"In a bid to promote Tamil language and culture, the Tamil Nadu government has started a scheme under which babies born in city corporation hospitals would be given a gold ring if they are given Tamil names"

So much for culture and language. Will this scheme work?

We fail to understand that culture is something that cannot be preserved. It has to be cultivated to keep it alive. And we cant keep it alive just by distributing gold rings for Tamil names. For me, the cave men would have been a happier lot. They lived their life and went away. There were no attempts made in promoting, preserving and enforcing their culture. If something within their 'culture' was worthwhile to be absorbed by the next generation, it was absorbed. Rest everything was discarded. This absorption is a natural activity - and any external force in this process would make it look spurious.

A one-gram gold ring makes no sense for a baby. There are about hundred other things that could help the child and its future. I'm not sure what motivated the TN Government to pass this scheme. Now that its into action, I hope that the distributed gold goes into the right causes. I am sure that there are many parents who will re-think of a suitable name for their upcoming baby when they hear about this scheme. What would matter to them is a mere gold ring - the culture is nowhere into picture.

I appreciate attempts to promote culture. It is our heritage and our fundamental duty is to make sure that it is not forgotten. Definitely, this approach has to be well thought and practical. If we really have a lot of gold rings to distribute, why don't we make it a wedding gift for the bride who gets married only when she's eighteen and over?

Somehow, the thought process isn't clicking these days. This is my nth attempt to post, and all I've got is a couple of drafts - half cooked though. After spending so much time, I don't feel like posting them. Probably I know that they are not worth. Well, actually even this post isn't. :)

I watched 'Delhi 6' today, and was quite amused with the 'Kala Bandar' script. The movie is much inspired from the infamous 'Monkey Man' fiasco that actually happened in Delhi during May 2001. Somehow, I missed the actual footage during those times ( I was inaccessible to nonsense news channels) - and could not enjoy the daily updates. It would definitely have been fun for sure.

Humans love rumours. And above all, mass hysteria is something that we all try becoming a part of. The 'Monkey Man' incident is one good example which plainly indicates how imaginative we can be, collectively. Today, this infamous cryptid has a write-up on Wikipedia, and has been quoted on BBC and TIME.

Now thats what I call being famous! :)

A forced post

This one is a forced post. Realizing that I may not voluntarily sit and spare some time to blog, I've forced myself for an update. However, the thought process is no longer the same. Its more about the technical fixes in the ongoing project, design changes, process issues and the user acceptance.

I can say that this year is definitely 'Rocking' in all the aspects. The news channels keep talking about economic recession, corporate debacles, and terrorist attacks. On the other hand, people around me are craving for several things. Right from better job profiles to 'Tata Sky' on their televisions - they want it all. The demands never seem to end. Probably, this keeps the economy running.

Anyways, lets not get into all that. We'll leave these topics for others to discuss on. Posting some snaps that I clicked via Canon Powershot SX100 IS. :)

The year 2008 ends with a lot of unanswered questions, incomplete drafts, and pending activities. My silly surveys to married-unmarried professionals, uncooked thoughts over 'Anwar', lesser posts, and around 40-50 documented days of 2008 - the year was worthwhile. I have no complaints, since I know that 2009 is a better year for all my surveys and 'uncooked' thought processes.

The people of my country did a lot of multi-tasking in 2008. Fighting Terrorism, Pre-school admissions, voting, faking reality shows, passing entrance examinations, protesting decisions - the list is endless. They'll continue to do more or less the same in 2009. The approach may differ. I hope that the approach will be better.

Welcome to the new year.

:)