Renaissance

Check out Revolution 2020 by Chetan Bhagat @ Rs 20 - Refer & Win

2011-09-08T09:16:00.001+05:30

Check out Revolution 2020 by Chetan Bhagat @ Rs 20 - Refer & Win

Sadhu dies after 115-day fast to save Ganga

2011-06-18T00:15:00.000+05:30

Baba Ramdev's deluxe ward at Dehradun's Himalayan Hospital was not far from that of his 'fellow faster' Swami Nigamanand. Yet, while the camera bulbs wouldn't stop flashing as Ramdev broke his fast following nine days of going without food, hardly anyone batted an eyelid as Nigamanand breathed his last after being on a hunger strike for 115 days. Nigamanand went on a fast unto death to protest against illegal mining on the bank of the Ganga in Haridwar. He started his fast on February 19 from Haridwar. On April 30, the district administration forcibly shifted Nigamanand - a seer at the Matri Sadan Ashram - to the Haridwar District Hospital as his condition started to deteriorate. But even then, he refused to touch food. On May 2, he entered into a coma. He was then shifted to Dehradun's Himalayan Hospital and put on life support. Nigamanand, 34, finally died on Monday - almost four months after he gave up food. --- India Today But GoI is still doing nothing to prevent Ganga. It didn't even bothered about Swami Nigamananda. What with people supporting Anna Hazare and not Swamiji? It is irony for India that we are just emotional fools and do not think before we act. Ganga couldn't be cleaned since 1980s plans and not there is a new one. What the hell GoI is doing?

Shop for Sale in TDI Mall Agra

2011-03-29T18:42:00.001+05:30

A shop for Sale at TDI Mall, Agra.

Contact # 0 9997439905, 0562 2870074

Moved

2011-03-02T12:03:00.003+05:30

I write primarily over here.

I will post here sometimes as and when I can. Till then enjoy reading at following locations:-

Palak Mathur
Aatmiyata - Ek Prayas (My Hindi Blog)
Palak Clicks
Vichar Vahak

Richard Feynman on doubt,uncertainty and religion

2010-09-03T16:13:00.000+05:30

In Search

2010-08-22T23:41:00.001+05:30

Sometimes you have so many choices to choose from but that doesn’t make any sense because you had already decided that you don’t want to make a choice as you are clear in your mind that what you already had chosen long back is right and any available options are not so lucrative to make you change your mind. Therefore, you continue doing what you are currently doing and are hopeful that your choice will present loveable results. However, when the results are declared you realize that they are not in favor.

You again have a mix bag of old and new choices but now you are confused. At these times, everything is in commotion and your mind says different things and you remain undecided. You are no more sure that what you are doing will fructify or not though you are sure that that is the correct thing. You are sure that the destination is correct but you are no surer that you will reach the destination and you are not sure about the way either. Your life is in turmoil and there is certain degree of chaos in your life.

You might enjoy this chaos but there are certain aspects of life where you want to have some definitive solution to this chaos but you do not seem to have any. You analyze your situation and re-analyze it and still you are not sure. Finally, you see a ray of light that makes you hope for the better and that also makes you surer about that option you had initially chosen. You again start believing in it and move ahead with full josh and confidence.

I am in search of same ray of light to come, ignite, and with its luminosity abate the darkness in which I currently am.

Black Day for Java

2010-08-16T12:47:00.000+05:30

I was long awaiting such kind of act by Oracle and it happened. Oracle sued Google over Java in Android platform ( News and actual complaint).

Is it really sad? Yes for the Java developers and users it is certainly a bad news. But isn't it true Java deserves its share of goodies. Sun created Java and after initial deals they stuck with IBM, Microsoft, Oracle and others they were not able to monetize Java. Java was used extensively and soon become the most preferred language for enterprise solutions. It was platform independent and could be run on any architecture all its needed was a JVM. In the end of April 2009 Oracle anounced acquisition of Sun Microsystems and became a hardware company. However, the most discussed thing was future of Java. Father of Java, James Gosling resigned Sun Microsystems/Oracle.

The things were not bad till recently. All were enjoying Java platform and developments were full-on. Then Android entered and changed the face of market. Developers started developing applications for Android and Oracle realized that this is the time that they must get the share of the success of Android and filed a patent and copyright infringement lawsuit against Google.

I am shocked and disappointed with this act. We must not forget that Sun held thousands of patents but backed open-source sharing. It cut licensing deals for Java, but also offered free versions. This act will certainly cause anxiety in other corporations that are major users of Java. IBM will be the first one that will be impacted, after Google, if this happens. Also impacted will be Apache Software Foundation, which provides support for the Apache community of open-source software projects.

What will happen to the lawsuit? What will be the future of Java after this lawsuit? These questions will be answered by time. Let's wait and watch. But this is certainly a black day for Java.

2010-08-15T00:01:00.001+05:30

I would like to wish all of my fellow citizens Happy Independence Day.

We are celebrating our 64th Independence Day. Pakistan celebrated its 64th Independence Day yesterday. Hope that the coming years will deplete the bitterness from both sides and we will see the progressive diplomacy and will march together towards the global success. I also wish that violence in Kashmir comes to an end. There should be solution to the agonies of the Kashmiris. I also hope that Naxalism will also end and the miseries of the poor get abated.

In hope that we can live with harmony together and forever.

Happy Independence Day!!

Shouldn’t there be a limit to Opinion-based Columns and News?

2010-05-10T17:30:00.003+05:30

I don’t remember when I first read the editorial of any newspaper. But it has been a long time now. I have been watching newspapers because of my interest in the news and reading newspapers. What is interesting to note is the increase in the devotion to columnists and opinion based articles. It has become a trend to generate views and debate over them and keep on doing so for a long time. People are also asked to participate in debates and it continues. While few of the people make their original views, millions of others are forced to accept one of the several views and million others remain confused.

Once I commented on a blog,

It is good to have more opinion based columns. However, I don’t like them much. A newspaper should publish a news as it is, i.e., neutrally. It helps people to judge the news and have opinions of their own. Now, if we post an opinion based column, you are forcing the views of the author upon masses making the people judgmental and prejudiced about an issue.

Also, many columns on the same issue will confuse the people. They will have all the views in their mind but will not be able to judge it on their own merits.

Once the ability to judge on merit is lost, we will have a nation of mere spectators who have no thoughts and opinions of their own – a death of a democracy then and there.

The people who write for a journal or a newspaper or for that matter who communicate through news channels are people with ample learning and experience. It is good to have their views. But isn’t it wrong to force these views. I know newspapers, news channels, etc are not doing intentionally, but somehow it is happening and it should be controlled.

Shouldn’t there be a limit to these opinion based columns?

A Doing That Cannot Be Undone - Defending Godse - Not Possible

2010-04-28T19:15:00.003+05:30

I read Nathuram Godse’s last speech. You can read it here.

On certain expects I agree with him but in all condemn him. I have already written my opinion here. I tried to defend his act, but in the end failed.

A Tribute to the Shaheeds

2010-03-23T15:48:00.002+05:30

Today is 23rd March 2010. 69 years ago, on 23rd March 1931 – Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru became martyrs for this land of ours. Wish we have more people like them who devote their lives for the country. My tributes to the trio!!

SHAHEEDON KI CHITAON PAR LAGENGE HAR BARAS MELE, WATAN PE MITNE WALON KA YAHI BAKI NISHAN HOGA!!

Breaking Rules – Generation after Generation

2010-03-22T13:32:00.008+05:30

Since long I have been thinking to write something on this issue but was not able to collect my random thoughts properly. Today I thought it is better to say it in whatever manner – proper or improper. At-least the message will be passed. Also the trigger point this time was a foreigner who was on a tour on his old and antique piece of Royal Enfield. I saw him near Koregaon Park crossing here in Pune and found him breaking the rule which normally he might have followed if he would have been in his own country, but not in India. Why? Because we, the natives are least bothered about following the same ourselves so how the hell can we expect someone alien to follow the rules of our land? I kept quiet, I remained mum. What could have I said to him when my own people do not follow the rules?

On driving through the roads, zipping besides other vehicles, it is a remarkable observation that there are people who drive on roads without following traffic rules and regulations. For example, whenever I drive from Dagdu Sheth Halwai towards Shaniwar Peth, at ABC Chowk and more often than none I have observed that people cross the road on their vehicles without bothering the traffic signal to turn Green. I specially mention this place because the place where one has to stop, it is difficult to know what is coming from the road which is on the left. But people endanger their lives as well as that of others. Several times I have observed that the policemen are the first one to break the rules and cross. One can also observe people driving on the wrong side. Why? Because they will have to drive a little extra to take a U-turn and reach their destination. This sometimes creates havoc and becomes extremely dangerous. And all the people who are doing such things are the well-educated people who boast of working in a MNC and being thecrème de la crème amongst the Indian people.

I was thinking why we behave in such a way that we don’t give a heed to the rules and regulation. And the answer was once again given when I talked to some children (around 9 or 10 years old. I asked their age) who were riding a bicycle and were on the wrong side of the road. I asked them why they were riding on the wrong side. They said because others are driving. One of them said that he comes with his father to buy bread daily and his father drives in a similar fashion. When I asked whether this was wrong or not, they said,”Hum itna aage kyun jaayein, jab dukaan yahan se 2-3 dukanein chhodkar hai!!” (Why should we travel further when the shop is just 2-3 shops away from here?) I had got the answer. I explained them that what they were doing is wrong. I asked whether they love India. They all said yes. So I asked them to follow these rules. This will make mother India happy. They agreed and left (still from the wrong side).

What are we teaching our kids? And why are we doing so? I have observed that many school buses drive rashly and break rules more often. The school has the responsibility to guide the children in the right way. I agree that this is a combined effort of theirs and the parents but at-least the schools can set an example. If their buses follow the traffic rules properly, then I think the children will have someone to look forward too when they are in doubt regarding what is right and what is wrong and may be the parents also change for the better.

Children tend to imitate the acts of their elders. We all want our kids to respect us and follow the rules. But will it be possible when we ourselves are not following the rules? Breaking the rules has become so common that we hardly realize that we have broken a rule. We make these things common and then crib that the people are not following rules. If we cannot follow the rules ourselves then we don’t have the right to even crib about it.

I know it is difficult to change everyone. There will always be a few people who will not change but let them be what they are. Administration will take care of them. As of now there are so many people breaking the rules, it is difficult for the administration to punish them all. But if everyone takes his/her own responsibility then the people who break the rules will be less and easier to catch and punish.

I doubt that we are going to realize this any sooner. But hope for the best. All the best!

Safe Driving!!

A Journey from R220 to S5233

2010-03-10T17:36:00.007+05:30

One fine afternoon, at around 3PM I returned home from college. Everyone was sitting on the double-bed. There was excitement in the eyes of all the three persons sitting on the bed – my father, mother and younger brother. I couldn’t guess what it was but I was sure that there is some surprise in store. But what was it, I was unable to guess.

I sat on the chair near the lakdi ka sandook (as it was called). My brother opened the almirah and brought a box and gave it to me. I was shocked and surprised. It was a mobile phone. Samsung R220 – a blue-silver body and jazzy blue display with an Escotel sim card. I was happy, very very happy.

I used to take it to college but was not allowed to call or receive any call. Those were the days, when incoming was also charged. But within a month’s time Airtel was also launched in UP and little later telecom reforms came making incoming free and call charges very less.
There were very few people in my college who had a mobile phone in their pockets. I was one of them. I was happy about that, but more than me my friends were happy.

The days passed and the mobiles became usual and casual. With the advent of Reliance Communication, there came a revolution in the telecom industry. But I am not here to discuss the industry as such. So let’s do not indulge in that. Everyone now had the mobile. Newer models of mobile hit the market and there was an addition to the features with each release of new model. GPRS, Infrared, WAP were the buzz words.

In 2006, I broke my lovely phone R220. I was unhappy with the incident and wanted to have a new phone. But I was jobless and asking papa for the same would have called abuses from him. I had worked in VCustomer for some time so had some money saved in my account, but didn’t wanted to touch that. It was like a bhavishya nidhi for me – a provident fund. In March 2006, on returning from Jaipur after taking Infosys tests and interview, Shalank (my brother) and I went to Shah Market and sold the broken R220 for Rs. 600 and on our way back home bought a new mobile phone Nokia 1110i. I liked the phone very much. It was also blue in color with inverted display means black screen with white/yellow display. It cost me around Rs 2500 which was a good amount for me to forfeit. But I was happy. Mummy and Papa also showed their acceptance to my happiness. The next day I got an email from Infosys informing about my selection. So, it became a lucky phone for me. :) Same year I financed my brother to buy Nokia 6030 with my first salary. :)

I lost my phone in Oct 2008 to my insanity. I also broke my brother’s mobile. I was angry on something and threw it against the wall. It broke into pieces. The pieces were lying on the floor. It seemed that they were questioning me in a sad voice. I realized what mistake I had done and assembled it. The screen was badly damaged. I had lost it. I didn’t bought mobile myself but helped Shalank buy a mobile. He bought a Sony Erricson phone. Model I don’t remember.

In Jan 2009, my friend Satish left for US and gave me his Nokia 6030. I used it till October 2009. One evening, I was with Vir and we decided that it is the high time that I should buy a mobile. So we went to Aundh in Pune and bought a new phone. My budget was only Rs. 5000. I liked Samsung Star and bought it. It cost me a surplus of Rs 5000. After parting with the money with Samsung Star in my hand I was happy. It was a touch screen phone with 3.2MP camera.

It has changed. The telecom industry has changed. Just it clicked. My current client is one of the telecom majors in Canada. :) People have changed, life has changed. And this change will continue forever.

Changed the template

2010-03-05T13:14:00.009+05:30

Finally today I changed the template for my blog. Was getting bore while doing deployment. Actually, I have been deployments for past few weeks and now I am not interested in doing so. So, was just thinking about the days back in Infosys. You will have to believe that whenever I think about Infosys, first thing that clicks my mind is about InfyBlogs - how I used to change the templates of the blog. More than writing, for few months I was interested in only making new templates for my blog. It used to satisfy my creative thirst.

Today was the similar day. I was thinking the same and suddenly I thought to change the blog template. Actually, I was going through the setting when I saw that I can add upto 10 pages to my blog. I thought this is a good thing actually. So, added a page. My old template was so simple that it was not giving a feel for tabs on the top of the page. Therefore searched the net and found this template.

I think after May, I will indulge in this creativity wherein I will create templates for blogger now. Hope I succeed!

Last Few Years

2010-02-26T10:43:00.005+05:30

In 2005, I passed my engineering and waited for 8 months for a job – tried different things to do but failed in all. In March 2006, I got offer from Infosys and joined it. The four months at Infy Mysore still remains the best time that I had with a sense of belonging. In Feb 2008, I got my first CRR. Having worked for a year and when I say a year – I literally mean it as we all didn’t had any leaves or vacation during the time my first project was under way of development, I was expecting CRR 1. With 50% people in the group sharing CRR 1 it was not difficult, but when I got to know my CRR, I kept checking the whole page for 15 minutes to see whether my CRR rating changes or not – but it didn’t. It was CRR 2. Many people who have got CRR 1, I have never thought of them getting any other rating however, given to understand that they have got other favours as well, CRR 1 for them was practically not right if you want to keep a team united. If we leave aside the last sentence, still a CRR 2 was not at all the thing that I deserved.

Before that CRR, lets move few months back. CRR was in Feb 2008, let us move to May 2007. I am on my desk with a SPM sitting beside me. It is 2 in the morning and I am trying to integrate my module with another module that is behaving very strangely. Everyone wants it to be done. But I have nothing that I could do. I make few changes in the other modules stored procedure in the database, and it starts working. 4 am is the time. Everyone leaves. I stay back and continue with work thinking I will leave in half an hour. I didn’t realize when the housekeeping guy comes and ask me for dust bin. I check the system clock it is 7:30 am. I am shocked. It has been 24 hours that I left home last day. I think that I will leave in a while. But people start pouring in. Finally I leave at around 8:30 PM in the evening. 37 hours in office – without a sleep.

Now let us come forward to June 2007. The day is a meeting in which SPOT Awards are distributed. Module name is announced: Scenario Builder and everyone starts looking at me and the name is announced. WOW!! It is not me!!! Someone else. After working for so many days, effort seem to go wasted. I try to keep myself calm. But the eyes of the people around me keep asking – What happened? How the hell do I know. Ask Kuldeep!!! I was suggested by someone to go easy on work and do not over-indulge myself with it. I tried to do so on that day, but next day I again started the way I was working with 100% devotion and in Feb 2008, I got the result – CRR 2. I wrote a mail to everyone I knew in the management – a sarcastic one. But I wanted to shout on someone. Wanted to enter into Jamuna Ravi’s office and scream at her, go to Satish HC’s office and make his office topsy turvy. But did nothing like that. I refused to discuss anything with anyone.

June-July-August-September (2008)- All went wrong. Satish, Kunal and Deepak helped me a lot in these months. I don’t know what action would I have taken if these people were not there. Thank you buddies! Last year in July I switched gears and joined IBM. In August someone came into my life and changed it completely. I was back again. Back into the real me!! In November got married to her.

Now, I know, that whatever will come my way – we will face it together!!

Obermann Once More by Matthew Arnold

2009-10-30T18:50:00.001+05:30

“The East bow’d low before the blast
In patient deep disdain;
She let the legions thunder past,
And plunged in thought again.”

This is a part of a poem written by Matthew Arnold(24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888), viz. Obermann Once More.

This poem is often used with reference to East by European historians specially when talking about India. The poem’s meaning can be understand by the following lines from the book Struggle for Asia by Francis Low:-

“Just over a hundred years ago the people of Asia had either resolutely sealed themselves off from from all contact with the West or were incapable of defending themselves against Western governments which backed the demands of adventurous European and American traders. The great continent slumbered, immersed either in its own culture and civilization or in its own internal quarrels.”

Asia for long has been a place of struggle for eminent position among Europeans. France, Great Britain and Russia have always tried to have a control over Asia. What can be the reason for this? I don’t know where to start drawing a line. But when I see, Asian countries were far behind their western counterparts when it comes to Industrial Revolution and cross-border trades. These westerners wanted to market their products in Asian market but due to the fear of these ‘barbarians’ we tried to keep aloof. India was an example for this as East India Company, which entered India as traders soon acquired most of the territories and soon India was a British colony. Most of the Asian coutries had had a rich culture and tradition and they always cherished what they had and any kind of interference from the outside must have been considered as a threat to their culture and tradition.

Talking specifically about India, it would be wrong to say that India bowed in front of the Britishers and of course not before resisting them. Since the known history of India, she has been invaded number of times and has absorbed them all. And all those absorbed by her have changed and adapted to the Indian culture or have helped her shape a new culture. But English were different. They were imperialists in their thoughts and actions. They had not come to rule over her but ruin her. This all may be questioned, however, one thing is sure that they were “Different”; not the one who could get adapted to the culture of the soil. So, the resistance is a natural phenomenon that would have taken place and so saying that India bowed in front of them would be wrong and foolish.

Women Empowerment – Challenges and Issues

2009-09-02T14:16:00.001+05:30

In the simplest words, empowering the women means creating such an environment in which they can take independent decisions for their personal development and the development of society in general. Empowerment is the process by which the women achieve increased control and participation in decision making which in turn helps to achieve equal basis with men in various spheres – political, economical, social , cultural and civil.

The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only grants equality to women but also empowers the state to strive and adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women. We have various laws, policies, plans and programmes aimed at women’s advancement in different spheres. However, there exists a wide gap between the goals enunciated in these various forms of development measures and related mechanisms on the one hand and the situational reality of the status of women in India, on the other. This has been analysed extensively in the Report of the Committee on the Status of Women in India, “Towards Equality”, 1974 and highlighted in the National Perspective Plan for Women, 1988-2000, the Shramshakti Report, 1988 and the “Platform for Action, Five Years After – An Assessment”.

The problem essentially is routed in gender disparity in India. Gender disparity manifests itself in various forms, the most obvious being the trend of continuously declining female ratio in the population in the last few decades. Social stereotyping and violence at the domestic and societal levels are some of the other manifestations. Discrimination against girl children, adolescent girls and women persists in parts of the country. The gender disparity can be understood that it exists by looking at the sex ration in India which stands at 933.

The underlying causes of gender inequality are related to social and economic structure, which is based on informal and formal norms and practices. Consequently, the access of women to education, health and productive resources is inadequate. Therefore, they remain largely marginalised, poor and socially excluded. There are various issues which poses myriads of challenges towards the vision of Women Empowerment. Literacy rate among women is very less. This is the major cause. Despite the concept of Gender Budgeting and various special provisions for women in Sarva Shikshan Abhiyan, ie, National Literacy Mission, the ground reality has not changed much. This is one of the foremost reason for women not taking active participation in mainstream economic activities thus making half of Indian Population nearly impotent from economic point of view.

In social field, women are suppressed domestically and do not enjoy respectable position. They are not regarded as intelligent and powerful enough as men. Politically they do not participate and even where they do as voter or representative, mostly they are used as rubber-stamps in the hands of their male relative. They are generally deveoted to household work in India’s patriarchal society. Such underprivilged conditions of women led them to face domestic violence, sexual abuse both at home and work place and improper opportunities for progress in every area of life.

Globalization has presented new challenges for the realization of the goal of women’s equality, the gender impact of which has not been systematically evaluated fully. From the studies that were commissioned by the Dept. of Women and Child Development, it is evident that there is a need for reframing of policies for access to employment and quality of employment. Benefits of growing global economy have been unevenly distributed leading to widening of economic disparities leading to feminization of poverty, increased gender inequality, often deteriorating working conditions and unsafe working environment especially in the informal economy and rural areas.

We have endorsed The Mexico Plan of Action (1975), the Nairobi Forward Looking Strategies (1985), the Beijing Declaration as well as the Platform for Action (1995) and the Outcome Document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly Session on Gender Inequality and Development & Peace for the 21st cenury, titled “Further actions and initiatives to implement the Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action”. But still we lag behind. Where are we wrong this needs to be analysed and as the studies say we need to reframe our policies for the development and empowerment of women.

Smarter Planet – Idea and the Involvement – Time to say THANK YOU!

2009-08-04T16:37:00.000+05:30

When I joined IBM on 3rd July 2009, the first thing I noticed was the poster of Smarter Planet at the gallery leading to my induction room. Later during induction, we were shown the video advertising Smarter Planet concept and how it has become the buzzword here in IBM. However, when I reached the floor where I work, was surprised that very few people talk about it and very few even doing something about it. I was astonished how people can be mute to such a special and important initiative, a dream if realized would change the earth and the way we live on it.

One thing for sure that people will have to come forward, brainstorm on the ideas and on how to implement this in real world. Unless this happens everything else is just words that sound great but in reality are nothing more than sounds. For achieving the objective, the resilience should be developed in the initiative and more and more people should get involved with the sense of belonging to the cause. We all are working on some project for some client but it is our moral duty, a fundamental duty to make this planet, Our Mother Earth a better place to live on. For years she has provided us all what we have needed and most of the times overused the resources that she provided; now the time has come to return a minuscule amount of what we have used. It is the time to say THANK YOU to her for being there with us all the times we needed her.

The Day has Come!!

2009-07-13T02:16:00.002+05:30

# The last mail that I sent in Infosys

26th March 2006
=============
A guy with a friend (Puneet) stepped out of Karnataka Express at Bangalore City station and headed straight to the bus stand opposite that of station. He was loaded with luggage and carrying it was a pain. But he had something to cheer about. They boarded the bus for Mysore, stopped on a motel for a tea waiting eagerly to reach Mysore. Finally they reached Mysore. Hired an auto for Hootagalli and reached their much awaited destination – Infosys Mysore.

After a security check, they were allowed to enter the campus. Their first step in and they froze. No word came out of their mouth and when they came back to senses, they could only utter – “WOW!! Is this really India?” Like many others they were mesmerized by the beauty of the campus and for next few months would remain so!!

27th March 2006
=============
First day in Infosys as Infoscion!!

21st April 2006
============
Good news for the guy. InfyBLOGS launched for all Infoscions. He was happy, he got a platform to say and utter what was near to his heart. It was a great platform to network with fellow Infoscions. Puneet suggested the name for the blog – Renaissance!!!

26th July 2006
============
Last day in Infosys Mysore

28th July 2006
============
First Project – Common Loan Origination System (CLO) for Capital One Auto Finance;

Module- Conversion and Scenario Builder;

Obsession-Scenario Builder

CLO taught him how to handle tremendous pressure. Sometimes he used to hate it, but always cherished it. When he was a child, his father used to work overnight and on weekends and he and his brother used to think what their father does in office and used to hate it too because working weekends meant no outing of any sort for them. And in CLO I was doing the same. I think some of my father’s genes traveled and entered my body. He loved working like this.

1st September 2009
===============
Last day in the First Project and First day in next – Real Time Messaging

1st July 2009
===========
His Last day in Infosys
====================================================================

The day has come and I have to bid farewell to Infosys. I never wanted to do this. It has never been easy to bid farewell to anyone anywhere, so I am not going to bid farewell as we all will be here and will meet somewhere, someday. I just hope that our paths will cross and I will wait for that time to arrive.

Three years have passed, to be more precise but not exact – 3 years 3 months and 5 days; the day was 26th of March 2006 when I, like many others, entered Mysore Campus and like all others was stunned on entering the campus. Infosys mesmerized me!! 27th March was my date of joining.

I have learnt a lot from Infosys and am taking with me cherished moments and memorable experiences that will remain with me till I traverse to the farthest corner of my life.

Thank you all for being there!!!

And in the end special thanks to CLO-R2 and RTM Teams and all of you in Capital One!!!!

Want out paths to cross “yet” again!!

Till then, still in love with Scenario Builder!!!

Regards,

Palak Mathur

Socialist Capitalism – The Way to Follow

2009-06-20T02:33:00.000+05:30

I feel exhausted after studying, understanding and writing about The Preamble to the Indian Constitution. Can’t stop thinking about the effort it took and the thought it must have taken towards realizing the dreams into reality or atleast on paper. I can’t believe the nationalist idea which though socialist was so different from socialism that emerged as a response to Industrial Revolution. When Industrial Revolution was taking shape, people believed that Capitalism would provide opportunities for growth of individual both in terms of wealth and personality. But, as we have seen its impact, it turned out to be bad. However I still believe that Capitalism is the best way for growth of individualistic thought, wealth and pesonality and which inturn would lead to the prosperity of the society.

We need to consider certain facts that were the major cause of failure of Capitalism in generating harmony in the society. Most people from the developing country feel and look at Capitalism as an “EVIL”. This is because most of these countries were under bondage or were colonies of a foreign powerful empire. Taking an example of India, our leaders who at one time saw Capitalism as an opportunity and even said that the people bought together and bonded by Industry will never be able to break away and thus will lead to the formation of nation, realized that it won’t be possible under the British rule. This was because British, the most advanced nation of the time didn’t wanted Indian economy to grow and for them undermined Indian economy meant a greater control over resources.

On the other hand if this would not have been the case, then the zamindars and merchant class of India which was still a despot would not have led to the foundation of a strong Capitalist nation. This was realized and thus the leaders started making leeway for Nationalistic thoughts and to reach out to the people with their ideas about a nation. It was necessary that a nation is formed first and then Capitalism is given its place. I liked the idea of Gandhiji on trusteeship of Industry. It is so idealistic for the humans. For that you need self-less people with philanthropic mindset. If Capitalism could be mixed with Gandhian idea, then it would certainly be the best mix of Socialsm and Capitalism. I would like to call it Socialist Capitalism or Gandhian Capitalism- the capitalism that safeguards and works in the interest of the people.

Democratic setup, I think is the best for individual growtth both in terms of wealth and personality and that in turn means Capitalism is best suited in a democratic setup. Democracy provides freedom to individuals (though under guidance of law) to achieve what they want to and that is the whole idea behind Capitalism too. So, if we could adopt a Socialist-Capitalist model then it would be the best thing to happen as Capitalism would create opportunities and Socialism will take care of the interests of the people.

Escape From...Death!!!!

2009-06-14T01:59:00.003+05:30

Saturday!! What a saturday it was! Everything was happening and happening too very fast!!

On Saturday, I was carelessly sitting on my bed, laptop was on and was chatting with my cousins and few friends from Vichar Vahak. Everything was lazy as was I. At around 2:30PM, I received a call from my friend Rohit Chauriha asking me to come over his place at Sus Road as they were planning for a few hour trip to Narayanpur. It was raining heavily then and as soon as it stopped I left for Sus Road.

We (six people:- Vir, Siladitya, Sulabh, Shirish, Rohit, and me) embarked on our journey to Narayanpur. Narayanpur is famous for temple of Shri Dattatreya. It is around 60-65kms from Pune. We reached there in about an hour as roads were slippery due to the rains. Having no interest in seeing the temple from inside, we decided to return. It was already 6:30PM. But as soon as we rotated our bikes we saw a sign board mentioning -- "Purandar ka kila". Vir and I had studied about it in our History books and suddenly a fascination to visit the fort grew and after a discussion we started moving towards the destination.

Purandar Fort is on a hill like most of Shivaji's fort are. Shivaji had a fascination for building forts so high that it was difficult for anyone to climb up and attack. That is why he never got attacked even by the mighty Mughal force. It was only later during Company rule that these forts were occupied either strategically or by force.

The road to the fort is not a proper road and it was difficult to drive up though people drive their bikes upto the fort. We parked the bikes at village's chaupal and trekked upto the fort. By the time we reached the fort, it was already 7:15 PM and the sun was drowning besides the clouds. For a moment or two it was all red in the sky and then a sudden darkness covered the area. Three of us - Rohit, Sulabh and Siladitya climbed further up and the rest of us started returning to the village. We had hardly walked for 10 minutes when it started raining heavily and we had no escape so we decided to keep moving. In forty five minutes we returned to the village where we had parked our bikes. We waited for other three to return. We tried calling them but there were no signals up there so the calls were getting rejected. It was already 8:45PM. We had no torch, no water, nothing as we hadn't planned for this. So we kept waiting for them sitting by the wall beside a dog. They returned at 9:15 PM and we started towards Pune.

The roads were slippery and friction between road and tyres was less so we taking utmost care not to apply brakes suddenly. It was dark and there were no street-lights and above all it was raining in cats and dogs. View was blurred and head-lights were not helping either. We were slow and driving safe. I was leading the way with Vir sitting behind me. After driving for few minutes we reached a blind turn. The road was not viewable so I was moving straight when I realized there is no road ahead and I have to take a turn. It was late and bike was moving towards the end of the road and I had to apply the brakes otherwise we would have fallen down the hill. But as soon as I applied brakes, Vir jumped off fearing that we are going off the road and the bike lost its balance and skidded for few seconds. My one leg was under the bike and I was not able to stand up. I had hurt my right hand, left shoulder, and both the legs. Somehow, I with the help of my friends managed to stand up. But it was painful. So, they made me sit on a stone. IT was already 9:45PM, and we had to reach Pune and it was still 60 Kms away. So, my friends made me sit on the bike. Vir was now driving and I was sitting behind him.

It had not stopped raining yet and we all needed a hot cup of tea or coffee. We stopped at a motel on Bangalore-Pune highway and ordered tea and Wada-pav(it is a speciality in MH). We stayed there for an hour waiting for the rain to stop but in vain. So, we again started running back. Just before Katraj tunnel, there was water-log about 2-3 feet deep. And somehow we managed to drive through it. The 1.5 kms inside the tunnel were beautiful and we were feeling safe. But soon we came out of the other side, again in the rain. And bike stopped!! It won't start. We tried all we could but had to roll it. We tried again and it started. It was already past 11 and we had to travel around 15 kms more to reach Sus Road. We started again. And finally at 11:45 we reached Sus Road.

We were all wet and uneasy. I wanted to return to my apartment at Orange Province, but it was not to happen easily. I lost my bike's keys. Kept searching for them everywhere. Where had they gone? We had just parked the bike. But we couldn't find them. So, I took Hitesh's bike and returned at around 12:30AM. Finally I was at home. But again there was no light and so no lift was working. My apartment is on 5th floor and I was not able to walk. It took me 15 minutes to climb the stairs. My legs started paining heavily and I was in great pain. Somehow I managed to change the clothes and took bath.

Everything on my bed was like I had left it and the complete slideshow of what happened that day rolled infront of me. I was happy that I was back and happy that I survived. Otherwise I would not have been there to write this today. For Shivaji, it was an Escape from Agra, for me it was An Escape from Death!!

A Month to Go!!

2009-06-04T00:23:00.002+05:30

He opened Sparsh, went to Webapps. Looked for a while on the screen. He was searching for something. He opened AIMS and saw the status as Invalidated. Then he checked his Performagic. Everything was fine there. He looked into his Skill Central report and was impressed with what he had learnt. He closed the browser. Again opened it. Went to COD and had a look on all the certifications he took. He tried to enter E-Joining, but access was denied. And finally he opened the app and filled the form. He accepted the diclaimer and with shaking hands clicked on Initiate. A message popped up "Are you sure you want to Initiate E-separation?" Sure? Was he? But it didn't matter. He looked at it for a while and clicked OK.

My last day in Infosys - 1st July 2009

Literacy in India

2009-05-31T17:19:00.004+05:30

For the success of any country it is necessary that its people are educated and literate. India has been a feudal for centuries. The concept of nationhood is still new and people find it hard to understand this and therefore we see acts of riots, religious and regional conflicts taking place everywhere in the country. Education focussing on national integration, cross-cultural sensitivity and equality has the potential to be an instrument to bring harmony and achieving social objectives besides creating a learned society.

Lets discuss about the National Literacy Mission (NLM), set up in May 1987 that aimed to attain 75% literacy by 2007 and had run several schemes to ensure that this target is achieved. But we were able to attain only 65% literacy (as perCensus of India 2001) or 61% literacy (as per Plan Australia). The current literacy rate is hard to be calculated but taking into account the growth of a decade, we can say that though not confidently that we have not hot hit the target of 75% literacy. But achieving 65% literacy rate was still an overwhelming task given to understand the size of our nation. However, we cannot make this excuse as when we had set the target in 1988 we must have thought everything before setting the target. In short, we have failed again.

Nearly 70 percent of the country's illiterate population belong to the eight states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. These states have not shown any major improvement in the government’s flagship programmes, the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (Education for All), for universalisation of elementary education in a time bound manner, and the National Literacy Mission.

The failure of states to implement the NLM has forced the government to set another target - to attain 80 percent literacy rate by the end of 2012, and complete literacy three years later - by 2015. The government has earmarked a whopping Rs.850 billion ($21 billion) - five times the budget allocated earlier - for the education sector in the 11th Five Year Plan, which ends in 2012.

UNESCO, which assists the mission, had in a report criticised the way the NLM was progressing, stating that

India was nowhere in terms of eradicating illiteracy.

Renowned educationist Professor Yashpal has questioned the credibility of the UNECO report, saying that

Who are they (UNESCO) to tell us? They aren't aware of the ground situation and realities of our country.

He hopes that the Mission would complete its new target of complete literacy by 2015.

The government is committed to eradicating illiteracy. It is its top agenda. All the agencies are being put to work to ensure that the literacy target is met on time.

But the truth remains that we have failed in achieving our set targets and that is due to few states who failed to implement NLM. The lack of zeal and strong-will of the administration and political setup has been the main reason for this failure.

Then what should be done. The GOI should set yearly targets for every state and this should be evaluated at the end of the year. If the state fails to achieve the target, necessary actions should be taken against the government of these states so as to ensure accountability of the governments of these states.

It is important that these states realize the urgency of NLM. This will mean the education of political leaders so as to make them aware of this urgency. Also, the people who are educated should come forward and help in achieving this target. This means, that not only GOI, but also, the people of India need to work on this. There are many NGOs that are working on NLM and are getting grants for their work. But they lack support of masses. In India, we have Reservation in education for socially backward people and many people from these groups have achieved a good education and attained a good status in society. These people should come forward to help government in attaining the targets of NLM.

Until and unless the government gets support of states, bureaucracy, and its people, the targets will remain the distant dream. So, we should realize this and come forward and help government in achieving the 100% literacy by 2015. It is difficult but not impossible.

Speech: Javed Akhtar: India Today conclave session on Spirituality – Halo or Hoax.

2009-05-09T01:29:00.001+05:30

INDIA TODAY CONCLAVE
DAY 2, Saturday, February 26, 2005
Session: Spirituality – Halo or Hoax.

SPEECH: JAVED AKHTAR

I am quite sure ladies and gentlemen, that in this august assembly nobody would envy my position at this moment. Speaking after such a charismatic and formidable personality like Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is like coming out of the pavilion to play after Tendulkar has made a sparkling century. But in some weak moment I had committed myself.

There are certain things that I would like to make very clear at the very outset. Don’t get carried away by my name – Javed Akhtar. I am not revealing a secret, I am saying something that I have said many times, in writing or on TV, in public…I am an atheist, I have no religious beliefs. And obviously I don’t believe in spirituality of some kind. Some kind.

Another thing. I am not standing here to criticize, analyze, or attack this gentleman who is sitting here. We have a very pleasant, civilized relation. I have always found him to be an extremely courteous person.

One is talking about an idea, an attitude, a mindset. Not any individual.

I must tell you that when Rajeev opened this session, for a moment I felt that I have come to the wrong place. Because, if we are discussing the philosophy of Krishan and Gautam and Kabir, Vivekanand, then I have nothing to say. I can sit down right now. I am not here to discuss a glorious past of which I suppose every Indian is proud, and rightly so. I am here to discuss a dubious present.

India Today has invited me and I have come here to talk of spirituality today. Let’s not be confused by this word spirituality, you can find two people with the same name and they can be totally different people. Ram Charit Manas was written by Tulsidas. And the television film has been made by Ramanand Sagar. Ramayan is common but I don’t think it would be very wise to club Tulsidas with Ramanand Sagar. I remember, when he had written Ramcharit Manas, he had faced a kind of a social boycott. How could he write a holy book in such a language like Avadhi? Sometimes I wonder fundamentalists of all hues and all colors, religions and communities…how similar they are. In 1798, a gentleman called Shah Abdul Qadir, in this very city, for the first time translated Quran in Urdu, and all the ulemas of that time gave fatwa against him that how could he translate this holy book in such a heathen language.

When Tulsi wrote Ramcharit Manas and he was boycotted, I remember a chowpai that he had written.

“Dhut kaho abdhut kaho rajput kaho ki julawa kohu

Kohu ki beti se beta na biahab, kohu ki jaat bigaar na chahu

Mang ke khaibo, mehjid ma raihbo, lebe ka ek na debe ka dohu”

Ramanand Sagar, when he made his television serial, he made millions. I am not undermining him, but obviously he is much lower in the rung.

I will give you another example. Perhaps it would be more direct and more appropriate. Gautam came out of a palace and went into wilderness to find the truth. But nowadays we see, the modern age gurus, come out of the wilderness and wind up in the palaces. They are moving in the opposite direction. We can’t talk of them in the same breath. So let us not hide behind names which are dear and respectable for every Indian.

When I was invited to give this talk, I felt that yes, I am an atheist, try to be a rationalist in any given situation, Maybe that’s why I have been called. But suddenly I have realized that there is another quality that I share with Modern Age gurus. I work in films. We have lot in common. Both of us, sell dreams, both of us create illusions, both of us create icons, but with a difference. After three hours we put a placard – the end. Go back to reality. They don’t.

So ladies and gentlemen, let me make it very clear that I have come to talk of this spirituality that has a supermarket in the world. Arms, drugs and spirituality – these are the three big businesses in the world. But in arms and drugs you really have to do something, give something. That’s the difference. Here you don’t have to give anything.

In this supermarket you get instant Nirvana, Moksha by mail, a crash course in self realization, cosmic consciousness in four easy lessons. This supermarket has its chain all over the world, where the restless elite buy spiritual fast food. I am talking about this spirituality.

Plato in his dialogues has said many a wise thing, and one of them is – before starting any discussion decide on the meanings of words. Let us try to decide on the meaning of this word spirituality. Does it mean love for mankind that transcends all religion, caste, creed, race? Is that so? Then I have no problem. Except that I call it humanity. Does it mean love of plants, trees, mountains, oceans, rivers, animals? The non-human world? If that is so, again I have no problem at all. Except that I call it environmental consciousness. Does spirituality mean heartfelt regard for social institutions like marriage, parenthood, fine arts, judiciary, freedom of expression. I have no problem again sir, how can I disagree here? I call it civil responsibility. Does spirituality mean going into your own world trying to understand the meaning of your own life? Who can object on that? I call it self-introspection, self assessment. Does spirituality mean Yoga? Thanks to Patanjali, who has given us the details of Yoga, Yam, Yatam, aasan, pranayam…We may do it under any name, but if we are doing pranayam, wonderful. I call it healthcare. Physical fitness.

Now is it a matter of only semantics. If all this is spirituality, then what is the discussion. All these words that I have used are extremely respectable and totally acceptable words. There is nothing abstract or intangible about them. So why stick to this word spirituality? What is there in spirituality that has not been covered by all these words? Is there something? If that is so then what is that?

Somebody in return can ask me what is my problem with this word. I am asking to change it, leave it, drop it, make it obsolete but why so? I will tell you what is my reservation. If spirituality means all this then there is no discussion. But there is something else which makes me uneasy. In a dictionary, the meaning of spirituality is rooted in a word called “spirit”. When mankind didn’t know whether this earth is round or flat, he had decided that human beings are actually the combination of two things. Body and spirit. Body is temporary, it dies. But the spirit is, shall I say, non-biodegradable. In your body you have a liver and heart and intestines and the brain, but since the brain is a part of the body, and mind lies within the brain, it is inferior because ultimately the brain too shall die with the body, but don’t worry, you are not going to die, because you are your spirit, and the spirit has the supreme consciousness that will remain, and whatever problem you have is because you listen to your mind. Stop listening to your mind. Listen to your spirit – the supreme consciousness that knows the cosmic truth. All right. It’s not surprising that in Pune there is an ashram and I used to go there. I loved the oratory. On the gate of the lecture hall there was a placard. Leave your shoes and minds here. There are other gurus who don’t mind if you carry your shoes. But minds?…sorry.

Now, if you leave your mind what do you do? You need the Guru to find the next station of consciousness. That hides somewhere in the spirit. He has reached the supreme consciousness, he knows the supreme truth. But can he tell you. No sir, he cannot tell you. So can you find out on your own? No sir, you need the guru for that. You need him but he cannot guarantee that you will know the ultimate truth… and what is that ultimate truth? What is the cosmic truth? Relating to cosmos? I have really not been able to understand that. The moment we step out of the solar system the first star is Alpha.Centueri It is just four light years away. How do I relate to that!! What do I do!!

So the emperor is wearing robes that only the wise can see. And the emperor is becoming bigger and bigger. And there are more and more wise people who are appreciating the robe.

I used to think that actually spirituality is the second line of defence for the religious people. When they get embarrassed about traditional religion, when it starts looking too down-market, they hide behind this smokescreen of cosmos and super consciousness. But that is not the complete truth. Because the clientele of traditional religion and spirituality is different. You take the map of the world, you start marking places which are extremely religious, within India or outside India, Asia, Latin America, Europe…wherever. You will find that wherever there is lot of religion there is lack of human rights. There is repression. Anywhere. Our Marxist friends used to say that religion is the opium of poor masses, the sigh of the oppressed. I don’t want to get into that discussion. But spirituality nowadays is definitely the tranquilizer of the rich.

You see that the clientele is well heeled, it is the affluent class. Alright, so the guru gets power, high self esteem, status, wealth…(which is not that important), power…and lot of wealth too. What does the disciple get? When I looked at them carefully I realized that there are categories and categories of these disciples. It’s not a monolith. There are different kinds of followers. Different kinds of disciples. One, who is rich, successful, doing extremely well in his life, making money, gaining property. Now, since he has everything he wants absolution too. So guru tells him – whatever you are doing, is “niskaam karma” – you are playing a role, this is all “Maya”, the money that you are making everyday and the property that you are acquiring, you are not emotionally involved with it. You are just playing a role. You come to me because you are in search of eternal truth. Maybe your hands are dirty, but your spirit and soul are pure. And this man, he starts feeling wonderful about himself. For seven days he is exploiting the world, and at the end of the seven days when he goes and sits at the feet of the guru, he feels – I am a sensitive person.

There is another category. That too comes from the affluent class. But he is not the winner like the first one. You know winning or losing that is also relative. A rickshaw-wallah if he is gambling on the pavement and wins hundred rupees will feel victorious, and if a corporate man makes only 300 million dollars, while his brother is a billionaire, he will feel like a failure. Now, what does this rich failure do? He needs a guru to tell him – who says that you have failed? You have other worlds, you have another vision, you have other sensibility that your brother doesn’t have. He thinks that he is successful…wrong. The world is very cruel, you know. The world tells you honestly, no sir, you have got three out of ten. The other person has seven out of ten. Fair. They will treat you that way and they will meet you that way. There he gets compassion. There he plays another game.

Another category. And I will talk about this category not with contempt or with any sense of superiority, not any bitterness, but all the compassion available one that is a very big client of this modern day guru and today’s spirituality, is the unhappy rich wife.

Here is a person who put all her individuality, aspirations and dreams, and her being at the altar of marriage and in return she got an indifferent husband. Who at the most gave her a couple of children. Who is rather busy with his work, or busy with other women. This woman needs a shoulder. She knows that she is an existential failure. There is nothing to look forward to. She has a vacuous, empty, comfortable yet purposeless life. It’s sad, but it is true.

Then there are other people. Who are suddenly traumatized. They lose a child. The wife dies. The husband dies. Or they lose the property, they lose their business. Something happens that shocks them and they ask – why me? So who do they ask? They go to the Guru. And the guru tells him that this is Karma. But there is another world if you follow me. Where there is no pain. Where there is no death. Where there is immortality. Where there is only bliss. He tells all these unhappy souls – follow me and I will take you to the heaven, to the paradise, where there is no pain. I am sorry sir, it is disappointing but true that there is no such paradise. Life will always have a certain quota of pain, of hurts, a possibility of defeats. But they do get some satisfaction.

Somebody may ask me if they are feeling better, if they are getting peace then what is your problem. It reminds me of a story that I have read. It’s an old Indian story told by a sage, that a hungry dog finds a dry bone and tries to eat it and in the process bites its own tongue. And the tongue is bleeding and the dog feels that he is getting nourishment from the bone.

I feel sad. I don’t want them, these adults, to behave like this because I respect them. Drugs and alcohol are also supposed to give mental peace and serenity, but is that kind of piece or serenity desirable or advisable? The answer is no. Any mental peace that is not anchored in rational thoughts is nothing but self-deception. Any serenity that takes you away from truth is just an illusion – a mirage. I know that there is a kind of a security in this which is like the security of a tri-cycle. If you are riding a tri-cycle you can’t fall. But adults do not ride tricycles. They ride bi-cycles. They can even fall. It is a part of life.

There is one more kind. Like everybody who is the member of the golf club is not fond of golf. In the same way everybody who is seen in an ashram is not a spiritual person. A film producer who is an ardent follower of a guru, whose ashram is about two hours from Delhi once told me that you must go to my Guru. You will see the who’s who of Delhi there. Let me tell you my Guruji is another Chandraswami in the making. Now this is a contact point for networking.

I have great respect for people who are spiritual, or religious, and in spite of this they are good people. And I have a reason. I believe that like every emotion or feeling, you have a limitation.

I am feeling slightly pressurized about time, can I get another five six minutes please…may I sir… Rajiv Mehrotra “yes you can”

You can see upto a point. And you can’t see further. You can hear upto a point, but beyond that you won’t be able to register sounds. You can mourn upto a point and then you will get over your mourning. You will feel happy upto a point and then you will be through with your happiness. Same way, I am sure that you have a certain capacity for nobility also. You can be as noble and no more. Now suppose if we count this capacity for nobility in the average man as ten units, now anybody who goes to pray in a mosque five times is consuming his five units, there anybody who goes to the temple or sits in the feet of the Guru, he is consuming his quota of nobility there. And in a totally non-productive manner. I don’t go to pray. I don’t pray. If I don’t go to any guru, or mosque or temple or church, what do I do with my quota of nobility. I will have to help somebody, feed somebody, give shelter to somebody. People who use their quota in worshipping, praying, adoring religious figures and spiritual figures, in spite of that, if they are left with some nobility, hats off to them.

You may ask me, that if I have this kind of ideas about religious people, why should I show such reverence for Krishan and Kabir and Gautam? You can ask me. I’ll tell you why I respect them. These were the great contributors in the human civilization. They were born in different points of time in history, in different situations. But one thing is common in them. They stood up against injustice. They fought for the downtrodden. Whether it was Ravana, or Kansha or the pharaoh or the high priests or the British Samrajya in front of Gandhi – or the communal empire of Firoze Tughlaq in the times of Kabir, they stood against that.

And what surprises me, and confirms my worst feelings, that today, the enlightened people who know the cosmic truth, none of them stand up against the powers that be. None of them raises his voice against the ruling classes and the privileged classes. Charity, yes, when it is approved and cleared by the establishment and the powers that be. But I want to know which was that guru which took the dalits to those temples which are still closed to them. I want to know which was that guru who stood for the rights of the Adivasis against the thekedaars and contractors. I want to know which was that guru who spoke about the victims of Gujarat and went to their relief camps. They are human beings.

Sir…It is not enough to teach the rich how to breathe. It is the rich mans recreation. It is the hypocrites’ pretension. It is a mischievous deception. And you know that in the oxford dictionary, mischievous deception is a term that is used for a word, and that word is…HOAX.

Thank you.

Source: http://www.javedakhtar.com/itc.htm

Social and Cultural Stigma - Unwed Mothers

2009-05-03T03:44:00.002+05:30

Mothers’ day has just passed and I was thinking about this topic. Over the time I have seen many girls and ladies (I will not disclose the names) who have become pregnant before marriage and few of them had teenage pregnancy. I will not discuss how they became pregnant as we all know it is one weak moment that may lead to such a stage. I am here to discuss social stigma that they face after this act.

Some years ago I visited a friend. He was not at home when I reached there. His mother was writing a letter, and I could sense that she was troubled. Obviously the content of the letter was disturbing her. She left it unfinished on the table to get a glass of water for me. I don’t know what came over me, but curiosity got the better of me. Battling with my conscience, I couldn’t help but peak at the letter which was troubling my friend’s mother so much. It was addressed to my friend’s sister. I found out that my friend’s sister had an affair with some guy; she got physically involved too and her mother observed that from the strange way in which she was walking.

I also know a few girls who became pregnant before marriage. In my very first job, I had a colleague who was having an affair with someone and eventually got pregnant. She asked the guy for commitment and then after resolving certain issues with parents they got married. Her story had a happy ending, but there are many who are not that lucky and have to bear the pains of being an unwed pregnant or unwed mother as the blame inevitably rests on them.

The social stigma associated with being an unwed parent is so much that it may lead some women to attempt or commit suicide. In our social setup, pregnancy outside marriage is considered a humiliation that will affect not only the mother but also her family. Such a woman is ostracized in most of our Indian Societies. The immediate family and extended family, which should provide social protection to mothers to be, leave them alone considering them social and financial burden.

According to a research conducted by a Colombo-based lawyer,

“The single women both at home and at the work place have to face many physical advances from men young and old, married and unmarried. In our interviews these women found it difficult to discuss these sexual advances.”

Single girls or unwed mothers are considered as ‘available’ or someone easy to gain access to. Another critical issue is that the responsibility of a child born outside marriage rests solely on the mother. The lack of support from family, relatives, society, etc makes her living quite hard and sometimes unbearable.

In present context I think unwed mother is a hype that can be ignored. A physical relationship before marriage is considered a bane while after marriage ethical. So, what exactly marriage is? Does it merely certify and legally justify the physical intimacy between a man and a woman? The issue is that ours is a man-lead society, a male-dominated society which conforms to the traditional role of women in society. In this society, a male can get away with a physical relationship and no one will blame him. But since the female has to undergo physical and biological changes, which are visible, they suffer most of the qualms, fears, and misgivings.

The time has come that we should start working on lessening the social stigma related to unwed pregnancy so that these mothers to be may live a life without any social and financial burden. They must be forwarded more support and belief so that they may brave against the society which by and large is male-dominated.

Yesterday I was watching Juno, as suggested by one of my friends Jessica. The film is about teenage pregnancy. I liked the attitude of the character Juno. She was worried and tensed but was at ease with her pregnancy. Her family, i.e., her father and step-mom were also relieved that is that is just a pregnancy and their daughter is not taking drugs.

There are few points that need to be considered:-

1) One should be careful while getting into a relationship specially a physical relationship.

2) I agree that this kind of stigma prevents such incidents to occur, but once it has occurred then acceptance shall be the key especially with respect to the immediate family of the girl. Family should help the girl with her pregnancy rather than boycotting or abusing her.

3) Teenage or unwed pregnancy should be taken just as a pregnancy. Support the girl, who is pregnant, she is going to be a ‘Mother’!!!

4) Teenage pregnancy becomes tricky due to various health reasons. Below 18 years of age an individual is still a child, so is it right for a child to be responsible for another child? So, the teenage pregnancy should not be condemned on moral grounds rather on medical grounds.

5) It shall not be considered as a ‘fault’; but even it is that then both the parties are equally responsible for it. So, just because the girl has to carry the evidence of physical involvement in a relationship, she should not be ostracized by the society.

6) Use contraceptives.

P.S.: – I think this is enough of writing. Actually we need to do more than just writing.

P.P.S:- Please think about the post

P.P.P.S.:- And let me know your opinion.