Arz Kiya hai...

Don’t shy away from the real problem...

I often come across this widely circulated email enunciating India’s glorifying past. Being a proud Indian, it is but obvious for me to swell with pride. But when I brood over the current state of affairs I get butterflies in my stomach. The country which was once accredited with having the world’s first university at Takshila (in modern Bihar) way back in 700 B.C where more than 10000 people from all across the world studied over 60 subjects, is today left with some sub-standard universities (with exception of a handful ones like IITs, IIMs), forcing an exodus of the students abroad. India which was once the richest empire on the earth is today decried by the westerners as poverty stricken and underdeveloped through political corruption. Where did we go wrong. It has been 58 years since independence, but can we really boast of our Moon Mission in 2008, when the newspaper is replete with the stories of farmer apathies and labor unrest. The biggest quandary that India faces today is the vast inequality existing amongst the people. In a country like Sweden this gap is hardly visible. What annoys me the most is the fact that India prides itself in being the largest democracy in the world. Dr. Ambedkar in the drafting committee had clearly envisioned that the primary role of a democratic government is to set up a welfare state with social, economic and political equality. And one does not need to be a rocket scientist to see that the governments have done nothing to bridge this ever widening gap. So, does the problem lie only with the government and the government babus for whom corruption is a life-style. It would be foolhardy for anyone to figure out that as the root of the problem. The govt. and govt. servants have not come from the moon. They are the people from amongst us. The central govt. employees alone count up to over 40 lakhs. Add to it the state govt. employees of the 26 states. Has our political system become such that it no more attracts people with an earnest desire to do something for the masses. So what’s the solution out. Do we accept it as our fate and let the things continue the way it is. Or should we find a way out to satiate our dollar dreams and settle thousands of miles away from the borders our motherland. Things have really changed since the world economy has opened up. Businesses are no more bound by the national boundaries. It does not matter to a global employee as to which country he works in. So, has the feeling of nationalism really become archaic. Well, I beg to differ. This is my country, these are my people... how can I be anywhere else. Okay – India has a long red tape and setting up a business here is no easy task (given the number of licenses one needs to obtain and the bribes that accompany them). The easy way out would be to move out and lead a plush life serving the whites. Now I don’t want to sound a racist here. But alas, if you call yourself a man, you must have the balls to fight the system by being a part of it. I know, that it’s easier said than done – but you won’t be called a man by just freaking out with your girl friend in a mall. Remember, no place in the world is perfect. The worldcomm fiasco did not occur in India. Each place has a problem unique to itself. And instead of choosing another problem why not solve the one you are currently facing. To start with, we need a bottom-up approach to solve the problem. One serious encumbrance to India’s woes is its herd-mentality. We often follow others and do not bother to wake up our own sagacity. Let us solemnly decide to do what we think (after proper deliberation) is right. Let a person become a teacher because he loves teaching and not because of any other reason. Only then will we see teachers in a govt. school attending to classes. In a populous country like ours, where unemployment is a staid problem, the luckier ones (who are financially independent) have to take the responsibility of helping the others. But what really happens is that most of them join the rat race – they get a small car and then they crave for a limousine. Buddha said – ‘desire is the cause of all sufferings’. I don’t say that you lead the life of a hermit. But it’s just that you got to realize that the happiness one derives from helping others is unparalleled. Huh, am I being idealistic. As goes the saying - In the race for perfection there is no finish line. May be I myself should realize soon that the bottom line is – This is an imperfect world. Humans by very nature are selfish. So don’t fret and let the things continue the way they are – its all just “Maya”.

Don't Read This......

Hey, didn’t you read the title of this article. I hope, you know little bit of English (at least to be able to understand the meaning of this title). So why are you reading this in spite of the warning. Stop reading this at once and do some useful work. If you continue to read this, don’t blame me later on for any damage caused to your….. So honey, take my sincere advice and stop reading this instantly. Ya, that’s like a good boy. Hey, you are continuing to read it further. Aadmi ho ki Pajama – ek baar bolne se samajh mein nahin aata. Besharmi ki bhi hudd hoti hai. Anyway, if you have read it this far, let me tell you one thing. Human beings by very nature are stubborn. They never do what they are told to, and they always try to do what they are told not to. But once explained in a rational way, they tend to learn and mend their ways. So I guess at this point, I have been able to explain you quite rationally that you should not read this. So dear, bbye, have a nice day. Arey arey ruko bhai, tum toh aage padhe hi ja rahe ho. Enough is enough man. Tum sahi mein bade wale ho – yahan tak bhi pahunch gaye. Okay I get it – so u have decided that you won’t bat an eye lid and just continue to read this – come what may. Woh kahte hain na – “Laaton ke bhoot……..”. Thank God, at least now you stopped. Better late than never. Ye kya phir shuru ho gaye, ek shabd bhi aage mat padhna, warna bahut bura hoga. Now I bet, I won’t let you read beyond five more words. Yess, I stopped you finally!

At the red light….(straight from the heart)

I have given the shape of a poem to an article I wrote a few months ago..

Unkempt hair,
Shabby attire.
Roses to sell,
Ah! No buyers.

Vehicles to vehicles
She moves and pleads.
But to the eye feasting
Scavengers she feeds.

Hope-lit eyes
Tinged with despair.
Crooked smiles
She silently bears.

Heart soaked with pain
Asking for care.
If u have some
She is willing to share.

Drooped are her shoulders
Below the weight of the flowers.
Extremely fragile she is,
Against the Mammon’s power.

She shields the chilling winter
With torn clothes, hope ‘n’ disgust.
Lonely tears trickle down
As unwanted emotional outburst.

She taps the car’s window.
She touches their feet.
Mumbling words inconfidently when
She can clearly speak.

At last she approaches
The beautiful lady in the car.
Who off ‘n’ on look in the mirror
And assumes herself a star.

She pushes the bunch inside
And begs her to buy.
Trying to be too assertive
As if it’s her last try.

Thinking of her some scum
Lady pushes her on the ground
She falls ‘n’ roses get scattered,
Without the faintest sound.

Roses die beneath tyres,
As commuters zoom away.
They are short of time
And word to say.

Delhi V Bangalore

I recently shifted my base (actually my whole body including the base :) from Delhi to
Bangalore. Though I have visited almost whole of south India earlier (in the capacity of a
musafir), this is the first time that I have actually come here to stay for a longer period.
I used to fear staying here - nightmares regarding the food, the language, the people... But
after spending about 2 weeks here, I feel that my apprehensions were unfounded. May be because Bangalore is full of north Indians. I guess, the nationalists will bicker with me for raising an LOC between the two parts of this beautiful nation. I will offer to say this in my defense – I am a firm believer of the tenets enumerated in the preamble of our Constitution referring to the underlying unity of the nation. And I don’t feel shy in admitting that it is the ‘Bimaru’ states of north India that are responsible for the very low ranking of India in almost all the listings released by the UN. But the fact remains that I am a hardcore north Indian and love the “chalta hai” attitude. I miss (not really) the ‘sarkari’ culture that is an integral part of a delhite (I offer my sincere apologies to the many hunkies working in the mushrooming IT companies in the NCR regions of noida and gurgaon). Everyone in delhi (or ‘dilli’) is (or claims to be) close to men-in-khadi (no less than the men-in-black). Now that is what speaks of your status. A Bangalorean would argue with me. But alas, that is the rule here. I found that the people in Bangalore are less status-conscious. When I landed at the Bangalore airport, I felt that I am going to have a hard time making the taxi-wallah lead me to my hotel. But to my surprise, he was talking to me in fluent (and grammatically correct) ‘angrezi’. On my way through, he acted like a tourist guide (of course with no extra bucks other than the taxi fare ;) telling me every detail of leela palace, lal bagh, bull’s temple, kemp fort…. Though I had visited most of these places earlier (on a bharat darshan tour), I listened to him very earnestly. I got a taste of the wary traffic on the airport road. Delhi was not much different some five years ago, but full marks to Shiela Dixit (the ‘fly over’ CM) for easing out the traffic snarls to a great extent. I dreaded my days ahead and decided to avail an accommodation as close to my office as possible.
The best thing about Bangalore is the weather here (no extremes like dilli). It rains quite a bit here and that is problematic for poor guys like me on 2-wheelers. The burgeoning IT industry has made Bangalore a crowded city. I wish that the state government takes appropriate measures to expand the city to the outskirts. Parking has already become a severe problem out here.

Today is the birthday of shashi's world

I love reading and writing all kinds of articles/views/opinions/criticisms. So having a blog space of my own was something natural. Not much to write today. But be sure to check back soon.