Matilda

Someone rightly said that Politics, Cricket and Tragedy are the three forces that unite the people of India. Politics has been a favourite chai-time theme for all Indians across classes and communities. Recently, we have all seen how the race to the bottom has led to no party forming the government in our capital, Delhi. Newspapers say 'The assembly is hung, so over to Jung.' And Mr. Jung is narrowing on the President rule to break the political impasse. I am not a mind reader but here is how I think he would have thought! The trilemma shown below explains the interactions of our electoral competitors: BJP--->Congress BJP and Congress, being the two seasonal opponents, can never form a coalition. Having been on the opposite sides of the fence always, this alliance was out of question. How can fire and water show their might being at the same place? AAP--->Congress The ambitious amateur AAP which has gained a foot hold in Delhi, took advantage of the all-seas...

Let the beauty remain pristine, Let the glory reflect in every scene... Let the sound of valley echo happiness, Let not such scars and spots fill it with darkness... Let it not become a political gimmick to fight on, Let it instead help the men there to get up and move on...slowly and steadily! Kashmir is NOT a separate state, it is a part of our own Union. There have recently been vigorous verbal tussles over the Article 370 that provides special status to Jammu & Kashmir. This article has made the magnificence of this land opaque. Read the newsfeed and take it as a daily dose! But this time, I paused and jotted down some critical queries that came to my mind. After reading the history of this Article, one realises that this article, as envisioned by the makers of our constitution,  was to help this part of India to get well integrated with the rest of India after having faced violent struggles during partition. It was finally decided that the J&K...

Dear readers, Today, I wish to give a thought for your heart. I know it sounds absurd but I believe that we can  accomplish our target only if our heart and mind are focused towards it. As a country, we can move a step ahead if we know where we are going, if we know where we want to go and most importantly if we have the will to go there. Be it the road taken or not taken, we must be clear about our principles and disciplines. But alas! Owing to the ever-growing greed and avarice, it is strange that we seem to find ourselves lost in the deep dark woods. Indian policymakers are unable to realize the responsibility they carry and hence fall short in their duty. Not just them, we are also to blame for our lackadaisical view about the bottlenecks in nation's progress. We the youth of today are the hope for tomorrow. But are we hands-on with all the tools we need? We have the zeal, the will and anything more? Yes, there is a part of our inner self that longs to be cleansed....

He blinked and all others bowed down. This is how Uncle Sam has dominated over the rest of the world. Being the greatest supplier of nuclear energy, America has never hesitated in asserting their supremacy and we have yet another example to prove this fact.  When India showed their disinterest in amending Section 17(b) of the Civil Nuclear Liability and Damages Act, 2010, America didn't give a favourable reaction. This statement of the law has been an obstacle in the alliance between NPCIL(Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited) and Westinghouse Electric house company based in the US. The US firm claims that this section is not in conformity with the international norms which boldly state that the loss in case of an accident has to born by the operator. They stand by their opinion that no provision will take place unless the clauses are relaxed.  This friction seems to add to the already persisting and existing disgruntlement between the two trade partners....

This is for that little one who has been getting low scores in its marksheets and unable to prove his abilities to his mentors. Even though his mother, Ms. RBI, has slogged day and night to tame the decline in his scores, he is finding it difficult to show up! These days, Mr. ₹ is undergoing a tough phase of his business cycle. His main papers like "GDP growth" and "Interest rate theory" have never been his forte. He has specifically lost maximum marks in one of his concurrent courses named "Current Account Balance". He hates to study it and would rather go to buy his gold toys (inelastic demand for the much-wanted medallion). Mr. ₹ believes that marks and scores are all damned lies and are not a true reflection of his capabilities. Seeing this, his mother has put so many restrictions but Mr. ₹ continues to invest in gold toys. Thus, she is also extremely tensed about her son's performance and therefore trying all policy mixes with him. Till the month...

A weapon that operates underwater has unfortunately become the target of water's own enemy fire. The mythology is testimony to the rift between fire and water : Who is mightier? A day before our independent nation turned 67 years old, fire declared its victory by burning one of Indian Navy's finest submarines INS Sindhurakshak (Sindhughosh class). Recently, our navy was preparing Sindhurakshak for a war patrol with armed torpedoes and was on its way to become one of  the most powerful weapons to be used against Pakistan or China (if needed; considering the growing friction). The flames that took over! She stood with all her glory after the refitting in Russia in April 2013 and had recently been fitted with warheads. The flames as if engulfed it and it started sinking in no time: spreading blackness and darkness in the skies. So me people even doubt that  since it was inducted close to the Pak shores, it may have been a planned destruction and not a n accident. On the o...

As the sun rays brightened up my face in the morning, I felt proud to be an Indian. India as a nation state has created a niche for herself and is now well noticed on the world map. After 66 years of independence, it has truly been a momentous expedition. We sure have had our share of feats and failures but we still have a long way to go (Miles to go before I sleep, miles to go before I sleep....) Last week I got an opportunity to hear Mr. Suhel Seth @ St. Stephen's College; speak about "India and her future". The talk was entertaining in all it's senses and he left us with a puzzling question. He said that youth of today must all ponder on the big question that "If I was the brand ambassador of brand India, what would I sell India for? "  He went on to tell us that even though Indians have high skill potential, it lies bare desperately longing to be tapped! How our infrastructure bottlenecks fall flat on our faces when we have to organise internatio...

Hello readers! I have witnessed a true date with nature! Beauty at its zenith...as if God came to earth! Bharatpur Bird sanctuary also known as the Keoladeo National Park was the place which left me spellbound. Far away from the hustle bustle on Delhi streets and the mundane day-to-day life, this was an unexpectedly memorable visit. I confess that I had never observed birds so closely as I did this time. I never knew that these little creations of God embodied within them unbound beauty and charm. As it is said, each gift of the almighty has something to teach us, I learnt a lot from our chirpy friends. Of course, the multitude of birds I saw are still fresh in my mind, I realised that each one of them is unique in their own way. They live together in harmony abiding by the implicit rules of community living. For they know that life is not about living for oneself but about living together with the rest. The chirping voices tell me that one should never lose the...