ISSUES AND CONCERNS

Friends, We are into the traditional month of Budget, so also the month of financial closures. Thus for all intents and purposes, it is the year end. Hope it helps the new year in April to usher with realistic hopes and pragmatic promises. As usual, the happening place that India is, continue to hog the global limelight, not necessarily for all right reasons, some of which could be stupid and bizarre. Month began with activists making a pulp of Bt. Brinjal. "I am with those against Bt. Brinjal. Let us not underestimate our farmer, who has his own knowledge" said Jnanpeeth awardee U.R.Ananthamurthy. "It is up to farmers to opt or desist from cultivating Bt. Brinjal. Let the farmer decide" Stated Biotechie Kiran Mazumdar. Thus, there was a quantum support for the farmers' opposition for the Bt. Brinjal, from across the intellectual divide. Of course there were many supporters for the introduction of the gene modified egg plant. It was not very clear where our sua...

Idea of India and parochial politics oget’s Thesaurus describes PAROCHALISM variously as, narrow minded, tunnel visioned, insular, pedantic, unbending, dictatorial, warped, biased, proud, clannish, prejudiced sectarian, chaunistic, xenophobic, unreasonable, discriminatory, intolerant, fanatic, obstinate, blinded, and many more that would largely mean to convey the small heartedness of its practitioner. India is country of exasperating variation, from Kashmir to Kanya Kumari and from Kutch to Kolkatta. India is kaleidoscopic in depth and variety . It has an incredible diversity, yet is bound in a unity that stretches way back into the un-written history. In the words of late Indira Gandhi, ‘the secret of India’s great uniqueness and resilience is the acceptance of life in all its fullness, the good and the evil, and at the same time trying to rise above it all’. In all the ups and downs of its long and chequered history, Indian customs, mores and traditions have been continuously evolvi...

GANG LEADER FOR A DAY A Book by : Sudhir Venkatesh The four of us left the restaurant and got into J.T.’s Malibu for our next task: a meting with Johnny, a man who owned a convenience store and no longer allowed members of the Black Kings inside. I already knew Johnny. He was a local historian of sorts who liked to regale me with stories of the 1960s and 1970s, when he was a gang leader himself. But he stressed how the gangs of that period were totally different. They were political organizations, he said, fighting police harassment and standing up for the community’s right to a fair share of city services. In his view, today’s gangs were mostly moneymaking outfits with little understanding of, or commitment to, the needs of Chicago’s poor black population. Johnny’s store was on Forty-seventh Street, a busy commercial strip that bisected Robert Taylor. The strip was lined with liquor stores, check-cashing shops, party-supply and hardware stores, a few burned-out buildings and empty lot...

MAN OR THE BEAST? OR ARE THEY MADE FOR EACH OTHER?

Jai Ram (Jai Hind) Ramesh Prof. B. M. Hegde, hegdebm@gmail.com It makes one feel good to know that there are some men in our government that have the guts to say no to a large multinational when the latter tries to make money at the cost of human future. Jai Ram Ramesh belongs to that class. May his tribe increase! It is not very easy when even the Indian business honchos were also backing the demand for introducing BT Brinjal in India. The business lobby has a point to make big money fast which is why they are in biotechnology business. Corporate business follows the only mantra of their mentor, Bernard Mandeville, Adam Smith’s teacher, who propounded the first law of corporate business thus. "The ONLY aim of corporate business is to make profit, irrespective of the consequences, as it is the duty of the corporate management to earn money for their stake holders. Philanthropy has no place in corporate business." Most, if not all, ills of mankind are due to this greed of the ...

WHEN ISSUES & CONCERNS WENT NATIONAL In Dec 2009, J. Shriyan, editor, was interviewed by Dr. K. S. Chaitra, for Doordarshn Bangalore Centre for its Kannada Channel 'CHANDANA'. Translated Excerpts. Chaitra: Having born in a small village, you went to Mega city of Mumbai chasing a bright future and also to continue studies. How did you feel the environment from a village to the city? J.S.: In 50s and 60s there were few day schools teaching Kannada.To continue my studies, I had to go to one Mogaveera Night School which was nearby, where I completed my SSLC. But the opportunites for personality development, which day schools offer, I missed in the night school. And that has certainly affected our personality development in general. Joined a college of Commerce to pursue higher studies. In the meanwhile, my father sold his shop and returned to the village. I had to take up employment to support my education and living as well. Managed to pass B.Com, then M.Com and intermediate I...

IAS officer with 220 bank accounts Raipur: B L Agarwal, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer in Chhattisgarh, has been found to have at least 220 bank accounts and assets worth crores of rupees, official sources said after the income tax department raided his residence here. IT officials searched the residence of the state agriculture secretary as well as business establishments of his close relatives. The officials similarly raided his chartered accountant Sunil Agarwal’s house and came across the documents suggesting that the IAS officer had amassed assets disproportionate to his known income. The officer had at least 220 bank accounts, several of them opened in fake names and addresses, and a few in the names of his domestic servants. Efforts to contact B L Agarwal failed. A man who answered his mobile telephone said that agarwal was "busy in a meeting". Income tax department sources said they were analysing documents and papers they seized. Some documents sugges...

Ex-Delhi speaker takes the govt for a ride New Delhi: From being the speaker of the Delhi assembly till 2008 to an MLA without salary, Congress leader Prem Singh is in the news for the wrong reason due to his alleged quest for free hospitality and privilege. Some time ago, Singh’s salary and allowances were blocked for allegedly taking away valuables, including air-conditioners, computers and floor tiles, from his official residence. Now, the four-time MLA from Ambedkar Nagar has landed in another controversy. The Indian Consulate General in New York, USA has shot off a letter to the Delhi government requesting its help to recover $960 (Rs 44,600) from Singh, as he did not pay the hotel bills of his family members during their stay from August 10-12, 2008. A top official said, Singh’s wife, son and daughter-in-law had accompanied the then speaker to the US. The consulate had paid the hotel and now wants the money from either the Delhi government or Singh. The consulate had booked only ...

Sterile water to ease pain Forget drugs, injections of tiny amounts of water into the lower back can help ease birthing pain. Jab of Sterile water eases birthing pain. Reynieze Petersen Leota, 17, who delivered her first baby at the Mater Mother’s Hospital in Brisbane, said. "The pain was really bad. I couldn’t handle it and then the midwife told me about the water injections. The pain went away straight away."

All about methi Hot methi ke parathe. Who can resist eating them? Methi or fenugreek has always been a kitchen favourite all over the world since times immemorial. Fenugreek is an essential ingredient in many foods in many cultures across the continents. Methi contains special oils, vitamins, minerals and trace elements, which keep the body healthy. Methi has exclusive properties which fight obesity and diabetes. Recent research studies have shown that methi is good for those suffering from diabetes. For the obese, fenugreek fights the fat cells and reduces the overall body weight. Fenugreek seeds and leaves can be consumed. The stem can also be eaten, but it is highly bitter in taste. Curry prepared from fenugreek leaves (since methi is bitter, it is generally used with other greens, meat or wheat) helps fight flatulence, indigestion and keeps the bowels highly functional. Ayurvedic doctors prescribe fenugreek for certain liver problems like some forms of jaundice. Methi is good for g...

Karnataka bans use of cell phone by teachers Bangalore: To instill discipline among teachers, the Karnataka Government has decided to ban use of cell phones by them during classes in all government and aided primary and high schools and junior colleges in the state. A similar ban already exists in the case of students in these institutions. The decision has been taken after students complained of cell phone misuse in classes by teachers, Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Vishveshwara Hegde Kageri said here. Kageri, who toured several districts in the recent past, said a circular would be issued to all schools and colleges to prohibit use of cell phones by teachers. Only head masters and college principals would be allowed to use it for administrative purposes. Nearly three lakh government teachers and lecturers are serving in over 40,000 government and aided schools and junior colleges in the state. 2.1 BN SMS a day China witnessed an increase of 8.4 per cent in the number o...