When did the Indians start cutting hair & beard?

Sanatan Dharma is the oldest religion and so the earliest people in India were undoubtedly the ones whom we collectively know today as Hindus. At that point of time, when Lord Rama and Lord Krishna took birth on this earth for the betterment of mankind, most of the people in India were very spiritual. Almost every spiritual man/woman, saints, the Avtaars/Prophets had uncut hair and beard as a mark of utmost respect and devotion to God Almighty and they maintained themselves as God had created them.

It was the time when the worst humiliation and punishment for any person was to cut his/her hair. It was considered to be worst than a Death Sentence.

With the birth of Janamejaya and under his rule, many things changed on the Indian Landscape. Janamejaya was a Kuru King. He was the son of Parikshit and Madravati. He was the grandson of Abhimanyu and the great-grandson of Arjuna, the valiant warrior hero of the Mahabharata. His rule marked the end of the complete Spiritual way of Life in India and marked the beginning of Kalyug. He was perhaps the first king who was not spiritually awakened like his ancestors and was more towards the worldly thought process.

Janamejaya always expressed doubt that Lord Krishna was an Avtaar/Prophet. He went with the same doubt to Ved Vyas. The author of the great epic Mahabharata, Ved Vyas was the first and greatest Acharya of Sanatan Dharma. Ved Vyas acknowledged the fact that Lord Krishna was an Avtaar and he  had complete knowledge of Past, Present and Future. 

Janamejaya said that if He was an Avtaar, then why didnt He tell His beloved Pandavas not to play "Game of Dice" will eventually led to so many troubles for them and the war between them and the Kauravas? 

Ved Vyas said that as we sow, so shall we reap and because of past deeds of the Pandavas, they had to face such tough times and bear the consequences and so even if Lord Krishna had told them beforehand, Pandavas still would have played the Game of Dice. Janamejaya over-ruled this and said that even Ved Vyas is a hypocrite and  is making a fool of the people. He said that if Ved Vyas told him to refrain from doing something as it will do some harm, than why would he do the same.

Ved Vyas then told him that he will die of Leprosy, which was completely incurable at that time. Janamejaya said that as per holy books, only that person gets Leprosy who has cheated/ stolen at Holy Place or harmed the Holy People and till then, he had not done any such thing. So if he gets leprosy, that means Holy Books were wrong.

Ved Vyas said that Janamejaya would perform Ashwamegh Yagya in which a Royal Horse was left out and from which all neighbouring states/ erstwhile countries it passed, either the king of that state had to accept the rule of the King who sent that horse or if any king dares to stop that horse and hold it with him, he had to fight with the King to maintain freedom. Ved Vyas said that the king of Banaras would hold that horse and there will be a fight between Janamejaya and that king in which that king will be defeated and he will offer lot of wealth and get his daughter married to Janamejaya.

But Janamejaya would be attracted to the beautiful maid (Daasi) that will come along the Princess from Banaras and will marry that maid (Daasi). Janamejaya will have a son from that maid and he will name him Ajay Singh. This was the first time someone used "Singh" with the name and since Maid (Daasi) was known as "RAJI" and son was called "POOT", Ajay Singh and his generations were called RAJIPOOT (means- son of the maid/daasi) and this word later became "RAJPOOT/ RAJPUT" who till date use Singh after their name.

Ved Vyas said Janamejaya would organize a royal function and will invite the holy men to offer prayers and his Queen (the Daasi) would request that she also wants to be the part of the function. As soon as she would come out to gathering, suddenly with the wind will blow for few moments and her clothing (unstitched cloth wrapped around the waist that covers till knees or below) would get lifted up and her body would be exposed, seeing which the holy men would laugh. In anger you would kill 18 of them and order your army to kill/punish the rest in the gathering. Due to these sins, Janamejaya will have leprosy and will die because of it.

Janamejaya denied and said he has more than enough territory under his rule and he will never go for Ashwamegh Yagya and after that he went away. Ved Vyas had told him that when something is bound to happen, God will make your mind work in such a way that you will do that work - Vinaash Kaal, Vipreet Buddhi

5 years after having this conversation with Ved Vyas, Janamejaya performed Ashwamegh Yagya as suggested by his army chief. By then he had forgotten what Ved Vyas had told him and everything went on as told by Ved Vyas. Janamejaya killed 18 holymen himself and got many more killed by his army. Very few who were sitting in the far corners of the gathering and didnt even know what went wrong were also tied up with rope and he ordered his men to shave off their heads, which was considered to be the most shameful punishment by the Indian men at that time as they kept uncut hair and beard. Their heads were shaved and they were left to move out in public. When people asked them who they were, they told that they were Brahmins. People objected that how could Brahmins cut their hair and beard, they said its because their father/mother have expired and thats why they have shaved their beard and heads. 

From that time, the Indians who used to follow Sanatan Dharam, now known as Hindus started cutting hair and beard and the custom of getting even the head shaved incase of death of ones parent started.

Janamejaya saw leprosy marks on his face after some time of killing these holy men and then he remembered what Ved Vyas had said.  Then he agreed that Lord Krishna was the Prophet/Avtaar and what Ved Vyas told was right - we cant escape but have to eat the fruits of our sins and nobody can save us from what is destined to happen.

He finally died of leprosy which was completely incurable at that time.

Educational Institutions functioning from Private Houses in J&K

Education Minister Mr. Peerzada has always set new benchmarks of corruption for his colleagues in Omar Abdullah's NC- Congress coalition government in Jammu & Kashmir. He has almost ruined the functioning and credibility of Jammu & Kashmir Board of School Education and made education a game more dirty than prostitution. There had been opposition against him from various quarters from a long time and finally he was compelled to offer his resignation which was surprisingly not accepted by Mrs. Sonia Gandhi.

3000 HEADMASTERS AWAIT CM's STAMP on their promotion. Some of them have retired from service waiting for their confirmation and hundreds of other are now awaiting the CM's approval so that at least their pensionery benefits are finalised. The WAIT OF 9 LONG YEARS HAS BEEN NERVE WRECKING.

Latest report in The Tribune once again highlights the failure of the government in the education sector in Jammu & Kashmir. The government had announced 22 new degree colleges for the state but even after its more than an year, these institutions today are just on paper or are functioning from a temporary accommodation. The slapdash approach of the government can be gauged from the fact that it has even failed to identify the requisite land for establishment of campuses in some cases, while some colleges are being run from two or three rooms in private houses or government higher secondary schools.

Last year, the government had announced 22 degree colleges, including 11 model degree colleges, in the state. The model degree colleges were to be developed with an estimated cost of Rs.8 crore under the UGC's scheme for backward districts.

The opposition had written to the PM, HRD Ministry and the UGC Chairman to look into the violations by the government but hardly anything has been done.

Jammu & Kashmir update!

J&K's 669 MW Hydroelectric projects ill- planned, Power Ministry napping!

Power ministry caught napping, Govt failed to take timely actions. Power Ministry hardly sought answers for Hydroelectric Projects being located in areas which are seismically active area, where natural disasters struck repeatedly.

For example, 240 MW Uri- II hydroelectric project which is likely to be completed by March 2013 bore brunt of earthquake which struck Uri and Pakistan occupied Kashmir on October 8, 2005. This was followed by flash floods in March 2007, May 2010 and September 2011 which resulted in washing away of the coffer dams. 


Medicinal plants that can win J&K a fortune
Some of the most needed medicinal plants grow in Jammu & Kashmir. However, unfortunately the government has been ignoring these resources for unknown reasons. Experts believe the plants can win the state quite a big fortune.

A plant commonly called as Soungul/ Pooes-Tul (Taxus Baccata) collected by Dr. Bashir is believed to yield some alkaloids that are used as anti- cancer drugs in the world of ailments. The plants needs to be studied seriously. 

Vanwangan (Podophyllum Emodi) is found growing all over Kashmir from 6000- 10,000 especially in Fir forests of Gulmarg and Gurez valley. The root of the plant yields Podophyllum resin, which is very popular in modern medicine. It is a powerful purgative and its action somewhat corresponds to that of mercury, hence it is named Vegetable Calomel.

Another important plant is Kuth (Saussurea Lappa). The Sanskrit name of Kuth is Kashmirja, which means "produced in Kashmir". Kuth is used as an aromatic, stimulant, as a medicine for cough, asthma, fever, dyspepsia and skin diseases. It is also used in stimulating mixtures for cholera and prescribed as stomatic tonic, for ulcers and in rheumatism. It is also used as a depurative and aphrodisiac.


Jammu City getting Breathless
There is a bad news for the residents of the city on the health front, as the presence of suspended particles in the city's air is way over the limit considered safe for breathing. Vehicular, industrial pollution has touched a new high. 

A data gathered by the State Pollution Control Board suggests that the Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) and the Respiratory Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) have seen a steep rise in the past two decades, crossing the limits suggested safe by health experts.

Jammu's Air Quality

Particulate Matter                         Current Level                             Normal Level
SPM                                             110- 114                                   100
RSPM                                           220- 230                                   200

TIME, Wikileaks are words of God!

Long time back, a friend of mine had forwarded a mail with a scanned copy of an old document. It had pic of a British Gentleman, who was deputed by the British to study the Indian society and how can they easily conquer India and rule whole country. 

He wrote- "I traveled across this country and I am amazed to see that I couldn't find any beggars. People are rich, self-contended and happy and their greatest strength is their culture. If we want to rule them, we will have to change their education system and make them believe that whatever is foreign is better than the Indian."

British successfully implemented this and same feeling has percolated deep inside our genes after centuries of slavery. We believe- All that glitters is Gold and even though politically we are independent, mentally and culturally we are still the slave of the Europeans and the US.

Even till today, whatever people and media of Europe and the US say, its like words of GOD to us, let is be from TIME Magazine or Wikileaks recently. We very well know media has also become a business only to gain power and money and it has been misused by politicians and businessmen like Mukesh Ambani for selfish interests. You will find "Friends of BJP or Congress", Journalists and Newspapers who blindly supports and work for either Congress or BJP and their trolls try to hijack the debates on Social media and influence the Indian mindset.

Ultimately what happens is obvious to us- all of them enjoy and common man suffers and is taken for a ride.

In the same way, news magazines like TIME and agencies like Wikileaks are used by the US to influence the whole world and create an atmosphere which suites their selfish motives and even to destabilize a country by spreading biased information as the people in developing countries neither have knowledge nor time or resources to verify the authenticity of their news/ views. Infact the more unfortunate part is, our own people carry forward their agenda and hype that information further and make it more flashy for selfish motives and use it against their opponents within the country - self before Nation. All of us do this, let it be Congress or BJP or regional parties like National Conference, Samajwadi Party , or Akali Dal. These politicians further misguide the innocent and ignorant people of the country and misuse them for selfish interests.

US has been in deep trouble from past many years and their economy still doesnt show any confident signs of desired recovery. Their expenditure exceeds their income, especially after their interference in Iraq and Afghanistan. (please read -Why things in US might be worse than Europe - http://www.rediff.com/business/slide-show/slide-show-1-special-why-things-in-us-might-be-worse-than-europe/20120628.htm )

We must remember that Americans are among the most selfish and cheap people on this earth who would go upto any extent for their personal interests. They are just like our Mukesh Ambani, who has amassed wealth by all possible means and now portrays a clean social image by running Reliance Foundation. He owns more than 25 News Channels, then who would expose the misdeeds of Reliance and its bosses? The Americans  are there to loot oil from Gulf and Iraq, minerals from poor countries like Congo, create and breed conflicts to sell weapons and what not. Their media supports and legalizes their interests as their intelligence agencies do the ground work.

The recent cover story of TIME showing our Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and giving him a tag of an UNDER-ACHIEVER is a part of their such strategies. No doubt UPA 2 regime has been the most corrupt till date and we all, including me, hate them for that but that doesn't mean we should let anyone to further misuse our sentiments and take us for a ride. May be for more penetration and hold in the Indian Markets, the US needs them to be more open which our Government didnt do till date and such a story can be an attempt to create pressure on our Government to do so.

Even during the Economic Turbulence across the World from the year 2008 till now, India has been among the least affected countries and growth rate has been among the best in the world.

No doubt corruption has been the most painful side of the present government but that doesnot mean corruption never existed in the Indian system before? It existed at every walk of life, even 25- 30 or 40 years back and has definitely increased over the period of time.

But one positive development over past few years is that corruption is being exposed more frequently, even the ministers have been jailed for the first time recently and the credit goes to the honest and clean man, Dr. Manmohan Singh.

This was my gut feeling which was supported and confirmed by comments of many of  esteemed readers on my blog for the article - If you are appointed as PM? To quote Mr. Deepak Budki's comments on my article (Twitter- @deepakbudki) - 

"I attended NDC course in 1992 alongwith Gen Vij & AM Krishnaswamy. Manmohan Singh delivered a lecture on Hawala Market & corruption and gave his analysis as to how to eradicate this evil.During the question hour, I asked him a question after reciting a couplet.Nasheman ke lut jaane ka ghum hota to kya ghum tha; Yahan to lootne walon ne gulshan loot dala hai.The question was;The corruption starts from you and filters down.By u I do not mean Manmohan singh but the Politician.In such a scenario I do not think you would be able to curtail or eradicate corruption. His reply was;In the given scenario when I am surrounded by all corrupt politicians, I have two options,One, to take them head on in which case they are so many and will eliminate me and my job would not be done. In the second case, i become one of them and slowly and steadily clip their wings and curtail the opportunities to earned money illegally thereby shall be able to bring down corruption heavily if not eliminate it. I was convinced and in the rest of my career was guided by his advice.Over a period I find he kept using this method quietly and exposing all others while sitting quiet and laughing at all of them.But at times I get a feeling that they have overwhelmed him and tarnished his good image and he has become helpless. As they say nothing succeeds like success, only time will tell who is the winner."

Finally I just want to say that lets not spare anyone who is wrong and we should put the interest of the Nation first. How many of us do this in our day to day life? Those who do only have the right to raise figure on others and blame them. Lets set ourselves right in our day to day life, rest will fall in place.

Secondly, lets not allow anybody within India or outside to misuse our sentiments or exploit our situation for their personal benefits.Its high time that we grow up and be India and love what is Indian and apply our own brains and logic before acting or reacting. We are equally human and intelligent like others. Lets prove it and not just write "Proud Kashmiri, Proud Hindu or Proud Indian" under our DPs on twitter.

DTDC - managed by "Complacent Pranksters"

When I was doing my engineering from Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, Bidar (small town in Karnataka, 140km from Hyderabad), DTDC was the only good courier service which was available there at that time and so my association with them is for quite a long time and overall satisfactory.


This courier service has grown very well with time and now they are a force to reckon with in this industry. Recently they categorized their services like DTDC Blue, DTDC Plus, etc. With DTDC Plus, they are trying to compete with Blue Dart, which offers premium service with guaranteed faster and timely deliver. 


Though Blue Dart also cant always be perfect, but mostly they deliver what is promised and if they don't, at least they are very quick to answer customer's queries and try to solve the issue then and there itself. But massive growth over the years have made DTDC guys complacent and unprofessional. If you have an issue, write a mail to their zonal office or head office in Bangalore, they hardly bother to reply and even if they do, it wont solve the purpose. It will be irrelevant and a generalized answer.


With the launch of DTDC Plus, their premium service, they promise faster delivery. But due to that and to promote the same, they have started delaying the delivery of the courier if its through their normal service. This is to compel the customer to pay almost the double amount for the same service, which they used to give mostly for half the amount. For example, if I send a courier from Jammu to Noida, it reaches DTDC's Delhi office at around 12pm and to Noida office by 4pm. At times they used to deliver the courier in Noida by 6pm but now a days, they have started delaying it and delivering it the next day. If we ask for probability of being delivered the next day, their staff in Jammu office now straight-away denies that.


My friend sent me a bundle of books from Delhi on 2nd July 2012. It weighed 6.5 Kg and she had to pay Rs.900 to DTDC. I waited for 3 days for the courier to reach from Delhi to Jammu and on the 4th day afternoon i.e., on 6th July 2012, I went to their office to ask for and pick my courier.


Only one elderly person Mr. Dogra is the reliable person in their office, who coordinates everything and keeps the things going. I always find him on his toes and most of the others are in a very relaxed poses though office has almost 4-5 employees apart from Mr. Dogra.


Today when I went there, unfortunately I couldnt find him there. When I asked for my courier, one guy was asking other to find, who inturn tried his best to depute the third. One of them finally tried to search for my parcel in their shelves and told me that it hasnt reached Jammu. Since repair work was going on, power was put off. When I insisted, they asked the electrician to put on a connection so that one PC could be put on and they could check the status of my parcel.


One guy put on the PC and without entering the password, he went and sat for lunch and 2 others were still telling me that PC cant be turned on. When i took them other way round the table, then the guys started struggling to enter the correct password. After all this drama, I was finally told that courier had arrived 2 days back i.e., on 4th July 2012.


Then for next 15 mins they started searching every nook and corner of the office, even the big poly-bags which looked as if dumped from ages. Inbetween someone said that check if the delivery guy has taken it today for delivery. Others guaranteed that it was not possible, he didnt take any. I asked them to call that guy but nobody did. After waiting for another 5 minutes I had to raise my voice and ask for that guy's mobile number. When I called him, he confirmed that the parcel was with him and he was at a location which was on way to my home from DTDC office.  


Finally I asked him to wait at a point and collected my parcel from him. Before going to their office, I had mailed about the delay to DTDC's Delhi Zonal Office and Bangalore office, but didnt get any reply till now.


They are surviving because in the country of blind, one eyed man is the king. There are few reputed companies in this industry and courier/parcel volumes are enormous. With the growth of business over the years, they have become complacent and that shows at every level of their hierarchy.

Jammu Refugees have been neglected!

Jammu refugees are the people who migrated from other parts of Jammu division, they are victims of militancy and had left their homes in the early 1990s.


Parts of Jammu divisions like Doda, Bhaderwah, Rajouri, Poonch, etc were among the worst affected areas of the Jammu & Kashmir state. The recent decision to revise the PM's package for "Relief & Rehabilitation" of Kashmiri Pandits has not gone well with the Jammu migrants. They are justified when they say that the government never thought about them and didn't provide them any relief or accommodation. The whole attention was on Kashmiri Pandits and this discrimination has always been there.


The PM has announced Rs.1600 crore package for Kashmiri Pandits in 2008 under which they would get jobs and Rs.7.5 lakh for each family for their return. The package has recently been revised by the J&K State cabinet and sent to the Central Government according to which each family will now get Rs.20 lakh for construction of houses in valley. 


Even the refugees who moved to India in 1947 from the areas now in Pakistan didnt get anything till date and have been living in misery. 


"The Kashmiri Pandits are being given jobs, accommodation, and cash relief but no one talks about the other migrants. We too are the victims of militancy and too have left our homes for safety and security but the government is least bothered about us", said Rajiv chunni, chairperson of SOS, an organization of POK refugees, while talking to The Tribune.


He further said,"the government is trying to create a gap between the Kashmiri migrants and Jammu migrants. If the government does not speak about others, then we will protest against it".


It is sad that our Governments have proved that they understand the language of the bullet and that's why all attention is being given to Kashmir region and people belonging to that part, let it be Muslims or Pandits. Does our Government want the people of Jammu region to ask for separation and then only it will treat them equally? Why should people of Jammu or others across the country pay cost for being patriotic and true to the country?


Under the PM;s package, the Kashmiri Pandits have been provided 1,400 jobs and a township in Jagti (13km from Jammu city) for rehabilitation. This township consists of hundreds of flats, which have been given to Kashmiri Pandits, free of cost. 


The government has proposed 3000 more jobs for them, enhancement of cash relief and Rs.20 lakh for each family for reconstruction of houses in the valley.

Worst Roads, No Rules, Who is responsible?

Bylanes Turn Death Zones
Tragedy waiting to happen as illegal parking rampant across Jammu & Srinagar Cities


The authorities in Jammu (and likewise in Srinagar) seem to be waiting for a big tragedy to happen on the Kunjwani- Narwal highway, for all bylanes and interior roads connecting Channi and other adjoining localities with highway have turned into virtual death zones. Even worst is the condition in road stretch from Bohri to Jewel Chowk, which is the worst stretch in Jammu city, so far as traffic blockage, illegal parking is concerned.


Blame Game - All departments concerned, including the Jammu Municipal Corporation, the Jammu Development Authority and the Traffic Police, have resorted to blame game and have failed to take corrective measures despite repeated requests by residents.


"It is the duty of the JDA to look after the parking slots in the city. We have very limited role to play as far as parking slots are concerned." - Senior Municipal Corporation Official


"It is the duty of the traffic police to keep a check on illegal parking of vehicles on roads. Our job is confined to residential colonies.. We can deal sternly with the violators if they encourage illegal parking in residential colonies" - Sarita Chouhan, Vice-president, Jammu Development Authority.




Dug-up roads make city a War Zone
With the Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA) missing several deadlines to complete the laying of sewerage system in Jammu, chaos continue to prevail on the city roads leading to long traffic jams and inconvenience to general public.


Under the centrally sponsored project, 48,220 houses of Srinagar City at a cost of Rs. 132.01 Crore and 30,400 houses of Jammu at a cost of Rs.129.30 Crore are expected to be connected with the modern sewerage system, when completed. However even after 4 years, the project is far from completion resulting not only in cost escalation but a huge problem for the city residents in both capital cities.


The size of the pipes that are being laid seems to be insufficient to cater to the sewerage needs of the cities for next one decade and one wonders if the government agencies will again start digging the roads just after this project will almost get completed.

Why Petrol & not Alcohol, Tobacco Products?

Is increasing petrol prices repeatedly the only option left with Government of India? That too when petrol is the most essential commodity for the common man, who cant even think of earning his livelihood without it. Cant there be other better options which would not over-burden the common man in fulfilling his daily needs for survival and at the same time, reduce the risk to his life and reduce his expense on medical treatments in a country without most basic medical facilities for the common man?


Unfortunately we live in such a country where it takes death of almost 1000 children in GB Pant hospital, Srinagar for Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad (resident of J&K state) to wake up from his sleep and visit the state and from years together, the projects of first ever Super-specialty hospitals of J&K state are hanging in complete uncertainty.


Present Liquor Consumption in India- 6.7 billion litres. If the government charges Rs.20 extra year on year, extra annual revenue for present year will be Rs.134 billion (Rs.13,400 Cr).


Alcohol consumption is increasing in India at a whooping rate of 30% year on year. Projected consumption for the year 2015 is - 19 billion litres. By then government would be charging Rs.60 extra per litre above present taxes and thus the extra revenue collected will be Rs.1,140 billion (Rs.1,14,000 Cr).


At present, there are 180 million (18 Crores) tobacco consumers in India and tobacco consumption will account for 13% deaths in India. 1,11,487 million cigarettes were consumed in India in the year 2010- 11.


If the government charges just Re.1 extra per stick, extra annual revenue collected will be- Rs.11,148 Cr and cigarettes account for only 20% of the tobacco consumed in India. Even if 50 paise are charged per unit of other forms of tobacco, government will be able to collect Rs.22,296 Cr more on other tobacco products. Total extra revenue from all tobacco products put together can be Rs.33,444Cr.


Consumption of cigarettes and other tobacco products is increasing in India at the rate of 4% annually. So by the year 2015, government will be earning an extra revenue of Rs.1,50,433 Cr from all tobacco products if the government keeps charging Re.1 extra every year on each cigarette and 50 paise per unit of other tobacco products.


By charging the above mentioned extra amounts on harmful products, that are not a necessity and are cause of deaths, heavy health expenses, the government can collect an extra amount of Rs.2,64,433 Cr per year by 2015.


Similarly, taxes on luxury (not a necessity for survival) and still harmful products like fast foods, soft 'pesticide' drinks, etc must be increased.


Above all, according to conservative estimates, corrupt officials in India are cornering around Rs.1,00,000 Cr every year and corruption is increasing at a rate of over 100% every year. So if the government shows some sincerity and tries to reduce corruption by just 20%, it will be an extra saving of more than Rs.1,20,000 Cr in next 3 years. 


Since I am not a economist and my calculations are a layman's estimates, government has better people and can take care of other repercussions of such decisions like effect on growth, employment in these sectors, etc and work out something thats a win win situation for every Indian. But its not rocket science and needs just a pinch of sincerity while drafting policies and planning.

World Environment Day - Lets make difference together!

Our school, G L S Public School, Jammu was founded by my father in the year 2000. It is named after his uncle, Gyani Lal Singh Ji (G L S), who was a great visionary, social worker and a wonderful human being. In 1947 at the time of partition, he along with few of his friends sold their Trucks, Buses and used that money to feed the hungry people who moved in to India from the present Pakistan. They distributed their land free of cost to as many people as possible so that they could construct shelters for their families. Throughout their lives, those people stood by the needy and helped in every possible way.

My father has been managing this school with the same spirit and though we dont earn huge profits yet, still there are many kids who are given concession in admission fee and some study free of cost. We have tried our best to give them all the facilities which includes well educated faculty, well ventilated and spacious classroom, Computer Lab, Art & Craft room, Library, green, clean and noise/pollution free campus with lot of space to play, games and sports facilities and also Educomp Smart Class.

Apart from studies, we have always tried to uphold moral and social values and ethics among our staff and the students and try our best to prepare them to contribute to the society throughout their lives. One important initiative in this direction has been the "World Environment Day"  (WED) Celebration. We have been celebrating WED from last 3 years. It includes Cultural Programs, Fancy Dress competition, Drawing Competition, Essay Writing Competition. The theme of all these programs and competitions is "Save Earth", and we try to make students aware of causes and effects of Global Warming and how can we fight with this ever growing problem.

Apart from this, we organize an "Awareness Rally & Plantation Drive". One plant each is given to our 250 students and staff of 25 odd people. At the same time, we distribute around 150- 200 plants, free of cost, during the rally, along with the informational pamphlets.

This year again, we will be doing the same and new additions will be increase in number of plants distributed and along with it, we will start distributing 4000 WED stickers (2 different stickers, 2000 each) with pictures and message on them and our school name and address below.

We have also formed "Environmental Club" in the school with 15 students as its members. We will be taking up "Green Project" in the school and will try to generate electricity using a wind mill and solar energy.

Lets all make it a habit to plant one tree on our and our beloved ones birthday. It wont cost more than what we spend for 1 soft drink or french fries at McDonalds. Lets spread the message across the world, to everyone we come in touch with and take measures to reduce Global Warming and emission of Greenhouse Gases. Its our earth, our home and we have only one.

 

"Mother Earth" is calling - Please dont keep her on hold!

Why is the Earth referred to as mother? Do we really treat her like our "Mother"? 


Our body is made up of constituents of this earth and its atmosphere. We are alive because it gives us food, shelter, air to breathe and water to drink, exactly like a "Mother nurtures a child".


As the mother cleans a child, the Earth absorbs our waste in it and again provides clean atmosphere to us.


Unfortunately, as we misbehave and disrespect our own "Mother" now a days and are "Thankless" towards her, our values have similarly eroded in every sphere and we are even worst in the way we treat the "Mother Earth".


Like a mother loves her child and forgives all his/her mistakes and tries to give as many chances to the child for improvement as possible for her, "Mother Earth" is still nurturing us, the "Most Thankless Creatures" in the universe.


A child can never give anything to the "Mother" and she never expects anything. She cries and begs the child not to give her a painful death and let her live so that she continues to serve/nurture him/her.


If we cant behave better and have become slaves to our greed, lust, lets atleast ensure that our "Mother Earth" remains alive and keeps nurturing us. If not for her, lets atleast be "Enough Human" to do it for our coming generations. If we dont have even that much of common-sense left within us and we have become such weak slaves of our greed and ill-habits, are we worth being called humans.


Lets all atleast plant a tree on our birthdays, once in an year. It wont cost us more than a McDonalds Burger or French Fries. 

Lets celebrate World Environment Day and make it a habit to be a bit Human towards "Our Mother".

1600 New cases, only 10 beds, 1 toilet - J&K Health Facilities

"The patients suffering from cancer require extra care but due to absence of basic amenities/facilities (trained nursing staff, infrastructure) in the department (Oncology, Govt. Medical College Hospital, Jammu), they are forced to go elsewhere for treatment." 
                                             ---- A Doctor in Oncology Dept.


1600 new cases of cancer are registered in the Jammu region every year, the Oncology Department of the Govt. Medical College Hospital, Jammu (the only major hospital in Jammu) offers just 10 beds to the patients in the name of basic facilities.


The patients, who come for Radiotherapy, are forced to share beds and the department lacks the specialized nursing staff.  The department has just two nurses who have gained knowledge with experience.


As reported by The Tribune, dated- 30th April 2012, Hygiene is a casualty in the department as a single bathroom is used both by male and female patients.


As one enters the oncology and the radiotherapy departments of the hospital, leaking water from the roof and stench from the public utilities greet the visitors.


What is more shameful is pointed out by the Committee of Estimates in its 42nd report tabled in the J&K state Assembly- non-utilisation of Rs.300 Crore (USD 60 million approx) meant for the purchase of linear accelerator required for the treatment of cancer.


Last and the most shameful part- R S Chib, Minister of Medical and Technical Education said,"I am not aware of the lack of facilities in the Oncology Department of the GMCH".


It must be noted that Congress contributes the most corrupt ministers in Omar Govt and they head the most sanctimonious fields of Education and Health. The Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad is from Jammu but Health Minister Sham Lal belongs to the Saif-ud-din Soz faction of the J&K State Congress, who are opponents to Azad.

"Climate Change" impact- J&K gears up

With J&K topping the charts as one of the most corrupt states and hundreds of illegal saw mills operational on the mountains from decades, looting it of its natural wealth, J&K preparing to tackle climate change impact seems to be another planning for a big loot. This feels so because till today nothing has been done to restore forest cover on Shivaliks (Hills surrounding Patnitop and Sanasar tourist spots) and Pir Panjal Range (Mountains surrounding Kashmir Valley).


With concerns rising over the environmental degradation in the state due to existing and upcoming development projects, the state has formulated draft of State Action Plan on Climate change (SAPCC), the first of its kind in Jammu Kashmir. Its really shameful that such basic Action plans and guidelines are not in place till now and where ever they are, its only on paper and nothing is implemented.


Action Plan covers the following - 


1. The complex nature of climate change impact in 3 diverse regions of the state - Jammu, Kashmir, Ladakh
2. The necessity for strengthening institutional and financial (the most fishy part) capacity to adapt to climate change.
3. The need to develop area and region specific climate strategies and actions.
4. The need for research to understand the likely impact of climate change in the state.


Experts say that the Himalayan region is a source of many rivers flowing perennially round the year. Keeping in view destruction of forests and air pollution, 2% increase in the temperature by 2050 will result in 35% of glaciers disappears, which could pose a problem for the state.


Jammu & Kashmir Government has always blamed insurgency/ militancy  for everything and its no surprise that they blame it for the destruction of forest wealth. Thus they are a party in looting the forest wealth along with the poachers and are now drafting this action plan to make more money like they have been doing till now with impunity in the last two decades. 


They will obviously be trying to make a big money in US $ by roping in international organizations like United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) in the name of environment. Government of India and International Agencies must keep an eye on the proper utilization of funds because if they can swallow a Complete International Cricket Stadium (I have written separate article on my blog) and existing Forest Wealth, doing away with whats just on paper is very easy.


Rather than wasting billions of rupees, if they could implement the forest laws honestly and stop illegal deforestation, things will be much better. Apart from that, Government owned (Forest Department) Plant Nurseries can afford to give saplings for Re.1- Rs.5 each. If Govt of India or J&K State Govt gives 1 plant every month  free of cost to each government employee, including Armed Forces & Police and asks them to plant them or get them planted in the surrounding hills or parks, the much needed Green Cover will be replenished within 1 year.


We have been organizing World Environment Day every year in our school from past 3 years and take out an awareness rally and distribute around 500 plants free of cost to students and to passers by during the rally. We had posted the photos of the same with above mentioned suggestions to Prime Minister of India and UNEP offices in Europe and the US.


Moreover, Jammu city in particular has entered the Traffic Danger Zone (article on my blog) and more and more vehicles are pouring in every day. Better roads with trees on the sides and inbetween on the divider must be constructed and schools and other educational institutions must be roped and more and more awareness must be created.

Lt Gen Bikram Singh's appointment as COAS

Supreme Court has rightly thrown out the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the appointment of Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh as the next Chief of Army staff, which was downright communal and completely baseless. Its a pity that very learned and honorary people like like former Chief of Naval Staff L Ramdas and former Chief Election Commissioner, N Gopalaswami were among the petitioners and played at the hands of communal forces active in our country. 


BJP & RSS are the most frustrated lot after second successive defeat at the hands of the Congress and so they are very strategically trying to create an issue out of everything that Congress Govt at the centre does. This PIL against the appointment of Lt. Gen Bikram Singh was the most recent attempt in that direction.


 This is very clear from the Communal Tone of the PIL and the reasons given to oppose this appointment. The Honorable RSS Petitioners dragged Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) and former Army Chief JJ Singh into the row. They had alleged that the SGPC had lobbied for Bikram Singh's elevation, while the succession plan for ensuring his appointment to the top post had been put in place way back in 2005 when JJ Singh was the Army Chief.


One fails to understand how come SGPC all of sudden became so powerful and influential after 65 yrs of independence that it could lobby and get its man appointed as COAS and that too when Akalis themselves are anti- Congress and have coalition government with BJP? 


Secondly, what mechanism that Gen JJ Singh put in place in 2005 that even after 7 years, his thoughts came to reality? Did he pass any such orders, signed by him, that could not be violated even after 7 years? Sheer nonsense. How could JJ Singh's plans be so powerful that no other Army office dared to oppose that even after 7 years and all silently accepted the appointment of Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh over them when they themselves were more competent?


Petitioners claimed that they had challenged Singh's appointment on two grounds - 


First, a case was pending in the J&K High Court about his alleged role in a fake encounter in 2001.


Secondly, a Court of Inquiry was on into the reported excess committed by the Indian forces in congo in 2007 when Singh was commander of the UN Peacekeeping Force in that country.


Court's stand on first allegation-  No way could the 2001 encounter be fake as Bikram Singh himself had suffered a gunshot injury in the incident and remained hospitalised for two months.


Quoting Major Navdeep Singh (his blog - http://www.indianmilitary.info/), he personally knew two of the officers present in the incident - Late Col J P Janu, commanding a Territorial Army Battalion and the other was Late Lieutenant Bikramjit Bajwa. While Col Janu lost his life, Lt Bajwa lost his limbs in the same incident.


May be the petitioners feel that Lt. Gen Bikram Singh conducted the fake encounter, got himself shot and then killed Col Janu and also managed to attack Lt. Bajwa. This renders me speechless.


If the petitioners are so much concerned about human rights violations, they may kindly visit Kashmir, see the list of cases pending and start working on them. Would they dare to do that?
Did they ever file any PIL against Gujarat CM Narendra Modi for organizing an anti-Muslim Pogrom in Gujarat and killing innocent people? How would Mr. Gopalaswami do that when he himself is a Gujarat cadre IAS officer? BJP was the only party to support the then Chief Election Commissioner Mr N Gopalaswami’s decision to recommend the removal of Commissioner Mr Navin Chawla barely three months before the CEC retired. After the Shah Commission’s indicted Mr. Chawla, he should not have been in public service. But the BJP did not object to his postings until 2005, including important ones under its own rule. It raked up the  issue when the Mr. Gopalaswami took action, to despicably self-serving ends. (http://www.sacw.net/article671.html - India: Cultural Aggression in The Name of Hindutva).


 This PIL was purely communal and was filed at the behest of RSS and BJP with two motives - One was not find a fault and wrong- intention in all what Congress does and second was to create an Anti-Sikh sentiment and stop a Sikh from becoming the Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army. Both these motives led to the basic or final goal- misguide the Hindu majority by creating sentiments against other communities and Congress and win the next elections.

BCCI Funds swallowed, Stadium eludes J&K

From Jammu Tribune- dated- 16 April 2012


"Instead of utilising BCCI funds for the promotion of cricket in the state, Jammu & Kashmir Cricket Officials (JKCA) are spending it for their own personal use" - A CRICKETER 


Even the JKCA is struggling to wriggle out of the recent multi-crore scam that has left the cricketing fraternity shocked, the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) stadium, after successfully hosting IPL matches, is now all set to host its first one-day international match during Team India's home series against England.


The postponement of the foundation stone-laying ceremony of the proposed INTERNATIONAL CRICKET STADIUM at Bajalta on March 18 came as a setback for cricketers of Jammu & Kashmir who were waiting for a long time for the construction of the dream project. 


A cricketer said - "Ever since we started playing cricket, we were told by JKCA officials that an exclusive cricket stadium of international repute would soon be constructed, but all these claims fell flat. We are now on the verge of taking retirement from the game and even the foundation stone has not been laid till date at the proposed site."


Another cricketer said - "HPCA has made rapid strides in a short span of time in International Cricket and was promoting its cricketers at higher levels."

Jammu enters TRAFFIC DANGER ZONE.

On an average, there are around 200 deaths every year in Jammu district alone. This is quite high, considering a small city like jammu, which has road length of 704.22 kilometres only and total number of vehicles in Jammu District are only 4,75,613 till February 2012.


Traffic density is quite high at 574 vehicles per kilometre and what makes it worst is absence of Traffic Lights, no rules or proper place for parking and narrow roads which have not been widened in last 2 decades.


There have been 800 deaths in almost 6000 road accidents in last 4 years. Jammu has witnessed nearly 18% increase in the vehicular population since 1982 and that too without any improvement in road conditions.


About 3000 new vehicles are hitting the road in the district every month and with already such high density of vehicles, Jammu has entered TRAFFIC DANGER ZONE.


SSP(Traffic) Manmohan Singh says that only 288 Cops are regulating traffic in Jammu district and Traffic Police is facing shortage of nearly 50% manpower. He laid stress on a multi-pronged strategy to decongest the roads in the district.

If U are appointed as Prime Minister!

Ever since I have been tweeting and in discussion with friends or go through general discussions/comments on twitter, I have seen people literally abusing Dr. Manmohan Singh. He is blamed for being face of the Nehru-Gandhi Dynasty, for being a puppet and for being a remote controlled Prime Minister. Though almost everyone agrees that as an individual, Dr. Singh is honest but he is blamed for being unable to prevent scam after scam being exposed in UPA- II.


Though I personally agree that many scams have been unearthed and corruption rules the roost, a thought struck my mind that what if any one of us is appointed as Prime Minister in his place and what different we would do, what he couldnt? 


I request you and all other readers of this post to kindly give your feedback, your personal opinion that "What would U do if U are elected as a Prime Minister, in place of Dr. Manmohan Singh?" How will U eradicate corruption? Eradicating corruption is the first step towards taking every positive step and making it a success. It because of corrupt at the top that all policies fail and we dont get the desired results.


While giving your reply, you have to consider every other condition, situation as the same. Same cabinet of ministers, same UPA MPs and same situation nation-wide.


Kindly tweet your reply at @gurpreetsinghin or e-mail your detailed reply at singh.gurpreetonline@gmail.com. Thanks a lot to you all in advance for sparing time to read this post and for replying.

Thankless People, Thankless Nation !

The world's biggest crime that a human can do is being thankless. Why does a person become thankless. There are many reasons for it. Its when his/her bad days are gone and he/she no longer feels the need of the one who helped. This happens when he/she becomes powerful, has all the resources and people around to support. In general, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. A mentally corrupt person doesnt remain human anymore or we can say he/she becomes wild and cant treat others as humans as he/she feels 100% safe under all circumstances. Thats why it is said that FEAR is also essential for MAN to remain a human.


Thats why Guru Gobind Singh Ji gave the concept of Khalsa (Saint- Soldier), the one who is a warrior and powerful but also worships God, remembers HIM as more powerful than the man and also remembers Death. I wont hesitate a bit to say that people like BALWANT SINGH RAJOANA portray that personality, character. Though he was a part of the plot to assassinate Beant Singh, but he is true at heart and has the courage to accept the truth and face death with a smile. Thousands of Sikhs were killed, raped, burnt alive in 1984 and not even a single person is punished till date. Let me ask everyone that what will you do if your mother or sister is raped infront of your own eyes, your father, brother or son is burnt alive by a mob and then nobody listens to you and you are asked to forget what happened?  Obviously all of us wont take extreme steps but atleast some will. 


It is the irony of fate that in this nation of thankless people, criminals who murdered thousands of innocent people are living with impunity and nobody raises voice for the victims and if a victim is compelled to take extreme steps, he is labelled as a terrorist. I agree that under all circumstances, crime is a crime. But my point is, even the murderers of Sikhs in 1984 and Muslims in 2002 must be treated on the same grounds, under the same law. Will they be given the liberty and privilege to murder anyone since they belong to the majority in this country? Are minorities a third grade citizens or slaves who dont have any human value and will be blatantly denied justice and they dont have any rights to demand the same? This was the way Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs were treated under the British. Then why people like Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev, Chandra Shekher Azad, who retaliated against the British are called Martyrs and Patriots and Sikhs who retaliate are called terrorists?


I do have a secular thinking and I have always written for our country India and against the corrupt who are looting our country. But just to defend my secular image and get that tag from people, it cant happen that I only raise my voice when wrong is being done to others and I escape and become a silent spectator when people of my family of community are being targeted, victimized. The point is, I will raise my voice when wrong is done with anyone, irrespective of religion, caste.


 Guru Gobind Singh had gifted this country with free-of-cost soldiers, who were always ready to sacrifice their lives for the country. They have done this in large numbers, even though they constitute very small percentage of Indian population. Whole of Afghanistan was a Buddhist nation and there were no Muslims in India. With the invasion of Afghanistan and then India by Mughals, whole of Afghanistan was converted to a Muslim country and so was much of Hindu population of India. Almost 40 crores Muslim population of Pakistan, India and Bangladesh were the Hindus who were forcefully converted. Guru Gobind Singh sacrificed the life of his complete family to oppose and stop this forceful conversion. Brahmins of Kashmir (Kashmiri Pandits) had gone to Guru Teg Bahadur for help to save their existence and so Guru Saheb was beheaded in Chandani Chowk. The Guru and the Sikhs were never anti-Muslim but they opposed the wrong done by anyone and thats why they opposed forceful conversion of the Hindus.


This country has always been thankless towards Sikhs. Right from the time of independence, Sikhs have been subjected to injustice. Gandhi and Nehru were successful in their plan that sikhs dont accept the offer of the British to take a separate Sikh Nation covering areas from Lahore to Delhi. They said- Sikhs are our heads, we will be headless bodies without them. Thus they duped Master Tara Singh and Sikhs choose to stay with India.


When the state of Punjab was to be demarcated in independent India, it was cut from all the possible sides, taking out Haryana, Himachal, leaving a negligible part of the original Punjab. Sikhs had to give voluntary arrests in 1966 to protest against this but nothing happened. 


Since Sikhs were brave and warriors, it was the fear of Brahmin rulers of this country and they worked to weaken and demoralize Sikhs in every possible way. Till today, one would find Wine Shops in every nook and corner of Punjab and you can freely consume liquor on the road side as almost nowhere else in India. This was a slow process, initiated from the time of independence, to intoxicate the generations of the Sikhs in Punjab, which was the religious center of the Sikhs. Jokes were created and cracked against Sikhs and media was put into service to show Sikhs as subjects of mockery. Whenever a Sikh is shown in a movie, he is always dressed very badly, in multi-coloured clothes, hair and turban loosely tied and almost hanging. Mostly Sikhs will be shown as drunkards or drivers with all sorts of nonsense talks. This discourages our younger generation, which gets drifted more and more towards getting clean shaved.


Sikhs were among those few who stood for the benefit country and opposed Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi. It was that grudge which Indira had and she first projected Sikh hardliners and then planned an attack on the Golden Temple, Amritsar. Where was the Army, BSF and intelligence agencies of this country when truck loads of weapons were taken inside the Golden Temple? Such huge cache of weapons were obviously not produced by Sikhs inside their homes. She masterminded the complete game plan to damage and defame Sikhs as much as possible and was very much successful in doing that.


When the Sikhs retaliated and killed her, what does the law say? Those who killed her must be hanged to death. But Rajiv Gandhi let loose the goons, criminals to kill innocent Sikhs across the country for 3 days. Till today not even a single criminal has been punished. Were they aliens who appeared from nowhere, killed the Sikhs and then disappeared back to nowhere? Why is the majority population of this country silent over it? Silence is acceptance. So those who silently agreed that what was done to Sikhs was right, they are equally a part of the crime.


Remember- YOU CANT REAR SNAKES IN YOUR BACKYARD AND EXPECT THEM TO BITE YOUR NEIGHBOURS ONLY. 


Today we cry about criminals being in politics, ruling us and looting our hard earned money. Who are they? They are the same criminals who where directly promoted and shielded by Rajiv Gandhi and indirectly promoted and shielded by all of us. They promote more criminals and corrupt in every department, let it be police, medicine, defence, judiciary, etc and these departmental heads further promote corrupt and criminal minded people.


Ultimately, all the above mentioned criminals and corrupt at the helm of affairs of this country kill, rape, loot our own people and 8 out of 10 victims are from our majority i.e., the Hindus. 


Religious difference do arise even in developed countries but the Majority Religious population doesnt let loose the goons over the minorities like in India. Shiv Sena, VHP, RSS have been developed and equipped for the same purpose. Promoting terrorists organizations like these will be the same blunder that Pakistan committed by harbouring terrorists in its territory. Today, they have become a curse for their own country itself. 


Sikhs took out peaceful processions across Punjab. Today they were attacked by Shiv Sena terrorists and Police also opened fire on Sikhs, killing 3 people. Shiv Sena terrorists can be seen burning the same turban which saved their own identity. 


 In developed countries, mostly Europeans and the US, they understand that a Country is like a Home and all people are like Family Members. A home can only be peaceful if all members are treated equally and same rules apply to everyone. Only then home can be kept in order. By promoting fanatic, gunda elements, each member of the family is at risk. Such activities develop a lack of faith among the minority members and widens the gap, which is further exploited by politicians and its a never ending process. 


In developed countries they ensure to have strict laws in place, which treat everyone as equal and give the similar punishment to everyone for same intensity of crime.


Neither Sikhs were anti- India and nor they are. But there is a limit to the injustice that a person can tolerate and this applies to everyone. Naxalites in different parts of India are not Sikhs or Muslims. They are the outcome of failed national policies and discrimination of corrupt rulers.


Quoting Ms. Arundhati Roy from her article which was titled- A Ghost Story and made the cover story of Outlook Magazine issue dated- March 26 2012 - 


"Meanwhile in Chhattisgarh, the Salwa Judum burned, raped and murdered its way through hundreds of forest villages, evacuating 600 villages, forcing 50,000 people to come out into police camps and 3,50,000 people to flee. The CM announced that those who didnt come out of the forests would be considered to be 'Maoist Terrorists"


"Recently, Soni Sori, an adivasi school-teacher from Bastar, was arrested and tortured in police custody. Stones were pushed up her vagina to get her confess that she was a "Maoist Courier". Soni Sori still remains in jail and Ankit Garg, the SP who conducted interrogation was conferred with the President's Police Medal for Gallantary on Republic Day".


None of the above mentioned people is either a Sikh or a Muslim. It is the time for the Hindu majority to take up stand against the corrupt and the wrong, no matter which Indian is a victim of it. It is you who can make a difference by boycotting the corrupt and criminals and restoring faith in the minorities. Muslims of Kashmir had happily chosen to live with India. It were Nehru's policies that made them feel alienated and discriminated and the gap went on widening over the period of time. 


Lets remember that time has re-written the political landscape of the world time and again. If supremacy of the British Empire didnt remain, USSR didnt remain, nobody else's will remain. Those who were Hindus at one point of time are today reciting Namaz in masjids of Pakistan, Bangladesh and India itself. Many Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims are converting to Christianity. 


Only truth shall prevail and as we sow, so shall we reap. 

Origin of the word - Hindu

United Punjab (including part now in Pakistan was earlier known as "Madhur Desh" (Sweet Country) because of the Fertile Land and sweet river water.

Before that, almost 1,500 years back, it was known as "Sapt Sindu" (Sapt- seven, sindhu- river) as it had 7 rivers flowing through its land. 

The inhabitants of this area of Sapt Sindhu (Punjab & neighbouring fertile plains) were called SINDHU.

Since Afghans & other invaders from Central Asia couldn’t pronounce the sound of "S", they pronounced the word SINDHU as HINDU.

So, the inhabitants of Fertile Plains of Sapt Sindhu Region were being called HINDU from that time, around 1,500 years back.

Since Sanatan Dharma was the only religion in this area at that time, all were collectively called HINDUS. This included people from all sects, the upper castes and the lower castes.

Later on, as Mughals invaded India, Islam started spreading here. With the birth of Guru Nanak, Sikhism came into being.