Sachin and the emotions

Let me be honest - I was not, am not and will not be a Sachin fan. Don't get me wrong - I respect the guy, and I admire him for the way he has handled enormous pressure while dudes like me blow off our top for every trivial stuff that happens in office; and for the squeaky clean image over a 24 year career.

There has been the odd "Maaki" (Australia 2008) or the "ball-tampering" (South Africa, 2008); but I will let those incidents pass - too many others have done far greater shit and walked away scot-free.

For me it is an honour that Sachin made his debut and batted last on my birthday (15th November 1989 and 2013). #ThankYouSachin for that :D

What is the best image of Sachin in my memory? I have 3

1. Operation Desert Storm

2. The stunning assault on the Aussies in the World Cup 1996. Nearly won us that match till he got stumped off a Mark Waugh wide

3. THAT innings in Chennai against Pakistan

Thanks for the memories Sachin :)

Rekindled Feelings for a One time love?

I recently met one of my MTech classmates who continues to work in the core-technical areas of the power system; i.e. design, simulations of power system devices. We got talking as friends do after a long time, and got down to discussing our respective lines of work. It was surprising how the adage - grass is greener on the other side holds true everywhere. My friend was of the opinion that commercial is the way to go whereas I told him that technical excellence is the harbinger of greatness.

The major point that got me thinking was when he said that Indian power systems still use Static VAR Compensators (SVCs) for reactive power compensation. What the hell has happened in the power sector in the last 7 years since I graduated? There was so much noise about the various devices like STATCOMs , DSTATCOMs, DVRs, SSSCs etc. revolutionizing the power sector. In fact research used to focus on churning out papers showing different simulations of these exotic devices.

Predictably stupid thoughts started to flow - was I ahead of time in 2006? (I was quickly brought to ground when another friend said that it was not about immediate utility application, but the race to patent an idea that drove such research) Why didn't the final set of unified simulations work? Why did I let folks push me around during the time when I was finding system modeling a little tough? Why did I allow all this to kill my interest in research?

These were some of the reasons for not joining a core-technical company.

But, as the proverb goes "Aadadella Olithe Aayithu" (everything happens for the good) - I discovered the field of management consulting in the power sector which has slowly but steadily led me onto energy policy. Herein is a world where I thought I would be a total misfit - but I've lasted for 7 years and going strong :-)

So much so, that I am contemplating taking up research in this area - is this an old flame fluttering her eyelashes at me? :)

A realization

Pustakastha tu ya Vidya
Parahasta Gatam Dhanam
Karyakaale Samutpanne
Na Saa Vidya Na tat Dhanam

Knowledge that exists in a book and money that is in another's hands
Is not knowledge nor money - cos when you need it its not there!

So true! Damn you Sanskrit Pundits for such foresight! :-(

Urbanization or reverse ruralization?

"The soul of India lives in its villages" goes a famous saying by Mahatma Gandhi. He was a champion of village development, and believed that India would progress only if its villages progressed. Nehru on the other hand was of the view that urbanization and rapid industrialization alone would carry the nation forward.
Innumerable debates rage about the benefits of either model. If one were to crudely generalize, politicians tend to prefer village areas, and the so called "air conditioned room arm chair specialists" prefer urbanization. There is even a book called "Triumph of the City" which champions urbanization. Before reading the book, I too loved and dreamed to the "suburbian" lifestyle. Big sprawling house with a drive down to a less congested city centre. This vision satisfied both my aesthetic and my environmentally conscious mind; but after reading the book I found that there was nothing environmentally friendly about the "suburbian" lifestyle. More on this book in another post.
One interesting trend that has emerged from the rapid construction boom in all cities is the extent to which the apartment complexes have spread to the far outskirts. Most of these areas used to fall outside the municipal limits of the "original" city. Once a upon a time you would have classified them as "rural" areas.
So, would you define the process as urbanization of the rural areas or a return to ruralization for the urban dweller? Keep in mind that we are just dealing with semantics here. True re-ruralization would actuslly mean one getting back to agriculture/animal husbandry etc and living like a true villager - a simple life without malls/24 hour electricity (wherever it exists) :-)

The vagaries of Meru Cabs - or radio cabs in general (in Mumbai ONLY)

When radio cabs (the likes of Meru, Mega, Easy) were launched a few years ago, it promised a brand new revolution - the revolution of clean taxis, courteous drivers who were on time where you wanted them to come, honest billing - in general a hassle free ride of course for a slightly greater charge.
These radio cabs were dreaded by the normal black and yellow taxis - there were stray incidents of violence and the like, proving the adage that if people are abusing you, you must be doing something good!
Then - the slide started. Was it the rising demand encouraged by efficient services not being met due to an old licensing procedure of the state? Was it the unionization of the driving pool? Was it the general hubris that sets in when the going is good?
It could be any of them - whats more puzzling is that I have heard cases of all the companies failing to pick up the customer after confirming a booking. It's as if all of them sat together and decided "OK, time to screw the customer!".

OR MORE SINISTER MOTIVES - The black and white cabbies have infiltrated the radio cab ranks and are deliberately under(non) - performing to bring them a bad name. Sounds good for a spy movie, but not for this blog :)

I absolutely have no issues if a cab company tells me when I call that they do not have cabs available. But what irks and angers me is when I am given the details of the driver only to find that he doesn't turn up; or if the company unilaterally cancels the request a little while before the alloted time!

The ultimate height (or nadir) in this case was a couple of weeks back when I had booked a cab to go somewhere. As usual, things were confirmed and we had planned our schedule accordingly. 15 minutes before pickup I start calling the driver and there was no response. I finally had to give up after 1/2 an hour and find alternate means of traveling. Luckily, this is Bombay and there was no problem finding an alternative!

Sometime in the afternoon the driver called me and said that he was extremely sorry, he had gone to sleep; please don't complain etc.

Sure dude, I won't complain, but reject the pick-up broadcast if you are really tired; atleast someone who could have come will certainly benefit.

But again, some things will never change!

Ekaro from Nigeria

To be honest, the journey to Lagos was always going to be undertaken with lots of trepidation. And why not, with news of violence, muggings and general lawlessness creating the right amount of fear. This was mixed with the usual excitement of seeing a new place and the tag of the first business trip outside India. Africa will thus hold a special place in my heart.

There was a really quick transit at Doha; but there was time to observe that many of the staff at Doha Airport were Mallus.

Doha to Lagos was a LONG flight (sorry US travelers, no comparison with you guys); and for the first time ever in my life I took breaks standing up, stretching etc in the flight. Watched Wolverine, Singham, a 2 hour highlights package of the 2011 cricket world cup and Ek Doctor Ki Maut. Man will do ANYTHING to kill time.

The landing in Lagos was a welcome relief and the interesting part was that somehow the strangeness of stepping out of the flight that I felt at Shanghai was not felt here. Maybe Africa is closer to India than China. Or was it because it was my second time?

My Arsenal connections (nothing much - I'm just a fan :) ) ensured an instant rapport with the gentleman who had come to pick us up.

We travelled along the longest bridge in Africa called the 3rd mainland Bridge which connects the Lagos mainland to Victoria Island. One can see the slow stirrings of development in Nigeria and this bridge is symbolic of it. However the massive slums that can be seen along its sides are indicative of the challenges facing Nigeria.

Its been 3 days here and this is what I have learnt -

1. Democracy is the best form of government. Even with all its imperfections, Nigeria will fulfil its potential. It may take it 15 years instead of 8; but its better to reach the finish line slowly with all your citizens rather than reach there quickly with only a handful.

2. Excellent English is spoken here;

3. The local language Yoruba is pretty cool to learn and I have started learning a few words

4. Traffic jams are everywhere :)

5. Formal attire is accorded so much importance that people dont think twice while wearing a suit in the hot sun

6. All houses are fenced/surrounded by high walls which goes to show that the fears of law-breaking are not
completely unfounded

7. Veggies will find it tough!

8. Inflation levels are super high here and petrol is cheaper than water :) {65 Nairas vs approx. 100 Nairas}

Some more time to spend here - hopefully will have much more to learn!

Shanghai Noon

I came across the character Chief Inspector Chen created by the author Qiu Xiaolong in either the Business Standard or the Times of India. (don't remember which one). The paper described the book as part of a latest trend gripping readers across the world; getitng to know the city through a detective novel and exploring the spots described later on.

I was a week away from my China trip; and then decided "Hey, this is so cool. I will read this book; memorize the names; explore the places and impress the localites".

I remember going to PVR Mulund (to watch either Transformers/KF Panda 2+X-Men) and hopped into the adjacent Crossword. As is my usual experience with Crossword, the book was listed in the database, but no copies were available. I dropped the idea of buying the book from a physical store, then and there like a hot potato and turned to the new darling - Flipkart!

Sure enough, I got the book delivered; admired the title, and thought - right, "Ni Hao Shanghai"! I even packed it on top of my travel bag!

I think you must have got the drift of the story now - I ended up enjoying so much in China that I hardly found time to read. All the books except The Enchantress of Florence came back unread :)

The irritating and time wasting Mumbai traffic then came to my rescue. Long, 2 hour (one way) bus journeys became the ideal setting for the slow, bureaucratic, deferential and nice detective story to unfold. If you are looking for a super mystery like Sherlock this is not your book.

Death of a Red Heroine realistically captures the difficulty of working within China's red-tape; the influence of politics even in the lives of meritorious candidates and the food eaten on the streets! It moves slowly, and somewhere in the middle of the book you know who the culprits are, but it still keeps you engrossed.

That's why I like this book.