Fear or What?…….. 10 January 2008

(nearly 400 words)

The other evening I travelled in a government bus from Yeshwanthpur to the Majestic Bus Stand (Bangalore), a half-an-hour drive. The bus passed through Malleswaram and Seshadripuram, two old habitats with a rich tradition of scholarship and religious fervour. I encountered several places of worship on the way on either sides of the road.

A young man, in his early thirties, sporting a small round vermillion mark on his forehead and a talisman on his neck sat by my side in the window seat. He had an overstuffed travel bag on his lap. He wore a sweater. Probably he was going to Majestic area to catch a night train or bus to go out of town.

In another seat was one more young man in his early twenties. He was well built. He had his top two shirt buttons open, probably to exhibit his manliness – a la Salman Khan style (now further popularised by Sharukh Khan as well). He wore three rings on his right hand and a rather long talisman on his neck. He had a macho look on his face.

You will agree that both these men had contrasting personalities.

But I observed one common trait in them. Whenever the bus passed by a temple their right hand would rise; its fingers would touch one cheek, then the other, then the forehead, then the chin in quick succession. Simultaneously their both eyes would close for fleeting seconds, and their lips would utter an almost silent prayer. This process repeated itself at least half-a-dozen times (as many temples on the way).

I wondered why they performed the act which I have described above.

· out of sheer habit; something imbibed from their parents or grandparents since their childhood?

· out of fear of God? (why should one fear God, the merciful and compassionate, I thought further)

· were they asking for a boon from the God so that their immediate missions become successful?

The thought of asking them these questions did cross my mind, but then I decided against that; it was politically incorrect to do so; it was also fraught with dangers. Reaching home quickly and in one piece were more important than these issue, I quickly and wisely decided.

S .Gopal
..keying in is better than idling

A Rewarding Week…. 13 January 2008

(about 300 words)

The last week (6 to 12 January 2008) was one of the most intellectually stimulating week for me. I had the good fortune of listening to four brilliant and hard thinking men of contemperory India on four consecutive evenings starting 8 January 2008. I wish the Indian politicians listened to them too! All these public lectures were held in Bangalore.

R. Chidambaram, the Scientific Adviser to the Government of India (and a former chairman of the Indian Atomic Energy Commission) spoke about the status of nuclear energy in India. He talked on the basis of his vast experience as an active scientist as well as a science administrator with international exposure.

A. P. Venkateswaran, India’s former ambassador to China and a former foreign secretary spoke on `India and China – a comparison’. He was very cynical about India-China relations. He was not sure whether there would be any true friendship between the two countries in spite of the visit of India’s prime minister Manmohan Singh who is in China now.

Ramachandra Guha, a political and cricket historian, spoke on the `Beauty of Compromise’ (a term borrowed from Mahatma Gandhi). He felt that most conflicts in Asia can be solved by dialogue. However, on the subject of Kashmir he felt that solution was not that easy.

M. S. Valiathan, a cardiac surgeon by training and a former vice chancellor of the Manipal Academy of Higher Education spoke on the Science of Ayurveda. He traced the 2000-year history of this ancient Indian concept and practice with special reference to the works of Susrutha and Charaka and ended with the current status if research in this field in India.

In some subsequent issues of Penumbra I will try to share with you what I learnt in these lectures.

S .Gopal
…Keying in is better than idling

I met a young (?) scientist… 24 December 2007

Day-before-yesterday, I had the rare privilege of meeting this young scientist at a lecture session in Bangalore.

He is Dr. T. Ananda Rao, the botanist, who

• is a veritable treasure house of eco-information.
• is actively engaged in environmental and ecological projects.
• is the author of several books and research papers.
• is a specialist in orchids (He has collected more than 140 of the 175 orchid species that are seen in Karnataka. Orchid is a collective term for a set of flowers which have a great ability to survive and grow on biological wastes which often feed themselves just by sucking moisture from the air).
• lost his wife in 1992, and who finds solace in his botanical passion.
• used to employ a friendly monkey (who would go with him on his scientific tours) to climb up tall trees to pick up orchids; he only had to bribe his friend with bananas.

He is ONLY 97 years Young…

S. Gopal …..Keying in is better than idling

The Mall and Social Divide… 14 December 2007

The other day I went to one of the many shopping malls in Bangalore along with members of my family.

The multi-level car parking lot was almost full. Fortunately, we got a slot in a higher floor to park our car. That floor led us to the Food Court; it was overcrowded with people gorging food of all varieties – North Indian, South Indian, Chinese, Indian version of Chinese, American, etc.

We went to a regular restaurant on another floor to have a buffet lunch, each costing some Rupees three hundred. All the tables were occupied excepting one, which we occupied.

After lunch I strolled around the various sales outlets. I had no money in my pocket; I don’t have a credit or debit card either. I saw hundreds of people just milling around, buying and buying; most, I thought were impulse purchases. Tens of thousands of rupees were getting exchanged.

Is this the true face of India? Are we not sitting on a social volcano waiting to burst? Hope I am proved wrong.

S. Gopal

…. Keying in is better than idling

Holy or Unholy ?….. 12 December 2007

When there was a hue and cry about thousands of acres of government land in Bangalore having been grabbed by influential citizens, the government instituted a joint legislature committee to probe the matter.

The committee has finalised its report.

As was expected, the list contains names of politicians and their relatives, film producers and stars, real estate developers etc. However, it also includes some names that I did not expect to be there, namely corporates like IBM, L and T.

What is worrisome is that religious institutions revered by the man on the street find a place in the list. The report says that the Adichunchangiri Mutt has encroached upon about 18 acres and the Art of Living Foundation has grabbed about 13 acres. I wonder:

· What signals do these institutions send to the public?

· Are such acts sanctioned by the religious texts?

· Should the common man follow the preachings of the religious leaders or imitate their institutions in real life?

· Should we turn a blind eye to this?

S. Gopal

… keying in is better than idling

foss.in…… 8 December 2007

about 250 words.

Yesterday I wrote about the five-day event foss.in which was held in the famous National Science Convention Centre at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. I attended the same for three days.

My observations:

· It was priced at just Rupees six hundred, which included 5 vegetarian lunches, 10 teas, 10 biscuits, and an event-kit consisting of a mug, pens, and a calendar. Gyan (knowledge) was free.

· The average age of the organisers and participants, as per my guess, was just 30. I was the oldest, only grey-haired fossil in that crowd.

· No politician or official was invited for inauguration and speechifying. Six or so persons from the crowd were called in to light the traditional oil lamp.

· Participants were dressed in a `don’t care attitude’ attitude but it was not obscene or vulgar.

· Many parallel sessions took place, people participated in them with great interest, and knowledge flowed freely.

· Attendees had fun and at the same time were serious when it came to exchanging knowledge.

· Everything went clockwork.

· The energy, enthusiasm, vitality, and good vibration of the event were infectious.

· Self-confidence oozed everywhere, but without a tinge of arrogance.

· Its time the older generation learnt from the younger ones and gave way to them. It will be good for the country.

S. Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

FOSS…. 7 December 2007

A five-day event known as foss.in started in Bangalore on 4 December 2007. I attended the same for the first three days, that is until yesterday. I plan to write about the event some other day soon.

What is FOSS ? It is the abbreviation for Free/Open Source Software. It stands for full freedom for production, distribution, modification, and use of software as per the needs and wishes of the user. This free environment and open standards is triggering large scale collaborative development of software, unleashing creativity and productivity, ultimately leading to lower costs and higher quality of software (Source: National Resource Centre for Free/Open source Software, Chennai).

FOSS movement is gaining momentum and acceptance. Many FOSS products like Linux, Apache, Firefox are being used widely. Many companies are also releasing their own software under open source. One does not require any licence to use these software.

FOSS is establishing a brave new world, across borders and continents. Most people driving this movement are not older than 30 years of age. Indians are part of this juggernaut.

S. Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Volunteerism in Bangalore.. 5 December 2007

Citizens of Bangalore hold a common view that the young – employed splurge money and indulge in pleasures without any concern for those who are not as lucky as they are. It’s about time this opinion is erased!Youngsters, especially those working in the Information Technology sectors, are coming together in good numbers and setting up their own voluntary groups or providing their services to existing voluntary organisations. They just don’t throw away money but actively involve themselves in activities.

Some of the organisations that are doing good volunteer work on the ground are:

· iVolunteer

· Chrisallis Performance Arts Centre for the Challenged

· Kilkilli

· Samarthanm Trust

· Asheyein

· R.K. Foundation – Clothes and Food Bank

· Baljothi Centre for the Disabled

· Project Milana

They work among the mentally or physically disabled (differently abled) children, inmates of orphanages, or young rag-pickers. They organise Christmas or Deepavali gatherings for them. Chrisallis, for example, have planned to give gifts to 10 000 children during this Christmas.

May the volunteer-tribe increase!

S. Gopal
….Keying in is better than idling

A tinge of sadness..Part I.. 2 December 2007

Last week I chanced to visit certain localities of Bangalore. Many of them were the ones I used to travel to for procuring business for the engineering products marketing company I ran for about 18 years.

Many familiar landmarks and institutions with whom I did business were missing.

• Two electrical engineering giants – NGEF and Kirloskar Electric – have disappered from the scene. On most of the land where the Kirloskar Electric stood have come up the `Metro Cash and Carry’ (a German wholesaler giant) and a multi-soreyed residential complex.
• Bhoruka Steel, KAP Steel, G R Engineering, and Mcnally Bharat in the Whitefield area do not exist anymore ; in their places swanky commercial and resdiential complexes have come up.

When organisations wind up, it does not happen suddenly; the end comes quite slowly. However, when they cease to exist, it brings a tinge of sadness not only to their employees, but also to the countless suppliers, dealers, partners, and service providers.

A small lump formed in my throat as I was returning home.

S .Gopal

….Keying in is better than idling

Why do I go to the Santhe? … 12 November 2007

(almost 400 words)

Yesterday was a Sunday. As it happens every Sunday, the santhe came into being in the morning at the usual open space about a kilometer away from my residence. Santhe (known as haat in some cultures) is a congregation of vendors of a particular variety of products. This santhe is dedicated to vegetables.

Whenever I am in town and as far as possible, I go to this santhe to buy the weekly quota of vegetables needed by my house.

Why do I do so?

• First and foremost, is nostalgia. As a boy, I used to buy vegetables in such markets in Delhi. It brings back memories of my childhood.

• It is at walking distance.

• It is interesting to watch stuff being unloaded, opened and laid out for sale.

• The vegetables look fresh and appealing.

• I have never compared prices with other outlets, but purchasing here gives me a good feeling that I have bought items at `wholesale rates’ meaning `I have got a good value my money’

• This gives me an opportunity to `cock a snook’ at the corporate marts, who I feel have usurped from the urban disadvantaged a few remaining chances of engaging in some economic activity.

• I feel some satisfaction that I am helping those who are being uprooted from their traditional vocation.

• Here you can listen to some creative sales talk of the vendors in praise of the vegetables they are selling (for example this is `homegrown’, Sir; see you can feel the smoothness and softness); in contrast nobody talks to you in a supermarket.

While I do not haggle (my point is: how much am I going to save by that?) I see with amusement people arguing with the vendors for 50 paise or one rupee, more so because these are the people I saw alighting a little while ago from their Honda Cities, Ford Ikons, or Toyota Innovas. (these people park their cars about half-a-kilometer off; they do not want the vendors to get wind of their economic strength and `exploit’ them. Exploiters never want to be exploited !!!)

S .Gopal ….Keying in is better than idling