Monday, May 25, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
Experiment->Drugs->Prostitution->Human Trafficking->Terrorism
The state of ruminating and pondering continues.Since two weeks I have been contemplating about some topic which ignites my desire to write another post. The mandate of India in Elections 2009 and the subsequent formation of a Congress led government at the centre seems to be a topic worth commenting but probably it is too common a topic for my liking. Watching the movie "Taken" and reading an article on Increasing Drug Addiction in Punjab seem to have once again opened the memories of my initial days in Tanzania and in retrospective provided me my choice of topic.
After being unable to find a suitable accomodation in dar Es Salaam within my modest company restrained budget I finally rented a 1 room apartment in an Indian owned hotel in the suburbs of DSM. The building was in a dilapidated condition and yet seemed to have high occupancy rates. In 3 days time I got the reason for this paradox. It was a fertile ground for a bustling prostitution racket. It provided a safe haven for anonymous wealthy Asians and Blacks who wanted to enjoy their sleazy lifestyle away from prying eyes.
It is not the only motel offering such services, there are probably hundreds of similar hotels in various cities of Asia,Africa and probably europe too. As a result the demand for young girls for fulfiling the desires of business czars, young boys trying to prove themselves to be cool , middle aged men working in alien countries is ultimately proving to be too much for the so called willing prostitutes /women who need to fulfill the stomachs of their poverty ridden families and who are thus forced to sell their bodies to filthy animals . Hence this supply demand mismatch has led to human trafficking . The story of drugs being used as a bait for young teenage girls to become economically dependent on pimps is a common tale nowadays. These girls are then ultimately forced to join this ghastly profession for a single dose of injection sometimes.
A well connected network of pimps supported by a no of politicians, law and order enforcement personnel who are on the roll of this trafficking cartel are involved in this network.It is not as if we all are ignorant of thsi existing network. Various reports have proved that this drug and human trafficking generated hawala money is ultimately used to fund the terrorist attacks.But the common man as usual is a mute spectator to this ever increasing money making machine. But then why should we care as ultimately it is not our family which is getting affected by this issue.
Frankly i did not write this post to create an awareness about this racket or try n awaken the sleeping masses( that would be an extremely futile purpose as all of us have already written our obituaries , "bhagat singh ka zamana nahi hai" ) . The views stated are essentially a reminder for all of us 20 something men/boys who sometimes during our college days have joked about visiting the red light traffic areas for getting a first hand experience of this experiment. That casual remark of visiting G.B. road is not just a simple fun remark but is a crude reminder of our existing "civilized" values.
Frankly when the reality actually stares you in the face it is anything but a joke. Its fine to reason that we are in a materialistic world wherein one buys what is available on the market and that the world is a better place without this moral policing but what if one day we find that the product we are shopping for is one of our very own loved ones , even the mere thought does not seem to be a joke.
After being unable to find a suitable accomodation in dar Es Salaam within my modest company restrained budget I finally rented a 1 room apartment in an Indian owned hotel in the suburbs of DSM. The building was in a dilapidated condition and yet seemed to have high occupancy rates. In 3 days time I got the reason for this paradox. It was a fertile ground for a bustling prostitution racket. It provided a safe haven for anonymous wealthy Asians and Blacks who wanted to enjoy their sleazy lifestyle away from prying eyes.
It is not the only motel offering such services, there are probably hundreds of similar hotels in various cities of Asia,Africa and probably europe too. As a result the demand for young girls for fulfiling the desires of business czars, young boys trying to prove themselves to be cool , middle aged men working in alien countries is ultimately proving to be too much for the so called willing prostitutes /women who need to fulfill the stomachs of their poverty ridden families and who are thus forced to sell their bodies to filthy animals . Hence this supply demand mismatch has led to human trafficking . The story of drugs being used as a bait for young teenage girls to become economically dependent on pimps is a common tale nowadays. These girls are then ultimately forced to join this ghastly profession for a single dose of injection sometimes.
A well connected network of pimps supported by a no of politicians, law and order enforcement personnel who are on the roll of this trafficking cartel are involved in this network.It is not as if we all are ignorant of thsi existing network. Various reports have proved that this drug and human trafficking generated hawala money is ultimately used to fund the terrorist attacks.But the common man as usual is a mute spectator to this ever increasing money making machine. But then why should we care as ultimately it is not our family which is getting affected by this issue.
Frankly i did not write this post to create an awareness about this racket or try n awaken the sleeping masses( that would be an extremely futile purpose as all of us have already written our obituaries , "bhagat singh ka zamana nahi hai" ) . The views stated are essentially a reminder for all of us 20 something men/boys who sometimes during our college days have joked about visiting the red light traffic areas for getting a first hand experience of this experiment. That casual remark of visiting G.B. road is not just a simple fun remark but is a crude reminder of our existing "civilized" values.
Frankly when the reality actually stares you in the face it is anything but a joke. Its fine to reason that we are in a materialistic world wherein one buys what is available on the market and that the world is a better place without this moral policing but what if one day we find that the product we are shopping for is one of our very own loved ones , even the mere thought does not seem to be a joke.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
John Nash : It is only in the mysterious equations of love that one can find logic n reason
Thus it seems finally I have corrected one of my beliefs
Thursday, May 7, 2009
The odyssey of 4 years
The journey in GTBIt began in august 2004 as a stopgap arrangement of one year to be used as a backup if I failed to clear jee next year or was unsuccessful in joining army. And as life would have it neither was i successful in joining the armed forces nor did i ever appear for jee 2005.So here I was stuck once more with en engineering degree which I was never able to love, a college which i disliked from day one but which gradually became the epicentre of my life, a place which over the course of time became so integral to my life that I even after one year I have still not moved on with life.
The studies never interested me nor did the teachers then what was the attraction of going to college. Just 2 words 'friends' n 'DLC'. The former is a well known fact while the latter was a close guarded secret , a society which I despised from the day I auditioned for it . The society which others believe I hated as it seemed to be at loggerheads with my opinions but frankly the reason is far more personal maybe i feared what it had shown to me. Ok whatever the reason i won't share it but ya DLC was a pivotal reason for my survival in GTBIT. From Joban sir to Harry n all the rest of amputated literary members u guys taught me to live life fully n for this I love u all n for nothing else. I also had the privelege to meet a few courtesy DLC who have been the flame of inspiration as far as shayaari is concerned n ya the criticism i made of dlc was essentially the only way through which i could show my affection towards the society , thats the way I treat people whom i like.
Now coming to my favourite category my friends to whom this post is dedicated . If i try mentioning their names the post shall become boring because except for one foe the entire batch was a friend but ya i will mention anuj as he is the one who suggested me this topic.It was this group which was responsible for all the fun I ever had in my life post St. John's. Even today as i ponder sitting alone in this room amidst the rustling of leaves all the days we spent at OTTIC, in the parking lot n the night out's at ankit n rane's house n the free movies we saw courtesy Keshav I find that the memories alone are enough to motivate me to survive these struggling times. The pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi n amritsar laid the foundation of our friendship n probably is the root cause for our uncorrupted bonds.
I might not have joined Infosys but i still dream about the football matches we played together n the ones i would have played at Mysore with tt n ankit . I guess it is almost one year since we left college but unfortunately I still miss u all be it the opinions of a drunk Udit wherein he is rebuking me for failing in FMS or the frank chats with Rahul .I still cherish the last prac wherein rana , kapil n anuj had drowned themselves in Scotch n then attended the practicals . The Hemkunt Sahib journey with Karir will remain forever etched in my mind n yo man we'll go this time too if the almighty allows. The unending arguments with sup and tapsie were also a joy as was the never say no attitude of pinak.
The memories are unending n i have still not mentioned the person who is the History channel. However times have changed n however much we might desire to hold onto those memories the truth is the 4 years are bygone , the memories are slowly fading . Everyone is treading a new path one which has taken u all to the streets of San diego,San jose, new york, florida , bangalore n ya luckily chandigarh too. Their are others who are still fighting it out in Delhi n may God bless them with all the happiness n success in life. A day might come when we shalll meet probably our convocation if it ever happens but ya i am greatful to all of you for your support n hopefully i'll meet new people who will help me forget my college .
I have missed out on a lot of experiences its your duty now to fulfill the gaps in this post.
The studies never interested me nor did the teachers then what was the attraction of going to college. Just 2 words 'friends' n 'DLC'. The former is a well known fact while the latter was a close guarded secret , a society which I despised from the day I auditioned for it . The society which others believe I hated as it seemed to be at loggerheads with my opinions but frankly the reason is far more personal maybe i feared what it had shown to me. Ok whatever the reason i won't share it but ya DLC was a pivotal reason for my survival in GTBIT. From Joban sir to Harry n all the rest of amputated literary members u guys taught me to live life fully n for this I love u all n for nothing else. I also had the privelege to meet a few courtesy DLC who have been the flame of inspiration as far as shayaari is concerned n ya the criticism i made of dlc was essentially the only way through which i could show my affection towards the society , thats the way I treat people whom i like.
Now coming to my favourite category my friends to whom this post is dedicated . If i try mentioning their names the post shall become boring because except for one foe the entire batch was a friend but ya i will mention anuj as he is the one who suggested me this topic.It was this group which was responsible for all the fun I ever had in my life post St. John's. Even today as i ponder sitting alone in this room amidst the rustling of leaves all the days we spent at OTTIC, in the parking lot n the night out's at ankit n rane's house n the free movies we saw courtesy Keshav I find that the memories alone are enough to motivate me to survive these struggling times. The pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi n amritsar laid the foundation of our friendship n probably is the root cause for our uncorrupted bonds.
I might not have joined Infosys but i still dream about the football matches we played together n the ones i would have played at Mysore with tt n ankit . I guess it is almost one year since we left college but unfortunately I still miss u all be it the opinions of a drunk Udit wherein he is rebuking me for failing in FMS or the frank chats with Rahul .I still cherish the last prac wherein rana , kapil n anuj had drowned themselves in Scotch n then attended the practicals . The Hemkunt Sahib journey with Karir will remain forever etched in my mind n yo man we'll go this time too if the almighty allows. The unending arguments with sup and tapsie were also a joy as was the never say no attitude of pinak.
The memories are unending n i have still not mentioned the person who is the History channel. However times have changed n however much we might desire to hold onto those memories the truth is the 4 years are bygone , the memories are slowly fading . Everyone is treading a new path one which has taken u all to the streets of San diego,San jose, new york, florida , bangalore n ya luckily chandigarh too. Their are others who are still fighting it out in Delhi n may God bless them with all the happiness n success in life. A day might come when we shalll meet probably our convocation if it ever happens but ya i am greatful to all of you for your support n hopefully i'll meet new people who will help me forget my college .
I have missed out on a lot of experiences its your duty now to fulfill the gaps in this post.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
We are born as Indians we'll die as marathis,punjabis,tamils,bengalis......
I have been fortunate enough to have been brought up in a country which is the abode of diversity on earth. A country which boasts of 16 official languages , innumerable religions and a rich heritage.
Its ironical that it was only after living in another continent, in a country which is about 5000 miles away from my birth place did i actually realize about our diverse culture.But then circumstances are a wonderful teacher. Forced to fend for my own self I found solace and help among my own countrymen.
From the punjabis who helped me to find a suitable accomodation and then fed me for 1 month, to the tamils who became my badminton partners, to the oriyas and gujaratis who invited me to their parties I was lucky to interact with indians from different linguistic backgrounds. All of them helped me to survive the loneliness which accompanies an individual who is working alone in an alien country on a project n is using the opportunity to overcome his fears and answer the questions of his peers.
All of them helped me n there are a lot of similarities between us . Each of the communities likes to speak in its own regional language rather than in hindi. People from every region whom i met felt that the central government had discriminated against their states in the allocation of resources and funds. From the missing lines in oriya which were not spoken as part of the song "Mile sur mera tumhara" at the independence day celebrations in High Commission,Dar Es Salaam to the complaints of the wrong policies be it the Lack of support for LTTE or the 84 sikh riots all of us have become too narrow minded and are carrying the burden of our past.
I guess these are very small undercurrent thoughts which we all have but when I ponder at the current political situation back home I believe the mushrooming of regional parties like TRS, Shiv sena ,Akali Dal, DMK, BSP,SP ,RJD are all a result of these narrow minded beliefs which we all indians have. Today we have reached the position wherein a Lau can force the central government to allocate 1500 crores for Kosi floods but for the floods in Orissa which are of the same scale a very meagre amount is released. What this implies is that are small undercurrent thoughts are getting translated into discriminatory policies.
Ultimately if we keep on progressing in the same direction more Naxal secessionist movements will crop up and every state will start insisting on more autonomy . We will have more Article 370's . My opinion is far fetched but then its better to understand the implications of our actions now rather than allow India to become another Balkanised region.
I hope that we start identifying ourselves by our country rather than by our states.
Its ironical that it was only after living in another continent, in a country which is about 5000 miles away from my birth place did i actually realize about our diverse culture.But then circumstances are a wonderful teacher. Forced to fend for my own self I found solace and help among my own countrymen.
From the punjabis who helped me to find a suitable accomodation and then fed me for 1 month, to the tamils who became my badminton partners, to the oriyas and gujaratis who invited me to their parties I was lucky to interact with indians from different linguistic backgrounds. All of them helped me to survive the loneliness which accompanies an individual who is working alone in an alien country on a project n is using the opportunity to overcome his fears and answer the questions of his peers.
All of them helped me n there are a lot of similarities between us . Each of the communities likes to speak in its own regional language rather than in hindi. People from every region whom i met felt that the central government had discriminated against their states in the allocation of resources and funds. From the missing lines in oriya which were not spoken as part of the song "Mile sur mera tumhara" at the independence day celebrations in High Commission,Dar Es Salaam to the complaints of the wrong policies be it the Lack of support for LTTE or the 84 sikh riots all of us have become too narrow minded and are carrying the burden of our past.
I guess these are very small undercurrent thoughts which we all have but when I ponder at the current political situation back home I believe the mushrooming of regional parties like TRS, Shiv sena ,Akali Dal, DMK, BSP,SP ,RJD are all a result of these narrow minded beliefs which we all indians have. Today we have reached the position wherein a Lau can force the central government to allocate 1500 crores for Kosi floods but for the floods in Orissa which are of the same scale a very meagre amount is released. What this implies is that are small undercurrent thoughts are getting translated into discriminatory policies.
Ultimately if we keep on progressing in the same direction more Naxal secessionist movements will crop up and every state will start insisting on more autonomy . We will have more Article 370's . My opinion is far fetched but then its better to understand the implications of our actions now rather than allow India to become another Balkanised region.
I hope that we start identifying ourselves by our country rather than by our states.
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