The 2G Sale

Interesting read.. Captivating and Eye Catching.. "Supreme court sraps UPA's 2G Illegal Sale". What a start to the Year. An investigation started one year ago and the SC coming thundering down steam rolling all culprits in its path, and having the tenacity and the guts to quash not one, not ten, but 122 licences, all across the country.

The impact no doubt will be big, and one report quotes SBI having a Rs 45k Cr exposure. Money, no doubt is a big issue, considering the number of players, however what is key, is the image bashing that the Government will have to go through. How do you inform the world, that the we sold you something that was tainted all across?

Possibly, they (Govt) knew. Possibly they endorsed it. Deals like these do not walk alone. They need crutches. Where the crutch originates from, no one really is worried. As long as there is a crutch.

Of course the next few months would see a lot of appeals, media comments, TV channels, all giving in their own views with animated screens coming down 25 times in one minute, making a mockery of the event with flashy, booming voice overs coming in from behind.

But, what of the Corporate world? The Tata's, the Birla's, the Ambani's. They are the images that the world sees as representatives of India. They too have been a part of the scam. It woudl simply not be possible, that they would have known that all is clean. The fact that many of them are being fined by the SC, speaks of their involvement in this.

The beureaucrats, no doubt will have a field day. Kapil Sibal blames Raja, the BJP asks the ex FM to quit, and of course there will be many more.. Congress blames the BJP as they did the initial draft by the then Telecom Minister.. and I distintctly recall that when the auctions took place, the BJP took credit as their brain child.. Today, all is forgotten, the blame game starts, the finger pointing.. How many more will be indicted is an open question, but once again the sufferrer will be the common man. Imagine millions of subscribers impacted due to this.

No doubt cleaning dirty laundry is never easy, and full Kudous to the SC of India, who once again showed their impartiality and put the National interest before any thing else. A judiciary that is independent of such baggage is necessary in a democracy, that still leaves hope for the future.

Anna Hazare, speak up!!!

A 30 Second Speech by Bryan Dyson



Speech by Coca Cola CEO

Got this on a FB post.. Nothing new, has been going around for a couple of years, always crops up now and then, you have people sharing a like, a Share, a comment, very good, so true, excellent, wonderful thoughts, and all the blah blah blah that comes along with it...



Is it bad? Is it wrong? No. What has been stated is so very true, and there have been a number of such thought provoking speeches over the years that we have read and will probably continue to read. The Dhirubai Ambani's, the Narayanan Murthy's, the Lee Iacoca's and all.. I totally agree, there has to be a balance of all, but at what stage?

Does this appy to a person starting his career? Can a fresher out of college go with this attitude? Can a person who has not had a job for months, think this way, that he will work efficiently and will leave on time. Who guarantees no retrenchments? Who gurarantees a Job? Who assures that what will be considered will be the efficiency of the work, not the fact that people have done their job and left on time.



In this world of man eat man, where even dog does not eat a dog, can this be said to be true all across. May be yes, once you reach a point in life, a certain destination, a certain goal, but the fact is, that you cannot have this 100% applied.. Bryan Dyson may have stated what he might have followed after becoming a CEO, however has he mentioned any of the hard nights that he might have gone through to reach that post?

I am just reminded of Ratan Tata's comment when he wanted to have a meeting in Jaguar after taking over.. The fact that people were not available after office hours, was an upsetting factor. The fact that people did not consider long travelling visitors who came to meet, was upsetting.. And by no means, is Ratan Tata a small grocery owner.. Who does one follow..

For me.. It is your call.. You know best, when to stop.. Work will never finish, however one should know where the line draws. No doubt what Dyson says is true, and certainly there has to be a balance, and every one has their own markers.





A day out.. On a Yacht

Was just reading my last post.. Nearly six months old. And apparently not more than one post in the entire year?? Why, I have no clue and no answer..And to think I came from hibernation at the time and was wondering why people go into hibernation? I guess, an answer I simply could not find, or I probably know, but not admitting it..

No point delving into the past, point is going ahead.. The fact that I have come back to writing, is initself a self good feeling factor to myself, that I am doing something other than the standard work routine.. Work, come home, work, and go back to work..

What became different? Well a simple change where a day out with the family on a Yacht.. What is so special about it? Nothing much one would say, but the simple fact that you stop every thing in the world, and take a day off for yourself, to enjoy the sun and the wind, the breeze flowing through your hair, the fact that you are in the middle of no where, at times, yet there, simply disconnecting from the world, leaving all your cares behind.. What more can one say?

Had the luxury to do it twice in less than a month, last week of the year in 2011, a few days off, not many, but still.. Off with the family, to a beach resort, doing nothing but sitting in the pool, in the sauna, on the beach, enjoying the sun and the sand.. Just leaving time behind, if only momentarily.

Moral of the story.. Time is indeed precious.. We all spend our lives working out for our bread and butter, and at some point, simply leave ourselves behind.. Though we come back to reality fast enough, but the momentary joy that one can attain by a simple act, of being with people one cares, people that one loves, sharing a light moment.. Simply priceless.. It is these memories that linger for long.. Not the project that you completed day and night..

India Treasure Troves

Often wondered at times, why people go into hibernation and then suddenly come out, from nowhere. What is it that ticks them to disappear, and what suddenly turns the nerve to come out all guns blazing.. My reason for the comment: I went through the same, stopping my notes for nearly six months, since my last comment, not writing and then suddenly an article that I read yesterday, stirring me up.

50k crores worth of treasure found in Kerala (video link), underneath the temple in Thiruvanthapuram. hidden in vaults that were closed for decades and centuries. What is amazing is not the quantum of wealth hidden, as the glory and grandeur of India is well known, but the fact that the vaults despite being in the temple, were never bothered to be opened. Either the temple authorities did not know, or were simply not interested.

As our famed Archealogical department now goes temple by temple, they probably will find a lot more such treasures, amounts running into Hundreds of thousands of crores, the question arises, what happens to this new found national treasure? Of course, there will be compilations, lists, assessments, then what?

Are we really going to preserve this, or is this treasure going to land up into Swiss Banks of the Mayawatis, the Gandhis, the Yadav's and not to forget, the Jaya Amma's? Is India really capable of understanding and managing it's history? Does India or for that matter the Average Indian really care about it's glorious past? Is it something that is just meant for history pages, that every one reads in the 8th - 10th Grade and not meant for future use?

I could be wrong. Maybe the treasure would be used properly, and show cased in museums, however we all know that this will never happen. India does not have the infrastructure, nor the interest to manage it's national treasures.. We may be a nuclear country, and we may possess the best brains, and half the world may be running on Indians (or Indian origin migrated expatriates), but the fact is that we are pathetic when it comes to managing our past and our glory. The only time it is highlighted is in the PM's annual speech on August 15 and Jan 26.

This treasure could just be a drop in the ocean and surely many more such findings would come out as there is so much more that probably may not even have been found.. What do we do with these.. Put these into safe lockers, hidden from the world (as are a lot of the treasures of the Nizam era) or will the state actually build a brand new musuem with the latest in security and guard this?

Or do we spend it on development? Of course, most of it would to to the minorities, the Muslims, the Christians, even though the treasure has been found from Hindu temples.. All in the name of secularism? And why would that be, because we Hindus would be busy fighting as to which caste and sect should be the beneficary of this money.

It is really unfortunate that despite the Kings and Queens of yore having gone long back, India and more so, Hindus, have not been able to come out of the caste bracket.. We are still high class brahmins and low caste Dalits. We have to survive this way to ensure that we get our pound of flesh, and all with the help of our leaders, who themselves ensure that this fire never dies down.

One fine day, we would find out that most if not all of our national treasures are gone, lying either in some offshore accounts of our saviours, our great party leaders, our politicians or even better, moved to another country in private mansions or even adoring musueums of coutnries, who have no link to our past? There will be a hue and cry in parliament, or maybe not at all, as most of them would have been part of it? A lot might be sold to our foreign buyers, of course, with our leaders being the sellers.

The question always does arise in my mind.. Should we be finding all these national treasures? Are we capable of living with our past and ensuring that the past is preserved and the future of our country taken care of? Or do we want to ensure that the past is where it should be, in paper, not really worth the effort to preserve this.

Or really, should some one have had the balls sixty years ago, to state that India is and will be a Hindu nation, so FU, MG..