SG OwnBlog

I stayed for 3 years in Bangalore. There were places I loved in the city, places that I liked and a few places that I hated. There were also places about which I cannot make up any opinion at all. Among them was the Jumma Masjid on the Dispensary road. This is not to be confused with the more famous Trust by the same name that is close by. The area around is always busy and the commercial street is also close. The markets were always full of customers, shopkeepers sold exotic items. Just a few hundred meters and you could also visit the markets selling lots of stolen goods, though the shopkeepers often deny that and then wink to show that they were bluffing. It is a fun place for a man to be in, a bit scary for many women, except in a crowd. Anyway, I always found the place inviting in a peculiar way, the nearby Salafi mosque preaching the evils of other religions, the stench of the urinals, the cheap stolen goods in the market, the prostitutes on the road, the hustle and bustle...

In this Information age, the opinions of people are shaped by the discourse that happens in the media – the newspapers, the internet forums, the videos that are shot, the letters, open letters and counter letters. A vast majority of them are full of half-truths and that is not surprising as every side has skeletons to hide. The problem arises when a gullible population (read Indians) digest these printed words both offline and on as the ultimate Truth without question. Secondary sources and even imaginary accounts becomes Gospels to be used to shut anyone who dares to oppose the mainstream discourse. The Quint has recently published an open letter by a veteran soldier of the Indian Army named Major Gaurav. They apparently waited for a counter to that which was furnished by a Wasim Khan, a ‘Kashmiri’ who now is settled in Mumbai and runs a successful media agency (not surprising). So before we go into braindead blaming attempts, let’s analyze the two pieces one by one and check ...

Burhan Wani – The man and his mission The death of a young ‘hero’? On the 8 th of July, Burhan Muzaffar Wani died in the Valley of Kashmir. Thousands poured out on the streets to commemorate his services to the movement that he had come to symbolize of late. The relative calm of the region was shattered with curfews, killings and allegations of human rights abuses. His father was proud for the services his son had offered in the name of their faith, convinced that he would go to Heaven. Amidst all this, the romantic ideals of a young boy, just off his teens began to shake up the youth of the entire country, both in and beyond India. There is a lot of unrest in the Kashmir Valley recently, especially in the aftermath of the death, nay execution of Burhan. All of this is not unexpected in any way. In fact, this was foreseen. Even his glorification, his elevation to the status of a martyr in the service of Islam does not come as a surprise to me. Threats to the Indians - In th...

Yamuna was a beautiful river in Northern India. It originates in the Yamunotri glacier at a height of 6400 metres above sea level. You may not remember it, and no, it's not Ganga. Let me remind you of a picture of the beautiful river here, the river that flows by the Taj Mahal. That's how the Yamuna river looks! Or rather looked before Sri Sri came. Yes, the picture above was real. The river supported a population of 57 million people. It continues to do now. The water was pure. Animals were aplenty. The air was sweet and the birds flocked to the area in thousands. The local forests on both sides of the floodplain were thicker than those in the Amazon and the waters were filled with fish. The standards of conservation of biodiversity was impeccable and often produced as an example to other river management bodies. Then came Sri Sri. An Indian godman who owned millions to spread his pagan beliefs and something called 'Indian' culture along with the cultures of ...

We, the city educated have always looked down upon the village dwellers. Of course not all of us. And even those who do, don't do this all the time. But in general, it is true. This phenomenon is not restricted to India or any developing world but also all over the Industrial world. The perception of tribal populations is also nuanced. Some consider them exotic, some think they are uncivilized, some find them as an opportunity to proselytize, some wish to use them as cheap labor, some hope to drive them out for mining or dam projects, and so on. Very few consider them similar to us. This is very true for the Left leaning self proclaimed liberals. They are always at the forefront when demanding tribal rights. In some landmark cases they have achieved wonderful results that anyone, regardless of their political ideology can be proud of. But the politically biased conclusions they derive spoil the efficacy of such interventions. The worst being them called as interventions. The ver...

As part of a survey of the residents of IIT Bombay regarding their perception of water quality and to some extent usage, we followed this questionnaire. Some interviews were done when we formulated the semi structured questions. These below are to basically quantify the data we get and make certain clear observations. What we expect - i. The investment made by different people from different strata in the purification of water in their own homes ii. The usage of water per person in different income groups iii. General awareness of water usage. We can also check if there is a difference in perception between male and female population surveyed. iv. Water literacy of the people can be understood. This can help the Institute to address any gaps necessary to either reduce wastage or improve efficiency etc. You can download the Questionnaire from here.

Santalekhola, a very beautiful calm and quiet place in the district of Darjeeling in W.B. It is not a very popular tourist spot still now, and I think that'why its virgin beauty attracted me so much.Here you don't need to run from one place to another, you only come here,take rest and feel the vibration of nature. The West Bengal forest dept.cottages are very good and reasonable priced and the ambiance is truly very soothing. "Khola" means in Nepali a small river, you can hear the rhythmic sound of water all the time. The birds, butterflies and the  sound of silence will create resonance with the nature and you.