Dear Rain, where are you??

People say a disaster like flood is manageable; not drought. But a disaster is a disaster, so why say drought is even more disasterous. The reason they give is that flood can be mitigated to some extent; it is not so easy in the case of a drought. People of Tamil Nadu, especially Chennai know that better. TN was hit severely both by drought (From 2001 to 2004) and floods (In 2005-2006).

With soaring prices of metro water, the struggle we had to put as a result of water scarcity in the city was profuse. Scenes of women squabbling on the streets were quite common; there were instances where the local police had to arrive, to settle the issue smoothly. I still remember this: we were advised by the apartment association to use only 3/4th a bucket for bathing, and only a mug for a face wash!

It was in the year 2003 that the government of TN made the rainwater harvesting scheme mandatory : 

"Through an ordinance titled Tamilnadu Muncipal Laws ordinance, 2003, dated July 19, 2003, the government of Tamil Nadu has made rainwater harvesting mandatory for all the buildings, both public and private, in the state. The deadline to construct rainwater harvesting structures is August 31, 2003. The ordinance cautions, "Where the rain water harvesting structure is not provided as required, the Commissioner or any person authorised by him in this behalf may, after giving notice to the owner or occupier of the building, cause rain water harvesting structure to be provided in such building and recover the cost of such provision along with the incidental expense thereof in the same manner as property tax". It also warns the citizens on disconnection of water supply connection provided rainwater harvesting structures are not provided."

MTC buses plying across the metro carried advertisements urging the need for rain water harvesting. Slowly it became a people's movement.  After the implementation of this scheme, a significant increase in both the quality and level of ground water was noted. The water quality in Chennai is a long way to reach International standards. After an Indian Ocean tsunami lashed the shores of TN, the weather pattern changed drastically. Bay of Bengal which could withstand not more than one or two cyclones, witnessed 4 to 5.  During the year 2005-2006, the highest rainfall of 2356.5 mm was recorded in Chennai district.

2012 was a disappointment for Chennai. TN is one of the states which receives rain from both South-West and North-East monsoon. Usually when the city records less rainfall, the south-west monsoon bridges the gap. This year it fell short by nearly 7 cm of the season’s normal of 41 cm. Overall shortage is estimated to be 33%.

I was taken aback when people were literally praying that it should'nt rain during the ARR concert or during the cricket matches. Short-term pleasures, unmindful of long term ones, seem to be the need of the hour. People, its high time we change our mindset. Why do we often hear the king in dramas uttering the words "நாட்டில் மும்மாறி பொழிகிறதா  அமைச்சரே ??" (Minister, is there enough rainfall in our country?) 

Although water provides no calories or organic nutrients, it is essential for every known form of life. It is considered as a purifier in most religions, philosophy and literature. For the crops to grow, for the agriculture and plains to flourish and for us to sustain on this planet we need water. And what is the purest form of water? Rain.

Our prayers to Bharat Matha

Our Motherland Bharat, India, the ‘United States of India’ (as I would love to call it) celebrates her 65^th Independence Day tomorrow. Who am I, to write about India on the eve of the Independence Day? The President? Certainly not! Just a concerned citizen! But here in India, every concerned citizen is a President on his own. It is just that we people are not aware of our strengths.

India is a developing nation, that’s right. But for how long have we been carrying the same label? For the past 65 years! We are definitely on the track of progress and development, but we need to ask ourselves this question- "How steady is our growth?". What is hindering the growth in our country? The reasons seem to be many.

Corruption is undoubtedly a major cause. Anti-corruption movements have gained momentum, only because the citizens are fed up with all pervasive corruption. It was the JP movement in 1975 and the Anna Movement now. Such movements are a sign of health democracy; but they cannot go to the extent of running a parallel government. There is a section of people, who are against corruption and support these movements, yet another group against both corruption and these movements. The corrupt group obviously is not against corruption, but the problem is with the section of people who are against it, but divided on the issue. It has therefore become very difficult to reach a consensus, and it is due to this reason that the Jan Lok Pal bill has never been passed by the parliament though it has been tabled 9 times. (In the years 1968, 1974, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2011)

I personally feel that such a bill is not required, if only we choose the right candidates during the elections. When the top order is corrupt, the lowest order is also corrupt; it follows the waterfall model. People who accept cash during the election time for voting for a candidature do not have moral rights to speak on corruption. The argument that it is only the tax payers’ money that is being given back to us in the form of bribe is absolutely invalid. Never accept bribe for voting! Never abstain from voting!

They say India was the richest nation once. I would say it is still the richest nation; just that so much of money is stashed abroad illegally. Perhaps, they don’t realize the fact that black money wouldn’t accompany them to the grave. It is wrong to blame the politicians alone. Our favourite film stars also do that, and we continue to admire them extremely stupidly. Remember, you can admire any artist for his immense talents, but we never know how pious they are in public life.

The members of the principle opposition party in the Parliament have given in writing, a declaration to the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, that they do not possess any illegal accounts outside India. It’s a welcome step; I just hope every word in that declaration is true, or else it’s nothing short of an ‘unkindest’ cut.

The national mood today is that of anger and frustration. I hope things change soon, but it is impossible without our contribution as citizens. On this day, let us take few resolutions. Let us improve our political wisdom, rightly choose the candidates in the elections, and vote without fail. Let us strive hard to see a superpower India.

WISHING YOU ALL A VERY HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!

भारत माता की जय!! 

We gotta learn from animals...

Animals are just living creatures. They have not got what is called as 'Commom Sense', the sixth sense, which the humans have. This might possibly be the attitude of a common man. But let me tell you, We gotta learn a lot from animals...from animals and birds of every kind!

1. Elephants

Being such lovely, cute and gigantic figures, they teach us the humanitarian aspects of life. Whenever an elephant comes across a dead body of another elephant, it automatically sheds tears to mourn. We gotta learn this from elephants!

2. Eagles

With sharp eyes and beautiful flight, eagles teach us how to be focussed and determined in life. Eagles have the capability to catch its prey even from a very great height. We gotta learn this from eagles.

3. Tortoise

They might be too slow with their movements, but they do hide their limbs when it fears an enemy attack and pretends to be a rock. Similarly, we must hide all the enemies present within us, namely anger, jealousy, stinginess , temptations etc. to take forward steps in life. We gotta learn this from tortoises.

4. Swan

White and Beautiful! You can always expect a swan to take only milk from a mixture of milk and water. Likewise, we need to analyse the good and bad aspects of everything we come across in life and take only the necessary ones. We gotta learn this from swans.

5. Parrots

Do they not echo the exact words spoken to it? Then, should we not learn to talk and practice only what is told to us by our parents. We gotta learn this from parrots.'

"Love for animals is love for God!"

CHEERS :)

- ∫.∫rikrishnan

Love Matters !

A blog after so many weeks! And that too a different topic, that I have never touched upon in any of the previous blog items - "LOVE MATTERS" And days before the Valentines Day! And I promise here that all the above statements are independent of each other.

I should definitely give such an assurance as the word "LOVE" has lost its significance and its true meaning. With half the contribution of the damage from the cine field, the rest is from the teenagers who are driven and influenced by the cine actors.

After these sentences on what the word "love" has been modified to, I want to say what it actually means to me. Love is a something that every human on this planet must have. Love for mother Earth. Love for parents, they are the best ever companions for us. Love for animals and birds. Love for mankind. Love for nature. Love for our country. Love for people around us! Love yourself. Be a true man!

Cheers :)

- ∫.∫rikrishnan

Inspiring Indians

“Inspiring Indians” – this should have been the title of my first blog! Anyways, even now it is not late.

Being an Indian is something really great! Indians have reached great heights in almost all fields and it feels very nice to type that here. A democratic and a secular country, one of the fastest growing economies, and above all, the country with so many people to encourage and inspire the present generation!

Here, I would just like to mention about a few people who have inspired me in many ways. So, here we go….

1. Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Simplicity, humble in thought and noble in action! I am very particular on listening to his speeches, especially to the student community. “Rameshwaram to Rashtrapathi Bhavan” – a must read biography! Who would forget his words – “Dream dream and dream and make your dreams come true!” Salutes!

2. Mahakavi Subramanya Bharathiyar

An Indian then a poet or a poet then an Indian? Ask this to him. Even he would not know the correct answer. (And this has become the topic for most of the Tamil debates…) “I know what I do is right, it is all for mother India”, his typical words. Even after 88 years of his death, he lives in everyone’s heart. Salutes!

3. Mr. Narendra Modi

Longest serving chief minister of Gujarat, Mr. Modi is also the best chief minister among all CMs of India. Indeed a role model for other politicians. His views on compulsory voting in elections, non-free electricity for farmers etc. are fantastic. I love the way he addresses his opponents. Salutes!

4. Dr. R.D.Sharma

Most of the engineering students forget his name after stepping into college. But for sure, they would have used his unmatched books on Mathematics in school life. I have not even seen his face on a photo, but I can tell you, this maths genius’ way of presenting different concepts on different topics is too good. I just loved the problems from his text book. It would be incomplete, if I do not mention his qualification for you to know – B.Sc. (Honors) (Gold Medalist), M.Sc. (Gold Medalist), Ph.D.!!!! Salutes!

5. Bagavath Ramanujar

A great philosopher, teacher, scholar, therapist and what not! For winning over the previous vedantha philosophies namely the Dwaita and the Adwaita to produce the third one with special qualities of both and removing the errors from them and composing the Bhashyam for “Visishta” Advaitham! The best role model for any man on this earth! Salutes!

P.S. :- Though the personalities have been listen from 1 to 5, I give equal respect and seek inspiration from everyone to the same extent !

Wishing all a very happy new year! Wishing to see India in great heights this year! Jai Hind!

- ∫.∫rikrishnan

To love is nature !

It is natural for any human to evade from appreciating nature! Though at some point of time or the other, one will definitely do it! For some, it comes soon, but for many it only comes late.

What I want to stress here is, since everyone is a part of nature, everyone must also know to appreciate it. It costs nothing. We must learn to distinguish between the terms “Natural” and “Artificial”. When we have distinguished between the two, half the job is over! “Waterfalls” is natural whereas a Fountain is artificial [repeated line] Coconut water is natural, Pepsi is artificial, Moon is natural, Sputnik is artificial.

Also, any natural thing has got better advantages over Artificial or I could also say Artificial things are dangerous sometimes [depends]. Any natural process in this world takes place from a higher potential to a lower potential. And therefore all natural creations on this world take place in a smooth way. Nature does not allow any artificial events to happen just because it is nature.

And when humans try to do any artificial creations or any act against nature, they spend a lot of energy. Energy is required only because it is against nature. Like, planting a tree [without any energy] and cutting down a tree to pieces [with so much of energy]. For dropping an object you need not spend energy, but for lifting it you ought to! That’s the law of nature!

Nature turns things at higher potential to lower potential to maintain a balance, but foolish humans try to turn things upside down! There was recent news saying that the American Government has installed artificial waterfalls. It is installed in many rivers beds. What happens there is water is pumped from the river to a tank placed at great height! Great height! Great Height! Great height of foolishness! And then water is again made to fall from that height back to the same river. Though they need not spend energy for making water fall from that height, they need to spend power to make water go up! They spend a few Kilojoules energy each minute and when you convert that to dollars, it is a big sum!

Nature knows how to take care of us, provided we take care of it. We are supposed to enjoy nature and not disturb it! Some of the nature lovers articles reveal that they become calm and composed after having a look at a beautiful scenery. They say there is a drastic change in the human brain activities after it.

Some of the best scenes I witnessed and that I cannot forget -

i) View of icy mountains in Badrinath that changed its colour to gold because of the reflection of the sunlight

ii) View of Srirangam Rajagopuram from other end of Kaveri River, surrounded by many tall coconut trees, and birds flying high.

iii) View of the river Bhagirathi/Alakananda from the hills at a great height

Lord Krishna does not show any interest to things that are not in its usual form. He likes butter but not buttermilk! “Aaratha vennai vizhingi, Arigiruntha moraar kudam orutti mun kidantha thamathe!” It says, he consumes a lot of butter, wheras all the buttermilk pots are made to roll all over the floor!

Let’s salute nature. Let’s appreciate nature.

Please do send your comments!

- ∫.∫rikrishnan

Manishan ah ??? Machine ah???

A hectic week ! Compiling all the lab programs one by one. Sorting out all the runtime errors and logical errors in the program ! Finishing the formatting work ! Getting the output verfication from the respective lab incharge ! Compiling the program again in the laptop @ house ! Copying the output from the console to a word document ! Taking out the printouts ! Finishing the record work!

I can tolerate with all the above ! But I really got upset when my Laptop was protesting ! It refused to obey my commands! Really irritating ! Felt like giving a big bang on it ! But what to do ? All my work is dependent on this Laptop of mine. Have to take care of its health too. When my LT (Laptop) goes off, I also go off.

It appears so foolish to me when I take care of my LT so much and I do not even speak freely with my parents !

* When my mother was not feeling well, I did not have time to even go to the medical shop to buy her medicines (instead my father went) ! But when there was a virus attack, I had to immediately upgrade my Anti-Virus and battle against the virus !

* I have never invited my father or my mother to sleep in the AC room! But I had to place a chair for my LT inside the AC room so that it is under a cool environment ! (My LT gets hot so quickly)

* I have never asked a question "Have you taken your food ?" to my parents ! But every time I am with my LT, I keep monitioring the charge available with it and when /i have to charge it.

* I have not even bought any gift for my parents for any occasion ! On the other hand , I keep searching for new updates available on the NET frequently!

* I dont even see my parents' face as frequently as I see my LT's monitor. After all a thing invented by Man and still I am a slave to it ! Just seeing a few engineering materials in a assembled form ! And I have to pay heed to it ! Disgusted !

And with so much devotion to my LT, what all will I gain in return ?? All kinds of health problems ... and nothing else..

Hope the situation changes soon.....

- ∫.∫rikrishnan

What God expects………….!

A new post after two weeks! I was thinking deeply as to what my next post should be on. But nothing reached my mind.

Always the following holds good – when you decide to plan something at the moment, it is just not possible to make out. So what is to be done is, stop thinking about it and feel free. A bell may ring at any point of time when you are relaxed, and then you may implement your idea! And that’s how I decided to write a blog on this topic! – “What God expects”

And let me also explain why I chose this particular topic or what made me to choose this topic.

As I was getting bored during my 35 km long and tiresome bus journey from my college campus to my place, I had no other go but to watch the outside world out through the window.

And when the bus was just crossing Padur, [near Kelambakkam], my eyes chose something different to look at. And that was the sight of a few people engaged in a social practice. “TOTALLY DIFFERENT” I would say! And that was going on my mind till I realized that, my stop was not too far away and it was time for me get down! And when I was taking the road from my stop to my house, I decided to write a blog!

A blog, on the incident that really made me think as to why those people where indulging in such activities! Activities that they claim would fulfill their master’s [GOD] wishes!

And I tell you, it is just not possible to narrate what they were doing, but all that I can do is to show you a picture which is similar to that. And here it is:

That sight really brought mixed thoughts into my mind. And I really could not bear, seeing them “hurting themselves”, in the name of religion and in the name of God.

But am sure that people reading this blog of mine are likely to think that I am an Atheist! NO!!! Let me clarify that here. I do believe in God! And I also feel proud for the same because one who believes in God also loves Science. After all science is just a tool used to explain the term “GOD”!

All that I can say about that is that they [the villagers] did not find time to realize that God does not expect all that from his devotees! Causing trouble to oneself will definitely not please God. And such activities and practices will only lead to their hospitalization! And God is also not cruel to impose such rules for His devotees to follow!

All that he expects from us is to be a sincere devotee and only that! There are so many ways by which we may “IMPRESS” Him. We may feed the poor, we may contribute money to charitable trusts, and we may respect our elders and follow their footsteps. According to Vedas, a man has to spend at least 1/16^th of his income for charity. And so God is really impressed when we follow all these. So what is the need of punishing ourselves?

Having created this wonderful world, He knows all the difficulties that each person faces. This is evident from the following incident [in Mahabharatha] i.e. Vidhurar was so happy to see Lord Krishna in his house. He almost forgot everything around him. Firstly, he took a deep glance at Lord Krishna, starting from His feet, the two holy feet which takes care of all the suffering of human beings.

And then he decided to serve Lord Krishna with whatever that was available with him. But he had only bananas! And so he offered bananas to him. Vidhurar was asked by Him as to what he would request to Him after serving him with bananas, and the reply from his side was “to eat some more!” And that is what I would call devotion! And Vidhurar having lost his mind completely was giving the fruits’ skin, instead of the fruit, and Lord Krishna was extremely happy to take them too!

God knows who his true devotees are! It is said that when you become his true devotee, he becomes your devotee!

So, I appeal to all viewers to refrain from such activities. Instead we can work on things such as helping the poor, supporting a poor child’s education etc. Lets be His devotees! Let’s praise His creation! Let’s appreciate nature and worship him! After all, that’s all he expects!

- ∫.∫rikrishnan