Why BMTC is wrong (again)
Sometimes, some pieces of news bewilder you to such levels that you feel utterly hopeless about life around you. It happened to me today, when I read: BMTC seeks congestion tax on high-density corridors; bus lane trial run on ORR from Oct 20. To anyone who lives in Bangalore and commutes every day (the commute involving using at least five kilometres of the pothole-ridden adventure tracks, commonly known as “roads” in Bangalore), this is no less than a crude joke.
My problem with the Quora Partner Programme
One of the things I do is answer questions on Quora. I’m not a regular or anything. I crossed the 10,000 mark only a few days ago. There are those with millions of views per week. I’m nowhere near, I’m nowhere that dedicated to anything in the world. But I do get answer requests every few days. These range from “okay” to utterly stupid/obvious. I am against systems that make people intellectually lazy, and unfortunately, with Quora rolling out the Partner Programme, it is slowly but surely becoming exactly that.
Kashmir and Article 370: Part Three
In the last two posts, we understood the technical aspects of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. To repeat for the benefit of those who landed here directly, this is the third part of the three-part series on the Act. Part One of the series is about the background of the formation of the Union of India and accession of Jammu and Kashmir to it. Part Two of the series is about the current situation, along with the legal and geo-political view of the change.
Kashmir and Article 370: Part Two
This is the second part of the three-part series on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. If you came here directly, this post alone will not do justice to the situation. Go back and read Part One. Reading the series partially will make you judgemental with limited knowledge. This article is available as a typeset printable PDF as well. This post talks about the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kashmir and Article 370: Part One
We heard a lot of noise throughout the last week over the abrogation of Article 370 (and subsequently, Article 35A). Everyone kept saying: Article 370 is “no longer valid” in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Why, Jammu and Kashmir was no more a state! But then, as with all noises, this noise added to the confusion in our minds. And before we go any further, let me say in simple English, what Article 370 and Article 35A are.
My Granny and Burma
On a regular visit to my grandmother’s house in Chennai, we would hear one or the other episode of their exodus from Burma (now Myanmar). And some of these stories, we would lip-sync with her, to mock her. She would notice it, but continue to tell the story. Defiantly. This nature of ours was so ingrained in us that we did not even give it a second thought before we mocked her or attempted to ignore her when she told us the story.
Are Government Freebies Bad
Ever since the word, “Socialist”, got added to the Preamble of our constitution—or perhaps much before that—political parties, in their manifestos, have continued to promise freebies to us citizens. This is so common, that we now take the freebies and subsidies for granted. Understand that I am not talking from a political standpoint; I am talking of politics, but not from a political standpoint. Take this post in the sense of an economy and its members, which is us; everyone of us.
The economics of home ownership in Bangalore
When I was in college, my dream was to buy a house in the Kathipara area in Chennai. I was a simple, unthoughtful middle-class child back then. As an unthoughtful middle-class child, my nature was to roll with the mainstream, whether something mattered or not. And the mainstream, more often than not, works on sentiments. Buying a house and “settling down” is one such sentiment. When I moved to Bangalore, my aunt told me, ‘You know what?
How to not celebrate Women's Day
When Ustraa sent me an “offers” SMS in November, “Gear up for No-shave November with Ustraa … 20% discount on all products”, I realised how meanings were being lost rapidly. No-shave November is a relatively new “observance”, and most of us Indians don’t know the meaning of it. (So, Ustraa is forgiven for now.) This post is not about No-shave November, but about a relatively old concept of Women’s Day. Did we lose sight of its meaning because it’s a pre-Millennial concept?
Where democracy should begin
Education is perhaps the most powerful weapon in the world. Education, starting from our childhood, shapes our thoughts, actions, interactions, and overall, our lives. Not only are our perceptions based on the learnings of our past, but our assimilation of new learnings depends strongly on the basis created by our experiences and past learnings. The talk of education brings to us the thought of literacy. We start thinking about how our rate of literacy is improving year on year.