It wasn’t so difficult once you got around to doing it. It was just the question of dynamics of picking up the weight and heaving the gunny sack full of potatoes on her back. Her mother could, her friends could do it and to say the least her grandmother could also pick her share thus ensuring her dihaari( daily wage) . The meticulous, watchful eye of Santosh kept an almost fanatical count of the bags they picked up and any slack was accounted and no leverage was given by him, all excuses fell to deaf ears.Rano had her eyes on the black and green salwar kameez which was being sold by the pheri wala every Saturday under the peepal tree. She had seen it for the first time, last week when they were hurriedly being taken back to their temporary camp in the fields next to the cold store. She knew it would look beautiful when she wore it and maybe Jeeto would like at her with a smile. Her tender, innocent heart had found its first love in the Palledar Jeeto who was the object of everyone’s desire at the store. He belonged to the same caste as her ..from Bhindian Saidan near Amritsar. She knew the dangers of falling in love with anyone who did not belong to her caste. It just meant instant death. Her father, uncles, older brother watched her with an eagle eye, and did not even let her visit the ‘Ghora wal baba” with her friends.
Rano, showed great promise to being a beauty when she grew up. Right now she was the tender, young nubile girl who had just reached her puberty and was catching everyone’s roving eyes. Her rustic beauty and her fair complexion along with her brown eyes which stared into you, not knowing when to avert her gaze she made men uncomfortable. The rights and wrongs were unknown to her; that would come when she had a ‘meaningful talk ‘with her mother later. A young girl blossoming like a flower in the bright sun caught everyone’s fancy. Her tinkling laugh and all her mannerisms just drew you to her. There were rumors of her being Sardarji’s illegitimate daughter as she did not even resemble anyone in her family. Her mother always tightlipped, with no sign of any emotion in her just lived every day as if waiting for death. Seeto which was her name had worked as a maid in her younger days in the village in Amritsar and had been married in haste and shipped off to Jalandhar to live her life with her recently widowed husband. Nothing was known about them, just that they worked in the fields, and his sons had also been sucked into the same existence.
Rano, started working in the fields and then the store to handle potatoes. It was harvest time and this year she would have to pitch in, earning a bigger wage by picking the bags too. Her father had told her in the morning over breakfast which consisted of watery tea and double roti or mitthe rusk if they had had money to spare, that now she was strong enough to pick up the bags and thus would help increasing the family’s income. Rano , wondered how she would pick up the bag? It was heavy, laden with dead weight of potatoes, and heaving it or holding it her on head with one head, keeping the duppatta in place and then to walk the distance, she smiled remembering the nautanki of the monkeys. She would have to become a bandari, it seemed! Oh! There was a brighter aspect to, every two weeks her mother would give her one dihaari i.e. 100 rs to spend. She could buy anything she wished, spend it on those orange yummy toffees, sticky ones or eat the pakoras available at the corner shop, buy bindis, and even save it to buy a new chappal and not a hand-me-down. It also meant the arrival of a new status. She was an adult, ready to share the burden of the family. Life was harsh; it thrust you into its bosom at the not so young old age of 14years. Old enough to work but young to make any decisions, she thought in her mind. She was scared of her father so just kept on dipping the rusk into her tea kept on nodding her head. He also said,’koi puuttha kam na karien”. As if she didn’t know the dangers of talking or doing anything with the boys. It was an unwritten rule in their family near and extended that if a girl was found cavorting with a boy she was married off and if any evidence was found or even the mere hint of intimacy was found she was killed mysteriously… no explanations or questions. There was never a second chance. This unwritten code bore down on every girl like a noose and they were weary of their fathers or uncles who watched them over like a hawk.
Rano , she knew she was on the cusp of adulthood which had its hidden promises , tantalized her seduced her into venturing into a world where all kinds of emotions came to surface. How could she explain, that looking at Jeeto made her want to defy her father? Or, that she wanted to visit the Ghode wala Jagah where all the boys and girls could slyly, yet freely talk under the guise of prayers. It was said that if a young unmarried girl visited the sacred place with a plastic horse for consecutive seven thursdays , her wish would come true. Oh! How she wanted to fulfill this particular vow, so that she could win over Jeeto. He epitomized all that was lacking in her life; love, freedom, romance.
She went to the store, sitting on the tractor trolley wondering how she would finish her quota of bags allotted to her. Well, she’d have to work; otherwise she would bring embarrassment to her father who worked outside in the machine room. The silver lining was that jeeto worked in tandem with their group, and she had worn her good suit and worn kajal to look attractive. A young heart cries with a thousand emotions, the object of one’s desire so near yet so far.
The day started as any ordinary day, no bugles, no fan fare heralding her elevation to an adult, her increase in duties or the fact that she was contributing to the family income by rs 100 every day. Picking up the first bag broke her back, there was a particular way when the bag was put on one’s back it hit you in the middle and one felt that walking even one step was difficult. How she wished, that the stupid, fat ugly Santosh would pick up one bag and try to walk the distance, maintaining the pace, speed and also trying to balance the weight? This carried on for hours, it seemed. Every bone, muscle in her body cried for relief. Forget Jeeto, she didn’t even want to look at anyone. The pain, agony was indescribable. It started off as backbreaking and settled in like a dull pain like a scab which refused to heal. What was all this talk of adulthood, the false promise of money, allure seduction was just a trap to fool her into working herself to a death? The chemicals applied on the potatoes hennaed her hands to a new shade of purple blue, ugly just like bruises. That night, she didn’t eat or talk just cried herself to sleep, the aches finally dulling her to an uneasy sleep.
This all continued till she had become hardened into the rest of them, the ink –blue kept on darkening, a reminder of the erosion of the fate lines. She felt her days started with the quota of potato bags, mingled with a few smiles with her friends and carried on drearily. The only time she felt her heart quicken was looking at Jeeto who was oblivious to her. He had however looked in her direction when they were giggling the other day a raunchy joke which had everyone in splits; over sahibji and the local thekadarni. She felthis gaze whenever he was nearby and she would steal glances at him . her friends would keep on whispering ,’dekh la’. She would smile and would keep on working. It seemed ever sice that day her spirits had been lifeted, ther was aquickness inher step,it seemed as if the burden wasa just a light load and she wondered why she made a fuss about it.
The pheriwala had still kept her suit an dshe anted to buy it today with the money which was rightfully hers. Masterji, was goingto hand it in the evening, chutti time. This was one day allowed to her and her friends where they could roam around in the village and walk back to their camp later on. She wanted to buy the suit, wear it for him the next day, knowing that the colors would look great on her. Everyone from mindho chichi, to pasho the one tooth mai to her friends told her that black made her sohni’, hor vi sohni….
She bought the suit, took it with her home wrapped in the old newspaper and she knew tomorrow would be different. She would wear the suit, it would fit her tightly, and accentuating her curves and it had a special dori at the back to tie. The salwar was made in the latest style, it had a piping on the side contrasting with black the brightness of lime green shocked. She wanted to look desirable in his eyes, to make him want her, she thought. It would mean an escape from this menial labor, if she could marry him. A palledar earned much more and their wives never worked in the store. She showed the suit to her mother who knew with a mother’s intuition what was happening. Mothers are mysterious, all knowing, how so ever a child may try to hide or think that they know better. She said, ‘don’t wear the suit to the store, and keep it for a special occasion.’ It will be spoilt; working in the dust and the dawaai”
Rano, shrugged her shoulders and mumbled, no, no it’ll be all right. We all are planning to wear something new tomorrow for work. Her mother looked at her, resigned to the fate that her daughter was growing up fast, too fast. This time, tide waited for no one. She walked away to go and attend to the evening meal. Rano ran behind her to go and help in the meal. She knew if she helped her in the chores, next morning her attitude would be softened towards her. Her only aim was to wear the suit tomorrow so that Jeeto would start looking at her.
Next morning came, the dawn heralding a new day. She had uncontainable excitement as she wore the new suit, applying kajal and eyeing herself in the half-broken mirror. She wrapped the duppatta tightly, so that her father would not remark at her. It was a bit tight, but she felt beautiful, attractive and she borrowed her mother’s chappals leaving behind her twice mended jooti which was scuffed, dirty and falling apart despite the twine wrapped around one of them.
Today she felt special, grown up, viewing the world with different eyes ready to defy the norms and for once to give into her emotions for once. To try to talk to him, she had been building dreams for so long and her friends had stolen romances with so many boys, nothing had happened to them It was also simple just a little stroll when went to attend nature ‘s call . No one stopped you or questioned you, but you had to take one girl with you. She planned on taking Banti, her childhood friend who would not tell anyone. She was going to pass on the message to him asking him to meet them outside after half time. This was the laziest, slowest time of the day, everyone was half-asleep, work was at its lowest and every supervisor looked for a chair to snooze the 20 minutes before the rush of the evening. She hoped he would agree and something would culminate with her taking all the risk and the bold overture.
He did and she kept on glancing at the big clock in the shed. The time passed so slowly, she could hardly concentrate on her work, and avoided picking up any bag, for the fear of dirtying her clothes. Everyone kept on ribbing her, passing comments on her figure, her looks and she kept on smiling and laughing.
They went out, to go behind the store where he was supposed to meet them next to the motor. And, there he was standing and looking at her, with amazement. He came forward to meet her and she suddenly got all tongue-tied, all shy. He came closer and Banti slipped away giggling and warning her to be careful.
It was like a dream come true, he spoke so sweetly, teasing her that why did she never come to the village shops or the square. He asked for her mobile number, to which she replied that she had no phone. Ashamed, she averted her eyes. He took her hand and held it, promising her one the next time she met him. Rano was stunned, he would give her phone, and she would be the toast amongst her friends. Smiling at him, she didn’t realize when he came close and started to touch her in a way which was foreign, invasive. She knew what he was going to but she knew stepping into the circle would lead to shame and she would be labeled as easy..
And that would slowly filter to her brother. How could she explain to Jeeto the wrath of her brothers, the scorn and the punishment if anything was heard of her in the village? She wanted to be with him, this forbidden passion was enticing to her, something was pulling towards him and she gave into his arms.
Just the very moment she gave in, her brother s friend happened to pass by and saw Jeeto’s back and said Hun kedi eh? Hearing this she was startled and she jumped out of his arms, to suddenly look into her brother’s friends eyes. Just her luck, she ran and shouted to Banti that she was going home. Running from the store, thinking of the consequences, wondering if her mother could hide her, whether she would be able to save her tonight from the beating she would get. She knew she would plead her innocence and tell them all that nothing had happened. It all sounded so feeble to her ears but she mentally kept on arguing to and for herself.
She came home to a lock on the door and waited. She knew her mother would be back first, so she would be saved. Whatever might happen she would not let them kill her, she hadn’t even done anything, but she was so afraid. Afraid of the beatings, the abuses, or the fact that they might marry her off in haste to someone. Jeeto would tell them nothing had happened, she thought to herself. Banti was also there, she would corroborate. Wrapping the dupatta tightly around her like a shroud waiting for them to come home. The wait was worse; she didn’t know what would be her fate by nightfall. Her mother came, seeingher sitting there, all tear stricken, eyes with kajal all smeared. She assumed the worst and asked her, “ki hoya”? When she had finished telling the incident, Rano felt her burden lighten, it was an embrace nothing all, nothing illicit had happened she told her again and again. Fibbing a little, she said that he also likes me so, all would work out. Pleading to her to save her she kept on whimpering to her mother to save her this once, promising never to trouble her ever in her life.
The next morning vernacular papers had a small news item which stated that a fire broke out in the temporary camps in the nearby village where a young girl died due to an explosion of the stove, and her mother was badly injured. The news reporter states that the mother was in shock and she clutched in her hands a piece of black dupatta and kept on sobbing incoherently, sobbing Rano , rano.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
now: ireport11
Now! ireport 11:
There is no time like the present, there is no generation which is the it generation. Ask your parents they thought they belonged to the most happening times, they did all we just think of doing. Beetles, the new age fad, the feminist movements, the bra-burning, the spiritual ashrams, the spiritual minded boutiques, the psychotherapy, the massages, Ayurveda. Every generation just thinks they’ve discovered something new. It’s actually old wine in a new bottle (of course the packaging just improves and its get shinier, glitzier with bling thrown).
People all want the same things which has driven us since time immemorial or I’ll say from the time of Adam or if it offends anyone’s religious sensibilities, Moses, Rama, Shiva! People scheme, promote, deceive, conquer, and pray for their loved ones, long to free misery and to escape death as eternal it is. We all think the era before us knew God a little bit closer than us; they were selfless, courageous or were well versed in literature or fine arts. And the apocalypse is upon us. In fact, the opposite is true. God is available to everyone and at anytime in every age. There never was amore holy age than ours, and never less.
There is no less holiness at this time then it was when Moses parted the waters, or Nanak founded Sikhisim or Krishna answered Arjuna the moral dilemma question which still plagues us. The trees planted in Punjab can also give you the same enlightenment like the Bo tree under which Buddha sat. There is however the question that the trees remain!!
There is no less might in heaven or on earth than there was the day Jesus said, “ Maid arise’ to the centurion’s daughter or the day Peter walked on water or the night Mohammed flew to heaven on a horse. In any instant the sacred may wipe you with its finger. In any instant as I say one might pop off.
In any instant you may avail the power to forgive, to love your enemies, accept failure slander, grief or to endure torture (I know I sound very sanctimonious here)
Purity is what I’m driving at. IT’s time is always now. You can’t mark it on a calendar or a diary or set an alarm on your iphone saying well, this my time I’ve allocated for Purity. It is not something which one can buy like antique furniture or a jamavar shawl which somehow one’s grandmom forgot to buy!
Joel Goldstein says,” God has nothing to give you that he (IT) is not giving you right now. God is available at all times, just reach out. God is the awareness of the infinite in each of us. Repeatedly and reassuringly, God tells him that “I am on the field”.
Ps: for us crazy cricketaholics: he’s playing..
There is no time like the present, there is no generation which is the it generation. Ask your parents they thought they belonged to the most happening times, they did all we just think of doing. Beetles, the new age fad, the feminist movements, the bra-burning, the spiritual ashrams, the spiritual minded boutiques, the psychotherapy, the massages, Ayurveda. Every generation just thinks they’ve discovered something new. It’s actually old wine in a new bottle (of course the packaging just improves and its get shinier, glitzier with bling thrown).
People all want the same things which has driven us since time immemorial or I’ll say from the time of Adam or if it offends anyone’s religious sensibilities, Moses, Rama, Shiva! People scheme, promote, deceive, conquer, and pray for their loved ones, long to free misery and to escape death as eternal it is. We all think the era before us knew God a little bit closer than us; they were selfless, courageous or were well versed in literature or fine arts. And the apocalypse is upon us. In fact, the opposite is true. God is available to everyone and at anytime in every age. There never was amore holy age than ours, and never less.
There is no less holiness at this time then it was when Moses parted the waters, or Nanak founded Sikhisim or Krishna answered Arjuna the moral dilemma question which still plagues us. The trees planted in Punjab can also give you the same enlightenment like the Bo tree under which Buddha sat. There is however the question that the trees remain!!
There is no less might in heaven or on earth than there was the day Jesus said, “ Maid arise’ to the centurion’s daughter or the day Peter walked on water or the night Mohammed flew to heaven on a horse. In any instant the sacred may wipe you with its finger. In any instant as I say one might pop off.
In any instant you may avail the power to forgive, to love your enemies, accept failure slander, grief or to endure torture (I know I sound very sanctimonious here)
Purity is what I’m driving at. IT’s time is always now. You can’t mark it on a calendar or a diary or set an alarm on your iphone saying well, this my time I’ve allocated for Purity. It is not something which one can buy like antique furniture or a jamavar shawl which somehow one’s grandmom forgot to buy!
Joel Goldstein says,” God has nothing to give you that he (IT) is not giving you right now. God is available at all times, just reach out. God is the awareness of the infinite in each of us. Repeatedly and reassuringly, God tells him that “I am on the field”.
Ps: for us crazy cricketaholics: he’s playing..
To be or not to be
To wear a bikini or not to wear one is the question which is the foremost in everyone's minds..
The modern woman is faced with the quandry of wearing one and denying it. It's similar to being painted as a scarlet woman. Youre damned if you do and youre damned if you don't.Today morning, I was surprised by two newspaper items :one which extolls that vidya balan denies that she wore one..somebody's morphed her , she says and this was the respectable hard-hitting journalistic one-stop complete news channel..CNN-IBN! Everything as they say boils down to TRP's...
The men salivate over the perfectly,toned photo-shopped body in the itsy bitsy two-piece ( in this case charcoal colored!!)and women wonder and drive themselves to distraction how that body which was till now covered in a Sabyasachi Mukherjee sari has suddenly metamorphised into having the perfect bod. A thin percentage like me , wonder about world being a stage and our part in it.. Shakespeare certainly is being remembered by me but for all the wrong reasons,today.
It's strange we get killed for wearing clothes or the lack of it ! And then we have the clerics who will declare fatwa for all they think is right in the eyes of God. The second news item was that condoms are being blamed for sexual anarchy. maybe, they think that ovepopulation would help them in making a straight line to GOD , you know it would be easier to reach HIM in a queue.Seriously , this was in the Times today.
I wonder if men actually use their brains .( This is not directed towards the few who would read this post.)
The modern woman is faced with the quandry of wearing one and denying it. It's similar to being painted as a scarlet woman. Youre damned if you do and youre damned if you don't.Today morning, I was surprised by two newspaper items :one which extolls that vidya balan denies that she wore one..somebody's morphed her , she says and this was the respectable hard-hitting journalistic one-stop complete news channel..CNN-IBN! Everything as they say boils down to TRP's...
The men salivate over the perfectly,toned photo-shopped body in the itsy bitsy two-piece ( in this case charcoal colored!!)and women wonder and drive themselves to distraction how that body which was till now covered in a Sabyasachi Mukherjee sari has suddenly metamorphised into having the perfect bod. A thin percentage like me , wonder about world being a stage and our part in it.. Shakespeare certainly is being remembered by me but for all the wrong reasons,today.
It's strange we get killed for wearing clothes or the lack of it ! And then we have the clerics who will declare fatwa for all they think is right in the eyes of God. The second news item was that condoms are being blamed for sexual anarchy. maybe, they think that ovepopulation would help them in making a straight line to GOD , you know it would be easier to reach HIM in a queue.Seriously , this was in the Times today.
I wonder if men actually use their brains .( This is not directed towards the few who would read this post.)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Adding value to Farming
Cell phones: anytime, anywhere tool for empowerment
The 4 inch mobile device which brings the world together in a nanosecond, sooner than you can blink has become the most indispensable tool in today’s modern world. It even in its small yet big avatar threatened to bring down the UPA government unearthing the mother of all scams. It’s used to connect, check the news, weather , send messages , you name it the mobile is capable of doing it all except for reproduction. From the huge bulky cumbersome device which was horrendously expensive and always a status symbol to flaunt has now become cheap, easily available and affordable. From the bai to the maali to the rickshaw wallah to the nukkad wala karayana shopwale uncle...Everyone has them. It is in fact one thing which has the highest salability and the prices have gone down something inverse to inflation in our country! Also there has been a dramatic shift in our lives from the real world to the virtual one where everything be it news, games, bank statements, stock prices, maps , information all is a finger tip away.
This tiny device which fits anywhere offers just a tiny bit more than two-way communication! It is used by teenagers to text; lose themselves in a world away from adults to a world of networking, music and online games, by housewives to network or as they say these days! It is increasingly being recognized by market companies as a tool for providing value –added services to the consumers. The VAS providers have exhausted themselves with the rest of the different segments of the society and have directed their attention to the farmer who generally has less access to accurate, timely, relevant information about farm operations from sowing to harvest to prevailing market rates of crops and commodities to recommendations from experts in the field of agriculture and allied services.
With the expansion of cellular services in rural India, reaching out to farmers has become easier. Though gathering data about their information needs maybe a pain staking task; as the data base needs to be established to set up the network. First of all clearing the apprehensions in the mind of farmers is the biggest hurdle to explain the pros and cons, it is the biggest challenge to get the farmer to innovate, to adopt the change because they always suspect that the service provider is out to make a fool of them or make quick money or doubt the reliability. The behavioral change is the most important when trust is established the farmer is ready to embrace the change which will help him eventually. There has been an emergence of one such VAS provider in Punjab called INFOPLUS MEDIA which has been started with a lot of zeal and promise by two such enterprising people by the names of Ikhlaq Singh Aujla and Jugraj Sohi. There firm has stepped in to provide agricultural information to farmers free of cost. The medium of dissemination of information is the mobile phone via the text message (SMSes). The content of the service include crop information, market information (prevailing rates in local areas to bench mark market, MSP, future price trends, exim policy), weather information, crop advisory and other handy trips sourced directly from PAU, ICAR, and the CPRI. They have also given impetus and have promoted allied services like floriculture, animal husbandry, apiculture, and agro forestry.. They also aim to be a one-stop information bureau in regards to loans, subsidies, insurance etc..
Jugraj Sohi, remarks, that they stepped in to provide this service in a state which subsists itself on agriculture and is the major contributor to the food bowl of the country. She, herself a postgraduate agriculture
from PAU felt the need to provide information which if received timely by the farmers would result in saving of costs and help them in making timely and critical decisions.
Her partner Ikhhlaq Singh Aujla, a cultivator himself says, that they stepped into empower the farmer as there was a gap between the information and it reaching the ultimate user. They wanted to bridge the gap and to fill in the grey area via the mobile which helps in transmitting information anytime, anywhere.
There unique firm has covered 26 districts impacting 6000 farmers and counting. All the service provided is free of cost and one can subscribe by a simple SMS of their name, village, block and district to 9815766442 or 9888036099.
Jang Bahadur Singh Sangha , Secertary General of POSCON , the largest seed potato organization of Asia says that agricultural VAS presently available in the country area huge asset to the farmers for services such as weather forecast, commodity prices in various markets and even future trading prices. But sometime the accuracy for instance weather is questionable and therefore can have negative bearings.
Thus the potential of mobile phones as a medium of information dissemination and revenue generation is huge provided the gaps in communication are addressed rightly, and accuracy and timely delivery of information is ensured.
ravneet sangha
The 4 inch mobile device which brings the world together in a nanosecond, sooner than you can blink has become the most indispensable tool in today’s modern world. It even in its small yet big avatar threatened to bring down the UPA government unearthing the mother of all scams. It’s used to connect, check the news, weather , send messages , you name it the mobile is capable of doing it all except for reproduction. From the huge bulky cumbersome device which was horrendously expensive and always a status symbol to flaunt has now become cheap, easily available and affordable. From the bai to the maali to the rickshaw wallah to the nukkad wala karayana shopwale uncle...Everyone has them. It is in fact one thing which has the highest salability and the prices have gone down something inverse to inflation in our country! Also there has been a dramatic shift in our lives from the real world to the virtual one where everything be it news, games, bank statements, stock prices, maps , information all is a finger tip away.
This tiny device which fits anywhere offers just a tiny bit more than two-way communication! It is used by teenagers to text; lose themselves in a world away from adults to a world of networking, music and online games, by housewives to network or as they say these days! It is increasingly being recognized by market companies as a tool for providing value –added services to the consumers. The VAS providers have exhausted themselves with the rest of the different segments of the society and have directed their attention to the farmer who generally has less access to accurate, timely, relevant information about farm operations from sowing to harvest to prevailing market rates of crops and commodities to recommendations from experts in the field of agriculture and allied services.
With the expansion of cellular services in rural India, reaching out to farmers has become easier. Though gathering data about their information needs maybe a pain staking task; as the data base needs to be established to set up the network. First of all clearing the apprehensions in the mind of farmers is the biggest hurdle to explain the pros and cons, it is the biggest challenge to get the farmer to innovate, to adopt the change because they always suspect that the service provider is out to make a fool of them or make quick money or doubt the reliability. The behavioral change is the most important when trust is established the farmer is ready to embrace the change which will help him eventually. There has been an emergence of one such VAS provider in Punjab called INFOPLUS MEDIA which has been started with a lot of zeal and promise by two such enterprising people by the names of Ikhlaq Singh Aujla and Jugraj Sohi. There firm has stepped in to provide agricultural information to farmers free of cost. The medium of dissemination of information is the mobile phone via the text message (SMSes). The content of the service include crop information, market information (prevailing rates in local areas to bench mark market, MSP, future price trends, exim policy), weather information, crop advisory and other handy trips sourced directly from PAU, ICAR, and the CPRI. They have also given impetus and have promoted allied services like floriculture, animal husbandry, apiculture, and agro forestry.. They also aim to be a one-stop information bureau in regards to loans, subsidies, insurance etc..
Jugraj Sohi, remarks, that they stepped in to provide this service in a state which subsists itself on agriculture and is the major contributor to the food bowl of the country. She, herself a postgraduate agriculture
from PAU felt the need to provide information which if received timely by the farmers would result in saving of costs and help them in making timely and critical decisions.
Her partner Ikhhlaq Singh Aujla, a cultivator himself says, that they stepped into empower the farmer as there was a gap between the information and it reaching the ultimate user. They wanted to bridge the gap and to fill in the grey area via the mobile which helps in transmitting information anytime, anywhere.
There unique firm has covered 26 districts impacting 6000 farmers and counting. All the service provided is free of cost and one can subscribe by a simple SMS of their name, village, block and district to 9815766442 or 9888036099.
Jang Bahadur Singh Sangha , Secertary General of POSCON , the largest seed potato organization of Asia says that agricultural VAS presently available in the country area huge asset to the farmers for services such as weather forecast, commodity prices in various markets and even future trading prices. But sometime the accuracy for instance weather is questionable and therefore can have negative bearings.
Thus the potential of mobile phones as a medium of information dissemination and revenue generation is huge provided the gaps in communication are addressed rightly, and accuracy and timely delivery of information is ensured.
ravneet sangha
Friday, March 4, 2011
monitor
An interesting situation has risen and it just makes me want to comment. Do you remember the time when we all were growing up (please have a Technicolor flashback aka... Hindi movie ishtyle)? WE were all studying in school and it was the desire, an ambition for all of us to become the class monitor and becoming one was the ultimate recognition that one has arrived. Being a class leader, deciding what where everyone has to sit and ensuring discipline and lording over everyone with authority, it gets ingrained in quite early. You know this could be a basis of a psychology debate for all- a revolutionary study would be conducted and I would go down the annals of history! Maybe Hitler, Napoleon, Gandhi were picked on as school kids and that led them to being leaders who swayed millions albeit in different paths.
Well getting back to the Punjab political scenario, it can be compared to the monitor being the respected CM who shepherds his flocks and one errant sheep MB is sent to sit on seat 90. The papers are full of this sensational news where discussions are being done, in context to the strategic shuffle. It is amazing that the fortunes of Punjab are being made over the strategic placement, never mind what is actually happening...How many of us actually read the PM’s speech and the honest apology of a man of integrity before making fun of his predicament?
We will continue to fight over petty things and miss the larger picture, as they do not affect us. Remember India is just a country we live, someone else is going to clean the act, meanwhile we will continue to wonder whether MB will sit at 90 number or the rebel MLA’s will sit or abstain from attending the session. The focus has shifted not on the common man but on resurrecting the ghost of the freedom fighter Shaheed Bhagat Singh who was un-mourned or revered upon till a few years ago.
I wonder if the ideals, revolutionary fervor will in fact rouse Punjab or only be worth the granite upon his name or the hologram sticker which adorns every SUV. The color yellow has suddenly become the ‘it ‘color and the mills are working overtime to manufacture the bales….
Ravneet Sangha
Well getting back to the Punjab political scenario, it can be compared to the monitor being the respected CM who shepherds his flocks and one errant sheep MB is sent to sit on seat 90. The papers are full of this sensational news where discussions are being done, in context to the strategic shuffle. It is amazing that the fortunes of Punjab are being made over the strategic placement, never mind what is actually happening...How many of us actually read the PM’s speech and the honest apology of a man of integrity before making fun of his predicament?
We will continue to fight over petty things and miss the larger picture, as they do not affect us. Remember India is just a country we live, someone else is going to clean the act, meanwhile we will continue to wonder whether MB will sit at 90 number or the rebel MLA’s will sit or abstain from attending the session. The focus has shifted not on the common man but on resurrecting the ghost of the freedom fighter Shaheed Bhagat Singh who was un-mourned or revered upon till a few years ago.
I wonder if the ideals, revolutionary fervor will in fact rouse Punjab or only be worth the granite upon his name or the hologram sticker which adorns every SUV. The color yellow has suddenly become the ‘it ‘color and the mills are working overtime to manufacture the bales….
Ravneet Sangha
Thursday, March 3, 2011
chai...
CHAI BANAO
Chai banao, chaa banaa, these two words are the bane of every woman. The favorite word we hear, be it from the start of the day to the end of our daily grind...It’s the answer to every life’s situation even a friends answer to writing a letter to a loved one.
Even the Pm’s query to the budget, the rising inflation and the way he handles Madam Chairman is all done by drinking tea. It’s amazing how much is decided over a cup of tea! Clandestine meetings between lovers, the drinking of tea in the canteen, the dhaba joint which makes the best tea , the one which it gets it flavor from being made in the same pan day in and day out without ever washing it. They say it adds to the intrinsic flavor. Business executives working, striking deals, authors drinking their fancy-schmancy peppermint tea and the tea which has ruined all of us poor straight simple drinkers...Green Tea. It does seem to me that it’s a conspiracy by these MNC’s to sell their product rather than give us actual health benefits. If I sound a bit like George Fernandes , blame it again on the tea.
Housewives, servants start their day not by chanting the lOrd’s name but injecting themselves with tea. It acts like rocket fuel-jumpstarts our cables to work as unpaid, unrecognized, taken for granted homemakers. For amoment , think of all that a woman does, she cooks , cleans, nurtures , acts as a cohesive to the structure of the society and all this without any murmurbut is she recognized, nope all she’s told is Chai banao!! Kudiyan de kam hunde ne
Chai banao, chaa banaa, these two words are the bane of every woman. The favorite word we hear, be it from the start of the day to the end of our daily grind...It’s the answer to every life’s situation even a friends answer to writing a letter to a loved one.
Even the Pm’s query to the budget, the rising inflation and the way he handles Madam Chairman is all done by drinking tea. It’s amazing how much is decided over a cup of tea! Clandestine meetings between lovers, the drinking of tea in the canteen, the dhaba joint which makes the best tea , the one which it gets it flavor from being made in the same pan day in and day out without ever washing it. They say it adds to the intrinsic flavor. Business executives working, striking deals, authors drinking their fancy-schmancy peppermint tea and the tea which has ruined all of us poor straight simple drinkers...Green Tea. It does seem to me that it’s a conspiracy by these MNC’s to sell their product rather than give us actual health benefits. If I sound a bit like George Fernandes , blame it again on the tea.
Housewives, servants start their day not by chanting the lOrd’s name but injecting themselves with tea. It acts like rocket fuel-jumpstarts our cables to work as unpaid, unrecognized, taken for granted homemakers. For amoment , think of all that a woman does, she cooks , cleans, nurtures , acts as a cohesive to the structure of the society and all this without any murmurbut is she recognized, nope all she’s told is Chai banao!! Kudiyan de kam hunde ne
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Woman empowerment In India – A Reality Check
Like the clockwork, the podium is dusted, the sashes taken out, aired out to get the stinking moth-ball smell out and the token sashes and awards ordered. The wilting flowers ordered, wrapped in cellophane to be handed out with the fixed smile. One can compare the wilt to the life of us women.
India proudly proclaims to be a superpower, a developed nation, a power to be reckoned. We cry ourselves hoarse “ Mera Bharta Mahaan” but are the woman empowered . Are they free from the clutches of the evils which befall her?
International Women’s day is a day which is an occasion marked by women’s group around the world. It started in the year 1910. This day is commemorated to merge the lives of women across different continents that are divided by national boundaries by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, political, social economic differences. They all come together to celebrate the day which represents the struggle of decades for the fight of equality, against oppression, and towards all round development. It is a move to recognize to the ordinary women who has become ‘extra-ordinary”.
There is however, a reason to worry , where the picture gets dismal and one wonders whether this is just a token day , one which has lost its meaning and is just a mere eye-wash.
Some truths:
1. Girls are killed, aborted and if born are killed in the most inhumane, horrific way thrown in the alleys, by lanes, dust-bins and sometimes even with their umbilical cord wrapped around them and blood smeared.
2. Certain sections of society do not send their girls to school when they attain puberty.
3. Dowry harassment, deaths are not new, they all have become old news. We all have become so de-sensitised that we do not even read the news, just merely skipping it for salacious gossip.
4. Sexual harassment goes on and on, at least 60% of the cases are not reported for the fear of society pressure.
5. Legislative strength is 10%
6. Crimes on woman are on the rise, working women face, assault, rape, murder, eve-teasing is rampant. An increasing number of disfigurement cases have come into the limelight, acid throwing being one of them.
7. Widows are still looked down; it is still a traditional closed society. Re-marriage is frowned upon.
8. Gender disparity is still rampant, rearing its ugly head in Punjab, Haryana.
9. Men only a select few look upon women as sex objects!
India ranks a miserable 53rd out of the 58 nations in the report called “women Empowerment: - Measuring the Global Gender Gap.”This gap measures the difference between men and women in economic participation, economic opportunity, political empowerment, and access to education, access to reproductive health care. We reflect the largest disparity.
Women play roles in a multi-faceted way: be it a mother, sister, daughter, learner, worker and she is the only one who begets LIFE.
It is important that this empowerment which is making its way be all year around for every minute every second and not a mere tokenisim. Like the way the requisite quota seats are filled by companies to show gender equality. We want respect, self esteem, our birthright and not one day to commemorate woman-hood. Aren’t we special everyday?
Like the clockwork, the podium is dusted, the sashes taken out, aired out to get the stinking moth-ball smell out and the token sashes and awards ordered. The wilting flowers ordered, wrapped in cellophane to be handed out with the fixed smile. One can compare the wilt to the life of us women.
India proudly proclaims to be a superpower, a developed nation, a power to be reckoned. We cry ourselves hoarse “ Mera Bharta Mahaan” but are the woman empowered . Are they free from the clutches of the evils which befall her?
International Women’s day is a day which is an occasion marked by women’s group around the world. It started in the year 1910. This day is commemorated to merge the lives of women across different continents that are divided by national boundaries by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, political, social economic differences. They all come together to celebrate the day which represents the struggle of decades for the fight of equality, against oppression, and towards all round development. It is a move to recognize to the ordinary women who has become ‘extra-ordinary”.
There is however, a reason to worry , where the picture gets dismal and one wonders whether this is just a token day , one which has lost its meaning and is just a mere eye-wash.
Some truths:
1. Girls are killed, aborted and if born are killed in the most inhumane, horrific way thrown in the alleys, by lanes, dust-bins and sometimes even with their umbilical cord wrapped around them and blood smeared.
2. Certain sections of society do not send their girls to school when they attain puberty.
3. Dowry harassment, deaths are not new, they all have become old news. We all have become so de-sensitised that we do not even read the news, just merely skipping it for salacious gossip.
4. Sexual harassment goes on and on, at least 60% of the cases are not reported for the fear of society pressure.
5. Legislative strength is 10%
6. Crimes on woman are on the rise, working women face, assault, rape, murder, eve-teasing is rampant. An increasing number of disfigurement cases have come into the limelight, acid throwing being one of them.
7. Widows are still looked down; it is still a traditional closed society. Re-marriage is frowned upon.
8. Gender disparity is still rampant, rearing its ugly head in Punjab, Haryana.
9. Men only a select few look upon women as sex objects!
India ranks a miserable 53rd out of the 58 nations in the report called “women Empowerment: - Measuring the Global Gender Gap.”This gap measures the difference between men and women in economic participation, economic opportunity, political empowerment, and access to education, access to reproductive health care. We reflect the largest disparity.
Women play roles in a multi-faceted way: be it a mother, sister, daughter, learner, worker and she is the only one who begets LIFE.
It is important that this empowerment which is making its way be all year around for every minute every second and not a mere tokenisim. Like the way the requisite quota seats are filled by companies to show gender equality. We want respect, self esteem, our birthright and not one day to commemorate woman-hood. Aren’t we special everyday?
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