Monday, December 18, 2006

Cricket: Sreesanth Swinging His Bat?!

Cricket: This is Sreesanth, of India, responding to Andre (the Giant) Nel of South Africa by scoring a six and..... (more)

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

Rule 49(0) - Election Rules

I found this information about the election rules, this one is very important to us voters and there is a provision to make a difference in Indian politics.

Disclaimer : I have not written this information, I am merely copying the contents which, I got on my mail (I have not verified for the authenticity of the article).

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Among the reasons for poor voter turnout in the cities, particularly of the middle and upper classes, is the complaint that they have no real
choice considering the poor quality of candidates and the poor public
image of the parties these candidates represent. Secondly, many citizens
believe that their votes are not really going to make a difference.


Since in the ensuing elections there is no provision for indicating
rejection of candidates on the ballot, except by invalidating the vote
by ambiguous voting - that is, putting the stamp on the line separating
one candidate's name from another -- the Indian Liberal Group recommends
a solution that already exists in the Conduct of Election Rules 1961.
This not only gives reluctant voters a reasonable choice, but also
ensures that their vote does make a difference.


Rule No. 49(O) in the Conduct of Election Rules 1961 says:


"Elector deciding not to vote - If an elector, after his electoral roll
number has been duly entered in the register of voters in Form 17 A and
has put his signature or thumb impression thereon as required under
sub-rule
(1) of rule 49L, decided not to record his vote, a remark to this effect
shall be made against the said entry in Form 17A by the presiding
officer, and the signature or thumb impression of the elector shall be
obtained against such remark. "


Explanation: In other words, a voter can go to the polling station and
tell the presiding officer that he/she does not wish to cast her/his
vote. The presiding officer will make a remark that the voter does not
wish to vote and take the voter's signature against his/her name in the
register of voters (Form 17A). At the end of the day, the presiding
officer will, in totalling the number of votes cast, also include the
number of electors who refused to cast their vote. By doing so, voters
make it clear to all political parties that they are not satisfied with
the kind of candidates put up by them. Though they have done their duty
as citizens by going to the polling station, they have not found anyone
on the ballot paper who deserves their vote. This is the Protest Vote.


If large numbers of citizens exercise their franchise in this manner,
political parties will be forced to be far more careful in ensuring they
do not nominate crooks and criminals or incompetents as their candidates
next time round. This in turn will see the emergence of honest and
committed candidates getting into Parliament and state legislatures in
the long run, thus leading the way to good governance. After the present
elections have concluded, the Indian Liberal Group will press for the
Protest Vote facility on electronic voting machines the next time round,
so that voters have the option to say "None of the Above" after
scrutinizing the candidates on the ballot.


The other factor thats involved with this 49(0) section is a scary
section for the political parties.


Here's an example. Say there's a candidate standing in City A.


And say out of 100 people only 40 people turn to vote and out of that
the Candidate recieves 30 votes. Then by rule, he's been declared as
elected.
But say, if out of the 100 people 70 turn to vote. and 30 people vote
for the candidate and the other 40 people use section 49(0), to say i am
not interested in anyof the candidate. Then if, the candidates
vote(which the vote he got ie., 30) is less than the vote against him
(under section 49(0) - which is 40), then by rule he would not be elected as winner and in turn he would not be able to participate in anymore further elections.
And the election for CITY A will be re-held with fresh candidates. Now
that sounds great handle for people!!


And i hope that's why many people dont know about section 49(0) and the
politicians and the goverment still tries to keep it a hidden secret.
But how long? That depends on you'r hands now. .

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Friday, April 28, 2006

(P)Reservation

Reservation seems to be the word on everyone's lips, be it students, politicians, parents or bureaucrats, anyone and everyone seems to have an opinion about reservation.

To me there should be some amount of reservation, I accept and totally agree if there is reservation made in education because by no means we can compare the quality of education in city to the ones in the sub-urban areas, students from there are far behind in terms of quality education, the key point for anyone not from the quality school infested place and the ones where there is 'a' school for all the places surrounding 50-60 km is to be educated and complete their primary education and not about the quality of it, so it also maps to the kind of teachers over there and the way they impart the education (I am not blaming the students nor the teachers here, they have accepted what is being offered to them and are reasonably satisfied, because there is no way a city kid would opt for a school/college in a village, the vice-versa is always the case).
With this background, when these kids want to do their higher education it always helps it they get some push, either by reserving some seats for them or by bringing down the cut-off marks for getting qualified, this way we are ensuring a level playing field so that all can play and then make their mark.
But I do not see a point why the reservation are mapped to caste's (yes there could be cases where a particular caste is always economically backward), I think the whole reservation system should be designed so that all those people who fall below a particular financial line, should be benefited rather than saying that all those belonging to a particular caste get the reservation, this is totally absurd (this is done purely to keep the vote bank alive).

The reservation should stop at the education level and since they have provided a level playing field it is left to the individual from here whether he succeeds or not, the government should not make or ask for reservation in the jobs, this is absurd, you have provided the best of the education and then instead of allowing them to work hard to get a job, you are again going a step further and providing all on a platter then what is the point in studying, they are indirectly being encouraged not to study well and work hard because anyway there is a section of jobs being reserved for them.
Instead of making reservation, it would be better if the government sets aside a % of its GDP and makes some provision in the budget so that all those people who belong to the particular castes are entitled for 'X' amount of money, this way everyone is happy.

I am a SC (Scheduled Caste) person, all through my life I always felt and knew that my father was sufficiently well placed that he could take of my education, hence at no point in my life have I taken the benefit of being a SC - never availed a scholarship, fee cut, nor got into a college based on my caste, I did my B.E (comp sc), if I had used my caste certificate I could have easily got a MBBS seat, but did not because all through my life I was put in best of the school, college and was reading the same books as others and in spite of this if I didn’t get through then it does not make any sense to fall back on your caste and take the help of it, I have lived by that, today I am working as a Senior Manager in a IT firm and happy with what I have achieved.
I do not know if I had got my first job through reservation, then how my colleagues would have perceived me, even if I would proved my credibility there would always be a comment "he got this job because of reservation" - this tag is not good in professional career and will always become an hindrance in one's life.

For me the whole episode is a sham and this Reservation is nothing but for Preservation of vote bank.

"Government should never become god"

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Disown

Disown - is it easy or difficult or it is based on what/who or is it based on how close the person/thing is,

Is it really necessary for anyone to disown - I think it is absolutely necessary and useful and it helps one to a great extent to realize the importance of anything/anyone.

I have always lived with this attitude that I can change anytime, the change can be either external or internal, if its internal should it change my 'defining character' or should it just change based on the situation, situational change is all that is required but if it makes others feel that this person has undergone a sea change then it should not concern you, since it was you who decided to change and change for what to disown.

The basic question is still unanswered, is it really necessary to disown, yes to me because this way I have been able to continue with my life the same way it was always, if you get entangled then it is easy to get away;
'Getaway' is the keyword, everyone wants to - robber who robs the bank, a person who has committed a crime, a politician who has given false hopes/promises to people, a student from the exam hall.
If you are inclined or don’t believe in disowning then you get attached, which will definitely drive you into emotional ups and downs and will not help you in anyway in forgetting things.

I am very interested in gadgets, electronic items; I have invested a lot in my home theatre system, made sure each and everything I have purchased has got lot of attention and research, so that it gives me good viewing pleasure with proper sound, but even a slight thing makes me feel that it is not so important and if there arises a situation that I have to give it up, it is pretty easy for me, because I am always inclined towards disowning things, here I may have taken the example of my home theatre, but replace it with any living thing, the effect is still the same.

To own gives you pleasure, to disown provides relief.

Monday, April 17, 2006

For the fans, By the fans and To the fans

Last week was a memorable on for me for 2 reasons, one my friend got married on April 12th and the same day Dr Rajkumar (annavru) reached the heavenly abode.

What a contrast it was, there was so much happiness filled with dance and enjoyment at my friends marraige and then what I saw on TV (aftermath of Dr Raj demise) was something I could not digest, we were still in Chennai when I heard the news that Dr Raj is no more, first thing me and my friends did was to check if the situation in Bangalore is OK and is it fine to drive down to Bangalore, because during last two occasions; 1 - Rumour of Dr Raj death few years ago and 2 - Kidnapping of Dr Raj, saw bangalore turn into a ghost city; and it was a precaution me and my friends took to call up bangalore and check the situation, I do not understand why the government failed to do so, I sincerely feel that that the adminstration failed on those wednesday and thursday and our police force was so inadequate in dealing with mob fury, it was all to be seen on the TV, live.

I thought that Dr Raj should have been kept for another 2 days for public viewing as the number of people turning out was obviously more and in one day defnitely it would not have been possible for all his fans and wellwishers to see him for the last time, I think here the government and also to an extent Dr Raj family made a mistake.
Also, Dr Raj should have been buried at his birthplace, it would have reduced the crowd tension and also made way for Gajanur to become a tourist spot, his burial place could have been converted to a garden.

Dr Raj was made what he was and what he is today by his innumerable fans, it was befitting that he was finally buried by his fans (since his family members could not finish the ritual due to all the commotion that prevailed on that day), I think no man can ever get such a see off, it speaks about all the great deed that great person had done during his lifetime, Dr Raj fans always follow what he used to say in his movies, I have never seen an entire village give up drinking after seeing the movie "Jeevana Chaitra", it happened and now after he donated his eyes, there are so many people who are coming forward for donating thier eyes, he was a man of principle and he always lived by it and in his death also he is doing a noble cause, such men are rare, that is why diamond is so precious, he is more than that.

It was heartening to see Bangalore leap back to its normalcy within hours, that is why this place is such a great place, there are people who are not Bangaloreans and could not understand why people went crazy and acted in a way it should not have been, they can never understand what it means to a Dr Raj fan to assimilate the fact that Rajanna is no more; I have seen those people who never cried when thier parents passed away, but crying inconsolably seeing 'Annavru' pass away, it takes a lot to be Dr Raj and I am sure no one can match what he was, he will always remain a lone shining star for all Kannadigas.

I hope now the government fullfil his last wish (which he has told that to his family members); Convert the place where he is buried into a beautiful tourist spot which will tell the tale of his life and also portray the rich culture of Karnataka.

My only request and wish is that the new international airport coming up should be named after Dr Rajkumar.

My salutation to the great soul, will miss you truly Annavre.

"If you really want to do something, you will find a way. If you don't, you will find an excuse."

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Our Education lacks Teeth

Its been nearly 10 years since I completed my Engineering degrees (also means I am away from the happening college crowd for 10 years, miss those time :( ).

Things have changed the way it was, now even school going kids have a mobile phone, iPods/iRiver, have acessible to computers more than we could, internet has bloomed to its full, information is just a click away, everything has become tech savvy, BUT seriously nothing has changed when it comes to the way education is taught, the syllabus (maybe it has changed, but seriously I do not see any perceivable changes that it is providing to the new lot as compared to when I was studying).

I strongly feel our education system lacks teeth, that killer instinct that has to be instilled in each and every child.

*** 07-Apr-2006 6:17pm *** (wish to complete)
The reason why I feel so is, apart from those dedicated and concerned individuals who go out of the way and teach the student apart from what is texted (not a typo, my word for contents in book), I was lucky to have one such teacher (during my pre-university classes), he used to tell us a lot about social values, what to do, what not to do - I used to always think what if the same was taught to me during my formative years, I would have been a much better human being that what I am.

Our education system, does it teach
- Us to be a law abiding people,
- Each one of us what it means to pay tax and how it benefits the society as a whole,
- Traffic discipline,
- Not to be corrupt,
- Politics is also a good option as a career and what difference does the educated clan can make to the current political scenario,
- Teach about the biggest scams which have happened in the recent past, and with it send a message that by doing it, we are hurting ourselves,
- India is one?

I can go on (which I will defnitely will do as and when required).

Sleeping when the house is on fire may help you not to see the damage but won't help in saving the house.

Road Rash

Atlast Bangalore is getting its infrastructure spruced up and all thanks to Kumaranna (I had written about him going the Naidu way in my yahoo blog - Wishful thinking - Kumara going the Naidu way), I see it happening now, Bangalore will regain whatever glory it had lost w.r.t IT, BT or any other T not coming to Bangalore, industries are still queing up to get land in Bangalore to start thier companies.

Coming to the orginal subject I wanted to talk about (I always transgress pretty easily :) ), the roads are all being made up, all tarred up, potholes being filled very meticulously and ensure than another bout of rain will not take the charm away from the decked up roads.

But whatever said and done, finally when it comes to the actual commutable place on the road, it still remains the same, it actually does not make any difference when compared to earlier times, because on either side of the road there are always vehicles parked which take away nearly 40% of the road and that leaves just place for vehicles to move from either side and the same traffic jam still exists as earlier, the main culprits I see are Autos (Auto drivers need to be educated properly, I think this is the biggest challenge for any goverment if they really want to solve the traffic woes), Two-Wheelers (they never park parallel to the footpath, instead they always park at 90degree to the footpath which naturally takes a lot of place), Cars (especially of those small companies which are located in small buildings and dont have parking place), these vehicles are parked almost throughout the entire day and during peak traffic hours.

Unless they are hefty fines charged for all the traffic violations and cancelling of the licence for frequent offenders, things will never improve and BCC will have a ball during every budget it comes out with, because they know only one solution - flyovers, fly over all the other things and pocket the money to the kitty.

We all need to be educated on traffic sense and it is the responsibility of each citizen to abide by traffic rules and also use some common sense while driving/commuting - this would actually make Bangalore a better place instead of decking up Bangalore.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Naming Conventions - who named all these places

I was watching the news channel (one of the many I have tuned on my TV), my wife hates me for watching the news channel whenever am in front of the TV, I somehow feel the news channels are more entertaining than any other entertainment channel.

A lady was reporting some news and while signing off she said her name and the place she was in, it made me think when was the last time a place has got its name, I mean other than those satellite towns which are created within a particular town to create a township (which are already well known).

I was born in Bangalore, in the place called Maruthinagar, which is adjacent to Madivala, Adugodi, Tavarekere, Suddaguntepalya and so on, it made me think since my birth all these places have those names and I think my father also remembers them since his childhood (Not taking into account those places which are renamed just to give that 'sense of owning' feeling).

Is there any place wherein people live and do not have a name for that place and are still strugling to find a name, when was the last time humankind found a place that did not have a name and still had people living!!!!! - does'nt it mean that the world has always been properly organised even before the invent of computer and other hi-fi gadgets?

Whats in a name, an apple if called as rose, does it loose its taste? NO, but it defnitely loses it charm

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Accessible or should I say Human Emotion!!!

Google has added a whole new dimension to learning, if I want to learn anything, just google and bingo I am on it, life has never been so easy, technology has compressed the world, it has become reachable to one and all, there are no restriction whatsoever as to who should learn what, if you have the urge then you are on.

Its an alltogether different story that, the rate at which technology is improving, it is making us all more accessible (nowadays, physical contact is not that much neccessary to being accessible) it is also drifting us apart.

I think that we are also becoming less and less adventurous when compared to our parents, grand parents, they had time for everything, but we, oh man ask us about time and we do not have time to speak about that, we have become so mechanical that we tend to forget we are still human with lots of emotion.

Am I blaming the improvements in technology to this (I am in no way accusing Google of taking away human emotion), not really, just that we tend to forget that things can always wait and we should learn to say NO whenever possible (even if its for the heck of it).

When was the last time, I surprised my wife with a flower --- hmm! probably 4-5 months back!!
When was the last time, I called up a distant relative just to say hi --- hmm! never.
When was the last time, I drenched myself in rain and enjoyed --- maybe several years back, when I was studying.
there are so many things that I can list and go on and on, but the point is that we think a lot even for small things, sometimes it is better to be a novice instead of an expert.

To say I love, makes no sense, one should feel it.

Moving from Yahoo 360

I used to blog on yahoo 360, but since most of my friends have a blog on this site, thought would make sense to move in here. Yeah it is difficult to move out of one's comfort zone and take up new things; there is always some kind of doubt in one's own mind whether what I am going to take up will work or not, but invariably it always works, it is just that we are not fine tuned to take up risk in our lives and hence become 'Frog in the Well'.

I have no idea for how long will I stick to here, all depends how easy my friends find to read the blog, so friends are my customers, if they are satisfied I am happy else, I have to move again and find a place where, I can make my customers happy.

Something similar is happening to me in my profession life, I have been with this company for the past 6 years, can call myself a success, have grown from the bottom of the chain in the hierarchy to being a manager, but offlate I am getting this feeling that I am getting into my comfort zone and hence there is fear of moving (shall write later about my fears), and hence am not able to satisfy my own conscience (my customer) and the moment customer is not happy, your business goes down and hence to keep my stocks up, have decided to take the risk and move out of the comfort zone.

Sometimes those decision we think are difficult to take are the ones which are the most easiest.