Parallel lines

I have decided (yet again!!) to write/copy some stuff for this hitherto neglected blog. And it has dawned upon me that I cant write long pieces. So, I will, for the greater good, keep these entries short. Here I go.

Having laid my hands on some books that time and again mention the various facets of various governance options and being habituated to getting stuck in traffic jams every single day, I have drawn some parallels between Traffic and State.

Traffic is symbolic of governance at the ground level ( literally ). And how the traffic moves is synonymous to how a state reacts under certain form of governance. Now there are many XYZ-archies, but the 2 major governance models that instantly come to mind are Capitalism and Socialism (less so).

Traffic is pretty much the same. Either it is policed or random. When the traffic is policed (this is definitely true about Mumbai), altogether avoidable long queues of vehicles are formed. With the policewallah wielding his almost absent grey cells, the result is chaos and inefficiency. And when the masked inspector ( who eerily reminds of pre-1991 Indian government with all its license-inspector(wow!!)-babu raj) is absent, and my friends will vouch for this, there are no jams. You cruise to your destination (if you are not in an auto or a BEST (really??) bus, that is). There are some minor hiccups but on the whole things are pretty smooth. Much like capitalism.

What we need is the traffic police not stopping lorries to fill their pockets rather the vehicles which violate the rules. We don't need the police to tell us where to go when, we just need them to stop people who are not on the right track. Traffic, like capitalism, if left to itself finds the optimal state. People after all are not as stupid as the policewallah think they are. I do not find the words to put it, but I have many a times observed that people manage to drive their vehicles and not create jams when the hawaldars are not present.

I know I was supposed to be drawing parallels but I am sure I at least managed a skew line!!

Cheers and enjoy!! (till I get another topic to write on)

A life cut short

By the time you read this blog, you probably would know all about the untimely demise of Rohit Kumar, 3rd year student of IIT Kharagpur, who lost his life due to no fault of his. Even if you don't, I can't and won't recount the excruciating circumstances in which his life ended.

A tumult of rage followed soon after the body of the demised was brought. The Director's house was ransacked and he resigned under force from the students, even though his deputy claims he took moral responsibility. Mr. Director, I am a little confused. Coercion and moral responsibility don't really look like the same side of the coin to me.

And then we had that which we always have in IIT Kharagpur when the students are facing problems and the authorities need to make some false promises. The OPEN HOUSE. It was heartwarming to see so many students come out of their rooms, united, alas, by the untimely death of a fellow student. TOAT was filled to its capacity of 4000. The show started. With the officials acting high and mighty and the chaos that usually ensues in an Open House, things started to get a little out of control. There were regular and loud cries for the resignations of the DOSA and the Deputy Director. And of course the authorota agreed to it all. After resigning from their respective posts ( The DD only resigned from the Chairman, B.C. roy Hospital though), they just took off declaring that the session was over and students should disburse. So much for an open house. It was pandemonium after that. People were floating ideas for boycott of classes, for DOSA to come and apologize and for many other things of the same nature.

The sad part was that people just forgot the reason why they had gathered after all. Damn it, will some resignations ensure that another Rohit's life is not taken away? Leaving aside the monotonous oration of the minutes of a meeting read by the Registrar and the few suggestions at the start of the session by the students, nowhere do I remember the issue of incompetency and the lack of facilities at the B.C. Roy Hospital being raised. I totally agree with the resignations by DIRO (this nut job squashed the idea of a multi-specialty hospital whose foundation stone was already laid saying that we did not need it. Of course, sir. All we require are new floors on already dilapidated buildings and 15000 students to be crammed inside them.) and the DOSA (don't even get me started on him. As a fellow student rightly pointed out, all he has done is slap fines on students in the DCs and yeah, run away from his responsibilities). But I still believe that the major issue has been sidelined. I don't know why, but it has been.

Its sad that it required such a tragic accident as this to open our eyes. It is a slap on our face. The time is now to make the authorities accountable and answerable. And also the time to demand answers. Hall tempo and poltu and bhaats and LAN are all great, but its time that we stand up and demand what should be a given, but unfortunately isn't.

My heart goes out for the family of Rohit. I hope God gives them the strength to bear the pain. And hope Rohit's soul rests in peace.

The song from the movie Aamir reverberates in my mind- Ek Lau is tarah kyun bujhi mere maula, Ek Lau zindagi ki maula.

21 Grams

OK, this is not an original piece. But I have wanted to share this monologue ever since I saw the movie.
21 Grams is basically a stark description of death and life. And everything in between. The following is a monologue at the end of the movie. I am not sure if it would mean much to those who have not seen the movie. But if it does, even a little, do watch the movie. Here it is:

How many lives do we live?
How many times do we die?

They say we all loose 21 grams at the exact moment of our death. Everyone.

How much fits into 21 grams?
How much is lost?
When do we loose 21 grams?
How much goes with them?
How much is gained? How much is gained?

21 grams.
The weight of a stack of five nickels.
The weight of a hummingbird.
A chocolate bar.

How much did 21 grams weigh?

Why?

So I finally decided to start writing a blog. People write blogs for different reasons. Some to express what their stand on certain issues is, some to vent out their feelings, some because others are doing it anyway.
Where do I fall?
None of the above.
Right. I am writing because I want to brush up on my writing skills. I am not a great fan of altruism. I will generally do stuff only if I am benefited by it. And if in the process someone gets benefited, well and good. I read in a certain magazine/newspaper that IIM-A, did not hold GD last year and are planning to do the same this year. Instead, they ask the candidates to write a sort of essay on a topic.
So, if by God's grace, I do get a call from IIM-A, I better be prepared. And in the process, I will write as if I started the blog with one of the reasons mentioned in the first paragraph. But seriously, you know better.

Anyways, happy reading!!