Apathy of MPs to price rise
There is an all round increase in the price of essentials in India. But the Members of Parliament who are elected to represent the problems of the masses in parliament and try to alleviate their sufferings have shown scant interest in discussing the price rise.
The following is the excerpt from the editorial of Times of India, Chennai edition dated 2008-04-18:
Missing in Action
MPs’ absenteeism subverts Indian democracy
Inflation is a burning issue because it eats into the already meager incomes of the poor, and our politicians are concerned. Right? Wrong. MPs revealed how much they really care about rising prices of essential commodities — as opposed to how much they would like us to believe that they care — by largely playing truant when the matter came up for discussion in both Houses of Parliament. In the Lok Sabha, even among the few MPs who bothered to turn up, many staged a quiet exit soon after. The lack of quorum in the House was dealt with simply by not drawing attention to the inconvenient fact.
What is intriguing is the absence of MPs belonging to BJP and other opposition parties, who are expected to make some noise at least!
But they are sure to take keen interest in debates on the privileges of MPs.
This is the citadel of democracy for you!
Chennai welcomes the Times of India
Yes. It is adieus to The (non)Hindu!
The time has come to part with an association which had assumed a second nature for me. The typical morning routine of a steaming cup of “ticoction” coffee in one hand and the The Hindu on the other. But it is all history.
There was a time The Hindu represented everything that was representative of educated middle class culture in Tamil Nadu. The completeness of the information, the classy and impeccable English (many of the past generation had averred that they got autodidacted with the English language solely by reading The Hindu), uniqueness of authentic reporting, earnestness of the delivery and clear identity with the south Indian culture and tradition. But all this is past glory.
The Hindu, especially after its take-over by the current management, has undergone a total shift from its traditions for which it has acquired a loyal clientèle built assiduously over a century plus. To be precise, it has let down the loyalists by converting the newspaper almost like an official mouthpiece of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), if the recent front-page coverage given to the party’s conference is any indication.
In addition to the major shift in allegiance from the centrism to partisan, the quality also had gone down considerably. Inaccurate reporting galore, prompting the paper to dedicate a big column for publishing corrections. The language too deteriorated considerably. There was nothing left except the name. And name, God, “Hindu” is a misnomer, with the reporting slant being consistently anti-hindu.
WEll, Times of India has launched its Chennai edition and has hit my doorway today. Let me see how it fares.
An invasion through conversion
YouTube - Watch - prosletysation of the gullible
Equality, Delhi style!
It is high time we admit that class difference will persist in human society and polity in some form or the other, whatever George Orwell had to say about it!
Read this news from Hindustan Times:
No VIP numbers for common man
Only ministers, SC & High Court judges and high-ranking officials to get fancy numbers An executive order has been passed to this effect which simply means that no privately- owned vehicle would be able to get numbers like 0001, 0002, etc., from now on. Declared a senior officer of the Transport Department of Delhi administration.
FOR ALL those Delhiites who like to flaunt their status, this piece of news might not go down well with you. From now on, the Delhi government has decided not to issue any fancy or VIP numbers to cars other than those belonging to high ranking officials, ministers and judges of the Supreme Court and the High Court.
But if you still desperately want one, the only solution is to get your vehicle registered outside Delhi.
“An executive order has been passed to this effect which simply means that no privately owned vehicle would be able to get numbers like 0001, 0002, 100, 786, etc.,” said a senior official of the Transport Department. Officials said the rule even applies to private vehicles of ministers, judges and senior officials.
The decision comes after months of indecisiveness on framing a policy to give fancy numbers. With this, Delhi becomes the only state in the country where only senior government officials would get fancy or VIP numbers for their cars. In most of the states, a VIP number is auctioned and the revenue generated goes in the coffers of the respective state government.
The Delhi Cabinet had stopped giving fancy numbers in August last year after it was found that land scam accused Ashok Malhotra had one and a half dozen cars with fancy numbers. Till then, the Transport Minister, at the recommendation of elected representatives or other important dignitaries, issued the numbers.
Sources in the government said the transport department toyed with the idea of putting numbers on auction and also prepared a Cabinet note which fixed the minimum price for each fancy number. The Cabinet did not clear it, as it feared offending the VIPs of Delhi who are continuously on the look for a status symbol.
“As no solution could be found, we decided to extend this facility only for government vehicles,” said the source.
Officials pointed out that the government was not ready for any fresh controversy which the fancy numbers usually generate.
“First it was a dealer who imported foreign cars and got VIP numbers which led to a major controversy in the year 2005. Then the Ashok Malhotra episode happened. From now, the entire mechanism wherein people of dubious background get these numbers is scrapped,” said a senior official.
Women in progress
Indian women have really progressed a great deal in terms of scruples, values, empathy and traditions, if the following news items that appeared in today’s Hindustan Times is any indication. Please have a look and share your opinion:-
- Woman kills brother due to property dispute.
A WOMAN smashed her brother’s head with a hockey stick and then stabbed him to death with the help of her husband and sons in central Delhi late on Wednesday, the police said.
The murder was allegedly committed over a property dispute.
The deceased Prem Kumar, 54, used to work as an accountant with an oil company in Khari Baoli.
The police said he did not get along with his sister’s family.
Kumar used to live on the ground floor of his ancestral house in Ara Kash Road while his sister Alka used to live on the first floor with her family.
The two families reportedly were not on talking terms.
Kumar’s sister Alka was arrested, while her husband Ravi and sons, Varun and Sahil, were on the run, police said.
The family allegedly rained blows on Kumar after an heated argument and stabbed him several times, the police said.
“Kumar was not happy with Alka, since she had eloped with Ravi before her marriage. Their family apparently did not approve of the marriage. Alka reconciled with her parents later and came to live in the ancestral house with her family,” said an officer.
Kumar was however, not happy with the development.
The two families often argued over minor issues.
The police said that Alka used to claim ownership of the house and pestered Kumar to shift out of the ground floor.
At about 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Alka came to Kumar’s house and picked up an argument.
Her husband and sons reportedly accompanied her.
“The argument soon turned violent. Alka and her family members picked up a hockey stick and thrashed Kumar. Varun and Sahil then caught hold of a kitchen knife a nd stabbed Kumar on his torso,” said an officer.
All but Alka managed to flee. Kumar’s family took him to a city hospital where doctors declared him brought dead, police said.
“We have registered a case and are looking for the other accused,” said an officer
- Mom’s illicit affair turns her son to murderous rage
Read moreNothing Hindu about The Hindu
February 24, 2008 · Filed Under India-centric · 2 CommentsThe centenarian English daily of Chennai (aka Madras) had become a staple companion of English-speaking Tamils. It had actually obtained a status of a second nature. The Hindu in one hand and a steaming brew of “dicoction” coffee in the other is the standard early morning scene amongst the Tamil bourgeoisie.
But things are changing for sure. The weatherman has already waved the flag of the imminent fresh laden clouds! Yes, The Times are stepping in the arena to change the tides of the monarch. The long-time loyalists of The Hindu have started to get the feeling that the imperious Hindu is dithering rudderless these days, losing its traditional Hindu-moorings and turning into a mouthpiece of pseudo-secularist and leftist ideologues. Yes. Its USP is getting eroded.
Besides, there is a perceptible trend of degradation of the quality of the newspaper which was the chief source of authentic information and impeccable Queen’s English for Tamilians for over a century. Bloopers and howlers galore, what with its own “corrections” nook overflowing even with acknowledged bunglings (including the Karanjia sn(w)ap), not to speak of those unreported ones.
Many old-timers feel that the negative paradigm shift started after the current honcho took over the reins. The present chief is one of the most popular and powerful media figures in India is reported to be left-leaning and ultra-secular in the widely perceived connotation of the term “secular” in India. But the image-shift is a bit difficult for the paper with the name “Hindu” on its masthead and the cross of a long history of nationalist and traditional reporting! Hence the effort to be “more royal than the king” in its endeavor to don the politically correct mantle.
And the city of Chennai awaits the arrival of Times of India, Chennai edition, which will start making the early-morning “thud” on my doorstep from the Tamil New Year’s Day (the traditional one that falls in April ‘08 - not the Goverment-sponsored new-year!). And already the tremors are being felt in the Hindu’s layout and structure. It is trying to morph into a tabloid during weekends. Perhaps we are going to witness many more surprises in the ensuing weeks preceding the D-Day!
But things will not be the same for the grand old man of Mount Road!
Do brahmins still belong to an upper caste?
YouTube - Watch - The pathetic condition of BrahminsIt is ironical that Indians who happen to be born to Brahmin parents are treated as second class citizens by being classified as belonging to an “Upper Caste” or a “forward caste”, thus denying them quality education and jobs in Government service. And on top of it, they have become the object of ridicule and hatred in the society.
The video contains several parts of audio in Hindi. I’ll try and get them translated into English soon.
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I am S.K!
Ok, what's the big deal, you may ask! But you may miss a good deal if you do not dwell deep into this web site, specially hand-crafted for you. But what about me, the person? Wait, I am not good at making things up. If you stumble upon a good-sounding résumé, please pass it on to me!
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