Recently I noticed one of my colleagues on the bus to work fiddling with his phone through out the journey. Being my usual naïve self, I asked him if he was facing some problems with his phone. After he managed to stop laughing he told me that he was listing to the radio. Yes. FM radio has come to Surat.
There are presently 5 channels:
Radio City 91.1
Big 92.7
My FM 94.3
Radio Mirchi 98.3
Akashvani 101.1
Personally I prefer Radio City and Radio Mirchi. My listening is mainly to and from work which is roughly 7:30 AM to 8:30 AM and 5 PM to 6:30 PM. The songs are pretty popular Hindi numbers. However, the commentary is in Gujarati. For the poor people like me, who would like to listen to the radio and don’t follow the local language, all I can say is this is your chance to pick up Gujarati. English songs seem non existent, though there was a global top twenty on Saturday night at around 9 PM.
That apart, a strange thought struck me today. While flicking through the channels, I suddenly felt like a scientist twiddling with a Geiger counter. Call me crazy, but the thought refuses to get out of my head. The similarity is striking. I didn’t know that FM radio had launched in Surat, until recently. Similarly, you never know the radiation that you are exposed to without the help of a Geiger counter.
We have hundreds of studies on the effects of a modern lifestyle on our health. Have we ever considered the number of radio waves that we are being subjected to? I mean I just realized that I am being bombarded by five more types of man made radiation on a daily basis. My miniature Geiger counter (read as cell phone) shows me 5 FM channels, and four mobile networks (Hutch / Vodafone, Idea, Cellone, Airtel) are bombarding me with their signals. The signals of Reliance are out of its range I think. So exactly how many more of these man made radiations am I being subjected to? How much can my body take? Is there any law governing them? Am I being paranoid? Is the work load getting to me? Am I being incoherent? Guess I should take that break now.
25 Sept 2007
24 Sept 2007
World cup for World peace?
Finally a world cup comes to the billion strong country after what seems like ages. India lifted the world Twenty20 world cup. But in my jubilation i couldn't believe my ears when I heard Shoaib Mallik, Captain of the Pakistan cricket team state, ' I would like to thank my country, Pakistan and all the Muslims around the world...'
He didn't thank anyone else. Not fans. Not supporters. Not well wishers. Not..... I am stunned. I mean, I know cricket is a religion for many people, but to thank only people of your faith???
With the following that cricket has and the surge in viewership for today's finals between India and Pakistan, I feel he should have chosen his words more carefully. After all "world cup" events are meant to celebrate harmony and understanding between people of the world.
He didn't thank anyone else. Not fans. Not supporters. Not well wishers. Not..... I am stunned. I mean, I know cricket is a religion for many people, but to thank only people of your faith???
With the following that cricket has and the surge in viewership for today's finals between India and Pakistan, I feel he should have chosen his words more carefully. After all "world cup" events are meant to celebrate harmony and understanding between people of the world.
17 Sept 2007
Big brother
Be scared! Be very scared!!!
In continuing with my previous post on matters of convenience take a look at big brother watching you
I think that we are giving in too much for this "increased surveillance against terrorism". There are more people dying of diabetes and heart ailments than those dying due to terrorism. Do we see the government enacting compulsory morning walks or gym sessions?
In continuing with my previous post on matters of convenience take a look at big brother watching you
I think that we are giving in too much for this "increased surveillance against terrorism". There are more people dying of diabetes and heart ailments than those dying due to terrorism. Do we see the government enacting compulsory morning walks or gym sessions?
5 Sept 2007
Grow up
Ok. I’m pissed and I need to vent some steam. My room mate had borrowed my helmet and I needed to go to a close by (not close enough that I could walk) shop. This traffic cop stops me and slaps a nice big fine for riding without a helmet. Ok. So I broke the law. But my question is why should there be a law?
I know the benefits that wearing a helmet gives. It was just that I took a conscious decision due to the prevailing circumstances. Is that a crime? “Yes, it is” says a friend of mine. Criminals are not born. They are made, goes his argument. Ok. Maybe I cant generalise the statement. Let me rephrase. The government says that I am an adult since I am over the age of 18. But it refuses to treat me like one. If I chose to not wear a helmet, though it is for my own safety, why should they bother? Why should I be fined for CHOOSING to disregard my own safety? I am not a child that needs to be taught what is right and what is wrong.
Ah…. There in lies the problem. Everyone tells you to grow up and behave like an adult, but they refuse to actually believe that you could. How do you expect people to behave like grown ups if you keep treating them like kids?
A friend of mine is attending one of the reputed coaching classes for CAT. He was telling me how half the students in his batch are attending the class only out of fear of the coaching center calling up their houses. Our future managers are not considered mature enough to take their own decisions AFTER having paid close to 15,000 to 20,000 for the course?
No. this is not a isolated incident. A friend of mine is studying at IIM – Indore. He was narrating how there is a ten o’ clock in time. Though we might be tempted to brand it as just “one of those rules” which no one takes seriously, it wasn’t so. Two students came in late one night and gave the guard a name of two of their classmates who were in another country taking part in an exchange program. The whole final year batch was called in and were told that placements would be on hold until the culprits confess.
“Culprits”???? If faculty at the premier Indian Institute of Management Indore cannot trust their students to decide how to manage their own programs, how do they trust them to take decisions that will affect not just corporations but the society at large? And if this is the attitude of IIM – I, I can’t even begin to imagine how the other “Management” schools treat their students.
Yeah. I guess I need to grow up to the fact that the rule makers will never be able to treat me like a grown up since they haven’t grown up themselves to know the difference.
I know the benefits that wearing a helmet gives. It was just that I took a conscious decision due to the prevailing circumstances. Is that a crime? “Yes, it is” says a friend of mine. Criminals are not born. They are made, goes his argument. Ok. Maybe I cant generalise the statement. Let me rephrase. The government says that I am an adult since I am over the age of 18. But it refuses to treat me like one. If I chose to not wear a helmet, though it is for my own safety, why should they bother? Why should I be fined for CHOOSING to disregard my own safety? I am not a child that needs to be taught what is right and what is wrong.
Ah…. There in lies the problem. Everyone tells you to grow up and behave like an adult, but they refuse to actually believe that you could. How do you expect people to behave like grown ups if you keep treating them like kids?
A friend of mine is attending one of the reputed coaching classes for CAT. He was telling me how half the students in his batch are attending the class only out of fear of the coaching center calling up their houses. Our future managers are not considered mature enough to take their own decisions AFTER having paid close to 15,000 to 20,000 for the course?
No. this is not a isolated incident. A friend of mine is studying at IIM – Indore. He was narrating how there is a ten o’ clock in time. Though we might be tempted to brand it as just “one of those rules” which no one takes seriously, it wasn’t so. Two students came in late one night and gave the guard a name of two of their classmates who were in another country taking part in an exchange program. The whole final year batch was called in and were told that placements would be on hold until the culprits confess.
“Culprits”???? If faculty at the premier Indian Institute of Management Indore cannot trust their students to decide how to manage their own programs, how do they trust them to take decisions that will affect not just corporations but the society at large? And if this is the attitude of IIM – I, I can’t even begin to imagine how the other “Management” schools treat their students.
Yeah. I guess I need to grow up to the fact that the rule makers will never be able to treat me like a grown up since they haven’t grown up themselves to know the difference.
15 Aug 2007
Independence Day
August 15th : Independence day is being celebrated all over India. Since it is a national holiday, I am sitting at home doing nothing in particular when I decide to Blackle (Google with a black background that saves power with each search) Independence Day and related topics. Through all of the pages the concept of “being free from the influence of others” seems to come through.
Am I really independent? Am I free from the influence of others? Am I free? Well, when I start my day I have to brush my teeth and do my morning dailies. Right? I mean my dentist has told me if I don’t do that I will have bad breath, bacteria will eat into my tooth enamel and I’ll lose my teeth early in life. If I don’t have my bath then my mom told me that I’d develop body odour. I open my wardrobe and pull out my uniform since my company says that they wouldn’t like to discriminate between employees……And this is just the start of my day.
Ladies are free to choose what they want to wear but advised not to wear “revealing” or provocative clothes. Religious fanatics attack others on the flimsiest grounds. So we are “advised” not to provoke them by stating opinions. We are told not to make adverse comments against old people or the disabled. They are to be called the elderly and the gifted.
Yes we are free. Free to our opinions. That is as long as we keep them to ourselves. Free to move into any part of the country or other countries as long as we get the required travel documents and permissions. Free to drive whatever vehicle we wish to, as long as you have the license, insurance papers, pollution under control certificate, etc. Free to accumulate wealth, as long as we pay our income tax, wealth tax, service tax and other taxes.
Oh man. I feel so free on Independence Day that I think I’ll make the best use of my freedom to curl up in my blanket. [The other option of celebrating is out of the question since there is a ban on the sale of alcohol today] Happy Independence Day everyone.
Am I really independent? Am I free from the influence of others? Am I free? Well, when I start my day I have to brush my teeth and do my morning dailies. Right? I mean my dentist has told me if I don’t do that I will have bad breath, bacteria will eat into my tooth enamel and I’ll lose my teeth early in life. If I don’t have my bath then my mom told me that I’d develop body odour. I open my wardrobe and pull out my uniform since my company says that they wouldn’t like to discriminate between employees……And this is just the start of my day.
Ladies are free to choose what they want to wear but advised not to wear “revealing” or provocative clothes. Religious fanatics attack others on the flimsiest grounds. So we are “advised” not to provoke them by stating opinions. We are told not to make adverse comments against old people or the disabled. They are to be called the elderly and the gifted.
Yes we are free. Free to our opinions. That is as long as we keep them to ourselves. Free to move into any part of the country or other countries as long as we get the required travel documents and permissions. Free to drive whatever vehicle we wish to, as long as you have the license, insurance papers, pollution under control certificate, etc. Free to accumulate wealth, as long as we pay our income tax, wealth tax, service tax and other taxes.
Oh man. I feel so free on Independence Day that I think I’ll make the best use of my freedom to curl up in my blanket. [The other option of celebrating is out of the question since there is a ban on the sale of alcohol today] Happy Independence Day everyone.
11 Aug 2007
Of counter and trackers
Some time back I decided to add a counter to my blog. I reached a site called Stat Counter . I am just over the moon with this site. The features that it offers are just amazing. I found out that if u type
lagae raho munna bhai
"Esop fable" grasshopper
naresh gupta ndtv video
ndtv tamasha political satire
"dinesh hinduja"
Into a google search, my blog shows up in the top ten hits. There are a few others keywords which were probably in the top ten then but don’t work now. As I explore this site I am amazed at all the services it offers me for FREE. I now know that I have a few hits from Latvia and USA. It is very very flattering to say the least.
The site also allows me to lookup the IP address of every visitor to my blog. It can also be configured to send a weekly report of page load activity to your email address. It also has features that would have a computer geek going bananas. The operating system the computers were running on, (Gotee, I know the number of times you have visited since the Linux OS could only be you :-P) , the screen resolution, which search engine sent me what traffic, the length of stay of each visitor, which part of the world each visitor came from etc.
“Where is the catch?” is the most common question. “Such services cost real money, you know”. Yes. I know. The answers to those questions can be found here. I very highly recommend the site.
lagae raho munna bhai
"Esop fable" grasshopper
naresh gupta ndtv video
ndtv tamasha political satire
"dinesh hinduja"
Into a google search, my blog shows up in the top ten hits. There are a few others keywords which were probably in the top ten then but don’t work now. As I explore this site I am amazed at all the services it offers me for FREE. I now know that I have a few hits from Latvia and USA. It is very very flattering to say the least.
The site also allows me to lookup the IP address of every visitor to my blog. It can also be configured to send a weekly report of page load activity to your email address. It also has features that would have a computer geek going bananas. The operating system the computers were running on, (Gotee, I know the number of times you have visited since the Linux OS could only be you :-P) , the screen resolution, which search engine sent me what traffic, the length of stay of each visitor, which part of the world each visitor came from etc.
“Where is the catch?” is the most common question. “Such services cost real money, you know”. Yes. I know. The answers to those questions can be found here. I very highly recommend the site.
10 Aug 2007
Taslima Nasrin and the order of democracy?
Taslima Nasrin attacked during a press release for her “anti – Islamic” views. The scores of 24x7 news channels bring you first hand the visuals of this “breaking story”. Breaking is right. They seemed hell bent on breaking everything in site. To top it all they went on to interview the people who “stood up for what they believed in” and comments of “she deserved it” were emanating from the idiot box.
Hello! ‘Freedom of speech’ ring a bell anywhere?
“Yes”, the news channel seems to reply. That is why the John Doe got his 30 seconds (more like 30 minutes with all the reruns and multiple channels) of fame to explain his point of view.
Thank God for small mercies that they were at least arrested. But did the fact that three of them were MLA’s (Member of Legislative Assembly) surprise anyone or has it become so common place that it hardly roused a flicker of interest?
full story
Hello! ‘Freedom of speech’ ring a bell anywhere?
“Yes”, the news channel seems to reply. That is why the John Doe got his 30 seconds (more like 30 minutes with all the reruns and multiple channels) of fame to explain his point of view.
Thank God for small mercies that they were at least arrested. But did the fact that three of them were MLA’s (Member of Legislative Assembly) surprise anyone or has it become so common place that it hardly roused a flicker of interest?
full story
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)