Terror attacks in Mumbai

Its sad to know about the terror attacks in Opera House, Zaveri bazar and Dadar in Mumbai. Ammonium nitrate was used as explosives. Unfortunately, the security establishment woke up after the attacks. As usual, once the issue dies the security will become lax. The politicians will come back to normal routine: looting people by corruption and politics.
The solution to these problems should be effective and in long term. One, the heightened security apparatus. The corruption in Police should be eliminated by zero tolerance to corruption. In addition, the policemen should be given better salaries and perks for their performance. Their numbers should be increased so that whole of Mumbai feels secure. Second, the politicians should be united when it comes to response towards terror. No politics should be played over the bodies of terror victims. They should not have any role in influencing the functioning of police. Third, the citizens should be vigilant and alert the security if they notice any suspicious movements. They should let go of their "chalta hai" attitude.
I am sure that these changes will take years or decades to become reality. But, we should not leave hope.
Jai Hind

Is India rich????

The news of "treasure" at Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple estimated to be around 2 billion $ has amazed the media. There are questions on how to use the wealth. Of course, no one questions or suggests how to get back the black money to India and use it for the poor. Surprisingly, I did not come across articles asking the government to concentrate on getting back black money and leave the wealth of God untouched. the reason I feel is that almost every influential person (politicians, media and businessmen) are corrupt with an deposit in Swiss Banks (or any such equivalent). If one temple had such wealth, imagine the wealth looted by series of invasions by barbaric muslim invaders and cunning European masters!!!! We, Indians are helpless people who could not protect our own wealth. We praise ourselves when we see the treasures of British in Big Ben London. We do not have balls to get them back!!!
I hope the present species of dirty Indian politicians stop thinking of looting Lord's wealth.

The ambiguity of Indian politicians

The recent spate of protests by farmers in Uttar Pradesh rocked the whole country. They protested violently against the government's policy of forcible acquisition without giving adequate compensation. Some reports suggest that the UP government paid 45 lakh rupees per acre and sold the same for  more than one crore rupees. In addition, the protests by farmers took an ugly turn recently when the policemen retaliated by trashing the villagers. Today, the Congree MP Rahul gandhi defied the UP state police and went on to meet the farmer's families. Good job Rahul Gandhi!!!!! But, think about these too.
Congress Government is in power in the states of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. Recently, Andhra police had violently dispersed the farmers in Sompeta, Srikakulam district. The farmers protested the acquisition of fertile marsh lands for the power projects. Rahul, where were you then. Why did you not reach these farmers???
Congree rules Maharashtra. They want to acuire fertile land to build the largest Nuclear Power plant in Jaitapur. Same old story. Atleast, the UP government paid some money for the farmers. the congree government just exploited the people. Rahul, could you go and meet these farmers too???

The Canadian attitude?

I read with great interest and shock about the treatment of Canadian Embassy in India. funnily, it describes border security force (BSF), a paramilitary force fighting the militants in different parts of the country as a "dangerous organisation". BSF is protecting millions of Indians from animals which are known as terrorists sponsored by "friendly neighbours" who are tempted to heaven after death where they can enjoy some virgins (not clear about number). I feel that Canadian officials in India should not be let off easily. they should get the taste of their own medicine. let them go to one of our militant-infested areas without BSF protection.
The Canadians should never give visas to people associated with "dangerous organization" especially those associated with Guantanamo bay and Abu-Gharib tortures.they do not have balls to say that as their own land will be eliminated in the name of searching for weapons of mass destruction like that happened to Iraq. being mean with friendly people can have bad consequences for future!!

Green Zone: A reality or a myth?

This weekend, I watched the movie "Green Zone" starring Matt Damon. The story revolves around the possible intelligence failure regarding the WMD (weapons of mass destruction) programme of Saddam Hussein government. The US army is unable to find the so-called  accurate locations of the facilities involved in WMD programme. It shows how some intelligence people distort the facts so that US government gets a reason to invade Iraq. The film ends with the chaos about the formation of new Iraqi government.
I should say that this movie is an eye-opener for me. One Iraqi general says that the US government never verified the facts before invading Iraq. It shows one chracter, a journalist from Wall Street Journal, who first reported the presence of WMD programme. However, the film shows the blame on the journalist and the intelligence agencies as the culprits. It fails to touch any aspect about White House.
The media should be careful when reporting any news. They should verify the facts before blindly publishing it. I am eager to see the media facing the music it normally gives to others. The so-called journalists who extoll the values of freedom of expression should be tried in media for their personal short comings. Unfortunately, media is a very strong weapon to shape public opinion and is indirectly controlled by political big-wigs and business interests. The public should read different opinions in the media before coming to a conclusion.
Seeing this movie, I feel that no country has the right to occupy the other country it feels a threat to others. Imagine country like India attacking the countries harboring terrorists. Does the so-called world police man allow it? Of course, our Indian politicians are more worried about the internal politics of money and sleaze than the security of the country.

The employees and the employers

I just was amazed to see the news about Infosys employees and their frustration using social networking sites. Since ages, the employees were not given much rights and conditions favored the employer. During the slave trade era, the slaves were the property of their masters even according to law! The abolition of slavery put a burden on the masters in terms of money and rights. Thanks to modern age, with the advent of communism the formation of trade unions is the key to protect the interests of the employees.
I was reading the comments of this article in the message board. Surprisingly, I could not see one positive aspect or comment about that company. The so-called "mentor" of Infosys, Hon'ble Narayan Murthy always preaches values and things that do not fit into the way Infosys treats it's employees.I was surprised how this company grew inspite of such frustration amongst the employees. I had the chance to interact with some software professionals. I still wonder how you can earn so much salary in spite of having average intelligence. I rarely find people who are really qualified for the job. The so-called "Best Employer Award" given by a media house needs to reconsidered in wake of such allegations.
I still wonder how the so-called founders of the company can live with such guilt and preach moral values!

The maturity of Indian politicians

Indian politics is dominated by two dominant parties: Congress and Bharatiya Jantha Party (BJP). Though Congress dominated most of the time for first 40 years post-independence, BJP emerged in the last few decades. I was upset seeing the behavior of Indian politicians over the period of time. Way back in 1980s Jayalalitha was physically handled by the opposition members in the Tamil Nadu assembly itself. Indian politicians are renowned to use the mikes in front of their benches as missiles!!!
Now coming to the maturity of politicians. During the Bangladesh liberation war in 1970s, the leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee praised the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi of Congress Party for her courage. Recently, Women's reservation bill was introduced in the Indian Parliament to ensure 33% reservation for women in parliament and state assemblies. Luckily, both Congress and BJP came on same side, while the parties such as Rashtriya Janta Dal, Samajwadi Party etc vehemently opposed it. I should appreciate the maturity shown by BJP in supporting the Congress with respoect to passage of Women's reservation bill. (During Kargil war, however, the then leader of opposition, Sonia gandhi of Congress,  gives a word of caution to the then BJP prime minister not to take credit for the success of this war, but lies with the people!!!!)
In response to the "Dantewada Massacare" in which 72 CRPF paramilitary jawans were ruthlessly killed by red terrorists "Naxalites", the Indian home minister Mr Chidambaram, offered to resign claiming moral responsibility. I was impressed with the maturity shown by the opposition BJP which asked him not to resign. They felt that  the resignation by home minister is like accepting defeat in the war with terrorists.
I hope the politicians become more mature and keep the interests of the people in mind rather than their politicial ideologies. I hope the red terrorists do the same.

Does awards really matter?

Getting a nobel prize is a dream for many scientists. It is also a recognition for "peace". but, when Nobel peace prize was awarded to Barack Obama recently, I lost all the respect I had for Nobel prize. If I were a billionaire with lots of political clout and lobbying capabilities, I could even get nominated for a Nobel Prize!!! Probably, Osama Bin Laden should consider lobbying for Nobel peace prize as he is fighting the "holy war" for muslims!!!
I was surprised that Gandhi was nominated in 1937, 1938, 1939, 1947 and, finally, a few days before he was murdered in January 1948. Nobel committee will have its own explanations. But, non-westerners know the fact that Sweden or Norway do not want to insult the colonial power of the time, Britain. It would have made mockery of the British colonial empire and have given impetus to the ongoing Indian Freedom struggle. Thankfully, Gandhi's own country men gave him the honor of "Father of Nation" (though they killed him themselves). Anyway, how can they award a peace prize from the money which is the profits earned due to the discovery and sale of substance that killed many people in the world: dynamite. The people accepting Nobel prize for peace should think about this before accepting the award.
Now for the film awards. The so called Oscar awards have a category for best foreign film. Hindi film Lagaan was nominated to Oscars in that category in 2001. It failed to win it. In 2009, another India centric movie "Slumdog Millionaire" got nominated and won couple of Oscars. While Lagaan shows the victory of Indian villagers over colonial Britishers, The Slumdog Millionaire shows the slums and their conditions in India. It is for the readers to judge the attitude of the so called western media. They still see India as slum filled country (even developed countries have it!!).
Thankfully, Aamir Khan does not go to such award functions (he's been to Oscar anyway) stating that they do not have credibility. In India, after the success of "Taare Jameen Par" he was awarded Gollapudi Srinivas Rao Award in 2007 which is given to best debutant film director in memory of the young director who passed away during the shooting of his first film. Type "aamir khan crying"  in you tube. You will see this function where he is felicitated by K. balachander, Anupam Kher and Vidhu Vinod Chopra. I believe awards should have such importance. This award I feel is the right one. Not the usual annual awards for the paparazzi and endorsements.

Media and freedom of expression

This is the favorite word of many people: governments, activists and citizens. But, what are the limits. In America, talking some no,-sense can land you in jail even though US considers itself as global super power responsible for upholding democratic principles. In US, activists campaigning for policies that are detrimental or critical of governmental policies will be under surveillance. This is no different from other countries say Iran or Zimbabwe etc. So, where is the difference: it's the media.
The western media in developing world is always criticized for being insensitive to the local sentiments. Indian media will not publish the news about communal clashes by the name of religion as it will further add fuel to fire. But, BBC thinks it blocks "freedom of expression". The same BBC will never do it if the same incident happened in Britain. Its left to the reader to judge the intentions of the media. In 2006/2007, when India toured England, the Indian cricket players complained about jelly balls being scattered on the pitch to tamper with the bowling and subsequently on the batsman. Indian media reported it, while BBC did not even mention it!!!!
In India, the so-called secularists have no problem with bashing of majority, but with minority bashing, they have problems. Seeing NDTV can make an average viewer conclude the political affiliations of the news channel. I saw TV9 telugu news today and was shocked at the conclusions made by the media. Dasari, an eminent director said that story is the hero and not any super star, be it Chiranjeevi or Raja Shekar. The media concludes that he spoke against family control of telugu film industry. Dasari, Chiranjeevi and Raja Shekar would not have problem with comments, but media has!!!!
We need responsible media that generates optimism in public perception and not create fear. Gone are the days when media was driven by principles. It is driven by profits, political affiliations and revenge. God save the media!!

Red terror in India

Back to work after a brief easter holiday at Paris. I felt sad seeing the news about the ambush of CRPF jawans by the naxalites in MP. I also read an article in Rediff about a former naxalite who left the movement. Reading both these articles made me loose whatever small pity I had over the movement. The real culprits are two: government and the naxals. Had the development been uniform through out with out corruption and exploitation, the naxals would not have got the patronage from the tribals. Its better late than never. The government has now recognised naxalism as biggest threat and moved its resources to fight red terror. There is always some mistakes done labelled as human rights violations by the so called activists. These activists do not utter a word of condolence for the families of jawans killed in naxal attacks. but, they are vociferous when "a" naxal is killed by police.
The government should make stricter laws to combat corruption by babudom in tribal areas. It should give due importance to their culture, customs and beliefs. By providing basic amenities of education, health and facilities, it can win the hearts of tribals. I may be wrong in my opinion, but if we have a good working government there is no need of movements to make it work. Hope the "rulers" realise this importance.