Shrikant’s Blog

I am getting more and more convinced everyday that we are country of a Billion+ Idiots. The press is giving massive coverage that Rahul Gandhi took a fast local to Dadar yesterday. Btw even I was in mumbai and took a train from Dadar to Parel, so whats the big thing he did. With all the problems that we face, this should not be the news we should be consuming. We should reject news like this and demand better coverage on real issues.

Even if we are not, we are destined to be a Billion Idiots.

(via Sushant) We as a nation want our celebrities to be part of our public life. We want them to have a view on international relations, on communal matters and even on sexual freedom. We want to be sprinkled with a bit of their pixie dust by giving them Padma honours when they don’t need it and National Awards when they don’t deserve it. We want them to entertain us onscreen and then edify us off it. They oblige us because it helps them promote their movies, or sell their products. And then we complain when they follow our script, or indeed the script of any of the special interest groups that have captured pubic space. We plunder our own history like thieves, and expect stars, not scholars, to write us a future. Sure, the West too values its celebrities, especially if they feed the hungry in Darfur and adopt the needy in Cambodia. But it doesn’t expect them to set the national agenda. >>>

Just like the Congress Party is talking about inclusive growth, a recent study suggests that corruption is not limited to government offices or at lower levels of private companies. It has been found that the senior management is the most corrupt in India Inc.

The study pointed out that the level of corruption is seen increasing from the lower management (83.4 per cent) to the middle management (88.1 per cent) to the senior management level (90.2 per cent). read more >>>

As India celebrates 60 years of being a republic, what is becoming extremely clear is that it’s selfish elite is holding the republic back.

The wealthy in general demanded little from the state and received only what they needed, such as the right to avoid fair taxation. They did not have to rely on lamentable public services. Their air conditioned SUVs would glide over the uneven roads; their diesel-fed generators would smooth over the cracks in the energy supply. The elite had been happy to secede from active politics.

The problem in India, particularly since economic liberalization in 1991, is not wealth creation. Nor is it democratic institutions. It is governance, the inability to deliver freedoms for the vast majority of its people. Politics and business have worked together to use power as a means of enrichment. The comfortable classes could have been active in the public realm. Unlike in authoritarian states, they would not have been punished for causing trouble. They chose not to. The level of complicity is, therefore, surely higher. …. >>>>

This the second autorickshaw  driver who has made vast social impact, the first being Uncle Kittu’s story.

(via an Exact Narration by Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries), who shares his inspirational encounter with a rickshaw driver in Mumbai:

Last Sunday, my wife, kid, and I had to travel to Andheri from Bandra. When I waved at a passing auto rickshaw, little did I expect that this ride would be any different…

As we set off, my eyes fell on a few magazines (kept in an aircraft style pouch) behind the driver’s back rest. I looked in front and there was a small TV. The driver had put on the Doordarshan channel.

My wife and I looked at each other with disbelief and amusement. In front of me was a small first-aid box with cotton, dettol and some medicines. This was enough for me to realise that I was in a special vehicle. Then I looked round again, and discovered more – there was a radio, fire extinguisher, wall clock, calendar, and pictures and symbols of all faiths – from Islam and Christianity to  Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism.

There were also pictures of the heroes of 26/11- Kamte, Salaskar, Karkare and Unnikrishnan. I realised that not only my vehicle, but also my driver was special.

I started chatting with him and the initial sense of ridicule and disbelief gradually diminished. I gathered that he had been driving an auto rickshaw for the past 8-9 years; he had lost his job when his employer’s plastic company was shut down.
He had two school-going children, and he drove from 8 in the morning till 10 at night. No break unless he was unwell.  ”Sahab, ghar mein baith ke T.V dekh kar kya faida? Do paisa income karega toh future mein kaam aayega.”

We realised that we had come across a man who represents Mumbai – the spirit of work, the spirit of travel and the spirit of excelling in life. I asked him whether he does anything else as I figured that he did not have too much spare time. He said that he goes to an old age home for women in Andheri once a week or whenever he has some extra income, where he donates tooth  brushes, toothpaste, soap,  hair oil, and other items of daily use. He pointed out to a painted message below the meter that read: “25 per cent discount on metered fare for the handicapped.

Free rides for blind passengers up to Rs. 50.

My wife and I were struck with awe. The man was a HERO! A hero who deserves all our respect!!! Our journey came to an end; 45 minutes of a lesson in humility, selflessness, and of a hero-worshipping Mumbai, my temporary home.

We disembarked, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a
free ride for a blind man.

I hope, one day, you too have a chance to meet Mr Sandeep Bachhe in his auto rickshaw: MH-02-Z-8508.

Got a call this morning from one of my friends saying ” you missed the thank you bonus from Intel”. Was wondering why Intel, known for running a tight ship is acting so charitable. The year is definitely  a year to celebrate with AMD not being as nimble as before, but there were two big rulings that dampened the even greater year Intel could have had . First was the fine of 1.45 billion Euro imposed by European Union. For all the we are clean talk by top Intel execs this should have put a doubt in employee minds: ” we are not that above-board after all “

Next was the Intel AMD settlement for 1.25 billion U.S. dollars. Again if Intel was that much in the right and all their brainwashing of AMD is always copying them, then why this settlement.

Thats why in spite of a good recovery year, I am calling this a guilt bonus not thank you bonus. More a PR stunt to motivate employees stuck in their overpaying jobs, frustrated and clueless about what to do next.