Just yesterday while reading this news in Times Of India, I realized that I received this mail years back and it was proved to be hoax.

The news went like - 36% of scientists at NASA are Indians: Govt survey.

Of course, any Indian will get interested in reading more of this news after going through such interesting title and getting into detailed news, you get to know that there are 34% Indian employees at Microsoft and 17% at Intel. Voila what a feeling you get specially knowing that these all facts are provided by our own minister of state for HRD, D Purandeshwari in Rajya Sabha (Parliament House).

Just imagine, how thrilled you will feel when you will be getting a similar mail with title - Be A Proud Indian with lot and lot of facts listed down in subject. One such mail I had received in year 2005 and along-with many facts, it contained lot of false data. Find the content of mail below with the link over Internet. And after about three years to that, our minister is presenting all those numbers as facts without checking their truthfulness. Three years is quite long time. Even if minister had figured out that it is 3 years old data, he might had refrained from sharing it but looks like he was in very much hurry to share them in defense of the country’s higher education system and the state of research.

I wouldn’t be getting into details about minister even knowing about him more than average but these are we Indians who select such leaders and should be ready to bear with such statements.

Here is the excerpt of news -

 

36% of scientists at NASA are Indians: Govt survey

NEW DELHI: If you thought that Global Indian Takeover was just a hollow cliche leaning on a few iconic successes like Pepsi’s Indra Nooyi, Citibank’s Vikram Pandit and steel world’s Lakshmi Mittal, there is a slew of statistics now to give it solid ballast.

The extent to which desis have made an impact in the US was reeled off in the Rajya Sabha — as many as 12% scientists and 38% doctors in the US are Indians, and in NASA, 36% or almost 4 out of 10 scientists are Indians.

If that’s not proof enough of Indian scientific and corporate prowess, digest this: 34% employees at Microsoft, 28% at IBM, 17% at Intel and 13% at Xerox are Indians.
And the House of Elders also heard some startling facts about a country that’s still stuck with a Third World tag — 20% of gold in the world is used by Indians and nine out of 10 diamonds used in the world are made in India.

The original version of poem, I once wrote about -

Kaum ke khadim ki hai jageer Vande Mataram

Mulk ke hai vaaste akseem Vande Mataram

 

Zalimon ko hai udhar bandook apni par garoor

Hai idhar hum bekson ka teer Vande Mataram

 

Katl kar hum ko na katil tu hamare khoon se

Teg par ho jayega tehreer Vande Mataram

 

Fikr kya jallad ne gar katl kar bandhi kamar

Rok dega zor se shamsheer Vande Mataram

 

Zulm se gar kar diya khamosh mujhko dekhna

Bol Utthegi meri tasveer Vande Mataram

 

Sarzami England ki hil jayegi do roz mein

Gar dikhayegi kabhi taaseer Vande Mataram

 

Santri bhi muztarib hain jab ki har jhankar se

Bolti hai jail mein zanzeer Vande Mataram

- Vishvnath Sharma

(During my visit to War Memorial Museum, Red Fort)

Here is from original post and the one I used to whistle -

Chheen sakti hai nahin sarkar Vande Mataram
Ham garibon ke gale ka har Vande Mataram.

Sar chadon ke sar me chakkar, uss samay aate zaroor
Kaanon mein pahunchi jahan, jhankar ‘Vande Matarm’

Jail mein chakki ghaseete, bhooka se veh mar raha
Phir bhi veh keh raha, bezar Vande Mataram

Maut ke munh mein veh khada, keh raha jallad se
Ghomp do seene mein, talvar Vande Mataram

Doctron ne nabz dekhi, sir hila kar keh diya
Isse to ho gaya hai, Aazar Vande Mataram

Eid Holi aur, Shubh Raat se bhi sau guna
Hai hamara ladala, tyohar Vande Mataram

Zalimon Ka Zulm to, Kafoor sa ud jayega
Faisla hoga, sare darbar Vande Mataram

Chheen sakti hai nahin sarkar Vande Mataram
Ham garibon ke gale ka har Vande Mataram…

This is what Indian cops are trying to impose on the cyber-cafes in financial capital of India - Mumbai. They are trying to make all owners in city to install keystroke loggers in their cyber-cafe in order to record every key pressed by visitors which will include the passwords, bank account details, credit card numbers, email texts and will ultimately end up in the police records for surveillance. This in turn, can frighten anyone that his/her personal information can be disclosed and sold out to third parties, provided the involved backgrounds. The news also, doesn’t denies it completely but says -

The government’s rationale (or rationalization) behind this is familiar and silly. Whenever the government wants to restrict freedom, it invokes security, and cops justify this move under the grounds of fighting terrorism. Well, firstly, at a practical level, the cops won’t have the manpower to scrutinize the massive volume of keystroke logs generated everyday, or to figure out what is terrorist code and what is teenage lingo. Secondly, at a moral level, it is simply wrong to deny people of their privacy in this manner.

Also another point raised in same article on the basis of similar news makes absolute sense -

…why should the cops not place TV cameras in hotel rooms or record every conversation in every taxi and train? After all, terrorists use hotels and public transport. Are you okay with that?

But you may also like to answer this question -

“The question we need to ask ourselves is whether a breach of privacy is more important or the security of the nation. I do not think the above question needs an answer,”…

 

As long as personal computers are not being monitored. If monitoring is restricted to public computers, it is in the interest of security,” said National Vice President, People Union for Civil Liberty.

In my view, the second way of monitoring by camera is much secure and efficient as compared to earlier one which will bring more insecurity for those already sensible nerds, even if it is in interest of nation.

Do you want to reduce already negligible Indian online population? - is my question.

It was just day before when I got chance to involve with friends at work in a discussion about the upcoming Indian politicians. They were all talking about young energetic politicians who were highly qualified, big businessmen and then chose politics to improve this country. They were impressed with few of their recent interviews over TV which I never preferred to listen. My point was that it should reflect in your work and you should get to hear about their achievements through news sources instead of you yourself urging to waaste your precious hours watching their interviews and listening all the crap which is just theoretical.

And I felt justified of my statements made that day when today I got to read this news that shining young congress MP Sachin Pilot who at Page 2 was talking about great Indian Leaders of future and what qualities they should possess. On Page 17 of same newspaper, there was a news about same politician asking minorities to continue their struggle for reservation. Ah, these politicians. I wonder why Times Of India selects such bas***** as its flag-holders.

The old ones are like the way they were - selfish and cunning!

Honestly, none of today’s leaders (politicians / bureaucrats) have impressed me except Atal Bihari Vajpai and Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

It was good to see Times Of India going open source in its own way - no more login is required to read the newspaper. You just have to select the city-edition and newspaper will be in front of you!

Amit asked me first thing this morning - What is going in Punjab these days and what riots going on these days there. I had no idea and then I realized that I was away from newspaper for last 4 days…I hadn’t gotten chance to even touch it but perhaps Amit was expecting me to answer and he knew that I will. After going through few sources and of course, truly punjabis, Raji and Sumit, I came to know about whole story which is quite eye-opening and tells about the those strong faith-holders in religion but with their eyes closed.

In Punjab, if you dress like a religious lord, chances are that you will be criticized and so called fatwa could also be issued against you. After wearing attire of the worshiped figure of Sikh community, Guru Gobind Singh - tenth Sikh Guru, protests were made by community against the leader who also belongs to same Sikh community but is from different sector.

News goes like -

Clashes between two sects in Bhatinda and Dera chief asks followers to maintain calm

 

 

Members of the Nihang sect clashed with supporters of Dera Sachcha Sauda after their leader wore an attire similar to that of Guru Govind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru in a baptising ceremony two days ago.

 

Nihang Sikhs protested the move and burnt effigies of the Dera Sachcha Sauda leader Sant Ram Rahim.

 

 

Trouble had been brewing between supporters of the Dera Sachcha Sauda and the Nihang Singh sect after an effigy of Baba Gurmeet Ram Rahim was burnt by members of the Nihang Singh sect and Sikhs in Bathinda on Monday.

 

Five people were injured in Monday’s clashes and the tension seems to be spreading, with minor clashes reported from Ludhiana.

Sikh demonstrators at the gate of Patna Saheb Gurudwara

There has also been strong protest at political level that India’s home minister had to assure that legal action will be taken as it has hurt the sentiments of Sikhs.

I was also thinking about Hindu religion where they themselves dress others to look like the worshiped figures in order to spread the religious teachings during the public concerts/exhibitions (e.g. the festivals like Deepawali/Dussehra) but then this religion has its own drawbacks. In my belief, a religion should be flexible enough to deal with controversies.

There is also a strong possibility of political connection with this happening rather a mishap which is described as follows in news -

Punjab on the edge, CM calls meet

 

The Dera Sacha Sauda has mass following in the Malwa region of Punjab in places like Bathinda and Patiala, and during the recent assembly elections in Punjab, the Dera had issued a edict to its followers to vote for the Congress.