The importance of English

The following is a seminar presented by my Student, Mr. Madhusudhan, (Basic) of MWF Batch Jun-Aug '10

English is one of the most important languages in the world. It can even be said o be the single most important language. Other languages are important too, but not for the same reasons as English are important. English is important because it is, maybe, the only language that truly links the whole world together. If not for English, the whole world may not be as united as it is today. The other languages may be important for their local values and culture.

English can be used as a language in any part of the world. This is because at least a few people in each locality would know the language. Though these people might not have the same accent as others, the language at least will be understandable. There are various reasons for the importance of English language. They are listed below.

1. When a person travels to another part of the world either for the sake of business or even as a tourist, the languages may differ. In these conditions, English is the language that helps people to deal with the situation. It is like a universal language.

2. In our country English is important for a number of reasons. India is a land of diversity. Different people speak different languages. A person of Tamil Nadu does not speak Hindi. So he can't understand Hindi of a person from North India. However he can understand in English. So English is a link language. Different people can communicate with one another with the help of English. Secondly, all advanced knowledge in science, technology and medicine is available in English. The results of the latest researches come to India through the medium of English. If we give up English, we will lag behind in the higher fields of study. Today the world has become one family.

3. The presence of English as a universal language assumes importance in the fact that more and more people leave their countries not only for the sake of business and pleasure, but also for studying. Education has increased the role of English. People who go to another country to study can only have English as their medium of study. This is because the individual will not be able to learn a subject in the local language of the country. This again reinforces the fact that English language is very important.

4. All correspondences between offices in different countries and also between political leaders of various countries is in English. This linking factor also tells of the importance of English language.

5. In spite of the growth of Internet in various languages, English is the mainstay of the Internet users. This is the language in which most of the information and websites are available. It is very difficult to translate each and every relevant webpage into the language of various countries. With Internet becoming very important in E commerce and also in education, English language is bound to grow. Thus the importance of English as a language is emphasized.

Life, A Laughing Matter by Murali A Raghavan

This article was published in The Times of India on 19th June 2010 Sat in the column Speaking Tree

Humour relieves boredom, eases tension and enlivens the atmosphere. Laughing at oneself is a good way to keep one’s ego in check. Yet ‘serious’ spiritual seekers tend to think that humour and spirituality are poles apart. This is far from the truth.

Evolved masters have a sense of humour, and they often use humour to drive home a point. Gurus like Kanchi Paramacharya, Ramana Maharshi, Swami Chinmaynanda and Swami Dayananda Saraswati sprinkled their talks liberally with humour.
Swami Chinmayananda was once scouting for a suitable venue in Chennai to hold his Geeta Gyana Yagna. Most temples, under the dominant influence of Brahmins, were reluctant to help out. Finally, one of his disciples rushed to him with the news that a Muslim was ready to make available his empty bungalow for the purpose. “But there is a problem,” said the disciple, “the house is believed to be haunted.” On hearing this, the Swami quipped: “What a wonderful opportunity! I’ve never seen a ghost in my life!”
Every morning, Ramana Maharshi would walk up the Arunachala hill. Once a stranger spotted him all alone, and wishing to have darshan, he walked faster and managed to overtake the Maharshi and stood in front of him, blocking his way. With folded palms he said “Swamiji, this is a great day for me. You have blessed me with your darshan.” The Maharshi responded: “This is really funny. What darshan you’re talking about? It is you who have come before me and given me your darshan.”
On another occasion a group of American devotees who were seated at a distance from the Maharshi because of the crowd, asked him whether they could move forward so that the Maharshi’s grace will be upon them. The Maharshi replied that he had no objection to their moving forward but his grace was always there for everyone irrespective of proximity. The group, nonetheless, pushed forward and almost came near him. After some time the devotees requested the Maharshi to place his palms on their head so that they can receive the grace in full measure. An amused Maharshi said: “Next you might ask me to sign a bond and take me to court if you imagine that the grace has not worked!’ The entire gathering burst into laughter.
While delivering a discourse on the Gita, Swami Dayananda Saraswati narrated the following story: There were three terminally ill patients and the doctor asked them to express their last wish so that he could arrange to fulfil them. The first patient said that he would like to meet the priest and confess. The second said that he would like to meet his entire family. The doctor took care of the requests. He turned to the third patient who muttered: “I’d like to see another doctor.”
A scholar approached Kanchi Paramacharya and boasted that he was an expert on the Gita. The seer asked him if he could spare some time to hold a 10-day discourse at the local temple. The scholar assented. On the first day 50 people came to hear him and the attendance dwindled on subsequent days. The scholar met the Paramacharya and said: “What sort of a town is this? No one seems to be interested in the Gita. On the first day there was a crowd of 50, second day 25 and on the third day there were only two persons to listen to me!’’
With a twinkle in his eye the seer remarked: “Why fret? When Krishna spoke the Gita there was only one person to listen to him!”

ATM inventor Shepherd-Barron dies

This article appeared in The Times of India on 21st May 2010 (Fri)

JOHN SHEPHERD-BARRON

India-Born Scotsman Was 84

London: A Scotsman who came up with the idea for the world’s first automatic cash machine while sitting in the bath after he was locked out of his bank has died at the age of 84in Scotland.
John Shepherd-Barron’s “eureka” moment was inspired by a machine dispensing chocolate bars and he later sold his concept to an executive at Britain’s Barclays Bank over a pink gin.
More than 40 years after the first cash machine, or ATM, opened at a bank in north London, customers now have access to 1.7 million worldwide. “It struck me there must be a way I could get my own money, anywhere in the world,” he said in a BBC interview in 2007 to mark the ATM’s 40th anniversary. “I hit upon the idea of a chocolate bar dispenser, but replacing chocolate with cash.”
In the absence of plastic cards, the first customers withdrew money using special checks impregnated with a mildly radioactive material. The machines were designed to recognize the checks and dispense money once the customer had entered a personal identification number (PIN).
Shepherd-Barron’s wife suggested he used a four-digit security number because she said she would never be able to remember the originally planned six digits. The idea stuck.Banks in the US at first gave his invention a lukewarm reception, viewing it as a “wacky European idea that wouldn’t sell in America”, the inventor and businessman said.
Born in India to Scottish parents in 1925, Shepherd-Barron worked for the banknote printer De La Rue and was honoured by Queen Elizabeth for services to banking in 2005.
Although Shepherd-Barron was credited with inventing the first practical ATM, he had a rival for the claim to have developed the type of machine widely used today.
Fellow Scot James Goodfellow, also honoured by Queen Elizabeth for an alternative ATM design, said it was wrong to portray Shepherd-Barron as the cash machine’s inventor. REUTERS

MAKING SENSE OF 3G

This article appeared in The Times of India on 21st May 2010 (Fri).

General About 3G
What is 3G technology and how is it different from 2G?
3G is the third generation of wireless mobile technology which represents an evolution over the existing 2G services provided by operators in India. While 2G networks allow data, text messaging and speech, the 3G technologies allow additional services such as multimedia messaging, customized infotainment, videos, and rich voice
How many countries in the world have 3G networks?
At the last count, nearly 132 countries had 3G networks operational
How many mobile subscribers are there in the world? What percentage has migrated to 3G?
There are nearly 4.7bn mobile subscribers worldwide. Nearly 13% of these have migrated to 3G
What is the growth projection for 3G subscribers in Asia?
One study suggests 570mn 3G subscribers in Asia Pacific by 2013. India is expected to have nearly 6% of this market
Who are the pioneers of 3G technology?
Japan and South Korea are seen as leaders in 3G technology. Additionally, UK, Germany, Italy and US also have widespread usage
Licences In India
How many 3G licences have been given?
Three pan-India 3G licences have been auctioned in 22 circles. In 5 of the 22 circles, a fourth 3G licence has been auctioned. So a total of 71 new 3G licences. BSNL and MTNL already provide 3G services
Why have 3G auctions been delayed?
Till recently, the govt was unable to secure 3G spectrum from the Defence Ministry. The auctions have been delayed more than a year since they were first planned for
Jan 2009
Will competition increase now?
No. Only existing operators have won 3G bidding. In fact, after auctions, further consolidation of the sector is expected within 18 months
Are there rollout obligations for 3G?
Street level coverage in at least 90% service area within 5 years. 50% coverage of district headquarters, of which 15% should be rural areas within 5 yrs Auction Details
What are the payment terms for successful bidders?
Successful bidders will deposit the amount within 10 calendar days of the close of auction, failing which earnest money shall stand forfeited
When will 3G services be available?
BSNL and MTNL already offer 3G services. Other operators may be able to offer 3G services only by end of 2010, but in any case not earlier than Sep 2010
What is the duration of 3G licences?
The right to use 3G spectrum shall be valid for 20 yrs from the effective date. Till the year 2030
Will M&A guidelines apply?
Yes, guidelines as prescribed by DoT. Currently, if two or more operators with 3G spectrum merge, they will be allowed to retain only one 3G spectrum block per service area and have to surrender the remaining
What is Hertz?
Hertz, named after the German physicist Heinrich Hertz, are the measurement of frequency, current, & electricity. Their uses are common in many fields, including sound waves and radiation
1 hertz = 1 cycle per sec (cps) One megahertz is made up of 1 million hertz. In 3G, each operator had bid for 5 MHz of spectrum in the telecom circle(s) of his choice. India has 22 telecom circles

Throwing Light On Knowledge

The following article appeared in "The Times of India - Speaking Tree" on 08th May 2010 Sat.

I like this one.

Throwing Light On Knowledge

G S Tripathi

Knowledge of eternity is sometimes termed as the knowledge of Supreme light. It remains an enigma and is sought out as the ultimate destination by all seekers of truth.
A reasonable understanding of the science of light began with Newton, whose concept of light converged with the concept proposed by Einstein more than 200 years later, of the particle nature of light – although Einstein’s light quanta are different from Newton’s corpuscles. In between the two, there is continuity, a wave, also a nature of light. This is the wave-particle duality of modern physics. Light interacts with matter as particle butpropagates as wave.
Shining light on philosophical aspects of knowledge also has several aspects. In the Bhagavad Gita, when Arjuna sees the cosmic form of Krishna, he compares the radiance he sees to the combined light of thousands of suns. In other words, the cosmic form is the Supreme light, the guide as well as destination of all knowledge.
In the Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga or the yoga of individual and ultimate consciousness of the Gita, Krishna says that He is the illuminator of all light, beyond darkness of all ignorance, and therefore Supreme Knowledge, knowing which, there would be nothing to be known further. He also resides as knowledge in all beings.
Knowledge is continuous; it pervades space and time; it is also discrete, as it is there in every being, all the time. It is the duality of knowledge, in conformity with the duality of light.
The beginning of light as well as knowledge remains as much of a mystery as the beginning of space, the universe, and time. The more one explores, the more the mystery. It’s worth the quest as it signifies progress and expands the territory of knowledge.
Knowledge liberates the mind and knowledge of the ultimate enables eternal liberation. On a similar note, ordinary light de-localises a localised particle; focused and high intensity light can liberate the particle from the system itself. This is the essence of Einstein’s photo electric effect.
In Quantum Theory, a material body can emit light when excited. The excitation can be done by absorption of light. Emission of light can take place also by mechanical, chemical, thermal and even biological excitations. However, all bodies cannot absorb light. Some transmit it and others reflect it.
Similarly, not everyone is capable of absorbing knowledge. The Gita says that the one who is devoted and has his senses in complete control is alone entitled to receive the Supreme knowledge. Hence, in the spiritual context, knowledge is also a form of energy; and it can do and undo things.
Both light and knowledge cannot be absolutely confined, although they could be effectively localised. But one should not lose sight of the fact that while light is a physical entity governed by and conforming to physical laws, knowledge is a transcendental perception.
What are the possible areas of convergence between the material and the spiritual? Synergy is essential for finding meaningful solutions to challenges of life and time.

A nice message

The following article was published in THE TIMES OF INDIA, Hyderabad edition on 25th Mar 2010 Thu

A Tree As Old As The Hills

Sanjay Dev

I am God’s creation; He who created the cosmos also created me. I am one of the elements of the natural world, and so am perhaps as old as the hills, existing say, for more than 210 million years now, going by the estimates of cosmogonists.
Genesis makes mention of me as the Tree of Knowledge planted by God along with the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, embodying knowledge of good and evil. The one whose fruit was forbidden to eat and which both Adam and Eve ended up eating, succumbing to temptation. And for which transgression they were banished from the Garden of Eden, to toil and sweat for survival.
I am also the Bo Tree, the tree under whose shade Gautama attained enlightenment and became known as the Buddha. I am produced by spore or seed and thus self-perpetuate, as per phytogenesis. That’s about my age, origin and evolution. I have witnessed vicissitudes of times; rise and fall of civilisations. I have survived the Apocalypse that flattened entire Creation and reduced me to a fossil or several fossils – proof of my once-being-there.
Years of survival and the struggle to live, inherent in all living beings, have conditioned me to stand the ground and acclimatise to surroundings, hostile or friendly, no matter! I first make sure that i stand on my own, and then prepare the ground for my near and dear ones. I not only create a habitat for myself but do so for others, too, who flock to my arborous arms. As a tree, one must be pliable when young. You can’t shape me into a mould once i am grown up and my limbs get ossified.
I understand the language of interdependence. And hence have a pact with those who tend to me. I fill their lungs with life-giving oxygen and take in the discarded carbon dioxide to fill mine and nourish myself. To reward others for my upkeep, i give them wood, fruits, rubber, nectar, gum, food and medicinal substances. This constitutes the material exchange. Besides, i also give protection from sun and rain; help stabilise the ground they make their homes on; offer them green cover to counter pollution and rarify the air they inhale.
I can’t be faulted because i keep teaching lessons – audible enough when it blows; visible enough when it blows and pours. I keep beckoning my arm-like branches and fluttering my wing-like leaves. What can i do if thewoods and its inhabitants collectively and separately miss my lessons of peaceful coexistence, communion with nature, symbiotic relationship, self-reliance, coalescence, assimilation and absorption, virtues of charity and giving, growing closely yet apart, vertical growth rooted in horizontal development, unobtrusive communication, standing tall, yet bending with one’s own weight without throwing it around – all this and much more. But alas, it seems they miss the woods for the trees!
I have always known my place in the vast cosmos and respect its limits in the context of my existence or not. Unfortunately, those who study the vastness of the cosmos believe in invading others’ space. Why don’t they just let me be? Ought you to judge a tree by its bark? The tree is known by its fruit, sometimes. How long will i take kindly to it all? If there is no more eco-mindfulness in the world and consumerism becomes the main driver of life and living, would that not impact the entire system? What if ultimately trees lose their ‘treeness’?

Hyderabad - part of history

The following article was published in THE TIMES OF INDIA, Hyderabad edition on 22 Mar 2010 Mon

For Hyderabadis, Bhagmati is vital part of history

Mir Ayoob Ali Khan | TNN

Hyderabad: When international scholar of Urdu and Deccani David Mathews expressed doubts over the veracity of the story that Sultan Mohammed Quli named Hyderabad after his beloved Bhagmati, local experts including writers, historians and academics joined issue with him. Mathews had said, “I am not saying there was no Bhagmati. What I am saying is that more research is required to establish her existence in history.”

Narendra Luther who has written extensively on the history and culture of Hyderabad firmly believes that the debate over the love story of Quli Qutb Shah and Bhagmati, a Hindu peasant girl, was settled long ago. He is firm that Bhagmati did exist, Mohammed Quli did marry her and when he built Hyderabad around the village of her birth Chechlam, he named it Bhagnagar. After he bestowed on her the title of Hyder Mahal, Bhagnagar was renamed as Hyderabad.

In an article published in the biannual journal of Salar Jung Museum in 1996 Luther cited several travellers and historians to debunk the writings of historian Haroon Khan Sherwani denying the existence of Bhagmati. However, Syeda Jafar who has edited the collection of poetry of Mohammed Quli and written the history of Urdu literature supports Sherwani’s opinion.

“North Indian historians such as Faizi, Khafi Khan, Nizamuddin and Abdul Baqui looked down upon the sultanates of the Deccan, some called the Sultanate a mere ‘jagir’ and others even misspelt the name of Mohammed Quli,” she avers. Contemporary historians of the Deccan like Ali Bin Aziz Taba Taba or the writer of Tareekh-e-Qutb Shah do not mention Bhagmati, she points out. Two important poets of the time, Mohammed Quli and Ghawasi, also did not mention Bhagnagar; they had referred to the new capital of Golconda as Hyderabad, she adds.

But K Chandraiah, a civil servant, preferred the Luther line. In an article, The Legend of Bhagmati, in the book Hyderabad: 400 Glorious Years, Chandraiah wrote, “The romance of young Mohammed Quli and the pretty charming lady (Bhagmati) has firm roots in history. The writings of Abul Faizi, Nizamuddin Baksh, Abdul Baqi Nihawandi and Khafi Khan cannot be brushed aside on flimsy grounds that some of them never visited the place and their accounts were based on hearsay.”

Ziauddin Ahmed Shakeb, an expert on Islamic and Indian art, said while contemporary Moghul sources such as Abul Fazal, Firishta, and Badayuni discuss Bhagmati, the character is hardly cited by Deccani sources. “There is a grain of truth in the character of Bhagmati. Mohammed Quli was in love with her, he named Chechlam as Bhagnagar which is around today’s Yakutpura. The name of Bhagnagar village can be found in archival records. But the Sultan did not change Bhagnagar to Hyderabad or name Hyderabad after Bhagmati,” he said.

Shakeb made another startling observation: “Mir Momin, the Peshwa (prime minister) of Mohammed Quli did not appreciate the closeness between the Sultan and Bhagmati. Therefore, he decided to ensure that Bhagmati’s character is driven out of contemporary history. So much so that she did not even have a tomb built over her last remains.” He added, “I agree with Mathews that there should be more research on Bhagmati.”

Historian Salma Ahmed Farooqui insists that accounts of foreign travellers should not be dismissed as they are one of the main sources of social, economic and administrative conditions of those times and bring to focus aspects of life that were ignored by local historians. Bhagmati finds mention in the travel accounts of Bernier, Tavernier, Thevenot and Careri, who visited Hyderabad, though it was some 60 to 80 years after the rule of Mohammed Quli ended. All of them refer to Bhagmati as the mistress of Mohammed Quli. “The presence of Bhagmati can be accepted as four travellers have referred to her romantic tale,” she said.

M Abdul Qaiyoom, former deputy director of the department of Archeology and Museum, provides artistic evidence of Bhagmati’s existence. The State Museum in Public Gardens has a portrait of Bhagmati done around 1750 CE. A copy of this portrait can be found at the Salar Jung Museum.

Another portrait was published in the Journal of J J School of Arts, Mumbai, in 1942, but its authenticity is doubtful. “I have come across a Sotheby catalogue which carries a portrait of a Deccani damsel seated on a terrace. It’s by the artist Mohammed Reza-i-Hindi and dated 1760 CE. Though she has not been identified as Bhagmati, her features are strikingly similar to those of ladies in the portraits at the State and Salar Jung museums. I demand that a search for the character of Bhagmati be undertaken afresh in Hyderabad and Europe,” he said.

Conservationist Sajjad Shahed would like to close the debate thus: “All people and places have their own myths, legends and love stories. Hyderabadis have their own love-story, one based on the long poem ‘Qutb-Mushtari’ written by Wajhi and presented to Sultan Mohammed Quli on his coronation. Qutb here is Mohammed Quli and Mushtari is his beloved Bhagmati. Forget about digging up the past; let’s continue to believe in the legend”.

RUINS OF GOLCONDA FORT