Vrindavan Gardens, Ponda .. the place to stay..

Vrindavan Gardens in Varcandeim, Ponda , Goa is the biggest residential complex in Ponda. And that is where I stay. There are about 120 flats in this comples divided into A1.A2,B1,B2,B3,D and row houses of the C type.

The beauty of the place is that this is also the only complex in Ponda which offers play area for the kids. My kids, jobin 12 years and Chinnu 7 years, just run to the play area in the evenings and play there to their heart's content daily. They have many friends there. The only problem we have started encountering these days is the growing number of cars which are vying for parking space in the campus. This is reducing the running area for the kids in the complex.

There is a grocery store by Naresh who also sells milk and vegetables here. There is a nedical shop, toy shop, the Sushrusha nursing home run by the Prabhu doctor couple, the kitchen furniture shop, the yoga clinic run by DR. Sawaikar nearby. There is also a hotel , cyber cafe etc. which have been started nearby.

Overall the place is very good and comfortable. Presently we are having some water problems, which is getting sorted out. The society is yet to be formed even though we have paid 4500 rupees for that.

Without AC I find staying on the top floor of A2 building is very difficult in Summer. A2-TF-01 is exactly where I stay.

george..

Reservation in Industry ??

The PM had a week back anounced at a CII meeting that the industry also needs to share the load of social responsibility towards the backward sections of the society along with the government.

A day later Azim Premji of Wipro told that there is no place for reservation in his company and that reservation can only blunt the cutting edge in innovative employment practices and technological innovations the indian private sector industry is enjoying presently.

The government still feels that the private sector should also be partakers to the social upliftment policies for the backward classes which it is pursuing vigorously all these years since independence. Has these reservation policies brought any improvement to the really backward sections of the society or only to the affluent and powerful from among the backward classes which is apportioning to itself all the benefits? The really backward thus continue to remain backward, whatever policies the government pursues.

There is also an opinion that the industry needs to fund primary education to a greater extent. Already the Premji foundation of WIPRO is doing that, What the govt is asking now is getting an assurance from the industry that it will have an affirmative plan of action in place to accomodate the weaker sections of the society, keeping it's commitment to competency and excellence in mind.

The ball is in industry's court which needs to respond to the government proposal positively. Need to wait. Meanwhile the debates going on will help clear up all the confusion regading the reservation policies in the government, it's implementation and followup.

Instead of trying to end reservations in a phased manner, the government is looking to globalise it by extending it to more sections and to more departments. This will definitely affect the competitive edge of Indian industry.

george..

final week of semester in college..

This week is the last week of this even semester.
Internal tests, finishing classes, presentations, farewell meetings etc.. it is really busy.

What Prez Bush' visit means to India.

The most important offshoot of Bush's visit to South Asia last month has been the signing of the nuclear accord. The second offshoot has been the sidelining of Pakistan for obvious reasons, though this has never been in the Indian radar.

Gen Musharraf raised a number of issues for discussion with the US Prez Bush, which he hoped would get a patient hearing, being the US partner in it's war against terror.

1. Being a military ruler, issue of Kashmir and provision of further ammo for continuing the military rule in Pakistan was foremost in Mush's mind. Very natural to expect from a military ruler. But Kashmir issue never enticed Bush this time as much as the nuclear deal with India.

2. Second it was issue regarding nuclear co-operation with Pakistan, which Bush was very wary considering the nuclear proliferation history of US' greatest friend Pakistan, to other rogue nations of the world. From where did Iran get the technology to start it's nuclear research for peaceful or military use ? Where did North Korea get's the technology from ? Lastly let us not forget, from where did Pakistan itself get it's nuclear technology from ?? Dr, Khan's infamous revelations and confessions were a shame for the western world. The history is different for India. With an indigenously developed research backing, it was and is in US' interest to engage with India constructively to keep track of advances in Indian nuclear research. The non-proliferation treaty, everyone knows, is a selfish ploy by the nuclear-haves from not getting overtaken by the nuclear-not-haves. This treaty was the first step and only way in which US could contain India's nuclear research ambitions.

3. Thirdly the issues raised by Bush of getting democracy back in Pakistan, irked Gen. Mush no doubt. Gen mush claimed his efforts to bring 'sustainable democracy ' in Pakistan (with him at the helm, of course..). Bush was sceptical whether the elections promised by Mush in 2007 would also be a farce like earlier ones. Even though one cannot say it was a slap on Mush's face, it no doubt was condemnation of the military establishment and it's role in contributing to the backwardness of Pakistan.

Raising Kashmir at every international fora has become a favourite pasttime and a ploy for Mush and Pakistan to deviate the attention of it's people from the sad state of Pakistan's economy at present. Undue interference of the Pak military in the democratic functioning of that country has been a bane for Pak ever since it got carved out of India. Also Pak's bad reputation reg nuclear proliferation has been the final nail on it's coffin.

US has found it's new found Saviour and friend in India, a country which has strived over the years during the cold war and afterwards, during the unipolar regime, to maintain it's own identity and preserve it's form of a strained democracy, not to get swayed by allurements. US has reasons and excuses enough to dump it's age old ally and friend, Pakistan.

It is the beginning of a new era in co-operaton between the world's two largest democracies. A relationship which can effectively sidetrack the growing clout of China in Asia and the world. For eg. the PC wing of IBM which was the pride of the IT industry of US, is now in Chinese hands. Unless India promises to continue deliver the brains, to drive the monopolist and capitalist US economy and industry, to help maintain it's cutting edge over other countries of the world, including India, US may not exist in the next century.

If Bush never got this treaty through, it would have been a missed opportunity for the greatest democracies of the world to carve out a mutually beneficial agreement for the betterment of humanity and to make the world a better place to live, at least for the next hundred years.

--
Kind regards,

George Easaw

Development vs welfare in Kerala ..

Kerala elections .. the tug-of-war between development and welfare.

Kerala is known for it's bipolar political landscape. Over many years it has been oscillating returning UDF and LDF after each assembly election. Come what may, and how well and how worse each group performs and delivers, invariably assembly elections return the "opposite" group.

Some sociologists call it the seesaw effect. This year too the incumbent government headed by the Indian National Congress and like minded allies like the Muslim League, Kerala Congress etc. are wary. The reason, they can foresee the seesaw effect. They are now trying to challenge this theory proposing that the seesaw effect need not happen always and this time, the UDF will be "returned" to power.

The main plank on which the UDF led by Oommen Chandy is banking on is the development agenda which has been pursued quite vigorously by UDF the last two years. Without development all of us know that the state cannot progress and catch up with the rest of the country. In the field of IT and IT related services, Kerala has got very good talent and if related industries are started, the state can develop to a great extent.

The marxists on the other hand are insisting on the question of social welfare and environmental protection. Unmindful of the fact that welfare and development of the society and it's members can only go hand in hand and not at variance with each other, they are fighting against each other, even though they are the two sides of the same coin, but do not want to accept that the opposite group is also alongside it in the march to development and welfare of the society.

While Vikasana Shathru ( as VS Achuthanandan is endearingly called by Malayalees all over) insists on opposing "all" the policies of the UDF, be they for development of the state or welfare of the people, Oommen Chandy heading the UDF, loses no time in accusing the LDF of being against development of the state and accuses it of nstead being interested in taking the state backward.

The irony observed was that even though within the state, Congress and Marxists are at each other's throat, the Central Congress leaders who came for electioneering work, never raised a point against the Marxists. Fully mindful of the fact that it is the Marxists that are propping them at the Centre, Congress leadership dare not point accusing fingers at them. The Marxists on the other hand, measuring the smooth sailing they can expect this time both in West Bengal and Kerala are getting a bit complacent, which finally could be only to their detriment.

Can Welfare happen without development or can development happen without welfare ? They are complementing each other. Each needs the other. So far Kerala has been concentrating on welfare of it's people. This has resulted in we getting to the top in the country regarding social security indicators and educational standards,comparable even to the state of New York in USA. But this overt attention on welfare and citizen's rights has resulted in lopsided development, with Industries and other mass employment generation potential opportunities getting sidelined and starting elsewhere. Trading and expatriate payments from the Gulf and Europe are presently responsible for maintaining the economy and the people.

While Oommen Chandy claims it is this scenario which he would like to address and get changed for the better, VS counters it by saying that all such development is only with a dangerous mindset and desire to see that the people finally suffer the illeffects while Kerala is sold to multinationals and rich companies.

Let the people decide who is right and who is wrong ( or just the 2 % of the electorate whose swing decides the final verdict). One thing is for sure, even this election cannot bring stability with development and welfare to the state. The churning process will continue for many years before Kerala can firmly get itself firmly girded on the road to development.

Regarding career and future ..

My service in Goa Engineering College has had many ups and downs. Presently armed with PhD and 16 years of service in Govt Engineering College, Goa I should try to leverage and make the best use of the time spent.

Today I was told by the Dir of Accounts that I am eligible for a decent amount as pension. I should try to switch over my career to either software or management education to get on the fast track. I know I can achieve much more in life, but it takes patience. Will Wipro respond to my application ?

george..