OK, this is actually old news by today's standards. A month or more ago, Dubya announced
his stunning new finding on the rising foodstuff prices and the shortage thereof. As per him, Indians are eating the world out of foodgrains and hence the food shortage and rising prices.
Given that the U.S. Army is still trying to find the elusive WMD in Iraq, which Dubya was
sure Saddam had, we know how much intelligence is there behind this new proclamation.
I am not even trying to debate his statement, due to it being really illogical given the
economic facts we have freely available for anyone to access.
We have consumption figures available per capita for various countries for the various
food-groups like grains, dairy, poultry, cereals etc. Americans top the list in consumption
and on an average consume more than 5 times what an Indian consumes and 3 times
more than an average European. And, India is a net exporter of food-grains, which would
not be a possibility if we were eating ourselves out of home and hearth.
Anyway, instead of the narrow lines of nationality on which Bush would like to see the
problem, I would think it would make more sense to think as to how the problem can be
resolved so that every human being, be it an American or an Indian or a really starved
African in one of those dictator-ruled countries could have the food that he or she needs.
To be frank, India and other developing countries do have a role in this problem, albeit
indirectly. And that is the huge population increase happening by the day. More people
means more mouths to feed, which requires output from farms to keep pace. But, farming
is not seen as a lucrative profession in most parts of India. In Kerala, you would be stared
at as if you were a lunatic if you professed your intent to farm your land. Reasons for which
are voluminous enough to deserve a separate blog-post in itself.
There is only so many people that the earth can support and given the way we are going
about reproducing in India and other developing countries, we are heading towards disaster. When I was a kid, the family planning slogan was "We two, ours two", implying two kids max. And the norm at that time was 3 and above, with many families I know having 6-10 kids.
My BIL is one of 10 kids - just imagine the racket at a home with 10kids. :-) Ofcourse, to
have a cricket team, you would be short of just one person.
Anyway, now the slogan is "We are one, ours one", implying only 1 kid per family. Sounds
all nice, except for the fact that the norm now is 2 kids and in some cases even 3. And this
is not just about the segment of society that is illiterate and is not aware of issues caused by population explosion. I know scores of educated people who opt for 2 kids. The favourite
excuse being that a single kid will grow up lonely and with behavioural issues.
If that be the case, how about adopting one of the thousands of orphans and giving them
a life ? It will not only solve the problem of your kid growing up lonely, but also enable a
kid to have a home and family. And in the process, you would have done your bit to not
add to the burgeoning population and also done a good deed too. But given that adoption
figures indicate a decrease over the past few years, this does not seem to be a favourite
option for Indians. Maybe we need to learn a thing or two from Angelina Jolie.
There is only so much that governments can do to rein in population. Laws & controls
restricting the number of kids per family would be tough to implement. Instead, the
government can focus on creating awareness among the public as to the plethora of
problems that lie tightly coupled with increasing population.
Though, in the current scenario where we have educated couples opting for two or even
more kids, I just do not see any light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully good sense sinks
in before it is too late to make amends.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Thanks for the view & the greenery. Now, how about a fresh coat of paint ?
If you have been away from Chennai for some months and were to return now, as you drive around in the city, you would sense that something is really different about the city, though
you can be forgiven for not being able to catch what actually changed.
Well, thanks to the government's decision to ban hoardings/billboards in the city, all the billboards advertising anything & everything under the sky, have been removed from the
city scape. The reasoning being that motorists get distracted ogling these advertisements, leading to accidents on the road.
While I have not had any accidents yet, I used to do my fair share of ogling the billboards.
My criteria for a billboard being ogle-worthy is simple - it should feature a pretty specimen
of the fairer sex. The billboards of Apollo Hospitals, Deccan Chronicle, etc were some of the
billboards that I regularly gazed at during my drive to work and back.
Anyway, coming back to the topic, Chennai with all the billboards gone, looks kind of nude.
Sort of like a freshly tonsured head. A part of the city's charm went missing along with the billboards that were removed.
The good thing is that you get to see the city in an entirely different light. Not only is the
view better, but you discover that Chennai is indeed quite a green city. You never knew
that the billboards were hiding behind them such a large amount of greenery.
Ofcourse there has to be a catch somewhere, right ? And that is having to bear the gory
sight of the buildings exposed due to the billboards being removed. All these years, they
stood there away from public gaze, which seems to have led the owners to think of saving
some money by not painting them for decades. And now they stick out in all their ugliness,
spoiling the cityscape.
Hope the owners spend some money in giving them a long-deserved & decent coat of paint
so that they do not spoil the cityscape. If not, maybe the government should draw up a law requiring people to keep the exteriors of their residential/office buildings in decent condition.
And poor me, I am still recovering from the withdrawal symptoms of not getting my daily
visual dose of the pretty billboard ladies.
you can be forgiven for not being able to catch what actually changed.
Well, thanks to the government's decision to ban hoardings/billboards in the city, all the billboards advertising anything & everything under the sky, have been removed from the
city scape. The reasoning being that motorists get distracted ogling these advertisements, leading to accidents on the road.
While I have not had any accidents yet, I used to do my fair share of ogling the billboards.
My criteria for a billboard being ogle-worthy is simple - it should feature a pretty specimen
of the fairer sex. The billboards of Apollo Hospitals, Deccan Chronicle, etc were some of the
billboards that I regularly gazed at during my drive to work and back.
Anyway, coming back to the topic, Chennai with all the billboards gone, looks kind of nude.
Sort of like a freshly tonsured head. A part of the city's charm went missing along with the billboards that were removed.
The good thing is that you get to see the city in an entirely different light. Not only is the
view better, but you discover that Chennai is indeed quite a green city. You never knew
that the billboards were hiding behind them such a large amount of greenery.
Ofcourse there has to be a catch somewhere, right ? And that is having to bear the gory
sight of the buildings exposed due to the billboards being removed. All these years, they
stood there away from public gaze, which seems to have led the owners to think of saving
some money by not painting them for decades. And now they stick out in all their ugliness,
spoiling the cityscape.
Hope the owners spend some money in giving them a long-deserved & decent coat of paint
so that they do not spoil the cityscape. If not, maybe the government should draw up a law requiring people to keep the exteriors of their residential/office buildings in decent condition.
And poor me, I am still recovering from the withdrawal symptoms of not getting my daily
visual dose of the pretty billboard ladies.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Writing Hindi ? Why would you need to learn that ?
The train had left Chengannur station and in another 15 minutes it will halt at my station for
a brief 1-minute before moving on to its final destination of Trivandrum. My compartment
being somewhere in the middle of the train, I was walking through the vestibuled coaches to
the rear of the train, since my Dad would be waiting at the car park, which happens to be
located where the rear end of the train would stop.
As I walk through the mostly empty compartments, I chance across a tourist (a white guy - European most probably) who is hunched over a notebook, writing something. Curiousity
gets the better of me and I take a quick dekko.
He has with him some pages torn from a student's notebook, with very basic Hindi words
written on them - you know the kind you would start off with initially, the Hindi equivalent
of "A for Apple", "B for Bat", "C for Cat", etc. He is labouriously copying them to his notebook.
I can see that he is trying to learn the Hindi script, though I fail to understand why he wants
to learn writing Hindi in the first place. If he plans to tour North India, it would definitely help
to know to speak Hindi. And if you can read, all the better because most boards, signs, bus destinations etc would be written in Hindi. But why would he want to learn to write the language ? That is, unless he has an Indian girlfriend who reads only Hindi.
Learning to write is the last of my priorities when I want to pick up a new language. The first priority is to pick up speaking, followed by mastering how to read the language. Unless it was
a language I learnt at school, I do not bother about learning to write it. I prefer English for anything that requires the written word. Even though I know to write Hindi and my mother tongue Malayalam, it has been years since I wrote even a sentence in either of them.
And with Tamil, which I picked up on my own after moving to Chennai, it took me just a
couple of months (and quite some interaction with my college-mates) to be able to speak
and understand it. Another 4 months saw me working on erasing my Malayalam accent -
it helps to sound like a local wherever you are.
And learning to read Tamil was just a piece of cake, given that all they have is some 18-odd alphabets, which are easy to remember. Compare this to Hindi, Malayalam etc which have
56-odd alphabets to remember. I can read Tamil just as well as someone who learnt it in
school. But when it comes to writing in Tamil, I am clueless because I never felt the need
to learn to write it.
Hindi can be tough (especially the script) for even people from India. And I am sure it is
going to be tougher for someone like our buddy on the train, who must have been exposed
only to the simpler Engish script. Wish him luck though.
a brief 1-minute before moving on to its final destination of Trivandrum. My compartment
being somewhere in the middle of the train, I was walking through the vestibuled coaches to
the rear of the train, since my Dad would be waiting at the car park, which happens to be
located where the rear end of the train would stop.
As I walk through the mostly empty compartments, I chance across a tourist (a white guy - European most probably) who is hunched over a notebook, writing something. Curiousity
gets the better of me and I take a quick dekko.
He has with him some pages torn from a student's notebook, with very basic Hindi words
written on them - you know the kind you would start off with initially, the Hindi equivalent
of "A for Apple", "B for Bat", "C for Cat", etc. He is labouriously copying them to his notebook.
I can see that he is trying to learn the Hindi script, though I fail to understand why he wants
to learn writing Hindi in the first place. If he plans to tour North India, it would definitely help
to know to speak Hindi. And if you can read, all the better because most boards, signs, bus destinations etc would be written in Hindi. But why would he want to learn to write the language ? That is, unless he has an Indian girlfriend who reads only Hindi.
Learning to write is the last of my priorities when I want to pick up a new language. The first priority is to pick up speaking, followed by mastering how to read the language. Unless it was
a language I learnt at school, I do not bother about learning to write it. I prefer English for anything that requires the written word. Even though I know to write Hindi and my mother tongue Malayalam, it has been years since I wrote even a sentence in either of them.
And with Tamil, which I picked up on my own after moving to Chennai, it took me just a
couple of months (and quite some interaction with my college-mates) to be able to speak
and understand it. Another 4 months saw me working on erasing my Malayalam accent -
it helps to sound like a local wherever you are.
And learning to read Tamil was just a piece of cake, given that all they have is some 18-odd alphabets, which are easy to remember. Compare this to Hindi, Malayalam etc which have
56-odd alphabets to remember. I can read Tamil just as well as someone who learnt it in
school. But when it comes to writing in Tamil, I am clueless because I never felt the need
to learn to write it.
Hindi can be tough (especially the script) for even people from India. And I am sure it is
going to be tougher for someone like our buddy on the train, who must have been exposed
only to the simpler Engish script. Wish him luck though.
Monday, June 23, 2008
The Almighty takes, the Almighty gives.
Today it is exactly 6 months since RTech aka Robin passed away in a freak bike accident,
about which I had posted here.
Every time I browse the team-bhp forum and come across threads started by him, I would
be reminded of a nice, young chap cruelly taken away by the power above, much before he should have been. But then, such are the ways of God.
Today I came to know from the forum that his wife delivered a pretty baby girl last week.
Looks like God is making amends for his unpopular decision of taking away Robin, by bringing into the world his baby girl. Atleast, this gives some reason for Robin's wife, parents and well-wishers to rejoice, inspite of the loss of a dear husband, son and friend.
about which I had posted here.
Every time I browse the team-bhp forum and come across threads started by him, I would
be reminded of a nice, young chap cruelly taken away by the power above, much before he should have been. But then, such are the ways of God.
Today I came to know from the forum that his wife delivered a pretty baby girl last week.
Looks like God is making amends for his unpopular decision of taking away Robin, by bringing into the world his baby girl. Atleast, this gives some reason for Robin's wife, parents and well-wishers to rejoice, inspite of the loss of a dear husband, son and friend.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Am I getting paranoid ? No wonder it is said that ignorance is bliss.
Last week, my wife was cleaning out my cabinet and comes across half a dozen used
batteries - the type that cannot be recharged. In accordance with the normal reasoning
for anyone in India in such a situation, she also wonders why I am keeping such junk
instead of throwing it out.
She : These are batteries that have been used, right ?
Me : Yes.
She : Then why are they still here, using up space and adding to the clutter ? Chuck them out. Me : No. I can't do that.
She : And why is that ?
Me : Well, because these contain harmful elements like mercury and thus should be disposed properly. We can't just chuck them in the grabage, which would result in them reaching a landfill, where the harmful elements will seep into the earth and poison the soil.
She : OK. So what should be done instead ?
Me : They should be handed over to be recycled in an environment-friendly way.
She : OK. Then why don't you do that ?
Me : Because I have never seen such a recycling centre or a pick-up box for the same in
India, like the ones I saw in the US or Japan.
She : So, what are you going to do ? Take them along with you to the US, whenever you
happen to go next ?
Me : Hmm. Not a bad idea. Actually that seems to be the only solution I have for this currently. But I do not foresee a trip anytime soon.
She : "Sighs in frustration"
Me : Don't you people find yourself clueless in such situations ?
She : Well, the thing is we don't see a problem at all here. Once used, we chuck it out.
Problem solved. While you seem to be getting all paranoid about such a simple thing.
Me : Hmmm.
No wonder it is said that Ignorance is Bliss. If I had not read about the harmful effects of dumping used batteries along with the garbage, I would have also moved on, without living
with a stock of used batteries in my cabinet.
I just hope some battery manufacturer in India has a recycling programme where I can handover these used cells without them ending up in landfills. Else, I will have quite some
stuff with me to carry on my next trip to Japan or the US, whenever that happens.
batteries - the type that cannot be recharged. In accordance with the normal reasoning
for anyone in India in such a situation, she also wonders why I am keeping such junk
instead of throwing it out.
She : These are batteries that have been used, right ?
Me : Yes.
She : Then why are they still here, using up space and adding to the clutter ? Chuck them out. Me : No. I can't do that.
She : And why is that ?
Me : Well, because these contain harmful elements like mercury and thus should be disposed properly. We can't just chuck them in the grabage, which would result in them reaching a landfill, where the harmful elements will seep into the earth and poison the soil.
She : OK. So what should be done instead ?
Me : They should be handed over to be recycled in an environment-friendly way.
She : OK. Then why don't you do that ?
Me : Because I have never seen such a recycling centre or a pick-up box for the same in
India, like the ones I saw in the US or Japan.
She : So, what are you going to do ? Take them along with you to the US, whenever you
happen to go next ?
Me : Hmm. Not a bad idea. Actually that seems to be the only solution I have for this currently. But I do not foresee a trip anytime soon.
She : "Sighs in frustration"
Me : Don't you people find yourself clueless in such situations ?
She : Well, the thing is we don't see a problem at all here. Once used, we chuck it out.
Problem solved. While you seem to be getting all paranoid about such a simple thing.
Me : Hmmm.
No wonder it is said that Ignorance is Bliss. If I had not read about the harmful effects of dumping used batteries along with the garbage, I would have also moved on, without living
with a stock of used batteries in my cabinet.
I just hope some battery manufacturer in India has a recycling programme where I can handover these used cells without them ending up in landfills. Else, I will have quite some
stuff with me to carry on my next trip to Japan or the US, whenever that happens.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Travelling 275 kms a day is not fun. No wonder I am tired to even blog.
Well, the "275 kms per day" part is only partially true.
It is true, if we go by the distance I travel in a week, averaged over a day. But, it is erroneous
if it implies that I do 275 kms each day of the week.
I have been doing weekly trips to Kerala almost every weekend, for the past many months
& today it just struck me to tally up the distance I am travelling each week, which went like :
Chennai -> Kerala (by train) : 809 kms // takes me 13.5 hours
Kerala -> Chennai (by train) : 809 kms
Home<->station commute : 26 kms // at Kerala and Chennai
Weekdays office<->home : 200 kms // 40kms per day
Travel at Kerala : 100 kms
---------
Total : 1944 kms
That is quite some travel, week after week, especially given the time spent on it. No regrets
though about the time/effort/money spent on this, since the 2 days I get to spend with my
son makes up for all the trouble.
But then, I am sure my friend Will would easily beat this measly record of mine, given the amount of travel he does to the US/Europe/Japan on business and pleasure. :-)
It is true, if we go by the distance I travel in a week, averaged over a day. But, it is erroneous
if it implies that I do 275 kms each day of the week.
I have been doing weekly trips to Kerala almost every weekend, for the past many months
& today it just struck me to tally up the distance I am travelling each week, which went like :
Chennai -> Kerala (by train) : 809 kms // takes me 13.5 hours
Kerala -> Chennai (by train) : 809 kms
Home<->station commute : 26 kms // at Kerala and Chennai
Weekdays office<->home : 200 kms // 40kms per day
Travel at Kerala : 100 kms
---------
Total : 1944 kms
That is quite some travel, week after week, especially given the time spent on it. No regrets
though about the time/effort/money spent on this, since the 2 days I get to spend with my
son makes up for all the trouble.
But then, I am sure my friend Will would easily beat this measly record of mine, given the amount of travel he does to the US/Europe/Japan on business and pleasure. :-)
Thursday, June 05, 2008
With love for all (girls) and hatred towards none.
This happened just when I was thinking in terms of having a few posts based on "Love',
which is supposed to make the world go round. But since I will have to draw on my personal experience with love, and due to the fact that I am quite irregular in my postings, I am not
really sure when this series of posts on love will finally make it to this blog.
Anyway, coming to the point, I came across graffiti of a different kind today. The usual type
that you see in India (on tables in schools/colleges, buses, trains, mountains, temples, places
of historical interest etc) is about some person (usually male) professing love for some lady,
with her name mentioned prominently.
However, this guy surely wanted to stand out in the crowd. In the elevator in our office
building, he had scribbled out "I love CTS girls" on the black plastic panel, with something
sharp. Since the background is black and it is not written with ink, this is not visible normally, but can be made out only on closer examination.
I have seen people come across this accidentally, then do a closer examination and finally
smiling to themselves after having read it fully. CTS, for those who don't know, is the acronym
for Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp, a widely known sofware consulting company in India.
They occupy some 3 floors of the total 8 floors in the building where our office is housed. They are a big company with scores of offices in Chennai, other Indian cities and around the world. They have on their rolls many members of the fairer sex and as per local guy lore, a very high percentage of them are visually pleasing to the eye.
Which I guess is what led to our hero getting confused as to whom of them to love. So, he took
the easy way out by professing love for all of them. So no one gets offended and everyone is happy. For, ain't it said that, "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" ?
which is supposed to make the world go round. But since I will have to draw on my personal experience with love, and due to the fact that I am quite irregular in my postings, I am not
really sure when this series of posts on love will finally make it to this blog.
Anyway, coming to the point, I came across graffiti of a different kind today. The usual type
that you see in India (on tables in schools/colleges, buses, trains, mountains, temples, places
of historical interest etc) is about some person (usually male) professing love for some lady,
with her name mentioned prominently.
However, this guy surely wanted to stand out in the crowd. In the elevator in our office
building, he had scribbled out "I love CTS girls" on the black plastic panel, with something
sharp. Since the background is black and it is not written with ink, this is not visible normally, but can be made out only on closer examination.
I have seen people come across this accidentally, then do a closer examination and finally
smiling to themselves after having read it fully. CTS, for those who don't know, is the acronym
for Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp, a widely known sofware consulting company in India.
They occupy some 3 floors of the total 8 floors in the building where our office is housed. They are a big company with scores of offices in Chennai, other Indian cities and around the world. They have on their rolls many members of the fairer sex and as per local guy lore, a very high percentage of them are visually pleasing to the eye.
Which I guess is what led to our hero getting confused as to whom of them to love. So, he took
the easy way out by professing love for all of them. So no one gets offended and everyone is happy. For, ain't it said that, "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned" ?
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