Think Tank

One of my colleagues tells his story from the childhood days. He was very bad in studies and when caught to some difficult question, he would become philosophical and would give vaguely thoughtful answers which even the teachers won’t be able to make solve. This strategy of his, worked. The confused teachers often asked him [...]

It seems there can’t be any demi-gods in “God’s own Country” Kerala. In the proceedings of the 2G Scam case, the Supreme Court had made some serious doubts about continuance of Mr. PJ Thomas as Central Vigilance Commissioner. Here is what the court said,
“CBI is functioning under the CVC, at that time he (Thomas) [...]

Recently I was in Delhi. The amount of construction work half-completed for Commonwealth Games is startling. The whole of Connaught Place is dug up and gives the image of a war-wrecked area. Given the pace, it will take more than two months to paint the under constructed buildings, leave alone finishing them. And then we [...]

Our company had to roll out a plan. It had decided to implement it in South Zone first, because of its favorable past experiences. Hyderabad was to be the hub. But by the time the roll out date came nearby, Telangana issue had blown up the political space and Hyderabad and AP was burning in [...]

(Politics) Wake up and Make a Difference: Vote for Change! I had gone to watch Wake Up Sid (WUS) on the first day of its release. The movie was well made, very much enjoyable and I loved it. It’s a story of a girl from Kolkata who comes to Mumbai with big dreams and no contacts. She [...]

(India) (Politics) Jaswant: Book – Expulsion Conclusion Most in our generation respected the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) for giving us a line of non-political leaders. These leaders joined politics from many different fields and hence were less prone to be corrupted from day-1. This was in contrast to the legacy of what the dynastic Indian National Congress [...]

(India) During last general election campaigns, BJP’s LK Advani had made a huge issue out of Indian money locked up in Swiss Banks. He claimed that in 2007, the money held by Indians in Swiss banks stood at USD 5.7 Billion, up from USD 2.6 Billion in 2001 (Both the amount and >100% increase are alarming). [...]

(Politics II) (India)  Won some, lost us General Elections 2009 have proven to be baffling to almost all observers. No one had guessed the results as they came in on May 16th. While everyone was waiting for a hung parliament and the outgoing government prepared for a graceful exit, Indian electorates threw up a surprise.   A [...]

(India) (Politics) Myth # 1: Indian farmers are happy and prosperous: thanks due to Rs 72,000 Crore farm-loan waiver by the government.  Any good finance minister or economist won’t splurge on loan waivers unless there is an extraordinary need for the same: because it rewards the dishonest and lazy. Since our govt still waived off such [...]

And We, the Victims  (Politics) (India) Our Prime Minister is proclaimed as an exceptional economist. Only I am not sure if this is because of or in spite of his performance during the last five years. His glory doesn’t come from a prize he won or a concept he authored. He happened to be India’s historic [...]

 (Politics) A ‘Gandhi’ came into the family of Nehrus when Feroz Khan had to adopt his surname of ‘Gandhi’ so that the political career of Indira Nehru doesn’t come to an end after their marriage. From Jawaharlal Nehru to Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, if there is one thread that runs in the family blood – it [...]

Politics IISuch a handsome Minster!  In the recent ministerial reshuffle, some new faces have come to the front. And so have propped up lines like: “Nation gets young blood”. Similar thing had happened when Ms. Patil had been made the President. We all were gifted with a woman President – I am not sure how [...]

Politics IIPolit Pundit talks to Prudent Indian Dear friends,  What is the most important thing for a child to grow properly? Right parental upbringing. What is most important for a new student? A good teacher. What is most important for a new character like me to grow? Inspiration.  My first avatar here as Polit Pundit was [...]

Politics-IIBJP is in back in black BJP has won the simple majority in the Himachal Pradesh assembly. After triumphant victory in Gujarat, the party routed Congress in HP also. What is more encouraging is the fact that the party is getting ‘clear’ mandate, and there are no hung assemblies these days.  Read: BJP gets majority in [...]

Politics-IIHow to loose it all in Gujarat If you have to win, you have to play the game. The scientist who devised Game Theory won the Nobel Prize. Before you take a move, you have to anticipate how your opponent would react, and then you take action. Congress, it seems, has forgotten taking help from the [...]

Politics-IIRegistration of marriages is compulsory now At first the news seemed to be plain. But there were invisible strings attached. Supreme Court of India has made it mandatory to register within three months, all marriages, irrespective of religions and beliefs.  Do you know that so far, registration of marriages was compulsory only for Hindus? And that [...]

Politics-IINaxals thriving in Chhattisgarh Between January and October, 134 policemen were killed by Naxalites in Chhattisgarh. The media is celebrating the killings and the central government is sitting tight. Having lived in the state for two years, I have known the locals to some extent. They are innocent, simple people who don’t have big ambitions. But [...]

Politics-IIHypocrisy  There are some hypocrites and there are some politicians. How far one can go to justify means for ends? Though many of you won’t like to say anything about politicians, I always fall in the trap of thinking them as human beings and Indians. Here is a para from a newspaper article, which bares [...]

Politics-IIT20 Divide It is said that Cricket and Bollywood are two things that join Indians more than anything else. But there was one report after India’s victory in the T20 world cup, which was alarming. Hope such incidents remain exceptional:  At least seven people, including a police officer were injured as fresh clashes over the result of the [...]

Politics IIHundreds of Nandigrams Some of us think that Nandigram is an isolated case. Media thinks Nandigram is a shame for the state of our democracy. Opposition thinks that this is a right opportunity to prove that the communists don’t have moral right to remain in power. What we all don’t admit is that the affairs in [...]