that i am in fact far from one. It is just that, i feel, displaying our affiliations in the open doesn't augur well for a harmonious society. We keep harping that religion should not pervade our society but keep doing the exact opposite. Why cant we just restrict our religious practices to the confines of our four walls? Is it necessary to openly display our religious faith to be counted among the faithful? Even if there is a minuscule chance that stopping these practices would in fact augment our chances of a more harmonious society, wouldn't it be worth a try?

Trip to Kanchipuram

Hi All,

I am back and i have a good reason for not posting for such a long interval. The waiting period for a posting location just seems to get loooonger and looonger every passing day and it seems like my training got completed ages back. Its not just the depression from the waiting but also a rather excruciating throat condition that has prevented me from doing what i want do.

Anyways, i paid a visit to my sister’s place during the extended Good Friday weekend and we went to Kanchipuram to buy some silk sarees for the women folk. As you would have guessed, i tried to sneak away by providing some lame reason but as fate would have it i was not even given a choice.

So off we went…. me, my mother, my sis her two kids and my bro-in-law. It was quite a journey taking almost an hour and half and the bad roads not making the situation any better. Once we had reached there it was hospitality at its best. Greetings flew thick and fast and within minutes we had a salesman allocated to us and the onerous task of choosing the best sarees started.(That was approximately the time i opened the HINDU which i had brought along anticipating a long session)

As my mother and sister (terror duo )started sifting through the seemingly endless collection, i was deeply engrossed in the political happenings which were extensively covered in the news paper. I occasionally sighed a heave of relief when the duo finalised a saree.

The sales man, i must admit, was an epitome of patience. He displayed every saree that was requested by the terror duo and gave some additional “tid bit” information about each saree. When the duo rejected a saree after examining it for what seemed like an eternity, he folded it back and displayed a new one. WOW! Hats off to this man and thousands like him who suffer at the hands of women every day.

After two complete readings of the HINDU and fetching my nephew to the toilet a number of times, it was all over. It had taken just over 3 hours to choose 7 sarees and the bill read close to 30K. When i had lamented to my mother about the delay, she chided me and added that she was much better comparatively!

Ayan -Watchable(No spoilers!)

Hi All,

I watched the Surya starer Ayan this weekend with my cousins and it made for a good watch. Initially, me being the lazy bum i am, i refused to go to the movie. But my cousin's persuasive skills and the fact Surya has a lot of female fans(who would surely be present in the theatre) compelled me to change my mind...:)

Deva(Surya) is a college going student who works for Doss(Prabhu) in his "ship works" company which is actually a cover for his assorted criminal business. With Vijay TV fame "Nandu" and comedian Karunas as his accomplices, Deva works rather faithfully for Doss and finishes his tasks with commitment.

The problem arises when Doss's competitor's son gets a little too greedy and wants to rule the roost. Things get a little too personal as the movie moves along and how Deva tackles villain constitutes the rest of the story.

Surya has been working out as his six pac abs would tell you and he seems to be maturing as a actor. It was heartening to see that he did not indulge in heroism that much and moral policing was absent as opposed to his earlier movies like Aaru, Vel etc. Surya has attempted at creating comedy which is a welcome change from the fare we get from typical comedian's like Vadivelu. The stunts were awesome and kudos to Surya if he did not use a double to perform them.

Vijay TV "Nandu"(don't know his real name) plays a significant role in the movie and has done a commendable job. His screen presence is second only to the villain and he has justified every minute of it. Tammana is ok for a heroine but, as with most lady leads these days, must work her on lip sync. Karunas, surprisingly, plays second fiddle to the newbie "Nandu" and makes you wonder why he was not roped in to the up the laughter factor.

The songs , save one, have been a great let down. None of the songs are actually hummable and the lyrics gets drowned in the background music. The picturisation of the songs was good though and in fact the director attempts to show you the corners of the world in every song. Some of the songs have been ill timed and should have been slotted at a more opportune time in the story line.

Apart from all the fun and frolic, the movie tries to convey a message by portraying the dark underbelly of the drug smuggling world. It shows to what great extent people would go to smuggle drugs across borders and how they would put themselves in harm's way just to earn some quick money.

Overall, Ayan is a movie that you can watch with your family and friends and when it is all over make you feel that it was worth every rupee you spent for it.

Ayan- Watchable

Hi All,

I watched the Surya starer Ayan this weekend with my cousins and it made for a good watch. Initially, me being the lazy bum i am, i refused to go to the movie. But my cousin's persuasive skills and the fact Surya has a lot of female fans(who would surely be present in the theatre) compelled me to change my mind...:)

Deva(Surya) is a college going student who works for Doss(Prabhu) in his "ship works" company which is actually a cover for his assorted criminal business. With Vijay TV fame "Nandu" and comedian Karunas as his accomplices, Deva works rather faithfully for Doss and finishes his tasks with commitment.

The problem arises when Doss's competitor's son gets a little too greedy and wants to rule the roost. Things get a little too personal as the movie moves along and how Deva tackles villain constitutes the rest of the story.

Surya has been working out as his six pac abs would tell you and he seems to be maturing as a actor. It was heartening to see that he did not indulge in heroism that much and moral policing was absent as opposed to his earlier movies like Aaru, Vel etc. Surya has attempted at creating comedy which is a welcome change from the fare we get from typical comedian's like Vadivelu.

"Nandu"(dont know his real name) plays a significant role in the movie and has done a commendable job. His screen presence is second only to the villain and he has justified every minute of it. Tammana is ok for a heroine but, as with most lady leads these days, must work her on lip sync. Karunas, suprisingly, plays second fiddle to the newbie "Nandu" and makes you wonder why he was not roped in to the up the laughter factor.

The songs , save one, have been a great let down. None of the songs are actually hymmable and the lyrics gets drowned in the background music. The picturisation of the songs was good though and infact the director attempts to show you the corners of the world in every song. Some of the songs have been ill timed and should have been slotted at a more opportune time in the story line.

Ayan takes you to the dark underbelly of the drug trafficking world and the perils of being involved in one, which i believe was the message the director ulitmately wanted to convey to the audience. Overall Ayan is a movie that you can watch with your family and friends.

Space Exploration

Hi all,
I am back at home for the extended weekend and it feels great. Before i carry on, a happy Ugadi to one and all!

I always wanted to discuss this topic…space exploration(SE).Is it really necessary?. So i thought it would be good if i could raise this topic in this space and elicit views of the Wiproites.

The case FOR SE is pretty simple and straight forward. SE(unfortunately) represents a country’s prowess in scientific advancement. It has, over the years, come to indicate a country’s clout in the international arena. Moreover, proponents of SE, claim that many aerospace technologies are spin offs from the research time and money spent on SE.

The case AGAINST SE is as follows. We all know how much countries around the world spend on SE. The expenses of preparing the basic infrastructure for SE is humongous to say the least. Then there is the cost of the space vehicle and not to mention to the high tech gadgetry inside it that transmits back data to the ground centre, the fat pay cheques for the scientist and technical staff working there.
The other thing about SE is that it tends to be impractical. We all know that other than the earth there is no planet that is hospitable for human existence. No planet has the right set of “ingriedients” for humans to reside in it. So what the probes we sent to mars managed to find water in it. Mars’s atmosphere still doesnt have the right composition for humans to live in. Then how about the soil..who is going to make it cultivatible.

Last but not least, the planet that we are all living in can accomodate all of us. I read somewhere that we can fit into a texas in groups(read families) of 4 with a dwelling and a garden for each group. So there is enough space for everyone and there can be(with proper policies) enough food and opportunities for each and everyone of us.

I have intentionally not stated my position in detail here so that it will not influence you people. I hope to have a debate on this issue. Waiting for your comments and replies

Catch 22 Situation

Hi bloggers,

Is child labour really being tackled in our country…is there a concious effort to eradicate that scourge from this land…i doubt it…let me narrate my experiences….

I am currently staying in a paying guest accomodation just opposite to Electronic City phase 2. There is a popular hotel in the main road(i don’t wish to name this hotel…ppl from blore must have at least seen it, if not gone into it) which employs child labour in the form of cleaners. I was appalled at this sight and one of my friends even asked the boy how old he was and the reply was a big big lie….”i am 18“….we only could laught it away…but that incident lingered in my mind long enough for me to write about it today…

One of my friend justified the boy working there saying that if he didnt work there, probably he would die of hunger…then what about schooling i asked and as u would have guessed all i got was giggles…the boy was too poor to go to school or even if he could afford it there were some other compelling domestic reasons to abandon school and start working at this rather tender age.

This is not the only place where i have witnessed child labour…and i am sure there have been other places you would have bore witness to the same…why is it that even after 6 decades of independence, we are not able to put our kids into schools….why is that we tend to turn a blind eye to work places that employ children…why is our noon meal scheme not working…what happened to the free textbooks schemes, free uniform and the list goes on and on….

I am sure as an individual i cant make much of a change…may be i could stop frequenting that hotel…and if a number of us decide to do the same then the boy will probably get fired as a result of the hotel closing[bcos the place is surviving bcos of ppl like me…:(]…a perfect catch 22 situation….

Home sweet home

Hi all …I am back home (where I am in my elements) and it feels great. It has been just about a month away from here but I started feeling terribly home sick already. So this three day weekend was a godsend for me. Long live Republic day...he he…

The journey home wasn’t a pleasant one and that is what I wish to write about in this post. I was travelling in a SETC bus that was plying from Bangalore to Trichy. The bus arrived late at the pick up point, typical of any government bus. (Though we anticipated such a possibility, we arrived at the spot way before the pick up time).

Everything was on course for the next two hours. After dumping my luggage, mostly consisting of unwashed clothes…, into the luggage compartment and anywhere else where I could I find space, I broke into a random chat with my eternal friend Balaji. Before we knew it, both of us had dozed off. As if this irked Miss Bad Luck (who has the habit of following me everywhere and interfering in whatever I do), I was given rude wake up call. The bus started jumping every second or so and this seemed to be happening only on the rear side of the bus.

The driver brought the bus to a halt and by then a significant number of co passengers had been jolted from their sleep. Balaji, always being the curious one, got down from the bus. Being lazy and unwilling to get out of the comfort zone, I voluntarily suppressed my curiosity and went back to sleep. The next time I woke up, the bus was moving or at least trying to.

The jerk, unfortunately, had not gone away and this time the whole bus was awake and the few who knew what had happened were enlightening the ignorant rest. There had been an accident and the bus driver had not seen the stones used to demarcate the accident site and drove straight into it. Though he managed to evade most of the stones, one stone had got stuck in between the rear tyres.

From then on there was one trick in the book the conductor and the driver failed to attempt. But all their efforts were in vain as the stone refused to budge even an inch. The option of pushing on wasn’t on the cards too as the stone simply went in further and threatened to tear the tyres. What puzzled everyone was why didn’t they try to loosen the tyres. Upon enquiry, we came to know that the bus neither had a lever nor a spare tyre. Hence the reluctance to push on or to loosen the tyres.
After an hour of frantic searching, we finally managed to convince one of the many “24 hour” mechanic shops to help us. The conductor got into action in a flash and started loosening the tyres, with the help of the driver. The fateful stone was finally pried out and we were on the move in a few minutes.

The stone had set us back by more than two hours and it left all of us irritated to say the least. What was rather shocking was why didn’t the bus have a set of levers to tackle such an eventuality and what happened to set of mandatory tyres that were supposed to have been kept somewhere in the bus. I don’t intend to pursue this matter, for the obvious reasons, hope this is first and the last time I have to experience something like this.

Life in a PG

The rumblings start early on and when i mean early i mean really early(at least for me...how else would 5 am be to a compulsive sleeper). Though the turbulence isint enough to dislodge you from your bed, the unmistakable stench of the toilet permeates the room and is sufficient to trouble your nostrils to an extent that you rather wake up than snug under that blanket of yours.

Welcome to a daily morning routine in a paying guest(PG) accommodation in Bangalore, the IT capital of India. The abode of thousands of non locals, PGs are the home away from away. The home tag might be a little too exaggerating, especially for those like me who have been residing in PG for just over a month now but i guess its better than sleeping in the streets and shivering to death.

Ok i am deviating now..back to my shoe-boxish room...my room mate and long time friend Balaji wakes me up..”dai palani...dai” and i slowly start to realize i have woken up to yet another monotonous day of work. Contrast this with home..mother comes along..tells me to wake up and my response is way too obvious to be spelt out. Chances of me waking up for the next ten minutes is so low that mother doesn’t even bother to come back and allows me to get out of my sleep(slumber?) on my own terms. God, i miss those days.

Its not all over when u have just woke up, in fact the ordeal has just begun. Somebody is stepping on your heels all the time. Get prepared to be screamed at if you take that extra minute to complete any of your morning chores. You will always be burdened with the thought that even a small lapse on your part can screw up your roomies day. Frankly it took me some time to get used that.

After getting all decked up for work, i pay a visit to Maaji Sagar along with my friends. Its the only decent restaurant you can find in this side of the electronics city where i am residing. We have been to that restaurant so many times now that the waiters there make that customary salute to us whenever we enter. Though the food there is eatable it doesn’t even come close to my mother’s cooking. Those super soft idlly’s , the mouth watering dosais she makes beckon me everyday.

Weekends are not weekends anymore. They are just part of the week, days when u wash your clothes, catch up with the outside world and more importantly study for those frightening online assessments that crop up periodically. Gone are the days where i used to dump my clothes into the laundry basket and expect them to come back clean and folded and smelling of jasmines(jasmine flavour detergent...:))

Television and the internet are luxuries now, something i would have taken for granted just a few months back. Limited access to the internet makes you sick and probably forget why u wanted to go online anyway and shared television means that you have to watch what the majority wants to.

Working life is so much different from that of college. It certainly reminds me of the much clichéd “life on the fast track” .PGs are instruments that facilitate that fast life and will remain so for many more years to come.

First day @ Wipro

After being in hibernation for the past six months, it was more than a rude shock to me. The hustle and bustle of the place reminded me of video snippets i had seen of times square. People were rushing/ scrambling towards entry points manned by security guards(who were working for more than what they have been paid for ...i will come to that shortly). The incessant flow of buses, cars and bikes was proving to be a more than a handful for the traffic regulators, but they seemed to be doing a good job nevertheless.

There i was, standing in front of a section called EC 4. The bevy of buildings inside the fenced zone left me stunned for the initial few minutes. The facade of one of the buildings was awe inspiring. I had been to places where development was the by word and had witnessed magnificent structures first hand. But this was the first time i was going to part of it, the first time i am going to be in the thick of things and after a looong looong time i genuinely felt elated.

I slotted myself into the queue which was winding for almost 50 yards from the entry point and within a minute i found myself being scrutinized by a couple of security personnel. One of them crooned his neck to inspect my temporary id card and found fault at once. It was lop sided and he had a problem with that! I didn’t really understand what was so wrong with that but complied nevertheless. As if this wasn’t enough a second security guard wanted to examine a couple of books i was clinging on to. Hello guys ...do i look like some fanatic who just crossed across the border with the sole purpose of decimating EC 4 wipro.

With the rather annoying security checks completed, i made my way, with the company of close friends, to the assembly location. It wasn’t that difficult a task given the fact that whole lot of wipro placed students( or should i be calling them colleagues) had the same joining date. The entire walk from entry gate to the assembly venue was pleasant to say the least. Landscaped gardens, well laid platforms and organized movement of both vehicular and homosapien traffic was pleasing on the eye and was in stark contrast to the chaos that reigned outside.

The familiar faces inside the auditorium was a reassuring sight. It was also the time when many of us exchanged pleasantries and caught up with friends whom we had not seen for some time. Usual lectures followed and then it was time for some surprises.

A small group (which included me) was severed from the entire lot and escorted to labs. A stocky man came along and gave the clichéd “due to business requirements” reason for allotting us to the different stream than the rest of the batch. Most of us weren’t even listening to what he was trying to convey and probably had anticipated that we would be divided into small chunks and that was when the real shock came. We would be facing the much feared FRP test (which had sky high minimum threshold) in just a week. There was pin drop silence when we heard that the much dreaded FRP test was due in just about a week. Adding insult to injury was the fact that FRP was waived off for rest of the batch.

The rest of the day was interspersed between coaching periods and coding programs for generating sine series and recursive factorial programs! It was 8 at night ( 8 isn’t exactly evening is it) when i left for home and it will be a day i cherish in my memory for some time to come.