Blog on break

This blog will take a well deserved break till 6th October 2008. It needs time to rethink, recoup and rejuvenate.

Faiures of Capitalism & Communism - Two sides of a coin

It is interesting to note that both the divergent Economic philosophies, Capitalism and Communism failed. And failed for precisely the same reason.

Does it mean that both were wrong. No. In fact there is nothing wrong in a free market economy as represented by Capitalism and the State Controlled economy that is Communism. The goals of both were the same - the good of the common man. Capitalism was to ensure competition resulting in better goods at cheaper prices, apart from creating more jobs. Communism aimed to do the same, but through Government investments, monopolies and economies of scale.

But why did they then fail? They failed because of Human Greed and concentration of power in a chosen few. In the case of Communism, the power was with the party politbureau while in the case of Capitalism, it was with the people who ran some of the top finanicial institutions. In both the cases, they abused the power vested in them to the detriment of the common man and betrayed their trust. The only people who benefitted in both the cases were the top party functionaries and top banking professionals who took care of their salaries and bonuses.

Any system is good as long as the people running it are good

Upanishads and guidelines to decision making

A manager is distinguished by his ability to take decisions. One of the basic modern management decision making model talks about the following steps Problem recognition, Information Seach, Generation of Alternatives, Evaluation of Alternatives, Actual Decision, Implementation and Feedback. But, strangely, hardly any input is given as to how to choose amongst the alternatives that lead to the ideal decision being taken.

But our scriptures take care of this.The Kathopanishad is one of the most popular of all Upanishads. It says, "At every stage in a man's life he is confronted by the necessity to choose between two courses of action. One is sreyas and the other is preyas. The wise man chooses sreyas; the average person on the other hand opts for preyas."

The terms `sreyas' and `preyas' are highly technical and have deep metaphysical import.

Simply stated, sreyas is that which seems painful in the beginning but the end result is pleasant. As opposed to this, preyas is pleasant in the beginning but painful in the end. The essential difference between the two is that the pleasure or benefit ensuing from sreyas is permanent while that from preyas is transient.

In managerial terms, sreyas may be regarded as the hard option while preyas is the soft option.

Before making his choice, a manager must ask himself the following questions: Will this option be in conformity with the general norms of justice and fair play? Will it be in the interest of the majority of persons in the organisation? Will the benefits flowing from it be long lasting? Will the solution it provides be a permanent one?

If the answer to these questions is in the affirmative, the proposed course of action is to be taken as sreyas and is to be preferred. Otherwise it has to be regarded as preyas and rejected.

There may be cases where after following all the steps a manager may still be unable to decide which is sreyas and which is preyas. Faced with such an impasse, he is advised to look for a precedent.

The specific guideline offered by the Upanishad is: "Look back to see how your predecessors had acted in a similar situation. Look around to see what action your contemporaries have taken." These precedents can be of help to a manager in taking a decision.

The Taittiriya Upanaishad lays down the qualifications of those who are worthy of being looked up to as precedents. They should be acknowledged masters in their field; should be men of discernment and unimpeachable integrity; and should be known for their objectivity.

Kathopanishad says that the art of living is nothing but the art of choosing wisely. If at the end of the day a person looks back and finds that the number of `good' options chosen by him, that is sreyas, predominates his life is a success. If however preyas predominates, it is a failure.

Arise, Awake

Normally I dont provide link to other articles on the web. But this one by the respected journalist TVR Shenoy in www.rediff.com tells many things that I myself want to convey but in a much better way.

It's time for the 'silent majority' to speak up

Win the war

Sometimes in life we come across situations when we have to face a stronger enemy and know we are licked from day one. How do we tackly such a situation?.

The answer to this lies in Chanakya Sutra. Remember that Chanakya was insulted by the then powerful Nandas. He was a mere poor brahmin and the Nandas were the mighty kings. He took a vow to defeat them and bided his chance,but never for once did he accept defeat. However, he was practical. After all, he was an expert in a field wherein all were playing games with one or the other all the while – making strategies, plans and conspiracies. He waited and waited till he found an able ally in young Chandra Gupta Maurya 'Vikramaditya', who he thought was stronger than Mauryas.

His philosophy is reflected in the sutra ,“He should seek shelter with one whose strength is superior to the strength of the enemy” (7.2.6)

When faced with an enemy who is stronger than you, the best situation is to have a stronger friend on your side. Because only strength will respect strength. We should be more powerful than the enemy by acquiring greater strength.

This is true in Corporate Management and stresses the importance of strategic alliances. Making friends with a much stronger ally would help in countering competition. The ally has more experience in fighting wars. It can protect you during calamities.

Also Chanakya advises one to keep his ego in check during a battle. Think of the long term- lose your ego and ‘surrender’ to a person superior to your enemy so that you get the required help. After all, you can defeat the enemy only if you survive through the turmoil in long run.

It is alright to lose some battles, as long as you win the war. Win with the wisdom your superior alliance gives rather than loose with your ego centric actions.

In the long run, winning is everything.

At times, you need to win over the enemy too, swallowing your ego. Chanakya did this. Budhi Rakshasa was the loyal minister of Nandas and was a perpetual thorn to Chanakya in his quest to defeat Nandas. When the Nandas were conquered and Budhirakshasa was jailed, Chanakya goes to him and convinces him to become the Prime Minister of Vikramaditya. This he did for two reasons; first he thought that the loyalty, intelligence and experience of Budhirakshasa will stand Vikramaditya in good stead; second, it was better to have Budhirakshasa in his side than as an opponent, for then he can be dangerous.

Zain, Wataniya infamous?

Oh! This is fun ! I thought such bloomers were only to be seen in some Sardarji jokes. Read on.............

“Thanks to this new numbering plan, Kuwait will be joining the few Gulf countries that are advancing at an impressive rate. Bahrain’s done it; so has Saudi Arabia. Now, Kuwait is joining the new generation phone numbers. With these smooth guiding and transitional steps, Kuwait is proving that it is a force to be reckoned with in the Gulf, and the telecommunications companies prove exactly why they are infamous and great throughout the Middle East,” says the statement. -"Arab times"

(The dictionary meaning of 'infamous' is having an extremely bad reputation)

Well, considering the quality of service offered by Zain and Wataniya, and the rates they charge, we can pardon the guy who gave the statement for inadvertently telling the truth.

Does the FM think that we are idiots?

According to Finance Minister P.Chidambaram, "high growth rate boosts demand and due to less supply inflation was supposed to rise. Also, it's after a long time that the entire world is facing a food crisis. The economic condition in rest of the world is worse than India. Due to India's strong economy, the situation didn't go out of control.

The country burdened with a 12.5% inflation, falling growth rates, manufacturing sector sluggish, agriculture sector in disarray, high levels of taxation, rising interest rates, economy in a downturn, the government not having a clue as to what to do other than say every month that the inflation will come down next month - AND THE FINANCE MINISTER IS SAYING 'THINGS DID'NT GO OUT OF CONTROL I am speechless! What does he think? That we, the common people, are idiots?

Buy for more and sell for less

There was a famous merchant known for his ethics and riches. He had a son helping him in his business and a grand son. Suddenly the son meets his end and the old man is in a dilemma – whether to burden his young grandson with business or carry on with the business himself for some more time allowing the young boy to enjoy his child hood till he has grown out of it. He decides on the later course , but as fate would have it ,suddenly took ill and is in the last stage of his life.

He calls his grand son and tells him,

“ I don’t have the time to train you. Let me give our success formula in short for you……….buy for more ……and sell for less………”

So saying , he breathes his last.

The boy truly takes the advice to heart and implements it to find him-self running into losses very soon. He can’t believe it or understand . So he decides to consult an old friend of his grandpa .

The old man smiled on hearing the story and told the boy “ you combined the 2 split sentences and ran into losses. Split them….buy good quality goods paying a little more than your competitors…thereby , you will have committed suppliers ,quality and availability……same way…..sell good quality goods at a price little less than your competitors …..there by you will have an assured market and profit too due to higher TURNOVER….that is the key.

The boy understood and prospered earning as good a reputation as his ancestors.

The above is a story that I read sometime back.

Come to think of it. Is it not what the big retail chains are doing. This also explains the importance of economies of scale. Stories are a great way of conveying a theory.

Four types of Managers

In Corporate world there are basically four types of managers that are not mutually exclusive.

The first group believes in doing things right and resist change normally. They are basically conservatives.

Then there are those who relish change and believes in doing the right things. They either have an entrepreneurial streak or better still an intrapreneurial streak. They are invaluable from a growth perspective.

The third group represents change and also gets others to do things that are perceived to be right. They make the best leaders. They are the fulcrum on which the organization revolves.

Lastly are those who complicate the issues about being right. They have a politicians streak in them. On the outset they look like a stumbling block, but can be leveraged effectively

Do nothing!

Post Delhi blasts, the Cabinet met and took important steps.

Home Minister Mr.Shivraj Patil will NOT BE REMOVED - The reason is bizzaire. In an election year, the UPA cannot be seen to replace the home minister as it will tantamount to admitting it failed in handling internal security. It will also give opposition a stick to hit it with. So the stupid incompetent Home Minister stays on - till the next blasts kills people. But who cares?

The proposal to have a separate ministry to handle internal security was scrapped. For the same reason as above.

UPA constituents like Paswan and quite a few Congress worthies opposed the promulgation of any new law that will help to tackle terrorism, as it means bringing the guilty in the minority communities to book. We can't afford that in a secular country, can we? It is alright for terrorist from minority community to kill people indiscriminately (I am not saying that all from the minority community are terrorists. But almost all the terrorists are from the minority community). But Government should not pass any law to take stringent action against the guilty just because they belong to the minority community. What bizzare logic!

Government has also vetoed a proposal to have a new Central Agency to tackle internal security.

So the government is back to where it was before and have excelled in doing all these days - NOTHING.

When will be raise our voices against such shameless inaction?

Of Lehman Brothers and Blade companies

The Malayalees are chuckling.................................One of the most well read amongst the people of India, the malayalee is upto date with happenings across the world.................he is chuckling quietly when he heard the news that the Global investment/industrial banks Lehman Brothers and Meryll Lynch has collapsed taking with them numerous investors down.

Now, why is he chuckling? There is a history to it.

In 1980s, private investment companies mushroomed in Kerala. They were unregulated. At that time, the nationalized banks whose services were poor, and the post offices or treasury bonds, were the only other option for the small investors. Stock markets were in its infancy and there were hardly any other financial instruments.

These private investment companies, who exploited a loop hole in the Banking law for non banking financial institutions, were started by dubious individuals who offered nearly 36% interests on deposits per year. The samll investors, who were getting a measly 8 - 10% from nationalized banks, flocked to invest their money in these investment cmpanies.

How could these companies survive by paying such high interest rates? They used to lend it short term at higher rates to needy customers, businessmen etc. Those days, it was notoriously difficult to get a loan from the nationalized banks. Well, it was almost impossible. The only source of financing for the small, medium traders were these Private Financiing Companies. They loaned at a ridiculous interest rate of 5% per month (equal to 60% per year) without doing due diligence, without adequate collateral cover and without assessing the risks involved. Not for once did anyone in the system thought about how sustainable it is for these traders to have a cost of capital of 60% and run a viable business model. Added to this, these private investment companies (aptly called 'Blade Companies' - because the interest rates were considered to be equal to cutting your throat) ventured into high risk, high return (purportedly) investments like movie making which were doomed to fail at some stage. That is precisely what happened. One by one these blade companies vanished without repaying the investors their deposit money. Millions of malayalees lost their hard earned savings and some even committed suicide. Though the situation is much better now, these Blade companies still mushroom now and then, and history is repeated.

The parallel to what is happening in US Financial sector is amazing. Only that the magnitude is bigger. These private equity firms, banks and other financial institutions offered high returns to the investors and invested in hedge funds, speculative real estate without taking the necessary due diligence process. Added to this the holier than thou attitude of the top management and their arrogance. They broke all the fundamentals of the investment banking. Is there any wonder then that they are falling like a pack of cards? What happened in a smaller scale in Kerala in 1980's is being replicated couple of decades down the line in USA.

The underlying cause in both the cases is same - GREED - of both the investors and the investment company.

Can you blame the Malayalee for chuckling?

Mr.Home Minister - Were you born Stupid or..........?

Brushing aside speculation that he would be asked to step down, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Monday asserted that he enjoyed ‘full blessings’ of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. "Well, I have full blessings of my leader," he said....................................... (Well! what do I say when the second most important minister of this Country, who has been an Tsunamic size disaster hides behind his Party Boss. I thought ministers in a democracy should be worried about the blessings of the voters. And what does this say of Sonia Gandhi, the super PM and her management style. Cry my beloved country!)

Another gem from the (dis)honourable Home Minister - Refuting charges of intelligence failure, the Home Minister said in all incidents information was given. "It was available with us in Delhi also. But what was not available was the timing, the place and the method to be used for the purpose," he said. .................. (Great! next time we will request the terrorists to send in advance the date, time, place of detonation of bombs so that Mr.Patil can take appropriate action.............tell me! is this guy for real? I have one question to ask the Home Minister - "Mr.Patil - Were you born stupid or did you acquire stupidity as you grew up"?)

Here is another bumbling idiot in the cabinet. Charging Pakistan with supporting terror modules operating in India, Defence Minister A K Antony on Monday said it was a 'serious' matter and the country will defeat the designs of the destablising forces....................... (Oh! what a discovery AK Antony! You deserve a nobel prize! We all knew this at least 30 years ago. Did you just wake up from a 30 year long slumber?. And pray what are you going to do about this 'serious matter'?. Gosh! Why do we have to suffer these idiots?)

Who will teach?

When Bankei held his seclusion-weeks of meditation, pupils from many parts of Japan came to attend. During one of these gatherings a pupil was caught stealing. The matter was reported to Bankei with the request that the culprit be expelled. Bankei ignored the case.

Later the pupil was caught in a similar act, and again Bankei disregarded the matter. This angered the other pupils, who drew up a petition asking for the dismissal of the thief, stating that otherwise they would leave in a body.

When Bankei had read the petition he called everyone before him. "You are wise brothers," he told them. "You know what is right and what is not right. You may go somewhere else to study if you wish, but this poor brother does not even know right from wrong. Who will teach him if I do not? I am going to keep him here even if all the rest of you leave."

A torrent of tears cleansed the face of the brother who had stolen. All desire to steal had vanished.

Chathurvarna in Management

Much has been said and written about the Chaturvarnas as per manusmrithi - the four class divisions in the society - Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Sudras. Though, of late, this has been discussed with the point of view of all that was wrong about Indian society, and that it promoted class system, a closer look will show you that this was where modern management originated. Much before the western management scholars functionally divided an organization, Indian society had discovered it. The whole society was divided into 4 distinct classes based on the Aptitude of the people for a particular type of job. Let us apply the above concept to an organization.

In an Organization, Brahamins can be those in research and development, think tanks and corporate planning. The Kshatriyas are those who do the marketing, sales, investor relations, benchmarking and obviously those in physical security and espionage. The Vaisyas are naturally the finance, logistics and trade-related operations guys. Reinforcing all are the Sudras who are service providers ranging from the receptionist (call centers), toilet cleaner (contractors), IT service provider, drivers, workers to bureaucrat and politician, i.e. anyone with intangible contributions to a business value chain. Each one according to his Aptitude for a particular kind of work and each one has to be in consonance with the organizations goals and targets. All are important cogs in the wheel and very vital to organizations survival and growth. Each has a core competency, that when in synergy with others, produces a whole that is greater than the sum of the parts.

Our wise forefathers knew the importance of specialization and handing over a particular task to a person with the aptitude and the core competency in that area. It is why India was so prosperous those days.

Will someone please place a bomb under our Home Minsters A**?

Internal terrorism became a reality in India during the Sikh insurgency in early 1980. Of course, prior to that there were instances of Naxalism, and secessionist movements in isloated areas in India. But the mainstream nation caught its attention only in early 80's. Which means almost three decades ago.

The nature of terrorism, the modus operandi and the key players behind it have changed since then. What has been constant is the loss of lives and the official apathy.

One would have thought any decent government would have taken note of this serious situation and tackled it on a war footing. But successive governments have turned a blind eye to internal terrorism to protect their vote banks.

The need of the hour, then and now, was to revamp the police system with more focus on intelligenct gathering and implementing judicial reforms. But no initiatives have been taken on both these counts. If we had started then, in 25 years we would have had a mature, armed to teeth, efficient police department to tackle internal security alone.

Contrast this with what has happened elsewhere. Post 9/11 USA has tightened their internal security to such an extend that not even a firecracker has burst in that country since 2001. Same with Spain, post Madrid bombing or in England, post the metro bombings. That is how seriously and effectively developed countries tackle internal terrorism.

I will not even bother to mention the serial bombings in Delhi today. Why should it surprise us? When the Government has not gone beyond giving lip service to tackling terror. Our honourable PM has appealed the people to be calm. Manmohan Singh! Why should we be calm? We are at the receiving end because we have been calm all these years. You can afford to be calm because you and your ilk are protected by black cat commandos. Just banish your security and try to live as a common man for one month. Then you will know what it feels to be at gun point all the time.

Just yesterday, our Super efficient, Sonia-pet, Home Minister Shivraj Patil shot down a proposal endorsed by his own National Security Advisor to approve the Gujarat Anit Terror law. Shivraj Patil is beyond condemnation. A guy, who was rejected by the people (he lost his lok sabha election last time around), promptly gifted with the plumb Home ministry posting and brought in as a Rajya Sabha member through the backdoor, has been an unmitigated disaster these past four years.

We, the people, deserve the government we have got. But even we dont deserve Shivraj Patil as Home Minister.

I dont believe in violence, but I would readily shake hands with the guy who will place a crude bomb under our Home Ministers A**.

Ramblings on an Onam Day

Me and the blog, as promised spent a quiet couple of days celebrating Onam in our own way. Both of us are introverts. As such, it was more about sitting back with a cup of coffee and remnicing about the past.

Lot of memories flashed through the mind. No, it is not about Onam alone. But some picture frames frozen from the childhood.

The earliest memory is about me, as a toddler, sitting in the neighbour aunty's house in Vaikkom on the floor eating my daily quota of pappad while others ate. Why, this alone is etched in my mind I dont know.

I remember, walking down the flight of steps from the main road to my house, holding an Aluminium school box. I also remember, our neighbour, Ramans mother, calling me over to drink raw, fresh cows milk, the moment she has milked her only cow, everyday. This was in Vadakara, where we moved to when I was 4 years old.

The paddy field behind our house, the pond adjacent to the house, the search for 'retta mainah' viewing of which brings happiness, the owl that had nested above the second floor bedroom window, the long balcony in the first floor, and above all the rickety sound of the handlooms are vivid memories. I had just started schooling then.

We always made it a point to have onam pookkalam on all the ten days. Simple to start with, but massive ones on Uthradam and Thiruvonam. The servant used to get us the flowers required. We also helped out by plucking thechi, chembaruthi and kasi thumba. The task of getting the more difficult aambal, thamara etc were left to our hard working and enthusiastic servant. Mother used to put the base 'kolam' and father sits near us in an easy chair giving directions. He was the planner and we were the executioners. But as we grew older, he started delegating even the task of planning and designing. But always stepped up with one key suggestion so that he also had a stake in the final outcome. In short, it was nothing special. Just, what happened in thousands of middle class homes every onam those days. Mother, of course was a superb cook. But there again, it was the father, who could barely cook (unlike me who is a superb cook - one up on him), who used to plan the menu and help her by cutting vegetables and being with her in the kitchen giving moral support.

Most importantly, the schools were closed for 10 days. That itself made us look forward to Onam.

How did I spend this Onam? At home, alone, doing a bit of cooking and as usual reading. Just another day. Any regrets? I dont think so. I have always been a guy who takes life as it comes. I dont have any expectations. Hence, I dont have any disappointments too.

Life goes on

Onam

I and the blog deserve couple of days off to celebrate Onam, don't we?

So Happy Onam to all my readers. May the year ahead bring you peace and prosperity.

Blog will be back on Saturday

A eulogy and an obtituary

The King is Back. Long live the King!

Despite me being very sick, was up till the early hours on monday night to watch Roger Federer give a classic exhibition in taking Andy Murray apart. The saying 'Form is temporary, but Class is permanent' holds good when it comes to Roger.

I have been watching Tennis for more than a quarter of a century. I have seen the brilliant Borg, the genius McEnroe, the sanguine Edberg, the hardworking Wilander, the dour Lendl, the flamboyant Becker, the ruthless Sampras, the two avatars of Agassi, the workmanlike Jim Courier, the aesthetically fantastic Miloslov Mecir (it is a pity injury cut short his career), the immensely talented Henri Leconte and the tenacious Nadal. But, none comes close to Roger Federer. Such a complete player, so pleasing to watch, superb shot selection and all the talent in the world condensed in one tennis player. It is a pleasure to watch Roger Federer and we dont know how lucky we are to be born in his lifetime. We need players like him to rekindle our interest in sports. Players who have a profound influence on the audience and makes them wish that they go out and play the sport immediately. In recent times, there were a few. Sachin, Schumaker, Michael Jordan, Bobby Fisher, Maradona and above all Roger Federer. It is good for the game, that he has got over the blimp and is back winning Grand Slams.

Waking up with bleary eyes yesterday, the first news that hit me was the death of the Violin Maestro Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan. Though, I have strong reservations about his style, I have always admired him as a maverick, who tried to buck the conservative carnatic music system. He was quite innoative, and largely responsible for dragging a whole bunch of young rasikas to the music hall. His different treatment of various krithis and the speed of bowing made him an instant hit with the younger generation. Added to this, his innovations like film song based kutcheri and more importantly, his using Valayapatti on Thavil (not done before and thavil is so loud that it is ideal only for nadaswaram) was a classic act.

I have heard Kunnakudi many times and everytime I have come away with the feeling that I have gone through a cacophony of sound rather than the melodious feel one expects. But once, mind you only once, I have heard him play Violin without his 'kasarthu' or antics. And it showed how talented was he while playing traditionally.

Ariyakkudi was the pioneer in product innovation by introducing the Kutchery style as it is followed today. Following that, one has to give Kunnakudi the credit for being the next great innovator. His focus on popularising the music through keeping it attractive to the modern audience was subsequently taken up by U Srinivas, Kadri, Ganesh/Kumaresh etc. Maybe, just maybe Kunnakudi was couple of decades ahead of the times. That makes him a visionary.

It is said that once when his father was in death bed, Kunnakudi played the 'Bhairavi' Raaga (Bhairavi is considered to be Jeeva Raaga) and his father espcaped death to live for a few years. When the heart attack came yesterday, maybe he didnt have the time to take his violin and play the Bhairavi for himself.

You dared to be different and I salute you for that. Hope you have adapted well to the needs of the netherworld. Your music will linger. R.I.P

Round up

A quick round up of important news items with my comments in brackets;

N-Deal is through with NSG waiver (I have been a bitter critic of N Deal, mainly because of the lack of transparancy and the secrecy that shrouded the deal. I am not worried about what happens if we test. Even if we have not signed the Deal, we would have been enforced bans. So no great shakes. The worrying factor is that the cost-benefit analysis is a bit skewed towards the cost and the Deal affects our indigenous capacity building. Still, now that the decision has been made, let us accept it and hope for the best). By the way there is a well researched write up by Rajeev Srinivasan on N-Deal in rediff.com. Do read if you find time by clicking on the link.

New RBI Governor Sworn in ( I hope he brings some qualitative changes in the role and functioning of RBI. RBI needs to be revamped totally. But who will bell the cat. We have institutions which are relics of the past and has outlived their utility. RBI is one such. It has failed miserably in controlling inflation and should be made accountable)

Singur issue resolved - well almost ( What amazes me is why Tatas were not part of the deal. I do admit that Tatas have behaved shamelessly in this whole episode. But since they are an affected party, should they not been in the talks. And then there is the classic politicians flip-flop and one upmanship after the agreement is reached. I am not sure the imbroglio has ended. It is likely to simmer for a long time. But it augurs well for accountability in the industry circles. In the guise of industrialization, India's leading industrial houses have been making hay grabbing land. And when they are challenged by the poor unorganized farmer, they take out the bogey of the issue affecting India's image abroad. Image - my foot. As if world cars about India. When we were screaming about N-Deal, the whole world was more worried about N.Korea and Iran. We are not even in the radar globally. Same with business. Since the industrial houses have the media on their side and are organized, they are having a field day. Image with foreigners? Why is it so important. What does it tell of India? That a privileged few can squash the poor? )

Sonia Gandhi and Abhinav Bindra honoured with honourary Doctorate (What a shame! A Ph D means something. It is the pinnacle of 20 years of hard work in the educational field. To dole out Ph. D to Sonia Gandhi, who is not even a high school graduate and who has done nothing to earn it, is a disgrace. Bindra is a good sportsman who toiled hard and he got his equivalent of PhD by winning a Olympic Gold. Let him be. By the same token, we should ask the Olympic committee to give honorary Gold medal to Sonia, Manmohan Singh, MS Swaminathan, Montek Singh Ahluwalia etc. They dont do that. Then why should the universities act so shamelessly. What does it take to get a PhD? Going to bed with a Prime Minister?)

Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh dropped from Irani Trophy team as a first step towards kicking them out of the Test team ( Long overdue. But would anyone like to bet that Yuvi will be in the team, because BCCI do not have the guts to say no to Yuvis sponsors. Indian team is being selected by the sponsors. Why this charade?)

By the way, everyone seems to have forgotten about Terrorism, Inflation, primary education, flagging stock market, power cuts all over the country, floods in Bihar, the idiot continuing as home minister, J&K, falling agricultural and industrial production etc etc.................... till the next major crisis happens. Till then adieu!

on leave for a day

Poor health means no blog for today. will be back tomorrow

Be what you are

He who understands something and leaves it, but takes to something else, forgets the first without learning the second.

In a certain region lived a hermit. One day a traveler came to see him and gave him some fruit and they sat and ate and talked together.

The traveler admired the hermit’s language and wanted to learn to speak as the hermit, but the hermit warned him that if he wasn’t careful the same thing would happen to him as what happened to the crow.

When the crow saw a hen strutting as she walked, he wanted to walk like her and began to copy her step. But he did not succeed and forgot his former pace, continually stumbling.

In practising a language to which you are not accustomed , you may forget the one to which you are accustomed, and be considered foolish and without knowledge or intelligence for practising what neither you nor your parents before you were brought up to.

You are what you are. Do not try to ape others. You will look and sound hollow and silly. It doesnt mean that you should not try to change. But change takes time. One needs to learn, practice and perfect anything new before adopting it.

Let people accept you for what you are. You are quite good. Why spoil it?

Whom does the baby look like

One of the social obligations one cannot avoid is to visit the parents of a new born baby. Now to me, every new born baby looks like every other new born baby. Red, wrinkled skin, eyes closed, fist clenched and wrapped so much that you can only see half of the face.

Well, the scene goes something like this.

The proud parents welcome you to the hospital ward. You walk in with a gift for the baby, which that baby is not in a frame of mind to appreciate (Always buy a gift for the older child, if they have one. A gift for the mother is also quite thoughtful).

The beaming parents insist that they place the delicate, happily sleeping bundle on your lap. Suddenly all the stories of Six Sigma ratings and how 6 defects in a million transactions comes to mind (I mean, even if we are at Six Sigma level, we are allowed to drop the baby 6 times in one million visits. This particular visit could be one of those. I shudder at what would happen then)

And the parents (well grandparents)  expect you to take a bit of sugar in your dirty fingers and thrust it in the mouth of the child saying 'umm. pretty one..........here is some sweet for you', giving along with it all the known infection in the world (I would personally like to shoot every single person who gives sugar to a new born).

Now that you are out of the tough part (Well almost. With people using Diapers these days, one can be safe of not being showered with Morarji Desai's favourite drink and then the bally parents will say "Oh! He/She likes you so much. It is why he/she squirted a bucketfull of piss on you". Imagine as adults if we piss on people and say that we did it because we liked them so much)

Then the final ritual. The most dreaded question.

"Come on tell me. Does he/she look like her father or her mother?"

As I said, all newborns look alike. And one can hardly do a PhD on resemblences at this stage.

I keep a deadpan face and reply,

"Won't look nice if he/she looks like the neighbour. Will it?"

A frosty silence. Sullen looks. And Rajan is personna non grata in one more house.

The price one has to pay for being honest! Sigh................................

Remembering a great teacher

Dr.Sarvepally Radhakrishnan, remains one of the towering figures of modern India. A statesman, thinker, writer, teacher and a philosopher, he was also the second President of India. But, it is as a philosopher-teacher that he is reknowned. He was also one of the foremost scholars on comparative religion.

He argued that Western philosophers, despite all claims to objectivity, were biased by theological influences from their wider culture. In one of his major works he also showed that Indian philosophy, once translated into standard academic jargon, is worthy of being called philosophy by Western standards.

His main contribution to Indian thought, therefore, is that he placed it "on the map", thereby earning Indian philosophy a respect that it had not had before.

After 1946, his philosophical career was cut short when his country needed him as ambassador to UNESCO and later to Moscow. He was later to become the first Vice-President and finally the President (1962-1967) of India.

When he became the President of India in 1962, some of his students and friends requested him to allow them to celebrate his birthday, September 5.

He replied, "Instead of celebrating my birthday, it would be my proud privilege if September 5 is observed as Teacher's Day."

Since then, Teacher's Day has been celebrated in India.

Here is to all the teachers in India. Your selfless work wont go waste. It is a thankless but mentally rewarding duty that you are performing. A real teacher is a true Nishkama karmachari.

Rama Rajya

Rama Rajya is considered to be the ideal. The Ayodhya Kanda, the second chapter of Ramayana, speaks about good governance. Bharata, the younger brother of Rama, goes to meet the latter in the forest to request him to return to Ayodhya and rule (Bharata is one of the most unsung heroes of Ramayana. A truly great soul, who ruled through proxy for 14 years without expecting anything in return. True practioner of nishkama karma). Rama politely refuses to return and opted to fulfill his fathers vow. Then he goes on to advice Bharata on Rajaneethi or sound governance. From quality of ministers and the importance of strategy sessions, to temperance in administration to justice, Rama expounds on all the subtleties of statecraft in a lucid manner.

According to Rama, a critical factor in good governance is the quality of ministers. Rama asks Bharata whether he has appointed courageous, knowledgeable, strong-willed men with a high emotional quotient (EQ) as his ministers, because quality advice is the key to effective governance. The emphasis is on competence and confidentiality. Rama's advice to Bharata is to take a decision on a complex issue neither unilaterally nor in consultation with too many people. There should be an efficient core group.

Rama tells Bharata to prefer one wise man to a thousand fools, as it is the wise who can ensure prosperity during an economic crisis. Even if there is one minister who is really effective, the king will gain immensely.

Moderate taxes should be levied on the people, lest they revolt. Rama wants Bharata to treat his soldiers well and pay their legitimate wages on time. Delays in payment of wages and other allowances can lead to dangerous consequences.

Trade and agriculture are important and Rama wants Bharata to ensure good irrigation facilities rather than being overly dependent on rains. Traders need to be ensured of a fear-free environment and their grievances should be redressed promptly.

Protecting the forests and maintaining livestock have also been dealt with as important aspects of effective governance. In fact, the vision of the Ramayana has eternal relevance.

I really wish our Government follows these simple principles. They have flouted every single one of them. Manmohan Singh has surrounded himself with 100 fools and there is not even a single wise man amongst it. Or else he would not have been exposed so cruelly as a liar in the N-Deal. He and P Chidambaram have taxed everything that even moves. The only thing that has not been taxed is marriage and f****ing. And you can see the benefit of that in the increased productivity in this sector (1.2 billion people and counting). Soldiers are extremely unhappy with the new pay commission report which is for IAS offices, by IAS officers and of IAS officers, the dimwitted beaureaucracy, who qualifies as the biggest stumbling block in India’s growth. We are still dependant on monsoons for agriculture activities and not much has been done to increase the irrigated land. Traders are burdened with taxes and have no protection from the protectors of law. Do I have to say more?

In search of excellence or (?)

In 1982, management gurus Tom Peters and Robert Waterman transformed the market for business books with their bestselling In Search of Excellence, a celebration of excellent management in corporate America.

Two years later, Business Week published an issue bearing a cover reading "Oops" - and pointing out that many of Peters's so-called "excellent" firms had since suffered a sharp decline in performance.

This was an interesting development as I had always held the above book in high esteem. Still it is worth reading.

The Overflowing Cup

A university professor went to visit a famous Zen master.

While the master quietly served tea, the professor talked about Zen.

The master poured the visitor's cup to the brim, and then kept pouring.

The professor watched the overflowing cup until he could no longer restrain himself.

"It's overfull! No more will go in!" the professor blurted.

"You are like this cup," the master replied,

"How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup."

This story can be analysed as follows,

One cannot learn anything if one already feels that he knows everything. Preconceived ideas and prejudices always prevent us from seeing the truth. One should open his mind before he talks. The master was trying to show the Professor that when you can no longer take, it is time to give - and you must sometimes give in order to receive.

What is your take?

Karma

‘Karma’ means one's action. An individual is characterised by the ‘Karma’ performed by him or her. It is ‘Karma’ which make a man great or small, noble or criminal.

Man has found it very difficult to exactly classify what action is right and what is wrong. Definition of right and wrong keeps on changing. Within the same period of history, different cultures and different religious come up with different definitions and classifications.

Even within the same religion, people of different generations will have different view of right and wrong and even if one does not consider the external situation at all but looks within, one finds that his own understanding fluctuates a great deal.

In 'Balyam', one’s understanding of right and wrong was on one level, in 'Koumaram'it changes, in 'Grahasthyam' it has changed yet again. Finally, one has a totally different outlook during 'Vanaprastham'. This is like reading the same book at different stages in life. At every stage, the perspective changes.

Lord Shiva has explained the Law of Karma in a lucid manner by defining three specific types of Karma:

Sukarma (Good or Positive Actions) – Action performed for the benefit of others—without any selfish motive--by which happiness and joy is experienced by both--the Giver and the Receiver.

Vikarma (Vicious or Negative Actions) - Actions performed in the state of body-consciousness and based on vices and therefore, cause unhappiness and sorrow to the individual and the receiver.

Akarma ( neutral Actions) —Actions which are performed in soul-consciousness—which produce neutral effects. They neither do good nor bad.

Try to increase your Sukarmas, shun Vikarmas and manage your Akarmas. Most of the people, though they dont do Vikarmas, tend to spend lot of time and energy on doing Akarmas. Hence the need for managing Akarmas.

In short, be selfless and do good.

Let that be the motto for this month beginning today