Kochi Metro

As with any infrastructure development project ever undertaken in the so called "God's Oen Country", Kochi Metro Rail Project has also got into myriad of problems. When North Overbridge modification works have started by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, keralites were hopeful that this project is going to come in right time. The kind of traffic diversions and construction management carried out by the team were praiseworthy. Notwithstanding such stellar performance, politics and ulterior motives are showing their power & might in derailing the whole project. Roads in kerala especially in ernakulam continues to be pathetic & narrow just like that of wicked people at centres of power. Can we all raise above petty politics & look into good governance in the long run ?

Development & Environment

There are many issues plaguing the country & the state of Kerala. The old adage "All men plume into improving the society and no man improves" can be true here too. Opposing political parties often come as hindrance to any development in democratic governance. This probably is the greatest bane of such form of governments. Except in a very few cases, most of the developmental projects comes to a halt once the political leadership of the state changes. Considering that many of the infrastructure projects have high gesticulation period, this leads to chaos. Most of the entrepreneurs shy out since the return for their investment becomes shaky. Nevertheless all Indian states are calling investors. Some time using Global Investment meets (Karnataka had it in July at Bangalore) otherwise by visiting foreign countries as a ministerial delegation. Recently Kerala had an investment meet titled 'Emerging kerala'. The outcome is yet to be materialized but I earnestly hope some serious investment will be coming up. On the other side, there is always a price to pay for development. Mostly the environment takes hit. Be it new roads, port or power project, big construction is sure to come up. This will lap up some of the fertile land or forest cover. At times there is the issue of land acquisition from private parties and associated hue & cry too. One of the major allegations towards 'Emerging kerala' summit was permission to use the land on long term. Afterwards state government had clarified its position and i guess the row has been subdued. Transportation and Power sector in Kerala remains to be a concern. No good roads are coming up and the road widening/expansion moves in snail's pace. I am not sure when was a major power project was commissioned in Kerala. All proposed hydro-electric projects are opposed for the environmental damage it may cause. In the nearby state of Tamil Nadu, a major agitation is underway opposing koodamkulam Nuclear Power Project. No concrete steps are taken towards renewable energy sources such as solar or wind farms. We can go back to lamps & candles in near future. Speaking of lamps, fueling them might also turn to be a herculean task. Fuel prices (be it Kerosene, ATF, Petrol or diesel) is progressively being taken out of the administered price mechanism. Liquid Fossil fuel reserves of the country are not aplenty. The production and processing capacity is also limited. India is dependent on imported fuel. Any variation in the international market seriously affects prices - not only for the fuel but also all commodities. A rethink on the way we use energy is required at grass root level. Every citizen has to think of ways to reduce own consumption. May be we can shun using energy for luxury and super comfort. Pooling of car, use of public transport, designing buildings in such a way that electrical lighting is not required during day time etc etc Energy conservation is not only our duty but also our responsibility to the future generations. Remember we are using what is rightfully theirs !

Welcome New President of India

Sri. Pranab Mukherjee is becoming the thirteenth president of India. He had an illustrious political career spanning decades. He had been cabinet minister for different portfolios. He was a peacemaker for the congress and UPA in many a crisis. Unlike some the former presidents who also had a political background, Sri. Pranab Mukherjee comes right from the thick of action & not after leaving active politics for some time. Though there were a huge demand (especially in Facebook & social networking sites)for Sri. A.P.J. Abdul kalaam, most of the political parties were, i guess - preferring some body from politics - their home turf - to become the president. Incidentally there was not much of competition for Sri. Pranab Mukherjee. Support given to him by Left parties were questioned by some. There were some action in JNU SFI Unit and its reaction came swiftly from higher party echelons. All is well that ends well. We can hope that Sri. Pranab Mukherjee, with his experience as a very senior political leader, will become an Icon of India as its first citizen. May the country prosper well under his tenure especially in wake of the economic turmoil which is happening in different parts of the world.

School Year Begins

It is back to academics time in Kerala. Schools which were closed for the midsummer vacation has just re-opened. Usually this season is accompanied by incessant rains with the onset of monsoon. This time however rain gods seems to be bit reluctant. As per the met dept, a few days delay is not of very much concern. Lets hope that rains are going to be quite normal this season so that kids can play a bit in the poodles around. There was a time when school going kids went walking from home to school through the ill-maintained roads. It was fun to play in the little 'ponds' in the road potholes. Normally the water will be brownish & it will leave a stain on clothes. Alas the present middle class generation goes to school and comes back by bus, car, auto rickshaw & what not.They definitely miss the fun. It is pretty hot here in vizag for the past week. There is an unprecedented heatwave which has resulted in even deaths. It is said that this is the hottest summer of the decade. Hope monsoon comes soon to Kerala so that we at Vizag can hope to get some reprieve soon

May Day

Here comes international workers day. We all are workers in some way or the other. Though there are many classifications like blue collar, white collar & what not. It is nice to have a day for all of us. Hope everyone gets little rest so that we all can introspect a bit. Life is getting fast & furious right? At times it is pertinent to slow down & look around. Better still look inward to see how we all have been faring. Much grime & dust must have accumulated to our body mind & soul. It is time to cleanse ourselves. Make some one happy & feel the exuberance that we used to have in our childhood for (seemingly) simple things. lets laugh aloud, make merry & live in peace ! Phew more of a sermon right ? Have a nice day..... ;-)

Bandh, Harthaal & Life without power...

February is the shortest month in a year. Thanks to feb being 1 day longer this year. As per a popular Facebook post there were as many as 17 days of Bandh / Harthaal in different parts of Kerala. Good going !
Summer heat is on & so is power cut ! owing to fears on Mullaperiyar, generation from Idukki dam based hydro power project was increased. Now water level in Idukki dam is on the lower side adding to the power crisis of Kerala. To top it all on 6th of March, the consumption of power in Kerala crossed 60 MU. Funny part is that only 22 MU came from our own hydel generation. About 30 MU came from central pool including that of NTPC's Kayamkulam gas based power project. Shouldn't there be a re-thinking on viability of a thermal power plant in the state to tide over power crisis. Almost every Indian state is doing capacity addition. Environmental concerns must be addressed in an amicable manner. In any case there are thermal power plants in the border like Mangalore, nuclear power plants such as proposed Koodankulam etc. Another option is to live in darkness or cut out all frills like air conditioning, festival lighting, Decorations etc. Why fuss over pollution from a power plant when almost every shop in a city is using small Diesel Generators which makes more pollutants. Coal will have to be imported or atleast trasported over long distances. Ash disposal can be a problem but with lot of infrastructure projects such as Kochi metro, Expressway etc coming up, ash can be effectively utilized.
Hope wisdom prevails in the echelons of power. (Either we make more power or we use less power)

One more year went on

Its nice to be back on to typing again after some good pause. Incidentally i completed 40 years of existence on earth. That means my half life period (Who knows? may be even more!) have been completed. As with any machinery things are getting down at times. I guess there is a scope of major overhaul as far as life style is concerned. Frankly i am reluctant to do so. Over the period of time i have accumulated many die hard habits more bad than fine. I guess thats the case with many people. Still young at heart but you can't blurt things out. World expects a lot of maturity (?) from people of this age. Any way life is a good mixture of paradoxes. "Chaltha Hai!"
As this is my first post in the year, it is customary to wish you the reader a very happy new year. Should there be any resolutions for new year? My keyword shall be 'Tolerance'. Lets all try to adjust to our neighbors & live amicably. Though it seems simple, some times its very difficult in actual practice. Hey what the heck! we all can give it a try at least....