The reality shows which has flooded the idiot –box in recent times has managed to keep its select band of viewers strapped to the seats. Whether its Little Champs which parades the talent of Kids to the variety of dance and talent shows showcasing team and individual events to the whimsical Big Boss which includes contestants who are in the news for all the wrong reasons.
The reality show which stormed into fame was Kaun Banega Karodpati? modeled on its western avatar- Who wants to be a millionaire?.
The show was meant to be a show stopper and one of its kind without the usual Cry baby Stuff , jealousy, business rivalries and the routine mundane stuff that accompany Saas bahu type serials.
People who were true aficionados of general knowledge were thrilled to match their skills and fill their vacant cells of their cerebellum with oodles of information that was hitherto unknown.
The organizers having struck the gold-mine went over board after TRP’s came down post the initial hurrah and turned to innovative techniques to keep the interest going. News leaked about the person who became the First Crorepati- Viz. Harsh Vardhan Nawathe.
If any of the readers can recollect some of the episodes featuring the eventual 1st winner- in one of the episode which revealed a murkier side. Harsh Nawathe took a opinion poll to seek an answer to the question to which he was clueless.
After mulling for a moment he surprisingly selected the option which the participants had given a measly 5% votes and MORE SURPRISE ..his option was Correct. Never ever a person who doesn’t know an answer would exercise his option like this!!Even when he won the 1- Crore Prize the celebrations were questionably restrained and muted. The Overall Joy and camaraderie of a true Winner was missing. Tongues started wagging and the Programme was slowly taken off the slot citing date problems for Bacchan. The winner too sulked and was not seen anywhere and the fixing angle gained momentum.
But the Current episodes have breached or surpassed all barriers of cheating.
One of the Contestant (obviously pre-selected one) claiming to be working for a Premier IT co, had no clue whatsoever about the Full Form of USB ( even Kids nowadays know this stands for Universal Serial Bus) she goes in for a opinion poll wins the round and leaves after garnering 25 lacs. A woman who had very limited access to information barely getting to read a newspaper through her own admissions surprisingly answered mind boggling questions and too quit after gaining 50 lacs. There were Several Participants who were easily recognisable from their traits/actions about their level of knowledge, yet received prize money in excess of 25 lacs. The organisers were clever enough to recruit some People who suffered early exits to prove that nothing was amiss.
The producer/presenter in tandem with the sponsors have chalked up a clever Plan which tries to play on the psyche of the viewers by selecting contestants from their own stables given adequate training on speaking etiquette and which revolves around Praising Bacchan every now and then for no rhyme or reason, wanting to chat with Aiahwarya Rai, and coming up with few anecdotes pertaining to Madhushala – a poem written by Senior Bachhan. Sometimes we all wonder whether there was any poet born other than Harivanshrai Bacchan??
Further Mr.Amitabh Bacchhan does, what he only can do best- ACTING .
Every Participant is given a Philip..a boost .Prodding .a false impression is created that the organizers caters even to people based in the lower rung/lower strata of society.
Siddhartha Basu is an entrepreneur in a true sense. It sure requires abundance of talent to fleece the innocent people without even raising an eye-lid of suspicion. But faulty Planning and lack of foresight has shred this amazing fool proof plan and set the cat amongst the pigeons.
The revenue generated through SMS’s sent by gullible viewers is astronomical.
Each SMS is charged at the rate of Rs.6/- to the sender.
Assuming there are only 100 entries from say 10 cities of some 20 districts and 20 states...
6(Rs/SMS) x 100(entries) x 10(cities) x 20(districts) x 20(states) = 6
x 100 x 10 x 20 x 20 = Rs.24,00,000
24 lakhs in 20 minutes.
(People trying for the 2 lakhs cash prize)
Imagine what if 1000 entries try out from 100 cities?
The figure simply grows by 2 more zeroes and yields a whopping 24 Crores!!!!
And it does not stop there...
In practice it could be another multiple of 100 or a multiple of 1000 on an average.
In that case it is 24 x 100crores earnings in just 20 minutes on every episode!!!
And the prize money: A mere 2 crore..
(and from whose pocket?)
And the best part of this calculation is just the SMS earning!!
We still have to account the revenue generated through advertisements.
A rough annual profit calculation goes like this:
2400 x 5 x 4) (episode/month) x 12 = 5,76,000 crores.
Let even 50% get dissolved in taxes and other payments, still you will be left with (which includes even the meagre 480 crores of prize money i.e.if every episode bags 2 crore prize)!
2,88,000-crores profit !!! (only from SMS)
Common on guys, at least do your homework and analysis properly before resorting to CONNING .
Eat only that much which you can digest and fool only those who can be conned.
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Man with the Golden Voice- Jagjit Singh A Tribute
The man bestowed with the golden Voice –Ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh passed away in serene calm on 10 Oct 2011. His age and his voice blossomed and radiated with every passing year akin to the Preserved Vintage Wine which gets matured in barrels.
In the 1970’s when Kishore Kumar/Mohd. Rafi reduced all competition to dust with their melodies Jagjit made his presence felt by belting out his first composition – Unforgettables in 1976.
Though the album made waves it did not translate into work for which he had to sing jingles in scores of advertisements to sustain his livelihood.
Singing in tandem with his wife Chitra he created his own select band of fans by composing songs which could be easily deciphered even by a layman with limited knowledge of Urdu and poetry.
Perhaps the greatest drawback was he could not raise his voice to a high pitch which incidentally worked in his favour in creating that soft and silky voice custom made for his trade mark Ghazals.
A car accident in 1990 killed his teen aged son Vivek which destroyed the singing career of his wife who seemingly lost her voice trying to cope up with the irrepairable loss. Jagjit went solo after a brief lull of around a year.
Any avid fan of his would vouch for the sudden change in the depth of jagjit’s Voice post 1990,which inculcated all the grief, gloom and the melancholy notes so effectively that it was relatively easy to identify the soul of a father who silently mourned for his dead son through the rendition of his songs.
One has to hear his ‘’Na chhiti na koi sandesh ‘’ and ‘’Kagaz ki kashti’’ and I bet it would be difficult to hold back the excess moisture breaking the contours of the eye lashes and cascading down the cheeks, as one could sense the overpowering grief let out in these classics.
It was always seen that he never showed any emotions and was a man of few words and was instrumental in organising concerts for charity as and when requested by scores of NGO’s.
While it would be difficult for his wife who has to continue the journey of Life without him his ardent fans hope that Jagjit Singh would have found solace after REUNITING with his beloved son.
The best compliment perhaps bestowed on him in 1989 was by the renowned Writer Khushwant Singh who said’’ He is a better singer than Mehdi Hassan and a better looker than Dilip Kumar.
As someone rightly said’’ God called Steve Jobs as he wanted an I- Pod and then had to call Jagjit Sngh to fill it up with his melodies.
In the 1970’s when Kishore Kumar/Mohd. Rafi reduced all competition to dust with their melodies Jagjit made his presence felt by belting out his first composition – Unforgettables in 1976.
Though the album made waves it did not translate into work for which he had to sing jingles in scores of advertisements to sustain his livelihood.
Singing in tandem with his wife Chitra he created his own select band of fans by composing songs which could be easily deciphered even by a layman with limited knowledge of Urdu and poetry.
Perhaps the greatest drawback was he could not raise his voice to a high pitch which incidentally worked in his favour in creating that soft and silky voice custom made for his trade mark Ghazals.
A car accident in 1990 killed his teen aged son Vivek which destroyed the singing career of his wife who seemingly lost her voice trying to cope up with the irrepairable loss. Jagjit went solo after a brief lull of around a year.
Any avid fan of his would vouch for the sudden change in the depth of jagjit’s Voice post 1990,which inculcated all the grief, gloom and the melancholy notes so effectively that it was relatively easy to identify the soul of a father who silently mourned for his dead son through the rendition of his songs.
One has to hear his ‘’Na chhiti na koi sandesh ‘’ and ‘’Kagaz ki kashti’’ and I bet it would be difficult to hold back the excess moisture breaking the contours of the eye lashes and cascading down the cheeks, as one could sense the overpowering grief let out in these classics.
It was always seen that he never showed any emotions and was a man of few words and was instrumental in organising concerts for charity as and when requested by scores of NGO’s.
While it would be difficult for his wife who has to continue the journey of Life without him his ardent fans hope that Jagjit Singh would have found solace after REUNITING with his beloved son.
The best compliment perhaps bestowed on him in 1989 was by the renowned Writer Khushwant Singh who said’’ He is a better singer than Mehdi Hassan and a better looker than Dilip Kumar.
As someone rightly said’’ God called Steve Jobs as he wanted an I- Pod and then had to call Jagjit Sngh to fill it up with his melodies.
Friday, September 16, 2011
The Dirty Picture
On a popular talk Show in Australia Radio Jockey Kyle Sandilands recently uttered some uncharitable words about India that incensed many of the Indians staying in Australia.
Kyle called India a shithole besides adding another expletive –calling the Ganges a ‘Junkyard’.
A Spanish diplomat recently aghast at the lack of dustbins in Delhi, volunteered to buy them and arranged to place them at strategic locations across the city to further the cause of hygiene as the roads earlier were strewn with trash.
This was perhaps the most humiliating incident which should have woken up the govt. authorities from the deep slumber rather than making an issue over the war of words expressed by the westerners who shudder at the apathy and the callous attitude of most of us Indians.
The Holy Ganges as it is called comes from the Himalayas and is in the most sublime and pristine liquid form, full of the mystic faith, that pervades within itself. The water is pure and clear and is known to cleanse all evils and sins in its path.
The gushing water later enters the plains, and at various pilgrimage destinations like Varanasi and Hardwar untreated effluents from various leather tanneries are released into it shedding all inhibitions, half burnt corpses are disposed off the burning ghats without any remorse and untreated sewage from the cities too makes its contribution to the muck factor that is lot more polluted than a ‘’JUNKYARD’’.
The word FILTH is synonymous with the Indian sub-continent .There is no need to zoom into the ‘subject’ you will find the same, at every opportune place.
People relieving themselves at the nearest corner, the so called educated people travelling in the 1st Class compartment throwing/spitting the wrappers /fruit peels/ghutka /pan contents out of the train windows, people residing in the slums/chawls recreating their own virtual dust bins on the roads by throwing the waste from a long distance (akin to a professional NBA basket –ball player) very often missing its target.
The Municipal Corporation with its corrupt and lethargic attitude cannot be expected to clean this muck alone, which mounts at an alarming rate often threatening the area with epidemics like cholera and malaria.
The Plastic Industry has successfully managed to stem the reported BAN on plastics by meeting high- profile politicians who deliberately dilly dally on such issues. Plastics act like a catalyst creating huge stagnant pools which serve, as a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and rodents which forage on decaying matter emitting nauseating and sickening odour leading to people gasping for breath of fresh air besides aggravating the ailments.
Crores of money has been spent on cleansing the Ganges at strategic places which has gone down the drain as NO real effort has been made to arrest the release of the various pollutants which negates the effect of the Cleaning Campaign.
Western countries have openly aired the dirty culture pervading the Indian sub-continent which is mistaken as an attack on our glorious past and incredible Culture.
Apologies followed later on as usual but honestly I feel Kyle only expressed his disgust at the mindset of Indians who when holidaying abroad adhere to all the rules and rave about the cleanliness but do not think twice before chucking cigarette stubs/spitting out of the car windows on landing back.
The comments though provocative certainly doesn’t fall within the purview or ambit of any racist slur.
Our self- respect and ego are easily hurt by the comments but the DIRTY PICTURE is not viewed in the right perspective.
Perhaps we have got so accustomed to the filth around us that, we have started to ignore it as a malady which is incurable.
Kyle called India a shithole besides adding another expletive –calling the Ganges a ‘Junkyard’.
A Spanish diplomat recently aghast at the lack of dustbins in Delhi, volunteered to buy them and arranged to place them at strategic locations across the city to further the cause of hygiene as the roads earlier were strewn with trash.
This was perhaps the most humiliating incident which should have woken up the govt. authorities from the deep slumber rather than making an issue over the war of words expressed by the westerners who shudder at the apathy and the callous attitude of most of us Indians.
The Holy Ganges as it is called comes from the Himalayas and is in the most sublime and pristine liquid form, full of the mystic faith, that pervades within itself. The water is pure and clear and is known to cleanse all evils and sins in its path.
The gushing water later enters the plains, and at various pilgrimage destinations like Varanasi and Hardwar untreated effluents from various leather tanneries are released into it shedding all inhibitions, half burnt corpses are disposed off the burning ghats without any remorse and untreated sewage from the cities too makes its contribution to the muck factor that is lot more polluted than a ‘’JUNKYARD’’.
The word FILTH is synonymous with the Indian sub-continent .There is no need to zoom into the ‘subject’ you will find the same, at every opportune place.
People relieving themselves at the nearest corner, the so called educated people travelling in the 1st Class compartment throwing/spitting the wrappers /fruit peels/ghutka /pan contents out of the train windows, people residing in the slums/chawls recreating their own virtual dust bins on the roads by throwing the waste from a long distance (akin to a professional NBA basket –ball player) very often missing its target.
The Municipal Corporation with its corrupt and lethargic attitude cannot be expected to clean this muck alone, which mounts at an alarming rate often threatening the area with epidemics like cholera and malaria.
The Plastic Industry has successfully managed to stem the reported BAN on plastics by meeting high- profile politicians who deliberately dilly dally on such issues. Plastics act like a catalyst creating huge stagnant pools which serve, as a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and rodents which forage on decaying matter emitting nauseating and sickening odour leading to people gasping for breath of fresh air besides aggravating the ailments.
Crores of money has been spent on cleansing the Ganges at strategic places which has gone down the drain as NO real effort has been made to arrest the release of the various pollutants which negates the effect of the Cleaning Campaign.
Western countries have openly aired the dirty culture pervading the Indian sub-continent which is mistaken as an attack on our glorious past and incredible Culture.
Apologies followed later on as usual but honestly I feel Kyle only expressed his disgust at the mindset of Indians who when holidaying abroad adhere to all the rules and rave about the cleanliness but do not think twice before chucking cigarette stubs/spitting out of the car windows on landing back.
The comments though provocative certainly doesn’t fall within the purview or ambit of any racist slur.
Our self- respect and ego are easily hurt by the comments but the DIRTY PICTURE is not viewed in the right perspective.
Perhaps we have got so accustomed to the filth around us that, we have started to ignore it as a malady which is incurable.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
SRK- The Legend Lives On......
14th August 2011 was the date when the ‘body’ and ‘soul’ of Shamsher Raj Kapoor better known in the Hindi film industry as ‘’Shammi Kapoor’’ decided to part ways – the body fading away into oblivion and the soul- immortalized in the hearts of millions of fans who were stunned to believe the colossal loss.
Though, many knew that the end was near with the aging star battling renal failure for almost a decade with only the faith and his ever cheerful attitude, which kept him going.
The Indianised version of Elvis Presley struggled to make a dent in the film industry which boasted of stalwarts like Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor at the helm in the 1950’s.However success didn’t elude him for long and Tum sa Nahi Dekha was his stepping stone to stardom from where he never looked back with a string of hits such as Kashmir Ki Kali, An Evening in Paris, Professor, Brahmachari, Dil deke Dekho,Teesri Manzil and so on.
It must be mentioned that the songs which he crooned on screen were sung by the inimitable genius, Mohd Rafi who it seemed gelled with the character and sung with such enthusiasm and versatility as if, his entire life depended on it. The result was flawless rendition, the effervescence of the actor and the vivacious melody of the singer synchronizing and belting out arguably some of the best songs ever composed. Perhaps the Rajesh Khanna/ Kishore Kumar and the Raj Kapoor/Mukesh combo are the only competitors till date.
The only time he reportedly lived the life of a recluse was when his beloved wife- Geeta Bali died of Small –Pox in 1965. After a brief lull he was back to his very best and carried on with life as only he could.
He lives on though, in the hearts of millions of his fans who clamored for his almost silly antics ‘’on screen’’, the Swinging and dancing coupled with wild and vibrant mannerisms, seldom seen on celluloid till the advent of this maverick star. His style was a rage in the late 50’s and the early 60’s and could not be imitated by any one in Bollywood ,though a couple of wooden faced Bengali babu’s did try to ape his grandeur and mannerism’s which ended as abruptly as it began.
Besides being an actor he was very tech savvy. He was one of the first to have subscribed to and access the internet in India, and was very familiar with the latest technology available on hand.
He even had a HAM license and was instrumental in helping and reaching out to people in danger in those days when mobile technology was in an infant stage.
Numerous stories float around about his generosity in helping out many junior artistes as he too in his initial days as a struggler had been in their shoes before achieving stardom.
The cry of Yahoo!! and the scene of Shammi Kapoor sliding down the icy slopes like an avalanche will remain entrenched in our hearts forever.
RIP- SRK …The Legend lives on…………………….
Though, many knew that the end was near with the aging star battling renal failure for almost a decade with only the faith and his ever cheerful attitude, which kept him going.
The Indianised version of Elvis Presley struggled to make a dent in the film industry which boasted of stalwarts like Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor at the helm in the 1950’s.However success didn’t elude him for long and Tum sa Nahi Dekha was his stepping stone to stardom from where he never looked back with a string of hits such as Kashmir Ki Kali, An Evening in Paris, Professor, Brahmachari, Dil deke Dekho,Teesri Manzil and so on.
It must be mentioned that the songs which he crooned on screen were sung by the inimitable genius, Mohd Rafi who it seemed gelled with the character and sung with such enthusiasm and versatility as if, his entire life depended on it. The result was flawless rendition, the effervescence of the actor and the vivacious melody of the singer synchronizing and belting out arguably some of the best songs ever composed. Perhaps the Rajesh Khanna/ Kishore Kumar and the Raj Kapoor/Mukesh combo are the only competitors till date.
The only time he reportedly lived the life of a recluse was when his beloved wife- Geeta Bali died of Small –Pox in 1965. After a brief lull he was back to his very best and carried on with life as only he could.
He lives on though, in the hearts of millions of his fans who clamored for his almost silly antics ‘’on screen’’, the Swinging and dancing coupled with wild and vibrant mannerisms, seldom seen on celluloid till the advent of this maverick star. His style was a rage in the late 50’s and the early 60’s and could not be imitated by any one in Bollywood ,though a couple of wooden faced Bengali babu’s did try to ape his grandeur and mannerism’s which ended as abruptly as it began.
Besides being an actor he was very tech savvy. He was one of the first to have subscribed to and access the internet in India, and was very familiar with the latest technology available on hand.
He even had a HAM license and was instrumental in helping and reaching out to people in danger in those days when mobile technology was in an infant stage.
Numerous stories float around about his generosity in helping out many junior artistes as he too in his initial days as a struggler had been in their shoes before achieving stardom.
The cry of Yahoo!! and the scene of Shammi Kapoor sliding down the icy slopes like an avalanche will remain entrenched in our hearts forever.
RIP- SRK …The Legend lives on…………………….
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Freedom of Speech
Speech is an art of expressing oneself amongst a gallery of astute listeners.
A good orator is one who captivates his audiences with his mannerisms, wit, intelligence and connects with their inner soul in the minimal time frame.
He should have complete knowledge of the topic under discussion and should be able to have the entire gathering completely under his sway with anecdotes and humor that adds freshness to any monotonous vibes that may prevail in the audience.
The Speech should nether be too long lest the audience would be left squirming in their seats with yawns reverberating all over nor should be too short to leave them a disgruntled lot wondering why on earth they are there for.
The Indian leaders since time immemorial prefer to read out their speeches which are drafted out by eminent people, checked for any grammatical mistakes, but are often riddled with some absurd words and sentences which do not synchronize either with wit or common Sense.
In 1947, Nehru roared from the ramparts of the Red Fort with some of the most insuating words ever: ‘’At the stroke of midnight hour when the world sleeps, India awakens to freedom’’. Perhaps the erstwhile PM or his over ambitious ghost writer got his geography all wrong and thought that the World is flat and every country woke up and slept at the same time.
Come Independence eve, the president arrives with a zombie like expression armed with a pre drafted speech laden with quotes ,self congratulatory messages, some absurd commitments /welfare measures that fail to take off , so on and so forth. All the TV channels are forced to broadcast this miserable display of word power that is hardly understood by the common man. The studio is decked up for the occasion and the President is more interested in displaying or showcasing her/his well Starched and well ironed attire.
The only exception to this strange practice was President Abdul Kalam who was both convincing and astute in his presentation.
We also have this moron of a Foreign minister who has made himself a laughing Stock in front of the dignitaries of United nations Security Council when he unassumingly picked up a paper belonging to a Portugal diplomat lying beside him and calmly read it till he was interrupted and intimated about the faux pas by a colleague.
Yesterday this very Foreign Minister requested Pakistan to release a prisoner serving a life sentence, on humanitarian grounds.This was made in complete ignorance of the fact that the so called prisoner is currently lodged in Ajmer Jail and not in Pakistan.
Honestly I presume the right hand of this guy doesn’t know what his Left hand is doing.
Most of the political parties have self-appointed spokesmen specially designed to brief the media , to calm down frayed nerves and to protect the party’s image when the going goes rough.
The crux of the matter is: It is fascinating to watch the debate involving the western parliamentarians who display shrewd technique and restraint while handling even the most complex of issues and possess immense knowledge of the related subject as compared to the hooliganism and immaturity displayed by their Indian counterparts.
A good orator is one who captivates his audiences with his mannerisms, wit, intelligence and connects with their inner soul in the minimal time frame.
He should have complete knowledge of the topic under discussion and should be able to have the entire gathering completely under his sway with anecdotes and humor that adds freshness to any monotonous vibes that may prevail in the audience.
The Speech should nether be too long lest the audience would be left squirming in their seats with yawns reverberating all over nor should be too short to leave them a disgruntled lot wondering why on earth they are there for.
The Indian leaders since time immemorial prefer to read out their speeches which are drafted out by eminent people, checked for any grammatical mistakes, but are often riddled with some absurd words and sentences which do not synchronize either with wit or common Sense.
In 1947, Nehru roared from the ramparts of the Red Fort with some of the most insuating words ever: ‘’At the stroke of midnight hour when the world sleeps, India awakens to freedom’’. Perhaps the erstwhile PM or his over ambitious ghost writer got his geography all wrong and thought that the World is flat and every country woke up and slept at the same time.
Come Independence eve, the president arrives with a zombie like expression armed with a pre drafted speech laden with quotes ,self congratulatory messages, some absurd commitments /welfare measures that fail to take off , so on and so forth. All the TV channels are forced to broadcast this miserable display of word power that is hardly understood by the common man. The studio is decked up for the occasion and the President is more interested in displaying or showcasing her/his well Starched and well ironed attire.
The only exception to this strange practice was President Abdul Kalam who was both convincing and astute in his presentation.
We also have this moron of a Foreign minister who has made himself a laughing Stock in front of the dignitaries of United nations Security Council when he unassumingly picked up a paper belonging to a Portugal diplomat lying beside him and calmly read it till he was interrupted and intimated about the faux pas by a colleague.
Yesterday this very Foreign Minister requested Pakistan to release a prisoner serving a life sentence, on humanitarian grounds.This was made in complete ignorance of the fact that the so called prisoner is currently lodged in Ajmer Jail and not in Pakistan.
Honestly I presume the right hand of this guy doesn’t know what his Left hand is doing.
Most of the political parties have self-appointed spokesmen specially designed to brief the media , to calm down frayed nerves and to protect the party’s image when the going goes rough.
The crux of the matter is: It is fascinating to watch the debate involving the western parliamentarians who display shrewd technique and restraint while handling even the most complex of issues and possess immense knowledge of the related subject as compared to the hooliganism and immaturity displayed by their Indian counterparts.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Oily Issues
The Indian shores particularly the western part of it is in the News again for all the wrong reasons ,of course. Merchant Vessel- Rak capsized some 31 nautical miles off the Mumbai Coast on 3rd August 2011.The Ship is leaking crude at the disastrous rate of about 1 to 2 tons every hour. The high tide coupled with the choppy monsoon conditions hastened the Oil Slick to Juhu , Versova & Madh Islands.
The fishermen community has already sounded alarms and blasted the slow and lackadaisical attitude of the Govt. agencies viz. the ever sleepy Coast Guards and the almost defunct Maharashtra Pollution Control Board.
The Navy which boasts of having acquired sophisticated gadgets over the years has time and again failed to locate the drifting ships or even plug the leaking vessels prompting people to cast apprehensions on these so called security agencies who might well be novices in using /handling the sophisticated arms and security gadgets.
This incident comes barely weeks after the Merchant Vessel – (M.V. WISDOM) which had drifted from the Gulf state of Qatar and settled itself on Juhu beach.
On 7th of August 2010 there was a collision between MSC Chitra and MV Khalijia near Mumbai which destroyed tonnes of precious marine life and uprooted huge tracts of Mangroves so essential to maintain the fragile ecological balance.
There were talks of taking the owners of both the ships along with the captains to task and recover the damages. It is likely that an ‘’OUT OF COURT SETTLEMENT’’ was negotiated and the culprits were allowed to go after greasing the palms of the authorities.
The Navy and the coast guard doesn’t believe in rescue operations but can only indulge and limit itself to salvage operations. They wait aimlessly and shamelessly to let the ‘’event’’ happen and then rush in to clean the muck.
It was evidently known during the rescue operations conducted on M.V. RAK, that the ill fated Vessel was carrying Crude/diesel /coal and impetus should have been given to block the Oil-Slick and restrict it to a limited area.
The callous attitude of all, be it the Govt. agencies, the navy, the Coast Guard and others is deplorable to say the least.
The damages for restoring the partial ecological balance should not only be recovered from the Ships owners involved but also the Coast Guard and the Navy for negligence that defies logic.
It is also quite possible that many ships (mostly registered in Panama) are on their last voyage and are deliberately drifted in this part of the Ocean saving the tugging costs up to Alang -Shipyard in Gujarat, where ships are broken down after its seaworthiness is over. The Ship Owners are fully aware about the lax in intelligence and obsolete security measures prevailing in the region making their task even simpler to carry out.
By the time you read this scores of marine species would have been exterminated from the Arabian sea , the beaches have been rendered unsafe, livelihood of innumerable fishermen has been put at stake and the rapidly dwindling mangroves snuffed off in double quick time, but who cares?
This careless and arrogant attitude coupled with lack of responsibility is primarily responsible for many forgettable incidents that have happened in our Country.
The fishermen community has already sounded alarms and blasted the slow and lackadaisical attitude of the Govt. agencies viz. the ever sleepy Coast Guards and the almost defunct Maharashtra Pollution Control Board.
The Navy which boasts of having acquired sophisticated gadgets over the years has time and again failed to locate the drifting ships or even plug the leaking vessels prompting people to cast apprehensions on these so called security agencies who might well be novices in using /handling the sophisticated arms and security gadgets.
This incident comes barely weeks after the Merchant Vessel – (M.V. WISDOM) which had drifted from the Gulf state of Qatar and settled itself on Juhu beach.
On 7th of August 2010 there was a collision between MSC Chitra and MV Khalijia near Mumbai which destroyed tonnes of precious marine life and uprooted huge tracts of Mangroves so essential to maintain the fragile ecological balance.
There were talks of taking the owners of both the ships along with the captains to task and recover the damages. It is likely that an ‘’OUT OF COURT SETTLEMENT’’ was negotiated and the culprits were allowed to go after greasing the palms of the authorities.
The Navy and the coast guard doesn’t believe in rescue operations but can only indulge and limit itself to salvage operations. They wait aimlessly and shamelessly to let the ‘’event’’ happen and then rush in to clean the muck.
It was evidently known during the rescue operations conducted on M.V. RAK, that the ill fated Vessel was carrying Crude/diesel /coal and impetus should have been given to block the Oil-Slick and restrict it to a limited area.
The callous attitude of all, be it the Govt. agencies, the navy, the Coast Guard and others is deplorable to say the least.
The damages for restoring the partial ecological balance should not only be recovered from the Ships owners involved but also the Coast Guard and the Navy for negligence that defies logic.
It is also quite possible that many ships (mostly registered in Panama) are on their last voyage and are deliberately drifted in this part of the Ocean saving the tugging costs up to Alang -Shipyard in Gujarat, where ships are broken down after its seaworthiness is over. The Ship Owners are fully aware about the lax in intelligence and obsolete security measures prevailing in the region making their task even simpler to carry out.
By the time you read this scores of marine species would have been exterminated from the Arabian sea , the beaches have been rendered unsafe, livelihood of innumerable fishermen has been put at stake and the rapidly dwindling mangroves snuffed off in double quick time, but who cares?
This careless and arrogant attitude coupled with lack of responsibility is primarily responsible for many forgettable incidents that have happened in our Country.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Bolting the stable after the Horse has fled
1. Bomb blast.
2. Cops, ATS ,RAW officials, Bomb disposal Squad rushing to the Site to take Stock.
3. P.M., home Minister, Leaders of the opposition make a beeline to visit the injured and offer condolences and shed CROCODILE TEARS.
4. Act is termed as dastardly, cowardly etc. and the terrorists are condemned.
5. Compensation is announced to the next of Kin.
6. A high –level enquiry is set up.
7. Candle –Light Vigil by the elite often accompanied by celebrities.
7. Spirit of Mumbai is evoked and saluted.
8. Garlands would be offered at the site –NEXT YEAR as remembrance.
9. End of the Story.
10. Waiting for another round of such unfortunate and avoidable incidents.
Moral of the story:Bolting the stable after the horse has fled
This is the sequence followed in our Country which is touted as the largest democracy in the world but in reality is headed by one of the most spineless and timid govt.post-independence. Even before the mortal remains of those killed in the Mumbai blasts of 7/13 have been cremated the home minister makes a callous statement and gives a clean chit to the intelligence officials who have time and again have failed to detect the conspiracies despite obtaining a lead from Interpol and western intelligence outfits.
The media has uncovered that the Local intelligence was hot on the heels of an anonymous person and tracking his each and every move before he gave them the customary slip and vanished into oblivion a couple of days before the blast.
The infiltration from Bangladesh/Pakistan that is taking place in and around Mumbai since he past several years is hardly heeded to. Most of our pseudo-secular Parties have time and again thwarted attempts to evict slums that are proliferating in and around Dongri, Bandra East/Kurla and Mankhurd in fear of losing the minority votes. These dingy shanties can easily camouflage scores of terrorists who can strike at will.
The Politicians jump the gun and announce compensation /ex-gratia to the dead and injured.
No one objects to the compensation being paid as this is one way of providing solace to the affected family who many a times lose their sole bread winner of the family.
What hurts is perhaps the mode of declaration. The govt. decides the amount to be doled and declares the same (out of the tax- payers money) as if their accountability and responsibility towards the people is over.
There is no accountability on those who run this Country. The salaries of all those in charge(Home ministry/Top Police Brass/PM & the cabinet ministers should be used to compensate the loss of limb and life instead of wasting the TAX PAYERS money. Once this is leveled we will see a drastic fall in such incidents as these guys would work 24X 7
It is difficult to manage the surging crowds at every nook and corner. Numerous food stalls and shops selling cheap Chinese items attract small time crowds and are potential soft targets for terrorists to leave the minute of bags containing RDX and other deadly potent mix of chemicals which can cause maximum casualties. At almost all major railway stations spaces have been encroached courtesy, the municipal/railway police officials who are bribed at regular intervals to set shops which have become possible terror targets.
Our dirty Politicians send negatives vibes when they openly say that the terror acts cannot be eliminated entirely which shows the glaring inefficiency of the Police and intelligence bureau who are spending all their precious time in protecting/shielding our corrupt MP’s and MLA’s .
It’s high time that an all out effort is made to deal strictly with terror and tough judgements are delivered in the least possible time frame and eliminate these outlaws by an iron hand .
2. Cops, ATS ,RAW officials, Bomb disposal Squad rushing to the Site to take Stock.
3. P.M., home Minister, Leaders of the opposition make a beeline to visit the injured and offer condolences and shed CROCODILE TEARS.
4. Act is termed as dastardly, cowardly etc. and the terrorists are condemned.
5. Compensation is announced to the next of Kin.
6. A high –level enquiry is set up.
7. Candle –Light Vigil by the elite often accompanied by celebrities.
7. Spirit of Mumbai is evoked and saluted.
8. Garlands would be offered at the site –NEXT YEAR as remembrance.
9. End of the Story.
10. Waiting for another round of such unfortunate and avoidable incidents.
Moral of the story:Bolting the stable after the horse has fled
This is the sequence followed in our Country which is touted as the largest democracy in the world but in reality is headed by one of the most spineless and timid govt.post-independence. Even before the mortal remains of those killed in the Mumbai blasts of 7/13 have been cremated the home minister makes a callous statement and gives a clean chit to the intelligence officials who have time and again have failed to detect the conspiracies despite obtaining a lead from Interpol and western intelligence outfits.
The media has uncovered that the Local intelligence was hot on the heels of an anonymous person and tracking his each and every move before he gave them the customary slip and vanished into oblivion a couple of days before the blast.
The infiltration from Bangladesh/Pakistan that is taking place in and around Mumbai since he past several years is hardly heeded to. Most of our pseudo-secular Parties have time and again thwarted attempts to evict slums that are proliferating in and around Dongri, Bandra East/Kurla and Mankhurd in fear of losing the minority votes. These dingy shanties can easily camouflage scores of terrorists who can strike at will.
The Politicians jump the gun and announce compensation /ex-gratia to the dead and injured.
No one objects to the compensation being paid as this is one way of providing solace to the affected family who many a times lose their sole bread winner of the family.
What hurts is perhaps the mode of declaration. The govt. decides the amount to be doled and declares the same (out of the tax- payers money) as if their accountability and responsibility towards the people is over.
There is no accountability on those who run this Country. The salaries of all those in charge(Home ministry/Top Police Brass/PM & the cabinet ministers should be used to compensate the loss of limb and life instead of wasting the TAX PAYERS money. Once this is leveled we will see a drastic fall in such incidents as these guys would work 24X 7
It is difficult to manage the surging crowds at every nook and corner. Numerous food stalls and shops selling cheap Chinese items attract small time crowds and are potential soft targets for terrorists to leave the minute of bags containing RDX and other deadly potent mix of chemicals which can cause maximum casualties. At almost all major railway stations spaces have been encroached courtesy, the municipal/railway police officials who are bribed at regular intervals to set shops which have become possible terror targets.
Our dirty Politicians send negatives vibes when they openly say that the terror acts cannot be eliminated entirely which shows the glaring inefficiency of the Police and intelligence bureau who are spending all their precious time in protecting/shielding our corrupt MP’s and MLA’s .
It’s high time that an all out effort is made to deal strictly with terror and tough judgements are delivered in the least possible time frame and eliminate these outlaws by an iron hand .
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