FOR YOU

O My love, where are you?

Come to me and rescue my life

Your absence fills me with heart wrenching pain

Without you, life is hard to entertain.

This world and everything in it

My life and my dreams, my mind and its whims

It’s hard to describe in words

The passion and the warmth of you in me

Come to me, come to me

For you shall be my queen

ECONOMICS OF RELATIONSHIP

What is it that makes us different from other organisms on this planet? Perhaps, it is our ability to form and maintain relationships in social milieu. Therefore, the earlier we understand the economics of relationship, the better we be in appreciating it.

An analysis of economics of relationship reveals that it is one of the riskiest investments a man ever makes in his life. If everything goes well, the returns are extremely satisfying. But, if something goes wrong, it creates havoc in personal life.  

We will now examine how it functions in the real world scenario. 

To nurture a relationship, you make commitments, spend time and invest emotions. The probable beneficial returns are satisfaction, happiness and enlightenment. Returns worth dying for! However, the losses are equally devastating. You get pain, sufferings and on top of that depression!

If you are a high risk taker, you can bear the loss much better because you remain mentally prepared for it. The conservative ones are not so fortunate. They invest after much deliberation and judgment only to see their investments go awry. For them, the loss also casts shadow over their judgmental abilities, a much sought after trait in their own opinion.

So, what are your lessons from this? One, be mentally prepared to bear the loss of your near and dear ones.  Second, conservatives (read sentimental ones) should never look failure in relationships as end of their lives.  And the most important one, always keep in mind that nobody will be with you forever.

Hehehe, on a lighter note, it’s better to lose for then it will pave way for a new rock-star.

Friends! Plan Your Finances for the Years Ahead

I’ve written this article especially for my final year friends, who’ll start earning in 2011. The year marks an important transformation in their lives and a rush of adrenalin might tempt them to spend extravagantly, jeopardizing the gains they could have made by investing early and wisely. With prudence however, they can definitely brighten future financial prospects for themselves as well as their families.

 

No matter how prosperous someone is, it always pays to save and invest well. Many people might argue about the need to plan for future so early in the career. To them I would say, “The need to save today is to secure tomorrow, to meet contingencies, and above all to pursue dreams, passions and hobbies.” In western world, people desire to retire from active work in mid 40s, so they plan their finances according to it. Although, it is not a common trend here at present; sooner or later it will be. 

The golden rule of financial planning is, ‘be wise and start early.’ One needs to figure out, what corpus, he would like to build in 20-30 years. It varies from person to person, depending on lifestyle and number of dependents one has. SIPs (Systematic Investment Plans) are ideally suited for it. They allow people to regularly invest a portion of their income to generate return and build corpus. One can invest either a fixed amount every year or increase his investments over a period of time as his salary increases. 

Keeping the hard earned money in bank deposits won’t be a wise act as inflation will eat it away and real rate of return (Deposit rate-inflation) will be negative.

For youngsters, the time is also ripe to be a part of share market.  Liberalization and continuous reforms in the last two decades have made the share markets friendly for the retail investors. The markets have doubled in the last two years and returns have been in the excess of 25 percent. Share markets are known to reward long term investors handsomely. So, one should aim to be in the game for longer time to reap better benefits. But, before investing in share market, it is strongly advised to consult a financial expert and be prudent and pragmatic.

For risk averse people, there are still other ways to generate good returns. Mutual funds and ULIPs are among them. These products invest their asset in share markets and bond markets under the guidance of capable managers. Both are equally good, but since ULIPs offer better commission to the agents, they are better marketed by the agents. 

Apart from these, one has to also look at the income tax aspect of investment. The government has also proposed to implement Direct Tax Code from 2012 and it’ll bring sweeping changes in the tax laws of this country. This should also be kept in mind while making investment decisions this year.

It is indisputable that a very bright future is waiting for the people, who would be joining industry this year and they can take it to an altogether new level through prudent financial decisions right at the start of their career. It is rightly said ‘Well begun is half done.’

Quality or Quantity: What should we strive for in higher education?

The most obvious question asked at any forum discussing higher education is, what should be preferred-quality or quantity? There are many people who say that we must not go for expansion in higher education sector as it will affect the quality of education. Well, my opinion is entirely against any move to restrict higher education in the name of quality control. India is a large country. It requires colleges in large numbers to meet the needs of its burgeoning population. We can't allow our students to sit idle while we bask in the glory of quality of our institutes.

We all know as to what is going on at present. Every year, around ten thousand students qualify for IIT. But, do we ever think about the rest of the students who got rejected? Are they less capable? There are many students who unfortunately do not go to IITs but fare better then many IITians. Same is the case with management graduates. In medical education sector, the situation is even more frightening. The country is not producing enough doctors to meet even the basic health care requirements. The government is bearing the burnt of its poor policy of limiting the number of medical colleges in the country. It is now forced to adopt a new scheme of rural doctors where the course duration would be four years only. This problem would not have arisen at the forst place had there been enough medical colleges in this country.

All these things point towards the need for change in the government policy regarding higher education. There is an urgent requirement for opening of more IITs, IIMs, central universities, medical colleges and other colleges.It's true that quality is and should be an important parameter in higher education, but keeping in purview the huge requirements of skilled manpower in our country, we must act fast to incorporate the idea of inclusive education. Let more institutions be opened and let they be functioned independently. In this present competitive world, they will surely establish their niche in the respective fields.

The question of quality comes only when the country's minimum requirements in terms of educational institutions are fulfilled. In the initial phase quality will decrease for sure as the quantity increases. But, this is a short term problem and can be taken care of over a period of time. Those who advocate quality, tend to forget that even our elite institutions are not getting faculties for teaching. Once, the problem of quantity is taken care of , they will have a large pool of contestants to choose from. Thus, improving quantity is in the best interest of the nation, the student community and above all for the educational institutions itself. If we act now, we can prevent our future generation from being deprived of one of the most basic rights of theirs: The right to access to higher education.

HACKING.........................

Hacking! Sounds dreadful! Isn’t it? The general perception about hacking is that it is a way of stealing information from computers. However that’s not true. The correct term for the method described above is cracking. Hacking is actually the intrusion into computers to expose their vulnerabilities and the security holes. Hackers are actually pranksters and most of the times are not ill-willed. There was a time when hacking was quite tough, even for the computer geeks.  However with the spread of Internet and thanks to the numerous works our forefathers did in the field of hacking, hacking at present is a little bit application of mind and lots of social engineering.  There are a large number of tools available on Internet which can help in this.

For hacking, a person must clearly understand what his goals are! Why does he want to intrude into otherwise inaccessible computers and what he intends to do once he succeeds in gaining access.  The next thing is to decide how to execute the plans like ‘what needs to be done to remotely connect to other systems without the prior permission from the system administrators’. It is always better to take consent of the person whose computer’s vulnerability are you going to expose. Now-a-days the cyber rules are quite restrict regarding hacking and any mistakes knowingly or unknowingly may have serious consequences.

Some of the important tools available for hacking are:

# KEYSTROKE LOGGERS- It’s a fun to use. Just install on the system and invite your friends to log into their email or Orkut accounts. The Keystroke Logger takes the imprint of the keys pressed and displays it. So anything which is typed will be recorded into its database and since passwords are also entered through the keyboard it records them too. These passwords can be retrieved through the database in a matter of seconds.

#MAC Spoofing- In common words MAC spoofing is the technique of changing the MAC address of one computer by replacing it with any other computer’s MAC address. This is generally done to to get unrestricted access to Internet.  For this, the new MAC must be of those computers  who have access to the internet. 

MAC is the acronym for Media Access Control.  It is the physical address of the networking cards installed inside the computer. MAC spoofing is generally done when the network administrator restricts the use of INTERNET only for a few computers on a large network.

#ROUTER HACK-   Routers are the devices that connect to different kinds of networks like wired and wireless networks. It can be hacked too. Depending on the security arrangements they employ like MAC Filter, WEP, WPA different tools such as Aircrack, KISMET are available to bypass these security arrangements and extract the data necessary for hacking.

# PORT SCANNING- If we imagine computer as a home, ports will its windows. Every port in a computer is utilized by some services. Port Scanning is a technique of finding open ports in a system.  Through these open ports one can get unrestricted access to other computer’s data. Besides these there are also some other tools which can assist you in hacking. A lot of information is available on Internet and one can take their help.

Also, It is easier to learn hacking on LINUX platforms than the WINDOWS platforms because most of the good tools for hacking are easily available on the Linux based operating systems compared to WINDOWS operating system.  The best operating system available for hacking is BACKTRACK. It can be downloaded from INTERNET and is free of cost. It contains almost all the tools available for hacking. 

Before someone attempts hacking, it is strongly advised to take into consideration its legal implications. Use hacking with prior consent of the system administrators to find out the loop holes in the cyber security measures. The best hackers in the world are also the best cyber security experts in this rapidly growing IT age.

Care and Concern for Environment is Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility is the buzz word of present time. At a time when the developed countries are feeling the heat of financial tsunami, India has come out unscathed, growing at an unprecedented rate of above eight percent.  India Inc. is shining. But, there is huge constrain on the natural resources to sustain this high rate of growth. Companies are increasingly looking for natural resources and they are ready to pay premium for raw materials security. 

In this scenario, it becomes very important to ascertain whether the corporate sector has any obligation towards the environment or not. There is no doubt that protection of environment is primarily a job of the government. But, when so many companies are reaping the dividends of higher growth, it is expected from them to contribute something back to the society. The existence of industry is dependent on the existence of people. Any mad scramble or the bungling of resources will create future problems for the industry. The corporate sector will have to understand this in very clear terms. 

Any development that occurs, keeping concerns for the environment aside, is not sustainable.  In recent times, numerous instances have come into light where the green norms were not followed in setting up a plant. The Vedanta episode is a glaring example of this. The Industry appears to have taken the short sighted approach where there is too much emphasis on profit booking and less on the concern towards the environment. There is little brain storming on ‘how industry will secure raw materials supply for the days ahead’. The unholy nexus between the government and the business houses is a big obstacle in implementing tougher environmental laws. When the whole world is talking about global warming and the need to save mother earth, this kind of approach from India Inc. is very frustrating.

 The corporate social responsibility should not be restricted to donation towards charitable trusts only. Rather, the policy of business houses should be to take an inclusive approach where development occurs not at the cost of environment. The companies engaged in mining, manufacturing and other polluting activities should follow environmental laws strictly and emulate the best practices of their counterparts in other parts of the world.  They can also spend money on development and utilization of green technology. This will reduce pollution and help them in earning carbon credits. The government should think of making corporate social responsibility mandatory for organizations, a certain portion of their revenues or profits to be spent on environment protection. The environmental laws enforcement agencies need to be free from political interferences so that they can take an impartial approach during appraisals of different industrial plants.

 All such efforts will be effective only if the corporate sector sincerely understands its responsibility. If the industry does not show genuine concerns and engages only in cosmetic acts, it will bear the fallout of environment degradation. Remember, the environmental catastrophe is not very far away. The earlier India Inc. understands this, the better they will be equipped to handle its effects on the Industry.    

   

Global Warming: Just a Possibility or a Proven Eventuality

Global warming refers to increase in earth’s temperature due to increase in the concentration of green house gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor etc. in the atmosphere. At present, it is one of the hotly debated topics around the world. Developed and developing countries both are assessing repercussions of this man-made problem. Even among the different societies across the world, there is renewed awareness about its fallouts. Still, from certain quarters, we hear that this problem is not as acute as it is being projected and some predict that it might actually be helpful in agriculture and forestry. Such kinds of assessments are creating doubts in the minds of the people and the governments. There is concern somewhere down the road that global warming might only be a possibility not an eventuality.

It is easier for the people to fall for the fancier arguments which advocate status quo i.e. making no efforts to counter global warming because it saves money and efforts.

Humans have been indiscriminately exploiting natural resources, producing waste in the process. There is a limit up to which the nature can itself repair the damages due to human activities. Unfortunately, we have crossed this threshold. Now, it is our responsibility to protect nature otherwise the future generations will be in danger of extinction.

The biggest obstacle in the expedition of human efforts towards countering global warming is the slowness of changes occurring in the environment. When scientists say that in the next hundred years, the earth’s temperature might increase by 2-6 0C, people don’t understand the implications of such minor change. Besides, the recent controversies surrounding IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), an apex body of U.N. on climate change, have only dent the credibility of efforts towards mitigating climate change. Also, the propaganda of various multinational organizations all over the world which would be hit the most by the implementation of efforts against global warming has created suspicion in people’s minds.

Global warming is for real. There might be arguments about the severity of its harmful effects and the period over which it will be a full-fledged problem, but there shouldn’t be any doubt about it being the worst problem for us and our future generation. Even, at present, the climate change is causing huge devastation to human life and property all over the world. Untimely rainfall, drought, tsunamis, earthquakes, these are indications of an impending danger ahead. Polar ice cap and glaciers are melting fast resulting in increased sea levels. The island cities and countries might drown in the near future.

Different summits have taken place all over the world to discuss global warming, UNFCCC at Rio de Janeiro in 1992, Kyoto, Copenhagen etc. to name a few. Still, nothing concrete has been achieved. Economists have predicted the cost of countering global warming which runs in billions of dollars. This cost might also be a region why countries all over the world are reluctant to take actions. But, it should be clearly understood that life on this planet is more valuable than anything else. It has to be saved at any cost. If we want our future generation to prosper, we have to act now.

CAMPUS SELECTION: WHAT IT TAKES TO BE SUCCESSFUL

Human nature is very unpredictable. No matter how intelligent we have become, we still cannot read human minds. Many intelligent people have tried but failed. So, when engineering students reach final year of their courses, reading recruiters’ minds become the most daunting challenge for them. Different theories go round the hostel regarding campus selection process. While some students assert that sound technical knowledge is the main criterion for selection, for few others better command on communication skills is a must for getting through. But, in truth, no one can firmly stand on his assertion.

In my college, placement season is in full swing and every day I hear news of companies visiting the campus and recruiting students. The excitement is at its peak. Students can be easily seen discussing current events, HR round questions and exchanging technical notes. From my personal experience and whatever I have understood from others’ views, I deem myself qualified enough to express my thoughts over the selection process.

The task of selecting students lies generally in the hands of Technical and HR managers. They are expected to remain impartial and above board during the entire process. But, the recruiters generally carry baggage of their personal experience, good or bad, while visiting campuses and the process fails to remain objective. By personal experience I mean ‘the attributes they think successful people should have’. However, one thing is very clear regarding selection: All companies want people with long term prospects and it is reasonable too. Nobody would like to make an investment whose return is not guaranteed. But, sometimes, during this entire trade off between ‘potential’ and ‘stability’, stability gets the upper hand. This case is mostly evident with small and mid size companies although a few large ones also behave in the same way.

Regarding selection methodology, now-a-days, almost all companies use the same technique i.e. written test followed by GD and personal interview. In some companies, each of these rounds is equally important but in many others different rounds carry different weightings. For students moving into final year, it is always helpful to talk to seniors.

In general, cracking written test is the easiest part in the entire process. Group discussion is where most students falter, few good ones too. This problem is largely related to a student’s upbringing. Most of the students of govt. engineering colleges come from rural background. For them, communicating in English becomes Achilles heel. Personal interview, more or less, varies with the interviewee personality. Interviewers judge him on technical as well as non technical parameters. Mentioning extracurricular activities in CV is always helpful. But, remember, if you have not performed them, in that case, you will be exposed easily. Also, it has been observed that an interviewer frames an opinion about the interviewee initially within few minutes and use rest of the time to justify it in his mind. Therefore, it is always important to perform well right from the start.

Although, this selection process is somewhat flawed, it has generally produced satisfactory results. In present world where so much emphasis is on relationship building, people with better personality are more likely to succeed. Personality includes everything right from appearance and dressing sense to communication skills. Even, the way you behave during the entire selection process can be used to assess you. In short, the entire selection process is more complex than it seems and sometimes the lady luck may also be the reason behind selection.


If you want to know more about the selection process, write to me at: shashank273@gmail.com

OBSCENITY: IS IT IN SOME GODDAMN SERIALS OR IN OUR MINDS?

Big Boss on Colors and Rakhi Ka Insaaf on NDTV Imagine, two of the highly
successful reality shows of winter 2010, are in constant news now-a-days albeit for some bad reasons. They have been accused of presenting vulgar content to the audience including children. It seems that they have stirred the hornet’s nest. The government has directed them to air their shows after eleven PM. But, the real question is: Is this solution appropriate? In the name of protecting the young generation from depravity, are we doing the right thing?

The answer is perhaps a big NO. It seems nice to hear that by censoring contents we can prevent our children from getting access to them. But, the rot lies deeper somewhere and through this action we cannot reach there. The million dollar question today is: Even if we censor content on the television, can we stop our children from gaining access to adult materials through other media such as Internet and magazines or even through their friends? It’s pretty clear that it’s not possible. Some way or the other, children are going to have them. In most of the Indian families, parents do not discuss adult life with their growing children. In those circumstances, friends, cheap books and Internet are children' biggest teachers. This generation of MTV and Facebook is pretty fast in gathering knowledge about sex although the quality always remains doubtful and this is where the problem starts. I remember, I was 15 years old when I watched porn first, quite late by present standards. For someone who had not even watched a B-grade Hindi Movie before, it was a totally different experience. It had a lasting effect on me and it didn’t in any way made me less moral. In fact, I became more aware about my feelings afterward. My parents know nothing about this and I don’t want to tell them too. I smile when my father suggests me to change the bikini girl’s wallpaper of my computer for little he knows that I have seen much more than this.

Then, what is the way forward? Some people suggest that we should revert back to medieval era of keeping everything behind the curtain. For them, I remember what a great man wrote about how his father imparted him sex education. He wrote, “When I was 14 years old, my father took me to a brothel and told me to learn things there.” Although, this might be quite a radical idea for us, a little opening up of society is always better. It should be clearly understood that obscenity is not in the shows that we watch. Rather than, it is in our psyche, in our minds. Rapes happen even in the countries where women cover themselves from top to bottom. Women living in open societies feel safer than those living in closed ones. In open societies, women remain vocal about their rights. If anything wrong happens, they get justice easily and subsequently lead normal lives. On the other hand, in closed societies, cases of women harassment are never registered and the victims never overcome the trauma.

For opening up of society, imparting sex education in schools might be the best possible way. In this way, it won’t be a curious topic among the children. It would also make them aware of their physical needs and protect them from STDs in future. The only thing in this to be taken care of is the method of implementation. We need highly trained teachers who could do this job without compromising their integrity.

Enough we vowed to protect ourselves through abstinence. Now is the time to be more vocal and to have greater exchange of ideas on subjects that have remained taboo so far. Don’t let your child suppress his feelings. It will lead to frustration only. Psychological studies have proved it time and again that sex offenders are mostly people without troubled sex history. It’s in the human nature that whatever he is forbidden to do, he tries to do that. Eve did this and we are no different. Talking sex is not bad. Only when we do it with wrong intentions, it becomes ugly. So, don’t ban serials because it will make matters worse only.

Movies!! Boom.......I want loads of them!!

My friends keep asking why I watch so many movies when I have other important things to do in my life like taking care of study, preparing for the competitions, planning for a bright future and so on. Many people also laugh at me when they see me devoting large part of daily life to movies. Even the HR head of the company where I’ll be working in the next few months asked me, “What is it in the movies that you like when most of them are not real and you claim yourself to be a very practical man?” To all of them who are curious to know why I do this, here is the answer:

I watch movies because they take me to a different world. They tell me that there are sufferings but also the people who have conquered them. They urge me to believe in the self and that even I can change the world. They teach me to be happy, take life as it is and above all love it. I think, whatever makes you happy is always good for you. I don’t care if they are just movies. At least, they give hope and what is better than hope. I know I’m quite pragmatic. But, don’t I have the right to enjoy, get lost in the dreams? I’m too a man made of flesh and blood and I can’t be mechanical. I’m ready to trade a million dollar for a single ray of hope and I feel most of you will do the same. Living life is not an easy job, at least in this cruel world where everyone else is your competitor and there are people out there ready to take your place at your single mistake.

So, watch movies and have fun because there is nothing more beautiful in life than happiness and nothing more valuable than the moments of selfless fun. They will be the real treasures for you.

Do write to me if you think this article in any way has rekindled your passion into movies. I’m available at: shashank273@gmail.com

TEN REASONS WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BE MARRYING

In 2011, I along with my batch mates will be graduating from NIFFT, Ranchi. The few years spent here have been the best of our lives. The year 2011 will bring a smooth transition from academic to professional life for most of us. Life would also be a lot more enjoyable as we would be earning then. But, this transition will also bring with itself the trickiest question that everyone faces in adult life: ‘whether to marry or not?’

Most of the people seldom think before taking a decision on it and the end results have been disastrous for them. Prima facie, their judgments seem myopic and constrained by short term benefits. They simply do not understand that ‘marriage’ and ‘prosperous life’ are two mutually exclusive terms. Also, with the kind of society we live in, it becomes imperative for everyone to raise children after marriage thus further making difficult the already critical situation.

In general, the fantasies associated with marriage have been huge in people’s minds and I witness them every day in the eyes of some of my friends who are eagerly waiting to get placed so that they could marry as early as possible. At a time when they should be thinking about career, they are thinking about wives and children.

Life becomes difficult from the day a man gets married. A cost-benefit analysis of ‘married life’ unambiguously supports this proposition. I have always suggested my friends to think clearly before taking a decision on marriage. I have shared some of my observations with them and I think it would be worth to share them with you too.

These ten reasons strongly support the bachelor life and will act as the invaluable guidelines to lead a normal, tension free life…………………

1. Freedom of lifestyle- An unmarried person has the freedom to choose his lifestyle….. He can decide for himself things like when to sleep and wake up, what to eat and what not, what to wear and what not etc…

2. No need to raise children- Perhaps the most important benefit of staying single is that you never have to worry about children. All your resources and energy that would have been consumed in raising children can now be utilized in productive works.

3. You would be contributing vitally towards controlling population thus serving a national cause………….. A tribute to your country.

4. Freedom from emotional torture and daily melodrama of a typical marriage life.

5. There will be no division in your family as you would not be fighting with your brothers and sisters over some petty issues if you are unmarried. You will live happily with your brothers, sisters and parents throughout your life…… What an ideal situation!!!!!!

6. You will have all your money to spend the way you want… Whether you want to spend it on ‘the African safari’ or on stay at ‘The Taj’ hotel, all decisions will be yours.

7. As there will be no distractions of married life, you will be able to focus on your career and thus will have better prospects of reaching to the top.

8. No need to save money. You will earn and spend thus enjoy life to the fullest extent possible.

9. There will be no need to earn too much. This will help you to lead a good life even on less salary. Since, it has been observed that corruption generally stems from the unethical demands of the family members which a man cannot fulfill with his salary, you will be less corrupted if you remain unmarried.

10. No need to take life insurance cover and cough your hard earned money as premium……

In a nutshell, you will be more humane, honest and happy if you decide to stay unmarried. The onus is on yours friends…………………..
THINK CLEARLY AND CAREFULLY

Reminiscence: BSP@BHILAI

Introduction: FROM 12TH JUNE TO 12TH JULY

I along with my friends went to Bhilai to undergo vocational training at BSP(Bhilai Steel Plant).Before the start of the journey, I thought the stay would be enjoyable. We would visit new places there and make friends. But, right from the start of the journey nothing went smooth. We lost our tickets. With great difficulties, somehow we reached Bhilai. During my auto journey from Bhilai station to the vocation trainee hostel, I was thinking that all our problems would end once we reach the hostel. I reached the hostel and..............................


12th June at 8:47 PM

"Is this the hostel we're supposed to come?"
"What is this? A hostel or a Bhutaha Haveli that we see in Hindi movies? Are we gonna live here and that too after paying Rs 1500 per bed?"
"Oh no, this can't be true."

After some time.............
"Where will we eat today? Is there any restaurant around?"..........
"Only South Indians selling Dosa, Idli and vada."

"No.. Are we supposed to return back from Dosa corner before half past ten?"

"Oh God! What is this place! The snakes move all around the hostel. Have we come in a zoo?"

10:00 PM
"How will we sleep? It's so hot and the fans are not moving. My mobile is not charged and there is only one electric port that too engaged. I have to talk to my mom. She will be worrying............ What! India's largest network AIRTEl has
pathetic network here."
Somehow we managed.


13th June- In the morning........

"The toilet is hell and no proper arrangements for shower.... What kind of people live here?" We cannot live here.... Today we will search an apartment and rent it no matter how costly it is."

But before that where will we eat? The mess is not running and food available is not worth eating. We will also have to make arrangements for food.....

"Bhaiya, Is there any restaurant around?"...... "Yes, a pure vegetarian: Annapurna."

Annapurna: A pure Rajasthani veg restaurant. Cost: Rs 50 per plate. Food quality: spiritual.

Hostel warden- Sardarji: An unusual one. I will talk about him some other time.

13th June ended. We couldn't search a proper apartment.
Regarding food we thought Annapurna might be a temporary arrangement till we find the subsidized canteens of BSP(Another fallacy).

14th JUNE: Our first day @ training section of BSP

"Who knows about this person?", A man carrying a picture in his hand asked. A new drama was going to unfold.......


................WILL BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT PART

WHAT DOES A MAN WANT?

What does a man want? Whenever I ponder over this question, I get the same answer. Freedom! freedom is what a man desperately wants no matter how costly it is. Freedom to live according to own choice is something mankind has always cherished.

But, we do not realize perhaps how costly freedom is! Ask those who have made sacrifices for this. Only they are worthy to answer. Palestinians, Blacks of South Africa, Iraqis... they know the real cost they had to pay or are paying still for freedom. Salute to them who sacrificed their lives to make this world free and equal to all humans irrespective of their race, religion and status. I feel indebted to our freedom fighters for dreaming the impossible.

Fellow countrymen! preserve the dignity of freedom. It didn't come free. Live in harmony with others and respect different cultures for they are the treasures of our own country. We are one nation and everyone of us deserve the same respect no matter from which part of the country we belong to. Let us build together a better, stronger and united India.

A LADY ON THE TRAIN

A lady on the train
Whirling here and there in the lane
Leaning loose over the window seat
To take a view of the beautiful terrain.

Alluring she was, like the bright full moon,
Pristine like the rainbow after the rain,
Her golden hair blowing in air
Caressing in gentle admiration
Her face half draped in cloth
As if preserving the essence of universe.

Resplendence redefined by the charm of her face
What an angelic body she had to compliment the best.

CASTE BASED CENSUS: SHOULD WE FALL INTO THE TRAP?

Date- June 6,  2007

Time- 10:30 PM

Good evening gentlemen!  Well this may sound too formal and mature; isn’t it? But, discussing a topic as contentious as the ‘caste based census’ requires such mature state of mind which is free from presumptions and prejudices and willing to incorporate new ideas, ideas which are pertinent to take ourselves to an altogether different  path of prosperity, but might be radical and unacceptable to the present narrow minded society.

Friends, we have to unfortunately live with the fact that casteism runs deep into Indian society and has its roots everywhere. It is not a new age phenomenon. It was present thousands of year before and it is still prevalent, albeit with greater acceptance.

I remember an incident from my childhood. When I was in class three, I had a group of friends, mostly belonging to upper castes. One day we heard that MCC had killed a number of Bhumihar Brahmins in Jahanabad district of Bihar.  We were discussing this. Suddenly one of my friends’ brother who was elder to us told that Ranbir Sena would take the revenge by  killing all those bastards who had committed the heinous act. He also told that Ranbir Sena was savior for the upper castes’ people. Unaware of all these facts, I was puzzled. At that time I didn’t realise the gravity of situation. Now, when I reflect on this, I feel, even the immature minds of our children are not spared when it comes to casteism. This venom is fed into their minds right from their childhood by their own family members and the members of society. By the time they reach adulthood, they no longer remain unaffected by casteism.

Many of you might be wondering that I have diverted from the topic as  our topic is ‘caste based census’ not casteism. But, to understand the cries and hues surrounding the census, we will have to know what the ground realities are. One of the most blunt truth is that we all practise casteism, consciously or subconsciously. A few of us being intellectually more nuanced, filter out the feelings. This census is generating so much controversy because it is being perceived as an asset by a few people while a few others view this as a threat. Those who are against the caste based census (the list includes me too), feel that it is another attempt to widen the gap between people and create rift in the society which has already become fragile.  For the supporters of this census, it is an honest effort to strengthen the identity of socially deprived. According to them, it will also be a basis for distributing the benefits of various social schemes effectively. But a nice intention is one thing and understanding the consequences of one’s action is another. I do not doubt intention, I doubt the narrow outlook that the supporters of the census are taking in relation to this. They are unable to foresee the problems that will arise in the future.The census will futhur the divisions in the society. Do we want our children to fight for castes!

I have few questions in my mind and I would like their answers from the census' supporters.

§  If this is so important, why was it discontinued? Remember, the last such census was done in 1931.

§  How much is this going to help in uplifting people from backward communities through social schemes when the real problem lies not in ‘whether we know the exact number of people belonging to different castes or not’ but in the delivery mechanism?

§   Isn’t it just another attempt by our politicians to take the political mileage for advancing their career?

Friends, we must not fall into this dangerous trap. At the time when INDIANS should be discussing about the ways and means to take our country to new levels of development, we are made to waste our resources and energy in such hypocritical acts. It’s high time that we think how much is ‘caste based census’ advancing our developmental goals.  We all have one identity. We all are Indians. All the rest should be inconsequential to us.

Caste based census is a politically motivated attempt to garner more votes; another instance of the divide and rule policy being followed by the current politicians to keep power in their hands. I once again emphasise the point that this census is not a panacea to our problems. The losses far outweigh the benefits.  THIS SHOULD NOT BE PUT INTO ACTION.

WHAT LIFE IS!

Jinks’ 10 is gone. But, reminiscences are still floating in air. They are now integral parts of our lives. One of the most interesting things that happened to me during JINKS’ 10 was participation in Mr. JINKS’. Initially, I thought about it ten times. Should I participate, shouldn’t I? At last, I decided to try. In order to qualify in the main round of Mr. Jinks, participants had to fill a form which asked to define what life is. When I saw that question, I thought, "May be the space provided is not enough for such a big question". But, when I started writing, I felt as if I had no words to define life. Anyhow, I managed to write something. But, my definition of life didn’t see the dawn as the judges were not convinced by my answer. And so, I was not selected for the main round. But, this experience gave me a very beautiful topic to write about.

Well, It is almost impossible to define life in words. Still, as a writer, I can take such liberty and when I define life, I see it as a flow. Life is a journey and it goes on. We rejoice we grieve. But, life never stops. It just flows. Life has no destination. It can never be a destination. Those who define life by aims either underestimate themselves or life. I remember when I was small, I used to think about too many things. I thought of becoming engineer. Now, when I‘m on the verge of being an engineer, I think to be anything but engineer. Such is life and such is life’s mystery. Life is an exploration. We do not know what it holds. Only when we unearth it, we find the true face of it. The real joy of life lies in its uncertainty. Hope, Tim Robbins in The Shawshank Redemption says, “ Hope is a good thing, may be the best of things and no good thing ever dies” has its genesis in life's dubiety and no one can deny there is ever a thing as merciful as hope. Many people spend their entire lives in anticipation of something, may be on some kind of hope. Those who are alone live life in search of friends, those who are poor do so in hope of prosperity. Life is also about memoirs we have of our past. People, come & go. joys, sorrows too pass. But their memories always remain with us. They blend with our soul and remain alive until we are.

But,friends, Life can never be about making money or fulfilling some dreams. Life is not an end too my friend. Life is all about living. If you could live it well, you will be worthy of it. In a nut shell, life is what life is! So, stop worrying and enjoy it because life is a beautiful dream and we are fortunate to have it.