Domain of Hecate

State Programme Manager for Bihar

2011-03-08T22:07:00.001+05:30

Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is a private, non-denominational development agency, which develops sustainable solutions to poverty and marginalization. This new position offers an experienced professional, an opportunity to provide overall leadership and ensure delivery of a high quality Multi Input Area Development (MIAD) programme in the state of Bihar. The programme aims to improve the quality of life of marginalized communities by addressing their multi-faceted poverty through a multi-year and multi-sector approach and empower them to improve their socio-economic conditions. It also aims to engage with public systems to enhance capacity and delivery of development programmes. The programme currently works in four districts - Muzaffurpur, Samastipur, Kishanganj and Patna - and plans to expand coverage and diversify interventions significantly over the coming 1-3 years.

The State programme manager is needed to take the lead on development and direction of the state programme strategy and effective implementation and performance of the programme. He would also manage AKF’s human resources in the state, and enhance organisational development along with annual planning and budgeting processes for the state programme and monitoring progress and fund utilization

We are looking for people with minimum 8-12 years of work experience in rural development, including at least 3-5 years of experience at a senior position in leading the implementation of multi sector programmes and multidisciplinary team. The person should also have strong human resource and financial management skills, experience of working and liaising with the government at different levels, as well as establishing and nurturing partnerships with other stakeholders.

Location: Patna, Bihar

Interested candidates can write to akf.spmbihar@gmail.com with the subject line indicating Senior Programme Manager. Last date for application is 7th March 2011

Jobs in Bihar

2011-03-08T22:02:00.002+05:30

Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotions Society (BRLPS), an independent Society under Finance Department, Govt. of Bihar is implementing the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project (BRLPS), otherwise termed as JEEViKA with support from the World Bank since October 2007. The project is working in 55 blocks of 9 districts in Bihar. The cost of the project is $ 99 Million. There are few opportunities available with us are as follows;

Few vacancies were announced at the State Level positions i.e., State Project Managers, Project Managers
Few vacancies were announced at the District & Block levels i.e., Manager-Thematic Area such as Livelihoods/Micro-Finance/Social Development/Monitoring & Evaluation/Communication and Block Project Managers

The interested candidate may visit our website at www.brlp.in or see the newspaper advertisement (ToI, HT) on 4th, 5th March 2011 (for district/block level positions, the advertisement was published in the Newspaper earlier, but you can see all the vacancy announcement in the website)

I assure you, this is one of the best project (among all the World Bank assisted rural development projects, implemented in India and outside). The project also offers you the opportunities to carry out innovations in different thematic areas.

How to protect a range of cells in Open Office Excel

2010-07-09T10:44:00.003+05:30

This info was not readily available so I thought let me share the same to enable easier access. This might be useful while preparing sheets where you would like to restrict access to certain cell ranges to avoid accidental change

Open the OpenOffice Scalc document (excel of openoffice).
Identify the range of cells to be un-protected. Open Office Calc documents will by default have all cells protected.
Type Ctrl1. You will be at the Cell Protection options.
Unmark Protected Option. now you have the range of cells as unprotected.
OK
Now go to Tools -> Protect Documents -> Sheet. (Alt T P S)
Put a password to protect the sheet.
Now you can edit all cells which have been unprotected while cannot edit the rest of the sheet.
Save the sheet in relevant format. (do not change the format to MSexcel)
Now you are good to go!!

Cheers

Dummy's Guide to Dooars!!

2010-01-03T19:04:00.005+05:30

Day Sub_Zero

The Plan

We did the acco plan first as when i checked with tour operators, travel was the easier part but acco was difficult. I would advise to go along with West Bengal tourism offers in terms of acco as that provides you with the ringside view compared to the pvt operators where you might get the satisfaction of shelling out a bit more and settling for a bit less.

I did my booking through . It is really cool as you can book any of the WB tourism lodges / packages online.

I booked two days at Madarihaat (jaldapara forest) and two more at malbazar. I would on hind sight advise guys to book the hollong lodge which is inside the forest area. The madarihaat lodge came inclusive of food. At Rs. 1400 per night for two it wasn;t bad.

The Malbazar lodge was though a bloomer. It was not at all well maintained. The saving grace was this waiter out there who used to make some great coffee.

The travel plan was easier as had quite a number of choices. There are a couple of trains which goo all up to alipurduar and I advise people taking that one as it will reach you straight upto the dooars.

Day 1 - Madarihaat Tourist Lodge

DocX to Doc

2009-05-14T14:02:00.002+05:30

Suppose, your client just emailed a Microsoft Word 2007 document ending with a .docx extension but you have no clue about how to open and print the file or convert from docx to .doc and other text formats. No worries, here's is a simple solution on handling .docx file when you don't have Microsoft Office Word 2007.

The .docx files, which are now the default file extension in Microsoft Word 2007, are essentially a bunch of zipped XML documents.

In order to convert .docx documents to .doc format, just download the free Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack from here. This will help you open, print, edit and save .docx files in Office 2000, Office XP, or Office 2003.

A dummies guide to "Asset Bubble

2008-10-04T14:59:00.000+05:30

Once there was a little island country. The land of this country was the tiny island itself. The total money in circulation was 2 dollars as there were only two pieces of 1 dollar coins circulating around.

1) There were 3 citizens living on this island country. A owned the land. B and C each owned 1 dollar.

2) B decided to purchase the land from A for 1 dollar. So, now A and C own 1 dollar each while B owned a piece of land that is worth 1 dollar.

* The net asset of the country now = 3 dollars.

3) Now C thought that since there is only one piece of land in the country, and land is non producible asset, its value must definitely go up. So, he borrowed 1 dollar from A, and together with his own 1 dollar, he bought the land from B for 2 dollars.

*A has a loan to C of 1 dollar, so his net asset is 1 dollar.
*B sold his land and got 2 dollars, so his net asset is 2 dollars.
*C owned the piece of land worth 2 dollars but with his 1 dollar debt to A, his net residual asset is 1 dollar.
* Thus, the net asset of the country = 4 dollars.

4) A saw that the land he once owned has risen in value. He regretted having sold it. Luckily, he has a 1 dollar loan to C. He then borrowed 2 dollars from B and acquired the land back from C for 3 dollars. The payment is by 2 dollars cash (which he borrowed) and cancellation of the 1 dollar loan to C.
As a result, A now owned a piece of land that is worth 3 dollars. But since he owed B 2 dollars, his net asset is 1 dollar.

* B loaned 2 dollars to A. So his net asset is 2 dollars.
* C now has the 2 coins. His net asset is also 2 dollars.
* The net asset of the country = 5 dollars. A bubble is building up.

(5) B saw that the value of land kept rising. He also wanted to own the
land. So he bought the land from A for 4 dollars. The payment is by borrowing 2 dollars from C, and cancellation of his 2 dollars loan to A.

* As a result, A has got his debt cleared and he got the 2 coins. His net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owned a piece of land that is worth 4 dollars, but since he has a debt of 2 dollars with C, his net Asset is 2 dollars.
* C loaned 2 dollars to B, so his net asset is 2 dollars.

* The net asset of the country = 6 dollars; even though, the country has only one piece of land and 2 Dollars in circulation.

(6) Everybody has made money and everybody felt happy and prosperous.

(7) One day an evil wind blew, and an evil thought came to C's mind. "Hey, what if the land price stop going up, how could B repay my loan. There is only 2 dollars in circulation, and, I think after all the land that B owns is worth at most only 1 dollar, and no more."

(8) A also thought the same way.

(9) Nobody wanted to buy land anymore.

* So, in the end, A owns the 2 dollar coins, his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owed C 2 dollars and the land he owned which he thought worth 4 dollars is now 1 dollar. So his net asset is only 1 dollar.
* C has a loan of 2 dollars to B. But it is a bad debt.
Although his net asset is still 2 dollars, his Heart is palpitating.
* The net asset of the country = 3 dollars again.

(10) So, who has stolen the 3 dollars from the country? Of course, before the bubble burst B thought his land was worth 4 dollars. Actually, right before the collapse, the net asset of the country was 6 dollars on paper.
B's net asset is still 2 dollars, his heart is palpitating.

(11) B had no choice but to declare bankruptcy. C has to relinquish his 2 dollars bad debt to B, but in return he acquired the land which is worth 1 dollar now.

* A owns the 2 coins; his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B is bankrupt; his net asset is 0 dollar. (He lost everything)
* C got no choice but end up with a land worth only 1 dollar

* the net asset of the country = 3 dollars.

************ **End of the story; BUT ************ ***************

There is however a redistribution of wealth.
A is the winner, B is the loser, C is lucky that he is spared.
A few points worth noting -

(1) when a bubble is building up, the debt of individuals to one another in a country is also building up.
(2) This story of the island is a closed system whereby there is no other
country and hence no foreign debt. The worth of the asset can only be calculated using the island's own currency. Hence, there is no net loss.
(3) An over-damped system is assumed when the bubble burst, meaning the land's value did not go down to below 1 dollar.
(4) When the bubble burst, the fellow with cash is the winner. The fellows having the land or extending loan to others are the losers.
The asset could shrink or in worst case, they go bankrupt.
(5) If there is another citizen D either holding a dollar or another piece of land but refrains from taking part in the game, he will neither win nor lose. But he will see the value of his money or land goes up and down like a see saw.
(6) When the bubble was in the growing phase, everybody made money.
(7) If you are smart and know that you are living in a growing bubble, it is worthwhile to borrow money (like A) and take part in the game. But you must know when you should change everything back to cash.
(8) As in the case of land, the above phenomenon applies to stocks as well.
(9) The actual worth of land or stocks depends largely on psychology (or speculation)

A trip to Matheran

2008-01-27T13:23:00.000+05:30

Why Matheran:
- Very Convenient - just 80-km east of Mumbai.
- Pollution Free - No motor transport allowed within the matheran limits. Only such city in the world Other than Venice

Matheran is at an attitude of 2,500 feet. The sylvan green surroundings, the beckoning silence of the woods and the serene surroundings of this hill station are quite inviting (avoid visiting Matheran on weekends if your prefer peace and quiet). The silence of the woods is broken by the pranks of the mischievous monkey's who are found in abundance and they try to attract the attention of the visitor's for small tit-bits to fill their bellies, sometimes to the point of greediness.

How to reach Matheran:
- drive from Mumbai: it might take 2.5 - 3 hrs. Remember there is a uphill drive of about 7 odd kms on the way and the driver should have experience of driving in the hills.

- Best option:
Train to Neral. Neral is in central line in Mumbai subirban Railways. If you are travelling through air, Sion/kurla may be the nearest station to catch a fast local to Neral. For Neral one needs to catch trains to Karjat/ Khapoli. Trains are available almost every 45 - 50 mins. Get down at Neral.

Travel to Matheran from Neral:
Option A: Take a shared cab (currently Rs. 50 per person) from Neral to Matheran. You will have to get down at Matheran limits and then go to the townside on foot/ horseback. Journey time: 30 mins

option B: Take the Toy train......you must try it at least one way in the journey. It is advisable to book it online through indian Railways rather than going to Neral and buying it there. This is because there are only a few trains during the day and limited seats are available within the train. First Class ticket costs Rs. 210/- and second class 37/- (as on Jan 2008)

The trip has four stops. The train chugs through the hills with vivid glimpses of the ghats along the way. One gets enough soft drink and snacks choices along the way at stations. Remember those who are booked at MTDC resort should get down at Aman lodge stop or the penultimate one.
Journey time: 2 hrs

Where to stay?
There are private resorts of various choices. Try travelguru.com for some choices.

You may also like to book a MTDC resort which pretty nice accomodation. This can be done online, The rate are pretty reasonable ( Rs. 600 - 2000 per night). One thing to remember though that the resort is half an hour trek from the town.

Eating Out:
Khans - Hukkas and Kababs, janta Chikki and Fudge, Butter Sweet Corn

Shopping - Bargaining skill needed. footwear in day haats

Roses for our anniversary

2007-07-08T00:29:00.000+05:30

Govt of India Bans 600 NGOs

2007-06-15T10:33:00.000+05:30

Andhra Pradesh, with 175 non-governmental organizations, tops the list of states where 600 NGOs that have been blacklisted by the Rural Development Ministry on Wednesday are functioning.

”We have to stop the scam involving public money,” said Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh in announcing the ban.

State wise List of Blacklisted NGOs

The 600 NGOs banned by the government up to March this year were funded by Council for Advancement of People’s Action and Rural Technology, which works as a liaison between the government and NGOs. The Council formulates projects and selects NGOs that can implement them. It also funds projects proposed by NGOs in different states, to take care of various development-related tasks. The blacklisted NGOs will not be allowed to start functioning again.
Bihar (123), Tamil Nadu (71), Uttar Pradesh (69) and Rajasthan (31) round off the top five states where the blacklisted NGOs are based. Karnataka (22), West Bengal (21), Delhi (21), Haryana (20), Orissa (19) and Maharashtra (19) are in the top 10 states.

Favourite Quotes

2006-12-16T11:18:00.000+05:30

Some people give and forgive, others get and forget.

Formula for youth - Remember your enthusiasm and forget your birthdays.

The only way on Earth to multiply happiness is to divide it.

Plan your work - work your plan.

Work like you don't need the money - Love like you've never been hurt - Dance like nobody's watching.

What matters is not the difference between believers and unbelievers, but between those who care and those who do not.

Its better to be hated for who you are - than liked for who you are not.

The voice is a wild thing - It can't be bred in captivity.

Anger is one letter short of Danger.

Our word's are the crumbs which fall from the feast in the mind.

God comforts the disturbed and disturbs the comfortable.

How to Calculate CD4/ CD8 Counts from available Total Count & Differential Count

2006-12-14T11:35:00.000+05:30

An example:
Total Count as reported is 8000 cells/ccm.
Differential count - Lmphocyte is 30%
Therefore the absolute lymphocyte count is 30% of 8000 = 2400 cells (lymph)
Of the Lymphocytes 80% are T cell % while 20% are B Cell.
Thus 80% of 2400 = 1920 (T cell) and 20% of 2400 = 480 (B Cell)
Of the total T Cell - 60% are T4 cells ------CD4 Cells.
Therefore 60% of 1920 = 1152 cells are CD4
Of the total T Cell - 30% are T8 cells ------CD8 Cells
Therefore 30% of 1920 = 576 cells are CD8

Of the total T Cell - 10% are other cells – killer/non killer.

There fore CD4 IS 1152 Cells and CD 8 is 576 cells.

Resignation Letter

2006-12-05T11:00:00.000+05:30

Found this interesting poem.....:)

"The name is good, the brand is big
But the work I do is that of a pig
The work or the brand; what is my way?
I don't know if I should stay.

To work, they have set their own way
Nobody will care to hear what I say
My will be NULL, they wont change their way
I don't know if I should stay.

the money is good, the place is great
But the development is at a very small rate
Should I go for the work, or wait for pay
I don't know if I should stay!

The managers don't know what they talk
The team doesn't know where they walk
That's a bad situation, what say?
I don't know if I should stay.

The -ves are more, the +ves are less
Then why have this unnecessary mess
No more will I walk their way,
It's all done, I won't stay."

Another one - This one is the shortest resignation letter in the world....!!

===========================
Dear Sir,

I Love Your Wife.

Thank You
===========================

COW and Companies

2006-11-09T13:05:00.000+05:30

INFOSYSism
You have a 1000 poor cows. You put them on a nice campus, & send them one at a time to the US for milking.

WIPROism
GE has a cow. You take 49% of the milk

DELLism
Intel has a Goat. Samsung has a Camel. Buy milk from both & sell it as Cow's milk.

IBMism
You have old stubborn cows. You sell them as pet dogs to innocent small businessmen.

MICROSOFTism
You have a cow. Force the world to buy milk from you. Spend a million dollars to feed poorer cows.

INTELism
Microsoft makes horse shoes. You nail them to your cows & wonder why they don't run fast.

SUNism
You have a bull. It doesn't give milk. You hate Microsoft.

ORACLEism
You have a cow. You don't know which side to milk, so you sell tools to help milk cows.

SAPism
You don't have a cow. You sell milking solutions for cows implemented by milking consultants.

APPLEism
You have a cow. You sell iMilk.

SONYism
You have a cow. You spend $50 mn to develop the world's thinnest milk.

CITIBANKism
Welcome to Citibank. If you have a cow, press 1. If you have a bull, press 2...stay on line if you'd like our customer care to milk it for you

HPism
You don't know if what you have is a cow. You sell complete milking solutions through authorised resellers only

GEism
You have a donkey. People think you have a 100-year old cow. If someone finds out, that's his imagination at work.

RELIANCEism
You don't yet have a cow. You sell empty cans to people for Rs. 501, because Dhirubhai wanted everyone to have milk.

TATAism
You have a very old cow. You re-brand it as TATA Indicow.

My Abstract in Toronto

2006-08-18T14:50:00.000+05:30

Truck-drivers and helpers as peer facilitators for dialogue-based interpersonal communication (IPC) for HIV risk reduction Chatterjee A.1, Sellers T.1, Bandyopadhyay N.1, Pachauri A.1, Sahni V.1, Ibrahim M.1, Thakar S.21PATH, New Delhi, India, 2TCIF, New Delhi, India
Issues: Truck-drivers have long been identified as one population key to HIV epidemic dynamics in India. Targeted prevention interventions have shown that peer IPC works best in enabling key populations to reduce HIV risks. Interventions have generally not succeeded, however, in recruiting truck-drivers and helpers themselves as peer facilitators in prevention programs. Description: As part of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation upported Indian AIDS Initiative (Avahan), PATH worked with local partners to recruit and train 20 truck-drivers and helpers as IPC facilitators. To accommodate the availability of truck-drivers, training was conducted over 4 weekends, interspersed with field work. Training included IPC methods, facilitation skills, HIV and STI prevention, gender, power and sexuality. Thirteen dialogue-based IPC methods were developed to enable truck-drivers to critically reflect on risk situations and behaviours and to share and analyse practical risk reduction techniques through discussion. All but 2 completed the full course, and through hearing about the project whilst participating in fieldwork, 18 more drivers came to volunteer for the project. Since the training a learning centre for dialogue-based IPC work with truck-drivers and helpers has been established on the site. Lessons learned: Barriers to truck-drivers becoming peer workers can be overcome through consultation with them. Embedding experienced IPC facilitators with newly trained truck-drivers is an effective capacity building strategy. Truck-drivers responded particularly enthusiastically to IPC methods involving role play and practical demonstration of risk reduction techniques. Recommendations: PATH is now working with partners to train additional truck-drivers to implement an innovative dialogue-based IPC project along national highways. The trained peer facilitators will work part-time on a flexible, consultant basis to accommodate their truck-driving. The aim is to use their mobility as an asset and create a pool of skilled peer IPC facilitators who are available to work at different truck stops along national highways in India.

http://www.iasociety.org/abstract/show.asp?abstract_id=2180991

Good Sites for E-governance documents

2006-06-18T00:00:00.000+05:30

http://www.iitd.ac.in/iceg/

http://www.worldbank.org/edevelopment/

Top 12 Funniest Newspaper Classifieds

2006-06-08T15:13:00.000+05:30

Illiterate? Write today for free help.
Our experienced Mom will care for your child. Fenced yard, meals, and smacks included.
Auto Repair Service. Free pick-up and delivery. Try us once; you'll never go anywhere again.
3-year old teacher needed for preschool. Experience preferred.
Wanted! Widower with school age children requires person to assume general housekeeping duties. Must be capable of contributing to growth of family.
Used Cars: Why go elsewhere to be cheated. Come here first.
Dog for sale: eats anything and is fond of children.
Man wanted to work in dynamite factory. Must be willing to travel.
For sale: antique desk suitable for lady with thick legs and large drawers.
Tired of cleaning yourself. Let me do it.
Wanted. Man to take care of cow that does not smoke or drink.
We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand.

News To A-Muse

2006-06-05T14:16:00.000+05:30

The whole newspaper is replete
With the current status of the Mahajan offspring;
And speculation on how he has become
An outcast from a potential king!
And just the other day
5000 of our Indonesian brethren left for the heavenly abode;
When the earth they reside in,
Thought of having a smoke and the cigar blowed;
It pains to see what media feeds this nation
Providing 3 and half pages for drug habits of a few and a quarter of an obscure column to the cry for quake rehabilitation!
I pray that we check the march of page 3 in time;
Before it claims all the pages as “mine”

Tax assessees can expect more disposable income in FY 2006

2006-06-01T12:53:00.000+05:30

Finance minister P Chidambaram has made a sincere effort to simplify the personal income tax structure currently applicable by revising the existing income tax slabs. These proposals are expected to change the very nature of personal income taxation and boost revenue by around 30%. After all, Chidambaram has pegged a figure of Rs 66239 crore to be garnered from income tax collection in FY 2006, up from Rs 50929 crore as per the revised estimate for FY 2005.
Union Budget 2005-06 has raised the income-tax exemption limit of individuals to Rs one lakh, revised the existing income tax slabs, done away with standard deduction and rationalised tax saving schemes.

The threshold limit for tax exemption has been proposed at Rs one lakh, up from the current Rs 50000. This means that individuals earning up to Rs one lakh will not have to pay any tax on their income. The threshold exemption limit for women has been raised to Rs 1.25 lakh, from the earlier Rs 75000, while for senior citizens it is now Rs 1.5 lakh.

Earlier, individuals earning between Rs 50000 and Rs 60000 paid 10% income tax, while those earning between Rs 60000 and Rs 1.5 lakh paid 20% tax. Income above Rs 1.5 lakh attracted 30% tax. Besides, 10% surcharge was levied on income above Rs 8.5 lakh.
The budget has proposed three income tax brackets between 10% and 30%. Individuals earning between Rs one lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh will attract a 10% tax, income between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 2.5 lakh 20% tax and income above Rs 2.5 lakh 30% tax. The income limit on which a 10% surcharge is applicable has been raised to Rs 10 lakh from Rs 8.5 lakh.
Along with a higher minimum exemption limit, the budget has proposed to abolish some important sections earlier utilised to save taxes: sec 88, sec 80CCC, sec 80CCD and sec 80L of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Earlier, individuals earning an annual income of less than Rs 5 lakh were eligible to claim a tax rebate under sec 88. This included investment in specified financial assets like premium towards life insurance policies, equity-linked tax saving schemes, public provident fund, contribution to employee provident fund, national saving certificate, payment of tuition fees and repayment of principal amount on housing loans. Investment in the any of these with an upper limit of Rs 70000 was eligible for a tax rebate. An additional sum of Rs 30000 could be invested in infrastructure bonds under the same section.

Within the overall investment ceiling of Rs one lakh, there were sub-limits for each instrument. For instance, an individual could claim a yearly tax rebate of up to Rs 20000 a year for repayment of housing loan principal and Rs 24000 for payment of tuition fees. Individuals with a gross total income less than Rs 1.5 lakh could claim a 20% tax rebate under sec 88, while those with a gross total income between Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh earned a 15% rebate. Those earning more than Rs 5 lakh were not eligible for sec 88 tax break.
Sec 80L, to do with interest income, too, has been withdrawn. Under this section, the maximum deduction permissible was Rs 15000 a year, including Rs 12000 interest earned from banks. With the removal of sec 80L benefit, interest income from bank fixed deposit, post-office saving scheme, national saving certificate, life insurance, public provident fund and corporate fixed deposit will attract tax.

Sec 80CCC allowed for deduction of premiums paid under a pension plan with a maximum limit of Rs 10000 per year from the total income, while section 80CCD allowed for deduction for contribution to the pension scheme notified by the Central government. Both these sections have been withdrawn.

Although the benefits available to individual taxpayers under sec 88, sec 80L, sec 80CCC and sec 80CCD of the IT Act have been scrapped, the deductions have now been brought under a new ceiling of sec 80C with an upper limit of Rs one lakh. In short, the proposed introduction of income-based deduction for savings under sec 80C replaces the earlier rebate method. This means that the traditional tax-saving instruments valid earlier under the two sections still qualify for the proposed sec 80C deduction. The tax breaks will be clubbed under the overall limit of Rs one lakh under sec 80C. This consolidated limit of Rs one lakh will qualify as deduction directly from the gross total income before tax is calculated, irrespective of the individual’s taxable income.

The consolidated investment limit of Rs one lakh will allow taxpayers greater flexibility in making judicious saving/investment decisions depending on their risk appetite and risk-return profile. The proposal seems to be more realistic as it recognises that every taxpayer is different with different financial needs. Earlier, every taxpayer had to invest in different asset classes in same ratio. In the new regime, an assessee can invest in whatever instrument that best suits him. Thus, taxpayers are free to choose their instrument of savings with no sub-limit for any one instrument.

Now, if one combines the minimum exemption limit of Rs one lakh and the consolidated saving of Rs one lakh under section 80C, the total exemption for an individual shoots up to Rs 2 lakh. Thus, an individual earning a salary of Rs 6 lakh, can make a consolidated investment of Rs one lakh and get it deducted from his salary, reducing his taxable salary to Rs five lakh. Of Rs 5 lakh, the first Rs one lakh gets a tax exemption. On the balance Rs 4 lakh, he pays 10% tax for his salary between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh. Between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 2.5 lakh, he pays 20% tax, and on the remaining Rs 1.5 lakh (Rs 4 lakh – Rs 2.5 lakh), he pays 30% tax.

Let us study this with examples. A taxable income of Rs 1.5 lakh was earlier eligible for a standard deduction of Rs 30000, reducing the net salary to Rs 1.2 lakh. Deduction of Rs 15000 available on interest under sec 80L and Rs 10000 under sec 80CCC, reduced his net taxable salary to Rs 95000. In the new regime, from the taxable income of Rs 1.5 lakh, the deduction of the proposed Rs one lakh under consolidated saving, reduces the taxable salary to Rs 50000, which attracts no tax.

Standard deduction of Rs 30000 and deduction under sec 80L and 80CCC reduce the net taxable salary of an individual earning Rs 5 lakh to Rs 445000. Deducting Rs 107500 tax and sec 88 benefit (Rs 15000), the net tax earlier was Rs 92500. Adding 2% education cess, the net tax payable stood at Rs 94350. Now, under the new tax regime, Rs one lakh deduction under sec 80C will bring the taxable salary down to Rs 4 lakh. A tax of Rs 70000 and Rs 1400 education cess amount to a net tax payable of Rs 71400, resulting in net tax savings of Rs 22950 (94350-71400).

Let us see how an individual in the higher income group of Rs 9 lakh fares in the new regime.
Earlier, with a Rs 20000 standard deduction and Rs 25000 benefit under sec 80L and 80CCC, the taxable salary stood at Rs 855000. With no benefit available under sec 88, the tax amounted to Rs 230500. Adding 10% surcharge (Rs 23050) and 2% education cess (Rs 5071), the net tax payable by the individual stood at Rs 258621.
As the new regime has no standard deduction, but allows a consolidated investment of Rs one lakh under sec 80C, the net taxable salary is Rs 8 lakh. Tax on this amounts to Rs 190000. There is no surcharge at this level. The 2% education cess increases the net tax payable to Rs 193800, leading to a tax saving of Rs 64821.
Therefore, the greatest beneficiary of the revision in tax slab is the individual in the income tax bracket of Rs 8.5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh, as beyond that the assessee continues to pay the 10% surcharge.

In addition, six categories of deductions, namely interest paid on housing loans (sec 24), medical insurance premia (sec 80D), specified expenditure on disabled dependent (sec 80DD), expenses for medical treatment (sec 80DDB), interest on loans for higher studies (sec 80E) and deduction to a person with disability (sec 80U) will continue to receive the same tax treatment.
An investment of Rs 10000 on medical insurance premia enjoyed full tax deduction. The deduction increased to Rs 15000 for senior citizens. This benefit continues in 2005-06 also.
Housing loan borrowers, too, benefit. Currently, a maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh annual interest payment on housing loan for self-occupied property enjoys full tax deduction under sec 24 of the IT Act. This will continue.

Earlier, the principal component of the housing loan was clubbed under sec 88, with a maximum limit of Rs 20000, to claim 20% rebate. As the housing loan aged, the principal component increased. But the excess principal paid was not eligible for rebate. In the new tax regime, principal component up to Rs one lakh can be claimed under sec 80C. Add this to the Rs 1.5-lakh yearly interest component, which is tax-free under sec 24 of the IT Act. A housing loan borrower can now deduct a cool Rs 2.5 lakh annually from his net taxable income.
Mutual fund investors also stand to gain from the budget proposals. Earlier, investors could claim a maximum tax rebate of Rs 10000 a year by investing in equity-linked saving schemes.

The removal of sec 88 and the introduction of sec 80C ensures that individuals can invest up to Rs one lakh to claim tax exemption. This is a positive step as ELSS is the only equity-based investment product available in the sec 88 basket and will help mutual fund investors take advantage of the bull run in equities. Another benefit is that as such schemes carry a three-year lock-in period, which allows the opportunity of long-term savings.

As a matter of fact, mutual funds gain on other fronts, too. With the removal of sec 80L, under which interest income from specified instruments was exempt up to Rs 15000 and the proposal to tax in future withdrawals from tax saving instruments under exempt-exempt-taxed (EET) norm, mutual funds score over investment in instruments like NSC and RBI Taxable Bonds as dividend income from mutual funds continues to be tax-free and redemption after one year will attract no capital gains tax.

If you want something you never had, do something you have never done.

2006-05-30T16:02:00.000+05:30

Don't go the way life takes you.Take the life the way you go.
And remember you are born to live andnot living because you are born.

2006-05-17T16:09:00.000+05:30

SHAVING TAX!! FOR INDIANS http://www.myiris.com/tax/

2006-05-17T14:30:00.000+05:30

Quotes and Charts of Important stocks of India linked to Yahoo Site

http://www.trendwatchindia.com/charts&quotes.htm

2006-05-11T10:08:00.000+05:30

Finance information for India

2006-05-11T09:48:00.000+05:30

An Educational Site for Potential Investors

Marzi hai aapki, kyunki sar hai aap ka - Issued in Public Interest

2006-05-10T13:26:00.000+05:30

STARTING TODAY, I am going to post features involving fun and humour, stocks, technology related stuff. These interests were hovering about just below my conscious surface for a long while and I intend to share my thoughts. As always, I will be greedy for feedback and encouragement.........

Cheers!!

2006-05-10T09:15:00.000+05:30

Stock Exchanges Worldwide

My stay at Beach Resort of Anyer, Indonesia

2006-05-07T08:39:00.000+05:30

The Anyer area on the west coast of Java is a great getaway just a few hours from the crash and bash of Jakarta. With the advent of long stretches of Toll Roads, we drove straight to Anyer - A two and a half hour drive which passes through the industrial district of Krakatoa where the largest steel plant of Indonesia resides.

The recent tsunami disaster inarguably brought lasting effects of devastation. Not only it had destroyed many beautiful and exotic places, its claws of paranoia also reached deep and far into other tourism areas in Indonesia. The attractive Anyer Beach surely is one of them. When we set off from International Airport, Jakarta on a hot Sunday morning, the 100-km highway that connects Jakarta to Cilegon, Anyer's nearest town, was far from crowded - Luis my focal point of contact from PCI - Indonesia mentioned that Sundays unlike rest of the week have sparse traffic. White clouds sparsely decorated the clear blue sky, signaling a pleasant, rain-free weather ahead.

Although our right and left sides were rich with greenery, the drive itself was rather dull and sleep-inducing. In Fact I had not slept in the previous 24 odd hours as I had travelled from New Delhi - Singapore - Jakarta. Not the fault of the airlines but my penchant for movies and the personalised "on demand movies" in modern airlines provide the privilege which few can overlook. Not until we passed through Cilegon, home to many heavy industries, that my eyes began to see extravagant things, such as the tall towers that exhaled pure-white smoke, and the monstrous machineries. Beyond all that, the palm trees were always in sight, constituting a familiar seaside backdrop.

After we passed that industrial complex, the road got its dullness back. But we were already too excited to be bothered with that. Many hotels began to appear as we advanced farther west, mostly on our right side. Our left side was filled with fish markets and restaurants, ranging from the most ordinary to the most ornate, yet every place was silent and devoid of people.

We arrived at Pisita Anyer, a Beachside resort hotel, and were received with an unusual warmth from the hotel staff. There were very few guests, the tsunami effect had hit the tourism business in this area very terribly, so they had to make the best to stay alive through this unfortunate situation.

Alas, Anyer doesn't have a sandy beach where people can play at. Instead, its beach is rocky. Anyer has all that tropical seashore serenity guaranteed to iron out those stress fractured faces though– calm blue water, tall curving coconut trees, cool sea breezes and red/orange sunsets.

Krakatoa, Indonesia

2006-05-07T07:40:00.000+05:30

I had recently been to Anyer Beach in Banten district of Indonesia. The Krakatoa was spewing ash a little distance away within the city. As I was driving back to Jakarta, discussions with my local companions held out the recent happening of an Australian Lady who was visiting the Krakatoa on a boat, was hit by a spewed stone and was burnt severely. She expired on the way to hospital a four hour boat ride away. The Krakatoa and its legends are many in number among the locals. As I looked at Krakatoa, I shivered, it was an eerie yet awe-inspiring sight.

Let us some facts about the volcano Krakatoa. It is located on Rakata, an island in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra, Indonesia. Its eruption in 1883 was one of the most catastrophic ever witnessed in recorded history.

Theories as to the origin of the Indonesian name Krakatau include:
- Onomatopoeia, imitating the noise made by white parrots that used to inhabit the island.
- From Sanskrit karka or karkata or karkataka, meaning "lobster" or "crab".
- From Malayan kelakatu, meaning "white-winged ant".

Until recently, its only known previous eruption was a moderate one in 1680. On the afternoon of Aug. 26, 1883, the first of a series of increasingly violent explosions occurred. A black cloud of ash rose 17 miles (27 kilometers) above Krakatoa. On the morning of the next day, tremendous explosions were heard which generated the loudest sound ever historically recorded by human beings — the cataclysmic explosion was distinctly heard as far away as Perth in Australia (Approx. 3100 km), and the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius (Approx. 4800 km). Atmospheric shock waves reverberated around the world seven times and were felt for five days. Ash was propelled to a height of 50 miles (80 kilometers), blocking the sun and plunging the surrounding region into darkness for two and a half days.

The drifting dust caused spectacular red sunsets throughout the following year. Pressure waves in the atmosphere were recorded around the Earth, and tsunamis, or tidal waves, reached as far away as Hawaii and South America. The greatest wave reached a height of 120 feet (36 meters) and took 36,000 lives in the coastal towns of nearby Java and Sumatra. Near the volcano masses of floating pumice produced from lava cooled in the sea were thick enough to halt traveling ships. Everything on the nearby islands was buried under a thick layer of sterile ash. Plant and animal life did not begin to reestablish itself to any degree for five years. The volcano was quiet until 1927, when sporadic weaker eruptions began.

New eruptions at the volcano since 1927 have built a new island, called Anak Krakatau (child of Krakatoa). These tremors have continued into the 1990s. One never knows when the CHILD will call out again for more sacrifice..................

WHERE TO SHOP IN BEIJING????

2006-03-05T14:59:00.000+05:30

Wangfujing Street is Beijing's most important shopping area, a commercial district that dates back to the 1300's. It includes Oriental Plaza (Dongfang Guangchang) and other Western-type malls and stores. It is also home to the city's biggest McDonalds. Also home to the Beijing Department Store, the One World Department Store, La Fayette (mostly French products), and Sun Dong'an Market (Neijing's largest supermarket). Check out the stores in the Longfu Building at the north end of the street.
The Friendship Store (Youyi Shangdian) was for years the only place in Beijing where foreign tourists could really shop. It has tradition Chinese souvenirs: silk, jade, porcelains, ceramics, etc. Money changing is available. Purchases can be made by credit cards. No haggling; prices are fixed.
The Silk Market is not far from the Friendship Store. The market sells a large variety of export products that didn't make it to the docks for some reason. Carpet. Products are less expensive and of variable quality...
Dazhalan, in the Qianmen District, is known for its traditional shops like the Tongrentang Pharmacy, which sells Qing Court-era secret medicines. Dazhalan is the city's oldest commercial street. It sits just south of Tiananmen Square.
Liulichang Street is a restored shoping district in Qianmen that specializes in arts and crafts, antiques, calligraphy supplies, and the like. The street is south of Hepingmen Subway Station. Be aware that you need an export license to take home antiques that date to 1949 or earlier. You can identify those products by their red seal. Export of antiques that date to 1795 or earlier is illegal.
Sanlitun Street Market also carries silk (and more). When the sun goes, the shops turn into bars.
The Russian Market on the west side of Ritan Park is pretty cheap, and you get what you pay for. The market has a history; Russian traders came in droves to buy goods to resell in Russian during the era when the two communist countries were friends instead of rivals.
Ghost Market, east of Longtan Park, carries souvenirs from the Cultural Revolution. The market closes at noon.
Silver Street runs a block east of Wangfujing. Shops there specialize in American/European clothes.
Ganjiakou Market near the Beijing Zoo carries mostly Asia products.
Liangmahe Market is across the street from the Kempenski Hotel. A few dozen smaller shops.
Beijing Curio City in the country's largest trade center for antiques.

And the list goes on......but for a first visit this sure will set u
off.......:)

If You Are A Parent.....

2006-03-05T14:52:00.000+05:30

An interesting perspective by the WIPRO chief

If you are a parent, you have many aspirations for
your child that may include him or her becoming a
doctor, an engineer, scientist or another kind of
successful professional. I believe these aspirations
are driven by our thinking about your child's future,
and her centrality in your life.

Since good education is often the passport to a good
future, I presume it leads you to getting your child
admitted to a good school. Then you encourage your
child to study hard and do well in the school exams.
To bolster this, you send him or her for tuition
classes. This would have primed your child for board
exam and entrance exams, thereby leading to admission
into a good professional course. Doing well at college
increases the probability of landing a good job. And a
good job means the child's future is ensured.

I am neither a psychologist nor an educationist, and
what I will now state may seem counter-intuitive. I
think that these aspirations and actions might be
doing more harm than good to your child. To understand
why; we need to re-examine some of our fundamental
assumptions.

In the first place, I have seen time and again that
living: for some distant future goal also means you do
not live in the present. The distant goal will always
translate into an external measure of success, such as
exams. And most exam - focused children start
forgetting what it means to be a child, to be curious,
mischievous, exploring, falling, getting up, relating,
discovering, inventing, doing, playing.

Childhood is very precious; precious enough not be
wasted by the artificial pressures of contrived
competition, by too many hours of bookish study; and
by school report cards that simplistically wrap up an
entire human being in numbers.

The second assumption is that education is merely a
ticket to socio-economic success. Give the state of
our country ; this reality cannot be ignored. But
restricting education to only this aspect is, I think,
a very limiting notion of the aim of good education.
The primary purpose of a school is to guide the child
in her discovery of herself and her world, and to
identify and nurture the child's talents. Just as
every seed contains the future tree, each child is
born with infinite potential. Imagine a school which
sees children as seeds to be nurtured - here the
teacher is a gardener who helps to bring out the
potential already present in the child.

This is very different from the current view which
sees the child as clay to be molded - where the
teacher and parents are potters deciding what shape
the clay should take. There is an old (and forgotten)
Chinese saying: "Give a seed to a potter, and you will
get a bonsai".

Even in a commercial organization, to make profits we
do not have to chase profits. Rather, we need to build
an institution that gives every employee an
opportunity to do meaningful and fulfilling work.
Create an organization driven by values of innovation,
integrity, customer centricity and care.

And as you practice these values everyday and moment,
you will see the profits take care of themselves.

Similarly ; dear parent, this is my request to you. Do
not give up your child's present to secure his or her
future. Give your child the freedom to truly explore
life with abandon. In doing this, you will see your
child flower into a creative and sensitive human
being. And when this happens, everything else - money;
social success, security - will fall into place
automatically.

Let your child be a child.

- AZIM PREMJI

TRAVEL TIPS

2006-03-05T14:45:00.000+05:30

HI, BLOGGERS,

The next few additions will concern the travel tips I have acquired where-ever I have been in my Life.

Hope you all enjoy them.

2006-02-11T23:32:00.000+05:30

The Beautiful Coorg!!

2006-02-11T23:29:00.000+05:30

The Beautiful Coorg where i recently went!

2006-02-11T23:22:00.000+05:30

A lotus flower petal covering a leaf plate at a recent Bengali wedding ceremony

Hanuman Chalisa

2006-02-11T22:42:00.000+05:30

Shree Guru Charan Saroj Raj, Nij Man Mukar Sudhari,
Barnau Raghuvar Bimal Jasu, Jo dayaku Phal Chari
With the dust of Guru's Lotus feet, I clean the mirror of my mind and then
narrate the sacred glory of Sri Ram Chandra, The Supereme among the Raghu
dynasty. The giver of the four attainments of life.
Budhi heen Tanu Janike, Sumirow, Pavan Kumar,
Bal Buddhi Vidya Dehu Mohi, Harahu Kalesh Bikaar
Knowing myself to be ignorent, I urge you, O Hanuman, The son of Pavan! O
Lord! kindly Bestow on me strength, wisdom and knowledge, removing all my
miseries and blemishes.
Jai Hanuman Gyan Guna Sagar
Jai Kipis Tihun Lok Ujgaar
Victory of Thee, O Hanuman, Ocean of wisdom and virtue, victory to the Lord of
monkeys who is well known in all the three worlds
Ramdoot Atulit Bal Dhamaa,
Anjani Putra Pavansut naamaa.
You, the Divine messager of Ram and repository of immeasurable strength, are also known as Anjaniputra and known as the son of the wind - Pavanputra.
Mahebeer Bikram Bajrangi,
Kumati Nivaar Sumati Ke Sangi.
Oh Hanumanji! You are valiant and brave, with a body like lightening. You are the dispeller of darkness of evil thoughts and companion of good sense and wisdom.
Kanchan Baran Biraaj Subesaa,
Kanan kundal kunchit kesa.
Shri Hanumanji's physique is golden coloured. His dress is pretty, wearing
'Kundals' ear-rings and his hairs are long and curly.
Hath Bajra Aur Dhvaja Birjai,
Kandhe Moonj Janeu saage.
Shri Hanumanji is holding in one hand a lighting bolt and in the other a banner
with sacred thread across his shoulder.
Shankar Suvna Kesari Nandan,
Tej Pratap Maha Jag Vandan.
Oh Hanumanji! You are the emanation of 'SHIVA' and you delight Shri Keshri.
Being ever effulgent, you and hold vast sway over the universe. The entire
world proptiates. You are adorable of all.
Vidyavaan Guni Ati Chatur,
Ram Kaj Karibe Ko Atur
Oh! Shri Hanumanji! You are the repository learning, virtuous, very wise and
highly keen to do the work of Shri Ram,
Prabhu Charittra Sunibe Ko Rasiya,
Ram Lakhan Sita man basyia.
You are intensely greedy for listening to the naration of Lord Ram's lifestory and
revel on its enjoyment. You ever dwell in the hearts of Shri Ram-Sita and Shri
Lakshman.
Sukshma roop Dhari Siyahi Dikhwana,
Bikat roop Dhari Lank Jarawa
You appeared beofre Sita in a diminutive form and spoke to her, while you
assumed an awesome form and struck terror by setting Lanka on fire.
Bhim roop Dhari Asur Sanhare,
Ramchandra Ke kaaj Savare.
He, with his terrible form, killed demons in Lanka and performed all acts of Shri Ram.
Laye Sajivan Lakhan Jiyaye,
Shri Raghubir harashi ur laye.
When Hanumanji made Lakshman alive after bringing 'Sanjivni herb' Shri Ram
took him in his deep embrace, his heart full of joy.
Raghupati Kinhi Bahut Badaai,
Tum Mama Priya Bharat Sam Bahi.
Shri Ram lustily extolled Hanumanji's excellence and remarked, "you are as dear
to me as my own brother Bharat"
Sahastra Badan Tumharo Jas Gaave,
Asa kahi Shripati Kanth Laagave.
Shri Ram embraced Hanumanji saying:
"Let the thousand - tongued sheshnaag sing your glories"
Sankadik Brahmadi Muneesa,
Narad Sarad Sahit Aheesa
Sanak and the sages, saints. Lord Brahma, the great hermits Narad and
Goddess Saraswati along with Sheshnag the cosmic serpent, fail to sing the
glories of Hanumanji exactly
Jam Kuber Digpal Jahan Te,
Kabi Kabid Kahin Sake Kahan Te
What to talk of denizens of the earth like poets and scholars ones etc even Gods
like Yamraj, Kuber, and Digpal fail to narrate Hanman's greatness in toto.
Tum Upkar Sugrivahi Keenha,
Ram Miali Rajpad Deenha
Hanumanji! You rendered a great service for Sugriva, It were you who united
him with SHRI RAM and installed him on the Royal Throne.
Tumharo Mantro Bibhishan Maana,
Lankeshwar Bhaye Sab Jag Jaana.
By heeding your advice. Vibhushan became Lord of Lanka, which is known all
over the universe.
Juug Sahastra Jojan Par Bhaanu,
Leelyo Taahi Madhur Phal Jaanu
Hanumanji gulped, the SUN at distance of sixteen thousand miles considering
it to be a sweet fruit.
Prabhu Mudrika Meli Mukha Maaheen,
Jaladhi Langhi Gaye Acharaj Naheen.
Carrying the Lord's ring in his mouth, he went across the ocean. There is no
wonder in that.
Durgam Kaaj Jagat Ke Jeete,
Sugam Anugrah Tumhre Te Te.
Oh Hanumanji! all the difficult tasks in the world are rendered easiest by your
grace.
Ram Duware Tum Rakhavare,
Hot Na Aagya Bin Paisare.
Oh Hanumanji! You are the sentinel at the door of Ram's mercy mansion or His
divine abode. No one may enter without your permission.
Sab Sukh Lahen Tumhari Sarna,
Tum Rakshak Kaahu Ko Darnaa.
By your grace one can enjoy all happiness and one need not have any fear under
your protection.
Aapan Tej Samharo Aapei,
Tanau Lok Hank Te Kanpei
When you roar all the three worlds tremble and only you can control your might.
Bhoot Pisaach Nikat Nahi Avei,
Mahabir Jab Naam Sunavei.
Great Brave on. Hanumanji's name keeps all the Ghosts, Demons & evils spirits
away from his devotees.
Nasei Rog Hare Sab Peera,
Japat Niranter Hanumant Beera
On reciting Hanumanji's holy name regularly all the maladies perish the entire
pain disappears.
Sankat Te Hanuman Chhudavei,
Man Kram Bachan Dhyan Jo Lavei.
Those who rembember Hanumanji in thought, word and deed are well guarded
against their odds in life.
Sub Par Ram Tapasvee Raaja,
Tinke Kaaj Sakal Tum Saaja
Oh Hanumanji! You are the caretaker of even Lord Rama, who has been hailed as
the Supreme Lord and the Monarch of all those devoted in penances.
Aur Manorath Jo Koi Lave,
Soi Amit Jivan Phal Pave.
Oh Hanumanji! You fulfill the desires of those who come to you and bestow
the eternal nectar the highest fruit of life.
Charo Juung Partap Tumhara,
Hai Parsiddha Jagat Ujiyara.
Oh Hanumanji! You magnificent glory is acclaimed far and wide all through the
four ages and your fame is radianlty noted all over the cosmos.
Sadho Sant Ke Tum Rakhvare,
Asur Nikandan Ram Dulare.
Oh Hanumanji! You are the saviour and the guardian angel of saints and sages
and destroy all the Demons, you are the seraphic darling of Shri Ram.
Ashta Siddhi Nau Nidhi Ke Data,
Asa Bar Din Janki Mata.
Hanumanji has been blessed with mother Janki to grant to any one any YOGIC
power of eight Sidhis and Nava Nidhis as per choice.
Ram Rasayan Tumhare Pasa,
Sadaa Raho Raghupati Ke Dasa.
Oh Hanumanji! You hold the essence of devotion to RAM, always remaining His
Servant.
Tumhare Bhajan Ramko Pavei.
Janam Janam Ke Dukh Bisravei.
Oh Hanumanji! through devotion to you, one comes to RAM and becames free
from suffering of several lives.
Anta Kaal Raghubar Pur Jai,
Jahan Janma Hari Bhakta Kahai.
After death he enters the eternal abode of Sri Ram and remains a devotee of
him, whenever, taking new birth on earth.
Aur Devata Chitt Na Dharai,
Hanumant Sei Sarva Sukh Karai
You need not hold any other demigod in mind. Hanumanji alone will give all
happiness.
Sankat Kate Mitey Sab Peera,
Jo Sumirei Hanumant Balbeera
Oh Powerful Hanumanji! You end the sufferings and remove all the pain from
those who remember you.
Jai Jai Jai Hanuman Gosai
Kripa Karahu Gurudev Ki Naiee
Hail-Hail-Hail-Lord Hanumanji! I beseech you Honour to bless me in the
capacity of my supreme 'GURU' (teacher).
Jo Sat Baar Paath Kar Koi,
Chhutahi Bandi Maha Sukh Hoi.
One who recites this Hanuman Chalisa one hundred times daily for one hundred
days becames free from the bondage of life and death and ejoys the highest bliss at last.
Jo Yah Padhe Hanuman Chalisa,
Hoy Siddhi Sakhi Gaurisa
As Lord Shankar witnesses, all those who recite Hanuman Chalisa regularly are
sure to be benedicted
Tulsidas Sada Hari Chera,
Keeje Nath Hriday Mah Dera.
Tulsidas always the servant of Lord prays. "Oh my Lord! You enshrine within my
heart.!
Chopai
Pavan Tanay Sankat Haran, Mangal Murti Roop.
Ram Lakhan Sita Sahit, Hriday Basahu Sur Bhoop.
O Shri Hanuman, The Son of Pavan, Saviour The Embodiment of
blessings, reside in my heart together with Shri Ram, Laxman and Sita

So what do you have to do to find happiness?

2006-01-06T17:45:00.000+05:30

Perversely, happiness has a negative image in our culture. Influenced by a sceptical European philosophical outlook, we think of happiness as a trivial pursuit for the Oprah generation, a Shangri-La perpetuated by self-help gurus. Isn't it selfish to try to increase our happiness, while much of the world faces suffering and premature death?

Great writers from Freud — "the intention that man should be happy is not included in the plan of Creation" — to Philip Larkin — "man hands on misery to man" — have painted happiness as an elusive butterfly. But ordinary people believe they are happier than average (an obvious impossibility) and that they'll be even happier in 10 years' time. If true, it would be good news because research shows that happier people are healthier, more successful, harder-working, caring and more socially engaged. Misery makes people self-obsessed and inactive.

These are the conclusions of a burgeoning happiness industry that has published 3,000 papers, set up a Journal of Happiness Studies and created a World Database of Happiness in the last few years.

Can scientists tell us what happiness is?

Economists accept that if people describe themselves as happy, then they are happy. However, psychologists differentiate between levels of happiness. The most immediate type involves a feeling; pleasure or joy. But sometimes happiness is a judgment that life is satisfying, and does not imply an emotional state.

Public surveys measure what makes us happy. Marriage does, pets do, but children don't seem to (despite what we think). Youth and old age are the happiest times. Money does not add much to happiness; in Britain, incomes have trebled since 1950, but happiness has not increased at all. The happiness of lottery winners returns to former levels within a year. People disabled in an accident are likely to become almost as happy again. For happiness levels are probably genetic: identical twins are usually equally bubbly or grumpy.

One thing makes a striking difference. When two American psychologists studied hundreds of students and focused on the top 10% "very happy" people, they found they spent the least time alone and the most time socialising. Psychologists know that increasing the number of social contacts a miserable person has is the best way of cheering them up. When Jean-Paul Sartre wrote "hell is other people", the arch-pessimist of existentialist angst was wrong.

America has pursued the chimera of happiness vigorously, not least through the insatiable consumption of self-help literature such as Climb Your Stairway to Heaven: 9 Tips for Daily Happiness! So it is no surprise that it's an American who is making happiness a subject of scientific study. At first glance, Martin Seligman's bestselling book Authentic Happiness, with its sunshine-yellow title on a sky-blue cover, blends with other manuals on the pop-psychology shelves. But America's latest guru of feeling good is not a stage hypnotist, an evangelical preacher or even a business visionary. Seligman is an eminent professor of psychology with a string of degrees. One of the chief architects of the prevailing model of depression, his work has helped to found modern "cognitive" therapies.

The man who's trying to do for happiness what Newton did for gravity has found it a scarce commodity in life. Seligman describes himself as a "walking nimbus cloud" who spent 50 years "enduring mostly wet weather in my soul". Feeling out of place as a chubby 13-year-old Jewish kid at a wealthy college, he hit on the role of therapist as a route to the hearts of unattainable girls. "What a brilliant stroke! I'll bet no other guy ever listened to them ruminate about their insecurities, nightmares and bleakest fantasies."

As a psychology graduate working in animal- behaviour labs, Seligman discovered "learned helplessness" and became a big name. Dogs who experience electric shocks that they cannot avoid by their actions simply give up trying. They will passively endure later shocks that they could easily escape. Seligman went on to apply this to humans, with "learned helplessness" as a model for depression. People who feel battered by unsolvable problems learn to be helpless; they become passive, slower to learn, anxious and sad. This idea revolutionised behavioural psychology and therapy by suggesting the need to challenge depressed people's beliefs and thought patterns, not just their behaviour.

Now Seligman is famous again, this time for creating the field of positive psychology. In 1997 the professor was seeking a theme for his presidency of the American Psychological Association. The idea came while gardening with his daughter Nikki. She was throwing weeds around and he was shouting. She reminded him that she used to be a whiner but had stopped on her fifth birthday. "And if I can stop whining, you can stop being a grouch."

Seligman describes this as an "epiphany". He vowed to change his own outlook, but more importantly recognised a strength — social intelligence — in his daughter that could be nurtured to help her withstand the vicissitudes of life. Looking back on "learned helplessness", he reflected that one in three subjects — rats, dogs or people — never became "helpless", no matter how many shocks or problems beset them.

"What is it about some people that imparts buffering strength, making them invulnerable to helplessness?" Seligman asked himself — and now he's made it his mission to find out.

Since its origins in a Leipzig laboratory 130 years ago, psychology has had little to say about goodness and contentment. Mostly psychologists have concerned themselves with weakness and misery. There are libraries full of theories about why we get sad, worried, and angry. It hasn't been respectable science to study what happens when lives go well. Positive experiences, such as joy, kindness, altruism and heroism, have mainly been ignored. For every 100 psychology papers dealing with anxiety or depression, only one concerns a positive trait.

A few pioneers in experimental psychology bucked the trend. Professor Alice Isen of Cornell University and colleagues have demonstrated how positive emotions make people think faster and more creatively. Showing how easy it is to give people an intellectual boost, Isen divided doctors making a tricky diagnosis into three groups: one received candy, one read humanistic statements about medicine, one was a control group. The doctors who had candy displayed the most creative thinking and worked more efficiently.

Inspired by Isen and others, Seligman got stuck in. He wanted to revolutionise psychology, but his weapon would be tough science. Clinical psychology was the science of how to get from minus five to zero. This would be the science of getting from zero to plus five. Seligman wanted experiments, he wanted statistics, he wanted proof.

He raised millions of dollars of research money and funded 50 research groups involving 150 scientists across the world. Four positive psychology centres opened, decorated in cheerful colours and furnished with sofas and baby-sitters. There were get-togethers on Mexican beaches where psychologists would snorkel and eat fajitas, then form "pods" to discuss subjects such as wonder and awe. A thousand therapists were coached in the new science.

Their holy grail is the classification of strengths and virtues. After a solemn consultation of great works such as the samurai code, the Bhagavad-Gita and the writings of Confucius, Aristotle and Aquinas, Seligman's happiness scouts discovered six core virtues recognised in all cultures: wisdom, courage, humanity, justice, temperance and transcendence. They have subdivided these into 24 strengths, including humour and honesty.

But critics are demanding answers to big questions. What is the point of defining levels of happiness and classifying the virtues? Aren't these concepts vague and impossible to pin down? Can you justify spending funds to research positive states when there are problems such as famine, flood and epidemic depression to be solved?

Seligman knows his work can be belittled alongside trite notions such as "the power of positive thinking". His plan to stop the new science floating "on the waves of self- improvement fashions" is to make sure it is anchored to positive philosophy above, and to positive biology below. And this takes us back to our evolutionary past.

Homo sapiens evolved during the Pleistocene era (1.8 m to 10,000 years ago), a time of hardship and turmoil. It was the Ice Age, and our ancestors endured long freezes as glaciers formed, then ferocious floods as the ice masses melted. We shared the planet with terrifying creatures such as mammoths, elephant-sized ground sloths and sabre-toothed cats.

But by the end of the Pleistocene, all these animals were extinct. Humans, on the other hand, had evolved large brains and used their intelligence to make fire and sophisticated tools, to develop talk and social rituals.

Survival in a time of adversity forged our brains into a persistent mould. Professor Seligman says: "Because our brain evolved during a time of ice, flood and famine, we have a catastrophic brain. The way the brain works is looking for what's wrong. The problem is, that worked in the Pleistocene era. It favoured you, but it doesn't work in the modern world."

Although most people rate themselves as happy, there is a wealth of evidence to show that negative thinking is deeply ingrained in the human psyche. Experiments show that we remember failures more vividly than successes. We dwell on what went badly, not what went well. When life runs smoothly, we're on autopilot — we're only in a state of true consciousness when we notice the stone in our shoe.

Of the six universal emotions, four — anger, fear, disgust and sadness — are negative and only one, joy, is positive. (The sixth, surprise, is neutral.) According to the psychologist Daniel Nettle, author of Happiness, and one of the Royal Institution lecturers, the negative emotions each tell us "something bad has happened" and suggest a different course of action. Fear tells us danger is near, so run away. Anger prompts us to deter aggressors. Sadness warns us to be cautious and save energy, while disgust urges us to avoid contamination.

Joy, according to Nettle, simply tells us, "something good has happened, don't change anything". The evolutionary role of pleasure was to encourage activity that was good for survival, such as eating and having sex. But unlike negative emotions, which are often persistent, joy tends to be short-lived. We soon get sick of cream cakes or blasé about our pay rise.

What is it about the structure of the brain that underlies our bias towards negative thinking? And is there a biology of joy? At Iowa University, neuroscientists studied what happens when people are shown pleasant and unpleasant pictures. When subjects see landscapes or dolphins playing, part of the frontal lobe of the brain becomes active. But when they are shown unpleasant images — a bird covered in oil, or a dead soldier with part of his face missing — the response comes from more primitive parts of the brain.

The ability to feel negative emotions derives from an ancient danger-recognition system formed early in the brain's evolution. The pre-frontal cortex, which registers happiness, is the part used for higher thinking, an area that evolved later in human history.

Professor Richard Davidson at the University of Wisconsin has scanned brains in different emotional states. When he wired up a Buddhist monk entering a state of bliss through meditation, he found electrical activity shooting up the frontal lobe of the monk's brain on the left side. Observing toddlers at play, he picked some who were exuberant and uninhibited, behaviour linked to higher levels of positive emotion, and others who were quiet and shy. Tested later, the inhibited toddlers showed greater activity on the brain's right side; activation of the lively toddlers' brains was on the left. Happiness and sadness are lopsided.

Modern humans, stuck with an ancient brain, are like rats on a wheel. We can't stop running, because we're always looking over our shoulders and comparing our achievements with our neighbours'. At 20, we think we'd be happy with a house and a car. But if we get them, we start dreaming of a second home in Italy and a turbo-charged four-wheel-drive.

This is called the "hedonic treadmill" by happiness scholars. It causes us to rapidly and inevitably adapt to good things by taking them for granted. The more possessions and accomplishments we have, the more we need to boost our level of happiness. It makes sense that the brain of a species that has dominated others would evolve to strive to be best.

Our difficulty, according to Daniel Nettle, is that the brain systems for liking and wanting are separate. Wanting involves two ancient regions — the amygdala and the nucleus accumbens — that communicate using the chemical dopamine to form the brain's reward system. They are involved in anticipating the pleasure of eating and in addiction to drugs. A rat will press a bar repeatedly, ignoring sexually available partners, to receive electrical stimulation of the "wanting" parts of the brain. But having received brain stimulation, the rat eats more but shows no sign of enjoying the food it craved. In humans, a drug like nicotine produces much craving but little pleasure.

At the Royal Institution, Nettle explained how brain chemistry foils our pursuit of happiness in the modern world: "The things that you desire are not the things that you end up liking. The mechanisms of desire are insatiable. There are things that we really like and tire of less quickly — having good friends, the beauty of the natural world, spirituality. But our economic system plays into the psychology of wanting, and the psychology of liking gets drowned out."

Liking involves different brain chemicals from wanting. Real pleasure is associated with opioids. They are released in the rat brain by sweet tastes. When they are blocked in humans, food tastes less delicious. They also dampen down pain so that pleasure is unadulterated.

Happiness is neither desire nor pleasure alone. It involves a third chemical pathway. Serotonin constantly shifts the balance between negative and positive emotions. It can reduce worry, fear, panic and sleeplessness and increase sociability, co-operation, and happy feelings. Drugs based
on serotonin, such as ecstasy, produce a relaxed sense of wellbeing rather than the dopamine pattern of euphoria and craving.

In essence, what the biology lesson tells us is that negative emotions are fundamental to the human condition, and it's no wonder they are difficult to eradicate. At the same time, by a trick of nature, our brains are designed to crave but never really achieve lasting happiness.

Psychologists such as Seligman are convinced you can train yourself to be happier. His teams are developing new positive interventions (treatments) to counteract the brain's nagging insistence on seeking out bad news. The treatments work by boosting positive emotion about the past, by teaching people to savour the present, and by increasing the amount of engagement and meaning in their lives.

Since the days of Freud, the emphasis in consulting rooms has been on talk about negative effects of the past and how they damage people in the present. Seligman names this approach "victimology" and says research shows it to be worthless: "It is difficult to find even small effects of childhood events on adult personality, and there is no evidence at all of large effects."

The tragic legacy of Freud is that many are "unduly embittered about their past, and unduly passive about their future", says Seligman. His colleague Aaron Beck developed cognitive therapy after becoming disillusioned with his Freudian training in the 1950s. Beck found that as depressed patients talked "cathartically" about past wounds and losses, some people began to unravel. Occasionally this led to suicide attempts, some of which were fatal. There was very little evidence that psychoanalysis worked.

Cognitive therapy places less emphasis on the past. It works by challenging a person's thinking about the present and setting goals for the future. Another newcomer, brief solution-focused therapy, discourages talk about "problems" and helps clients identify strengths and resources to make positive changes in their lives.

The focus of most psychotherapy is on decreasing negative emotion. The aim of Seligman's therapy is to increase positive emotion (positive and negative emotions are not polar opposites and can co-exist: women have more of both than men). From the time of Buddha to the self-improvement industry of today, more than 100 "interventions" have been tried in the attempt to build happiness. Forty of these are being tested in randomised placebo-controlled trials by Seligman and his colleagues.

In one internet study, two interventions increased happiness and decreased depressive symptoms for at least six months. One exercise involves writing down three things that went well and why, every day for a week. The other is about identifying your signature strengths and using one of them in a new and different way every day for a week. A third technique involves writing a long letter to someone you're grateful to but have never properly thanked, and visiting them to read it out in person.

Seligman and his graduate students weep tears of joy when they do this exercise, but most Brits would probably rather be miserable than do it. So it's a relief to hear that it doesn't work particularly well. It has strong, but only brief, effects.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN

Men often complain about their wives' volatility. Now research confirms that women really are both happier and sadder. Positive and negative emotions are not polar opposites — you can have both in your life. Women experience more of all emotions except anger. First it was found that women experience twice as much depression as men. Next, researchers found that women report more positive emotion than men, more frequently and more intensely. It all points to men and women having a different emotional make-up. Cognitive psychologists say that men and women have different skills related to sending and receiving emotion. Women are expressive; men conceal or control their emotions. Women convey emotion through facial expression and communication; men express emotion through aggressive or distracting behaviour. Does the difference lie in biology, social roles or just women's willingness to report emotion? That's up for debate.

2005-12-25T19:12:00.000+05:30

my group who tolerated me for 8 days :)

2005-12-25T19:08:00.000+05:30

Participants from my recent Stepping Strones workshop in Beijing

Astronomical data and the Aryan question

2005-06-23T10:29:00.000+05:30

Dating the Rg-Veda (or Rig Veda)

The determination of the age in which Vedic literature started and flourished has its consequences for the Aryan Invasion question. The oldest text, the Rg-Veda, is full of precise references to places and natural phenomena in what are now Panjab and Haryana, and was unmistakably composed in that part of India. The date at which it was composed is a firm terminus ante quem for the entry of the Vedic Aryans into India. They may have come from abroad or they may have been fully native, but by the time of the Rg-Veda, they were certainly Indians without memory of a foreign homeland.

In a rather shoddy way, Friedrich Max Müller launched the hypothesis that the Rg-Veda had to be dated to about 1200 BC, and eventhough he later retracted it, that arbitrary guess has become the orthodoxy.1 It is forgotten too often that in his own day, other scholars rejected this extremely late date on a variety of grounds. Maurice Winternitz based his estimate on purely philological considerations: "We cannot explain the development of the whole of this great literature if we assume as late a date as round about 1200 BC or 1500 BC as its starting-point."Isn't it refreshing to find how logical and unprejudiced the early researchers were? You cannot credibly cram the complicated linguistic, cultural and philosophical developments which are in evidence in Vedic literature, into just a few centuries.

The most explicit chronology would be though, provided by astronomical markers of time.

Ancient Hindu astronomy & Astronomical tables

One of the earliest estimates of the date of the Vedas was in 1790. The Scottish mathematician John Playfair demonstrated that the starting-date of the astronomical observations recorded in the tables still in use among Hindu astrologers (of which three copies had reached Europe between 1687 and 1787) had to be 4300 BC. His proposal was dismissed as absurd by some, but it was not refuted by any scientist.

Playfair's judicious use of astronomy was countered by John Bentley with a Scriptural argument which we now must consider invalid. In 1825, Bentley objected: "By his [= Playfair's] attempt to uphold the antiquity of Hindu books against absolute facts, he thereby supports all those horrid abuses and impositions found in them, under the pretended sanction of antiquity.

Bentley did not object to astronomy per se, in so far as it could be helpful in showing up the falsehood of Brahminical scriptures. However, it did precisely the reverse. Falsehood in this context could have meant that the Brahmins falsely claimed high antiquity for their texts by presenting as ancient astronomical observations recorded in Scripture what were in fact back-calculations from a much later age. But Playfair showed that this was impossible.

Back-calculation of planetary positions is a highly complex affair requiring knowledge of a number of physical laws, universal constants and actual measurements of densities, diameters and distances. Though Brahminical astronomy was remarkably sophisticated for its time, it could only back-calculate planetary position of the presumed Vedic age with an inaccuracy margin of at least several degrees of arc. With our modern knowledge, it is easy to determine what the actual positions were, and what the results of back-calculations with the Brahminical formulae would have been, e.g.: "Aldebaran was therefore 40' before the point of the vernal equinox, according to the Indian astronomy, in the year 3102 before Christ. (...) [Modern astronomy] gives the longitude of that star 13' from the vernal equinox, at the time of the Calyougham, agreeing, witjin 53', with the determination of the Indian astronomy.

This agreement is the more remarkable, that the Brahmins, by their own rules for computing the motion of the fixed stars, could not have assigned this place to Aldebaran for the beginning of Calyougham, had they calculated it from a modern observation. For as they make the motion of the fixed stars too great by more than 3'' annually, if they had calculated backward from 1491, they would have placed the fixed stars less advanced by 4�or 5�, at their ancient epoch, than they have actually done."

So, it turns out that the data given by the Brahmins corresponded not with the results deduced from their formulae, but with the actual positions, and this, according to Playfair, for nine different astronomical parameters. This is a bit much to explain away as coincidence or sheer luck.

For the Latest on Kyrgyzstan

2005-06-22T16:17:00.000+05:30

http://www.msnusers.com/mehecate/Documents/INFO%20portals%20based%20in%20Kyrgyzstan.doc

Kyrk plus yz , a combination meaning "forty clans."

2005-06-22T15:47:00.000+05:30

Lets go A few 100 years back....

The name Kyrgyz derives from the Turkic kyrk plus yz , a combination meaning "forty clans."

In the period after A.D. 840, the Kyrgyz joined other Turkic groups in an overall Turkification pattern extending across the Tian Shan into the Tarim River basin, east of present-day Kyrgyzstan's border with China. In this process, which lasted for more than two centuries, the Kyrgyz tribes became mixed with other tribes, thoroughly absorbing Turkic cultural and linguistic characteristics.

The forebears of the present-day Kyrgyz are believed to have been either southern Samoyed or Yeniseyan tribes. Those tribes came into contact with Turkic culture after they conquered the Uygurs and settled the Orkhon area, site of the oldest recorded Turkic language, in the ninth century. If descended from the Samoyed tribes of Siberia, the Kyrgyz would have spoken a language in the Uralic linguistic subfamily when they arrived in Orkhon; if descended from Yeniseyan tribes, they would have descended from a people of the same name who began to move into the area of present-day Kyrgyzstan from the Yenisey River region of central Siberia in the tenth century, after the Kyrgyz conquest of the Uygurs to the east in the preceding century. Ethnographers dispute the Yeniseyan origin, however, because of the very close cultural and linguistic connections between the Kyrgyz and the Kazaks.

In the period of tsarist administration (1876-1917), the Kazaks and the Kyrgyz both were called Kyrgyz, with what are now the Kyrgyz subdenominated when necessary as Kara-Kyrgyz (black Kyrgyz). Although the Kyrgyz language has more Mongolian and Altaic elements than does Kazak, the modern forms of the two languages are very similar. As they exist today, both are part of the Nogai group of the Kipchak division of the Turkic languages, which belong to the Uralic-Altaic language family.

The modern Kyrgyz language did not have a written form until 1923, at which time an Arabic-based alphabet was used. That was changed to a Latin-based alphabet in 1928 and to a Cyrillic-based one in 1940.

(Source : http://www.country-studies.com/kyrgyzstan/society.html)

2005-06-22T15:33:00.000+05:30

Where the Heck is Kyrgyxstan!!

Kyrgyzstan - A Historical Perspective

2005-06-21T15:10:00.000+05:30

ELEVATED TO THE STATUS of a union republic by Joseph V. Stalin in 1936, the Kyrgyz Soviet Socialist Republic was until 1990 one of the poorest, quietest, and most conservative of all the Soviet republics. It was the Kyrgyz Republic that celebrated the election of a sheepherder as president of its parliamentary executive committee, the Presidium, in 1987. Three years later, however, that quiescence ended, and Kyrgyzstan's history as a separate nation began.

Kyrgyzstan began the new phase of its existence by declaring independence in August 1991. At that point, it possessed a combination of useful resources and threatening deficiencies. Geographic location fits in both categories; landlocked deep inside the Asian continent, Kyrgyzstan has minimal natural transportation routes available to serve its economic development, and its isolation has been an obstacle in the campaign to gain international attention. On the other hand, Kyrgyzstan also is isolated from most of the Asian trouble spots (excepting Tajikistan), making national security a relatively low priority.

In the mid-1990s, the most ambitious economic and political reform program in Central Asia caused more frustration than satisfaction among Kyrgyzstan's citizens, largely because the republic inherited neither an economic infrastructure nor a political tradition upon which to base the rapid transitions envisioned by President Askar Akayev's first idealistic blueprints. Although some elements of reform (privatization, for example) went into place quickly, the absence of others (credit from a commercial banking system, for example) brought the overall system to a halt, causing high unemployment and frustration. By 1995, democratic reform seemed a victim of that frustration, as Akayev increasingly sought to use personal executive power in promoting his policies for economic growth, a pattern that became typical in the Central Asian countries' first years of independence.

Since independence Kyrgyzstan has made impressive strides in some regards such as creating genuinely free news media and fostering an active political opposition. At the same time, the grim realities of the country's economic position, which exacerbate the clan- and family-based political tensions that have always remained beneath the surface of national life, leave long-term political and economic prospects clouded at best.

2005-06-20T15:47:00.000+05:30

Some of the Best pandals (where durga idols are housed during the five days of Durga Worship fest)

2005-06-20T15:43:00.000+05:30

Some of the durga snaps i had taken in in my last visit to kolkata!! quite a range!!

2005-06-20T15:28:00.000+05:30

Another jaipur snap. This time of the Amer Fort itself!! from a distance though..

2005-06-20T15:26:00.000+05:30

The River beside Amer fort

2005-06-03T17:05:00.000+05:30

on the way to orto sai hill Kyrgyzstan

among the snowy peaks of Central Asia, in Kyrgyzstan

2005-06-03T15:25:00.000+05:30

participants returning from the evening walk

The Mythology of Durga Puja

2004-11-15T16:46:00.000+05:30

Origin of Durga

In the ancient times, a demon called 'Mahishasura' earned the favour of 'Lord Shiva' after a long meditation. Shiva, pleased with the devotion of the demon, blessed him with a boon that no man or Deity would be able to kill him. Empowered with the boon, Mahishasura started his reign of terror over the World. People were killed mercilessly and even the Gods were driven out from heaven. The Gods went to Shiva for relief and informed him about the atrocities caused by the demon. Shiva, who is normally unaware of the happenings in the material world, became very angry after hearing all this.

This anger came out in the form of an energy from Shiva's third eye and concentrated to form a woman. All the Gods who were present there contributed their share of energy to this Goddess and thus Durga, the eternal mother, was born. Riding a lion, she attacked Mahishasura. After a fierce battle, Durga transformed into Devi Chandika, the most ferocious form of the Goddess, and beheaded Mahishasura.

The Bengali Belief

Daksha, the king of the himalayas and the plains, and his wife, Menoka, had a daughter called Uma.

Uma, right from her childhood, started worshipping Shiva as her would be husband. Shiva, being pleased with the worship of Uma, came to marry her. Daksha did not like this tiger-skin clad groom with ash & dirt spread over all of his body. Uma got married to Shiva but was prevented by her father from moving to Kailash, the abode of Shiva. Daksha, later on, arranged for a 'yagna' where everyone except Shiva was invited. Uma, feeling ashamed of the behaviour of her father and shocked by the attitude metted towards her husband, went on fast and finally died. Shiva came to know about this and went to Daksha's house. He lifted the body of Uma on his shoulders and started dancing madly. With the supreme power dancing, the World was on the verge of destruction. Narayana, another SuperGod, came forward as a saviour and used his 'Chakra' to cut the Body of Uma into pieces. Those pieces started falling off from the shoulder of the dancing Shiva into different parts of the World. Shiva was finally pacified when the last piece fell off from his shoulder. Narayana revived Uma for a new life. Daksha, who was extremely sorry about his misdeeds, prayed for mercy and was finally forgiven. The places where the pieces had fallen are known as the 'Shakti Piths' or energy pits, few of these places being Kalighat in Calcutta, Kamakshya near Guwahati among others. Ever since peace was restored, Uma, with her four children, Ganesh, Kartick, Saraswati and Laxmi and with her two 'sakhis' - Jaya and Bijaya, comes to visit her parent's home each year during the season of 'Sharat' or autumn when Durga Puja is celebrated.

What the epics say - 'Akalbodhan'

In the 'Ramayana', as it goes, Rama went to 'Lanka' to rescue his abducted wife, Sita, from the grip of Ravana, the king of the Demons in Lanka. Before starting for his battle with Ravana, Rama wanted the blessings of Devi Durga . He came to know that the Goddess would be pleased only if she is worshipped with one hundred 'NeelKamal' or blue lotuses. Rama, after travelling the whole world, could gather only ninety nine of them. He finally decided to offer one of his eyes, which resembled blue lotuses. Durga, being pleased with the devotion of Rama, appeared before him and blessed him. The battle started on the 'Saptami' and Ravana was finally killed on the 'Sandhikshan' i.e. the crossover period between Ashtami (the next day) and Navami (the day after). Ravana was cremated on Dashami. Since the period of this worship was different from the conventional period (during the spring - 'Basanta'), this puja is also known as 'Akal-Bodhan' or a worship (Bodhan) in an unconventional time (A-Kaal).

2004-11-15T16:37:00.000+05:30

Diseases cured by Drinking water.. Amazing! But True!!

6 glasses of water (1.5 litres). Without spending on medicine,tablets, injections, diagnosis, Doctor fees, etc., just by drinkingpure water, the following diseases will be cured. You can never believebefore practicing. Let us see the list of diseases being cured by thistherapy Diseases cured by Drinking water

Headache
Blood Pressure/Hyper Tension
Anemia (Blood Shortage)
Rheumatism (Pain in joints/ muscles)
General Paralysis
Obesity
Arthritis
Sinusitis
Tachycardia
Giddiness
Cough (Khansi)
Asthma
Bronchitis
Pulmonary Tuberculosis (TB)
Meningitis
Kidney stones
Urogenital diseases
Hyper acidity
Gastroenteritis
Dysentery
Rectal Piodapse
Constipation (Kabj)
Hostorthobics
Diabetes (Madhumeh)
Eye diseases
Ophthalmic Hemorrhage & Opthalmia (reddish eye)
Irregular Menstruation
Leukemia (white Blood)
Uterine cancer
Laryngitis

How to do this watertherapy?

1) Early morning after you get up from bed (without even brushingyour teeth) drink 1.50 litres of water i.e., 5 to 6 glasses. Betterto pre-measure 1.50 litres of water. Let us all know that our ancestorstermed this therapy as "Usha Paana Chikitsa". You may wash your facethereafter.

2) Here it is very essential to note that nothing else ? neither drinksnor solid food of any sort - should be taken within 1 hours beforeand after drinking this 1.50 litres of water.

3) It is also to be strictly observed that no Alcoholic drinks shouldbe taken the previous night.

4) If required, boiled and filtered water may be used for this purpose.Is it possible to drink 1.50 litres of water at one time? To beginwith, one may find it difficult to drink 1.50 litres of water at onetime, but one will get used to it gradually. Initially, whilepracticing you may drink four glasses first and the balance two glassesafter a gap of two minutes. Initially you may find the necessity tourinate 2 to 3 times within an hour, but it will become normal aftersometime. By research and experience, the following diseases areobserved to be cured with this therapy within the indicated days as below:

Acidity 2 days
Constipation 1 day
Diabetes 7 days
BP & Hypertension 4 weeks
Cancer 4 weeks
Pulmonary TB 3 months

Note: It is advised that persons suffering from Arthritis orRheumatism should practice this therapy thrice a day, i.e., morning,midday and night, 1 hours before meals - for one week; and twice a
day subsequently till the disease is cured.

How does pure water act?

Consuming ordinary drinking water by the right method purifies humanbody. It renders the colon more effective by forming new fresh blood,known in medical terms as Haematopaises. That the mucousal folds ofthe colon and intestines are activated by this method, is an undisputedfact, just as the theory that new fresh blood is produced by themucousal fold.

If the colon is cleaned then the nutrients of the food takenseveral times a day will be absorbed and by the action of the mucousalfolds they are turned into fresh blood. The blood is all-important incuring ailments and restoring health, and for this water should beconsumed in a regular pattern. We make an earnest request that theabove method should be read and practiced carefully.

Finally Please Ensure that you are drinking pure water

Meet the Indian who took on Stephen Hawking!!

2004-08-12T09:37:00.000+05:30

An Indian theoretical physicist who questioned the existence of black holes and thereby challenged Stephen Hawking of Britain at last feels vindicated. But he is sad.

Abhas Mitra, at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Mumbai, was perhaps the first and the only scientist who had the guts to openly challenge Hawking of Cambridge University who is regarded by many as the modern-day Einstein.

For over 30 years Hawking and his followers were perpetuating the theory that black holes -- resulting from gravitational collapse of massive stars -- destroy everything that falls into them preventing even light or information to escape.

Mitra, four years ago, in a controversial paper in the reputed journal, Foundations of Physics Letters, showed that Hawking's theory was flawed. He proved black holes couldn't exist because their formation and existence flouted Einstein's general theory of relativity.

Except a handful, the majority of mainstream scientists dismissed Mitra's conclusions even though, till now, no scientist has contradicted him in writing. Mitra invited several notable black hole theorists including Hawking and Jayant Narlikar of India to criticise his work but no one replied.

Naturally, Mitra now feels vindicated following Hawking's own admission two weeks ago at a conference in Dublin, Ireland, that there isn't a black hole "in the absolute sense."

In essence, Hawking's "new" black holes never quite become the kind that gobble up everything. Instead, they keep emitting radiation for a long time -- exactly what Mitra showed in his paper.

Hawking's about-turn has vindicated Mitra. But, in retrospect, he feels sad about the treatment he got at home while trying to take on Hawking all by himself.

Too "embarrassed" to be associated with a man who challenged Hawking, even Mitra's close colleagues avoided him and he became an outcast. To add insult to injury, BARC authorities removed Mitra from the theoretical physics division on the excuse that this division was meant only for those doing "strategic research."

"The ironic element in this whole exercise," Mitra told PTI, "is that the person who actually dared to show that there cannot be any black holes was completely ignored both by the academicians and the media."

A black hole is characterised by an imaginary boundary called the "event horizon" that shuts everything within. But in 1976 Hawking introduced quantum mechanics into the problem and claimed that black holes do radiate energy -- although at a low rate -- and ultimately vanish into nothingness.

The vanishing act, however, destroys all the trapped information as well - directly conflicting with the laws of quantum physics that say that information can never be completely wiped out. This is the "information loss paradox" associated with black holes that, in a way, was created by Hawking's own work.

One logical resolution of this paradox would have been to realise that black holes did not exist. But Mitra says that such sweeping, yet logical thinking "was never undertaken by either party involved in this prolonged debate and they kept on debating effectively to make the paradox more popular and perpetuating."

It was then that Mitra published his seminal paper showing that gravitational collapse of massive star can at best produce an "Eternally Collapsing Object" but not an "event horizon" or a black hole in the strict sense. "Since no event horizon is formed, there is no paradox at all in the first place," Mitra argued.

In a subsequent work Mitra showed that the "Eternally Collapsing Objects" that he proposed are actually the massive compact objects now referred to as Black Hole Candidates (BHCs).

Motivated by Mitra's work, American physicists Stanley Robertson and Darryl Leiter have confirmed in 2002 that BHCs have intense magnetic fields as predicted by Mitra and therefore are not real black holes which cannot have magnetic field.

Mitra says that in the light of new developments, "the supposed black holes are not really black holes and it would be intellectual dishonesty to still call them as black holes and keep the debate alive."

Though his own colleagues had sidelined Mitra after his first paper, he is solaced by the encouraging e-mails he had received from several physicists around the world.

One from Salvatore Antoci, University of Padova, Italy, a noted relativist says: "Let me express to you my great joy in seeing your much-disputed paper eventually accepted for publication by Foundations of Physics Letters. Convincing the community of relativists about the mythical nature of black holes will remain a tremendous task, but it is a little less desperate thanks to your success."

Peder Norberg, of the Department of Physics, Durham University, UK, said he carefully read through Mitra's paper and found "that most of the results presented there are more than impressive" while Stanley Robertson, a relativist of South Oklahoma State University, USA said: "On first becoming acquainted with your work, I was dubious, thinking it unlikely that something as profound as belief in the existence of black holes could become erroneously established in the literature. In the meanwhile, I have found no errors in your work. It is fascinating."

The only Indian who praised Mitra's work was relativist Pankaj Joshi of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai.

The BARC scientist recalls the episode in the 1930s when Subramanian Chandrasekhar's work on the upper mass limit of white dwarfs was considered incorrect by celebrated astrophysicists like Sir Arthur Eddington even though no one could precisely point out any error in Chandra's work.

Sourced from http://us.rediff.com/news/2004/aug/03hole.htm

AIDS as an agent of reform?

2004-07-29T12:16:00.000+05:30

NEW DELHI
AIDS COULD be a good thing for India!That's one message sent by health planners and clinic workers watching the epidemic's impact on this country's politics, economy and social customs. As revolutionary as Mohandas K. Gandhi's insurrection against British rule, AIDS has the potential to rework India even as it infects millions.

The notion of AIDS as a change agent isn't a flip remark. For India, and other countries slowly waking to the disease, the stakes are major. In India, there are 5 million infected with the virus that causes AIDS. Only South Africa has more cases.

This devastation has brought on a frank brand of reverse thinking. The epidemic is so dire, India has to try something brand new. The threat should yank social thinking and institutions forward in ways that other changes such as politics, the Internet, religious fervor or popular culture could only dream about.

Is it callous to think that AIDS can produce positive changes? To several Indians, it's the only way.

Consider a list of nearly taboo subjects that go along with any serious effort to curb AIDS: women's rights, domestic violence, sex education, political leadership and government responsiveness.

"This epidemic allows us to talk about all these things. It's an opportunity we never had before,'' said Dr. Revathi Narayanan, a United Nations AIDS planner.

With AIDS creeping into Indian society from all sides, what can be done? This is where the revolution begins.

First the disease needs to be understood. In a tiny schoolroom in Mombai, former street children are taught the basics: AIDS comes from drug use, tainted blood and failure to use a condom. Just as important, the young audience is taught about AIDS myths: You don't get it from a handshake, a hug or a shared glass of water. It's tentative and dumbed-down, but it's a start in a country skittish about sex ed.

Next comes prevention. Handing out condoms is one heavily promoted concept because it's cheap and simple-sounding. Condoms work fine for men who patronize prostitutes. But many males don't like using them, contract AIDS during paid-for sex, and then return home to infect wives.

In India, this infection-spreading dynamic is enormous. The country has a huge military and migrant population of truckers, railway workers and factory hands who patronize brothels or street prostitutes during months away from home.

Here comes the challenge. Wives need the social support to ask husbands to drop outside partners or use a condom at home. Right now, a questioning wife risks a beating or divorce. A simple condom becomes a powerful symbol of male responsibility and women's rights.

Government can't escape the blame either. Former President Ronald Reagan famously looked away from the brewing AIDS scourge in the 1980s. This failure can't be repeated in even bigger countries such as India and China.

What worked in the United States with its population of gays under siege from AIDS can't be transplanted overseas. The anti-AIDS message, safeguards and target audience need to be tailored for maximum impact. Said U.N. official Dr. Maxine Olson, "What India needs is a Magic Johnson,'' a national celebrity who admits carrying the AIDS virus. India's pop culture hasn't produced such a figure.

So far the fresh thinking comes from outside Indian government. For example, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has launched a five-year, $200 million effort targeting truck drivers and roadside prostitutes on the country's heavily used highways. But the work taps private health groups and gas-station chains, not the country's notoriously obstructive bureaucrats.

A terrorist couldn't design a more dangerous challenge than AIDS. Nearly every social institution is under assault, from the central government to the intimacy of husband and wife. But if a country like India can find a response, it will be a huge victory over AIDS and the injustices that allowed it to spread.

Marshall Kilduff, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 July 2004

IAC 2004 Bangkok

2004-07-28T11:41:00.000+05:30

As the curtain falls on the IAC 2004 in Bangkok, and we move towards the International Conference on AIDS and Sexually transmitted infections in Africa (ICASA) 2005 in Abuja, Nigeria’s sprawling capital city – a very beautiful one and arguably one of the fastest growing cities in today’s world- it is imperative that all hands must be on deck so that the lessons of Bangkok are built upon to ensure a very successful conference.

Already, with the theme as "HIV/AIDS and the Family", and coming on the heels of previous and similar conferences held in the same city such as the year 2001 African summit on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and other infectious diseases and the 4th National Conference on HIV/AIDS in Nigeria held in 2004, the elements of ‘access to all’ would still echo at Abuja.

As a biennial event that brings together all stakeholders on HIV/AIDS from within and outside Africa, ICASA 2005 would afford another opportunity for countries, companies, communities, groups and individuals to present updates and take stock of the various responses to the epidemic and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) especially in the continent. It would be time once more to showcase achievements, constraints and best practices recorded in providing ‘access to all’ through effective implementation of preventive, care, supportive and other control programmes undertaken and or envisaged to be undertaken.

It is imperative to initiate and or strengthen without further delays, actions for clear, affordable, applicable and adaptable policies and programmes which seek to provide universal access to HIV/AIDS education and information, ensure the availability and affordability of HIV/AIDS-related medicines including life-extending treatments, enhance overall nutrition and food security, out rightly condemn and abhour all forms of HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination regardless of race, creed or reasons, mobilize enough resources and funding for HIV/AIDS control activities whether in the high-rises of New York or the

In doing so, all measures which have even the slightest chances of reducing the spread and impact of the disease must not be ignored. These include measures which address post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for all those at risk for the disease resulting from their occupation or accidents, provision and distribution of male and female condoms, investments in microbicides and vaccines initiatives, massive provision of medicines for tuberculosis (TB), Kaposi's Sarcoma, STIs, thrush, meningitis and other HIV/AIDS opportunistic and or co-infections. Others measures include generating/updating protocols for diagnosis, research, drugs availability and clinical/home-based care and
carers, including the avowed commitment of 15% of annual national budgets to improve health, particularly HIV/AIDS, TB, and malaria provision of good governance at all levels for practical self-evident and visible improvement in the welfare and living standards of our people in order to check the so-called brain drain, devising local ways to access/take all the benefits of the Doha declarations, etc.

The time has indeed come, for our countries and communities to provide enhanced ‘access to all’ our people who are infected and or affected by HIV/AIDS, with or without the almighty donor support.

The Mythology of the Constellations

2004-07-26T17:06:00.000+05:30

Most ancient cultures saw pictures in the stars of the night sky. The earliest known efforts to catalogue the stars date to cuneiform texts and artifacts dating back roughly 6000 years. These remnants, found in the valley of the Euphrates River, suggest that the ancients observing the heavens saw the lion, the bull, and the scorpion in the stars. The constellations as we know them today are undoubtedly very different from those first few--our night sky is a compendium of images from a number of different societies, both ancient and modern. By far, though, we owe the greatest debt to the mythology of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

The earliest references to the mythological significance of the Greek constellations may be found in the works of Homer, which probably date to the 7th century B.C. In the Iliad, for instance, Homer describes the creation of Achilleus's shield by the craftsman god Hephaistos: On it he made the earth, and sky, and sea, the weariless sun and the moon waxing full, and all the constellations that crown the heavens, Pleiades and Hyades, the mighty Orion and the Bear, which men also call by the name of Wain: she wheels round in the same place and watches for Orion, and is the only one not to bathe in Ocean (Iliad XVIII 486-490).

At the time of Homer, however, most of the constellations were not associated with any particular myth, hero, or god. They were instead known simply as the objects or animals which they represented--the Lyre, for instance, or the Ram. By the 5th century B.C., however, most of the constellations had come to be associated with myths, and the Catasterismi of Eratosthenes completed the mythologization of the stars. "At this stage, the fusion between astronomy and mythology is so complete that no further distinction is made between them"--the stars were no longer merely identified with certain gods or heroes, but actually were perceived as divine (Seznec, 37-40).
Despite the many mentions of the stars in Greek and early Roman texts, by far the most thorough star catalogue from ancient times belongs to the Roman Ptolemy of Alexandria, who grouped 1022 stars into 48 constellations during the 2nd century A.D. Although Ptolemy's Almagest does not include the constellations which may only be seen from the southern hemisphere, it forms the basis for the modern list of 88 constellations officially designated by the International Astronomical Union (Pasachoff, 134-135). The influence of both the Greek and Roman cultures may be plainly seen; the myths behind the constellations date back to ancient Greece, but we use their Latin names.

Mythology, of course, had influence on a great many aspects of astronomy other than the naming of the constellations. The planets all bear mythological names which reflect their characteristics--Mars, for instance, is blood-red, while Jupiter is the largest planet in the Solar System. On a particularly amusing note, the names of the Galilean moons of Jupiter (the four largest, which may be seen with even a small telescope) are Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. It is ironic that the mythological characters the king of the gods so ardently pursued now revolve around him.

Women and HIV/AIDS: Confronting the Crisis

2004-07-19T16:38:00.000+05:30

UN Report released today: "Women and HIV/AIDS: Confronting the Crisis"
PRESS RELEASE, 14 July 2004

ACTION AGAINST AIDS MUST ADDRESS EPIDEMIC'S INCREASING IMPACT ON WOMEN

BANGKOK, 14 July 2004 - Action against HIV/AIDS that does not confront gender inequality is doomed to failure, according to a report released today by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund.

Noting that women are now nearly half of all people infected with HIV, the report documents the devastating and often invisible impact of AIDS on women and girls and highlights the ways discrimination, poverty and gender-based violence help fuel the epidemic.

The report, Women and HIV/AIDS: Confronting the Crisis , reveals that 48% of all adults living with HIV are women, up from 35% in 1985. Today, 37.8 million people are infected worldwide: 17 million of them are female. The situation is even more alarming in sub-Saharan Africa, where women make up 57% of those living with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Young African women aged 15-24 are three times more likely to be infected than are their male counterparts.

Without AIDS strategies that specifically focus on women, there can be no global progress in fighting the disease. Women know less than men about how to prevent infection, and what they do know is often rendered useless by the discrimination and violence they face, according to the report.

"Promoting concrete actions that address the reality of women's lives and help decrease their vulnerability to HIV is the only way forward," said Dr Kathleen Cravero, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS. "We must reduce violence against women, ensure greater access to HIV prevention and treatment services and protect their property rights."

Confronting the Crisis focuses on key areas identified by the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS - an international pressure group - as critical to an effective AIDS response. The Coalition is a broad-based initiative launched in 2004 to stimulate concrete action to improve the daily lives of women and girls infected and affected by HIV and AIDS.

These critical areas include HIV prevention, treatment, care-giving, education, gender-based violence and women's rights. Women have the right to education and information needed to protect themselves, and to female-controlled protection methods. They have the right to own or inherit land and property and to pursue independent livelihoods. They have the right to be free from harmful traditional practices and violence. They have the right to exercise control over their own bodies and lives.

"The ABC approach - Abstain, Be faithful, use Condoms - is not a sufficient means of prevention for women and adolescent girls," said UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Obaid. "Abstinence is meaningless to women who are coerced into sex. Faithfulness offers little protection to wives whose husbands have several partners or were infected before marriage. And condoms require the cooperation of men."

"The social and economic empowerment of women is key. The epidemic won't be reversed unless governments provide the resources needed to ensure women's right to sexual and reproductive health," she added.

Despite the odds stacked against them, many women have become leaders in the battle against HIV/AIDS. Confronting the Crisis offers a number of stories of women from across the globe who are taking innovative action to face the epidemic. These women are battling to change AIDS policies and strategies, and calling for funding to be directed to meeting women's needs and circumstances.

Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Director of UNIFEM, said that "gender inequality has turned a devastating disease - AIDS - into an economic and social crisis."

"The crisis requires the infusion of serious resources into programmes and policies that promote gender equality and women's empowerment," she added. "These must be grounded in the knowledge and experiences of women living and working in communities affected by HIV/AIDS. Women are not just victims, they are agents of change. Infected and affected women's voices must be heard and their leadership invested in. To end this triple threat of HIV/AIDS, gender inequality and poverty, women must have the right to economic independence and equal access to land, property and employment, and to a life free of stigma, violence and discrimination."

Note to editors:

Some of the women whose stories are featured in Confronting the Crisis include:

Kousalya Periaswamy, living in India, was widowed and left HIV-positive at 19 by a husband who only told her he was infected a few weeks after their marriage. She braved social disapproval and began speaking out to encourage positive women like herself to come forward. The group she helped to start, the Positive Women's Network of South India, now has thousands of members, providing counselling, social services and hope for many women and girls. (Ms Periaswamy is attending the IAS conference and may be available for interview.)

In Sierra Leone, armed militiamen abducted Khadija Bah, 19, and made her their sexual slave after murdering her parents and husband. She escaped, made her way to the capital, Freetown, and like thousands of others with no means of support, she turned to sex work to survive. At a centre run by the Women in Crisis project, started by "Auntie Juliana" Konteh, Khadija found a safe place where she could talk about her trauma, learn to protect herself against HIV, and learn skills that would allow her to give up sex work.

Road to Success

2004-07-05T18:12:00.000+05:30

The Road to Success is not straight. There is a curve called failure, a loop called confusion, speed bumps called friends, caution lights called family,and you will have flats called jobs.

But... if you have a spare called determination, an engine called perseverance, insurance called faith,and a driver called God you will make it to a place called success!

About Life and Death

2004-07-05T10:52:00.000+05:30

"If you're going to make every game a matter of life or death, you're going to have a lot of problems. For one thing, you'll be dead a lot." !

Lesotho’s Parliamentarians & ‘Seven Habits of Most Effective People’

2004-07-04T09:53:00.000+05:30

Comprising ten different political parties, Lesotho’s current parliament is the most inclusive and widely representative in the nation's history. This was made possible because, before its watershed 2002 general election, the country adopted a new electoral model in which two thirds of the 120 member National Assembly is chosen under a First-Past-The-Post model, and one third through Proportional Representation.

In May,2004 after consultations with the Assembly’s leadership, UNDP organized a three-day “Seven Habits of Most Effective People” workshop designed to inspire Parliamentarians' personal transformation as a first step towards empowering them to take on greater leadership roles and help the country “break out of the mould” in addressing its urgent problems.

The workshop emphasised the virtues of altruism in personal as in public life; uncompromising loyalty to principle and willingness to overcome one’s prejudice and predispositions to become a fuller person. It aimed to help parliamentarians hone their leadership skills, find new ways to transcend interpersonal differences and partisan divisions in pursuit of higher national goals, and more effectively articulate the needs and aspirations of their constituents.

A follow up session, where workshop participants will review the commitments they have made to bring about change in their lives, in their inter-personal and public relations, and in the manner in which they transact their public duty and obligations, is being planned for the latter part of the year.

Sourced from N S Bereng (UNDP News)

Was wondering with the new crop of young politicians in our parliament if some sane brain can introduce similar management concepts in lives of our parliamentarians too!

What is Monitoring?

2004-07-02T18:54:00.000+05:30

Monitoring is the regular observation and recording of activities taking place in a project or programme. It is a process of routinely gathering information on all aspects of the project. To monitor is to check on how project activities are progressing. It is
observation; systematic and purposeful observation.

Monitoring also involves giving feedback about the progress of the project to the donors, implementers and beneficiaries of the project. Reporting enables the gathered information to be used in making decisions for improving project performance.

Purpose of Monitoring:

Monitoring is very important in project planning and implementation. It is like watching where you are going while riding a bicycle; you can adjust as you go along and ensure that you are on the right track.

About Governance

2004-07-02T17:29:00.000+05:30

What is good governance?

One goal of good governance is to enable an organization to do its work and fulfill its mission. Good governance results in organizational effectiveness.

But good governance is about more than getting the job done. Especially in the voluntary sector, where values typically play an important role in determining both organizational purpose and style of operation, process is as important as product. Good governance becomes more than only a means to organizational effectiveness and becomes an end in itself.

Good governance is about both achieving desired results and achieving them in the right way.

Since the "right way" is largely shaped by the cultural norms and values of the organization, there can be no universal template for good governance. Each organization must tailor their own definition of good governance to suit their needs and values.

There is plenty of room for different traditions and values to be accommodated in the definition of good governance. At the same time, all is not relative. There are some universal norms and values that apply across cultural boundaries. The United Nations published a list of characteristics of good governance. They include:

Participation: providing all men and women with a voice in decision-making

Transparency: built on the free flow of information

Responsiveness: of institutions and processes to stakeholders

Consensus orientation: differing interests are mediated to reach
a broad consensus on what is in the general interest

Equity: all men and women have opportunities to become involved

Effectiveness and efficiency: processes and institutions produce
results that meet needs while making the best use of resources

Accountability: of decision-makers to stakeholders

Strategic vision: leaders and the public have a broad and long-term
perspective on good governance and human development, along with
a sense of what is needed for such development. There is also
an understanding of the historical, cultural and social complexities
in which that perspective is grounded.