Random Thoughts, Ramblings.....
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Recovering India's money
This is the first time I have deleted a post and it was something that landed in my inbox about recovering the money in the Swiss bank.. when I checked on the people behind the initiative, I did not like what I read about most of them...
Monday, September 7, 2009
And why did they die?
When I read the news that 67 people died upon hearing the death of YSR, I wondered if such an incident can ever happen in Kerala. It did pain me to note that precious lives were lost due to some reasons.
In Kerala we do have ardent supporters who will kill another for the party’s sake (and get away!) but never have I heard anyone committing suicide or of anyone who has even died of a heart attack upon hearing about the death of a political leader. (They may commit suicide if the State announced that liquor is completely banned!)
1- Is it because the state is 100% literate?
2- Is it because the caste system is thinning out and also many social norms have been thrown out? (women are more empowered)
3- Is it because the state is more developed?
4- Is it because the state does not have good political leaders worth dying for?
While the 4th is true at the moment for Kerala, the first 2 counts even more. Kerala is also a smaller state and hence the poverty level could be lower when compared to AP. And while I think that the needs of the state of Kerala are not as severe as that of AP, the state does have suicides among the farmers.
I assume that in some states when the desperate needs of its people are met even in the barest level, they tend to elevate their leader to the status of God. So much that when one saw the live telecast of the funeral on TV channels and the news that so many even died for him, one wonders how a leader who has been accused of corruption and accusation in the highest level got into the hearts of the common people.
In Kerala we do have ardent supporters who will kill another for the party’s sake (and get away!) but never have I heard anyone committing suicide or of anyone who has even died of a heart attack upon hearing about the death of a political leader. (They may commit suicide if the State announced that liquor is completely banned!)
1- Is it because the state is 100% literate?
2- Is it because the caste system is thinning out and also many social norms have been thrown out? (women are more empowered)
3- Is it because the state is more developed?
4- Is it because the state does not have good political leaders worth dying for?
While the 4th is true at the moment for Kerala, the first 2 counts even more. Kerala is also a smaller state and hence the poverty level could be lower when compared to AP. And while I think that the needs of the state of Kerala are not as severe as that of AP, the state does have suicides among the farmers.
I assume that in some states when the desperate needs of its people are met even in the barest level, they tend to elevate their leader to the status of God. So much that when one saw the live telecast of the funeral on TV channels and the news that so many even died for him, one wonders how a leader who has been accused of corruption and accusation in the highest level got into the hearts of the common people.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
All is not lost...
Judiciary seems to be paving the way for a corruption less society.
The following could be the start and it felt good to note that the Kerala High court along with the Delhi High Court is setting the standard.
New Delhi/Kochi, Aug 28 (PTI) Judges at the High Courts of Delhi and Kerala today decided to make public details about their assets--the first in the state judiciary, two days after a landmark decision by the Supreme Court judges to reveal information about their wealth.
The assets details that is at the core of intense public debate about the importance of judicial accountability in the country is expected to be put up on the websites of the respective courts in a couple of months since the modalities and manner of declaration are being finalised.
The move by the two high courts came even as Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan suggested that the judges of High Courts cannot be compelled by the apex judiciary to follow suit. Balakrishnan however hoped that some of the high courts would follow the apex court.
Yet another welcome news was the resolution passed against Senior Supreme Court judge, Mr. Cyriac Thomas. When I listened to his passionate speech exposing his overly gratitude to the Church I did wonder if his love for Church was more than his love for Christ and his teachings. For some, the passionate love for the church alone can adulterate their faith and the actions that follow. In my opinion he should step down if his love for his Church is a hindrance to his job.
By Our Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug. 28: The Kozhikode Bar Association has passed a resolution against the senior Supreme Court judge, Mr Cyriac Joseph, criticising his visit to the Bengaluru Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory to view the narco analysis CDs of the Sister Abhaya murder case suspects.
It was after a two-hour long discussion that the bar association passed the resolution. In all, 180 advocates supported the resolution and six opposed it.
The resolution said that Mr Joseph’s conduct was unbecoming of a judge and sought an inquiry by a SC judge into the allegations against him. The resolution also said that he should step down from his post while facing the probe. However, those who opposed the resolution said that allegations against SC judges should be discussed in Parliament and not in bar associations.
On Wednesday, 62 members of the Kerala High Court Advocates Association had moved a resolution against Mr Joseph in a meeting of the association. However, the meeting rejected the motion saying that it was not legally maintainable.
The following could be the start and it felt good to note that the Kerala High court along with the Delhi High Court is setting the standard.
STAFF WRITER 20:29 HRS IST
New Delhi/Kochi, Aug 28 (PTI) Judges at the High Courts of Delhi and Kerala today decided to make public details about their assets--the first in the state judiciary, two days after a landmark decision by the Supreme Court judges to reveal information about their wealth.
The assets details that is at the core of intense public debate about the importance of judicial accountability in the country is expected to be put up on the websites of the respective courts in a couple of months since the modalities and manner of declaration are being finalised.
The move by the two high courts came even as Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan suggested that the judges of High Courts cannot be compelled by the apex judiciary to follow suit. Balakrishnan however hoped that some of the high courts would follow the apex court.
Yet another welcome news was the resolution passed against Senior Supreme Court judge, Mr. Cyriac Thomas. When I listened to his passionate speech exposing his overly gratitude to the Church I did wonder if his love for Church was more than his love for Christ and his teachings. For some, the passionate love for the church alone can adulterate their faith and the actions that follow. In my opinion he should step down if his love for his Church is a hindrance to his job.
Resolution against SC judgeAugust 29th, 2009
By Our Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram, Aug. 28: The Kozhikode Bar Association has passed a resolution against the senior Supreme Court judge, Mr Cyriac Joseph, criticising his visit to the Bengaluru Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory to view the narco analysis CDs of the Sister Abhaya murder case suspects.
It was after a two-hour long discussion that the bar association passed the resolution. In all, 180 advocates supported the resolution and six opposed it.
The resolution said that Mr Joseph’s conduct was unbecoming of a judge and sought an inquiry by a SC judge into the allegations against him. The resolution also said that he should step down from his post while facing the probe. However, those who opposed the resolution said that allegations against SC judges should be discussed in Parliament and not in bar associations.
On Wednesday, 62 members of the Kerala High Court Advocates Association had moved a resolution against Mr Joseph in a meeting of the association. However, the meeting rejected the motion saying that it was not legally maintainable.
Monday, August 24, 2009
A dangerous trend…
While traveling through Alapuzha road, Hubby has never stopped reminding about the Kanichukulangara murder case and to show the Lorry which continues to lie there as witness. Bits and pieces of the case would float through my mind and I would feel sad at the state of affairs in Kerala. And now we have one more land mark, the place where the gruesome murder of Paul Muthoot occurred. Let me forget that this case got much interest since it involved a family of high influence and let me also forget the fact that wanted goondas were travelling with the victim. The way the case is moving makes me believe that the police will be forced to twist the facts and in the end we will never know the entire truth.
It is indeed sad to see the political and other murders committed so often in our state. We have never been satisfied by the court verdicts and many murderers still run scott free. Another murder that still stands fresh in my mind is that of the teacher K.T. Jayakrishnan in front of his 6th standard students in year 1999. The accused were given death sentence by the lower courts but were left free by the Supreme Court. I remember writing a very emotional letter to the Chief Minister and I am sure that letter reached nowhere but I could do nothing else.
Yesterday I watched a retired police commissioner say how the police are not allowed to do their work freely, although the Kerala Police is one of the best in the country. He said that unless the society cooperates this scenario is not going to change.
Is it only the judiciary and the police to be blamed?
Is it only the political parties to be blamed?
Below is an excerpt from The Hindu dated Nov 30, 2004
The credibility of the crime investigation and prosecution machineries in the State has been deteriorating rapidly. The developments in the last few days have eroded it further. Legal experts attribute the failure of the investigative machinery to lack of experience, incompetence and corruption. Poor prosecution mechanism, they say, is owing to the incapability of Government lawyers. They feel that political interference is compounding the problem
It is indeed sad to see the political and other murders committed so often in our state. We have never been satisfied by the court verdicts and many murderers still run scott free. Another murder that still stands fresh in my mind is that of the teacher K.T. Jayakrishnan in front of his 6th standard students in year 1999. The accused were given death sentence by the lower courts but were left free by the Supreme Court. I remember writing a very emotional letter to the Chief Minister and I am sure that letter reached nowhere but I could do nothing else.
Yesterday I watched a retired police commissioner say how the police are not allowed to do their work freely, although the Kerala Police is one of the best in the country. He said that unless the society cooperates this scenario is not going to change.
Is it only the judiciary and the police to be blamed?
Is it only the political parties to be blamed?
Below is an excerpt from The Hindu dated Nov 30, 2004
The story of derailed probes High Court strictures
The credibility of the crime investigation and prosecution machineries in the State has been deteriorating rapidly. The developments in the last few days have eroded it further. Legal experts attribute the failure of the investigative machinery to lack of experience, incompetence and corruption. Poor prosecution mechanism, they say, is owing to the incapability of Government lawyers. They feel that political interference is compounding the problem
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Even the Readers Digest?
It was sad to read the following news today:
The publisher of Reader's Digest, the country’s most popular general interest magazine, said Monday it will file for Chapter 11 protection with a plan to swap a portion of its debt for ownership of the company.
Practically grew up with this book since my parents have subscribed to it from the time it landed in India. It even made my mother start a similar magazine at home to keep the 5 of us siblings engaged during the holidays. We used to write our own versions of articles and stories which was edited by my mother. She compiled them and either typed it or re-wrote by hand and named it the "Philip's journal". Since we used to write anything and everything and drop it into a box that was kept specially for this, we used to wait eagerly to see if it passed our mother's editing. It was a proud moment if it ever reached the final print.
The Indian edition was first published in 1954. Its circulation then was 40,000 copies. Today, the magazine is published in India by Living Media India Ltd., and sold over 600,000 copies monthly in 2008 — a fifteen-fold increase. It not only includes local Indian articles but international articles as well.
The real life drama section was always a thrill to read and the “quotable quotes” was the first page that I enjoyed reading. During the growing up years the collection of articles was always a source of comfort and inspiration.
I do read that the magazine may continue but not as before. Seems they do not have much audience amongst the young and also since similar articles are in abundance on the internet it was slowly losing its readers.
The Indian edition was not upto the mark but I always opened this little book with much eagerness and have read every single page of it. Here in Kuwait I did arrange for the magazine to be delivered at home but the delivery has always been erratic.
....edited to add the following from NDTV
Reader’s Digest to file for bankruptcy protection
The publisher of Reader's Digest, the country’s most popular general interest magazine, said Monday it will file for Chapter 11 protection with a plan to swap a portion of its debt for ownership of the company.
Practically grew up with this book since my parents have subscribed to it from the time it landed in India. It even made my mother start a similar magazine at home to keep the 5 of us siblings engaged during the holidays. We used to write our own versions of articles and stories which was edited by my mother. She compiled them and either typed it or re-wrote by hand and named it the "Philip's journal". Since we used to write anything and everything and drop it into a box that was kept specially for this, we used to wait eagerly to see if it passed our mother's editing. It was a proud moment if it ever reached the final print.
Indian edition
The Indian edition was first published in 1954. Its circulation then was 40,000 copies. Today, the magazine is published in India by Living Media India Ltd., and sold over 600,000 copies monthly in 2008 — a fifteen-fold increase. It not only includes local Indian articles but international articles as well.
The real life drama section was always a thrill to read and the “quotable quotes” was the first page that I enjoyed reading. During the growing up years the collection of articles was always a source of comfort and inspiration.
I do read that the magazine may continue but not as before. Seems they do not have much audience amongst the young and also since similar articles are in abundance on the internet it was slowly losing its readers.
The Indian edition was not upto the mark but I always opened this little book with much eagerness and have read every single page of it. Here in Kuwait I did arrange for the magazine to be delivered at home but the delivery has always been erratic.
....edited to add the following from NDTV
"The Chapter 11 filing will apply only to the company's US businesses...its operations in Canada, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia-New Zealand will not be affected. RDA's international operations are expected to have adequate funding based on continuing operations and access to proceeds from the DIP (debtor in possession) financing," the company said.
Earlier in March 2009, Indian Software exporter HCL Technologies had announced a seven-year IT operations and management engagement with RDA.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
It is sad to see them leave the stage...
It is really sad to see them go so early. After Rajan P. Dev, it is now Murali.
Murali will remain one of my favourite actors and sadly these great actors have not acted enough in the Malayalam cinema. He acted raw and should be called the real superstar. I guess he was not confined within any Superstar status and was free to just act. He never needed any “props” unlike the current superstars, to remain on the screen and at times as a pain to the viewers. We have superstars whom the fans want to remain eternally young, virile and what not but we loved watching Murali for his personality and acting alone. Even the media was stingy in using the Bharat before his name and I wish Murali could have seen the real support that he had from the viewers. He was an avid reader and a writer too, although I wonder if his political leaning did reduce his chance to act in more movies.
And talking about the recent deaths in the Malayalam film industry, is this industry getting to be injurious to the health of those involved in it? Are they being over taxed? Are some of our actors getting too involved with the character and hence getting affected psychologically? It is understood that unlike Bollywood actors, the Malayalam actors are required to act in a controlled manner and hence act real.
Watched “Billu (Barber)” during the weekend and yet again wondered how SRK continues to rule. Was it not very obvious that Irfan Khan did a much splendid job effortlessly?
Let me continue to wonder how some superstars are made and sustained.
Murali will remain one of my favourite actors and sadly these great actors have not acted enough in the Malayalam cinema. He acted raw and should be called the real superstar. I guess he was not confined within any Superstar status and was free to just act. He never needed any “props” unlike the current superstars, to remain on the screen and at times as a pain to the viewers. We have superstars whom the fans want to remain eternally young, virile and what not but we loved watching Murali for his personality and acting alone. Even the media was stingy in using the Bharat before his name and I wish Murali could have seen the real support that he had from the viewers. He was an avid reader and a writer too, although I wonder if his political leaning did reduce his chance to act in more movies.
And talking about the recent deaths in the Malayalam film industry, is this industry getting to be injurious to the health of those involved in it? Are they being over taxed? Are some of our actors getting too involved with the character and hence getting affected psychologically? It is understood that unlike Bollywood actors, the Malayalam actors are required to act in a controlled manner and hence act real.
Watched “Billu (Barber)” during the weekend and yet again wondered how SRK continues to rule. Was it not very obvious that Irfan Khan did a much splendid job effortlessly?
Let me continue to wonder how some superstars are made and sustained.
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