MyAirtel

Whenever one thinks of the finest mobile network service provider in India, a red and white combination picturesque comes to one mind – the AirTel. The features, be it low call drop; fast internet; innovation in different field; customer care facility or anything one can fathom, Airtel tops the chart by far. It is due to these excellent features that consumers have given positive replies in terms of maximum subscription and making it the most used networks in india. Venturing into other related areas like DTH and broadband serices, it has only made life easier for consumers by providing services to the highest qualities.

I can boast about my relationship with Airtel from year 2006 when I got the opportunity of possessing a mobile phone of my own. Airtel was the the first mobile network I chose owing to its network even in distant places. I remember a friend saying – “Airtel hai boss, India me jaha road bhi nahi waha Airtel mil jaega.” I found no flaw in his statement as it served my purposes quite well. When other networks were struggling in providing internet on mobile phone, I was able to use GPRS on my Nokia 6030 back in 2006 without a hassle.

Now that Airtel has variety of portfolio, I on switching to a smartphone downloaded its app and without a surprise, the app is simply fantastic. It is embedded with so many facilities reminds me of an automatic hi-tech gizmo where you can operate everything from one location. I luckily have Airtel mobile network as well as DTH provided by Airtel. The app has made my life so easy that I have stopped visiting shops to recharge or pay my bill. The app itself is laden with variety of features that provides knowledge with regards to latest features, offers and what not.

Among different features, my favorites these days is the new “shake” feature which makes aware of recharge offers, coupon if any while paying, and any recharge benefits which Airtel is always ready to shower on its customers. I can literally listen to the sound of saving by shaking the phone, on every recharge that I make these days.

Another feature that I appreciate is the Auto login feature which has the advantage of making a safe login in my mobile phone with reduced and almost negligible chances of phishing. This feature also enables me to have a full view of my account where I can access everything in one shot which in turn makes me aware of best recharge and payment options. This is a clear example of customer delight provided by any service industry.

MyAirtel app is as flawless and quick as its network and internet speed. This quickness feature of the app is the most preferred of all the features in my view. Whenever I feel like facing problems with recharges, this app never disappoints me by slowing down or getting stuck in payment section. The secure and quick service deserves a salute.

My overall experience with this app is amazing. First Airtel mesmerized me and now the app is following its master.

Abolition of Net Neutrality – A cold-blooded murder of Freedom

The news about net neutrality has been hovering around at every touch points I have been in contact with – Media (print, TV, social etc.) or peer discussions and where not. Despite being an addict of internet, I hardly ever bothered about the methodology by which these contents on the internet were getting fed to me. I spend most of my leisure hours on internet browsing Wikipedia, YouTube, TVF, social sites and other sites on requirement. Suddenly one of my friends brings frightening news that I may not be able to browse many of my favorite sites. Intrigued, I tried to figure out the culprit behind this menace and it turned out to be something relating ‘ban on Net-Neutrality’.

Let me first put forward the idea of Net-neutrality. Consider it this way – you go to an ice-cream parlor and order your favorite kesar-pista. The guy on the counter delays your order but serves promptly to people who order Chocó-chips, vanilla or strawberry flavor. When inquired it gets registered in your cognition that since those flavors had higher margins, you would be served last. In another example if your telecom operator allows you to selectively make calls to people based on certain revenue generation criteria, wont you feel cheated?

The same case applies on abolition of net-neutrality. By definition it means – those internet service providers must provide us with open networks and should not block or discriminate against any application or content that ride over those networks. As of now, in a free internet era, we as a user have been offered the freedom of choosing any site we want to surf without discrimination. This makes us surf Flipkart or Amazon or Yepme with the same internet speed. The service providers like Airtel or Idea make these available with the same ease and comfort. Imagine a situation when Flikart pays Airtel a certain sum of money to enhance its speed and slow down Amazon’s and Yepme’s. What if you are an Airtel’s subscriber and your friends yells at you to buy the limited edition Indian cricket jersey (1992 CWC) quickly from Amazon as sale ends in five minutes, but you can’t buy because Airtel has purposely slowed down Amazon’s site.

The move against net –neutrality will not only discriminate between giant sites, but, it will also be a serious bane for start-up ventures competing in this intense competitive market. Their effort will be nipped in the bud. E.g. entertainment sites like TVF or AIB which has gained popularity only due to net-neutrality will hardly be able to survive since they may not be able to pay the amount as compared to other giants.

In this era of freedom encompassing every field, especially in the sector of internet which has become the prime source of propagating freedom of speech, will definitely get hampered. Such move will not only curtail the upcoming ventures but the very basic right to freedom of speech.

It must, therefore, become our incessant effort to come out in big numbers and keep demanding something which is rightfully ours. Let not the power of this powerful tool be concentrated in a few hands. Only a voice in chorus will sail our daunting concerns through and open the veiled eyes of authorities who has lately been suffering from biased-myopia. 

Being Bold

Life is a second name to struggle and we all agree to this fact. Had the path been rosy, we wouldn't have to battle it out every day to make life better than yesterday. We all play our part designated to us so that final goal we have long planned for is achieved eventually. In the long run, we either arrive at the targeted destination or drift away in middle after getting distracted on prioritizing different things which might not have mattered when the dream was initially woven in mind. All we need to do is keep moving with constant change, suiting the scenario and adapting thusly.

I have found myself in dilemma about many decisions. Whenever I am at crossroads, I always have this fear of getting lost. Every time I chose one path, I always kept thinking about stuff I would miss on the other path. But again, I have no major complaints about how I have treaded my journey till date. If at all, given a chance to travel back in my past and alter some actions, I wouldn't have many on my list.

I must share a story of my life where I was doldrums and I couldn't figure out about my future. Pursuing my engineering degree in Mechanical from one of the most reputed colleges of India, I was in third year first semester. I had my friends planning their career with enthusiasm and painting a picture of their life ten years from then. Recession had just hit which had made the environment even gloomier. I was more of reckless guy who always liked to flow with the wind. That night of December 10 is completely unforgettable for me. The thoughtful conversations made me quit the room and forced me to go on the terrace. I simply sat down and tried to find any gloomy star just like me. Damn! They were all shining even brighter in that clear sky. I was among the brighter lot, not the brightest, though. After a good 1 hour meditated thoughts, I decided, I was going for GRE in material science.

I was so shaken concerning my future that I started preparing from the next day. Days passed by and I started inching towards the D-day of GRE. I was confident enough to crack it and crack it good. The result was no different. A score of 1540 out of 1600 wasn't easy but there it was. I was elated. Riding on cloud nine would have been an understatement. I was now about to enter final semester.

With an excellent GRE score I was sure to bag a premium college in the US. It was then that the seed of management and entrepreneurship was sown in the elective subject that I had chosen. What I had elected as a time-pass subject became the most important and interesting subject of my life. By the time I finished my engineering, I had decided to sit for CAT, despite having a score many would kill for.

Life had always been a matter of dictated terms for me till my engineering days. This time I wanted to do something different, something that interested me. By the end, I had understood that engineering in long run was not my cup of coffee. Quitting an MS degree for an uncertain MBA from India was a bold step in itself. But, I took it wholeheartedly. Two years of preparedness and yet not getting a seat in top management school always tempted me to get back on the GRE score and pursue MS. But, as they say – First step was already taken. There was no turning back.

I encountered this statement from Housing that taking a bold step to move ahead in life itself is the foundation stone for success. I kept this mantra in my mind to incessantly move forward. Finally the sweat paid its price and I ended up in one of the most prestigious colleges in management in India which is said to have produced the maximum number of CEOs in India.

Let me reiterate that there is always fun in taking the path that has the fragrance of the flower you admire and not the prince of that kingdom does. It takes time to reach there but the combination of perspiration and luck takes you there eventually. # StartANewLife #BeBold

B +ve just not a Blood Group..

Amidst the ocean of hate and antipathy spread across the globe, the only place where you find solace is among loved ones. The fault is in us who look for reasons for melancholy and to the worse we quest after it. We have forgotten to live merrily and engage into moments of mirthful activity. I mean look at our news papers and media, all spreading fear and useless concerns. The sense of optimism is almost invisible in our environment. Where has the world come to? Is life actually full of misery?

I have a different point of view about it. I am that kind of a person who invents optimism out of the slightest chance possible. I do not lose my hope till the last door is closed which has made me a hot topic of criticism on multiple occasion. But again, I am what I am. Finding optimism and positivity, in my opinion, is an art that transforms a noise into music. All you need is to shoo away negative thoughts and sow the seeds of positivity. To some what may seem a dungeon, one might consider it an adventurous place. When you no choice left, the best practice to avoid boredom and monotonous life is thinking right and positive.

This reminds me of my dog named Rangdaar. This name is a colloquial for a goon in hinterland of Bihar. Rangdaar justified his name with a bold and heavy barking, and his heavy and daunting look. I remember people running for life just by its mild woof. I always felt safe while it was around and tagged it along wherever I went. On one particular summer I was visiting a neighboring village with Rangdaar where it was not welcomed pleasantly by local dogs. Rangdaar was attacked suddenly and it being outnumbered by almost half a dozen to one, struggled extremely hard to survive the battle. By the time humans intervened, a lot of blood was already spilled. While other dogs were in tatters, Rangdaar also didn't look in good shape. On close observation, I found that its head was heavily attacked and brain was quite exposed. The scene wasn't pleasant. I had tears I my eyes and so was Rangdaar.

People there passed a verdict which I rubbished out straight away. They said that chances of Rangdaar to survive were negligible. I had this belief in myself and Rangdaar that it would survive this almost fatal attack. I carried it back home as much as I could and demanded my father for the best treatment possible. Doctors were worried as well but I had that splinter of positivity burning. With lots of sleepless nights and extreme caring, finally Rangdaar was a goon again.

This incident has always given me strength to stay optimistic and fight any situation possible. It is when the whole tunnel is dark; the only path that leads you to that most coveted silver lining across the tunnel is optimism. Whenever positivity in life is mentioned, it reminds me of Housing as this follows the same principle when it comes to professionalism.

As the most intelligent species on the planet, we must strive to find positivity in the slightest thing possible. In our fast moving life, we tend to ignore the smile of a kid, the rustling of a falling leaf, the melody of water currents and numerous other paltry stuff which if otherwise enjoyed can bring tons of optimism, happiness and positivity.

Let you yourself define and dominate the situation rather than it being defining or dominating you. B positive is just not a blood group. Remember this. J

From House to Home!

Born and raised in a rural heartland of Bihar in a joint family, I learnt the ‘sarvajan hitay sarv jan sukhay” mantra i.e. holistic happiness. Circumstances forced me to leave my cozy confines at home to double decker bed in a boarding school at a tender age of 10. I have since then become a guest in my own family. Who else will understand the importance of a family and a sense of togetherness? Every vacation when I visited home was like a festival in itself. The getting-together of family members, eating as a large group with incessant crackling of jokes and savoring the past reminiscence shared by every other person used to be the most cherished moment in my mind. And to be honest, I haven’t forgotten any of those vacations. It is those moments that shower strength when I am lying low and the wind is blowing south.

My point directs towards the theory of spending the most of your living time with the one’s you love and care. There may arrive a situation when you are in a quandary of choosing between family and career and mind you, both are important. It is then that you have to devise a plan that in the want of career, family is not long forgotten.  Life has no meaning if you have spent it in solitude, no matter how much wealth you have amassed. Like the famous quote “Live your life in such a way that when you die the world cries while you rejoice”, it revolves around the fundamental fact of being among loved ones.

A recent survey conducted by a very reputed channel revealed that more than half of Indian youngsters don’t want to live with their parents anymore after marriage (males and female included). This might be an individual’s decision to live their way but aren't we drifting away from our ancient values of being together. Aren't we violating the old adage that there should be a simultaneous sound of an infant’s squalling and hymn-chanting by elders at home? This may sound old-fashioned but it directs towards completeness. And to those who are living in the rocket-paced life with hardly a moment to breathe – in the moment of crises, it is the family who backs you and the firm which fires you. So the choice is yours.

One of my friends working for Housing  expressed the motto of his company that revolves around the idea of togetherness and completeness in a house. To be honest, it moved me questioning myself. It shook my brain reminding of my past  as how i have been spending my precious life (purposely or by force) without my family. Now that I am at the verge of completing my MBA and starting a fresh career, I have certainly made up my mind that no reason whatsoever is going to keep me away from my family. I want the same togetherness, long laughs and liveliness within those four walls.

You may be an excellent guitarist, but a symphony requires the whole band, doesn't it? Come closer to your family and loved ones, for their faces will matter more than the face of Gandhi shining on those shining Rs. 1000 notes.

Pathetic Aam Aadmi Party (PAAP)

Delhi, the Indian capital and the epitome of political turbulence. The residence of all our national parliamentarians and the foreign embassies. I cannot even fathom about the number of important decisions taken and documents of national importance signed every day here. Right now, it does not concern me but what draws my attention is the other face of Delhi in which it is a state in itself and is currently run by less than two year young party – the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Who in his wildest dream would have thought the way it came in power in December, 2014 lasting for 49 days, clinching the house again this year by a whooping majority (67/70)? But it did. Kudos! But, the 2 year old baby is howling in pain with internal bleeding. Is this episode sad or inevitable?  

My brother Shashikant was an apolitical man before last year. Plenty of attempts of infusing the political spark by me did not bear any fruit unless one day he accidentally heard a name called Arwind Kejriwal somewhere in January after he gave up the chief-minister ship in Delhi. Shashi is an inquisitive guy for sure but he limits his curiosity to his area of interest. Suddenly he googled the man and printed his professional kundali in his mind; went on to watch his agitation, speeches, and interviews. After a thorough study, he then called me on a day and the way I received the fusillade of questions about the man, I could sense that he was smitten by this man called Arwind Kejriwal and his AAP gang.

Shashi is just a common face of the crowd who is part of the mass, heavily impressed by the euphoria created by this team. The promises of bringing Lokpal (majority of supports have no clue about it but yet follow the call), ending the corrupt political system and bringing transparency therein, converting the VIP culture to being part of the mainstream society, exposing big corporate, and most importantly giving plentiful of water(20000lts/month) and electricity (half the price) gave the already haunted and distraught people of Delhi, a ray of hope and sense of positivity. People, especially in the lower middle class and lower class group felt an incarnation was born to do away with all their problems. Shiela Dixit would have had bucketful of haters by then otherwise who fastens his fate to 3 month old party?

The journey wasn't too smooth as it suffered heavy loss in his highly ambitious endeavor of contesting nationwide election. It fielded more than 400 candidates and won only 4 seats. Not bad for a start up party, though. Now was the time to play hard game as Delhi election could be around any time. It restructured the party, sidelined some old faces, made way for new energetic ones, consolidated the constituencies with door to door campaigns, learn from past mistakes, attacked carefully on oppositions and voila! It captured a historic 67 seats out of 70 seats in total.

I had very keenly followed the Delhi elections. The way AK was holding rallies and delivering promises, some very radical ones like opening 1500 schools, a pan-Delhi free wifi and other wishful lists that after coming from such rallies his clear conscience itself would contradict his statements. But people believed him and followed him day in and day out. I could go on war on social media with my friends and Shashi as well against his announcements. They put forward his IRS and IIT KGP credentials making me speechless about my little knowledge of capital spendings and large project deliverables. 

Slowly the cat started coming out of the box. Wifi became wifi­*, with terms and conditions making it almost non usable. It still will go on to provide the said facility resembling a censored porn movie. The recent news threw some light that for the water and electricity, the NMDC demanded 32 cr. every month from the govt. Where is government going to pay this, definitely not from own pocket. Water and electricity tax is the highest source of tax generation from a civic body after the property tax. The sheer thought of communism is not enough to run the government. This is one of the many loopholes in the party’s ways of functioning.

I have never been an admirer of AAP due to varied reasons, its left approach of ideology being one of them. Though it chanted the mantra clean politics and frequently hollered a sense of democracy in the party, I always had my skepticism in mind. The recent sequence of sting operations relating to horse trading, assimilating Muslim voters, and finally the use of abusive language for none other than one of the pillars of AAP, has nothing but bolstered my understanding of politics and shattered the hopes of many budding as well as old politics lovers who romanticized about the insurgence of AAP.

The episode of retaining the national convener post despite oppositions; ending any sort of dialogue other than exchange of letter and finally terminating the likes of Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan, and Anand Kumar from the post of national executive is extremely despotic. Your threatening to resign like Julius Caesar refused to accept throne despite seeking the opposite, and abusing your own vital members exposes your vulnerability even more gravely. AAP is just an infant and needs to be nurtured and not ruptured part by part. A body cannot function without all its parts playing its delegated role. It is like cricket. You have got to consolidate in initial overs, only then can you you score 272 or more. The sooner you understand the better.

Let me stop by saying that your uprising was like a dream come true for many and like a next to ideal solution for their everlasting agony. Mend your ways for many of those budding believers, or their happiness and felicitous dream will be nipped in the bud. 

True BLUE Fan!

I am disheartened today. No points for guessing why, but you are right. India has crashed out of the hitherto eventful journey of Cricket World Cup, 2015. The effort and enthusiasm displayed by players as a team proved that there exists great power in oneness. Truth be told, this team was not considered among the favorites before the event commenced on the Valentine ’s Day this year. But, the way this journey set out on an invincible voyage before today is definitely commendable.

The team has been on the Australian island for past four months and played the Border-Gavaskar test series with Australia and then a triangular series including England. The results were pathetic, losing out the four match test series by 2-0 and not being able to make into the finals of the ODI series. The team kept calm, gazing at the larger picture.

In the world cup, having been placed in a group that included giants like South Africa, Pakistan and not so favorite West Indies, India was looking forward for quarter finals by defeating the remaining minnows. But, surprisingly the team went on winning every group stage match and to warn you – not by fluke. It demolished the opposition through and through. What was considered as the weak link became the talk of the show. The bowling attack. We not only defeated Pakistan, and RSA, but demolished them. Proud of you Dhoni and Co.

The knockouts started with Bangladesh as opponent in Quarters. An easy victory served on a platter and we relished it. But, today was different. After winning seven games on a trot in this world cup and facing Australia in their den was gonna be difficult. It was a pressure game and unfortunately we succumbed. Who to be blamed? Don’t know.

I have been following different twitter handles, (expert) comments on Facebook and other online platforms, and not to forget sarcastic comments offline in friend groups. Everyone has their ideal team that could have defeated the mighty Australians and gotten us the World Cup. Thankfully, they don’t select the team, otherwise reaching into quarters would have been a Mars mission in itself. Kick Rohit, Mohit, Sir Jadeja; get Yuvraj, Gambhir, Sehwag; blah, blah, blah. Some of them lambasted Dhoni for not repeating a 2011 by stepping up in the batting order, Kohli getting out because Anushka was watching the game. Holy crap!  I would be lying if I said that these same people never cried foul about Yuvi, Sehwag or Gambhir on other occasions and praised the same Kohli for standing tall in recently held test series. Man! Chill. Cricket is just a game. Players are humans as well and God created us to err.

News channels are making such a fuss about the loss that I feel sorry for their lack of journalistic skills and ethics. Arnab, let me say it online and sue me if you want – Tu Chutiya hai. The boys in blue are already in distress, fans’ hearts are already into multiple fragments and you go on to make such sadistic comments. Who has given you this authority? A patient in a fever needs medicine and not a damn speech on how not to catch a fever, you psychopath.

Let me close by saying that stop making fuss about the defeat. We are all aware that no one other than the soldiers knows more about the war and the casualty. We civilians only fight in deciding what to like, subscribe, comment and share. #bleedblue #WillBringItBack

The Bashing of 'Do-Do Chhakke' (66A)

The fever of cricket is not untouched even in the court of law as the Supreme Court quashed “do-do Chhakke” i.e. article 66A on Tuesday, 24^th March. The move was widely accepted as a positive one by the apex court, terming it historical. The erstwhile draconian law curtailed the very fundamental right to freedom of speech and it severely curtailed information that might  be sent on the Internet based on whether it was grossly offensive, annoying, inconvenient, etc,

The law was passed under the regime of UPA II in 2009 in the name of the Information Technology Act which authorized police to arrest people for social media posts construed “offensive” or “menacing”. The law was heavily misused by political leaders like Azam Khan, a minister in UP who got an eleven standard girl arrest for posting a status on FB. Mamta Bannerjee ha many arrest held in Kolkata, cartoonist Aseem Trivedi  was arrested as well, and son of the then Home Minister P. Chidambaram’s son also had one of the persons arrested.  Similar incident was reported in Thane in 2012 when two girls were arrested for posting “Respect cannot be taken by force” for Bal Thackeray regarding shutdown on his funeral .this triggered the petitioner Shreya Singhal to file a PIL against this law.

So, what is the conclusion of the story? First of all the legislators amend laws favoring them and then have the temerity of making numerous arrests based on such disgusting laws. It is the judiciary that is keeping a proper check on these otherwise ferocious hounds preying on the very masters they serve.

On one hand we feel that we live in a free nation with all the amenities to use freely but the moment we try to foment on public forum we get lashed out. Remember the Ramleela Maidan and Jantar Mantar (New delhi) incident during the agitation by India Against Corruption under the guidance of Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal?  The government tried all its malicious intent to sabotage the stirring but thankfully the crowd stood its ground and true democracy defeated the despondency. I consider this verdict to be an apology to that incident. 

How can a person be detained on posting his/her anguish online in this tech-driven environment? What are we, North Korea? You can call citizens Haramzadon and still roam scott-free; you can openly convey the message of relieving police off their duty for 24 hours to orchestrate a nationwide massacre and still fight an election. But, the moment we write down a piece that pin points the inconvenience your fraternity causes, then we are sent behind bars.  No sir,  with due respect, you will have to mend your ways and fall in line. The Big Brother is watching.

Concluding the post I must thank the makers of the constitution who made sure that judiciary had an independent role and a vital one otherwise our mother nation would have gone to the dogs. Arrest me for this  if you want to. Arghh.

Play it Gently, If You Can

A pandemic struck India back in 1980s and has only deepened its root since then. The disease existed even before that with its effect hither and thither in small pockets. Its dormancy evaporated drastically when some of the viral agents with likes of Kapi Dev, Mohinder Amarnath, Sunil Gavaskar, Roger Binni etc grabbed their prey in their spectacular claws. The pandemic called Cricket has not witnessed a downside since then. The effect sometimes is so intense that one cannot find single person walking on otherwise busy streets. Such is the effect of Cricket in India.

Cricket has been termed as a Gentleman’s game. The way it was played in olden days among royal classes, its exquisiteness, the lunch and tea breaks and sheer respect for sport made this game different from other outdoor games, which were more of fierceness and physical aptitude. Cricket required skills and long term planning. Whilst other games had a course of a few hours, Cricket went on for six/five days.

With passing days, rules have changed, formats have been added, and players have adorned more and more accessories. The game has seen changing attitude among players with more ferocious attitude replacing the erstwhile calm and gentle behavior on ground. Sledging has become a very common phenomenon in modern day Cricket. Be it bowlers hurling derogatory words and showing gestures on batsman missing the delivery, batsman being a bigmouth on scoring heavily, or fielders/wicketkeepers encircling and openly sledging  the batsman has become a necessary ingredient of this game. Off the field taunting is no more non-existent. Every unthinkable strategy and tactic is being employed to win a game/series, making it no more a Gentleman’s game.

Has the spirit of Cricket actually died? Has it just metamorphosed into just any other game with just an intention of victory/defeat? I would say NO. Several incidents that I recall has still kept the spirit alive and kicking. The one that I recall is the Ashes 2005, the Edgbaston Test, a nail biting test match in which England defeated Australia by 2 runs. Full of twist and turns ended with Michael Kasprowicz wicket and a thin line victory. Brett Lee on the non-strikers end was completely distraught and heartbroken that he pinned himself on ground. Andrew Flintoff then went to him offering his hand in consolation and pulled Brett Lee up. In words of Flintoff, “While growing up as a cricketer in Lancashire, I was told that in victory or defeat you respect your opposition first and then you have a lot of time to celebrate…” it is clearly evident that the spirit is still alive.

Second incident is just one day old. The World-Cup 2015 semifinal between South Africa and New Zealand. Again a very close fight with a heartbroken defeat for the favorites RSA in a rain hit match. As the game reached its conclusion one could see several floods in the eyes of South African players. It was then that Grant Elliott, the engineer in New Zealand’s victory with an unbeaten 84 runs, approached Dale Steyn, who was bowling the last over and fell on ground disheartened. He picked him up and congratulated him on a superb display of cricket.

These gestures gladdens me to the core of my heart when I see the backbone of the spirit still healthy in the only sport that I have invested most of my time either watching or playing. Cricket, Thou shalt live!

Proud to be (ILL)iterate Indian !

Congratulations! India. 74.04 %. What’s so special about this number? Well, it is just a statistical number and if you are able to read it, you fall into the category which it represents. Friends, this is the literacy rate of India according to census 2011. To define literacy, in Census operations, “It is the ability to read and write with understanding in any language.” A consultation paper on ‘Literacy in the context of the Constitution of India’ also states that Any formal education or minimum educational standard is not necessary to be considered literate. That brings us to a very basic assumption that any person who is able to sign and read it as well is literate in India. So once again congratulations.

We as a pioneer among developing nation have been crying out loud about our robust economic development over past 25 year post ’91 liberalization. But, have we ever tried to compare the state of social well being? When I make you aware that we have improved even at a worse rate than many of our South Asian countries, it may not amuse you. Let me not distract the topic covering every social aspect, but when I focus on education, India is only ahead of Nepal in terms of mean years of schooling with a staggering figure of 4.4 years. It pinches my heart that despite such robust economic growth, governments have not been able to provide enough education infrastructure.

According to government estimates, only 29% students study in privately run schools leaving majority to receive education in government schools. With dilapidated premises, falling roofs, no facility for proper toilets, acute shortage of teachers, callous behavior of schools staff, and numerous

other reasons are responsible for students not attending schools on a regular basis. Like I mentioned that not every child in India is fortunate enough to receive education in well furnished private schools due obvious reason of poverty. Isn’t it the responsibility of government to shape up schools, which in turn will shape India’s future? It is estimated that more than 40% of India is below 18 year of age which accounts for entire population of many countries. Strengthening them with the sword of education is only going to bring more skill and well being of masses.

I am not here to formulate policies and advise the government of India for bettering the education status of India. I would rather like to draw attention about the mindset of people who are advocates of cheating that happens during examinations. They are okay with the process as in the words of Ganesh Pandey from Jehanabad, Biahr “Since, teachers don’t teach well in class and children have to pass, they have to adopt this practice of copying.” What Mr. Pandey is not realizing is the very fact of flaw in the system. Had he rather stressed on teachers imparting knowledge honestly and with zeal and enthusiasm,  the students would have had double benefits of not having to cheat and learning subjects in entirety. Following the current trend, the child would be reduced to nothing but a man who is just a literate by Indian standards.

My complain is not to the government but to common person like Mr. Pandey who unknowingly feel rejoiced at spifflicating his ward’s future by simply accepting the ignorance of government. What they don’t realize that none of the wards of the legislators or the executives have to face the Ruins called Government Schools. That is another reason for callous behavior towards the wreckage of the system. On top of that leaders like Lalu Yadav have the audacity to declare that he would supply the entire book for cheating. this mindset is the testimony to the fact that Bihar ranks the

lowest in literacy in India.

Enough of week-long amusement and mini mountaineering for transferring the decoded answers. Time to feel guilty for both parents and the government. Wake up dude!

                                                                 See for yourself.  

                                                                     

Politics - A synonym for Marketing

Mao Zedong, the greatest leader of modern China very rightly pointed out that “Politics is war without bloodshed”. Politicians do not leave any stone unturned to drive home a result of their choice. They literally go on a war without bloodshed (blood is spilt occasionally, though). Attacks from opponents, from people within the group and sometime from one’s own kin can make politicians vulnerable. Eventually, it all narrows down to tricks and tactics that fends away such unprecedented situation and turn that adversity to your benefits. It requires a great deal of skill and the art of diplomacy to come unscathed of all the turbulence.

When I try to look for another word for Politics, the only word that comes as a replacement is marketing. As an ardent follower of politics and as a marketing major in MBA, I find these complementing each other if not being used as synonyms. Be it the concepts of DSTP (Differentiation, Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning) or the 7 P’s (Product, place, Promotion, Price, People, Process, and Physical Evidence). In the modern day politics, where a multidimensional approach is indispensible, these parameters have to be applied full-fledgedly to come out victorious.

Political parties have to segment the population wisely which are substantial in numbers, accessible, measurable, differentiable and ultimately actionable. This mammoth task cannot be managed at tap of a finger. It requires careful planning and a strategic vision. To maximize the gain, politicians make every effort to reach its segmented population with a very careful approach, doling out customized packages for each segment. In recent election how BJP tried to lure voters differently in rural and urban India is a live example.

Targeting carefully is another task that requires precision. No political party can keep everyone happy or provide facilities to every section of masses with equal magnitude. They must target their prospective voters in such a way that they grab the maximum count on D-day. The Delhi election held in this February explicitly shows how AAP targeted the lower middle class and then middle class population in a step by step manner. They also took heed of disenchanted congress voters and targeted them wisely to secure a whopping 67 out of 70 seats.

Differentiation among masses and correct positioning has to be properly taken care of. The election manifesto declares the stand of the party on issues of the society. This is mainly done for proper positioning of the party so that the targeted voters correctly connect themselves. Congress positions itself as left of centre party with secular values to lure liberal majority and minority voters.

We can keep on relating politics with marketing as said by one of my professors Mr Ghadiyar, “If you ever want to understand the concept of marketing, try and understand Politics.” I so truly believe in this statement. The politician has to be a true marketer, salesman and true blue manager. In words of Caskie Stinnett “A politician is one who can tell ou to go to hell in such a way that you actually look forward to the trip.” It clearly shows the salesman instinct in a politician. We have witnessed the marketing done for our Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Lok Sabha election in 2014.

The promotional campaign was done in such a way that it reached every nook and corner India. Promotional media adopted included TV, radio, prints, hoarding, and hardcore social media networks. I witnessed my 4 year old nephew chanting the slogan “Abki bar Modi Sarkar”. This is the power of political marketing.

These are some of the aspect of marketing concepts applied in politics. In today’s world when technology is advancing leaps and bound, political marketing is catching up with equal pace. The old styles of rallies are just one of the many ways of reaching the targeted voters. The 3D speech delivered by Mr. Modi last year is a testimony to that. He addressed to people of multiple locations at the same time, not on a television but seemed like a live person standing in front.

At the end, I would just like to reiterate that the multidimensional marketing approach very aptly applies to politics and if I were to interchangeably use these words, I wouldn’t hesitate in doing it. 

Rotten Action Polluting Environment (RAPE) - Let's rip it apart (PART 2) - Conclusion

 continued......

We can go on counting endless reasons like communal vengeance, personal differences etc. but what we must focus on is the solution that envisages a society that is free of fear and oozing equality. The so called development cannot be achieved if our societal fabric is under developed or poverty stricken, so to say.  The balance of the seesaw of our society is already skewed with unequal payment, foeticide, ill-treatment, and countless other problems.

Rape in India is not a new born baby. It existed even in the past but sadly, women didn’t report out of shame. They are not to be blamed for it. It is our hypocritical society that looked at raped women with contempt rather than a victim. The recent awakening due to women empowerment, media presence and sense of awareness has brought women to a platform from where they are willing to shout out loud.

The situation directs us towards measures to be taken to obliterate the entire activity of rape and molestation. Well, that brings us to extreme reaction like people of Dimapur, Nagaland, who lynched an alleged rapist Syed Farid Khan brutally, out in open, or, waiting endlessly for the justice to be granted to our beloved Nirbhaya. In my opinion, both are extreme. Death penalty awarded instantly in certain Middle East countries are also a very inhumane decisions as sometimes even an incident suffers. So, what is to be done, then?

Fast track court is for rape purposes is the order of the day, like the old saying – justice delayed is justice denied. There has to be speedy process that brings the doer to its knees and awarded due penalty thereby. 

We need a positive moral policing among the youth and teach them to treat women with respect. Saying is easy but in practicality it is equally difficult. The values have to percolate right from their childhood and the responsibility lies completely on parents and teachers.

Legalizing prostitution to some extent with certain preventive measures is another way which may lessen if not eradicates the problem. In a sexually frustrated nation like India where rapists don’t discriminate between an septuagenarian nun (W.Bengal) or an infant leave alone the prospective victims, legalized prostitution may bring respite to an extent.

Societal Vigilant committees: Every society/village/mohalla should come up to formulate a team bestowing them with the responsibility of acting as a vigilante for the safety of women. Instead of demanding everything from government, coming up with these small groups might come handy.

Ultimately it is each of individual’s duty to be vigil and guard our own society. I agree that police have the job of protecting the common man but we must also be firm in stopping any incident rather than shunning away from shear confrontation. Let us all join together, build a robust wall that prevents the unwanted elements of the society to unnecessarily pollute our paradise called India. 

Jai Hind.

Rotten Action Polluting Environment (RAPE) - Let's rip it apart (PART 1)

Proud of our ancient history, rich culture and fierce warriors, aren’t we all? But, it makes these a very shallow claim when you have half of the population treated like slaves, and to make the figure modest I am not even referring to our dalits or downtrodden population. In a span of every 22 minutes a woman (mentioning age is immaterial) is supposed being raped in India in every corner. The perpetrators are true Indians (pun intended), as they do it irrespective of caste, colour, creed, or economic disparity. They not only commit this flagitious crime but end up murdering them brutally. So the question – should we really be proud of our so called culture and glorious past with these barbaric species roaming freely in our society.

We try to have a respite that there are other countries, developed countries like USA or Sweden that has more rape cases than us but what we don’t consider that more than 70% of our rape cases don’t even get registered. Counting every case we might turn out to represent the entire population of many European countries. Literally, shame on us!

Enough of foisting every problem on the government and crying foul about not-so-stringent policies against rape. Instead, it is time to look inward and dig into reasons and finding ways to minimize if not decimate it. Some of the reasons are

Sex – basic human need: If we consider Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, sex falls into the most basic i.e. the physiological needs. The stronger sex whenever finds an occasion preys on the weaker sex. Point taken, but isn’t that what animals do. Considering our species to be the most intelligent and an ability to live in a society unlike other animals, we ought to have a differentiating factor and stop predating on the already dreaded gender.

Moral degradation: When we scream vociferously about educating India, what we don’t take into consideration is the wholesome education including moral values. Majority of the rape committed are not by strangers but the very known relatives on whom one can trust blindly. The world has gone to the dogs. There has been a visible degradation with more and more eve-teasing, deliberate nudging at market places or passing lewd comments occurring every other day. Small towns are not left behind. The question again – shouldn’t schools and families take an honest responsibility of sowing the seed of morality and a sense of culture that nurtures the female population rather harassing them.

Economic and Educational disparity: if we look into cases of recent rapes we reckon that most of these are committed by cab drivers, guides, daily labourers or people with meager income and low educational background but wide exposure to variety of people with extremely rich to not so rich background. They find their prey either on their occupational stint or target by constantly following them. A report has also mentioned that the disparity frustrates the perpetrators and motivates them in getting into such wicked crime.

Legislation against legality of prostitution: India doesn’t allow prostitution giving a basic argument of it being against the tenets of it cultural fabric. We must realize that with constant urbanization, there has been a huge amount of mobilization from one corner of our nation to the other. Majority of the chunk that leaves its native place for months and sometime for good years to earn bread live as a single despite being married for their savings. They have their physical needs and need it fulfilled. Prostitution being illegal, they resort to illegal activities of enticing women or sometimes rape. It is high time that government took a heed into the matter and came out with an appropriate measure.

                                                                                                            to be continued...

जागृति

शिष्य :

अवस्था अभी सुप्त है तो क्या, जागृति को उतारू है,

            दिशा अंजान है , उल्टी अभी वायु है ।

                        पग दौड़ने को उतावले , रक्त में गजब का उफान है,

                                    चित्त कुछ करने को लालायित है, अंतर्मन में उठा विचित्र सा तूफान है ।

रोके न रुक रहा , आई ये कैसी आंधी है ?

            पथ पे हूँ अकेला खड़ा, दुनिया ने आस बाँधी है ।

                        मार्ग होता नहीं प्रतीत, है शून्य सा बना हुआ,

                                    स्तिथि मनो हो खड्ग, रक्त से सना हुआ ।

कुछ शेष अब रहा नहीं, मन हो गया है जीर्ण-शीर्ण,

            सुन ताने-बाने विश्व के, असह्य हो रहे ये कर्ण ।

गुरु :

हे तात ।।

तू धीर बन, गंभीर बन,

                        ले खड्ग और तू चीर मन ,

तू वश में विश्व बाँधेगा,

                        देख तेज तेरा जग कौंधेगा ।

                                                            सब घास है, तू खास है ,

                                                                        तुझे अपने लक्ष्य की तलाश है ।

                                                            यही सोंच के तू पुलकित हो,

                                                                        हो उठ खड़ा और जीवित हो ।

देख दृढ  तेरा ! वायु भी अपना रुख मोड़ेगा,

            तूफ़ान से उबरकर, तू सर्वत्र छाप छोड़ेगा ।

                                                            निशा का अँधेरा , खुद तुझसे घबराएगी

                                                                        जब रवि की लालिमा, स्वयं पथ दिखलाएगी ।

ले लक्ष्य ह्रदय में  , संकल्प मुठ्ठी में भींचे,

            अग्रेषित हो निरंतर, नवचेतना को खींचे ।

                                                            जब होगी उड़न ऊँची, और बदल ही धूप ले लेंगे,

                                                                        तब ताने-बाने विश्व के प्राशंषा रूप ले लेंगे ।

तेरा व्यथित होना व्यर्थ है

            तू सर्व करने में समर्थ है ।

हाँ, हाँ, तुझमे विराट शक्ति है,

            सत्य, बेमानी तेरी विरक्ति है ।

शिष्य:

दिग्भ्रमित हो मैं शोकाकुल था,

            परिस्थिति से व्याकुल था ।

सद्मार्ग हमें दिखलाया है,

            सत्य से अवगत कराया है ।

                                                            चेतना सुप्त थी, समर्थता गुप्त थी,

                                                                        लगा दी अग्नि उसमे, अब आ गयी नव-जागृति ।