Wednesday, December 19, 2007

And Next....




It's been really a long gap and working environment is taking it's toll and no escape for me. One more blatant truth comes to light. This time it is not from the west asian media or from the usual journalists. US National Intelligence Estimate which consolidates the inputs from federal agencies has categorically ruled that Iran is not pursuing any plans for nukes. George's Bush has been caught red-handed umpteenth time and US has to answer the ordeals and sufferings of innocent Iraqi's through the unsubstantiated waged upon it buy this neo-colonialistic US government.

A lot has been discussed and much furore was made when the Republicans lost the numbers in the congress and the democrats started soft-pedalling. What followed is the troop surge to Iraq!! Now Bush's show is coming to a close with 2008 presidential election process being kicked in by Feb.

Bush and his spin doctors inched really close and breached all the borders in forcing India to take pro-US stance in real critical world stage like IAEA by forcing to vote against Iran while more trusted US ally like Pakistan abstained from voting, forcing pro-active petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar to pack his bags, by forcing India to skip the delegation level meetings in the Iran-Pak-India gas pipeline and making Dr.Singh to make statements like "enlightened national intereset" and on and on and on...


The sad part which really bothers me is that a country of India's size and geo-political importance is being bullied by the neo-capitalist state and our own politicians being party of that....

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

RAM SETU




The initial furore over the Ramar setu has been settled down. And people started worrying about Rahul's out of form and Dhada's comeback. We really need to have a in deapth perspective for the project.

The sentiments of the people, makes the case still more complex as it is played down by the oppurtunist parties in general and BJP in particular. The same BJP which gave all the clearance is now crying foul of the entire project.




If we are going for a scientific perspective researcha and analysis has proved beyond doubt that Adam's bridge or Ram setu is a natural formation and there is no proof of human construction. But still a billion people's beleif is bigger than any scientific study and it has to be respected at any cost. The sad part is people who did'nt found any issues when in power are now finding that people's sentiments are affected and proclaiming to save Ram setu. The only understadasble plot is that BJP which ride the Rath yatra wave by kindling people's sentiments in late 90's and grew from nil to 160 MP's want's to do it again.


The whole issue would not have come up if for Swami filing a PIL. Only God knows what's there in Subramanya swami's mind and what's driving him. Questions like " was he an civil engineer" was totally uncalled for and condemnable. A senior politician who is repected across the political spectrum has to really think twice. And "Gold for weight" is equally ridiculous and barbaric. Paradoxically he is a Sadhu!

Friday, September 14, 2007

Why we should be more inclusive.?



I often come across question with blatant complaints about the much criticized reservation system, flawed secularism and others. This is really an appropriate time to ponder over the underlying facts in these criticized concepts and the actual logic which has to be practised in the true spirit.

If one goes through Praveen swami's terrorism related articles in Frontline not once butTime and again he writes about some notorious jehadi outfit leader vowing to disintegerate india and to unfurl the muslim flag in red fort. To this day that remain only as a news report and the magic thread of "unity in diversity" still holds us one nation.






The actual system of reservation and minority policies, which is most badly nick named as "Muslim appeasement" and pseudo secularism by the politicians has at least got one bottomline that has to be driven home. One of the strong ingredient of the magic thread which unites us all the indians is the inclusiveness of the hindu(this can be taken as modern day sindhu) soceity which welcomed khilji's,Moguls and even the english who eventually enslaved us. or more directly, the more inclusive the soceity is, the more the thread will become strong and the more united we become and that says everything.


The communal violences, religion based pogorms, caste based discrimination which are some of the malise which are uptill today haunting a normal right thinking Indian. The inclusive soceity about which we are talking will leave the fellow citizens with a psychological feeling that our personal breatherns(christians,muslims,jains...in the macro level) are well placed and this mental composure is all the stuff for which our founding fathers and experts devised the inclusive options like reservation for the underprivilaged and spcial minority programmes.

There are gory live examples not as a newspaper report but as fact finding committiees which is predominantly hinduisistic like srikrishna committee's cold blooded revealations like how police abetted 92 Mumbai riot and Rajinder Sachar's committee's findings which throws light on the poor economic conditions of the muslim population in general( please leave the bollywood khan's and Kalam..there are always exceptions).

sad thing is that for the sake of few self-centric,selfish and money minded politicians all the underlying theme of the plans as been blacked out and even the educated lot of the 21st century is left thinking that reservation and muslim appeasement policies of the government are the only thing which is haunting our country. How ironical? But every right thinking citizen either a muslim,hindu or christian should continuously strive and shape up him/herself towards an inclusive soceity for the posterity.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Nuclear impasse





The nuclear agreement has again opened a pandora's box, with the more trickier Hyde act which will obviously have some adverse effect on India's foreign policy in the due course. He very proof is the India's anti-Iran vote not once but twice in the IAEA meet overriding official
direction to abstain. Even in the negotiation stage if US managed to coerce India to this volt face
then once the deal comes through India will become a puppet in US hands.




True that India needs energy security but not at the cost of sovereignity,foreign policy and more of self respect. Once the deal comes through as pointed out by many specialist India would come automatically in the US camp and virtually it would become a check from US against the rising china and as a counter balance for SCO and the Russia in resurgence. Everything will be decided and dictated by US using one or the other like return of equipments, threat of second technoloy denial regime, Will-stop-your-reactor words and others.

It may be wise if we look into the point that our foreign policy decisions should be in pace with time while talking about Panch-sheel and the NAM concept, Our future posture as a super power in the making is all in the independent,powerful,self-discretionary foreigh policy decision and that will be at least 2 in the queue after military might for the super power status. We should drive our strategy in a balanced manner such that we end up having "get the energy security", "keep uncle sam happy", "independent decisions","keep development apace" all together at the same time..Indeed a tought job,..but for that only we have the well-educated,shrewd and independent babus in our buerocracy and watchful left friends in Delhi....

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Part II


People will be surprised to know that comman people put their children for a paltry sum of Rs.600. that turns about USD 17 for employment. And we as people have to do something to wipe off child labour in the near future. If one look into the areas where children are deputed, one can make out quite a number of things. Beedi roll shops Cracker industry, Road side eateries, and Hotels predominantly employ children where no special skills are required and regular labour charge is very high. These petty margins drives people to employ children in their shops.

Another perspective is that this poor earning from children is enabling their wretched parents to make ends meet if not for lavish spend which enables one to correlate easily towards life condition of people and some serious root cause for chronic issues like child labour.

The worst form of the chil labour is bonded labour or servitude where children are bonded to the owners and have to toil for round the clock and served food minimally. WIth roughtly around 11 million children as child labours some thing need to be done seriously....

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Plaguing the nation



Breaks can at times be refreshing, but occasionally breaks too can spoil the rythm. This time i was caught in the second one and bit lot more time to start. After a handful of soceity reflecting blogs...I too need a change and what I am planning is to work on theme based blogs rather. A new idea,new concept will always enables me to come up with new and unseen perceptions which would be thought provoking and insightful for the audience.

The nation still owes a lot to its subjects no matter how good it boast it's own performance no matter how miniscule it may be.. There are several, in fact many things which keeps plaguing our nation. Woemen empowerment, corruption, extremist threat both internal and external, poverty, agrarian crisis, infant mortality and to top it all the Child labour...


This series of blog will concentrate on the worst of all and it is the child labour. India stands high in the world arena mostly because of it's recent glare due to the high and encouraging IT exports and this can be directly attributed to the large chunk of working youth 90% of them all in their 20's. Even some media report claims that india equals the youth line up with that of china. To maintain the strategic lead we enjoy in this particular IT domain with that of our competing countries in general and china in particular we have to address a series of issues and surely child labour will be major one..

Friday, April 27, 2007

Island trouble

This is a subject which I have never touched before but going through repeated articles and the coverage it gets in the Media gives me a second thought. It's the issue of the rebels operating from the island nation..




And as a tamil the issue becomes more close and naturally it becomes a issue of greater importance. The general mis-conception about the tamil rebels is that it is a terrorist organisation. I don't have any special incident and chain of event which can be correlated and substantiated for the start of war in the early 80's. But at some point or other I have heard that tamils in the island nation has been stripped of basic rights and marginalised. Some bad points to note are something like tamils were not allowed to rise beyond certain ranks in armed forces,civil forces. and suffered untold miseries..







When the rebel mission was started, India's iron lady was in the seat of power and the rebels were trained and equipped by our own country. I never come across the stories and theories beyond this Indira's step..But this rebel group has grown into sizes which grabs bbc's prime space in it's website when it launched the first ever air attact..

If one start to think of the time and position which forces one to launch and run a rebel group in search of a separate statehood and to fight for it's sovereignity is only when the group is pushed to the brink..But the positions unwound differently with Rajiv taking a different stand by sending IPKF to tame the group which has been groomed by his own mother. I personally feel that the rebel group's greatest blunder ever was the assasination of Rajiv in 1991 and to add insult to the injury the rebel group leader's note that it was a painful incident.. Goes by the tamil proverb that says" pillayum killitu...thottilayum attura kathai..." I don't beleive the rebel group will ever gain India's confidence atleast in the near future..

In another dimension we need to look after the plight of the tamil breathern's in the east and the war torn decade..A very simple example is the students missing out academic calender in case of a war emergency...Simply put who ever speaks tamil will yearn for a quicker solution. for the island breatherns....

Plunder in Bengal

Nandigram has opened the Pandora's box with speculations coming out up to direct remarks from CPM that it won't go for replacing Budhadeb. This again raises the very basic questions regarding SEZ, that do we really need them? With heavy tax sops,numerous incentives and all these at our farmer's cost. With the CPM's politbureau howling for a development with human face and the state in west Bengal moving forward swiftly with no second thought for the planned SEZ. The state is already notorious for the special interest it showed on the Indonesia based salim group.

Here what the lefts in the state will cleverly argue that WB will the development cycle if it fails and says nay to the "FDI in state" optiona and missing the IT boom..True, but it should never lose the base line and that's what I fear is happening in WB currently. The lefts really had a dream run last two years with more direct communists in the parliament after the early years of independece and a emphatic victory in their bastion WB and tripura. I remember voting for Mohan from Madurai when he contested from the MK headed alliance in TN. Sure it's fact that people like Nallakannu,Mohan and other communists in the state are noted for their simplicity and staraight forwardness these incidents wreaking a havoc and sure will have some impact at least in the near future.


With singur not being settled out and pushed to the back burner and Nandigram in the news this year is especially bad for the communists, With wal-mart and other big ones are already drawing plans I feel Lefts should reframe their strategy..

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Irony of Fate

Much has been written about the reservation, but it is very much unfortunate that the supreme court staying the 27% reservation for backward classes in the premiere central institutions. It's always like the downtrodden and voiceless keeps on crammed down out of their space and their voice strangled..The elite and privilaged who represents a very minimal percentage of the urban class got the coverage more than needed in the more voyeurisitic indian media which has slipped long back from the thumb rule of journalism that it has report news..Now days news and snippets are manufactured fakely to propel the urban centric TRP ratings and aiming costlier advertising slots..After all each and everyone knows well that news will not be happening round the clock, 24X7 or live.. A well to do educated, abundantly salaried knews nothing more than to swap through news channels as if looking for more news to match for more snacks he gobbles...Resulting in news being manufactured for the hungry urbanite resulting mentally obese audience always gaining self-pleasure in going through fallacies and analysing unnecessary details..




No wonder that these fluent english speakers and their obvious kids from AIIMS,CMC's,Jipmer's got more media coverage for whom manufacturing news becomes easy with better english speakers rather than the poor ruralite who will be provided with education in his mother tongue by the state, for whom simple uni-colour uniforms are unaffordable, for whom schools are never reached in Power air-conditioned high-end sedans, for whom a full tutor is a dream or mere luck if he gets one,for whom school is more a place revered for the un-balanced mid-day meal, with politicians more concerned with whether to add egg or not in the mid-day ration rather than a better improved infrastructure, for whom schools are either squeezed with his mates or classes usually going in tree shade, for whom basic sanitary needs in his school is always denied or unaccessible, for whom additional tutions is only imaginable and to top it all finishing the school will become an acheivement..




But for the elites school is always packed with programs with strong business motives of the promoters promising soft-skills, yoga, swimming and all related stuffs.. Where one register for high end coaching class right away from the day he joins class VII where he would be familiarizing himself with physics,chemistry and maths, and taking N mock tests, n+1 guides, N+N tutions and infinity guidance and still two solid years preparing only for the 3/6 hours entrace exams and still complains that he is being denied the right of equal oppurtunity...with thousands and thousands of inequalities being present in the way he learns, trains and tries and gets guidance for the admission...
And atlast the elite,privilaged,more straight forward urbanites starts pester the government and state that injustice has been meeted out to them... This is simply "Irony of Fate"

Monday, March 12, 2007

Oil Addiction

The "stay the course" stunt had enough of George with rumours spelling out like"either fix it immedietely" or expect a "repeat of vietnam" failure for the mighty,world #1,corporate centric United states. Much has been talked about the US elections which transferred the total power structure to the democrats after a long gap of eight years, and light hearted, 'so called' optimistic,poor fellows like me expected a road map of the US retreat.. Much fanfare was there for Nancy as the first woman speaker in the US congress and US media boasted of the Bipartisan approach.. what follwed is the usual US way..








To put in the way as exactly framed by Ijaz Ahamed is the "One more time.. and last" addicted syndrome of a usual gambler going for another and another and another approach all along his time seems plaguing US. All predictions went wrong !! Either it is Democrats or Republicans..Worldwide protest or No!! Always God will come and say like "George!! still are you not doing your role as a saviour???" Then George will wake up and announce proudly for a new road map and push in more troops..Democrats??Bipartisan approach?? Anti - war policy of Democrats...Bull shit...We as Americans have to save Iraq..God knows what is they are going to save..The oil addiction and the corporate-political tangle drives American mindset to pump in for more troops..
Iraq Oil fields


Miserable are reports from "Lancet" like 6 millions are dead in Iraq are really horrible!! Who knows?? George my push more troops and stabilise Iraq... With chenoy giving an unusual,unannounced visit to Pak. speaks volumes of Pakistan's dubious distinction as America's ally in the war against terror..And the hawks eye now turn to Iran..Thankfully India does not have Oil resources...God is still soft towards us !!!!!!

Monday, March 05, 2007

IT revolution




Since last decade, really India has got a new colour in the world arena, atleast in the urban level. Mood is upbeat..More IPO's...Sky rocketing sensex... up to the height of dubious "India shining" campaign ( voters really judged it exactly whether it is shining
really or not..) If not all, there were some visible changes which made each and every urban folk to feel proud. I will list out some outright examples. Dignitaries from the outside world ( read it " from west" ) after their short visit to Taj in Agra, never missed the next flight to Bangalore to visit the campus and love to hear the inspiring story of the IT. The list is studded with Big heads like former Japanese prime minister, Chinese president,Bill Gates and even Dutch royals.


Something can be marked and noted still more. Although chinese universities are faring well and competing with even the elite Ivy-league.. Hu did'nt missed to visit the prestigious IISc campus in Bangalore which says in itself how people atlest in the beurocratic level watches India's advancements. sure IT changed the face of India. with all this said one easy inference for any engineering grad is a how life would be without IT??




I myself personally had enviable dream of a career as a "Software engineer". Although this tag has lost its gloass today.. Everyone longed for it. Fortunately we had Azim and Narayanamurthy and Ramadurai with us who all pioneered the IT and ITES industry, today the industry entirely absolving a maximum number of undergrads irrespective of their engg. specialisation churned out by the colleges to its fold. It's direct logic. A great Indian IT dominance, happy " quarter conscious " corporates, happy IT proffesionals , Still happy shareholders and atleast a content government. True, each and every government woos IT cos. to set up shop in theri respective state. Some visible backdrop is the spiralling real estates. This would be unimaginable without IT.. What would have happened if we missed this IT revolution to some other english speaking countries... Unemployment would have reason..You and me will not be here writing and reading this.. No software exports...
Anyway India managed to get the bus this time...

THANKS IT

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Verdict

This is verdict time.. I would like to share my thoughts of the review.. It would never be wise to come to serious conclusions and talk firmly about the dispute. Any way I would do a layman's analysis. The tribunal has come up with a verdict after 16 long years notorious for the interim order which triggered a anti Tamil pogorm resulting in killing of 18+ civilians.




The much worrying thing is that kannadigas are colouring up themselves more and more regionally, I would have never been worried this much if the protest were not in the name of kannada and with some individual flag. I have very well noticed some sort of uneasyness with the kannadiga mindset in refined,undisputed and most revered personality like contemporary historian Ramachandra guha making some not so convenient comments about anti-tamil pogorm of '91.

At the outset, a slight review through articles reveal that karnataka will have release some 187 tmc of water which is somewhat less than the interim order of 205 tmc. Although theremight be some contention about the dependability share of 50%/75%. I would also like to make my point here that counsel for the upper reparian state claiming that the water needs should be calculated based on the availability of ground water. This seems ridiculous for me very much immedietly with my very little knowledge. IT is absurd that a paddy farmer will be supporting his crop entirely with the ground water and that too for paddy which needs sufficient water althrough its cycle. And if We go by the same measure, the upper riparian state may well have it's own share being cut too..


The other thing is the sharing during distress time.. Still I feel the tribunal should have cleared it well rather than doing a last minute reversal with a passing note. Another major thing is that the lowere riparian state remained idle when whole lot of new reservoirs and dams being built in the upper riparian state paving way for new catchment areas and cultivables and ringing alarm bells when almost everything is done.


The worst of all is the ever cunning politicians using the chavenistic kannadiga sentiments for their personal milieage. The only saving grace is the commotion is not up till now... With further appeals from the major riparian states I hope we may get the final settlement in a year as in other inter-state river disputes. Let's hope a amicable solution...

Friday, January 19, 2007

Iraq quagmire....

Saddam's execution..

The very popular quote which is being trumpeted in the recent times is that "Iraq was is better shape than before". This makes the writing in the wall still clear..It's really unfortunate that even after some bad toned interviews with a typical American arrogance like "we don't do body counts" from the now ousted Rumsfield on being asked about the casuality count of the iraqis.. Bush-Blair duo still manages to spearhead the campaign that they are towards the goal of spreading democracy in the middle east and the stereo-typed,monotonical slogans like liberating Iraq... and rebuilding iraq.

And the irony of all is that Bush and the puppet regime's court of Justice managed to hang Saddam.. Although it's a fact that Saddam is to be accused of Torturing and killing the Kurds, there would not be this much hue and cry if he would been tried in the unoccupied Iraq and a well oiled Independent Iraqi court of Justice. It makes one feel really uneasy that one who is charged with torturing his own coutrymen is tried by Bush who himself is responsible for killing thousands and thousands of Iraqis for his selfish,jealousy,self-centric,personal Oil greed.

Though Bush managed to announce Saddam's execution well before the US elections.. Republicans had their due in the elections losing clearly in both the senate and the lower house.. poor Saddam being again used by G.Bush,Jr. Now Bush might be having a tough time thinking about the bipartisan approach and dealing with Nancy Pelosi.





Bush may fortunately leave the office by doing some "Stay the Course" stunts and may escape from the "President who lost the Iraq war" tag cleverly by deploying some more troops.. And already Blair preparing for packing the bags from Downing street.. The Iraq war is well poised with all the oil being rightly trapped... Inciting the internal rivalry..Executing people at will..Money for Iraq reconstruction being swindled by already fat corporates..God should save Iraq.. Perhaps, God will never say.. "Go Bush.. Save Iraq" to Bush.Jr.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

The report

It's really a long break since i last blogged..Meanwhile the oppurtunity which at one point of time for which I craved is fast loosing it's shine and leaves me clue less. Definitely I did'nt expect this at a great place to work.. infact..



Indian Muslims have been deliberately left out..

A lot of hullo-bullo has been made over the Rajinder sachar committee's request for the Muslim headcount from the armed forces.. People shouted as if that would tarnish the armed forces image and kill it's integrity. The shouting proves that there is something perceptibly wrong.. Although the facts and figures of the Muslim headcount in state and central public services are alarming,the one most shocking one which i read from frontline is that out of one lakh police personnel in tamil Nadu, only 500/600 were muslims!!!! This is too much for our nation in general and TN in particular.. Since the days of the Rath yatra the Indian right wing managed to paint a grave picture on the India's largest minority and grown the animosity in quite some minds.


The sachar committee's findings throws sufficient light on the plight of the Indian Muslim minority and it's recommendations has to be implemented at once to it's truest of the intentions. After all, the key slogan on which the congress(I) rided on it's way to the Delhi throne was "Garibi hatao!" and Garibi definition fits everyone and it's almost is the need of the hour for Muslim upliftment. At the end of the day, everyone dreams of a decent earning,food and a modest shelter and the government should really help who are less previlaged


With all this said, something has to be done to keep the unity in diversity tag which we are very much proud of, and also we need to have the secular fabric more lively with a equal, open and just representation encompassing all sections of the soceity.