Freedom of speech ........yes....but within limits

What Arundhati Roy espoused in Delhi & Srinagar, Azadi for Kashmir, while ridiculing the Indian Democratic set up (again) is bad. But worse is the feeble support that is emanating from the typical pseudo secular intellects of this country and some shameful Indian journalists - that her action is justifiable as she has the right of freedom of speech in this country.

I beg to differ.

Let me give you an analogy.

I was brought up in a household that gave primacy to freedom of thought and speech. I could call my father an idiot on his face. Only thing is that, he would look at me, and challenge me to prove it, or else withdraw the statement, apologize and shut up. We were entitled to have our difference of opinions, but within the unwritten framework of our immediate family. We would take strong exception if we come to know that one of us had spoken against the family outside to others. Of course, we had the freedom of thought and speech, but there were unwritten boundaries, which we were not expected to cross - and cross we daren't. You just dont enjoy the privileges the family affords, without behaving responsibly.It was unsaid but understood.

As per constitution of India, “the right to freedom of speech and expression” resides in Article 19(1) a. However, this right is subject to restrictions under sub-clause (2), whereby this freedom can be restricted for reasons of “sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, preserving decency, preserving morality, in relation to contempt, court, defamation, or incitement to an offence”. Now, Arundhati Roy has clearly violated sub-clause (2). The punishment as per lay is imprisonment for life, with or without additional fine.

Arundhati Roy is entitled to her view point that the State has failed the poor or even the Kashmiris (though they have been actually pampered). She claims to represent the poor and the downtrodden. Fine. In India, 60% belong to that category. If that were so, let her stand for election as a MP , win , gain credibility and raise her voice in the Parliament. Or let her form a social movement, political party and use legitimate ways to pursue her cause (assuming she has one, other than self propaganda). But she is taking pot shots at the Government, pampered by an indulgent media. This is abuse of authority without a shred of responsibility.

It is sad that Government decided not to prosecute her. I really wish someone would file a PIL and the Supreme Court put her in a slammer, and make an example for others of her ilk.

Fan

I have been a Fan of so many sportspersons over the years.

Gavaskar still ranks up there. Chandrasekar. Bjorn Borg. Brazilian Football Team. Maradonna. Chris Evert. Stefan Edberg. Michael Schumacher and of course Roger Federer. You would have noticed that none of the recent Indian Cricket Players is in the list. I do like Sachin, Kumble, Laxman, Dravid etc., but can't say I am a fan of them.

I recently came to know that Fan is a short form for Fanatic, a person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal

A Sense of Outrage

All that is wrong with our judicial system!  40 years for a verdict at the lower court!!!!

The cases mentioned, in the link above, of Varghese, and of course the murder of Rajan in Kakkayam Camp, and the travails of Rajan's father Eachara Warrier who fought for justice till he died, is etched deep in my mind as it happened during my formative years.

I feel a sense of outrage at this delayed, denied justice.

Let us try these......................

Sometimes I wish we were not such a permissive democracy - well! we permit any nonsense under the guise of democracy, maybe because we lack the leadership and will to take hard decisions. Here are some of the things I would like to happen in India, but am sure won't,

Throw Arundhathi Roy into a common jail (no special privileges) along with petty women thieves, prostitutes, and some tough nuts with about 20 people sharing one jail. Keep her there for a month and if that doesnt put a lid on her anti national tongue, give her a one way ticket to wherever she wants to go, rescind her passport. In short, set an example. This will put fear of god into some of the high profile, professional NGOs, activists and journalists who think that freedom of speech means deriding your own country and practising sedition.

Tell the Kashmiris in no uncertain terms that breaking away is not an option. Either they fall in line, respect the constitution, or they are welcome to move over to Pakistan. Push them to Pakistan, like Bangladeshis do in North East. And settle back Kashmiri Pundits who have been driven away. This will make Kashmir more secular. And no special privileges to Kashmir. No additional funds. They have to earn additional funds through good behaviour, not like Pakistan, who get rewarded by US for bad behaviour. All bullies are cowards - ditto for Kashmiris and Pakistanis.

Make anyone above 65 ineligible to contest in Elections. Why should we suffer a 80 plus PM, 85 plus opposition leader in L K Advani, 87 something CM in Kerala, 75 plus Foreign Minister? There is reason why employees retire at 60 or 65.Their mental and physical faculties are not adequate to meet the demanding requirements of a job. What is true for millions of Indians should be true for politicians.

Abolish the posts of Presidents and Governors. There are relics of the colonization, and no longer relevant. And abolishing them will save money.

Ban the silly dresses of the judges and the lawyers. What is wrong with a Judge wearing normal official dress and lawyers just wearing a black pant, white shirt and a tie? And for god's sake get rid of the guy, wearing still sillier costume (davali in a court?) and whose only job is to announce a judge! and he gets bloody paid for it.

Give fair salaries to all the MPs, MLA's and Ministers. But take away all their perks, including the revolving light on top of their cars and their escorts.

Withdraw all security of all Ministers. Being exposed to normal public whom they are supposed to serve will make them perform better.

Put the Judges and the Lawyers involved in common jail for one month if any hearing extends beyond 30 days. Delay in justice is one of the main reason why our society is in shambles.

Introduce the concept of referendums. When the whole world use referendums as a way to allow the people to have a say on major policy matters, why can't we?. For example, let us first have a referendum on various clauses of the constitution. Our constitution was written by a handful of people, whose own prejudisms helped shape it. Let us ask the people what they want. For example, everyone uses/abuses the word secularism - which only means the right to follow any religion and nothing else. Let us ask the people whether they approve of the current (pseudo)secularism, where minorities get special privileges. In a democracy, people's voice is final and majority verdict should be heeded to. Let us have a referendum and then see what is the reality.

Implement internal democracy in all political parties (the law exists, but never implemented). Promote the concept of primaries, as is the norm in Britain and US. Let the local, card bearing members elect their candidates. Then let us not have this first past the post system where someone who gets only 25% of popular votes go through because the next candidate got 24.9%. Have two rounds. After the first round, only the top two candidates should remain, and anyone who doesnt get 51% of the total electorate in the constituency should not be elected.

Obama's visit - a non-event

US Governments used to treat India with disdain in the past. Very few took the trouble to visit our country. We were a small player in the global arena, a developing country that was pro Russia, and hardly worth a second look for one of the then two super powers of the World.

But times have changed. The Super power is in serious trouble. Dollar is on a slide, retaining a bit of credibility only because of the troubles faced by Euro and Yen. The US financial sector is in disarray. Unemployment is near to 17%, which is inclusive of those who have not registered, while the figures for those on the list is slightly less than 10% - an alarming situation whichever way you look at it. The Government's revival package for the industry are clearly not working. The industry is hiring less and less, adding thousands to the jobless list every week. The manufacturing sector has lost out to the Chinese, the services sector to the Indians. The US was respected at least for its military might. But Iraq and Afghanistan have severely dented that aura. They remain a paper tiger at best. In short, US has lost the moral authority. Dollar is under attack and has lost nearly 14% of late, and is facing the ignomy of being propped up by the Chinese, Japanese and the other Asian countries who buy US treasury bills in droves to support the dollar. The US has resorted to cheap protectionism slogans to rally the industry around, something they accused the third world countries of, not long ago. The worst part is that their economy is in serious recession and shows no sign of recovering. Their fiscal deficit for 2009 was $ 1.4 billion, almost 9.9% of their GDP, something that should send warning signals across the globe. And these are just official figures, the unofficial figures claim the deficit to be close to 16%.

With  joblessness on the rise, manufacturing down, and economy in recession the only major advantage US had all these years - being the largest consumers in the World - is under serious threat. The Asians, natural savers, are trying desperately to encourage their people to spend. China is leading the way, with internal consumption on the rise, followed by India. The economic power has already shifted away from the West to Asia.

India is rising, despite its problems. The economy is growing at nearly 9%, something US cannot even dream for another couple of decades, if not forever. The manufacturing and services sector are doing extremely well. And we are being given grudging respect by the World. Money and prosperity talks, and only they talk in this World, but one must know how to leverage them, which we, as a nation, dont.

It is under such a foreboding scenario that Barrack Obama is visiting India, a non-event. And added to his woes, he will be visiting India at a time when his political standing in US is at its lowest ebb. The Democrats are expected to lose badly in the mid term elections, if the polls are any indications. And US has nothing to offer. The Nuclear Deal, on which Manmohan Singh spent all his political goodwill, has proved to be a non starter. Obama is in fact here with a begging bowl, seeking opportunities for US companies to make money. This is the time to turn the screw on US and get major concessions. But our Government lacks the political will and the leadership to show US their place. So much the tragedy

What we should do is to tell Obama to reign in his pet dog Pakistan on Kashmir or else US Companies will not get any concessions. Tell him to not talk rubbish about banning outsourcing and gently remind him the exhortions made by US over the years about a single global economy. Put pressure on him to reduce subsidy given to his agriculture sector and open up the sector for imports from India. We should tell him in no uncertain terms that Nuclear Liability bill is here to stay, and the US companies understand their responsibilities and accept the bills provision if they want to do business in India. If not, we will find other suppliers. Tell him that we are least bothered about his curbs on H1B visas. Anyway, who wants to migrate to jobless US in these times?. And finally, put Obama in his place by telling him clearly that for once the shoe is on the other foot, the hunter has become the hunted or the alms giver has become the alms taker.

The Murky Business of Lotte(aund)ry

The biggest news in Kerala these days is the Bhutan Lottery Scam. The case is in the Supreme Court, and all the parties in the case, The Kerala Government, Indian Government, Bhutan Government and even the courts have all covered themselves with dishonour in this case, where a distributor by the name Martin has been buying politicians and cheating the Governments and the common man for a long time now. And in the bargain making hundreds of crores.

In the first place, why State Governments should run lottery is a mystery. That is not why Governments have been elected. Lottery is essentially collecting a small amount from millions of people and giving a million rupee to one individual, with a few consolation prize thrown in. You can even call it gambling, as it can be addictive, and it is - especially the one digit lotteries. I know of many workers who spend 1/3rd of their hard earned daily wages on lotteries in the hope of getting the first prize.

Running lotteries is not Governments business. And they should get out of it. The government argues that many under privileged people (most of the lottery ticket sellers are handicapped) make a living out of this. Fine. Government can allow private lotteries and regulate it strictly.

The trouble lies there. There is a nefarious side to the lottery business. It is used for money laundering. For every lottery ticket sold, governmnet has to be paid a hefty sum as sales tax. Most of the lottery kings use this as an excuse to show boosted sales figures, pay 1/3rd tax and thereby convert millions of rupees of black money to white. Then there is the still darker side. Fake lottery tickets are printed and distributed in millions which results in huge tax evasion.

And who benefits. Well, every week, a handful of individuals who win the first three prizes and the agents make some money, while crores of ticket buyers lose out. Government gets tax money, but has to pay a heavy price by way of giving a conduit for black money to be turned to white legally, and also allowing more black money to be generated through sale of fake tickets. And then there is the socio cultural problem of people getting addicted and throwing hard earned money in the hope of getting easy money one day.

Every which way you look at it, it is a zero sum game.

Let us get rid of this Laundry ........oops Lottery business.

Sound 'Bites'

Congress thinks for the common people, weaker sections and is involved in uprooting poverty, unemployment and hunger - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh  - Well. Our PM is a honourable man and dont lie. What he told is correct. Congress 'thinks' for the common people but 'does' nothing, and is involved in 'uprooting' poverty, unemployment and hunger, but not to eradicate but lift the level of poverty, unemployment and hunger to a higher level.

Instead of making a nation of sportspersons, we are converting ourselves into an organiser of the sports events - Congress MP Mani Shankar Aiyar - Pray tell us what YOU DID when you got the opportunity to create sportspersons as Minister for Youth and Sports till you were booted out?

Look at corruption in your own depts: Kalmadi tells Shiela - Better still, all of you crooks get together and compare the Swiss Bank passbooks where you stashed all the money looted from CWG

It all started on a Vijayadasami day 3 years ago...............................

Yaa Kundendu tushaara haaradhavalaa, Yaa shubhravastraavritha

Yaa veenavara dandamanditakara, Yaa shwetha padmaasana

Yaa brahmaachyutha shankara prabhritibhir Devaisadaa Vanditha

Saa Maam Paatu Saraswatee Bhagavatee Nihshesha jaadyaapahaa

Saraswathi Devi never failed me with words during the last 3 years since this blog came into existence on a Vijayadasami day.

Now the journey continues into the 4th year.................................... and I pray to Devi Mookambigai (pic above) to give me the right words at the right time, both at work, in personal life and while writing this blog.

Ya Devi Sarvabhoodeshu, Budhi Roopena Samsthitha

Namasthasye namasthasye, namasthasye namo namaha: - Devi Mahatmyam

Let the Government take a leaf out of our Private Sector

I read somewhere that the recession has started to bite even the Queen of England. She is forced to cancel the annual party thrown to her employees that cost the exchequer $ 80,000.

This is the right time for us to rethink on the waste in our country. And the austerity measures have to commence at the top. Forget about Ministers travelling by Economy Class - a drama enacted a year back. It was in the news for a couple of days, and the ministers are back to travelling First and Business Class. I dont grudge them. Even middle level executives travel Business Class, then why not the Ministers. They are certainly entitled to it. At least, it will spare the common man travelling Economy the pompous behaviour of a Minister.

I am talking about abolishing certain posts. Why do we need a President? Only thing she does is to swear in the Central Cabinet, appoint Governors and some functionaries like Chief Justice, Election Commissioner. Even here, her role is ceremonial, and she has no say in any of the matter. Do we really need a Ceremonial Head of the State, whose job is ornamental? Rashtrapathi Bhavan can be converted to a national museum. The ridiculous Presidential Body Guards can be dispensed with to bolster the army, where at least they can contribute to the nation.

Ditto for Governors at various States. An envoy of the Central Government is a relic from the British Era, and it is high time they are dispensed with. An audit of all the Governors since independence will show that the cost - benefit analysis tend to be skewed towards huge costs with nil benefits. In fact, our Governors have proved to be a hindrance than a help in many a State, the latest case being Karnataka.

Why do we need 80 Ministers in the Centre? Most of the Junior Ministers (Junior is an anachronism - some of the Junior Ministers are well over 70 years old) dont get any work allocated to them. Various Ministries can be merged and we can rule quite comfortably with 20 Ministers. As such, the PM leans on less than 10 ministers to get 95% of his work done. So why have 80? We can have 20 Cabinet Ministers, and each can be allowed to have 2-3 MPs assisting him, as non ministers, who can be an under study.

Indian Private Sector cut the flab in 1990's and became lean and mean. They reaped rich dividends in the long run, and are highly respected globally. In fact, they have beaten Western MNCs hands down amidst fears to the contrary in 1990's. It is time, Government takes a leaf out of our Private Sector.

A welcome change in mindset

146 for 3 in 29 overs chasing 207 for a win on the 5th day on a treacherous track. It is a reflection of the changing mindset of the new age India. Pujara and Vijay played with abandon. That is a classy knock from Pujara, on his debut. Much to be said of young blood and a uncluttered mind. Not overawed by the match situation, a superb counter offensive innings of 72 from 89 balls, that took the sails out of Australia's plans to win the Test (As I write this, we still have to score another 61 runss. Hope, we dont screw up from this situation). Admitted, this Australian side has one of othe weakest bowling attacks, still it takes gumption to play a knock like that.

And spare a thought for the relief man, Murali Vijay. The perpetual reserve held the innings together in the first innings and was involved in a 300 run plus partnership with Sachin, and gave admirable support to Pujara in the second with a well made 37, that laid the foundation.

What is heartening is that we are seeing the nucleus of the future Indian batting line up. With Sehwag inclined to bat lower down the order, we could see Vijay, Gambhir, Poojara, Raina, Sehwag and probably Manish Pandey/Ambatti Rayudu at 6, followed by Dhoni at 7. Only bowling looks bare. Transition time. It is so welcome and gratifying. The change in mindset to go hell belting the leather off the ball, while chasing 207 on a tricky 5th day pitch is what sets this innings as a turning point in India's cricketing history, irrespective of whether we win or not. I do hope, for the sake of the young lad, we do.

This is the India that we want in all spheres - chasing goals with a swagger and confidence, unafraid of anyone, supremely confident in its abilities, unmindful of the external factors.

UPDATE

And We Did Win, by 7 Wickets. The old guards Sachin and Dravid guided us through calmly with a nice 61 run partnership. The team think tank gambled by sending Pujara in at 3 and it worked like a charm. All is well that ends well. Australians cribbed about how India got to No.1 by playing Srilanka often. An unfair criticism. Now that they have been beaten fair and square 2-0, and now them slipping to 5th in Test Rankings, they are bound to shut up. This Australian team is weak - both in batting and bowling. Mitchel Johnson, their lead bowler was pathetic. Hauritz, their lead spinner with a big mouth, was no better than a club bowler. Only Hiefenhaus bowled with some heart, but he was way too short of class. And the batting lacks class. Clarke, Hussey and North at 4,5 and 6 looks too thin. Australia is on the way down, while Indian future looks good. If only we could unearth some good bowlers!!!.

And one final word. For all those doubting the popularity of Test Cricket, just have a look at the KSCA Stadium on the 5th day, a working day to boot, of this wonderful Test Match.

Poor health

Poor health (down with severe flu), work pressure means no blogging till Saturday, unless something important crops up

Hypocracy

International diplomacy is more about hypocracy and double standards, than creating a honest perception of the reality.

Take Kashmir for example. The Kashmiris who complain about high handedness by India, rarely speak a word about the pathetic conditions in which the Kashmiris of the Pakistan Occuppied Kashmir lives. At least on our side, they have a democratically elected Government, the per capital aid given by Centre is much higher than for any other state (it is another matter that the corrupt Kashmiris have swindled most of it, but that is not new if you were to take any part of India - it is a national malaise) and they even have their own flat and their lands are protected (no non kashmiri can buy a land in Kashmir). Contrast this with the life of the POK Kashmiris. They live like vermins, have no fundamental right, are harassed and neglected by the mainstream Pakistanis. But no one hears about this, do we?

Everyone talks about Israel's blockade of Gaza. Condemnable as it is, why is it that no one talks about the sealing of the Rafa border by the Egyptians? Egypt is a muslim country, and they can easily open the borders to ease the perils of the Palestines? But they dont? And why is it that no muslim country talks about this, but talks only about Israel's blockade?

During the end of last century, US and the Western countries were waxing eloquent on the need for Asian countries to stop protectionist activities and open up the economy for global trade. Globalization was the mantra they chanted, that will lead to ultimate nirvana for the 'poor' third world countries. Now, the shoe is on the other foot. US and Europe are in deep recession, and are resorting to blatant protectionism - like Obama threatening tax on companies that outsource to US senators taking a pledge to buy only US made goods. We were told to tighten our belt, reduce subsidies, stop handing out doles to public sector companies to reduce the fiscal deficit by the World Bank. The same World Bank is quiet when US and Europe pumped in billions of Dollars to support the broken greedy Banks. Why cant they have allowed the market economy to play in this case - survival of the fittest is the motto of capitalism, isn't it?

Never pamper the bully

One of the things I am careful about while at work, or while teaching or at home is not to pamper those who indulge in tantrums. Some think that they can throw tantrums, and people will pay extra attention to them/give additional benefit to them just to shut them up, or to stop them from creating further nuisance. If they are pampered, they lie low for a while and then revert to their tantrums in a few months time. I have seen employees, who talk loudly how they have two better offers on their hand which they are contemplating, or there are cases of some who walk in saying they would like the company to match the latest offer or else they threaten to quit. Some of these offers are plain bogus, and cooked up at times in fake letter heads. My response - I stare at them in their eyes and tell them to take up the offer, quit my company. This puts them in a spot. They revert to how they would not like to put the company into trouble and how they would like to give adequate notice bla bla bla. I tell them not to bother and to quit with immediate effect. But I know of at least three middle level managers in Kuwait, Indians, who manage to bully their company to give them hikes every 6 months or so with the threat to quit. And after 4 years, they have still not quit nor will they. And the other staff knows about this, and have started using the same tactic, spoiling the whole culture of the company. Needless to say, the companies in question are not doing well.

Pakistan tries the same trick with the World Community. They indulge in terrorism, and then expect the world to give them billions of dollars of doles to ensure 'good behaviour'. In a months time, they repeat the same trick, over and over again. It is almost a national trait. Just see their indignant behaviour when the cricket trio was caught in the spot fixing scandal, and the earlier fixing scandals!

We are seeing something similar in Kashmir. Contrary to what many people think, only four areas in the Kashmir valley is indulging in stone pelting. Ladakh, Jammu and most of rural Kashmir valley is peaceful. This is one state that has been pampered with doles. The average funds per person given to the people of J&K by the Central Government is 10 times that of any other State in India. But still they complain of neglect and resort to silly violence. This leads to everyone making a beeline to the protesters and pampering them with promise of more money to root out unemployment and for developmental programs. Unemployment is rampant throughout the country, but hardly any funds is alloted to other parts of the country. Then why to Kashmir? It is time, we stared the Kashmiris eyeball to eyeball (by Kashmiris, I mean the militant side of it) and tell them to fall in line or face the consequences. Any violence has to be treated as a law and order situation and no leniency should be shown. I cant understand why we are talking of a political solution at all. Kashmir is an integral part of India. It has got an elected Government. It is not starved of funds. Let the Government of J&K should be treated as any other State Government, and they should be shown no special preference. Never pamper a bully. Read the riot act, here and now, before it is too late.

Patron Saint of Indian Cricket

Miracles do happen!!!

No. I am not talking about Ayodhya or even Common Wealth Games getting off smoothly.

I am talking about the sensational victory pulled off by VVS  Laxman, Ishant Sharma and Pragyan Ojha in the First Test at Mohali. Down and out at 124 for 8, with VVS crippled with a bad back, no one would have given even a long odds for India to score 92 more runs. But they did!!! Terrific.

What is it about VVS that sees him pull off improbable feats against Australia? The Aussies must be bloody tired of seeing him deny them time and again, bad back or no bad back.

VVS really ranks to be up there as one of the greatest match winners India has produced. Even greater as a match winner than Sachin, with due respects to Sachin.

Any day when we put across Aussies is a good day, but this one is really special. This would mentally disintegrate the so called tough Aussies no end. That pleases me quite a bit.

Let us raise three cheers to the Patron Saint of Indian Cricket - VVS Lakshman

Compromise??? Why now? Why not before?

It is amusing to see the Wakf Board and Congress Party talking about a Compromise formula in Ayodhya. Till the judgement came (when they were almost sure that the Wakf Board will win the title suit by a 2:1 majority), they had steadfastly refused to compromise, and had eloquently spoken about the 'absolute supremacy of the judiciary' and the 'primacy of the constitution'. Now that the judgement has gone against them, there is a subverted attempt to whip up the pseudo secular intelligentia and politicians to raise the issue of compromise. There was no talk of compromise for 60 years, then why now when the judgement has been given?

Relief and Disquiet

We can heave a sigh of relief.

The Common Wealth Games takes off today and it looks like it might go off without any major hitches. Despite our reservations about the gross mismanagement and corruption, no one wants India to lose face in the International Arena. Recriminations can follow, and must - but post the Games. The people responsible for the massive corruption should be brought to book- but I suspect they wont be.

The Ayodhya verdict has come and gone. The sky did not fall down. People accepted the verdict laconically and just got on with their life. To say that they are indifferent is incorrect. People do have strong feelings about it, but have decided to keep it to themselves. Or is it that the mischief mongers in the political parties decided to keep quiet for reasons of their own? One of the recurring themes one hears is about how poverty has driven the muslims to extremism in India. This do not hold water. Poverty in India is across the religions, irrespective of whether they are hindus, muslims, christians, sikhs or jains. With 60% of the people below the poverty line, it has to be like that. But why do others cite this as a reason for extremism. This is something to be reflected upon. The Kerala muslims are better off than their counterparts elsewhere, thanks to the Gulf Money and their enterpreneurial nature. The State has been very inclusive all these years, with Indian Union Muslim league being a part of any government that is in power and holding plum portfolios like PWD, Education. But today, Kerala is one of the breeding grounds for extremism in India, which is sad. I was in the State recently, and could sense an undercurrent that was discomforting to say the least. I hope better sense prevails.

Oman vs Kuwait

Have been keeping my eyes open on my arrival in Muscat. There are quite a few differences between Kuwait and Oman.

In Kuwait, there are hardly any vehicles with manual transmission (except some 18 pick ups). In Oman, a substantial number of the medium sized sedans come with a manual transmission.

Kuwait is littered with high end cars and SUV's. Oman looks a poorer cousin, with more mid sized sedans than large expensive cars on the road.

Omani's actually stop their car to let a pedestrian cross the road, something unseen when a Kuwaiti is driving.

There are many many bookshops in Muscat, unlike Kuwait, which pleases me no end.

2 Temples - One Shiva temple and One Krishna temple, as against none in Kuwait. Also, one can see the common sight of hindus sporting kumkum, vibhoothi and sandalwood paste on their forehead.

The bakalas that dot the landscape of Kuwait is conspicuous by their absence in Oman. One is dependent on mini super markets and hyper markets for groceries.

The Country is littered with Educational Institutions/ training centres and health clinics, unlike Kuwait.

Alternate medicine like Ayurveda and Homeopathy is allowed in Oman, whereas it is banned in Kuwait.

Hardly any skyscrapers dot the skyline in Oman. The town has a flat architecture dotted by arid mountains.

Oman is less hot, more humid and not at all dusty, unlike Kuwait.