Gen Next?

 

 

We are a miserable generation. A generation of confused, battered souls that prides itself with the devices that have come to dictate our lives. A generation that wants more and expects more but is not willing to work for it. A generation that takes pride in the national anthem when its sung but will not bat an eyelid as they fill numerous applications to study and settle abroad. "I'll come back. I want to do something for my country". These words were said at least for sentiment at some point of time. Now even that sentiment is missing. We cuss at the country that provided 20+ years of life and move away as if it were just another dysfunctional relationship. The generation that looks at the recent Cadbury's Ad and goes "aww..I want that" without putting the effort to get there and maintain a relationship.

 

 

Our generation that thinks that trying hard is uncool,that it should look like it came without effort. The fact that info is just a few clicks away makes us take knowledge for granted. That ‘being’ means much more than just ‘doing’. We say we live life unplugged but are bound by unseen wires to the very technology that lets us live unplugged. We know we can take tech for granted because it is not going to stay the same. But we do not take a moment to appreciate the world around us, because we are too busy multitasking. Or at least the twisted version of it. True multitasking is productive. Checking mails, FB, SMS during work is not multitasking, its just being distracted! We've all done it and continue doing it each day..

Recall the last time you thanked someone for something they did. Not a customary 'thanks', but genuinely meant it within you. I challenge you to recall more than 5 in the past month, or two. We are not only ungrateful, we're also more selfish. The world expects us to be. Each day Darwin and his theories bear light as we struggle in the survival of the fittest.. And in the course of this struggle, we end up becoming selfish. Fending for ourselves becomes our primary instinct.

We're not progressing, we're retrogressing. Not only in clothing, but in manners, in application, we are increasingly going backward towards the era of the Cro-Magnon man. Survival has begun to mean more than co-existence. Evolution hasn't done much mentally for us. Sure we've made some tech advances, made touch screens, speakers that blow one's ears (literally), sent dogs and men into outer space and so on..but have our minds evolved, really? We just have shifted our focus. And all that is seemingly human; that which binds us to other humans, is taking a back seat. Even chivalry, which was ordained as a highly valued virtue has become a laughable issue.

Motivation theories were in fear of people becoming more profit driven and less purpose driven. And yet, the problem today is that we're highly purpose driven to making more profit, for us. That money has become a blinding higher purpose. Among the ones who have worked, you must have made a faint commitment to making someone's life better when you start earning. Ask only yourselves, have you?

Its high time they stop calling us anything like the generation that will lead us to the next century. If anything, we're only taking it back.

Awake now.. Before its too late..

 

…

Budget!!

 

 

I know, I know.. Why would a site on thoughts need a post on the Budget? Well firstly, it is important to understand the impact of government decisions on Mango-people, and secondly, I was making notes all through the budget day, so I’m not letting that go waste!  : )

Pranab Mukherjee is like Chunni babu from Devdas- non-committal, ever-smiling (with surprising seriousness), and trying to woo Paro (Fiscal Deficit) somehow. Well in this regard, common man should rightly be Devdas, because he’s been given money and fame, but ends up paying for much more. Confused?? Actually, me too.. So I’ll just cut to the chase.

Our FM, Mr.PM (Ironical!) closed his speech with the words, “This is an aam aadmi’s budget. I will not say much more, but leave everything to the people of India.” Truly, that is what has been done, on the surface at least.

Tax slabs are now changed.

New Income category	Old Category	Taxation	Savings (approx)
Upto 1.6L	Upto 1.5L	Nil	-
1.6 – 5L	1.5 – 3L	10%	Rs.20,600
5 - 8L	3 – 5L	20%	Rs.41,200
8L upwards	5L upwards	30%	Rs.52,000

 

What the new slabs do?

No technicalities, but the new slabs puts more spending power into the middle class’s hands. By expanding the slabs to accommodate higher avg. salaries in the previous slabs, FM is putting a considerable savings (for guaranteed expenses!). At the moment, it is one method to help the middle and lower income classes fight inflation.

 

The Good +/-

1. This year Fiscal Deficit (FD) was maintained at 6.8-6.9% (as promised in the previous budget), the coming year FD is targeted at 5.5% , further to 4.8 or lower for FY’11 (68%).

2. 25% allocation to rural infrastructure; about 25 km of highways each day.

3. Revenue tax gain Rs.20,500 Cr this year.

4. Service tax contributes 60% to the coffers, but service tax rates retained at 10% taking a hit on direct taxes. To counter this, he makes changes to indirect taxes, which is projected to put Rs.46,500 Cr in gains.

5. Agri delight-

• Farmer loan credit raised to 3.75 L.
• Banks for all villages with 2000 population.
• Support to retail trade in agricultural sector.
• 2% subsidy to farmer loans, extend farm loan payment by 6 months.

6. Partial cutback on stimulus to auto industry.

7. Big allocations –

• 31,000 Cr for education
• Social sector outlay is at 1.38 L Cr.
• Urban devpt allocation : 61,000 Cr
• UID gets 1900 Cr.
• Renewable energy outlook raised to 1000 Cr

8. Increasing health insurance for the poor by adding NREGA families.

 

 

The Bad +/-

1. VAT incr from 15 to 18% ; Excise duty up, so everything will cost more.

2. No numbers specified for RT Education act or Food security act, but general measures for Food security mentioned. No statement for higher education and not much for skill development.

3. IT will be hit, nearly 10,000 jobs this year affected as foreign companies are not getting the same tax benefits for companies as in other countries like Mexico,Brazil.

4. Too many sector based concessions, not so good in today’s context.

5. Net gain from indirect tax will be 46,500 Cr, but if that does not happen (due to market downtime, 3G auction not living up to expectations, FDI speed breakers) may make Fiscal target difficult.

6. Being a non-election year, he could have pushed more, but played safe with reforms.

 

 

The hopeful +/-

1. Setup a body for macro supervision of big companies

2. Setup a financial stability council to establish mechanism in case of financial turmoil.

3. Financial regulations are very old ; Legislative reforms commission(LRC) setup to improve this on a regular basis.

4. Govt. had been giving incentives to petroleum companies to supply fuel at subsidized rates, due to which a majority of them are in loss. International petrol prices are much lower now than before when they were more than 1000 dollars/barrel, so these companies can absorb the increase in the prices of petrol, diesel. Hopefully, they will come out of the loss stage eventually.

5. GST and direct tax code by April 2011.

6. Lots of incentives to NRIs for investment, return on Indian equities over past year has been around 87.4%. Hopefully, things will remain good over the coming year.

 

So, that ends my wrap up of Budget 2010. Till next time.. : )

< I got a little newsreader like vibe>

The art used above was painted by Vidita Jain, a class VII student of St.Thomas’ at Delhi. Ideally, this picture represents the change India needs (Sorry Obama) in the coming decade. Tackling global warming, peace, and sustained progress. Here’s to hoping we come close to making it happen. And kudos Vidita!

Come, peep in..

 

I believe it was MK Gandhi who once said, “Show me your  friends and I will tell you who you are.” Luckily for him, Facebook and Twitter weren’t available back then, and this statement made some sense.

It has taken us many ‘smart’ developments to get us to where we are right now. People spend hours using their organizers, mail clients, and even their phones, to improve their work efficiency which would definitely improve without these distractions in the first place. Keeping in touch has become literal at times, with e-pokes being sent across FB networks! It has become routine for me to login to FB atleast once a day to check out what’s happening with the people I know. (Shame, shame to me too!)

The great thing about it is the ease with which we can network, regardless of the distance or the time elapsed. Though some good has come out of this new development, the meaning of the word ‘privacy’ has been obliterated. Stars tweet their schedules, including time spent in the loo and fans lap it all up. It took Tiger Woods just a single message on his website to communicate that he was taking a break from golf to repair his home tottering under his infidelity (-read many many-), and the whole world was made aware of his decision from just that source.

It is not only the technologically inclined who can keep track of these things. Media (newspapers, tv channels) have developed a knack for taking tweets and pics and painting them in an entirely new hue. Some time ago, a certain bootilicious  ‘Basu’ and a footsy ‘Ronaldo’  were purported to have been in a lip lock when the pics only showed them approaching a casual cheek peck. A little simmer time and the rumour had become the headlines on most news channels. Certain news channels who encourage viewers to ‘think about the impact’ came up with ‘What will happen to John now? Will they break up? Stay tuned to find out more.’

Our mental faculties have begun to degenerate, think of yourself in today’s context as opposed to say, 7-8 years back. There is a deterioration associated with age, but it has begun reducing the starting age. Kids in school cannot find enough stimulation today. Each day they get bored about something or the other, and something new draws their attention away from their activities. Forget studies, how many kids go out to play in the evenings anymore? There used to be a time when gully cricket formed an important entertainment for localities, where passersby would stand and bear witness to the cheers and appeals from budding gully cricketers. Now, kids return from tuitions (for even 2nd and 3rd std), and spend hours on Facebook or Orkut. There are only mechanisms for measuring our GDP growth and our inflation, but there seems to be no way of finding out the deterioration that our country is undergoing every day. “Our future lies with our youth” they say. Considering where we are headed as a generation, I sure hope the future does not rest with us.

We have progressed a lot as a nation, but it seems funny that we haven’t emerged as leaders yet. How will we ever lead, if all we do is follow trends and technology from other nations?  There hasn’t been a single startup that has managed to inspire people on the lines of Infosys, while several startups emerge in the developed nations, especially during the economic crisis (which they think is over, btw). We have used Twitter, Facebook, the i-gadgets (iPod, iPhone, iTouch and now the iPad!) for a long time now, but no progress has been made to emulate their success in a grand manner. It has partly to do with the lack of support from our government, but aren’t we to blame too? 

It’s time we pull up our socks. I don’t know how many people are actually reading this, and if any of you have actually thought about the deterioration that we are facing. Think about it. And then Do something about it.

 

 

Any suggestions are welcome.

 

…

I re-quote: To opt or not to opt!!!!

I recently had a discussion with a friend of mine, Piyu on her blog regarding the reforms our HRD ministry has decided to bring about in education . I thought it made a good article on Human thoughts, so I’m reposting the discussion here. Hope you will contribute to this discussion on either of our blogs..

 

On Monday, November 9, 2009, Piyu wrote -

TOI, DH, IE, Hindu…. Rediff, yahoo! Just about everything was gung ho about 10th exams going optional! So much so that, the permanent link to the rediff item ends in “govt-makes-strong-pitch-for-educ-reforms.htm”. Hmmmm….
It was as though there was a furious re-arranging of the deck chairs going on as the ship sank. “The Class X board exams will become optional in all CBSE schools from the coming academic year (2010-11).”
NEWS!!!!
The government on Monday announced that it will introduce grading system in all Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools and make Class X board exams optional from coming academic year (2010-11).
Union Human Resource Development minister Kapil Sibal, during a press conference in New Delhi, said: “Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) supports making Class X examination optional in CBSE system.”
And then the letters to the editor followed. I especially remember this one -
“This is a revolutionary bold step undertaken by a minister. Had it been taken by some one 30 years back, I would have also cherished by childhood instead of remembering it as the most traumatic period of my life. Anyway, I feel happy thinking that atleast now onwards god gifted human life specially its child hood will be remembered happily by everyone. Learning should be always a happy and enjoyable experience. The moment it becomes an unpleasant painful job, it will fail to fulfill its objective and the whole exercise of education system will be futile..Last but not least it is an humble request to the hon'ble minister Sri Kapil Sibalji, to think about the entry age of children of going to school.”
And that set me thinking. One of those Wordsworth’s “pensive” moods I guess. I didn’t know what it meant to make an exam optional and replace it with a “grading system”. The grading system is “an aptitude exam, which schools can use to test Class X students on their level of understanding in each subject.” What’s the distinction and what difference will that distinction make?
Won’t the student’s competitive spirit dampen? Won’t it all get diluted? What’ll happen to the good ol’ days of studying? Will students succumb to the “chalta hai” attitude? Will parents no longer push their children to be their best? What will happen to the torches of tomo? Won’t all of them make it the easy way?
But then, a move such as this one must have really been under consideration for long and probably after a long deliberation, implemented. So, what must have been going on in the mind of Kapil Sibal when he introduced this move? As he put It, it was to de-traumatize education.
Interesting! I pondered. (Click for More/Less)

How many of you had to forego your cricket camps because it was “10th board exams?” “Oh! I stopped sending sheela to music classes.. after all, it is boards this year.she ought to be studying!” I could hear my neighbour say. My own brother discontinued cricket because 10th was board. One promising left arm spinner, lost! Why, you ask? Because, after 10th it is pre-univ and board-time again! So, it never goes beyond that. Atleast, most of the time. I at times wonder, what would have happened if the parents had continued to send their children to extra-curricular classes instead of just sweating it out in front of books! Instead of making them write the grammar lessons which they never really understood a zillion times just coz’ u can score a 100 in Sanskrit. Or grab all the formulae that the student came across lest he miss out on something that may appear for "one" crucial mark in “the boards!”. The young singing talent lost her voice because she was made to read aloud her history dates early morning everyday – so loud and clear lest she forgets them. Or seen parents askin' children not to read the latest knowledge bank or maybe even tinkle, coz it doesn’t have Board curriculum! Huh! These are just a few of the most generous and lenient instances.
I haven’t touched tuitions yet. When the rest of the whole world blissfully sleeps, alarms go ringing right from 3 or even earlier and then you know! That there is a student who is appearing for the “Boards!” oh yes! Ofcourse, you realize. Their day starts this early. And when the rest of the whole world thinks of jogging and getting some good refreshing exercise, the “Boards” victim is off on his bicycle carrying with him a rucksack as though on an expedition. Socials, science, math and what not! Yes, he has to finish his math tuition and then run to science classes! And there is hardly a gap of 15 mins. Ofcourse, he can’t come home. The tuition is faaaar off! Great!
The whole world cheers TZP – makes it a runaway hit! But hypocrisy prevails when it comes to treating their own kids! If you are a 10th std board candidate, try taking your easel and do that sketch u always wanted to do. And you’ve had it! “U are in Board! This isn’t the time to be doing it! Do it in ur summer vacations” comes the call. You drop what’s in your hand, totally frustrated, you walk towards ur room, pull out a book and all you can see is images of that one sketch you wanted to make. And nothing goes in.
Oh…. How could I miss the mocks! Umpteem number of mock-tests…. Mock state and national rankings…. More mock tests.. more rankings…. Life!
10th standard! That’s like 14 or 15 yrs! A teenager…. An inquisitive mind…. Hot blood…. Curiosity to see the world.. do something new…. Challenge…. Pursue their passion…. And ofcourse, Experience the sheer joy of childhood !Isn’t that supposed to be happening?
What is this life full of care, when we have no time to stand and stare?
What happened to the happiness lies where the heart is? What are we pushing them towards in the name of developing a competitive spirit? 7th and 10th students committing suicide coz’ they got a math problem wrong? You call that healthy?
And don’t ever blame it on the child, saying he was sensitive – you made him so! The system made him so! A child, probably a Sachin of tomo was killed because you failed to see the talent in him? Because board exams don’t measure your other attributes? Or you are looking down on the child’s innate abilities and are after him to acquire something new and beat others in it when he could have topped in his area of expertise?
The Board just does that. No doubt, it instills the competitiveness and urge to fight. But, what are we fighting for? 1 mark? 2 marks? Have you seen kids line up infront of the teachers’ desks being at their persuasive best for a quarter mark because that quarter will make them top? Is this the kind of competition we teach? So, what do you think will happen to these kids? They’ll never enjoy the process. They al become so result-oriented and selfish, that they fail to think beyond.
“I play to win” sounds nice when you really enjoy the play and learn along. Learning is not always measured by marks. Learning is an all-round phenomena. What you learn becomes crucial at a later stage.
"It is sports day after all! Stay at home and revise for that test next week. Don’t sign up for any dance events." "It is Boards this time. Don’t this. Don’t that."
When Kapil Sibal talked of de-traumatising education, he meant this and much more which can never be put down in words. The psychology of the child is so inexplicable – you never know what you can do by foolish acts not to mention education systems gone haywire!
Grading system overcomes all this to some extent. It is revolutionary. It is a positive move – one that instills hope that not everything is so bad after all. An optional system is in no way going ot dilute the quality of education, trust me on this. Students are not going t be let away with whatever they do. There is a constant evaluation happening and hopefully one that takes into account the student’s overall performance. So, this kind of monitoring will keep the student on his toes – he has to constantly perform but the difference being – there is no pressure , so scope for optimal learning accompanied by performance. A cool example of competence and performance nourishment sans pressure. Infact chn will have a more rounded personality. Isn’t this the optimal environ for growth?
Young kids should not be considered as computer hard disk memory so that we keep on storing information in the name of imparting knowledge. Through education let us not make the effort to make some one learned but let us kindle the light of desire to know the unknown by themselves. Education always meant that, didn’t it?

 

If you’re still reading (God bless you with abundance- lots of money, love and attention), here’s what I said in reply-

Sooner or later, there is going to be something to increase the pressure. 20-30 years back, there was no pressure on people to pursue Engg/Medicine as the only 'monetary' disciplines.. Our own parents have done very well through other courses. But the pressure has changed,and it is just a handful students who pick Science stream, or Arts stream or one from a multitude of others.
Other new built pressures include pursuing a PG for better pay, children forced to choose friends from a 'amiable' set, and so on.
The truth is that today with increasing workloads, the ability to withstand pressure has to increase. I would liken it to when a bee breaks out of its covering with great struggle, it's the struggle that strengthens its wings. Dramatic, but I kinda liked this analogy..
I've honestly felt that the pressure I've experienced at the 10th and 12th stages, and the fact that I made it through strengthened me with pressures at work. It's something that many of my friends have agreed with.
Now, more than ever, the need to cope with increasing load is essential. Kids with talent will pursue their ambitions as well as their studies. They may not do both on an equal scale, but that's a choice the kids and their parents (read: only parents) have to make. Bringing context here through cricket,people talk of Sachin being able to achieve so much despite his incomplete schooling and the support from his parents, while people like Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid and many others completed their schooling, graduation with honors and pursued their passions as well.
At a time when Obama is asking his country's educators to step up the education level there to compete with Indians, Chinese students,such a step would be taking the foot off the pedal. More than reducing pressure at these levels, it would be wiser to distribute each level (10th,12th) over a 2-3 year period with varying pressure. Students must be given the option of taking a major exam at the end of one year by applying to it. The syllabus can be broken down to distribute the difficulty level, so that no year is preferential. Also, it must be ensured that any early or late completion has no negative effect on their career prospects. This way the kids really interested in pursuing a career through their education can do so earlier, and the ones who want to attempt an alternate career path can do so as well. The parents can rest assured that things will work out, if the security of a catch-net is available in case one of the options chosen by them fails.
Then again, like you said, the HRD ministry must have put a lot of thought into this process before deciding to implement it.

And here’s some cartoons on students that you may like.

The Indianisation of Duniya

 

"Yeh suit mera dekho, yeh boot mera dekho,
Jaise gora koi London ka.."

Gone are the days when we look westwards for style icons. It is surprising though, that the west looks to us for spiritual and moral icons. Not long ago, when Mr.Barrack ‘Peace’ Obama was conferred with the Nobel, Matt Damon said India’s own Gandhi was his inspiration to do good work. Not much of a surprise really, everyone hides behind Gandhi to do good work. Our politicians have often quoted Gandhi in their speeches and have done some pretty exemplary (read: lame) work, even for their standards. Going back on the timeline by a few more weeks, Julia Roberts shooting for a movie in India, suddenly decides to go the ‘baba’ way by having her kids named after Hindu deities. And baba rightly blessed them “Baba sab theek kardenge, ok?”

So what is it about India that keeps the goras coming here for a piece of the spiritual cake? Well, it’s not just that. Why else would they rake up the love story between Independent India’s first patriarch, Nehru and the wife of the last viceroy of India, Mrs.Edwina Mountbatten? This is not a new fascination. India has always been on the cards when ‘they’ needed to portray action in a poor,malnourished environment (Read: Slumdog Millionaire, City of Joy, Octopussy, I could go on for long..)

The mystery that shrouds India’s mystics and yoga and the like, make it a magical land at least to those poor souls who lap up on the stories that numerous industries quite literally thrust down them. Yoga as it was in India with terms like Gomukhasana, Shalabhasana and so on, are getting westernized with terms like upward dog, Warrior 1, Warrior 2 (and all of Ashtanga yoga being labelled as Power yoga). It shouldn’t be long when they try to patent yoga, I mean they’ve also tried patenting the medicinal use of turmeric and mehndi and so on.

No cross cultural connect would be complete without mentioning Raj Kapoor, the showman of the millennium. Re-runs of his old movies still run like hot cakes in Russia. In the very words of a Russian old lady-

"In early fifties, just after the devastating war with Germany, the country was still in ruins we were poor and our life was full of privations and shortages," said the old lady during `Retrospective of Raj Kapoor films` organised in the provincial city of Tver.

“But when we saw greater hardships being faced by the poor from the country (India) with a smile, it gave us optimism. So after watching `Awara` and `Shri 420`, Raj Kapoor became a symbol of optimism for the Soviet people.” she added.

So there it is folks! Hope. The world looks to us for Hope. We may not have encouraged talented worthy workers to do more, but we certainly have hugged them and called them our own when they succeed. Hope moves the world. If you don’t buy a ticket, you don’t stand a chance to win the raffle! Here’s hoping that some grinding cogs in the system’s machinery somewhere will start realizing that.

(In other unrelated news, India is planning to build the world’s largest building! Well, Good luck with that! :P)