Corruption Story # 1

Timeframe : 1st week of December 2008

Place : Lucknow, Ministers' office in the legislative assembly.

Actors :

To -> Education Minister of a state, Secretary for higher Education

From -> Managing committee members of a College
Story :
The college planned to start two new post-graduate courses and filed an application with higher education ministry in mid of 2008. There was no response till November end (even on followups).

Sometime in December we went to the Secretary (had to grease palms to arrange meetings).
The officer there was a typical example of 'Sarkaari afsar' , old, sluggish, yawny, frowny, full of excuses.. in all hard to move to work.

The first reaction was, I dont remember we got a request for approval. Then it was, come some other day, we will see if we have the file. On persisting further, it changed to wait-for-a-while-and-I-will-call-you kind of response. We kept sitting in front of him. After some time, the file was brought. There was a 5 word response from the minister

"अगले सत्र में विचार हेतु" (To be discussed in next session) !!

Why ??
Do you understand what next session would mean ?
Do you know that next session means 60 odd students will study the subject they did not plan to ?? They will loose the battle before they enter it...

He simply re-read the note and gave us a now-we-are-talking look. We understood the look within fraction of a second. Why wont we ? We are so used to this. However we knew we need to build the story forward. Here is the conversation..

"सर, बच्चों के भविष्य का सवाल है, आप इसी सत्र में देख लीजिये "(Sir, this is question of career for the children। Please see if it can be done within this session)। We pleaded।

"देखा नही आपने, मंत्री जी ने क्या लिखा है" ( You dont see that it is final now). That meant it would be a bigger amount. (Saala bada muh phadega).

"Its you who can make this happen sir, please let us know if we can do some 'sewa'. You are the only one who can talk to mantriji and move this for this session." We came to the point, early.

"देखिये काम थोड़ा टेढा है, बहुत सा urgent files बचा है", he said, without raising his head. We knew its just a routine act, just to raise the price.

"आप सेवा तो बोलिए सर" (you just tell us the amount)

"Let me see", he said, went inside and came back after a while. "1.25", spat the pro.

"ठीक है, कब तक ?" (by when should we get the money)

"जितना जल्दी हो सके" (as soon as you can)

"आप फाइल आगे चलाइये, हम अगले हफ्ते आते हैं" (you move the file, we will arrange the money next week).

Mumbai Blasts : Whose fault; Joining the dots

48+ hours the battle still continues ..

200 + Dead known so far ...

~1000 Injured known so far ...

1.25 Billion Indians worried and 

~6.5 Bn World confused about India ...

Victory !!! The akas of the seperatist forces must be rejoicing. What they wanted to achieve has been achieved. They have written their success story, with blood and flesh of innocent people.

The image of India as a state who is falining to protect itself from inside and outside has been painted in red. News bytes of burning taj, crossfiring between commandoes and terrorists, photos of Indians and foreigners killes, live accounts from those rescued...; the world is seeing it all !! They precisely attacked the place where it would hurt most.  Leave tourists not thinkingof  coming to India. Big business heads will think thriice before coming to India on a business trip. So, no tour to India, no business trip to India, perhaps no business outsourcing going forward. The damage is done, the aftermath is to come.

Whom to blame ? 

The government has done the routine duty to condemn the attacks and to condole the losses. I am sure they do not read the messages from paper now. They have done it so many times that they should remember all. As usual goverment is pointing fingers towards security agencies and agencies are complaining about inaction. There are one thousand and one reasons. One which seems prominent is inability of the leaders to join the dots and think ahead of the enemy.

Its long when we started strenthning the border between India and Pakistan, making it difficult to invade. Its long (as old as 2002) that Indian intelligence got information about Lashkar operatives being trained in Marine commando techniques near Mangla dam along the Border.  Late 2006, Intelligence also learn about Faisal Haroun, a Lashkar top guy, who commanded LeT opearations from BanglaDesh. Haroun had been using a shipping network (with merchant ships and small boats) to smuggle explosives into India. 

Wasn't this good enough to give a clue and tighten the security at sea routes ? 

The Intelligence forces recommended to step up counter terrorism defences back in 2006. In 2007, evidences were found of increased Islamist activities in Maldives ( Haroun wanted to use a deserted island in Maldives as control centre for LeT activites). It was planned to set up coastal police stations, more boats, jeeps, motorcycles etc for mobility along the cost. Not even 50% of this has moved to implementation. 

What an example of negligence.

Guess what, now we will be more vigilant at sea. Will that be helpful now ?

So what will be the next innovative method of attack ? Air  ? ( remember Puruliya, how easy it was for aeroplanes to drop weapons ?).  

Until we learn to join dots, we would come to know only after we read the newspaper coloured in red !!

avoiding continuous bomb blasts in India : What is the solution ??

Great topic for debate. There would be a lot which we will leave untouched on this sensitive yet the most important topic today

As Kautilya said, " To shed the weed, weaken the roots". Here, we need to look at the root cause of the problem. Unfortunately, when we look at the root cause of the problem, we see ourselves standing in front of a mirror. It is the unrestful, dissatisfied, misguided you and me (read youth) who is behind all this. And read me, we should not segregate this youth on basis of religion. We now have Malegaon if we had others. And the people (alleged to be) involved with Malegaon are far educated, (considered to be) civilized, powerful and established compared to those involved with others.

The root cause is :- till date (majority of) Indians have not identified themselves with India. You first belong to family then community then caste then sect then religion and then if there is some room left you belong to country ( though country belongs to you in every aspect).

So incidents like Godhra, Babri and the bomb blasts are more seen as attack on one particular religion->sect->Community.. on another and not from extremism on life.

We have to come up with measures both short term and long term, which control the damage as well as clear the weed of seperationism. Easier said than done, however, for a country like India we have to choose this path if we need to keep the country united under the umbrella of democracy.

A few short term measures could be (will elaborate in some next post on these)
S1. Make the intelligence more intelligent and deep rooted
S2. Make common man participate and make them feel that they are participating in the security of the nation
S3. Taking paced action on those found guilty : There is no use in keeping those found guilty in cellars and feeding them with nutritious food from taxpayers. There are quite a few who have accepted the charge ( and have no regrets about it). Prosecute (read execute) them and advertise about that in a manner that others think twice before getting into extremism. Human rights forums will keep crying (that's what they exist for). But you loose people anyway; either by keeping it loose on law and loosing innocent many people killed in blasts or keeping it tight on law and loosing a few suspects. I am personally fine with latter.
S4 : Penalize separatist forces like MNS etc

Long term
L1 : Planning our cities for a society rather that communities and religions
L2 : ...

More to come later

Disasters : How prepared India is: Take that

Take this

• India has faced 21 out of 23 most dreading cyclones the world over in last 270 years which took toll on 6,00,000 lives
• 59 % of Indian land is quite prone to earthquake. The capital is in grade 4 zone. 18,000+ people have lost their lives in last 18 years as earth-quake calamities
• As per estimates, property worth Rs 5,000 crore is at risk from known natural disasters
• India looses 7.5 million hectare of land and 1600 people every 5 yr

And

• In India, the national disaster management authority is headed by PM
• It gets Rs. 65 Crore per year to meet its objective.
• As per the authority, their objective is to make people aware about disasters and how to cope with it (really !! , and we thought 'management' meant something else)
• In India, Disaster management is controlled by Cabinet Secretary, Home ministry, Health ministry, National Disaster Management Authority, State government ..... Which means, at the time of disaster, all of these could do nothing and blame everybody else for inaction

So, how good you think we are prepared ?

Mile sur mera tumhara

Mile sur mera tumhara - Two versions

The original one



And the new one from MIT folks



And here is the lyrics

Mile sur mera tumharaa,
Toooo sur bane hamaraa....
sur kee nadhiyaan har disha se behkee saagar mein mile.
Baadalon ka roop leiker bharse halke halke...
Mile sur mera tumharaa..
too... sur bane hamaara..
Mile sur mera tumhara...


Chaain taraj tahin nyay taraj
ek but baniye saayen taraj

Tera sur mile mere sur de naal
milke bane ek nava surtaal

Mile sur mera tumharaa....
to sur bane hamaara..

Mohnja sur tohi desa pyara mile jadein
geet ashaanjo madhur tarano bane tadein

Sur ka dariya bahte saagar me mile
badlaan da roop leike
barasan holle haule

Isaindhal namm iruvarin suramum namadhakum..
Dhisai veru aanalum
aazi ser aarugal Mugilai mazaiyai
pozivadu pol isai ...Namm isssaiiii....


Thik thakida thathikakidA....
thaka thimi thaka junu

Nanna dhwanige ninna dhwani-ya,
seridante namma dhwaniya..

Naa swaramu nee swaramu sangammamai,
mana swaram ga avatarinchey

Ninde swaramum ningalude swaramum
otthucheiyum Namudeya swaramai....

Tomaar shoor moder shoor
srishti koroor koi ekshoor[2]...

Sriishti karoon woi katha

Toma mora swarer milan
srishti kare chalbochatano

male sur jo taro maro, bane aapno sur niralo

majhya tumchya julta tara madhur suranchya barasti dhara

Sur ki nadiya har disha se behke saagar mein mile... Baadlo ka roop leke barse halke halke..

Mile sur mera tumhara to....sur bane hamara...

Mile Sur mera tumharatho sur bane hamara tho sur bane hamaratho sur bane hamara

Will try and put full commentary of this song next time

Reactions on Tata Nano : Comments :"The world is jealous" !!

REACTIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD ON THE PEOPLE'S CAR

It Costs Just $2,500. It's Cute as a Bug. And It Could Mean Global Disaster. ........

The most hotly anticipated auto show of 2008 isn't the one set to begin in Detroit next week. It's the New Delhi Auto Expo, which opened in India three days ago and managed to beat Detroit to the punch by a week -- and $2,500.
That's the sticker price of the most eagerly awaited new car in decades: the Indian-made "people's car," dubbed the Nano. It's the brainchild of Ratan Tata, scion of the massive Indian conglomerate known as the Tata Group. He had long dreamed of giving middle-class Indian families a safer alternative to piling mom, dad and the kids onto the only motorized transportation they could afford: a motorcycle. True, the car doesn't meet U.S. safety standards. Still, by putting distribution in the hands of its dealers, taking advantage of cheap Indian labor and using lower-cost materials, Tata Motors has driven the price of a car down to levels never seen before.
This is good news for the millions of people in the developing world who never imagined that they could own their own car. But it's a problem for the rest of us.
It's a problem for Detroit, which is racing to enter India's booming small-car market but will now have to completely revolutionize its production and distribution to compete. It's a problem for America's beleaguered auto workers, who will become even more expendable as Detroit moves its manufacturing efforts to India and other Asian countries. And it's a potentially gigantic problem for the environment. India's urban roadways are already choked with traffic, and the air quality of its major cities is ghastly. If millions of Indians and Chinese get to have their own cars, the planet is doomed. Suddenly, the cute little Nano starts to look a lot less winning.

See what Washingotn post says further :
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/11/AR2008011101998.html


And this one comes from NewYorkTimes
.....
So while we admire Mr. Tata’s business and engineering acumen in creating the Nano, we ardently wish that he would focus his talents elsewhere: creating transportation that is both affordable and doesn’t emit ever more greenhouse gases. That would be something for the whole world to celebrate and buy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/16/opinion/16wed4.html?ref=opinion


ABC news
The $2,500 Car: An Environmental Nightmare?

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/GadgetGuide/wireStory?id=4113059



And here ToI summarizes it all

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-2693551,prtpage-1.cms

Snippy sarcasm and grudging admiration greeted the Indian debut of the Tata Nano in the world's most mobile society, where there are nearly twice as many cars as families. It seemed that American reporters were present in droves at the event, judging by the coverage the buggy received here. It made news on almost every media outlet, including the evening network news watched by more than 30 million viewers, causing one wag to remark that the US was hit by the "El Nano" effect. "It can seat five people...if no one breathes," ABC News anchor Charlie Gibson said sardonically against the footage of the event. Time dubbed it an "upstart econobox." And Popular Mechanics headlined its story "Nano Is the $2500 Car That Might Change the World," before the reporter hits the brakes.


My comments : Let me research on it... Till then, Its cool, its compact, its dream come true, its affordable (well, wait till you get to hold the keys..),it is ENGINEERING, INDIAN ENGINEERING

Cricket Sledging

The best of sledges-Review-Sunday Specials-Opinion-The Times of India

A Graceful One
During a county game, the legendary W G Grace was clean bowled by a rookie. Grace was man enough to stand his ground. "They came to watch me bat, not you bowl," he said.


McGrath vs Sarwan
Sarwan and McGrath went eyeball to eyeball in Antigua in May 2003. Sarwan, on his way to a sublime second-innings century that eventually helped Windies chase a record 418, was taunted by McGrath, "So what does Brian Lara's arse taste like?" To this Sarwan said, "I don't know. Ask your wife." McGrath went mad with rage. "If you ever f*****g mention my wife again," he said, "I'll f*****g rip your f*****g throat out."

McGrath Vs Brandes
Long before that exchange, Zimbabwean pacer and chicken farmer Eddo Brandes was once unable to get his bat anywhere near McGrath's deliveries. Frustrated that Brandes was still at it, McGrath went up to him and said, "Why are you so fat?" Brandes replied, "Because every time I make love to your wife, she gives me a biscuit." That had even the Aussie slip cordon in splits.

Rod Marsh vs Botham
When Botham took guard during the memorable Ashes series in 1981 at Headingley, Aussie wicket-keeper Rodney Marsh welcomed with, "So how's your wife and my kids?" Botham replied, "Wife's fine, but your kids are retarded."

Ormond vs Waugh
During the '94 Ashes in Australia, England's James Ormond had just come out to bat. Mark Waugh, fielding at second slip, greeted him by saying, "Mate, what are you doing out here, there's no way you're good enough to play for England." Ormond, who was clued in to the debate in the Australian media over who was the better player between the twins Mark and Steve, replied, "Maybe not. But I'm still the best player in my family."

The Red Cherry
In the middle of a county match between Glamorgan and Somerset, Glamorgan pacer Greg Thomas beat Viv Richards and had the temerity to inform the legend, "It's red, round and weighs five ounces." The next ball was smashed out of the ground, into a river. Richards said, "Greg, you know what it looks like. Now go and find it."

Healy Vs Ranatunga

During the '95-'96 Australia-Sri Lanka series, Aussie wicket-keeper Ian Healy made a comment which was picked up by the host boadcaster Channel 9. It was a particularly hot night in Sydney and Arjuna Ranatunga called for a runner. Healy told him, "You don't get a runner for being an overweight, unfit, fat, ****."

Waugh Vs Parore
Mark Waugh was standing at second slip and Kiwi keeper Adam Parore, who was relatively new to international cricket (this was the '97-'98 series), came to the crease and played and missed the first ball. Mark Waugh said, "I remember you from a couple of years ago in Australia. You were shit then, you're f*****g useless now." Parore, who had all the personal details of Waugh, replied, "Yeah, that's me and when I was there you were going out with that old, ugly slut and now I hear you've married her."

Merv Hughes Vs Cronje
During the 1993-94 series between Australia and South Africa in South Africa, Australian pacer Merv Hughes was being carted all around the park in one of the tour games. Cronje hit a number of sixes off Hughes. After another one landed out of the ground, Hughes walked up to Cronje, stood still and let out a fart and said, "Try hitting that for a six." It was five minutes before Cronje and the Aussies could stop laughing.

Steve Waugh vs Parthiv Patel
Sydney, 2004. Steve Waugh's final test. Indians were pressing for victory. As Waugh fought a grim battle to stave off defeat, Patel couldn't stop saying, "Come on, just one more of the famous slog-sweeps before you finish." Waugh, who was visibly annoyed, said, "'Look, show a bit of respect. You were still in your nappies when I made my debut 18 years ago." Parthiv must have been delighted when Waugh perished to the slog-sweep, to be caught by Tendulkar at deep mid-wicket off Kumble.