(Continued from #17...)
From Mansa devi, our first stop was Pinjore garden, an hour's drive from the holy shrine. The place was a garden cum tourist resort. Since we had hardly eaten anything in the morning, the first task was to have a good breakfast. At the restaurant there, we had our fill. We also sneaked to see the rooms. At 2000 Rupees, the Maharaja suite, which looked no less than a palace, seemed a steal.
After the breakfast, we took a leisurely stroll in the lawns of the resort. The Garden presented a majestic site with a paved canal (with fountains and coloured lights) bifurcating the entire length of the garden. Though it was daytime and none of the fountains were running, it was not difficult to fathom the beauty of the garden at night.
Towards one end of the garden, I chanced upon a group of school children. Thanks to the processed and packaged foods, the whole place seemed littered with leftovers, tetra pack of soft drinks and empty packets of chips. The lack of civic sense showed by the children seemed to be aberration given that the last 36hours had created a very good impression in my mind about the citizens of Chandigarh. My yearning to see the place clean got better of me and I politely conveyed my displeasure to the teacher-in-charge. The words made her embarrassed and within ten minutes, the army of school children had cleaned the litter - probably quicker than the time they had taken to mess up the whole thing.
Normalcy restored, we then had chats and golgappa from a local shop (This is a different issue that the chats did not give me company till Shimla as they found their way out during the upward journey!). After spending about two hours there, we headed for the sky, the summer capital of yesteryears and the capital city of Himachal - Shimla.
As per expectations, the road till Shimla (a National Highway) was good and our journey was reasonably comfortable. There were adequate signs to keep the drivers on track.
When we about there, a man frantically waved his hand beseeching us to stop our car. Despite my reservations against the mvoe, the car was stopped. The man turned out to be a hotel agent. We explained that we had our reservations but he still pleaded to give him a chance because he could offer us the best deals. Not to be influenced, we left the man and moved ahead. Few meters ahead another man tried to stop us but we did not heed his call. In a desperate attempt, the man plunged on our car like a monkey and managed to get a foot hold on the rear part of the car. Regaining his balance, he asked us not to stop the car because there were others like him ready to pounce on us. Getting panicky, we stopped the car and asked him to get down. But the man did not move. After some not so kind words, the man finally gave way. Soon after, we reached our hotel. It was about three in the afternoon and we quickly had our lunch.
Thereafter, we retired to our rooms and drew the curtains. Inch-by-inch as the curtains parted ways, the Glory of Shimla (or the lack of it) became conspicuous. Even before the journey, we were aware of the fact that Shimla had lost its pristine beauty; that Manali as a hill station was much better option.
However, we chose Shimla almost by default. And here, as we stood in our rooms - the landscape was all hotels - hotels built on the debris of nature - hotels built to see something that was buried under them. The whole place seemed nothing short of a concrete jungle, something any urbanite is so used to in his/her life. Just that instead of a flat land, the jungle was located on the hills. The place seemed so stark, so naked and so devoid of nature.
In the evening, we went to "The Mall", the main shopping center of Shimla. The place was bustling with natives and honeymooners alike. The latter oblivious to the lack of beauty - in the make believe world of their own.
The market offered all the latest brands, including coffee from the new lifestyle brand Barista. There, we brought a couple of sweaters. I too brought a Monte Carlo piece, which the shopkeeper said was a very unique piece one (only that I saw the same sweater worn by one of my colleagues in my company!). I also entered a leather store to buy a wallet. I asked the shopkeeper when the shop was built - to this he said it was built in 1881. I said it was almost hundred years old. To this he said, "You must be knowing maths". To the wallets he showed, I remarked that they were trifle costly. Then, when I asked him to show some belts he said they were very costly and whether I would be interested in them. I left the shop without buying anything.
After shopping for about two hours, we returned to our nest. It was getting chillier. A hawker remarked that it was not snowing, which made their lives difficult. Snowfall brought along with them tourists and better climate. I could not understand the logic.
In the night, the curtains still drawn, the sparkling St. Michael's Cathedral that overlooked The Mall was a sparkling sight. A knight in the shining armour you may say.
The next day we headed for the nearby tourist places. The first stop was Jakhoo temple. The drive to the temple was difficult, our task compounded by the narrow road. When a car suddenly appeared in front of our Sumo, our driver showed the normal instinct to swerve the car towards left. A few more inches and we
would have been going downhill at express speed. I urged the driver that I would rather choose to break a bone by a head-on collision than to die by falling down the valley. Thereafter, without further problems we reached the place. Since the temple was about half a kilometer further up, our parents chose to stay down. At 2455m, this hill was Shimla's highest peak and a vantage point for Shimla's famous views. Walking up, as we neared the temple, we were urged to keep our spectacles in pocket, lest the monkeys attack us. In front of me, a man was helplessly braving a monkey. I took no chances, and quickly kept the specs in my pocket. After worshipping, on my way out, the unthinkable happened. A monkey attacked me. First he kept his paws on my waist. I gestured with my empty hands that I had nothing to offer to him. But he did not oblige me so easily. He kept his hind legs on my body and with a forward thrust he was on my shoulders. With his hands encircling my head and his legs perched on my shoulder, I thought my end was coming close. Soon, I thought, a horde of monkeys would attack me and I would be dragged to a deserted place and feasted by these beasts. I shouted for help.
A man standing nearby mockingly replied, "Who is here to help you?" However, soon after, he had a change of heart and he wielded his lathi. The monkey got frightened and ran away. When I got down, my parents asked whose temple did I worship. I said, "Without my specs, I could not see anything. Probably, it was the temple of Lord Shiva!"
Chachu (25/12/2002)
Web Resources
-------------
http://www.123himachal.com/shimla.htm
http://travel.indiamart.com/shimla/
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Wednesday, December 25, 2002
Sunday, December 15, 2002
Chachu’s Column #17: A Trip To Chandigarh
Various reasons, including festivals, marriages, and family reunions, provided our family the perfect opportunity to get together and embark upon a short excursion. And if these reasons were not enough, there was that impending fear of the casual leaves getting lapsed as the year end drew closer.
The options for the excursion were aplenty- the picturesque Shimla - or the pink city of Jaipur - or may be a religious pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi. After lot of deliberations, a consensus was achieved for moving up north. Ergo, we managed a Tata Sumo and headed for the summer capital of yester years - Shimla.
A direct journey to Shimla would have meant a continuous trip of around 10 hours (assuming that the persons concerned heeded to various calls). A better option was to have a night halt at Chandigarh and then proceed for the hills the next day. Without further ado, hotels were booked at Chandigarh and Shimla.
Everything was set and on the destined morning, we packed our bags and headed off. The GT Karnal road provided direct connectivity between Delhi and Chandigarh. Thanks to the efforts of the Prime Minister and the Highway minister, the roads were four laned; at many places, there were efforts to expand the road further. Then, every few kilometers, there was a Traffic Aid Center with an ambulance ready - all this to faciliate help in case of emergency.
When we took a short break to have fresh milk, the motel offered us dustbins, clean chairs and even usable rest rooms. My foreign returned sister was quite impressed by the developments at home. To this I remarked that, "Yes, the country is making progress in many dimensions. Just that people must have the understanding to use (for example, our driver must understand what is lane driving). More importantly,
people must ensure that the things are maintained the way they currently are."
In about five hours time, we covered 240kms and reached Panchkula, a city very close to Chandigarh; we had planned to stay there overnight. After a brief respite at the hotel, we went out to see Chandigarh. From my childhood days, the city of Chandigarh fascinated me. Having seen most of the important cities of the country including Delhi, kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and Bangalore, I thought Chandigarh was one of the notable omissions. Around a decade back, my father had an offer from a company there. However, the apprehensions of militancy had prevented us from going there. Now, the militancy having been curbed, and normalcy restored, the city offered us no more than a short sojourn.
Even at Panchkula, the signs of what we expected at Chandigarh were clearly visible. The roads were four to six laned. The crossings and huge roundabouts. And the roundabouts were very well landscaped and maintained. It was rumoured that Punjab and Haryana were up against arms over the accession of Chandigarh, a city that had the unique distinction of being the capital cities of both the states at the same time. Panchkula was made to challenge Chandigarh's hegemony.
A short drive from Panchkula and we were at the popular boating resort Sukhna Lake. People generally come here for a walks. The place had a children's park with toy trains and joy rides (all of which worked!). There was a huge boating resort and even a club. We took a boat ride and found that the lake had very few littering of plastic bottles thrown by callous visitors. It was said that the environment friendly people of Chandigarh tookpart in its disilting operation every year.
From Sukhna Lake, we went to the famous Rock Garden. The place has various pieces of art made from household and industrial waste (like broken tiles, bangles, plates, etc.). Divided in various phases, the garden had an assortment of objects like a band of army men, group of monkeys or birds. The Garden was conceptualized by Nek Chand. The man had a penchant for making something out of nothing. The passion in its extreme found its expression in the form of Rock Garden.
Thereafter, we went to the famous Rose Garden that spreaded over 30 acres of land having over 1600 different species or roses. True to expectations, the Rose garden was well maintained. People of age groups were busy strolling in the green and verdant garden.
Our final stop was the most famous Sector 17 market. In my whole life, I had never witnessed a shopping center of this scale or magnitude. Even South Extension of Delhi or M. G. Road of Bangalore pale in comparison. The market had more than adequate space for parking. One of the best part of the market was that it had also left adequate space for the pedestrians to window shop. Generally, the markets in
other parts of the country have very little to offer those on the barefoot. Not this one. The market also offered fashion shows and lightnings effects, though we were not lucky enough to witness it. We had our fill in a South Indian restaurant and came back to our hotels. The next morning, we went to Mansa Devi where we prayed for our well-being. From there, we headed for Shimla.
Overall, Chandigarh lived up to its reputation. Clean and well-planned. No slums. Green with well-maintained gardens. An excellent shopping market. On both sides of roads, there were a row of trees between the roads and the residential houses, thereby giving a feeling of space and freedom. The only sore points were the cost of two items that I happened to buy. One was the 20 rupee Daab (Cocunut water) at Sukhna lake. And second was the 10 rupee Bhutta (Corn), which I could buy at Rs 3/- in Delhi. Barring these small indicators of the high cost of living, Chandigarh remains a dream for a city worth more than a day-long sojourn.
Chachu (15/12/2003)
Web Resources
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http://www.chandigarhcity.com/tourism/index.htm
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The options for the excursion were aplenty- the picturesque Shimla - or the pink city of Jaipur - or may be a religious pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi. After lot of deliberations, a consensus was achieved for moving up north. Ergo, we managed a Tata Sumo and headed for the summer capital of yester years - Shimla.
A direct journey to Shimla would have meant a continuous trip of around 10 hours (assuming that the persons concerned heeded to various calls). A better option was to have a night halt at Chandigarh and then proceed for the hills the next day. Without further ado, hotels were booked at Chandigarh and Shimla.
Everything was set and on the destined morning, we packed our bags and headed off. The GT Karnal road provided direct connectivity between Delhi and Chandigarh. Thanks to the efforts of the Prime Minister and the Highway minister, the roads were four laned; at many places, there were efforts to expand the road further. Then, every few kilometers, there was a Traffic Aid Center with an ambulance ready - all this to faciliate help in case of emergency.
When we took a short break to have fresh milk, the motel offered us dustbins, clean chairs and even usable rest rooms. My foreign returned sister was quite impressed by the developments at home. To this I remarked that, "Yes, the country is making progress in many dimensions. Just that people must have the understanding to use (for example, our driver must understand what is lane driving). More importantly,
people must ensure that the things are maintained the way they currently are."
In about five hours time, we covered 240kms and reached Panchkula, a city very close to Chandigarh; we had planned to stay there overnight. After a brief respite at the hotel, we went out to see Chandigarh. From my childhood days, the city of Chandigarh fascinated me. Having seen most of the important cities of the country including Delhi, kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and Bangalore, I thought Chandigarh was one of the notable omissions. Around a decade back, my father had an offer from a company there. However, the apprehensions of militancy had prevented us from going there. Now, the militancy having been curbed, and normalcy restored, the city offered us no more than a short sojourn.
Even at Panchkula, the signs of what we expected at Chandigarh were clearly visible. The roads were four to six laned. The crossings and huge roundabouts. And the roundabouts were very well landscaped and maintained. It was rumoured that Punjab and Haryana were up against arms over the accession of Chandigarh, a city that had the unique distinction of being the capital cities of both the states at the same time. Panchkula was made to challenge Chandigarh's hegemony.
A short drive from Panchkula and we were at the popular boating resort Sukhna Lake. People generally come here for a walks. The place had a children's park with toy trains and joy rides (all of which worked!). There was a huge boating resort and even a club. We took a boat ride and found that the lake had very few littering of plastic bottles thrown by callous visitors. It was said that the environment friendly people of Chandigarh tookpart in its disilting operation every year.
From Sukhna Lake, we went to the famous Rock Garden. The place has various pieces of art made from household and industrial waste (like broken tiles, bangles, plates, etc.). Divided in various phases, the garden had an assortment of objects like a band of army men, group of monkeys or birds. The Garden was conceptualized by Nek Chand. The man had a penchant for making something out of nothing. The passion in its extreme found its expression in the form of Rock Garden.
Thereafter, we went to the famous Rose Garden that spreaded over 30 acres of land having over 1600 different species or roses. True to expectations, the Rose garden was well maintained. People of age groups were busy strolling in the green and verdant garden.
Our final stop was the most famous Sector 17 market. In my whole life, I had never witnessed a shopping center of this scale or magnitude. Even South Extension of Delhi or M. G. Road of Bangalore pale in comparison. The market had more than adequate space for parking. One of the best part of the market was that it had also left adequate space for the pedestrians to window shop. Generally, the markets in
other parts of the country have very little to offer those on the barefoot. Not this one. The market also offered fashion shows and lightnings effects, though we were not lucky enough to witness it. We had our fill in a South Indian restaurant and came back to our hotels. The next morning, we went to Mansa Devi where we prayed for our well-being. From there, we headed for Shimla.
Overall, Chandigarh lived up to its reputation. Clean and well-planned. No slums. Green with well-maintained gardens. An excellent shopping market. On both sides of roads, there were a row of trees between the roads and the residential houses, thereby giving a feeling of space and freedom. The only sore points were the cost of two items that I happened to buy. One was the 20 rupee Daab (Cocunut water) at Sukhna lake. And second was the 10 rupee Bhutta (Corn), which I could buy at Rs 3/- in Delhi. Barring these small indicators of the high cost of living, Chandigarh remains a dream for a city worth more than a day-long sojourn.
Chachu (15/12/2003)
Web Resources
-------------
http://www.chandigarhcity.com/tourism/index.htm
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Monday, October 28, 2002
Chachu’s Column #16: A Tale of Two Metros
Not some time back, when long queues were observed in front of CNG stations of Delhi, the state and central government locked horns, trying their best to blame the other for the pain and the suffering of the masses. This was hardly surprising as the BJP-led NDA government in the Center could not tolerate the Congress government of the Delhi Assembly. While BJP strongman Madal Lal khurana hobnobbed with the diesel lobby and promised that CNG was just a pipe dream, the Delhi Government found itself sandwiched between the rulings of the Supreme Court and the wishes of the Petroleum ministry. While the petty battle of the politicians continued, today, Indraprastha Gas Limited announced opening of its hundredth CNG station in the capital. While much has been said about CNG, a lot still remains to be said, and more to be done. Like, for example, excise duties and tax based on pollution; tax incentives to non-polluting cars; and promotion of use of eco-friendly transportation mechanisms.
Talking of eco-friendly transportation mechanisms, one such mechanism that is evoking considerable interest among Delhites is the Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS). Started in 1998, the first phase of the project is expected to be complete by this year end, connecting 8 km stretch between Shahdara and Tis Hazari. Surprisingly, most of the news items detailing the MRTS development have been good news. This, despite the fact that government enterprises are notorious for their inefficiency, corruption, and red-tapism. The success of MRTS has been so remarkable (despite the fact that the first passenger-carrying train has still not run) that the BJP and Congress are now fighting over the kudos and acclaims. Both claim to be the architect of the successful completion of the project and both want credit for that.
Keeping the politicians aside and coming back to the main story, the MRTS project started just four years ago is scheduled to lay a MRTS network of 62.5km. Out of this, 12.5km is underground and rest is elevated or ground level. The network will connect Shahdara in the East-delhi, to Rohini/Barwala in North-West delhi, and Dwarka in West Delhi. A norht-south corridor will also connect Vishwa Vidyalaya to Central Secretariat via ISBT and Connaught place. Wtih a capital outlay of a staggering 10,000 crores, the first phase of the project is scheduled to be completed by September, 2005. If everything goes well, the second phase of the project will also be undertaken which will then connect Noida in East Delhi and Vasant Kunj in South Delhi.
The advantages of a state-of-the-art MRTS is not hard to fathom. Since the metro will be signal free, it will result in reduced commuting time. In addition, the journeys will be safer and more reliable. Since the trains will be run on electricity, they will reduce atmospheric pollution; (nearly 70% of the Delhi's pollution is caused by vehicular traffic especially two-wheelers). If people start migrating to the metros, there will be fewer cars on the roads resulting in huge savings of fossil fuel as well as increase in the lives of the vehicles as well as that of the roads. Overall, there are number of benefits associated with the MRTS.
Apart from these benefits, certain features of Delhi MRTS make it truly world class. There are specific provisions for physically and visually handicapped people, a class that is almost perennially neglected by the city planners and civic authorities. Then there are automatic sensors that read tickets kept in the passenger's pocket or handbag. There are adequate parking spaces so that office goers can park their vehicles and board the Metro to their work places. The Metro is also supplemented by other forms of transport like buses, three-wheelers and even rickshaws. If everything goes well, the Delhi MRTS will change the landscape of how people live and move. There are already talks of property prices zooming around areas where metro passes. And when MRTS starts operation, the trend will only pickup.
The Delhi MRTS is not the first to be commissioned in India. The credit for this goes to the City of joy Kolkata. However, comparisons between the two metros may not be fair. For one, the Kolkata metro for most part of it is underground which is not the case for Delhi. Then, the Delhi metro plans a peak time frequency of a train every three minutes. In contrast, Kolkata even after so many years of operation provides a train every 8-10 minutes. Moreover, while the Delhi MRTS shows us the way how things should be built, the 16.5km stretch of Kolkata took nearly twenty-five years to be built.
Since first fifteen years of my life were spent in Kolkata, I have some interesting memories of the city. The route to my grand-mother's house was almost the same as that on which the Metro was built. And for years I used to see dug roads which used to get full of water after a spell of Monsoons. When I queried my father as to when the Metro would be operational, he let out a wry smile, suggesting that the question did not have an answer. However, one fine day the Metro did got complete providing me an overwhelmingly simpler option of reaching my Grandma's house. The Metro was quite in contrast to the dilapidated state of public transport. Air-conditioned and having televisions (which later on mysteriously disappeared), the Kolkata Metro was like a breath of fresh air. In fact, whenever I used to get down the flight of stairs that led to the underground railway, there was a strong soothing breeze blowing across. The trains always ran on time, and there was hardly a trace of babudom which the city has become synonymous with. The stations were generally neat and clean. And there were hardly any betel stains. However, when the Metro was completely ready for me to take benefit of, my father moved out of Kolkata, leaving the prized metro in the hands of possessive Bengalis.
Chachu (28/10/2002)
Talking of eco-friendly transportation mechanisms, one such mechanism that is evoking considerable interest among Delhites is the Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS). Started in 1998, the first phase of the project is expected to be complete by this year end, connecting 8 km stretch between Shahdara and Tis Hazari. Surprisingly, most of the news items detailing the MRTS development have been good news. This, despite the fact that government enterprises are notorious for their inefficiency, corruption, and red-tapism. The success of MRTS has been so remarkable (despite the fact that the first passenger-carrying train has still not run) that the BJP and Congress are now fighting over the kudos and acclaims. Both claim to be the architect of the successful completion of the project and both want credit for that.
Keeping the politicians aside and coming back to the main story, the MRTS project started just four years ago is scheduled to lay a MRTS network of 62.5km. Out of this, 12.5km is underground and rest is elevated or ground level. The network will connect Shahdara in the East-delhi, to Rohini/Barwala in North-West delhi, and Dwarka in West Delhi. A norht-south corridor will also connect Vishwa Vidyalaya to Central Secretariat via ISBT and Connaught place. Wtih a capital outlay of a staggering 10,000 crores, the first phase of the project is scheduled to be completed by September, 2005. If everything goes well, the second phase of the project will also be undertaken which will then connect Noida in East Delhi and Vasant Kunj in South Delhi.
The advantages of a state-of-the-art MRTS is not hard to fathom. Since the metro will be signal free, it will result in reduced commuting time. In addition, the journeys will be safer and more reliable. Since the trains will be run on electricity, they will reduce atmospheric pollution; (nearly 70% of the Delhi's pollution is caused by vehicular traffic especially two-wheelers). If people start migrating to the metros, there will be fewer cars on the roads resulting in huge savings of fossil fuel as well as increase in the lives of the vehicles as well as that of the roads. Overall, there are number of benefits associated with the MRTS.
Apart from these benefits, certain features of Delhi MRTS make it truly world class. There are specific provisions for physically and visually handicapped people, a class that is almost perennially neglected by the city planners and civic authorities. Then there are automatic sensors that read tickets kept in the passenger's pocket or handbag. There are adequate parking spaces so that office goers can park their vehicles and board the Metro to their work places. The Metro is also supplemented by other forms of transport like buses, three-wheelers and even rickshaws. If everything goes well, the Delhi MRTS will change the landscape of how people live and move. There are already talks of property prices zooming around areas where metro passes. And when MRTS starts operation, the trend will only pickup.
The Delhi MRTS is not the first to be commissioned in India. The credit for this goes to the City of joy Kolkata. However, comparisons between the two metros may not be fair. For one, the Kolkata metro for most part of it is underground which is not the case for Delhi. Then, the Delhi metro plans a peak time frequency of a train every three minutes. In contrast, Kolkata even after so many years of operation provides a train every 8-10 minutes. Moreover, while the Delhi MRTS shows us the way how things should be built, the 16.5km stretch of Kolkata took nearly twenty-five years to be built.
Since first fifteen years of my life were spent in Kolkata, I have some interesting memories of the city. The route to my grand-mother's house was almost the same as that on which the Metro was built. And for years I used to see dug roads which used to get full of water after a spell of Monsoons. When I queried my father as to when the Metro would be operational, he let out a wry smile, suggesting that the question did not have an answer. However, one fine day the Metro did got complete providing me an overwhelmingly simpler option of reaching my Grandma's house. The Metro was quite in contrast to the dilapidated state of public transport. Air-conditioned and having televisions (which later on mysteriously disappeared), the Kolkata Metro was like a breath of fresh air. In fact, whenever I used to get down the flight of stairs that led to the underground railway, there was a strong soothing breeze blowing across. The trains always ran on time, and there was hardly a trace of babudom which the city has become synonymous with. The stations were generally neat and clean. And there were hardly any betel stains. However, when the Metro was completely ready for me to take benefit of, my father moved out of Kolkata, leaving the prized metro in the hands of possessive Bengalis.
Chachu (28/10/2002)
Tuesday, October 15, 2002
Chachu’s Column #15: From Microcosm to Macrocosm (Part 2)
A new furnace is being built,
will increase the turnover to 1000 crores,
the factory will then be the largest,
Not just in India but in Asia.
There are minor impediments,
Very minor you may say,
You may even choose to ignore them,
Will not block the progress.
But hiding them is difficult.
Actually, it is the debris.
Dug in huge quantities.
Abrading earth's flesh,
through earth-guzzling cranes,
dumped in open spaces,
where a banner says "Do not throw debris here".
But what are the options?
Expansion is imminent,
to create jobs.
The women-folk are trapped,
in fetters of families and
fetters of space.
They want a park,
where the evenings can be spent,
cribbing about the mother-in-laws,
they also seek few benches,
to give their tired bones a rest,
after a hectic day at the kitchen.
Promises are made,
but orders of benches presumably not,
The debris needs space,
lots and lot of them.
Park is too small a thing,
trucks of earth will submerge it all.
"The park?" feeble voices utter.
But there are no takers.
If fact there is reproach and admonishment,
"Get your priorities right,
Park can wait,
If not you, your children may get,
the life has been spent anyway,
what's the need now?
At the threshold of salvation,
it is sacrilege to have such material desires."
The parking lot for the truck has not been spared
either,
eaten by the debris,
so the truckers dine in the open and sleep under it.
Demands are made again,
"How about a cabin,
where the truckers can relax after a long journey?"
There is more admonishment,
"The employees near the furnace don't even have a
fan,
and you seek a rest house?
You can either engage in charity,
or you can earn profits.
And if there are no profits,
there will be no truckers to sleep under the truck,
nor any employees to die in accidents,
in poorly maintained factories,
that are Asia's largest .
Get your priorities right,
Get your priorities right!"
But the boast has to continue,
largest in Asia,
second largest in the world.
Invisible from moon,
insignificant in the universe.
There is no cure,
to the problem of loneliness.
What is this loneliness,
What is this solitude?
Where does it come from,
where does it reside?
Or is it nothing,
a nothing that we seek to fill?
Fill with what one wonders?
Some take solace in companionship
and seek to marry.
But there are caste problems to settle,
and janampatris to match.
Caste must match, but gotras must not.
All the precaution and all the effort,
cannot guarantee marital bliss.
In far off land, the problems remain the same,
only the abstractions differ.
"Marry an Indian my son,
no matter what caste,
be it Tamil or Kannada.
Make sure she is Indian."
But two states are up in arms,
cannot stand each other,
just for water,
just for water.
The cable TV and the movies are the casualty,
so are the innocent cars,
and the torched trains,
The trains refuse to run.
Whose problem is being solved,
and whose being created
no one bothers to think.
The solution lies in padayatra,
akin to Dandi march,
there are more protests and more violence,
but there is no solution.
The country binds them together,
else there could be a war,
a state attacking other,
like in olden days,
a king attacking other
But civilization has dawned upon us,
so we resort to Bandhs,
and to torching our own cars and trains,
even those of our neighbours would do,
as long there is one to torch,
there is no problem ¾
a temporary vent to the unemployment problem.
While the foreign lady still laments,
"Marry an Indian my son?"
an Indian lady leaves her husband,
for her lover of another caste,
the traces of vermilion still in her hair-parting.
The mangal-sutra not bothered to be worn at all.
The problem of loneliness is not yet solved,
so there is alcohol,
and partying whole night.
Drunken driving is not a problem,
at least not in this country,
the bail is just 950 rupees,
when the entry fee in the disco is more than a
thousand.
Occasional lapse of concentration does happen,
and the imported smuggled jeep kills a few,
breaking the legs of few others.
You will get away you think,
that is the way things have been,
hit and run,
run and hit,
hit and run.
The old haggards sleeping on the pavements
were half dead in any case.
Death is not that bad,
it liberates from the shackles of life.
But there are exceptions,
a few caring souls raise a cry,
and for a change there is hearing,
and attempts of justice.
Some say it is witch-hunting,
so many hit and run everyday,
and no one bothering to raise an eyebrow?
So why this fuss when there is one more?
What if there is no license to drive,
and there is booze up to the brim,
This is still witch hunting.
So many hitting and running,
one more or one less makes no difference .
But at a temple it is not one,
there are many.
The state has been silent for a while,
the silence has been killing,
cannot be digested by few,
those seeking action.
The population is rising,
and if there is no forcible sterilization,
what better way than to hack a few.
So few perish in this noble cause,
and few more in the grief of it.
But at an island there is not just few,
few more than few,
and a few less than more,
vacationers sauntering at a paradise,
sacrificed for a noble cause.
Life is getting dull,
so few crackers ignite hidden passion.
Travel warning is then issued,
and embassy closed.
But who can fight destiny,
or the whims of the Almighty,
so whether you run away from danger,
or you run towards it,
what difference does it make?
The earth is round, remember,
you come back to where you started.
Another thing will come back,
but not now,
after fifty thousand years.
Keo is the name.
The campaign seeks message,
"What will you want your future generation to read,
what legacy do you want to leave behind?"
Words are aplenty,
no shortage of space,
for once,
thousands of words,
to be read after thousands of years.
What to say is difficult to decide,
The next day is itself an enigma,
thousands of years seems an eternity.
Till yesterday, the name was third from bottom,
but the last two were dropped,
so the name became last.
Profits will keep the position intact,
else that name too will be dropped,
and new names will then become last,
waiting to be dropped,
and the cycle will continue,
do,
while you have something to do.
drop,
while you have something to drop,
kill,
while you have something to kill,
loot,
while you have something to loot,
Profits, Loot, Space, Kill,
Right, Death, Morality, Torture,
Good, Evil, Happiness, Bad
Smile, Loneliness, Pleasure, Desperation do,
while you have something to do.
Dropping has caused further loneliness,
and the unpaid home loans further anxiety,
some fear this and don't opt for a loan,
they will die debt free.
The nation has a debt too,
so the brave countrymen fight adverse conditions,
protecting the frontiers,
protecting barren lands,
for whom, for what, for why,
The barren land is integral part,
whose integrity and whose part?
The other side is not very different.
The population problem comes again.
Already one billion,
more following every day, every second.
So new lands is required,
the integral part,
where no one treads,
where no one lives,
except brave men,
braving brave conditions,
developing psychological disorders,
and physical ones.
But the sacrifice is worth it,
the enemy cannot get the advantage,
the integral part,
The world will laugh at us,
if there is a loss.
So there will be more deployment,
and more men to brave the integral part,
to prevent further loss.
But few medals are lost,
after being caught in a dope test,
there are cries of innocence,
but no one listens.
The medals are snatched anyway.
Just few days of stardom,
but many days of anguish.
The loss of medals is not a bother,
what remains is still aplenty,
to boast the sporting skills of the nation.
Good or bad is just a matter of reference frame,
as is right and wrong,
depends on what you compare with,
like theory of relativity.
And when looked from far above,
or from very close,
all the accumulated wealth,
and name and fame,
and movies directed, and books written,
and medals gathered, and goals scored,
seems a speck of speck,
nothing of anything.
From microcosm to macrocosm,
everything is nothing,
and nothing anything.
Chachu (15/10/2002)
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will increase the turnover to 1000 crores,
the factory will then be the largest,
Not just in India but in Asia.
There are minor impediments,
Very minor you may say,
You may even choose to ignore them,
Will not block the progress.
But hiding them is difficult.
Actually, it is the debris.
Dug in huge quantities.
Abrading earth's flesh,
through earth-guzzling cranes,
dumped in open spaces,
where a banner says "Do not throw debris here".
But what are the options?
Expansion is imminent,
to create jobs.
The women-folk are trapped,
in fetters of families and
fetters of space.
They want a park,
where the evenings can be spent,
cribbing about the mother-in-laws,
they also seek few benches,
to give their tired bones a rest,
after a hectic day at the kitchen.
Promises are made,
but orders of benches presumably not,
The debris needs space,
lots and lot of them.
Park is too small a thing,
trucks of earth will submerge it all.
"The park?" feeble voices utter.
But there are no takers.
If fact there is reproach and admonishment,
"Get your priorities right,
Park can wait,
If not you, your children may get,
the life has been spent anyway,
what's the need now?
At the threshold of salvation,
it is sacrilege to have such material desires."
The parking lot for the truck has not been spared
either,
eaten by the debris,
so the truckers dine in the open and sleep under it.
Demands are made again,
"How about a cabin,
where the truckers can relax after a long journey?"
There is more admonishment,
"The employees near the furnace don't even have a
fan,
and you seek a rest house?
You can either engage in charity,
or you can earn profits.
And if there are no profits,
there will be no truckers to sleep under the truck,
nor any employees to die in accidents,
in poorly maintained factories,
that are Asia's largest .
Get your priorities right,
Get your priorities right!"
But the boast has to continue,
largest in Asia,
second largest in the world.
Invisible from moon,
insignificant in the universe.
There is no cure,
to the problem of loneliness.
What is this loneliness,
What is this solitude?
Where does it come from,
where does it reside?
Or is it nothing,
a nothing that we seek to fill?
Fill with what one wonders?
Some take solace in companionship
and seek to marry.
But there are caste problems to settle,
and janampatris to match.
Caste must match, but gotras must not.
All the precaution and all the effort,
cannot guarantee marital bliss.
In far off land, the problems remain the same,
only the abstractions differ.
"Marry an Indian my son,
no matter what caste,
be it Tamil or Kannada.
Make sure she is Indian."
But two states are up in arms,
cannot stand each other,
just for water,
just for water.
The cable TV and the movies are the casualty,
so are the innocent cars,
and the torched trains,
The trains refuse to run.
Whose problem is being solved,
and whose being created
no one bothers to think.
The solution lies in padayatra,
akin to Dandi march,
there are more protests and more violence,
but there is no solution.
The country binds them together,
else there could be a war,
a state attacking other,
like in olden days,
a king attacking other
But civilization has dawned upon us,
so we resort to Bandhs,
and to torching our own cars and trains,
even those of our neighbours would do,
as long there is one to torch,
there is no problem ¾
a temporary vent to the unemployment problem.
While the foreign lady still laments,
"Marry an Indian my son?"
an Indian lady leaves her husband,
for her lover of another caste,
the traces of vermilion still in her hair-parting.
The mangal-sutra not bothered to be worn at all.
The problem of loneliness is not yet solved,
so there is alcohol,
and partying whole night.
Drunken driving is not a problem,
at least not in this country,
the bail is just 950 rupees,
when the entry fee in the disco is more than a
thousand.
Occasional lapse of concentration does happen,
and the imported smuggled jeep kills a few,
breaking the legs of few others.
You will get away you think,
that is the way things have been,
hit and run,
run and hit,
hit and run.
The old haggards sleeping on the pavements
were half dead in any case.
Death is not that bad,
it liberates from the shackles of life.
But there are exceptions,
a few caring souls raise a cry,
and for a change there is hearing,
and attempts of justice.
Some say it is witch-hunting,
so many hit and run everyday,
and no one bothering to raise an eyebrow?
So why this fuss when there is one more?
What if there is no license to drive,
and there is booze up to the brim,
This is still witch hunting.
So many hitting and running,
one more or one less makes no difference .
But at a temple it is not one,
there are many.
The state has been silent for a while,
the silence has been killing,
cannot be digested by few,
those seeking action.
The population is rising,
and if there is no forcible sterilization,
what better way than to hack a few.
So few perish in this noble cause,
and few more in the grief of it.
But at an island there is not just few,
few more than few,
and a few less than more,
vacationers sauntering at a paradise,
sacrificed for a noble cause.
Life is getting dull,
so few crackers ignite hidden passion.
Travel warning is then issued,
and embassy closed.
But who can fight destiny,
or the whims of the Almighty,
so whether you run away from danger,
or you run towards it,
what difference does it make?
The earth is round, remember,
you come back to where you started.
Another thing will come back,
but not now,
after fifty thousand years.
Keo is the name.
The campaign seeks message,
"What will you want your future generation to read,
what legacy do you want to leave behind?"
Words are aplenty,
no shortage of space,
for once,
thousands of words,
to be read after thousands of years.
What to say is difficult to decide,
The next day is itself an enigma,
thousands of years seems an eternity.
Till yesterday, the name was third from bottom,
but the last two were dropped,
so the name became last.
Profits will keep the position intact,
else that name too will be dropped,
and new names will then become last,
waiting to be dropped,
and the cycle will continue,
do,
while you have something to do.
drop,
while you have something to drop,
kill,
while you have something to kill,
loot,
while you have something to loot,
Profits, Loot, Space, Kill,
Right, Death, Morality, Torture,
Good, Evil, Happiness, Bad
Smile, Loneliness, Pleasure, Desperation do,
while you have something to do.
Dropping has caused further loneliness,
and the unpaid home loans further anxiety,
some fear this and don't opt for a loan,
they will die debt free.
The nation has a debt too,
so the brave countrymen fight adverse conditions,
protecting the frontiers,
protecting barren lands,
for whom, for what, for why,
The barren land is integral part,
whose integrity and whose part?
The other side is not very different.
The population problem comes again.
Already one billion,
more following every day, every second.
So new lands is required,
the integral part,
where no one treads,
where no one lives,
except brave men,
braving brave conditions,
developing psychological disorders,
and physical ones.
But the sacrifice is worth it,
the enemy cannot get the advantage,
the integral part,
The world will laugh at us,
if there is a loss.
So there will be more deployment,
and more men to brave the integral part,
to prevent further loss.
But few medals are lost,
after being caught in a dope test,
there are cries of innocence,
but no one listens.
The medals are snatched anyway.
Just few days of stardom,
but many days of anguish.
The loss of medals is not a bother,
what remains is still aplenty,
to boast the sporting skills of the nation.
Good or bad is just a matter of reference frame,
as is right and wrong,
depends on what you compare with,
like theory of relativity.
And when looked from far above,
or from very close,
all the accumulated wealth,
and name and fame,
and movies directed, and books written,
and medals gathered, and goals scored,
seems a speck of speck,
nothing of anything.
From microcosm to macrocosm,
everything is nothing,
and nothing anything.
Chachu (15/10/2002)
List Managment
--------------
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Saturday, October 05, 2002
Chachu’s Column #14: Of Role Models and Roads Ahead
As Indian contingent struggles it out at Busan Asiad, and as medals come only in a trickle, a peep in the history of Indian sports provides hope for the future. Providing this hope is an array of ex-players, who had excelled in their respective discipline in the yesteryears, and who now strive to make future world champions for India. Two such stars that deserve special mention are the former Badminton World Champion Prakash Padukone and the Golden Girl P.T. Usha.
Prakash Padukone is arguably the greatest Badminton player India has ever produced. Prakash was the national champion for most of the nineteen seventies. But it was in the year of 1980 that he found his Midas touch when he won the All England Badminton Championships, thereby becoming the first Indian to do so. In the very next year, Padukone won the World Cup also. While Padukone could not repeat such performances, he remained one of India's best Sporting stars in the early eighties. After his retirement, Prakash felt a strong urge to continue his legacy and produce more stars for the country. From his dreams and aspirations took birth the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA). Established in 1994 at Bangalore, the Academy has now become a full-fledged sports school. It takes care of all necessities of the trainees offering them boarding, lodging, coaching, equipment and other requirements. The selection is based on merit and is done mainly for the young age group. The endeavor is to catch them young so that the trainees become future Padukone. The effort proved to be truly worthwhile when one of the protégé of the Academy, P. Gopichand, won the All England Badminton Championship in 2001. (Ironically, amongst this success story there lies that prototypal Indian phenomenon of bureaucratic interference and politics in sports. While Asian Games is currently underway, it is reported that Gopichand is still waiting for official clearance so that he can take part in the Asian Games and bring laurels for the country).
On similar lines, India's Golden Girl P. T. Usha too has opened Usha School of Athletics at Koyilandy, in Kerala's Kozhikode district. Her ambition is see an Indian on the victory podium of the 2008 Olympic Games. (Her desire to see an Indian win an Olympic medal stems from her own failure to win the bronze medal at Los Angeles Olympics (1984) by one- hundredth of a second. The disappointment at the Olympics, which was in some sense a landmark for Indian sports, was actually her biggest regret in a sporting career spanning fifteen long years. )
Like her sporting career, building the School was not without heartburns and severe perseverance. Usha sought help from various quarters, including government bodies, large corporates and celebrities. Many refused but few did help. Eventually, the dream bore fruit and the School commenced operation in May, 2002. The initial set of trainees includes young children in their pre-teens or early teens. The school bears all the expenses the cost of all students. Efforts are made to ensure that money does not play spoil-sport in the success of a potential superstar, many of whom leave sports for commercial and other considerations. When complete, the Usha School of Athletics will have with an eight lane 400 metre track, a swimming pool, a gymnasium, a school, an office and hostel accommodation for the students. Help and financial support is now coming from various quarters. Thanks to Usha's determination, Indian athletics is looking a new future, whose first chapter is being written by the golden girl who burnished India's image in the international athletics arena during her time.
Chachu (5/10/2002)
Web Resources
-------------
http://www.tamil.com/rasigar/ptusha.htm (On P. T.Usha)
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/05/29/stories/2002052904391800.htm
(On Usha's School of Athletics)
http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/jun/20spec.htm (On Usha's School of Athletics)
http://www.geocities.com/colosseum/court/9595/aboutus.htm
(Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy)
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--------------
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Prakash Padukone is arguably the greatest Badminton player India has ever produced. Prakash was the national champion for most of the nineteen seventies. But it was in the year of 1980 that he found his Midas touch when he won the All England Badminton Championships, thereby becoming the first Indian to do so. In the very next year, Padukone won the World Cup also. While Padukone could not repeat such performances, he remained one of India's best Sporting stars in the early eighties. After his retirement, Prakash felt a strong urge to continue his legacy and produce more stars for the country. From his dreams and aspirations took birth the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy (PPBA). Established in 1994 at Bangalore, the Academy has now become a full-fledged sports school. It takes care of all necessities of the trainees offering them boarding, lodging, coaching, equipment and other requirements. The selection is based on merit and is done mainly for the young age group. The endeavor is to catch them young so that the trainees become future Padukone. The effort proved to be truly worthwhile when one of the protégé of the Academy, P. Gopichand, won the All England Badminton Championship in 2001. (Ironically, amongst this success story there lies that prototypal Indian phenomenon of bureaucratic interference and politics in sports. While Asian Games is currently underway, it is reported that Gopichand is still waiting for official clearance so that he can take part in the Asian Games and bring laurels for the country).
On similar lines, India's Golden Girl P. T. Usha too has opened Usha School of Athletics at Koyilandy, in Kerala's Kozhikode district. Her ambition is see an Indian on the victory podium of the 2008 Olympic Games. (Her desire to see an Indian win an Olympic medal stems from her own failure to win the bronze medal at Los Angeles Olympics (1984) by one- hundredth of a second. The disappointment at the Olympics, which was in some sense a landmark for Indian sports, was actually her biggest regret in a sporting career spanning fifteen long years. )
Like her sporting career, building the School was not without heartburns and severe perseverance. Usha sought help from various quarters, including government bodies, large corporates and celebrities. Many refused but few did help. Eventually, the dream bore fruit and the School commenced operation in May, 2002. The initial set of trainees includes young children in their pre-teens or early teens. The school bears all the expenses the cost of all students. Efforts are made to ensure that money does not play spoil-sport in the success of a potential superstar, many of whom leave sports for commercial and other considerations. When complete, the Usha School of Athletics will have with an eight lane 400 metre track, a swimming pool, a gymnasium, a school, an office and hostel accommodation for the students. Help and financial support is now coming from various quarters. Thanks to Usha's determination, Indian athletics is looking a new future, whose first chapter is being written by the golden girl who burnished India's image in the international athletics arena during her time.
Chachu (5/10/2002)
Web Resources
-------------
http://www.tamil.com/rasigar/ptusha.htm (On P. T.Usha)
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/05/29/stories/2002052904391800.htm
(On Usha's School of Athletics)
http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/jun/20spec.htm (On Usha's School of Athletics)
http://www.geocities.com/colosseum/court/9595/aboutus.htm
(Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy)
List Managment
--------------
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Monday, September 23, 2002
Chachu's Column #13: Of Roads, Rails, and Safety
As the saying goes - A picture says a thousand words - I found one such picture in the latest issue of Business World (23rd Sep, 2002). It was a picture of the Mumbai-Pune expressway that looked like a giant serpent snaking its way to some place beyond the horizon. At three different glances, the picture evoked three distinct feelings. At first glance, I found the expressway quite awe-inspiring. The expressway was state-of-art six-lane highway. On closer look, I found an over-turned truck right in the middle of the picture. Given the fact that the Business World cover story was meant to highlight the rapid developments of highway in India, the over-turned truck didn't give the right signals. Since the traffic moved at great speeds on the expressway, the truck over-turned was a potential traffic hazard. On even closer inspection, I found that the truck was cordoned off by appropriate signs and roadblocks thereby giving motorists adequate time and space to avoid the truck. The last point was quite satisfying indeed. An adequate proof that India's traffic management paradigms were moving in the right direction.
But Pune is far far away from Delhi suburb where I reside. Around my house, there are no signs of state-of-the-art technological developments. Nor is it visible in my commute to my workplace. This despite the fact that a major part of my route lies within the country's capital Delhi. In fact, the way things are, there seems to be no state government and no art in the madness. Everyday, I encounter a number of potential situations that could lead to accidents, major or minor. While a comprehensive list could run into pages, let me list four important ones:
1. On a long empty stretch of road without any road divider or central verge, there is a speed breaker that extends only half the breadth. This awful design implies that one side of traffic moves without breaking, while other side is forced to cross the ill-designed breaker. Ideally, this is not a bad situation. But, and a big but, as there is no road divider the unfortunate motorists, in order to avoid the breaker, come on the wrong side displaying their headlights seeking permission to cross. This breach of rule is not limited to motorcycles or cars (yours truly included), but also includes buses and trucks. One day, no wonder I found a badly smashed car near the breaker.
2. Another serious breach of traffic rules is overloading by shuttle operators. They have found unique ways of carrying more passengers than the load the jeeps can take. For one, they extend the rear and sides so that people can stand on them and hang around. Then, they also fit a carrier on top of the jeep that is then used to seat around 8-10 people atop the jeep. Seeing people on the train top is not unusual (seeing them dance, like in the song in Dil Se, is exhilarating), but seeing them sit precariously on a jeep is really unnerving. The most bizarre part of this drama is that the overloaded jeeps have to cross the Delhi-Haryana border where police continuously monitor the traffic movement. But I have never seen anyone questioning the errant drivers. In fact, once when we were nine of us were going to office in a Qaulis, we were caught and challaned because the Qaulis had license to carry only 8. While the inspector demanded something for tea, not willing to file a challan, an overloaded jeep carrying around twenty people crossed us. For the inspector, nor the jeep nor the violation existed. His monthly premium was already paid by the jeep driver. Only when he extracted his quota from us did he leave us. Once, tired of being daily witness to the violation, I logged on to the site (http://www.delhitrafficpolice.nic.in/witness.htm) and lodged a complaint. The site did not offer any means for the complainant to track the progress of the complaint. The complaint was lodged by me long time back. Needless to say, the overloading continues unchecked, unstopped, and unseen. And only God or Delhi traffic police knows what happened to my complaint. Given the state of affairs, one day, and the day may not be far, one of the many such jeeps that ply will meet a serious accident and twenty will die. The newspaper will then say - "Twenty killed in an accident due to overloading". And then the routine enquiry followed by routing analysis. And within months, if not days, the file will be dumped in some public office and the soul of the dead will live in peace.
3. As monsoon ends, the roads have cracked and pot-holes have become the order of the day. The methods adopted for repairing the roads is so outdated and abysmal that one wonders whether we are in the twenty-first century or in the early ages. The pot-holes are first left to fester so that water can stagnate and eat the road. When the holes are big enough to cause a flutter, small stones are used to fill them. To hold the stones together, soil is used. It is no-brainer that a fresh spell of rains washes away the soil. What remains is a situation that is worse than one that existed before repairs. When the situation becomes beyond control, the road rollers are brought in. In the process, the height of road keeps rising and comes in level of the footpath.
4. Talking about footpath, the less said about them the better. Suffice it to say that there is no bigger loot than the encroachment of public land by shopkeepers, residents, et al. Even the non-performing assets may pale in comparison to the loss of revenue due to encroachments. It is disheartening that no one bothers to keep the footpaths free for people to walk. The end result is that the poor pedestrians walk on the roads making them vulnerable to the fast moving traffic.
The threats mentioned above are not imaginary. The terrible Rajdhani train accident few days back highlights the utter neglect of safety in public movement. 120 people, supposedly well-to-do, perished in the accident. But the event was taken in a matter-of-factly way. The more accidents happen in India, the more they lose their relevance. It is like listening to news "BSE catches cold as NASDAQ sneezes; Two more die in fresh violence in Vadodra, CM blames Abu Salem who was caught in Portugal early this morning; Death toll in Rajdhani reaches 120."
In an interesting article "Cracks in the Tracks" (see http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/sep/19dilip.htm), the writter Dilip D'Souza highlighted how a small accident in Britain that killed only four people played havoc in the minds of the people. "The accident led to a national soul-searching that went beyond just rail accidents. How had this happened, how could it be prevented, what is the malaise with the rail system the world once envied? In fact, what is the malaise with the British themselves? The unsettling impression grew of Britain as an unsound country, weakly equipped, under-skilled, easily made chaotic and only superficially modern; an incompetent society. It was this, even more than the toll in the accident that got the English talking. What had happened to this advanced country, one that had once been the mightiest industrial and military power the world had ever seen, one that itself took the railway to large swathes of the world? Was it now really no more than an "incompetent society"?"
The bitching and cribbing can continue on and on. But I will stop here and come back to the original topic with which we started. The highway revolution started by PM Vajpayee and monitored by Major General B. B. Khanduri, Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways is going to be one of the biggest achievements of NDA government. With a staggering investment of 54,000 crore, India will have 5846km of Golden Quadilateral and 7300km of North-South-East-West built by the end of 2007. And for once, the work is going to finish before schedule.
Chachu (23/9/2002)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
But Pune is far far away from Delhi suburb where I reside. Around my house, there are no signs of state-of-the-art technological developments. Nor is it visible in my commute to my workplace. This despite the fact that a major part of my route lies within the country's capital Delhi. In fact, the way things are, there seems to be no state government and no art in the madness. Everyday, I encounter a number of potential situations that could lead to accidents, major or minor. While a comprehensive list could run into pages, let me list four important ones:
1. On a long empty stretch of road without any road divider or central verge, there is a speed breaker that extends only half the breadth. This awful design implies that one side of traffic moves without breaking, while other side is forced to cross the ill-designed breaker. Ideally, this is not a bad situation. But, and a big but, as there is no road divider the unfortunate motorists, in order to avoid the breaker, come on the wrong side displaying their headlights seeking permission to cross. This breach of rule is not limited to motorcycles or cars (yours truly included), but also includes buses and trucks. One day, no wonder I found a badly smashed car near the breaker.
2. Another serious breach of traffic rules is overloading by shuttle operators. They have found unique ways of carrying more passengers than the load the jeeps can take. For one, they extend the rear and sides so that people can stand on them and hang around. Then, they also fit a carrier on top of the jeep that is then used to seat around 8-10 people atop the jeep. Seeing people on the train top is not unusual (seeing them dance, like in the song in Dil Se, is exhilarating), but seeing them sit precariously on a jeep is really unnerving. The most bizarre part of this drama is that the overloaded jeeps have to cross the Delhi-Haryana border where police continuously monitor the traffic movement. But I have never seen anyone questioning the errant drivers. In fact, once when we were nine of us were going to office in a Qaulis, we were caught and challaned because the Qaulis had license to carry only 8. While the inspector demanded something for tea, not willing to file a challan, an overloaded jeep carrying around twenty people crossed us. For the inspector, nor the jeep nor the violation existed. His monthly premium was already paid by the jeep driver. Only when he extracted his quota from us did he leave us. Once, tired of being daily witness to the violation, I logged on to the site (http://www.delhitrafficpolice.nic.in/witness.htm) and lodged a complaint. The site did not offer any means for the complainant to track the progress of the complaint. The complaint was lodged by me long time back. Needless to say, the overloading continues unchecked, unstopped, and unseen. And only God or Delhi traffic police knows what happened to my complaint. Given the state of affairs, one day, and the day may not be far, one of the many such jeeps that ply will meet a serious accident and twenty will die. The newspaper will then say - "Twenty killed in an accident due to overloading". And then the routine enquiry followed by routing analysis. And within months, if not days, the file will be dumped in some public office and the soul of the dead will live in peace.
3. As monsoon ends, the roads have cracked and pot-holes have become the order of the day. The methods adopted for repairing the roads is so outdated and abysmal that one wonders whether we are in the twenty-first century or in the early ages. The pot-holes are first left to fester so that water can stagnate and eat the road. When the holes are big enough to cause a flutter, small stones are used to fill them. To hold the stones together, soil is used. It is no-brainer that a fresh spell of rains washes away the soil. What remains is a situation that is worse than one that existed before repairs. When the situation becomes beyond control, the road rollers are brought in. In the process, the height of road keeps rising and comes in level of the footpath.
4. Talking about footpath, the less said about them the better. Suffice it to say that there is no bigger loot than the encroachment of public land by shopkeepers, residents, et al. Even the non-performing assets may pale in comparison to the loss of revenue due to encroachments. It is disheartening that no one bothers to keep the footpaths free for people to walk. The end result is that the poor pedestrians walk on the roads making them vulnerable to the fast moving traffic.
The threats mentioned above are not imaginary. The terrible Rajdhani train accident few days back highlights the utter neglect of safety in public movement. 120 people, supposedly well-to-do, perished in the accident. But the event was taken in a matter-of-factly way. The more accidents happen in India, the more they lose their relevance. It is like listening to news "BSE catches cold as NASDAQ sneezes; Two more die in fresh violence in Vadodra, CM blames Abu Salem who was caught in Portugal early this morning; Death toll in Rajdhani reaches 120."
In an interesting article "Cracks in the Tracks" (see http://www.rediff.com/news/2002/sep/19dilip.htm), the writter Dilip D'Souza highlighted how a small accident in Britain that killed only four people played havoc in the minds of the people. "The accident led to a national soul-searching that went beyond just rail accidents. How had this happened, how could it be prevented, what is the malaise with the rail system the world once envied? In fact, what is the malaise with the British themselves? The unsettling impression grew of Britain as an unsound country, weakly equipped, under-skilled, easily made chaotic and only superficially modern; an incompetent society. It was this, even more than the toll in the accident that got the English talking. What had happened to this advanced country, one that had once been the mightiest industrial and military power the world had ever seen, one that itself took the railway to large swathes of the world? Was it now really no more than an "incompetent society"?"
The bitching and cribbing can continue on and on. But I will stop here and come back to the original topic with which we started. The highway revolution started by PM Vajpayee and monitored by Major General B. B. Khanduri, Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways is going to be one of the biggest achievements of NDA government. With a staggering investment of 54,000 crore, India will have 5846km of Golden Quadilateral and 7300km of North-South-East-West built by the end of 2007. And for once, the work is going to finish before schedule.
Chachu (23/9/2002)
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Wednesday, September 11, 2002
Chachu's Column #12: Of Sporting Stars "Dhanraj" and "Dravid"
Strange are the ways of the world. A man is awarded the best player in a tournament that is one of the premier international tournaments. But this achievement doesn't even find a mention in the leading newspapers. On the other hand, a double century scored in a drawn match in a drawn series gets front-page news and photograph. This is step motherly treatment to the former. But then who said life is fair.
So in this unfair world, let us stop innuendoes and come to the point. The 24th Champions trophy hockey concluded recently at Cologne, Germany. The event generated lot of interest among Indians because India was taking part in the tournament after a gap of many years. Champions trophy is a annual hockey tournament in which only top six teams of the world take part. Given the fact that only the best fight for the trophy, the event is viewed to be more exalted than the World Cup or Olympics. This time Germany, Holland, Australia, Pakistan, Korea, and India were the teams in fray. India’s best performance in the tournament till date was a bronze medal, that too two decades back. Given the strong opposition and an unfavorable pedigree, a good performance in the tournament meant a lot to India, a team that was trying its best to be back among the best.
The prelude to the tournament couldn't have been worse for India. India came last in the four nation Rabobank hockey tournament held at Amstelveen, Holland fews days before Champions trophy. The tournament was won by hosts Holland followed by Australia and Korea. Since all the three teams were taking part in Champions trophy (besides Germany and Pakistan), a last position at this tournament meant that India's chances in Champions trophy too were very slim.
However, in a remarkable turnaround, the first match saw India drawing against Holland 3-3, a team to which it had lost 2-5 only days back. India could have even won the match had it not conceded a last minute goal. Conceding last minutes goals became India's bane as this disturbing feature continued till its last match. In the next match, India repeated its mistake to lose to Germany 2-3. Germany on the other hand showed remarkable fighting strength and won 3-2 against India, Pakistan, and Australia by scoring last minute goals.
A solitary point in two matches did not augur well for India. The team that stood last was relegated from tournament and a new team was given chance. If India was relegated, it would have to wait for many years to gain entry. India's fortunes changed when in the next match it won 3-2 against Australia. But this win was not without its tensed moments as India conceded many penalty corners in the dying moments. Only a great goal keeping by Divesh Chauhan helped India maintain its lead. In the next match too, India continued its good form and won 3-2 against archrivals Pakistan.
With seven points from four matches, India had an outside chance of qualifying for the finals. But the calculation, as usually happens with India, did not prove favorable and the result of the next two matches meant that Germany and Holland qualified for the final. In an inconsequential match against Korea, India lost 2-4 in its last league match.
In the final standings after the league stage, India and Pakistan came third and fourth respectively to set up the bronze medal clash. Since India had won the first match, I had a gut feeling that India would lose this time. However, some fine conversions meant India leading 3-1 against Pakistan till the 53rd minute. But the lament that India lacks killer instinct proved to be true as India allowed Pakistan to score three goals in a matter of just five minutes. And from a score line of 3-1, much to the dismay and nightmare of Indian hockey fan, the scoreline read 3-4 after five minutes. The score line remained the same till the end as the hooter saw Pakistan fans cheering the victory of their team when it mattered most. "India loses when it mattered most" was what the next day's headlines screamed.
Coming to the analysis, I found India's shedding some of its perennial problems. The trapping of hockey ball was quite good and some of the counter attacks were breathtaking, especially the last goal against Holland. The passes were also short and quick. Penalty corner conversion was also decent with stars Jugraj Singh and Dilip Tirkey coming good on several occasions. Forwards Gagan Ajit Singh and Sandeep Thathur also showed lot of promise. The fact that most of the members were young and below twenty-two years of age implied that India is building a young hockey team that can serve India for many years.
However, the problem areas still remain; the biggest being the inability to consolidate upon lead and to come under heavy pressure from the opposition. The discipline was also lacking, especially in the last match against Korea. The highlight of India's foray in the competition was the award of "Best Player of the tournament" to India's mercurial forward Dhanraj Pillay. His ability to beat at least two or three defenders was a sight to watch. Now, that he is reaching 35, it is time the youngsters took his mantle and carry the responsibility forward. The tragic part of the award was that it was left for Dhanraj to proclaim himself in a featured article in Times of India that he authors that he had won the coveted award. All this happened while Dravid's double ton at Oval and ICC contract row hogged most of the
attention and front page news. For once I do not wish to glorify the double century and let the talking on cricket to be done by someone else.
Chachu (11/9/2002)
So in this unfair world, let us stop innuendoes and come to the point. The 24th Champions trophy hockey concluded recently at Cologne, Germany. The event generated lot of interest among Indians because India was taking part in the tournament after a gap of many years. Champions trophy is a annual hockey tournament in which only top six teams of the world take part. Given the fact that only the best fight for the trophy, the event is viewed to be more exalted than the World Cup or Olympics. This time Germany, Holland, Australia, Pakistan, Korea, and India were the teams in fray. India’s best performance in the tournament till date was a bronze medal, that too two decades back. Given the strong opposition and an unfavorable pedigree, a good performance in the tournament meant a lot to India, a team that was trying its best to be back among the best.
The prelude to the tournament couldn't have been worse for India. India came last in the four nation Rabobank hockey tournament held at Amstelveen, Holland fews days before Champions trophy. The tournament was won by hosts Holland followed by Australia and Korea. Since all the three teams were taking part in Champions trophy (besides Germany and Pakistan), a last position at this tournament meant that India's chances in Champions trophy too were very slim.
However, in a remarkable turnaround, the first match saw India drawing against Holland 3-3, a team to which it had lost 2-5 only days back. India could have even won the match had it not conceded a last minute goal. Conceding last minutes goals became India's bane as this disturbing feature continued till its last match. In the next match, India repeated its mistake to lose to Germany 2-3. Germany on the other hand showed remarkable fighting strength and won 3-2 against India, Pakistan, and Australia by scoring last minute goals.
A solitary point in two matches did not augur well for India. The team that stood last was relegated from tournament and a new team was given chance. If India was relegated, it would have to wait for many years to gain entry. India's fortunes changed when in the next match it won 3-2 against Australia. But this win was not without its tensed moments as India conceded many penalty corners in the dying moments. Only a great goal keeping by Divesh Chauhan helped India maintain its lead. In the next match too, India continued its good form and won 3-2 against archrivals Pakistan.
With seven points from four matches, India had an outside chance of qualifying for the finals. But the calculation, as usually happens with India, did not prove favorable and the result of the next two matches meant that Germany and Holland qualified for the final. In an inconsequential match against Korea, India lost 2-4 in its last league match.
In the final standings after the league stage, India and Pakistan came third and fourth respectively to set up the bronze medal clash. Since India had won the first match, I had a gut feeling that India would lose this time. However, some fine conversions meant India leading 3-1 against Pakistan till the 53rd minute. But the lament that India lacks killer instinct proved to be true as India allowed Pakistan to score three goals in a matter of just five minutes. And from a score line of 3-1, much to the dismay and nightmare of Indian hockey fan, the scoreline read 3-4 after five minutes. The score line remained the same till the end as the hooter saw Pakistan fans cheering the victory of their team when it mattered most. "India loses when it mattered most" was what the next day's headlines screamed.
Coming to the analysis, I found India's shedding some of its perennial problems. The trapping of hockey ball was quite good and some of the counter attacks were breathtaking, especially the last goal against Holland. The passes were also short and quick. Penalty corner conversion was also decent with stars Jugraj Singh and Dilip Tirkey coming good on several occasions. Forwards Gagan Ajit Singh and Sandeep Thathur also showed lot of promise. The fact that most of the members were young and below twenty-two years of age implied that India is building a young hockey team that can serve India for many years.
However, the problem areas still remain; the biggest being the inability to consolidate upon lead and to come under heavy pressure from the opposition. The discipline was also lacking, especially in the last match against Korea. The highlight of India's foray in the competition was the award of "Best Player of the tournament" to India's mercurial forward Dhanraj Pillay. His ability to beat at least two or three defenders was a sight to watch. Now, that he is reaching 35, it is time the youngsters took his mantle and carry the responsibility forward. The tragic part of the award was that it was left for Dhanraj to proclaim himself in a featured article in Times of India that he authors that he had won the coveted award. All this happened while Dravid's double ton at Oval and ICC contract row hogged most of the
attention and front page news. For once I do not wish to glorify the double century and let the talking on cricket to be done by someone else.
Chachu (11/9/2002)
Tuesday, August 13, 2002
Chachu's Column #11: Of Commonwealth, Asian and Olympic Games
A sudden Euphoria has gripped Indian sporting arena. First it was Lords where two young lads, Kaif and Yovraj, led India to a sensational victory in the Natwest Trophy. Not only the victory ended India's drought of umpteenth final loss, it also made India register their highest second innings winning score. (The subsequent loss in the First test against England and the last-day fight back to save the Second test notwithstanding, Indian cricket team is now viewed as a candidate to lift the World Cup). Then, the Indian Football team won the LG cup held in Vietnam a week back. This was the first major tournament win for the football team in three decades; this augurs well for the future.
If this was not enough, the Indian Contingent picked up a rich of haul of medals to come third in the recently concluded Seventeenth Commonwealth games held at Manchester. Leading the pack were the shooting stars Jaspal Rana (4 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 bronze) and Anjali (Vedpathak) Bhagwat (4Golds). Apart from these two, there were many others shooters who contributed to the Indian kitty, enabling India to collect 14 Golds from shooting. Then there were weightlifters, mainly women, who helped India collect 13 Golds from the event. N Kunjarani Devi, Sanamacha Chanu, and Shailaja Pujari made a clean sweep in Clean and Jerk, Snatch and Overall categories to pick three Golds apiece. Pratima Kumari and Sateesh Rai also picked two golds each. Three gold in wrestling, one in Boxing, and one in Women's hockey enabled India to come third overall with 32 Gold, 21 Silver, and 19 Bronze. This was a vast improvement from the showing in previous Commonwealth games held at Kuala Lampur in 1998. There, India had come eighth and had managed 25 medals including 7 golds.
Among the medal winners, the most commendable performance came from India's Women hockey team. The Indian team won the Gold facing stiff opposition from highly fancied teams like Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa. Despite the strong opposition, Indian team overcame all obstacles to win in a rather dramatic fashion. In the finals, the teams were tied 2-2 at full time. In the extra time, the lanky forward Mamta Kharab scored through a rebound in penalty corner after the hooter had blown. The referee disallowed the goal. Now, as per the rules, the penalty is not complete till the ball is out of D. As the ball was within the D, play was on despite the hooter having blown. Thus, the technical team awarded the goal to India, much to the delight of India contingent. The fighting spirit was not limited to the final. Even in the league stage, India was down 3-0 against South Africa. However, in a remarkable comeback India overcame the deficit and eventually defeated South Africa 4-3 to enter semis. In semis too, India were down by 1-0 against New Zealand. But in that match too, the team came from behind to defeat New Zealand 2-1. Overall, it was a remarkable performance and the Men's hockey team could take a leaf from their women counterpart. You may wonder what happened to the Men's team in Commonwealth games. The answer is that they could not qualify for the tournament as only one team qualified from Asia, and that team was Pakistan because of their better performance in Sydney Olympics.
The glory of the rich haul of medals was however marred by the positive dope test of 62 kg lifter Krishnan Madasamy, who was stripped of three silver medals. There were also reports that another weightlifter, Sateesh Rai, was tested positive. This report was not confirmed though.
In the media, there has been speculation as to what this achievement at Commonwealth games implies ¾ Whether this performance will be repeated in the Asian Games, which is to be held at Busan later this year ¾ Whether Indian athletes can match the skill, stamina and speed of nimble-footed Korean, Chinese and Japanese, the three sporting superpowers in Asia. While the debate will continue till Indians prove or disprove the critics the wrong, there is no denying the fact that the haul has brought rich financial gains. The Indian Government announced a cash award of 20lakhs for Gold, 15lakhs for Silver and 10lakhs for Bronze medal. Such prize money implies that some of the winning athletes (like Jaspal Rana) will pick more than a crore of rupee. Given the poor monetary rewards that have traditionally accompanied sporting success, such handsome payouts will go a long way in making sports as a lucrative career.
If reports are to be believed, the Indian Government has also announced a prize money of 1crore for anyone winning a gold at Olympics to be held in Athens, 2004. This is a huge amount, and many organizations including the Army and the railway men have started preparing for the Olympics. Historically, the performance of India in Olympics has been abysmal. With a population of 1 billion, there is that oft-lamented refrain that even 1 billion people cannot bag an Olympic Gold. Till now, no Indian individual has bagged more than a Bronze medal. In team events, the Indian Hockey team has won many a gold medals, including six consecutive Gold medals in years 1928, 1932, 1936, 1940, 1952, and 1956. After that, India again won Gold in 1964 and 1980. However, after 1980, Indian hockey has failed to retain its premier position that it once occupied.
In the Individual events, Norman Pritchard, an Anglo-Indian from Calcutta, was the first Indian athlete ever to win an Olympic medal. He won silver in the 200 metres sprint and 200 metres hurdles events in 1900 Olympics. However, his name hardly finds a mention in various discussions. Post-independence, the first Indian to win a medal was the wrestler K D Jadhav. Jadhav won a bronze medal, in the bantamweight category in 1952 Olympics at Helsinki, Finland. After that, India had to wait for 44 years for another individual medal. This time, it was India's very own Davis Cup star and hard-core patriot Leander Peas, who won India a bronze medal in Tennis at Atlanta Games, 1996. In the next games held at Sydney in year 2000, India retained its medal haul of 1 bronze when Karnam Malleswari won the bronze with a total lift of 240 kg in the women's 69 kg weightlifting. Apart from Jadhav, Leander, and Malleswari, when it is Olympics, only two other Indians find a mention. The first of them is Flying Sikh, Milkha Singh who finished fourth in a photofinish in the Rome Olympics in 1960. The other Indian is, who else, but Payolli Express P. T. Usha who finished fourth in 400 meters race by one-hundredth of a second at Los Angeles Olympics in 1984. Apart from these handful of athletes, hardly any other Indian has made his/her presence felt. What the 2004 Olympics at Athens holds for India, only time can tell. But it is not too optimistic to believe that India just might better its performance of 1996 and 2000 Olympics. And if not Olympics, the Busan Asiad might just be the platform where the Indian sporting flag flies high.
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Chachu (13/8/2002)
If this was not enough, the Indian Contingent picked up a rich of haul of medals to come third in the recently concluded Seventeenth Commonwealth games held at Manchester. Leading the pack were the shooting stars Jaspal Rana (4 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 bronze) and Anjali (Vedpathak) Bhagwat (4Golds). Apart from these two, there were many others shooters who contributed to the Indian kitty, enabling India to collect 14 Golds from shooting. Then there were weightlifters, mainly women, who helped India collect 13 Golds from the event. N Kunjarani Devi, Sanamacha Chanu, and Shailaja Pujari made a clean sweep in Clean and Jerk, Snatch and Overall categories to pick three Golds apiece. Pratima Kumari and Sateesh Rai also picked two golds each. Three gold in wrestling, one in Boxing, and one in Women's hockey enabled India to come third overall with 32 Gold, 21 Silver, and 19 Bronze. This was a vast improvement from the showing in previous Commonwealth games held at Kuala Lampur in 1998. There, India had come eighth and had managed 25 medals including 7 golds.
Among the medal winners, the most commendable performance came from India's Women hockey team. The Indian team won the Gold facing stiff opposition from highly fancied teams like Australia, New Zealand, England and South Africa. Despite the strong opposition, Indian team overcame all obstacles to win in a rather dramatic fashion. In the finals, the teams were tied 2-2 at full time. In the extra time, the lanky forward Mamta Kharab scored through a rebound in penalty corner after the hooter had blown. The referee disallowed the goal. Now, as per the rules, the penalty is not complete till the ball is out of D. As the ball was within the D, play was on despite the hooter having blown. Thus, the technical team awarded the goal to India, much to the delight of India contingent. The fighting spirit was not limited to the final. Even in the league stage, India was down 3-0 against South Africa. However, in a remarkable comeback India overcame the deficit and eventually defeated South Africa 4-3 to enter semis. In semis too, India were down by 1-0 against New Zealand. But in that match too, the team came from behind to defeat New Zealand 2-1. Overall, it was a remarkable performance and the Men's hockey team could take a leaf from their women counterpart. You may wonder what happened to the Men's team in Commonwealth games. The answer is that they could not qualify for the tournament as only one team qualified from Asia, and that team was Pakistan because of their better performance in Sydney Olympics.
The glory of the rich haul of medals was however marred by the positive dope test of 62 kg lifter Krishnan Madasamy, who was stripped of three silver medals. There were also reports that another weightlifter, Sateesh Rai, was tested positive. This report was not confirmed though.
In the media, there has been speculation as to what this achievement at Commonwealth games implies ¾ Whether this performance will be repeated in the Asian Games, which is to be held at Busan later this year ¾ Whether Indian athletes can match the skill, stamina and speed of nimble-footed Korean, Chinese and Japanese, the three sporting superpowers in Asia. While the debate will continue till Indians prove or disprove the critics the wrong, there is no denying the fact that the haul has brought rich financial gains. The Indian Government announced a cash award of 20lakhs for Gold, 15lakhs for Silver and 10lakhs for Bronze medal. Such prize money implies that some of the winning athletes (like Jaspal Rana) will pick more than a crore of rupee. Given the poor monetary rewards that have traditionally accompanied sporting success, such handsome payouts will go a long way in making sports as a lucrative career.
If reports are to be believed, the Indian Government has also announced a prize money of 1crore for anyone winning a gold at Olympics to be held in Athens, 2004. This is a huge amount, and many organizations including the Army and the railway men have started preparing for the Olympics. Historically, the performance of India in Olympics has been abysmal. With a population of 1 billion, there is that oft-lamented refrain that even 1 billion people cannot bag an Olympic Gold. Till now, no Indian individual has bagged more than a Bronze medal. In team events, the Indian Hockey team has won many a gold medals, including six consecutive Gold medals in years 1928, 1932, 1936, 1940, 1952, and 1956. After that, India again won Gold in 1964 and 1980. However, after 1980, Indian hockey has failed to retain its premier position that it once occupied.
In the Individual events, Norman Pritchard, an Anglo-Indian from Calcutta, was the first Indian athlete ever to win an Olympic medal. He won silver in the 200 metres sprint and 200 metres hurdles events in 1900 Olympics. However, his name hardly finds a mention in various discussions. Post-independence, the first Indian to win a medal was the wrestler K D Jadhav. Jadhav won a bronze medal, in the bantamweight category in 1952 Olympics at Helsinki, Finland. After that, India had to wait for 44 years for another individual medal. This time, it was India's very own Davis Cup star and hard-core patriot Leander Peas, who won India a bronze medal in Tennis at Atlanta Games, 1996. In the next games held at Sydney in year 2000, India retained its medal haul of 1 bronze when Karnam Malleswari won the bronze with a total lift of 240 kg in the women's 69 kg weightlifting. Apart from Jadhav, Leander, and Malleswari, when it is Olympics, only two other Indians find a mention. The first of them is Flying Sikh, Milkha Singh who finished fourth in a photofinish in the Rome Olympics in 1960. The other Indian is, who else, but Payolli Express P. T. Usha who finished fourth in 400 meters race by one-hundredth of a second at Los Angeles Olympics in 1984. Apart from these handful of athletes, hardly any other Indian has made his/her presence felt. What the 2004 Olympics at Athens holds for India, only time can tell. But it is not too optimistic to believe that India just might better its performance of 1996 and 2000 Olympics. And if not Olympics, the Busan Asiad might just be the platform where the Indian sporting flag flies high.
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Chachu (13/8/2002)
Sunday, July 28, 2002
Chachu's Column #10: Of Delhi and Parivartan
Last year when CNG was mandated for commercial vehicles in Delhi, I was happy. Happy because finally someone, in this case judiciary, was addressing the environmental issues facing the country. Now, however, that decision along with couple of similar such rulings passed by Supreme Court (SC) has threatened our daily bread and butter. What is the connection you may ask? The point is that my father is the president of a Glass factory, a factory that uses CNG as fuel for its furnace. A CNG pipeline terminated directly at the factory, making the location of the Glass factory quite strategic. This strategic location translated into higher profitability. Now, however, the pipeline runs dry; instead, the CNG is used to satisfy the ever-growing demand for the commercial vehicles of Delhi. The lone decision of stopping supply of CNG to the industries and diverting it for transport industry has reduced the profits of the Glass factory by crores.
If this blow was not enough, the SC came with another judgement that has broken the backbone of the Glass factory. The SC has prohibited trucks not destined to Delhi from entering Delhi. In simple terms, this means that if your truck has nothing to deliver in Delhi, it will not be allowed to enter Delhi. Geographically, Delhi has a very central location. It is surrounded by Rajasthan and Haryana in West/South/South-West, Uttar Pradesh in East/South-East, and Punjab in North. Given this geography, inter-state transport generally requires transit through Delhi. A ban on inter-state transit means routes that earlier were of 60km, will now shoot to 150km. The distance is not the only problem. Most of the alternate routes have very poor infrastructure in terms of road quality, width and the ability to carry heavy trucks. Then there is ignorance, which means that many truck drivers are not aware of this change in rules. All this means the decision is a nightmare for truck-drivers and entrepreneurs alike.
What is my grudge you may ask? First, does a state have the right to ban movement of trucks in its administrative territories? What if tomorrow, large states like Uttar Pradesh or Madhya Pradesh ban trucks that have nothing to do with them? Does a state have such a right? In the beginning of this year, India had banned Pakistan flights from over flying India. The decision had cost Pakistan Airlines dear. Now, we see similar measures within India, hurting Indian industries severely. Second, what makes Delhi so special to take such arbitrary decision? With due respect to Supreme Court, any decision must take into account the ground realities. However, in India, rules are made first. Implementation is an after thought. If there was a third ring road in Delhi's periphery that provided unrestricted movement of inter-state trucks, this decision might not have been so harsh. But without adequate arrangements, the benefits of the decision are subverted by the hardships faced by the masses.
The case of CNG supply is no different. Despite SC's ruling, there are still long queues to be seen at CNG stations. Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), the company responsible for CNG supply, and Delhi government, continuously fight with each other for CNG supply. And the Auto owners brave the Delhi's severe heat and cold to fill their fuel tanks.
Then, the country is facing a drought. Each state is queuing up at the Center with a begging bowl; each demanding help to face droughts. The ones with greater clout will take away a greater share of the loot. Some states are facing floods, and the reaction is no different. Give us grant so that we can bail the poor. Are the poor really bailed?
At the end of it all, one is forced to ask how decisions are implemented in India? Can the roads be not made before the trucks are banned? Can the CNG stations not made before the deadline for diesel expires? Can the states and center not take adequate action so that the damage inflicted by nature's calamity is limited, whatever the state of monsoons be. Should the farce be repeated time and time again? Can there be no planning before a decision? Can the entrepreneurs be not informed a priori about the decisions that affect their very existence? Should everything be made a hotchpotch before a damage saving exercise begins?
Among these days of poor governance, there is an NGO that is doing some great work for the common man. This NGO, Parivartan, fights for right of the masses. Find below two examples where Parivartan have brought about a change using the Right of Information as their tool. Visit them at www.parivartan.com
* Parivartan has been working in a slum in Delhi called Sundernagari. The Kerosene Depots in this slum do not open regularly. Even when they open, they issue only 4 litres against an entitlement of 7 litres. About 15 women from the community raided one such shop last month and asked him to mend himself. That day, the oil in that shop was distributed by an old woman, who was put behind the counter by the raiding party. Everyone that day got the right quantity of oil at the right price. This incident galvanised a whole lot of others in that community, who then would themselves collect the people in their area and threaten other ration shopkeepers to mend themselves. Two such cases have been told to us by the residents in the last few days, where the women raised their voice against other shopkeeprs as well and forced them to mend, this time, without Parivartan's help.
* Similarly, there has been a drastic improvement in sanitary conditions of some areas in Sundernagari and Pandav nagar, where Parivartan is working for the last few months. This has become possible through the use of Right to Information. Earlier, the sweepers would not come at all and the citizens were not even aware of who the sweeper was and whom to complain. The residents now obtained the copies of attendance registers of sweepers and their jurisdictions. They started monitoring whether the sweeper actually comes and whether he is marked present if he does not come. In one such beat in Sundernagari, earlier, almost no sweeper was seen. Now, out of a total of 51 sweepers in that beat, 29 have started coming regularly for the job and others are marked absent. This has created a lot of furore amongst the sweepers. They gheraoed Parivartan workers and local residents twice, when they threatened of dire consequences if this work was not stopped. Last week, the sweepers invited us for a meeting with them. When we went there, about 100 sweepers gheraoed us and started threatening us. But these are all empty threats. However, it is not the sweepers who are at fault. It is their inspectors, whose corrupt incomes have taken a plunge, who are instigating them. In some informal meetings with some sweepers, we did try to explain to them that it was in their own interest that they cooperate with us. The sweepers are themselves an exploited lot and their cooperation with us would help their own interests in the long run. This absentism from duty is a racket called Lahori system in their parlance in which the sweepers do not come for work and share a part of their salary with their supervisor for marking him present. It is this system, which is responsible for pathetic sanitary conditions in Delhi.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (28/7/2002)
If this blow was not enough, the SC came with another judgement that has broken the backbone of the Glass factory. The SC has prohibited trucks not destined to Delhi from entering Delhi. In simple terms, this means that if your truck has nothing to deliver in Delhi, it will not be allowed to enter Delhi. Geographically, Delhi has a very central location. It is surrounded by Rajasthan and Haryana in West/South/South-West, Uttar Pradesh in East/South-East, and Punjab in North. Given this geography, inter-state transport generally requires transit through Delhi. A ban on inter-state transit means routes that earlier were of 60km, will now shoot to 150km. The distance is not the only problem. Most of the alternate routes have very poor infrastructure in terms of road quality, width and the ability to carry heavy trucks. Then there is ignorance, which means that many truck drivers are not aware of this change in rules. All this means the decision is a nightmare for truck-drivers and entrepreneurs alike.
What is my grudge you may ask? First, does a state have the right to ban movement of trucks in its administrative territories? What if tomorrow, large states like Uttar Pradesh or Madhya Pradesh ban trucks that have nothing to do with them? Does a state have such a right? In the beginning of this year, India had banned Pakistan flights from over flying India. The decision had cost Pakistan Airlines dear. Now, we see similar measures within India, hurting Indian industries severely. Second, what makes Delhi so special to take such arbitrary decision? With due respect to Supreme Court, any decision must take into account the ground realities. However, in India, rules are made first. Implementation is an after thought. If there was a third ring road in Delhi's periphery that provided unrestricted movement of inter-state trucks, this decision might not have been so harsh. But without adequate arrangements, the benefits of the decision are subverted by the hardships faced by the masses.
The case of CNG supply is no different. Despite SC's ruling, there are still long queues to be seen at CNG stations. Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL), the company responsible for CNG supply, and Delhi government, continuously fight with each other for CNG supply. And the Auto owners brave the Delhi's severe heat and cold to fill their fuel tanks.
Then, the country is facing a drought. Each state is queuing up at the Center with a begging bowl; each demanding help to face droughts. The ones with greater clout will take away a greater share of the loot. Some states are facing floods, and the reaction is no different. Give us grant so that we can bail the poor. Are the poor really bailed?
At the end of it all, one is forced to ask how decisions are implemented in India? Can the roads be not made before the trucks are banned? Can the CNG stations not made before the deadline for diesel expires? Can the states and center not take adequate action so that the damage inflicted by nature's calamity is limited, whatever the state of monsoons be. Should the farce be repeated time and time again? Can there be no planning before a decision? Can the entrepreneurs be not informed a priori about the decisions that affect their very existence? Should everything be made a hotchpotch before a damage saving exercise begins?
Among these days of poor governance, there is an NGO that is doing some great work for the common man. This NGO, Parivartan, fights for right of the masses. Find below two examples where Parivartan have brought about a change using the Right of Information as their tool. Visit them at www.parivartan.com
* Parivartan has been working in a slum in Delhi called Sundernagari. The Kerosene Depots in this slum do not open regularly. Even when they open, they issue only 4 litres against an entitlement of 7 litres. About 15 women from the community raided one such shop last month and asked him to mend himself. That day, the oil in that shop was distributed by an old woman, who was put behind the counter by the raiding party. Everyone that day got the right quantity of oil at the right price. This incident galvanised a whole lot of others in that community, who then would themselves collect the people in their area and threaten other ration shopkeepers to mend themselves. Two such cases have been told to us by the residents in the last few days, where the women raised their voice against other shopkeeprs as well and forced them to mend, this time, without Parivartan's help.
* Similarly, there has been a drastic improvement in sanitary conditions of some areas in Sundernagari and Pandav nagar, where Parivartan is working for the last few months. This has become possible through the use of Right to Information. Earlier, the sweepers would not come at all and the citizens were not even aware of who the sweeper was and whom to complain. The residents now obtained the copies of attendance registers of sweepers and their jurisdictions. They started monitoring whether the sweeper actually comes and whether he is marked present if he does not come. In one such beat in Sundernagari, earlier, almost no sweeper was seen. Now, out of a total of 51 sweepers in that beat, 29 have started coming regularly for the job and others are marked absent. This has created a lot of furore amongst the sweepers. They gheraoed Parivartan workers and local residents twice, when they threatened of dire consequences if this work was not stopped. Last week, the sweepers invited us for a meeting with them. When we went there, about 100 sweepers gheraoed us and started threatening us. But these are all empty threats. However, it is not the sweepers who are at fault. It is their inspectors, whose corrupt incomes have taken a plunge, who are instigating them. In some informal meetings with some sweepers, we did try to explain to them that it was in their own interest that they cooperate with us. The sweepers are themselves an exploited lot and their cooperation with us would help their own interests in the long run. This absentism from duty is a racket called Lahori system in their parlance in which the sweepers do not come for work and share a part of their salary with their supervisor for marking him present. It is this system, which is responsible for pathetic sanitary conditions in Delhi.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (28/7/2002)
Saturday, July 13, 2002
Chachu's Column #9: Of Dhirubhai, Politicians and Cricket
The last week saw the demise of one of the greatest industrialist of contemporary times ¾ Dhirubhai Ambani. The who's who of Indian politics, Industry tycoons and Bollywood celebrities made a beeline to pay the last homage to the great man. The TV channels and newspapers were flooded with obituaries reminding us the greatness of the man and how from being a gas station attendant, he rose to build a staggering empire worth 60,000 crore, now run by his sons. Ordinary people like us always ask the question ¾ What is the secret behind this extraordinaire rags-to-riches story? Why, while thousands of people dream, only few succeed. And even among those who succeed, only very very very few rise to the heights as that conquered by Dhirubhai Ambani. The secret was let out by the employees of the Reliance Company in a very subtle fashion. After the death of Dhirubhai Ambani, a notice was put at Reliance notice board expressing dismay and shock at the demise of Dhirubhai. The Reliance employees, in a remarkable gesture to show the solidarity towards their deceased leader, went on to work more than expected from them. The gesture was symbolic of the values imbibed by Dhirubhai who said he could retire only after death. I was truly inspired by the gesture. But this is not the end of the story. In a start contrast, a section of Gujrati businessman, decided to keep their business houses closed for a day to express their grief over the death of their role model. I just wished the businessman had the sensibility to take a cue from the Reliance employees, who went to do more work not less. Lot more can be said about this, but I will keep it till here.
Among other news, the politicians these days are showing remarkable solidarity for an issue that is threatening their very existence. Supreme Court (SC) some time back passed a judgement whereby candidates contesting elections were required to provide information necessary for the voters to decide their representatives. The information included educational qualifications, criminal precedents, and information about the assets held by them as well as their spouse/dependents. After the judgement, the Election Commission passed an order thereby implementing SC's order. However, the move made the politicians jittery. They proclaimed that they were supreme in their own sense, and that no orders from Supreme Court were required. Soon, legal analysts were brought in to find means to subvert the orders of SC. Finally a clause was found. The order had said, "In the absence of a suitable law". What if a law was made that suited the interests of the politicians. An all-party meeting was called and everyone unanimously agreed that Election Commission had arrogated the powers of the legislature. They then decided to bring a law that mandated that some of the information had to be furnished after the candidate was elected. Now, this law has two basic fallacies. Firstly, the original intention of providing means for the electorate to base their decision on solid facts was peacefully forgotten. Secondly, once the candidate was selected, there was very little chance of him/her losing her seat, notwithstanding whatever information they furnished. That is, if they ever furnish any information. In UP assembly, when such information was asked, only 6 out of the 400 odd members responded. God save the country from the self-serving politicians.
Lastly, today was a big day for Indian cricket. Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh showed a remarkable temperament to help India successfully chase a gigantic England total of 325 and lift the Natwest trophy. Kaif, who was not out on 87, was declared Man-of-the-match. The win was particularly important because through this win India broke the jinx of being chokers, as, preceding this victory, they had lost 9 successive finals on the trot. Today too, when India were 140 odd for five down, I had lost all hope. And I dreaded that along with two pieces of news that I have shared with you above, I would have had to share third bad news too. But Kaif made my day and India won a thriller. For once, three cheers to Indian cricket team, and especially to the young tigers like Kaif, Yuvraj, Sehwag and Zaheer. Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (13/7/2002)
Among other news, the politicians these days are showing remarkable solidarity for an issue that is threatening their very existence. Supreme Court (SC) some time back passed a judgement whereby candidates contesting elections were required to provide information necessary for the voters to decide their representatives. The information included educational qualifications, criminal precedents, and information about the assets held by them as well as their spouse/dependents. After the judgement, the Election Commission passed an order thereby implementing SC's order. However, the move made the politicians jittery. They proclaimed that they were supreme in their own sense, and that no orders from Supreme Court were required. Soon, legal analysts were brought in to find means to subvert the orders of SC. Finally a clause was found. The order had said, "In the absence of a suitable law". What if a law was made that suited the interests of the politicians. An all-party meeting was called and everyone unanimously agreed that Election Commission had arrogated the powers of the legislature. They then decided to bring a law that mandated that some of the information had to be furnished after the candidate was elected. Now, this law has two basic fallacies. Firstly, the original intention of providing means for the electorate to base their decision on solid facts was peacefully forgotten. Secondly, once the candidate was selected, there was very little chance of him/her losing her seat, notwithstanding whatever information they furnished. That is, if they ever furnish any information. In UP assembly, when such information was asked, only 6 out of the 400 odd members responded. God save the country from the self-serving politicians.
Lastly, today was a big day for Indian cricket. Mohammad Kaif and Yuvraj Singh showed a remarkable temperament to help India successfully chase a gigantic England total of 325 and lift the Natwest trophy. Kaif, who was not out on 87, was declared Man-of-the-match. The win was particularly important because through this win India broke the jinx of being chokers, as, preceding this victory, they had lost 9 successive finals on the trot. Today too, when India were 140 odd for five down, I had lost all hope. And I dreaded that along with two pieces of news that I have shared with you above, I would have had to share third bad news too. But Kaif made my day and India won a thriller. For once, three cheers to Indian cricket team, and especially to the young tigers like Kaif, Yuvraj, Sehwag and Zaheer. Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip hurray!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (13/7/2002)
Saturday, June 22, 2002
Chachu’s Column #8: Of Fabulous E-tailing Sites
Even when the stories of dot-com busts still abound the Internet fraternity, the e-tailing business has made slow but good progress in the country. The success of Amazon.com (for online purchase) and ebay.com (for online auction) are case in point. E-tailing, in simple terms, refers to purchase of goods over the Internet. Some five years ago, our Computer Science professor had to buy a very important book. However, he was too loath to give his credit card information over the Internet. The apprehensions were obvious. What if someone siphoned off his credit card number? In the end, his fears won and he did not buy the book. A couple of years later, I too find myself in dire need of buying few books from Amazon.com. I consulted an old gentlemen and a mentor to me about the efficacy of the idea. He was quite upbeat about the idea and said his experience was overall quite good. He had once ordered books from Amazon, which unfortunately took a very long time to get delivered. When the shipment did not arrive even after an inordinate delay, my friend informed the vendor, who promptly dispatched the shipment once again. After few days, my friend had two copies of all the books he had ordered. When the vendor was informed about this, a reply came that both the orders be kept, as it was not economically viable to return the books back to US. In summary, the dealing was based on trust and the experience was overall quite satisfactory. I too, spurred by his experiences, brought books from Amazon without any problems. Just that I used dollar cheque instead of credit card. Some more time passed and my penchant to surf the Internet brought me to Fabmart.com (meaning "fabulous mart"). I did hunt for books and put them in a shopping cart. However, I did not bother to buy them. Some six months later, I landed on the site once again, only to see my account still there and the shopping cart intact having the books I had collected months ago. Finally, I mustered enough courage to give my credit card number, and everything went fine. For net transactions, apart from the customary credit card number and expiry date, the vendors do seek a 3-digit number that is printed adjacent to the main number on the card. This number does not appear when the card is swiped, thereby providing an additional level of security. The transaction went smoothly and all the books arrived in around a week's time. Now, apart from credit card, there are various other options like cheques, bank drafts and direct payment from bank account (using ICICI's Infinity and HDFC's netbanking facility).Since then, I have brought books and cassettes worth more than six thousand rupees of. My membership level (akin to the the frequent flier status in aviation industry) has been elevated from silver to gold, whereby I get additional reward points. The elevation also gave
me 100 bonus points, each point being worth a rupee. The good part of the reward program is that it is simple. In most cases, I find the points having no relationship with money, thereby confusing the customer. In Fabmart, however, rules are simple. 1 point is 1 rupee. The points are redeemable at the site itself. Apart from the reward points, I have often found that when orders are shipped, the bill comes with a small surprise. It says "You have saved XYZ on this order". The XYZ is an additional discount offered by the vendor after the order is placed. This discount is then credited to the account of the customer. In normal circumstances too, Fabmart offers discount ranging from 0% to 25%. The surprises are over and above that. In last few years, Fabmart has made rapid progress. It now offers hosts of goods, which include books, cassettes, music videos, watches, Jewelry, computers and accessories, Internet connections, and even groceries (which is shipped to certain areas only). While
prices are competitive, the quality of goods is generally good. While I wonder whether people opt for purchase of durables like computers over the Internet, the market for books and cassettes is really large. The obvious proof being that there are at least half a dozen sites, including SIFY mall, Indiatimes, FirstandSecond, selling these items.They key to success in e-tailing business is that customers trust should never be betrayed. Moreover, his/her words should be accorded the greatest importance. Like in the case of my friend's purchase from Amazon, the small gesture from the vendor reinforced my friend's faith in e-purchase, thereby motivating others to choose that option without any fear. The reason for this is that the items are not visible to the customer till the payment has been made and items are shipped. A dubious vendor may ship poor quality goods and the customer is then forced to live with it. As a good business practice, the vendor should not ship such goods. In the remote case such omission does occur, a support system should be in place whereby defective items can be replaced or can be shipped again. Another important aspect of e-tailing is customer care. In fact, as brand differentiation diminishes, a good customer care becomes one of the key USPs of a company. In this regard, Fabmart, like most others provides an efficient email based customer care. The telephonic
option exists, but that implies making an STD to Bangalore. However, in most cases, the email option is suffice. Earlier, a live chat facility existed at Fabmart. That facility, however, has now been stopped.
In general, my experience with Fabmart has been quite good, as I have never received a defective shipment. The customer care too has been prompt and efficient. There has been just once exception when I lodged a complaint regarding incorrect calculation of reward points and the customer care executive gave a rude email response stating that the calculations were correct. The response left me flabbergasted as I held high regards for the company. However, the matter was set straight when a week later, I received another email. The vendor sought apologies for the previous response and accepted the mistake. The reward history was later corrected and I found around 200 reward points in my account, which allowed me to do shopping worth that amount totally free.
However, the same cannot be said for another e-tailing site, which I would not like to name. I ordered a book, 'Coolie', by Mulk Raj Anand from that site. When I received the order, it turned out to be the critical study of the book by Ramji Lal. The mistake was repeated with another book by Mulk Raj Anand. My attempts to get the book replaced were in vain and the two critical study still lie
in my drawer, being of no use. The same vendor also sponsors a quiz, in which I was lucky to be a winner, a couple of times. There too, my experience was not very good. While the vendor claimed a collection of millions of books, the winners of the quiz could buy only from a accelerated delivery store that contained the most pathetic collection of books including strange titles like "Harvesting in
Israel". In that pathetic collection, I did manage to order three books. However, even after one month, I did not receive any books. In a fit of anger, I emailed the vendor lambasting it that it should immediately get out of the business of sponsoring quizzes and that the whole process was a sham. The vitriolic mail got a polite reply stating that "The vendor appreciated my patience and the books would
be dispatched soon." The polite reply was definitely a saving grace. Within four days, I received the books. For once I appreciated the fact that the customer had won a battle, the several losses notwithstanding.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (22/6/2002)
me 100 bonus points, each point being worth a rupee. The good part of the reward program is that it is simple. In most cases, I find the points having no relationship with money, thereby confusing the customer. In Fabmart, however, rules are simple. 1 point is 1 rupee. The points are redeemable at the site itself. Apart from the reward points, I have often found that when orders are shipped, the bill comes with a small surprise. It says "You have saved XYZ on this order". The XYZ is an additional discount offered by the vendor after the order is placed. This discount is then credited to the account of the customer. In normal circumstances too, Fabmart offers discount ranging from 0% to 25%. The surprises are over and above that. In last few years, Fabmart has made rapid progress. It now offers hosts of goods, which include books, cassettes, music videos, watches, Jewelry, computers and accessories, Internet connections, and even groceries (which is shipped to certain areas only). While
prices are competitive, the quality of goods is generally good. While I wonder whether people opt for purchase of durables like computers over the Internet, the market for books and cassettes is really large. The obvious proof being that there are at least half a dozen sites, including SIFY mall, Indiatimes, FirstandSecond, selling these items.They key to success in e-tailing business is that customers trust should never be betrayed. Moreover, his/her words should be accorded the greatest importance. Like in the case of my friend's purchase from Amazon, the small gesture from the vendor reinforced my friend's faith in e-purchase, thereby motivating others to choose that option without any fear. The reason for this is that the items are not visible to the customer till the payment has been made and items are shipped. A dubious vendor may ship poor quality goods and the customer is then forced to live with it. As a good business practice, the vendor should not ship such goods. In the remote case such omission does occur, a support system should be in place whereby defective items can be replaced or can be shipped again. Another important aspect of e-tailing is customer care. In fact, as brand differentiation diminishes, a good customer care becomes one of the key USPs of a company. In this regard, Fabmart, like most others provides an efficient email based customer care. The telephonic
option exists, but that implies making an STD to Bangalore. However, in most cases, the email option is suffice. Earlier, a live chat facility existed at Fabmart. That facility, however, has now been stopped.
In general, my experience with Fabmart has been quite good, as I have never received a defective shipment. The customer care too has been prompt and efficient. There has been just once exception when I lodged a complaint regarding incorrect calculation of reward points and the customer care executive gave a rude email response stating that the calculations were correct. The response left me flabbergasted as I held high regards for the company. However, the matter was set straight when a week later, I received another email. The vendor sought apologies for the previous response and accepted the mistake. The reward history was later corrected and I found around 200 reward points in my account, which allowed me to do shopping worth that amount totally free.
However, the same cannot be said for another e-tailing site, which I would not like to name. I ordered a book, 'Coolie', by Mulk Raj Anand from that site. When I received the order, it turned out to be the critical study of the book by Ramji Lal. The mistake was repeated with another book by Mulk Raj Anand. My attempts to get the book replaced were in vain and the two critical study still lie
in my drawer, being of no use. The same vendor also sponsors a quiz, in which I was lucky to be a winner, a couple of times. There too, my experience was not very good. While the vendor claimed a collection of millions of books, the winners of the quiz could buy only from a accelerated delivery store that contained the most pathetic collection of books including strange titles like "Harvesting in
Israel". In that pathetic collection, I did manage to order three books. However, even after one month, I did not receive any books. In a fit of anger, I emailed the vendor lambasting it that it should immediately get out of the business of sponsoring quizzes and that the whole process was a sham. The vitriolic mail got a polite reply stating that "The vendor appreciated my patience and the books would
be dispatched soon." The polite reply was definitely a saving grace. Within four days, I received the books. For once I appreciated the fact that the customer had won a battle, the several losses notwithstanding.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (22/6/2002)
Sunday, May 26, 2002
Chachu's Column #7: Of Utopian Clubs, Communities, PMs and Internal Wars
Some two and a half years back, I had enrolled myself in a club at a posh colony of Gurgaon. At that time, the club promised of ambitious facilities like horse-riding and squash courts. Since learning squash had been one of my dreams (which it even remains today), I had paid the registration fees of fifteen thousand rupees, out of which ten thousand was refundable. At that time, since I was out of liquid money, I had borrowed the money from a friend of mine and had paid more than fifteen-percent interest. In the two and a half years of my association with the club, instead of fulfilling the promises that had made me enroll, things have gone downhill. The first sign of this degeneration was visible last June when a major portion of the boundary wall was broken down. On making inquiries, I came to know that the wall stood on encroached land and hence was broken down by HUDA authorities. The broken wall was not the only casualty. Along with it, the changing rooms for the swimming pool also came crashing down. With no changing rooms, the recreation of swimming, especially in the scorching sun, became a difficult proposition. The crowd waned, as no one was ready to use the makeshift rooms that did not have even a latch to offer.
The next casualty was an ill-designed tennis court that had to be used for new changing rooms. The gymnasium, badminton courts and basketball courts too were relocated. All these changes meant that the architectural integrity that the club once boasted of was completely lost. All that remained were ad-hoc designs and incomplete amenities. Instead of the squash court, what is there is a twenty feet trench. Adjoining the trench is a blue board indicating "Squash Court", that some future generation may get to use. No horses are seen yet.
And if this damage was not enough, one day I found the parking lot encircled by a fence, and the entrance marked as that belonging to certain school. I wondered how entry to a commercial club could ever be through a school. My fears proved to be true as the school-gate too was closed, leaving the club with no parking space. The rear entrance was then used, along with the narrow lanes and vacant plots, to park cars of the club-goers. The single lane was inadequate to hold the parked cars resulting in major traffic snarls. Then, a part of broken school-wall came to everyone's relief. Till date, the broken wall is being used to park cars, presumably in the school's compound. The day is not far when this portion too will be sealed, leaving everyone back to using the vacant plots and single lanes for parking cars.
Tired of the deteriorating facilities and the shadiness that went along, I decided of withdrawing from the club membership. Promptly, I gave an application to the in-charge for refund of my security deposit of ten thousand rupees. One week later, when I went to inquire about the status of my application, I was asked to sit. In the meanwhile, the lady in-charge feasted the dhoklas that one of her friends had to offer. Some five minutes later, I was told that it would take three months to get my refund. The comment made me furious. This was the same club that had sent its executive to my office to get me enrolled. Now, when the work was offer, and it was time to pay, I was told that the rules of the game had changed and that I had to wait for three months to get my money back. The encroached boundaries that were eventually broken and the dubious parking lot do not inspire lot of confidence. Especially in the present days when one banking scam after another has become the norm. God wonders whether I will get my money back?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Continuing with the previous topic, I have come to know that Indians are not good in forming associations and fighting together. History is littered with cases of betrayal, the classic example being the divide and rule policy of the Britishers. In the present case, if there had been a club members association, that could stop paying annual fees, the club owners could not retort to such dubious practices. But alas, that is not to be and so one has to contend with what is offered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In my life I have seen bad politicians and pathetic politicians. There have been few good ones too. But our prime minister belongs to a different genre. I wonder if there has been ever a strange leader than the one that presently rules the country. Two remarks are pertinent here. One, he says he should have settled scores with Pakistan just after Parliament was attacked in December. Two, during a Parliamentary debate, he said he thought about removing Modi but did not do so in the fear of a backlash. A man is not known for what he thinks he will do or what he should have done, but what he actually does. And if such a man is the Prime-minister of the country, God save us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Somewhere I was reading that thousands of Indians die or lose their limbs while crossing railway lines. The accidents could easily be avoided had these people used the overhead pedestrian bridges made for the purpose. This is not the solitary example. In another story, I read a mother lost her life when her year-old kid fell into an open manhole near which she was sleeping. The police refused to lodge an FIR stating the case as frivolous. Hundred of Indians die for strangest of reasons. A high-tension wire falling and killing a bus full of marriage participants. Forty die somewhere by consuming illicit liquor. My point in citing these examples is that when the denizens of this country do not value their lives, do we have a moral right to lament killings by militants? Loss of lives in India is partly due to our own recklessness and partly due to bureaucratic apathy. The rest is filled by a weak and defunct judiciary. Given this, external killings form only a small proportion of accidental death or death due to negligence. Will someone take these into account? Most importantly, will someone affix the blame behind these deaths?
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Chachu (26/5/2002)
The next casualty was an ill-designed tennis court that had to be used for new changing rooms. The gymnasium, badminton courts and basketball courts too were relocated. All these changes meant that the architectural integrity that the club once boasted of was completely lost. All that remained were ad-hoc designs and incomplete amenities. Instead of the squash court, what is there is a twenty feet trench. Adjoining the trench is a blue board indicating "Squash Court", that some future generation may get to use. No horses are seen yet.
And if this damage was not enough, one day I found the parking lot encircled by a fence, and the entrance marked as that belonging to certain school. I wondered how entry to a commercial club could ever be through a school. My fears proved to be true as the school-gate too was closed, leaving the club with no parking space. The rear entrance was then used, along with the narrow lanes and vacant plots, to park cars of the club-goers. The single lane was inadequate to hold the parked cars resulting in major traffic snarls. Then, a part of broken school-wall came to everyone's relief. Till date, the broken wall is being used to park cars, presumably in the school's compound. The day is not far when this portion too will be sealed, leaving everyone back to using the vacant plots and single lanes for parking cars.
Tired of the deteriorating facilities and the shadiness that went along, I decided of withdrawing from the club membership. Promptly, I gave an application to the in-charge for refund of my security deposit of ten thousand rupees. One week later, when I went to inquire about the status of my application, I was asked to sit. In the meanwhile, the lady in-charge feasted the dhoklas that one of her friends had to offer. Some five minutes later, I was told that it would take three months to get my refund. The comment made me furious. This was the same club that had sent its executive to my office to get me enrolled. Now, when the work was offer, and it was time to pay, I was told that the rules of the game had changed and that I had to wait for three months to get my money back. The encroached boundaries that were eventually broken and the dubious parking lot do not inspire lot of confidence. Especially in the present days when one banking scam after another has become the norm. God wonders whether I will get my money back?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Continuing with the previous topic, I have come to know that Indians are not good in forming associations and fighting together. History is littered with cases of betrayal, the classic example being the divide and rule policy of the Britishers. In the present case, if there had been a club members association, that could stop paying annual fees, the club owners could not retort to such dubious practices. But alas, that is not to be and so one has to contend with what is offered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In my life I have seen bad politicians and pathetic politicians. There have been few good ones too. But our prime minister belongs to a different genre. I wonder if there has been ever a strange leader than the one that presently rules the country. Two remarks are pertinent here. One, he says he should have settled scores with Pakistan just after Parliament was attacked in December. Two, during a Parliamentary debate, he said he thought about removing Modi but did not do so in the fear of a backlash. A man is not known for what he thinks he will do or what he should have done, but what he actually does. And if such a man is the Prime-minister of the country, God save us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Somewhere I was reading that thousands of Indians die or lose their limbs while crossing railway lines. The accidents could easily be avoided had these people used the overhead pedestrian bridges made for the purpose. This is not the solitary example. In another story, I read a mother lost her life when her year-old kid fell into an open manhole near which she was sleeping. The police refused to lodge an FIR stating the case as frivolous. Hundred of Indians die for strangest of reasons. A high-tension wire falling and killing a bus full of marriage participants. Forty die somewhere by consuming illicit liquor. My point in citing these examples is that when the denizens of this country do not value their lives, do we have a moral right to lament killings by militants? Loss of lives in India is partly due to our own recklessness and partly due to bureaucratic apathy. The rest is filled by a weak and defunct judiciary. Given this, external killings form only a small proportion of accidental death or death due to negligence. Will someone take these into account? Most importantly, will someone affix the blame behind these deaths?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (26/5/2002)
Sunday, May 05, 2002
Chachu's Column #6: Of APM, CNG, Politicians and Insurance
Strange are the ways of the world. From the time the Finance budget 2002-2003 was announced, the prices of crude oil have gone up from 20$ to around 26$. Ideally, the prices of petrol should have also gone up. More so because on April 1, the Administered Price Mechanism (APM), a tool to artificially control petroleum prices, was dismantled. But that has not been the case. What has in fact happened is that reduction on subsidy on LPG has been rolled back by twenty rupees. And public sector companies have been prohibited to increase the prices till further notice. So while the public sector oil companies make loss for every litre of petrol sold, the precariously placed BJP seeks brownie points from the populace for maintaining oil prices. And if the farce was not enough, our honourable Petroleum minister wishes to control the prices of petrol further by manipulating excise duties.
The farce enacted by APM dismantling is only one part of the story. Around a week back, the prices of CNG were increased by a staggering 30%. CNG has been well accepted as a fuel to be many times less polluting than diesel. So, environmentally, it would have been advisable to put a 'Pollution tax' on the more polluting diesel. However, what we have now is that the environment-friendly CNG has been slapped a very harsh hike. But the media seems to have struck with amnesia, as this hike seems to be of no concern to anyone.
The CNG buses are already known to be almost twice as costly as a diesel bus. The price advantage of CNG over diesel evoked interest among masses to opt for the former, environment considerations never coming into the picture. But after the price hike, the price difference has gone for a toss. So what we have is 1) a CNG bus that costs twice as much, 2) a fuel that costs almost as much, and 3) a dispensing station that takes anything between two to twelve hours, something that can make any bus conductor go insane; more so when diesel buses whisk away with diesel in their belly in a jiffy. The saddest part of the story is that there was no uproar in the parliament for CNG price hike, no demand for adjournment motions, and no agitation from the people.
The immediate fallout is that the fare of buses will increase. In our company too, the monthly fee is slated to be doubled. Already, there are increasing talks of people skipping buses, and opting for personal vehicles. This possibly explains why Delhi has 35 lakh vehicles, which is equal to the number of vehicles of other three metropolis put together. Apart from price, the buses are stuffy, not air-conditioned, and do not offer the flexibility of choosing your office timings. The end result will be more cars and scooters on the roads, more congestion, more pollution, and more damage to public health.
Across the world, countries are realizing that unless economics goes along with environment, no one gives a damn to trees and fresh air. So they employ the principle of "polluter pays". For example, if the use of polythene bags is to be dissuaded, then instead of banning it, which is almost impossible to implement, especially in a large country like ours, a pollution tax is imposed. As soon as use of polythene will come economically unviable, people will automatically seek alternatives. In the case of CNG too, it was expected to mix environment with economics. But alas, that is not to be. CNG has become a political football in which politicians play with people's health.
Also read http://www.cseindia.org/html/cmp/air/press_20020429.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Among some good news, the Supreme court of India this week held that the people had a right to know about the antecedents of politicians standing for election to public offices. After a landmark judgement, politicians have to now file details of their criminal record, which includes whether they were ever convicted or not, and whether any chargesheet was pending against them in courts or not. Apart from this, they also have to file details about the wealth that they possess, including the wealth of their spouses/dependants. This verdict was being strongly opposed by the politicians, for obvious reasons. But ultimately, a good decision was given, and people can now expect cleaner government.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A friend of mine was recently given in a ticket in US for over-speeding. He had to appear in court to explain his point of view. The judge had to penalize him by giving him points. While there was a possibility of my friend getting four points, my friend beseeched for two points. The points would directly affect the insurance charge that the friend had to pay. Ultimately, two penalty points were awarded, and my friend marched back happy indeed, ensuring that the rise in insurance was under control. While we have our own no-claim bonus, I just wish something equally sophisticated finds its way in India.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (5/5/2002)
The farce enacted by APM dismantling is only one part of the story. Around a week back, the prices of CNG were increased by a staggering 30%. CNG has been well accepted as a fuel to be many times less polluting than diesel. So, environmentally, it would have been advisable to put a 'Pollution tax' on the more polluting diesel. However, what we have now is that the environment-friendly CNG has been slapped a very harsh hike. But the media seems to have struck with amnesia, as this hike seems to be of no concern to anyone.
The CNG buses are already known to be almost twice as costly as a diesel bus. The price advantage of CNG over diesel evoked interest among masses to opt for the former, environment considerations never coming into the picture. But after the price hike, the price difference has gone for a toss. So what we have is 1) a CNG bus that costs twice as much, 2) a fuel that costs almost as much, and 3) a dispensing station that takes anything between two to twelve hours, something that can make any bus conductor go insane; more so when diesel buses whisk away with diesel in their belly in a jiffy. The saddest part of the story is that there was no uproar in the parliament for CNG price hike, no demand for adjournment motions, and no agitation from the people.
The immediate fallout is that the fare of buses will increase. In our company too, the monthly fee is slated to be doubled. Already, there are increasing talks of people skipping buses, and opting for personal vehicles. This possibly explains why Delhi has 35 lakh vehicles, which is equal to the number of vehicles of other three metropolis put together. Apart from price, the buses are stuffy, not air-conditioned, and do not offer the flexibility of choosing your office timings. The end result will be more cars and scooters on the roads, more congestion, more pollution, and more damage to public health.
Across the world, countries are realizing that unless economics goes along with environment, no one gives a damn to trees and fresh air. So they employ the principle of "polluter pays". For example, if the use of polythene bags is to be dissuaded, then instead of banning it, which is almost impossible to implement, especially in a large country like ours, a pollution tax is imposed. As soon as use of polythene will come economically unviable, people will automatically seek alternatives. In the case of CNG too, it was expected to mix environment with economics. But alas, that is not to be. CNG has become a political football in which politicians play with people's health.
Also read http://www.cseindia.org/html/cmp/air/press_20020429.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Among some good news, the Supreme court of India this week held that the people had a right to know about the antecedents of politicians standing for election to public offices. After a landmark judgement, politicians have to now file details of their criminal record, which includes whether they were ever convicted or not, and whether any chargesheet was pending against them in courts or not. Apart from this, they also have to file details about the wealth that they possess, including the wealth of their spouses/dependants. This verdict was being strongly opposed by the politicians, for obvious reasons. But ultimately, a good decision was given, and people can now expect cleaner government.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A friend of mine was recently given in a ticket in US for over-speeding. He had to appear in court to explain his point of view. The judge had to penalize him by giving him points. While there was a possibility of my friend getting four points, my friend beseeched for two points. The points would directly affect the insurance charge that the friend had to pay. Ultimately, two penalty points were awarded, and my friend marched back happy indeed, ensuring that the rise in insurance was under control. While we have our own no-claim bonus, I just wish something equally sophisticated finds its way in India.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chachu (5/5/2002)
Saturday, April 13, 2002
Chachu's Column #5: From Microcosm to Macrocosm
Thy sit in the drawing room,
flipping 100 channels through the remote,
waiting for thy death,
Thy neighbour is not so unlucky,
thee does not have to wait,
thee is burnt in the train,
or, if thee is luckier,
in the house itself,
Then, there is a debate,
'who started the fire' thy ask?
but the earth is round,
who can say where it starts and where it ends,
but this does not affect the debate,
'thou were provoked' thy still protest.
Same may be said for death itself
Who knows what is life, what is death,
Where it starts and where it ends,
When the body dies, the soul still lives,
and when the body lives, the soul is killed -
the definition then becomes nebulous.
So are thy living or are thy dead?
And if thee are dead, then does it matter - who started the fire
because a dead does not die again,
Or does it?
Thy sister shrieks nearby,
thee is raped there, two here,
in a mob, there is no villain,
the time is ripe, to have some fun,
to shed the bedroom boredom.
And there is more debate
whether thy ate beef some thousand years back,
or a particular leader did something amoral,
or few pages were purged from history book or not.
Whatever,
the inferno is not visible from moon,
Nor the twin towers,
Only great wall of china,
so does it matter if the towers remain or not?
What about the loss of human lives,
Or, the financial losses,
'I want revenge' thy proclaim,
And a savaged nation is further battered,
Thy bemoan ¾ 'the cost of life is not worth a penny,
The missiles are million dollars apiece.'
Still, the missiles do not stop coming down,
Occasionally, with food packets,
a mother then wonders,
whether the lost limb of her son is important,
or food to survive for another week.
Uranus is oblivious to all this,
It has its own share of problems.
Neptune has started eyeing Pluto,
Uranus seeks help.
Scientist offer a new planet - Planet X,
But this is not the end of the problem,
who knows how long the relationship will last,
these are trying times,
Everyone wants independence,
a small skirmish and it is adios.
The sun too is seething in anger,
burning ever since,
but no help is forthcoming.
The commuters burn too,
in a heated debate,
For those in the air-conditioned car,
it is better,
But what about those,
who use the diesel buses,
These buses belch black smoke,
which seek a place in the infinity,
Some do not like this, want cleaner air.
And there is a debate - what is clean?
Carbon mono-oxide or sulphur-dioxide,
CNG or Ultr-low-sulphur.
Unwittingly, the 'ultra' is dropped'
but 'low-sulphur diesel' remains,
but the debate continues ¾ what is clean?
the diesel company pays for a research,
to prove why diesel is not that bad,
and few CNG buses explode,
who knows why,
and the question of safety
subverts the issue of pollution.
Does it matter whether thy get burnt in the bus,
or through asthma and other disease,
waiting for thy death on thy's funeral pyre,
many are dying anyway,
if not in bus then in train.
Death is above all,
does not differentiate between the cause.
But who cares about death,
or an impending disaster,
I want my money thy say,
by selling whatever I can,
what the next generation gets is immaterial.
The fossil fuel is depleting anyway,
will last for another hundred year or so.
It is all banality, thy holler,
when nothing is left, how will thy pollute,
it is the last chance,
so make the best use of it.
Somewhere, an old man sits on a fast,
demands a review of certain artifact,
the canvas is the planet itself,
the master plan has a line,
and the course of a river is altered,
few valleys are drowned,
and few million displaced,
some of these will perish,
others will survive,
contributing to the urban squalor,
but the debate will continue,
what is good and what bad,
what is life and what is death.
Whatever,
the supremacy of mankind will be reaffirmed,
while research on AIDS will continue,
and unknown diseases will continue to cause death.
But death is not that bad,
it liberates from the fetters of life.
And more debate will happen,
'What is God' but a fool's chimera
and whether 'Euthanasia is good for health.'
Thy profundity is unexceptionable,
but what lies beyond narrow realm?
The space is expanding,
into what thy question?
And few space-ships are launched,
again seeking a place in the infinity.
But there is only nothingness in the infinity,
and infinite energy in the atom.
The energy is again debated,
'Only for deterrence' thy proclaim,
and a truant neighbour threatens misuse,
but some do not threaten,
thy hegemony must be established,
so few bombs are dropped, and millions die,
but the appetite for power is satiated,
temporarily at least.
A certain tax proposal creates furore,
the additional burden is unbearable,
thy do not have a voice,
so thy will suffer,
the weak will meekly yield to the powerful,
those who can kill, will,
this is nothing new,
but thy protest, 'Aren't we not civilized -
At least we proclaim so?'
Laws are made,
presumably,
but are they followed,
thy do not have an answer.
Then why this pretense?
Then, there is action and reaction,
Newton's third law,
Thy kill one,
I kill two, and rape two,
the reaction then equals action,
The math is somewhat different here,
the definition of civility too,
in fact, the very concept of civility is a myth,
to give comfort to the meek and the timid,
actually, we are progeny of savagery,
our ancestors hunted and looted,
now, the form differs,
the scale differs,
but the act remains,
those who can kill, will.
'Then why this debate of morality,
and what about conscience' thy ask
but how these notions came,
to cause needless misgivings,
the body will live and soul will die,
and the debate on life and death will continue.
El nino is giving some problem,
and the choked sewage lines,
which are full of polythene bags,
but what is life without them,
and who will sort the vegetables if there are none,
thy mother and wife fights with thee,
there is already lot of trouble,
thy do not seek more,
what happened with Uranus thy remember,
so thy will have one bag for each type of vegetable,
the half life of polythene being a million years notwithstanding.
The national average is still two kilograms,
while the world averages seven,
there is lot of scope of improvement,
lot of forest lands still
do not have a polythene cover.
There is a ban,
'no bags less than twenty microns' thy declare,
but thy do not say how to measure,
so twenty or two makes no difference,
and more bags in the market,
and more money in pocket,
the magazine will then proclaim,
thy have become seventh richest.
But thy neighbour still thinks,
what is money but wads of paper,
money does not bring happiness,
but then nor does poverty?
Thou should be happy when thy have love,
but thou art not when thy have,
thou seek something else,
may be name, may be fame,
to be known even after death.
But how to be known after death,
or is death just an illusion,
just like life itself,
and like many other things,
including time.
The Almighty is sleeping,
the two children playing with the universe,
the noise is disconcerting,
and the sleep is disturbed.
The Almighty picks a hammer,
and breaks the universe with a big bang,
the pieces try to escape,
some successfully run away, some tire mid-way.
One of them is the milky-way,
in it is the angry solar-system,
comprising the angry sun,
and the earthly matter.
What is earth but a speck of dust,
in the canvas of universe.
And what about the so called masters,
the rulers of earth,
when everything is nothing,
and nothing anything,
And the accumulated wealth,
and name and fame,
and movies directed, and books written,
and runs gathered, and goals scored,
and heights conquered,
and depths traversed,
and persons burnt, and women raped,
what is what, and why is why,
but a speck of speck,
nothing of anything.
Millions of years before,
and so many after,
only seconds seen,
and day's missed.
The haughty dinosaur too bit the dust,
but the measly mosquitoes and ants survived.
Who's turn is next, who knows,
till then there are things to be debated,
names of places to be changed,
and problems to be found in solutions,
and questions to be asked,
how black is black hole,
and when was the civilization created
(when the definition of civility is unclear),
and whether a minister should administer anymore.
But some will still worry about mundane issues,
how to get the next bread,
and how to get employment for the son.
And the refugees in the relief camp will wait,
for death or for food, both will do,
From microcosm to macrocosm,
everything is nothing,
and nothing anything.
Chachu (13th April, 2002)
flipping 100 channels through the remote,
waiting for thy death,
Thy neighbour is not so unlucky,
thee does not have to wait,
thee is burnt in the train,
or, if thee is luckier,
in the house itself,
Then, there is a debate,
'who started the fire' thy ask?
but the earth is round,
who can say where it starts and where it ends,
but this does not affect the debate,
'thou were provoked' thy still protest.
Same may be said for death itself
Who knows what is life, what is death,
Where it starts and where it ends,
When the body dies, the soul still lives,
and when the body lives, the soul is killed -
the definition then becomes nebulous.
So are thy living or are thy dead?
And if thee are dead, then does it matter - who started the fire
because a dead does not die again,
Or does it?
Thy sister shrieks nearby,
thee is raped there, two here,
in a mob, there is no villain,
the time is ripe, to have some fun,
to shed the bedroom boredom.
And there is more debate
whether thy ate beef some thousand years back,
or a particular leader did something amoral,
or few pages were purged from history book or not.
Whatever,
the inferno is not visible from moon,
Nor the twin towers,
Only great wall of china,
so does it matter if the towers remain or not?
What about the loss of human lives,
Or, the financial losses,
'I want revenge' thy proclaim,
And a savaged nation is further battered,
Thy bemoan ¾ 'the cost of life is not worth a penny,
The missiles are million dollars apiece.'
Still, the missiles do not stop coming down,
Occasionally, with food packets,
a mother then wonders,
whether the lost limb of her son is important,
or food to survive for another week.
Uranus is oblivious to all this,
It has its own share of problems.
Neptune has started eyeing Pluto,
Uranus seeks help.
Scientist offer a new planet - Planet X,
But this is not the end of the problem,
who knows how long the relationship will last,
these are trying times,
Everyone wants independence,
a small skirmish and it is adios.
The sun too is seething in anger,
burning ever since,
but no help is forthcoming.
The commuters burn too,
in a heated debate,
For those in the air-conditioned car,
it is better,
But what about those,
who use the diesel buses,
These buses belch black smoke,
which seek a place in the infinity,
Some do not like this, want cleaner air.
And there is a debate - what is clean?
Carbon mono-oxide or sulphur-dioxide,
CNG or Ultr-low-sulphur.
Unwittingly, the 'ultra' is dropped'
but 'low-sulphur diesel' remains,
but the debate continues ¾ what is clean?
the diesel company pays for a research,
to prove why diesel is not that bad,
and few CNG buses explode,
who knows why,
and the question of safety
subverts the issue of pollution.
Does it matter whether thy get burnt in the bus,
or through asthma and other disease,
waiting for thy death on thy's funeral pyre,
many are dying anyway,
if not in bus then in train.
Death is above all,
does not differentiate between the cause.
But who cares about death,
or an impending disaster,
I want my money thy say,
by selling whatever I can,
what the next generation gets is immaterial.
The fossil fuel is depleting anyway,
will last for another hundred year or so.
It is all banality, thy holler,
when nothing is left, how will thy pollute,
it is the last chance,
so make the best use of it.
Somewhere, an old man sits on a fast,
demands a review of certain artifact,
the canvas is the planet itself,
the master plan has a line,
and the course of a river is altered,
few valleys are drowned,
and few million displaced,
some of these will perish,
others will survive,
contributing to the urban squalor,
but the debate will continue,
what is good and what bad,
what is life and what is death.
Whatever,
the supremacy of mankind will be reaffirmed,
while research on AIDS will continue,
and unknown diseases will continue to cause death.
But death is not that bad,
it liberates from the fetters of life.
And more debate will happen,
'What is God' but a fool's chimera
and whether 'Euthanasia is good for health.'
Thy profundity is unexceptionable,
but what lies beyond narrow realm?
The space is expanding,
into what thy question?
And few space-ships are launched,
again seeking a place in the infinity.
But there is only nothingness in the infinity,
and infinite energy in the atom.
The energy is again debated,
'Only for deterrence' thy proclaim,
and a truant neighbour threatens misuse,
but some do not threaten,
thy hegemony must be established,
so few bombs are dropped, and millions die,
but the appetite for power is satiated,
temporarily at least.
A certain tax proposal creates furore,
the additional burden is unbearable,
thy do not have a voice,
so thy will suffer,
the weak will meekly yield to the powerful,
those who can kill, will,
this is nothing new,
but thy protest, 'Aren't we not civilized -
At least we proclaim so?'
Laws are made,
presumably,
but are they followed,
thy do not have an answer.
Then why this pretense?
Then, there is action and reaction,
Newton's third law,
Thy kill one,
I kill two, and rape two,
the reaction then equals action,
The math is somewhat different here,
the definition of civility too,
in fact, the very concept of civility is a myth,
to give comfort to the meek and the timid,
actually, we are progeny of savagery,
our ancestors hunted and looted,
now, the form differs,
the scale differs,
but the act remains,
those who can kill, will.
'Then why this debate of morality,
and what about conscience' thy ask
but how these notions came,
to cause needless misgivings,
the body will live and soul will die,
and the debate on life and death will continue.
El nino is giving some problem,
and the choked sewage lines,
which are full of polythene bags,
but what is life without them,
and who will sort the vegetables if there are none,
thy mother and wife fights with thee,
there is already lot of trouble,
thy do not seek more,
what happened with Uranus thy remember,
so thy will have one bag for each type of vegetable,
the half life of polythene being a million years notwithstanding.
The national average is still two kilograms,
while the world averages seven,
there is lot of scope of improvement,
lot of forest lands still
do not have a polythene cover.
There is a ban,
'no bags less than twenty microns' thy declare,
but thy do not say how to measure,
so twenty or two makes no difference,
and more bags in the market,
and more money in pocket,
the magazine will then proclaim,
thy have become seventh richest.
But thy neighbour still thinks,
what is money but wads of paper,
money does not bring happiness,
but then nor does poverty?
Thou should be happy when thy have love,
but thou art not when thy have,
thou seek something else,
may be name, may be fame,
to be known even after death.
But how to be known after death,
or is death just an illusion,
just like life itself,
and like many other things,
including time.
The Almighty is sleeping,
the two children playing with the universe,
the noise is disconcerting,
and the sleep is disturbed.
The Almighty picks a hammer,
and breaks the universe with a big bang,
the pieces try to escape,
some successfully run away, some tire mid-way.
One of them is the milky-way,
in it is the angry solar-system,
comprising the angry sun,
and the earthly matter.
What is earth but a speck of dust,
in the canvas of universe.
And what about the so called masters,
the rulers of earth,
when everything is nothing,
and nothing anything,
And the accumulated wealth,
and name and fame,
and movies directed, and books written,
and runs gathered, and goals scored,
and heights conquered,
and depths traversed,
and persons burnt, and women raped,
what is what, and why is why,
but a speck of speck,
nothing of anything.
Millions of years before,
and so many after,
only seconds seen,
and day's missed.
The haughty dinosaur too bit the dust,
but the measly mosquitoes and ants survived.
Who's turn is next, who knows,
till then there are things to be debated,
names of places to be changed,
and problems to be found in solutions,
and questions to be asked,
how black is black hole,
and when was the civilization created
(when the definition of civility is unclear),
and whether a minister should administer anymore.
But some will still worry about mundane issues,
how to get the next bread,
and how to get employment for the son.
And the refugees in the relief camp will wait,
for death or for food, both will do,
From microcosm to macrocosm,
everything is nothing,
and nothing anything.
Chachu (13th April, 2002)
Sunday, March 31, 2002
Chachu's Column #4: Of POTO, ex-PM, and Jharkhand
The biggest news of the week gone by was the joint session convened by NDA government to pass the controversial POTO bill. The joint session between Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha was held after an interregnum of two and a half decades. Given the lack of majority of NDA government in the Rajya Sabha, the government always faced the risk of key pieces of legislation being defeated in the upper house of Parliament. Thus, when POTO was defeated in Rajya Sabha, a joint session was used to pass the bill.
While the controversy surrounding the bill is outside the realm of this column, few comments are in order. First, despite the fact that POTO existed as on ordinance since past few months, the Gujarat carnage could not be stopped. Nor could the attack on the parliament. Then, one may question the efficacy of the bill. Second, the sincerity with which NDA passed the bill is commendable. Just that one wishes that the same level of sincerity is seen in other spheres of governance. Three, with the BJP rout in four state assemblies, and the latest defeat in Delhi MCD election, the PM laments that the center is to be blamed for the spate of defeats. One wonders whether he is the leader of the government or part of the opposition. Since long, one has become accustomed to seeing indifferent leaders, right from P. V. Narsimha Rao, to H. D. Dewe Gowda, Chandra Shekhar to now Atal Bihari Bajpayee. Somehow, the zeal to bring about a transformation in the country is missing. Given this, one may thing whether it is really possible to satisfy the aspirations of billion odd Indians.
One exception here is the good work done by Union Urban Affairs minister Jagmohan. He had cleansed many a places and broken down many an illegally constructed buildings. But he was viewed as a man doing too much, and transferred to the less harmful portfolio of Tourism.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Talking about H. D. Dewe Gowda, few days back I attended a marriage whether I chanced upon our ex-PM. Apart from him, Mayawati, a potential UP chief minister was also part of the celebrity gathering. To assume that the marriage was of a VIP would be foolishness. The groom was a very ordinary engineer of an average Indian firm. Thus, the reason for the two celebrities attending the marriage is not clear. The point worth noting was that while ten commandos provided heavy security to Mayawati, the ex-PM had only few uncles to provide company.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A recent article on the deplorable state of Bihar caught my attention. My prime years, between 1990 and 1994, were spent in the city of Ranchi, now capital of Jharkhand. The article commented how, after the creation of separate state of Jharkhand, the per capita income of Bihar had fallen from above five thousand rupees to something close to four thousand three hundred rupees. The article also said how e-business (extortion business) was booming in laloo's heartland. The article evoked some not so happy memories of my stay there.
First of all, every now and then, a Jharkhand bandh was called, sometimes extending for almost three days. Unfortunately, most of the times the bandh was successful and the economic activity in the city was brought to a halt. As a student, I always cheered those bandhs as it meant a holiday for me. But then, the bandhs also meant that the two-year course of ICSE board X examination, required three years of teaching. My father was not so lucky as his office hours were shifted from 9am-6pm to 6am-3pm. Once, while returning from work, a Jharkhandi activist attacked my father's car by hurling a stone at the moving vehicle. Luckily, the stone missed by father, and hit the rear window instead, damaging it completely. Apart from this, I also remember how a close friend of my mother was kidnapped by her driver, looted and later murdered. When he was caught and a trial was held in the court, the culprit ran away from the court in broad daylight. Civic amenity, like law and order, was also in a state of shambles. We got electricity only about 12 hours a day. Once, thieves stole so many members of the towers carrying power that the entire infrastructure carrying power collapsed. There was no electricity in the city for about two weeks. Roads were awful. Our frustration reached its peak when my mother was incorrectly diagnosed, a lapse that almost took her to her deathbed. It was then when my father decided he had enough of the state.
Given this, the creation of Jharkhand was a rather cheerful occasion for me. An uncle who visits us regularly from the state updates us about the latest developments. And every time I ask how are things, he only laments how things have hardly changed. Given this, the article on Bihar and Jharkhand does not come as a surprise. Those who ruined economic activity to see Jharkhand become a separate state have hardly brought cheers to the people. Rather, some time back, Ranchi High Court lamented how weak and ineffective Jharkhand government was ruining the mineral-rich state.
Residents of Delhi too lament the poor state of roads, or the erratic power situation. However, if they ever get to live in the less privileged states of the country, they will redefine what poor road is or what erratic power situation is. Not that either of the situation is justifiable. Just that by knowing extremes, things can be put in a better perspective.
Chachu (31/3/2002)
While the controversy surrounding the bill is outside the realm of this column, few comments are in order. First, despite the fact that POTO existed as on ordinance since past few months, the Gujarat carnage could not be stopped. Nor could the attack on the parliament. Then, one may question the efficacy of the bill. Second, the sincerity with which NDA passed the bill is commendable. Just that one wishes that the same level of sincerity is seen in other spheres of governance. Three, with the BJP rout in four state assemblies, and the latest defeat in Delhi MCD election, the PM laments that the center is to be blamed for the spate of defeats. One wonders whether he is the leader of the government or part of the opposition. Since long, one has become accustomed to seeing indifferent leaders, right from P. V. Narsimha Rao, to H. D. Dewe Gowda, Chandra Shekhar to now Atal Bihari Bajpayee. Somehow, the zeal to bring about a transformation in the country is missing. Given this, one may thing whether it is really possible to satisfy the aspirations of billion odd Indians.
One exception here is the good work done by Union Urban Affairs minister Jagmohan. He had cleansed many a places and broken down many an illegally constructed buildings. But he was viewed as a man doing too much, and transferred to the less harmful portfolio of Tourism.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Talking about H. D. Dewe Gowda, few days back I attended a marriage whether I chanced upon our ex-PM. Apart from him, Mayawati, a potential UP chief minister was also part of the celebrity gathering. To assume that the marriage was of a VIP would be foolishness. The groom was a very ordinary engineer of an average Indian firm. Thus, the reason for the two celebrities attending the marriage is not clear. The point worth noting was that while ten commandos provided heavy security to Mayawati, the ex-PM had only few uncles to provide company.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ * ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A recent article on the deplorable state of Bihar caught my attention. My prime years, between 1990 and 1994, were spent in the city of Ranchi, now capital of Jharkhand. The article commented how, after the creation of separate state of Jharkhand, the per capita income of Bihar had fallen from above five thousand rupees to something close to four thousand three hundred rupees. The article also said how e-business (extortion business) was booming in laloo's heartland. The article evoked some not so happy memories of my stay there.
First of all, every now and then, a Jharkhand bandh was called, sometimes extending for almost three days. Unfortunately, most of the times the bandh was successful and the economic activity in the city was brought to a halt. As a student, I always cheered those bandhs as it meant a holiday for me. But then, the bandhs also meant that the two-year course of ICSE board X examination, required three years of teaching. My father was not so lucky as his office hours were shifted from 9am-6pm to 6am-3pm. Once, while returning from work, a Jharkhandi activist attacked my father's car by hurling a stone at the moving vehicle. Luckily, the stone missed by father, and hit the rear window instead, damaging it completely. Apart from this, I also remember how a close friend of my mother was kidnapped by her driver, looted and later murdered. When he was caught and a trial was held in the court, the culprit ran away from the court in broad daylight. Civic amenity, like law and order, was also in a state of shambles. We got electricity only about 12 hours a day. Once, thieves stole so many members of the towers carrying power that the entire infrastructure carrying power collapsed. There was no electricity in the city for about two weeks. Roads were awful. Our frustration reached its peak when my mother was incorrectly diagnosed, a lapse that almost took her to her deathbed. It was then when my father decided he had enough of the state.
Given this, the creation of Jharkhand was a rather cheerful occasion for me. An uncle who visits us regularly from the state updates us about the latest developments. And every time I ask how are things, he only laments how things have hardly changed. Given this, the article on Bihar and Jharkhand does not come as a surprise. Those who ruined economic activity to see Jharkhand become a separate state have hardly brought cheers to the people. Rather, some time back, Ranchi High Court lamented how weak and ineffective Jharkhand government was ruining the mineral-rich state.
Residents of Delhi too lament the poor state of roads, or the erratic power situation. However, if they ever get to live in the less privileged states of the country, they will redefine what poor road is or what erratic power situation is. Not that either of the situation is justifiable. Just that by knowing extremes, things can be put in a better perspective.
Chachu (31/3/2002)
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