Both my parents teach science at the secondary and college level. Ever since I was young, I was very interested in their books as they had a lot of diagrams. I had my mother order test tubes and beakers for me and my father bought me batteries, wires, switches, and sometimes brought home a voltmeter or ammeter. These things fascinate me even now and I am quite good at making simple circuits, and science in general. I had planned to go into applied science ever since I was in the 5th grade. This plan was somewhat dampened after my health failed in the 8th grade, but still I had my heart bent on studying science after school. But an incident in the 10th grade made me despise the way science is taught here.
It was a Physics laboratory in the 10th grade. It was a Saturday. I had been given an experiment on optics – to find the focal length of a lens. I am very diligent with experiments and as usual I did the whole experiment with great care. I took the observations minutely and carfully jotted them down. It was perfect and I was very proud of myself. I went ahead to show my results to my teacher.
When my turn came, he looked at my copy and frowned. What he proceeded to tell me, or accuse me of, mortified me. He accused me of cheating because my observations were “too perfect”. He concluded that such observations had to be a work of plagiarism from a book. He admonished me for such an act and ordered me to start the experiment all over again. I sulkily went back to my table, erased the observations and tinkered with the results to give it an imperfect look. After that I sat down and chatted with my classmated for some time. I did not touch the experiment at all. I went over to my teacher with this work of fiction and he seemed to be quite proud of me.
After that I never took experiment very seriously. I did my experiments diligently but when it came to writing reports – well, that was just a work of fiction. It was after this incident that I decided that I could not study applied science under such circumstances. So after school, I just took up a subject I liked as much as science – History. I still love science and toying with circuits and gadgets, and I know a little bit of concepts too. Maybe, given the right opportunity, I would like to study applied sciences again.
Wednesday, 26 October 2011
Monday, 24 October 2011
The Maoist Boogie
There has been a lot of hue and cry over the Maoist problem in Junglemahal in West Bengal, India. The Communist government of Bengal went ahead and deployed paramilitary forces to contain the armed Maoist threat. Accusations flew like the wind. The Maoist accused the Communist government of oppressing the people of the region and stalling development in that region. They took up arms and murdered Communist cadres and started a guerrilla warfare with the armed forces. They also accused the police and the armed forces of heinous atrocities against the people of the villages. The government accused the Communist of revolting against the state and forcing the local village folk to join their ranks at gun point. The new government offers to bring peace to the region through developmental projects and holding peace talks. But the Maoists have threatened to resume their armed struggle unless the armed forces are withdrawn.
I am no analyst or intellectual. I am just a student of History and what I see I do not like. It is a fact that the region of Junglemahal has been neglected by the state for far too long. It is a fact that the armed forces stationed there by the state have committed heinous human rights violation. The rest is all shrouded in mystery. I have always loved History and have been studying History ever since I was a child. What I have come to realize over these years of studying History is that Indians in general, are averse to armed struggle and revolution. They have to be led. They cannot organize a protest by themselves. The only time they have joined hands unanimously is during occasions when their physical existence has come under threat, like the Santhal Rebellion. In such cases, the people of the whole region take up arms and not a single person remain in the region who do not support it. In all other cases, the people have been led, and many have stayed aloof. In most of these cases, the few who have been at the head of the movement had a personal motive behind the struggle. The Maoist scenario looks like a struggle led by a few, for a few.
It is true that the Maoists have a large support base, but there is a large majority who do not support an armed struggle. How do I know this? Well, because many people of the region have come up asking for assistance and jobs from the government – the Maoists proclaimed enemy. I do not care about the accusations as they easily may be propaganda. I only believe in those that are supported by evidence, and I believe that the Maoists do not have the support of a large number of people in the region. This can only mean one thing – the Maoist cause is led by only a few with their own goals of coming to power. And why is it that when the government is offering to bring about social development projects in the region, the Maoists are opposing it? Simple. Bringing about social development will take away whatever base they have now as people are too eager to give up war. They do not like war.
I do not trust the Maoists at all and I do not have faith in the government either. Both are looking for their personal welfare at the expense of the people. I suggest that the paramilitary forces are reduced in number but a sufficient number should stay back to counter any attempts by the Maoists to take over the villages in the region by force. The government, on the other hand, should start development projects on a war footing. I know that the finances of the state are too low for an extensive project but at least some projects need to be undertaken on an emergency basis. The more the issue is delayed, the more confused people get and very soon they will forget what started the controversy in the first place. We need to act, and act fast.
I am no analyst or intellectual. I am just a student of History and what I see I do not like. It is a fact that the region of Junglemahal has been neglected by the state for far too long. It is a fact that the armed forces stationed there by the state have committed heinous human rights violation. The rest is all shrouded in mystery. I have always loved History and have been studying History ever since I was a child. What I have come to realize over these years of studying History is that Indians in general, are averse to armed struggle and revolution. They have to be led. They cannot organize a protest by themselves. The only time they have joined hands unanimously is during occasions when their physical existence has come under threat, like the Santhal Rebellion. In such cases, the people of the whole region take up arms and not a single person remain in the region who do not support it. In all other cases, the people have been led, and many have stayed aloof. In most of these cases, the few who have been at the head of the movement had a personal motive behind the struggle. The Maoist scenario looks like a struggle led by a few, for a few.
It is true that the Maoists have a large support base, but there is a large majority who do not support an armed struggle. How do I know this? Well, because many people of the region have come up asking for assistance and jobs from the government – the Maoists proclaimed enemy. I do not care about the accusations as they easily may be propaganda. I only believe in those that are supported by evidence, and I believe that the Maoists do not have the support of a large number of people in the region. This can only mean one thing – the Maoist cause is led by only a few with their own goals of coming to power. And why is it that when the government is offering to bring about social development projects in the region, the Maoists are opposing it? Simple. Bringing about social development will take away whatever base they have now as people are too eager to give up war. They do not like war.
I do not trust the Maoists at all and I do not have faith in the government either. Both are looking for their personal welfare at the expense of the people. I suggest that the paramilitary forces are reduced in number but a sufficient number should stay back to counter any attempts by the Maoists to take over the villages in the region by force. The government, on the other hand, should start development projects on a war footing. I know that the finances of the state are too low for an extensive project but at least some projects need to be undertaken on an emergency basis. The more the issue is delayed, the more confused people get and very soon they will forget what started the controversy in the first place. We need to act, and act fast.
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
Child Labour
India has banned child labour and declared it punishable by law. The Indian intelligentsia has hailed it as a victory of morality and it has been used to showcase the human side of the corrupt politicians. It does not come as a surprise to me that this ban has been rampantly flouted everywhere.
The first thing we need to ask is who are these legislations made for and what are their purpose? If the ban on child labour was implemented to safeguard the child, then the legislation absolutely failed in its mission even before it failed in practice. The legislation provides no solution to the problem of child labour or the exploitation of children. The legislation attempts to remove the child from labour without going into the realities that bind these children to exploitation in India. Let us look at the realities that have so easily been shoved aside while formulating the legislation.
In India, slums are a part and parcel of urban life, and these slums teem with people of all ages. Families who live in these slums beget themselves large families, even while they do not have the means to feed them. The reasoning behind this is that more the children, more the working hands, and more the chances of earning money. So the urge to get children into the labour market from a tender age starts from the family. Parents refuse to send their children to school, mainly because free schools are rare and the education there serves no purpose and the parents know it. When I was associated with the SSL and trying to get street children to attend evening classes for an hour every day, many of the parents refused to send their children because they felt their children will be able to earn more if they work for that hour than study.
Banning child labour at this stage is not the solution. The question that we need to ask ourselves is how can we keep the children out of the labour market? One way is to provide alternatives to labour keeping in mind the concern of the parents. There should be schools where these children can be sent and where they can also be fed. This will at least convince the parents to send their children to school, where their children will have an opportunity for a meal. At the same time, legislation needs to be passed that enforces equal pay for children at the rate at which an adult is paid. If this law is stringently enforced, employers will refrain from employing children, except in the tea and tobacco industry. Both these combined will result in the lowering of the number of child labourers. The government might view this as an expensive proposition as immense amounts would have to be spent on building schools, employing teachers and providing food. But this is only for one generation. When this generation grows up, they will be educated enough to control the size of their family and the pressure on the government will be lowered.
But rest assured nothing of this sort is ever going to happen in India. The population is enormous and everyone is trying to better their condition by any and every means. This compounds the problem of corruption. The politicians will refrain from making this a success as their electoral success depends heavily on the continuation of poverty and illiteracy and inefficiency. They will never make it a success. All that the children will receive are hollow legislations and insincere promises.
The first thing we need to ask is who are these legislations made for and what are their purpose? If the ban on child labour was implemented to safeguard the child, then the legislation absolutely failed in its mission even before it failed in practice. The legislation provides no solution to the problem of child labour or the exploitation of children. The legislation attempts to remove the child from labour without going into the realities that bind these children to exploitation in India. Let us look at the realities that have so easily been shoved aside while formulating the legislation.
In India, slums are a part and parcel of urban life, and these slums teem with people of all ages. Families who live in these slums beget themselves large families, even while they do not have the means to feed them. The reasoning behind this is that more the children, more the working hands, and more the chances of earning money. So the urge to get children into the labour market from a tender age starts from the family. Parents refuse to send their children to school, mainly because free schools are rare and the education there serves no purpose and the parents know it. When I was associated with the SSL and trying to get street children to attend evening classes for an hour every day, many of the parents refused to send their children because they felt their children will be able to earn more if they work for that hour than study.
Banning child labour at this stage is not the solution. The question that we need to ask ourselves is how can we keep the children out of the labour market? One way is to provide alternatives to labour keeping in mind the concern of the parents. There should be schools where these children can be sent and where they can also be fed. This will at least convince the parents to send their children to school, where their children will have an opportunity for a meal. At the same time, legislation needs to be passed that enforces equal pay for children at the rate at which an adult is paid. If this law is stringently enforced, employers will refrain from employing children, except in the tea and tobacco industry. Both these combined will result in the lowering of the number of child labourers. The government might view this as an expensive proposition as immense amounts would have to be spent on building schools, employing teachers and providing food. But this is only for one generation. When this generation grows up, they will be educated enough to control the size of their family and the pressure on the government will be lowered.
But rest assured nothing of this sort is ever going to happen in India. The population is enormous and everyone is trying to better their condition by any and every means. This compounds the problem of corruption. The politicians will refrain from making this a success as their electoral success depends heavily on the continuation of poverty and illiteracy and inefficiency. They will never make it a success. All that the children will receive are hollow legislations and insincere promises.
Monday, 10 October 2011
Banning The Bands
Bands are now everywhere, and here when I talk about bands I mean the rock bands. The infestation of the bands has turned into a plague. Go to any town or city, nay any village even, and you are sure to find a band even though there may not be a school. What are these bands? Where do they come from? What do they do? Well, these are the questions that haunted me after a series of auditory torture at the hand of bands!
I grew up to the music of bands like The Beatles and The Carpenters and I had a lot of respect for them. When I was about to enter college, band music entered Bengali culture through bands like Bhumi and Chandrabindoo. There music was refreshingly new with a touch of Bengali folk music. But before I came to college I had never been to a live band performance. The first bands I heard in college were Indian Ocean and Mother Jane. It was a wonderful experience and I simply loved it. But that was it! That was the last time I wanted to hear a band play!
My experience with bands after that has been very traumatic. I have been forced to attend live band performances where high pitched cacophony is regarded as music, with a sprinkling of bad lyrics and worse voice. I have also been forced to tolerate live band performances that lack melody, lyrics or music, being hailed through the Public Address System! I have had enough but no one else seems to mind. So I decided to study the various bands active in my town and in Calcutta and Delhi. I must admit that the whole experience was a test of my sanity and sensibility and also a test of my temper. I have come across only 3 bands out of about 25 who can perform decently.
Most of the bands start at school. Students who think they are ‘cool’ and whose parents can afford an electric guitar or drum set and amplifiers are the ones who start a band. It is mostly a three or four member band and the lead singer is always the leader of the band and is the ‘coolest’ of the lot. The knowledge of music or any talent whatsoever is unnecessary as long as one has the money to buy the gadgets or is ‘cool’. Since not many have the money to buy these instruments, each school has one or two bands, and the band members regard themselves as elites. They have a place to jam, where they let their animal instinct loose and the result is apocalyptic noise.
These bands perform at school by playing songs of hit bands, and in the absence of any competition, they are hailed as awesome and talented. By the time the band members reach college, their ego has been bloated up to the size of the universe, and they regard themselves as authorities on music, fashion, coolness and women. They have this weird accent copied from some rockstar which they impose on others. They start keeping shabby long hair, and strange and dirty looking beards, dressing up in clothes that are either too small or too big for their size. They stop hanging out with guys and start hanging out with girls, and you are sure to find a gang of girls swooning over them. These bands start performing more regularly and even go for competitions. They now sing their own songs that are unpalatable. To hide the harsh voice and the bad lyrics, they resort to playing death metal and metal rock and other such genres where the electric guitar and drum drowns the voice and lyrics. But even then it is a torture.
In my town, bands are now playing at all occasions, even the pujas. The puja held near my house had a band night this time and the performance was broadcast over the PAS. The band had no tune or melody, and sitting in my house I felt a strong urge to borrow some money, buy some rotten eggs, go over to the event and throw the eggs at the band members. Thankfully my sanity prevailed.
But seriously; does no one mind what goes as music these days? Do we have to tolerate whatever is served to us in the name of music, consoling ourselves by saying that we do not have the money to hire better bands? Should we even allow anyone and everyone to perform in public? Do we not have a law against noise pollution? People have every right to form bands and jam but why can they not play melodious music, if not lyrics? Why can the band members not understand that they are singing rubbish and improve themselves? I guess the answer to most of these questions lie in the fact that people who form these bands is not driven by the love for music but by the urge to be popular and get girls.
I do not know about you, but I hate these bands and their music.
Sunday, 2 October 2011
Poems from Arabian Nights
Stint thy blame man! 'Twill drive to a passion without bound;
My fault is not so heavy as fault in it hast found.
If true lover I become, then to me there cometh not
Save what happened unto many in the by-gone stound.
For wonderful is he and right worthy of our praise
Who from whiles of female wits kept him safe and kept him sound.
- Arabian Nights, pp: 13
My fault is not so heavy as fault in it hast found.
If true lover I become, then to me there cometh not
Save what happened unto many in the by-gone stound.
For wonderful is he and right worthy of our praise
Who from whiles of female wits kept him safe and kept him sound.
- Arabian Nights, pp: 13
Art and the Pujas
The Pujo is here! Goddess Durga has come down to Earth with her two daughters and two sons and it is a time for rejoicing, but she will soon be gone, back to her abode at Mount Kailash. And there will start another wait till she comes again next year.
People all over Bengal do their utmost to make Her stay on Earth as pleasurable as possible by building pandals and idols of exquisite form and beauty. The idols and pandals are a work of art - art that is as temporal as Her stay. And that I feel is tragic.
Artists, sculptors, architects and designers get together and toil for months to create monuments with bamboo, cloth, straw, cardboard, thermocol and other items of temporal construction (even buiscuits and candy!) that are built to the model of temples, churches, mosques, historic buildings and even ships. The effort that goes into the construction of these aweinspiring pandals is gargantuan in proportion and deserves all the praise.
The idols are also works of art, examples of exquisite sculptures. They come in various sizes and shapes. Sometimes all five members of Goddess Durga's family are put together and sometimes they are paired and at other times they are created individually. They are adorned with intricately designed ornaments and dresses that would put any emperor to shame. The idols are made mostly of clay, but sculptors also create idols from straw, from wood-shavings, from paper, from chalk, and from other materials.
The sad part of this is the end - these works of art last only for the duration of the pujas, after which they are dismantled or sold off in pieces. It does not feel right that these works of art should stop existing so soon and so easily. We need some way of preserving them, but their size and their number are too daunting for any conservationist programme. It is almost impossible to preserve them. It is very difficult to preserve pandals that replicate the Ajanta Caves or the Taj Mahal or the White House, and are at least 20 feet tall and covers the area of a football field. Where do you keep such pandals, how does one preserve them? But I think if we try a little harder, we might be able to preserve the idols. They do not take up so much space as the pandals, but even then we would require a huge space for preserving them as thousands are created every year but only a hundred can be regarded as works of art.
I hope that the pujas bring joy to everyone and everyone enjoys themselves as I will, but at the same time I wish I could do something to preserve these works of art. Anyone has any ideas?
People all over Bengal do their utmost to make Her stay on Earth as pleasurable as possible by building pandals and idols of exquisite form and beauty. The idols and pandals are a work of art - art that is as temporal as Her stay. And that I feel is tragic.
Artists, sculptors, architects and designers get together and toil for months to create monuments with bamboo, cloth, straw, cardboard, thermocol and other items of temporal construction (even buiscuits and candy!) that are built to the model of temples, churches, mosques, historic buildings and even ships. The effort that goes into the construction of these aweinspiring pandals is gargantuan in proportion and deserves all the praise.
The idols are also works of art, examples of exquisite sculptures. They come in various sizes and shapes. Sometimes all five members of Goddess Durga's family are put together and sometimes they are paired and at other times they are created individually. They are adorned with intricately designed ornaments and dresses that would put any emperor to shame. The idols are made mostly of clay, but sculptors also create idols from straw, from wood-shavings, from paper, from chalk, and from other materials.
The sad part of this is the end - these works of art last only for the duration of the pujas, after which they are dismantled or sold off in pieces. It does not feel right that these works of art should stop existing so soon and so easily. We need some way of preserving them, but their size and their number are too daunting for any conservationist programme. It is almost impossible to preserve them. It is very difficult to preserve pandals that replicate the Ajanta Caves or the Taj Mahal or the White House, and are at least 20 feet tall and covers the area of a football field. Where do you keep such pandals, how does one preserve them? But I think if we try a little harder, we might be able to preserve the idols. They do not take up so much space as the pandals, but even then we would require a huge space for preserving them as thousands are created every year but only a hundred can be regarded as works of art.
I hope that the pujas bring joy to everyone and everyone enjoys themselves as I will, but at the same time I wish I could do something to preserve these works of art. Anyone has any ideas?
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