Where Are We Heading As A Nation?

Over the past half a decade, we have been fed on the diet of ‘The Great Indian Growth Story.’ Right from the tabloids to the visual media, all that we read or hear about is how despite world recession and Eurozone crisis, the country’s growth rate has been par at 8% or how despite global meltdown, the Sensex has managed to stay above the 16000 mark.

 

Television – More Than Just An ‘Idiot’ Box

11 am, 6^th may, 2012, marked an important moment in the history of Indian television. This day will be remembered, as the day when television became more than just an ‘idiot box’ and took upon the mantle of being the medium for championing the cause of bringing about change in the society. All this achieved courtesy a show called ‘Satyamev Jayate.’

 

Joint Entrance Exam – the Confusion prevails

The only component of the education system that had managed to escape the clutches of the politicians for decades has been the Joint Entrance Exam to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-JEE). For decades, the exam, regarded by many as the toughest entrance exam in the country, has filtered a few thousand students from lakhs of aspirants, and deemed them qualified to study in the most reputed and prestigious institute in the country – the IITs. But as fate would have it, the luck has finally run out on IIT-JEE, and if the honourable HRD minister, Mr. Kapil Sibal, has his way, it will be scrapped away altogether.

 

India And Sachin

‘Sachin Tendulkar’ – one name that unites this country like no other. One name that transcends the countries sociological and cultural borders and helps the country, which is otherwise marred by caste and religious distinctions, integrate into a nation.

In a country famous for being home to some 33 crore gods and goddesses, if ever there was one common God acceptable to all the religions and sections of the society, than it has to be Sachin Tendulkar. If anyone has any doubt about my last statement, fancy cursing or abusing Sachin in any part of the country, be it a Muslim, Sikh, Christian or Hindu dominated area. You will be lucky to escape with your nose and teeth intact.

 

The Journey That Never Was

The excitement generated while packing your luggage to head home during vacations, after 6 strenuous months of engineering, is unparalleled and unprecedented.

So was the case with me. Clothes were decked, bags were packed, locks were checked and exhilaration level’s racked. I was on my way to Bangalore City Junction, to board the train that would land me straight to Siliguri, my hometown. There was only one minor little glitch though – I didn’t have any ticket.