IRCTC call centre experience

I called Irctc's customer support call center today. And boy, what an experience it was!!! I am used to the excessively oily and polite talk of call center representatives in private sector and the callous indifference of is a rude shock. Don't get me wrong. The guy ultimately provided the support I needed. But the style of talking was appalling. Far from feeling that I,the customer, is a king, I felt like dirt. Irctc has to move light years in its service standards.

A Nice poem

ఒరులేయని యొనరించిన

నరవర తన మనంబున క ప్రియంబుగుతానని

ఒండురులకు సేయకునికి

పరాయణము పరధర్మ పథములు కెల్లన్ ...

తా || ఇతరులు ఏయే పనులు చేస్తే నీ హృదయానికి బాధ కలుగుతుందో అవి ఇతరులకు నీవు చేయక పోవడమే అన్ని ధర్మాలలోకెల్ల మహోన్నతమైన పరమ ధర్మము.

Fitting in

One of man's basic needs is to fit-in the society he lives in. Being the social animal that he is, it is among the basic human needs that he needs acceptance from his peers. But when a person fits in the crowd, he is indistinguishable from the crowd. He is no longer an unique individual but becomes one among the multitude. Thus his very basic nature pulls him down from the path of greatness. The direct implication of this is every great man is one who has fought against this basic human need - and won.

Kleptocracy

I learnt a new word today. Kleptocracy. I think the word suits perfectly for most of our politicians. Come to think of it most of the terms with negative connotations suit our politicians perfectly. Crony Capitalism, Kleptocracy, Nepotism, Demagogy the list continues....

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleptocracy?wasRedirected=true

Imperfect World

The Kid was bored. He had nothing to do. All his pals were out playing, building better things/ He is stuck in his room, grounded by his father as a punishment for using magic in classroom.

Bah! The fools. They, and their reservations against using magic. What is the point in not using magic when you can? Dad always says to him "Not using magic is the key to learn to its proper uses" or "If you are not careful, the cosmos you will create shall be imperfect". They all said so. Why can't they agree with his argument that for building a perfect thing he should first practice? He can always correct the mistakes with a little magic. When he put forth his argument, Dad always shakes head and pulls a harder frown on his face.

None the less, today his curiosity or juvenile nature got better of him and he has used a little magic in the class. A small prank, was all. He merely reversed the entropy of one of the cosmos models on display and it started to shrink instead of expanding out. This pissed the teacher something awful and they sent a letter to his father. As a result, he was grounded. Dad would not listen to him even when he offered to undo his magic. He was in fact even more angered. "Irresponsible", he said in a disgusted tone. And then he was grounded.

The kid was bored. He had nothing to do. He began to pace his room. He thought of ways to avoid boredom. He thought of practicing the magic tricks he recently learnt. But they were too small and childish for him. He passed over the thought. He thought of pulling a prank. No good. There was no one to pull the prank on. He grew resentful and restless. He started searching the house for something interesting.

Then he suddenly found it.

It is a cache of that material which father never lets him touch. "Thou canst not use it before thine magic lessons are completeth" he would say.he had seen bits and pieces of the material sticking to the fingers of elder kids at school when they came out of laboratories. He knew that they apply the principles of magic to the material and learn how to create cosmos. But he never held the material himself.

The kid was fascinated. His lethargy vanished in an instant and he felt enthusiasm running through his being. He gingerly touched the material. He could not say what the material is. "Primordial" is the word father uses to describe it in revered tones.

The kid gingerly picked up a small chunk of matter. It was surprisingly heavy and light at the same time. On an intuition, the kid passes a little magic into it. The material pulsed and resonated with energy. Enthusiastically he threw it up and caught it with another hand.

A strange thought gripped him. He trembled with the desire to create a cosmos all by his own. He was not yet aware of all the principles of magic. Be he knew enough to create cosmos which is not disappointing to watch. It is not perfect. But it will be worth the try.

The kid concentrated and channelled magic into the material. Remembering all the principles he was taught, he willed the primordial matter to obey him. And then he threw the material into the middle of the room.

The result was a disappointment. The material started to grow out for a brief while. And then it stopped. It was not at all lustrous or colourful like the models he has seen at school. They were full of lights, twinkles, colourful gas columns of myriad shapes, sizes and densities. Most fascinating among them were the dark patches which let out light beams on either side of them. They move as if they are flirting with matter all around them. They were all beautiful to look. In contrast his cosmos was little more than a lump of matter.

The kid realized that something is wrong. His less then perfect knowledge created a less than perfect cosmos. He was humbled. But he did not give up. He decided to supply all the energy the matter needs to make it look as beautiful as a cosmos should be. He commanded more magic and willed it to flow into the matter.

This time the result was as delightful as it was surprising. The little clump of matter expanded exponentially. All the lights came up just as correctly. It was as beautiful as any model in the laboratory.

The kid was happy. Just as he was about to celebrate, he realized something wrong again. In many of the little twinkles, there were "things". They were in a way similar to him and many of the things were capable of thinking.

The kid now realized what father meant when he said "think of your cosmos before you create it". He could cut the magic flow into the cosmos and end it. But he somehow knew that all the "things" will be very unhappy about it. No matter what they agree or disagree, they all had overwhelming unity in saying that their cosmos should not be destroyed. They would rather live in an imperfect world.

The kid sighed. He hid his cosmos in the small corner of this room where he was sure father would never look into, and went to ask mother about dinner.

Isn't life too short?

That is just one step in the repetitive cycle that had been shaping and reshaping our earth. The last time all the lands were together, Protozoans were Terraforming earth. That time is but a miniscule in the life of our planet. Solar System is but a fraction in the lifetime of our Universe which itself is in its infancy. And here we are, in our less than 100 years life time worrying whether we reach office on time or whether we can reach our goals within one lifetime.

I often think of the poem of Ozymandias in this perspective.

    OZYMANDIAS

    I met a traveller from an antique land
    Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
    Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
    Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown
    And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command
    Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
    Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
    The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
    And on the pedestal these words appear:
    "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
    Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
    Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
    Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
    The lone and level sands stretch far away.

Google Goggles: Another cool app from Google

Google Goggles :
Another cool app from Google. Androiders and iPhoners, you might want to check it out.
http://www.google.com/mobile/goggles/#text

Colbert roasts Bush

This guy is brave. See for yourself.

What-if

The world coming to an end today
Don't worry. It is already tomorrow in Australia.

What if I am currently in Australia????

శ్రీకృష్ణ కమిటీ చూపించే పరిష్కారం ఏమిటి?

శ్రీకృష్ణ కమిటీ చూపించే పరిష్కారం ఏమిటి?

కొంతకాలంగా శ్రీకృష్ణ కమిటీ సభ్యులు చేస్తున్న వ్యాఖ్యలను చదువుతూ ఉంటే నాకు వాళ్ళ రిపోర్ట్ ఎలా ఉండబోతోంది అన్న ప్రశ్నకు ఒక జవాబు తడుతోంది. ఇది పూర్తిగా నా ఊహ మాత్రమే. నివేదిక అందాకే నిజానిజాలు తెలుస్తాయి.

          ముందుగా నేను ఈ అభిప్రాయానికి రావడానికి గల కారణాలు చెబుతాను. అవి శ్రీకృష్ణ కమిటీ సభ్యులు వేరు వేరు సందర్భాలలో చేసిన ప్రకటనలే.

1.       మా నివేదిక అందరికీ ఆమోదయోగ్యంగా ఉంటుంది.

2.       అన్ని పరిస్థితులనూ పరిగణనలోకి తీసుకుంటాము.

a.       డిసెంబర్ 9కి ముందు, తరువాత పరిస్థితులు

b.      సీమాంధ్రలో నిరసనలు

c.       తెలంగాణ ఉపఎన్నికలు

d.      క్షేత్రస్థాయి పర్యటనలు

e.      భావగర్భితమైన అంశాలు

3.       మా కమిటీ వివిధ ప్రత్యామ్నాయాలు సూచిస్తుంది.

4.       తుది నిర్ణయం ప్రభుత్వానిదే.

Statisticsలో Pareto Chart అని ఒక గణన ప్రక్రియ ఉంది. దాని ఆధారంగా లెక్క వేస్తే అత్యంత సమస్యాత్మకమైన అంశం ఏది అన్నది తెలుస్తుంది. దాని ప్రకారం చూస్తే కమిటీ పని, వేసే ప్రశ్నలు స్థూలంగా ఇవి.

సీమాంధ్రులకు: ఎందుకు విడిపోకూడదు అనుకుంటున్నారు?

తెలంగాణ వాసులకు: కలిసి ఉండడం వలన ఎక్కడ నష్టపోతున్నారు?

ఈ రెండు ప్రశ్నలకు సింహభాగం ప్రజలనుండి వస్తున్న సమాధానం "హైదరాబాద్". ఈ నగరం మనది అన్న అభిప్రాయం అందరి మదిలోనూ నాటుకుపోయింది. ఇది వదులుకోవడానికి ఎవరూ సిద్ధంగా లేరు. కనుక కమిటీ ఇచ్చే పరిష్కారం అంతా కూడా ఈ నగరపు సమస్యని పరిష్కరించడంలోనే ఉంది.

 

ఈ సమస్యకు పరిష్కారం కనుక్కోవడానికి కొన్ని మార్గదర్శకాలు కూడా ఉన్నాయి.

1.       ఏ ఒక్కరికో లాభం/నష్టం కలిగించేటట్లు ఉండకూడదు. అప్పుడే అది అందరి అంగీకారాన్ని పొందుతుంది.

2.       భారతదేశ రాజ్యాంగం ప్రసాదించిన హక్కులను కాలరాసేదిగా ఉండరాదు.

3.       దేశ సమగ్రతకు, సార్వభౌమత్వానికి సవాలు కాకూడదు. వేర్పాటువాదాన్ని/ద్వేషాన్ని ప్రోత్సహించేదిగా ఉండకూడదు.

ఈ మార్గదర్శక సూత్రాలను అనుసరించి కమిటీ కొన్ని పరిష్కారాలు సూచించగలదు.

1.       అందరికీ చెందేటట్లు: సీమాంధ్రను, తెలంగాణను విడదీసి హైదరాబాదును ఉమ్మడి రాజధానిగా గుర్తించాలి. ఈ విధానం ఇప్పటికే పంజాబ్,హర్యానా రాష్ట్రాలలో అమలులో ఉంది. ఆ విధానాన్నే ఇక్కడా మరింత పటిష్టంగా అమలు చేయవచ్చు.

2.       ఎవరికీ చెందనట్లు: సీమాంధ్రను, తెలంగాణను విడదీసి వాటికి వేరు వేరు రాజధానులు ప్రకటించి హైదరాబాదును కేంద్రప్రాలిత ప్రాంతంగా గుర్తించవచ్చు. యానాం, పాండిచ్చేరి (పుదుచ్చేరి), గోవా తదితర ప్రాంతాలలో జరిగినట్టు.

3.       మధ్యే మార్గం: లేకుంటే హైదరాబాదును వేరే రాష్ట్రంగా గుర్తించచ్చు. ఈ పద్ధతి అనుసరించాలని ఒకటవ ఎస్సార్సీ రోజుల్లో బొంబాయి ప్రజల నుండి ప్రభుత్వానికి చాలా ఒత్తిడి వచ్చింది. వ్యతిరేకిస్తూ శివసేన "ఆమ్చీ ముంబై" అని నినాదాలు చేసింది. తత్పలితంగా ముంబాయి (రాజకీయ పరంగా) మహారాష్ట్ర రాజధాని అయినప్పటికీ, ఆర్థికంగా వేరే ప్రాంతంగా ఇప్పటికీ పరిగణించబడుతోంది. ఈ పద్ధతి అనుసరించవచ్చు.

ఈ పద్ధతుల వలన అతి పెద్ద సమస్య అయిన హైదరాబాద్ కు పరిష్కారం దొరుకుతుంది. ఇక ""తెలుగు జాతి అంతా ఒక్కటే"" లాంటి భావగర్భితమైన అంశాలంటారా? వీటి వలన కొద్ది రోజులు ఆగ్రహావేశాలు ప్రబలినా అవి చల్లారిపోతాయి.

ఇక నదీ జలాల పంపిణీ వంటి చిక్కులంటారా? అవి నిఝ్ఝంగా తీర్చలేని సమస్యలు కావు. ఇప్పటికే అంతర్రాష్ట్ర నదీ జలాల పంపిణీకి నియమావళి, నిబంధనలు ఉన్నాయి. బచావత్ ట్రైబ్యునల్ ఉంది. వాటిని అనుసరిస్తే ఈ సమస్యలు పరిష్కారం అవుతాయి. "విభజన తరువాత సమస్యలు వస్తే ఏం చేయాలి?" అన్న ప్రశ్నకు పెద్దగా ఆలోచించక్కరలేదు. ప్రస్తుతం మనకూ మహారాష్ట్రకూ/కర్ణాటకకూ వివాదాలు రగులుతున్నాయి. ఏం చేస్తున్నాం? అప్పుడూ అదే చేస్తాం.

ఈ మార్గాలలో ఏది ఎంచుకున్నా రాష్ట్రం అంతటా ఆగ్రహావేశాలు తప్పవు. కానీ హైదరాబాదును గుత్తంగా ఏ ఒక్కరికో అప్పగించేకన్నా ఇది చాలా మేలు పధ్ధతి. పంచతంత్రంలో రెండు పిల్లులు, రొట్టెముక్క గొడవను కోతి ఎలా తీర్చిందో తెలుసుగదా? ప్రస్తుత పరిస్థితికూడా అలాంటిదే.

కానీ ఏ నిర్ణయమూ కేంద్రం వెలువరించేముందు ఒక జాగ్రత్త వహించాలి. నిర్ణయానికి తామందరం కట్టుబడి ఉంటామని అన్ని ప్రాంతాల నాయకుల వద్దా హామీ తీసుకోవాలి. లేకుంటే అది మరొక చారిత్రక తప్పిదం అవుతుంది.

నాకు ఈ పరిస్థితి గ్రీకు పురాణాల్లోని హెలెన్ వివాహ ఘట్టాన్ని స్ఫురింపజేస్తోంది. హెలెన్ స్పార్టా దేశపు యువరాణి. అద్భుత సౌందర్యరాశి. ఆమెను వివాహమాడటానికి అందరు రాజులు పోటీ పడతారు. ఎవరినీ కాదనటానికి ఆమె తండ్రికి ధైర్యం చాలదు. ఎంతకుఉ విషయం తేల్చకుండా నానుస్తూ ఉంటాడు. అతనికి ఇథాకా రాజు యులిసిస్ ఉపాయం చెబుతాడు. వరుడు ఎవరన్నది ప్రకటించేముందు రాజలందరి చేత దైవసాక్షిగా ప్రమాణం చేయిస్తాడు. ఏమని? హెలెన్ భర్త మీద ఎవరైనా దండెత్తితే మిగిలిన్ రాజులందరూ ఏకమై హెలెన్ భర్తకు బాసటగా నిలవాలని. ఈ మాట అందరూ ఇచ్చిన తరువాతే వరుడిని ప్రకటిస్తాడు. తక్కిన పోటీదార్లు అసూయ చెందినా దండయాత్ర భయంతో ఆయన నిర్ణయాన్ని అంగీకరిస్తారు.

     ఇప్పుడు మనకి ఇదే పరిస్థితి పునరావృతం అయ్యింది. హైదరాబాదును హెలెన్ అనుకుంటే, రాయలసీమ, కోస్తా, తెలంగాణా వరులు అయ్యారు. కేంద్రం తండ్రి పాత్రలోకీ, శ్రీకృష్ణ కమిటీ యులిసిస్ పాత్రలోకీ కుదిరారు. ఇక ఒడంబడిక చేసుకుని నిర్ణయాన్ని ప్రకటించాలి. లేకుంటే మన రాజకీయనాయకులు వాళ్ళ సేనలను (అదే అమాయకపు ప్రజలను) ఉసిగొలిపి యుద్ధం చేయిస్తారు. తాము మాత్రం బాధ్యత తీసుకోకుండా తప్పును పోలీసుల మీదకు నెట్టేస్తారు.

ఇది చెప్పుకున్నాక మరో విశేషం కూడా చెప్పుకోవాలి. గ్రీకు రాజులు తాము చేసిన ప్రమాణం అనూహ్యమైన ఫలితాలను ఇచ్చింది. హెలెన్ తన భర్తను వదిలి ట్రోయ్ యువరాజుతో పారిపోయినప్పుడు వారంతా కలిసి ట్రోయ్ పైకి దండెత్తవలసి వచ్చింది. ఆ యుద్ధం పదేళ్ళు జరిగింది. అలాగే మన హైదరాబాదు కూడా మరో రాష్ట్రంలో కలిసిపోతానంటే పరస్పరం కలహించుకుంటున్న కోస్తా, తెలంగాణా, రాయసీమ ఒకటిగా కావల్సిన పరిస్థితి ఏర్పడవచ్చు. ఏర్పడకపోనూవచ్చు. చేప్పలేము. నందో రాజా భవిష్యతిః

mob mentality - తెలంగాణ

ప్రస్తుతం ఆంధ్రదేశంలో జరుగుతున్నదేమిటి?

 

ఒక్క మాటలో చెపాలి అంటే mob mentalityని exploit చెయ్యడం. ఈ exploit చెయ్యడం అన్నది రాజకీయ నాయకులు చేస్తున్నారు. అది వాళ్ళకు జీవన్మరణ సమస్యగా మారిపోయింది. వివరంగా చెబుతాను.

 

తెలంగాణ:     కెసిఆర్ ది పచ్చి అవకాశవాదం. తనకు కోరుకున్నంత ప్రాముఖ్యత దక్కలేదన్న ఉక్రోషంతో ఆయన నిద్ర్రాణంగా ఉన్న తెలంగాణ సెంటిమెంట్ ను రెచ్చగొట్టి దాన్నొక నిచ్చెనలా వాడుకున్నాడు. సామాన్య ప్రజల ఆవేదనను, ఏదో మంచి జరుగుతుందన్న ఆశను సోపానాలుగా మలుచుకుని తన పేరు దేశ చరిత్రలో సుస్థిరం చేసుకున్నాడు. ఇక్కడ ఆయన exploit చేసింది mob mentalityనే.

        ఇక ఇతర రాజకీయ నాయకులు. జనం కెసిఆర్ కు జై కొడితే మరి వీళ్ళకు జై కొట్టేదెవరు? అందుకే వీళ్ళు సెంటిమెంట్ ను తలకెత్తుకున్నారు. ఇక్కడ వీళ్ళు చేస్తున్నది కూడా ఈ mob mentalityని exploit చెయ్యడమే. అవతలి వాడికన్నా ఎక్కువమంది  నాకు జై కొట్టాలి అంటే దానికి కావల్సింది ఏమిటి? అవతలి వాడి కన్నా ఎక్కువ నోరు పెట్టుకుని పడిపోవడమే. వాళ్ళు "తిడతాము" అంటే, వీళ్ళు "కొడతాము" అంటారు. వాళ్ళు కంగారు పడి "తంతాము" అంటారు. వీళ్ళు "చంపుతాము" అంటారు. వాళ్ళు "తలకాయలు ఎగరకొడతాము" అంటారు. వీళ్ళు "గుండెలు చీరేస్తాం, కాలేయం కొరికేస్తాం, కిడ్నీ కాల్చేస్తాం" అంటారు. ఇందులో జరిగేది ఏమిటి? సామాన్య ప్రజానీకం ఉర్రూతలూగి, రక్తం ఉడుకెత్తి గొడవలకు దిగుతారు. ఒకటి రెండు హత్యలు, ఆత్మహత్యలు, పికెటింగులు, హర్తాళ్ లు, బందులు, పోలీసు ఫైరింగులు జరుగుతాయి. అందరూ కొన్ని రోజులు చల్లబడతారు. తరువాత ఈ చక్రం మళ్ళీ తిరుగుతుంది.

ఈలోపు నాలాంటి వాళ్ళు నిర్విరామంగా పేజీలకొద్దీ బ్లాగులు రాస్తాము. అయ్యో దేశం ఎటు పోతోందో అని గుండెలు బాదుకుంటాము. కానీ మన ఘోష అలాగే మిగిలిపోతుంది. ఎందుకు అంటే ఇదంతా చదువుకున్న, ఆలోచించగలిగే జనాభాకు పరిమితం గనుక. ఈ విశ్లేషణ ఏ కొంచం కూడా నాయకుల వెంట తిరిగే జనాభాకు చేరదు. ఈ విశ్లేషణ ఏ మాత్రమూ రాజకీయనాయకుల కార్యక్రమాలకు విఘాతం కలిగించదు. ఇది సర్వమూ, సమస్తమూ నాకూ, ఈ బ్లాగు చదివేవాళ్ళకూ పరిమితం.

        ఆలోచించండి. రాష్ట్ర జనాభాలో 61.11% మాత్రమే అక్షరాస్యులు. మళ్ళీ వీళ్ళలో functional illiterates చాలా ఎక్కువ. functional illiterates తమ పేరు రాయగలరు అంతే. అంతకన్నా ఎక్కువ చదవడం, వ్రాయడం వీరికి రాదు. ఈ functional illiterates కి కావల్సినవి సిద్ధాంతాలు, ఆశయాలు కావు. రోజు గడవటానికి కావలసిన తిండి, ఒళ్ళు కప్పుకోవడానికి బట్ట, కాయకష్టం చేసిని ఒళ్ళు సేద తీరడానికి మందు/కల్లు. వీళ్ళకు తమ సమస్యలు తీర్చుకోగలిగే శక్తి ఉండదు. పరిష్కారాన్ని ఆలోచించగలిగే తెలివితేటలు ఉండవు. ఆ అవకాశం కూడా ఉండదు. వీళ్ళ అవసరాలు ఎవరు తీరిస్తే వాడే వీరికి నాయకుడు. అతగాడి మాట వీళ్ళకు వేదవాక్కు. వీళ్ళకు మన బ్లాగులు గట్రా అందవు. వీళ్ళే మన రాజకీయ నాయకుల టార్గెట్ జనాభా. వీళ్ళే వాళ్ళకు ఓటర్లు.

        మొన్న తెలంగాణా ఉప ఎన్నికలలో ఓటర్ల హాజరు శాతం 55% మాత్రమే. మధ్య తరగతి ఓటు వెయ్యదన్నది జగమెరిగిన సత్యం. వివిధ కారణాల వల్ల మధ్య తరగతి పెద్దగా ఓటింగుకు హాజరు కాదు. కానీ దిగువ తరగతి ప్రజలు తప్పక వస్తారు. నాకు ఓటు హక్కు వచ్చి పన్నెండేళ్ళయింది. కానీ నాకు ఓటరు గుర్తింపు కార్డు కూడా లేదు. కానీ మా పని అమ్మాయి వాళ్ళ ఊరు వెళ్ళి మరీ ఓటేసి వచ్చింది. మీకు అర్ధం అయ్యిందనుకుంటాను నేను చెప్పదలచుకున్నది ఏమిటో. తర్క విశ్లేషణ చేయగలిగిన నేను ఓటు వేయలేదు. చెప్పిన మాటలు గుడ్డిగా నమ్మే మా పని అమ్మాయి ఓటు వేసింది. ఆ ఓటు ఎవరికి పడిందంటారు? అందరి కన్నా గట్టిగా అరచి, జనాన్ని ఉర్రూతలూగించిన వక్తకి. వాళ్ళు చెప్పింది కరక్టో కాదో నాకు తెలుసు. మా పని అమ్మాయికి తెలీదు.

        క్రితం తెలంగాణ ఉప ఎన్నికలలో జరిగింది ఇదేనని నా ప్రగాఢ విశ్వాసం. ఇందువల్లనే తెరాస విజయఢంకా మోగించింది. దెబ్బకి నాయకులకు గెలుపు సూత్రం అర్ధం అయ్యింది. ప్రెస్ క్లబ్ లో చక్రవర్తి గారిమీద దాడి అయినా, గ్రూప్ I పరీక్షల రగడ అయినా ఆ గెలుపు సూత్రాన్ని అమలులో పెట్టే ప్రయత్నాలే. ప్రస్తుత పరిస్థితుల్లో ఎవరు ఎంత ఎక్కువగా mob mentality ని cash చేసుకోగలిగితే వాళ్ళు అంత పెద్ద నాయకుడు కాగలడు. ఇప్పుడు ఆంధ్ర రాష్ట్రం నిజంగానే అవకాశాల నేల. రాజ్యం వీరభోజ్యమన్నట్లు ఎవరు తమ బలాన్ని ఎంత ప్రదర్శిస్తే వాళ్ళకు అంత ఎక్కువ దక్కుతుంది. రాష్ట్ర ప్రజల నోట్లో మట్టి పడుతుంది.

Google Buzz!!! A new fad???

Google Buzz!!! A new fad??? Or a new avenue and innovation from Google??? Time will tell.

You know, there was a time when people were flocking to hi5. then it was namesdatabase and then there was something else, then Orkut, Facebook, Twitter and also for a very brief while MSN spaces and Yahoo 360. Now it is Google Buzz.

But then, there were USAmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, Rediff, Postmark and then Gmail. So, you never know.

Truth to be said, I have stayed with Orkut. I have not registered with Facebook, Twitter etc. I used to register with every other website hoping to stay in touch with friends. After many such websites, I have realised that it is not the website that connects me with my friends but it is ME who does that. If I want to stay in touch, nothing can stop me and if I am too lazy then, nothing can make me stay in touch.

After realizing this, I stopped all my social networking sites. There are a few which I checkout occasionally but that is not the greatness of the site. It is the dormant wish to get in touch with friends that makes me do it.

The best example I offer is Shelfari. None of my friends use this. But I do. I am a regular here and maintain my shelf in good shape. I occassionally post a reivew or answer a question. This I do with a complete stranger. But I dont post a word on Orkut and dont update my status. I am extremely reluctant to share anything with others when there is no ned-to-know.

That rule falls apart when it comes to Shelfari. So, I strengthen my conclusion. It is not the website that keeps people in touch. Websites is just a tool helping people stay in touch better. In the sense that a chainsaw is better than a pick axe, Twitter is better than some other such site.

That said, I agree that Buzz's target customers are not folks like me. For those who wish to stay connected, it might be a great tool. Coz' it had been less than 12 hours since its launch and I have buzzed thrice so far. So, who knows? If Google has finally figured a way to make the horse drink its water, then Hatsoff Google.

But for the folks who are strong fans of social networking, is Buzz a better tool? Or just another tool? Time will tell.



N. Gopi Krishna
             B. Tech (C. S. E)
Assistant Consultant,
Tata Consultancy Services

Why Telangana - Reply to accusations in a chain email

I have received a mail the other day arguing why Telangana must be carved out of AP. The mail has listed a number of reasons for splitting Andhra. I did a bit of research on the points and below are my findings.

Let me say beforehand that I am a staunch and unequivocal supporter of united Andhra Pradesh. Nothing can change my opinion regarding the matter.

Original Mail

 

Why Telangana ?...........Pls Know the Facts...

Please note that the below points were discussed in a blog...I just used here for educating the people.....

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi All,

Whenever the topic of Telangana is raised, many of us blindly support Andhra or Telangana based on where we come from. Not sure how many really think of why the demand for separate state has been there for such a long time. The 2 major reasons why the demand has been pending for so many years is WATER AND HYDERBAD. People around the state have earned and invested in and around Hyderabad so there is a concerns about the safety of the investment if the state is separated while both the major rivers in our state flow mostly through Telangana. Below are some facts that are few reasons for the demand. Sentiments can be foolish but not facts.

1. There are 10 districts in Telangana, 9 in Andhra and 4 in Rayalaseema. Out of these 7 districts in Telangana, 3 in Andhra and 1 in Rayalaseema are considered severely backward districts which means 70% of districts in Telangana are backward while in Andhra it is 35% and in Rayalaseema it is 25%. Apart from these there are some areas in all parts of the state which are also backward.

2. 45% of the state income comes from Telangana region. When it comes to utilization of funds, the share of Telangana is only 28%.

3. Normally canals are dug to supply water to the crops from rivers for cultivation. The amount of land cultivated through canals in just Guntur district is more than the land cultivated with canals in entire Telangana region.

4. Nagarjuna sagar dam is built in Nalgonda district which is in Telangana but majority of the water from the dam is used for Krishna and Guntur district. The original dam was supposed to be build much ahead of its present location but the location was changed so that it falls in the Telangana region. Due to the construction of the dam several hectares of Lime stone mines vanished as part of the dam back waters. Everyone know that lime stone is used for producing cement. Even the natural resources were not allowed to remain.

5. Fluorinated water problem is only in Nalgonda district which has not been resolved since decades.

6. Two major rivers Krishna and Tungabhadra enter the state of AP in the district of Mahaboobnagar(the biggest district in Telangana) but the district always remains the worst draught hit areas along with Anantapur because there is no project and process with which the water can be utilized. The plans for utilization has been pending for decades.

7. RDS (Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme) is build in Mahaboobnagar to provide water to 85000 hectares of land in the district. The leaders of Rayalaseems blasted the gates of RDS and water is supplied to KC (Kurnool-Cudapah) canal while only remaining water, if any, is supplied to the lands in Mahaboobnagar.

8. 3 TMC of water from Gandipet is sufficient to supply drinking water to our city. Every year 1700 TMC of water is wasted and is flown into Bay of Bengal from river Godavari. Starting from Nizambad to Bay of Bengal there is no project allowed to build on Godavari. If it is built leaders in Godavari districts fear that the fertile lands in the area may fall short of water. If the Godavari water is utilized properly, there will be no scarcity for food grains in our state.

9. In Telangana regions, only few areas cultivate one crop a year and very rarely two crops a year while most of the land doesn't even cultivate single crop. In both the Godavari districts, Krishna and Guntur district, two crops a year is common and there are times where even 3 crops a year are cultivated. The only reason is WATER.

10. Government issue G.O.'s for implicating its decisions. G.O number 610 is the longest non implicated G.O in the history of AP. The G.O was issued in 1986 by late NTR who was then the CM of AP, which is not yet implicated. The G.O speaks about the share of Telangana employees in Government jobs in Telangana region.

11. 33% of the population in Mahaboobnagar district have left the district for livelihood to different parts of the state due to draught and majority of them are working as daily labour. No other district has so many people who fled the home place due to lack of livelihood and working as daily labour.

12. There are 25 plus government degree colleges in Krishna, Kadapa and Guntur district while there is not even a single government degree college in Ranga Reddy district.

13. Dairy development corporation of AP purchases milk from farmers across the state for distribution. For the same milk, in Andhra, the government pay Rs. 24 to the farmers and in Telangana they pay Rs. 22 per litre. Partiality is shown even in milk.

14. In between 2005-2008 government sold lands worth Rs. 20000 crores in and around Hyderabad which was utilized to build projects in Rayalaseema and Andhra.

15. Not even a single project was completed in Telangana in the last 5 years while several projects were completed in Andhra and Rayalaseema.

My Answers

1. There are 10 districts in Telangana, 9 in Andhra and 4 in Rayalaseema. Out of these 7 districts in Telangana, 3 in Andhra and 1 in Rayalaseema are considered severely backward districts which means 70% of districts in Telangana are backward while in Andhra it is 35% and in Rayalaseema it is 25%. Apart from these there are some areas in all parts of the state which are also backward.

2.  45% of the state income comes from Telangana region. When it comes to utilization of funds, the share of Telangana is only 28%.

a.     Good statistics. Cannot argue against them without more data.

3. Normally canals are dug to supply water to the crops from rivers for cultivation. The amount of land cultivated through canals in just Guntur district is more than the land cultivated with canals in entire Telangana region.

a.     Districts of Guntur, Krishna and Godavari are geologically and Pedologically more fertile than Telengana.  Telangana area, which is a rain shadow region, is comparatively less fertile than Guntur and hence it is not surprising that there is more cultivable land in Guntur.

4. Nagarjuna sagar dam is built in Nalgonda district which is in Telangana but majority of the water from the dam is used for Krishna and Guntur district. The original dam was supposed to be build much ahead of its present location but the location was changed so that it falls in the Telangana region. Due to the construction of the dam several hectares of Lime stone mines vanished as part of the dam back waters. Everyone knows that lime stone is used for producing cement. Even the natural resources were not allowed to remain.

a.     This is not because of any prejudice to Telangana. History will tell us that construction of Nagarjuna sagar was started in 1956 which is also the year of formation of AP State. Construction of Nagarjuna Sagar was first proposed by the British in 1903 and the project location was decided after much deliberation of the matter. It is hard to believe that there was a conspiracy to drown a small limestone mine (which probably fetches a few crores a year) when discussing the construction of a dam which is the first of its kind in entire world.

b.    This can be argued in another way too. Had the dam been constructed down river, then the backwaters of Sagar dam would not have been in Telangana at all. Presently, all the stored backwater percolates into the earth and significantly boosts up the ground water in the surrounding areas. It is Telangana districts that are getting benefited by this. According to the above allegation, Andhra has lost the advantage of never dropping water table to sink a small limestone mine.

5. Fluorinated water problem is only in Nalgonda district which has not been resolved since decades.

a.     I am not under-estimating the suffering of Nalgonda residents. But I want to counter question – Is the Fluorine problem a conspiracy of Andhrites? What are the elected MLAs and MPs of Nalgonda doing all these years? They too were allocated their quota of funds just like any other MLAs or MPs in any part of India. A Fluorine treatment plant can very well be set up with the funds which they have at their disposal and they are at liberty to do so. If they have not, then it is their failure. Why are you not catching and questioning them? Without correcting the lethargy of your local leaders, what good is to be achieved in simply passing the blame on to Andhrites?

6. Two major rivers Krishna and Tungabhadra enter the state of AP in the district of Mahaboobnagar(the biggest district in Telangana) but the district always remains the worst draught hit areas along with Anantapur because there is no project and process with which the water can be utilized. The plan for utilization has been pending for decades.

a.     Again, what are your local leaders doing about this? Why have they kept mum? Earlier, There were chief ministers hailing from Telangana area. Dr. Chenna Reddy was a prominent leader of Telangana movement. Why have they not launched any projects in Telangana?

b.    That point not withstanding, a number of projects have been started by late chief minster Dr. Y.S. Raja Sekhar Reddy in Telangana too. They have been launched and are progressing fast. The argument that there are no projects in Telangana is not valid anymore.

7. RDS (Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme) is build in Mahaboobnagar to provide water to 85000 hectares of land in the district. The leaders of Rayalaseems blasted the gates of RDS and water is supplied to KC (Kurnool-Cudapah) canal while only remaining water, if any, is supplied to the lands in Mahaboobnagar.

a.     To this, I humbly agree. But I would like to point out that, the problem was caused by Karnataka state by over utilizing its allocated share of water.

8. 3 TMC of water from Gandipet is sufficient to supply drinking water to our city. Every year 1700 TMC of water is wasted and is flown into Bay of Bengal from river Godavari. Starting from Nizambad to Bay of Bengal there is no project allowed to build on Godavari. If it is built leaders in Godavari districts fear that the fertile lands in the area may fall short of water. If the Godavari water is utilized properly, there will be no scarcity for food grains in our state.

a.     Gross misrepresentation of facts!!! The reason for not building projects on Godavari is purely technical. From an Engineering point of view, there are very very few places on Godavari where a dam can be built. I shall not discuss the technical details of it but I point out to history.

                                          i.    When the entire length of Godavari was scaled in search of suitable project site, Polavaram was identified to be a feasible location for diverting Godavari waters into Krishna. This was decided in 1942 before we attained independence. Please see this link http://www.sakti.in/godavaribasin/indira-klrao.htm

b.    Polavaram project is not a regular water storage project like Srisailam or Nagarjunasagar. It's purpose is to divert water and there by link two rivers.

c.     Construction of this project will result in submersion of 1500 Hectares of Madhya Pradesh and 1000 hectares in Orissa. Those state governments are not agreeing to this. This is the main reason for the project not being approved by Central Water Commission. There is no conspiracy against Telangana here.

9. In Telangana regions, only few areas cultivate one crop a year and very rarely two crops a year while most of the land doesn't even cultivate single crop. In both the Godavari districts, Krishna and Guntur district, two crops a year is common and there are times where even 3 crops a year are cultivated. The only reason is WATER.

a.     Admirably summed up. We have already discussed this  above in 6a and 6b.

10. Government issue G.O.'s for implicating its decisions. G.O number 610 is the longest non implicated G.O in the history of AP. The G.O was issued in 1986 by late NTR who was then the CM of AP, which is not yet implicated. The G.O speaks about the share of Telangana employees in Government jobs in Telangana region.

a.     Please check the government jobs which are being filled up. Ever since this GO was issued, jobs are being filled in strinct accordance to this ratio/percentage. This GO contains two parts

                                          i.    Filling up of jobs according to an agreed % - This is being done.

                                         ii.    NGOs should work only in the Zones to which they belong. NGOs working in non-native zone must be transferred back to their native zones. This is not completely done owing to humanitarian grounds. Transferring employees long settled in a district all of a sudden is unethical. Rayalaseema and Kosta districts too have a number of Telangana NGOs. This applies to entire state.

11. 33% of the population in Mahaboobnagar district have left the district for livelihood to different parts of the state due to draught and majority of them are working as daily labour. No other district has so many people who fled the home place due to lack of livelihood and working as daily labour.

a.     Considering points 3a, 5a and 7a, this cannot be blamed on Andhrites. This is because of the incapability of the local representatives of Telangana.

b.    The people of rest of AP have not objected to Mahaboobnagar people settling down in their areas. Don't you think this is due to a feeling of fraternity? Is this fraternity visible among people of other states? We are seeing how Biharis are being attacked in Mumbai.

12. There are 25 plus government degree colleges in Krishna, Kadapa and Guntur district while there is not even a single government degree college in Ranga Reddy district.

a.     Can someone throw light on this?

13. Dairy development corporation of AP purchases milk from farmers across the state for distribution. For the same milk, in Andhra, the government pay Rs. 24 to the farmers and in Telangana they pay Rs. 22 per litre. Partiality is shown even in milk.

a.     Milk procurement rate changes from district to district. This is based on the negotiations of individual groups and not based on location/area.

b.    The government diary is practically non-existent in Chittoor. This is not a Telangana district. What do you have to say to that?

14. In between 2005-2008 government sold lands worth Rs. 20000 crores in and around Hyderabad which was utilized to build projects in Rayalaseema and Andhra.

a.     Untrue. As part of Jalayagnam, 26 projects were launched in Telangana. Where as only 22 were in Andhra area and 11 in Rayalaseema. Please check this link
http://jalayagnam.org/index1.php?action=priority

15. Not even a single project was completed in Telangana in the last 5 years while several projects were completed in Andhra and Rayalaseema.

a.     Untrue again. Devadula, Ali Sagar Lift Irrigation Scheme & Alimineti Madhava Reddy Projects are complete. They are being constructed in Telangana area only. Andhra area had 5 projects finished and Rayalaseema has one. Please check this link
http://jalayagnam.org/index1.php?action=results

My Conclusion

వచ్చిండన్నా వచ్చాడన్నా వరాల తెలుగు ఒకటేనన్నా
తెలుగు జాతి మనది నిండుగ వెలుగు జాతి మనది


N. Gopi Krishna

Quantum of Solace

Disappointment. This is what can be said about the latest installment in Bond series "Quantam of Solace". After an impeccable series reboot in "Casino Royale" which has not only met expectations but has exceeded them, Bond 22 is a rather poor show. A movie which is not worth the money.

 

              The movie picks up right from where it ended in "Casino Royale" with Bond transporting the shad henchman of an unknown organization Mr. White into the hands of Her Majesty's Secret Service incharge "M". And almost from the very first moment, disappointment begins to kick in. Remember the high adrinaline chase during the opening of "Casino Royale"? As Bond chased the bombmaker, the audience panted and sweated. The director has envisoined an equally high adrenaline car chase where Mr. White's sidekicks try and stop Bond from delivering Mr. White. Unfortunately, the vision has been seriously undermined in the photography department. I missed the name of the photographer in the credits but it looked either like he was drunk during the filming or was a complete rookie in terms of camera work. The fundamental judgement of whether to use a long shot or a closeup is completely flawed and the camera jerks as violently as Bond's BMW. All through the movie, I found myself wondering why the camera is so jerky. Less than 20 minutes into the movie, I found myself thinking of a possible explanation for the jerky camera work. First sign that all is not well.

 

               And that is not the end of it. Starting from this moment, the "Quantum" follows the age old bond movie principles to the boot. You know the Bond rules : You need a creepy villain with a plot to takeover the world, a grand-looking-supposedly-secret building which can be demolished in the climax, a character to which the entire plot of the movie will be explained, a lot of exotic technology which you dont find in day to day life. These are the classic Bond movie principles and director Mark Forster follows them to the letter. Not that these rules are bad. But the movie degenerates into a mindless chaos where Bond does some ridiculous things for which there is no explanation. He kills all the witnesses and then goes after a wild goose chase. He sees a girl being killed by the villain and interferes in it for no apparent reason. And what does he do after saving her? He dumps her without gathering any information from her and then chases the villain halfway around the world to find out his plot. Quite contrary to the typical Bond whose loyalty is ultimately with his Queen and his country, Quantum's Bond is loyal to no one but himself and is driven by nothing except his personal vendetta. I can accept this last to be a valid plot device but unfortunately, instead of making his revenge a major plot line, it becomes the sole plot line of the movie with serious defects. For some one who is unable to get over his love, he seduces a girl without a second thought. In a classic homage to Goldfinger, this girl is killed and covered in oil and laid out on Bond's bed.

 

                This sends Bond from fight to fight and from place to place. With the US and the British goverments seemingly oriented with the evil organization, "bedding with anyone" as bond puts it, M freezes Bond's credit cards. And then the true madness starts. Instead of having an action scene to enhance the script, the script seems stitched for the action sequences. It almost feels as if, director has envisioned a set of fights and wrote his story to suit them. With the help of Mathis, the double agent who betrayed him, Bond gets into the thick of the action. Then the conclusion comes almost as suddenly. After some heavy blasts and explosions, Bond emerges victorious. He, though not directly, causes the death of the main villain and audience gather one word from him. "Quantum". It is the name of the operation which the villain has plotted to take over the world. What about "Solace"? We are suposed to imagine that Bond got it when he finally walks away from killing Vesper Lynds Algerian boyfriend and drops her love knot necklace. You leave the movie theater feeling pretty much let down.

 

                Giving credit where it is due, Daniel Craig is as fantastic as he was in the first movie. He has shown Bond with a heart in "Casino Royale". Here, he has changed into a ruthless assassin driven by personal vengence. And any director with half a brain can easily show him off as "Cold, Ironic and Brutal" James Bond in the forthcoming movies. His efforts in the action sequences are visible and impressive. But he is completely let down by almost all other aspects of the movie. Background music blended into the movie and that is good. It is probably the only other thing that worked well. But rest of the movie pretty much falls short of any decent cinegoers expectations.

 

             If this is the kind of movie you get, you don't need the Bond engine for it. Any medium budgeted B grade Bollywood thriller will do. If this is the camera work, the I might as well be the photographer.

 

Rating : 2.5 out of 5.

Google Chrome

No Doubt Chrome has a sleek look and feel. But I am afraid I am not so impressed. Probably because I am a strong admirer of Firefox :-)

Apart from the user interface, I don't see any significant improvement in Chrome. It even has a larger memory footprint compared to Firefox. Chrome loaded the webpages slightly faster than Firefox but I guess that is because I have many Firefox addons installed which consumes some CPU cycles in Firefox.

Chrome still has some problems with rendering Unicode text. Pop-up windows render only Ansi text. Unicode is not yet supported. I guess this shall be in future versions.

Chrome uses a lot of code from Firefox. Not that I am complaining, but this makes me think if it was better for Google to simply have released a Chrome theme or may be a Chrome addon to Firefox rather than implementing a new browser all together. Of course, if in the behind the scenes source code they have made some architectural changes, then that is a completely different issue. But as such, I don't understand the point of reinventing the wheel except for a showing off of Google's capabilities. We already know and acknowledge Google's think tank. Then what is the big deal???

ఎచటగలవో చెలీ

ప్రేయసిని కనులార వీక్షించువేళ నే అనిమిషనేత్రుడను
తన దర్శనార్ధమై వేచియుండువేళ నేనాకుంఠిత దీక్షాదక్షుడను

తన కంఠధ్వనినాలకించువేళ నే పులకితపన్నగమును
తను గాత్రము శృతి జేయునపుడు నే వర్షఋతూకాంక్ష్తుడనగు చకోరమును

తను నటమయూరియై పాదము నేలనిడునపుడు నే శశికిరణసోభితమగు కలువపూరేకును
తను అలసితయై డస్సినపుడు నే కళను గోల్పోయిన శిశిరపత్రమను

తను నా జేయి పట్టునపుడు నా చరిత్రాపర భగీరధము
తన స్వాంతన లేని బతుకు వ్యర్థము

తన కంటిపాపలో నా బింబము స్వాతిముత్యము
తనకై నా మనసు మధుపము నిండిన పుష్పము

ఎచటగలవో చెలీ, గనుమీ దీనుడిని, కటాక్షించు ఈ ప్రేమికుడిని

Words of Wisdom

Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.
  - Robert Frost

saameta

పులిని చూసి నక్క వాత పెట్టుకుందని సామెత. ఆ సామెతకు తగ్గట్టు అందరూ బ్లాగుతున్నారు కదా అని నేను కూడా బ్లాగుతున్నాను. ఈ వెర్రి ఎన్నాళ్ళో చూడాలి.

--

A new experience

I had a most interesting experience yesterday.Though I use the word interesting, I do so only because I am unable to find a more appropriate word to fit the scenario. I reckon the experience was irritating, frightening and immensely thought provoking. Definitely not amusing.

Let me recount the tale without further ado. Yesterday I was travelling in the bus journeying back to my home from office. A middle aged lady sat opposite to me. (The seats were facing each other). She shook my hand and introduced herself. I took her hand and responded with my name saying that it was a pleasure meeting her. Then I continued doing my work on my laptop. For almost half an hour the lady kept staring at me and doing odd things like peeking into my laptop, putting her face close to mine and looking deeply as if something amusing is happening. I was a little uncomfortable with her behaviour but I kept silent and proceeded with my work. After a while, she started to speak in Danish to some other fellow passengers. I understood that her conversation was about me but I did not bother much. When asked, I told her that I dont understand Danish. She soon became aggressive and started shouting "call the police".

I was a bit surprised. I did not know what the fuss was all about and anyway my destination arrived and I bent down to retrieve my bag to pck my laptop. The lady went wild. She roughly pulled the laptop out of my hands and I instinctively pulled it back saying "Excuse me!!! That is my laptop". It was probably a good thing. I was about to retrieve my bag again when the lady went berserck and shouted at me "what are you taking out?" I replied "It is my bag." She started to make faces at me saying "Oh It is your bag, ofcourse. Do you think I am stupid?". I was a little more alarmed and embarrassed. Everyone in the bus was looking at me and the benefit of doubt remained with the lady. I asked her to return my bag back to me. I said "This is my stop and I have to leave. Please give me my bag back." She ran amok and jumped out at the bus stop and started to shout "Call the police." She said something in Danish too which I did not understand but I caught the word "bomb".

To be honest, I panicked. Here I am, a stranger in a foreign land, with less then perfect English skills and very desi looks. Given the world environment we are in, it is my word against her and I was not so sure how the situation will develop into.

Thankfully, two youth got down the bus with me. They looked Afghan youth to me. They tried to reason out with crazy woman. They conversed with her in Danish and the more they tried to convince her the more frenzied she became. The two youth advised me to stay calm and offered me a cigarette. I was about to puff one and then my conscience kicked in. I can still recollect the words that went on my mind at that moment "This is the testing time for principles and should I break them at the first hint of trouble". I refused the cigarette as politely as I could manage at that moment. I hope have not offended them.

Meanwhile, the lady ran across to another bus driver and asked him to call the police. She talked to him in Danish and I once again heard the word "bomb". The driver messaged the police, got down the bus and stood gaurd for the lady. I resigned myself to meet the poice and clear myself from this mess and I took out my cellphone to inform my roommate that I am going to be late. I opened the phone and talked two words to him in Telugu and his lady threw herself into a crazy fit again. She pulled my hand away from my ear and would not allow to talk on the phone. I began to lose my temper. I shouted her "wait" and the two youth jumped to my defense. The bus driver came to the defense of the lady. She listened to the driver and let go of me and I stuttered something over the phone to my room mate. I explained him the situation as best as I could (which was not very good). I said that in case the situation worsens and I have to go to police station, then I will call him again and inform him. Till then I told him to stay at home.


It took almost 20 minutes for the police to reach. Till then I stood there holding my laptop in one hand and thanking the stars that she has not taken that away and that it is still safe after all the struggle. During the wait, for the second time in my life I experienced the courage offered by veracity and honesty. I had nothing to hide and nothing to fear. Still, I could not completely push away some nameless fears.

Till the time police have arrived, this lady kept shouting swear words at me. Sometimes in English and mostly in Danish. I leaned against the signpost both to control the tremble in my legs and also for the sake of doing something and relieve some tension. Almost every one in the bus stand was throwing suspicious looks at me. I tried to assume a Devil-may-care air and tried the NLP technique of body-over-mind. I daresay it worked.
Two cops arrived after 20 minutes and have interviewed me and lady separately. They have taken witness from the two youth and from the bus drivers. Tehy asked my id and I gave them my CPR card. They talked to each other and began to smile to themselves. One of them has given me a secret smile and both walked over to the lady. I realized that they cleared me and was much relieved. A desi bus driver (I guess a brother from Pakistan) stood to help me if needed. He was watching the situation from almost the beginning but did not dare approach me until I was cleared by the police.

The police tried convincing the lady to return my bag to me and when she was not convinced they overruled her. At the last moment, she furiously stood up and literally threw my bag onto my face. The police officer told me "If you want to leave, you are free to go. I apologize for this." I thanked him, collected my items and left the place as fast as I could manage.

This incident has given me much to think about. A number of points flash my mind as I think of various faces of this. My feelings range from a boyish thrill of new adventure to more sober thoughts about the paranoia being spread by terrorism. From a new outlook on principles and values to the significance of mind-over-body and body-over-mind.

Lots of food for thoughts!!!