Thursday, October 30, 2008

This Time They Strike At Assam

The terrorists are continuing with their disruptive activities in full swing. After a brief break they have struck again – this time at the beautiful state of Assam in the picturesque North East.

The postmortem of the situation has already started, with the usual constituents like blame gaming and scapegoating. And as usual the common people are not interested in all this, as it can neither undo what has happened nor apparently prevent the repetition of that. What they want the authorities to do is a meaningful analysis of the security and intelligence mechanism/infrastructure, identify the rooms for development and address the same. But will our great leaders do that? I am not sure whether I can be much hopeful about it.

After all what can we expect when we have an ultra-incompetent and unenterprising Home Minister like Mr. Shivraj Patil, who is in his position not because of any administrative acumen (which he does not have in the first place), but simply because of his unquestioned loyalty to “Madam”? With such a weak and inept person in charge of internal security, there is little wonder that the terrorists are having a field day.

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Congrats Anand! The Nation Salutes You.

Dear Mr. Viswanathan Anand, please accept a bagful of congratulations for successfully defending your world champion title.

There are some people for whom making their motherland proud seems to be a regular habit. And Anand, my friend, you seem to be one of them.

The game of Chess originated in our beloved India, and thus every Indian feels that it is sort of our birth right to be the best country in this game. However, there is always a gap between mere wish and reality. And we are grateful to you for successfully bridging that gap. Anand, you are just superb!

I always take pride in the fact that I belong to such a generation of Indians which is represented by some unparalleled sports personalities, i.e. people who have created history in their respective fields. In cricket we have Sachin Tendulkar, in rifle shooting we have Abhinav Bindra, and so on. And then there is one from the game of Chess – the great Viswanathan Anand.

May the almighty shower you with all the choicest blessings of life, and empower you to fulfill each and every dream that you have in your life.

Please also permit me to express my sincere wishes and regards for each and every member of your family, whose relentless support has always enabled you to move forward through the thick and thin of professional and personal life.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Doctor found fake after 14 years

  • He has practiced as a general physician for 14 years.
  • Has been running a nursing home.
  • Has held the position of an assistant secretary of the Bengal branch of the IMA.

    His qualification?

    Well, he failed to complete his MBBS from NRS Medical College and Hospital, Calcutta.


    Absurd? Unbelievable? Please visit the following news link –

    http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081027/jsp/bengal/story_10025680.jsp

Friday, October 24, 2008

Diwali Celebration At Espire





























Today (24th October, 2008) we had a nice party in the evening at our Espire Infolabs office, to celebrate the auspicious occasion of Diwali.

Though the celebrations began only after 4 pm, the office was in a festive mood from the morning itself. Most of the Espirians were dressed in ethnic wear (I was one of the ones who were not), and most (not all) of us were busy in decorating the cubicles of our respective departments with flowers, ribbons, candles, etc., apart from embellishing the floor with nice “Rangoli”.

Then in the afternoon there was a gala party in the office cafeteria. First we wished all those fellow Espirians who had their birthdays in the last month (i.e. September), and presented them with nice gifts . It was followed by lots of fun games, which woke up the little children hidden inside all of us. Oh yes, have I forgotten to mention about the mouthwatering dishes that were there?

Over all a great experience.








PS - Forgot to mention the main news. The “Rangoli” designed by our department (the Marketing department) has been judged the best in the entire office. Hearty congratulations to all the members of my team (including myself).

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Shame On Raj Thackeray!


No! The heading is wrong. Actually it should have been “Shame On Us!" Why? Because politicians like Raj Thackeray have not emerged from nowhere. It is we, the common people of India who have made them leaders.

It is a common habit of the Indian mass to criticize their political leaders, while we tend to forget that it is we ourselves who bring these so called leaders into the corridors of power. India is not a military dictatorship where the people are forced to accept the leadership of the dictator who has usurped the power. Rather, India is a democracy where we have the full freedom to choose our leaders. And therefore we must accept the responsibility of all the nuisance (corruption, malpractice, misgovernance, etc) created by a leader who has been elected by us.

So instead of criticizing all these leaders whom we accuse of making our life hell, it is time we woke up and took our democratic rights seriously, so that we are able to elect people who worth our confidence. India is a matured democracy, buddies. And we must learn how to behave like the citizens of a matured democracy.

What has happened in Mumbai is actually a boon in disguise, as it has given us another opportunity to wake up from our slumber. Hope we will now start learning how to behave like a matured electorate.

Photo courtesy : www.ndtv.com

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Hearty Congrats To Sachin and Sourav! And Kumble, Do Not Lose Heart

Dear Sachin and Sourav, please accept hearty congratulations for your respective successes. India’s cricket enthusiasts are really so lucky to have cricketing giants like you.

By the way, Kumble, please do not lose heart. I know that now your performance - both as a bowler as well as Captain – is under scanner, with the media in a constant look out for any mistake or failure that comes in your way. But believe me, the genuine cricket lovers of India are always with you. I am very much confident that you will spring back with a bang, exactly in the manner Sachin and Sourav did. I am now eagerly awaiting that auspicious occasion.

Friday, October 17, 2008

The Helpful Colleagues That I am Lucky To Have

Different people have different experiences with their colleagues. Some people are blessed with good and helpful colleagues, while some fail to find a single colleague who can be called supportive and dependable. And then there are some, who have had the experience of having both these types of colleagues. It is this third group that I belong to.

In my around 8 years of processional career I have had various types of colleagues (as it happens in everyone’s case). I will not hide this fact that my experience with some of them was not very pleasant (in fact I will dare say that a couple of them were just intolerable). However, at the same time I have been blessed with some genuinely nice and helpful colleagues, who have always extended their helping hands every time I have approached them.

My present company Espire Infolabs is a really lucky organization for me in this regard. Here I find myself surrounded by some so nice, helpful and co-operative colleagues. And they help to reduce the tension and stress of the work to such a significant level.

While I have the names of at least a dozen of people in my mind, today I will like to focus on a few of them.

To begin with there are Amit Bharti (Administration) and Debesh (HR). These two gentlemen are neighbours, with both having their own cars. However, they come to office in a single car, using each of the cars on every alternate day. And they give me a lift everyday while coming to office. Actually they come to office in the same route that I follow, and pick me up from a particular spot near my home where I wait for them. Thus I enjoy a happy car ride to office, instead of having a lengthy and painful bus journey and ultimately reaching office with almost all energy lost.


Exactly this same favour I enjoy from Kumarshivam and Neerav (both software professionals at our office), while going back home. Both have their bikes, and stay close to my home (in fact Kumarshivam is virtually my neighbour). Everyday one of them gives me a lift, and I again enjoy the pleasure of reaching home with a fresh body and mind, instead of a strenuous bus journey sucking out all of the remaining energy that I manage to retain after the entire day’s work.

Then there is this lady colleague in my department, who is always there to help me whenever I have some problem with Excel. I am not that strong at Excel, and find myself in deep soup whenever I have to do some work on it. And she is my only refuge on such occasions, as she always comes forward to solve my problem. So far twice or thrice I have approached her for help, and every time she has come to my rescue, saving me from unpleasant consequences that I otherwise would have faced for failing to do the work properly.

Another person who always helps me in handling computer applications that I am not strong at is Mr Yogesh Gupta, another bright software professional of our organization. He is another person whom I have approached for help for a couple of times, and he has never disappointed me. What has touched me a lot is that he has often come to my desk and helped me by putting aside his own urgent work, something least expected in the “ultra professional” environment of the modern corporate scenario.

Every person has his share of problems and challenges in his work, and so do I. It is quite natural. But all my work related tension and stress get evaporated, courtesy the support that I enjoy from these people. My sincere thanks to them!