Omkara

Scams in India....It Never Ends

2010-12-08T14:25:00.000+05:30

Today's morning news broke the arrival of new scam – food scam in UP and Land allotment irregularities in Tamilnadu. The news reader referred to the UP Food Scam as “Mother of all Scams”. I am not sure whether the news reader recollects that the same term was used for 2G Spectrum allotment irregularities about a week ago in the same news channel.

Two weeks ago, there was 2G, before that Commonwealth and Adarsh. In about 10 secs, I was able to note down the following scams; Satyam Computer Services Fraud; Justice Dinakaran – land grabbing case; Mining Scam – Jharkand; Mining Scam – Bellary; IPL ; Karnataka Land Allotment; Adarsh ; Commonwealth Games; 2G Spectrum Scam; Food Scam in UP; Land Allotment Scam in TN….It Never Ends.

Gone are the days when a person involved in corruption was looked down upon. Instead of social stigma, there is a wide spread social acceptance.

After seeing these scams, I myself realize as to how we are used to ‘palm greasing’ even for basic things – Gas connection, Drivers License, and many more things for which we have the Right to access and demand, still we need to go the extra 'penny' to get things done.

Transparency International, the global civil society organization leading the fight against corruption, ranks India at 87th position in Corruption Perception Index with 3.3 points.

The case of despair becomes even stark when the ex-boss of an anti-graft commission, Pratyush Sinha, threw his hands up in despair, saying his job was thankless and lamenting that increasingly materialistic Indians were becoming “utterly corrupt”.

Global Financial Integrity, an American think-tank, in a report suggested

From 1948 through 2008 India lost a total of $213 billion in illicit financial flows (or illegal capital flight). These illicit financial flows were generally the product of: corruption, bribery and kickbacks, criminal activities, and efforts to shelter wealth from a country's tax authorities.

Two points that need attention in the report are related to growth of economy and income distribution.

In the post-reform period of 1991-2008, deregulation and trade liberalization accelerated the outflow of illicit money from the Indian economy. Opportunities for trade mispricing grew and expansion of the global shadow financial system—particularly island tax havens—accommodated the increased outflow of India's illicit capital flight.

There is a statistical correlation between larger volumes of illicit flows and deteriorating income distribution.

There is a lot of simmering in the public on this raging issue of scams. These scams could plague the nation’s development. There are some NGOs formed to fight for anti-corruption. I for one believe, it is not for an NGO or any group to stop corruption (I am not demeaning the work done by them).

It is for the people to take collective responsibility. Most importantly, offenders should get punishment and this will bring in a sense of social correction. Judiciary and other Government agencies should bite and not merely bark.

“Right to Know” Vs “Right to Privacy”

2010-12-06T15:10:00.000+05:30

There is enough written, discussed and debated on the Wikileaks in every possible forum. I am no pundit to comment on the implications no more than what is already been done to death. But the development over the last couple of days on handling the leaks is something that requires attention.

Everyone is gunning for Assange’s head, typical reaction we see from our politicians and bureaucrats, to bring an end to this leak menace. Servers were traced and shunted out, Interpol notices were issued against the Wikileak founder; so in essence, there is a massive hunt for human and physical infrastructure that helped created these leaks. Is shutting down the servers or finding Assange going to solve the problem? What if Assange is murdered tomorrow? Is anything going to change? I have my sincere doubts.

I think it is a classic case of missing woods for the trees.

The fundamental is – Wikileak has shown that technology exist to allow individuals to leak data while maintaining anonymity. With or without Assange, this model can survive. Assange has planted an idea – to enable anonymous leaking and make information public.

Technology made it easier for the Government and their agencies to snoop around the lives of individuals; the reverse is what we are seeing now. Individuals, alone or working together are snooping around the offices of the government. So, going forward government’s functioning should take into account the “secret-keeping” strategy as part of its functioning. From now on, this is going to be the situation that the government has to live-with.

Basic question is – Can such leaks be prevented? Yes. Those with the permission to access the sensitive materials refuse to divulge any information, this can be prevented. But this is highly unlikely. As long as individuals have their own moral and social sense – these leaks and scandals will continue.

To cap such leaks, the Government might lay severe restrictions on the flow of information and restrict few people to the sensitive data and information. This will constrain the information sharing between different governments agencies for the fear of leaks. This can hamper the normal functioning of the government.

There is always going to be a dilemma when "right to know" starts interfering with the “right to privacy”. For instance, medical records or transcripts of individuals are under the ambit of “right to privacy”. What if an individual is having some ailments is also the ‘Head of State’? Should this information get reported? That is where the challenge comes as to how are we going to interpret the data and information.If we have to stop any such leaks, our debate should be centered around things that determine leaks and not on the leaks.

Is Google taking on Wikipedia?

2007-12-19T18:59:00.000+05:30

Google unveils its new online tool, Google Knol, defining it as "Unit of Knowledge". This tool helps people to share their knowledge. Currently, the tool is under development and only selected few are allowed to use it.

Are Diesel Vehicles facing a Ban in the Capital?

2007-12-14T14:01:00.000+05:30

....If one goes goes by the statement made by Delhi Environment secretary J K Dadoo at roundtable of the automotive industry and civil society,

"We will come down with a strong hand and ban registration of diesel
vehicles in Delhi if everything else fails,"

My View:

The sale of Diesel vehicles are surging at the rate of 40-50% in Indian market. With many auto makers lined up for India launch, this move could well be a bomb-shell for their future plans.
Ofcourse the level of pollution is increasing at an alarming rate, which has to be met with stringent emission norms, but banning the diesel vehicles, even private vehicles is altogether a different proposition.
It is a known fact that public transport buses and some heavy vehicles run on polluted or rather suspect quality of diesel and coupled with poor maintenance is one of the main reason for increase in air pollution. Whereas, the private cars are maintained properly and thus using the same yard stick for all the categories of diesel vehicles is a mypoic view of policy making.
Nobody can stop a Delhi resident from buying and registering the car outside Delhi and bring it to Delhi

Stringent norms and tougher implementation are the requirement of the day and not a ban.

Counter View:

Diesel is one of the most highly subsidised fuel next to LPG, and all those subsidies can be put into better use than using it to polluting the city.
Let diesel be only as fuel for tractors and other agriculture machineries/equipments, rather as fuel for high-end private cars

BJPs Timing

2007-12-11T18:19:00.000+05:30

On the eve of 1st Phase of Gujarat Polls, BJP announced Mr. L.K.Advani as its Prime Ministerial candidate for the forthcoming National Elections.

One cannot but help wonder about the timing of the announcement.

- It could be a signal that BJP wanted to give to the people of Gujarat, considering that it might create any last minute vote-swing in its favor.

Or,

- Is it a message to Narendra Modi & Co, that whatever happens in Gujarat Election, his claim in National Politics is still far away!

Otherwise, why was a person with dwindling support from RSS after his remarks on Jinnah was given a chance to claim the throne???

Salute Dada

2007-12-11T18:11:00.000+05:30

I was one of them who had also thought that the days of Bengal Tiger in Internation Cricket is over. But after his performance in the last 6 months, he deserves an apology....

I take a bow and Salute Dada, wishing him a great days ahead.

Chinese Premier Breaks all Walls...

2007-12-11T17:30:00.000+05:30

"Only an open and inclusive nation can become strong and prosperous, while a nation that shuts its door to the world is bound to fall behind."

"China's opening up policy is a long-term one. Opening up has brought great benefits to more than one billion Chinese. It is the right policy for China and has the support of the people, and it will therefore not change. To deviate from this policy will only impede China's development and we will lose popular support. This is the fundamental reason why China will stay on the track of opening up."

These were part of the speech that Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao expounded on china's open door policy in a speech during a gala dinner held in honor of him by Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry in Singapore.

What was more interesting about this speech was, the Premier admitting the days of bamboo curtain and subsequent regressive years, before a foreign audience!!

Focus Energy

2007-12-11T14:00:00.000+05:30

Not less than a week ago, after i had commented on $100 plus Oil Prices and the change in market dynamics, on Dec 7th, US government has amended Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations, which was first enacted in 1975 to improve the average fuel economy of cars and light trucks.

As i had mentioned, the bill seeks to improve the operational efficiency of the current fuel usage and also has lots of provisions to increase renewable fuels. Other countries should also take a cue and enact similar Energy policies with distinctive national requirements.

Some of the highlights of the Energy Bill are:

- Provisions to accelerate the electrification of transportation

- 40% increase in fuel economy requirement by 2020

- Increase the renewable fuel standard to 36 billion gallons per year by 2022

- elimination of about $13 billion in tax subsidies for big energy companies

Resource: H.R.6: Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (Engrossed Amendment as Agreed to by House)

Will have to wait and watch as to how the automobile manufacturer's and green house lobby react to the bill.

Ticket Booking Experience in Hyderabad

2007-12-10T18:07:00.000+05:30

Getting bored over the weekends, with nothing do to, decided to watch some movie just to while away...Watched the trailer of Khoya Khoya Chand and felt it would be a decent watch.

Watched Khoya Khoya Chand at Sensations - Insomnia, Hyderabad. The movie was tasteless but what was interesting was the ticket booking experience at Sensations.

While standing at the counter to book tickets, i was asked to bend a little. I was wondering why? Then he flashed a camera and took my photo and the electronically generated tickets had my photograph and a barcode imprinted on it. It took me a few seconds to realise what was happening.

My surprise did not end here...

At the Screen entrance, there was a person sitting with a Computer and a Barcode reader. On flashing our tickets, the tickets were read using barcoding machine, photograph was verified with the person carrying the tickets and then marked Confirmed in the system. Automatically, those seats were marked red in the seating chart on the screen. Phew!!! It was too much...

Even Prasads and PVRs, some of the most popular Cineplexes in Hyderabad do not have such process in place for ticket booking. This was truly amazing.

With such a ticket booking system in place, the Thetre ensures the following:

1) Prevent Black Market tickets

2) Security and Safety for movie goers

3) No need to safegaurd the ticket counterfoils, for you dont know who will come and claim our seats!

4) Thus ensuring the correctness in ticket booking, thus making the movie watching hassle free

Next attraction in these theatres were the cost of tickets. For Rs. 60, we got balcony seats which was quite unusual for a person like me coming from Chennai where we are forced to shell out a minimum of 100 bucks to get a decent seat in the hall. Also the facilities were decent.

Overall, it is a good concept worth emulating across all Cinema Halls in the Country.

Khoya Khoya Chand

2007-12-10T17:38:00.000+05:30

Set in the '60s film industry, Khoya Khoya Chand is a story of a leading actress Nikhat (Soha Ali Khan), superstar Prem (Rajat Kappor) and a struggling director Zaffer (Shiney Ahuja). Do i need to elaborate on the story anymore? A perfect traingle plot, that stresses more on castings, costumes, sets and their like than storytelling.

Plot, where friends become foes and foes become friends without a problem. The film potrays the not-so-perfect relationships, not-so-popular bollywood theme. Though at some point, it was become more tough to digest the kind of romance potrayed. I wonder whats so special about selecting the '60s as background for the movie.....when the theme had all the relevance to the current crop of bollywood movies.

If Sudhir Mishra has attempted to engross the audience with an emotional romantic movie set in a Bollywood backgroud, then i must say he has failed miserably.

After leaving the movie hall, you dont want to remember anything about the movie...except the hummable titile song.

After all this, if i had to tell the truth, the movie was unwatchable!!!

Life of Pi

2007-12-06T18:46:00.000+05:30

I always carry with me at least couple of books whereever i go, whether or not I read them. One such book that has been with me for more than 6 weeks was 'Life of Pi' by Yann Martel and i could mange only 20 pages during that time. My relocation to Bangalore brought salvation for the book.

On reading the following outline...

"The story of Pi, an unusual boy brought up on a zoo in India. Pi's father decides to move the family to Canada, but when the ship taking them across the Pacific sinks Pi finds himself on a lifeboat with a hyena, an orang-utan, a zebra with a broken leg and a Bengal tiger called Richard Parker. Somehow he must survive."

was drawn into it and immediately bought the book without any hesitation.

This was one of the book that shall give you an indication of how strong is human survival instinct during the most adverse times.

The narration is too simple and realistic from the mind of a 16 year old boy. The narration was wrapped with very fine sense of humor, which made it a good reading. Though at somepoint the narration was dragging (not boring!), which made me flip through few pages, still made a good read.

This book had won Booker Prize and defintely not the one to be missed.

Where is Dollar heading...

2007-12-06T18:43:00.000+05:30

spine-chilling views from Standard Chartered for Indian Exporters!

Some Positives from Rising Oil Prices...

2007-12-06T18:37:00.000+05:30

There is lot of concern on the rise in oil prices, and its impact on global economy. There are plethora of views on Oil Price contribution to slowing down of US juggernaut.

However, i see a change in market dynamics of operation of conventional enery producers coupled with the prominence of green-power sources.

- Higher oil prices can be a good motivator for enterprises to improve their Operational Efficiency

- For years, alternative source source of energy (wind, solar, etc) championed by the people worried about global-warming, has been side-lined until recently because they were too costly to compete. But the soaring oil prices can change the market dynamics.

- These renewable energy can't offer overnight relief to the skyrocketing oil prices, because viable green alternatives are not easy to find. Hydrogen powered cars are not expected to hit the market soon. This will draw the world's attention to the need to diversify energy portfolio and raises people's awareness of the cost of energy and where energy comes from.

Lets understand and operate in an inflationary economy of $100 -plus barrels of oil than worry about its crippling effects on Economy.

After a Long hiatus..

2007-12-06T18:31:00.000+05:30

...attempting a new innings....

I keep telling myself that i should start blogging..it has been a real long hiatus. inspite of goading myself to start blogging, i had failed miserably.I hope to post somethin regularly.......keeping fingers crossed

2006-03-19T23:16:00.000+05:30

Exactly a week ago, in Bulls Ring, Wanderers, South Africa, the fifth and the deciding ODI between Australia and South Africa ended up becoming more than just a decider for the series. It went down as one of the best ODI in Cricketing history. Setting an himalayan target of 434 for South Africa, and then SA romping home was one of the most spectacular thing to watch.

But today, there was another ODI happening thousand miles away from Bull Ring, in the sub-continent between Srilanka and Pakistan. Pakistan restricted Srilanka to 130 and set themselves an easy target. But it became a very closely contested contest and eventually Pakistan won by 4 wickets.

Two different versions of ODI, one entertaining every moment and the other deathly boring. Why is there such variations in preparing the tracks? Should the Cricket Governing body enforce certain code of conduct for the ground conditions in the future???

The Unthinkable

2006-03-19T22:56:00.000+05:30

Batting Maestro,Sachin Tendulkar, playing his 132 test match against England today at Wankhade stadium, Mumbai his home became the most test capped player to represent India.

He walked on to the crease when India crawling with the loss of its openers needed all his batting skills to rescue India. But he flirted with disaster when he nicked Anderson to wicketkeeper after making one run.

Disappointment written large all over his face, eyes downcast walked backed to the dressing room after yet another failure at the middle. Then happened the unthinkable, he was booed by fans on his home ground.

Thought the man who has been treated as God for Indian cricket has nothing special to offer, but it would certainly be remembered by Tendulkar but for wrong reasons......

I was really shocked by the treatment meeted out to him:-(

Chi-doku - Only Bubbly...no Bounty

2006-03-08T17:12:00.000+05:30

Chidhu, our Finance Minister, P.Chidambaram was prompt for his Date! On February 28, 2006 he presented the General Budget (Chi-doku) for the financial year 2006-07 in Lok Sabha.

The man, who made a dream budget in 1997, made his fifth budget as a “No Big Bang” budget. The philosophy seems to “Don’t touch anything when the economy is doing well”. With a bit of tweak here, twist there he has managed to do the same. Alas, he managed to keep the index firm on its rising trend. Sensex closed nearly 36 points high at the end of the day.

The primary focus of the budget was on social and infrastructure sectors. The service sector was given a bit of facial and the personal tax was left untouched.

Massive investments are proposed to develop 1000km Express highways. Also, there was assurance that by June 2006, 96% of the Golden Quadrilateral project will be completed. In the power sector, Chidhu has proposed to generate few more thousand watts. For the other two important cogs of the Power sector wheel, transmission and distribution, he has made the Prime Minister at the helm of affairs to establish an Empowered committee of Chief Ministers and Power ministers. He has also said that more than 50 million rural connections will be rolled out in three years time. These are some of the highlights of the budget on the Infrastructure front.

Allocation of funds to Primary education and health care is a welcome aspect of this budget. In the outlay for education, most of the money is channeled for Primary education. I felt more funds should have been allocated for higher studies and R&D.

The index rose steadily till the announcement of hike of 25% in Security Transaction Tax (STT) was made. There was a momentary panic in the market and it lost close to 70 points in the rally till the next announcement. Nobody will complain when they are asked to pay tax when they made gains. On the contrary when the investor is asked to pay tax for the loses he has made, it’s sure to raise enough eye brows on the market. FM then followed with an assurance to the foreign investors by increasing their investment limit in the Capital markets and setting up of an investor protection fund, which is a step in the right direction to bolster the confidence of the retail investors. But the disbursion mechanism needs to be worked out correctly. After this the Sensex downfall was arrested and became firm.

There was a no change to the personal tax framework. I was expecting the limit to be raised from 1 lakh to 1.5 lakh. But the real good news was there were no new taxes that were imposed. I would not have been surprised, if he had levied few percentage points cess for Petroleum, just kidding! So the only good news for poor souls like us, there are couple of avenue for investment, in the form of Fixed deposits in Scheduled banks, with a rider that the minimum lock-in period of five years. The ceiling for investment in Pension funds has been increased from Rs.10, 000 to Rs.1 lakh.

“Charity needs face”, seems to be message from FM. Any anonymous donations made to the social organizations will not be recognised for tax purposes. So, be proud and show your face to the world and let them know about your generosity.

FM has decided to issue PAN Suo moto and hence direct person to apply for PAN on a case-by-case basis. In the fine print, it has been mentioned that the next list of transactions for which quoting will be made mandatory will be announced shortly. What skeleton does that cupboard hold? Let us wait and watch.

This article will not be completed without the mention of Service tax. It has been increased to 12% from 10%. For a common man like me, what interests in the budget is how much more will I get (cash inflow) and how much should I spend (cash outflow). He has made Shoes, Umbrella, Packaged foods, Pastha cheaper and making it affordable. But after consuming all these when I ask for my bill, I will be charged 2% more than the normal. This means there is an offset for the price reduction.

FM wants the GST to converge. Already the equilibrium level is at 14%. So we can expect further increase of service tax. What we have seen is just the beginning.

After reading the transcript, it looks like Chidhu has forgotten the word “Disinvestment”. Only two companies are under consideration for privatization. Also the target is set at a modest Rs.3500 cr. After rubbing cold shoulders with Left on many occasion, probably he thought this is not the best of times.

It is very evident that, FM has made some conscious decisions to make this an “aam-aadmi” budget.

I wish.......

2006-01-30T23:51:00.000+05:30

I wish i had an idea like this. Damn cool stuff.

I know it need brains!

Bangalore - The Brand

2006-01-30T23:32:00.000+05:30

Bangalore - The Brand
In the last few years, the golden goose of Bangalore, IT companies started complaning about Infrastructure issues in the city. At one stage, some of them even mentioned about the possibilty of moving out of the state while evaluating their future expansion plans. With the present Government taking little effort to address the issue, there is a growing concern that they might actually be forced to divert their attention away from Bangalore. But, so far nothing of such magnitude has happened. But the recent turnuot of events might send some jitters. First, it was the IISc attack. City's transition from an IT destination....to Soft target for terrorism was a jarring jab in the ribs for many. Second is the actions of the ambitious Gowda family that could well be the killer blow to the City.
Sorry for raising the topic 'India-China' again, but i have no other option. We all have been told that China is fast emerging as a super power. And there are so many reasons attributed to their success story. The only reason i attribute is "Policy stabilty". This is one of the key issue or a pre-requiste for any business to thrive. Nobody wants to wake up to new policy everyday. This is a nightmare, if you are a busniessman. In such situation you are better off doing nothing!
What we lack in India is "Policy stabily", which stems from political instabilty. Every party that comes to power have their own idealogy that is diagonal to one another. This kind of situation leaves a confusion in the minds of entrepreneurs and they look out for different place. With the recent politcal actions, Bangalore might have to face such situation. All those development work that were eventually done by the present government will get halted. All those contracts will be re-tendered and new contracts will be signed. Because the new government does not want to lose out this oppurtunity.
The city's growth has been fuelled by the IT companies for years and if archaic policies of Gowda family were persued relentlessly, then the Golden goose will take its wings to another city.

My Nominee for Nobel Peace Prize 2006

2006-01-30T23:30:00.000+05:30

During the first week of January, one thing that remained on focus was India tour of Pakistan. Billed as one of the most intense series, with more than billion eyes expected to watch the action unfold, some rated this series, as high as Ashes. Energised by the series victory against English at home, and Shoaid Aktar finding his rhythm in the company of Sami and Rana the series was heavily loaded against Pakistan. India, having beaten Sri Lanka fair and square in One day and test matches at home and drawing the series against South Africa, under the new leader Dravid and Coach Chappel were really geared to take up any challenge thrown at them.
During the run-up, Indians were warned to be prepared to take on the pace attack of shoaib & co on a green track at Lahore. The result is here for everybody to see:1089 runs scores in 220.5 overs claiming 11 wickets; Second world highest opening partnership of 410 runs between Sehwag and Dravid; 5 centuries and 1 double century and the match ending in a Draw.
Taking on the flake for preparing such tame pitches, the PCB sent its curator much earlier to Faisalabad, venue for Second test match. From individual skill, team strength and its strategy the focus shifted to 22 yard strip. Team selection for the second match test match, clearly showed who is gaining momentum in the series. R P Singh, left arm medium pacer was brought in place of Sourav Ganguly. Pakistan preferred Imran Farhat and Razzaq for their pacemen Rana and Sami. Indians were prepared to take agressive, bold decisions whereas pakistan preferred to be on "Safe mode".
With the pressure of preparing a track that to produce a much more competive game of cricket, the test match produced.....1702 runs in 426.4 overs claiming 30 wickets; 6 centuries and 2 near centuries; match ending in a draw.
With two placid tracks, batsman's paradise, bowlers graveyard......the end result is, boring game of cricket with series level at 0-0 and the team head to Karachi for the last test starting on 29th January.
After losing the home series in 2004, i expected a better fight back from Pakistan. But the kind of wickets that were offered, seldom gave any room for tussle between these countries. I came across a comment by one of the former cricketer in one of his news paper column, that this series is underlined for friendship and peace. I think the Pakistan Cricketers took this statement literally and wanted a win-win situation, what better way to acheive with series drawn. At the end of any series, we will have to pick a man of the series. I think this series deserves much more than that. So, i porpose to nominate the pitch curator and PCB for this years Nobel Peace Prize. I think they have earned this!

Back to Action

2006-01-12T00:32:00.000+05:30

Its been really long long time that i had updated my blog. If i remember correctly, my last post was sometime in late June or early July of 2005. So its 6 months i have come across any of the blogs. Its not because of my aversion, but my work took me to different places which made it difficult to balance. Now i am bit settled down in a place and hope to continue from where i left.

Wish me luck:-)

Victimisation

2005-07-01T22:02:00.000+05:30

Nearly 3 weeks ago, 28 year old Imrana was allegedly raped by her father-in-law Mohammad Ali. This is the most latest case that has caught the head lines of the media. She was raped once by her father-in-law, but the ordeal did not stop there. She was again victimised by Muslim law and now continuously attacked by the media. Why is this ordeal?
Didn't the Women organization fighting for the cause of such victims realise it?

If you think i am over reacting by saying so, then, type Imrana in the google search and see it for yourself. I beleive there should be some kind of restraint in publishing such news items.

Should i blame the media alone, certainly not. If i do so, then the 'honest politicians' of this nation would crucify me. The political outfits, from regional to national parties are pulling out various cards to please their vote bank. In this blame game, the victim is lost.

In the whole episode, the muslim community leaders certainly had their share of role. Even here the muslim law overrode the sentiments of the individual. The most important question that still had to be answered by them is, What comes first, Religious sentiments or Individual sentiments?..........

What is the solution to such Victimisation......

Responsibility over Rules and Norms

2005-05-07T12:08:00.000+05:30

NDA has decided to boycott the entire Budget session. In a statement read out by NDA convener George Fernandes at a joint press conference said,

"After considering the issue of boycott in detail, the NDA leaders have unanimously come to the conclusion that in view of the government's undemocratic and intemperate attitude towards the opposition and its complete disregard of all parliamentary norms and standards, the NDA has no alternative except to boycott the rest of the session until May 13,".

During the week, some of the NDA MPs had signed the daily attendance register and had claimed for their daily allowance of Rs.500. This was brought to the notice of the Parliment by some of the ruling party MPs, Ambika Soni and others. However, they did not mention the name of any of the MPs who did so.

They were correct in pointing out that without attending the session they are not entitled to the benefits. The issue here is not just about boycoting a day, it is about discharging your responsbilities.

* The NDA will not attend the session and at the end of the session the Finance Bill will be passed by the ruling party without any meaningful discussion on some of the critical issues.

* This kind of political drama is not the first of its kind and UPA has also done it in the past. Who is going to bell these cats?

* NDA says there is complete disregard of all parlimentary norms and standards. But what about their accountability and responsibilty towards the people who have elected them. Shouldn't everyone be there to discuss the issues that affect our life and pave wqay for a better future.

Allegations against each other and walk outs every day, will not take us anywhere. I hope our esteemed Members of Parliment understands it, before its too late.

Unbiased Washing machine

2005-05-07T11:51:00.000+05:30

A spanish designer has come with a washing machine that has finger print recognition technology. Both husband and wife have to register their finger prints. Then, the washing machine will not let the same person to use the machine twice in a row.

The scientist, Pep Torres,from DeBuenaTinta in Barcelona says,

"I thought it would be good to finish with macho man from the ice age who doesn't do anything around the house except drink beers,"

and added,
"I hope both women and men will think it's time for the men to do more around the house".

I need a clarification on this,
* If one of the partner is out of station for a week, then what happens? Who will be blamed for not washng hte clothes?

Ganguly: Best Indian Captain

2005-04-29T11:02:00.000+05:30

The recently concluded Ind-Pak series Pakraman II, has raised many issues.Reason for debilitating performance, failure of dream batting line up, pitch preparation, crowd behavior, selection of venues and so on. The most highlighted issue is Ganguly's captaincy.

Not a day passes without the mentioning of Ganguly, about his form and captaincy in print and electronic media. Ex-cricketers and some experts have their share of opinions and a piece of advice for sourav to regain his form. The cricketing record of some of the experts give little credibility to thier opinions. Sachin in his interview to The Hindu has rightly said about the opinions given by some ex-cricketers.

Many say Ganguly has lost his form both with the willow and as a captain. A reminder to everybody.....form is temporary, class is permanent. Ganguly is a class player, he will regain his form,no doubt, its only a matter of time.

As far as his captaincy is concerned,i still rate him as one of the best captain and i could not see Dravid or anybody in the current team as his replacement.

I would like to mention an incident that happened during the second one-dayer at Vizag.

Pakistan were 45 for no loss, openers Butt and Kamran were beltering the Indian seam attack. Kamran Akmal slashed a ball to square leg, the ball flew like a tracer bullet to Ganguly, he could not latch on to it, catch was dropped. The next ball from Nehra was similar to the previuos one and Akmal repeated the same shot and was caught.

The score board read, Akmal C Sehwag B Nehra 18.
Nothing wroung, Indians got the neccessary break through and they went on to win the match.

What is that one thing that is not there in the score card? Ganguly has moved himself out of the square leg position and asked the best man, Sehwag to stand in that position. I think thats leadership. To me a leader is one who finds the best man to do a job, when he is not capable of doing.

This is one such incident where he has put the team interest ahead of proving his own capability and skills. I think thats what takes him a cut above the rest.

An invention to make my Mom happy

2005-04-09T19:00:00.000+05:30

My mother had tried innumerable ways to wake me up in the morning. She had bought all kinds of alarms...different sounds, sometimes really irritating ones, but she was always on the losing end. She gave up in the end.

When i was doing my PGDM, i used cell phone alarm, but always used the other convenient feature "Snooze"......neither technology nor human efforts had succeded in waking me.

I am afraid this success is coming to an end, thanks to Gauri Nanda, a 25-year-old Massachusetts Institute of Technology student.

She has designed a clock that falls to the floor and rolls away on the first push of the snooze button. So the person has to get up to switch off the alarm.

My mother sends million Thanks to Gauri :-)

Source: Telegraph

Hall of Fame for Amma

2005-03-31T19:56:00.000+05:30

Today, while i was reading "Apollo Times", a local newspaper published from Vadapalani, Chennai i came across an interesting piece of information. It is about Edaya Theivam Puratchi Thalaivi Selvi Amma...aka Jayalalithaa, CM of Tamil Nadu. Her portrait will be displayed at International American Frienship Soceity's Hall of Fame in Chicago.

The article says,
"A pastel painting depicting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, clad in a green sari and against a yellow background, will be on display".

The painting was drawn by Ruckmani Thiyagarajan, general secretary, youth wing of the World Tamil Youth Federation.

The press release from the society says:
"The painting was presented to the society in recognition of Jayalalitha's efforts to empower women".

Ahoi:-)

Cricket Commentary - A Robots Job!!!

2005-03-24T16:47:00.000+05:30

After listening to the commentary of the Indo-Pak Cricket series, one cannot but wonder whether you need a professional cricketer to do that job:-)

Today, when i was watching the match (3rd test), when a shot was played, some of my friends watching TV quipped some comments about the shot, which were same as those of the commnetators. If you think it was a mere coincidence, then you are mistaken, this happened for most part of the match. This made me wonder the rationale of having former international cricketers as commentators. When you listen to Ravi sastri , Arun lal, Siva ramakrishnan and their likes...... i feel a robot programmed to say some of the cricketing cliches can do the same if not a better job.

All you need to know is some of these sentences...

Elegant cover drive
Keep the scoreboard ticking
flurry of boundaries
Batsmen/Bowlers hold the key
Crucial period of the game
Catches wins matches
Went like a tracer bullet
Lion hearted effort
Batsman's paradise
Put the foot on the pedal
A thorough entertainer

........ are some of them i could remember now.

What does an ex-cricketer brings to the game???

Bucknor's love for Sachin

2005-03-19T01:02:00.000+05:30

Steve "old" Bucknor has done it again. His love for Sachin Tendular continues. I think he will hold the record for highest number of mis-judgments against Sachin.

During the last test match, when Sachin's catch at silly point was turned down, there was a debate as to whether he should have walked or not? I gave a firm NO.

For my reply, i got stick from many of my friends on various issues like morality, ethics and what not.....

What happened today was there for everyone to see. Sachin was given out caught behind by an errant umpiring decision. Now i wonder what those people who spoke of ethics and morality and self-judgement have to speak...

One day you are not given out, when you know it was clearly out. Other day you are given out for nothing. Thats how the game is, marked with such stray incidents. Thats why i said, sachin should utilise certain decisions to his favour when it is offered, which is snatched at some other instance....

As i had already said before....it all gets evened out at the end...

Blogging is good for your health

2005-03-19T00:39:00.000+05:30

Blogging is good for your health, according to a press release titled the "Brain of a Blogger" from two doctors, Fernette Eide M.D. and Brock Eide M.D. M.A.

The reasons given by them are,

Blogs can promote critical and analytical thinking.
Blogging can be a powerful promoter of creative, intuitive, and associational thinking
Blogs promote analogical thinking.
Blogging is a powerful medium for increasing access and exposure to quality information
Blogging combines the best of solitary reflection and social interaction

Read the full report here.

A Blog a day, Keeps the doctor away.....might become the saying of the 21st century:-)

Thirukural in Budget 2005-06

2005-03-17T21:40:00.000+05:30

I was going through the print version of Finance Minister's Budget speech in Eonomic Times. I was not interested in knowing all aspects of the budget. I was browsing through the whole document. Surpringly there was no Yojanas or its ilk, like it used to appear in the previous budget announcements.

I read the complete report and came to concluding remarks of FM. It started by quoting Amartya Sen and then went on to draw parallel between his policy and the quote. Then came the most interesting aspect. I read it wice to believe what i was reading. I was reading a thirukural. It is written by a saint called Thiruvalluvar, two-thousand years ago.

The kural went on like this,

"Pini Inmai Selvam Vilaivu Inbam Emam

Ani Enba Natttirku Iv Iyndhu"

(Health,wealth,produce, the happiness that is the result, and security

These five, the learned say, are the ornaments of a polity)

I wanted to give the link to this speech, so i went to FM website. I got hold of Budget highlight Pdf. There were two versions available, English and Hindi. Here the second surprise was awaiting me. What was there on the conclsuion part in ET, was there on the front page of the Budget highlights. Interestingly, the hindi version also has thirukural in its first page.

Thanks Chiddu :-)

Statistical Abuse on Sachin!!!

2005-03-17T20:47:00.000+05:30

The little master of Indian Cricket, Sachin Tendulkar, clipped a delivery from his hips to fine leg, for a single. But, this was not just another run. It brought him his 10,000 th run in Test cricket. He became the fifth player after Sunil Gavaskar, Allan Border,Steve Waugh and Brian Lara to score 10,000 test runs.

I wanted to write some statistics on Sachin's cricketing records. Everything i could think of or i could lay my hands on was taken by the media scribes. So, i am left with no worthwhile statistics....sorry sachin.

But don't get disappointed....i have something special for you,just for you...the cricketing GOD.

Sachin has scored 10,000 runs in test cricket. Of which, i assume he would have scored nearly 40% of his runs in boundaries and sixes. So, the remaining 60% is by running between the wickets. Approximately, if has to run 21 yards for every run, he had run nearly 114 kms ( 1 yard =0.91 mts) to reach this landmark.

Thats my Stats on Sachin's achievement:-)

Madras Baashai in Limelight;-)

2005-03-17T20:08:00.000+05:30

madras baashai, local dialect popular among chennaites has found a place in wikipedia. Today, i read a post (in twingemini Blog) about madras slangs.

Chennaites, we have made it, atleast in this!!!

Should Sachin have walked?

2005-03-12T04:01:00.000+05:30

On the third day of the first test match at Mohali, when Sachin was at eight, an appeal from silly point fielder for a catch was turned down Rudy Koertzen. The TV replays showed that sachin had infact got an edge.

My immediate reaction to the situation was, " Tommorow media will have a field day, questioning the integrity in the game and ask whether he should have walked?".

To answer the question, should he walk?, my answer is an emphatic NO.

I firmly believe, he is entitled for his chance of luck. How many times he had lost his wicket by poor umpiring decisions. These decisions are honest errors of judgement, take it in your stride, according to me.

One incident that immediately comes to the mind is the leg before decision he got in Down Under by Steve Bucknor against Australia(99-00 season) in the first test match.

On the other side, can you imagine what would have been the thought process of Sachin. A seasoned cricketer respected throught out the world, who believes in fair play knows that he should have been given out. But in that fraction of second he has to make up his mind, whether to walk or stay at the crease. With millions of eyes watching him and a landmark in the vicinity, what could have gone through his mind??? - $$million dollar question$$.

Whatever it is, he should consider that the rub of the green was on his side that moment. But as the saying goes, "it all gets evened out at the end of the day", he was not able to reach the 10,000 run figure. He has to wait for the next test match to reach the milestone.

Didn't it get evened out......

India - Pakistan: Test One

2005-03-12T03:58:00.000+05:30

From day 1 of the first test match, i wanted to blog about the test match, but something or the other came in my way.
A test match billed as more than just cricket or as an initiative for peace process between the two old estranged friends, or as called by the media as "Cricket: It cannot get bigger than this", has for sure drawn more eyeballs.

Day 1:

With Ganguly deciding to bowl after winning the toss on a pitch which would favour pace bowlers proved to be right for him. Opening bowlers, pathan and zaheer were suitably rewarded for bowling an impeccable off-stump probing line. Then the first change bowler, black 'bradman' Balaji was too good for Pakistan batsmen. He ended the day with a five wicket haul. His form against pakistan is incredible, continuing from where he has left in pakistan. Pakistan was wounded up for 312 runs.

Highlight: Gritty innings from Asif Kamal

Final word: Ganguly's decision, backed by excellent performance from balaji gave India a good start.

Update

Day 2:

With the expectaion of watching Sewhag in action, i was glued to TV since 9:30am. But, rain gods did not show any mercy towards millions of fans. Thankfuly, it was drizling and not heavy showers with chances of match starting sometime during the day. Butit was a long wait.....

Finally, the authorities decided to start the match at 2:30pm and have an extended session. The drizling gave way to storm in the form of Veeru, to the delight of fans. He belted around the bowlers all around the park..( i cannot help myself but use this most used cricket parlance or cliche!!!). The effect Sehwag agression seemed to have some effect on his opening partner, Gambir. He did want to be left out in the run gathering race. He raced to 41 in just 50 balls taking the opening partnership to 113, before he got out to Kaneria. With Rahul 'Rock' Dravid coming at number three, gave no respite to pakistan bowlers. India ended the day with 184 for 1 in just 40 odd overs.

Highlight: Pakistan catching making life easy for Indian's and miserable for Pakistan.

Final word: Veeru's innings exposed pakistan bowling attack.

Update
Day 3:

With Veeru saying that he wants to play throughout the day and get big runs, Indian innings got a to a flyer with 117 runs in the first session wiping the deficit and in the process lost dravid's wicket. Sachin joined the party and added misery to the oppenents. First time in the test, pakinstan bowling attack in the form of Danish Kaneria showed some grit and exerted some pressure on the batsmen making it difficult to score runs. In an attempt to force his way through to make runs, Indian batsmen started taking chances. One mis-hit from Veeru cost his wicket, bring an end to a fabulous innings of 173. Ganguly-Sachin duo measured approach led to drought of runs in the second and third session of the day. Sachin required 121 runs to score 10,000 test runs, but was dimissed on 94 ( Eden gardens probably is lucky to witness the spectacle!!!)

Highlight: Sachin's bat-pad catch decision being turned down; Kaneria's relentless bowling.
Final word: Starting the day with great acceleration, Indian's ended the day crawling.

Update
Day 4:

Time for quick runs, put up a sizable lead on the score board and get quick wickets. Indian team partially fulfilled this objective. With 204 run lead, Indian innings came to an end. Balaji replaced Zaheer and given the onus of sharing the new ball with Irfan. He justified the move by picking up wicket in his first over followed by another in his very next over. Irfan followed up with another dismissal. Score board showing 10 for 3 created flutters in pakinstan camp, when youhana was joined by the giant captain. The pair took the attack to the indian camp scoring flurry of boundaries, rapidly increasing the scoring rate. The rock solid partnership, looked all set to spoil india's dream, but for the efforts of old war horse Kumble. Plauged with the problem of not having big partnership, pakistan finishes the day with a lead of 55 runs with 4 wickets in hand.

Highlight: Danish Kaneria's marathon bowling; first pakistan leg spinner to get 6 wickets.
Final word: India senses victory

Update
Day 5

Victory signs looming large for India, Pakistan were under tremendous pressure to bat India out of victory. Overnight batsmen, Akmal and Razzaq shouldered the responsibility and a valiant innings from the duo snatched victory from India. They put on a brave fight and batted nearly two-and half session. For India to win the match, they were required to score at an astronomical run rate. Match ended in a Draw.
Highlight: Akmal and Razzaq Innings
Final word: Pakistan renewed its Spirits!!!

Looking forward to the next test match at Eden Gardens.......

Sania Mania continues

2005-03-12T01:47:00.000+05:30

Today two news grabbed my attention. One was the drive to improve sex ratio launched by the Cheif minister of AP,YSR reported in Telegraph. The next was the launch of a publication devoted entirely to sania, reported in NDTV.

Are we over reacting???

HSC exam blues!!!

2005-03-09T21:12:00.000+05:30

The Higher secondary exams started last week throughout India. Every year we come across numerous news about malpractices in exams. Thsi year is no exception to that rule. There were incidents of stdents involving in copying, using mobiles, proxy exam writers and so on. The list does not end here. A new item is added to ths list.

A 17-year old boy who is supposed to appear for his exams had been abducted. The boy was found wandering in the streets of lonavala and the local police took custody of him and returned to his parents. Later, spilled the beans that ha had fled from his house for the fear of appearing for exams.

Towards whom should we be more concerned, the boy or the education system!!!

Read the story from Mid-day

Definition of Truth

2005-03-08T20:25:00.000+05:30

I came across an interesting question from one of my friend,"What is the definition of Truth?". I though it was very stupid of him to ask such questions. I though there is well known universal answer. Our discussion went on like this,

Me: Truth is a fact that has been verified and which is conforming to reality or actuality

My friend: Do you mean to say there is only one version for truth.

Me:(thinking.....)

My friend: I mean to say, Can there be different versions of truth?

Me: YES (firm)...

My friend: (Silence.........)

Me: Yes, definitely there is no single thing called truth.

My friend: Then, why are people calling something as truth, when they know it has variations?

Me:(Why is this guy always questioning me!!...making me think)
(I was thinking of some analogy to explain my view.....)

Me: (Wow! It struck me...)
See there only two types of truth, one absolute truth and the other relative truth.

I will explain it with an analogy.Take water in 3 bowls, one extremely cold, one extremely hot and one lukewarm.

Action 1 : Dip your hand into cold water, remove it and dip it into lukewarm water. You will feel that it is extremely hot.

Action 2: Dip your hand in hot water, then dip it in lukewarm water, you will feel that it is extremely cold.

Question: Nothing has changed the characteristics of water in the three bowls, but still you have different feelings, Why?

My friend: (Long Silence.........) ....( i enjoyed every moment of it)

Me: The temperature state of the water in each bowl is known as absolute truth, the temperatures of the lukewarm water after certain action of yours are known as relative truth.

There was no reply from my friend. Knowing what he is capable of i am expecting a strong reply in few days.

Is Impossible always impossible???

2005-03-05T02:44:00.000+05:30

Today, received a mail from my friend krish asking me to comment on the following statement,

"Is Impossible always impossible???...or is possible always possible..if the possibility of the impossible is greater than the impossibility of the possible, then it makes all the more sense to pursue the impossibile...if the possibility of the impossible is greater than the possibility of the possible, then will impossible still be impossible???"

I replied back saying:

"I think as the possibility of impossible tends to become more than the imposibility of impossible, then the probability of impossible becoming more impossible is more possible."

Another friend of ours replied back stating:
"Who knows what is possible. Everybody knows what's difficult. 'Possible' is only an excuse to waste time pursuing the impossible."

Awaiting more reactions to this statement.....

When to use ethical toothcomb in your career?

2005-03-05T01:32:00.000+05:30

This article in TheHindu, by Prayaag Joshi on Morality of Career Choices throws lots of questions.

Are we moral, ethical in what we do to earn for our living?
Is it right to work for a company, whose values do not match yours, even if it is a powerful and lucrative job?
Any work that we do, should it pass the litmus test of ethics and morality?

By looking at all these questions, one cannot be left wondered but to realise a bit of stretching in this logic.

The author has tried answering this question, the crux is, the individual makes sense of morality and ethicality of career, only when he has reached certain stage in his life.

To me, the answer lies in answering these questions,

When do you address such isues,i.e at what age?
the financial position of the individual
Career choices available to the individual

It might sound a bit irrational, but i call it cold logic!!!

Left Voice transcends Border

2005-03-05T01:26:00.000+05:30

If you think, Congress alone is listening to the voice of Left, you are mistaken. Their voices are heard acroos the border too, according to the report from Telegraph.
The article reports,
Pervez Musharraf ordered immediate release of some Indian youths jailed in Pakistan for illegally crossing into the country from Iran last month.

The foreign ministry spokesman Jalil Abbas Jilani said in a statement,
"The President issued the orders on a formal request by Harkishen Singh Surjeet, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), who met him along with a senior CPI leader A.B. Bardhan in Rawalpindi".

At the end of the trip, both the left leaders said they found in him the “courage of a leader and not a general” and commented “He is very frank and honestly answered all our queries". On his part, Musharaff acknowledged the role of the two leaders in promoting peace in the region and the Left’s support for the composite dialogue between the two governments.

Given the political situation and mood along the Loc, the mutual praise has to be treated with a pinch of salt.

Erotic quotient for Cinema

2005-03-04T12:39:00.000+05:30

First it was IQ. Then we moved on to EQ, the emotional Quotient. Then somebody coined SQ, Spiritual Quotient. Bollywood doesn't want to be left behind in having a unique quotient for itself. Thanks to film maker Mahesh Bhatt, for coining one for cinemas, EQ, not to check the level of emotion being showed in the mega serials, but for meauring the erotic content!!!

Mahesh Bhatt, who is in the eye of the storm for his yet to be released movie, in an interview to Timesofindia, comes up with this proposition as a solution to end controversies in cinema.

Fabulous idea, are we to expect more such Quotients, given the type of movies that are being released!!!

IT revolution: Sytem designed to cheat your boss

2005-03-04T12:27:00.000+05:30

Can you imagine a day where employees are taught how to cheat their employers. It has become a reality, its happening in South Korea. Telegraph says that a software firm has found a way to help people appear to be hard at work while they are actually playing computer games at their desks.

productivITy is sure to make some dent in the years to come.

Paedophile on IIT campus

2005-03-04T12:04:00.000+05:30

One more sex scandal at IIT-Kharagpur, second one within three months. Telegraph reports of a Paedophile on campus. In IIT parlance, the Disco has expelled the concerned person. What has happened to the premier institute, always in the news for wrong reasons.

New Viagra, a wierd story

2005-03-03T22:33:00.000+05:30

Mid-day reports about a weird instance of body piercing. Inspired by body piercing acts, Raju Shetty, a trader from mumbai found an innovative method of body piercing. This act landed him at hospital, scarring the medicos.
I am shit scared of such acts. My grandmother used take "Kavadi" to palani murugan temple. There is a ritual which happens in palani murugan temple, where people pierce their bodies with "vale" ( i don't know its english equivalent), a sharp object, pierced all over the body as a means for offering prayer. The sight of it will make me squirm. Being so sensitive to such acts, i cannot even imagine of such things even in my wildest dreams. The most astonishing thing in the whole episode is the reason given by him for doing so.

A new viagra in the market!!

Indo - Pak Nuke war

2005-02-24T02:50:00.000+05:30

A nice forward that i recieved today, shows in lighter vein the plight of India and Pakistan. It goes like this:

During the Cold War, if USA launched a nuke-loaded missile, Soviet Satellites would inform the Soviet army in 3 seconds and in less than 45 seconds Soviet counter-missiles would be on their way.

Recent studies commissioned by US department of Defense included one on nuclear war between India and Pakistan :

This was the scenario................

The Pakistan army decides to launch a nuke-missile towards India. They don't need any permission from their government, and promptly order the countdowns. Indian technology is highly advanced. In less than 8 seconds, Indian army detects the Pak countdown and decides to launch a missile in retribution. But they need permission from the Government of India. They submit their request to the Indian President. The President forwards it to the Cabinet.The Prime Minister calls an emergency Lok Sabha session. The LS meets, but due to several walkouts and severe protests by the opposition, it gets adjourned indefinitely. The President asks for a quick decision.

In the mean time, the Pak missile failed to take off due to technical failure. Their attempts for a re-launch are still on.

Just then the Indian ruling party is reduced to a minority because a party that was giving outside support withdraws it. The President asks the PM to prove his majority within a week. As the ruling party fails to win the confidence vote, a caretaker government is installed. The caretaker PM decides to permit the armed forces to launch a nuclear missile. But the Election Commission says that a caretaker government cannot take such a decision because elections are at hand. The ElectionCommission files Public Interest Litigation in the Supreme Court alleging misuse of power.

The Supreme Court comes to the rescue of the PM, and says the acting PM is authorized to take this decision in view of the emergency facing the nation.

Just then one of the Pak missiles successfully took off, but it fell 367 miles away from the target, on its own government building in Islamabad at 11.00AM. Fortunately there were no casualties as no employee had reached the office that early. In any case, the nuclear core of the missile had detached somewhere in flight. The Pakistan army is now trying to get better technologies from China and USA.

The Indian Government, taking no chances, decides to launch a nuclear missile of its own, after convening an all-party meeting. This time all the parties agree. Its three months since the army had sought permission.But as preparations begin, "pro-humanity", "anti-nuclear" activists come out against the Government's decision. Human chains are formed and Rasta rokos organized. In California and Washington endless e-mails are sent to Indians condemning the government and mentioning "Please forward it to as many Indians as possible".

On the Pakistan side, the missiles kept malfunctioning. Some missiles deviate from target due to technical failures or high-speed wind blowing over Rajasthan. Many of them land in the Indian Ocean killing some fishes. A missile (smuggled from USA) is pressed into service. Since the Pakistan army is unable to understand its software, it hits it original destination: Russia.

Russians successfully intercepts the missile and in retaliation launches a nuclear missile towards Islamabad. The missile hits the target and creates havoc.

Pakistan cries for help. India expresses deep regrets for what has happened and sends in a million dollars worth of Parle-G biscuits. Thus India never gets to launch the missile. Pakistan never gets it right. And both live happily ever after!!!!

Does Google Know more about me than myself!!!

2005-02-24T02:32:00.000+05:30

While checking my Gmail account, i noticed Google ads that come up in the page. For a moment, i was taken aback, looking at the relevence of the link to the mail content. For instance,

Mail Content (somewhere in 15 or so lines):
I watch WWE wrestling programs

Google Ads:
3 Ads popped up --> 2 on WWE game cds and one on WWE gift items.

The power of Google's algorithm dawned on me.
The point i am trying to make is, if they are able to track mails to such an extent, wouldn't they have a complete profile of me interms of my interest level in various subjects.

Imagine Google building up profile on each and every individual who have G-mail account. With more space and better features, i am sure G-mail users are increasing everyday and so is the directory with the corresponding profiles. Doesn't it give an enormous business value to the whole concept. Like, when a home loan company is scouting for contacts, Google might be an one point source of information provider to reach individuals across the globe who have interest in buying house.

Can you imagine other implications!!! I leave it to your imagination:-)

Media Caught off-gaurd

2005-02-24T01:36:00.000+05:30

All of us who were proud of 15 year old, Saurabh singh for topping the International Scientist Discovery (ISD) conducted by NASA are in for a rude shock. This timesofindia article reports that the so-called whiz kid has taken everybody for a ride. The report says:

NASA says it conducts no such exams and has never heard of Saurabh Singh, the boy who appears to have perpetuated the hoax. On its website, NASA does on even list the so-called International Scientist Discovery examination that Singh claims to have bested from among 200,000 students.

The other fallout of this incident is the reporting in Indian media. All roads led to the village Ballia, to record the event, without the least of verification. He even entered the portals of PMO and Rashtrapati bhavan gaining instantaneous spotlight. Why didn't the media take care to verify when it is reporting such an acheivement? It is for them to answer this question. Is it neccessiated by the race amongst themselves to grab eyeballs?...

Did any of us checked the NASA website!!!! Try to answer it yourself.

Trip to Murdeshwar

2005-02-22T00:59:00.000+05:30

Murdeshwar
Originally uploaded by kbvenkat.

Yesterday, me(extreme left) and my friends (from L-R: Souveer,Nitin,Aseem,Krishna,Santosh and Chox) went to murudeshwar. Located on the main Mangalore-Karwar highway, Murudeshwar is sandwiched between the picturesque Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea. Its main attractions are its beach, the awesome Shiva statue and the famous Shiva Temple built on a hillock which offers a magnificent view of the sea. The gigantic statue of Lord Shiva overlooking Murudeshwar entices tourists every day. The sea surrounds the temple on three sides, a fabulous site to watch.

Situated 110 kms from Manipal,nearly two-and-half hour drive along the coast. The drive along the coast was an equally enthraling one. Along the way, near Turtle bay beach resort, which is 12 kms from Kundapur, the highway almost converges with the sea. On one side of the highway, we have the Arabian sea and on the other side we have rivers and backwaters. It was an unbeleivable sight to watch.

We had a nice, peaceful dharshan of Mahabaleshwara. The temple built in the Dravidian style depicting Chalukya and Kadamba sculptures on a hillock has some beautiful carvings and statues. After the dharshan we had our food and spent nearly two hours on the sea shore.

We started from there around 4:00 pm and on the way we again stopped near the Turtle bay beach resort for a panoramic view of the arabian sea, glimmering and shining with beauty. The enthralling beauty did not allow us to move from that place for another half-an-hour. We draggfed ourselves from the sea shore and reached Manipal around 6:00 pm.

This is a one of the series of trips we had planned in the next one month, before we leave the Oxford of the East. Bookmark this site to know more about another tourist attraction of the region......very soon.

Best days of my Life...Should i call so!!!

2005-02-19T14:50:00.000+05:30

Should I...for...............
having found new friends who are equally good or better than my school or college friends

Should I...for .............
having developed a flair and understanding for Hindi

Should I...for............
completely and fully understanding the significance of Parkinson's Law

Should I...for............
having watched more films during the two years in TAPMI than probably in my entire life

Should I...for............
mastering the habit of sleeping even when a blarring music party is on

Should I...for............
learning the art of composure by tolerating some really non-sensical, moronic freaks

or may be
Should I...because............
Everybody says so!!!

or atleast
Should I...for............
having gained a PGDM which i hope will give me a good start in my carrier....

or for what else Should I.....

Other Blogs

2005-02-16T17:38:00.000+05:30

It has been a while i have blogged. I had spent the whole of last week...just reading others blog. It was time worth spent. I came across many blogs, everyone unique in its own way. Different views, ideas, means of expression left me wondering. I believe each blog is " A castle of an individual", built with great care and dreams.
Some of the blogs, i really enjoyed were,
indiauncut by amit varma and oxlog by David, Josh and Patrick from Oxford.

Amit, if you happen to read this blog: The note below is addressed to you :-)
Your blog was really an eye opener. I am a nascent blogger, i started blogging just a month back. I happen to see your blog during Tsunami reporting and i really got impressed and probably thats the reason why i started blogging.

I see this space as a means to express my ideas, opinions and feelings on as varied topics as possible.

You are allowed to pop into my blog, but leave your footprint.

Primary education in India

2005-02-05T15:28:00.000+05:30

I am trying to develop a business model for an NGO, whose focus would be on primary education. In the process i came across facts related to primary education in india. Some of the facts that caught my attention were, the number of school drop outs, child labor and female literacy rate. Such many more facts took my attention beyong NGOs role. NGOs can supplement the work in the field of primary education, should it take the responsibility of providing primary education to all childrens? Then, why do we have a government.....on a lighter note, with the amount of aid and benefits we are getting from other countries, can India be termed as a "Mother of all NGOs".

Ok, jokes apart!!! lets now get to the business.

At the outset, for a nation as diverse and as sprawling as India, it is definitely a daunting task. But, it is not the reason for absolving itself from the issue.

The Government in the recent years have come out with lots of initiatives to provide primary education.Let me tell you about some initiatives.

Initiatives for expanding the provision of primary formal and non-formal education to realise the goal of Universilisation of Elementary Education (UEE).
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan :It primarily focuses on providing education for all.
Free and Compulsory Education Bill, 2004 [Revised]:
Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya(KGBV):
District Primary Education Program (DPEP):
Education cess collection towards primary education

I was pleasantly surprised to see so many schemes that have been started by GOI. But as any Indian citizen i was doubtful about the implementation of these initiatives and wanted to explore the results of some of these initiatives.

I would like to highlight some of my findings on the schemes which were obtained through secondary research from various websites.

Center to allocate more funds for education only from next year.

"The funds are not expected to be allocated to the two schemes due to low absorptive capacity of the primary education sector", senior human resources development ministry officials said. Can anybody help me by explaining what does "low absorptive capacity" mean?

2. India ranks 105 out of 127 countries in Unesco education report .

Where does all this lead to.....staggering number of school drop-outs....probably the number of illiterates in our country now would out number the population 25 years back.

I am not trying to paint a bad picture on the initiatives taken by the government, but trying to stress on the fact that we need more...more...more...and more attention.

I feel that GOI should do a lot more in imparting primary education. But, i feel i can contribute something to this cause in a small way. This idea gave me focus to developing a business proposal for a primary education knowledge center...... call it by what ever name you want to. My idea is to develop a new model of school, attractive and easily accessible to the needy children. The model should be flexible enough to be implemented in any part of the country.

I believe and hope, i am not the only soul having such feelings about the sorry state of primary education in India. Anybody, who share my belief can contribute in their own way.

My focus is on providing education to those children, who are forced to work to support their family or to those who have been denied the oppurtunity of attending schools due to financial constraints.

My proposal is based on the answers to some of these basic questions:

What should be taught?
How should we teach?
How to motivate the children?
Creativity in Education!!

The questions mentioned here cover only a part of the study. Another important issue is making these instituions financially self sustaining. This is one of the most important aspect of the model to make the initiative sustainiable. Hence, it becomes imperative to develop a revenue model for the proposed school.

(to be continued....)

Larry Ellison: Read to believe

2005-02-04T01:19:00.000+05:30

Ellison speech, Yale 2000: Read this to believe it.

This is the speech that Larry Ellison (Oracle CEO) gave at Yale University to the graduating class of 2000 last month and he was ushered off the Stage because of it:

"Graduates of Yale University, I apologize if you have endured this type of prologue before, but I want you to do something for me. Please, take a good look around you. Look at the classmate on your left. Look at the classmate on your right. Now, consider this: five years from now, 10 years from now, even thirty years from now, odds are the person on your left is going to be a loser. The person on your right, meanwhile, will also be a loser. And you, in the middle? What can you expect? Loser. Loserhood. Loser Cum Laude.

In fact, as I look out before me today, I don't see a thousand hopes for a bright tomorrow. I don't see a thousand future leaders in a thousand industries. I see a thousand losers. You're upset. That's understandable. After all, how can I,Lawrence "Larry" Ellison, college dropout, have the audacity to spout such heresy to the graduating class of one of the nation's most prestigious institutions? I'll tell you why. Because I, Lawrence "Larry" Ellison, second richest man on the planet, am college dropout, and you are not. Because Bill Gates, richest man on the planet-for now anyway-is a college dropout, and you are not. Because Paul Allen, the third richest man on the planet, dropped out of college, and you did not. And for good measure, because Michael Dell, No.9 on the list and moving up fast, is a college dropout, and you, yet again, are not. Hmm ... you're very upset. That's understandable.

So let me stroke your Egos for a moment by pointing out, quite sincerely, that your diplomas were not attained in vain. Most of you, I imagine, have spent four to five years here, and in many ways what you've learned and endured will serve you well in the years ahead. You've established good work habits. You've established a network of people that will help you down the road. And you've established what will be lifelong relationships with the word "therapy." All that of is good. For in truth, you will need that network. You will need those strong work habits. You will need that therapy. You will need them because you didn't drop out, and so you will never be among the richest people in the world. Oh sure, you may, perhaps, work your way up to #10 or #11, like Steve Ballmer. But then, I don't have to tell you who he really works for, do I? And for the record, he dropped out of grad school. Bit of a latebloomer. Finally, I realize that many of you, and hopefully by now most of you, Are wondering, "Is there anything I can do? Is there any hope for me at all? Actually, no. It's too late. You've absorbed too much, think you know too much. You're not 9 anymore. You have a built-in cap,and I'm not referring to the mortarboards on your heads. Hmm ... you're really very upset. That's understandable.

So perhaps this Could be a good time to bring up the silver lining. Not for you, Class of '00. You are a write-off, so I'll let you slink off to your pathetic $200,000-a-year jobs, where your checks will be signed by former Classmates who dropped out two years ago. Instead, I want to give hope to any underclassmen here today. I say to you, and I can't stress this enough: leave. Pack your things and your ideas and don't come back. Drop out. Start up. For I can tell you that a cap and gown will keep you down just as surely as these security guards dragging me off this stage are keeping me down..." (At this point The Oracle CEO was ushered off stage.)

What it means to have a Girl friend!!!

2005-02-04T01:12:00.000+05:30

I got a forward from my friend. thought people would enjoy reading....

********* U have to think twice b4 committing to a North IndianGirl**********

1. At the time of marriage, a north Indian girl has more boyfriends than her age.

2. Before marriage, she looks almost like a bollywood heroine and after marriage you have to go around her twice to completely hug her.

3. By the time she professes her undevoted love to you, you are bankrupt because of the number of times you had to take her out to movie theatres and restaurants. And you wait longingly for her dowry.

4. The only dishes she can think of to cook is paneer butter masala, aloo sabji, aloo gobi sabji, aloo matar, aloo paneer, that after eating all those paneer and aloos you are either in the bed with chronic cholestrol or chronic gas disorder.

5. The only growth that you see later in your career is the rise in your monthly phone bill.

6. You are blinded by her love that you think that she is a blonde. Only later do you come to know that it is because of the mehandhi that she applies to cover her gray hair.

7. When you come home from office she is very busy watching "Kyonki saas bi kabi bahu thi" that you either end up eating outside or cooking yourself.

8. You are a very "ESpecial" person to her.

9. She always thought that Madras is a state and covers the whole of south india until she met you.

10. When she says she is going to "work out" she means she is going to "walk out"

11. She has greater number of relatives than the number of people you have in your home town.

12. The only two sentences in English that she knows are "Thank you" and "How are you"

13. She thinks Hritik can dance better than Michael Jackson.

******WHAT IT MEANS TO HAVE A South Indian GIRL-FRIEND***********

1. Her mother looks down at you because you didn't study in IIT or Anna University.

2. Her father starts or ends every conversation with "... I say..." She shudders if you use four letter words.

3. She has long hair, neatly oiled and braided (The Dubai based Oil Well Company will negotiate with her on a 25 year contract to extract coconutoil from her hair.)

4. She uses the word 'Super' as her only superlative. Her name is another name for a Goddess or a flower.

5. Her first name is longer than your first name, middle name and surname combined (unless you are from Andhra)

6.When she mixes milk and rice you are never sure whether it is for the Dog or for herself. 7. For weddings, she sports a mini jasmine garden on her head and wears silk saris in the Madras heat without looking too uncomfortablewhile you are melting in your singlet.

8.She thinks Mohan Lal is the sexiest man alive.

9. Her favourite cricketer is Krishnamachari Srikkanth.

10. Her favourite food is dosa though she has tried North Indian snacks like Chats (pronounced like the slang for 'conversation')

11. She bursts into songs with her cousins in every movie. She bores you by telling you which raaga each song you hear is based on.
12. You have to give her jewellery, though she has already got plenty of it .. Her thali (Mangal Sutra) weighs more than the championship belts worn by WWF wrestlers.
13. She is more educated than you.
14. Her father thinks she is much smarter than you...

The Real Tsunami

2005-02-01T21:47:00.000+05:30

Last week, me and my friend krish had a discussion about Tsunami. While we were discussing about the natural tsunami, suddenly i asked him, what would be your reaction if it was man-made calamity. He was taken aback.
My point is, if some one wanted to do something like this, can it be done artificially? What could be the motives of doing so? why would anybody do so? the discussion went on for about an hour, till we felt bored about the topic.
Then the topic lost its relevence the next day. we did not think much about it. But today morning he came across some news article, on the same lines as what we have been discussing a week back.

The article can be found at, http://vialls.net/subliminalsuggestion/tsunami.html.
This article was interesting, intriguing, scaring and what not......
Though the article seem to be so convinced about the incident, i have few reservations over the article.

1. Will US run the risk of including more than 10,000 of its men in the operation and can still hope it to be covet operation?
2. I doubt the veracity about the involvement of Austraslian government in the whole operation.
3. Was it supposed to be a low key operation, turned into a monster or was it intented to harm the region?
4. Will anybody try some serious operations in others territory knowing the fall out of such an event?

and so on.,..... as and when i get time i had decided to fill up my reservations in this post, despite being a good read!

Aid to India: A deter to become Superpower

2005-01-20T15:24:00.000+05:30

India rejected aid from world community claiming that it can support itself and it doesnt want the support of the world to rehabilitate the victims of tsunami. This is the second time the Govt of India is rejecting such offer, first time(NDA govt) was from Bill Gates foundation donation for AIDS. Both these actions were meant to be a part of india's gesture to the world community that "We are Big and have enough resource to tackle our problems". I accept the first decision, but not the second one.

All these actions by the government was to potray India as an emerging superpower. Such acts create a bonhomie among the public who boast of india on the path of becoming a superpower.
All these arguements are good to hear...but i take these statements with a pinch of salt.
I am sceptical for two reasons, primarily the definition of being a superpower attributed to economic power (read money) and the secondly, the money that is being given are phenomennaly high and it can really be of immense use to the needy.

First let me explain, who according to me is a superpower. No doubt the country has to be economically powerful, but is that all required to make a superpower. We should be powerful in every possible aspect that should make others emulate you. When you see USA, most countries try to emulate what is happening there. A country should have that kind of power to become a super power and more importantly to retain the status. It is the status offered by other countries looking at our mightiness and not self conferred.

On the second issue of rejecting aid from other countries, i feel it was the affected who missed the oppurtunity. I feel a sense of double standard in India's arguements. On one hand we are rejecting aid, while on the other hand, the foreign nationals are allowed to donate money either to PM's fund or to any of the NGOs in India. I really could not understand this. If you are rejecting any help from outside outright, then why have this alternate route? Somebody, please explain.

After deliberating on this topic for some time i found today's (20th Jan'2005) edition of The Hindu carrying an article on the topic "Saying no to aid" by Vaiju Naravane.

India does not get any offer of aid for Kashmir or Telengana rehabilitation. These are man-made and the concerned countries have to take care. But, when it is a natural disaster, when a country loses its people for no reason, countries feel sympathetic towards those who lost lives and towards a country. I think the notion of sympathy towards a country has to be seen as sympathy towards the individual.

I dream of India becoming a Super power, but not at the expense of me and you. It should decide which is more important, political signalling or the immediate impact of the aid.

(The views expresses are personel and are not meant to hurt others)

Tsunami Satellite Pics: Why made in America?

2005-01-20T14:49:00.000+05:30

I was wondering why the indian satellites could not get any satellite pics of tsunami....why only American satelites... the question got partially answered today. An article was published in The Hindu's Science and Technology section of 20th Jan'2005.

Titled "Why Indian satellites did not observe the tsunami", the article gives certain information about why we did not get the pics from our satellite. But still my question remains unanswered as to how american satellite alone could do it?

any takers pls!! Just curious.

Virtue in disaster

2005-01-05T19:39:00.000+05:30

When everybody is talking about the disaster caused by tsunami, i was wondering all that we will have at the end of the rehabilitation is the count of life lost, monetary loss, emotional loss and mounting losses of all sorts.
After real hard think, i felt there can be some positive outcomes that we can derive if we want to. I would like to list some of the positive outcomes.

1. Countries around the indian ocean have been affected by the killer waves. So, the co-operation among the countries in assisting each other at this time of distress would be a confidence building measure among these countries.

2. There is a great sense of mistrust, suspicion and infact animosity among the countries that have been affected. Providing mutual support would iron out some of the differences between these countries.

to be continued....

My Blog

2005-01-04T15:09:00.000+05:30

what prompted me to start blog?

One fine sunday moring during december, when i was in deep slumber at my residence enjoying the term break, i was woken up with a news that my favorite spot in chennai, the marina and its waves have come to see me(quite literally). The plans for the rest of the week that i had scheduled took a back seat and the city lost its shine in a matter of few hours.

The next 24 hours i was glued to the television and internet to get the latest information on the Tsunami(by this time, it has become a household name). Every news bulletin sprayed blood. i really got scared of "Refresh" button on IE. Every time i refreshed, it gave a new toll number which was increasing my pulse rate. I was really disturbed by the event.

My parents did not allow me to go anywhere near the beach and my dad was very particular about it. I spent the whole of monday cribbing, cursing and what not for coming to chennai during this time. I couldn't control myself, so i decided that i should go back to manipal where i study(mid-vacation) or visit the affected areas for myself.

so on tuesday i ventured out of my house, decided to see visit my all time favorite spot...marina. The marina i saw there will remain with me throughout my life. I visited couple of relief camps.(More on the tragedy and on my experience in the relief camps later).

The newspapers and magazines were flooded with pictures and stories of the affected families. Some of the articles were really troubling me. so, I felt i need to react to these articles and reports. But i was not sure how to do it. I used to complain about these articles to my parents and friends....but i was not convinced. I was on the look out for a proper medium, that will give me the freedom to post my views and at the same time, i want others to view and comment on them.

At this time i remembered an incident that took place six months back. Swarna srikrishnan, my friend in TAPMI, introduced me to the concept of blogging. While he was doing his summers in Mumbai, he took blogging as a new hobby. When we met he was all gaga about blog, its features,etc,etc. He tried to educate me about it, but i was not much enthused about it. I did not find much use.

But now, i found a different connation to blogging: a medium to express my feelings, views and opinions. I decided that the first thing i will do reaching manipal is to start a blog.

On reaching manipal, i contacted Krishna to know more about blogging. Now i did not hesitate to start a blog. omkara, was born.