a common man ಸಂಜಯ

Author: msanjay

  • marriage search

    Not sure if I’ll ever publicise my marriage search experiences and learnings, not at the moment at least. My life is an open book, but with some pages stuck in between 😉 But here are some interesting observations for now.

    Its really strange how so many things can occupy and totally enslave a man’s mind. For example a popular song that keeps repeating itself again and again, or an addictive video game that one feels like playing even in his sleep. Or a girl . I usually prefer to keep my mind free and not occupied by anything other than whatever I’m doing at the moment, not a question of convincing myself, but allowing it to naturally happen instead of running behind thoughts endlessly. Except of course when I’m writing/blogging where penning (ok typing) down the endless train of thoughts becomes the whole point 😉

  • the game of destiny

    This morning I missed the morning shuttle – the next one is only at 11:15. I came back home, and sat in the hall.

    My mind wandered around and I started thinking of yesterday’s meeting.

    Ok let me assume that they were really not interested. There are some regrets that I could’ve presented myself better – maybe really try to convince Shylaja that marriage wasnt such a bad idea. Maybe I was just too casual about the whole thing (not that this is the first time for that).

    Then I have two courses of action.

    Either accept that this is a lesson from life, and let it go, and carry on. Remember that everything happens with a reason, for the good. Simply let it go, Shylaja was probably better off without me, and carry on.

    Or try to do something about the situation – write a letter to her parents in Mysore expressing my interest and asking if they need any clarifications.

    And when I was thinking of this, the phone rang. I looked at the caller ID, it was from Mysore – my mother answered it.

    It turned out that the family and the girl actually liked me and they had agreed.

    I felt surprised, happy, and humbled all at the same time. I felt grateful for the Universe, because I had really believed that I would be priviledged to share my life with a girl like her.

    This time my mother was convinced, and even her sister had approved of it. Later on, my uncle came and then after hearing about it, almost inevitably commented that the girl’s father had afterall been some clerk long ago. He said he knew some managing director of some institute who was also looking for someone for his daughter, and said “imagine how prestigious it would be if he could go around saying that his maava is an MD”. Ugh. But I doubt if my mother would get influenced too much, she’s more convinced about my doDamma’s opinion than my uncle’s.

    There is no doubt in my mind at all about my endless quest to discover myself. That is the highest priority more than anything else. I want to make it very clear to her before really confirming anything. Of course new questions are there – does the girl really know what she’s getting into. Would she really be able to digest the idea of a meditative lifestyle. I’m trusting that time will provide an answer.

    I’ve had mukajjiya kanasu in my bookshelf for over a year – planned to read it but never got down to it. I havent read Kannada since schooldays except once in a way. Will take it out now! 🙂

    [I had planned to start off around a year ago with a thin book and even that though interesting I’d read only around 60%].

  • Shylaja

    There is no response from her side.

    And one thing suddenly hit me.

    During the time I spent with her, the girl was very passive. I guessed and asked her “I think you’re not interested in marriage itself now” and she laughed and said “yes thats right, I’m doing this just because of my parents”

    Then I did not take this properly and said in order to empathize with her “yeah even me I wasnt so interested and am mainly agreeing because of my mother” which I later realise isnt really true – I have to say I’m marrying because of my own inclination to live among people instead of being a loner. (If I was so obedient to my mother, I wouldve married 3 years ago which is when she started bugging me about it)

    But now I realise the girl was never interested in marriage itself. She was just going through the whole thing waiting for everything to get over. For example most of the time, she was just passive. When I said my hobby is to write articles, she never even bothered to ask what kind of articles, what do you write about or something like that.

    I must also say its a kind of blow to one’s ego to keep approaching proposals and getting rejected. I feel a slight frustration, but very fortunately I have the advantage of knowing its unimportance and simply letting it go. But I can really imagine and empathize with the people who keep trying this thing out endlessly.

    [ usual human tendency is to consider only the -ive part of the paragraph ignoring the rest ! ]

  • book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

    The Alchemist is a beautiful small book that makes easy reading, has simple language and one can certainly relate to it.

    One might be familiar with the word in the title which refers to Alchemy, a process of transformation of a common ordinary substance, which over time refines into a substance of great value.

    Prerequisite 😉 for reading this post … first read his book Alchemist

    Also, I had to look up this word:

    disinter: To dig up or remove from a grave or tomb; exhume.

    Rakesh sent this letter by Paulo Coelho… on why it is so hard to live our dreams, why we don’t have the courage to confront them.

    (The link no longer works so putting in the contents here, which happens to be in the introduction in a later edition)

    “What is a perosnal calling? It is God’s blessing, it is the path that God chose for you here on Earth. Whenever we do something to fill us with enthusiasm, we are following our legend. However, we don’t all have the courage to confront our own dream.

    Why?

    There are four obstacles. First: we are told from childhood onward that everything we want to do is impossible. We grow up with this idea, and as the years accumulate, so too do the layers of prejudice, fear, and guilt. There comes a time when our personal calling is so deepy buried in our soul as to be invisible. But it’s still there.

    If we have the courage to disinter dream, we are then faced by the second obstacle: love. We know what we want to do, but are afraid of hurting those around us by abandoning everything in order to pursue our dream. We do not realize that love is just a further impetus, not something that will prevent us going forward. We do not realize that those who genuinely wish us well want us to be happy and are prepared to accompany us on that journey.

    Once we have accepted that love is a stimulus, we come up against the third obstacle: fear of the defeats we will meet on our path. We who fight for our dream suffer far more when it doesn’t work out, because we cannot fall back on the old excuse: “Oh, well, I didn’t really want it anyway.” We do want it and know that we have staked everything on it and that the path of the personal calling is no easier than any other path, except that our whole heart is in this journey. Then, we warriors of light must be prepared to have patience in difficult times and to know that the Universe is conspiring in our favor, even though we may not understand how.

    I asked myself: are defeats necessary?

    Well, necessary or not, they happen. When we first begin fighting for our dream, we have no experience and make many mistakes. The secret of life, though, is to fall seven times and to get up eight times.

    So, why is it important to live our personal calling if we are only going to suffer more than other people?

    Because, once we have overcome the defeats—and we always do—we are filled by a greater sense of euphoria and confidence. In the silence of our hearts, we know that we are proving ourselves worthy of the miracle of life. Each day, each hour, is part of the good fight. We start to live with enthusiasm and pleasure. Intense, unexpected suffering passes more quickly than suffering that is apparently bearable; the latter goes on for years and, without our noticing, eats away at our soul, until, one day, we are no longer able to free ourselves from the bitterness and its stays with us for the rest of our lives.

    Having disinterred our dream, having used the power of love to nurture it and spent many years living with the scars, we suddenly notice that what we always wanted is there, waiting for us, perhaps the very next day. Then comes the fourth obstacle: the fear of realizing the dream for which we fought all our lives.

    Oscar Wilde said: “Each man kills the thing he loves.” And it’s true. The mere possiblity of getting what we want fills the soul of the ordinary person with guilt. We look around at all those who have failed to get what they want and feel that we do not deserve to get what we want either. We forget about all the obstacles we overcame, all the suffering we endured, all the tings we had to give up in order to get this far. I have known a lot of people who, when their personal calling was within their grasp, went on to commit a series of stupid mistakes and never reached their goal—when it was only a step away.

    This is the most dangerous of the obstacles because it has a kind of saintly aura about it: renouncing joy and conquest. But if you believe yourself worthy of the thing you fought so hard to get, then you become an instrument of God, you help the Soul of the World, and you understand why you are here.”

    Paulo Coelho
    Rio de Janeiro
    November 2002
    Translated by Margaret Jull Costa

  • Bhoomi jaathre!

    (Source: Mail from ESG)

    Dear Friends,

    Bhoomi Jathre is here once again!

    Two weeks after Ugadi on Saturday April 23rd. The theme for this jathre is THE TREE GOD – MARA DEVARU.

    Thus we bring you a non-sponsored, dusk to dawn, music festival in celebration of trees. Where the artists, and in fact, the whole event is supported by the gate collection. We are also particularly thrilled to say that the entrance remains Rs 200 for the third year running. No meanfeat considering the price of a cappuccino, a pint or the last row at Sting.

    More than ever the jathre has become a movement of artists rather than just a platform for performance. Great new talent, respected senior artists, a protest singer from the rain forests of Ecuador. They are all coming together to play beneath a banyan tree. On April 23rd many of us will gather at Fireflies, a beautiful eco-ashram on Kanakpura Road, to star-gaze and listen to them.

    Renowned violinists Mysore Nagaraj & Dr.Mysore Manjunath have joined the jathre with much joyousness. As have a Yakshagana troupe from Udipi and Shiri Dance Company from Bangalore. From Myndsnare, a popular heavy metal band to G. Ravi Kiran, a formidable Carnatic vocalist.these are just a sample of the range.

    The line-up for this year is as follows:

    Appagere Thimmaraju – Jaanapada about trees

    David Chungandro Teran (Ecuador) – Protest songs from Latin America

    Yakshagana (Udipi)

    Prakash Sontakke – Hindustani slide guitar

    Shiri Dance Company – performing SAAKSHI, a Tale of a Tree

    Mysore Nagaraj & Dr. Mysore Manjunath – Violin Duet

    G. Ravi Kiran – Carnatic Vocals

    Konarak Reddy – Guitars

    Roberto Narain – Drums

    Myndsnare – Metal Band

    Yell-O – Rock Band

    The concert runs between sunset and sunrise, but you are welcome to come in any time after 5.30pm. We will be doing sound checks, but the craft stalls will be open. And as in earlier years, there will be stalls

    with home-made food cooked by a variety of people from around Bangalore and Kaggalipura Village.

    Chilli bajjis, momos, apple shakes, akki roti

    Coffee cake, chocolate fudge, date bars

    Organic salads, sandwiches and biriyani

    Baskets, t-shirts, mats, chappals

    Music.Food.Dance.Music.Film.Music.Craft.Music

    We will be repeating the Free Books Stall and the Flea Market from last year. Please do bring books for the Free Books Stall and practically anything that is legal, eco-friendly and convivial for the Flea Market.
    The idea is to trade, barter and re-cycle, not to make a killing. From past experience, let it be said that CDs, cheap T-shirts and guava cheese work better at the Flea Market than furniture and other pricey stuff.
    Eg It’s a great place for bands and musicians to sell their CDs.

    To donate books to the Free Books Stall contact Aparna at 9886002171

    To participate in the Flea Market contact Gracey at 944842572

    For info and directions to Fireflies contact Anugraha John at 9448192010

    For info about Bhoomi Jathre contact Kirtana at (080) 25585395

    Bhoomi Jathre tickets, priced at Rs 200 only for a whole night of music will soon be available at K.C.Das, some Coffee Day outlets and Crossword on Residency Road. Home grown Bhoomi Jathre posters will appear in public spaces, but like every year, we depend on the Bangalore grapevine

    and other guerilla techniques to get the word out. This is a people-supported, community event. So please,

    talk about it
    talk about it
    talk about it
    talk about it.
    And forward this to anyone who loves music.

    Come, join us.

    With much warmth,

    Kirtana, Konarak, Deepu, Anugraha John and all at Fireflies

    _____________________________________________
    ANUGRAHA JOHN
    |P.O Box 3210|R.T Nagar|
    |Bangalore – 560 032|INDIA|
    |Mobile:91-94481 92010|
    |Email: ajohn316@rediffmail.com
    |
    ———————————————
    Pipal Tree/Fireflies
    |Tel:91-80-2843 2725/3091 1027|
    |Telefax:91-80-2843 2130|
    |Email: pipaltree@vsnl.com
    |
    ———————————————

    Environment Support Group (R)
    S-3, Rajashree Apartments
    18/57, 1st Main, SRK Gardens
    Bannerghatta Road, Jayanagar
    Bangalore 560041
    INDIA
    Tel: 91-80-26341977/26531339/26534364
    Fax: 91-80-26341977
    Emaill: esg@bgl.vsnl.net.in
    Web: www.esgindia.org

    ESG is a not for profit public interest research, training and advocacy initiative responding to social and environmental justice issues.
    Donations to ESG are exempt from Income Tax per Sec. 80 (G) of the Income Tax Act of India.

    >From esg@esgindia.org Fri Apr 15 16:40:37 IST 2005
    From: “ESG India”
    Date: Fri, 15 Apr 2005 16:33:48 +0530
    Importance: Normal

    Dear All,
    We would invite thematic posters for this year’s Bhoomi Jathre festival at Fireflies. The subject for the posters should be concerned with “Mara Devaru” (tree god), the theme for the Bhoomi Jathre. We would like to raise awareness about the rapidly declining population of trees and the illegal felling of trees in Bangalore.

    Thanking you,

    Bhargavi S Rao,
    Environment Support Group.

  • studying in Germany

    a long ago conversation with my school friend (currently doing a PhD) on various links and information on German universities. Too bad that I never got myself down to following up on it but atleast the info is here, and perhaps its not too late…

    >Is the medium of instruction for you in German or English? Would you have
    >managed with only English (with just a minimum knowledge of German?) Are the
    >text books in English or German?

    Well, the course was 60% German and 40% English (though not exact & moreso keeps changing as & when a new Prof. takes over!). For ex. the script was in German and the class was held in English or both in English or both in German! In the first sem i took just the english exams and by then had enuf German knowledge (technical german is almost the same as english) to carry on with German subjects. Well, the best part is that u get the question papers in german and english and u can ans it in either Ger. or eng.!

    As far as text books are concerned, some subjects do NOT require. The script suffices! And the uni lib has a hoard of books and u do get eng. as well as ger. books. The recommedations from the prof. are usually a mix of German and english books. I found some German books (esp. in the field of communications better than their english counterparts!). But no worries….

    u can hv a look at our univeristy’s library

    www.ub.uni-duisburg.de

    click on Katalog ( a new html pops up!) and look for the book…..

    >Also, pls have a look at www.i-u.de .It looked interesting to me, what do you think? >Is it a good place?

    Well, i myself am surprised to see their website! so many associations blah blah blah…and then later realised it’s a private school and charge a whopping 10,000Euro per year + Insurance + acco + living costs + course matl + initial cost .. roughly 20,000Euro per year!!!! Not me…. Bruchsal is a small place, roughly an hour’s journey by normal train from Mannheim. Heard not much as it happens to be a private one rather paid one!!!! Nevertheless, if u are more interested then i can garner some info. abt it!

    >This is wrt all universities or only specific ones? If all, then what exactly did the >DAAD scholarship cover? (Do not bother to elaborate too much here, since I dont >qualify for one, I am already aged 27!)

    Well, most Universities are government based and all the foriegn studies are DAAD funded! And Sanjay, don’t be dissapointed abt your age….. the age requirement was specific to my schol type.. need not be for other schemes!

    Well, DAAD gave me a monthly stipend of 1330DM or roughly 660Euro. So, 350DM (i was put up in Duisburg (West Germany), cheaper than South Germany, else u pay 440DM) for house + 100 DM for Insurance + rest for you! 😉 But u will realise that u can hardly save especially if u call India frequently or have too many friends to play pool or visit the pub! But the amount is more than enuf in West Germany, just enuf in South Germany!

    Well, more than the money support, it’s the DAAD schol. You won’t believe it…. you are the VIP for the University. Your doc. are kept in the VIP section and you have a personal guide apart from the DAAD rep. +++ . I realised the VIP part quite too late…. 🙁 Atleast, zindagi main ek baar tho….. anyways….

    there are lot more links…. lot more schemes … contact DAAD in newdelhi daadnd@bol.net.in

    for ranking, don’t believe it fully! just get an idea….

    http://www.stern.de/campus-karriere/uniwelt/ranking/

    http://www.focus.de/D/DB/DBU/DBU27/DBU27F/dbu27f.htm

    All Courses at German Universities

    http://www.hof.uni-halle.de/tabellen_ba_studiengaenge_02.pdf

    Association of Universities and other Higher Education Institutions in Germany
    http://www.higher-education-compass.hrk.de

    Exchange of Students for Techincal Experience (IAESTE)
    http://www.iaeste.org

    You might also want to contact Alexander Humboldt foundation for schol-

    www.avh.de/en

    Good Luck Sanjay!

    And remeber UNI is better than FachHochschule (FH)

    >daad.de website was down yesterday… will try it again later.

    Quite surprising!!!!

    >have u completed ur MS? It is typically for 2 years compared to 1-1.5 years in >other places, right?

    I am done with my Master’s and you are absolutely right! It’s 3 semesters for the exams(normally) and one semester for Thesis. Rules here require that you need to do Thesis for 6 months. Also the 3 semesters is dependent on you! How? well, i had 15 subjects to do and i took 5 per semester! So, if you can manage it in one sem or two…… wallah! Additionally, people have to do something called “Industry Praktikum” for 13 weeks and is exempted for those who already have worked in an industry for a min period of 13 weeks in the field of Comp. Sci. For ex. if you have worked in a non-Informatik co. then add 3 months to your study!!!

    >What have u specialized in? Do you think that by the time youre done, it still carries value in the ever-changing market?

    Well,we had 3 areas of specialisation Data Processing, Communications and Electronics. And i did DP as it was favorable (had to do 15 subjetcs when compared to 18 in Communications) and moreso had subjects of my interest! (like C++, Databases and datamodels, Knowledge Engg. , Internet Tech etc.)

    >Do u think its too late for me to start studying now?

    well, is it ever late for studying??? Jokes apart, i would advise you to look at the pro’s and cons! It might take a little time to get back to study mould after a gap! I had turbulent times in the first sem… did BE in EE, worked for KEC as Design Engg and was deep into Induction Motors and then had to switch to study mould for a different syllabus!! Also, if you have plans to marry (which i see on a rule of thumb basis!), then you should hv enuf money to support yourself and your wife (approx. 1000Euro per month for both).

    >Does ur MS help in getting you a job, or do you think that if you had worked for the >same time, you would have done better?

    Well, that was the very hope. But thanks to Sept 11 and Iraq, Germany is currently in deep shit! The situation was good… but now is facing a crisis! But, i would say a Master’s would always help anyone… to get to the upper levels of Management. It’s a direct promotion. The second part of your question is partly answered! The rest is dependent on how the company is “seeing” you and how potential a cadidate you are. Well, bottom line BE + Master’s immediately – best recipe, BE + Job(2-3years) + Master’s – Potential candi for MNC’s, prob for individual, BE + Job (5+years) + Master’s – doing BE once again, “why so late” question from MNC?

    >Did u pay for the fees and are u working part time… (or i think I vaguely remember >u mentioned u got some scholarship?)

    NO. There are no fees here. But you are supposed to pay a paltry 100 Euro (on a rule of thumb) per semester for Student ID which ensures travelling free (roughly 50kms radius) and for cheap food at college canteen! And yes, i did get DAAD scholarship. The requirements were that you were supposed to be from the 10 colleges that they had listed (RV was one), disti candidate, TOEFL of 550 and above, age not greater than 25 or 26!

    >Thanks!

    thanks for the quick response….. well, i am back in Germany and would be more than pleased to answer any of your questions about doing Master’s in Germany. Before we could have any conversation on that, request you to have a look at www.daad.de . Hopefully it answers most of your questions and do NOT hesitate to ask any question no matter how trivial it is! Also, in my opinion winter semester would be better and the last dates (on a thumb rule) is 15th June. Most of them ask for TOEFL and a basic knowledge of German… so ensure that u r within deadlines for any enrollment or exams!

    Good Luck!

    nice to read you! and i had answered the mail in a common perspective as to what holds for one in the future and not from the perspective of just gaining knowledge. Nevertheless, peace!

    Well, i have not much to say abt the onset of winter sem and so also the German language requirement! And same with me vis-a-vis language…… i am still a novice! 😉

  • Every day ordinary sounds from everywhere

    Quiet American

    You might want to browse through this site – I found it quite fascinating.
    Its basically the collections of a guy (& his wife) who collects sounds.

    Every day ordinary sounds from everywhere.

    I couldnt agree more with him when he says:
    “The world makes its own music, but we rarely listen with naive ears.”

    This was my favorite… (It contains is a 53 MB MP3 file that I downloaded today at home)

    One of the more memorable parts of my honeymoon was trekking the Annapurna Circuit in central Nepal with my wife Bronwyn.

    For three weeks, we walked: up one valley, over a 17,500′ pass, and down another, through dozens of towns and climate zones. The pictures below should give you some sense of the environment we hiked through and what it contains (here are more). It’s the most popular trek in Nepal with good reason.

  • Gandhi's message in a mobile phone ad

    Watch this beautiful award-winning ad, then (just so that you view it unbiased) scroll down for my comments…

    It says,

    Imagine the world like this…
    If he could have communicated like this

    Seems rather paradoxical that the music makes the words barely audible – perhaps thats what would’ve *really* happened “if he could’ve communicated” in our time heh heh 🙂 …but …thanks to google, here’s the text…

    If you want to give a message, it must be a message of ‘Love’, it must be a message of ‘Truth’. I want to capture your hearts. Let your hearts clap in unison with what I’m saying, and I think, I shall have finished my work.
    Then, the question “Did I believe in one world?”. How can I possibly do otherwise. Of course, I believe in one world.

    Edited from a page from:
    Mahatma Gandhi – Research and Media Service

  • truly enjoyable TT and driving

    There are countless applications of meditation, and I note some of them here.

    As an avid computer user, I used to be quite severely afflicted by this common problem called repetitive stress injury (RSI). It causes severe sharp pain in the wrists due to one out of various very vague reasons – tendons wearing out, constricted blood vessels, etc – different doctors give different reasons. I had also recorded my RSI story where I’d explored a lot of short term solutions.

    In the first place, I’m able to maintain a better posture more consistently. I am able to judge when its necessary to give my wrists rest when they need it, instead of being absentminded and going on typing/using mouse till it gets very much worse. With a relatively increased (compared to myself a few years ago) of awareness, I have been able to overcome this problem since I am able to not react and make it worse – just observe the nature of its impermanence. For quite a while its become totally negligible.

    —————–

    I find that even while playing table tennis there are really interesting observations. TT can become an extremely fast game after some practice.

    Its interesting to see most players of TT playing with the idea of having fun and recreation, but actually get tensed and frustrated every time they miss a shot or hit a bad shot. What is supposed to be entertainment, becomes yet another form of misery! [Not that I expect anybody to easily accept such a strange opinion, this is only a private opinion that I share here.]

    When I play, I can experience this fluctuation myself – whenever I hit a smash or return a difficult shot, I feel the exhilaration of it – and whenever I miss, I feel the frustration of it.

    Another thing is, I find that after every time I dispatch a shot, I am hoping that the opponent will miss it!

    This I see as a major yet very very subtle pitfall of a competitive game, that the players, even if they are the very best of friends otherwise, are constantly having bad intentions about each other. [And imagine this extrapolated to international matches… entire nations!! …but let me leave it at that ;-)]

    Anyway I find that after a while, I am able to establish a reasonable degree of equanimity. The strange thing is that once this happens, I find the quality of my game has increased drastically.

    This might seem a very strange sentence:

    I find that usually the reason I miss any shot, is, because I’m trying to hit it.

    The more I’m able to “step out of my own way” the better my game improves. I find the learning curve increasing almost exponentially (though not consistently).

    I also find that I feel more like helping my opponent improve as well, and bring up the level of his game by pinpointing his mistakes, getting him to practice specific kinds of shots for a particular amount of time, in a more structured way. And when he hits an excellent shot that I miss, I no longer feel disappointment, instead I praise him and motivate him.

    And I find that he too starts cultivating a similar cheerful attitude – not that he was not like that earlier, but it merely reminds him and me as well, that that was the whole point behind playing in the first place! 😀

    —————–

    In car driving, I find the urge to speed up whenever the roads are empty, the mild annoyance at traffic jams or when somebody is blocking the road or being inconsiderate. I find the same principle applies there too, once equanimity is restored, I am able to drive a lot more holistically… taking into consideration the fuel consumption (minimising clutch usage), well-being of the car (avoiding sudden braking or acceleration), compassion to all on the street (no cutting off people, allowing people who want to go to go, minimal honking, not even a trace of road rage). People might argue that such concepts would make me take forever to reach the destination, but nobody who has actually sat with me in the car has complained so far 🙂

  • radical IT approach to political situation

    Randomly happened to chance across what seems to be a radically alternative approach to the political situation. Here is an excerpt from a blog:

    ————-
    The root of all evil in post-independence India has been, quite unequivocally, its politicians – ranging from downright illiterate to openly criminal (when not octagenarian and senile). Now someone’s come up with an interesting way to sift the wheat from the chaff. He’s another IIT alumnus who dropped his ‘lucrative’ Silicon Valley career – Pallav Pandey.

    …

    The politicians who are the primary policy makers, cannot become honest in a day or even a year. Keeping this in mind I think that these guys are working with a very practical approach (www.alchemists-india.com), they are helping the politicians improve their performance and not trying to make them “honest”. Once this idea gains acceptablility there will be a lot of change happening and that too when apparently the politicians are working to consolidate their careers… development of the country will be a very useful by-product!!

    In fact, Pallav wrote to me that: “Typically a problem with NGOs giving feedback and creative inputs is that of taking the horse to water but not being able to make it drink.We have approached the problem differently, we charge the horse money for taking him to water and then he better drink. Its a matter of creating a model where the interests of the elected representatives are aligned with benefitting the society.”

    http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/001322.html

    ————-

    Check out the Problem and Solution given in the website…
    http://www.alchemists-india.com

    (I thought it was simply brilliant!)