Friday, December 31, 2010

The Remarkable Year


The Remarkable Year
It’s a cliché- writing about resolution for next year and highlights of the passed year. Do you think I will write something banal? Well I just might. This has perhaps been the most remarkable year in my life in terms of lesson that it has taught me. I have learned a lot this year and mostly through failures. So as of now I will narrate my story for this year in terms of confessions and lessons.

The year started with a resolution that I will be more sensible and responsible this year, that I will finish the things that I start, that I will stick to my words, that I will be serious about stuff. Result- Failure, Lesson- No impractical resolutions anymore, Resolution for the coming year- I will stick to my words and for that I will be cautious with my words. I read somewhere the golden rule of professional success is ‘Under promise and over delivery’. Well I think this is something that is fairly accurate in the context of our daily life as well.
This year is supposed to be a defining year in my life as I am going to change my line this year from technical to administrative/managerial. And for that I have written a heck load of tests this year from mock to sectionals to real-time brain grilling tests(except XAT, the toughest one). Result- yet to be declared but the one that has been declared has been a failure. Lesson- It doesn’t matter how good you are at classes or at mocks or at sectionals if you can’t perform your best in these tests. Lesson- gotta learn how to be normal under pressure and will have to avoid putting myself under unnecessary pressure.

One more thing and one of the most important one is I learned that I am not really a genius. I had a notion that I am brilliant, I can do anything and over that I am better than anyone that I have met or will ever met except few( very few). But by the end of this year I happened to come in touch with people with godly intellect, Absolute genius. Result – well I guess this is an abstract one but still I would say the result is that I learned the reality. Lessons- Though there are people who have sharper logical ability or better quantitative ability or may be they know more words than I do or perhaps are better at grammar than I am. But does that make them superior or more importantly how does it bring me down? Well the thing is they have their strengths and I have mine. They have their dreams and I have mine, they have their ways and I have mine. Where any competition does comes in? A test? Well is life all about these tests? No.   But its good that I know that there are lot of people out there with a sharper brain than the one I have. Some with perhaps not as sharp an intellect but a higher capability to work hard and more dedication and as a result they are better than me as well in the overall result. So the point is I have gotta work hard and improve a lot.  

Now most importantly, for my preparations I took sort of a sabbatical from facebook and most forms of social networks barring PG. And in this period of abstinence I realized the value of friends and the strength they give. Its not that they help you out physically all the time or transfer funds into your account but they provide you the necessary encouragement and motivation. They help you in keeping it on, they stick by your side and provides you company in hard times. I love you fellas J there is a lot more that I want to say but its not hitting me right now nor are the thoughts coming in a structured way as they usually come. Thanks for keeping up with me.

Lastly I will specially like to thank a few special people in my life

My parents and brother( though it unlikely any of them will read this, they never had)
My sisters Saki Dee, hiral, ankita dee , feby
My brothers Addu , shree,akash, sumit bhai, nitin bhai sorry if I missed any one.
My Besties Chunnu, bunnu, mittal, gauti, Dj, tannu, Srish
Some other special friends this year
Neha,Satwinder, api, dip da, deba bhai, jeff broda,megz, tashu, Dr. Shraddha, Divyadeep, ruchi, sonam, anu, bhoomi, akash, sikki, addu, jt, Deepak actually a lot of people

Guess I am fairly good at socializing but I love you guys and you can mail me your greviences for missing your name in this post

Wishing you all a very happy and prosperous new year


Friday, December 24, 2010

Human Beings and Computers

We are becoming increasingly dependent on computers. They are used in business, hospitals, crime detection and even to fly plains. What things will they be used in future. Is this dependence on computer good or we should be more suspicious of its benefits?

Barely half a century ago, the concept of computer was alien to mankind. All the calculations were done with pen and paper. Firms use to hire accountants in herds to manage there accounts. Then came computers, in what can be called as invention of the century. The idea behind the invention of computers was to create device to aid human beings in tedious and time consuming calculations requiring pinpoint precision. What was not foreseen was the potential and possibilities associated with this technology. Soon computers could be seen anywhere from industries to shops, from offices to homes, and from desktops they reached our pockets. It came as a service but have now become a utility in many parts of the world.

What sets a computer apart form other path breaking discoveries of its time, namely Radio and television? Why these technologies didn’t reach the same level as computer? The answer to this question is interactivity. Computer is an interactive device. It is customizable that is it can be modified to fit and serve user specific requirements. It reacts to users commands provides useful results, helps its owner increase his or her efficiency. It is this property of computers that creates a bond between it and its user. A computer integrates itself into the life of its owner. Which, unfortunately its counter parts television and radio couldn’t do.

This interactivity and integration also makes computer suitable for a wide range of applications. It can be embedded into home appliances. It can be a one point connection to rest of the devices in a system. A computer can also be upgraded significantly in term sof computational power. And owing to its interactive nature it can perform and multitude of complex functions. This can be observed in diversity of applications for which computers are employed. Computers are used in flight simulation, precision requiring surgeries, space operations, auto pilot, traffic monitoring, manufacturing units and many more. All technological advancement in computers have come in less than half a century.

This frenzied pace of development makes one wonder, where is this technology heading? Are those sci-fi fantasies coming real? Will there be cyborgs sprawling all across the planet? Will those digital mazes as in matrix be a reality in future? Already R&D labs across world are spending heavily on artificial intelligence and neural networks to provide thinking capabilities of human brain to computers. NASA has already send spirit and discovery, its automated probes to scan the surface of mars and provide us with valuable information. These probe can work in inhuman condition without any effect on their logical units. They can run on static source of power for long durations. They can refuel themselves. Defense departments everywhere in the world are busy in developing unmanned fighting machines. US Air force’s Predator, an Unmanned Ariel Vehicle (UAV) is one such example. It can transmit signals across continents, is undetected by radars. It has been successfully transmitting strategically sensitive information in Afghanistan and Iraq. These are but few examples of how penetrating and strong computer based technologies can be.




With human beings relentless pursuit for creating artificial intelligence, One can be in awe as well as fear of the possibilities computer presents. Where, they can be representatives of our civilizations at places where we cannot flourish, they can also be our worst nightmares if they gain complete self control. The dependence on computers need a vigilant monitoring on our part for its good as long as we are its masters but not the other way round.  

Thursday, December 16, 2010

In a State of Moral Corruption



I have been going over this particular issue over and over in my mind. Every few days I get to read stuff like this in news paper and most of the time its coming from Delhi. A few days ago it was a rape case of a BPO employee near Dhaula Kuan (  a place which was the main junction to reach my test center for IIFT) and now I read about a teenage girl who was abducted and stripped of her dignity by a hoard of spiteful creatures.  All this, day after day, it blew the lid off my  rage WHAT IN THE WORLD IS WRONG WITH DELHI? To be precise the question should be What in the world has gone wrong with delhites?
With this question haunting my mind I decided to dig up the internet for as many facts as I could come up with and my own interpretations of those facts. They may be skewed for all I care but the point is THIS NEEDS TO STOP! Is this what we will pass on to our coming generations, An Ethically disgusting place to live?
 With every search I did I came up with more abominable facts and opinions. Here is what Wikipdia has to say about Delhi on its main page dedicated to Delhi

In 2005, Delhi accounted for the highest percentage (16.2%) of the crimes reported in the 35 cities in India with populations of one million or more.[100] The city also has the highest rate of crime against women (27.6 compared to national average rate of 14.1 per 100,000) and against children (6.5 compared to national average of 1.4 per 100,000) in the country.[101]


What a glossy picture we are throwing of our nation all across the world. I feel privileged living in this country of rich culture and tradition.  Here is more I am compiling as much of news as I can for you at one place as possible for me.  For you need to understand that everything is not right. Commonwealth game might have made every Delhite proud of delhi for pulling it off magnificently amid all the legendary scams but Life is not about games. Delhi, if it keeps on going like this will soon be uninhabitable, at least for the fair sex. Here is more…
Delhi is the national capital, but the law and order is not the best in the world. In fact it is abysmally poor, with day light murders and rapes a frequent occurrence. Recently two girls were walking along the road, when a car pulled up near them and one of the girls was pulled inside the car and it sped off. This too in broad daylight, when tens of commuters were around. The girl after repeated rape was left on the roadside. The silver lining was that she was not murdered.
Over the past couple of months Delhi, has been witnessing an average of one rape case almost everyday and experts have attributed the alarming trend to two major factors - a low conviction rate and lack of better and preventive policing.
Citing rape to be one of the fastest growing crimes in the county, they say it takes an enormous amount of time to bring to book the guilty.
According to police records, over 400 rape cases have been reported in the capital in the year 2010 alone.”
I think this must be giving you some chills but this is what happening in Delhi. But the question here is why is this happening ? After decades of monetary corruption now are we heading towards an Age of moral corruption? Strangely the answer to this question can be found on a Government site. The following excerpt has been taken from  CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN CELLS - THE DELHI POLICE EXPERIENCE.
“A steep decline is evident in the male female ratio in India over the last century. It has declined from 972 females for every 1000 males in 1901 to 927 per thousand in 1991. The northern states show even poorer ratios than the national average. Along with some other countries in South Asia, India must hold itself accountable for its missing women. From cradle to grave there is a systematic discrimination against women. Nutrition, health care, education are all withheld or provided grudgingly to daughters. Son preference is expressed in deep rooted cultural mores: blessings and rituals at a marriage, foods prescribed for pregnant women, condolences at the birth of a girl child.
Violent crimes against women are both a continuation of the systematic discrimination against women and its results. The violator feels his acts are socially sanctioned; the evidence is manifest in all that he has witnessed since childhood. Women must be kept in their place, else some great calamity may befall society.The falling sex ratio should be of grave concern to law enforcement and criminal justice agencies. In simple terms who will the extra men find to marry, start a family with, or harass in a domestic relationship? Will it not lead to greater street crimes, more harassment of women in public places, more rape, and more violence in marriage as husbands strive to keep control of the increasingly rare commodity that they have managed to secure? “

The Declining Sex ratio, especially in the northern provinces of the country has got a very crucial implication on the crime scene in the national capital or should I say National Crime Capital( As many as 53,244 criminal cases, including 467 murders, 581 rapes, 1,764 dacoity and other heinous crimes, were registered in Delhi during the year). Now back to the most important issue the effect of Declining sex ratio on the crimes against women can be understood if look at certain facts.
Sex ratio in states sending majority of migrants to Delhi
Punjab
874
Chandigarh (U.T.)
773
Haryana
861
Bihar
921
Uttar Pradesh
898
Madhya Pradesh
920
And finally
Delhi (U.T.)
821
Where the sex ratio of India stands at 933. 
This clearly suggests the huge disparity in the sex ratio in the national capital reason being most of the migrants that come from these states are Male labors or youngsters in search for employment. Which is one of the prime reason for skewed sex ratio in the National capital. These guys come from states where there are not enough to equate their numbers. For I can not belive that those of the educated class as most of the urban city citizens on india can be classified into would commit such heinous crimes.
Crime of this nature can only be committed by 2 catagories of people
·         Those who are immune from the law and order
·         Those who don’t know the law and order
As for the first category the Sons and daughter of corporate stalwarts with political influence and the ministers will count And as far as the second category is concerned these labors from the poorer states will count.

And as we all know both these species can be readily seen strolling through the roads of Delhi. No Wonder the crimes are soaring. But is this the only reason? Unfortunately not there is one more reason rather complex one 
It is the lax law enacted by the Morarji Desai Janta regime in 1977, which amended the law and made getting bail easier. Thus a rapist or murderer easily gets bails and the deterrent of time in jail is dispensed with. In addition the law and order in Delhi is a Central Government prerogative and the Delhi state government has no responsibility. This leads to a piquant situation and the sufferer is the law and order situation. Another aspect of the crime rate is the lax police approach. Many a time the police do not record FIR's as they would like to keep their books regarding crime clean. In addition the western UP criminal tribes come to Delhi commit the crimes and head back. But these tribes usually take part in robbery and murder. But rape and sex related crimes are the handiwork of local boys. Some of them are the children of known politicians, who are shielded by their parents. An example is the case of Nitesh kataraia.This boy was murdered by the son of a well known politician, as the boy could not accept kataria's love affair with his sister. The government of India which is responsible for the law and order of Delhi, must act before Delhi slithers further down the road of crime and anarchy.

But my friends these are not the biggest reason. The biggest reason for increasing crimes in delhi is the Sleepy citizens of delhi. There complacency. Their  cowardice. The sheer brilliance in forgetting everything. Their relentless pursuit of Ignorance.
Psychiatrist Samir Parikh blames the increasing number of rapes on the mentality of "getting away with anything.The rising number of cases suggest that the fear of consequence of action is on decline and the perception of 'get away with anything' is growing. Why is it that in Delhi young girls in buses don't find any support when they are harassed?" he asks.

They say Ignorance is a bliss but not at the cost of dear ones my friends. How long do you plan to keep on sleeping. If 14 million resident of delhi will voice their concerns over rising crime will they still be unheard? If 14 million people of delhi decides to stand against crime can they be suppressed. Its common sense the answer is No. As United we stand.

For if it continues like this one day your sisters, wives, mothers wont be able to step out of their homes.  I may sound rhetoric but who cares? As long as my voice is heard and reaches the right ears I am a happy man I don’t live in delhi and if it stays like this I certainly don’t want too. But as an Indian I fear what is delhi today may be my city tomorrow.

SOURCE

Saturday, December 11, 2010

The Heir to a Cursed Throne





I feel dejected; it feels hollow in my stomach.
My Insides seems to have vanished
There is a void in my heart and it seems to devour every last bit of feeling left in me.

My mind is swirling in a whirlpool of negative thoughts
I am going to drain through the eye of the storm into an emptiness 
of thoughts
Completely devoid of any form of spiritual life.

Its Back, The hopelessness of a lone success
I have everything to share but no one to share it with
I sit atop the highest hill but there is no sense of 
accomplishment

Its remorse, its morbid, It’s a lonely tree in 
a seemless garden
A lonely moon in a dark starless night
I see flashes of happy, smiling faces
I spread out my arms and reach out to them
They fade away.

I hear a voice, its coming from a far away place
It sounds familiar, its mine, I almost forgot.
I see the whole world I can even pull some strings
But no one seems to notice

I have got a huge following, but they don’t know me
The real me.

The Heir to a cursed throne

This is the way my life is going to be and
 I am learning to live with it
No love
No hope
No emotions
A Still Motionless Sea of Great Depth…
Mayank Rajput

11 December 2010