Its raining cats and dogs
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Clearly one doesn't understand the real meaning of the word 'Monsoon' until he or she experiences it first hand. Nothing in this world can ever give you the true meaning of the word like experiencing it by being in the midst of it; not even books, tales, experiences shared by someone who's seen it or videos.
As someone said, if the world has to look for a long term progress in any part of the world, it has to be the Indian subcontinent. For no other nation or group of nations experience a steady dependable period of downpour from the heavens like the subcontinent does. In fact this act of nature, also known as rain, is probably one of the most important needs of humans. They need it in order to meet their daily needs, to progress and to sustain the civilization. I cannot think of any other part of the world where a monsoon, or its equivalent, works like a clockwork every year.
1st of June is known to be the day when Monsoon hits the southern part of the country in the state called Kerala. Apparently, June 1st marks the first day schools reopen after the long summer break. Keralites have known for years that these two coincide almost every year. No matter what happens, it rains on the 1st of June. Some kids are probably annoyed that their school season starts with a schoolbag and an umbrella (or a rain jacket) in hand whilst some are happy that the monsoon is finally here - they can enjoy it out in the open: playing in the rain is like a dream come true for any kid in this part of the world.
In a matter of weeks the Monsoon gradually travels north-west and hits the western part of the country before arriving in Mumbai in the 2nd half of July and then the northern parts of the country in August/September. June through October are the months when the country meets most of its supply of the yearly water consumption filling in lakes (both natural and man made) and dams. It comes with another benefit - a relief from the scorching summer heat. With temperature rising every year, the importance of monsoon rains would only increase in the future. Of course, needless to say that its a boon to industries and the agriculture industry. Nothing better than a natural source of water.
It also brings a level of discomfort with it. The intensity of rains on certain days almost disrupts the routine people are used to. Travel, communication, electricity and anything you name it is affected. As the intensity increases, folks get over the initial jitters and life during monsoon falls back to normal. It can bring a whole city to halt (like what happened in Mumbai a few years back) and bouncing back becomes difficult. The uncertainty adds to the displeasure of residents; if it starts to rain - one can never predict when it would stop. Sometimes it just rains for a week. Light rain at times but still it keeps pouring days and days. There are quite a few industries that survive as a result of Monsoon. They're active during these 4-5 months and make full use of the rains.
People have started to wonder if the Monsoon is of that help. All it causes is a discomfort, they say. To them I only have this to say - One year without a Monsoon and it would be difficult for half of the country to survive. The amazing thing to note is its dependability. Nature is reminding us time and again of the way it works and for as long as people in the subcontinent can remember - they have seen it function like a clockwork.
It is fun to look out of the window and enjoy the thunder, the lightening, heavy droplets of rain, small droplets but nothing like having a hot cup of tea and pakoda! Off I go to have my tea and pakoda, of course!
As someone said, if the world has to look for a long term progress in any part of the world, it has to be the Indian subcontinent. For no other nation or group of nations experience a steady dependable period of downpour from the heavens like the subcontinent does. In fact this act of nature, also known as rain, is probably one of the most important needs of humans. They need it in order to meet their daily needs, to progress and to sustain the civilization. I cannot think of any other part of the world where a monsoon, or its equivalent, works like a clockwork every year.
1st of June is known to be the day when Monsoon hits the southern part of the country in the state called Kerala. Apparently, June 1st marks the first day schools reopen after the long summer break. Keralites have known for years that these two coincide almost every year. No matter what happens, it rains on the 1st of June. Some kids are probably annoyed that their school season starts with a schoolbag and an umbrella (or a rain jacket) in hand whilst some are happy that the monsoon is finally here - they can enjoy it out in the open: playing in the rain is like a dream come true for any kid in this part of the world.
In a matter of weeks the Monsoon gradually travels north-west and hits the western part of the country before arriving in Mumbai in the 2nd half of July and then the northern parts of the country in August/September. June through October are the months when the country meets most of its supply of the yearly water consumption filling in lakes (both natural and man made) and dams. It comes with another benefit - a relief from the scorching summer heat. With temperature rising every year, the importance of monsoon rains would only increase in the future. Of course, needless to say that its a boon to industries and the agriculture industry. Nothing better than a natural source of water.
It also brings a level of discomfort with it. The intensity of rains on certain days almost disrupts the routine people are used to. Travel, communication, electricity and anything you name it is affected. As the intensity increases, folks get over the initial jitters and life during monsoon falls back to normal. It can bring a whole city to halt (like what happened in Mumbai a few years back) and bouncing back becomes difficult. The uncertainty adds to the displeasure of residents; if it starts to rain - one can never predict when it would stop. Sometimes it just rains for a week. Light rain at times but still it keeps pouring days and days. There are quite a few industries that survive as a result of Monsoon. They're active during these 4-5 months and make full use of the rains.
People have started to wonder if the Monsoon is of that help. All it causes is a discomfort, they say. To them I only have this to say - One year without a Monsoon and it would be difficult for half of the country to survive. The amazing thing to note is its dependability. Nature is reminding us time and again of the way it works and for as long as people in the subcontinent can remember - they have seen it function like a clockwork.
It is fun to look out of the window and enjoy the thunder, the lightening, heavy droplets of rain, small droplets but nothing like having a hot cup of tea and pakoda! Off I go to have my tea and pakoda, of course!
Labels: Kerala, Monsoon, Mumbai, Rain
Posted by Rajesh @ 10:26 AM; PERMALINK,
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God's own land? Don't think so.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Saturday morning as I sit on the chair with some breakfast in my hand, staring through my window at the tree that has just bloomed and the rain drop dripping from its baby pink flowers, I ponder; have I seen this before? Of course - everyone has. I've seen it too, and have pondered about it back then, in what they call the God's own land - Kerala. Tile houses are surrounded by flowering plants and trees that get a booster shot as if life has been pumped into them as soon as the first ray of sunlight falls on them. Everything you see and experience out there is divine and is irreplicable (if that's even a word).
Well, that's the land that they all portray on websites and on the top attractions list that India carries in her pouch. Getting deep into the nooks and crannies of the inland, one would start to get the notion that maybe not. It may all be a hype. It is a great tourism destination but a state as big as Kerala cannot survive merely on tourism. Isn't there anything else out there? One would ask. And from what I've seen, there is but its gonna die out sooner or later.
The state has a unique distinction, a magnetic power if you may call it, to repel anything that comes in its path, any new notion, an idea, an industry. Anything that starts to bloom in Kerala is met with an ill fate; some do not even bloom, the idea is opposed and killed before it can even take flight. This is quite evident from the fact that there are almost no industries in the state, most of the people have fled to other parts of the country, the Middle East, the Western hemisphere and Europe.
Hartals and Bandhs are the backbone and the main reason that industries have tried to run away from the state. The state carries unique distinctions - like the most number of bandhs in the country (~100 bandhs a year in the recent times) , the maximum success rate of a Bandh has also been registered in the state. It had become such a nuisance that there was a Court ban on Bandhs and that too more than a decade ago.
Visiting Kerala a few months back, I heard from people that the state cannot go on living like this for long. Nokia was in a negotiation trying to setup a factory in India to make use of the exploding market in the subcontinent and this state was in its radar. They backed away the last minute and opened up their factory in the adjoining state of Tamil Nadu (TN) because of a fear that the labour force would spend more time on the streets raising flags and protesting than in the factory itself [overheard]. We all know the Coca Cola war that was going on a few years back. There are may more examples, which I do not wish to list here, that describe the sad story.
Literacy rate is one of the highest in the country but isn't that big of an asset because the young task force is not able to work in the state after he/she graduates. 20% of the educated class is unemployed (three times the national average). Most of the anger can be diverted to the politics in the state and the involvement of politics in colleges and unions at workplaces. Politics itself is a fire , forget mixing it with education and work .
And when young people try to bring a wave of change, they are opposed throughout their stint in the state and they don't have any other option but to resign to the fact that here I am trying to get some common sense but its all in vain. IPL - the big thing in India these days. A few months of sport and an income that would be enough to sustain one for years. This year, though, it has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. The first half was taken over by the staggering $$ amounts that the team owners have spent and the news that there would be two new teams starting next season - Pune and Kochi.
Kochi - the port city in Kerala and the most happening place in the state. Young crowd that grasps anything that comes in its way, reflects it back to the audience watching and gives a "foreign" look to the city. The new announcement was grabbed with both the hands by the people and the dignitaries of the state. But when it seemed like everything was going smooth, the so called chair of the IPL started throwing dirt indicating that a minister of the cabinet (M Of State for external affair) Dr. Shashi Tharoor (who is an MP from Thiruvananthapuram) was involved in wrongdoings and was involved in obtaining the bid for the winners (Rendezvous).
If there's anything we can learn from the state's history it is the fact that we shouldn't be surprised. As I mentioned before, anything and everything that has attached itself to the state has encountered a road block and the matter has always gotten worse thereafter. Here's a guy who has left a United Nations job to come and serve for his country and finds himself amidst a storm initially and now a hurricane. Should he be targeted for his novice? It looks like he underestimated the state of Kerala and what it is capable of. The name in itself is enough to malign a good deed - he should have known that.
About a month back the state government sent out a letter to the Big B of Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan, indicating that they would like him to be the state's brand ambassador to promote tourism. BigB agreed only to be rejected a couple of weeks later. The government says it was yet to make up its mind on the matter. The fact was the BigB was promoting the same for the state of Gujarat, India, and they were questioning the fact that he's supporting the state were riots took place a few years back. I mean, come on - grow up. If you need time to think over then just say so before jumping the gun and sending out the letter and being made fun of in the public.
So, at the end of the day, even though many of its (Kerala's) social indicators are on par with the developed world and it has the highest human development index in India, it finds itself in a huge conundrum ... how to save itself. Low infant mortality, high literacy rate, highest life expectancy in the country, lowest school dropout, high gender ratio (women outnumber men), low population growth, lowest rural poverty in the country - are all statistics that look great on paper [stats courtesy BBC]. Even after achieving these positives, the state has one of the highest suicide rates, highest unemployment of the educated class, lacks industries that can make the state sustain itself and politics/unions that threat to shake the pillars and topple the building with a bandh/strike few often. Anything that touches the state or its affairs - turns into coal.
It looks to me that we are observing two extremes here. One extreme will eventually be successful. Which one? We need to wait and watch.
PS - Just my thoughts. Am sure all may not agree.
Well, that's the land that they all portray on websites and on the top attractions list that India carries in her pouch. Getting deep into the nooks and crannies of the inland, one would start to get the notion that maybe not. It may all be a hype. It is a great tourism destination but a state as big as Kerala cannot survive merely on tourism. Isn't there anything else out there? One would ask. And from what I've seen, there is but its gonna die out sooner or later.
The state has a unique distinction, a magnetic power if you may call it, to repel anything that comes in its path, any new notion, an idea, an industry. Anything that starts to bloom in Kerala is met with an ill fate; some do not even bloom, the idea is opposed and killed before it can even take flight. This is quite evident from the fact that there are almost no industries in the state, most of the people have fled to other parts of the country, the Middle East, the Western hemisphere and Europe.
Hartals and Bandhs are the backbone and the main reason that industries have tried to run away from the state. The state carries unique distinctions - like the most number of bandhs in the country (~100 bandhs a year in the recent times) , the maximum success rate of a Bandh has also been registered in the state. It had become such a nuisance that there was a Court ban on Bandhs and that too more than a decade ago.
Visiting Kerala a few months back, I heard from people that the state cannot go on living like this for long. Nokia was in a negotiation trying to setup a factory in India to make use of the exploding market in the subcontinent and this state was in its radar. They backed away the last minute and opened up their factory in the adjoining state of Tamil Nadu (TN) because of a fear that the labour force would spend more time on the streets raising flags and protesting than in the factory itself [overheard]. We all know the Coca Cola war that was going on a few years back. There are may more examples, which I do not wish to list here, that describe the sad story.
Literacy rate is one of the highest in the country but isn't that big of an asset because the young task force is not able to work in the state after he/she graduates. 20% of the educated class is unemployed (three times the national average). Most of the anger can be diverted to the politics in the state and the involvement of politics in colleges and unions at workplaces. Politics itself is a fire , forget mixing it with education and work .
And when young people try to bring a wave of change, they are opposed throughout their stint in the state and they don't have any other option but to resign to the fact that here I am trying to get some common sense but its all in vain. IPL - the big thing in India these days. A few months of sport and an income that would be enough to sustain one for years. This year, though, it has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. The first half was taken over by the staggering $$ amounts that the team owners have spent and the news that there would be two new teams starting next season - Pune and Kochi.
Kochi - the port city in Kerala and the most happening place in the state. Young crowd that grasps anything that comes in its way, reflects it back to the audience watching and gives a "foreign" look to the city. The new announcement was grabbed with both the hands by the people and the dignitaries of the state. But when it seemed like everything was going smooth, the so called chair of the IPL started throwing dirt indicating that a minister of the cabinet (M Of State for external affair) Dr. Shashi Tharoor (who is an MP from Thiruvananthapuram) was involved in wrongdoings and was involved in obtaining the bid for the winners (Rendezvous).
If there's anything we can learn from the state's history it is the fact that we shouldn't be surprised. As I mentioned before, anything and everything that has attached itself to the state has encountered a road block and the matter has always gotten worse thereafter. Here's a guy who has left a United Nations job to come and serve for his country and finds himself amidst a storm initially and now a hurricane. Should he be targeted for his novice? It looks like he underestimated the state of Kerala and what it is capable of. The name in itself is enough to malign a good deed - he should have known that.
About a month back the state government sent out a letter to the Big B of Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan, indicating that they would like him to be the state's brand ambassador to promote tourism. BigB agreed only to be rejected a couple of weeks later. The government says it was yet to make up its mind on the matter. The fact was the BigB was promoting the same for the state of Gujarat, India, and they were questioning the fact that he's supporting the state were riots took place a few years back. I mean, come on - grow up. If you need time to think over then just say so before jumping the gun and sending out the letter and being made fun of in the public.
So, at the end of the day, even though many of its (Kerala's) social indicators are on par with the developed world and it has the highest human development index in India, it finds itself in a huge conundrum ... how to save itself. Low infant mortality, high literacy rate, highest life expectancy in the country, lowest school dropout, high gender ratio (women outnumber men), low population growth, lowest rural poverty in the country - are all statistics that look great on paper [stats courtesy BBC]. Even after achieving these positives, the state has one of the highest suicide rates, highest unemployment of the educated class, lacks industries that can make the state sustain itself and politics/unions that threat to shake the pillars and topple the building with a bandh/strike few often. Anything that touches the state or its affairs - turns into coal.
It looks to me that we are observing two extremes here. One extreme will eventually be successful. Which one? We need to wait and watch.
PS - Just my thoughts. Am sure all may not agree.
Labels: 2010, Amitabh, Bachchan, BigB, Bollywood, Cricket, Europe, Government, India, IPL, Kerala, Literacy, Nokia, Poverty, Shashi Tharoor, Tamil Nadu, Tharoor, Tourism, US
Posted by Rajesh @ 9:25 AM; PERMALINK,
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Transformers
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Talk about transformations and you don't have to look any further than the Asian subcontinent; and one of the major contributors - India. Couple of years here and there and you would miss so much that you would feel nothing but embarrassed in front of "The Common Man". Yes I'm talking about the common man as portrayed by R.K Laxman; and the common man knows a lot ... lot more than one can possibly think of.
Trip back to India now a days (business/pleasure) comes as a surprise for many. The very outlook of cities change in a matter of days, forget months or years. The rate, for example, at which the shopping malls are propping up in cities is ridiculous and one starts to get a feeling that - are we in line with something like happened in the west? The way one used to spend $$ in relation to the $$ earned has changed drastically. More and more money flowing in to the market has only caused prices of commodities, real estate to skyrocket and make the common man's wallet thinner and thinner.
Sticking to 'shopping malls' read somewhere the other day that the country would see ~600 of them in the coming 2 years span. Thats an amazing rate of ~1 per day in a country that is yet to accept the rate of change that it has been seeing in the past 7 years !! Now, I'm stressing on these outlets 'cause they are nothing but hangout places for college kids and the young generation, I've seen the older generation getting lost out there and trying to accept these changes as a norm of the 21st century.
On a recent trip, learned a lot as in the way things are and the way one can expect things to unfold. Money is being poured into the stock market and every Tom, Dick and Harry now owns few thousand Rs. worth of a stock or the other. Was amazed by the interest and the knowledge that the 'common man' shows now-a-days, quite literally I was embarrassed. Cell phone revolution, SMS, Explosion of TV channels, $ being poured by investors, BPOs are all changing the face of the nation.
Slow and steady, cities are getting destroyed though. One can actually see the effect with an increase in vehicles on the roads, infrastructure development not catching up with the development, daily commuting hours rising higher and higher and what not. I also had been to God's own land for a few days and realized that in a few years it may not live up to its name!! This is something strange and something that I had not seen in the past. Things like these used to take some time to trickle down to Kerala but not anymore.
Oh well, that's probably the new face of India, changing India, Incredible India. Hope we all are prepared to accept the new face :)
Signed: Rajesh
Trip back to India now a days (business/pleasure) comes as a surprise for many. The very outlook of cities change in a matter of days, forget months or years. The rate, for example, at which the shopping malls are propping up in cities is ridiculous and one starts to get a feeling that - are we in line with something like happened in the west? The way one used to spend $$ in relation to the $$ earned has changed drastically. More and more money flowing in to the market has only caused prices of commodities, real estate to skyrocket and make the common man's wallet thinner and thinner.
Sticking to 'shopping malls' read somewhere the other day that the country would see ~600 of them in the coming 2 years span. Thats an amazing rate of ~1 per day in a country that is yet to accept the rate of change that it has been seeing in the past 7 years !! Now, I'm stressing on these outlets 'cause they are nothing but hangout places for college kids and the young generation, I've seen the older generation getting lost out there and trying to accept these changes as a norm of the 21st century.
On a recent trip, learned a lot as in the way things are and the way one can expect things to unfold. Money is being poured into the stock market and every Tom, Dick and Harry now owns few thousand Rs. worth of a stock or the other. Was amazed by the interest and the knowledge that the 'common man' shows now-a-days, quite literally I was embarrassed. Cell phone revolution, SMS, Explosion of TV channels, $ being poured by investors, BPOs are all changing the face of the nation.
Slow and steady, cities are getting destroyed though. One can actually see the effect with an increase in vehicles on the roads, infrastructure development not catching up with the development, daily commuting hours rising higher and higher and what not. I also had been to God's own land for a few days and realized that in a few years it may not live up to its name!! This is something strange and something that I had not seen in the past. Things like these used to take some time to trickle down to Kerala but not anymore.
Oh well, that's probably the new face of India, changing India, Incredible India. Hope we all are prepared to accept the new face :)
Signed: Rajesh
Labels: 2007, India, Kerala, Stock
Posted by Rajesh @ 6:33 PM; PERMALINK,
,
Onam - Oh seven
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Couple of years back, i.e in 2005, I thought I saw Maveli up here in Boston - but then I was wrong. Last year this time, I was back home in Kerala, India celebrating our harvest festival - ONAM.
This year - Oh well, just a few phone calls, this post and a few snaps from last year ;-)
Wish you all a Happy Onam!!
This year - Oh well, just a few phone calls, this post and a few snaps from last year ;-)
Wish you all a Happy Onam!!
Labels: 2007, Kerala, Maveli, Onam
Posted by Rajesh @ 6:55 PM; PERMALINK,
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What to wear, What not to wear
Sunday, July 29, 2007
So, the Guruvayoor temple (Guruvayoor, Kerala, India) has finally decided to relax the dress code last week. Female devotees can now wear a churidar /salwar kameez as against the 'Sari only' policy that they had. This (according to the Guruvayoor Dewasam board) was a long-pending demand from several women.
I've been there quite a few times and the atmosphere out there is worth experiencing. The darshan puts you right there amongst the clouds :). The temple has been in limelight, off late, due to various reasons. The stringent rules (or laws) like the one above, a purification ritual that they performed after a minister and his wife (who was a christian) - to name a few.
I'm not pro or against these rules (laws) but know one thing, slow but steady they would have to relax these and open up the doors to other folks to avoid major issues. I know there are a few similar places (in India and throughout the world); but globalization should be able to change that (isn't it ?). The part of Kerala where I come from, its not possible to get an entrance wearing pants (or trousers), you gotta get into something known as a mundu ;).
Hope this is for the good and its the first step towards relaxation of rules and regulations.
I've been there quite a few times and the atmosphere out there is worth experiencing. The darshan puts you right there amongst the clouds :). The temple has been in limelight, off late, due to various reasons. The stringent rules (or laws) like the one above, a purification ritual that they performed after a minister and his wife (who was a christian) - to name a few.
I'm not pro or against these rules (laws) but know one thing, slow but steady they would have to relax these and open up the doors to other folks to avoid major issues. I know there are a few similar places (in India and throughout the world); but globalization should be able to change that (isn't it ?). The part of Kerala where I come from, its not possible to get an entrance wearing pants (or trousers), you gotta get into something known as a mundu ;).
Hope this is for the good and its the first step towards relaxation of rules and regulations.
Labels: Guruvayoor, India, Kerala, Temple
Posted by Rajesh @ 6:00 PM; PERMALINK,
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Living in this modern era
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
I'm sure we all have our own perceptions on how the modern world is changing/adapting itself to the changes. Here's an example (got forwarded via email) -
OLD VERSION...
MODERN VERSION...
The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house.
Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other grasshoppers demanding that grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not upholding the fundamental rights of the grasshopper.
The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance).
Opposition MP's stage a walkout. Left parties call for "Bharat Bandh" in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry. CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among ants and grasshoppers.
Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.
Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the Prevention of Terrorism Against Grasshoppers Act [POTAGA]", with effect from the beginning of the winter.
Arjun Singh makes Special Reservation for Grass Hopper in educational Insititutions & in Govt Services.
The ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government and handed over to the grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.
Arundhati Roy calls it "a triumph of justice". Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice'. CPM calls it the 'revolutionary resurgence of the downtrodden' . Koffi Annan invites the grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly.
MANY YEARS LATER...
The ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi billion dollar company in silicon valley.100s of grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India.
OLD VERSION...
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away. Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or
shelter so he dies out in the cold.MODERN VERSION...
The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter. The grasshopper thinks the ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.
Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and starving. NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering grasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?
Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the ant's house.
Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other grasshoppers demanding that grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter.
Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not upholding the fundamental rights of the grasshopper.
The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance).
Opposition MP's stage a walkout. Left parties call for "Bharat Bandh" in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry. CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among ants and grasshoppers.
Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'.
Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the Prevention of Terrorism Against Grasshoppers Act [POTAGA]", with effect from the beginning of the winter.
Arjun Singh makes Special Reservation for Grass Hopper in educational Insititutions & in Govt Services.
The ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government and handed over to the grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.
Arundhati Roy calls it "a triumph of justice". Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice'. CPM calls it the 'revolutionary resurgence of the downtrodden' . Koffi Annan invites the grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly.
MANY YEARS LATER...
The ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi billion dollar company in silicon valley.100s of grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India.
Labels: Ant, BBC, Bengal, CNN, Funny, Grasshopper, India, Kerala, NDTV, UN, United Nations, US, West
Posted by Rajesh @ 8:39 PM; PERMALINK,
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