ध्रुव-तारे की खोज

जीवन का आधार है सपना 

इनके बिना क्या कोई अपना?

यही मनुज को पंथ दिखाते 

नित-नूतन उत्साह जागते 

इनसे ही प्रेरित हो मानव, श्रृंग दुर्गमों पर चढ़ जाता 

सागर की उत्ताल तरंगों पर अपनी किश्ती लहराता 

यही स्वप्न बन भीषण ज्वाला, मानव का अंतर धधकाते 

नर को कर अधीर-विचलित वे, उसमें नूतन भाव जगाते 

मानव का सौभाग्य अमर की स्वप्न नेत्र में पलते आए 

हों पाँव मनुज के भले धरा पर, स्वप्न स्वर्ग संजोते आए 

जब जीवन के कुरुक्षेत्र में, स्वप्न-सत्य टकराते हैं 

कुछ सपनों की आह निकलती, कुछ दीपित हो जाते हैं 

दीपित सपनों की प्रखर प्रभा, धारा उद्वेलित करती है 

मानव का पथ करके रौशन, नूतन आशाएँ भरती है 

नव भावों से संदीप्त मनुज, दावानल सा बन जाता है 

निज के पथ की प्रत्येक विपद से, हो निर्भय टकराता है 

चक्रवात की महा शक्ति को, मुट्ठी में बाँधा करता है 

जीवन जलधि के प्रत्येक भँवर को, साहिल में बदलता चलता है 

वर्तमान से असंतोष ही, मूल मनुज की चिर उन्नति का 

दीपित सपनों की प्रखर प्रभा पर, मूल मनुज की असंतुष्टि का 

स्वप्न-सत्य के कुरुक्षेत्र में, सत्य विजयी जब होता है 

मानव के सपने मरते हैं, शायद तब वह भी रोता है 

स्वप्न-देव की शर-शय्या पर, नित वह आँहें भरता है 

दुःखी हृदय और रुँधे गले से, प्रभु से पूछा करता है 

जिन सपनों की आयु लघु, क्यों उनको देता जन्म विधाता 

जिन बाणों की धार मंद, क्यों उनको तरकश मिले विधाता 

घोर समर में, जीवन रण में, मानव को छलते यही विधाता 

कर मानव को हीन-दीन, ये उसको करते व्यथित विधाता 

व्यथित हृदय का गंगा-जल है, धोता किसका पाप विधाता 

अपने ही सपनों से कटता, मानव अपने आप विधाता 

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प्रभोवाच  एक स्वप्न जो टूट गया है  तू मुझसे क्यों रूठ गया है  जीवन नहीं पुष्प की बेला  यह संगर है झेल अकेला  जीवन समर अटल है चलता  नहीं किसी के रोके रुकता  मानव तेरी यही कहानी  विपदाओं से हार न मानी  आसमान में कितने तारे  यूँ तो सुन्दर लगते सारे  पर सब सीमित काल-खण्ड से लगते शापित स्वार्थ-दण्ड से  काल-खण्ड के परे जो पहुँचा  ध्रुव-तारा बन वह ही चमका  आसमान में कितने तारे  टिमटिम-टिमटिम करते सारे  पर नाविक का कौन सहारा  एकमात्र वह ध्रुव का तारा  सदा-सर्वदा अविचल रहता  मानव को पथ इंगित करता  जब तक जीवन में ध्रुव तारा  नहीं मनुज! तू समर में हारा  सत्य बोल, बचपन का सपना  नहीं लगे, क्या आज बचपना?  क्या उस सपने को आधार बना तू  जी सकता है जीवन अपना? जो सपना हो तुझ तक सीमित,  मानव! वह काल-खण्ड से परिमित  स्वार्थ-हेतु तू सपने बुनता  फिर उनमें से कुछ को चुनता  यूँ वह जीवन बुरा नहीं है  पर स्वार्थ-दण्ड का स्वप्न वही है  जीवन के निश्चित मौकों पर, मानव देखा करता सपने होते उनमें कुछ बेगाने, कुछ मानव के होते अपने  वे मौके अब बीत गए हैं  कुछ सपने अब मीत बने हैं  उन मित्रों को परखो मानव, शायद मिले तुम्हे ध्रुव-तारा  व्यथित हृदय की मनोदशा में, मनुज! वहीं हैं अटल सहारा  -हिमालयपुत्र 

Y DO WE UNDER-RATE OURSELVES ??

Recently, CEO of Tejas Networks (by now, quite a successful Indian startup in the field of optical networking), Mr Sanjay Nayak was in ST to give a keynote address on entrepreneurship during ST's recently concluded Techweek-2011. Apart from the speech of a typical entrepreneur (that talks abt self-motivation, risk taking capability, passion etc), he spoke abt the changing status of Indian Centers of MNCs i.e Indian Development Centers are no longer just "low cost centers" (as we hv been made to believe till now), but now, they are second to none when it comes to doing "quality R&D work". Essentially, it is not only dollar based R&D but also value based R&D that Indian centers are turning into.

Surely, this post has got nothing to do with whether or not Corporate or Shining India represents an inclusive growth for the entire country, the topic is beyond even my wildest imaginations while writing this article, however, this article is more abt us having a very low opinion of ourselves and a sense of pessimism when it comes to our abilities, and this is especially true of Indian centers of MNCs. This was also reflected in one of the questions that was asked of Mr Nayak after his inspiring talk: "Indians hv a mentality to compromise on something or the other and thus not deliver a perfect solution (even when they can), how did Tejas overcome that?" I believe that perhaps the best (a bit harsh though, i agree but nevertheless THE BEST) answer to that would be: People seem not to realize that their opinion of their surroundings is also a confession of their character. Also, one of the statements I heard from HR of the current company is: "Indian engineers have a big attitude problem. A 50 yr engg abroad wouldnt mind trying his hand at coding, but not so in India."

Surely, I hv no intent of comparing engineering talents of India and abroad; I would personally avoid ne comparsions b/w 2 individuals (as a recent gtalk status of one of my friends very aptly suggests: Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid). Also, I believe that perfection can only be achieved when one moves beyond all comparisons. However, all I feel is this: its high time we shun away such negative thoughts and pessimistic ideas, remembering the famous quote of Swami Vivekananda: "Anything that makes you weak physically, intellectually, and spiritually, reject as poison; there is no life in it; it cannot be true".

Changing Times !!

I recently got a chance to leave office on time ( :D :D) and see the lovely evening/sunset of Noida. Also, while sauntering in the park of my colony, I saw kids playing cricket (wait cricket fans, this post is not abt my lack of interest in the game / ongoing WC :P :P ) and was taken back to my childhood when we would play the same game, and just when the thought crossed my mind that "certain things never change (every such kid wants to be the next Tendulkar !!)", I realized that few things have indeed changed a lot.

The normal playground for kids of today is within the boundaries of colony, which is hardly (1/10)th the size of "our" typical playground, perhaps due to crunch of open space everywhere, especially inside residential colonies. Most of the space in such colonies is dedicated to construction work. Also, the boundaries of such "grounds" are no more the boundaries of the park (else every shot would be a boundary !!), but some arbit car (distinguished only by colour by kids eg, green color car or the red one) or a building which is mostly referred to as (almost) being owned by one of the players (eg, meri building / teri building etc :P :P). Further, the heights of buildings and their "encroachment" on the lawns ensure that the kids have to think twice b4 throwing a ball high up in the air, else it might land in someone's home :D :D. Almost similar changes could be seen in other sports like football etc.

I was recently studying the book: "You are Born to Blossom" by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, wherein he describes almost every aspect of an ideal education system. He also talks about the vision of Shri Rabindra Nath Tagore abt education and its realization (The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence, from "A Poet's School"). I was left wondering, with so much crunch for open space, is the vision of Sri Rabindra Nath Tagore even practical now, who dreamt of imparting education to kids in close vicinity of Mother Nature. Are today's "centers of education" even slightly heading in that direction? Amidst all the bombardments in classes with all the technical stuffs and minute details, are we providing a kid with an opportunity/platform to express Self, which in my opinion, shud be the sole aim of education? I guess sometimes, we tend to forget that its inherent in a kid to be happy and "cheerfully irresponsible", I find kids enjoying much more than adults on hilly slopes, rivers or beaches and other natural places !!

Reflecting a bit more on this change in times, I started thinking of various other changes that have come in and around us in the last couple of yrs; and apart from the obvious and much publicized changes in Nature (i mean, global warming, pollution even in villages and hills, etc [shud not be very difficult for my friends to guess y this thought came first :P :P]), the next thing that came to my mind (may be, due to the video I saw a few days back), was the work-life balance thing. I can only describe the video as "one nice Masterpiece" and as the presenter Mr Nigel Marsh rightly says towards the end, "its time that success of an individual not be measured by the amount of money one has when one dies, but by how meaningfully one lived the best years of one's life" is indeed an idea worth spreading.

TECHNOLOGY AND INSTINCTS/NATURE !!

A few weeks back, I was fortunate enough to make a trip to Chopta, a remote place in Uttarakhand, where technology has yet to reach (not coz its really remote, its just 60 kms from Rudraprayag after all, but coz its very near to Kedarnath Wild Life Sanctuary) and its feared that the advent of technology would degrade the natural scenic environment of the place. There are no electric wires (ppl still use solar chargeable lamps in the area) and just one mobile tower (ob, its BSNL !!) with no modern facilities (or necessities !!) like TV etc.
Staying there, I was taken back in time to the days when not each home had an inverter / generator and residential colonies with power back up was not heard of, and when ppl would wait for hours together for electricity to come and "plan" things accordingly; when ppl had time to spend with each other, least of all, with their (new) neighbours; when "social networking" meant meeting friends face to face and not tweeting, facebooking, orkutting or gtalking (and when liking someone's hilarious joke or comment would result in laughing heartily rather than speaking out a series of lol, lmao, rofl etc) !!! On my yet another recent trip to Gangtok, I read in some of the monastery, the 10 diktats of Dalai Lama, and the one which I distinctly remember is: Its amazing how people hv gone to and returned successfully from moon, but dont get time to cross a gallery / road and welcome their new next door neighbour !! how ironic truly ... Sure, how social networking has modified over the years is necessary (and upto some extent, natural) considering the changes that have been brought in the society as a result of post early-90's changes in the economy, but can such social-networking sites ever replace the charm of face to face interactions ... i fail to understand, as one of my friend's status msg on fb suggested, y shud facebook represent hollowness and emptiness within us, if it were just being used as a social-networking medium ? Everyone uses these social-networking sites to stay in touch with their old pals and friends, and ofcourse for fun, and thats obvious, however, wht I fail to understand is, how can such sites sometimes become a substitute,for eg, to congratulate a friend over his success, especially when one can easily meet him and wish the same !!
Also, y is it that technology is always assumed to degrade the natural and scenic environment of a place ? y cant science and nature co-exist (in places other than the advertisement of some cosmetic products) ? There are places like Sikkim, where the local growth rate is as high as 8.3% (as per the wiki page) and yet are too beautiful and so well-planned. The day-to-day life in places like Chopta is too harsh compared to city life essentially coz of the lack of many of the basic amenities (ofcourse, it doesnt matter much to tourists, who normally wouldnt be in the place for more than a week, but kudos to the human spirit for survining there too !!). The dangers of poaching for the musk deer (and other diverse flora / fauna found in the area) apart from the pollution concerns in the area has prevented technology from reaching there. But can such risks be truly attributed to technology ? Aren't they the result of human greed. Yes, over commercialization has, upto some extent spoiled places like Mussoorie (compare the mussoorie of today to what it was somewhere in early 90s and one would immediately realize the difference). However, Gangtok has still retained its charm and natural beauty inspite of all the commercialization and tourism there. So, science and nature need not exist in isolation. They can co-exist too. The nature can sustain the "side-effects" of technology, but only upto a limit. It reminds me of the excerpt: nature can cater to the needs of all, not the wants. Its our wants that we need to take care of !!






P.S: To know more about the scenic beauty, fun and thrill of trekking in Chopta, click here.
PPS: Thank you Amit for re-kindling my interest in blogging :) :)

SHOULD WE REALLY BLAME THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM ??

I recently read an article by Sagarika Ghose in HT abt the movie 3 Idiots and the current education system. The author very rightly observes that the movie, though a wonderful watch, is not meant to be taken seriously. I quote from the article "And, of course, we are not meant to take 3 Idiots too seriously, as it is after all just about having an escapist laugh and not thinking too much. After all, if you think too much you may discover that 3 Idiots is a dangerous, preachy and sanctimonious film that disdains all forms of hard work; that subliminally condemns studying as a pathetic exercise in rote learning and scorns the sadhna of higher education."

The current higher educational system may hv its shortcomings. No system/individual is ideal and scope of improvement is certainly there. However, what the movie does is simply elaborate them (in a comical way) without suggesting ne solutions. Its very easy to criticize a system/an individual; however, the problem as is shown in the movie, is more or less known to most whom 3 Idiots team would include in their target audiences. What is needed is not just criticism but also a solution to it and "3 Idiots" surely fails there. Surely the inspirational speech by Baba Ranchoddas is no good for those who study just for marks. Everyone hears such speeches almost daily !!! Even the simple solutions, for eg, hving more open book exams (wherein students are allowed to take books/notes etc inside the exam hall) instead of closed books were lacking in the movie.

Also, I personally feel that if we do some introspection, we would realize that more than the system, its our attitude thats the problem. May be, the educational system rewards those who don't understand the subject and do rote learning, but surely, it does not punish those who comprehend the subjects and study for knowledge... (this is shown in the movie too when Rancho secures top rank with Silencer around, though there is a diff b/w real and reel life; however i made the above comment on the basis of my personal experience during college life)... so, surely, like many other things, it depends on the individual whether he wants to study for marks or for knowledge .... the current system leaves that choice to the individual concerned .... probably, the problem is we want ppl who do rote learning to get lesser marks, and not strive for excellence (study for knowledge) ourselves ... and therefore, we tend to blame the system ...
also, the following 2 excerpts from the article are truly food for the thinking mind:

1) "caution has to be exercised that urban middle class children are not pampered into thinking that anything that causes ‘stress’ is evil and should be attacked and, worse, not be even attempted." Personally, I feel that upto some extent, stress does improve performance, and if some1 is over stressing himself i believe its the prob with the person concerned ... its like abusing a catalyst to performance, surely if u overdose a medicine, it does more harm than good ... also, there is no clear cut demarcation where stress ceases to be a catalyst to performance...it depends on the individual

2) Encouraging students to abuse their teachers, hate their books, throw metaphorical tomatoes at all centres of excellence is to encourage an illiterate lumpen rage against anything that isn’t dumbed down to the shocking level of intellectual nothingness

well, i ceratinly dont mean that the system is ideal ... but what i want to say is its always introspection that helps ... sometimes, i feel that the easiest thing in the world is to blame the system / others for one's failure .. but one must remember tht the same system has produced geniuses, so, it cannot be 100% wrong either .. and surely its not ideal ...

P.S. For complete article, please click here

Y DO WE ALWAYS NEGLECT HILLS ??

Recently, for their demand of a separate state of Gorkhaland, the GJM (Gorkha Janmukti Morcha) was blocking the NH-31; and extending the blockade by an hour each successive day; this highway is almost like the neck of NE India ... it's like a gateway to sikkim and mountainous areas of North Bengal from the plains of Siliguri. Inspite of the great strategic importance of NH31, it was indeed shocking to see the negligence of the bandh and demands of GJM by the media, both print and electronic ...

I fail to understand y v only concentrate on the plains and treat hills only as entertainers for those living in plains (i.e. tourist destinations) ... we care for even 20 minutes of delhiites and make flyovers to reduce their travel time (and obviously, there's nothing wrong in that; kudos to Delhi governance for that) ; however, do we really care for so many hrs of blockade on the roads of highest strategic importance ?? and abt the condition of such roads ?? NH31, (or atleast the part that lies in West Bengal), is worse than most of the local roads in Delhi-NCR region ..

media was too busy covering the issue of Telangana, in minutest details (prob coz of the involvement of Hyderabad there); however the only news in print media that i could get abt duration of bandh declared by GJM was thru the local edition of Dainik Jagran (no news abt it even in the Kolkata edition of TOI while HT discusses the bandh with respect to the problems that tourists are facing in Darjeeling (click here)) ... and neither of them neways mentions the duration of the bandh on NH31 ..

i m not supporting (or opposing) GJM in their demand for a separate state ... all i feel is that there is more to hills than just tourism/tea/apples etc ... they deserve good roads and better infrastructure as much as ppl in plains do ... and the way media is informing ppl of the opinions/demands of both pro and anti telangana groups, the ppl in hills too deserve the same ... i met localites in Kolkata who r supportive of their cause for a separate statehood and also ppl in Siliguri who are against them ... so, whether their demand is legitimate or not cant be decided by just looking at one side of the coin ... though i wonder how many of my friends from plains even know abt the NH31 bandh and the reasons for GJM to ask for a separate statehood !!

however, i titled this blog as "Y DO WE ... " as i personally feel that media only shows what it can sell .. hence, media is just a reflection of what we want to see/read ... and if v concentrate on only plains and treat hills as just places of tourist attraction, y blame media for making news along that line ???

SOFT POWER OF INDIA

I recently saw one video of Shashi Tharror on ted.com where he talks abt the need of having soft power by nations. And this certainly is one of the best presentations i hv seen in recent times (apart from may be, the power of sixth sense, also available on ted.com). Basically, he refers to "soft power" as the capability to influence other nations independent of the "hard power" i.e. military strength, population or the economic growth or other such parameters. Certainly, hard power is not a field that India lacks (we hv 4th largest army in the world and r still growing @ a decent (if not gr8) pace, when the world has just witnessed one of the worst financial crisis since Great Depression), but soft power is something that India has championed over the last thousands of years. Thats y, the famous comment by Hu Shih, former Ambassador of China to USA: "India conquered and dominated China culturally for 20 centuries without ever having to send a single soldier across her border." Thats the extent of our soft power!! The hard power can certainly be attributed to the Govt and its initiatives; however soft power is something that can only be attributed to people.
The past several decades hv seen a tremendous change in the attitude of the World towards India. The drastic change in impression from a land of snake charmers and fakirs sleeping on nails to a land of computer gurus, business tycoons, and IT giants is certainly not possible with just hard power. Its not easy for the technical and higher educational institutes of a country, that was once thought to be a land of superstitions, to be rated equally to the topmost scientific universities of the world, all within a matter of a few decades, if not years. The last general elections in India was a very unique illustration in itself: a woman of Italian origin giving way to a Sikh PM, who was sworn in by a Muslim President (Dr APJ Abdul Kalam) in a country that's almost 80% Hindu; and this was not a demonstration to the world, it was just India being itself (Mr Tharoor rightly points it out in his talk).
Though some might feel that it's more of a glorified version of an "India Shining" initiative by the Govt of India, (as is obvious from the comments to that presentation); however I don't think this can be totally subscribed to. The problems being faced by the country are immense and gigantic, (and no one can deny that...there are many 'isms' to deal with), but amidst all that, does lie some "power" (call it soft or nething), due to which India is still moving ahead. We might talk of innumerable (and almost never-ceasing) differences in India; but one thing that India has proven is the fact that for a truly diverse society to not disintegrate (unity etc comes only later; and there were "learned scholars" who predicted that India would disintegrate in 1950s or 60s owing to such differences), it (i.e. the society) need not agree on all points; all that is needed is that we agree on the most fundamental principle i.e. how to disagree; how to survive without consensus .. we still hv to overcome many obstacles (a country can't be both a superpower and a superpoor simultaneously !!), however, the fact that as diverse a country as India, and with a multi party democratic set up, is still existing and developing is no less a miracle !! ..

P.S. I personally dont think this post is a contradiction to any of my previous posts especially this one ...