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Monday, May 25, 2015

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Nostalgic Moments :')

Nostalgic Moments   :’)
#Words Of Wisdom By Our Very Own College Director, #Inspiration-At-Its-Best!
                           
Pre-Note: I happened to bump into one of the greatest assets our college has ever had while paying a visit to my college to collect my graduation degree and what happened next was not just a mere coincidence, but it was one thing that made my day (in fact, made my entire week as I kept thinking about it :D). It was a conversation of more than 2 hours and to describe that conversation in mere words sounds impossible to me. It was sheer pleasure to say the least. The above image contains the love and comments made by our Awesomely awesome College Placement Director, who lies in the heart of every student and it is because of this imminent and inspiring personality, our institution enjoys such a good name and track record. He is our very own Mr. Ashok Oberoi sire!



“Heyday, now that is a funny word ain't it? Part of a heyday is, you don't never know you are having yourself one till later when it's all over with, long gone.”
                                                                ― Lee Smith, On Agate Hill


How do you feel when you go to your school or your college after a years of graduation and you get that sinking feeling into the nostalgic haze down the memory lane?

The bunkers lane that, years ago, seemed to be just like an everyday affair was no longer a part of our daily routine but when you go through that lane even today, you find youngsters making their memories through that lane. What about the canteens and the other food outlets or even the famous smoking points or the ever green couple’s point of the college, finding new love stories in the making and friends and smiles of the new couples encompassing the ambience of that place, don’t they bring up a flash back in front of your eyes with a flush of emotions and tears of those great moments we spent with our friends?
It is indeed a moment of great adrenaline rush and nostalgia when you meet your teachers who taught you  years ago and if you were students like me, who  were always short of attendance in every single semester and in a sheer desperate attempt of trying to strike deals with the courier delivery boys not to deliver any courier during weekends or any holiday as it could be containing a potential bomb (the short attendance letter sent to the parents asking them to respond immediately) waiting to explode if delivered in the right hands then I believe we are all on the same page. Yes those were some moments we can never forget and wandering through any of the places that we as a student used to do every day at every single occasion makes you feel sentimental and definitely touches my raw nerve.

Yes, I went to my college today to get my graduation degree after two long years of graduation and experienced the same woeful moments of missing those days and that time when being frolic and having fun with friends was all we cared about, a time when number of classes bunked for the silliest of reasons was more frequent and sounded more reasonable than attending classes in name of the fear of getting low grades, by some of the strict teachers, in the exam, where even bunking the exams was more of a justifiable situation to any of us in the name of "not studied properly" for the exam than to sit for those "long exam hours" which used to seem like unending and incessant.

By the way, I met some of teachers too today that have made me who I am and it is because of them that we are able to stand in this competitive world for they prepare us for the battle that awaits everyone once you get past those doors of care and love endowed upon you by your parents and institution.

The interactions with my director sir and the deputy director sir have always been very memorable and sends strong signals down the spinal cord and makes us realize the importance of our alma-maters ( I have also attached some message that they wrote for me today and It again filled me with the feeling of solitude, responsibility and gratitude that I have always had for my institution)! I met them today and it was there in their eyes (I could sense it just by the mere glance of it) the happiness that they experience seeing their ex-students meet them and I believe I as a student or as a son or as an individual will always remain indebted to my alma-mater and any attempt to do anything would seem trivial in comparison to the things they have done for us for they have taught us the very meaning of life and the very importance of LIFE in the most abstract of forms.

You can make life dance to your tunes inside your college gates (i.e.during your college life) but at the other side of the gate, life sets its own tunes & makes you dance.
Thank you my alma-maters. This is a small tribute that I intend to express for all the greatest things that you have taught us and would continue to teach the young ones that seek the guidance and enlightenment under your shades of wisdom.

P.S.  (to all the young folks out there who are either in college or going to be a part of this legacy, this one goes out for you)

College comes and goes like a wind what is left behind is a bunch of memories which you cherish for the rest of your lives – showing it to your relatives, friends, everyone – “These Were My Golden Days. I Was The King Of My Life. Everybody Used to Call Me ‘The Ultimate Rockstar’ .Don’t Miss It and Don’t Ruin It either…Live It All!!!!”



Delhi Elections : To Be Or Not To Be (AAP)


Note: This article was written by me during the first Delhi elections on my feelings about AAP. Also, the time when I wrote this was when they took the elections by storm claiming 38 seats and then later went on to win a staggering 67 seats out of 70 odd seats in the Delhi elections!



Amidst the ongoing election polls drama, Aam Aadmi Party clearly proves to be the hot potato of the season. After a long time, one party or rather I should say a group of people that clearly stand out is the party of the mango people (or the Aam Aadmi Party). The party is headed by Arvind Kejriwal, a former Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer.


So before we make any decision on whom to vote in these elections, let us try to dig deep into what has this man done for the country and why is it that he is so adamant to bring about a change in the country.


1. Mr. Kejriwal is a graduate of the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, where he studied Mechanical Engineering.


2. He is a former Joint Commissioner in the Income Tax Department and left it all just to bring about a change in the country that many of us dream of, “A better future!”


3. He is also a former Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer – clearly signifying a man with strong character and rock steady background who is ready to give up all the luxuries in pursuit of his dream to see India (or rather Delhi first, we should say) as a better and a safer place to live.


4. He is well-known for his role in drafting a proposed Jan Lokpal Bill and his efforts to bring and implement the Right to Information (RTI) act at grassroots level. Mr Kejriwal is, thus, known as the Father of the RTI Act!


5. Mr. Kejriwal won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006 for his contribution to the enactment of the Right to Information Act and for his efforts to empower the poorest citizens of India.


6. He donated his Magsaysay award money as a corpus fund to a NGO, Public Cause Research Foundation, after resigning from the IRS.


7. Mr. Kejriwal initiated a movement named “Parivartan”(a change) for assisting citizens in navigating income tax, electricity and food ration matters in parts of Delhi. It was through this initiative that Kejriwal unearthed the Ration fake card scam in Delhi in 2008. Mr. Kejriwal has been a strong believer of the saying “Change begins with small things”.


He is definitely not the Triton among the minnows but is of a strong character who wants to go for the big fish as he fights against Delhi CM- Sheila Dikshit for the New Delhi Constituency.


I too am a common man who wishes to see Delhi as a better and safer place to live, where our female counterparts too have the freedom to roam anywhere and at anytime, be it a day or night.


I believe that it would be sagacious to atleast given the party one chance to prove them as we have nothing to lose but only to gain if the movement by Mr. Kejriwal becomes a smashing success.

Sunday, May 24, 2015

A Nostalgic Anecdote



This, being my first job after graduation, I had to travel to a new destination away from my family and friends for the first time. It was a memorable experience and a great learning curve in my career as the place not only taught me and many other to-be young professionals the professional aspect of the corporate culture but also gave us mentors for life. I did make one of the best friends here both in the professional and personal sphere.




#GEC - 1, Infosys Mysore !!

The first project at my first job was the most interesting one and the new things that came my way, surely looked very appealing and it intrigued me. My first project was for one the biggest clients of our organization, Nordstrom, a US e-commerce website. The interesting fact was that this opportunity taught me how to adapt myself to the different surroundings in various ways. AT first, as the project was an 18 year old project with various languages and platform-dependent -integrations and deployment happening over the past 18 years, the project looked like a hot potato for a fresher to lay their hands on, but with time, I realized that it was one of the best projects one could have ever worked on and gave me the beginning that I dreamt of :D. My team got the opportunity to work all by ourselves and the ideas that we used to bring to the table helped the entire team, as a whole, to develop a better product. It also meant that the entire team was learning all the time and not just one section/group of individuals, as the inputs kept coming from all areas :D.



It was here that I discovered that the greatest things can not only be learned from books alone, but I could learn these small things from each one of our team and also, try to teach some things (if I may) so that we all can learn something from each one of us and be a better person and a better professional.


In the end, I would just like to remember it by quoting the following lines referring to the time I spent in Infosys, Mysore :)


“Don’t cry because it’s over.


Smile because it happened :)” .


Yes, I am not going to mourn or cry because it ended but be greatful and thankful that it happened as had this not happened, I may not have been the same person I am today and I would have definitely been deprived of the great things that Life taught me here or I should say the Infy Campus teaches you here! :D


(#start-of-my-career)


Women’s life in Men’s World

Women’s life in Men’s World





*She dwelt among the untrodden ways,*

* Beside the springs of dove;*

* A maid whom there were none to praise,*

* And a very few to love”*

What is spun in William Wordsworth’s word here, unfortunately, happen to be what the world lives in real today. Women have their importance clearly revealed in the traditions and ancient logbooks with them being called *‘THE ** **SHAKTI**’* (The Powerful) by the Indians. *MARY MAGDALENE* is a pious name in Christianity. All religions in the world portray them as divine manifestations of mysticism and beauty.

We have survived for very long now, and empirically derived out of it the inevitability of one of the most significant element of life *–‘CHANGE’*. Someone once said very truly *“To exist is to change”*. But a sphere where its weight has lacked a lot of dynamism is –the fate of women in the world.

Yes, we can’t gainsay the copious amounts of encouragement received by women in various fields, helping them to emerge out as winners. Women have made their noteworthy presence felt in every field possible. The world’s governance rests on the able shoulders of vibrant leaders like *Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, Mrs.Angela Merkel, Mrs. Hillary* *Clinton, and Mrs.Pratibha Patil* to name a few.

Sports which were out of the bounds for women have welcomed their participation and witnessed tremendous performances as well. Also, theatre and the entertainment industry would have been in jeopardy without the active involvement of females. The roots of the industry are led to newer depths by the terrific coupling of unmatchable talent with beauty and glamour.

All these speak volumes about the undying spirit and enormous potential of women which have taken them to great heights. But what continues to remain an uncontested fact is that these opportunities have been the privileges of only a few who have been favored by fate. It’s a startling sight to watch the plight of those who have been victimized by the orthodoxy and chauvinism of the opposite sex.

Discrimination in its most ruthless avatar is the practicing of female infanticide. Some villages in China consider baby girls as *‘maggots in rice’. *In a village in Rajasthan , India people kill the baby girl and then carry out a “purifying” procedure to cleanse the village. These gruesome and disgusting incidents are evidences of the heinous practice.

Some places have “witch-hunting” rituals carried out where the suspected “witch” is beaten to death or burnt alive. Brides are set on fire if they don’t bring in with them satisfactory dowry. Rapes have been recorded at an all time high in the past decade. Male ego has transformed into a more narcissist form.

The world has proved to be unfair for women at various junctures. With every new law made in their interests, an idea is born to encumber it. Wouldn’t the world be a lacuna if there wasn’t mutual and equal existence of interests of both the sexes?

It is time that ‘*EVE’* was stopped being condemned for taking a bite of the Forbidden Fruit, for if she hadn’t, the world wouldn’t have come into being!

Written by – Anchit Sood