China-India matters…. 28 September 2007

India is a democratic country with freedom of speech, and dissent. `But China is a state-controlled nation with no freedom of speech, and dissent’, we boast.

Read the following statement put out by an official agency in China and decide: China has witnessed 87 000 (eighty seven thousand) protests, riots, and other mass incidents in almost every province. This probably is the biggest surge of rural violence since the cultural revolution. What are the simple lessons to be learnt from this?:

• Facts are different from perceptions.
• However long the arm of the government be, people will speak loudly despite the consequences they might have to face.
• As in India, so in China the urban-rural divide is growing; rich are becoming richer and the poor, poorer; the haves are not showing any concern towards the have-nots. The mindset of the urbanites has to change, sooner rather than later.
• One has to very quickly review the definition of sustainable development, whether it is Nandigram, Singur, or Sethusamudram. Who is going to bell the cat?

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Snippets (continued) …… 27 September 2007

I didn’t know till a few days ago that as many as 7 000 (seven thousand) languages are spoken in the world. According to an expert in this field, half of these languages will disappear before the end of this century. The ones that will become extinct are the ones spoken by the native people (also known as indigenous people). With that will also vanish local knowledge pertaiing to environment, mathematics, and time. Don’t you think that this is sad ?

What is Green GDP? Whether we clearly understand what GDP (Gross Domestic Product) is, we know for sure that it is a measure of prosperity of a nation. For example, a country having a GDP of 10 percent is more prosperous than a country with GDP of 7 percent. Green GDP is a sensible extension of GDP. Green GDP is calculated by deducting the cost of depletion of natural resources and environmental degradation from the traditional GDP. Its time that we ask our governments to provide us the figures of Green GDP.

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Snippets (continued) …… 24 September 2007

Breaking News: Prashant Tamang is the Indian Idol (Singing Sensation)

The people of Karnataka and Kerala are predominantly rice-eaters. Right? Sorry, the statistics pertaining to people, who are not covered by the public distribution system (the so-called ration shops), show otherwise. 74 percent of rural and 81 percent of urban population in Karantaka consume wheat, not rice. The corresponding figures for Kerala are 60 and 72. For Tamizh Nadu the figures are: 29 and 61. Urban Tamizh Nadu consumes more wheat than rice !!! (Penumbrans of Coimbatore origin, please make a special note !)

Eighty percent of the world’s poorest nations have suffered a major war in the last 15 years. Because of this, the poor nations are never able to develop. For the governments of the western world, war is a big business; they will never allow peace to reign in the world. Since the United Nations is a toothless body, mass of people of the world must unite together and wage an `emotional’ war against war. The best god-given tools are the internet and the world wide web; use them to forge a strong peace brigade.

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Snippets…… 23 September 2007

India has 22 central-government-controlled universities and more than 280 state-government-controlled universities. Experts have suggested that India must have at least 1 500 universities by year 2015 to be a successful nation.

Any one (even if she or he is an Indian citizen) wanting to enter the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh must possess an `inland land permit’. No outsider can purchase land in Arunachal Pradesh.

What do you think of Doctor Akash Rose? Decide yourself after reading this. He

· is an MBBS from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences,

· has a diploma in tropical pulmonology,

· has a scholarship in physiology,

· has certificates in photoshop master and photography,

· is a consultant in

o robotics, electronics, and information technology,

o retail design,

o advertising,

o biomedical engineering,

· is the director of Academics at the National Institute of Creative Communication.

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Some thoughts…… 22 September 2007

Better be a sincere agnostic or a sincere atheist, rather than be a fake believer! (An agnostic is one who thinks that existence of god is unknown; an atheist is one who affirms that god just does not exist).

Don’t at all be impressed by anything that only money can buy.

To succeed (in an ethical manner), more important than education are two qualities that a person must possess:

o A photographic memory

o Excellent gift of the gab

[(some of the people with the above qualities whom I have listened to or met are: Dr. M. S. Swaminathan (agricultural scientist), Professor Roddam Narasimha (former director of National Aerospace Laboratories), Shri M. N. Venkatachaliah (former chief justice of India), Shri Soundararajan (former chairman of Scooters India)]

Say once, twice, thrice…..indifference? or no compliance? I tell myself: Gopal, just keep shut and let things role by.

If you do not know the subject, better keep shut; don’t make an exhibition of your ignorance.

Let the experts do their job. Don’t poke your nose; it is dirty!

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

Indian Patriot; characteristics of….…… 20 September 2007

Recently I read an article in the Deccan Herald newspaper published from Bangalore. It details the characteristics of an Indian Patriot. A gist of it is given below:

• has a sense of belonging for the country
• abides by the rules and regulations of the country
• speaks positively about India wherever she or he is, despite knowing that India lacks in many areas
• who tries to improve the position of India in her or his own small way
• puts in just a little effort – economically, socially, and intellectually, for example
  • teaches the child of a maid servant
  • works towards improving the economy of the country
  • opts and buys Indian products, all other features being equal
  • conserves natural resources, electricity, water and fuel
  • shows tolerance towards other religions and cultures
  • promotes Indian handicrafts, embroidery etc.
  • learns more about the rights and duties of an Indian citizen and exercises them
  • shows compassion towards the weaker and disadvantaged sections of the society
  • shows respect towards the environment

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling

News snippets….. 6 September 2007

* Two new districts – Ramanagara and Chickballapura – have been carved out of two exisiting ones in Karnataka.

* When the purse of the urban Indian is getting fatter, can the gods lag behind? The following table is self-explanatory.

 

God Annual income in Rupees Crores

Tirupati Balaji 750

Pazhani Dandayudhapani 100

Vaishnodevi Santoshima 75

Sabarimalai Ayyappa 50

* The Canadian Health Department has said that Neem Toothpaste from India contains harmful bacteria and chemicals.

* A state-of-the-art Nanotechnology Park as well as a Science City will soon come up in Bangalore.

* Four new engineering colleges with combined capacity of 960 seats have been started by the government of Karnataka.. However only 11 students have so far opted to join these colleges!

* Permission has been granted by the Drugs Controller General of India for use of a surgical glue called Bio-sealants. This can replace stutures. Made out of human and animal blood products, this is, of course, very expensive.

* Fragging – soldiers using their weapons on themselves or on their fellow-soldiers – is on the increase in India.

Gopal

…..keyingin is better than idling

Shame to defence administrators…… 28 August 2007

Two recent reports in the Press – one pertaining to the US defence administration (Pentagon) and the other to the Indian Army – suggest that all is not well with these two entities.

Pentagon is not able to account for 190 000 pistols and rifles, 135 000 body armours, and 115 000 helmets given to the Iraqi security forces in the years between 2004 and 2006. It is believed that these have fallen into the enemy hands in Iraq. Ofcourse, the American military defence industry will be very pleased with this news. More such losses, more the demand for fresh stocks! With all the real-time data-collection technology that the US has, this is the story.

In India, some senior army officers have taken the soldiers defending the country at Siachin and other high-altitude places for a ride. This scandal spread over the last six years has resulted in food and other items like chocolates, food supplements, snow boots, and parachutes meant for soldiers to be sold in open market. Shame to those army officers!

Gopal

…..keyingin is better than idling

Happiness (Subjective Well Being) Index…. 29 July 2007

A study conducted by British Analytic Social Psychologist, Adrian White shows that Denmark is the happiest country, followed by Switzerland, and Austria. The least happy country is Burundi, a notch below Congo and Zimbabwe. The positions (smaller the number, happier they are) of some of the other countries are:

USA 24

Australia 26

Germany 35

UK 41

France 62

China 82

Japan 90

India 125

Russia 167

Countries with more population are not necessarily happier countries. Capitalism need not lead to unhappiness.

Countries with better health care, easier access to education, and higher Gross Domestic Product per capita are happier.

And you know what, Bhutan is the 8 th. happiest country. They have committed to sane and sustainable growth. They have restricted foreign tourists, hardly touched their timber and minerals, and taken unsual steps to protect their Buddhist monuments. They believe in Gross National Happiness instead of Gross National Product.

Another study says: The Americans are three times wealthier than they were half-a-century ago, but thay are not happier.

Gopal

…..keying in is better than idling