The maverick Lalu Yadav, Railway Minister in the UPA Government does not mince words or miss any opportunity to lambast the BJP and RSS. Bit all this is for public consumption. He wants us to “Do what I Say not What I do”. The Tehelka weekly magazine (issue 24 January 2009) informs us that the RSS stalwart Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, who is also former Vice-President of India and Chief Minister for Rajasthan, was chosen by Lalu Yadav as the local guardian for his daughters when they were studying in the Maharani College, Jaipur (Rajasthan, an elite educational institution). It was disclosed by none but by Shekhawat himself during a course of an interview.

Prepare yourself to listen from Lalu Yadav that all this is a conspiracy to defame him by the RSS leader. Perhaps Lalu and his ilk think that the people are fool and can be fooled by any Tom and Harry.

http://www.assamtimes.org/Editorial/2578.html

The People’s Union for Democratic Rights has condemned the incident of vandalism by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad goons (ABVP, student wing of the RSS) in Delhi University, in which members of the press community were also made victims.

The University Community, an independent group of students and teachers of Delhi University, organised a meeting on “Communalism, Fascism and Democracy: Rhetoric and Reality” on 6th November 2008 at Room No. 22 Arts Faculty. It did not come as a surprise that right-wing forces would be opposed to any meaningful discussion on these issues.

As the Chair of the meeting, SAR Geelani (lecturer at Zakir Husain College, University of Delhi), came inside the room and took his seat, one of the ABVP members came and spat on his face twice. It was then that we realised that this was a planned attempt to disrupt the public meeting – ABVP goondas were sitting inside the room and they rose to hurl abuses at the participants and physically attack them. DUSU President Nupur Sharma (of ABVP) entered the room and declared that SAR Geelani, a lecturer of this University, could not speak in the University! This, when we had taken due permission from the University authorities to conduct the meeting.

The ABVP goons attacked the women students and participants, broke the microphone and hurled chairs. They also manhandled media persons who were covering the meeting. Two journalists from Tehelka and Mail Today, who were speakers at the meeting, were threatened by ABVP. The mother of one of the media persons who was present had to leave the venue because she was terrorised by the goons. At this point, the Pro-Vice Chancellor and the Proctor called one of the organisers and told him that the meeting could not go on because it was creating a ‘law and order’ problem. Who did the University administration side with? ABVP.

It was the courage and fortitude of the audience who insisted on continuing the meeting. The ABVP goons were pushed out of the room and the meeting continued behind closed doors. ABVP did not stop there. In the presence of a large contingent of Delhi Police, and we dare say with their permission, they threw stones at the room, broke all the window panes, tried to break the doors and continued abusing – Goli maaro saalon ko, Pakistan Murdabad, Vande Mataram – were some of the better ones. SAR Geelani, in particular was targeted. However, they could not scare us and stop the meeting from concluding successfully.

The University Community, the organisor of the meeting alleged that this was not the first effort of ABVP to snatch all the democratic space available to it in the University. Last year, the faculty members and students of the History Department were targeted only because of a text in their syllabus. The same goons who once attacked our right to study history texts today attacked our right to hold meetings and discussions.

During a meeting on communalism and fascism, it witnessed the threat and danger posed by these communal and fascist forces to the secular and democratic fabric of our country. The parent organisation of ABVP, and the politics espoused by them, is responsible for the widespread attack on minorities across the country. It is they who were responsible for the genocide in Gujarat and for spreading the politics of hate and fear. If we remain silent today, we will lose whatever little space that is left to us in the University. Do we need to take permission from ABVP to hold a meeting in the University? Who does the University administration and Delhi Police support in the fight against fascism?

It has called upon the entire University community to protest against this assault on academic freedom and democratic rights. In protest of today’s events, the University community has organised a protest march on November 07 at the University, at 11:00 a.m. at Vivekananda statue, Arts Faculty.

It has also demamded:

1. The University administration should lodge a FIR against ABVP members, especially persons like Nupur Sharma, Vikas Dahiya, Desh Ratan, Sonu Singh and Ashutosh.

2. Time-bound enquiry into this act of vandalism and goondaism and action against the people found guilty.

3. To give us assurance that future public meetings on similar issues will not be disrupted by these goons.

Yes, we all should support Raj Thackeray and take his initiative ahead by doing more...

We should teach our kids that if he is second in class, don’t study harder.. just beat up the student coming first and throw him out of the school
Parliament should have only Delhiites as it is located in delhi
Prime-minister, president and all other leaders should only be from Delhi
No Hindi movie should be made in Bombay. Only Marathi.
At every state border, buses, trains, flights should be stopped and staff changed to local men.
All Maharashtrians working abroad or in other states should be sent back as they are SNATCHING employment from Locals
Lord Shiv, Ganesha and Parvati should not be worshiped in our state as they belong to north (Himalayas)
Visits to Taj Mahal should be restricted to people from UP only
Relief for farmers in Maharashtra should not come from centre because that is the money collected as Tax from whole of India, so why should it be given to someone in Maharashtra?
Let’s support Kashmiri Militants because they are right in killing and injuring innocent people for the benefit of their state and community..
Let’s throw all MNCs out of Maharashtra, why should they earn from us? We will open our own Maharashtra Microsoft, MH Pepsi and MH Marutis of the world
Let’s stop using cellphones, emails, TV, foreign Movies and dramas. James Bond should speak Marathi
We should be ready to die hungry or buy food at 10 times higher price but should not accept imports from other states.
We should not allow any industry to be setup in Maharashtra because all machinery comes from outside. We should STOP using local trains... Trains are not manufactured by Marathi manoos and Railway Minister is a Bihari
Ensure that all our children are born, grow, live and die without ever stepping out of Maharasthra, then they will become true Marathis

JAI MAHARASHTRA!

Delhi is facing 30 percent shortage in power. Maharashtra on an average has 8 to 10 hours of load shedding every day. Madhya Pradesh has 26 percent power deficit. In Gujarat, while the requirement is 5,500 Mega Units, availability is 4,780 Mega Units. Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are facing 2000 Mega Units of energy deficit and Bihar and Jammu and Kashmir have 1,500 and 1000 Mega Units of power shortages respectively.

The real problem for power shortage in the country emanate from poor generation capacity and distribution and transmission problems. While the public sector is unable to generate enough funds for investment in the power sector, lack of return is acting as an impediment to the private players to step in this sector. Despite stringent laws, to add to the woes, power theft is continuing unabated. Power sector is the joint responsibility of the Central and the State governments. With the bulk of the transmission and distribution functions lying with the state utilities the State governments are chiefly to bear the blame for the power crisis.

The Indian economy is growing at a rapid pace at over 8 per cent per annum. The rising demand for power is outpacing supply. While electricity shortage is fueling power riots in the country, perhaps the best form of protest has come from a grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, the pioneer of non-violent protests in India. Gopalkrishna Gandhi, the Governor of West Bengal has volunteered to cut electricity in Raj Bhawan, his official residence, for two hours every day.

Source: ibnLive
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I would like to ask, what about ornithology, archeology or let us say some of the fine arts? The saddest thing is that a person who is truly talented in these fields does not find any opportunity to earn his bread and butter (I mean rice and grain) in his country and he has to mould his interests to suit the profile of an engineer, a doctor or a business manager. Other than this at the 12th standard level when a student makes specific career choices its rather peer influence, parental pressure or the current employment scenario that decides the career that he opts for, rather than his own personal liking.

Did somebody say that the Indian education is obsolete? Is it that the laws of physics hold good for today and not tomorrow? Why blame the syllabus when we don’t know how to use it? New economy is something that has come today. To appreciate its worth you need to have a sound knowledge of the old. You need to learn to crawl before you learn to walk. It is only very recently that a noted Indian management guru has shown the world how a management mantra of Chanakya (advisor to the great Mauryan emperor Chandra Gupta ) can provide the best solution to many of the current day and futuristic global management problems. Rote learning could never have produced a C.V. Raman or an Amartya Sen.

How do you define basic skills- knowledge of good communicative English? Why aren’t our people mature enough to understand that English is a foreign language for Indians and cent per cent proficiency should not be expected? When Japanese and Russian employers have looked beyond English for making progress, why shouldn’t an Indian employer give such an opportunity to his prospective employee? Yes, before talking about technical knowledge, I think we should think about the laboratory facilities given to the mass students. How can a person be creative when he has a limited choice of career options? We cannot think beyond the IT sector and its related areas.

Another very very grave issue that needs to be addressed is the brain drain. So is it lack of talent or our excessive desire for money, power, fame and social status that is eroding India of the employees that her business establishments truly deserve?
Of course academic policies and measures should be updated from time to time and our youth trained for employment as they have the capabilities to become the best global citizens to tread this earth.

Via: DNA India, Corbis

Inflation has spared none so far and no, Gods are not going to be spared either. Food prices have sky rocketed all over the globe in past few months and it is has hit Indians where it hurts the most. Indian devotees quite accustomed to bathe God in milk and offering flowers and fruits have been forced to cut down their daily offering. Most of them are heading temples in the mornings with empty folded hands with ardent prayers in their soul.

In past few months prices of milk, oil, lentils, rice and all essential commodities have risen sharply all over the globe. There is decline in local and global agriculture produce, so international markets are riding high and there is very little any government can do. From Africa to Thailand it is the same story. According to the U.N food program, more than 100 million people are being driven deeper into poverty due to rising food prices. This has led to world-wide protests and also to food-riots in some countries.

In this context, it is not surprising that temple offerings in India are being cut down by people. But in a multi religion dominated country like India this has many implications. Cut-down in religious offering is a visible parameter of inflation hitting the kitchens and bellies of common man in India. Temples and mosques are also complex economy centers in this country. There is a long supply chain; shop-keepers of flowers, fruits, milk, coconut, sweets, dairy products sells goods to devotees who offer them to small priests, head priests for their services and make generous donations to God. This is a sensitive ground to tread for everyone. Once this chain is affected no one can be sure how things can go out of control in India. This can also mean that Indians are already in a zero-tolerance zone.

It is high time Indian government took steps to curb the inflation or soon there will be desperate food-riot kind of situation. Global trends of inflation may take time to reverse but local interventions by Indian government like increasing local self-sufficiency by producing more food grains (rather than procuring from global markets) will ensure majority Indians, their children and their Gods don’t have to go hungry again.

Source: WashingtonPost

The facility currently is at research level, mainly for understanding nuclear chain reaction of thorium and testing the efficiency of thorium in producing energy. The data will be used to make a more powerful reactor in next five years; a huge network of such reactors may help India meet its electricity needs. The reactor is completely assembled indigenously by Indian scientists who often had to work against odds like international sanctions. No wonder Atomic department’s Chief Dr. Anil Kakodkar too was overjoyed.

Moreover, Indian scientific community can work in these facilities without radioactive worries. For the first time NDTV’s crew and camera could shoot inside the reactor core and vessel itself! Thorium looks all set to be the next nuclear fuel for the country. But how long will it take to generate energy on a larger scale? The projection is anything between 100 to 150 years! It may appear far and beyond current energy needs but it appears reasonable to work out options now, since mankind with its current consumption rate is set to exhaust hydrocarbons fuel in next 75-100 years.
This is a true ‘long term endeavor’ of science and technology; the present single reactor cannot even light a bulb, but who knows 100 years from now, it’ll be the only nuclear fuel satiating India’s energy needs and making India fully self sufficient in the field of energy.

source: NDTV