The final touch

After a shivering night I finally got the berth to sleep in. With a blanket over me and the fatigue of a long time it is the first time in the last twenty days that I really am relaxed and have a sound sleep. Though it begins in the morning at around 5, it was well excepted by me. I made full use of it. I didnt know how long i slept. I just dozed off and when my eyes opened i was hearing Bengali being spoken and thus I was finally into West Bengal. The watch showed around 10. Well I think I just got used to not sleeping for too long I think. Did morning chores. No problems in train now. Durgapur had just passed an long time to go. I just packed up my stuff and sat outside watching the scenary. Indian railways charges people for the distance it covers but what it offers as a side service is just priceless, the view of real India through its grilled windows. I just had a cup of coffee and the ‘Jhal muri‘ as my eyes were fixed outside. I don’t know what I was seeing. All that was going through my mind was whether all that happened in the last 20 days was a dream or a reality. As I watched the view outside, a song was playing at the back of my mind, one that we sang the most during the trip. ‘ Yeh Jo desh hai tera, Swadesh hai tera, tujhe hai pukaraa…‘ My mind recalled all the people I met during the trip. A thought passed through my mind and that was a sense of pride in associating myself with a such wonderful group of people. I made it a point that I will ensure that this trip acts as a great platform for all of us to work together towards a future that we see together, so plans to interact must be formed. I had great plans to start off before the trip ends, but some how i just couldn’t do it. I thought of starting it as soon as possible so that the spirit doesn’t  die down, but now i think that this trip really was amazing for everyone as it was for me and it is going to take a some time to sink in. There was a great deal to think about and thus let everyone settle back in (and also let me get back to my college and check how things are going ) Also I hope, by that time Kaustav will be able to set up the website that he is going to set up for the yatris to interact.

Anyways it was amazing that having not had anything since morning and sitting idealy in the train time passed so quickly. it was 2 pm by the time the train reached the majestic Howrah Station. It is always a great scene at the howrah station before ‘Ganga Sagar’. Of course the scene that I saw yesterday in the train was also great. Somehow I crossed the huge chunk of people who had more or les hade this great junction their home for these few days. I again wished i wasnt carrying so much of luggage. I think getting of the train was the last thing I could have done, to say i had completed the yatra. But no, I had to carry the luggage till the pre-paid taxi counter and wait for 15 mins. for my turn to come and then wait at the counter for 10 mins because there was no taxi. I just dumped all my luggage on the seat when I finally got a taxi and just closed my eyes. Though of getting some sleep. Best of luck to you when travelling through the trademark Kolkata streets with a cacaphony of horns blowing all around. By the time I reached Howrah Bridge and read the sign Welcome to Kolkata, I already knew that I had arrived at Kolkata. I am a yatri and thus I enjoy whatever comes my way.

Shivering night

My friends were gonna get off at allahabad and they had somehow managed to get a whole compartment and it was shared by 8 yatris who were all from NIT Allahabad. Their boggie was 2 boggies after the one in which I had RAC , so after a sleepless night I got to sleep at their top berth. It was a scene to watch the way all their luggage was dumped on the side upper berth. I got up in the evening and finally we had some discussion on the yatra. Everyone shared their view on the yatra. Though everyone did say they enjoyed. One thing I realised was that it was too early for people to form opinion on. Even I was not able to comprehend it well. Thing like who affected you the most, what kind of bonding was developed with fellow yatris, what i enjoyed the most, what I would miss, what I take back, future plans etc. etc. We had some evening snacks. I had something in my bag, so I went through the crowd and believe me I think I showed as much athleticism as I would have shown in a hurdle race. The area near the door as well as vestibule was jammed packed with luggage and people sitting on it. In around 20 mins I crossed two boggies and brought back my bag which had snacks.

My friend got off at Allahabad at around 10 pm clear indication that the train was late by atleast 2 hours. Many deboarded the train, but even more boarded again. I though of retaining the top bearth as no one would complain since many were without reservation. (Acting smart, eh?)  Well, I just went help get off all the luggage the yatris were carrying and by the time I come back there were around 15 people sitting in every compartment, with another 8 sitting inthe upper berths. I some how managed to get some place to sit conveniently on the top berth. Then it was chatting time. I talked about the life in UP, and it somewhat less harmonious that what I had thought. Most of them were young (in mid 20s) and some were trying for public services. one thing I noticed was that they had a view about every thing but without much depth (May be it was an after effect of the yatris on me or of the yatra). As the talks warmed up the temperature kept falling and with just a windcheater on, I was literally shivering. No doubt no one had trouble with so many people sitting togeather in such a small space. Once Mirzapur came people with reserved seats started coming in and thus we had to vacate the seats. So I went back to my RAC seat and woke up the bugger and there was another inconvenient night like yesterday the exception being that it was colder. Thankfully the other person with whom i shared the seat was getting off at koderma that was scheduled to come at 4 in the morning. So atleast I would get a good sleep in the morning. With some nudging and budging and a bedsheet on top I went to sleep. The negotiation continue through the night.

to the origin

it was amazing to travel on the old route to bombay once again. i have been so used to the route of banglorea and other areas over the past few years that it seems refreshing to be back on the route through Bihar and MP into maharastra. i am joined by two of my school mates on this trip who also accompanied me on the way to mumbai. we all had RAC tickets and we all had huge luggage because we had stuff that would sustain us for the next 20 days and more. the nights wereextrememly cold and even though theere was so much warm clothing in my bag i just couldn get it out as i had packed it for the yatra and it would be trouble some to unpack and pack all the things in such a small space that we already had.  it was an amazing experience though a little troublesome. we chatted through out the day and trembled through out the night. we refredhed quite a lot of memories from our school.

we reached mumbai and got down at LTT.

we reached iit mumbai and got robbed by the taxi driver. we paid a sum of 350 rupees for a ride from station to the campus.

just an indicator of how this trip is gonna be.

the journey begins actually

hey folks just leaving kolkata from the night train to mumbai after celebrating dad’s b’day

i dont know what to say. feeling a little gittery. for a brief moment i felt that i am not prepared but then i know one thing , nothing is perfect. i just need to be there.

so mumbai here i come and india here i come

dr kiran seth – spicmacay

How did the idea of SPICMACAY come to you and how was it founded?

When I was studying at Columbia University , I heard a concert of Ustad Aminuddin Dagar and Ustad Fariduddin Dagar . I was deeply affected by it �in fact, I felt that I was moving 1 foot above the ground! In 1976, when I started teaching Operations Research at IIT, Delhi , I asked the class if anybody had heard of Nikhil Banerjee . Nobody had heard of him, let alone listen to him. I felt very sad. Shouldn’t we do something I felt?

more info : http://tiet.ac.in/spicmacay/purpose-origin.htm

devashri mukherjee ashoka

Ashoka Fellows

Ashoka Fellows are leading social entrepreneurs who we recognize to have innovative solutions to social problems and the potential to change patterns across society. They demonstrate unrivaled commitment to bold new ideas and prove that compassion, creativity, and collaboration are tremendous forces for change. Ashoka Fellows work in over 60 countries around the globe in every area of human need.

All Ashoka Fellows must undergo a rigorous search and selection process in which they demonstrate that they fully meet Ashoka’s selection criteria.

more info :  http://india.ashoka.org/team

Narayana Murthy infosys

Born: August 20, 1946
Achievement: One of the founders of Infosys Technologies Limited; Chosen as the World Entrepreneur of the Year – 2003 by Ernst and Young

Narayana Murthy is the Non-Executive Chairman and Chief Mentor of Infosys Technologies Limited. He is a living legend and an epitome of the fact that honesty, transparency, and moral integrity are not at variance with business acumen. He set new standards in corporate governance and morality when he stepped down as the Executive Chairman of Infosys at the age of 60.

Born on August 20, 1946, N.R. Narayana Murthy is a B.E.Electrical from University of Mysore (1967) and M.Tech from IIT Kanpur (1969). Narayan Murthy began his career with Patni Computer Systems in Pune. In 1981, Narayana Murthy founded Infosys with six other software professionals. In 1987, Infosys opened its first international office in U.S.A.

With the liberalization of Indian economy in 1990s, Infosys grew rapidly. In 1993, the company came up with its IPO. In 1995, Infosys set up development centers across cities in India and in 1996, it set up its first office in Europe in Milton Keynes, UK. In 1999, Infosys became the first Indian company to be listed on NASDAQ. Today (in 2006), Infosys has a turnover of more than $ 2billion and has employee strength of over 50,000. In 2002, Infosys was ranked No. 1 in the “Best Employers in India 2002″ survey conducted by Hewitt and in the Business World’s survey of “India’s Most Respected Company.” Conducted in the same year.

more info: http://www.scribd.com/doc/7435219/Narayana-Murthy-Infosys

murthy sudhakar – infrasys

Business for benefit
infraSys, a development-driven enterprise that creates physical, financial, and knowledge infrastructure in rural areas.

April 2004: Large-scale unemployment in the rural areas and mass migration (of the rural population) to urban centers are related. Rural poverty is inevitable when landless labourers and subsistence farmers are at the mercy of feudal overlords, the elements, and seasonal agricultural work for their livelihood. With drought and starvation staring at him the poor villager migrates to take a job in the city, but even here his position is often at risk of being replaced by mechanization, global changes, and other forces beyond his control.

Public policy, particularly in response to globalization and the dictates of international loans, woos and seduces capital to come ashore, making available water, power, services, and roads for an investor class. Large dams are built, hydroelectric and nuclear plants are commissioned, regulations are slackened, and roads are widened – roads that will eventually carry goods from the factory to the nearest port for export, completely bypassing millions of poor along the way who might themselves benefit from similar products. The nation’s balance of payment looks better; the GDP is improved. The benefits flow to a very small percentage of the population – the urban and the schooled. But the evil pair – rural poverty and urban squalor – lingers.

read more: http://www.indiatogether.org/2004/apr/eco-infrasys.htm

ITC echoupal

A powerful illustration of corporate strategy linking business purpose to larger societal purpose, e-Choupal leverages the Internet to empower small and marginal farmers – who constitute a majority of the 75% of the population below the poverty line.

By providing them with farming know-how and services, timely and relevant weather information, transparent price discovery and access to wider markets, e-Choupal enabled economic capacity to proliferate at the base of the rural economy.

Today 4 million farmers use e-Choupal to advantage – bargaining as virtual buyers’ co-operatives, adopting best practices, matching up to food safety norms. Being linked to futures markets is helping small farmers to better manage risk. e-Choupal has been specially cited in the Government of India’s Economic Survey of 2006-07, for its transformational impact on rural lives.

more info: http://www.itcportal.com/rural-development/echoupal.htm

Tulsi tanti – suzlon energy

If anyone can even attempt to portray a setback as a benefit, it’s Tulsi Tanti.

The 51-year-old chairman and managing director of Suzlon Energy, says the cancellation of an order for turbines by Edison International, California’s largest utility owner, turned out to be a win-win situation for both parties.

Tanti remains unfazed by the wave of negative publicity that has hit the Rs 13,531-crore (Rs 133.51 billion) Suzlon over the last six months after rotor blades supplied by the company developed cracks.

read more : http://specials.rediff.com/money/2008/aug/01slde1.htm