INDIA S(L)EEPS

Jinhe Naaz Hai

2011-12-29T20:06:00.003+05:30

Bilquis (Jinhein Naaz Hai) is an awesome song from Rabbi Shergill's album, Avengi Ja Nahin. Part of the lyrics are based on a song with the same name from Guru Dutt's Pyaasa (1957)

Shergill's song speaks about the atrocities committed against people who raised their voice against corrupt practices in the system. It asks the obvious question, "jinhe naaz hai hind par woh kahan the, jinhe naaz hai hind par woh kahan hai." 3 of the 4 people mentioned in this song were murdered.

Translation of 'jinhe naaz...'
"Where were all those people who were proud of India (when this happened), where are the people who are proud of India?"

People mentioned in the song

[0:54] Bilkis Yaqoob Rasool aka Bilkis Bano
During the Gujarat riots of 2002, Bilkis Bano was raped and left for dead alongside 14 members of her family. In January 2008, 13 of the 20 accused in the case were convicted. Supreme Court lawyer Vrinda Grover pointed out, “For the first time in post-independence India, a communal riot-related rape case has seen conviction.

Read more on Tehelka

[1:32] Satyendra Dubey
Dubey was Project director at the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). He was murdered while fighting corruption in the Golden Quadrilateral highway construction project.

Read more on Wikipedia

[2:20] Shanmugham Manjunath
Manjunath was murdered for sealing a petrol station in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh. The station was sealed for selling adulterated fuel.

Read more on Wikipedia

[3:32] Navleen Kumar
Navleen Kumar was a human rights activist who was murdered in 2002 in her apartment in Mumbai. She had been working for more than a decade to protect and restore the lands of Adivasis (indigenous peoples) in the Thane district through legal interventions at different courts.

Read more on Wikipedia

So, jinhe naaz hai Hind par woh kahan hai?

"Everyone just stood there and watched."

2011-11-21T15:57:00.000+05:30

November 19, 2011. In a city bus in Pune. The young girl standing beside me in the bus starts yelling at a guy next to her. It was time the girl's patience had gone over board due to inappropriate advances the guy was making towards her, intruding her personal space. My friend & I had noticed the pranks of this guy from the time we had boarded the bus, which he had been doing since he was in the bus stop. Meanwhile, the guy tried to defend himself by blaming the girl for what was happening. She created commotion out of it and called out for the conductor to chuck this guy out of the bus. But like everyone else in the bus, the conductor just stood there and watched the tamasha. The bus and the commuters continued their journey as if nothing had happened.

What the girl told me, during the conversation later, is what this article is about. “I cannot tolerate such things” she said “Unfortunately, no one in the bus came to my help. Everyone just stood there and watched.”

“Everyone just stood there and watched.”

This is exactly the same thing what Priyanka Fernandes said a week back, “When my friends Keenan and Reuben were being stabbed repeatedly, mercilessly, I could see at least 50 eyewitnesses, who stood like stone, unmoving and unmoved, as we screamed for help. Not one came forward to join the fray, to help us fight against a reprehensible crime.” [Keenan & Reuben case: NDTV, Wikipedia ]

Not that I expected a mob justice for this girl, but I was hoping that, at least, the bus conductor would give a warning to the guy. The last time I witnessed something similar was in Chennai, when a guy was thrown out of the bus for making lewd remarks to a girl.

But unfortunately, people need a more empathetic factor to raise a voice against something bad happening to a person standing next to them. They don't care because it is not someone they know. And while we stand there watching indifferently, the number of Keenans & Reubens will only continue to increase in our country.

Thankfully, this time, I wasn't one of those who stood there and just watched.

[The above image is not an image from the scene]

Anna Hazare thanks Steve Jobs

2011-10-10T20:32:00.001+05:30

According to news channels, Anna Hazare thanked Steve Jobs and said that his innovations have helped him in his fight against corruption.

Dear Anna, you know what Stephen Hawking once said?

"Some people have blamed the atom bomb on Einstein because he discovered the relationship between mass and energy; but that is like blaming Newton for causing airplanes to crash because he discovered gravity."

No offence to your campaign, but do you get it Sir?

Policeman attacks mentally challenged man with brute force. Jai Ho!

2011-09-23T21:51:00.001+05:30

The ABC of Ayodhya

2010-10-04T22:34:00.001+05:30

Source: The Internet

A celebration of slavery

2010-10-03T23:43:00.001+05:30

A recent campaign by Arindam Chaudhuri (of IIPM) about his latest article on the Common Wealth Games interested me and took me to his blog. The article is about Indians creating hype around the CWG and that we should stop participating in such lavish games.

In a country like India where we cannot provide the basic necessities of life to lakhs of people across the country - is there a need of spending Rs. 70, 000 Cr on a 11-day event? I am sure many would have been happy, at least, if the money was genuinely spent on the games, but we know what has happened to it, which is a different story in itself. Even the central government did not show much interest though it involved so much money.

In terms of expenditure, Rs. 70, 000 Cr is a whopping amount compared to the 1951 and 1982 Asian Games for which the expenditure was only Rs. 5cr and Rs. 55cr respectively. Yes, there has been inflation over the decades but this is mind boggling. The amount spent on the games is a lot more than the yearly food budget of the country.

Arindam says in his article (complete article here) that these games are a celebration of our slavery under and British Empire and of all the nations that were under the colonial rule. Frankly speaking, they are. Is there a need for any of the erstwhile colonies to celebrate their centuries of oppression?

Amazingly this year, the celebration of slavery started a day after Bapu’s birth anniversary.

Food for thought: I hail from India…

2010-07-12T22:18:00.001+05:30

I hail from India - the country which ranks at 66 among 88 in the Global Hunger Index. A nation whose child malnourishment record is worse than that of sub-Saharan Africa. A country now ranking 134 in the United Nations Human Development Index below Bhutan and Laos.

Here, issues of grave national concern get only a couple of stories spanning a modest few inches across three or four columns in newspapers but full pages are devoted to deaths of fashion models.

Here, 836 million Indians (77 per cent of the population) live on Rs. 20 a day or less. (Report by National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector)

Here, the authorities say that ‘there-is-no-money’ to feed the hungry while the country spends Rs. 10,000 crore on a new airport, more than Rs. 40,000 crore for the Commonwealth Games, Rs. 60,000 crore happily lost in the spectrum scam, Rs. 500,000 crore in write-offs under just three heads for the super-rich and the corporate sector in the current government budget. Here, funds for the hungry are hard to come by.

Economists estimate that if rice/wheat were made available to all Indians at Rs. 3 a kilo, it would add Rs.84,399 crore to the food subsidy in coming budgets. That's about one-sixth of the tax write-offs for the wealthy in this year's budget. (Other estimates place the added expenditure each year at no more than Rs. 45,000 crore).

It is the same country that has 49 dollar billionaires in the Forbes list.

I hail from India, the land of the Mahatma.

(Excerpted from (a must read article) Food security — of APL, BPL & IPL by P. Sainath of The Hindu)

The Indian Jawan

2010-05-05T23:28:00.001+05:30

These are few stories told by the jawans in the Indian paramilitary forces.

Story 1

“I spent one third of my 20 years in the CRPF just travelling. Of these 20 years, I could spend only three years with my children. I took medical leave to get married. I could only reach my village five days after I received news of my father passing away. I am the eldest in my family but I couldn’t even perform the last rites. I couldn’t attend three of my four sisters’ marriages. I had to arrange a separate house for my wife and kids after my father’s death because my brother threw them out from the joint family house. But if you take any of these problems to your officers, they just shoo you away.”

Story 2

A jawan who has spent 16 years in the CRPF — six in Jammu and Kashmir, three in Assam, three in Tripura, and three in Manipur. Too scared to talk at the CRPF headquarters, he calls late at night to share his story. During a posting in Srinagar, he was charged with indiscipline and lost 15 days of pay for daring to complain about inedible food and cockroaches in his dal. When he fell sick in Tripura, he couldn’t get a car to get to hospital. “I had to hire a jeep,” says he. “Only if 15-20 constables fall sick and need a car together, there’s a chance of us getting it. Otherwise the cars are busy ferrying the officers’ children. This country got independence in 1947, but we still live like slaves. Our officers order us to do unauthorized things; we have no right to express ourselves. They tell us to barge into people’s homes and pick up bricks and cement and construct our quarters. They pocket lakhs of welfare money; they take commissions from ration shops.

We pay Rs 1,326 per month for food. The bills are for A-grade rations but we get C-grade food. The commander is like the king of a battalion. He runs it the way he wants. As a driver, I am sent all the time for unauthorized pick ups. All the risk of being caught is on me. You live under so much pressure, you either shoot yourself or shoot someone else. I am just waiting to complete 20 years so I can get a part of my pension and then I’ll quit."

Story 3

One retired jawan remembers a tortuous journey in 2004 that stretched 8,000 kilometers over two months as the Home Ministry ordered his company like a pawn to move from Agartala to Gujarat via Bangladesh, Delhi, Kashmir and back to Agartala. Crowded trains, no reservations, no accommodations, no sense of why they were being deployed anywhere, and, most of all — no sense of respect. “I have fought insurgents for 20 years,” says the jawan bitterly, “but this one journey showed me my standing in my country’s eyes. How can you fool around with so many human beings on the pretext of an emergency situation?” Other jawans speak of being summoned to places for six months and being asked to stay for six years.

Read the full article here: Soldiers of Misfortune

Also read ‘My patriotism is dead’ & ‘We felt like pawns’ on the same page.

Life, as a normal Indian…

2010-05-05T23:14:00.000+05:30

The road woes

+ I take my cycle to school. I approach a crossroad; a bus swerves from the right to the left extreme left of the road, close enough to flick me. Someone from inside the bus stretches his hand to take off my cap. I am glad my cap stays tight. No one says a word. They are all just like me, Indians. This is a common sight for us.

+ Another fateful Monday, I am in white school uniform, heading to school. Someone from the bus spits out his tobacco, randomly. And luck has it that the red spit of his lands on my shirt. No one says a word. No sympathy for me, this is a common occurrence, I was there at the wrong place. I will soon live with it.

+ I realize it is a bad idea to venture out on rainy days. One is sure to get mud all over the dress, thanks to the holes in the road and our dear artistic bus drivers.

+ I understand it is not safe on the road. There is nothing called a lane system here.

+ Sometimes I get so freaked, I know no one would blame me if they also saw a huge truck coming straight at me, on my ‘correct’ side of the road.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

+ I would think thrice before I take my girlfriend to the beach. For I am sure there would be some lolling tongue that would comment on her. I am just reconciled to the fact that there is no concept of solitude here!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

+ Every time I say goodbye to a friend who takes his/her bike, I offer a prayer that they reach safe. Never have I been sure that it would happen. I am not scared; I have just come to terms with lack of rules at the roads.

…………………………………………………………………………………………..

The Indian real-idiot-box

+ I switch on the TV, there are ads that I don’t like, especially the one where a guy gets a deodorant out and the servant women feels him all over. If there ever was a desperate woman, this would be one.

+ I change the channels and I see our super action hero taking his 150 cc bike, with no helmet, jumping red signals and speed limits at will. The heroin behind him removes her veil and lets if fly, not caring about it falling on the path of those behind her. What love indeed!!

+ I change channels again and there is an hour show on what is going on in the world of films. Who kissed who, and who slept with who are the hot topics here. Sportsmen are not spared either, every word they utter is scrutinized and each one of their gestures is interpreted a million bad ways.

+ I don’t watch Indian channels anymore.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

It is an open secret

+ I would gladly give a couple of hundreds for not wearing a helmet, five hundred for not wearing my seat belt, a thousand for crossing the red light and a thousand more to close a case, if I banged my car and killed someone. It is so easy here, in India.

+ I go to the police station, to report the loss of my bike, and I am treated like a criminal myself. I make a follow up trip a week later and I am reasoned out that people lose their cars and houses and a bike ain’t such a great loss.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

We are used to all this now

+ I take up the newspapers, and the first item that catches my eyes is the picture of death, a burning van, a child – crying as his legs were severed from the explosion. I read of parliamentary bitching everywhere. I read of shameless ministers who jump from party to party, all of them with often conflicting ideologies. I read of deceitful men, who call themselves as saints on the outside and are sex addicts inside their so called hermitages.

+ I don’t read the papers anymore.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

+ I take my friends to a hotel. I order lunch and wait half an hour for it to arrive. I don’t complain about the extra salt or the lack of salt or how hot or cold the food is. What can I expect, if I complained a fly fell in my soup I would have to drink it with the knowledge that the waiter picked it out with his bare hands!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

+ I can apply for any certification that I want. Be it birth, death, educational degree, marriage, passport, voting id, ration card. All could all be done by spending extra money. There is no waiting period for those who choose to be smart and bribe. I am smart, I bribe.

+ I live in Gandhian land, where the man in white and white is the most respected. He is also the most powerful.

+ I need a job, no problem; I just gather up a few lack of rupees and land it into his hands, I get settled for life – a job in the government.

+ I need to enrol myself in some college; I gather up some money and give it to him.

+ I need to escape the law; I flash a photograph of myself with him, or show his visiting card. He would save me, as long as I would pay him his cut dutifully!

……………………………………………………………………………………………

+ I am an Indian I endure it all. I don’t comment when someone spits on the road. I act as if I don’t notice when I see them throw litter on every empty land available. I would keep silent even if someone killed my brother and threw him into one of those pits. I would bribe anyone for I have no other choice if I need my work to be done. I am not surprised when the leader of my clan cheats his followers. I don’t stop anyone when they are busy abusing my women folk.

+ I would not dare stop them, for I fear that if I did, It would be me who gets thrown in the pit and one of my Indian brothers who would watch me silently from above.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

I am an Indian, and I am not proud of it.

(The author does not like to disclose his identity. Content slightly edited.)

Who on earth is Shashank Manohar?

2010-04-25T22:36:00.001+05:30

(A bot tweeted me about this article. An interesting read about Shashank Manohar. Have not verified the facts myself, though.)

The short answer is Shashank Manohar is a NEW President of the BCCI. But there is enough dirt on this clown and he is a perfect example why Indian cricket is in such perfect shambles.

To know Shashank Manohar better, one has to go back to 26th November 1995. It was an ODI played between India and New Zealand when the VCA stadium wall collapsed, killing 13 people and injuring over 70. And who were responsible? Shashank Manohar himself, along with his father V.R. Manohar, the bosses of the VCA stadium - allegedly these guys had contracted a close relative of theirs for the construction of the wall. It isn't a surprise that a man responsible for cricket's biggest on-field tragedy is the NEW president of the board. (Read here)

It's no secret that the betting cartel run from Karachi by Dawood Ibrahim's gang has the BCCI backing. So what's the nexus between the Dawood gang and BCCI? Well. the official link is Shashank Manohar. Manohar's family is quite close to the Dawood gang and defends their gang members in most high-profile cases. So the question arises if a man is so close to the betting cartel, should he be the BCCI New president?

Is he an honest man? Shashank Manohar claims to be one. His sycophant journalists include a certain Ajay Nayudu and Vinay Nayudu who claim that Shashank Manohar does not take a penny from the BCCI, even pays for his travel expenses. Facts state otherwise. Shashank Manohar took money from the VCA offers to sponsor a school-boy team's 3 month tour to England. Why? Just because his son was playing in the team. For the record, his son Adwait Manohar is a pathetic cricketer, with a first class average of 15.

So, he spent millions from the BCCI earnings to give his own good-for-nothing son. An honest douche bag indeed. (Read here)

He is also the guy making the most fuss about contracts, pay-for-performance and endorsement caps. Why? Simply because to cover up all his betting cartel links, he needs an honest image.

As a cricketer himself, he played just one first-class match - thanks to his father's influence, averaging 9. (Read here)

Read the original article here.

IPL – it’s real

2010-04-14T22:23:00.001+05:30

I came across this blog post, IPL, Basic Economics & Us, a few days back, while surfing the internet about how IPL is affecting the common man. The ‘phenomenon’ of IPL has gripped the whole nation for the past 3 years with an entire generation from film stars to politicians to you and I involved in it. Everyone wants to be a part of it, the rich men want to buy it, the cricketers want to play it, bloggers like me want to write about it and the common man doesn’t want to miss it either. And yeah, the Bollywood too is not behind in the race.

I am not a great fan of IPL or of cricket for that instance (not that I hate cricket) Actually, IPL is not about cricket at all. It is just another reality show with the world’s finest cricketers as lead actors. The only difference compared to other TV shows is that this reality show is LIVE and is also telecasted on YouTube. No doubt it would be one of the highest grossing shows in television history. Thanks to the amount of money involved.

Now, coming to the article which I read, is by a guy called Buddhiraj. He is not a regular blogger but I liked the only two articles (my kind) he has written so far. In this article he starts off with a story and then goes on to relate economics in IPL to inflation in the country. He also tells about the how the advertising during IPL will (might) influence the prices of day-to-day commodities. It is a short write-up and good read for IPL fans to know that IPL has some serious side effects, other than wasting a few million man-hours.

Read the complete article here. You can also read Buddhi’s other articles on his blog, Buddhi Baptizm.

Forgive me for being blasphemous about IPL and cricket. They are just not my cup of tea.

WTF News Part – 1

2010-04-14T22:15:00.001+05:30

This is the first of my WTF News series. There will be more of these, probably once every week, or as I gather enough stuff for a post. These are screenshots of news from prominent news websites in the country.

And the reason why I consider these WTF News is:

i) I (or you) wouldn’t care to have first look at them. Forget about the second look anyway.

ii) Their being there or not being, anyone reading it or not reading does not make any difference to you, me or the common man walking on the road.

iii) Coz I love it when the news channels make a fun of themselves and those whom they are writing about, by posting this kind of news on their sites.

iv) They think we are jobless to read them. Yes, I am, jobless enough to read them and put them on my blog.

So, here we go. The first in the series.

More to come.

Just 1411 tigers left…

2010-02-04T00:26:00.001+05:30

Just 1411 left. You can make a difference. Show your support... join the roar on http://www.saveourtigers.com/

And the Padma Shri goes to…

2010-02-04T00:10:00.001+05:30

The recent list of the Padma Shri awards raised eyebrows in the political and entertainment circles and most importantly in the story-hungry media. While I wondered why (Nawab) Saif received it - whether it was for marrying a woman elder to him by 12 years, or to divorce the woman after 13 years of marriage, or was it for the alleged poaching of two bucks or was it for romancing an actress younger to him by 10 years – the statement in the media by Saif did confirm me that he surely did not deserve it. (Read the complete article here)

According to Saif, "If you look at the awardees over the last couple of years, all of them have not exactly invented a nuclear bomb."

And the closest Saif (probably) got to it was only to the word ‘bomb’shell, as seen below.

I also started thinking who the possible contenders for the next year’s award would be. Here’s the list.

On top is Rakhi Sawant for strengthening cross-border relationships and for social service like donating her clothing and looking after children.
Next is Shilpa Shetty for her nature of athithi devo bhava (sanskrit: guest is equal to God) and allowing her guests to do whatever they wanted with her, in front of the media. And for her attempt to revive the ancient Indian art of Yoga.
To the wife-friendly, Rahul Mahajan for showing compassion towards his fellow beings in the ‘house’ and to bring back the extinct Indian custom of swayamvar, actually reverse-swayamvar.
Ekta Kapoor for creating the image of the liberating Indian naari.
Chetan Bhagat. Period.
KCR for his modern (a)satyagraha
Kareena Kapoor (though size zero) won’t get it as ‘behind every successful man, there is a woman’ or is it?

Man…lot of people trying to restore the Indian culture, don’t you think they deserve it more than any restaurateur.

“1st February 2010 - An interesting day at The Hindu” by Mir Mohammed Ali

2010-02-02T22:55:00.003+05:30

“You're brother and sister. No we're not. You're BROTHER and SISTER. No, we're not. YES YOU ARE AND THAT'S THE BOTTOMLINE CAUSE STONE COLD SAID SO!”

A panchayat in Chandigarh decided that a 3-year marriage which now had a 10-month-old baby needs to annulled because the absent-minded couple (Satish and Kavita) in question were actually ‘brother and sister’ (though not from the same 'gotra' - lineage or clan. More on that in a while). That their parents had consented to the wedding carried no weight against conclusions of the Panchayat.

Not long ago, the friendly panchayats had issued punishments when couples from the same ‘gotra’ got married. But the problem with these ‘same gotra’ couples was that they were a hard catch as they would quickly elope and the poor panchayat's lack of enforcement capability made it rather difficult to bring the freshly-eloped pair to injustice. To the panchayat's credit, they still managed to get their job done by using the tried and tested techniques of blackmail and ostracism, among other things.

Not to be tied down by the specifics of intra-gotra marriage, the panchayat now decided to punish people even from different ‘gotras’. In the above case, village-specific dimensions came into play when an official profoundly said, “In our village, a couple from these two ‘gotras’ cannot marry as they are considered brother and sister”.

The ‘firm’ (air)head of the panchayat, Hawa Singh was, well, firm. he gave the couple a 28-day deadline to comply, pending which firm action would be taken. I do not know if the number 28 was given keeping in mind the approaching month of February. If it was, then I'm sure poor Satish would've wished for March to have begun.

In all fairness, I must add that the Panchayat did not take a knee-jerk decision. It took "a six hour discussion" to decide.

Read the original article here

Roger that, Chief. Chief. Chief... Chief?

Meanwhile, in the legion of doom... Actually in Meghalaya, the Meghalayans (I know they are Indians first, but here I’m talking in the ‘second person’) had the rare privilege of having 4 ‘Chief Ministers’. They already had three and now, four. In the latest instance, the Deputy Chief Minister Mr. Lyngdoh became the proud 4th CM. There is some serious enjoyment happening at the top, thought I. And to second me thrice was the Chief Minister himself (CM No 1, 2 or 3? I found out later).

His un-minced words bear quotation in extensio: “This is not the first instance of Meghalaya having more than one person enjoying the rank of Chief Minister. We had done [it] in the past. I myself was enjoying the rank of Chief Minister when Mr. Rymbai became Chief Minister. Similarly Mr. Rymbai and Mr. Donkupar Roy are enjoying the rank of Chief Minister. There is absolutely nothing wrong in our upgrading the rank of Mr. Lyngdoh to Chief Minister.”

Read the original article here

The Divider becomes the Compass...I mean... the Divided

India's favourite uniting-dividers, who unite as they divide (or vice-versa depending which side you're on) found themselves divided. When RSS ideologue Ram Madhav tried to test the waters by calling on the “[Parivar's] volunteers in Maharashtra” and indirectly told our Marathi-supremacist brothers (and sisters. Happy?) to “try and prevent the spread of anti-north Indian and anti-Hindi feelings”, he probably didn’t realize that the word ‘prevent’ was superfluous. Because if they tried, the ‘spread of anti-many things’ would surely be prevented. Mr. Manohar Joshi, former Lok Sabha Speaker (who never spoke as he was without a Mic) took more than a hint and “...Mumbai belongs to the Marathi people...” he roared.

When Mr. Madhav and Mr. Joshi met at the sidelines of the - where else? - midlines, here is how the conversation continued (according to a ‘highly placed source’ of course) -
Ram Madhav (RSS) - 'Why did you get offended? I was only addressing the "volunteers of the Parivar"' to stop the spread of you-know-what. If you consider yourself a volunteer of the Parivar, you ought not to have been offended as you are part of the Parivar and ought to know to take orders. If you don’t consider yourself a volunteer, then the message wasn’t addressed to you in the first place. Now tell me, "Is it the former or the latter?”
Manohar Joshi (The ‘SS’) - [now feebly] 'Mumbai belongs to the Marathi people...’
Ram Madhav (RSS) - ‘Did you comprehend my question?’
Manohar Joshi (The ‘SS’) - ‘Well. What can I say... I got serious Language issues!’

Read the original article here

Reach the author at seekingoblivion(at)gmail.com.

Let’s hope for the best..

2010-02-01T22:26:00.001+05:30

Aman ki Asha – an initiative by Times of India and Jung Group. I am sure many people would have been shocked (like I was) after seeing the headlines on January 1st. And most of them would have ignored it saying that something like that wouldn’t be possible. For them, I would like to repeat what they said - It is easier to say Hi than to say Sorry. It's shorter too. Besides, there is no rule that says a book has to be closed before a new one is opened. Not even if it's a history book. (See the newspaper advertisement below)

They also made a good television promo(may be one of the many) for the project…I like it…

Below is the advertisement which appeared in Times of India, on January 1st, 2010.

The vicious circle

2010-01-15T21:28:00.001+05:30

A conversation I had with my colleague Aniket Nathvani, while returning from office. It was about the software industry and the vicious circle around it.

“These people in software companies write code to make applications which can reduce human labour in other MNCs and thereby cutting down the number of people working in that company. The people who could not join those MNCs, come and join the software industry to write more and more code for the MNCs. And the cycle continues…”

Pretty funny…heh…hmm…??? But that’s the truth buddy. :)

Justice in India. WTF!

2009-12-13T02:36:00.001+05:30

Was searching for this video for a long time. An example of quick justice when someone steals a gold chain in India. Amazing. Jai ho ! WTF!

Tryst with destiny

2009-12-13T00:04:00.001+05:30

Jawaharlal Nehru’s speech

World’s poor = $13 trillion

2009-12-12T03:13:00.001+05:30

C. K. Prahalad identifies the world’s poor (the “bottom of the pyramid”) as a mostly untapped market for companies, worth up to $13 trillion a year in revenues. In his words, “the real source of market promise is not the wealthy few in the developing world, or even the emerging middle-income consumers. It is the billions of aspiring poor who are joining the market economy for the first time.” In his TED talk, Dr. Prahalad warned against “learning disabilities” on the part of companies, leading to mistakes, such as mistaking current profits for leadership, and unwillingness to face up to capability gaps. He seems to be saying that the answer lies in democratizing technology, communication, and learning, such that everybody from the top to the bottom will know what’s going on.

A display of compassion at TEDIndia

2009-12-12T03:07:00.001+05:30

TEDIndia is an international conclave of achievers, thinkers and speakers and this year (2009) it was held in Mysore, India. I found this in the blog of www.shambhalasun.com. You can read the complete article here.

Sunitha Krishnan brought the house down in Mysore today. And by that, I mean that she broke hearts and moved people to action. The audience listened painfully to some of the stories of the more than 3,200 girls she has rescued, girls who had endured unimaginable torture and yet, somehow, nevertheless found the will to heal and thrive. She spoke of the need for everyone to overcome silence about the phenomenon of human trafficking, the modern form of slavery, and for us not only to offer our love and compassion to its victims, but to be willing to accept them in our communities. She admitted that rescuing girls is never a very safe business, sharing that she can no longer hear out of her right ear, and that she has been beaten up during interventions more than a dozen times. Her strong voice and powerful body language ensured that no one could claim to have misunderstood her points.

During her post-presentation interview with TEDIndia’s co-host, Lakshmi Pratury, Ms. Krishnan had just finished describing a wish for Prajwala to have permanent property to establish its headquarters in India (due to social stigmatization, Prajwala is charged extraordinarily high rent for office and work space). At that moment, a woman (whose name I will try to report here when I find it) called out from the audience, “Excuse me. I’d like to give ten thousand [US] dollars. Could I please have eight other hands of people who will also give ten thousand dollars?” Several hands sprung to the air within seconds. Ms. Pratury, later in the day, would also report that Google had pledged to offer employment to some of Ms. Krishnan’s rescuees, and that at least $100,000 in donations to Prajwala had been pledged.

Get an insight into Sunitha’s work. View the video.

Click here to know more about TEDIndia.

A speech for every Indian

2009-12-12T02:46:00.001+05:30

I think the following speech by APJ Abdul Kalam, former President of India is a must read for every Indian. It is worth your time.

This speech was delivered at Hyderabad in 2008. (If anyone has details about the location and the exact date, please post it in the comments)

I have three visions for India. In 3000 years of our history people from all over the world have come and invaded us, captured our lands, conquered our minds. From Alexander onwards, the Greeks, the Turks, the Moguls, the Portuguese, the British, the French, the Dutch, all of them came and looted us, took over what was ours. Yet we have not done this to any other nation.

We have not conquered anyone. We have not grabbed their land, their culture, and their history and tried to enforce our way of life on them. Why? Because we respect the freedom of others, that is why my first vision is that of FREEDOM. I believe that India got its first vision of this in 1857, when we started the war of independence. It is this freedom that we must protect and nurture and build on. If we are not free, no one will respect us.

My Second vision for India is DEVELOPMENT. For fifty years we have been a developing nation. It is time we see ourselves as a developed nation. We are among top 5 nations of the world in terms of GDP. We have 10 percent growth rate in most areas. Our poverty levels are falling. Our achievements are being globally recognized today. Yet we lack the self-confidence to see ourselves as a developed nation, self-reliant and self-assured. Isn't this incorrect?

I have a THIRD vision, India must stand up to the world. Because I believe that unless India stands up to the world, no one will respect us. Only strength respects strength. We must be strong not only as a military power but also as an economic power. Both must go hand-in-hand. My good fortune was to have worked with three great minds. Dr. Vikram Sarabhai of the Department of space, Professor Satish Dhawan, who succeeded him and Dr. Brahm Prakash father of nuclear material. I was lucky to have worked with all three of them closely and consider this the great opportunity of my life.

Why is the media here so negative? Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements? Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse to acknowledge them. Why? We are the first in milk production. We are number one in Remote sensing satellites. We are the second largest producer of wheat. We are the second largest producer of rice. Look at Dr. Sudarshan; he has transferred the tribal village into a self-sustaining, self-driving unit. There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters.

I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was this day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck.

But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert and into an orchid and a granary. It was the inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news. In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime. Why are we so NEGATIVE?

I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture, when a 14-year-old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is: she replied: I want to live in a developed India. For her, you and I will have to build this developed India. You must proclaim.

India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation. Allow me to come back with vengeance. Got 10 minutes for your country? YOU say that out Government is inefficient. YOU say that our laws are too old. YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage. YOU say that the phones don't work, the railways are a joke, the airline is the worst in the world, and mails never reach their destination. YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits. YOU say, say and say. What do YOU do about it?

Take a person on his way to Singapore. Give Him a name ? YOURS. Give him a face ? YOURS. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your international best.

In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores. YOU are as proud of their Underground Links as they are. You pay $5 (approx.Rs.225/-) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU comeback to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity.

In Singapore you don't say anything, DO YOU? YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai. YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah. YOU would not dare to buy an
employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds (Rs.900/-) a month to, "see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else. "YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 kmph) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop, "Jaanta Hai sala main kaun hoon (do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. Take your two bucks and get lost.

"YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand. Why don't YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo? Why don't YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston? We are still talking of the same YOU. YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground.

If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country why cannot you be the same here in India?

Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay Mr. Tinaikar had a point to make. "Rich people's dogs are walked on the streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place," he said. "And then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels
the pressure in his bowels?

In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan. Will the Indian citizen do that here?" He's right. We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility.

We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin. We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use
of bathrooms. We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity.

This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public. When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse?" It's the whole system, which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forego my son's rights to a dowry. "So who's going to change the system? What does a system consist of? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbours, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU.

When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to The system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr. Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand. Or we leave the country and run away. Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England. When England experience unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system.
Our conscience is mortgaged to money.

Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a Great deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too.

J.F. Kennedy's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians?..
"ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY"

Where's My Nobel Prize?

2009-12-12T02:34:00.001+05:30

By Chetan Bhagath, Times of India, Oct 24, 2009

The recent news of a person of Indian origin winning the Nobel prize while based abroad sparked off a series of discussions at home. "Why don't we win Nobel prizes here?" became the question of the week. The standard points were raised: we don't have the facilities, too much government interference, the selection process is rigged, the prize committee is racist and, finally, who cares about the Nobel anyway (of course we do, that's why we discuss it).

Like all media stories, this one too will die soon. However, maybe it is time to look at the core issue: why India doesn't excel on the world stage on a fairly consistent basis. We don't win a significant number of Olympic medals, we don't create global brands, our IT industry is essentially a job transfer model but we haven't created even one Google, Facebook or Twitter. (Of course, there is plenty for Indians to be proud of otherwise, so please don't jump on me because of my observations.)

The real issue comes down to the treatment of talent in our country. So, what is talent? Talent refers to a special ability and aptitude that give people an edge in a particular field. In sport, science, films, business or the arts, people who dominate the world stage all have a gift that makes it easier for them to excel. Of course, along with talent there is preparation, hard work and a certain amount of luck required to achieve success. However, talent is usually a necessary ingredient. Talent is rare, and randomly distributed across the human population, irrespective of pedigree, connections or wealth. Some may call talent an unfair gift. However, it is talent that allows ordinary people to come up in life. Otherwise, rich people would stay rich and poor people poor. Thus, this unfair talent actually makes the world fairer.

However, we don't put talent on the highest pedestal in our country. Talent's stature is below that of someone with connections, hereditary entitlement, pedigree or even experience. If i were to tell you that an unknown boy from Agra will become the next superstar, versus a star's son becoming the next star, the latter story is much easier to digest. Even in an IIT, a truly gifted young faculty cannot jump ranks and scales set by the system. And the people designing the system never took talent into account. Even when talent is identified, we are unable to train it, and find it difficult to reward it.

It is difficult to say why we have this attitude, but there are many possible reasons. One, talent conflicts with the traditional Indian caste system. Two, Indian cultural values revere the older generation and its experience, and talent zooms past it. Finally, the 'tall poppies syndrome', an already existing term used in Australia and UK to "describe a societal phenomenon in which people of genuine merit are criticised or resented because their talents or achievements elevate them above or distinguish them from their peers". Ask yourself, have you seen some of this in India? Maybe because so many dreams have been crushed in India, someone else's success reminds us of our own pain. The US (only as a contrasting example, not recommending we become like them) has an opposite value system. Talent is respected, seen as something to be emulated. That is why they have teenage boy bands and college dropouts who open dotcoms as national icons. We don't.

There are grave negative repercussions for a community that doesn't respect talent. It leads to a society where connected people do better than people with ability. It leads to a lot of talent being unused, a tremendous waste of a national resource. It causes frustration in the entire new generation as they see people with less capability doing better than them. It also reinforces the old Indian values of fatalism and the helpless-common-man theory. And it means India's excellent people may not excel worldwide to the extent possible.

So what can be done? Well, we definitely can do something both at the macro organisational level and a micro individual level.

At the organisational level, we have to let go of corporate hierarchies and the lifelong promotion ladders of government, particularly in talent-dependent organisations like R&D, companies requiring high innovation or sport. We have to make incentives in line with what attracts talent, as there is a global battle for it. Exceptional talent demands exceptional reward. We have to take away the moral judgement associated with rewarding talent. Just as it is morally okay for a rich man's son to be rich, a person with talent also deserves to do really well.

Change needs to happen amongst us, at the individual level as well. We have to acknowledge that talent exists, and we need to respect it. Frankly, isn't it better a talented person gets rewarded than a minister's son? Talent shouldn't cause resentment, it should become an inspiration. I think the young generation is already on board with that. It needs the older generation's support to make this change in values. It may be difficult, but it is worth it.

Because if we do become a talent-driven country, we will become a more progressive nation, utilise the new generation's skills properly, become a fairer society and, along the way, win a few Nobel prizes too.

Jaago re - I

2009-12-12T02:07:00.001+05:30

India’s 20 greatest films

2009-12-10T23:42:00.005+05:30

1. Meghe Dhaka Tara (1960, Bengali), directed by Ritwik Ghatak

Story of a self-sacrificing woman who puts her wedding on hold because she is the sole breadwinner of a refugee family that barely ekes out a living in Calcutta.

2. Charulata (1964, Bengali), directed by Satyajit Ray

Charulata is a loose adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore's Noshto Neer, set against the backdrop of the reform movement in 19th century Bengal. Among all his films, Charulatha was Ray’s favorite.

3. Pather Panchali (1955, Bengali), directed by Satyajit Ray

The film focussed on a poverty-stricken family in rural Bengal, it underscored the invincibility of the human spirit and the magical beauty of the landscape juxtaposed against the misery of the characters that populate it.

4. Sholay (1975, Hindi), directed by Ramesh Sippy

A hugely successful adventure flick that drew upon conventions of the Western to deliver a pure Bollywood movie experience that remains unmatched to this day.

5. Do Bigha Zameen (1953, Hindi), directed by Bimal Roy

This is a tragic drama about a small farmer who is compelled by indebtedness to relocate to the big city and become a rickshaw-puller. Do Bigha Zameen, which exposes the vice-like grip that ruthless zamindars/moneylenders have on agriculture in this country, is generally regarded as one of the earliest and finest examples of "neo-realism" in Indian cinema.

6. Pyaasa (1957, Hindi), directed by Guru Dutt

Inspired by Saratchandra's novel, Srikanta, Guru Dutt's Pyaasa is the story of poet who has no takers in a nation overrun by philistinism. The cinematic mastery on display in Pyaasa has rarely been replicated in mainstream Hindi cinema.

7. Bhuvan Shome (1969, Hindi), directed by Mrinal Sen

This small Film Finance Corporation-funded satire was Mrinal Sen's big national-level break. Many also regard it as the film that marked the beginning of the New Indian Cinema movement.

8. Garam Hawa (1973, Urdu), directed by MS Sathyu

Set in Agra, the story is about an elderly shoe manufacturer and his family who are faced with a crucial question: should they continue to live in India or migrate to the newly-formed state of Pakistan? The prospects are daunting and there is little hope of a future in a climate of distrust and hate.

9. Mother India (1957, Hindi), directed by Mehboob Khan

One of the greatest films ever made in this country, Mother India rightly enjoys the status of a timeless epic. In its grand narrative, it captures aspects of Nehruvian India that are both positive and negative.

10. Ghatashraddha (1973, Kannada), directed by Girish Kasaravalli

Based on a story by UR Ananthamurthy, the film is set in an orthodox 1920s Brahmin village in Karnataka. It chronicles the travails of a child widow as seen through the eyes of a boy.

11. Elippathayam (1973, Malayalam), directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan

Adoor Gopalakrishnan's most accomplished film, traces the last legs of a decaying feudal order In Kerala. It revolves around Unni, a middle-aged man who cannot pace with the changing world around him.

12. Mughal-e-Azam (1960, Urdu), directed by K Asif

a blockbuster to beat all blockbusters, blending style, panache and substance. This historical romance tells the apocryphal love story of Prince Salim (Dilip Kumar) and commoner Anarkali (Madhubala). They face opposition from all quarters, including Emperor Akbar (Prithviraj Kapoor), and Anarkali dies to save the prince.

13. Nayakan (1987, Tamil), directed by Mani Ratnam

Nayakan, by far the greatest underworld dramas ever made in India, catapulted Mani Ratnam to the big league. The film was a riveting, if controversial, fictionalisation of the life and times of real-life Bombay mafia don Varadarajan Mudaliar.

14. Kaagaz Ke Phool (1962, Hindi), directed by Guru Dutt

Guru Dutt's most melancholic film ever, takes his deepening disillusionment with the world and its guardians to a new level of despair.

15. Apur Sansar (1959, Bengali), directed by Satyajit Ray

A superbly crafted, expertly modulated human drama, the film tracks the voyage of a boy turning into a man in a tough environment and it does so with unmatched empathy and perspicuity.

Taken together, Pather Panchali, Aparajito and Apur Sansar constitute one of the greatest cinematic achievements the world has ever seen.

16. Sant Tukaram (1936, Marathi), directed by Damle & Fatehlal

A film that has outlived all others made in the 1930s, Sant Tukaram was an outstanding recreation of the life and times of the 17th century poet-saint.

17. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron (1980, Hindi), directed by Kundan Shah

This dark, cocky satire about amoral politicians and avaricious businessmen is the greatest advertisement for FTII that there has ever been.

18. Guide (1965, Hindi), directed by Vijay Anand

This is a sweeping drama about a tourist guide who rescues a wannabe dancer from a loveless marriage to an archaeologist and helps her achieve stardom. He makes money in the bargain but is convicted for forgery. When he returns from jail, he wanders about the countryside and is mistaken for a holy man. His messianic halo is strengthened when he starves himself to death in order to end a dry spell in a drought-hit area.

19. Madhumati (1958, Hindi), directed by Bimal Roy

This classic reincarnation story scripted by Ritwik Ghatak was the biggest commercial success of Bimal Roy's varied directorial career. The stars, Dilip Kumar and Vyjayanthimala, play multiple roles alternating between the present and a past life.

20. Anand (1970, Hindi), directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee

A terminally ill hero is determined to make the most of the remaining months of his life. In one of his early starring roles, Amitabh Bachchan played a Bengali doctor who develops a deep emotional connect with the dying man.

This list emerged from the 'T20 of Indian Cinema' poll of NDTV in which 20 experts from around the country - 10 young filmmakers and 10 seasoned critics and scholars – participated.

Related links

Read the original post here

Satyagraha in modern India

2009-12-09T23:17:00.006+05:30

The fast-unto-death by Potti Sreeramulu and his consequent death in 1953 made the government to pass the States Reorganization Act in 1956, which dissolved the old states and new states were created based on language and ethnicity. Thus was inclusion of a new tool in the Indian constitution, so that people can demand their constitutional rights. As someone said, in India everybody knows their rights, but no one knows their duties.

But I am not writing this post to show how the act was used (exploited) over the years. I just want to present two parallel stories of fast-unto-death – one whose aim is to divide an existing state and another for peace, sans media attention.

Case 1: The 21st century Potti Sreeramulu or is he?

As I write this post, it’s been 11 days since K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR as he is popularly known) started his fast-unto-death demanding the formation of a separate Telangana state. The doctors at NIIMS, Hyderabad say that he shows signs of protein malnutrition and there is an urgent need for insertion of central intravenous lines for administration of fluids and medicines. While this happens in the hospital, the supposed Satyagraha, we see a different situation outside. The so-called future of the Telangana state (if one gets created) especially the university students, hit the streets, pelted stones on the police and vandalized public property. Students (future of Telangana) from the prominent universities in the state took to the streets, protested, burnt buses and brought the state to a halt. Some protesters even immolated themselves.

Self-immolation – a mindless concept, popularized in India by Rajiv Goswami in protest of the Mandal Commission in 1990, where neither the person who is immolated nor the purpose of his act is fulfilled.

In all this, the media, especially the Andhra Pradesh media which has about fifteen dedicated 24-hour news channels (probably the highest in the country) played a major role to track every single breath of KCR and his violent supporters, protesters, agitators…whatever you call them. The detailed follow-up of the events is so intense that you would feel that you were part of the agitation yourself, even if you are in some remote part of the world. The capitalistic media surely has a major role in a dividing the country but not always in uniting people.

Now, I am just waiting to see what happens next and what will happen to Hyderabad, if a new state is created.

Case 2: Irom Sharmila’s bounden duty, 10 years later...
Wait…let me start this case the same way as I started the previous one.

As I write this post, it’s been almost 10 YEARS since Irom Sharmila started her superhuman fast protesting the indefensible Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) that has been imposed in Manipur and most of the North-east since 1980. The Act allows the army to use force, arrest or shoot anyone on the mere suspicion that someone has committed or was about to commit a cognizable offence. The Act further prohibits any legal or judicial proceedings against army personnel without the sanction of the Central Government.

In 2006, Irom Sharmila had not eaten anything, or drunk a single drop of water for six years. She was being forcibly kept alive by a drip thrust down her nose by the Indian State. For six years, nothing solid had entered her body; not a drop of water had touched her lips. She cleaned her teeth with dry cotton and her lips with dry spirit so she would not sully her fast. Her body was wasted inside. Her menstrual cycles had stopped. Yet she was resolute. Whenever she could, she removed the tube from her nose. It was her bounden duty, she said, to make her voice heard in “the most reasonable and peaceful way”.

The humbling power of Sharmila’s story lies in her untutored beginnings. She is not a front for any large, coordinated political movement. The 34-yearold’s Satyagraha was not an intellectual construct. It was a deep human response to the cycle of death and violence she saw around her — almost a spiritual intuition. “I was shocked by the dead bodies of Malom on the front page,” Sharmila had said in her clear, halting voice. “I was on my way to a peace rally but I realised there was no means to stop further violations by the armed forces. So I decided to fast.”

Such a fast is absolutely unparalleled in the history of political protest anywhere in the world, ever. Yet you have been oblivious of her. A hundred TV channels. An unprecedented age of media. Yet both Indian citizens and the Indian State were oblivious to her.

(Case 2 excerpted from the article Irom And The Iron In India’s Soul by Shoma Chaudhury in Tehelka Magazine, Dec 05, 2009)

Read Shoma Chaudhury's complete article here.

Related links
Gandhiji’s rules of Satyagraha

Dharavi

2009-12-09T22:11:00.004+05:30

Dharavi, the teeming slum of one million souls, where as many as 18,000 people crowd into a single acre. By nightfall, deep inside the maze of narrow lanes the slum is as still as a verdant glade. Once you get accustomed to sharing 300 sq. ft. of floor with 15 humans and an uncounted number of mice, a strange sense of relaxation sets in—ah, at last a moment to think straight. It is Asia's largest slum and lies on prime property right in the middle of India's financial capital, Mumbai.

Many here are second and third-generation residents, whose parents moved in years ago. Today's Dharavi bears no resemblance to the fishing village it once was. A city within a city, it is one unending stretch of narrow dirty lanes, open sewers and cramped huts. The residents - the Kumbhars came from Gujarat to establish a potters' colony. Tamils arrived from the south and opened tanneries. Thousands traveled from Uttar Pradesh to work in the booming textile industry. The result is the most diverse of slums, arguably the most diverse neighborhood in India's most diverse city. In a city where house rents are among the highest in the world, Dharavi provides a cheap and affordable option to those who move to Mumbai to earn their living. Rents here can be as low as Rs. 185 per month.

Dharavi also has a large number of thriving small-scale potteries and textile industries. In addition to these, there is an increasingly large recycling industry, processing waste from other parts of Mumbai. It has an estimated 15, 000 single-room factories, with an approximate annual turnover of more than Rs. 3000 crores a year.

But Dharavi lacks basic infrastructure facilities like sanitation and health. As of November 2006, there was only one toilet per 1,440 residents. Mahim Creek, a local river, is widely used by local residents for urination and defecation, leading to the spread of contagious disease. The area also suffers from problems with inadequate water supply.

An urban redevelopment plan is proposed for the Dharavi area. The plan involves the construction of 30,000,000 sq. ft. of housing, schools, parks and roads to serve the existing 57,000 families residing in the area, along with 40,000,000 sq. ft. of residential and commercial space for sale. There has been significant local opposition to the plans, largely because existing residents are due to receive only 225 sq. ft. of land each. Furthermore, only those families who lived in the area before the year 2000 are slated for resettlement. Concerns have also been raised by residents who fear that some of their small businesses in the "informal" sector may not be relocated under the redevelopment plan. The government has said that it will only legalize and relocate industries that are not "polluting."

It is now up to time to decide what will be the future of Dharavi and its millions of dependents.

(Article excerpted from articles by NGC, BBC & Wikipedia)

A wise man said...

2009-12-09T01:25:00.003+05:30

A wise man, Anthony Gonsalves, once said in 1977 that

The whole country of the system is juxtapositioned by the haemoglobin in the atmosphere because you are sophisticated rhetorician intoxicated by the exuberance of your own verbosity.
Such extenuating circumstances coax me to preclude you from such extravagance.
The coefficient of the linear, is juxtapositioned, by the haemoglobin of the atmospheric pressure in the country.
Excuse me, please.

Anthony Gonsalves, 1977 in a file photo :P :P

Kitna badal gaya insaan...very true...

2009-11-20T01:25:00.000+05:30

Lost Paradise - Kashmir

2009-03-03T14:08:00.003+05:30

Where the fraternity has failed him, Providence will provide

2009-02-25T09:45:00.002+05:30

From fleet-footed forward to plodding pensioner, the wheel’s come full circle for Mohammad Zulfakaruddin.

A member of India’s football squad that made the 1956 Melbourne Olympics semifinals, a peak it may never scale again, he’s been subsisting in Secunderabad, under a roof not his own, unknown and unsung, until the recent felicitation call-up to Delhi.

A vain bid for recognition found no takers at the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SAAP) office a few years ago. Nobody believed he was an Olympian. An official issued an application form, more out of sympathy for the septuagenarian. Footwork for the proforma over, the frail figure began paper work for an Arjuna or Dronacharya award.

No honours

Mohd. Habeeb and Yousuf Khan, who played under him, received the Arjuna Award, while Syed Nayeemuddin, the Dronacharya. Strangely, Zulfakar, AP’s captain from 1958 to 66 — the game’s golden era that saw the Bengal bastion breached — found no mention in any honours list.

On the field an inside-left, he’s been left out by fame and fortune. The rare foray to the fore is to give away prizes at a local tournament.

His face glows when his football feats excite interest. “When AP won the 1963-64 Pentangular tournament in Ceylon, I received the trophy from the then FIFA President Sir Stanley Rous,” he recalled. He featured in India’s runner-up finish at Kuala Lumpur in the 1959 Merdeka Cup.

Feted by half a dozen heads of State, from President Rajendra Prasad to Shankar Dayal Sharma, Zulfakar also led Central Police Lines (CPL) for over a decade, the side boasting half a dozen Olympians!

Historic strike

Old-timers fondly remember his solitary goal in 1966 that fetched Andhra Pradesh the Santosh Trophy for the first time. Dodging the legendary Jarnail Singh, Bengal’s stopper back, he slipped the ball into the net, throwing the Quilon (Kollam) crowd into raptures. That triumph was especially sweet for AP, which had lost to Bengal in two earlier.

“Team spirit ran high, on and off the field,” he reminisced. After every match, players gathered at Hotel Madina in the Old City for tea or biriyani or at the Lateef restaurant, near Moazzam Jahi Market.

Reflected in competition, this camaraderie chipped in to cohesion and great understanding. Little wonder then that in Indian football’s finest hour, eight men were from Hyderabad.

Food for thought

With the wolf never far from his door, food is a recurring theme.

“Many players were good cooks too. Some handed out Hyderabad recipes to a Delhi restaurant, which has grown so much that Rahul Gandhi orders food from there,” he says. Soft-spoken and modest, he’s a misfit in a market-driven world.

A blinding love for Hyderabad and deferring to his father’s wishes, Zulfakar stayed back in the Twin Cities, when teammates made a beeline for Bengal, Indian football’s El Dorado.

Still dogged by injuries from his playing days, he takes recourse to religion, beard and skull cap in place. Where the fraternity has failed him, Providence will provide, perhaps.

(From The Hindu dated February 26, 2009. Article by A. Joseph Antony)

Slumdog: An over-exaggerated nothing

2009-02-25T02:34:00.000+05:30

Excerpts from an article by Sandipan Deb

Frankly, I don't think Slumdog Millionaire deserved the Oscar for best film. And even more frankly, I don't think Resul Pookutty should have invoked "my country and my civilisation" in his acceptance speech for best sound mixing. India was not up there in the Kodak auditorium for approval. It was a British film financed by the indie subsidiary of an American studio which happened to be set in India and as a result they could not help but involve Indian actors (including Indian-origin Britishers) and shoot it in India. We crave too much for international recognition. A bit too much than is seemly. Even as all of us go around strutting, pretending to be a superpower.

But Slumdog has won, and we should really rejoice for the six children who acted in it, for they are the real stars of the film. We should rejoice for AR Rahman, though the music he has got his two Oscars for is not even of his average quality, forget his sublime and exhilarating stuff. But the Academy has decided. But I really think it's a bit too much if we take this as a victory for Indian cinema. It's a non-Indian film which happened to have an all-Indian cast. We shoot entire films abroad nowadays, especially in the US, remember?

Read the complete article here:

http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20090224/1241/top-it-shouldn-t-have-won.html

The 2004 Tsunami - Conspiracy?

2009-02-10T13:21:00.003+05:30

Asian Tsunami Caused by Nuclear Test

6 January 2005, Thursday

The earthquake that devastated the Indian Ocean on December 26, triggering mammoth waves called tsunami, "was possibly" caused by an Indian nuclear experiment, an Egyptian weekly magazine wrote on Thursday.

In the suggested test, according to the Al-Osboa magazine, "Israeli and American nuclear experts participated".

India, in its heated nuclear race with Pakistan, has lately received sophisticated nuclear know-how from the United States and Israel, both of which "showed readiness to cooperate with India in experiments to exterminate humankind," the Egyptian magazine commented.

Geologists labeled that region "The Fire Belt" for being "a dangerous terrain that can move at anytime, without human intervention," Al-Osboa wrote.

The Egyptian weekly magazine concludes in its report that "the exchange of nuclear experts between Israel and India, and US pressure on Pakistan which is exerted by supplying India with state-of-the-art nuclear technology and preventing Islamabad from cooperating with Asian and Islamic states in the nuclear field, pose a big question mark on the causes behind the violent Asian earthquake."

To produce an earthquake of 9.0 like the one in the Indian Ocean, a bomb of 178 megaton would be necessary to blow off, the Russian online edition MIGnews commented. However, neither India or Israel, nor the USA disposes of such bomb. The maximum power known to be tested so far on earth was the H-bomb of 57 megaton tested by the former USSR in 1961.

Report by Novinite - http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=43330

An Interesting Profile

2009-02-10T12:46:00.004+05:30

This is an interesting profile I came across on a social networking site. The description of the owner of the profile had the following content. This is interesting because if this is true, then the author has been subjected to a lot of violence. If not, this is a remarkable piece of creativity on part of the author. Either way, something’s wrong.

The author for some reason has come up with a profile (finally on a networking site,) that is a bit thought provoking about certain activities that go on in the society. I will not write anything more as the following is self-explanatory. Do leave your comments if you read this.

The following content is highly abusive and contains offensive material. Continue at your own discretion. All names have been changed to protect the interest of those involved (if it’s true)

".....am well aware that the way the world works is that i might always be dominated by bullies who r physically stronger than me and who verbally and physically abuse me like that jealous liar mur_derer Ms. ABC - my so called elder sibling 8 years older than me who did her best to destroy my body and spirit every day and night of my life .. (and beat up everybody else also) .. and whose husband Mr. DEF has un_der_world connections with Don_s and merce_naries .. i was put in jail by my violent jealous liar elder sibling Ms. ABC and i paid $000 my money to the local judicial system to get released on bail.. and by those who practise black magic, psychic practices, occult rites and other energy manipulation techiniques to play with my life.. like that $ex addicted psychic clairvoyant b@$t@rd Mr. GHI who probably trapped me with his black magic and video recorded me in his house and his b@$t@rd good for nothing lout money minded father who was monitoring my computer activity even i came to JKL(a place) .. and other 3rd rated nauseating black magic practising $ex addicted b@$t@rds Mr. MN, Mr. OP, Mr. QR,etc.

those shameless f*ck*ng d**kh**ds Mr. STU and Mr. GHI attached themselves to me during final years of college to get their work done.. no wonder everybody laughs at them - they deserve it..

also be aware of those shameless beggar scum pro$titute$ Mr. S, Ms. T, Ms. U, Ms. V who shamelessly harassed me all my life jus bcoz they lost their jobs in WXY(a place) and shamelessly attached themselves to me and my family all these years harassing me for countless favours $hamele$$ly without any self respect.. my mother had to get that sl*t Ms. U a college seat in Z college bcoz she came to my house and threw a tantrum bcoz she wanted to go to the same college as me.. apart from countless other favours that this pro$titute family has harassed me and my family for all my life just bcoz they lost their jobs in WXY and have been leaching me and my family shamelessly all my life..

even here in JKL am waiting for that oversized money minded bully Mr. A1 to transfer my phone to my name that he has cleverly registered in his name using the money that my mother gave him to buy my phone.. apart from bullying me all the time for money,etc.. his brother Mr. A2 in the WXY has un_der_world connections with don_s.also i keep away from that permanently pr*gn@nt pro$titute Ms. A3 who keeps gossiping about me to that sl*t Ms. T in WXY.

even after i came to JKL was tortured by a A4(country) national called A5 and his mother beauty who conspired with my neighbour and blasted loud music for several days and nights next to my room bcoz i did not allow her into my room and did not marry A5 ..

and also be informed of that cheat thief Mr. A6 - that Z college student who never gave me the Rs.000 that he promised me for getting the top sponsor for college show ..his N(a place) 3rd rated nauseating cheap thief bit*h Ms. A7 who stole my blue mirror work sandals,
that 3rd rated bit*h thief Ms. A8 who stole my expensive gold chain & pendant to please her sh*t ar*e brothers Mr. A9 & Mr. B1 .

coupled with my so called selfish mur_derer b@$t@rd$ p*rn-addicted @dulterou$ father Mr. B2 who enjoys himself with the servant maid Ms. B3,etc and that selfish daughter-mur_derer bit*h mother Ms. B4 .. it has been horrible surrounded by these mur_derers all my life.. the tablets that Mr. B2 gives Ms. B4 to keep her in control have still not worked..

have learnt how the world works - full of jealous liar mur_derers who will kill me bcoz they cannot bear to see me prosper .. have been surrounded by these cunning liar mu_rderer killers all my life..i hate all the criminal devilish cruel psychotic mur_derous MONEY MINDED (and sometimes $ex-obsessed) fools that have verbally and physically abused me all my life and want all of them - especially liar Ms. ABC - to be punished for their crimes....."

The Indian 'Elite'

2009-02-07T21:29:00.005+05:30

Excerpt from Death of a Salesman and Other Elite Ironies by Tarun J. Tejpal

Politics, every single day, is killing, impoverishing, starving, denigrating, millions of Indians all across the country. If the backdrop were not so heartbreaking, the spectacle of the nation’s elite — the keepers of most of our wealth and privilege — frothing on television screens and screaming through mobile phones would be amusing. They have been outraged because the enduring tragedy of India has suddenly arrived in their marbled precincts. The Taj, the Oberoi. We dine here. We sleep here. Is nothing sacrosanct in this country any more?

What the Indian elite is discovering today on the debris of fancy eateries is an acidic truth large numbers of ordinary Indians are forced to swallow every day. Children who die of malnutrition, farmers who commit suicide, dalits who are raped and massacred, tribals who are turfed out of centuryold habitats, peasants whose lands are taken over for car factories, minorities who are bludgeoned into paranoia — these, and many others, know that something is grossly wrong. The system does not work, the system is cruel, the system is unjust, the system exists to only serve those who run it. Crucially, what we, the elite, need to understand is that most of us are complicit in the system. In fact, chances are the more we have — of privilege and money — the more invested we are in the shoring up of an unfair state.

It is time each one of us understood that at the heart of every society is its politics. If the politics is third-rate, the condition of the society will be no better. For too many decades now, the elite of India has washed its hands off the country’s politics. Entire generations have grown up viewing it as a distasteful activity. In an astonishing perversion, the finest imaginative act of the last thousand years on the subcontinent, the creation and flowering of the idea of modern India through mass politics, has for the last 40 years been rendered infra dig, déclassé, uncool. Let us blame our parents, and let our children blame us, for not bequeathing onwards the sheer beauty of a collective vision, collective will, and collective action. In a word, politics: which, at its best, created the wonder of a liberal and democratic idea, and at its worst threatens to tear it down.

And let no one tell us we need more laws. We need men to implement those that we have. Today all our institutions and processes are failing us. We have compromised each of them on their values, their robustness, their vision and their sense of fairplay. Now, at every crucial juncture we depend on random acts of individual excellence and courage to save the day. Great systems, triumphant societies, are veined with ladders of inspiration. Electrified by those above them, men strive to do their very best. Look around. How many constables, head constables, sub-inspectors would risk their lives for the dishonest, weak men they serve, who in turn serve even more compromised masters?

India’s crying need is not economic tinkering or social engineering. It is a political overhaul, a political cleansing. As it once did to create a free nation, India’s elite should start getting its hands dirty so they can get a clean country.

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 5, Issue 49, Dated Dec 13, 2008

Read the complete article at

http://www.tehelka.com/story_main40.asp?filename=Ne131208death_of.asp

Not-so-breaking news in India

2009-01-21T12:44:00.002+05:30

A few things about which I have been reading in the newspapers during the past one year, but rarely reported in the television media. And the reasons for which I am writing this post:

Candles are bought only when the upper strata dies, provided the dead is/are from a so-called ‘metro’.
The media cannot commercialise on these kind of news.
More importantly, the public isn’t interested in such news.
Everybody wants India to become superpower by 2020 and everybody wants to do nothing.

So, the not-so-Breaking News…

Eight persons including 7 jawans are killed in a terrorist attack in a CRPF Group Centre in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh…were the jawans rich people?Oh…then no use having it on the ticker.
Twelve persons are convicted in the Bilkis Bano case. 11 get life-sentence….Bilkis who?
Fifteen persons, including 13 policemen are killed in naxalite raids on police stations and arms depots in Orissa’s Nayagarh district. Over 1,100 arms and one lakh live bullets are looted…thank god it didn’t happen in my city.
India’s first centre for Climate Change and Adaptation Research is inaugurated at Anna University in Chennai. What is the use of such a centre in a country like India, how can you commercialise on that?
Biranchi Das, former coach of child marathoner Budhia Singh is shot dead in Bhubaneswar. One accused arrested 23 days later…Budhia who?
Women’s Reservation Bill. It’s still a myth.
The Centre announces a relief package worth more than Rs. 330 crore for the victims of 2002 post-Godhra riots in Gujarat….lol…funny…7years later…
The Centre announces a Rs. 28.81 crore relief package for the next of kin of the 844 people killed and 22 injured in the October 1989 Bhagalpur riots in Bihar. Never knew something like that even happened.
Security forces rescue seven hostages after a 19-hour gun battle which militants in Chinore on the outskirts of Jammu…hah…Kashmir, it’s normal.
Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma dies during the encounter in Jamia Nagar….really?
Maharshtra Navnirman Sena activists beat up North Indian aspirants appearing for the RRB entrance exams for the Western region in Mumbai…you are not supposed to protest against such acts coz the upper-strata doesn’t write anything else other than CAT and GRE.
IAF officer killed in Naxal attack on chopper ferrying poll material from Bijapur…really! Bad naxals.

An amusing quote

2009-01-21T11:37:00.007+05:30

An amusing quote I found in the newspaper, the other day.

This was the spokesperson of the Israeli Army...

"The Israeli Defence Forces does not target innocents or civilians, and during the operation the army has been fighting an enemy that does not hesitate to fire from within civilian targets."

Period.

.
P.S.: While the whole media was somewhat frenzy about the latest Gaza attacks, nothing ever cropped up about it on the Yahoo frontpage. Not on its Indian website atleast. Now, what can be the reason for that...!

Eyewitness account of a Gazan boy

2009-01-07T21:32:00.003+05:30

Saleem Abdulla, aged six, is in the first grade at Rimal school, Gaza.

I finished the exam at around 10 a.m. in the morning [on Saturday] and I started to go out from my classroom when suddenly I heard a large explosion near my school. I started to be really scared. My classroom is on the second floor so I was afraid to get to the stairs until a teacher came and took us to the ground floor. Usually my mum comes to pick me up or sends me a taxi. I found no taxi so I stayed at the gate of the school just hearing explosions and people running.

I felt that I could do nothing but stand. I kept waiting for a while — I don’t know how long for. I found my mum running to the school to pick me up. We walked home — maybe about 2.5 km.

I started to hear explosions from right and left and was really scared. Mum tried to ask me how I did during the exam, but I forgot everything. I was just looking around looking at the flames and smoke on the buildings.

Now I hate going to school. I threw my bag in the bathroom with my books because I don’t want to see it.

I don’t want to go back to the school ever. I don’t know what is happening and why this is happening. I feel really cold as my mother and father keep opening the windows so the windows don’t smash with the bombs. I keep sneezing all day. When I ask my mother to close the window, they say it’s for my own benefit. I have no electricity for three days. We have no milk, and no dairy products. Other food is here for the moment — we have vegetables, but we can’t get fruit any more, just a type of orange. Just tell me why and what for.

Whose media? Which people?: Nissim Mannathukkaren

2008-12-22T16:26:00.013+05:30

The coverage of the terror attacks showed that when the media becomes a purely business enterprise, news becomes a commodity, serving the interests of the few. It ceases to be the guardian of democracy or the protector of public interest.

...It is shocking that a slogan like “enough is enough” is bandied about in the media now after a terror attack. The moral angst of the media could not be roused all these years even when 1.5 lakh farmers committed suicide in a period of mere eight years from 1997 to 2005. How many channels did exclusive “breaking news” stories when

India

, the second fastest growing economy in the world, secured the 94th position, behind even

Nepal

, in the Global Hunger Index Report? Where were the Shobha Des and Ness Wadias then, who are now out on the streets mouthing revolutionary slogans like “boycott taxes”? Where were the candle light vigils and demonstrations when policemen rode on a motorbike with a human being tied to it? Or when a father and a child were crushed under a bus after being thrown off it for not being able to pay two rupees for the ticket? For the 40 crore Indians who live like worms, the prospect of being shot dead by terrorists would seem like a dream come true. At least it is more glorious and patriotic than swallowing pesticide!...

Read the complete article at http://www.hindu.com/mag/2008/12/21/stories/2008122150060100.htm

The monster in the mirror: Arundhati Roy

2008-12-22T16:11:00.004+05:30

Published in guardian.co.uk, December 13, 2008

The Mumbai attacks have been dubbed 'India's 9/11', and there are calls for a 9/11-style response, including an attack on Pakistan. Instead, the country must fight terrorism with justice, or face civil war.

...We're told one of these hotels is an icon of the city of Mumbai. That's absolutely true. It's an icon of the easy, obscene injustice that ordinary Indians endure every day. On a day when the newspapers were full of moving obituaries by beautiful people about the hotel rooms they had stayed in, the gourmet restaurants they loved (ironically one was called Kandahar), and the staff who served them, a small box on the top left-hand corner in the inner pages of a national newspaper (sponsored by a pizza company I think) said "Hungry, kya?" (Hungry eh?). It then, with the best of intentions I'm sure, informed its readers that on the international hunger index, India ranked below Sudan and Somalia. But of course this isn't that war. That one's still being fought in the Dalit bastis of our villages, on the banks of the Narmada and the Koel Karo rivers; in the rubber estate in Chengara; in the villages of Nandigram, Singur, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa, Lalgarh in West Bengal and the slums and shantytowns of our gigantic cities...

...In this nuclear subcontinent that context is partition. The Radcliffe Line, which separated India and Pakistan and tore through states, districts, villages, fields, communities, water systems, homes and families, was drawn virtually overnight. It was Britain's final, parting kick to us. Partition triggered the massacre of more than a million people and the largest migration of a human population in contemporary history. Eight million people, Hindus fleeing the new Pakistan, Muslims fleeing the new kind of India left their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs...

...Through the endless hours of analysis and the endless op-ed essays, in India at least there has been very little mention of the elephants in the room: Kashmir, Gujarat and the demolition of the Babri Masjid. Instead we had retired diplomats and strategic experts debate the pros and cons of a war against Pakistan. We had the rich threatening not to pay their taxes unless their security was guaranteed (is it alright for the poor to remain unprotected?). We had people suggest that the government step down and each state in India be handed over to a separate corporation. We had the death of former prime minister VP Singh, the hero of Dalits and lower castes and villain of Upper caste Hindus pass without a mention...

...The only way to contain (it would be naïve to say end) terrorism is to look at the monster in the mirror. We're standing at a fork in the road. One sign says Justice, the other Civil War. There's no third sign and there's no going back. Choose.

Read the complete article at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/12/mumbai-arundhati-roy

Tip Tip Barsa Pani: Ritika Passi

2008-12-12T17:01:00.005+05:30

RITIKA PASSI wonders at the depletion of scarce water resources by Bollywood

THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY is expected to grow faster than the GDP. By 2020, India could run out of drinking water. What’s the connection? Gone are the days when you could cite continuously flushing toilets and leaking taps as causes of water shortage: The newest and much more glamorous culprit is our healthy, wealthy, but not so wise Bollywood industry.

India’s very own tinsel town has a major hand in depleting precious water resources. Think of all the rain sequences in Indian movies, particularly the rain dances. It’s estimated that around 28,000 litres of water are needed for a single rain sequence in a film. And that too pure water, since actors fear rashes. The amount is enough to fulfill the water requirements of 30 families for four weeks, according to an art director interviewed by a leading daily. Puts the leaking DJB water tankers to shame.

And before you go, “What about movies like Titanic and Poseidon?”, remember the words ‘special effects’, which are much more advanced there than here?

So while in Gujarat nearly 4,000 villages suffer from severe water scarcity every year, not to fear — the scantily clad damsel in distress in a Yash Raj Production will be sufficiently drenched to artfully capture her nubile form enticing her indifferent lover through yet another song. While Bollywood may indeed have given us evergreen rain song numbers, like the more modest pyaar hua ikraar hua and the sizzling tip tip barsa paani, it’s time to ask whether it’s worth the environmental fallout.

And these are just the water woes. Consider this: Hollywood spews around 2,000 tonnes of CO2 for every average big-budget movie. Moreover, 8,00,000 sheets of paper are wasted by the average blockbuster. Bollywood can’t be far behind, considering how well we like to compete with our western counterpart. And it’s also said that a one-minute shot eats up 120 KW. Aishwarya Rai, Amitabh Bachchan and the likes may have joined unforgettable world tours to highlight climate change; Vidya Balan may have taken part in the illustrious plantation drive on World Environment Day. But the fact remains — Bollywood is a ‘dirty’ business.

Tip Tip Barsa Pani is a famous rain song from the Bollywood movie, Mohra (1994) and the phrase literally means the sound(tip tip) of water dripping.

(Ritika Passi studies at the Amity School of Communication, Amity University)

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 5, Issue 48, Dated Dec 06, 2008

Why the United States got it wrong: P. Sainath

2008-12-12T16:24:00.007+05:30

It is worth learning this: Al-Qaeda was the biggest beneficiary of the “response” of the United States to 9/11 alongside U.S. corporations. America’s “War on Terror” produced far more terrorism in the world than there had been prior to that response.

Of all the arguments making the rounds after the appalling slaughter of 180 people in Mumbai, the worst is this: that India should learn from the United States about how to respond to such terror. “Look at the USA,” goes the refrain, “after 9/11 has there been another attack on U.S. soil?” In short, Washington’s measures after that tragedy were so effective, nobody ever bothered them again. This knocks at the doors of insanity. The U.S. “ ;response” does stand out as worth learning from. There is very little it did not get wrong.

Around 3,000 people lost their lives in the dreadful attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York on 9 /11. America’s response was to go to war. It launched two wars, one of against a country that had not a single link to the events of 9/11. Close to a million human beings have lost their lives in that response. That includes 4,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and nearly 1,000 in Afghanistan. That is apart from several hundred thousand Iraqis losing their lives. Countless Afghans die each month, as one of the world’s poorest states sinks deeper into devastation. (Afghanistan, for U.S. liberals, is “the good war.”) Millions have suffered dislocation and deprivation in the region.

· $ 3 trillion-war

· Embedded journalism

· Curbing of civil liberties

Read the complete article at http://www.hindu.com/2008/12/11/stories/2008121155660900.htm