Stock Market - Simple & Superb Explanation :)

Once upon a time in a village, a man announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for Rs 10. The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys around, went out to the forest and started catching them..

The man bought thousands at Rs 10 and as supply started to diminish, the villagers stopped their effort. He further announced that he would now buy at Rs20. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. Soon the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms.

The offer rate increased to Rs 25 and the supply of monkeys became so little that it was an effort to even see a monkey, let alone catch it ! The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at Rs 50! However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now buy on behalf of him.

In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers. Look at all these monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at Rs 35 and when the man returns from the city, you can sell it to him for Rs 50. " The villagers squeezed up with all their savings and bought
all the monkeys. Then they never saw the man nor his assistant, only monkeys everywhere !

Welcome to the 'Stock Market'!

"அம்மா" - மூன்றெழுத்தில் முடிந்து விட்டது என் வாழ்கை

பகிர்வுக்கு நன்றி : Suren & Vijay

ஈரைந்து மாதங்கள் மட்டும்
சுமையாய் இருப்பேன் என எதிர் பார்திருந்திருப்பாய் !
இருபத்தைந்து ஆண்டுகளும் சுமையாய் இருக்கிறேனே !
தரி கேட்டு திரிந்தவனை
தடம் மாறி போனவனை
தட்டிக்கொடுத்து ஆதரித்தாயே !
உனக்கு நான் என்ன செய்ய முடியும் ?
அம்மா !
எனக்கு கடவுள் நம்பிக்கை இல்லை.
அதனால்,
... உன்னை தெய்வத்திற்கு ஒப்பிட மாட்டேன் !
அப்படி ஒருவன் இருப்பனேயாயின்
அவன் உன் முன் கதிரொளியில் மறையும் நிலவே ஆவான் !
எழுநூறு கோடி மக்கள் இருப்பினும்
எனக்கென்னவோ உனக்காக மட்டுமே
உலகம் இயங்குவதாய் எண்ணம் !
"அம்மா"
மூன்றெழுத்தில் முடிந்து விட்டது என் வாழ்கை !

-Vijay S

“பழந்தமிழரின் கடல் மேலாண்மை”

பகிர்வுக்கு நன்றி : வினோதன்.

“பழந்தமிழரின் கடல் மேலாண்மை” ஒரு ஆராய்ச்சிக் கட்டுரை!

வணக்கம் நண்பர்களே..

சமீபத்தில் நான் தெரிந்து கொண்ட தமிழர்களின் அறியப்படாத வரலாற்று ஆய்வை உங்களுடன் பகிர்கிறேன். 16.11.2011 அன்று வெளியான “டைம்ஸ் ஆப் இந்தியா” நாளிதளில் வந்த ஒரு செய்தியும் அதை தொடர்ந்து நான் கலந்துகொண்ட “பழந்தமிழரின் கடல் மேலாண்மை” என்னும் கருத்தாய்வு கூட்டத்திலும் நான் தெரிந்து கொண்ட விஷயங்களையே நான் பகிர்கிறேன்.

தமிழர்களின் கடல் மேலாண்மை பற்றி ‘கடல் புறா’ போன்ற வரலாற்று நாவல்கள் மூலம் அரசல் புரசல்களாக நம்மில் பலரும் அறிந்திருப்போம்.

’கலிங்கா பாலு’ என்னும் கடல்சார் ஆராய்ச்சியாளரின் கடல் ஆமைகள் பற்றிய ஆய்வில் தமிழர்கள் பற்றிய பல அறிய உண்மைகள் வெளிச்சத்துக்கு வந்துள்ளன.

அவருடைய ஆய்வறிக்கை “தமிழர் வரலாற்று ஆய்வு நடுவம்” நடத்திய “பழந்தமிழரின் கடல் மேலாண்மை” கருத்தாய்வு கூட்டத்தில் விளக்கப் பட்டது. அந்த ஆய்வறிக்கையின் சாராம்சம் பின்வருமாறு-

கடல் வாழ் உயிரனமான ஆமைகள் கூட்டம் கூட்டமாக முட்டையிட்டு குஞ்சு பொரிப்பதற்காக வருடா வருடம் பல்லாயிரம் மையில்கள் கடந்து தமிழகம் மற்றும் ஒடிசா மாநில கடற்கரைகளில் தஞ்சம் புகுவது பலர் அறிந்த விஷயம். இந்த ஆமைகள் பற்றிய ஆய்வில் ஒரு சுவாரஸ்யமான விஷயம் தெரிய வந்திருக்கிறது. சராசரியாக ஒரு கடல் ஆமையால் ஒரு நாளைக்கு 85கி.மி தூரமே நீந்தி கடக்க முடியும் ஆனால் இவ்வாமைகள் கடந்து வந்ததோ பல்லாயிரம் மையில்கள்! அதுவும் குறுகிய காலத்தில்!! எவ்வாறு என்று சில புதிய தொழில் நுட்பங்களின்(RFID-செயர்கைக்கோள் சாதனம்)

RFID உதவியுடன் ஆராய்ந்த போது ஆமைகள் Ocean currents எனப்படும் கடலில் பாயும் நீரோட்டங்களின் உதவியுடன் பல்லாயிரம் கிலோ மீட்டர் நீந்தாமல் மிதந்து கொண்டு பயணிக்கும் விஷயம் தெரிய வந்திருக்கிறது. இப்படி பயணம் செய்யும் ஆமைகளை செயர்கைகோளின் மூலம் பின்தொடர்ந்த போது மியான்மர்(பர்மா), மலேசியா, இந்தோனேசியா, ஆஸ்திரேலியா, பசிபிக் தீவுகள், ரஷ்யா, மெக்சிகோ, ஐஸ்லேண்ட், ஆப்ரிக்கா என பல உலக நாடுகளின் கடற்கரைகளுக்கு ஆராய்ச்சியாளர்களை இட்டு சென்றுள்ளன. அப்படி அவை கடந்த கடற்கரைகளை ஆராய்ந்த கலிங்க பாலுவிற்கு ஒரு இன்ப அதிர்ச்சி காத்திருந்த்து. ஆமைகள் தொட்டுச் சென்ற பல கடற்கரைகளில் துறைமுகங்களும் அவற்றில் 53 இடங்களின் பெயர்களும், அதன் மக்களும், பண்பாடும், மொழியும் ஏதாவது ஒரு வகையில் தமிழின் தாக்கத்தோடு இருந்திருக்கிறது. அந்த கடற்கரைகளில் உள்ள ஊர்கள் சிலவற்றின் பெயர்கள் உங்கள் பார்வைக்கு:

ஊர் பெயர்களும் அந்த நாடுகளும்:

தமிழா-மியான்மர்

சபா சந்தகன் – மலேசியா

கூழன், சோழவன், ஊரு, வான்கரை, ஓட்டன்கரை, குமரா- ஆஸ்திரேலியா

கடாலன் – ஸ்பெயின்

நான்மாடல், குமரி,- பசிபிக் கடல்

சோழா, தமிழி பாஸ் –மெக்சிகோ

திங் வெளிர்- ஐஸ்லாந்து

கோமுட்டி-ஆப்ரிக்கா

இப்படி அந்த ஆமைகள் சென்ற கடற்கரை நகரங்களின் பெயர்களும் ஒரு சில பகுதிகளில் வசிக்கும் பழங்குடியினத்தினரின் மொழி, பண்பாடு ஆகியன தமிழோடு தொடர்புள்ளதாக இன்றளவும் இருக்கின்றன.

இன்னொரு சுவாரஸ்யிமான விஷயம். ‘சர்க்கரை வள்ளிக்கிழங்கு’(sweet potato) என்பது தமிழ் நாட்டில் விளையும் கிழங்கு வகை. நம் மீனவர்கள் கடலோடும்போது பல நாள் பசி தாங்க இவற்றையே உணவாக கொள்ளும் வழக்கம் இன்றளவும் உள்ளது. இதே வழக்கத்தை தமிழுடன் தொடர்புடையதாக கருதப்படும் பல பழங்குடியின மக்கள் பின்பற்றுகின்றனர். இதில் கவனிக்க வேண்டிய விஷயம் மியானமர், இந்தோனேசியா, ஆஸ்திரேலியாவின் சில பகுதி என பல இடங்களில் நம் சர்க்கரை வள்ளிக்கிழங்கின் பெயர் ‘குமரா’!!

பிசிபிக் கடல் பகுதியில் உள்ள தீவில் வாழும் ஒரு குறிப்பிட்ட இனமக்கள் உபயோகப்படுத்தும் படகின் பெயர் ‘திரி மரம்’. அதில் உள்ள நடு பாகத்தின் பெயர் ‘அம்மா’ வலது பாகம் ‘அக்கா’ இடது பாகம் ‘வக்கா’. அடி பாகம் ‘கீழ்’.

Tamil bell Found in New Zealand

நியுசிலாந்து பகுதியில் 1836ஆம் வருடம் ஒரு பழங்குடியினர் குடியிருப்பில் தமிழ் எழுத்துக்கள் பொறிக்கப்பட்ட இரும்பாலான மணி கண்டெடுக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இது பற்றிய தகவல் விக்கிபிடியாவில் உள்ளது. அதை படிக்க http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamil_bell சொடுக்கவும்.

இப்படி தமிழுடன் தொடர்புடைய பல விஷயங்களை விஷயங்களை மேலும் பல வருடங்கள் ஆராய்ந்த கலிங்க பாலு அவர்களின் ஆராய்ச்சி முடிவில் பழந்தமிழர்கள் தம்முடைய கடல் பயணங்களுக்கும் படையெடுப்புகளுக்கும் ஆமைகளை வழிகாட்டிகளாக (Navigators) பயன்படுத்தி பல்லாயிரம் மைல்கள் கடந்து பல நாடுகளில் கோளோச்சிருப்பது ஆதாரப் பூரவமாக நிரூபனமாகியிருக்கிறது.

இது பற்றி அவர் பல ஆதாரங்களை முன் வைத்திருக்கிறார். அடுத்த மாதம் இது பற்றிய புத்தகம் அவர் வெளியிட இருப்பதால் நான் பல விஷயங்களை இங்கே பகிர இயலாது.

கலிங்க பாலு அவர்கள் எந்த ஒரு அரசு உதவியுமில்லாமல் இத்தனை ஆண்டுகள் இந்த ஆராய்ச்சிகளை மேற்கொண்டு வந்துள்ளார். இப்போது தான் ஒரு நிறுவனம் நிறுவி அவருடைய ஆராய்ச்சியை தொடர்ந்து வருகிறார். இது பற்றிய ஆர்வமுள்ளவர்கள் அவருக்கு உதவலாம். அவருடைய இமெயில் முகவரி -kalingatamil@yahoo.co.in

நான் கலந்துகொண்ட அந்நிகழ்ச்சியில் என்னை வருத்தப் பட வைத்த விஷயம், அரங்கம் நிறைய தமிழ் ஆர்வலர்கள் குழுமியிருந்தனர். ஆனால் பெரும்பாலும் நரைமுடிகளையே காண முடிந்த்து. மொத்தமே 10 இளைஞர்களே என் கண்ணில் பட்டனர். அதிலும் மூவர் ஒலி ஒளி அமைப்பாளர்கள்.

நண்பர்களே நான் அந்நிகழ்ச்சி முடிந்ததும் அதன் ஒருங்கினைப்பாளர்களிடமும் கலிங்க பாலுவிடமும் தனிப்பட்ட முறையில் உரையாடிய போது Facebookகில் நம் சங்கத்தை பற்றியும் நம்முடைய தமிழார்வத்தை பற்றியும் விளக்கி நம்மால் முடிந்த உதவிகளை அவர்களுக்கு செய்வதாக சொன்னேன். அதற்கு அவர்கள் சந்தோஷப் பட்டு ஒரே ஒரு உதவி மட்டுமே கேட்டனர். இளைஞர்களிடம் அதுவும் குறிப்பாக தமிழில் பேசுவதையே இழுக்காக கருதும் இளைஞர்களிடம் இந்த தகவல்களை கொண்டு செல்ல உதவ வேண்டும் என்றார்கள்.

நம்மால் முடிந்தவரை இந்த தகவலை பகிர்ந்து நம்முடைய வரலாற்றை பலருக்கு கொண்டு செல்லுவோம்.

நன்றி - வினோதன்.

Successful Transplantation of Trees by CMRL

Courtesy & Thanks : Chennai Metro Rail

Tree Transplanting involves relocating or moving a tree safely from one location to another. Tree transplanting is a specialized service. Small trees mean having small girth and small height. It is comparatively easier to transplant small trees. While transplanting big trees i.e., tall tree & trees with heavy girth, extra care is required. During transplantation as the roots are cut they are prone to infections, so proper use of chemicals is required. After transplantation the transplanted trees need special attention for about six months. As these trees are prone to infections because of the weak system of the tree due to transplanting operation, it takes time for a tree to adapt itself to a new condition and environment.

As part of safeguarding the environment and its sincere efforts in attempting to restore the ecological balance, besides undertaking compensatory afforestration for the trees felled in the project, CMRL can proudly say that it has also successfully undertaken transplanting a good number of trees. In Thiru Vi Ka Park underground Station area at Shenoy Nagar, 23 trees sufficiently big in size were identified as important species and they are successfully transplanted. Similarly in Pachaiyappa’s College underground Station area, 33 trees were identified to be suitable for transplantation and were successfully transplanted. All the trees transplanted have survived and CMRL can boast of achieving 100% success in tree transplantation.

Cereal Offenders

Courtesy & Thanks : Veeresh Malik (http://www.moneylife.in)


Doctors, stunned by the increase in patients with gastro or digestive-system linked cancers, are suggesting the need to do away with sugar—and breakfast cereals

Over the last few years, an amazing and visible change has taken place in India, and that has to do with the easy availability of such processed and manufactured foods as well as the ailments which follow, with digestive and gastro issues taking pole position. Certainly, low sanitation has one part to play with this, especially the quality of water we drink. But more importantly, it is the rapid change in dietary habits in urban India which is a major change in the reasons behind medical issues, and only one of the areas where it is showing up in huge numbers is cancer.

For example—sweetened coloured carbonated soft drinks, were sold and available out of small cottage industries which had not learnt the art of adding more salt so that they could make you crave for another within a short time. And to counter all that salt, they then had to add more sugar. And since sugar was expensive, other chemicals masquerading as sweeteners have now been added. (Readers may be glad to observe that the number of celebrities endorsing soft drinks appears to have come down now, especially after Yuvraj Singh’s unfortunate episode with cancer. (Cancer Colas: Slowly being outcast by the West, Colas exploit India through unaccountable celebrity endorsements)

Or take another example—pre-packaged polished rice or refined flour was simply not available. Indian food simply didn’t taste the same with this base for a meal. Besides, everybody knew that the real nutrients as well as value came when you ate it without losing all the good parts. And the end products, bread or biscuit, were mostly made locally—from fresh ingredients sourced locally, too. Not loaded with garbage in the name of add-ons. (How does the wood in your bread, biscuit taste today?)

However, within the Indian context, even in the poorest of families, breakfast was the main building block of the day’s meal. Something which had to provide everybody with a reason to go, work, study or whatever. It was healthy, freshly cooked, and it was of prime importance that people knew what went into it.

A lot of that appears to have changed in the last decade or so. And one reason for it is the massive push being given to packaged breakfast cereals. Famously, it has been said more than once, including in the US Congress that the boxes they came in provided more nutrition than did the breakfast cereals themselves—and this was never contested or denied by the breakfast cereal industry. But, based heavily on advertising and marketing, the push for space on your table is huge. Simply put, the more they spend for the effort involved in getting breakfast cereals, the less you will get in terms of value.

This heavy push to try and change Indian breakfast eating habits does not come cheap, for anybody who knows what the cost of advertising is, or the charges levied for retail display space. After soft drinks, breakfast cereals are now the second highest marketed food products in India, and that is saying something for a category that simply did not exist here a decade ago. In the words of one advertising guru, the brief given was to make it a lifestyle product for children, with the power of pestering their parents. So, free toys, provocative advertising, and somehow connecting breakfast cereals to “family values” and “healthy lifestyles”, all this and more, made sure that you brought cereals home.

But what, then, is the link with cancer?

Doctors one speaks to are not very sure, but that old villain—excess sugar and salt—raises its head again. And why is there so much of it? Well, sugar provides the ‘bulk’ feeling and salt provides the taste, and the manufacturers have to provide something for the Indian palate—so up goes the sugar and the salt. In effect, when you are eating a bowlful of cereals, especially the so-called high fibre sorts, you are likely ingesting more salt than an equal weight of potato chips.

So where is the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India on breakfast cereals? As usual, nowhere, other than saying that they adhere to Indian standards. Which, actually, say nothing about the process to be used to make them in the first case, which is where the trouble starts. What sort of corn goes into making corn flakes sold in India, for example?

Even the crows don’t touch GM corn anymore...

Typically, when you manufacture a breakfast cereal, you are simply running the base grain through high temperatures, using a variety of processes to remove most of the natural nutrients, and then replacing them with artificial additives. This is done to (a) prevent the cereal from going rancid and (b) keeping the cereal crisp. The additives can include the mythical Vitamin D as well as our famous plant fibre, and of late, the new buzzword is Omega-3. The problem is, all these make the whole thing taste unpleasant, at least to children, so add more sugar.

Of course, after that you add milk and you guessed right—added more sugar.

So does this conclusively prove that breakfast cereals are now an additional possible cause for cancer?

The point is this we still don’t know what goes into breakfast cereals sold in India. And like there are people still denying that tobacco causes cancer, there are those who will sing the glories of breakfast cereals, so strong is the cereal lobby.

But if you ask the doctors, mostly over-worked and some absolutely stunned by the vast increase across all social and class levels of patients coming in with gastro or digestive system linked cancers, they are increasingly suggesting lifestyle changes need to do away with sugar. And breakfast cereals.

Breakfast cereals on their way to becoming serial offenders? It’s your life and it’s your money. Why do you want to spend it on cancer?

With credit to Felicity Lawrence’s books, “Eat Your Heart Out” and “Not on the Label”.

U. Sagayam from Tamil Nadu - The Real IAS Officer (Hero)

Courtesy & Thanks : http://www.outlookindia.com

Man With A Steel Frame

Under A Dangerous Motto

By refusing to take bribes, the Madurai collector has earned 18 transfers in 20 years, a modest house and bank balance and lots of respect

Trigger Why we are doing this story

• Because the assets of an IAS officer-couple in Madhya Pradesh were valued at Rs 360 crore. They had 25 flats in three cities.

On a hot summer afternoon, on Madurai’s busy main road, the district collector, U. Sagayam, saw a young man talking on a cellphone while riding a motorbike. He asked his driver to wave the man down, got down from his car and meted out instant punishment: plant 10 saplings within 24 hours. Somewhat unconventional justice, some might say. But that’s how Sagayam works.

‘Lanjam Thavirtthu, Nenjam Namartthu’ (Reject bribes, hold your head high), says a board hanging above Sagayam’s chair in his modest office. That’s the code he lives by, even if politicians are incensed they cannot bend him their way—he’s been transferred 18 times in the last 20 years—and has made enemies of both superiors and subordinates. “I know I sit under a dangerous slogan and probably alienate people,” he says. “But I have been the same Sagayam from Day 1. Standing up against corruption is not for a season. Nor is it a fad. It’s forever.”

Two years ago, as district collector of Namakkal, he voluntarily declared his assets: a bank balance of Rs 7,172 and a house in Madurai worth Rs 9 lakh. Once, when his baby daughter, Yalini, who had breathing problems, was suddenly taken ill, he did not have the Rs 5,000 needed for admitting her to a private hospital. At that time he was deputy commissioner (excise) in Coimbatore and there were 650 liquor licences to be given out. The going bribe for each was rumoured to be Rs 10,000.

Sagayam started cleaning up Madurai the minute he landed here. The main bus terminus at Mattuthavani looked more like a bazaar, with shops all over the bus-shelters and no waiting place for passengers. Even a police outpost had been turned into a shop. The system was well-oiled with haftas to local politicians and policemen. Sagayam quickly went through the rulebook, cited the relevant clauses and cleaned up the entire area. But didn’t it hit poor shopkeepers who lost their livelihood? “A violation is a violation,” says Sagayam, “but we will help them rehabilitate.” Nageshwaran, a taxi-driver and one of Sagayam’s many fans, says, “He’s strict and hasn’t taken even ten paise in bribe during his career. He’s like the upright collectors they show in some films, a real hero with integrity.”

Sagayam’s masters degrees in social work and law come in useful in his role as an administrator. He knows the rulebooks in detail and is not afraid of using them, however powerful the opponent. No wonder then that Sagayam’s career is marked with the scars of countless battles.

When errant village officers ganged up to get Sagayam transferred, people protested and the order was rescinded.

When he was in Kanchipuram as revenue officer, he took on the sand mafia, ordering them to stop dredging sand from the Palar riverbed. Large-scale dredging had made the area flood-prone. The mafia sent goons to assault Sagayam, but he did not budge and would not take back the order. He also took on a mighty soft-drink mnc when a consumer showed him a bottle with dirt floating in it. He sealed the bottling unit and banned the sale of the soft drink in the city. In Chennai, he locked horns with a restaurant chain and recovered four acres valued at some Rs 200 crore.

Given such credentials, it wasn’t surprising for him to be picked by the Election Commission to oversee elections in Madurai, as famous for its temples as its political gods. During the last polls, Sagayam took on M.K. Azhagiri, the local MP and son of former CM and DMK supremo M. Karunanidhi. He conducted voter awareness campaigns in colleges; the DMK petitioned the court twice, seeking to end what it said was an attempt to influence voters, but the court demurred.

Sagayam’s wife Vimala has stood by him all these years but she was rattled by some of the threats during the elections. “He always says if you are right, nobody can hurt you,” she says. “But sometimes it becomes difficult.”

Sagayam takes a hands-on approach to his work. He holds a Monday ‘durbar’, at which anyone can meet him with their complaints. During tours of the district for review meetings and inspections, he will suddenly stop a school bus to talk to children or duck into a school to take a class. When students tell him they want to be IAS or IPS officers, he asks, “It’s all well to say now that you’ll be honest, but will you remain unbending about not taking bribes throughout your career?”

Some months back, while driving to a village, he found a 92-year-old woman cleaning rice. She said she had to work in order to eat. He immediately sanctioned Rs 1,000 as old-age pension for her. When 60-year-old Vellamma met him during a tour of Uthappanaikkanoor village this week and asked him to grant her a pension, he said, “I can do that. But do you want me to send your son to jail too—for abandoning you?” He said it with a smile, as a joke, but he has in fact taken action against children who don’t take care of their aging parents.

“I believe, as Mahatma Gandhi said, that India lives in her villages,” says Sagayam, who also idolises Subhash Chandra Bose. His years as a collector—he has slept overnight in village schools many times—have convinced him to better the lot of villagers by strengthening the village administrative officer (VAO) system. Many VAOs have never visited villages and often stay miles away from where they should be, in cities. In Namakkal, his action against errant VAOs had them ganging up with politicians to get him transferred. Over 5,000 villagers protested, saying they wouldn’t let Sagayam go. The politicians had to retreat.

Sagayam says he learnt honesty on his mother’s knees. He is the youngest of four sons of a farmer from Pudukottai. “Our adjoining field had mango trees and my friends and I would pick the fallen fruit,” he says. “But my mother made me throw the mangoes away, saying I should enjoy only what is mine.” Now his daughter Yalini wants to become a collector. When she has an argument with her brother Arun, she asks her father, “Is he really your son? He just told a lie!” Both of them are proud of their father. Recently, after a long time, the Sagayam family went on a vacation to Kullu in Himachal Pradesh. While visiting a gurudwara, a stranger came up to their father and asked him, “Aren’t you IAS officer Mr Sagayam?” Yalini and Arun have not stopped beaming.

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Courtesy & Thanks : http://www.deccanherald.com

IAS officer makes assets public

M R Venkatesh, Chennai, Nov 11, DH News Service:

Namakkal collector creates history, voluntarily declares property worth Rs 9 lakh

Seeking to “walk the talk” on upholding probity in administration, a Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer has put up his asset details on a state website.

U Sagayam, Collector of Namakkal district, has created history of sorts by being the first IAS officer in the state to upload details of his assets on the district website, taking fellow officers by pleasant surprise.

Taking recourse to the “purely voluntary disclosure” provision under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the 47-year-old officer, during the RTI Week observed in Namakkal district last month, had announced that he would make known his property and bank balance details on the website.

Walk the talk

Fulfilling his intent, Sagayam declared on the Namakkal district website recently that he has a house property worth Rs 9 lakh in Madurai, jointly owned by his wife Vimala and himself, besides a bank balance of a mere Rs 7,172 in his account with the State Bank of India.

As per the All India Service Rules, people entering IAS not only have to furnish details of their personal assets at the time of joining service, but should also submit their property statement to the government every year. Does this make the bold IAS officer’s move a wee bit superfluous?

Sagayam, speaking to Deccan Herald from Namakkal on Wednesday, said though the asset details of IAS cadre officers were already with the government and in the public domain at that level, he still felt impelled to take it to a larger domain of public visibility.

Leading by example

“The collector, as one leading the district administration, instead of just telling his subordinates to be honest, should lead by personal example,” he said.

“It will create confidence in the people and also motivate the administration at large as the impression of public servants in the eyes of the people is at low ebb,” Sagayam reasoned.

He hoped that his action would convey that “there are people serious about upholding integrity in public administration.” It should also help to strengthen the democratic process in the country.

Some IAS officers feel that there is no necessity to disclose their assets on the website as they are already with the government. Yet, Sagayam seems to have made a point to ponder.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U._Sagayam

http://ab.nalv.in/general/the-real-ias-officer/

சகாயம் - மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர்.

மதுரை மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர் சகாயம் எப்படிப்பட்டவர்?



‘‘மதுரை கலெக்டர் சகாயம், அதிமுக-வினர் போல் செயல்படுகிறார். அவர் தமிழ்நாட்டில் மாற்றம் வேண்டும் என்று பேசும் அளவிற்கு சென்றுள்ளார் என்று நான் குற்றம் சாட்டுகிறேன்.’’

மத்திய அமைச்சர் மு.க.அழகிரி, மதுரை மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர் குறித்து அளித்துள்ள பத்திரிகை செய்தி இது. இதே சகாயம் குறித்து டெக்கான் கிரானிக்கில் மற்றும் ஆனந்த விகடன் ஆகிய இதழ்கள் அளித்துள்ள விவரங்கள் என்ன?

‘‘என்னை கோயம்புத்தூருக்கு மாற்றியிருந்த நேரம். என் பெண் யாழினிக்கு அப்போது மூன்று வயது. திடீரென்று ஒருநாளிரவு அவள் மூச்சுவிட மிகவும் சிரமப்பட்டாள். மருத்துவமனைக்குத் தூக்கிச் சென்றேன். உடனே மருத்துவமனையில் சேர்க்கச் சொல்லிவிட்டார்கள். மாதக் கடைசி என்பதால் கையில் ஆயிரம் ரூபாய் கூட இல்லை. புதிய ஊர். அறிமுகம் இல்லாத மனிதர்கள். எனக்குக் கீழே வேலை பார்க்கிறவர்களிடம் கடன் கேட்கவும் சங்கடமாக இருந்தது. காஞ்சிபுரத்தில் நான் வேலை பார்த்தபோது எனக்கு நண்பராக இருந்த ஒரு பள்ளி ஆசிரியர் அப்போது கோவைக்கு மாற்றல் ஆகி வந்திருந்தார். அவரிடம் மிகவும் தயக்கத்துடன் நான்காயிரம் ரூபாய் கடன் கேட்கவும் ஓர் அரை மணி நேரத்தில் அவர் கொண்டு வந்து கொடுத்தார். உடனே குழந்தைக்கு சிகிச்சை ஆரம்பிச்சிட்டோம். ஆனால், சம்பளம் வாங்கியதும் அந்தக் கடனை அடைத்ததும்தான் என் மனமதில் இருந்த சுமை இறங்கியது.’’

சகாயம்,ஐஏஎஸ். நாமக்கல் மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர். மதுரையில் ஒன்பது லட்ச ரூபாய் மதிப்பில் எல்ஐசி ஹவுசிங் லோன் மூலம் கட்டப்பட்ட ஒரு வீடு. வங்கியில் 7,172 ரூபாய் சேமிப்பு என பகிரங்கமாகத் தனது சொத்துப்பட்டியலை வெளியிட்ட இந்தியாவின் முதல் ஐஏஎஸ் அதிகாரி சகாயம். ’லஞ்சம் தவிர்த்து நெஞ்சம் நிமிர்த்து’ வாசகத்துக்குக் கீழ் தலைநிமிர்ந்து அமர்ந்திருக்கிறார் சகாயம்.

‘‘நான் அந்த கோயம்பத்தூர் சம்பவத்தை ஏன் சொல்றேன் என்றால்,அப்போது என் கட்டுப்பாட்டில் 650 மதுபானக் கடைகள் இருந்தன. உரிமம் புதுப்பிக்க கடைக்குத் தலா பத்தாயிரம் ரூபாய் என்று கொடுக்கத் தயாராய் இருந்தார்கள். நான் ஒரு வார்த்தை சொல்லியிருந்தால், அடுத்த ஐந்தாவது நிமிடம் 65 லட்ச ரூபாய் என் வீடு தேடி வந்திருக்கும். ஆயிரம் ரூபாய் கூட கையில் இல்லாத, மகளுக்கு உடம்பு சரியில்லாத சூழ்நிலையில், மனநிலை என்ன மாதிரி இருக்கும்னு யோசித்துப் பாருங்கள். ஆனால், அதெல்லாம்தான் ஓர் அரசு அதிகாரியின் நேர்மைக்கான சோதனை. நேர்மையா இருக்கிறதில் ஒரேயொரு சிக்கல் மட்டும்தான். நாளுக்கு நாள் நமக்கு எதிரிகள் அதிகரித்துக்கொண்டே போவார்கள். அவர்களை மட்டும் சமாளித்துவிட்டால் போதும். — தடதடக்கும் வார்த்தைகளில் கொப்பளிக்கிறது உற்சாகம்.

புதுக்கோட்டை மாவட்டம் பெருஞ்சுனை குக்கிராமம்தான் என் சொந்த ஊர். மற்றவர்கள் தோட்டத்து மாங்காய் தெருவில் கிடந்தால்கூட எடுத்துக்கொண்டு வரக்கூடாது என்று சொல்கிற அம்மா. நீ படித்து கலெக்டர் ஆகி உதவின்னு கேட்டு வர்றவங்களுக்கு எல்லாம் உதவணும்டா என்று சொல்லிக்கொண்டே இருக்கும் அப்பா. கலெக்டர்தானே, ஆயிடுவோம்னு படிச்சேன், ஆயிட்டேன். வேலைக்கு சேர்ந்த முதல் நாள் நம்ம மனது எந்த அளவுக்கு புத்துணர்ச்சியோடவும் புனிதமாகவும் இருக்கோ, கடைசி நாளின்போதும் அதே உணர்ச்சியோடு ஓய்வு பெறணும்னு மட்டும் முடிவு பண்ணினேன்.

‘‘காஞ்சிபுரத்தில் கோட்டாட்சியராகப் பணியாற்றிக் கொண்டிருந்த சமயத்தில் ஒரு பெரியவர், தான் வாங்கிய பெப்சியில் அழுக்குப்படலம் இருந்ததாகப் புகார் கொடுத்தார். மாதிரியை ஆய்வுக்கூடத்திற்கு சோதனைக்காக அனுப்பியதில், மனிதர்கள் குடிக்க இலாயக்கற்ற பானம் என்று அறிக்கை வந்தது. சட்டப்படி அந்த நிறுவனம் மேல் என்ன நடவடிக்கை எடுக்கணும்னு ஓர் அறிக்கை தயாரித்தேன். ரொம்ப யோசனைக்குப் பிறகு வட்டாட்சியரிடம் எட்டு பூட்டு மட்டும் வாங்கிட்டு வரச் சொன்னேன். எதுக்குன்னு புரியாம வாங்கிட்டு வந்தவரைக் கூட்டிக்கிட்டு மதுராந்தகத்துல இருக்குற பெப்சி கம்பெனிக்குப் போனேன்.

நான் தயாரித்த அறிக்கையின் ஒரு நகலை கம்பெனி மேலாளரிடம் கொடுத்துட்டு, கம்பெனியைப் பூட்டி சீல் வைக்கப் போறோம். எல்லோரையும் வெளியே வரச் சொல்லுங்கன்னு சொன்னோம். அந்த மேலாளரைவிட என்கூட வந்த வட்டாட்சியர் ஆடிப்போயிட்டார். சார், ...பெரிய பிரச்சனை ஆயிடும். எதுக்கும் கலெக்டரை ஒரு வார்த்தை கேட்டுக்கலாம்னு பதறினார். கலெக்டரைக் கேட்டால் சீல் வைக்க விடமாட்டார். சட்டப்படி இந்தக் கம்பெனியை மூட நமக்கே அதிகாரம் இருக்கு. நீங்க தைரியமா உங்க கடமையைச் செய்யுங்கன்னு அவரை உள்ளே அனுப்பினேன். ஒரு மணி நேரம் கழித்து இன்னும் பதற்றத்தோடு வெளியே வந்தவர், சார்... அவங்க அமெரிக்கா வரைக்கும் பேசுறாங்க சார். முதல்வர் கிட்ட பேசுறதாச் சொல்றாங்க, சார். என்ன பண்ணலாம்னு கேட்டார். உள்ளே இருக்கிறவங்களை கைது பண்ணிட்டு சீல் வைக்க வேண்டியதுதான்னு நான் சொல்லவும்தான் எல்லாரும் பயந்து வெளியே வந்தாங்க. கம்பெனியை இழுத்து மூடி எட்டு பூட்டுகளையும் போட்டு சீல் வெச்சுட்டோம்.

நான் உடனே அலுவலகத்துக்குப் போகாமல், ஒரு குக்கிராமத்துக்குப் போய் ரேஷன் கடை, பள்ளிக்கூடத்தை எல்லாம் ஆய்வு செய்துவிட்டு இரவு எட்டு மணிக்கு வீட்டுக்கு வந்தேன். என் மனைவி வாசலிலேயே காத்துக்கொண்டு இருந்தாங்க. கலெக்டர், சீஃப் செக்ரடரி, உள்துறைச் செயலாளர்னு பலரும் என்னைக் கேட்டு வீட்டுக்குப் போன் பண்ணி இருக்காங்க. நான் திரும்ப எல்லோருக்கும் போண் பண்ணினேன். யாரைக் கேட்டு சீல் வெச்சீங்க? என்ன காரியம் பண்ணியிருக்கீங்க, தெரியுமா? என்று எல்லோரும் கேள்வி கேட்டாங்க. நான் என் கடமையைத்தான் சார் செய்தேன். மக்களுக்கு நல்லது செய்ததுக்காக, சஸ்பெண்ட் செய்தால் தாராளமாகச் செய்துகொள்ளுங்கள் என்று சொல்விட்டேன். மறு நாள் இந்த செய்தி எந்தப் பத்திரிகையிலும் பெட்டி செய்தியாகக் கூட வரவில்லை. பெப்சிக்கு சீல் வைத்த சம்பவம் ரிப்போர்ட் செய்யப்படவே இல்லை,.

இரண்டு நாள் கழித்து ஜூனியர் விகடன் இதழில் மட்டும் அந்தச் செய்தி விரிவாக வந்திருந்தது,. அதற்குப் பிறகுதான் பெப்சிக்கு நான் சீல் வைத்த விஷயமே வெளி உலகத்துக்குத் தெரிந்தது.

இதுவரை 15 இடங்களுக்கு என்னை மாற்றி மாற்றி பந்தாடிட்டாங்க. இப்போதான் முதன்முதலாக நாமக்கல் மாவட்டத்துக்கு கலெக்டர் ஆகியிருக்கேன். மாவட்டம் முழுவதும் ஒரு கோடி மரக்கன்றுகள் நடத் திட்டமிட்டு, ஏழு லட்சம் மரக் கன்றுகளை நட்டுவிட்டோம். அவற்றின் முறையான பராமரிப்புக்கும் ஏற்பாடு பண்ணிவிட்டோம். இன்னும் பத்தாண்டுகளில் அதிக மரங்கள் உள்ள மாவட்டமாக நாமக்கல் இருக்கும். ஏற்கனவே நொந்து போயிருக்கும் விவசாயிகளை, குறை தீர்க்கும் கூட்டத்துக்கு வான்னு ஒவ்வொரு மாதமும் கலெக்டர் ஆபிசுக்கு அலைக்கழிக்கிறது நல்லாவா இருக்குன்னு நானே விவசாயிகளைத் தேடிப் போக ஆரம்பித்தேன். ஒரு நாள் இரவு முழுதும் அந்தந்த கிராமங்களிலேயே தங்கி, அவங்க குறைகளை வாழ்ந்து பார்த்துட்டு வருவேன். அப்போதுதான் அவங்க சொல்வதற்கு முன்னாடியே அவங்க குறைகள் என்னன்னு நாம் உணர முடியும்.

இப்படிப்பட்ட சகாயம் மீதுதான் அமைச்சர் மு.க.அழகிரி குற்றம்சாட்டுகிறார்.

Keelulla inaipugalaiyum parka. (Please refer other related links too)

http://hari1103.blogspot.in/2012/04/u-sagayam-from-tamil-nadu-real-ias.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U._Sagayam

http://ab.nalv.in/general/the-real-ias-officer/

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காலில் பித்தவெடிப்பா? கவலையை விடுங்கள்! சளி, இருமல், தொண்டை வலிக்கு நம்ம பாட்டியோட கை வைத்தியந்தான் இருக்கவே இருக்கே. பித்த வெடிப்புக்கும் நம்ம பாட்டியோட சூப்பரான க்ராக் க்ரீம் இதோ.....

பித்தவெடிப்பு மறைய

காலில் பித்தவெடிப்பா? கவலையை விடுங்கள். தேனையும், சுண்ணாம்பையும் ஒன்றாய்க் குழைத்து பித்தவெடிப்பில் தடவி வந்தால் பித்தவெடிப்பு இருந்த இடம் தெரியாமல் மறைந்துவிடும்.

தொண்டை வலிக்கு

பால் இல்லாத டீயுடன் கொஞ்சம் எலுமிச்சை சாறு விட்டு குடித்து பாருங்கள் தொண்டை வலி நீங்கும்.

இருமல் தொல்லைக்கு

தூங்க போகும் முன் 1 கப் சூடான தண்ணீ­ரில் 1 ஸ்பூன் உப்பு போட்டு வாய் கொப்பளிக்கவும். இது இருமல் தொல்லையையும் நீக்கும்.

கண்ணாடி துண்டினால் காயம் ஏற்பட்டால்

கண்ணாடி துண்டினால் காயம் ஏற்பட்டால் வாழைபழத்தோலை அந்த காயத்தின் மீது வைத்து காட்டுங்கள். ரத்த போக்கு நின்று காயம் விரைவில் ஆறும். அதற்கு முன் காயத்தை நன்றாக வெதுவெதுப்பான நீரால் கழுவவேண்டும்.

இருமல் சளிக்கு

தூதுவளை இலை 15 கிராம் அளவில் சேகரித்து 500 மில்லி தண்­ணீரில் போட்டு 200 மில்லியாக சுண்டக் காய்ச்சி வடிகட்டி 30 முதல் 40 மில்லி வரை ஒரு நாளைக்கு மூன்று வேளை

இந்த கஷாயத்தைச் சாப்பிட்டு வந்தால், இருமல், இரைப்பு, சளியுடன் கூடிய காய்ச்சல், சயரோகக் காய்ச்சல் குணமாகும்.

கட்டிகள் உடைய

மஞ்சள், சுண்ணாம்பு, விளக்கெண்ணெய் மூன்றையும் நன்றாக குலைத்து கட்டிகள் உள்ள இடத்தில் பற்று போட்டால் கட்டிகள் சீக்கிரம் பழுத்து உடைந்து விடும்.

பேன் தொல்லை நீங்க

வசம்பு, வேப்பிலை இரண்டையும் அரைத்து தலையில் தேய்த்து 30 நிமிடங்கள் கழித்து குளித்து வந்தால் தலையில் உள்ள பேன் நீங்கும்.

மேனி பளபளப்பு பெற

ஆரஞ்சுப்பழத்தை தொடர்ந்து சாப்பிட்டு வந்தால் மேனி பளபளப்பு பெறும்.

தும்மல் வராமல் இருக்க

தூதுவளை பொடியில் மிளகு பொடி கலந்து தேனில் (அ) பாலில் சாப்பிட்டால் தும்மல் வராது.

கரும்புள்ளி மறைய

எலுமிச்சை சாறு மற்றும் கிளிசரின் கலந்து கரும்புள்ளிகள் மீது தடவிவர, அவை நாளடைவில் மறைந்து விடும்.

தொண்டை கரகரப்பு நீங்க

அதிமதுரத் துண்டு ஒன்றை வாயில் அடக்கிக் கொண்டிருந்தால் வாயில் உமிழ் நீர் சுரக்கும். இந்த உமிழ்நீரை உள்ளுக்கு விழுங்கிக் கொண்டிருந்தால் தொண்டைக் கரகரப்பு நீங்கும். குரல் கம்மல் நீங்கி விடும். தொண்டையில் உள்ள சளிக்கட்டு கரைந்து விடும்.

கருத்தரிக்க உதவும்

அதிமதுரம், திராட்சை இவை இரண்டையும் சமமாகப் பொடி செய்து 50 - 100 கிராம் எடுத்து தண்ணீ­ரில் அரைத்து பாலில் கலக்கி பெண்களின் மாதவிடாய் தொடங்கிய நாள் முதல் ஐந்து தினங்கள் சாப்பிட்டு வந்தால், ஆரோக்கியமான பெண்களுக்குக் கருத்தரிக்கும். கருத்தரிக்கும் வரை 2-3 மாதங்கள் சாப்பிட்டால் நல்ல பலனை எதிர்பார்க்கலாம்.

இருமல் சளி குணமாக

சித்தரைத்தையும் பனங்கற்கண்டு இரண்டையும் சம அளவு எடுது கஷாயம் வைத்து மூன்று வேளைக்கு தொடர்ந்து மூன்று நாட்கள் சாப்பிட்டு வந்தால் வரட்டு இருமல் சளி குணமாகும்

The Success Of Marriage

Courtesy & Thanks to : Sunantha for sharing this.

I hope U Will Enjoy This Short Story.......

Once upon a time a married couple celebrated their 25th marriage anniversary. They had become famous in the city for not having a single conflict in their period of 25 years. Local newspaper editors had gathered at the occasion to find out the secret of their well known "happy going marriage".

Editor: "Sir. It's amazingly unbelievable. How did you make this possible?"

Husband recalling his old honeymoon days said: "We had been to Shimla for honeymoon after marriage. Having selected the horse riding finally, we both started the ride on different horses. My horse was pretty okay but the horse on which my wife was riding seemed to be a crazy one.

On the way ahead, that horse jumped suddenly, making my wife topple over. Recovering her position from the ground, she patted the horse's back and said "This is your first time". She again climbed the horse and continued with the ride. After a while, it happened again. This time she again kept calm and said "This is your second time" and continued. When the horse dropped her third time, she silently took out the revolver from the purse and shot the horse dead !!

I shouted at my wife: "What did you do you psycho. You killed the poor animal. Are you crazy?" .

She gave a silent look and said: "This is your first time!!!"."

Husband:"That's it. We are happy ever after. " :D :P ;)

We miss Life's moments because..

A young man was getting ready to graduate college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted.

As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box.

Curious, but somewhat disappointed the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible. Angrily, he raised his voice at his father and said, "With all your money you give me a Bible?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the holy book.

Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old, and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. Before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care things.

When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart.

He began to search his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. As he read those words, a car key dropped from an envelope taped behind the Bible. It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words...PAID IN FULL!

How many times we miss Life's moments because they are not packaged as we expected !!!!!!!

Courtesy : Anita Arockiasamy

No one is perfect in this world, But that's not a big deal

Sharing a story I got from a friend who got it as forward. Happy reading…

"NOBODY IS EVERYTHING, NOBODY IS NOTHING,
NO ONE IS PERFECT - That's why pencils and pen's have Erasers"

Mom liked to make dinner with extra care. And I remember one night in particular when she had made it after a long, hard day at work. That evening, mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed.

All dad did was reach for his biscuit, smiled at mom and asked me how my day was at school. I don’t remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that biscuit and ate every bite.

When I got up from the table, I remember hearing mom apologize to dad for burning the biscuits. And I’ll never forget what he said: Honey, I love burned biscuits.

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, “Your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she’s real tired. And besides – a little burnt biscuit never hurt anyone!”

You know, life is full of imperfect things…..and imperfect people. I’m not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else.

What I’ve learned over the years is that learning to accept each others’ faults – and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences – is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

Because in the end, you are the master of your own life, to be happy or unhappy, to be positive or negative.

We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship , be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship.

Don’t put the key to your happiness in someone else’s pocket – keep it in your own.

Moral of the story – No one is perfect in this world. To build and maintain a relation it is important to appreciate the positives and ignore the negatives.

Have many wonderful moments…

Two Friends - Samy & Prachi..

Good Morning Class, Today we have a new student among us, her name is Samyuktha” announced the class teacher “Samyuktha come here, introduce yourself to the class”

Samyuktha a 12 year old girl, with fair complexion skin and a neatly pleated hair on either side of her head was sitting in the one corner of the class.

She slowly got up from her seat. Each one of the student in class started staring at her. With all those stares, new faces, new city, new school, she was scared to death. She moved slowly to where her teacher was standing and faced the class with lowered head as if it were a punishment.

“Samyuktha introduce yourself to class. Why are you lowering your head?

Stand straight up. Don’t waste the time of the class” said teacher somewhat sternly.

“My name is Samyuktha..I..I…I know no English much..i..i..” said samyuktha with a very feeble voice.

The whole class started giggling and started hush-hushing comments on Samyuktha. The teacher asked Samyuktha to go back to her seat hearing the commotion in the class and asked the class to be quite. Samyuktha almost had tears in her eyes. She was lost in her own world for the rest of the class.

During Interval she sat alone at her desk, looking at her book but not looking at the words but thinking about the world she left back in her small town, Varanasi. “Hi” said a voice. Samyuktha looked up to see a girl standing there. She was slightly dark complexioned, with a smiling face, and had hair exactly like Samyuktha’s.

“I am Prachi, your classmate. Why are you not having lunch?” said prachi.

“a..umm..i not feeling hungry much.” replied Samyuktha.

“Why not? Common I know you felt bad when the class laughed at you. Even I felt bad but don’t care about them. If you don’t eat, you will become sick.

Did you bring your lunch box?” said Prachi.

Samyuktha felt a sense of relief after hearing what Prachi said and started feeling hungry too.

“Yes I brought. Will you eat with me?”asked Samyuktha..

“Yes sure. Lets go outside and eat. We will have some fresh air” said prachi and took samyuktha’s hand and went outside the class to a playground. Both sat and started eating together. They shared a bit of each others lunch too.

“so, you miss your old school..isnt it?” asked prachi.

“Yes a lot. I am from Varanasi. Daddy got transfer here. I got no admission here as my English is poor but daddy gave donation and I got admission..i will fail sure” said samyuktha sadly.

“Oh don’t be sad Samyuktha. I will help you. You will learn everything easily. Where is your house?” asked Prachi.

“In Vasant Kunj, Phase-1” said Samyuktha. “hey even I stay in same place!” said Prachi happily.

“Is it.” Said Samyuktha gladly.

“Yes, now don’t worry at all. We both can study together.” Said Prachi assuring Samyuktha.

“Hey can I call you Samyu?” asked prachi..

“Yes sure, my friends in Varanasicall me with same name. I am happy” said Samyuktha with a glitter in her eyes. Thus the friendship between Prachi and Samyuktha started in the 6th standard/grade which grew manifold during the years to come.

Samyuktha had an intelligent mind which needed some shining and polishing whereas Prachi was a creative person. Samyuktha and Prachi became best friends during their first year together itself. They were totally inseparable. Due to them, both the families of Samyuktha and Prachi too became good family friends. Samyuktha just about managed to clear her 6th grade but later with Prachi’s support she became more and more confidant.

Prachi used to force Samyuktha to be a flamboyant and aggressive in school activities which boosted Samyuktha’s inner confidence. Samyuktha overcame all her inhibitions within few years. Prachi was very jovial and used to crack jokes which Samyuktha cherished. The whole class used to be jealous of their friendship. Samyuktha and Prachi both excelled with good marks in their 12th standard and both got admission in B.tech in DelhiUniversity.

Through all these years Samyuktha became very outgoing person. She was now no more the person which she was 6years ago. She became a smart, stylish and trendy by the time she turned 18. Prachi on the other hand remained same.

Prachi still doted on Samyuktha and was very possessive about her. Samyuktha started drawing lot of attention in college. Due to her looks and attitude, boys went crazy for her on the other hand Prachi was not at all approachable and she hardly cared about her looks. Samyuktha started loving the attention showered on her from her B.tech classmates. She participated in a fashion parade in College’s annual function and with that she became an instant hit through out the college. Prachi always used to pull back Samyuktha to the ground and asked her not to neglect her studies. Other than Prachi, Samyuktha started having her own circle of friends in college. When Prachi and Samyuktha were together, Samyuktha’s friends used to talk to her but didn’t give much attention to Prachi. Samyuktha did try to mingle Prachi with her other friends but Prachi didn’t show much interest. There were lot of times when Samyuktha bunked her classes and Prachi used to make a copy of notes for Samyuktha too. As Samyuktha became more and more involved in other activities of college rather than studies, Prachi became too much involved with her academics and had very few friends or one can say acquaintances other than Samyuktha. During 2nd year of B.tech, Prachi and Samyuktha started having some arguments and fights. Samyuktha wanted to enjoy the college life with fun and being naughty sometimes. Prachi on the other hand didn’t approve with Samyuktha’s thinking.

It was during 3rd year of college when Aakash, the 4th year B.tech student entered Samyuktha’s life. He was supposed to be the most handsome guy of the college. Aakash had the looks of a model with a very sexy voice due to which he used to compere most of the college shows. Aakash came in touch with Samyuktha through some common friends and instantly fell in love with her.

Samyuktha, was on top of the world when she came to know about Aakash’s feelings. With Samyuktha and Aakash’s love affair going strong, Prachi distanced more and more from Samyuktha. Prachi hated Aakash to the core and blamed him for ruining the friendship between her and Samyuktha. Samyuktha who was blind in love, didn’t understand the feelings of Prachi. During 3rd and 4th year of college, Samyuktha and Prachi rarely used to spend together.

Going to each others homes became almost null. Samyuktha started suspecting Prachi to be jealous of her on the other hand Prachi used to miss Samyuktha and longed for her to be like her old school friend.

One day during the 4th year of her college, Prachi was alone in her room and was crying looking at the old photos and greeting cards which she got from Samyuktha for different occasions.

“Prachi what happened? Why are you crying?” asked Prachi’s mom with worried look.

“Nothing..its just that” said Prachi trying to wipe of the tears from her cheeks.

“Kya hua beta..something wrong in college?” said Prachi’s mom

With that Prachi hugged her mom and started sobbing.

“arey arey..what is this..i never saw you crying this way..tell me what happened..did Samyuktha say something to u?” asked Prachi’s mom. Prachi’s mom observed the growing distance between Prachi and Samyuktha but she never talked about it with Prachi.

“mom..why do people change in college..why do we get old..school days used to be so good” said Prachi between her sobs.

“beta..thats life..there’s a saying “the only thing which remains constant is change”..you are not a small girl now..you should understand this..going to college, getting married, getting career, getting old..all this is part of life..you should learn to accept this..”said Prachi’s mom caressing p’s hair.

“No I will never marry in my life for sure. I cannot accept tha some outsider comes and changes other relationships in life. I will not let that happen to my life” said Prachi strongly.

Prachi’s mom chose not to argue with her at that time and hoped time will change her attitude towards life.

“Mom you know this year Samyu forgot to wish me on my birthday. Since that Aakash came into her life, nothing else is important to her. And tomorrow its her birthday and I don’t feel like wishing her either” said Prachi

“Why not..thats wrong..you should wish her..if you don’t wish her there wont be difference between you and her. May be after u wish she will realize her mistake. You should atleast give a try to revive your old friendship.” Said Prachi’s mom convincing Prachi to call Samyuktha.

When clock struck 12, Prachi decided to call Samyuktha and dialed her mobile number. Her mobile was engaged. She tried calling 3-4 times more but still her line was busy. When it was almost 12:30 A.M she thought of calling her landline but she held back fearing everybody at her home might get disturbed. Prachi knew that Samyuktha might be busy talking with Aakash and hated him more. Next day Samyu didn’t turn up at college either. After college, she went straight to Samyuktha’s house with a greeting card and a small painting which she herself did. Samyuktha was not at home as well, when confronted with her parents..

“Hey Prachi, Samyu is not with you?” asked Samyukhtha’s mom.

“uh…No..Infact I came here to wish her” said Prachi

“She said she will go with you to Aakash’s home. Aakash is leaving to US today. She said she will see him off to the airport and that you will accompany her” said samyuktha’s mother with a angry tone.

“hmm oh, actually I was late to college today..may be that’s why she went alone” said Prachi knowing that Samyuktha would have definetly not taken her along to meet Aakash and that she simply bluffed her parents. “Anyway aunty, once she comes, give her this card and gift” continued Prachi.

On the way back home Prachi felt happy that Aakash is leaving Indiabut at the same time felt bad that she was not able to wish Samyuktha personally.

Next day in the college, Prachi was eagerly waiting for Samyuktha to come.

She wanted to see how she reacted for the card and gift. As soon as Samyuktha entered the class, everybody in the class started wishing her belated birthday greetings. Many of them showered gifts to her. She greeted them all with a sad smile. Prachi guessed it must be because Aakash left to US. After that Samyuktha came to Prachi with a serious expression on her face..

“So, you must be very happy now?” said Samyuktha.

Prachi was puzzled, but then she immediately remembered that her parents might have caught her lying to them. “Samyu I had no idea about your plan yesterday” said Prachi with innocent look.

“Oh don’t be so innocent Prachi. The whole class knew I was with Aakash yesterday.

Since last 5 months you never came to my house. Suddenly you came home yesterday to spoil my day. That was your plan” accused samyuktha

Prachi was shocked with Samyuktha’s behavior and was almost in tears “No, what wil I gain with this Samyu. You are my only friend. I tried calling you day before yesterday night to wish you at 12 but your line was constantly busy. Yesterday nobody informed me about your plan.”

“C’mon Prachi. I know how much you are jealous of me since I met Aakash.

Prachi you should go and get some life. I never thought that you would come down to such cheap tricks. Thanks to you my parents have stopped trusting on me” said Samyuktha and left the class fuming.

Prachi stood there with tears and embarrassed with all the stares towards her in the class. The whole class saw what happened between Prachi and Samyuktha. After that incident almost everybody stopped talking to Prachi.

Prachi remained aloof from everybody even outside the college. She remained to her self and kept herself busy with studies. After 6 months, college was over and since then Prachi and Samyuktha never met.

Soon after graduation Prachi started searching for jobs and almost immediately she was placed in TCS, Bangalore. Prachi didn’t knew what happened to Samyuktha and didn’t care to find out. She moved to Bangaloreimmediately and took an apartment all by for herself. She lived alone. In office she used to talk with others when only it was required for work. She was not friendly with anybody. She used to eat alone in the office canteen. Everybody in the office used to call her with different names like ‘sadist’, ‘psycho’,’poor thing’..etc etc. Life went on.

2 years later, one fine day early in the morning at around 7:00 AM Prachi heard the door bell. She looked at her watch and wondered who would be ringing the bell at this time. She just got up to get ready for the office.

She went and opened the door to see a young man standing there with a small bowl in his hand. He was about 6 feet height with curly hair and lean figure and good features. Prachi looked at him with red face.

“Hi..umm..i am Mayank, your new neighbor” said Mayank.

“So….”said Prachi with irritation.

“I am sorry, actually I came to borrow some sugar. I moved in this apartment today morning. I have the habit of drinking tea early in the morning..so if you plz don’t mind can u plz lend some teaspoons of sugar” said mayank with pleading eyes.

“So..for your tea..you disturb other people early in the morning” said Prachi and started closing her door.

‘Plz plz plz don’t close the door..if I don’t have tea in the morning I get sick.. I tried many other doors, but only you opened it..plz ‘ pleaded Mayank once again.

Prachi closed the door on the face of Mayank and he stood there stand still for a minute and started moving to his apartment when he heard the click of the door open from his behind. He looked back to see Prachi standing there with Sugar bottle in her hand.

“Hey..thank u so much..errr…i thought..u got angry…u saved my life..u know”

said mayank gladly.

“How many teaspoons do u want?” said Prachi seriously ignoring the excitement of Mayank.

“umm..oh..umm..2 spoons” said Mayank somewhat embarrassed.

Prachi took 2 teaspoons of sugar and poured it in the bowl of Mayank and without a word went back inside the home closing the door behind.

“Thank you” said Mayank to the closed door!

Prachi got ready for the office and left the home exactly at 8.45am as she used to do daily. Her day in the office went on as usual and at one instance while having tea she remembered the early morning incident. She realized she doesn’t even remember the face of the guy clearly.

Back at the home at around 8pm she heard her door bell ringing again. When she opened, she realized it’s the same morning guy standing outside.

“Now what??” said Prachi again irritated.

“Actually I bought the sugar in the afternoon…so thought of giving you back your 2 spoons of sugar which u gave me……” said Mayank with little naughtiness in his eyes.

“Whaaaat” said Prachi with disbelief.

“Here your 2 spoons of sugar” said mayank again bringing the small bowl in his hand towards her.

“Godddd..wait…here” said Prachi and closed the door. She went back inside the home to her kitchen and came back with Sugar bottle. When she opened the door, Mayank was still standing there waiting for her.

“Here now put that sugar inside this bottle” said Prachi handing over the bottle to Mayank.

Mayank pours down the sugar in the bottle.

“Ok..Anything else?” Said Prachi with an angry tone.

“Nope..thats it..thank you for lending me sugar in the morning..otherwise I would have been dead by now” grinned Mayank

“Its ok. Goodnight!” said Prachi somewhat mellowing down and closed the door.

Prachi felt amused by the behavior of Mayank and the fact that he came to return back the two spoons of sugar.

“Was he trying to impress me” thought Prachi…“Anyway good, I didn’t give him any kind of that impression..now he will never approach me again”

Next day after coming back from work, again her door bell rang. Prachi somehow suspected it must be Mayank again and she was right.

“What??” Said Prachi hardly opening the door enough.

“umm..i am sorry…umm..to disturb u again..actually I need to make an urgent call to my parents in Bombay. I don’t know why but my mobile is not activated yet. So, can I please make a call from your phone?” asked Mayank.

“Good lord..there are thousand PCO’s outside this apartment..why don’t u go and call from there?” said Prachi annoyed.

“Actually there’s only one PCO nearby and today that is closed due to ID festival..i went and enquired and the next one is 3kms from here..well it was urgent..otherwise I am sorry I wouldn’t have disturbed you” said Mayank with pleading eyes again.

“huh..wait I will bring my mobile..” said prachi and closed the door behind , again to come back with her mobile.

Mayank takes the fone and moves little far away from her. Prachi stands there for a while and then goes back inside the home, with door almost closed. After a short while she hears a knock on her door.

“Thank you so much..i cant tell you..how grateful I am today..had it been not your Mobile..i would have not known that in khichdi I need to add 3 glasses of water for 1 cup of rice..” said mayank happily

“Whaatttttt…your urgent call was about khichdi???” said Prachi somewhat angrily.

“umm..yaa…u know..i love the khichdi which my mom makes..so..anyway..here take this 10rs for the STD call” said mayank handing over a 10 rupee note to Prachi.

Prachi takes 10Rs note without a word and hopes not to create any good image of herself in front of him.

“Hey thanks a lot..for everything Prachi” said Mayank

“How do you know my name?” said Prachi with surprise.

“Well you wrote Prachi on your Mobile’s screen” smiled Mayank.

“Ok..goodnight” said Prachi and closed the door.

“There is something peculiar with this man…” thought Prachi again. Through out that day and next day Prachi kept thinking about Mayank and felt bad that he was coming again and again in her thoughts. She tried her best to remind herself that she should not fall into any kind of distractions in her life. There is no place for a man in her life.

Till next couple of days she never met Mayank but he never went out of her mind. She was angry that she was thinking about him how much ever she tried avoiding. One day again in the evening she heard her door bell. She was in kitchen cooking dinner for herself and when the door bell rang, she ran into the bathroom to comb her hair neatly and then went to open the door .

“Hi” said Mayank with his ever charming smile.

Prachi making sure that she is not pleased seeing him asked him with monotonous tone “ yes, what do u want now?”

“nothing..today I came to give you something?” said Mayank.

“well you have given me money for the call you made from my fone last time..now what?” said Prachi

“not that..today I made gajar ka halwa and it came out really well..so came here to share with you some” said Mayank bringing his hand forward from behind with a box.

Gajar ka halwa was Prachi’s favourite sweet dish but she resisted from showing any kind of positive emotion.

“see mayank..i don’t know what you think about me..but I don’t like such gestures from anybody..i hardly know you..as a neighbor I helped you ..thats all..dont expect anything else…do u understand that?..now you can leave..” said Prachi fighting back her inner emotions.

Mayank stood there like a rock for a minute .

“sorry Prachi..i don’t consider you just as a neighbor but as a friend in need..but ..but..i respect your privacy..today is my birthday…I don’t know anybody else in this city..so thought to share this halwa with the first person I came to know in this city..anyway I wont disturb you again” said Mayank and started to leave.

After hearing that its his birthday, Prachi felt a guilt pang and stopped him “hello..wait..umm..i am sorry..i didn’t know its your birthday..Happy Birthday” said Prachi loudly.

“Thank you” said Mayank turning back to look at her.

“Well, can I taste your Halwa..ofcourse if you are not mad at me” said Prachi with a smile for the first time.

Mayank was surprised to look at her beautiful smiling face for the first time and was smitten.

“Heyyy..no..not at all..” said Mayank and gave her the box he brought.

Prachi opened the box and tried some with her hand.

“ummm..it tastes great” said Prachi licking her fingers “can I keep whole of this box.”

“oh sure.. that was for you anyway..” said Mayank “I guess I should be leaving now”.

“Ok..will return the box tomorrow..by the way happy birthday again” said Prachi.

“umm..u know what..i was lying..its not my birthday” said Mayank and before Prachi could say anything, he ran back upstairs to his apartment.

Prachi stood there in disbelief but later smiled at herself thinking how easily she got fooled. She somehow didn’t feel mad at Mayank later and relished the halwa.

As usual Mayank’s magic lingered on Prachi for that day and next day. When it was time to return the box to Mayank, Prachi questioned herself whether to go or not to go to his house to return the box. Finally she decided to listen to her heart and braced herself to go to Mayank’s house.

She pressed the door bell of Mayank’s house and waited for few seconds when Mayank opened the door.

He had a big cutlery spoon in one hand and was wearing an apron.

“Hey, what a correct timing..can u plz taste my rajma curry and let me know if everything is ok?” saying this Mayank left her at the door went towards his kitchen.

Prachi was standing at the door steps unable to decide whether to go in or not. “Prachi…come in..where are you” shouted Mayank from his Kitchen.

Prachi stepped in the house and realized that this was the first time since she came to Bangaloredid she stepped into anybody’s house. She noticed, the house was clean and neat, had decent furniture and she could listen some soft soothing music from the speakers somewhere. Prachi walked slowly towards the kitchen. Mayank was ready with some rajma in a small bowl and asked her to taste it.

“ummm..its nice…everything is ok…” said Prachi after tasting the Rajma

“oh good…see my mom doesn’t believe that I am good cook..i will have to make you talk to her one day…then only she might believe” said Mayank feeling satisfied.

“Ok, I will leave now” said Prachi.

“Why?..i have prepared dinner for both of us.” Said Mayank.

“What….?” Said prachi.

“Well I knew you would come home to return my box today and obviously you will come little early..and also I am sure you would not have got time to cook dinner by now” said Mayank while putting plates on the dining table.

“How were you so sure that I would come?” asked Prachi amused.

“Well I can read People’s mind..after all I am a Psychiatrist” said Mayank

“Psychiatrist!!” exclaimed Prachi.

“ya why?..cant handsome men become psychiatrists?” said Mayank naughtily.

“aha..i didn’t mean that” smiled Prachi “I don’t know if you are lying or telling truth..yesterday you were saying it was your birthday..now today you are saying you are a Psychiatrist!”

“no..seriously..i am a Psychiatrist..i don’t lie on Wednesdays..u know” said Mayank.

“uh..u r impossible..anyway what made u believe that I will have dinner with you” asked Prachi

“Well, today is my birthday..and I knew you wont be able to say no” said Mayank.

“What..plz..you think I can be fooled twice?” said Prachi

“ha ha..see I was born on 6th aug and today its 6th nov ..so its my monthly birthday” said Mayank showing her the seat to sit.

Prachi and Mayank laughed together and started having dinner together.

Mayank was indeed a good cook and Prachi liked everything prepared by him..no not only the food..but she realized she liked Mayank’s charming nature.

“So, what made you come to Bangalore?” asked Prachi having her sweet dish.

“I saw that this city had lot of scope for doctors like me..so I choose this place for my practice” said Mayank.

“Scope!” exclaimed Prachi

“yeah..you see..Bangaloreis a software hub for India..and hence more patients for me” said Mayank with a naughty smile again.

“aha..so you mean software engineers are mad people?..Mister..Even I am a software engineer..remember that!” said Prachi.

“Oh..is it..i never knew that beautiful gals too are becoming software engineers” said Mayank flirtingly.

Prachi wanted to reply him back and suddenly realized that Mayank was complementing her and gave him a smile.

“thanks” said Prachi blushing.

“thank god..you understood that” said Mayank with a twinkle in his eyes.

While Prachi was about to leave his house after dinner. Mayank asked “So at what time should I come for dinner tomorrow at your house?”

“what?” said prachi and stared at him questioningly.

“yeah..you are a self-respect girl right..i know you will return my dinner!!” said Mayank again with his flirting smile.

Prachi couldn’t stop smiling and said “hmmm..smart..haan..come at 8pm..dinner will be ready.”

After coming home , thoughts of Mayank and whatever they talked lingered in Prachi’s mind. She looked herself in mirror a thousand times. All her life never did any guy talked to her the way, Mayank talked. She realized she smiled and laughed so many times on that single day. Mayank did some magic on her.

Next day she was not able to concentrate in her office work too. She was too busy thinking what she should prepare for dinner and what all she need to buy to prepare food. She even tried searching some recipes on the internet.

She left office early at 5 pm and went to grocery store to buy all vegetables and groceries to prepare dinner. She decided to make Jeera rice, Palak Paneer, Cabbaga kofta, rotis, fruit salad and lassi. She finished off everything by 7:30 and cleaned the kitchen and dining hall. She realized she never cooked so fast earlier. She dressed herself in one of her best casual salwar suits and waited for him. Exactly at 8pm her door bell rang. She wanted to run and open the door but she resisted and took some time to open.

Mayank looked handsome as ever. He wore a short kurti and jeans and looked cute.

“Wow you look wonderful” said Mayank.

“Thanks. Come in.” Said Prachi blushing.

Mayank stepped into her house for first time and was soon impressed.

“You did all those paintings?” asked mayank looking at big canvas paintings in her hall.

“Hmm..yeah..i do it for my timepass” said Prachi.

“Oh man…they don’t look like timepass paintings Prachi..these are master pieces!!” said Mayank who kept gazing at those beautiful paintings.

“Oh please…I am not a trained painter..thanks anyway..come lets have dinner”

said Prachi.

When Mayank saw what all she prepared, he said “sorry for giving you trouble!”

“No its fine. Cooking for one person extra is not a trouble” said Prachi while serving food in his plate.

“Don’t say that otherwise I might come everyday” said Mayank.

Prachi wanted that to happen everyday. She never felt so happy after a long time. Throughout the dinner, Mayank kept on praising her food and she got more and more attracted to Mayank’s charm. After dinner they talked for long time. Mayank kept making jokes and Prachi laughed non-stop. Prachi never realized when it was already 11:30pm.

Mayank suddenly looked at his watch and realized it was late. “Hey ..sorry..its late..i should leave..you have to get up early to the office again tomorrow” said mayank and got up to leave.

Prachi didn’t want him to leave and wanted to stop him for some more time.

“yeah..it was …it was nice having you here today” stammered Prachi.

“really?” said Mayank

“yeah…u know..i never smiled and laughed this much before Mayank. You brought something back which I lost long time ago.” Said prachi, her eyes were almost in tears.

Mayank kept looking at her for sometime.

“so where is my fees?” said mayank.

“Fees??” questioned Prachi.

“yeah for bringing back what u lost!” said Mayank.

“aha..so I am your first patient it seems…tell me whats urfees, I will give you” said Prachi with a smile.

“ummm…lets see..umm” said mayank making a thinking gesture “how about one more dinner, this time somewhere outside”

“done” said prachi almost immediately.

“wow…that’s an improvement ..i thought you would me hit” said Mayank laughing.

And then for coming weeks they were inseparable. They met almost everyday for dinner. Mayank and Prachi were madly in love with each other but never expressed it to each other. Prachi started smiling more and more and became more communicative in office with colleagues. All her colleagues were surprised to see the change in her behavior. She even started taking care on what she was wearing and how she looked.

One day in a restaurant, Mayank seemed little restless.

“What happened to you today?” asked Prachi.

“Actually I wanted to tell you something..dont know how you will react!” confessed Mayank.

Prachi suspected that he might propose her and felt little nervous deep beneath her heart but was still waiting for this moment since long.

“Its ok Mayank..tell me…since when did u get so nervous in front of me?” said Prachi.

“hmm..its not nervousness but..i don’t want you to hate me after what I will tell you” said Mayank.

“Now…plz..dont keep me in suspense!!” requested Prachi not able to keep bear the excitement.

“Actually, few days back I read a article in a newspaper. There is going to be a painting exhibition for new talents in Mumbai. That’s going to be conducted by Tina Ambani, wife of Anil Ambani of Reliance Industries.

Without your permission I sent your name and one of the photos of your painting. Today I got a reply from Tina Ambani herself and she is pleased with your painting and want that to be exhibited. I know you are going to be mad at me now but Prachi I want the whole world to know your talent” said Mayank holding one of the hands of Prachi.

Prachi listened to all with complete silence. She didn’t knew how to react.

She was expecting something else. She was in love with Mayank but with what Mayank told her, she could not hold back her tears. Tears rolled over her cheeks and she couldn’t speak.

“uh..oh..sorry Prachi..i dreaded this..i didn’t want to hurt you..Your paintings were so impressive, that I felt it should not confine just within four walls of your home. I guess I should have asked you before. I am sorry again” said Mayank with guilty.

“uh..no no..dont say sorry Mayank..its just that..i never thought you cared about me so much..i never realized that you felt my paintings were worth sending to an exhibition…i..i..am surprised …but I don’t think I am worth it….i do it for my own pleasure..” said Prachi with chocking voice.

Mayank holding her hand tight “I already told you this before..your painting are master pieces and now the response from Tina Ambani herself tells you what you are worth of. Prachi you should learn to be proud of your own talent..you really don’t know what you are worth of…”

After a 2 minutes of silence. “I don’t know Mayank..how to thank you for all this…how will I be able to return the favour” said Prachi.

“The fact that you are not mad at mr after hearing this, is itself a big favor” said Mayank smiling “And the by the way, there would be competition too in that exhibition and whoever wins, will get a sum of Rs 5lakhs and a contract to do the painting of Reliance’s New office in Mumbai.”

“oh is it…that sounds interesting..i hope you wont ask 5lakhs in return of favour” said Prachi teasingly.

“ha ha..may be” said Mayank.

Mayank took care of logistics of sending Paintings to Mumbai. All 5 of her paintings were selected for exhibition. Prachi and Mayank both went to Mumbai together on the day of the opening of the exhibition. There were total of 25 paintings altogether. Prachi was nervous to talk to Tina Ambani but Mayank stood beside her and gave his support. Prachi and Mayank could notice that Prachi’s painting caught most of the attention from viewers.

Prachi and Mayank spent that day in Mumbai doing shopping and sight-seeing.

She couldn’t believe she was with Mayank for whole day. They were hardly in their hotel rooms and were roaming around till 2 am midnight. When they came back to their hotel, they were both tired and dozed of almost immediately in their respective rooms. They returned back to Bangalorenext day by early morning flight. Exhibition was held for 2 more weeks and results were out the last day. As expected Prachi’s paintings won the first place.

Mayank was ecstatic with the news and Prachi was more pleased to see Mayank happy than winning the actual award. Calls didn’t stop pouring in Prachi’s phone that day. Her office was proud of her after hearing the news. Prachi’s parents were both surprised and felt on top of the world.

While they both were on flight to Mumbai to receive the award.. Mayank whispered in Prachi’s ears “Prachi when we will go back to Bangalore, I will ask you to return my favour”

Prachi looked surprised and said “I will be pleased”

The award ceremony went on very well. Prachi had to speak few words on the stage after receiving the award and she was very nervous about it but one look at Mayank and words flew from her mouth smoothely. She became a celebrity overnight. It was one of the memorable days ever for Prachi and now Prachi was looking forward to what Mayank would ask her after returning to Bangalore.

Mayank asked her to come home for dinner the day they returned. Prachi was on cloud 9 and she was sure that Mayank would propose her. She looked forward for the evening and got ready on time. She looked in the mirror some 100 times before making sure she looked perfect. Sharp at 8pm she went to Mayank’s home and rang the bell.

Mayank opened the door and stared at her.

“Oh my god..dont do this to me!” said Mayank.

“What did I do?” said Prachi surprised.

“You look ravishing..what if I get heartattack? I am just a psychiatrist not a cardiologist” said Mayank again with his flirting smile.

Prachi blushed and felt shy.

Mayank took her hand and made her sit on the sofa. Mayank sat on the small chair beside her still holding her hand.

Mayank stared at her for a minute and said “actually I have two things to ask from you Prachi”

“And what are those?” said Prachi, her hands going numb.

Mayank took a deep breath.

“Prachi I want you to forgive Samyu..i mean Samyuktha” said Mayank.

Prachi didn’t understand what was Mayank talking about for a second and later got shocked.

“Yes your friend Samyuktha, Prachi” said Mayank.

Prachi took back her hand which Mayank was holding and stared at him with thousand questions in her mind. Mayank looked away from her and stared behind her. Prachi didn’t understand where he was looking and turned to the direction where he was looking. Samyuktha was standing there behind her.

Prachi got shocked looking at her after all these years.

“Prachi..hi…how are you?….” said Samyuktha slowly.

Prachi looked back at Mayank.. “So you knew me from before hand..and all this was one big drama?” said Prachi with anger.

“See Prachi..yes I knew you ..but all this is not a drama…don’t get me wrong…i…” said Mayank when Prachi cut him in mid-sentence and left his home in rage without looking back.

Mayank ran for her but Prachi didn’t let him in her house. She closed the doors and went to her bedroom weeping. Mayank tried calling her mobile, but she kept it off. Mayank tried knocking her door many times but she didn’t budge from her bedroom. The whole night Prachi kept reeling back to the time she met Mayank for first time, how she spent time with Mayank and felt sad that all that was a drama. He did it all for Samyuktha not because he liked her. She hated Samyuktha for coming back in her life again. Everything was so beautiful till yesterday. She ruined everything again.

She slept sobbing in her bedroom and didnt know when it was already 9am in the morning. She realized she had headache and called her office to tell she will be on leave. She noticed a letter near her main door. She knew it must be from Mayank and didn’t touch it for long but kept looking at it. After few hours passed she decided to read it. It was not from Mayank but from Samyuktha.

Dear Prachi,

I know you are still very angry with me. And I know I deserved it. Prachi I cam here all the way from US just for you. After leaving college, I soon went to US for higher studies and later married Aakash. Life was rosy for few years but I realized I lost all my friends. Even after marriage Aakash kept in touch with his old school friends but I didn’t had any genuine friends. The one genuine friend I had, I broke her heart. I wanted to get in touch with you again but was afraid of your reaction. I tried contacting your parents in delhiand they said you left Bangalore. They told me how much you have changed and distanced yourself from everybody even with your own parents. Then I realized I am the reason behind it. Prachi when I was in college I was naïve and was drawn to all attentions. I didn’t understand what was right or wrong. When I was in school, you helped me to come out of my shell and later you went into the same cocoon because of me. You don’t know how bad I felt later when I realized my mistake. I wanted to repent for everything I did and wanted to bring back that old charming Prachi.

Mayank is school friend of Aakash. I met him when i visited Indialast time and became good friends. When Mayank decided that he wanted to go to Bangalorefor his medical practice, I told him about you. I asked him if its possible for him to get in touch with you. I took your address from your parents and luckily Mayank got a flat for rent in your apartment. Mayank kept telling me about you whenever he met you. I realized you have changed a lot and felt guilty. Mayank and I decided to tell you about me when the right time comes. Prachi, Mayank likes and respects you a lot. Being a psychiatrist he knew you are not the person you were projecting. He wanted to bring out real you and I was happy that what I couldn’t do, atleast he can do that and did that.

Prachi I am leaving to Delhitoday by 5pm flight. I want to say sorry to you again in person though its ok if you don’t forgive me. And one more thing, if you want to hate me still, its ok, but don’t hate Mayank. Whatever he did was not because I asked him to do but he himself wanted it to do. I primarily wanted to be in touch with you through Mayank, nothing else. I am not sure if you will forgive me or not but I want to say Sorry for one last time.

Love, Samyu.

Prachi read that letter for 10 times and tear swelled from her eyes. At 4’o clock she decided to go to Airport. She reached airport by 4:30 and saw Samyu there. Samyu was overwhelmed with joy when she saw prachi. As Prachi came near she swung and hugged her with tears.

“I knew..i knew you would come” said Samyuktha

“How wouldn’t I ..i wanted to hear a sorry from you” said Prachi with tears.

“I am so so so so sorry Prachi..you don’t know how happy and relieved I am after all these years…” said Samyuktha.

“Me too…and…I want to say thank you!” said prachi

“Thank you?” puzzled Samyuktha

“Yeah..thank you for sending Mayank in my life” said Prachi

“I guess that was fate Prachi…I didn’t send him..but it was a co-incidence that you happened to be my friend…err…aren’t we friends”

“Yes..yes..now again don’t make me cry..cried a lot since yesterday” said prachi with a smile.

“ha ha ok ok..” said Samyuktha.

“That’s bad, you friends are having good time and forgot about me” said Mayank from behind.

Prachi looked back with surprise and became happy to see him there.

“Mayank, you wanted to ask one more thing to Prachi yesterday night right..why don’t you ask that?” said Samyuktha looking at Mayank.

“May I madam?” asked Mayank looking at Prachi.

Mayank bent down on his knees and took out a small box from his pocket.

“Will you make tea for me early in the morning everyday , will you cook dinner for me every day, listen to my bak-bak everyday, sleep with me in my bed, ….be my better half for rest of my life” said Mayank showing the ring to her.

“Yes” said Prachi smiling but with tears “ you guys are making me cry like anything”.

“I hope you will not cry for rest of your life” said Mayank and hugged Prachi.

It was time Samyuktha to leave and she once again hugged and congratulated Prachi. Then congratulated Mayank and thanked him for everything.

"Happy Ending"

Soldier & Software Engineer

by Service Selection Board on Tuesday, May 17, 2011 at 1:08pm

Courtesy : Service Selection Board

Vivek Pradhan was not a happy man. Even the plush comfort of the air-conditioned compartment of the Shatabdhi express could not cool his frayed nerves. He was the Project Manager and still not entitled to air travel. It was not the prestige he sought; he had tried to reason with the admin person, it was the savings in time. As PM, he had so many things to do!!

He opened his case and took out the laptop, determined to put the time to some good use.

"Are you from the software industry sir," the man beside him was staring appreciatively at the laptop. Vivek glanced briefly and mumbled in affirmation, handling the laptop now with exaggerated care and importance as if it were an expensive car.

"You people have brought so much advancement to the country, Sir. Today everything is getting computerized. "

"Thanks," smiled Vivek, turning around to give the man a look. He always found it difficult to resist appreciation. The man was young and stockily built like a sportsman. He looked simple and strangely out of place in that little lap of luxury like a small town boy in a prep school. He probably was a railway sportsman making the most of his free traveling pass.

"You people always amaze me," the man continued, "You sit in an office and write something on a computer and it does so many big things outside."

Vivek smiled deprecatingly. Naive ness demanded reasoning not anger. "It is not as simple as that my friend. It is not just a question of writing a few lines. There is a lot of process that goes behind it."

For a moment, he was tempted to explain the entire Software Development Lifecycle but restrained himself to a single statement. "It is complex, very complex."

"It has to be. No wonder you people are so highly paid," came the reply.

This was not turning out as Vivek had thought. A hint of belligerence crept into his so far affable, persuasive tone. "

Everyone just sees the money. No one sees the amount of hard work we have to put in. Indians have such a narrow concept of hard work. Just because we sit in an air-conditioned office, does not mean our brows do not sweat. You exercise the muscle; we exercise the mind and believe me that is no less taxing."

He could see, he had the man where he wanted, and it was time to drive home the point.

"Let me give you an example. Take this train. The entire railway reservation system is computerized. You can book a train ticket between any two stations from any of the hundreds of computerized booking centers across the country.

Thousands of transactions accessing a single database, at a time concurrently; data integrity, locking, data security. Do you understand the complexity in designing and coding such a system?"

The man was awestruck; quite like a child at a planetarium. This was something big and beyond his imagination.

"You design and code such things."

"I used to," Vivek paused for effect, "but now I am the Project Manager."

"Oh!" sighed the man, as if the storm had passed over,

"So your life is easy now."

This was like the last straw for Vivek. He retorted, "Oh come on, does life ever get easy as you go up the ladder. Responsibility only brings more work.

Design and coding! That is the easier part. Now I do not do it, but I am responsible for it and believe me, that is far more stressful. My job is to get the work done in time and with the highest quality.

To tell you about the pressures, there is the customer at one end, always changing his requirements, the user at the other, wanting something else, and your boss, always expecting you to have finished it yesterday."

Vivek paused in his diatribe, his belligerence fading with self-realization. What he had said, was not merely the outburst of a wronged man, it was the truth. And one need not get angry while defending the truth.

"My friend," he concluded triumphantly, "you don't know what it is to be in the Line of Fire"

The man sat back in his chair, his eyes closed as if in realization. When he spoke after sometime, it was with a calm certainty that surprised Vivek.

"I know sir.... I know what it is to be in the Line of Fire......."

He was staring blankly, as if no passenger, no train existed, just a vast expanse of time.

"There were 30 of us when we were ordered to capture Point 4875 in the cover of the night.

The enemy was firing from the top.
There was no knowing where the next bullet was going to come from and for whom.
In the morning when we finally hoisted the tricolour at the top only 4 of us were alive."

"You are a...?"

"I am Subedar Sushant from the 13 J&K Rifles on duty at Peak 4875 in Kargil. They tell me I have completed my term and can opt for a soft assignment.

But, tell me sir, can one give up duty just because it makes life easier.
On the dawn of that capture, one of my colleagues lay injured in the snow, open to enemy fire while we were hiding behind a bunker.
It was my job to go and fetch that soldier to safety. But my captain sahib refused me permission and went ahead himself.
He said that the first pledge he had taken as a Gentleman Cadet was to put the safety and welfare of the nation foremost followed by the safety and welfare of the men he commanded... ....his own personal safety came last, always and every time."

"He was killed as he shielded and brought that injured soldier into the bunker. Every morning thereafter, as we stood guard, I could see him taking all those bullets, which were actually meant for me. I know sir....I know, what it is to be in the Line of Fire."

Vivek looked at him in disbelief not sure of how to respond. Abruptly, he switched off the laptop.

It seemed trivial, even insulting to edit a Word document in the presence of a man for whom valor and duty was a daily part of life; valour and sense of duty which he had so far attributed only to epical heroes.

The train slowed down as it pulled into the station, and Subedar Sushant picked up his bags to alight.

"It was nice meeting you sir."

Vivek fumbled with the handshake.

This hand... had climbed mountains, pressed the trigger, and hoisted the tricolour. Suddenly, as if by impulse, he stood up at attention and his right hand went up in an impromptu salute.

It was the least he felt he could do for the country.

PS:- The incident he narrated during the capture of Peak 4875 is a true-life incident during the Kargil war. Capt. Batra sacrificed his life while trying to save one of the men he commanded, as victory was within sight. For this and various other acts of bravery, he was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, the nation's highest military award.

Murmors of my Heart

My heart will never be free
To push aside the longings
I still feel
My eyes will never forget
The fields of patchwork green
Soft rain so real
In my dreams I keep searching
For those paths I never find......!!!

Wow what an amazing song in the film 'River Queen'.. So touching and it stayed in my Heart so strong...



I was never to see those people i met in my path, most my Friends, the places i have traveled & my memories again.
We'd never meant to stay up with all those stuff and memories all this time.
And now it was I who couldn't leave all those and couldn't forget...!!!

And a following conversation between Sarah and Doyle and their thoughts

A soldier fights long enough...
it's like he's breathing. He doesn't even know what he's fighting for.
Then he sees something he doesn't have...
like the love we have for those.
Suddenly there comes something worth fighting for.
You've to fight for what's in your heart, DEAR.

------------------------

There was only room in my heart for her.
Lost.
Lost to me my Dear was.
I was.

------------------------

I don't know where they took her or where she went.
For years I trailed them.
There was only memories and very few traces around.
I thought if I could find the people she'd met recent.
I'd be sure to find her path and memories.
And if I found her path and memories.
I'd find my Dear one
I traveled...
I searched...
always I saw my Dear one..
And always he was never there..........