The Sunshine Within You

After Diwali came the inevitable cloud of smog in Delhi. The fact that smog is going to arrive any moment was known to every single person living in Delhi, just the intensity of this smog was a bit surprising. And why not? The toxicity of air was 14-16 times more than the safe limit. The PM 2.5 level skyrocketed making people vulnerable to various respiratory problems. Usually when the smog checks in, a translucent greyish layer of air cover the city. But this winter, this layer was quite thick, almost opaque. As this year's smog came right after Diwali, a number of people directly blamed Diwali's crackers for it. On the other hand, some remain critical of the farmers of Punjab and Haryana who burned their paddy releasing poisonous gases in the air that reached Delhi through the wind. While both burning crackers or crops fairly invite criticism not because they polluted the air but because these actions could have been avoided or minimized. Diwali is celebrated everywhe

Gangubai Nivrutte Bhambure gets up at 5 am to do household chores. She is a 94-year-young sarpanch of Bhamburwadi village and holds the distinction of becoming oldest sarpanch in Pune district. Gangubai believes in hard work. She says it's time to work for the people, her people, otherwise it's of no use of her becoming a  sarpanch . She says she will not disappoint them who trusted and endowed her with the chair of the  sarpanch . The first task would be to help farmers from seven villages who own 1000 hectares of land, but due to lack of water, they can't grow anything on it. According to Gangubai's grandsons, there is a canal less than 2km from these farms but they don't get a drop of water. The government had failed the people. Gangubai is keen to take PM's help in this matter and she is very optimistic that PM will respond to her request. She says that PM Narendra Modi is like her son and he will definitely help her and the farmers. Her other priorit

I don't know whether committing suicide is a courageous or cowardly act. And I think, taking a specific side here would be unfair. During evolution, our thinking power enabled us to survive. But, it has also provided us an option to end a messed up life. Suicide is a very serious psychological and philosophical problem that modern humans are facing today. Legally, it is a crime. Religion, too, never permitted this act. And, as a society, we don't want people to do it. To be, or not to be, that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing, end them. To die, to sleep— But, when life becomes miserable, why would one let one's mind to suffer, when there is an option of suicide to attain peace? Why is everyone against suicide? Probably because, suicide is the violation of human survival interest. We are an adapting species and always believe tha

One day, Peter and team decided to give a final try and search the deepest part of the sea. Sadie noticed that there was a large number of aquatic animals moving in and out of a particular place. On further inquiry, she saw a castle, yes it was the magical castle. She felt immense pleasure to see it. She also saw a whale there. She informed Peter about this. Peter and John came there with swords and harpoon, hidden with them. They sent Sadie back to the ship for her safety. As they move forward, Octo uncle saw them and he at once spilled ink as a mark of danger to alert everyone there. Then, came the orca out of the ink to attack them. They moved back in three different directions. The orca chose John and started chasing him. John realised that he can't swim faster than a Whale. So, he aimed the harpoon towards Orca and shot it one after another. This made the orca even more aggressive. John realised that it is his last breath when the aggressive whale was mere 2 ft distance fro

According to the weather forecast experts, it was an ideal weather for commencing a journey. Therefore, the ship SATAN-3O1 commenced its journey to Guyana. It was containing a large number of gold coins which was to be transported via sea route. During the start of this journey, everything was normal. However, somewhere in the mid sea, the weather became extreme. Suddenly, there were high tides, an unstopping rain and a violent storm. The captain and his co-workers fought the storm bravely but couldn't control the ship, and at last, the ship along with all the gold coins sank as the result of extreme weather. And, all the humans in the SATAN-3O1 became dinner of killer Sharks. The Magical Castle In the sea, the sank SATAN-3O1 has now a major attraction for the sea creatures. It has fallen into Octo uncle's territory. Octo was a wise octopus. He decided to build a castle, with the help of crab and sea ants, around it to protect them against theft. The ugly Octo has now beco

Children are building blocks for a healthy society. They must grow to their full capacities. To carry the responsibility of human species on their shoulders and to take it to a next level, they must be developed strong, vigorous and healthy both physically and psychologically. Children are curious by nature. This curiosity must be nurtured. It is the quality that churns out great scientists, doctors, engineers, teachers, writers, etc. This curiosity brings innovation and creative ideas, essential for a progressive society, make our life easier and this world a better place to live in. All parents want to see their children in a healthy state. They leave no stone unturned to keep them strong, healthy and full of curiosity. Often, they get the results. But, in certain cases, their children fall behind on growth. They do not show the symptoms of growth. They do not attain right weight and height as per the age. And, as a result of retarded growth, they do not show curiosity for le

Forgiveness is a divine power, something that ordinary humans are not entitled to have. And, those who have this quality are more than 'a human'. One, who is free from materialistic desire and, most importantly, the ego, is blessed with such divine power. Whether it is of physical or mental strength, weak cannot forgive others. Forgiveness is always an attribute of strong people. It is a trait of a mature person having deep inner control over his mind. This strength cannot be bought, it has to be earned. But, how would you earn that? I think spirituality may be the answer. There are multiple benefits of forgiveness. It directly influences our thinking process. It sets you free from the negativity building around and boosts positive personality. It saves energy which can be redirected to do productive things. It is also the key to longevity and good health. But, how will you forgive someone who is not even sorry for their action? How will you respond to evil with kindn

This generation wants to explore and enjoy every moment of life. It is a generation of those who believe in hard work but, at the same time, cannot let it overshadow their enjoyment of life. That's why they are always on the go. This is the ready-to-go generation. And, no wonder, I am also a part of this generation, the generation that is full of fun and life. Despite having a very busy and hectic life, we are those who cannot afford to miss any fun out there. The definition of fun is, obviously, different for everyone. But, in general, as a part of human civilization, we love to hang out and spend quality time with our friends and families. Whether it is by enjoying food in a restaurant or going out for a long drive. Also, we seek freedom from all those things that restrict us to enjoy ourselves. Whether it is social norms or workload, nothing can stop us from doing what we want to do (except that it must be legal). We are the ones who do not let monotony of daily routine to

Whether you call it Nitish Kumar's masterstroke for gaining publicity and support of people or a responsible chief minister batting for people's interests, on the face of it, it is great that Bihar is free from alcohol abuse. The Bihar excise (amendment) act, 2016 – a very old 1915 act has been converted into a very stringent law – is haunting the alcohol gang of Bihar. This law banned manufacturing, selling or consumption of liquors (strong or mild) and even prescribes the death penalty for the manufacturer, suppliers and sellers of hooch in case of death as a result of consumption of spurious liquors. Although Biharis can drink outside state boundary, they'll be punished if they create nuisance after returning home. The government had actually proposed to ban only 'desi' liquors. The sale of non-country or ‘Indian Made Foreign Liquor’ (IMFL) was allowed, although, with some caveats. However, within five days, the government extended the ban to IMFL as w

Disclaimer : No alcohol has been used during the writing of this post. I don't know why I didn't cover this story earlier. Probably because on this topic, I didn't want to write in haste and as sayings go “better late than never”, I came up with this post. And while writing this article, sometimes I felt an alcoholic haze, that is why you should read this carefully! Let us begin with the definition of 'Alcoholism'. Casually, the process of consuming alcoholic drinks is called alcoholism. But, to be precise, alcoholism is a medical condition in which there is an abnormal addiction to alcohol, and taking it in small quantity very occasionally is not. Simply put, if you can live without alcohol, you are not an alcoholic. “Alcoholism is the effect of excessive intake of alcohol on the functions of the body and personality.” ~ W.C. Reckless “Alcoholism is a condition in which the individual has lost control over his alcohol intake in that he is constantl

When you were a child and your parents told you stories about god, you listened to that with great curiosity and excitement, but as you grow older and started seeing everything with the rational eye of science, you realise that it was a lie, and so every religious event and ritual appears to you as an act of stupidity. Still, you keep worshipping the men or women whom you were told to worship as Gods. Why? Have you considered what is the significance of religion? Religion teaches us that God has created this universe and he is running it in his own way. The Sun, The Moon, Stars, Planets, Living creatures  — bacteria, viruses, plants, animals, humans are all the creation of God. We are just doing things ordained by him. It may appear that we are influencing things, but the reality is we, ourselves, are influenced by some heavenly forces. Indians, especially Hindus, are obsessed with rituals and other religious activities like holding fast and going to temple. Some of our ritua

J Jayalalithaa, the actress turned Chief minister of Tamil Nadu was given the nickname " Amma " by her followers comparing to or assuming her Amma (Mother). But, she developed this nickname to be the biggest brand in Tamil Nadu, the “Amma brand”. Despite having no market value of this brand, it has a very significant value for the people of Tamil Nadu, especially the poor and the have-nots. For them, she is the goddess who is not only filling their hungry stomach but also providing them almost all basic items necessary for living a decent life (including some luxurious items too). After becoming CM, the major work Jayalalithaa's government has done is providing subsidy and freebies to the people. For instance, subsidized cheap food at canteen, packaged water, pharmacy bill, cement, free rice, free mixer grinder, spectacles, mobiles, laptops, bicycles, etc. all under brand "Amma" and at the price no other shopkeepers, manufacturers or the e-commerce compan

Through the ongoing controversy what we need to understand is that ours is a young nation still in the making which has all the ingredients to become truly a great nation, but it needs time. Give this nation that time, that gestation period and it will show the world the true meaning of greatness, one which is home to a complete spectrum of diverse culture but still thrives together with immeasurable amount of tolerance which has never been experienced anywhere else (this holds for the common citizens of India but unfortunately not for the practitioners of divisive vote-bank politics which they don’t find anti-national). Every powerful nation that exists today has gone through some sort of civil war which led to enormous violence and bloodshed. We too have our share of challenges; be it the Kashmir issue, Nagaland or Naxalism; but we have the opportunity to show the world that we can do it in a better way without any bloodshed. It is that unity in diversity that is the soul of

Earlier this week, the Backward Classes Commission proposed to implement up to 27 percent reservation in the private sector. Some caste obsessed politicians rushed to support this proposal. In the name of social justice, these netas are, in fact, encouraging social injustice. It has been old gimmickry of them to divide the society along the caste lines in order to play vote banks politics. And, those who are born Dalit or within SCs/STs community are supporting or eager to support this proposal to get a job without much difficulty and that would be a privilege for them. Undoubtedly, India's social structure has been highly stratified. And there might be a need for reservation for people belonging to backward castes during the making of the Indian constitution. But in today's India, there are laws which safeguard their interests. During the formulation of the reservation policy, there were not many private companies. So, the policymakers had given reservation to backward c

The Bangalore racist attack on a 21-year old black Tanzanian woman by a mob once again raised questions about the existence of racism in India. She was attacked because some other black person in another car had fatally run down a woman. Yet, Karnataka CM don't find any sort of racist angle into the incident. It happened in the modern city of Bangalore which is also known as the silicon valley of India. Such incidents can affect India's liberal image severely because racism has been a global phenomenon and history is full of racist discrimination against black people in the countries what we call "superpowers" today. India is fighting racism within its own boundaries. All of us are aware of the existence of North Eastern racism in India and that people from North East are often referred to as ' chinki ', an offensive word for them. Sometimes it is also said in a casual way without having the intention to offend anyone but the fact of the matter is that t

In the first 15 days of January, Delhites have gone through, a much-hyped, odd even formula . They were overwhelmed by the desire to secure the future of next generation as they were told about. That may be the reason why they have obeyed the rule without moving toward Jantar Mantar in protest. The idea was not innovative but taken from Beijing which also depleted its air quality to the extremes. But it seems that the scheme was imported only for his political campaign of a man called Kejriwal. Perhaps it is the only major work done by Kejriwal's government apart from blaming the centre and his neighbour for obstructing in the Delhi government's endeavour. And that is why they are so touchy about this scheme. With the completion of the odd even trial , Delhi government, without wasting time, claimed that it has successfully reduced the air pollution level in Delhi. But, there is no credible data to back this claim. The Hindu The idea to exempt women drivers and two-

It was a moment of joy for the North Koreans when they heard the news that North Korea has successfully tested H-bomb on January 6th and thus “guaranteed the eternal future of the nation”. But it was also a shocking and despairing moment for others. Followed by the claim, came the condemnation from most other countries of the world including US, Japan, South Korea, and even China (supposed friend of N. Korea). But it was not unexpected that the North Koreans will do a further nuke test after the three previous ones in 2006, 2009 and 2013. But nobody on this earth, or even in space, thought that they would be able to do an H-bomb test. It was a second nuclear test only in four years during the rule of Kim Jong Un, the young head of the mafia family that controls North Korea is a sobering reminder of the progress that three generations of Kims have made in expanding their nuclear capability—despite outside efforts to curb it. Few think that North Korea has yet managed to mi

E very morning brings sunshine along with unbounded positive energy that inspires us to live life to the fullest. That is why when we wake up from the bed, we find ourselves most relax during the morning. We don't find the pleasant sound of birds chirping, relaxing weather and the aesthetic sunrise any moment of the day other than morning. If there is a lot of stress in our life, there is also enough beauty of life to inspire us. One should be ready to face both faces of life and should not complain about stressful life. A new day also brings new promises or the opportunity to keep yesterday's promise. For example, you promise yourself that "Today I shall submit the assignment" or you promised your kids yesterday that "you will take a leave and go for a vacation". Now, this can be possible only if you are in a good mood. And if your kids demand you to take them out for vacation but you are reserved that day, you cannot just shout at them, you must learn t

What is dowry? Casually, some of us find this as a traditional custom of bribing the groom and their family by bride's parents to get rid of their daughter. Or some of us may consider this as buying of groom by bride's parents through a bidding process. We as a part of Indian society are infamous for dowry and its related offences. When a daughter is born, most of the Indian families don't find that joy a son could have given them. Some of them get depressed after finding out the gender of newborn baby. Having a daughter is a burden to them, mostly, because of the social phenomena like dowry. We make noise and protest against corruption. But we never go through its roots and make substantive changes to uproot it. What is the reason for the corrupt officials to take such risks? The dowry is not the "only" but a good and considerable reason to hoard money through corrupt practices. No media has more reach to our society than Bollywood movies. In the plethora of