Delhi Metro - More to it...

It was such a wonderful experience travelling in the Metro yesterday... I boarded the train from Mandi House Status to go to Rajiv Chawk (read CP) and the crowd the train and on the Barahkhamba Station got me thinking about how the hell am I going to get off the train... CP station is usually overcrowded and the scene is not too different then the Mumbai Locals or the Kolkata Metro...

Looking at people standing in queues on the station almost shocked me... and then I noticed the Metro Guards who ensured that for every gate of the metro there were two rows of people to board the train, and the centre space was left for the people to de-board the train... even the announcement was now changed from instructing people to get down from the left, to getting down from the centre.. wonderful feeling this was... smooth getting out, and smoother boarding... I even saw loads of people thanking and appreciating the guards for their effort... There were continuous announcements as well which told the passengers to follow the instructions from these guards..

I hope the otherwise "i don't care" attitude, now gets more disciplined this way... and the ride in the best thing that has happened to Delhi in a long time, only changes for better...

Talking to Myself...

Starting to feel too comfortable about something?

you really liking it? or for that matter hating it?

THIS IS the time to wake yourself up and do something about it...

STOP Depending... START acting...

Buh Bye....

Today is Manish's Last working day with IBM... he has been a great friend right from day one of his coming to this account...

I really wish him a great future ahead... and hope that I keep interacting with him closely even after we work in different bays in different companies in different cities...

Aditya, who reports to me, has also resigned from here... Better money, better work Profile... and a better career path... good move this is...

And I have also resigned from IBM... next week happens to be my last week in Delhi... I am moving out of the comfort zone of mom dad friends and my own house to a rented place where I have to make my own arrangement for food, clothes, housekeeping everything... this is not going to be easy at all... but then what the heck... I have to do this for myself.. I need to know how it feels... Infact I am looking forward to this experience...

Life is on the verge of a change... and looks like I am game for it !!!

PodCasts...

Podcasting is something that I have read about for a while, however never made an effort to get enough information to stay at pace with technology...

But looks like I should not be staying too far away either. And here is what I learnt about Podcasts and Podcasting today:

A Podcast is a media file that is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds, for playback on portable media players and personal computers. The method of this syndication is referred to as Podcasting.

A lot of websites like mypodcast.com provide a Free Podcast for users who register on the site.

The content provider usually begins by making a file and then sharing it over the internet and then acknowledging the presence of that file using a feed which can be a RSS feed or an ATOM Feed. which can then be used by people watching the feeds.



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ASK me how...

This weekend was different... unusual... and a Beginning...

Bindiya works with ASK (The Association for Stimulating Knowhow)... You can go through their website for more info by clicking HERE, and allow me to continue what I am going to talk about...

I take photographs of people and I have always wanted to give it a meaning than clicking just like that... Bindiya gave me that opportunity by asking me to click pictures of their center Sankalp, in Moradabad which is working towards "Ensuring normal childhood to working children in brass industry of Moradabad".

The plan was made and then got delayed and delayed and delayed... I managed to interest some of my very close friends Gaurav, Priyanka and Kavita into the idea too and we spent sometime deliberating over what we want to do there and so on with inputs from Bindiya... Also met Dr. Aqueel Khan who leads the ASK team in doing various activities...

Finally landed in Muradabad on Friday night... and started working on Saturday till Monday... here is what all we experienced in the Sankalp Centre in Moradabad...

~ ASK - Sankalp is based out of Gali number 1, Rehmat Nagar and has 5 other satellite centres around the area... A Muslim dominated area with an average family size of about 5...

~ A total of about 500 children many of whom were earlier working somewhere or the other now attend school in one of these centres... The difference this effort brings to their lives is something that I cannot capture in words...

~ A warm and dedicated team of about 30 leads the initiative together with Arif and Kalpana heading the pack... More then anything they fight with a mind block... they do not have to prove anything to anyone except themselves and they do it over and over again...

~ Children have been working in places which are smalled then 20 sq ft. and full of fumes. Someone like us might not be able to stand in there for more then 10 minutes and they work the entire day there... We all can however do something or the other to make a difference, and I am keen on making some...

~ Sankalp happens to be a self sustainable model where they build up on their own resources internally and keep the motivation high... We all however can participate in the cause in one way or other... Sankalp even has a fully functional unit where all the related processes can be done. If someone who can help get them business, they would be able to make things themself in units which have been properly built to function...

~ It was heartening to see how dedicated and sensitive the entire team was towards the cause they are working for...

~ All the teachers are ladies there and from the community itself, making them more aware and independent...

~ The kids are great without a doubt, and we managed to meet a few who went ahead to do their class XI, XII and then graduation after studying at Sankalp... They are the people to look up...

~ Also understood the Brass industry in detail with help from Kalpana and Arif.... They are real rockstars I know... what they do is something that no normal person can do... Hats off to them...

In all, it was an experience that my words cannot express...

Meanwhile here are a few links again:

ASK website

Sankalp- True to their name...

Go Wi-Fi...

Wi-Fi enabled networks, Wi-Fi enabled airports and express highways...

But what is Wi-Fi exactly?

W-Fi is a brand originally licensed by the Wi-Fi Alliance to describe underlying technology of Wireless LANs based on the IEEE 802.11 specifications...

A person with a Wi-Fi enabled device such as a laptop, a computer or a hand held can connect to the Internet or to the local network he is in when in proximity of an access point. The region covered by such an access point is referred to as an Hot Spot. Wi-Fi also allows connectivity in P2P mode which enables devices to talk with each other, and is helpful in electronics or gaming scenarios.

It has really helped LANs to be deployed without cabling... Just one ACCESS Point using a Wi-Fi enabled router and wifi enabled Laptops/Desktops/Peripherals typically reduces the overall cost of network deployment and expansion. These days almost all of the companies out in the market for network devices offer various options with Wi-Fi devices.

All of the Operating Systems Platforms like Windows, Apple OS X, Open Source Unix like systems support Wi-Fi now.

Read more about Wi-Fi on Wikipedia, W-Fi Alliance Home Page and for the products, check out the Cisco Site offering solutions in Wi-Fi, VOIP, Video Conferencing, Secure Networking etc.

Go Wireless Go Wi-Fi...


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Credit Cards Review

Credits Cards... Some love these small plastic play things and some people would go to the end of the world to stay away from them...

I have been using one for about 5 years now without a problem... In fact the card company has been more then keen on excellent customer service, good promotional offers, and quick responses...

Infact in case one wants to enjoy the card then here are a few things that I personally feel should always be taken care of..
1) Always know your payment limit and spend only under that...
2) Keep some cash ready in your account, to pay for the bills...
3) Do not use a card because you do not have money, infact use it to save yourself the hassle of carrying money around...
4) While selecting a card, look for the best deals possible both immediate and in the longer run. 0% credit cards these days provide good deals and minimum rates of interest...
5) In case you have been using a card for a while, and have some amount pending... You can look for a better card which provides 0% balance transfers and switch for a better deal...

In the end it all depends on how you use it, you can use it for your convenience or make things worse... the choice is yours and of-course the card companies would always be around to facilitate your choice...


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Jai Ho Beimaani Ki....

I have people around me who would keep truth, principles, ethics very very near the dustbin...

For all practical purposes, these values are treated as junk only except the times when they have to "showcase" things and prove that they still live by those values in front of visitors !!!

Long live these men !!!

Review - Lombard Direct News

I always had a fear of the financial market... Did not really know how the finances work... how does money flows from one person to the other, from one company to the other.

The most difficult part is to start reading about this area on the net... Also every search that you do for a word is going to get you millions of web pages, and its not very easy to comprehend information.

And then I got introduced to Lombard Direct, one of UK's leading online providers for over 10 years. The moment you go to the site, it greets you with a quick and simple loan calculator which lets you either put in the amount you need or the amount you can afford monthly...

One important and interesting feature that has been recently introduced is the Lombard Financial News... News which are consolidated, news which are segregated by categories, news related to Motor Finance, Home Finance, and Repayment Insurance...

For the internet savvy, it also has a RSS feed that you can use to read the news on your individual RSS readers...


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LiFe of A ThouGht... ThouGht for LiFe...

I am a feeling...

I am will...

I am the power...

I am the word that changes life...

I am held close...

I am scared...

I am loved... and hated...

I am stuck...

I need to breathe...

I need to see the sunset and the sunrise...

I am surrounded... Its suffocating in here...

I need to get out...

I need to be free....

INDIA Wins....

Picture this...

a war between India and one of the countries... and India decided to launch its deadliest weapon ever in the history of the world...

a concert with Altaf Raja and Himesh Reshamiya...

Either the guys on the other front would drop bombs on the stage...

or will kill themselves...

in either case...

We Win !!!

HaPPiLy EvEr AfTer...

She... why can't you just take care of yourself... you will fall ill because of the way you are living these days...

he... there is li'il i can do about it... BPO does that to a lot of people...

she... let me come over this weekend and cook for you... atleast one day you will save yourself from the junk you have to eat outside...

he... only one weekend? can't you feed me for the rest of my life?

and they cooked and ate happily ever after....

WiNdS of ChAnGe....

its a different feeling...

its growing on me...

i did not want this to happen to me for a very long time... and when its happening, i don't really mind it...

infact i am looking forward to more...

not sure how it would move from here... but then i am keen...

God Bless me....

Review - EBates Car Rental

Online shopping is all about purchasing that is quick, convenient, easy, and cost efficiency... and now it comes with added benefits like Cash Back... Websites like Ebates offer you a guaranteed cash back on most of your purchases in the simplest possible way... all you need to do is register for free using a valid email address, and return to Ebates to let them know of an online purchase that you made or download a easy to use Moe Money Maker to do the rest... This small effort can help you get upto 25% cash back on your purchases... In addition to this to facilitate your purchases you can get coupons, and information about the specials on the web... How Ebates manages to give you this money is by not keeping the commission that they get from their sales partners... all of that is turned into cheques and sent across to the customers... Even CNN mentions Ebates "A no-Brainer".... so next when you think about the latest deals, the best coupons or a cash back on car rental... think Ebates...

MoBiLe Ads....

What follows is an SMS that I got yesterday night....


"Hi, Guys for Complete Fun, Masti Entertainment Enjoy with NRI, Models, Airhostess, Russian, Nepali. If interested call Any @ xxxxxxxxx or Jeet @ xxxxxxxxx otherwise ignore... "


Please join me in welcoming the new age mobile advertising...

WheRe 'R' tHe VeGGiES?

Delhi - a World Class city... and one of the initiatives taken to take the city towards that mark is making a Global Village on the land around the DND ( Delhi NOIDA Delhi Road)...

How is that happening? here is the process...

This land was being used for Farming, basically an agricultural land...

The question here is that who took over the land? Was it acquired by the Govt. or bought directly 1 to 1 from the people.... As per the Land Acquisition Act in our country, the govt. can acquire any land and/or asset for national purpose or development... One of such projects is the development of SEZs where the Govt. Acquires land and then hands them over to the corporates developing the project...

During one of such acquisitions, the people get compensaton for the land plus the structures if any on the land and the crop... They also get the compensation for an year of income... Also the training for an alternate livelyhood is the responsibility of the Project Sponser...

Now comes the question that I am struggling with...

How does the government compensate for the loss of Land? Where do we get alternative land from?

There is only an "X" amount of agricultural land in India... and everytime one of these projects comes up, some amount reduces from this "X" amount.. hence reducing the amount of land that we have for the farmers...

Alternative means of income and livelyhood might ensure that the people getting effected continue to live properly... but do we have any alternatives for the soil?
do we have any alternatives for the vegetables that were once grown on that land?
do we have any alternatives for the load on nature?

I guess no... and I am not how many of the people who read this agree to me... but I am not really keen on a situation when we start eating capsules instead of vegetables to match the required nutrition chart, when we start importing food grain instead of having our own...

All this in the name of infrastructural development and economic growth...

Is the tradeoff too irrelevent? or are we only looking short term?

P.s. This post is not about just one piece of land near the DND... this is about all the agricultural land which are loosing out on, slowly but surely...

Thanks a ton Bindiya for the time spent in talking to me about this and giving me more information...

You Are Cordially Invited....

• The loudest and the shrilliest Music...

• 50 people dancing on a floor made for 10 on tunes that I have never heard in my life...

• A hall that stinks...

• People surrounding the food like there is no tomorrow...

• A floor that sticks to you shoes...

• Oh and did i forgot to mention the real smoke machine, and the laser lights on the DJ console...

• No paper tissues around...

• Men with Rifles and Guns all around...

• And the Dowry earned Hyundai Santro all decked up at the gate...

Welcome to the BIG FAT WEDDING @ a village in UP....

I am a PiZZa....

I am a classic Cheese Pizza.... complete in itself... but only for the few who have a taste of no frills food...

The people who came into my life at some point or the other were toppings... some improved me and some screwed up the taste...

But the Classic Cheese Stays... i might taste good with some topping and taste really bad with another.. but that would not effect my soul... i will continue to be me !!!

Complete in my own sense....

Me....

Its easy to face anything in this world, but yourself... for how long can you keep running away from yourself... for how long can you keep telling yourself that its not the truth... for how long can you lie to yourself and for how long your own self would stay ignorant...

i keep getting introduced to a new me, every now and then... and though the situations, the circumstances, the behaviour changes... there is something that stays that same... me.... even though its new, it still does not change...

the darker side of me... possesive, jealous, angry, silent, loud, irrational, demanding, cribbing, wanting to get attention all the time, too much of a thinker me...

the practical side of me... calculative, playing safe, accepting the facts, looking at life in the eye, letting go of things beyond my control, taking it the way it comes to me, me...

the other side of me.... happy go lucky, not bound by anything, raw, honest, entertaining, non reactive at times, and too much reactive at times me...

and i know it for sure that there is a lot more to me then just me... and i am on my way to find whats that !!!

have you found out whats you?