YOU ARE 20...GOING ON 21....

If you are reading this piece then you are a cricket buff like me, and, very likely, a fan of SACHIN TENDULKAR (SRT). This piece is my humble tribute to the master on his completion of twenty years of international cricket.

My piece is not about his statistics---- they are there everywhere---his records. It is about the phenomenon of Sachin himself.

I recall very easily the day when it was announced that SRT, who was just 16 then is selected to tour Pakistan. My first reaction was that some one is trying to harm this boy and his career ambitions by sending him on a tour to pakistan to make his debut. Honestly, i got scared. Can this young boy of 16 face up to the fury pace of Waseem Akram& Waqar Younis ?

There was this 4th test match and india playing their second innings on the last day were 38 for 4 and needing a draw to level the series. Those days the helmets were without any grills. Sachin got hit on his nose by a nasty ball from waqar and started bleeding. He was asked to get back to the pavilion retired hurt. He refused to do that, wiped off the blood and batted on gamely. He went on to score 57 in a 101 runs partnership with Siddhu and drew the match for india and we were abale to level the series. That day a lot of us in this country saluted this young boy for his courage and committment and we knew a star is born.

Sachin's long career can be viewed in two parts. The first part is where Sachin, the Lord of Cricket was on display. He was agressive and fully exhibited his talent. All the top bowlers of the world were scared of him ( remember Warne saying he had nightmares of Sachin taking his bowling apart). Those of us who were lucky enough to witness his back to back centuries at Sharjah against the aussies would always say that the Master was at his best then. The
' sandstorm' knocks were undoubtedly his most aggressive and best.

In this first decades he made and broke several records, but, the records then were not his priority ( or the media's for that matter). Then came the second decade. A change came over him gradually. May be he did what he thought best. He started batting like Gavaskar, cutting down aggeression to some extent, accumulating runs, slowly and steadily. i think he did it, playing percentage cricket, to prolong his career. There is nothing wrong with that , he skill scored his centuries and tons of runs and went on breaking records, may be taking a lot more time. Except that he was no longer a terror to the bowlers who realized that the master stopped being an agressor mostly.

The third phase is the last few years where he was seen clearly struggling with form and injuries. He is seen batting some what like Boycott leaving all the good balls bowled at him. His reflexes got slower and we have seen him edging to slips or getting bowled through the gate more often. His hunger for runs and his committment are still very much intact. I personally see that as a case of mind is willing but the body not. More and more people have started saying that Sachin should retire.

We now come to the last week's match at Hyderabad against the aussies. Wife and i watched this match together. Everyone wanted Sachin to cross the 17,000 mark. He was struggling but crossed it to everyone's releif. Then a transformation took over. As if by magic, the Sachin of Sharjah reappeared. I told my wife " look, old Sachin is back and we are going to see one of best ever knocks". And that is precisely what he did. It was the Sachin of Sharjah who reappeared at Uppal.

Unfortunately, Sachin is not a finisher these days like he was in Sharjah or india would have won that match requiring just 19 of 18 balls when he played that scoop shot (remeber that the same shot by Misbah cost pakistan the first T-20 world cup).

I entirely agree with the legend Kapil Dev who says that Sachin should continue to bat on like this for the reminder of his career and not like Gavaskar or Boycott.

Sachin is God's gift to india.
He has always been a gentleman cricketer. His behaviour on and off the field is always impeccable. There never was any controvery surrounding Sachin-- not once.
I have never seen him swearing at any one nor raise his voice. He has always been a great role model for the young and the upcoming. His popularity cuts across all regions, religions of India. His fans are young and old, male and female.
It is peopel like Sachin Tendulkar, Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachhan who keep India together despite the best efforts of some of our politicians to break it up.

Two days back Sachin said "..i am a maharastrian but first i am an indian."

Hope you have heard it Raj Thackery.

Join me in saluting this gem of india SACHIN TENDULKAR and wishing him all the best.

GOD BLESS SACHIN

Obama gets the Nobel Peace Prize

Wow!!!!!!!!! Am i surprised?????? Why not??? Obama himself said that he is surprised.
Am i delighted?????? You bet i am!!!!!!!
There are a lot of guys out there who say that he got it too early, didn't do much etc.etc.
A few quotes from the Nobel committee-----

"...Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given it's people hope for a better future..."

"...it is because we would like to support what he is trying to achieve..."

important and meaningful statements from the committee......

I think this prize is not so much for what he has actually accomplished in his eight months of presidency--at home or abroad. It is for what he did in terms of a policy shift, a change of direction. And for what he did not do.

Under Geoge W Bush America started two wars --- Afghanistan and Iraq, dragged the rest of the world too into these wars. It was also itching to start another two wars, with Iran and North Korea. Obama reversed the policy and made sure that no new wars are started and sincerely trying to end the old ones. He even set a date for quitting Iraq and is rethinking his Afpak strategy. The world was standing on the verge of an economic collapse when Obama took over. He made sure that the economic bomb didn't go off by his immediate actions in cooperation with other world leaders. On the environment front too he is fighting a battle on growing threats due to climatic changes and pushing for better energy management.

True that he has not yet achieved any concrete results either at home or abroad. But eight months is too short a time to solve problems of this magnitude. Obama's success is in the sense that he has made policy shift from CONFRONTATION TO COOPERATION. He has made sincere efforts to reach out to the muslim world. He is making sincere efforts to reach out to Iran. These are gigantic shifts considering american actions of the past few decades.

By these shifts Obama holds out a HOPE for PEACE in this violent world. That is why some are calling this a PEACE HOPE PRIZE.

The Nobel Committee has awarded Obama for not what he has achieved yet but what he hopes to achieve. He richly desrves this prize.

That is CRICKET .........

Two incidents at the ongoing Champions Trophy bring out the true spirit of cricket.

The first was during the England vs Srilanka match when Angelo Mathews was given run out by the umpire when he collided with the bowler and couldn't complete a run. In a fine gesture of sportsmanship the English captain Andrew Strauss called him back.

The second happened last night when Paul Collinwood strolled out of crease casually after playing and missing a ball and the kiwi wicket keeper threw the ball at the stumps. The matter was referred to the third umpire who ruled paul out. But the kiwi captain Vettori talked to his players and asked Collingwood to bat on. It was a high stakes low scoring match and Paul went on to score 40 runs.

I am sure that these incidents warmed the hearts of millions of fans like me. It is great to see the sportsman spirit alive and kicking in the highly competetive world of 2009.

HE up there must be quite happy because both the teams won the respective games and are through to the finals. Both Strauss and Vettori must have experienced the JOY OF GIVING.

KEEP UP THE SPIRIT BOYS BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT LIVES ON LONG AFTER WE ARE GONE.

Champions Trophy - Top seeds gone

We are just over the midpoint after completion of 9 of the15 matches. The news is that South Africa and India (ICC ODI ranks 1&2) are out of it. South Africa are beaten by the toss and a rejuvenated England and India by the rain gods (and it's own bowlers). Technically India is still in with a remote chance -- if Pakistan thrash Aussies by a big margin ,and , if India beats West indies too by another big margin. Big 'ifs" indeed.
South Africa fought gamely chasing a 325 and fell short by 20 odd runs. They were unlucky to loose the toss (and the match). But they have only themselves to blame having lost their opener against the lankans. As you have realized by now in this format, if you loose your first match, it is very difficult to come back. Pakistan had an easy opponent in windies in thir opener and won it and so did aussies against the same windies. Both are through to semis. India on the other hand faced the tough pakistan in their opening match, lost the toss and lost the match too.

But, if you look at it objectively, india did not deserve to win after their poor bowling against the pakis. Except for Ashish Nehra all others bowled all over the place. Bhajji gave 71 runs in his 10 overs for a lone wicket in his last over. Comparison of his pitch map with that of ajmal (his pakistani counterpart) was quite revealing and showed his lack of control. Looks like he needs a break. Ishant Sharma has lost both his line and length and is an easy meat now. RP Singh was erratic too, mor often than not. With such poor bowling backed by equally poor fielding you can't expect to win matches.

The batsman put up a much better show. Gambhir was in sublime touch and but for his suicidal runout could have taken india much closer to the target. Raina too played well and was unlucky to be given lbw, i thought. Dravid put up a good show within his limitations ( a poor strike rate and inability to rotate strike). But Sachin failed at the top to provide a good start and fell to Aamer who said earler that he would try to get Sachin (and kept his word). Dhoni too failed with the bat playing akwardly to get out lbw.

All in all India were beaten truly and squarely by Pakistan. If the pakis maintain the same hunger and spirit, we will see them in the finals for sure and from there it is just one match away from the championship.

So, which is more bitter -- india's failure to make it to semis or Pakistan making it to finals (and may be, even winning)-- take your pick.

India vs Pakistan - Champions Trophy 2009 - A Preview

In a few hours from now india and pakistan are going to clash at the Centurion, SA. The traditional rivals haven't met after 26/11. This is a game much hyped for over a month. But things dont look as good for india as for Pakistan.

This is india's first game at the CT while pakistan had a game against the windies and won it and have points in the kitty.

India have lost the services of Yuvi through a hand fracture while practicing fielding and the team balance is gone. Yuvi is a big hitter who can also play a longish innings when needed and can accelerate beautifully. He is also a useful slow left arm bowler and a great fielder. i can't see any one replacing him in true sense.

India's pace bowlers have their task cut out. In recent times only Ashish Nehra was consistant . Ishant has been very erratic, bowling all over the place. RP starts well but then looses his line/ length. All these three have to realize that they have to bowl a consistent line and length to contain Pakistan and take wickets.

Veterans Sachin and RD are now asked to do a lot along with Dhoni at the top. Yusuf Pathan has to come good with both bat & ball . Haven't seen his big hitting of late.Suresh Raina too must play to his potential and not throw away his wicket after getting well set with poor shot selection. Bhajji should talk less and get more wickets.

Pakistan look pretty well balanced team. Their bowling line up is very good with newcomer Aamer bowling very good pace along with Umer Gul and Rana Naved. i dont think they will risk playing asif after such a long layoff against india. they are well served in the spin department too. As far as batting goes, their opening pair is functional and both Imran nazir and Kamran Akmal are dangerous if they get going, so best to get them out soon. Younis is not fully fit and Md.Yousuf is not in good form. But their new star Umer Akmal is very talented and has great temperament. I am greatly impressed by his batting. We are going to see a lot of this boy in years to come. He is a great prospect for Pakistan.

Pakistan is hungry for a win. They haven't beaten India yet in a ICC tournament. Aamer wants to get Sachin's wicket. Umer Akmal wants to score big. This is their best chance to beat India.

Their biggest threat is their own unpredictability, you never know when they fold up like a pack of cards, on such days they were beaten by monnows. But against India-- well i can hear the war cry across the border.

My own objective assessment is 60-40 in favour of Pakistan.

Good Luck Team India, you need it.

Champions Trophy -2009 -- the begining of the end

After a lot of hype and build up, CT2009 finally got off the block on 22nd sept'09. The very first match, Srilanka vs South Africa made a mockery of the ICC rankings with the top seed getting beaten black and blue. It was clear that Srilanka was battle ready fresh from the tri-series and South Africa were rusty after a long lay off. And when you are playing Ajanta Mendis the first time it is not easy to read him. Dilshan is in such great touch these days that Jayasurya can now retire without a worry. So, the very first match is decided on D/L. For us in india, the D/N matches of CT starting at 6pm mean we can only watch one full innings without loosing too much of sleep.

Match 2 was pathetic. A lot of things have gone wrong with the windies cricket, of late, and, their biggest problem has been the ego of their cricket board. So they sent a club team that got beaten by Bangladesh in the recent series. These minnows faced Pakisthan in the match 2. The result was a foregone conclusion, but for the record, the windies were blasted away by the Paki pacers and, the paki batsman made a heavy weather of the target 139, loosing 5 wickets before winning the match.

The list of champions missing from CT is growing all the time, Zaheer khan, Veerendra Sehwag , Flintoff, Peterson due to injuries and Gayle, Chanderpaul due to other reasons. Now comes the real shocker-- YUVI IS OUT TOO WITH A FRACTURE. We may see a few more before the end of CT2009.

When you look at it dispassionately, you see that too much of cricket is taking it's toll on the players. The ICC and BCCI and their bosses think that playing cricket should be like going to office/ work everyday. Given the facts that the T20 format is giving everyone concerned more than double the revenue per ball ( or over) it is not surprising that more and more players (and fans )will give the ODIs a miss.

In spite of the best efforts of all concerned, CT2009 is likely to be the last Champions Trophy (ODI) and the World Cup 2011 may even be called off . If not called off, it will be a big flop. Sachin's suggestion that ODIs can be split into two innings of 25 overs each, though has some merits, may not work out. Fans (and players) would prefer two T20 matches in place of one ODI.

So, i think, this is the beginning of the end for the ODIs.

MY TRIBUTE TO YSR

I am no fan of YSR. On the contrary, i have been his staunch critic on several issues, over the years. But , this is not about those issues.
This is about the tragic, sudden, untimely death of a very popular, young,dynamic, very fit Chief Minister of my state of Andhra Pradesh.

I first caught the news of missing helicopter around 12-30pm yesterday. Since then i was glued to the TV like millions others. My heart told me , as hours passed by, that the worst has probably happened. But, there was always that very slim chance, a miracle. Alas--- that was not to be.

As i look back, i first became aware of YSR in the early 80s. As an young MLA he started making his mark. He was a stormy petrel, an 'young turk' in the congress party. They used to make him a deputy minister to keep him quiet. But he became more vociferous and critical. Some congressmen used to call him (jokingly) as 'leader of opposition'. Over the years he matured and became a shrewed politician.

He was PCC president on a couple of occasions and was also the leader of opposition for some time. There are a few things that certainly stand out in his political career.

The first thing that comes to my mind is his 'PADAYATRA' in 2003, wherin he walked 1400kms all over the state covering a lot of rural areas and REACHING OUT to people. That he did it in hot summer at the age of 54 goes to show how fit he was. People all over the state sat up and took notice of his padayatra. Though Chandrababu was very popular with the urban and the educated with his 'HITECH' immage, YSR marketed himself well as the champion of the rural folks who are mostly dependent on agriculture. He came to power defeating Babu entirely on his own hard work and efforts.

The next thing that comes to my mind is the pre-2009 election period. This was the time when there was a tremendous pressure on YSR , both with in and out side his party, to give in on the Telangana demand. There was a role reversal. The champion of 'swarna Andhra Pradesh' all along, Chandrababu did a volte face and supported seperate Telangana. Babu joined hands with , of all the people, KCR of TRS. The communists, always against a seperate Telangana, also jumped on the band waggon. Thus the entire Opposition ganged up into a grand alliance pitted against YSR. It is to YSR's credit that he stood firm like a rock , convinced his high command that he can deliver the votes (and seats) and took on the might of the opposition, single handed and head on. Babu's unholy alliance with TRS cost him dearly and YSR was the more credible option. The rest is history and YSR triumphed. I salute him for his steadfast support of a united A.P.

He had many popular schemes going, often, at great cost to the state. Many of these schemes were also money spinners for the corrupt. But, there is one scheme for which i salute him. It is the ' AROGYA SRI' scheme. The concept of this scheme is that the poor should have access to the best of medical aid, free of cost, when required. I know of a number of genuine benificieries of this scheme who had major surgeries under this scheme and are living their normal lives today. But for this scheme they would have probably died. This is a scheme that is really working for the poor. It may not be perfect but it is working. And it is YSR's brain child.

It is a real tragedy that a dynamic, young leader like YSR met with an untimely and violent death. He was on his way to a few villages near chittor to interact with the villagers in his 'Rachabanda' programme when his copter crashed. The people of AP, particularly those who have benifited by his schemes, will greatly miss him. But it is even a bigger loss to the congress party which doesn't have anyone nearly half as good to replace him.

MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE

Indian Democracy - Karunanidhi way

The most lasting visual of the last few days , as far as i am concerned, is not Sonia or Manmohan or Rahul celebrating the election win. It is KARUNANIDHI BEING WHEELED IN HIS CHAIR TO NEWDELHI WITHOUT DELAY FOR BARGAINING.

HERE IS A OLD MAN WITH ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE. HE HAD GONE TO DELHI AND DEMANDED MINISTERIAL BERTHS FOR HIS SON, DAUGHTER, GRANDSON ETC. HE WANTS 7 BERTHS FOR 18 MPs.

I am reminded of the old political satire (drama) of Cho Ramaswamy in our student days titled "Mohammed bin Tuglak". In that drama, a guy becomes a prime minister (or chief minister) by offering all others deputy prime ministership (or deputy chief ministership). I AM SURPRISED THAT KARUNANIDHI HAD NOT ASKED FOR 18 BERTHS !!!!!!! Karunanidhi's concept of democracy is grab as much power for his family as possible through as many 'lucrative' ministries as possible.

Another lasting visual of this old man was his recent FOUR HOUR FAST DEMANDING INDIAN ACTION IN SRILANKA-- LYING DOWN ON A COUCH WITH TWO COOLERS (OR ACs) AND TWO WIVES PROVIDING COMFORT AND CARE.

He made his famous statement that Prabhakaran (of LTTE) is his PERSONAL FRIEND (just before TN elections) but is silent after the death of his 'Friend'.
DO YOU ENVY MANMOHAN SINGH HAVING TO DEPEND ON SUCH 'FRIENDS'?

CAN RAHUL GANDHI DO AN UP IN TAMILNADU NEXT TIME OUT?

INDIAN POLITICAL SCENE WOULD BE MUCH BETTER OFF IF AND WHEN, OLD POLITICIANS LIKE KARUNANIDHI MAKE THEIR EXIT.

VERDICT 2009 - THE GOOD AND THE BAD

Well , the results are out. And they have taken most of us by surprise, haven't they? Experts talked about all possibilities (except this,perhaps!!). Now that the cat is out of the bag it is time to take stock. People are going to write a great deal about this verdict, how it is a watershed, how mature is indian democracy and all that blah,blah,blah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As i see it there are some positives and some negatives in these results.

POSITIVES :

• Congress doing relatively well in UP at the cost of BSP and SP, there by putting Maya's ambitious flight to Delhi and PM gaddion hold.
  
• Kingmaker Amar Singh will be unemployed, at least for sometime.
• Signs are clear that may be we will be going back to the two-party democracy sooner than later.
• Third front marginalized and there is no threat of a third front government and a Deve Gouda like PM.
• Fourth front (of Mulayam, Lalu & Paswan) is a non starter. Both Lalu and Paswan got too big for their shoes and got thrashed. Icing on the cake is Paswan getting defeatedin Hajipur (he got into Guinnes book of records in 1989 for his 7 lakh plus votes there).
• The thrashing of comrades in WB and Kerala, particularly in West Bengal after 30 years ( i am no fan of Mamta but salute her sheer perseverence).
• Karat & company deserved no less for the troubles they caused in past five years and the treatment meted out to veteran speaker Somanath Chaterjee.
• Nitish, Sheila Dixit and Naveen all proving that performance does count, if sincerely performed.
• JP of LokSatta got elected from Kukatpally and the Lok Satta polled 10 to 15 thousand votes in several other constituencies. There is hope, however slim.
• Amma Jaya has not become a king maker . Thank God, we need not send ourArmy to Srilanka and attack them.
• TRS and Telangana issue are dead and burried , at least for now.
• Chirnajeevi can go back to movies and invest all the money (he is said to have made by selling seats to suckers) in movie business.
• Stock Markets will soar as there will be political stability and government will have a free hand on policy.
• BJP will have to for a total image change dumping LKA and NM (and Hindutva) and opting for a new and younger leadership if they want to give a good fight in 2014.
  

NEGATIVES :

• CORRUPTION is no longer an issue in indian democracy. Just look at the mandate YSR got!!!! And he is already claiming that people have give him a clean chit. I beg to differ. They have not said he is not corrupt. They have said that they do not care.
• This ACCEPTANCE OF CORRUPTION is the most disturbing feature of the results. It looks as if people have accepted corruption as a normal practice and don't give a damn.
• Security and Terrorism also are not seen as issues, it appears. Look how well Congress and NCP have done in Mahrastra inspite of 26/11.
• YSR and son now have the mandate to loot AP as they please and no one dares question them. They can beat their own previous record for corruption.
• India will continue to be a soft state which protects terrorists to appease it's minorities and protect it's vote banks. So come across the border, bomb and kill us. In the unlikely event that you are caught, you will not be hanged even if supreme court says so.
• In Hyderabad the MIM goons can continue to target writers, municipal officials, doctors and even the police under the continued protection of YSR- no action shall be taken.
• The loss of power of comrades will mean there will be no checks and balances on excessive and at times, unwanted, privatization, in certain areas.
• Rahul's transition to primeministership will be smooth and will take place sooner than later. India will continue to be ruled by the Nehru-Gandhi family. The Dynasty is here for good. Take it or leave it.

All in all a very interesting mandate, certainly much more clearer and focused than 2004 . It is not to say that the Congress has become good overnight ,but, by and large, people perceive it as a lesser evil, perhaps. Let us hope for the best and keep our fingers crossed for the next five years.

MERA BHARATH MAHAN

JAI HIND

LOKSATTA FOR ASSEMBLY

Having decided on the vote for Parliament elections it is time now to turn to the state assembly elections. This time we have a three-way fight among the main contenders. Let us go--one by one......

1) The Congress party :
There are a hundred reasons why i will not vote for Congress. But, a few vital ones--

• YSR government is the most corrupt government AP has ever had
• His son Jagan made thousands of crores under the benovalent protection of his father and madame.
• MIM legislators and goons get away with thrashing writers, doctors, public servants and even police under YSR's protection.
• The government became a real estate agent for YSR family selling off Government lands through them for a pittance.
• Terrorists have a sanctuary in Hyderabad under YSR, and, even if police catch someone they are allowed to escape.
• There is neither law nor order.
• All the good work done by Babu earlier on making Hyderabad a clean city with good roads has been undone by YSR.

2) TDP and Maha kootami (grand alliance):

Reasons for not voting for TDP.........

• Chandrababu has gone off the rocker. The sops he has offered make me dizzy. Has someone calculated how much it is going to cost and how it is going to be funded.
• His MONTHLY REMITTANCE SCHEME is sheer madness . How can any government fund such a scheme? Does it make sense to give a monthly dole to the not so poor and middle class? We can imagine the amount of mis-use that is going to take place under this scheme.
• His alliance with TRS is real pits in political morality, even by Indian standards. For years they had diagonally opposite positions on Telangana. For the sake of power, Babu did an about turn and alligned, of all the people, with KCR.
• He offered a free colour TV to all those who can not afford it. He even promised free power to watch the colour TV ( all you guys closing your industries for three days due to lack of power, please note). This was the last straw.

3) Prajarajyam :

When this party was formed i had some hopes that he would allign with some reformers like JP and try to bring in real change. But it is evident that he is just another politician in the same mould. Myreasons for not voting for this party......

• It is another family run party and playing cast based politics.
• Chiru was second to none in terms of sops offered , never bothering to clarify how they would be funded.
• He is matching YSR and Babu in name calling and personal attacks.
• Has absolutely no experience--administrative or otherwise, nor has the NTR type fire in the belly.
• Wants to be (and mostl likely will be) a king maker.

4) Loksatta :

This party is like a breath of fresh air. For those of you reading this piece, you already know about JP and his party. My reasons for voting fo Loksatta..............

• Clean as a whistle ( no pun intended) (for the un-initiated, whistle is their party symbol).
• Clear vision of what governance should be and what it should not be.
• Can be a good change agent by example and acts--- not just words.
• Overwhelming choice of my IITgroups.

I am going to vote for Lok satta at the state level. I know they would not come to power. i know they would not even win enough seats to become king makers. It is ok with me even if only JP gets elected and even if they get only 5% votes today. My vote for Loksatta would make it twice as hard for others. My vote for Loksatta is for the welfare of my children and grand children. May be they will come to power in 2020--- but this is the begining. Even the lone voice of JP in assembly would be a welcome check/ balance on the party in power.

Kisko doon, vote kisko doon?????

It is election time and i have to make up my mind whom to vote ( or whom not to vote). So many conflicting thoughts pass through my mind that i thought it is best put them down in one place, and, which better place than my blog. Let me first take up the Parliament.

Parliament:

1) Congress / UPA :

Reasons for not voting for them--------

• They don't hang Afzal Guru who is sentenced to death by the Supreme court for attacking Parliament, a symbol of our democracy
• They are largely responsible for the monumental corruption in the country.
• Their concept of secularism is hurting the country more and dividing it forever on religious lines
  
• They have made this country a soft state and a fair game for every terrorist across the border as can be seen from the number of attacks and lives lost in the past few years. Shivraj Patil, undoubtedly, the worst Home Minister, india ever had.
  
• They have failed to take any deterrent action after 24/11 against pakistan despite irrefutable proof of pak's involvement.
• They perpetuate dynastic rule, the congress party is forever the personal property of Nehru/ Gandhi family.
• Their Inflation computation is ridiculous and irrelevant when you consider that 'aam admi' are concerned about the high cost of foodstuff and essentials.
• They always talk of law taking it's own course, but, seldom allow it to do so.

2) Third Front :
Reasons for not voting for them

• They have a single point agenda-- to be a king or kingmaker.
• There are as many aspirants to the throne as there are parties.
• If voted to power they will do much more damage to the country than any other combination, either by action or by inaction.
• They will make country bankrupt (remember Chandrasekhar selling family gold)

3) BJP / NDA :

Negatives :

• The Hidutva brigade is a cause for concern.
  
• Their handling of Kandahar was bad. Parliament was attacked when Advani was the home minister.
• The Gujarat holocaust is a big blot on india.

Positives :

• Promised to bring back POTA
• there has been communal peace in Gujarat since then along with spectacular economic development.
  
• Hidutva forces will be balanced, hopefully, by other constituents of NDA.
• Nitish Kumar did a much better job in Bihar than lalu/Rabri
• can be expected to be more firm on terrorism and dealings with Pak.
• On economy, can't do anything worse than congress.
• Undoubtedly much less corrupt than congress.

So, for the Parliament, i will vote for BJP / NDA

INDIA'S OWN SHOEGATE

On 7th april'09, India's home minister Chidambaram was participating in a press conference. A journalist named Jarnail Singh of Dainik Jagaran threw a shoe at chidambaram narrowly missing him (but making his point). With the memories of an Iraqi Journalist throwing a shoe at George Bush still fresh in one's mind, the electronic media has gone to town with umpteen number of replays from various angles. The media also gave a wide publicity to the statement of Jaranail Singh.
But, why did this happen? What made a senior and responsible Journalist from an equally responsible publication do this petty, un-civilized act? We need to go a little deep into history and recall certain facts.
In 1984, Indira Gandhi was assasinated by her own mis-guided Sikh bodyguards , who sought a revenge for Operation Bluestar which resulted in an assault on their most sacred Golden Temple that was also a sanctuary to sant jarnail singh Bhindranwala and who was killed in that operation.
Soon after Indira's assassination Delhi went into flames, and, mobs incited and led by congress leaders like Jagdish Tytler and Sajjan kumar killed 3000 Sikhs and destroyed their property. The rampage went for three days unchecked and the Sikhs of delhi were left unprotected and at the mercy of the mobs.
This happened 25 years ago, but the memories , the pain and the anguish are still fresh in my mind. So, what happened to those criminals ? Three thousand deaths--- so how many criminals caught, how many prosecuted, how many sentenced, how many in jail????????
NONE.......... NOT EVEN ONE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The congress party shielded, protected and rewarded tytler and sajjan for their role.
After 25 years, last week, CBI GAVE A CLEAN CHIT TO TYTLER AND WITHDREW CHARGES ( SO THAT HE CAN CONTEST AS AN MP).
Now let me say something clearly and unambiguously---- EXCEPT FOR THE CONGRESS PARTY AND CBI, THE WHOLE COUNTRY BELIEVES THAT TYTLER WAS GUILTY.

IT IS A SHAME REALLY AND WHEN I LEARNED THAT CBI GAVE TYTLER A CLEAN CHIT MY BLOOD BOILED.
IF MY BLOOD BOILED AT THIS INJUSTICE, YOU CAN IMAGINE WHAT IT DOES TO JARNAIL SINGH AND OTHER SIKHS.
NOW YOU KNOW WHY HE THREW THE SHOE.
The shoe was thrown not at chidambaram the individual, but chidambaram the home minister of India and chidambaram who represents congress party. The incident reveals the FRUSTRATION OVER GROSS INJUSTICE.
BY SUCH GROSS INJUSTICE ,THE CONGRESS PARTY IS DOING A HUGE DAMAGE TO THE COUNTRY BY ALIENATING ONE OF OUR MOST PATRIOTIC COMMUNITIES--- THE SIKHS.
There are quite a few Indian politicians who deserve the shoe-treatment. I believe the trend started and we will see (hopefully) more such incidents. I only hope they would be more on target than Jaranial singh.

Chidambaram said that he forgives Jarnail singh ( for throwing the shoe).
Good of you Mr. Chidambaram, but, HISTORY WILL NOT FORGIVE YOU OR YOUR PARTY FOR PROTECTING TYTLER.

CLEAN CHIT TO JAGDISH TYTLER----------MY FOOT....OR, SHOULD I SAY, MY SHOE?????????

HOME COMING -- HARD LANDING

After our six months sojourn at Chicago, USA, we were homesick and eager to get back home (though we were going to miss our lovely grand daughter Sreeya badly). We landed at Hyderabad at 8am on Sunday, the first March’09. The last few hours preceding this were quite interesting and I now attempt to record them as they happened.

It was 11pm on Saturday night (28 Feb) when our KLM flight from Amsterdam reached Delhi skies. Even as I was telling my wife that we have made it before time the pilot announced that we are not yet cleared for landing due to traffic delays. The words traffic delays brought smiles to our faces. We finally landed at 11-30pm .

Even as the flight was taxing on the runway towards the gate, a guy around 30 years age sitting a couple of rows behind us got up, opened the overhead locker, picked up his bag and started off towards the door (as if to get off from a running bus !!!). He had to be literally chased back to his seat by the cabin crew !!!!!!!!. I suddenly started wondering why, some of us , can not follow simple instructions like not to open overhead lockers till seat belt signs are switched off and not to switch on your mobiles etc.

As law abiding senior citizens , we were one of the last off the aircraft. Naturally we were at the fag end of a long Q at one of the several immigration counters at the IGIA. There were several counters and there were long Qs at each counter. As we spent nearly an hour in the Q, two thoughts occurred to me. At Chicago , SFO and LA, I had seen that the US citizens had separate counters at the immigration and were out faster compared to the visitors. Doesn’t it make sense to do a similar thing at our Airports too? The second thought was, shouldn’t we have a separate counter or two for the senior citizens who would be pretty tired physically after long and tiring flights. May be we should put up a representation to the civil aviation minister.

Having cleared immigration, we went to the baggage collection area. Some one was kind enough to have taken our four pieces of baggage off the conveyor and put them all together at one place (thanks to Bharathi’s scheme of unique identification of tying a pink ribbon to each piece). I was looking around for trolleys when a porter walked up to me and offered to take them. When I asked him about his charges he said “sab , jo chahe de dijiye (give what ever you wish).

Now, I must admit something. This is one of those things I was missing—I mean the human interaction and human touch.

So there we were happily walking along these two guys pushing two trolleys , first taking us through the customs blue channel (no questions asked!!!!) and to the jet airways lounge. There they noted our ticket details and guided us to the Free Coach for transfer to the domestic terminal. The porters loaded our luggage on the coach and when I gave them a hundred rupee note saluted me and left. They were happy and so we were.

When the coach was full it started on it’s journey ,and , when it stopped for a few minutes waiting for an aircraft to go past us close by, I realized that we were taking a private road within the airport alongside the boundary wall and not the public road outside. I suddenly felt a chill when I realized how easy it would be for terrorists to get on to this bus, hijack it and go to one of the passenger aircrafts and take it over. Is there a wonder that we are so vulnerable???

When we reached terminal 1B, another guy helped us with the baggage . When we entered the terminal 1B lounge we got shocked. It was packed, all seats full and lots of people resting on the floor too (like the pre-Lalu railway stations). After waking around a few minutes with our loaded trolleys I decided it was time to play my cards. I walked up to a couple of policeman guarding the area and sought their help for a couple of seats. They promptly woke up a couple of guys (who were sleeping on several chairs) and got us two adjoining seats. That was quick action, and, believe me, they were embarrassed when I thanked them ( may be they do a mostly thankless job, I wonder). We had some cool mineral water and a some good coffee. After an hour or so I walked up to the security personnel who were standing on guard at the entrance to the check-in lounge and asked them if we could go in and relax. They told us to come back at 3-30am and we were allowed inside when we went back later. There were these guys with the Jet airways badges who took our luggage and put it through the security check and to the check-in counter.

At our counter, an young man checked our e-tickets and passports and printed the boarding passes. I thought it was pretty fast. Then he kept on trying , for the next five minutes, to get our baggage tags and failed. I asked him what the problem was and he said that the machine is printing the tags but not releasing them. I suggested to him that he should get our tags from the next counter and do his trials later on. For good measure, I added that we have been traveling for nearly twenty plus hours and pretty tired. That had the desired effect and our tags were given with no further delay !!!!!

We then went through the security check with our cabin baggage and found that there were separate Qs for ladies and gents. We both had to take our laptops out of their bags and put them back in after the check (but that is an international practice these days) and there was nothing to complain about.

We were very happy to find that we walked into more spacious , better maintained lounge with comfortable seats. Most important was the toilets were well maintained, had paper and operating flush!!!! And this was our first opportunity to get out of the thermals (for the record, it was -4C in Chicago when we left). We had more coffee ( I thought Rs 25/ for a small cup was pretty expensive).

When our flight was announced we walked to the gate but the security there stopped my wife because her strolley was not stamped. We had to go back and put it through the security check again and get it stamped again. What upset me a little was no body said sorry!!!!.

The Jet Airways flight was half empty and both of us were eagerly looking forward to a hearty breakfast (having skipped the last meal on AMS-Delhi leg). The flight took off on time and in no time the breakfast trolley appeared. When we said veg , the young lady offered us a choice of ‘south indian’ or ‘north indian’, we said ‘south’ hoping to get some vada or dosa. Next minute she checks up and says only north is available. When I said she shouldn’t have offered us a choice, she demurred and said sorry (rather sweetly). Anyway, we had a hearty breakfast and enjoyed it.

We landed at Shmashabad at 8am , a clear 20 minutes ahead (obviously no air traffic delays at Shamshbad and that may not be good news for GMR!!!!!). When we walked out of the aero bridge we were offered a ride on the cart (mercifully) and the guy dropped us right at the lift which took us one level down to the baggage area. There , we took our heavy bags off the conveyor (courtesy a fellow passenger) . We had another smiling porter help us with the trolley and our folks were waiting outside to receive us. Keep it up, Shamshabad!!!!!.

As we were driving home around 9am on a Sunday , the heat and dust hit us pretty badly (after six months of controlled atmosphere). As we passed by , it occurred to me that the PV Narasimha Rao Express Highway looked the same (not much progress!!!!!!).

As we neared home lines from an old song was ringing in my ears “ Aye mere pyare watan…….”

HEAT AND DUST ,
TRAFFIC AND NOISE,
PROBLEMS GALORE…….
BUT WE ARE HAPPY TO BE BACK HOME!!!!!!!!!!

Obama's struggle to bring in change (contd.)

9th Feb has been a busy day for Obama. He made a trip to Elkhart, Indiana to meet the people at a Townhall meeting. Elkhart has a high 15% unemployment now, the major industry there being production of RVs (recreation vehicles). His objectives for the trip were quite clear-- have a direct chat with the people, hardsell his economic plan, emphasize the need for urgency in action by senate in passing the bill (and thus putting more pressure on the Republicans to act swiftly). Having seen the meeting live on CNN, i would say that he achieved his objectives to a great extent.

( I was reminded of Indira Gandhi who used to go to people and address them directly at huge rallies whenever she had political problems, there by putting great pressure on her detractors. Also, he looked like 'the angry youngman' , Amitab Bachan in zanzeer & deewar.)

Later in the evening at 7pm(EST) he addressed his first primetime press conference at the east room in white house. At this conference he spoke well and answered the 13 questions well. More often, he sounded like a professor and his answers were lengthy. But, it was refreshing to see a man who was well informed, knew what he was talking about and spoke with passion and conviction.

The salient points are----

- this is not your run of the mill recession, it is the biggest one since great depression.

- his priorities are to create 4 million jobs, improve the credit availability from banks, improve
consumer confidence.

- jobs will be created by the private sector, but government has to jump-start the economy now.

- hard to take criticism form those (republicans) who have doubled the national debt.

- inaction is not an option at all.

By his actions today, Obama has taken full ownership of the plan and rightly so. Time alone will tell whether he will succede and to what extent. But one thing is clear, he has a plan and he is a man in hurry. He beleives in change and will do his best to bring in. He is asserting himself as the President showing signs of agression, at times. His popularity is at a high 75%. All this bodes well for america in it's hour of economic crisis.

Good luck Mr. President.

OBAMA'S STRUGGLE TO BRING IN CHANGE

President Obama put the economic recovery and reinvestment plan before the house about two weeks back.
The plan envisages an outlay of about $ 819 B out of which one-third is tax cuts and two thirds is spending. The plan expects to create / save 3 to 4 million jobs. The proposed spending of $ 550B mainly consists of:

$ 142B - Education
$ 111B - Health care
$ 90B - Infrastructure
$ 72B - for aid & other benefits
$ 54B - Energy
$ 16B - Science and technology
$ 13B - Housing

Obama has always advocated bi-partisanship and wants to bring in change involving everybody.
Right through his campaign he maintained that Washington needs to change it's approach. So when he put the bill before the house he hoped to get the support of everyone -- across party lines. He addressed the house and pleaded for bi-partisanship and full support.

HE GOT A RUDE SHOCK AND HIS FIRST BIG LESSON IN AMERICAN POLITICS AS A PRESIDENT.

The Republicans wanted a lot of changes in the proposal. They want MORE OF TAX CUTS AND LESS OF SPENDING. They strongly feel that tax cuts are the only way for economic recovery. But , Obama pointed out that there have been so many tax cuts last few years and look where it has taken the economy. He told them "...whack me over my head, but no more tax cuts for big business.." The Republicans want less spending because they feel that this spending will not create a lot of jobs.

Let us take just one example of the automobile industry. Obama has been saying all along that the auto industry needs to change and become energy efficient and eco-friendly. The Republicans seem to say that look, things are bad, this is not the time for change, let us pump in more money, so that more cars are sold and more are made (saving jobs). Obama says that such QUICK FIXES wont work. He says that THIS IS THE BEST CHANCE TO MAKE AUTO SECTOR REFORM , WHEN GOVERNMENT IS GOING TO FUND IT.

Most of us who have spent time in the corporate world know what happens there---

WHEN YOU ARE DOING WELL, PEOPLE SAY, WHERE IS THE NEED TO CHANGE?

WHEN THINGS ARE BAD, PEOPLE SAY, TIMES ARE BAD AND WE CAN NOT AFFORD CHANGES.

SO, THE QUESTION IS WHEN DO YOU CHANGE????

If you look at the funds earmarked under various heads , you see that education , healthcare and infrastructure are topping the list. What Obama's team is trying to do is invest for a better tomorrow while creating / protecting jobs in those areas today. He is very clear and focussed on what he wants to achieve.

Most of the Republicans are worried about Obama. They were dazzled by his win ,and, politically, they do not want him to have too much of success. But, they are also worried about being labeled as obstructive. So they are trying to compromise and get the best possible tax cuts in the deal and drop some developmental spending that will not result in immediate job creation.

( ....... to be continued )

Slumdog millionnaire is trash

I first saw this movie a few days before it won several golden globes. I did not like what i saw. As a matter of fact, some of the scenes were so nauseating that they were repulsive. My first thoughts were....Oh my God, not again, this can not be happening in 21st century, the western movie makers indulging in india bashing, focussing only on it's poverty, its rope tricks and the Taj Mahal, as they used to do in 50s and 60s.

So when it won so many golden globes and won Oscar nominations i was surprised. i wondered if i was wrong in my first assessment. I said to my self..." OK, i will see it once again with a open mind and objectively". I watched the movie a second time and realized that my first assessment was wrong---- IT WAS NOT JUST TRASH, IT WAS UTTER TRASH.

Why do i say that??

1)Let us start with the title.....SLUMDOG MILLIONNAIRE. In india of today we call the people who live in slums slumdwellers not slumdogs. Calling someone a dog is a big insult and abuse. Remember the dialogues of Dharmendra in umpteen films when he cries out loud while bashing crooks and criminals " kutte, my tera khoon peoonga...". (for my western friends, kutta is dog).
When Harbhajan singh reportedly called Andrew Symmonds a monkey everyone called him a racist, they were after his blood and he was fined and suspended. BCCI had to bail him out and rescue him. But if you call the slum living boy a DOG it is not racist ???????????
People are asking a simple question " why not a SLUM BOY MILLIONNAIRE ? Why the DOG?
Not answered till date satisfactorily.
I am surprised our Neta log have not reacted to this racist slurr? Ihave read somewhere that P.Chidamabaram, our home minister praised Slumdog. I would like to ask him if he had seen the movie and his prescription for rags to riches is GAMESHOWS.

2) The movie has several revolting scenes--- let us take the worst one. The boy literally wades through SHIT and fully covered from head to toe in SHIT he gets the autograph of Amitabh Bachan. Do you think boys in india (slumdwellers or others) will wade through shit to get an autograph of AB or SRK ?? Many such visuals were revolting.

3) What is the message of this movie ? That there is something called Destiny and you beat all odds to get from rags to riches. So how do you do it ? Not through hardwork or brillinace etc. but through a GAMESHOW (KBC like) where all the questions are answered based on the boy's various experiences in his young life. OMG, how lucly can you get that a computer generates only such queations that you can answer ALL of them based on your limited experiences.

If the idea is to show the rags to riches success, several movies have done it so well in the past. I readily recall the Amitabh starrer "Muqaddar ka Sikandar" ( Master of Destiny) where it was done so well. I entirly agree with Priyadarshini that a Maniratnam would have made this SDM into a fine movie (recall Yuva).

4) This movie is also an insult to the indian media. Here is a young boy doing well round after round in a KBC and a couple of policemen arrest him and subject him to a third degree to find out if he is cheating or how he is able to answer. Do you think the indian news channels ever hungry would let go a story like that???? No way. You would have the whole lot of them at the police station in a jiffy. And the Human rights people too. Oh my God , David (hope i got the name right) you do not know my india of today.

5) I am as happy as you are that our mastero AR Rehman wona golden globe for his music in SDM. My friends say that he was better in several other movies and i agree. Just recall "Lagan" which was also nominated for Oscars. It had such wonderful music by Rehman. Of course, Lagan couldn't win a Oscar. They said it was too long, too indian, too much about cricket etc, etc , etc. Bla, bla.bla..... The british were shown defeated by a ragtag bunch of village cricketers. How can that be??????

So, folks, i sincerely hope that people back home trash this movie and give it the treatment it deserves. I hope the indian media stops going into raptures on the awards won by this movie and expose it for what it is. The CRITICS may rant and rave about it but i am just a 'aam aadmi'.

Finally, i pray that it does not win an Oscar because it does not deserve one.

Obama-The first week

At the outset, let me state clearly that i am a great fan and admirer of Barack Obama (for the past one year). So, it was a great moment when he was sworn in as the 44th President of USA on the 20th Jan'09 ( a week ago).
Yesterday (26th Jan) is being called a bloody monday in USA because on this single day 70,000+ americans have lost their jobs. The out look is gloomy and not good at all. Worse is expected in the next few days and weeks. However, amidst all this gloom, there is a reason to cheer. The first week of Obama in office brings a lot of hope not only to america but the world at large. His policies and actions in the areas of energy, foreign policy and economy give hope for a better tomorrow. They reveal that Obama is a statesman and has a vision-- a refreshing change from his predecessor who never knew what these words mean and undoubtedly did tremendous damage to america and the world. Here is what he said and did during the first week.

ENERGY & ECONOMY:
America's over dependence on foreign oil is a serious threat which bankrolls dictators and terrorism. Also a long term threat of climate change. " Our leaders raise their voices each time there is a spike in gas prices, only to grow quite when the prices fall at the pump." he said.
( how very true of india and it's leadership too!!!!!).

Policy is to reverse the dependence on foreign oil while building a new energy economy that will create millions of jobs. He has put forward the American Recovery and Reinvestment plan before the congress that will generate 4 million jobs with clean energy investments. Also to ensure fuel efficient automobiles of tomorrow are built in america it self. Proposes a new emission standards for the model year 2011. Target for cars is atleast 30 miles per gallon by 2020. A 40% increase in fuel efficiency could save 2million barrels per day of oil (nearly the entire US imports from gulf).
(my friends in US, recall what i have been saying in my earlier visits about fuel guzzling large cars, fuel inefficient homes and attitude of indifference to energy saving)

California and twelve other states have shown leadership to reduce greenhouse emissions. But washington under Bush stood in their way & blocked. Obama has now directed EPA to immediately review the earlier denial. States will be free to fix the emission standards. There are rumblings in the auto industry and it's supportes of statu quo. Obama's goal is not a quickfix but to help auto industry prepare for future. America will lead the energy revolution and Obama has asked China & India, two large populous nations to join america in the global coalition on energy.

Foreign policy :
Obama sent a clear message of change when he gave his first major interview to AL-ARABIYA on 26th Jan (the significance should not be lost on anybody!!!!). The interview reveals a great shift in the policy,tone and language.
Here are some of the salient points :

--- Appointed Senator Mitchelle as personal envoy to middle east.
--- Ready to intiate a new partneship with muslim world based on mutual respect and mutual
interest.
--- On Isreal-palestine conflict shows his vision when he says that the bottom line is , is a child in
palestine territories going to be better off? Is a child in israel going to feel confident about
his/her safet and security?
--- Going to address the muslim world in his first 100 days from a muslim capital.
--- To Al-Queda and other terrorist organizations he said you will be judged on what you have
built not what you have destroyed.
--- Says his job is to communicate to american people that muslim world is full of people who
simply want to live their lives and see their children live better lives. Likewise to
communicate to the muslim world that america is not your enemy. We sometimes make
mistakes. We are not perfect. But we are not a collonial power.
(it takes a great courage to accept ones mistakes , a sure sign of a statesman).
--- Withdrawal of troups from Iraq and closing Guantanamo on a time bound basis.
--- Language is important, will not use words like islamic facism, seperate Al queda from other
muslims ( a far cry from Bush's " if you are not with us , you are against us")
--- To Iran he said "... you unclench your fist, we will extend our hand"

World should breathe easy that Barack Obama is the american president now. An excllent begining, Mr.President.

DSR speaks

Some ofyou have been telling me that it is time i started blogging, more so, after my recent mails from Chicago. So i have taken up and just opened my blogspot ---DSR speaks. Hope you will like my ramblings/ musings / thoughts etc.etc. from time to time.
Seshu 26/01/09 Chicago