Its my life!!!

The Fast ends. Its moral victory for the People...

2011-08-28T11:43:00.003+05:30

The Anna Hazare fast finally ended today after 288 hours. Herculean effort and all for the country. Kudos to the man for his steadfast resolution and for galvanizing the people for this movement.

As per Pranab Mukherjee's opening speech in Parliament yesterday, there were 40 points in Anna Hazare's Jan Lok Pal bill. Out of those 40 points, there was consensus with the government on 20 of them. On 7 points there was consensus with some editing and another 7 points had agreement between the two parties in principle. There were 6 points which faced differences between the two sides. These points were:

1. Bringing the PM under the Lok-Pal.

2. Bringing the conduct of the MPs inside the house under the purview of Lok-Pal.

3. Bringing the judiciary under the purview of Lok-Pal

4. Creating of Lok-Ayuktas (in states) as part of the Lok-Pal bill.

5. Bringing the lower bureaucracy under the Lok-Pal ambit.

6. Creating a citizen's charter for addressing people'e grievances.

After several rounds of discussion between Anna's team and the Govt., and also judging the opinion of the largest opposition party, the Govt. began to concede on bringing the PM under the Lok-Pal ambit.

It was also apparent that conduct of MPs inside the house would remain outside the scrutiny of the Lok-Pal since all parties unanimously opposed it.

As enshrined in our constitution, Judiciary is independent of the Legislature and everyone was of the opinion that however corrupt the judiciary might be, it would be wrong to bring the judiciary under the Lok-Pal for it would make the system devoid of the proper checks and balances that are required. Hence, unanimous opinion was to make the judiciary account through judicial accountability bill.

Point nos. 4,5,6 remained the sticky issues on which there was no considerable agreement and the opinion of the various political parties on this issue was also unclear. Anna wanted a resolution on the sticky points to be passed in Parliament so that the opinion of each of the political parties comes out in the open. Anna had kept the condition of breaking his fast only after the parliament passed a resolution agreeing to consider all the 3 points mentioned above.

After 8 hours of debate in Parliament on the 27th-Aug, it was clear that the Govt and the largest opposition party-BJP along with some of the other parties were in agreement to pass a resolution, agreeing on all the 3 sticky points. The final content of the resolution was presented to Anna Hazare paving the way for the fast to end after a 288 hours marathon.

The draft is now going to go through the Standing Committee before its passed by the Parliament. How long will that take, what would be final contents of the Bill and whether the Govt will rise above petty bickering to present a strong Lok-Pal bill is something that time will tell.

Let people's voices be heard and the country grow stronger into a more vibrant democracy in its true sense.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Sensex touches below 16K

2011-08-27T14:40:00.000+05:30

On Firday, 26th Aug, the Sensex went below 16K. When will the turnaround of the indices happen? Will this be an inordinately long bout where the bears will reign? Can I start buying into some of the counters again? How much can I invest? Questions that ring in my mind but have no definitive clues.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Economic Contagion Spreading...

2011-08-19T10:05:00.000+05:30

First was the downgrading of the American Economy by S&P from AAA to AA+ and now Europe seems to be in the doldrums with the weaker economies of the Eurozone (read Greece, Portugal) on the brink of default and the stronger economies registering negligible growth (as seen in France, Germany). Even Italy (one of the G7 countries) has had to pass austerity measures to keep its debt in control. Spain is struggling similarly. Whether this crisis will blow over soon is a million dollar question. But its definitely taking majestic proportions and threatening to go out of control at the moment.
The domestic economy is also paralyzed by high inflation and policy deficit. The ruling government is finding things difficult to get its way and political apathy is adding fuel to fire.
Right now, we can only hope that this vicious cycle gets a quick fix solution.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

On the Anna Movement...

2011-08-19T09:54:00.005+05:30

Heard many voices ridicule that not many know about the Jan Lok Pal but still support Anna. That's because he stands more for the anti-corruption movement against the existing system rather than the Jan Lok Pal. People might have differences with his version of the Lok Pal but find the Govts' watered down version of the bill inexplicable in such tumultuous times.

After all that has happened in the 'Anna' campaign till date, I am still perplexed regding the Govt. handling of the issue!!! It has now opened the Ram Lila grounds for agitation. As far as I see it, with the wave of support for Anna, the Govt will have to enter into discussion with him. So why not now and put an end to the agitation and start talking? Are back channel discussions in progress? Or is the Govt. hoping the tide of protests will die down?

19-Aug: Anna to continue his movement from the Ram Lila ground.

27-Aug: Anna's 3 sticking points with the Govt:
a) Introducing Lok-Ayuktas for the states as part of the Lok-Pal Bill
b) Introducing a citizen charter to listen to citizen's complaint.
c) Bringing the lower bureaucracy under the Lok-Pal.

As the Parliament debates these issues, a +ve resolution on all these points will result in Anna breaking his fast on the 12th day. The devil lies always in the details. Question remains if the Anna camp will now be satisfied with the new draft that is expected to be presented containing a resolution on all the 3 issues!!! Time will tell. But my personal opinion is now the fast should be broken and Parliamentary procedures allowed to take its course. I still find it difficult to believe that the Parliamentarians will deliver an honestly strong Lok-Pal bill. They will keep loop holes in between to save their skin. But, the agitation can continue once the final bill is presented and if it still compromises on corruption. Till then, let the Parliament reign supreme and allow the equilibrium of the democracy be restored. Let this end as a good precedent and not a horribly wrong dream where we get into a zero-sum game. That way, the civil society agitation will have a dignified place in history and set a good precedent of providing adequate checks-and-balances on the legislature which even the Constitution of the country would have considered as a master-stroke.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Birmingham 3rd Test Ind Vs Eng

2011-08-11T15:58:00.004+05:30

End of 1st Day:
India 224 all-out; Eng 84/0

Another pasting on the cards?

End of 2nd Day - its Eng 456/3 Alistair Cook nearing his double century.
India slipping fast from their no.1 tag.

3rd Day of the test-match:Decimation complete: India defeated by innings and 242 runs. One of the biggest margins of defeat for the team and a tight slap on the face of the no.1 team. Couldn't have gone down in a more embarrassing way:(

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Bengal govt to vest 270 acres of JSW in Salboni:(

2011-08-11T15:48:00.011+05:30

My initial reactions was:
Don't know what the govt is upto!!! First the land acquisition problems are scaring away the investors. And when the industry is acquiring land by themselves, they are being vested by referring to archaic land acquisition laws even when there are no reprisals by the landowners. Anti-industry and politically motivated...
Source: Business-Standard

Vest & lease plan for Jindals:
Some respite for the Jindal's perhaps after their setback in Karnataka where the Lokayukta indicted them of wrong-doings.
The Bengal government will vest the land the Jindals bought in Salboni in excess of the land ceiling and lease it back to their steel project to circumvent a procedural twilight zone.
Source: The Telegraph

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Indian Test team get a pasting in England

2011-08-07T20:41:00.001+05:30

With the Indian test team enjoying the status of the being the top-ranked test team, its on a visit to England to challenge the arguably most complete test team after the hammering the Australians received in the last Ashes series on their home-ground. The Indian team had a half-baked preparation on the placid West-Indian wickets just prior to the current series. The West-Indies series saw many of the top players missing from the ranks, cooling their heels after a hectic schedule involving the World-Cup and the IPL matches.
The team failed to give a good account of themselves in the West-Indies and have found themselves completely out-of-sorts in the current England trip - already trailing 2-0 to the Englishmen and burdened with injuries to top players like Sehwag, Zaheer, Gambhir and also plagued by fatigue or lack of battle readiness. They have been really found wanting against the rampaging Englishmen who have prevented the Indian batting line up from conjuring even a single 300+ total in 4 innings. Worse still, they have had a real bad outing against the Northants in the run-up to the 3rd Test and also go for the next rubber with the knowledge that Zaheer is out of the series permanently with injury. Also added to the list of injuries is Harbhajan and Yuvraj. Harbhajan though must be thanking his stars for the injury after having a poor performance in the last 2 series.
Everyone is hoping for a turn-around from this Indian side but the current form of the players does not raise too much hope.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Sayantan starts going to Pre-School

2011-08-07T20:02:00.004+05:30

Sayantan joined Euro-Kids from April, 2011 onwards. He has really taken a liking for the school and as parents, we are satisfied as well with the school's handling of the tiny-tots. Gearing up for his nursery admissions which seem to be a big milestone to achieve given the weird point system for admissions in Delhi.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Updates from National and International Arena...

2011-08-07T19:29:00.007+05:30

A lot of water has flown under the Thames since my last post. Just thought about updating the blog after a long time. Some of the important news that has captured the headlines since then are:

- After 18 long years of wait, the Indian team finally won the World Cup under Dhoni's captaincy with some inspirational performances from Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh. Its a moment to cherish and may the victory bugles continue to play for long.

- The Lok-Pal bill seems to have united the nation against corruption of the state. While the Congress Govt. tries to skirt the issue with a so called -"Jok-Pal Bill" that does not have much teeth to take to task the corrupted politicians and Babu's, the Anna Hazare camp is really giving them some tough times with some scathing questions.

- The 2G spectrum scam has taken toll on a number of high-profile politicians such as A.Raja, Kanimozhi, Dayanidhi Maran from the DMK camp and also on the party in the latest Tamil-Nadu elections in 2011.

- Suresh Kalamadi - the CWG OC is also being pressed on charges of swindling tax-payers money in the run up to the CWG event in New-Delhi.

- Osama Bin Laden was killed from his Abottabad compound in Islamabad, Pakistan following a daring action by the US Navy seals.

- America faces a serious fiscal crisis with its credit rating being on the line for its huge debt burden, raising the possibility of a double dip recession in US. Would it impact its war-on-terror? Time will tell.

- China is emerging as the new world power, flexing its muscles in ASIA and across the continents as well by lapping up vital resources like oil-fields to building Dams for holding up the waters from the rivers without caring for any water-sharing agreements with its neighbors. Its also accused of sponsoring mass scale cyber attacks all around the world. Its high-speed rail network is the cynosure of all eyes at present. Also, the state supported mobile company 'Huawei' is making the mobile market leaders like Ericcson shake in its legs. The Chinese Dragon is living upto its reputation, gobbling up everything that comes in its way.

- Google launches Google+ to compete with Facebook as the preferred social networking site.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

IT clients look beyond India

2009-12-09T09:29:00.001+05:30

9 Dec 2009, 0542 hrs IST, TNN

BANGALORE: IT buyers are expanding their global sourcing networks as part of an effort to reduce their dependence on a few large locations such
as India, says a new report by Everest Research Institute.

Recent events impacting offshore locations, such as terror attacks and typhoons, and suppliers (such as bankruptcies , frauds) have underscored the need for holistic risk management in global sourcing, the report says.

“Traditionally, global sourcing risk management approaches remained largely focused on engagement-level performance management. However, a more sophisticated approach to risk management compels buyers to understand risk from the entire sourcing ecosystem spanning each individual supplier and delivery location as well as the collective portfolio of suppliers and locations,’’ says the report.

The institute also says that another new global sourcing paradigm is emerging and generating additional push for creating a global delivery network.

“This new paradigm is associated with a more robust and complex demand profile that mandates a global delivery network and is creating further impetus for expanding the delivery footprint beyond the traditionally favoured offshore destination, India,” Everest says. A combination of these two factors is creating a demand for global locations that support technology and business process delivery. Clients now have a number of credible offshore destinations to choose from.

The report identifies these areas as Brazil, Central and Eastern Europe, Israel, Mexico, the Philippines and South Africa. These markets represent a blend of locations that are either superior skill markets or large talent markets that global sourcing buyers can’t ignore.

“The supplier landscape in these emerging markets includes a mix of global majors, India-centric suppliers expanding their delivery footprint, and domestic/regional suppliers that have roots in the emerging market. A handful of suppliers in this new category have acquired meaningful operating scale and, through investments in delivery capabilities and adopting industry best practices, successfully serve Global 1000 corporations,” the report says.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

All the RBI's men ...

2009-12-09T09:05:00.004+05:30

Read this:
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/need-coordinated-exitglobal-stimulus-rbi_429483.html

Brief:
Even as the global economy — faced with the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression — is undergoing an unprecedented churn, what measures should India take to see to it that its steady growth march does not come to a grinding halt?

More importantly, what should India’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India, do to ensure that the nation avoids committing the same mistakes that developed nations did — high debt, lack of regulation and over spending.

The respect for the Indian central bank has been mounting with each passing day among the fraternity of global economists for its prompt action before and during the global financial crisis, the men who helm — and helmed — the RBI engine sat down for an exclusive tête-à-tête with CNBC-TV18 to outline their views on the global and Indian economies and how the bank would be charting its course ahead in the field of policymaking.

On the occasion of the RBI’s 75th anniversary; RBI Governor D Subbarao along with former governors Bimal Jalan, YV Reddy and C Rangarajan spoke to Network18's Managing Director Raghav Bahl and CNBC-TV18 Banking Editor Latha Venkatesh.

The first volley thrown at the panel: How will the current global monetary policy — in terms of unprecedented stimuli issued — shape up and what would be its after effects?

See stimulus exit in a year

“I think the [global central banks’] response was appropriate and coordinated,” former governor Reddy began. “Given the type of challenges, it was better to be on the safer side and inject liquidity.” He said the next big challenge for central banks was to time an orchestrated global exit from the loose policy.

Rangarajan said that even as injection of stimulus to resuscitate the financial markets was an “extraordinary response to an extraordinary situation”, developed countries could not sustain the too much liquidity in the system for more than a year.

“This kind of extraordinary accommodation cannot continue for ever because the fiscal deficit of the United States is exceeding 10% and the policy rates being near zero will also cost problems for the United States in terms of the exchange rates,” he said. “Sooner or later, both the central banks and the government will have to act.”

Inflation no major concern

The present governor, Subbarao, said concerns of inflation rearing its head as a result of loose policy were “exaggerated”.

“Having said that, if oil prices shoot up, for example, there could be inflation from the supply side,” he said, which he added was a bigger a bigger threat than asset price inflation. He, however, admitted the danger of inflation was bigger than that of deflation in global economies going forward.

The central bankers also spoke on the disparity between the financial markets and real economy and said the debatable issue of capital controls must be seen on a case-to-case basis. “Capital inflows are, generally speaking, welcome particularly in a developing country. They go to build productive capacity but a distinction has to be made between types of capital flows,” Rangarajan said. “It could also go into speculative activities like raising prices of real estate or even crops.”

Subbarao said that during the time when the issue of participatory notes came up in 2007, there was “discussion and debate” within the RBI and the government.

“There was of course, differences on what needs to be done,” he recalled, “but I think we acted in coordination.”

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

What ET says!!!

2009-11-30T14:13:00.003+05:30

Auto:
The valuations in the auto sector stocks have gone up significantly during the last couple of quarters. Those invested in auto stocks at lower levels can book partial profits. However, those looking at taking fresh positions should be careful because the valuations of auto stocks are already stretched. The growth in sales could flatten going forward , and interest rates may also go up in the medium term.

Banking:
Stocks in the banking sector have been through a good rally during the last few weeks. The good results declared by large global banks have brought investor attention back to this sector.
The demand for retail loans picked up during the festival season. Those invested in bank stocks at lower levels can book partial profits.

IT:
The positive developments in the global economic conditions have kept the IT stocks in a bullish mode. These stocks are expected to do well as economic conditions improve in the developed markets. However, investors should track the dollar depreciation (rupee appreciation).
The sharp appreciation of the rupee against the dollar can play spoilsport in these stocks. Investors should go for stocks of large-cap companies that have a wider base and capability to hedge against sharp currency movements.

PSU:
The stocks of public sector units (PSUs) have come into the limelight due to talks of disinvestment in these companies. The government is also talking about the merger of some public sector banks. Investors should do their homework before taking any investment decisions.
The proposed disinvestment is not going to change anything from the control perspective of these PSUs and the money collected as part of this disinvestment will go mostly to the government.

Real-Estate:
The situation has definitely improved for companies in the real estate sector.
However, the stocks in this sector have shown high volatility due to their being sensitive to macroeconomic data on the global and domestic fronts.
There are many factors that directly or indirectly influence the movements in stocks of this sector.
Some of the main factors include data related to consumer confidence, raw material prices, job market data, interest rate data etc.
Investors with a longterm horizon can look at accumulating real estate stocks in correction phases.

Telecom:
The entry of new global players into the domestic telecom space has triggered a new tariff war.
The pricing pressure is quite visible in the recent results of leading telecom companies.
Although this is one of the fastest-growing mobile markets in the world with a huge potential for growth, investors should take a cautious approach on fresh positions in telecom stocks till the pricing war gets stabilised.
Investors with a longterm horizon and having telecom stocks in their portfolio should hold on to their positions, and look at averaging out at lower levels.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Questions you should ask before buying/selling in a market...

2009-11-06T11:54:00.007+05:30

- Is the stock amongst the high beta stocks (check volatility)
- Is the stock sensitive to change in interest rates and which way are the interest rates headed?
- How well is the sector (to which the stock belongs) performing?
- Has the stock shown some resistance in the face of a sharp rally or a sharp fall?
- How good is the management of the company? Does it instill confidence?
- How has been the performance of the company in the last 3 - 5 year period?
- Are MFs buying or selling the stock? Whether the better performing MFs holding this stock in their portfolio?
- Is the P/E ratio in a reasonable range?
- How good is the growth prospect of the sector to which the company belongs?
- What is the profit/loss % in the stock from which you want to exit? If profit is significant or loss is minimal, then you can think about exiting from the stock.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Feeding on the greed and fear of the stock markets

2009-10-27T12:54:00.002+05:30

Fearful or greedy about stocks? This might help
13 Oct 2009, 2031 hrs IST, AGENCIES

AMSTERDAM: It's said that greed pushes investors to buy stocks when they're overpriced, while fear drives sales when stocks are at or near a bottom.

With that in mind, Philips Electronics has teamed up with a prominent Dutch bank to develop a system of warning home traders when they're about to make a decision to buy or sell stocks while feeling overly emotional. It's called ``The Rationalizer,'' and a test model is on display at an innovation summit in Brussels this week.

It consists of an ``EmoBracelet'' that looks like it might come out of a science fiction film, and an light-emitting ``EmoBowl'' that rests near a trader's computer. The bracelet supposedly feels emotional states and sends radio signals to the bowl. As the user's feelings intensify, the bowl glows yellow, orange and finally red.

The emotion-detecting technology is a ``galvanic skin response sensor.''

``It's a very nice way of saying it measures the way you sweat,'' Philips' design arm director Geert Christiaansen said Tuesday.

He said the technique is surprisingly fast and accurate at detecting a person's overall emotional levels, though it doesn't distinguish between positive or negative feelings.

Paul Iske, who works for ABN Amro bank, said the system was favorably received by testers, and proved especially useful for men.

``Women are less emotional investors,'' he said. ``Men have too much attachment to the underlying assets. Women don't have that as much.''

The companies have no intention of getting a product onto shelves in time for Christmas.

``It's a demonstration model,'' Christiaansen said. ``You may see bits and parts of the design in many products, but not for years to come.''

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

The Journey of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala (I liked it...)

2009-10-23T09:10:00.001+05:30

We have seen a 80% rise in the stock markets over the last one year, the highest pace in fact in the last eight years and one man saw this

happening. We are talking about the pied piper of the Indian stock markets, none other than Rakesh Jhunjhunwala. A journey which started with just Rs. 5000 has now moved to this place, RaRe Enterprises (Ra-Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Re- Rekha Jhunjhunwala). Rakesh Jhunjhunwala spoke exclusively to ET Now of his experience with the markets and about his journey to the top.

When you first ventured into the stock markets, it must have been a huge gamble 20 years ago. You qualified as a CA, what made you take that step?

My father was also interested in stocks. When I was a young child, he and his friends would drink in the evening and discuss about the stock market. I would listen to them and one day I asked him why do these prices fluctuate. He told me to check if there is a news item on Gwalior Rayon in the newspaper, and if there was Gwalio Rayon's price would fluctuate the next day.

I found it very interesting and I got fascinated by stocks, I self-taught myself. My father told me to do whatever I wanted in life but at least get professionally qualified.

I was always a reasonably good student so I took up chartered accountancy. In January 1985, I completed my CA. I told my father I wanted to go to the stock market. My father reacted by telling me not to ask him or any of his friends for money. He, however, told me that I could live in the house in Mumbai and that if I did not do well in the market I could always earn my livelihood as chartered accountant. This sense of security really drove me in life.

But your first real large investment was Sesa Goa, I am curious to understand Sesa Goa, a commodity company, what prompted you to invest in Sesa Goa?

Sesa Goa had a big fall because there was a depression in the iron ore industry and then prices for the next year had been considerably raised about 20-25%. The stock was available abysmally cheap around Rs. 25-26. There was a projection of a very good growth in profitability in the next year but nobody seemed to believe it.

When I saw the facts, I wanted to invest but I did not have capital. Between 1986 and 1989 I must have earned Rs 20-25 lakhs. After 1986, the market went into a big depression for two three years but I put that money in Tata Power and the Tata Power stocks became about 1100-1200.

Now I was worth Rs 50-55 lakhs. I bought 4 lakh shares of Sesa Goa in forward trading, worth Rs 1 crore. I sold about 2-2.5 lakh shares at Rs 60-65 and another 1 lakh at Rs 150-175. The prices then went up to Rs 2200 and I sold some shares. I did some other trading too. I had net worth of about Rs 2 - 2.5 crore.

Was there any point of time when you came close to thinking that this is not for you or was it always a goal from the beginning?

I would not say that I did not come to a point where I had doubts in my mind, but my family circumstances and the support of my parents and my wife and my brother always let me do what I wanted in life. As long as I was not risking anything which I had not made with my own hands and I was playing with my money, I thought it was fine.

Your mother insisted that stock market is for gamblers, your wife is saying that she is a good luck charm, there was perhaps some amount of family resistance when you started your entry into stocks.

I would not say there was some kind of resitance, there was only some kind of apprehension. They never stopped me from going, they only warned me. There can be no greater well wisher for me in life than my mother. My mother says every man’s luck is his woman.

People will laugh at me, but when they ask me to make a wish for the next life, I will say I want the same parents, same brother and sister, same wife, same friends.

Are you superstitious, to what extent do you feel that luck has something to do with it?

I would not say I am superstitious. When you acknowledge that you have been lucky or you have been successful because of circumstances which are not what you have done or created, then you get humility, you do you feel that I am what I am because of what I am. You feel you are what you are because a set of circumstances came together and those circumstances were not brought together only by you, they were also brought together by fate. For example if Rakesh Jhunjhunwala has earned some wealth in life, the fact that the index was 150 when he came here and today the index is 17500, is one of the biggest contributors of the creation of the wealth, yes.

Did you ever in your wildest dreams imagine that we would be at these levels?

When index was at 150 points I did not have so much idea of markets but surely in 2002-2003 I felt that markets will see levels and India will see prosperity which we can't imagine right now. I still hold that view.

What does Rakesh Jhunjhunwala do when he does want to take some time out, indulge himself, is there something you enjoy doing?

I enjoy reading, I enjoy watching food shows.

Are you a big foodie?

Yeah, look at my size. Basically my favourite food is street food. I love the Chinese food on the streets, also I love the dosa. I do not get the taste in the paav bhaji anywhere so I tell my wife and then we make it at home. I basically like relaxing, I do not do much physical activity.

Now we know three sides of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, investor, trader and businessman, you have got a fourth side also and a very prominent fourth side which is the philanthropist, the philanthropist Rakesh Jhunjhunwala because I have been told that you got big plans to construct a children’s home.

I would not call myself a philanthropist and all, it is too early but surely see, we must realise one thing that the giver of this wealth is God, do not think we have earned it because we are smart. Ultimate giver is God and it casts a duty on us that this wealth be used for good social purposes. So it is the aim and ambition of my life that a good portion of the wealth that I earn would be used for good social purposes.

The only sure income that I have is dividend income and I spend one third of my dividend income in charity and I hope to do that in future and also with time I would like to endow at least Rs. 500 crores to a foundation and really work on charitable activity.

Everyone knows that you are both a successful long term investor as well as a trader, how do you manage to balance both?

Short term trading is for short term gain. Long term trading is for long term capital formation. Trading is what gives you the capital to invest. My trading also helps my investing in the sense I use a lot of technical analysis for trading at times.

If the stock is overpriced, I should sell but my trading skills tell me that the stock can remain overvalued or get more overvalued. Hence, I hold on to my investments.

So, I think they complement each other in many ways but they are two distinct compartments totally.

You make investment decisions quickly and with a lot of conviction. We got examples how you made a decision to buy Praj or Matrix, that is unique. When you are investing long term money, you need to assess it, you need some time assessing.

See, one thing first of all, all assessments can only be made up to a point. You are investing in the future, the future is uncertain. So you cannot make any prediction of profits to any preision and you look at the opportunity; you look at the people managing, you look at the competitive ability.

If the margin of what you think the value is and if you think the future can be so great then why spend time assessing it. If I thought that Matrix profits are going to be hundred crores and Matrix market cap is 150 crores then what should I invest, what should I research and what should I think. So when the opportunity is so great...

It is interesting that some of your best ideas have come not because of insider information, not because of insider edge, they have come because of simple common sense and news which is there in public domain.

Yes, they have, because many a times the insiders themselves do not know what is happening. My idea is to credit the factors which drive the portfolio which are the opportunities, the competitive ability, the people, the valuation, the return on capital.

So if those circumstances are present then why will profits not arise.

Welcome back, Samvat 2065, Indian markets have given astonishing return of 80%. Where from here, this Diwali to next Diwali, do you see Indian markets?

I see very very very very bullish for the very very very long term. Bullish for the short term and maybe you could see a correction in the mid-term.

What extent of a correction could we see?

I wish I knew.

Have you made any large investments in the last three months?

I have not made large investments in the last three months because I have been fully invested right through the fall and right through the rise but I did make some investments in the last one or two years.

You have often indicated that it is important to buy but it is equally important to buy at a right price, are prices right?

Well, prices are right. There can be no generalisation, you know, look at the equity, you can still find investment opportunities at these price levels. In 2003 bull market, I made some of the best investments in which I made the largest money.

I made the investment in Praj Industries in January 2004 with the index of 5500 and it nearly doubled and I sold some part of it about 250 times appreciation even now.

Any area that you have been looking to exit or you think it is the right time to exit over the last few months or now?

As far as the exits are concerned, I keep buying-selling something, nothing substantial. The variability in my portfolio will not be more than 5% or 3%. Personally, I have decided that at some point of time, regardless of companies, looking at the macro, I am going to exit all my investments because the history of bull markets tells us that excesses go to such levels and to recapture them takes decades.

What are the biggest driving factors for the markets going ahead?

Well, driving factor for the market is that there is a transition from West to the East. We have good regulation, good trading platforms, there is mountain of savings; we are just going to go up every year driven by growth in GDP demographics, growth in financial markets.

The foreigners have no choice but they will invest where growth is 10%, I think that is what is driving markets.

Is that a case where next 12 to 24 months' earnings do not expand and PE multiples will expand?

I do not think so. I think earnings will expand faster than what people are anticipating and already none of the results have disappointed.

You have no exposure to real estate, very little exposure to technology and very little exposure again to commodities.

Well, I will not buy real estate even today. Look at the way you can get value for a stock by issuing an old stock and there is the continued circle to get constant earnings. It is speculation of the highest order.

What happens in real estate price discovery is most imperfect and I do not like the general real estate.

Although bullish in the residential real estate in India, I do not think there are models which are sustaining.

As far as technology is concerned, I think it is a mature industry. I am bearish on US dollar, I have large investment in the unlisted space. I have some exposure to commodities and I have a large investment in oil companies.

Maybe it was by design of accident, I missed the cement boom and I never invested again. I missed the cement boom in 2003-2004-2005. As far as other industries are concerned I was bullish on Tata Steel because of the Corus factor, but I did not buy.

So what would Rakesh Jhunjhunwala buy today?

Well, what I buy today and what I sell today is a matter of personal...

Which sector would you look at?

I would look at all India sensitive sectors, retailing, banking, infrastructure, pharma.

How do you see yourself, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, the family man, the investor or the businessman?

See, the only truth of life is death and that when I am going to die I would say boss, just leave me for three hours, I would buy one stock, I will do some trading, I will spend some time with my children, my wife, I will have two drinks and then you can burn me. So it has to be combination of everything.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

The Metal Pack (Source: BS)

2009-10-06T10:54:00.000+05:30

While the run-up in prices have made metal stocks expensive, medium term prospects are unattractive due to weak demand and inventory pile-up.
The rally in domestic metal stocks is backed by the rise in metal prices, ranging from 30-100 per cent, since February 2009. Signs of a global economic recovery, surge in Chinese imports and weakness in the dollar had fuelled the rally in metal prices. This helped metal stocks move up higher than the broader markets. The BSE Metal index has gained 157 per cent against the 73 per cent rise in Sensex since January 2009. However, analysts now believe that the fortunes of the sector, although they remain intact from a longer term perspective, do not look attractive from the medium-term standpoint as metal prices are expected to correct following the recent rally and notably, the piling up of inventories (of non-ferrous metals at the London Metal Exchange; LME). Besides, there are worries regarding the recent global economic recovery, which may not be as strong as anticipated and might get prolonged. Last but not the least, metals stocks, too, are not attractive at current valuations. The BSE Metal index is trading at a price to book value of 2.37 times and PE of 15.18 times, which is higher as compared to its five-year average of 2.33 and 7.7 times, respectively. At current levels, share prices indicate that a lot of positives are already factored into valuations.
Industrial metals
Consequent to the demand destruction as a result of falling global economic activity, prices of non-ferrous metals dropped below their respective marginal cost of production and most companies opted to cut output. As a result, global non-ferrous metal production was cut by 10-15 per cent during April 2008 and February 2009. However, since then, demand has shown signs of revival on account of recovery in global industrial and economic activities. “People did not buy anything till 2008 and beginning of 2009, but as most government started spending too much of money to revive their economies, people have again started to buy and pile up inventories,” says Jim Rogers of Singapore-based Rogers Holdings and author of Hot Commodities.
The demand for industrial metals is closely linked with economic activity, which is why analysts believe that buying in metals started in the hope of an economic revival. The IMF, in its recent World Economic Outlook report, has projected world GDP growth of 3.1 per cent in CY2010. While it is significantly higher as compared to the 1.1 per cent decline projected in CY2009, it is still far from 5.2 per cent in CY2007. According to the data, the US, Europe, Japan and Russia are expected to see a strong recovery, but only in CY2010.
This is also a reason that most analysts believe that the long-term fundamentals of the metals sector are promising. However, from the near-term perspective as Tarang Bhanushali, analyst who tracks metals at India Infoline says, "Metal prices from here could consolidate within a range of about 10 per cent for some time given that China, which was earlier importing and building capacities have stopped doing so. Also, the new supplies (plants) which were earlier closed have (or will) come on stream due to the rise in metal prices.” This should restrict any rise in prices, unless global economic growth surprises on the upside.
"China’s imports are coming down, but in the rest of the world restocking is still happening in metals. As far as prices are concerned we do not think they will go up from these levels significantly, but at the same time there is little downside considering that metal prices are still trading at reasonable levels, which is marginally above the cost of production," says Rakesh Arora, who tracks the metals sector at Macquarie Securities.
“It is very unlikely that commodity prices will correct towards the low levels seen at the beginning of the year. This is mainly due to a combination of stabilising demand, ongoing stimuli, tight fundamentals and a weak dollar versus emerging market currencies," says Diego Parrilla, managing director and head of commodities-Asia Pacific, Merrill Lynch in an interview with Business Standard, last week.
Aluminium
Amongst the most widely used non-ferrous metals, aluminium has an edge over others as it will benefit the most in case of any revival in the global economy. Asia accounts for 43 per cent of world consumption, wherein economic growth is expected to be faster. According to IMF estimates, developing Asia’s GDP is expected to grow at 6.2 per cent in 2009 and 7.3 per cent in 2010. Also, the revival in automobile, packaging and construction sectors, which are the largest consumers of aluminium, as well as the demand from the power sector, would augur well for this metal. However, most of these benefits are seen accruing in CY2011, as major global economies are expected to see revival by end of CY2010. During 2009, despite an expected 6 per cent decline in world aluminium production to 37.25 million tonne, the surplus is expected to remain as consumption is expected to be lower at 34.63 million tonne. Also, analysts fear that spare capacities might be put to use in the near term if metal prices rise further. Any meaningful recovery in aluminium prices is seen only beyond CY2010; per tonne prices are expected to average at about $1,900-1,930 in CY2010 and $2,200 in CY2011, as compared to the current price of $1,850.
Copper & Zinc
Lower demand, a sharp cut in China’s copper imports recently, higher inventory at LME and over 100 per cent increase in copper prices since March 2009, are near-term concerns for copper prices. In CY2009, global copper production is expected to be lower by 3.6 per cent, but consumption is seen falling by 4.6 per cent. Copper fortunes are only seen improving in CY2010 when production and consumption are expected to grow at about six per cent each.
In CY2008, Zinc’s global consumption grew by 0.5 per cent as against 9.1 per cent rise in production. Even during January to July 2009, consumption fell by 10.77 per cent, while production slipped by a lower margin of 7.17 per cent. Thus, inventories have piled up from a low of 70,000 tonne in September 2007 to about 436,000 tonne currently. Despite this, zinc prices have been rising as China, which consumes about 30 per cent of global zinc production, continued to import and accumulate its inventory. However, as zinc prices are up 73 per cent since March this year and inventories have risen sharply, prices are expected to remain subdued going ahead. Also, slowing imports from China and incremental supplies coming at higher prices might cap zinc prices. Analysts estimate prices to trade at current levels of $1,855 per tonne during CY2010 and CY2011. Any recovery is only seen in CY2012, when prices are seen at about $2,125 per tonne.
Sterlite industries
Sterlite Industries’ edge is its low cost of production and any recovery should mean relatively more gains for the company. In copper, while refining margins have improved from their lows, it has signed long-term contracts at 67 per cent higher rates as compared to CY2008. This year, revenues are expected to drop by about 4-5 per cent given the lower realisations; in 2010-11 though, realisations are seen improving by over 25 per cent. More importantly, operating profit margins are expected to improve from 22.2 per cent in 2009-10 to 30 per cent in 2010-11 due to cost reduction, better realisations and contribution of power business. Sterlite will be commissioning a total of 2,500 mw of merchant power capacities by July 2010; of this 600 mw capacity is being commissioned in October 2009. The power business would contribute almost 30 per cent of earnings in 2010-11. Overall, revenues will also be aided by expansion of its zinc capacity by 2,10,000 tonne per annum and doubling of aluminium capacity at Balco, both by October 2010. On the sum of parts basis, analysts value the stock between Rs 750-850 per share due to its stake in different subsidiaries and cash in the books.
Hindalco Industries
Hindalco is a leading aluminium producer and among the low cost producers globally. The performance of Hindalco’s US subsidiary, Novelis (accounts for about 70 per cent of the consolidated sales), is seen improving as demand in two of its biggest markets (US and Europe) is stabilising. Due to steps towards lowering costs and the recent improvement in realisations, Novelis’ EBDITA per tonne is expected to improve from $83 per tonne in Q4 2008-09 to about $180 per tonne in 2009-10 leading to higher consolidated profitability. Overall, aluminium business is expected to do well with higher prices and volumes on account of expansion of capacities and higher shipments recorded by Novelis. Its copper business (26 per cent of revenues) is expected to report revenues in line with last year’s levels, given the lower demand and realisation (refining margins). Overall, while fundamentals are improving for the company, most of the gains are already reflected in its rich valuations.
Nalco
Nalco, another low cost producer of aluminium globally, has been able to grow in terms of volumes despite the depressed LME metal prices. The company reported 20.46 per cent growth in its production volumes in June quarter. It has increased its alumina and aluminium production capacities by 31 per cent to 2.1 million tonne, and by 28 per cent to 0.46 million tonne, respectively. Revenues are however, expected to be lower by about 9-10 per cent this year, due to lower metal prices. Analysts estimate LME prices to trade lower, which will also mean lower realisations for Nalco as it mostly deals in primary aluminium products, wherein prices closely track the trend in LME aluminium prices. Operating profit margins, too, are seen lower at 26.5 per cent as against the 32.9 per cent in 2008-09. Analysts expect its aluminium volumes to grow by about 10-15 per cent in 2010-11. Nevertheless, the stock is over-valued and more than factors in the positives.
Ferrous metal—Steel
Globally, about 60 per cent of steel is consumed by the US, Europe and China. The recent recovery in industrial activities of these countries is some good news for the sector. This is also evident from the increase in steel production from the lows of last year. “Globally, the demand has improved partly due to the fact that most of the inventories were depleted and people are once again buying to build their inventories led by marginal recovery seen in the end user industries,” says Manoj Kumar Agarwal, MD, Adhunik Metaliks. The recovery however, is not strong as global steel demand in CY2009 is expected to be lower by about 9-10 per cent and is seen recovering only in CY2010 by about 4-5 per cent.
The results are also seen in global steel prices, which corrected from $1,100 per tonne in July 2008 to a low of about $400 per tonne in May 2009, and are now up to $550 per tonne levels. However, prices are not expected to move up fast and are seen hovering around $600 in CY2010 as demand is yet to pick up on a sustainable basis. Steel companies also believe that only if coking coal and iron ore prices move up sharply (earlier levels of $300 and $200, respectively), then prices will move higher.
Tata Steel
While Tata Steel’s European subsidiary, Corus (accounts for almost 80 per cent of consolidated revenues), incurred losses in June 2009 quarter, on the back of an expected revival in European economies, it is likely to do well. Corus’ capacity utilisation is expected to go up from 53 per in June 2009 to 70 per cent this year and about 80 per cent in 2010-11. Besides, recovery in steel prices along with measures to curtail production costs by $1.2 billion at Corus should help improve margins. While Corus reported an operating loss of $117 per tonne, it is now expected to report profits in 2009-10 and 2010-11 adding significantly to Tata Steel’s consolidated performance.
Tata Steel’s domestic operations are growing with strong volumes, however realisations are lower compared to last year. Its advantage of low cost of production and focus on long products has helped tap the emerging demand from the domestic infrastructure sector. Its steel volumes were up by about 22 per cent in quarter ended June 2009. Though fundaments are improving, analysts feel that the share price is up significantly and the stock can only be considered from a two year perspective on the hope that global economies recover as anticipated.
SAIL
SAIL largely sells its produce in the domestic market, which is also a reason that it is relatively insulated from the slowdown as local demand has been relatively better. However, its realisations will be lower this year, and thus, its revenues are expected to fall by 10-12 per cent. Positively, lower raw material costs (average coal cost was over $250 per tonne in 2008-09 and is expected to be $150 per tonne in 2009-10; it was $185 in June 2009 quarter) mean that operating profits should be slightly higher this year. The larger benefits will be post 2012, as its current capacities will go up from 11.4 million tonne to 20.2 million tonne by March 2012. Analysts believe valuations are not cheap.
JSW Steel
The recent recovery in steel demand and prices along with higher production and cost savings (led by lower coking coal and iron ore prices) have proved positive for JSW Steel, whose share prices has risen by 250 per cent since January 2009. JSW has recently added 2.8 million tonne of new crude steel capacity, taking its total capacity to 7.8 million tonnes. It is further expanding its capacities by 10 million tonnes by March 2011. Due to higher capacity JSW Steel has projected a 78 per cent growth in sales volumes at 6.1 million tonne for 2009-10. While analysts expect the volume growth to range 60-65 per cent, they believe it will not translate into revenue and profit growth, as realisations would be lower compared to last year. In 2008-09, average realisations were Rs 37,117 per tonne and are projected to come down to Rs 26,000-28,000 per tonne in 2009-10, due to lower steel prices. At the current levels, the stock is expensive.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

'The past and The present'

2009-01-09T21:07:00.006+05:30

Truly spesaking, its been a whirlwind journey after marriage. The honeymoon trip to Manali was very memorable. And thereafter, started a life with loads of responsibilities. Not that I shirk them but yes, the carefree attitude had to go out of the window.

However, the sense of togetherness brings with it lots of joy and happiness. And that is what I been lucky to witness in the company of my wife.

One of the milestones of Rupanjali's career was reached when she successfully enrolled herself for the PhD program towards the last week of January, 2008. The next milestone was that of her paper being published in the Malaria journal in September, 2009. By this time, I had also slipped into the comfort zone at Alcatel-Lucent.

But apart from all these, there was another lingering thought that was running through our minds; and that was about the joys of the impending parenthood and the responsbilities that it would bring along. An anxious wait throughout the month of October gave way to the birth of 'Sayantan' on the 5th of November, 2008. And wasn't it a great feeling to have him with us!!! Slowly but surely Sayantan has grown from a tiny tot to a more grown up one, if I may say so. But this hasn't come about without many a nightouts for the two of us. Now Rupanjali has surely started to understand his whims and fancies. For all his snaps uploaded till date, visit: http://picasaweb.google.com/saikat.chaudhuri/OurSonDeep#

While I write this blog, my wife and my son are hundreds of miles away. And the longing for them in my heart grows by each passing day. Another 13 days to go before I catch up with them once again. And wouldn't it be a joyful re-union then!!!

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

"Courting my love"

2008-10-18T14:54:00.001+05:30

July,2007 to December,2007: One of the most cherished periods of my life till date; Life was like "Movie, Masti, Magic' :-) My wife to be - 'Rupanjali' and myself used to have real fun then on weekends - We would be roaming all around the city of Delhi and Gurgaon - almost visiting a new spot every next weekend. Starting from the Humayun's tomb to Qutab Minar; Chadni Chowk market to 'The Karims'; Connaught Place to Priya Cinemas to Chanakyapuri and how can we forget the 'Leisure Valley', our most frequented place!!!!
And as December approached, we waited with baited breath for The Day - 14th of Dec, 2007.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Ahoy!!! Ahoy!!!

2007-06-30T09:37:00.000+05:30

Cometh 2007, cometh, un-arguably, one of the most happening and eventful years of my life.

The year started off with the purchase of my new car - perhaps a dream that everybody has in his/her eyes as soon as they start earning. After much efforts, running after loans agents, hopping to different showrooms and dealer negotiations, it was finally there on the 24th of Jan, 2007. And I felt proud to be the owner. After all, I had saved every bit for this moment. Apart from a freak accident in Feb, 2007, I every enjoyed every bit of my rides on the new WagonR LXI.

Then came the next and probably one of the most momentous occasions in my life - My Engagement with Rupanjali. Ever since we first met in Oct, 2006; the chain of mails and interactions finally culminated with the proposal finally getting the elder's nod on the 6th of May, 2007. And guess where was I at that point of time? Ssssshhhhhhh.... I was returning from Varanasi after a secret meeting with her. Every minute spent in her company seemed to come as a whiff of fresh air - an entirely new experience; the moments spent on the banks of the Ganges, the movie hall, the luncheons together and of course (How Can I forget!!!) - the trips to VT. The engagement was scheduled for the 20th of June, 2007. And both of us waited with bated breath for the day.

On the engagement day, it was a feeling of excitement that gripped both of us. With the relatives pouring in and the two of us being the cynosure of all eyes, the moment really seemed special. The uploaded snaps can be found at: http://picasaweb.google.com/saikat.chaudhuri/AshirbadSnaps

About a month later after the engagement, it was time for Rupanjali to shift to Delhi to pursue her career after completing her Masters. And since her arrival, the two of us together have shared some wonderful moments in each other's company. In the meantime, Rupanjali appeared for her first interview of her career for the post of a research assistant at the prestigious IGIB. And on the 31st of July, came her confirmation for the post. The gleam and excitement in her eyes was unbelievable.

At the same time, towards the end of July, my brother's BSc results had been declared. Calcutta University had spared the tricks that it had played last time and my mother and myself were a relieved lot.

Its nearly the end of August now and Rupanjali has quietly but surely settled into her job. Rupnajali's ICMR results have also been declared and she has surprisingly made it to waiting list. No mean achievement considering the little window of time that she had for her preparations and given the competitive nature of this All-India exam. Only time will tell how things will unravel in the future. I have also planned to diversify my career a bit and have thus enrolled myself for the CFA course from ICFAI.

Rupanjali and myself are looking forward to our wedding scheduled on the 14th of December,2007. As the events unfold, I will keep updating this post. Till then...

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

A Transition that was to be...

2006-12-10T21:00:00.000+05:30

It was in August, 2004 that I started to get a feel of the Nokia-ISS project. Having worked for the Nokia CX-MMI team till then, I was more involved in GUI based applications which began to feel like a bore after having spent a year in Newgen working on VC++. So with the Nokia-ISS project opportunity coming up, I saw an opportunity to shift to the domain of Linux/Solaris, which is probably the most commonly used domain the Telecom field. But as luck would have it, as soon as I moved out from the CX-MMI team, the team members started getting an opportunity to visit the Nokia-UK setup for 3 months of on-site opportunity.

I had the big plus of working on a more coveted platform and was thus never un-duely depressed that I did not get the opportunity of an on-site visit. Since April, 2005 onwards, I had the full responsibilty of the project on my shoulders. While it meant that I had to look into all the nitty-gritties of the project, it also meant an additional amount of independence for me because I had the liberty to chalk out my work as I wished to. Additionally, Nokia being an excellent customer, providing customer support in the project was never a problem.

By the time it was Sep, 2006, I realized that I should now scout for fresh waters for a new project that would provide some value-addition to my profile. I was looking for VOiP and 3G related projects when the IJPP for the current I-HSPA project came up. In Oct, 2006, I took up the new project assignment and finally left the SS7 products team on the 8th of Dec,2006.

Working with the Products group was a different experience. I had heard earlier that in Products, you have full Masti along with some real good work. True to that image, I found that the SS7 group was a team comprising of a vivacious group of people. Well, one can't deny that the first name that could possibly come to one's mind is Kamal Kishore Pandey - a chap with "No holds barred" attitude. Well there was of-course the other fresher chaps - Prabhakar, Nimish and the oldie-goldie - Ankit Sharma who would always keep the team on the brink of laughter. Then there were the technically serious guys like Swapnil (Swap), Vipul, Nilesh.... Haidar would receive the highest nominations for being the scape-goat guy of the team - if anything has gone wrong - guys would jokingly put it across as Haidar - the Fall guy. Then there was Simon Saha - who never cared whether anyone laughed at his jokes or not - he would be always at the fore-front trying to make people laugh. And people did laugh - not so much at the humour of his jokes rather than the humour that he used to create while trying to tell a joke. His huge under-belly was a cynousre of all eyes in the team. Then comes the likes of Pavan and Arif sir - the Technically sound and with Dedication in their hearts to be darling of the customers of the company - many a times at the expense of their own families. Who can forget the burly - Gaurav Singh - the man with innovative excuses during office hours. Last but not the least, it would be in-appropriate to leave out the name of Manish Sharma - a person who held the team together. While heas around, the size of the group going for lunch would be envy of all eyes in the Presidency building. And of course, the gang for the chai-party in the attrium - Deepak, Swapnil, Nilesh, Mohit and myself - that was mighty enjoyable:-)

So I left all these moments beind and took up a new challenge - a new project involving 3G networks, starting from the 11th of Dec, 2006. I was bid a warm farewell by the SS7 group and the momories of that one year assocaition is going to stay with me forever.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

"Movies, Masti, Magic..."

2006-09-24T10:42:00.000+05:30

Three movies in a week!!! That’s something that has never happened with me before. But after loads of work, you seriously feel the need to chill out by the end of the week.
Saw United 93 – last Sunday-17th Sep, Munna Bhai Lage Raho on Tuesday – 19th Sep and Dor – Yesterday – 23rd Sep.

United 93 was based on the Al-Qaida’s attack on US on 9/11 and depicted the bravery of the passengers aboard the plane, United 93 who took up the cudgels to crash the air-liner in no-man’s land rather than allow it to hit Washington DC.
The movie was more on the lines of a documentary showing the element of surprise amongst the Americans where they can scarcely believe that their symbols of prosperity and strength are targeted one-by-one by Al-Qaida terrorists on a suicide mission. It also displayed the lack of preparedness on the front of the American air-force to deal with the emergency. Despite having the information that there were multiple hijacking at the same time and that two of the planes had already hit the twin-towers in New York, little could they do to prevent the third air-liner from crashing into the Pentagon Headquarters. Soon screams from the cock-pit alerted the Air Traffic Controller that another plane – United 93 had also been hijacked. The hijackers on board U-93 had killed the flight captain and his sub-ordinate and had taken control of the plane.
Meanwhile, as the passengers destined to their fate started bidding good-bye to their near and dear ones, they came to know of the attack on the twin-towers and the Pentagon. Soon they realized that the hijackers were on a suicide mission and none of them would be spared for a ransom. With their lives at stake, some of the passengers mustered the guts to use all they had at their disposal and attack the hijackers and retain back the control of the plane. But in the process, the plane crash-landed into no mans land and none survived.
It’s a very serious kind of stuff and not the usual movie with the hero(es) or the heroine(s) hogging the lime-light. It’s a movie completely based on impersonal lines and a movie to watch out only if you have plenty of interest in the nitty-gritty’s of the incident. We came out of the hall somewhat enriched in knowledge regarding the incident but none too refreshed.

Munna Bhai Lage Raho – Many including myself thought that this was a sequel to “Munna Bhai MBBS”. And truly speaking, I haven’t relished too many sequels. So I was a bit circumspect regarding the value for money factor. After all 150 bucks is no small an amount. Incidentally, it so happened that the day we saw U-93, we had actually gone to see MBLR. That being on a week-end, all the shows were booked. Luckily, that very Tuesday, we had a party at office and planned to watch MBLR.
Well, the movie was no sequel to MBMBBS. With most of the core team remaining the same, the movie was however on an entirely different concept. It revolved the concept of applying Gandhi’s principles to take care of real world problems. The message was adequately communicated. The acting of Arshad Warsi aka Sarkeshwar aka Circuit was absolutely superlative. His expressions using his eyes and facial changes along with his accent of a typical Mumbai “Tapori” left everyone bursting into laughter every now and then. However, the scenes of emotion were no less emphatic. Vidya Balan too plays her role to a nicety and shows why she is being rated so high of late. The movie was a classic with “Gandhigiri” being interleaved with comedy throughout the movie. The concept was altogether a new one and the message sent across does leave an impression even after you have left the cinema hall. All-in-all, it’s a must watch movie with great conceptualization and brilliant screenplay.

Dor – I have always loved movies which have a strong story-line. Iqbal was one such film. And with Shreyas Talpade and Girish Karnad involved, Dor promised to be somewhat on similar lines. The 4 stars in its TOI rating further ignited my interest. However, most of my friends usually do not share the same sentiments regarding movies. For them, a light movie is more value for money. So when I asked my room-mate to watch this movie along with me, I just hoped it would have some elements of entertainment for him as well.
Although it was a newly released movie, there weren’t too many takers for the movie in the hall (Perhaps there weren’t too many people who belong to my class:)). The movie is based on the lives of two women, Zeenat and Meera who are newly wed and have to part with their respective grooms who leave for Saudi for better work prospects. Zeenat belongs to a Muslim family based out of Himachal Pradesh, and Meera belongs to a Hindu Family based out of Rajasthan.
The lives of both the ladies change once Shankar, Meera’s husband is reported to be murdered by Amir, who is Zeenat’s spouse. Amir is sentenced to death according to Saudi law and the only thing that can save his life is a signature from Meera on a document forgiving Amir for the crime.
Zeenat is sanguine that the incident was an accident and not a murder. She sets off in search for Meera to obtain her signature on the document. The movie then captures the sentiments of the two women from two different regions and how Zeenat’s zest for life rubs off on the life of Meera who, till then, was leading the life of a desolate widow. Shreyas Talpade provides some light as well emotional moments in the film with equal panache and livens up the movie in the second half. Both, Ayesha Takia (Meera) and Gul Panag (Zeenat) give off strong performances and probably capture the maximum possible attention of the audience. In short, it’s a movie with a strong story line and scores even better in terms of picturisation. What’s noticeable is that both heroines are without make up in the entire film.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Exotic snaps from the trip to Agra and Manali in Aug'06

2006-09-18T09:19:00.001+05:30

I am back...

2006-09-07T08:40:00.001+05:30

It a'int surprising if somebody wondered whether this guy vanished into thin air, after all!!! No posts for one full month; where did he go?
Well, August for a change, was full of activities.With my mother,brother,mashi n mesho then scheduled to visit Gurgaon around the 2nd week of the month, the early days of August was a wake up call for me to get into the cleaning up act. I am not dirty but you know how a bachelor's room inevitably looks like, don't you - things strewn all over the place, books and computer covered with a layer of dust, smelling bed-sheets, et al... :) But trust me, I was much cleaner on most of those counts. However, a sprucing up act was of-course required.

My family reached Delhi on the 9th of Aug. During their stay, we visited Agra (Mathura & Vrindavan- both en-route to Agra) during the first week-end and then went to visit the Himalayan paradise - Manali, the following week.

Their stay lasted around 10 odd days. On the flip side, the climate at Gurgaon was pathetic during that period - high temperatures coupled with humidity made matters worse. But, thankfully, the trips were pretty successful and they left satisfied at the end . My family departed from Delhi on the 19th of Aug and from then on, I have plunged myself into the the current assignment @office so as to be able to find time for my Puja vacations.
So looking forward to Durga Puja and eager to be back home soon...

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Info corner... July'06

2006-07-26T18:31:00.000+05:30

General Tit-Bits:

Maruti comes out with a new version of Wagon-R with dual fuel injection system. It can operate, both, on petrol as well as LPG.
Tata Steel Ranked World’s Best Steel Maker for the third time - Study by World Steel Dynamics. The WSD report of February 2006 covers the study of all the leading steel manufacturing companies across the globe including POSCO, Arcelor, Nippon Steel, Bao Steel, Thyssen Krupp on 20 different parameters. Emerging out of the study, Tata Steel has been ranked first with a weighted average score of 8.51 as against a score of 8.11 last year. POSCO of South Korea followed in the second place with 8.41. The production capability of Tata Steel at the end of the Financial Year, 2005-2006 stands at around 5 mn tonnes. NatSteel, acquired by Tata Steel has a capacity of around 2mn tonnes.
Infosys will be the first Indian company to remotely ring the Monday bell to open trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York - reports CNN-IBN on July, 29, 2006. Infosys was India's first global company, with more than 90 per cent of its US$ 2.1 billion in annual revenues coming from overseas.

National & International News:

Mumbai rocked by seven serial blasts in local trains on July 11, 2006..
Israel launches offensives in Gaza and Lebanon over the capture of Israeli soldiers.
The United States House of Representatives on 27th July, '06 overwhelmingly voted for a legislation providing greater access of sensitive nuclear technology to India after defeating potential deal breaker amendments. The legislation, cleared by the 435-member House by a 359-68 vote nearly four hours after taking it up for debate, must now be approved by the Senate before being signed into law by President George Bush. Besides the Senate, the deal, which was reached during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to the U.S. in July 2005, needs the clearance from the Nuclear Suppliers Group, an assembly of nations that export nuclear material.
Srilankan army launches air-offensive against LTTE.
The Affirmative Action Committee, set up under the chairmanship of J J Irani by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), has given the thumbs down to the government’s suggestion of reservations in the private sector. It has proposed several benefits for disadvantaged groups of society, including SC/STs, but not OBCs. These sops aimed at helping create employment includes help to create 100 SC/ST entrepreneurs by large firms, setting up of coaching centres in 10 universities for 10,000 students belonging to the lower strata of society apart from the setting up of 10 coaching centres that will cater to 5,000 students preparing for professional and technical courses.
Eminent cardiologist and executive director of Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre, N Trehan is planning to expand his MediCity project beyond Gurgaon. "Discussions have been initiated to set up MediCity in Kolkata similar to the one coming up in Gurgaon and the proposal is likely to be finalised within the next three-four months," he said.

Economics & Business:

WTO talks fail in Geneva with US refusing to budge on the issue of Farm-subsidies. EU had agreed to reduce farm subsidies by 75%. Meet attended by G-6: U.S., the EU, Australia, Brazil, Japan and India.
The RBI raised the reverse repo rate (the rate at which the RBI sucks out liquidity from the system ) from 5.75 per cent to 6 per cent and the repo rate (the rate at which the RBI lends its short term funds or the process of injecting funds into the system) to 7 per cent with immediate effect. Dr. Reddy expressed concern in particular over the fact that the credit growth of banks was much higher than deposit mobilisation. This would also help keep the inflation in check.
Tatas, Fiat team up to make cars. Tata Motors and Fiat have scaled up their alliance that was forged last year. The two companies will now undertake joint production of passenger cars, engines and transmission systems in India.
Mittal on 26th July,'06 stated that he had acquired 92% control of Arcelor. Ever since Mittal made the offer to Arcelor, the combined market capitalisation of the two companies has gone up by 8 billion USD. The merged entity, to be christened Arcelor-Mittal, would control 10 per cent of the world's steel making capacity that is currently estimated at 1,000 million tonnes a year.

Telecom Sector:

In April 2006, the number of mobile subscribers in India reached 96.92mn while fixed line telephone subscribers stood at 47.50mn. Total telephony subscribers in the country crossed 144mn. Gross tele-density reached around 13.16. Total broadband connections in the country in April,'06 stands at 1.4mn. In the last two years, the number of telephone connections have doubled.
DoT is augmenting the spectrum availability for 3G roll-out in India. A Rs.1000 crore project initiated for release 45MHz from defence.
After the Alcatel-Lucent mega merger, it was the turn of the the Nokia-Siemens big ticket merger in the Telecom circles. The 50:50 joint venture isvalued @$30bn. It will start with 60K employees with revenue of 15.8bn euros. Siemens has a strong fixed-line network equipment, Nokia specialises in the wireless equipment side. Before the merger, Nokia had sales of 6.56bn euros and operating profit of855mn euros. Siemens had sales of 13.1bn euros and operating profit of 45mn euros.
Stockholm based Erricson is valued at $61.8bn (last Oct, it acquired fixed line gear maker Marconi Corporation's broadband internet and telecommunication assets for $2.2bn. The Paris based Alcatel-Lucent entity is valued at $36bn and the Nokia(FIN) - Siemens(GER) entity is valued at $30bn. Motorola has been pushed to fourth position among 'Network Equipment Makers'.

Sports:

Italy wins Football WC'06 by defeating France in the Finals on 9th July,'06. Golden Ball awarded to: Zinedin Zidane(FRA). Golden Boot awarded to Miroslav Klose(GER).
Roger Federer moves closer to making tennis history by winning the Wimbledon for the fourth time. Andre Agassi also announced his retirement during this year's Wimbledon Championship. Amelie Mauresmo of France became the Ladies' Wimbledon Champion in 2006 following her win at the Australian Open a few months back.
Abhinav Bindra won the air rifle gold at the World shooting championship, India's first-ever in the sport, on 24th July,'06. He is a 23 year old lad from Delhi.
Manavjit Singh Sandhu’s explosive performance at the shooting ranges in Zagreb enabled not only got him an individual gold but also helped India clinch the team silver at the ISSF World Championships. Indian team totalled 360/375
ICC launches 2007 World Cup logo, mascot in India on 27th July, 2006.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Life is boring; "Kuchh naya ho jaye..."

2006-07-26T08:58:00.003+05:30

Of-late, life has become very monotonous. Nothing new to look forward to:-(

On professional front, stuck up with the same Nokia project although 'woh din ab dur nahin jab main kisi naye project mein jaaunga', "hopefully". But still some time to go and not too sure what the project will be. So keeping my fingers crossed.

On personal front, I am still a rolling stone, 'which according to the proverb', will gather no moss. The problem is that I come up with some very good plans but over a period of time, it fizzes out because of lack of motivation or lethargy, whatever you might call it. So got to change my mind-set (don't know how many times I have said this to myself). Unless I do so, I will continue to be a perennial under-achiever.
With some friends returning back from abroad next month, August will probably be jam packed with parties. My mother, brother, mashi & mesho are also scheduled to visit my place early August. But that too is short time excitement.
I am thinking about taking up CFA course. At least that will keep me engaged with something more productive. I will get to know more about Finance and it will keep my grey cells ticking.

No major sports tournaments are coming up as well. There is the ICC champions trophy in October though. But who cares about cricket!!! Its the same old story with India performing well in the sub-continent and then flattering to deceive when they are abroad. My school and college mates may be surprised by this statement of mine since I always used to be an eternal optimist on this issue. But, its just that probably with time, I have grown more matured to be able to look through the things.
By the end of September, Durga Puja will be round the corner. Some more fun, some more excitement. Well, by then, it will soon be time for the closing phase of the current project. So, may be I will have something new to look up to.

Shifting back to Kolkata does not seem to be a viable option as of now. But soon, I will be forced to take a call. NCR is getting more and more expensive and room-rents and realty prices are going off the roof. So, may be Kolkata will be a viable option given that I have my own house out there. Even if that means sacrificing a few bucks in the compensation package, I might be game for it.

I have always been an arduous reader and there are lots of interesting facts and figures and little bits of info that keeps coming my way. I have thought up of an idea to keep a month-wise blog maintaining all these pieces of information. Sounds exciting but it needs some meticulous updation every day or at least, every second day. Lets see if I can maintain it.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

"When GOD makes a mistake..."

2006-07-20T15:01:00.002+05:30

Its been quite sometime since the Football World Cup 2006 finals but the realization that the GOD of WC'06 made such a disgraceful exit has yet not sunk in. Well, the subject under discussion is pretty unambiguous, I guess!!!

It was an all European final, the first one since 1982, where neither of the Latin-American giants could find a place. Both Italy and France had peaked gradually as the tournament progressed and they out-witted their opponents when it mattered most.

On the 9th of July, the highly charged up finals started with a bang - a 6th minute penalty against the Italians, cheekily converted by Zizou. With Italians better known for their defensive approach, the game was thrown wide open. Italy responded in style though a Materazzi header in the 19th minute, drawing the scores level. From then on, the rejuvenated Italians played some really attractive soccer with substantial ball possession in the mid-field. Pirlo's accuracy in dead ball situations and the height of the tall Materazzi and Luca Toni posed a substantial threat to their opponents. However, at the end of the first-half, the score line remained unchanged.

The second-half saw the French displaying some of the tricks in their bag and the entire half was by-and-large dominated by them. Despite the skills of Riberi, Henry and Zidane, they failed to bulge the net a second time. Buffon made some excellent saves as well to keep Italy in the race. Meanwhile, the second half saw Henry and Riberi being replaced in the latter stages. With the game still level at the end of 90 minutes, it went on to extra time to find a decider to the World Cup.

In the extra time, the French pushed harder but the un-flinching defence of the Italians, with Cannavaro at the helm of affairs, left little room for the Frenchmen to drive the ball home. As the game dragged on, penalties seemed inevitable. And, as per records, Italians had never won a match that went on to be decided through penalties. But in Buffon, Italians had a superior goal-keeper than the French who had to rely on the services of the cranky Barthez.

While the spectators all over the world were speculating whether the odds were stacked against the Italians, suddenly something strange happened - 10 minutes from the end of extra-time, the referee blew the whistle in the middle of the game, indicating a foul. The Italians had a player down and they were vehemently drawing the referee's attention towards Materazzi. Replays told a shocking story. Right in the middle of the game, Zidane had lost his cool in response to some instigation by Materazzi and he head-butted Materazzi on the chest. And with that, probably, the French had lost their chances of winning the World Cup. Zidane was shown a RED CARD. That meant an ignominious end to a magnificent career.

The game eventually went to penalties and the Italians won the shoot out by meticulously converting all their 5 shots at goal. The Italians had won the World Cup for a fourth time, next only to the 5 time world champions, Brazil. The French had not only lost the World Cup final but the Zidane incident had left a bad taste at the end of the high-profile final. Perhaps their only solace was that despite the incident, Zidane went on to win the Golden Ball award tipping Cannavaro and Pirlo who finished second and third respectively in the race.

The FIFA disciplinary committee announced match suspensions to Zidane for his un-ruly act. However, since Zidane had already announced his retirement, the gentle-man as he is, he has himself volunteered for some community service as penitence towards that act. Zidane, however, made himself clear that given Materazzi's instigations, he provided an appropriate response to his adversary. Well!!!, if the Frenchmen have forgiven Zidane, what has the world got to rue for?

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Surprise!!! Surprise!!! Its FRA vs ITA

2006-07-07T19:10:00.002+05:30

In my previous post, I had stated that probably its a GER vs BRA final in the offing. But the campaigns of both teams came to a pre-mature end and we now have a FRA vs ITA final this coming Sunday. What a surprise!!!

After GER had beaten ARG, it seemed pretty much a GER participation in the finals. But ITA played out of their skin to win the semis. It was a wonderful match and the standout player of the day was un-doubtedly Cannavaro.

Brazil had a poor game against the French and with Zidane finally displaying his fangs, Brazil soon found themselves kicked out of the tournament, failing to reach even the semi-final stage.

However, the French had a pretty ordinary performance against the Portuguese and beat them by a solitary goal scored of a controversial penalty. The second half of the match saw as high as 70% ball possession by the Portuguese who had their chances but could not convert in the end.

Going by the performances of late, I would say that ITA start favourites in the final. But one who discounts Zidane can do so at his own peril!!!.

So lets wait and hope to witness some attacking football in this final.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

On the expected lines - "Pekerman quits after Argentina's exit"

2006-07-01T09:08:00.002+05:30

Extracts of his statements:

"I think the cycle is over. I'm sure I'm not going to continue (as coach)," Pekerman told the post-match news conference at the Olympiastadion.
"I always believed in this team, these players, this squad and they did not let me down" Pekerman

Goalkeeper Roberto Abbondanzieri had to come off with a rib injury and was replaced by his deputy Leo Franco, but Pekerman also brought off playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme and sent on defensive midfielder Esteban Cambiasso.
"Riquelme looked a bit tired," Pekerman said.

Asked why he had opted minutes later to replace Hernan Crespo with Julio Cruz instead of sending on teenage ball wizard Lionel Messi, Pekerman said: "We always had that option in mind...but it wasn't the right moment."

And thus ends Pekerman's story....

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Argentina have themselves to blame!!!

2006-07-01T00:06:00.001+05:30

Pooooh!!!

What a game and what a shame. It was an excellent game of football of the highest standards. The ARG-GER quarter-final stretched to the penalty-kicks and finally the Argentines did not have the nerves to clear the last hurdle. And I really cannot understand what the Argentine coach Jose Pekerman did!!! In such a high profile play-off, there was no Lionel Messi, no Saviola. It was a real shocker and the Argentines had to pay for it in the end.
1 goal up in the second half, with 60-40% ball possession in favour of Argentina, what was the coach afraid of? He adopted a defensive approach; replaced a striker for a mid-fielder and in the end, he was left with no alternatives by the time the game moved into the closing stages. Things came to such a pass that during the penalties, they did not have their front-line strikers for penalties.
Neither of the teams had lost till date in the WC on penalty shoot-out. And today it had to be Argentina's black day.
Anyways, it was wasted talent and I see a Germany-Brazil final in the offing. Wouldn't it have been great if the two Latin-American giants had met in the finals. But that was not to be:-(
Adios Argentina...

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

A welcome change in the catering service @office

2006-06-26T19:25:00.002+05:30

I dare say that the anti-reservation issue may not have had a direct impact on the lives of the people as yet but its side-effects are showing.

The caterer in our office cafetaria had almost made a mockery of the whole system. When they started catering about a year back, the initial stuffs that they dished out was pretty palatable. But as time passed, they started changing colours. The food quality went from bad to worse while the coupon rates had either remained same or even increased. During their initial days, they started off with Rs.15 coupons. But the quantity of the food was very in-adequate. With the employees raising their voice, they found a convinient option out by changing the coupon rate from Rs.15 to Rs.20 in return for an increased quantity. People still did not have much of a problem with that but as days passed by, things really started going out of hand. The food quality had deteriorated like anything and any amount of complaints with the Admin people would fall on deaf ears.

At times, people found to their dismay that the food was half cooked, while at other occassions, even insects were found to make an appearance. The quality of service was also bad. A lot had been written about it on Junk and a link for feedback towards the cafetaria services were also provided. But nothing could change the status quo.

Fed up with all other means, one of the employees proposed boycott of the cafetaria services and the boycott date was fixed to be the 22nd of june (Thursday). People responded positively in large numbers and the Admin was forced to come up with an immediate action plan to change the caterer. While the Admin had earlier stated that the caterers would be changed by the 30th of June, but the success of the boycott seemed to have hastened the things and finally we had a new caterer in place from today itself.

All I can say is "Kudos to this sense of belief that one should always stand up for their rights". May good sense prevail!!!

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

How stock market behaves - 1 pic that says it all:-)

2006-06-26T11:17:00.000+05:30

Click on the picture above to get the full view

Found it to be very humourous as well as appropriate:)

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Its "Samba" time...

2006-06-23T14:08:00.002+05:30

This month, its the football fever that has gripped almost everybody. With the top 32 teams vying for the world cup, the tournament has been a big draw as it always has been in the past. I have been closely watching the World Cup since 1990.

1986 saw the brilliamce of Maradona help the Argentines win the WC. Visuals of that individual brilliance captured my imagination and since then I grew to be an ardent Argentine fan. In the 90's, the Argentines play some decent soccer. However, the level of their game was nothing compared to the brilliance that they displayed in 1986. Maradona was a shadow of himself in the 90 WC. Burruchaga and Claudio Cannigia had a pretty good WC. But their real hero was thier goalkeeper (forgot his name) who used to see the Argentines through in every match that were decided through penalty shoot-outs. However, irony of ironies, the Argentines lost to Germany in the final courtsey of a single penalty that was awarded to the Germans. The Argentines were finally left high and dry and had to be satisfied having come second best in the competition.

1994 saw the infamous exit of Maradona when he failed the doping test. His departure gave a big mental blow to the Argentines who never seemed to recover from it, since then. Their prospects finally came to an end when the Romanians beat them 3-2 in the second-round qualifiers. The world cup in '94, as such, was not too exciting. The teams displayed a very defensive approach and even the Finals between Brazil and Italy did not produce the fire expected in a WC final.

1998 witnessed much better performance from the Argentinian side with Gabriel Batistuta being a star performer in the league matches. Their second round match saw them taking on the Englishmen. The Michael Owen goal is still etched in my memory. However, David Beckham got marching orders for an un-necessary act of aggression. And a clever set-piece, converted by Zanetti saw the Argentinians conquer the Englishmen. However, a Dennis Bergkamp master-piece in the quarter finals spelled the exit of the Argentinians from the WC. The '98 WC marked the first time a host nation, France in this case, had lifted the world cup. The finals saw an un-remarkably poor performance by the Brazilians (with an unfit Ronaldo). Zinedine Zidane headers marked the final nails in the Brazilian coffin.

The 2002 world cup is probably one which the Argentine fans would like to forget at the earliest. Pitted in the "group of death" involving Nigeria, England and Sweden, the Argentines had a real hard time. After having somehow snatched a victory against Nigeria, the Argentines lost to the Englishmen and were subsequently held by Swedes. They finally could not make it to the next round and faced an ignominious exit. Another team to bite the dust were the defending champions France who too could not clear the group stage. The same tournament also saw the Brazilians go from strength to strength before they finally went on to win the World Cup. And who can perhaps forget the stellar performance by Ronaldhino in the tournament!!!

The 2006 WC started with a bang with the Germans winning the match with a 4-2 margin over the Costa-Ricans. Never has the first match of a World Cup witnessed so many goals. And that has probably set the tempo for the entire tournament. We have witnessed some exciting soccer from the Germans, the Englishmen, the Spaniards, the Brazilians and off course, not too forget the effervescent Argentines (thier 6-Nil thrasing of the Serbs was pure magic). The African nations have not disgraced themselves. Although its only Ghana which has made ot to the 2nd round, Ivory Coast too did play some excellent soccer. The Asians have failed to make a mark this time unlike the 2002 WC where the Koreans went up to the Semi-Final stage.

All eyes are now on the 2nd round matches. The Germans have already routed the Swedes with a double strike in the first 12 minutes while the Argentines have moved on to the Quarter Final stage after beating a rather reusrgent Mexican side. However, the decisive Argentine goal against Mexico by Maxi Rodriguez was a sure winner.

Its now time to wait and watch what the WC unfolds in the remaining few matches. Its exhilarating stuff and I will sign off now to catch up with the England-Ecuador match.
So long till then!!!

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

"Ajeeb Dastan Hai Ye"

2006-06-11T10:53:00.001+05:30

Life is full of surprises, isn't it!!!
Some sweet, some sour but everything in hindsight is so exciting nevertheless. Here I share a recent experience which will be etched in my memory for a long, long time.

My home-town is Kolkata and I work in Gurgaon - more than a thousand kilometers apart. I often fret for my home and wish I could be with my family. However, I consider myself real lucky that right now, I am in the company of friends which makes me forget about my home at times. Thats one of the plusses of staying put in the same company for some time. You make lots of friends.

Right from my joining in Flextronics(then Hughes), I had a steady friend circle comprising of my colleagues and a few bongs. With a vibrant "Goodmorning" and a firm shake of the hands, everyday used to mark a new begining. The day would normally end with the snacks in the cafetaria and some gossip for around an hour or so. But, in March 2006, I was shifted out of my previous premises (in Plot 7) and re-located to the Presidency building, which was almost totally cut-off from the main office. Initial few days were really bad. Being located far-off from the main campus, I did not have the luxury of meeting my friends even occassionally. With new people around, it takes some time to build a rapport as well. So things were not really looking up for me.

But soon things changed with the anti-reservation issue coming to the fore. The whole SS7 team at Presidency seemed to be the epicenter of the corporate employee's battle agaist the reservation issue. Help poured in from several un-known quarters as well. And before I could realise, I had made lots of friends out there. This continued for almost 3 weeks until the corporate rally was forced to be aborted last monday. Things have gone quiet since then.

But as I look back, I realise that I have learnt a whole lot of things from this experience - dealt with people from all walks of life -medicos, engineering students, students from DU and not to forget my tryst with the journalists; the night out at the AIIMS lawn, the collection of money for the YFE, attending the rallies, organising buses to take people to attend the rallies, motivating people every now-and-then, meeting people with vested interests of their own, trying to organise a rally on our own and also basking in some fame. Foooo!!! thats some experience in 3 weeks time.

And, in the midst of all this hectic activities came a surprise package. I really can't state it down in my post right now but it had something to do with a sweet little phone-call arnd 9:00pm on the 3rd of June (saturday before last). Does this mark another new begining? Only time will tell. But if it does, i'll let everybody know about its connection with my lucky 13 again.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Article in "The Tribune" ...

2006-06-07T17:53:00.000+05:30

Corporates to join anti-quota stir
Smriti Kak Ramachandran
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 23
After the medicos it is the corporates who have joined the anti-quota juggernaut. Faced with the possibility of having to provide reservation, corporates have begun hectic parleys to draw up their blueprint for protest.

While the corporates had come out in support of the agitating doctors, they have now resolved to “take on” the issue of reservation in a more “organised way”.

Opposed to “any kind of reservation”, the corporates have criticised the government for contemplating “a legislation to bring in reservation”.

Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Meira Kumar yesterday warned the private sector that the Centre would be forced to bring in a legislation if they fail to provide voluntary reservation.

Reacting to the statement, Saikat who works for a multinational company said, ‘we have supported the medicos, but now we are in the process of streamlining our protest. We have begun meetings to draw up plans for what our future course of action will be”.

An employee of another private concern, Sandipan, pointed out that if reservations are forced on the private sector, “it will have an adverse affect on the prospects of the candidates from the reserved categories. Companies will discriminate against them because they may not have the required merit”.

Cautioning that if the government does not alter its stance on reservation in the academic as well as private sectors, the corporates said they “ will take to the streets in far greater numbers than the medicos”.

Indicating that they too might take the resort to hunger strike, the corporates said they are mobilising support from their counterparts across the country.

Meanwhile, having refused to call off their stir despite the Prime Minister’s repeated assurances, medical students’ who continue their hunger strike, accept they have reached “a deadlock”, but are quick to add that this has not “demoralised” them.

On hunger strike for the last 10 days, protesting medicos acknowledge that their demand for a review of the existing reservation policy is not “an easy one”, they are, however, insistent that the review “is overdue and that reservation of up to 50 percent is unacceptable”.

“We have sought a review of the policy and neither the government nor the political parties have extended their support to us. But we remain committed to our struggle,” said Dr Vinod of the Youth for Equality.

While support from seniors in the profession and their faculty has been trickling in, the medicos are now banking heavily on the support from corporates and other professionals, who are also facing the possibility of having to provide reservation.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

The country is going to the Dogs...

2006-06-03T14:22:00.001+05:30

The country is embroiled in one of the hottest debates on the issue of caste-based reservation. SC has now sent out an order stating any protests, statements or agitation as contempt of court since PILs have already been filed in court and the matter is now sub-judicial.
To go back shortly in time, the Maha-Rally on 27th May, 2006 was a grand success. Things were looking up with rallies being taken out in Mumbai and Bangalore as well, on the 28th May, 2006. With all these rallies witnessing participation of substatially large numbers of public, even the political parties like BJP were showing signs of aligning themselves with the general public by demanding a white paper on the outcome of reservation that has been in place for the last 55 years. On the 29th of May, 2006, in response to a PIL, the SC asked the governement to spell out the basis for the 27% reservation for the OBCs. Just when things looked rosy, SC fired off a statement on 30th of May, 2006 declaring all forms of agitation against reservation as tantamounting to contempt of court. The medicos were the first to be targeted and they were directed to get back to work or face court proceedings. The medicos finally wilted on the 31st of May, 2006 when they called off their strike and returned back to medical services. Since then, the reservation issue has not found a place on the front page of the newspapers.
We, the corporates have also joined the movement and were a part of the rally on the 27th of May, 2006. We thought about carrying the movement forward by taking out a rally in Gurgaon organised by the "Pukar" (A Corporate Initiative...). The rally is scheduled for the 5th of June, 2006 and the logistics are still not completely in place. It remains to be seen whether we can make it a success or we falter at the hurdle.
The groups like "Youth For Equality" have also toned down their demands. Probably, the 27% reservation is now a destiny and a scar that we will have to live with. It troubles us now and will continue to trouble us in future as well till the reins are in the hands of such un-scrupulous politicans.
The caste based has not helped the deprived and the down-trodden. It has always been hijacked by the "creamy layer" amongst the backward classes. While they have already cornered the benefits of reservation, they do not want the benefits to be diluted.
The question that comes to my mind right now is where is the end to this caste-based system? will an independent country, considered to be a knowledge powerhouse, with a booming economy, ultimately go to the dogs!!!
With the current reports coming in, the government is considering further tightening of screws on this issue. They want to have a say in the fee structure, number of seats, examination.. What next? Prescribe books and class schedules?

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind...."

Day after the Anti-Reservation rally...

2006-05-21T13:28:00.002+05:30

The 20th Day of May, 2006 was planned to be marked as solidarity day with protesters against the governments reservation policy supposed to carry out a massive rally in the capital and also in other parts of the country.
All geared up, we waited for the Saturday morning to make a historic trip to Jantar-Mantar and be a part of this rally. The day's temperature was pretty cool and probably supportive of our noble cause. Puneet Poddar ( a new found friend/ally in this drive) and myself reached CP at 9:10a.m. We were soon joined by another guy from Flextronics. Within the next 10-15 minutes, Ramesh, Prabhakar and Swapnil along with some of his other friends had arrived. By 9:25a.m. or thereabouts, we started towards Jantar-Mantar (very near to CP). There, Kaushik was waiting along with his friends & room-mates (after having watched Rang-de-Basanti the night before). Soon more and more people started pouring in, not only from our company but from various organisations like TCS, CSC, Siemens and many others.
The atmosphere was charging up. With more people came the banners as well, written - "Pukar - A corporate initiative". That was our corporate banner to show that the corporates were not be left behind. A cop came over to give us a few guidelines and also instructed us not to get provoked by the pro-reservationists.
The gathering got into shape around 10:00a.m. with the banners flying high and the protesters getting into a queue. The media people were there to cover the issue. The students from the DU, CAs, Lawyers and various people from other professions were also there. There was some in-decision as to whether we should march towards MAMC to meet the other rally (which had started from MAMC) and then march back along with them to Jantar-Mantar. However, we finally decided to stay put and wait for the other group to join us.
The protests started off with the singing of the National-Anthem, followed by chanting of various slogans against the governemnt policy, in general and Arjun Singh, in particular. Pamphlets were also distributed to the passengers of the vehicles passing by.
While these continued, the media got active to get a word or two about the agenda of the various groups that had assembled out there. So I was called upon by the CNN-IBN team, A BBC journalist and the ETV to speak on this issue on behalf of the corporates joining this protest. Questions ranged from why do you want to join, to whether this is going to be a one-off incident and even asking as to whether the violent means applied by some pro-reservationists in Patna and JNU, a day earlier, was justified.
Soon after, we were joined by the other rally that had started from MAMC. From Jantar-Mantar, we proceeded towards Parliament Street. A podium was set up a few 100 meters from Jantar-Mantar. With the members from the other rally joining in, the numbers soon swelled to a few thousands.
Immediately afterwards, we saw Navjot Singh Sidhu (in his conventional style) and Shiv Khera walking towards the podium. Sidhu started off with his big booming pledges in his own inimitable style with the crowd liking every bit of it. Once he stopped after about half-an-hour of speech, the podium was taken over by Shiv Khera.
Around 12:30p.m., the rally got over with the observation of a minute silence to mark this protest.
The whole thing went of peacefully. A Pan-Indian face was visible in this agitation with people from different professions and also from different parts of the country chipping in, in their own capacity. We left with a feeling of satisfaction and fulfillment to have been a part of this drive. A special mention for Amit Jain from our HR dept. who was an active supporter and handled the media issues very adeptly. We have to continue with our fight from hereon, to show further solidarity with the protesters, if required, and in our own endeavour to create a new awakening in this nation.

"....The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering
his attitudes of mind...."

CNN-IBN on corporate participation in Anti-Reservation...

2006-05-21T11:30:00.003+05:30

Corporates fear quota will sting them

Shreya Dhoundial

CNN-IBN

Posted Saturday , May 20, 2006 at 23:27

New Delhi: Thousands of anti-reservation protesters marched down the Parliament Street in the Capital on Saturday.

One of them - Saikat Chaudhary, an IT professional - is angry. Almost as angry as the medical students, he's supporting.

He fears after the 27 per cent quota is implemented in educational insitutions, the private sector will be next be on the government's hit list.

"Today, if it happens in the education sector, it may spill over to the corporate sector tomorrow. There will be a depletion of knowledge and no industry will come here," says Saikat.

Another demonstrator, Vivek Singh, a Banker says, "Politicians are doing nothing for the country, but they are dividing it on the basis of caste."

Saikat and Vivek are not lone voices. Almost 100 IT professionals from Wipro, TCS and Freescale have joined the anti quota stir.

Corporates feel strongly against the issue as reservations in the private sector are on the Common Minimum Programme of the UPA governement.

"Because of this, the MNCs are moving out. MNCs are only here because of our talent and if you ruin our talent, no MNCs would be here," says Sajwal Mathur, an IT Professional, Semiens.

The decibel levels are rising. But is emotion rather than understanding fuelling these raised voices? Ater all, the 27 per cent education quota is still not final, nor are reservations in the private sector.

As the corporates join the reservation debate the question that need's to be asked is are rallies like these moving away from reality and spiralling towards rhetoric?

Are the pro reservation voices fuelling a paranoia of things that might not happen?

It's probably now time for people on both side's of the reserrvation debate to pause for a moment, look at existing realities ane then work out a middle path - Buddha didn't preach it for nothing.

The night before the Anti-Reservation rally...

2006-05-19T23:06:00.003+05:30

Perhaps this episode marks a new chapter in my life. I have always believed that once i set on a goal whole-heartedly, i will achieve it 99/100 times. While there have been several such mile-stones in my career in the past, but probably, all that will fade in the face of what I had set to achieve as being part of this Anti-Reservation campaign and what I have actually achieved till date.
The country is on tenter-hooks on this issue of almost 50% reservation for the minorities. It will spell doom for the brains in India and also for the Industry, over a period of time. And moreover, the moot question is where are we heading to? A 69% quota in a state like Tamil-Nadu is already in place and who knows that this might be the case for the central universities also, infuture!!!. We got to stop this governtment on their tracks. And for that, if we can make a small contribution towards that end, it will be a huge plus.
Keeping this motive in mind, we(the people from the corporate sector) joined in so as to make an impact in our own way. Probably hundreds of mails were exchanged to encourage people to be a part of the rally on Saturday. With two different rallies slated, it added to the confusion. Finally we settled for the one @10am @Jantar Mantar on 20th May,2006(tomorrow). We held meetings for half an hour with the other interested colleagues in our company. Although the number wasn't huge, it was significant and those who participated, did it with their whole heart and sole.

Its 11:15pm and I just got a call from Ritu stating that there has been some commotion @JNU. So got to check the News. Will update after the march tomorrow.

More about me....

2006-05-12T21:26:00.002+05:30

I always felt that I should keep a note of my happenings in life. U know, its a great feeling to read about your past life as they have passed by. So here I go...

Since this is my first post, I would like to make a brief introduction to my past.
Born in Kolkata, I was brought up in Jamshedpur. Father used to work with TISCO. And wasn't it a great pleasure to have spent my childhood in the Steel City!!! Did my schooling from Loyola, Jamshedpur - More than my schooling, it is my association with the Institution that I cherish the most. After having passed out in 1997, joined Presidency, Kolkata to further my graduation. Post graduation, MBA was a dream for me but I always wanted to have some work-ex before going for MBA. And so I started my MCA preparations, in parallel with my graduation. After graduation, got through MCA after clearing UPMCAT. Took up MCA in HBTI, Kanpur - passed out in 2003. Years 2001-2002 were the dark years for the industry with slow-down setting in. It was by sheer God's grace that I was amongst the chosen few who grabbed a campus placement, inspite of the Industrial downturn. And, by jove!, I was placed on the 13th of August, 2002 - Lucky 13???

Took up my first job with Newgen Software Systems, New Delhi. Joined co-incidentally on the 13th of Jan, 2003 - 13 Again????

The first few months in my job was a mix of ecstacy and tension. Still remember the first stipend that I received (Jan - Jun, 2003 was my training period). However, there were days when I used to tirelessly work for long hours, apprehensive of what would happen if I were to miss out on the committed deadlines. And in the process, I took up some very stiff deadlines as well. In parallel, I started my MBA preparations after borrowing some amount from my senior. But preparing for MBA in parallel with the tremendous work-load in office was a very demanding task indeed. Somehow, prepared for the exams and appeared for the same. But by the time I was home from the exam center, I got to know that the paper got leaked and exams were to conducted afresh. And wasn't I crestfallen!!! During the period of my preps, I had a one point agenda to study for MBA while many of my colleagues left my company for greener pastures. I grew envious of them but never had the bandwidth to prepare for an of-campus placement. But after the cancelled exams in Nov, 2003, I got a lucky break with an interview call in Hughes Software Systems (currently Flextronics Software Systems), Gurgaon. Converted it impromptu. And guess what was my interview date - 13th of Jan, 2004 - i need not point out anything this time. So I left my previous company and joined Hughes on 27th of Jan, 2004. Hughes was a much bigger and better company than Newgen. It had a corporate look and feel and I felt privileged to be a part of this organisation.

But soon things would not be the same for me anymore. On the fateful day - 9th of Feb, 2004, I was in the midst of a project meeting when I received a call on my mobile. I rejected the call, not to be disturbed in between the meeting. But the cell phone rang again and when I picked it up, I got the shock of my life.... My uncle (mamu - maternal uncle) had rung up with an urgent tone asking me to take a flight for home asap since my father was very ill. The scenario was not alien to me since I had heard of some of my class-mates getting similar calls from home, only to find out later that one of their near and dear ones had passed away.

Somehow managed to take a Jet back home. Reached home at around 8p.m. in the evening only to face the inevitable. Held back my tears so as to lend moral strength to my grieving mother and brother. My heart cried but I did not let my tears come out. Soon left for the crematorium to perform the last-rites. It is there that I wept my heart out. One of the important chapters in my life had come to an end.

However, life had to go on and it was definitely going to be very different for me from then on. During my stay, I had to go through all the documents in the house, separate the important ones from the others. And then I realised how helpful were my father's meticuluous ways of maintaining all records. The Herculean task was made lot easier for me.

I departed for my work place on the 23rd of Feb, 2004, leaving my mother and brother behind with my relatives to look after them.

It has been a long and eventful journey since then. I had missed out on my MBA re-exams that were scheduled in Feb, 2004 because of this mis-hap. So I started all over again for my preparations. Work at Hughes was not as hectic as in Newgen. I found a new way of life at Hughes and made some very close friends as well. The company changed hands in May, 2004 and soon it became Flextronics Software Systems.

Another good thing that happened with me at Flextronics was that I found quite a few Bengali friends of round about similar age-group. We formed a small bong group in FSS. And how did we come together is 'Junk' - which probably a fellow FSS'ian can only understand. Its been a real pleasure to have spent time with them and have enjoyed every outing in their company - The trip to Manali is still fresh in my memory.

Meanwhile, my MBA preps continued until it was exam time again. The CAT had a surprise in store and the unsuspecting mouse(myself) fell for it - scored 92 percentile - looks good on paper but not enough to give you a place in the top notch colleges. I had serious thoughts about further attempts but (may be its just an excuse) I always felt that for such preparations, you always need a calm n quiet atmosphere around you. That was just not possible staying in a shared accomodatio0n with collegues. Plan to do an 'Executive MBA' but that too is on hold because I am not sure where I will be for the next 3 years. Would have preferred to go back to Kolkata but that is only possible when more companies come up and the job situation stabilises out there.

With the Left scoring an out-right victory in the current assembly ellections and with the reformist 'Buddha" @ the helm of affairs, I have plenty of expectations for the state of WB.

In the last couple of years, I feel that I have matured a lot with more responsibilities on my shoulders. I have had to curtail my ambitions to a certain extent but I have no regrets. After all the fruits of your labour is directly proportional to the happiness that you give to your family. And to keep my family happy, that's a small sacrifice from my side.

Thats quite a big summary, I guess. So thats it for this psoting. More to come on specific events later on.

So long till then....

A brief intro...

2006-05-12T16:09:00.004+05:30

Name: Saikat Chaudhuri
Age: 32 years
Location: New Delhi
Permanent Address: HB-230, Saltlake, Kolkata-106
Profession:Software Engineer
Comapny: Tata Consultancy Services
Worked with:
Alcatel-Lucent
Aricent (Formerly Hughes)
Newgen

Photo Location: Mt. Abu, Rajasthan (Nakki Lake)