Reflections

LOCATION : INDORE 3 Days Ago, {24th March, 2015} Old RTO Road, in front of RTO : {I noticed it lay open for at least 2 days prior to this}  TODAY, 27th March 2015, same place.. An open Manhole, lying open for days in a public place, in front of a Mandir...  What makes things worse is that this stretch goes isolated at night. And right in the middle, an open manhole. Wow, what governance! Cant the Municipal people at least put a cover on it? Isnt it a potential risk? Worse still : No one cares! Why should they? It isnt their lives, isnt it?  Update: Informed the authorities, nice and encouraging response. That is interesting, and raises questions on us the people. For the response was equally blunt : " aapne dhyaan rakkhhaa yeh kyaa kam hai "? Intend to send letter of thanks to the official once it is done... 

A LinkedIn Question on Managers, and their attitudes towards employee’s mental health triggered a thought process; Do managers really care about employee’s mental health?  You can read the full  discussion here : LinkedIn : How much does top management care about the mental health of employees? } No, they dont.   I dont think this can be an argued, with; neither is this open to question. There are several documented surveys in existence that bear the proof : that disease of every kind is rising, and fast.   Question is, does anyone care? No. Also true.   Next question : can anything be done?   Answer : No.   Concluding Question : Why?   Answer : The stupid idiot who tries to do something gets sacked, regardless of level . Statement of simple fact.   It doesnt take a genius to figure out that you run everyone under incredibly high stress combined long with 14-hour days - there are going to be cases of burnout, breakdown, mental disorders, heart attacks, diabetes, Asth

Make in India is the flavour of the season, almost - with Media going overboard on its prospects, and waxing eloquent on the benefits it holds for India. Lost in all this panjandrum are the voices - some small, like mine, and others highly influential, who have been raising questions {not objections} on this entire affair. Let us look at some hard facts, conclusive facts that can drill a hole through this initiative, or at least raise some serious questions.  1) India is a primarily agricultural economy with employment in agriculture being at around 57%  2) The total number of dependants on agriculture can easily be around 500-700 Million people, perhaps more  3) Data supports the above : let us look at just one data point - number of land holding in agriculture. There are 121 Million individual land holdings in India. If you assume one family per holding, you are straightaway staring at a figure of around 500 Million. Add landless labour and support services, and you h

Sick Mentality, Moral Depravity Or Just Plain Fear? woman lay dying on AJC Bose Road as hundreds streamed past Yet another accident… yet another victim… and yet again, our lack of decency, humanity, empathy and caring lie exposed. Yet again, we lie exposed for what we have become as a people – uncaring, depraved and self-centered people who care nothing for anyone not related to us, who feel no empathy and no pity for any person not directly emotionally connected with us. My head hangs in shame… what have we become as a people? How did we become so heartless, so cruel? “” She lay bleeding on the road in front of St John's Church at AJC Bose Road-Ripon Street crossing for about 25 minutes in rush hour. What makes it even more shocking is, people went about normally all around her. One flank of AJC Road was then packed with vehicles bringing students to two of Kolkata's most reputable schools. On the other flank, buses carrying passengers to Sealdah and the IT

I normally carry my own articles and analysis; for the first time, please read an article on Business Standard on the Defence Forces {Business Standard} , which is self-explanatory, and is a factual analysis. This is a small attempt from my side in educating the people, at least those who may not be aware. The genuine needs of our Defence Forces cannot be put off; having said that, it is equally true that we are a developing country, and funds are always going to be extremely scarce.  But does that mean we spend historical lows on defence in percentage terms? I am sure the Government can find space in the budget for a better allocation to the genuine needs of the security forces. I understand the difficulties faced by the government, and am not stating the Government doesn't want to; they have to make some difficult choices in the governance of the nation, and are a democratic government. They have to meet the needs of a diverse set of requirements, all of which are genuine. 

THE SAGA OF AGNI THE RISE OF THE GREY PRINCE By Arka Chakrabarti : You can read more about the author on this link :   Interview If you have read the first part :  4 stars. If you have not read it, 2.5 stars. That should tell the reader of this review all he or she needs to know. The first time I picked it up I just could not make any sense out of it. It was all Greek and Latin to me; nothing made sense, and nothing connected to anything. The land portrayed was alien, the people were completely alien, the narrative connected to events of which I had no knowledge. I found myself constantly leaving through pages, going back and forth to make some sense out of it. And then, I almost gave up. And then, I re-read the most critical page - The Story So Far.  It was a slow and tedious build-up, as the names and characters were totally unfamiliar; and the layout alien. But the concept- that was the puller; that was the attraction. The concept of a fantasy novel always has at