India is now ruled by:

Amma in South,

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Didi in East,

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Bahenji in North,

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Aunty in Capital,

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Madam in Centre,

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& Wife at home.

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It's a women's world.

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Jai Mata Di !!!

State of Our Parliamentarians - Why they Don't Want Lok Pal Bill?

by Pritish Nandy!!!
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On the occasion of Birthday of Dr. Ambedkar,

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I was an MP not very long ago. I loved those six years. Everyone called me sir, not because of my age but because I was an MP. And even though I never travelled anywhere by train during those years, I reveled in the fact that I could have gone anywhere I liked, on any train, first class with a bogey reserved for my family. Whenever I flew, there were always people around to pick up my baggage, not because I was travelling business class but because I was a MP. And yes, whenever I wrote to any Government officer to help someone in need, it was done. No, not because I was a journalist but because I was an MP.

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The job had many perquisites, apart from the tax free wage of Rs 4,000. Then the wages were suddenly quadrupled to Rs 16,000, with office expenses of Rs 20,000 and a constituency allowance of Rs 20,000 thrown in. I could borrow interest free money to buy a car, get my petrol paid, make as many free phone calls as I wanted. My home came free. So did the furniture, the electricity, the water, the gardeners, the plants. There were also allowances to wash curtains and sofa covers and a rather funny allowance of Rs 1,000 per day to attend Parliament, which I always thought was a MP's job in the first place! And, Oh yes, we also got Rs 1 crore a year (now enhanced to Rs 2 crore) to spend on our constituencies. More enterprising MPs enjoyed many more perquisites best left to your imagination. While I was embarrassed being vastly overpaid for the job I was doing, they kept demanding more.

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Today, out of 543 MPs in Lok Sabha, 315 are crorepatis. That's 60%. 43 out of the 54 newly elected Rajya Sabha MPs are also millionaires. Their average declared assets are over Rs 25 crore each. That's an awfully wealthy lot of people in whose hands we have vested out destiny. The assetsof your average Lok Sabha MP have grown from Rs 1.86 crore in the last house to Rs 5.33 crore. That's 200% more. And, as we all know, not all our MPs are known to always declare all their assets. Much of these exist in a colour not recognised by our tax laws. That's fine, I guess. Being a MP gives you certain immunities, not all of them meant to be discussed in a public forum. If you think it pays to be in the ruling party, you are dead right: 7 out of 10 MPs from the Congress are crorepatis. The BJP have 5. MPs from some of the smaller parties like SAD, TRS and JD (Secular) are all crorepatis while the NCP, DMK, RLD, BSP, Shiv Sena, National Conference and Samajwadi Party have more crorepatis than the 60% average. Only the CPM and the Trinamool, the two Bengal based parties, don't field crorepatis. The CPM has 1crorepati out of 16 MPs; the Trinamool has 7 out of 19. This shows in the state-wise average. West Bengal and Kerala have few crorepati MPs while Punjab and Delhi have only crorepati MPs and Haryana narrowly misses out on this distinction with one MP, poor guy, who's not a crorepati.

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Do MPs become richer in office? Sure they do. Statistics show that the average assets of 304 MPs who contested in 2004 and then re-contested last year grew 300%. And, yes, we're only talking about declared assets here. But then, we can't complain. We are the ones who vote for the rich. Over 33% of those with assets above Rs 5 crore won the last elections while 99.5% of those with assets below Rs 10 lakhs lost! Apart from West Bengal and the North East, every other state voted for crorepati MPs. Haryana grabbed first place with its average MP worth Rs 18 crore. Andhra is not far behind at 16.

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But no, this is not enough for our MPs. It's not enough that they are rich, infinitely richer than those who they represent, and every term makes them even richer. It's not enough that they openly perpetuate their families in power. It's not enough that all their vulgar indulgences and more are paid for by you and me through back breaking taxes. It's not enough that the number of days they actually work in Parliament are barely 60 in a year. The rest of the time goes in squabbling and ranting. Now they want a 500% pay hike and perquisites quadrupled. The Government, to buy peace, has already agreed to a 300% raise but that's not good enough for our MPs. They want more, much more.

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And no, I'm not even mentioning that 150 MPs elected last year have criminal cases against them, with 73 serious, very serious cases ranging from rape to murder. Do you really think these people deserve to earn 104 times what the average Indian earns?

Ratan Tata reveals why he did not get married

Revealing one of the best kept secrets of his personal life, the bachelor industrialist Ratan Tata has said that he had fallen in love and had come seriously close to getting married as many as four times.

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But in the hindsight, he thinks it was not a bad thing to remain unmarried and the situation would have been more complex had he got married, Tata said in an interview to CNN International's Talk Asia programme.

."When you asked whether I'd ever been in love, I came seriously close to getting married four times and each time it got close to there and I guess I backed off in fear of one reason or another," he said.

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He replied in the affirmative when asked whether he had ever been in love. When asked how many times, he replied, "Seriously, four times."

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Ratan Tata, 73, heads one of the country's biggest business empires which comprises nearly 100 firms with revenues totalling about $67 billion.

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He is scheduled to retire in December, 2012 when he turns 75.
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Asked to speak more about his love life, Tata said: "Well, you know one was probably the most serious was when I was working in the US and the only reason we didn't get married was that I came back to India and she was to follow me..."

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"... and that was the year of the, if you like, the Indo-Chinese conflict and in true American fashion this conflict in the Himalayas, in the snowy, uninhabited part of the Himalayas was seen in the United States as a major war between India and China, and so she didn't come and finally got married in the US thereafter."

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Asked why he never got married, Tata said: "Each of the occasions (the four times he was close to getting married, but did not) was different. But in hindsight, when I look at the people involved, it wasn't a bad thing what I did. I think it may have been more complex had the marriage taken place."

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Asked whether any of the people he was in love with were still in the city, he replied in the affirmative, but declined to speak any further on the matter.

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"Oh, well, because of the people that are here, and, of course, this may be aired in the US. . . So I'd be in trouble, whatever I do. So I think I'd better stop here," he added.

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Speaking about the business environment in India, Tata said in the CNN International's Talk Asia interview that his group has succeeded in growing without indulging in things like kickbacks and bribes.

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"I would say that we could have grown faster and could have prospered more as a group, but we have never, we have never in fact partaken in this kind of activity," he added.

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Asked whether anyone in his company or any lobbyist did anything inappropriate or illegal, he added: "I can say with my hand to my heart that we have not in fact partaken in any clandestine activity. I am hopeful that the investigations that are underway will truthfully bring out the position and that the truth will be on the table before too long."

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Speaking further about the corruption issue, he added: "I think what's happening now in terms of things being before the courts, I hope will put things in the right perspective. I hope that it doesn't become a nation of scandals and allegations as they are," he said.

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"I think more importantly the media has to be more circumspect and be careful they don't malign or allege or convict people before they've had a fair trial," he added.

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Asked whether it was hard to be an honest businessman in India, Tata said: "I think there are many honest businessmen, I think there are many that bend. I'm happy that I have not bent, not that I am dishonest, that I have not bent."

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Besides the group's promoter company Tata Sons, Ratan Tata is chairman of major group companies like Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Power, Tata Global Beverages, Tata Chemicals, Indian Hotels and Tata Teleservices.

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During his tenure, the group's revenues have grown nearly 12-fold, totalling $67.4 billion in 2009-10.

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He also serves on the boards of Fiat SpA and Alcoa and is also on the international advisory boards of Mitsubishi Corporation, the American International Group, JP Morgan Chase, Rolls Royce, Temasek Holdings and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

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The contents and the photographs are by the courtesey of rediffmail.com

Proud to be a SIKH - Great tales of their Courage and Sacrifices

With admiration and best wishes to my Sikh friends, and I am proud that I have quite a few!

Ashok

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Life would be boring without jokes. We all crack jokes. In India, most of the jokes, for some years now are being cracked on the Sikhs. There are these 12 o'clock jokes, Banta Singh-Santa Singh jokes, Giani Zail Singh jokes, Baldev Singh jokes, Khalistan jokes. The list is endless.

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Picture yourself as a Sikh and look for an honest response from within yourself. Would you be able to handle these day in day out of cracks targeted at you by colleagues/friends/the unknown person standing next to you/anyone and everyone taking the liberty. I know your immediate reaction. "Sure man, it's only a joke." You are absolutely right, it is only a joke. However when a joke enters the bloodstream as a cancerous virus and you get targeted daily, right from your childhood, let me tell you, as much as you believe you can, the fact is you will not be able to handle them.

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On the other hand, look at the Sikhs. Have you ever seen anyone of them getting irritated with these digs & cracks on them. You wouldn't have. Ever thought why they don't get effected? Well the answer lies in a couplet by Saint Kabeer :

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Kaho Kabir chucha ghat bole. Bhariya hoe so kabahu na dole.

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Says Kabeer, an empty pitcher makes noise. But that which is full, makes no sound.

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Sikhs by nature are self-respecting, courageous, hardworking and enterprising. Look into their short span of history and you will find their pitcher is full of sacrifices and hard work which has contributed so much towards the nation building. If not for them, the course of Indian History would have been very different. That's what makes them the SPIRIT BORN PEOPLE and gives the ability to simply ignore the digs targeted at them. Volumes could be written on the contributions made by the Sikhs, who constitute less than 2% of Indian population. I am listing below just a few, which should make my friends start thinking.

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Sikhs have always believed in the right of an individual to practice a religion of his own choice and have always fought against tyranny. Jahangir, the 4th Mughal ruler wrote in his memoirs, Tuzak-i-Jahangiri about Arjan Dev, the 5th Sikh Guru, "for a long time the thought had been presenting itself to me that he should be bought to the fold of Islam.". In 1606, when the Guru refused the forceful conversion, he was put to death by boiling in a cauldron and sitting on a hot iron plate.

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Aurangzeb, the 6th Mughal ruler was a fanatic ruler who desired to convert every Indian to Islam. Tyrannized by his forceful conversions, a delegation of Kashmiri Brahmins in 1675, approached Tegh Bahadur, the 9th Guru of the Sikhs. He offered to sacrifice his life for their cause. This was a unique & unparalleled sacrifice in the annals of human history. He laid down his life in defense of religious tolerance, of freedom of worship, and freedom of conscience. He gave his life so that the Hindu's right to wear the sacred thread is not violated despite the fact that Sikhs themselves did not believe in these rituals. This was a martyrdom for the defense of basic human values.

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For about 7 centuries, since the invasion of Mahmud Ghazni in the 10th century, many ruthless invaders played havoc with the life of Indians. Recurring defeats had sapped the psychic energy of the Indians so much that they had resigned themselves to their fate. It was Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru of the Sikhs who imbibed the fearlessness amongst the Sikhs to fight against all odds. He wrote to Aurangzeb saying "when all means have failed, it is right to pick up the sword". In the year 1699 he proclaimed, "call me by the name of Gobind Singh, only if I succeed in making the sparrows (Indians) fight against the Hawks (mighty foreign rulers) and am able to make one Sikh fight against an army of one Lakh". He set himself against oppression and intolerance. He did not fight for any territory or worldly power, or against any religion or sect. He made nationalism the religion of Sikhs. Apart from the numerous Sikhs who lost their life in defense of the country under him, his 2 sons were martyred on the battleground, while the other 2 preferred to be bricked alive than give up their esteem. In 1709 he left this world with a lifetime of heroic events which changed the History of India.

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Bulle Shah, a celebrated Sufi Muslim Saint has said, "I neither say of the past, nor of the future, but I talk of the time of Guru Gobind Singh & declare openly. That but for him, all the Indians would have been circumscribed and converted to a foreign culture and religion".

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In 1710, Banda Singh Bahadur was the first Indian to re-establish Indian rule after 7 centuries of foreign rule in India, post a fierce battle with the forces of Aurangzeb, although this was short lived.

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Between 1713 and 1801 the Sikhs were homeless and living as Guerillas, demonstrating heroic acts of courage at every possible instance. The tyrant rulers had put a reward of Rs. 25/- for every Sikh head and Rs. 100/- for every Sikh caught alive. Those caught alive would be cut to pieces. Many new vocabulary (of which many jokes against Sikhs are made nowadays) were given currency among the Sikh guerillas which showed with what brave face and heart they had accepted the challenge of their persecutors.

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In 1738 Nadir Shah, the Persian ruler invaded India from Kabul and went on a rampage upto Delhi. He returned to Persia in summer of 1739 and carried back a huge booty of looted wealth, Kohinoor diamond, women, artisans and slaves. To avoid the summer heat, the convoy would rest during the day and travel in the night. At the peak of the day heat at 12 noon, the Sikh guerillas started attacking his convoy right from Punjab up to the Indus. They freed many women, artisans, slaves and deprived him of large amount of wealth. The women were escorted back to Delhi by the Sikhs. It was for this heroic act, which no one else dared, of fighting against the might of Nadir Shah by a handful of Sikhs and freeing the women, that the Sikhs started getting seen as people who go mad at 12 Noon and therefore the 12 o' clock jokes of nowadays. When Nadir Shah asked Zakhariya Khan "who these barbarians where and where they lived", Zakhariya replied " they are the followers of Nanak & live on saddles of their horses".

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Post the return of Nadir Shah to Persia, Zakhariya Khan went on a rampage against the Sikh movement and killed 10,000 of them in a few days.

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Between 1748 & 1765, Ahmad Shah Abdali the ruler from Afghanistan rampaged India 9 times. Again the Sikhs attacked his returning convoys during the peak summer heat and freed 2200 women and escorted them back to their homes. Yet again a heroic act at 12 noon, which unfortunately the others perceived as a maddening act and therefore further strengthened the 12 noon syndrome. These acts of Sikhs aggravated Ahmed Shah Abdali, who swore to take revenge at an appropriate time. During his 6th invasion he caught the Sikhs unaware and 25,000 of them were killed in a few days. But the spirit of the Sikhs remained high as one Nihang Sikh of that time commented "only the soft and unbaked ones of us have fallen off".

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Finally, Sikhs under Ranjit Singh, in 1798 bought to an end the 800 years of foreign invasions into India through Khyber pass, by bringing it under their control. This was the best gift the Sikhs gave to the nation which finally allowed the rest of India to breathe in peace. Hari Singh Nalwa, who manned the Khyber pass for years became a household name in Afghanistan. Even today, the Afghani mothers put their children to sleep with the threat of Hari Singh Nalwas name.

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It was Ranjit Singh who bought back to India, the world famous Kohinoor diamond, which was looted by Nadir Shah earlier.

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If not for the Sikhs, who captured Kashmir in 1819, today it would have been a part of Afghanistan.

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Ladakh, which earlier was a part of Tibet, owes its existence on the map of India to Zorawar Singh, who captured it in 1836.

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Sikhs were the last to surrender to the British in the sub-continent and were the first to raise arms against them.

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After 2 bloody Anglo-Sikh wars did British manage to annex Punjab as the last kingdom on the map of British-India Empire. It is an irony of fate that the Sikhs had to fight against their own countrymen as British forces in saving Punjab from British annexation. It was not due to lack of soldiers courage & conviction that the wars against British were lost, but a treachery by Gulab, the Dogra prime minister under Ranjit Singh, who joined hands with the British in exchange for the title of Kashmir on winning the war. British records say about the Sikhs "Such a mass of men, fierce and untamed in their dying struggle, who fought like Lions and ran right on the bayonets and struck on their assailants when they were transfixed".

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Inspite of the loss of empire to British, the spirit of freedom amongst Sikhs was soaring high. Whereas the British would daily fire a canon at 12 noon by the East India Co. time, which was the Calcutta time, the Sikhs on the other hand refused to recognize the British time. There is a one and a half hour time difference between Calcutta and Lahore time and therefore the Sikhs maintained their firing of the Canon at 12 noon Lahore time. Amongst the general public there was a confusion as to which canon denoted the 12 noon and therefore at the fire of the first canon the public would say "12 o clock of British" and on the second fire, an hour and a half later, they would say "12 o clock of Sikhs." Soon the spirit of defiance and freedom was forgotten by fellow Indians and they started linking the madness demonstrated by them during Nadir Shah and Abdalis invasions at 12 noon to the act of defiance during British period and there took place the 12 o clock jokes.

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Much before 1919, when Mahatma Gandhi issued the call for satyagraha (boycotting English goods), the Sikhs under Baba Ram Singh had started the boycott movement in the year 1863. Eighty two Sikhs were tied to canons & blown apart by British.

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Sikhs were the only Indian community to be internationally acclaimed as early as 1897, for their heroism and valour. Where in the history of warfare can you find the instance of heroism as demonstrated by 22 Sikh soldiers manning the signal post of Saragahi in Nort-West province with no ammunition back up. All the 22 of them fought till the last bullet had been fired against an Afghan army of 7000 warriors. The 22 soldiers then charged with their kirpans to be eventually cut down to pieces. The easier way out would have been to surrender but the spirit of Sikhs has always made them do what Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru had said, "Grant me this boon, O Lord, at last when the end of life is near, I may die fighting in the battlefield for the sake of righteousness".

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The first battle for freedom from British was won by Sikhs, when after loss of many lives in 1929 they were able to take over the charge of their shrines from British. On this victory Mahatma Gandhi sent a telegram saying "THE FIRST DECISIVE BATTLE OF INDEPENDENCE OF INDIA WON - CONGRATULATIONS".

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Where in the world can you find an act of sacrifice like that of Sikhs in 1922, willing to offer lives of their wives, children and themselves by lying on the rails to stop a train of freedom fighters who only had to be fed because they were hungry. The train finally stopped after killing a few Sikhs.

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Not many can claim the valor with which Bhagat Singh offered himself at the altar of Indias' freedom in 1931.

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There is not another instance of bravery as shown by Udham Singh in 1940, when he went to London and shot dead Sir Michael O' Dwyer at a public meeting, as a revenge for the Jallianwala massacre.

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Out of 42,000 recruits in the Indian National Army under the command of Subhash Chandra Bose, 28,000 soldiers contributing 67% of strength, were Sikhs.

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Contribution of Sikhs who are less than 2% of Indian population , in the freedom struggle of India against the British.

PUNISHED                        TOTAL     SIKHS     % OF SIKHS

Hanged                                   121           93                   77%

Life Imprisonment                  2646        2147                  81%

Jallianwala Bagh massacre      1300         799                  62%

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Book source : "History of Indian National Congress".

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Partition of India in 1947 brought innumerable death to Sikhs and was the greatest disaster known in the Indian history. Surely the Sikhs paid the heaviest price for the freedom of the country.

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Punjab lost its most fertile part to Pakistan during the partition. However, today due to hard labor of Sikh farmers, the Punjab in India produces much higher quantities of food grain than the fertile Punjab in Pakistan. Punjab contributes 40% of rice and 51% of wheat into the central pool of food grains in India.

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Post partition, many of the landless Sikhs who settled in the jungles of Terai in Uttar Pradesh have today made the area as fertile as Punjab.

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Contribution of Sikhs towards the Indian Defense Services is the highest with respect to their 2% population size. This community has also won the maximum number of gallantry awards since independence - 5 Param Vir Chakras (PVCs), 40 Maha Vir Chakras (MVCs), 209 Vir Chakras (VrCs).

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During the emergency of 1975 imposed by Indira Gandhi, no organized protest was made across the country by any section of community, except for the Sikhs who conducted daily morchas, involving 40,000 arrests.

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You will never find a Sikh ever begging on the roads, in spite of being uprooted & made homeless many a times, they have demonstrated the ability to rise back from the scratch. Each one of them actively contributes towards the nation building. Almost 30 years ago, Professor Milton Friedman (Noble Prize Winner) an American Economist, on his visit to India had humorously remarked, "Lease out India to the Sikhs for a while and there will be no problem of development". Could there be any greater compliment to the Sikh spirit and enterprise.

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In spite of endless contributions made by Sikhs towards the nation building, our friends find them to be a laughing stock. Well, it makes no difference to the Sikhs as their pitchers are filled with unparalleled acts.

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As a nation we may lack the sense of humor but Sikhs are a rare species, with a great sense of humor. This is the community which has learnt to fight, succeed and laugh. It is time for my friends to do a bit of introspection.

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Above article taken from http://www.snsm.org.my/library/articles/articles.h

Sent by Ashok Sawhney

sawhneyashok@gmail.com

Why should public money and national awards be distributed to cricketers / film stars etc

It is shameless and shocking to pay such huge amts, give awards or give such publicity to any one and last to players and films personalities. What have they done for common men, downtrodden, patients, poor, sufferers, undernourished children, farmers committing suicide, illiteracy, national development. Rather they have wasted electricity which is scarce, they are the reasons of trillions of man hour lost, spoiling of education of students and spreading menace of gambling, betting, promoting a life style products which cant be afforded by 90% of Indians who are suffering at the hands of politicians and bureacrtas. Like we have chosen a vocation they have chosen cricket or film as a vocation and that's it. If you need any entertainment of that sort go buy a ticket and enjoy but for havens sake do not make them heros/leaders/sought after (only mad do it and they are available in big lots and in plenty) and last which they deserve is any award except their own filmi or sports award but not at all a national award which can only be given to one who does sacrifices tan, man and dhan for the nation or does something for common man. It is a shame that people forget great people like Vinoba Bhave who did so much for landless labourers and want land and FSI grabbers like Shahrukh, Sachin, Amitabh to get Bharat Ratna.

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We forget those who built charitable schools, hospitals, various institutions which have helped us day in and day out, those who worked for cancer, HIV, handicapped, senior citizens etc and we want sachin to get an award??? What namak harami. We forget those who did so much for us, for community and nation at large and want to reward those playing for self. Let sachin do something for common man and then we will see whether he desrves any Bharat Ratna or not??

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Alok Tholiya ....

tholiya@hotmail.com

also see http://www.aloktholiya.blogspot.com/

To Afridi, With Love - Our Cricket Speaks to the Nation

"Lets find ourselves a reason to be patriotic and celebrate Pakistan, and let cricket be a sport, not an identity." To Afridi, With Love. by Maheen Sadiq
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To whosoever it may concern and influence

(added by me)

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... a lot to be said about the cricket tournament, especially our match against India. And it has a lot more to do with Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Gul’s bad luck, and Sachin Tendulkar’s good fortune. Cricket speaks to our nation in a way our government never has.

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And Shahid Afridi addressed the nation in a way our president never has – unselfish, genuine, modest. So when Afridi apologized to Pakistan, millions listened and were humbled by the gesture. Our eyes filled with tears and our hearts with love and strange kind of sorrow. Shahid Afridi, you need not apologize to the nation. We are proud of you and our entire cricket team! You didn’t bring back the cup, but any excitement, any happiness, any hope that Pakistanis have felt in the past few months is because of your brilliance. We’ve been hearing a lot of “Pakistan needs something to celebrate,” but what Pakistanis really needed was something to look forward to, and the green team gave us that with the anticipation of each game played.

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The funny thing about cricket is that it can unite the nation through a victory or a loss. It would have been wonderful to go out on the streets and celebrate with dhols, etc, as we did when we won the 20/20 Cricket World Cup in 2009. But even after our loss yesterday, the people of Pakistan, in their state of disbelief, came out and shared their sorrow. Misery loves company. Cars on streets, people driving around slowly, quietly, patiently. No honking, no cursing, no where to go, no where to escape. It was surreal. This only goes to show what cricket means to us and the massive void it fills for our nation.

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Cricketers, you made us patriotic. You made us passionate. You made us proud.

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And these precious adjectives are some that Pakistan rarely gets the chance to associate itself with.

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So again, Afridi, your apology is appreciated but not needed. You conducted yourself with patience, grace and dignity, encouraging your own with a smile, and congratulating the opponents with an even bigger smile. You didn’t win the semi-finals, but you won our hearts. Thank you for showing the world we are not an aggressive nation.

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To Pakistan, I propose this: if there’s anyone who needs to apologize it’s us.

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So to Afridi and the team, I apologize for the pressure I put on you to win the World Cup. It comes from my own shortcomings. So lazy and so cowardly am I that I am incapable of creating for myself a reason to celebrate Pakistan. Since as far as I can remember, my patriotism has tenaciously clung to cricket. It is unfair. I know.

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To those Pakistanis who thought this was a match between Hindus and Muslims, I’m glad India won. This was never a battle between nations, or a jehad against Hindus. It was a semi-final cricket match, and if a loss is what it took to be reminded of this then I’m glad we lost. Victory would have only made you gloat over something you had wrong all along anyway.

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However, if there was one thing I was relieved to discover it was that we don’t hate India. We may hate America, but we don’t hate India. No burning of the Indian flag, no bitter remarks, no threatening reaction. Phew! Just healthy competition and a pure love for the game.

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So we don’t hate India. In fact, we hate Zardari. What pleased me even more were the numerous text messages and facebook statuses I came across that poked fun at Zardari. My personal favourite is, “ We congratulate India on winning the semi-finals. As a good-will gesture, India can keep Pakistan’s prime minister. And if it wins the finals, we will give our president too.”

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Ahhh, Zardari jokes. They never get old. He’s our scapegoat now. It’s his fault we lost. Somehow.

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That being said, think. It’s time we stop asking of our cricketers something we should have been asking of ourselves. Or our government. Lets find ourselves a reason to be patriotic and celebrate Pakistan, and let cricket be a sport, not an identity. If we all just took a little responsibility, maybe our beloved team can finally approach the pitch as cricketers, not as soldiers entering the battlefield. We owe it to them.

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Welcome back, boys!

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This article has been written by Maheen Sadiq

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Received through courtesy Carl Gomes

naughtilus2000@gmail.com

My dog

My dog sleeps about 20 hours a day.

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He has his food prepared for him.

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He can eat whenever he wants, 24/7/365.

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His meals are provided at no cost to him.

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He visits the doctor once a year

for his checkup, and again

during the year if any medical needs arise.

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For this he pays nothing,

and nothing is required of him.

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He lives in a nice neighborhood in a house

that is much larger than he needs,

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but he is not required to do any upkeep.

If he makes a mess, someone else cleans it up.

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He has his choice of luxurious places to sleep.

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He receives his accommodations absolutely free.

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He is living like a King,

and has absolutely no expenses whatsoever.

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All of his costs are picked up by others

who go out and earn a living every day.

I was just thinking about all this,

and suddenly it hit me like a brick in the head.......

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My dog is an Indian POLITICIAN!

Lets learn from Japan....

10 things to learn from Japan-

1. THE CALM: Not a single visual of chest-beating or wild grief. Sorrow itself has been elevated.
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2. THE DIGNITY: Disciplined queues for water and groceries. Not a rough word or a crude gesture.
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3. THE ABILITY : The incredible architects, for instance. Buildings swayed but didnt fall.
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4. THE GRACE : People bought only what they needed for the present, so everybody could get something.
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5. THE ORDER : No looting in shops. No honking and no overtaking on the roads. Just understanding.
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6. THE SACRIFICE : Fifty workers stayed back to pump sea water in the N-reactors. How will they ever be repaid?
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7. THE TENDERNESS : Restaurants cut prices. An unguarded ATM is left alone. The strong cared for the weak.
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8. THE TRAINING : The old and the children, everyone knew exactly what to do. And they did just that.
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9. THE MEDIA : They showed magnificent restraint in the bulletins. No silly reporters. Only calm reportage.
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10. THE CONSCIENCE : When the power went off in a store, people put things back on the shelves and left quietly.
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THERE IS SO MUCH TO LEARN FROM THEM !!!

Sent by Deepak Das
d302012@yahoo.co.uk

Only Married Men...

Hiring only Married Men-----------------------A factory had a policy of hiring only married men.

.

Concerned about this, a local Woman's Liberation Front Leader called on the CEO and asked him, "Why is it you limit your employees to married men? It must be because you consider us women are weak, dumb, cantankerous or do you consider us as tantrum throwers, bossy, etc?"

.

"Not at all, Ma'am," the CEO replied. "It is because our policy is to hire staff- Who are used to obeying orders without questioning, -Who are accustomed to being shoved around, -Know how to keep their mouths shut and  -Put up with anything when I yell at them.

.

And we can find these qualities only in married men."--

Sent by Deepak Das

d302012@yahoo.co.uk

Dating of Ramayan - Facts which may Interest many

It has been believed that there is no evidence to determine the dates of events in the Ramayanic era. However, Sage Valmiki, the author of "Valmiki Ramayana" has recorded the dates of events in detail, by describing the positions of stars and planets. To make sense out of these astrological/astronomical recordings of Shri Valmiki by research & scientific analysis has not been a trivial task, and not many have attempted to do so. But what provided the workable foundation to date important landmarks in Ramayana is the fact that the ancient Indians had a prefect method of time measurement. They recorded the 'tithis', ays according to the nakshatra on which the moon prevailed, the months, the seasons and even the different Solstices. By therefore, noting a particular arrangement of the astronomical bodies, which occurs once in many thousand years, the dates of the events can be calculated. The correct astronomical records go to show that Valmiki has chronicled an account of a true story and also, that an advanced time measurement system was known to the Hindus (Indians) at least 9000 years ago.

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It should be noted that the Mahabharat has recorded a number of facts about Ramayan (and not otherwise). The precedence of the Ramayanic era to that of the Mahabharat can therefore be inferred. An attempt to fix the dates of the events in the Mahabharat era, mainly based on internal astronomical records has also been made by following the astronomical method.

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Genealogical links available from the Mahabharat and Puranas, Yuga calculations and some archaeological findings also provide clues to the dating of the Ramayanic era. Also, literary references to the characters from the Ramayanic Era provide limits after which the Ramayan could not have occurred. For example, Guru Valmiki (the author of Ramayana) is referred to in the Taittiriya Brahmana (dated to 4600 B.C) and therefore, Ramayana must have been before the Brahmana was composed. However, archaeological and literary methods can only provide approximate datelines and for determining the precise time of the Ramayanic events, astronomical calculations alone are considered useful. On the basis of these calculations, the dates of Ramayanic era have been worked out as follows:

.

Rama’s Birth Date : 4 December, 7323 BC

.

Rama – Seeta Married : 7 April 7307 BC

.

Rama Exiled : 29 November 7306 BC

.

Hanuman Enters Lanka : 1 September 7292 BC

.

Hanuman Meets Seeta : 2 September 7292 BC

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Ram Setu ( Bridge) Built : 26 – 30 October 7292 BC

.

War Begins : 3 November 7292 BC

.

Kumbhakarna is Killed : 7 November 7292 BC

.

Ravana is Killed by Rama : 15 November 7292 BC

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Rama Returns to Ayodhya : 6 December 7272 BC

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Information provided by Amit Bhadhuri

Ref: Dr. P. V. Vartak, Vastava Ramayan in Marathi, Vedvidnyana Mandal, Pune

Why are some nations rich and others are not.

To reflect and...  act.

***

The difference between

the poor and rich nations

is not the age of the Nation.

***

This can be demonstrated

by countries like India and Egypt,

which are more than 2000 years old

and are still poor countries.

***

On the other hand,

Canada, Australia & New Zealand,

which 150 years back

were insignificant, but today

are developed and rich countries.

***

The difference between

the poor and rich nation

does not also depend on

the available natural resources.

***

Japan has limited territory,

80%  mountainous, unsuitable for

agriculture or farming,

but is the second in worlds economy.

The country is like an

immense floating factory,

importing raw material 

from the whole world and

exporting manufactured products.

***

Second example is Switzerland,

it does not grow cocoa

but produces the best

chocolates in the world.

In her small territory she rears

animals and cultivates the land

only for four month in a year,

nevertheless manufactures

the best milk products.

A small country which is

an image of security

which has made it the

strongest world bank.

***

Executives from rich countries

who interact with

their counterparts

from poor countries

show no significant

intellectual differences.

***

The racial or colour factors

also do not evince importance:

migrants heavy in laziness

in their country of origin

are forcefully productive

in rich European countries.

***

What then is the difference?

***

The difference is

the attitude of the people,

moulded for many years

by education and culture.

***

When we analyse

the conduct of the people from

the rich and developed countries,

it is observed that

a majority abide by

the following principles of life:

***

1. Ethics, as basic principles.

2. Integrity.

3. Responsibility.

4. The respect for Laws and Regulations.

5. The respect from majority of citizens by right.

6. The love for work.

7. The effort to save and invest.

8. The will to be productive.

9. Punctuality.

***

In the poor countries

only a small minority

follow these basic principles

in their daily life.

***

We are not poor

because we lack

natural resources

or because nature was

cruel towards us.

***

We are poor because

we lack attitude.

We lack the will to follow

and teach these principles

of working

of rich and developed societies.

***

We are in this State because

We want to take Advantage over

Everything and Every one.

We are in this state becauseWe see some thing wrong

and say "let it be"
We should have a Spirited Memory

And  Attitude…

Only then will we be able to

change Our Present State.

***

If you really love your

COUNTRY

Try and circulate this message

so that as many people as possible

can reflect on this and CHANGE.

Age-old grouse to be addressed, at last

by Aloke Tikku, Hindustan Times
.

With the Cabinet Secretariat finally coming up with an objective formula to measure performance of file-pushing babus, civil servants in Delhi who get good grades would finally get monetary incentives from next year. The incentive, however, would not be directly linked to their individual grades but the performance of departments and divisions under their charge vis-à-vis their targets and success in cutting administrative costs.

.

The total incentives to be disbursed amongst civil servants will not exceed 15% of the total savings in non-plan administrative expenditure. The annual targets that they would have to chase would have to be listed at the beginning of each financial year in consultation with an independent group of academics and retired bureaucrats.

.

The consultation process would ensure that the targets set in the department’s Results Framework Document are not too easy.

.

At the end of each year, achievement against the pre-determined targets would form the basis of the department’s score, according to the Performance Monitoring and Evaluation System for the central government, cleared by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

.

Government officials contend that the system resolves the biggest hurdle in rewarding performing bureaucrats — measuring their performance.

.

This system measures the performance of departments and thus, indirectly, the performance of the men and women who lead the departments.

.

According to the plan drawn up by the cabinet secretariat, secretaries to the central government would be given financial incentives to be disbursed down the line. The incentive would be a function of the department’s score as well as the savings they make.

.

It will be 20% for those who achieve all targets in the first three years, 30% between the fourth and sixth year and 40% from the seventh year onwards, till the ninth year.

.

“The incentives increase because as the years go by, it will become more and more difficult to achieve ambitious targets and make savings. The system will force civil servants to be innovative in their approach,” a government official explained.

.

But key ministries such as those dealing with defence, home and finance will be left out of the incentive scheme unless they voluntarily agree to have their performance evaluated.

.

These are also departments — led by senior ministers — that have resisted suggestions to be covered under the performance evaluation scheme or haven’t volunteered.

Lessons from Mahabharatha - The Eighteen Days Rule

Every dictator has to fear the Eighteen Days Rule.

.

At about a time in the hoary past which has variously been designated by scholars to be between 6000BC and 500 BC the power centre of the Indian Sub Continent shifted from the region of Kuru to Panchala. Kuru roughly comprises the region of modern day Haryana and Panchala is today's NCR and portions of UP with Delhi as its centre.

.

When we look to see what the cataclysmic event was that led to this epochal realignment we find that it was the Kuruskshetra War so graphically described in the Mahabharatha. It was a war that was considered to have been fought between Dharma and Adharma. Actually it was a struggle to remove a dictatorial regime entrenched for more than a generation and half – which works out to about 30 years.

.

Now comes the curious observation.

.

The struggle lasted 18 days. 18 days!

.

Fast forward to Tunisia, the land of Hannibal. President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali had been in power for 23 years. Mohamed Bouazizi, was a Tunisian street vendor who set himself on fire on 17 Dec 2010, in protest of the confiscation of his wares and the humiliation that was inflicted on him by a female municipal official. A murmur of discontent rose in Tunisia. On 28 Dec 2010 when Bouazizi was almost on his last breath President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali visited him in the hospital. This act became the catalyst for the Tunisian revolution known as Jasmine Revolution sparking deadly demonstrations and riots throughout Tunisia in protest of social and political issues in the country. Anger and violence intensified following Bouazizi's death. President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali ran out of the country on 14 Jan 2011.

.

How long did the struggle last?

.

Just 18 days.

.

Move forward to Egypt. Hosni Mubarak ruled Egypt for 30 long years during which his rule was well known for widespread corruption, patronage, and nepotism. Economic reform did not benefit most Egyptians and there was no hope of political change since he was propping up his son (like Karunanidhi in Tamil Nadu). On 25 Jan 2011 the Egyptian people moved into the Tahrir (liberation) Square. They faced gun fire, molotov cocktails, water cannons and vehicles driven into their midst. On 11 Feb 2011 Hosni Mubarak abdicated.

.

18 days again!

.

However, what is the lot of the people?

.

After the Mahabharatha War Lord Krishna went away to Dwaraka and the Pandavas were too old and tired to carry on with the administration of the State. India descended into anarchy and petty wars. We are where we are because of that.

.

Tunisia and Egypt have gone into Army Rule who were in the first place the power behind the dictators.

.

So what is the lesson?

.

People can throw out bad leaders in 18 days;

.

But unless they can throw up good leaders they are doomed!!

Clear vision a must

If we dont have a vision or goal in place,then our life starts controlling us rather than we controlling and managing our life and we simply become drifters,says Dr Kapil Kakar

.

One's goals in life should correspond to the activities that one performs,both at work as well as at home.Many a time,we tend to work aimlessly without having a goal and a vision in place.A vision is about where you see yourself, your work and your family, and what you seek to accomplish respectively.Vision is something achievable in the long run. If we dont have a vision or goal in place, then our life starts controlling us rather than we controlling and managing our lives, and we simply become drifters.

.

Living without a long-term vision and a clear-cut goal is like living a life to which we have surrendered and become puppets of circumstances. This is like living in inertia and is as good as being dead so to say.

.

Your vision in life should be highly ambitious. It needs to be realistic from the short-term perspective but certainly can be improbable from the long-term perspective. Remember, if your vision is such that it does not stimulate you,or bring out the best in you, then it should be discarded and not pursued.

.

In order to pursue your ambition successfully, you should not have any backup plan in terms of an alternative ambition. The day one has a backup ambition, one has internally articulated that I may not be successful. This statement contains the word may which further breeds infinite ifs and buts which will undoubtedly confuse you. Thus, you need to have only one vision and that too an irreplaceable one.

.

Finally, till the time we dont accomplish our vision, we can stay unsatisfied but should not be dissatisfied. Lack of satisfaction is important, as it propels us to move ahead, focusing on our vision. It also ensures we dont lose the sight of our vision. However,dissatisfaction is the cause of failure as it not only makes us restless, but creates a feeling of discontentment.

sent by Chaks K

chakpi@yahoo.com

Abolish IAS, says Infosys’ Murthy

For a country accustomed to gloating about GDP growth figures and taking these as a measure of achievement, here is sobering advice from NR Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys Technologies, India’s second-largest infotech firm. Stop focussing exclusively on 8 or 8.5% growth, look at the sorry state of affairs on the governance front, he said at a function here.

.

Drawing a contrast between the success of the private sector and the decay and corruption in the government sector, he said: “In areas where public governance is involved, we have hardly made any progress.”

.

Murthy said the politicians and bureaucrats are trapped in a colonial mindset. “They feel they are the masters and there is no need to show fairness and transparency,” he said.

.

Murthy, seen as an idealist by many, owns less than 5% of the total shares of Infosys. He will step down as chairman of the company in 10 days.

.

While admitting to some exceptions, he noted many of the leaders and bureaucrats were completely out of touch with the dynamics of the current world. “Once I was with a senior bureaucrat discussing how badly our high school students had performed in an international competition and he said, ‘we must stop participating in such competitions’,” he said.

.

The outdated mentality of the political class, he said, is accentuated by an equally apathetic population, which has almost accepted corruption and inefficiency. “For over 1,000 years, the government belonged to someone sitting either 2,000 miles or 4,000 miles away. There is no sense of societal ownership,” he said. “The penalty (for corruption) is minimal. As a result, there is no fear of repercussions and there is no accountability.”

.

Murthy’s cure, besides tougher punishment, is to abolish the system of generalised administrators under the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and replace it with specialists under a new ‘Indian Management Service’.

.

The new breed of government servants would have specialised knowledge to manage projects. Their salaries must also be increased to ‘near private sector’ levels, while making 60% of their remuneration variable according to how well they are able to implement projects. “If we had kept track of the activities using a project management software, we would not be where we are,” he said, about the delays in setting up the Commonwealth Games infrastructure.

.

He, however, refused to encourage speculation that he would join public life. “I am too old. Besides there is already someone from Infosys,” he said, referring to former CEO Nandan Nilekani, currently heading the UID project.

Sāre Jahāñ se acchā Hindostāñ Hamārā

Dear Friend,

.

One hundred years is not a long period in the history of mankind, considering that our recorded history dates back to several millenniums. Yet within the last century the following major nations have disappeared from the globe:

.

The Great Ottoman Empire (1299-1923) has disintegrated into dozens of nations. Prussia (1525-1947) which was a unifying force for German speaking peoples is now divided into several countries.

The Dutch East Indies (1800-1949) has no trace in the Indian Ocean USSR was formed with great expectations in 1922. Their honeymoon lasted for less than seventy years, when they broke up in 1991.

.

Viewed in this context, Allama Iqbal's lines make sense,

.

yūnān-o-miṣr-o-rumā sab miṭ gaʾe jahāñ se

ab tak magar hai bākī nām-o-nishāñ hamārā

.

I was impelled to fish out the entire song from the Internet, and for those who may not have read it, I am placing it below in roman letters as well as its translation. And for those who read urdu alphabets, I have added that too.

.

And then, at the bottom there are two links to military bands playing in Edin borough. The first one is 'Saare jahaan se achha and the second is a medley.

.

Before I close, let me invite your attention to one more interesting observation. The world has about two hundred countries. Some of them have had a long history of maritime explorations. India has not produced an equal of Columbus, Vasco-de-gama or Capt Cook. Yet the ONLY country which has an OCEAN named after it is our country. The Indian Ocean is the third largest water body on the globe!

.

SAARE JAHAAN SE ACHHA HINDOSTAN HAMAARA

sāre jahāñ se acchā hindostāñ hamārā

ham bulbuleñ haiñ us kī vuh gulsitāñ hamārā

.

ġurbat meñ hoñ agar ham, rahtā hai dil vat̤an meñ

samjho vuhīñ hameñ bhī dil ho jahāñ hamārā

.

parbat vuh sab se ūñchā, hamsāyah āsmāñ kā

vuh santarī hamārā, vuh pāsbāñ hamārā

.

godī meñ kheltī haiñ us kī hazāroñ nadiyāñ

gulshan hai jin ke dam se rashk-e janāñ hamārā

.

ay āb-rūd-e gangā! vuh din haiñ yād tujh ko?

utarā tire kināre jab kāravāñ hamārā

.

hindī haiñ ham, vat̤an hai hindostāñ hamārā

.

yūnān-o-miṣr-o-rumā sab miṭ gaʾe jahāñ se

ab tak magar hai bākī nām-o-nishāñ hamārā

.

kuchh bāt hai ki hastī miṭtī nahīñ hamārī

sadiyoñ rahā hai dushman daur-e zamāñ hamārā

.

iqbāl! koʾī maḥram apnā nahīñ jahāñ meñ

maʿlūm kyā kisī ko dard-e nihāñ hamārā!

.

.

سارے جہاں سے اچھا ہندوستاں ہمارا

ہم بلبليں ہيں اس کی، يہ گلستاں ہمارا

.

غربت ميں ہوں اگر ہم، رہتا ہے دل وطن ميں

سمجھو وہيں ہميں بھی، دل ہو جہاں ہمارا

.

پربت وہ سب سے اونچا، ہمسايہ آسماں کا

وہ سنتری ہمارا، وہ پاسباں ہمارا

.

گودی ميں کھيلتی ہيں اس کي ہزاروں ندياں

گلشن ہے جن کے دم سے رشک جاناں ہمارا

.

اے آب رود گنگا، وہ دن ہيں ياد تجھ کو؟

اترا ترے کنارے جب کارواں ہمارا

.

مذہب نہيں سکھاتا آپس ميں بير رکھنا

ہندی ہيں ہم وطن ہے ہندوستاں ہمارا

.

يونان و مصر و روما سب مٹ گئے جہاں س

اب تک مگر ہے باقی نام و نشاں ہمارا

.

کچھ بات ہے کہ ہستی مٹتی نہيں ہماری

صديوں رہا ہے دشمن دور زماں ہمارا

.

اقبال! کوئي محرم اپنا نہيں جہاں ميں

معلوم کيا کسی کو درد نہاں ہمارا

.

Translation

.

Better than the entire world, is our Hindustan,

We are its nightingales, and it (is) our garden abode

.

If we are in an alien place, the heart remains in the homeland,

Know us to be only there where our heart is.

.

That tallest mountain, that shade-sharer of the sky,

It (is) our sentry, it (is) our watchman

.

In its lap frolic those thousands of rivers,

Whose vitality makes our garden the envy of Paradise.

.

O the flowing waters of the Ganges, do you remember that day

When our caravan first disembarked on your waterfront?

.

Religion does not teach us to bear ill-will among ourselves

We are of Hind, our homeland is Hindustan.

.

In a world in which ancient Greece, Egypt, and Rome have all vanished without trace

Our own attributes (name and sign) live on today.

.

Such is our existence that it cannot be erased

Even though, for centuries, the cycle of time has been our enemy.

.

Iqbal! We have no confidant in this world

What does any one know of our hidden pain?

.

Surjit

mażhab nahīñ sikhātā āpas meñ bair rakhnā