Thursday, September 22, 2005

Pervert masturbates on woman in train

I have read a lot of weird news but this one takes the cake.India has its share of perverts too!!!

Pervert masturbates on woman commuter
By: Janaki Fernandes
September 22, 2005

Anshu Mehta (23, name changed) was accustomed to battling overcrowded trains and crowded platforms, but yesterday, while walking along the congested overbridge at Kurla station at 8.45am, she found semen on her trousers.

“It was the last straw. I was horrified, something like this has never happened to me,” said the devastated girl.

‘There were men all around me’

The advertising executive said the overbridge was so crowded that it was impossible to pinpoint who masturbated on her.

Traumatised, she tried to look for a policeman on the platform, but found none.

“There was no one I could complain to, so I just cleaned myself and left,” she said and added, “Two trains had just entered the platform and so the bridge was very crowded. There were men all around me, but to think this could happen…”

Shares her trauma

A few minutes later Mehta decided to call Go92.5 — the radio station she was listening to — and shared her distress with the radio jockey.

“I just needed to speak to someone and get it out of my system,” she said. Mehta said she had been felt up at Kurla station before, but never this.
Sympathetic cops

Mehta says she was too upset to register a complaint with the police station in the morning, but returned in the evening to do so.

“The police were shocked that such an incident could have occurred, but they were very sympathetic and registered my complaint,” she said. They have promised to increase vigilance during peak hours and in fact, immediately deployed another plainclothes GRP to man the overbridge, she added.

“Since I don’t know who did this, I don’t expect them to arrest anyone. They just need to know what’s happening at the station, that’s all,” said Mehta.

All bases covered

Officials from the railway police station say there are six policemen manning the station at all hours.

“However, during peak hours, the bridge gets really crowded so we can’t have someone standing there. But we will cover that area as well,” said one officer for the police station.

Monday, September 19, 2005

Sudoku

I keep seeing Sudoku puzzles in my favorite newspaper.I still have not had the inclination to try to solve atleast one puzzle(ho hum).Here's a link to some puzzles posted by the Hindu,one of India's most read newspaper.

How to do it

Sudoku, a mind game that uses numbers, a puzzle that you solve with reasoning and logic.Here is how it works: Fill in the grid with digits in such a manner that every row,every column, and every 3X3 box accommodates the digits 1 to 9.Here is an example.



The solution :



http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/sudoku/index.htm

Information security practices in Indian BPO's

The Indian BPO industry is on a roll.It has been growing by leaps and bounds.What there is a lot at stake.One of them being customer information.A few months ago the industry was in the spotlight following incidents of information theft.So what are the steps being taken to reduce the scope of such pratices from being repeated again?

Take a look at this link to find out more.

"You are a BPO employee with a criminal bent of mind.You are dealing with sensitive client information and have have immense faith in your charms..."

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/ew/2005/09/19/stories/2005091900080100.htm

Hello folks

Hi,i am back after a fairly enjoyable weekend.There's a lot of stuff to write about considering the fact that a lot of events have transpired over the past couple of days.I read some interesting articles about the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in India and the measures that are being taken to enhance information security following some incidents over the past few months.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

Happy Onam to ya all

Happy Onam!!



MAVELI NAADU VANIDUM KALAM
MANUSHYARELLARUM ONNU POLE
AAMODATHODE VASIKKUM KALAM
AAPATHENGARKKUMOTTILLATHANUM
KALLAVUMILLA CHATHIYUMILLA
ELLOLAMILLA POLIVACHANAM
KALLAPARAYUM CHERUNAZHIYUM
KALLATHARANGAL MATTONNUMILLA


(During the reign of Mahabali
All men were of equal stature
When they were all living happily Everyone was secure and safe No thefts and no cheating Not even a lie, No false measurements No other forms of falsehood either.)

Vijayakant's new political party

Popular Tamil actor launched his new political party on the 14th of September.The name of his party is " Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam" (DDMK) and when translated it stands for "National Progressive Dravida Party" .Phew..some name..Tamil Nadu already has a lot of parties who say they are for improvement of the Dravidian population of Tamil Nadu but in reality they play caste politics.India's biggest probelm is the caste system.India must be the only country in the world which practices racism by dividing people on the basis on caste.So much for democracy.

The slogan of his party is

'Take pride to say that you are a Tamil and we will say only what we will do' are the twin mottos of his party. ---> so much for national integration!!

Links

http://newstodaynet.com/13sep/rf1.htm

http://www.hindu.com/2005/09/15/stories/2005091519670100.htm

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Donate for Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts

American Red Cross






Salvation Army










US Freedom Corps









How You Can Help The Victims Of Hurricane Katrina

http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm/bay/content.view/catid/68/cpid/310.htm

Official Website of the State of Mississippi

http://www.state.ms.us/index.jsp

Happy Onam

Hi Guys!

Happy Onam

15-09-2005 is Thiruonam day!!!

Have fun!!

When Maveli, our King, rules the land,
All the people form one casteless race.
And people live joyful and merry;
They are free from all harm.
There is neither theft nor deceit,
And no one is false in speech either.
Measures and weights are right;
No one cheats or wrongs the neighbor.
When Maveli, our King, rules the land,
All the people form one casteless race.

Links to websites about Onam

1.http://hinduism.about.com/library/weekly/extra/bl-onam.htm
2.http://www.namasthenri.com/fairsandfestivals/onam.htm#onam

What can stop India and China?

Found this interesting article of Rediff.com

What can halt the Indian and Chinese juggernaut


Plenty of forces can still throw the Chinese and Indian economies far off course.

The economic fundamentals of both nations, with their enormous populations of young workers and consumers, point to strong growth for decades under almost every forecast. But it is instructive to remember that financial crashes, coups, political strife, and plain bad management have derailed many other miracle economies from Southeast Asia to Latin America.

And the same huge populations that can translate into economic power for China and India also could prove to be a double-edged sword if social, political, and envronmental challenges are not deftly managed. Indeed, growth doesn't have to slow all that much to pose serious social problems.

Both China and India need annual growth of at least 8% just to provide jobs for the tens of millions joining the workforce each year. Fear of worker unrest is a big reason Beijing has kept stoking its boom with massive lending and growth in the money supply, despite economists' warnings that it is setting the stage for a nasty bust.

If India grows only 6.5% a year, which seems a respectable rate, its jobless rate would still jump, resulting in another 70 million unemployed by 2012, forecasts India's Planning Commission.

Graphic: The Numbers Are Ominous

Slower growth also could keep China and India from fulfilling the widespread predictions that they will become superpowers. For example, in forecasting that India will rank just behind the US as the world's No. 3 economy by mid-century, with a gross domestic product of $30 trillion, Goldman, Sachs & Co. assumes 8.5% average annual growth.

But what if India grows at less than 6%, its average for the past 20 years? By 2050, it would have only a $7.3 trillion economy -- smaller than Taiwan's even then and just 2.6% of global GDP, notes Stephen Howes, the World Bank's former chief India economist. Worse, India's masses would remain extremely poor.

"If you don't grow fast enough, will you have social forces that bring everything to a stalemate?" asks Infosys Technologies Ltd. CEO Nandan M. Nilekani. "That's the worry."

China and India: A Visual Overview

To achieve the high growth predictions, China and India will have to overcome formidable challenges. Some of the biggest:

Environment

Both countries have paid a steep ecological price for rapid industrial and population growth, with millions of deaths attributed to air and water pollution each year. Air quality in big cities like New Delhi, Chongqing, and Mumbai is among the world's worst. And forests are vanishing at alarming rates.

Enforcement of environmental laws in both nations is poor. Many power plants and factories depend on coal and don't invest in clean technologies. China is one of the world's most wasteful users of oil. If it does not act quickly, the long-term costs of health problems linked to the environment and the required cleanup will skyrocket. A growing scarcity of water in both nations could slow industry within two decades.

Political backlash

China's Communist Party harshly represses dissent. But virtually each week brings new reports of big protests in cities and villages over corruption, pollution, or worker abuse.

The Trade Challenge

They underscore China's lack of democratic institutions and the widening gap between rich and poor. Serious challenges to Communist rule can still erupt, especially if the economy stalls. Judging from history, the process could be tumultuous.

India has a democracy, but it also has extremely unbalanced growth and rampant corruption. The surprise electoral defeat of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party by a more populist coalition led by Sonia Gandhi's Congress Party in 2004 served as a warning of mass discontent.

The new government also is reform-minded, but the pace of economic liberalization has slowed. Further electoral setbacks for reformers are possible if the poor don't see the benefits of growth. Tensions between Hindus and Muslims have eased after bloody riots in 2003 and 2004. But communal violence remains a threat.

Financial crisis

Debt and currency crises have derailed many high-flying emerging markets. India needed an International Monetary Fund bailout in 1991. China withstood the 1997 Asian financial crisis mainly because they lack convertible currencies.

India's New Worldly Women

Also, Beijing controls the banks. Bailouts and the banks' near-monopoly over China's vast domestic savings have kept them solvent despite mountains of bad loans to state firms.

In 2006, however, Beijing will start letting foreign banks compete for deposits and domestic loans. That could put more financial pressure on state banks. China also is starting to loosen its currency controls a bit. China has plenty of foreign reserves now.

But if Beijing can't whip its banks into shape, there's a danger that financial market liberalisation will go wrong, leading to a crash. India's financial system is in stronger shape, but its public finances remain a mess, with budget deficits at the federal and state level reaching 10% of GDP.

Health

Perhaps China's biggest worry over the long term is inadequate medical care for its rapidly aging population. In 20 years, China will have an estimated 300 million people age 60 or older. Yet only one in six Chinese workers now has a pension plan, and just 5% have guaranteed medical benefits.

What's Next For China's Miracle

What's more, many retirees willnot be able to rely on children for support. Beijing promises to build a broader safety net, but adequate health care and pensions could consume a huge portion of GDP and deplete China's economic strength in the future.

Both nations also could face full-blown crises with AIDS, tuberculosis, avian flu, and other infectious diseases, and their health systems have been slow to mobilise. At least 5 million Indian adults are infected with HIV, one of the world's highest rates outside sub-Saharan Africa.

India's National Intelligence Council predicts the number could pass 20 million in 2010. The U.N. estimates the number of Chinese with HIV could hit 10 million in five years. Some 200,000 Chinese also die annually of TB. And a serious flu epidemic could kill millions.

"Many investors don't appreciate the economic damage a serious outbreak would cause in our crowded cities," says Subroto Bagchi, chief operating officer of Bangalore info-tech services firm MindTree Consulting Ltd.

War


India and neighboring Pakistan have fought three times since their independence in 1947 -- and have had many border skirmishes over Kashmir. Now, both nations possess nuclear weapons, so a war could be catastrophic.

New Delhi and Islamabad have recently eased tensions and begun peace talks. But the rise to power of a radical Islamic regime in Pakistan, or election of a stridently Hindu nationalist government in India, could easily reignite tensions.

China's biggest flash point remains Taiwan. Beijing has cooled its fiery rhetoric lately, but still vows to invade should the island declare independence. Any war in the Taiwan Strait would likely involve the US and possibly Japan -- China's two biggest trade partners -- and paralyze shipping in and out of China's southern ports. It also would likely result in long-term Sino-US tensions that would spill into trade.

It's too much to expect for any developing nation to avoid military, financial, environmental, and health crises for decades. But the test for a great power is how well it manages a great crisis.

Mumbai during the July 26 2005 floods.

Got these photos from a friend.Take a look.





Katrina Musings

I am writing this post almost seven months after i started on this blog.I guess this is the right time.

Some of the blogs i have read lately on the Hurricane Katrina disaster and the relief efforts being taken have made me write this post.I want to divert attention to two blogs.SInce i am from India i cannot keep quiet either.

Here are links to the two blogs :

Bruce Sterling's blog - http://wiredblogs.tripod.com/sterling/index.blog?entry_id=1212973

Boing Boing - http://www.boingboing.net/2005/09/05/katrina_whew_here_co.html

Check out the headings for those two posts.

Very sarcastic and insensitive.

India is ,in words used by people from the so called 'Western countries', a Third World country and since the Katrina disaster took place,we have tried our best to help our brethren in New Orleans and the surrounding areas by sending urgent supplies of food,water,blankets etc and also financial support to the tune of USD5 million,which if you ask me is good for starters.But some bloggers out there can't appreciate the Indian governmnet's kind gesture.These are the words coming from the same people who called Bush stingy when he promised a measly 15 - 30 million USD for the victims of the Asian tsunami of December 2004.

Another event which comes into perspective is Terrible Tuesday a.k.a The Mumbai Floods which happened on July 26 2005.Even though the Maharastra government has 2 left feet and were indulging in mud-slinging ,the city got back on its feet a week later.Compare this to New Orleans and what do we have?A third world type situation!!

Mumbai or the rest of the Tsunami hit countries were not affected by incidents of large scale vandalism or violent shootouts after days preceeding the tragedy.

Things are different in New Orleans.Looting,vandalism and mobs who fire at the very people who want to help them.

Not to mention racism which had reared its ugly head once again.

FEMA and the Bush Administration - Shame on you.

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My heart goes out to the victims of Hurricane Katrina.Godspeed.

Useful Links for Job Hunters in India

1.www.koolkampus.com
2.www.freshersworld.com
3.CHETANA-JOBS@yahoogroups.com (my personal favorite,this group has a membership base of almost 230,000 people ,mostly students fresh out of college.The list is growing and has helped lots of people to get jobs.Has the latest question papers and other resources connected to tests conducted by software companies in India.)

Still more to come...

Technical Writing

I belong to the technical writing community and i started my career as a technical writer.If you are a newbie ,checkout this link.It has got a lot of resources connected to technical writing in India.You can subscribe to the site's mailing list ,get job alerts and so on.

http://twin-india.org/