Thursday, February 11, 2010

Where was the youth skipped?

It seems yesterday
When I hoped to grow up one day
Not into a mature individual
Not into a working professional
But into something which was
Glorified as youth
The energy and intensity of the word
Itself was drawing enough
The dreams and the hopes that came
With the thought were unavoidable
The imagination of being a young
Student with dreams in the eyes
With a will to follow that he desires
The imagination of being a young
Energetic individual capable of
Doing anything that he sets his mind on
The imagination of being able to
Know what he wants and
Sets his mind and focus on it.
Just the mention of the word youth
Reminded one of the promising times ahead.
But here we stand today
Engaged in the wheels of the world
Giving a slight push whenever we can
And feel like.
The mention of the word now
Pops into imagination those who are
In the wonderful and amazing world
Doing their duties as a youth with no
Bars to what to do and what not except for
Their own sense of right and wrong
Nobody to tell them when to wake up
Or go to sleep now.
Nobody to book their time so intensively
So as to not to have the time to even be sick
Everything is a pleasure for them
The warm sun, the chilly wind, the incessant rain
Everything is an event to be enjoyed,
Not a hold-up t work,
Not an obstacle to get to work on time.
All the thoughts of these people and
The word youth now give a slight sense of sinking
A slight sense of missed or rather skipped
Opportunity to enjoy the world
as made by god
To enjoy the company of other people
As designed by god
To travel and know more
As expected by god
To do all this at an age
As envisaged by god
I think of all this and then
I think of the time when the word
Was a fantasy and the time when
.it has become missed opportunity
what I fail to understand is
where could youth have been fitted into this?

Thursday, February 14, 2008

THE MOST EMBARASSING MOMENT!!!

It was just one of those merry days in the life of an average hosteler guy, the day when ideally the seniors welcome the juniors to the club and there's an end to the dreaded ragging period. But actually its just another excuse for a final year guy who has raised above all these petty things of college life to drink and be merry. I am a final year student of Delhi College of Engineering, Delhi. I remember coming late that day and after a rough estimation of the no. of guys in the group who are going to drink, we went out for bringing in the supplies from the local theka very close to the college and on the way back i bought a packet of my favourite NAVY CUT. The supplies included a bottle of whisky and three beer bottles of the college's favourite brand ZINGARO strong. Now one of the friends who is generally sent in befor the supplies come in just to check everything is all right at the entry gate to the college. He reported checking at the gate by the security guards of bags as well as cars, but after three years of experience we knew what to do, hopped the bag in from one of the side walls on to the soft grass at the other side, then walked into the college empty handed, picked up the supplies and went to the hostel.
I and Ayush thought that it would be better to have a little suroor before going to the jam session, and both agreed monotonously. But, there's one thing about booze, it is seldom taken in small quantities, i guess the punchline of lays is better suited to pegs than to chips "noone can have just one". So after gulping down sufficient quantities we went to the freshers (short for fresher's party) and sat down at the last for the proceedings in the open air theater(OAT). After sometime we started to feel that we haven't had enough and decided to go for a smoke, as we were going to the canteen I met an old friend of mine who with his friends was going back to the hostel for the same purpose and for the same reason, they also felt that "thodi kam reh gayi". One of them had a car and we all packed into it, the one who was driving had a kind of self pride that i don't admire and don't like people of that kind. He took out his car, packed with eight of us in it, in the reverse direction from the mechanical parking at blistering speed. "Whoosh!" i thought, "what was that", but that wasn't the end he took of again at rocket acceleration out of the canteen, this time in the forward direction, and drove the car at really high speed to the hostel, ignoring speed breakers and traffic rules, and then parked the car really close to the side wall in the parking, the car coming to a screeching halt just inches away from the wall. We got out of the car with me and ayush stunned at the rash driving, others seem to be normal, they were used to it all i guess. To be true I was a bit jealous of the man for his driving skills, because i consider myself a good driver and think that i could handle the car very well but i cant imagine of performing such a feat even in the wildest of my dreams. Driving or rather flying the car schumacher style! Well after the shocking experience we were all surrounded by the overwhelming feeling of being close to the boozing experience, which was to happen soon enough in my room. These people picked up their supplies from the back of the car and after some "high" talk, we all decided to drink in my room. We went upstairs to the room and gathered in the singly room, all eight of us. Everyone sat wherever they got a seat, five on the bed, one on wooden chair, and me and schumacher were the only ones left standing, now there is one more cane chair in the room on which i usually sit and enjoy my drink and fag when i am with my group, but as i was thinking to sit on it or to offer it to schumacher, he sat on it, i felt offended, anybody else would have sat on it and it wouldn't have had mattered, but not him, just not him. I compromised and decided not to say anything and made space for myself on the table adjacent to the cane chair. Anyways the beer bottles came out and so did the cigarette packets. I noted that all of them were 50000, a brand which i had seen only in the beer shops close to the college and nowhere else, the beer was actually good as it had the maximum hit, but i couldnt see the brands of dome of them because of the angle of viewing. All on the table for the distribution, because of the absence of bottle opener, I was asked to do the honours and open the bottles with my teeth because i was the closest to the bottles, i started one by one, opened 2-3 bottles straight, but on the next one, my tooth started to have a little ache, but i still continued to open them one by one then i opened till the last of the bottles which was a zingaro, "thats more like it" i thought, "baby you are mine"! Then after taking a sip or two, i kept the bottle down on the table to light up the fag, that is when the rounds of chatting, bakchodi (bc) as it is known as in the college, started steaming and the spirits were all high with the room becoming a smoke box and smell of booze all around, that is when i saw schumacher sipping from the zingaro bottle and doing it really quick, all focussed on the bc going around in the room, then when i saw him drop the bottle, i thought its my chance now, and i began gulping down huge sips of the beer and that is when i saw him taking out a cigarette from the navy cut box and smoking it with full enjoyment, head raised for smoking the remains of the puff out. Still all engulfed in the bc around, my cigarette ended and i decided to take another one before schumacher snatches on another. I took huge gulps and kept the bottle to light a cigarette, as i had expected schumacher picked it up and started drinking, now i was getting pissed off. Like what is this first of all, this guy comes to my room and takes my favourite seat, takes my bottle and thinks it to be his own and then on top of it the cigarette packet too. I took a lot of pain in opening the bottle with my tooh aching and this guy just enjoys it with so much ease sitting back lumped into my chair, in my favourite style, "OUTRAGEOUS" i thought, but i knew better to not to say anything as he was a guest in the room and it is considered highly unethical to first invite someone in and then say something to spoil the mood. Then i remembered a saying that i read somewhere "Deeds speak louder than words". To finish the race, lit up a cigarette and drank the remains of the bottle in two raises of the bottle, and kept the bottle down on the table and got involved in the bc going around which had taken on a high intensity and involvement from all. Then as i expected schumacher picked up the bottle and to his surprise found it empty. That is when i saw him opening another of the zingaro bottles on the table with his teeth, i thought what the hell he should have atleast asked. Then i knew what to do, that is to try and put as much of the contents into my stomach as possible and forget about the rest, and yes to smoke the cigarettes as soon as possible. Both of us tried to put in as much as possible and as soon as possible before losing control of the bottle and smoked continously. And all the time both of us were fully engaged in the discussion. The topic was of the interest of every one "girls". The discussions included heavy laughs and some wayward suggestions, everyone was joyful still sipping on their first beer. It was then that i realised that the second bottle was also over, schumacher was taking the last sips out of the belly of the bottle. I decided to open the third and the last bottle on the table of zingaro and started gulping it quickly till he finishes the last sips of his bottle. Then there were only 3 cigarettes left out of a packet of 10. I tried to drink and smoke as quickly as possible. And Mr. Schumacher tried to do the same, with some occasional advice from friends to go slow, but it didn't matter, it was a full scale war now. The third bottle was gone in a matter of 4-5 minutes, and that is when i saw the last cigarette in the box and had a grab at it. Smoked it as if it was a reward after winning a debating competition while schumacher sipped at the drops left in the bottle. Then again the bc session continued with all drunk and the room a complete smoke box. Then one of the noble men said that its already 10 and we should all go to the jam and rock it out. After some apprehensions everyone decided to go. I decided that i am not going in the car because in a war you can't use the resources of the enemy and also i would have to leave myself in his hands and driving. I decided to go back walking, and ayush decided to accompany me so when everyone was out i tried to find the lock and key to lock the room before leaving the room. I saw the lock on top of my bag and bent down to pick it up. That is when alchohol took over and i tripped on to the bag which made a glassy noise because of the weight, i opened the bag to check what was so brittle in it to make such a brittle sound, that is when i saw the three bottles of zingaro lying there and the navy cut box hiding from the bottom of the bag. I was shell shocked and kept looking at the bottles for a long time to make sure that they were real, and the navy cut box which seemed more unreal than the bottles. Ayush asked about the problem and why was i reacting that ways, but i was too shocked to respond and then i said after a long deep thought that "i have just had the most embarrasing moment of my life"!!! The beer bootles that i drank and the cigarettes were his, and i mine were there in the bag waiting to be opened and so was the navy cut packet, i felt so ashamed that for a second a thought struck me "i guess i shouldnt have had come back the second time, the first time was i had had enough", but then an even more sinister more graver thought struck me " what would schumacher be thinking of me"!!! In the least it would be OUTRAGEOUS!!!

KIDNEY RACK-IT!!!

Consider the level of desperation in the following situations:
1. Without money: There is no money to feed the family,not even the money required for transportation to go to the big city for a job. The person sees the younger ones in the family maldeveloping due to lack of nutrition, the elder ones of the family withering away to death. In such a situation the person is bound to feel "I can do anything which will help my family to get out of this misery". If such a person sells his kidney for a lakh or so rupees and uses the money well to feed the family and buy necessities and to arrange for a sufficiently paying job, and also according to a senior surgeon that it doesnt shorten the lifespan of the person if done properly, the logic being that if one kidney can catch an infection, the other can too. So the man may give his family and himself a much better life and take them out of the earlier misery. Also the children have a chance of living their life better.
2. Without kidney: A person has worked really hard throughout his life, to have earned enough money that he starts feel around 40 about his money and bank balance and feels that he can enjoy a better life now with no financial worries. If this person falls ill, ends up in a hospital and comes to know that his kidneys are not working properly and all attempts to revive his kidneys have failed. The person lies on the hospital bed and asks god "what have I done wrong to be made to suffer all this". Doctors inform him that the best thing he can expect is that he has to come to the hospital every 3-4 days for a dialysis if not sooner. What that means he cant move or travel a lot, in this desperation situation he is bound to think "I can do anything to get my life back, to be able to go on morning walks, to take my family out on weekends".
3. A businessman: Or should I say a monopolist. He would set the price of his product at his own free will to gain the max. profit possible. And like all businessmen he would want to lower his cost price and raise his selling price as much as possible. That is what all businessmen do, nothing wrong in that. Is there?

Now comparing the abovementioned three, who would you say is wrong:
1. The man who tries to earn himself and his family a better standard of living and take them out of the misery of poverty by a donation?
2. The man who wants to get his life back and is ready to pay anything for it?
3. The monopolist who wants to earn max. profit?

In my opinion , none is wrong and all theree are justified in their actions as they are carried out of desperate circumstances. But our dear govt. has banned donation of kidneys by anyone outside the patient's family. Why is that there? I guess that is because that would lead to a chaos as people needing kidneys would try and lure people who are poor to donate theirs with the power of money.

One thing is for sure, there is both demand for kidney donation and more than enough kidney donors in the nation, what is amiss is the proper and just system for the exchange.

This leads to a very perilous situation where a man cannot live his life longer and healthily, others cant enjoy a better standard of living, just because the government cannot mange the transfer and cannot put in a system for it.

The situation demands a high attention level from the government, which would ensure the smooth transfer of the kidneys and adequate compensation. The government should allow transfer of kidney from outside the family but in turn it must require from the family of the patient to sign on donation certificates for their kidneys in case these are deemed usable at the time of their death. After a certain period of time this would ensure enough kidneys in the country to be used by anyone needing them. Also this would bring in a sense of seriousness and commitment from the family who is buying the kidney in the first place. Also there should be centers developed where the family of the donor and the patient can meet and settle on the donation money or better still the amount can be decided by the govt itself.

Hopefully the govt can come up with a solution soon enough, i think i am being too optimistic, hopefully the government recognizes this problem soon enough before more of such rackets happen.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Nandigram!!!

We have read a lot abt the situation in nandigram but what is not clear to me is the motive and driving force of the workers of the left(read:CPM) parties and of their mentors.
NANDIGRAM
Why would the CPI or rather the left workers work so hard, fight a battle in nandigram when we have never heard of them being so active except during elections, then what is it that drives them about this issue that they have dug trenches, bunkers and took on villagers straight on? There cen be 3 reasons that i can think of:
1. For the dev of our nation and that of Bengal
2. Pressure from the seniors.
3. Third is the reason which is the thing that makes the world go round.

Reason 1 and 2 are interrelated as it is the seniors who will tell the workers what is good for dev. and as far as i can c both are not the reasons for the issue because:
1. If Mr. Bhattacharya and his men were all that sensitive and hard working towards the development of bengal then it would have been the best state of the nation by now as they have been in power for 10 years.
2. Left would rather stay in the prototype indian marxist image than beat drum of being a dev. oriented party which can be seen in the N-deal issue, an issue for which BJP couldnt find much flaws and the left managed to strangle the deal for its prototype anti-US
image.
3. Left ideology and capitalism are two opposites and SEZ is a typical capitalist brainchild.
4. There has never been a grand enough dev. agenda for which our dhoti clad politicians and their team of workers along with the local police and administration would take such a step and kill an imaginary uprising by killing those involved and also sealing off the area for our omnipresent media, mamta banerjee, medha patkar and the burgeoise...

So the only logical reason that seems to be there for the nandigram incident to have occurted seems to be the financial gains expected out of setting up the industry. Money is bound to be sucked up into the govt machinery on buying as well as selling side of the SEZ land.
Some part of this money is bound to make its way into the hands of the parties, workers and police people who helped seal off the area and curb the uprising.. It seems that the villagers sensed it much beforeus the city dwellers were enjoying the comforts of AC or geyser
(sometimes both) could. This maybe because:
1. Their proximity to the deal deal and the reason that they were under the hammer and hence they were supposed to realise.
2. Years of experience of govt cruelty and insensitiveness, the yearsold experience of their fathers and forefathers not getting the promised relief material and money in times of flood and drought.

So the villagers had experience of the govt robbing them of their rights and knew that the govt was once again coming for the kill, this time the big kill, this time they are after their livelihood, their land which is theeir and their families only possession. this is why the villagers are protesting asgains the land grabbing. Why else would tthey oblect to a promise of good jobs and good money for their land.
And all the media coverage is not going to help as the story that the CRPF has gained control over the area is good enough to stop thinking about the issue but what abou those who lost their lives, what about those whose family members lost their lives defending their own land which would eventually be snatched. More importantly what about those who organised these mass murders, loot and plunder. Most importantly, will the govt still go ahead with the plan.