Nuclear Liability Bill: Who bears the brunt?

Last month Obama came to india and it looks a fruitful trip. He sold lot of american goddies and india bought them whole heartedly to keep up the mood of it's new buddy. Lately america has started considering india as an open market and leaving no stone unturned to sell every god damn product which is manufactured in uncle sam's land. Starting from barley to nuclear reactor, americans are lining up an impressive array of products which can be sold to india.

Biggest item on the list is ofcourse the nuclear reactor. Energy business is unlike any other business and nuclear energy business is unlike any other energy business.India is the first nation to get exception from the strictly controlled nuclear energy proliferation laws. Many countries are lined up to pick up stakes in the huge indian market. French and Russians have already started building reactors and thus have advantage.

Nuclear co-operation bill was establised in 2008 with the intend of opening state controlled indian nuclear energy sector to foreign players. The whole play has suffered from lot of unpleasant but extremely important twists. It seems like india is not rushing in. We have sustained 20 plus years of technological embargo, we sure can wait for few more years. While french and russian are already building reactors, US insecurity is rising exponentially. US companies like General Electric and Westinghouse electric are the major american players and want to bite a sizable marketshare. But i don't think that's gonna happen. Indian Nuclear liability bill is not going up very well with US. Why ? because it puts too much pressure on US companies. Currently the compensation cap is almost $450 million. The indian panel is suggesting the law to be extended to suppliers and sub contractors.

Now this is pretty natural. Iam letting you build a critical energy source in my home and  iam paying you a handsome amount for that. It's not wrong if i ask for excellent  quality and insurances against disasters. I know that there's no insurance for nuclear business- but baby, everything has a first time!

It's about atleast an initial business environment for $10 billion. I think US is losing out because of their bad attitude. They think that "It's american way or..NO WAY". But fortunately it would be "no way" for americans. Right now you are the sales man and iam the buyer and i have other salesmen on my door. So try to impress me..don't put your policies on my face. Do business in a way it should be done. America is a greedy nation. It just wants money and doesnot care about any other god damn thing. Nuclear business is not like buying bread. We all saw what happened in union carbide or Bhopal gas case. US never extradited Anderson. It was the worst industrial accident ever. I don't think indians can actually trust americans on something which is as critical as nuclear energy. India can be partner with US. But to be partner you need to show respect and mutual co-operation and commitment to each other. I can give to $10 bn for your work and you should be grateful to me that iam considering you for the opportunity when there are better options out there.I care about my people like you care about your people. So how can you expect me to remove liability clauses or loosen the clauses. British Petroleum is getting a bill of over $34 billion for the gulf of mexico oil spill disaster. After US senators demanded, around $20 Billion were transfered to federals to compensate the disaster. But that same US is finding it unacceptable that India has placed a Rs 1500 Crore compensation cap on US firms in case of nuclear accidents. What a drama has unfolded and now i doubt US over this whole generosity. Oh i am sorry ...not generosity ...it's actually business.

So my advise to you americans - be polite and respect the demands of your customer. Leave your arrogance at your doorstep. Asia is bigger than your mouth and there ain't no american way here!!

We will call it like we see it!!!

It's American way or..NO WAY!!!

American way...The first time i read about this was in Superman comics. Superman declares that his job is to fight " the never ending battle for truth, justice and the american way". Quite catchy! isn' it. I always wondered what exactly is the American Way? My perception and thinking around it has changed drastically over all these years. Unlike what i used to hear about America and American way, things are no more the same.

In reality and at present American way is to react to half baked lies, misinformation, confusion with strong acts of violence, torturing and discrimination towards innocent people.

Starting from Iraq invasion to opting protectionism policies to "revive economy" america shows that the concept of american way is long gone and polluted.


I am adding a new category in this blog - "AMERICA- A neutral view"

I will be talking about everything which comes or happens in america and effects life outside.

Stay tuned to Maverick's Zone

Type Of Indians - 2

Hello there,


taking it from the last post, this week is about three states- Gujrat, Bihar and Bengal.


Starting from 


Gujrat

Gujrat is like india's sea facing balcony.This state is one of the highly industrialized state of india. It's the birth place of Gandhi and also the witness of Godhra Massacre.  


Looks: Gujjus have the normal asian brownish complexion. You can easily indentify a gujju by his/her dialect.This is also the community where men dress up more than women. Women are good to look at but talk a lot about SRK, Indian Idol and Kichdhi...So if you are not an expert in any of these topics than you are at loss. Gujju men are the only reason that Arrow shirt created floral print formal shirts.


Life: Gujjus like gold or anything which glitters. The shine and glitter should be directly proportional to the cost. Navratri should be renamed as "Dandiya Festival". Infact gujju bhai says that dandiya should be used in every occassion, even on 15 august.


Food: The food is not food if it doesnot have both khatta and mitha flavours. Namkeens should be eaten six times in a day and pickle should be sweet.


Motto: Eh jignesh bhai..business khol lete hai, kya?




Bihar

Sadly this state is a tragic story. Widespread corruption, poverty and lack of education are the only achievements of this state. It was once the centre of power, education and culture. India's first empire- the Maurya empire and worlds most peaceful religion- the Buddhism arise from this place. It was the land of Nalanda- world's first true "global University". Now it is the state of extreme violence, illiteracy, corruption and zero economic growth. It's a tragedy!!!


Looks: There's nothing special in bihari men and women. All just too plain and simple. For reference you can look to Lalu prasad yadav and  Rabri devi.


Life: What life! they don't have any life. Bihar has highest youth population than any other state and every youth wants to join goverment job- in railways or in police. They want to carry on the legacy of corruption. They are hard labourers, they can work really hard ...but for what...for corruption. Again a tragedy! You can rarely see a bhaiya in the cities of the South, or at least they are not common. But Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi and other cities cannot function without the lowly bhaiya doing every dirty job at a dirty salary with a broad, toothy laugh packed with a shot of khaini (tobacco).The first few bhaiyas whom I came to know were milkmen, municipal sweepers, tram conductors and the hand-operated rickshaw pullers in Kolkata, who were (and still are) never thought to belong to the human species by the intellectuals crowding Kolkata.


Food: Nothing comes close to litti and choka. And i have tasted both..thank god..actually!! 


Motto: Forget motto...instead read this


"A Schoolmaster from a remote rural area in Bihar was transferred to a new School in Mumbai.

He reported for duty two days before August 15 and, as was the practice in the school, was asked to address the school assembly on Independence Day.
Here's his dynamite speech :

Leddies and Gentulmens, Contemporaries, Children, "This is my first maiden speech. If small mistakes get inside my speech, I ask pardon.

Stickly speaking, I wanted to joint your school more fastly, but for the following reason. Too much time lost in getting slipper reservation in three-tyre compartment. The clerk rejected to give ticket. I put complaint on stationmaster. He said me to go to lady clerk. At first she also rejected. I then pressed her for long time and at last with great difficulty she gave a birth only to my son. Anyway I thanked the stationmaster because he was responsible for getting birth of my son.

We got independent because of great leadersz linke Gundhiji who get-outted all angrezi peoples from India. Tilak said Swaraj is our birth rate and we shall halve it.

Today we all have our birth-rate.You children are future dynamic generators of the Nation. Look into future time only. No backside looking, or looking at your behind.

Be like great like X' raj Ranjan of Germany or Presidents like Loosebelt, Dim Butter, Lipton etc. You know genius, no? It is one per cent perspiration and ninety seven percent evaporation.

They became great by reading great books. After we finish you off here in the school, you can go to college and get B.A., M.A., M.A.M.A and other decrease.

Then you can become great liars in the supreme courts, shattered accountants, or lecherers in college.

The school is like a garden. You are the seeds, classroom is the soil. We will bury you in this soil, pour water of knowledge on your heads and one-day you all will become great phools.

Many vacancy job come in papers. Only yesterday I saw in paper "Wanted for refuted engineering firm: - Generators, highpower condensors" so and so forth, etc. These jobs may be teknickel, but you can shine.

If you have flare in English, you can become teacher.

I am now ending this fastly.

My God blast you!

Thank you and thank God!"

And finally

Bengal

Uh .....the original intellectuals of india. They generally win Oscar, nobel, booker and other pristigious prizes for india. They love to argue and you just cannot win with them in any argument. They have opinion about everything under the sun and also above the sun. These people love food, traditional music n dance and soccer.

Look: Girls are pretty, boys are not. I think bong girls are sensuous and mostly traditional. But beware, they are very hard to impress and once you get hooked with a bong girl ..she won't let you escape that easily.Starting from Suchitra Sen to Sushmita Sen bong girls redefine beauty.

Life: Bengali life is all about football,macher-jhol, rossogolla and music. If the kid doesnot grow up to be a professor or economist or music director or an author than he is a failure. Children learn to write poetry in 2nd standard and parents keep reminding them that they belong to the land of Rabindranath Tagore and Saratchandra Chatterji.

Food: The bengali fondness for food is legendary. Bengali food is the extreme of sweet and spicy. To a casual palate bengali food means rice and fish.Ofcourse it's much more than that. Sweet holds a position of pride in bengal.

Motto: Joi Bangla..Joi Sourav Dada

Type Of Indians - 1

Everyone knows about the variety india offers in terms of almost everything. To be honest all the variety comes from people. India has so diverse sub cultures and population races that it is bound to produce variety.India has 26 main languages and more than 1500 dialects..phew!that's more than the population of some european countries (just joking!). India is all about numbers and indians are tottally smitten by numbers- starting from describing the beauty of a woman to strange demograhic stats..it's all about numbers. Here's a take- there's more "Guptas" is india than "people" in Austria  The most amazing thing is how these cultures and races co-exist and work their way through co-operation and competition. Sounds contradictory...hell ya ! it's pure contradiction...but that's what india is all about.

So lets talk about the epicenter of all variety- The people!

To understand different kind of indians the best thing is to understand how they look how they think, how they eat and what they aim for. I will try to explain different kind of indians based on their states. I will consider four criteria - Looks, Life, Food and motto. it would be very tough to cover all states but....

Lets get started...Starting from top..

1) KASHMIR:  I think kashmir is a lot different from jammu. Kashmir has muslim dominated population, different terrain, different thinking and food.

Looks: i love kashmiri women..Kashmiri women are among the most beautiful in India. They have an English rosiness of complexion behind the Eastern tan. Men are also fit since most of them are farmers. Apart from kashmiri pandits everyone is more o less associated with farming. You may not like strong flavours after you get off the bed in morning but you just cannot deny it if a petite kashmiri girl (wearing a nice pheran) is serving fresh kehwa to you.

Food: If the women are so beautiful, the food has to be tasty: start the day with kehwa and gorge on masala rajma with freshly boiled rice.

Life: Terrorism destroyed lot of life. But kashmiris are about tolerence and suffering. Stone throwing has become a favourite pastime.

Motto: Gar firdaus bar rue zamin ast,hami asto, hami asto, hami asto (If there's a paradise anywhere on earth, it's here, it's here, it's here!)

PUNJAB: Punjab literally means five rivers. This state is a rich agricultural state and is the texas of india with huge stakes in farming.

Looks: Women are good, men not. Women are good till they are unmarried. There;s this strange thing about punjabi women that i don't understand. They look pretty but then they get married and become exact carbon copy of their moms.Punjab da puttars generally have strong build and are good drinking partners but pretty bad driving partners.

Food: Iam not exactly fond of punjabi food. They are good in eating but not in preparation of food. Ask any punjabi to prepare a chicken curry and he will start frying the chicken with lots of tomato paste. Ask him to prepare mutton curry and he will do the same. Of course he will replace chicken with mutton. the only authentic food you can have in punjab is sarso da saag and makke di roti. also don't forget the huge glass of sweetened lassi. Punjabis  alone are responsible for consuming almost half of butter produced in india. Butter in everything!

Life: One thing- punjabis are full of life.Lots of food, Lots of bhangara, lots of sharab.

Motto: Singh is King

DELHI: Uh! the capital of india and the heart of india. Many delhites will be offended by this- but ho jhao bhai..truth is truth!

Look: Delhi is made up of mixed populations - primarily from Punjab and UP. People in delhi or Delhi-ites are almost comparable to punjabis. Girls are the same- Long straight hair and slightly plum- It has something to do with the butter in diet.It's again same in delhi. Delhi gals looks cute till they get married. Men in Delhi are always aroused and we record the highest rape incidents in delhi

Life: Hopping from one shopping mall to another is the favourite timepass here. Hyundai sells 70% of its santros here. In delhi it seems like everyone owns atleast one santro. People think that you should have more than one car.What good if you don't have a gaddi. and what good if you dont have a 5000 watts sound system in the gaddi. What good if you don't roll down the window and blast the music off . Delhites are low on etiquette and use a spectrum of abuses in normal conversations. Bhen**** is part of normal conversation and is considered as an instrument to show dearness or dislikeness in a perticular conversation circle. Quite strange!

Food: Chole-bhature is the thing. I have seen people making a trip to delhi just to eat chole bhature. Also worth trying are different type of parathas and naans in purani delhi and shammi kebab in khan market

.

Motto: What is life without some show off

To be continued.......

UN Politics: The Sweeter, the tougher

Obama's state visit to india is largely a success- more for yankees and less for indians. Obama came here as a salesman in disguise and was pretty successful in his pitch. He signed 20 different deals worth US $10 Billion. india is buying all kinds of stuff from US starting from Military transpost aircraft to passenger aircrafts to jet engines to oil and gas equipment. He claims that he created 53670 jobs for americans. Well quite true! But most of the americans still think that india is taking out their jobs. As obama pointed out, these are "old stereotypes and old concerns ignore today's reality".

But what india got? Nothing solid but assurances that US will back india's quest for UNSC permanent seat and will use its leverage on pakistan to bring 26/11 responsibles to justice. Out of these two,UNSC is definately more important and interesting. 26/11 is gone and Ajmal kasab has already been through trial and the world knows that pakistan is now the epicentre of global terrorism and is unfortunately a soon-to-be failed state. While we keep the past in our head and learn from it,its also important to focus on future. India is back in UNSC after a very long time. The happy moment came after the embarrasing fiasco of 1996 where india was deliberately set up to lose (which i think is western countries punishment to india for being too close to communists). That was what i say " ab tera kya hoga kaliya?" situation.


But things have changed now. India is a growing economic and military giant and has shown it to the world that embargos, corruptions and forced isolation cannot stop this nation to claim it's rightful place. In recent elections India garnered something which can be a UN record. Normally a country needs 2/3 votes to be elected as a member of UN security council but India got the assent of 187 out of 192 possible voters. But as they say great power comes with great responsibilty. What can india expect out of this stint in security council? And how should india work?


Well, the expectation ball was rolled when prez Obama asked india's intervention in myanmar situation. Quite true! India is acting like a rock when it comes to myamnar crisis (today i heard that suu kyi is going to be released). Once in the security council, people will expect india to take steps regarding Iran, North Korea, Myanmar, Sudan, Palestine and global terrorism. Suddenly the responsibilities will expand. Western countries are already performing war games with indian forces to increase the interoperability. So the mentoring and grooming has already started for some time now. But in UN - it all about international politics and mature diplomacy. India may have to offend many friends like iran- so we will have to learn the fine art of negotitations.




Pakistan is already miffed with the US endorsement of india's bid for UNSC perma-member seat. Out of the five perma members, China can shoot down india's aspirations. Rest of the four countries US,UK France and Russia are already in sync with india. 


Perma seat is still few years away but india has to prove a lot before reaching that level.

Kashmir Problem: A Must Read

Arundhati Roy's comments has brought out one important question on the general awareness about the whole kashmir problem.There's a gross misunderstanding and confusion on why the conflict happened and how the events unfolded which gave birth to present situation. It is definitely a sensitive issue and people commenting on this issue should be aware about all the aspects.


MSN published this article which is worth a read. This article is written by E Jayakrishnan  


here it is..


********************************************************


Arundhati Roy says Kashmir was never a part of India. We look at why she is wrong & why India’s position is not as vulnerable as it is portrayed to be

Myth-I

"Kashmir has never been an integral part of India": Arundhati Roy

The story

At the time of Indian independence, none of the princely states - Hyderabad, Gwalior, Mysore, Baroda and Kashmir, to name a few - were part of India. They were called princely states - quasi-sovereign states ruled by the Indian princes under the "suzerainty" of the British. There were as many as 568 states in India when the British decided to leave India.

In 1947, under the Mountbatten Plan, they were given two options - either India or Pakistan. Though most of the Princely states thirsted for freedom, that option was closed at the insistence of the Congress party. Though the choice of which entity to join was left to the rulers of the Princely states it was largely understood that religious denomination of the majority of the citizens and geographical contiguities of the states will be preponderant determining criteria.

Kashmir fulfilled both these paramount criteria to join Pakistan - geographical contiguity with the newly-formed state and religious domination of the majority of its citizens.

However, there was a problem. The Hindu ruler of Kashmir Maharaja Hari Singh wanted something which was not on the table, namely azadi, or freedom from both India and Pakistan - to remain independent. In spite of entreaties from various quarters including from the Governor General of India Loius Mountbatten, the Maharaja continued to dither and be non-committal. The situation reached a stalemate.

Jinnah and Pakistan perceived the intransigence of the Maharaja as a clever ploy of the India and Mountbatten to pluck Kashmir surreptiously from Pakistan's grasp. So in an operation that today can be seen as a precursor of the Kargil Operation, Pakistan launched a military invasion of Kashmir on October 22, 1947.

Pashtun tribals and irregulars, morally and logistically supported by the Pakistan army, were sent in to force the Maharaja to accede to Pakistan. The invaders reached the outskirts of Srinagar, the capital. And were threatening to besiege the city.

A frightened and panicky Maharaja radioed Delhi for military help. The Indian leadership argued that it not be legally possible to send in the Indian army unless Kashmir acceded to India formally. After another bout of resistance, the Maharaja finally yielded and Mountbatten's aide V P Menon was sent to Srinagar to secure his signature on the Instrument of Accession. Once signed (on 26 October 1947) the Indian army was airlifted to Srinagar and beat back the Pakistani invaders, but not before they controlled about one-third of Kashmir.

The Reality:

As soon as the Maharaja signed the Instrument of Accession, Kashmir's accession to India was complete in the legal and formal sense - the same Instrument of Accession that was signed by more than 500 other princely states. That is a fact of history, which cannot be disputed without stretching the truth. It's there is black and white. In fact, it can be argued that it was Pakistan's folly of invading Kashmir to usurp it, overplaying its hand, which sowed the seeds for the Kashmir imbroglio.

Myth-II

India refuses to hold the UN-mandated plebiscite to give the right of self-determination to the Kashmiri people.

The story

When the irregulars from Pakistan invaded India on October 22, 1947, Prime Minister Nehru went to the UN in good faith to call on the world body to intervene and ensure that Pakistan pull back its troops. Based on the Indian complaint and the counter-arguments of Pakistan, the UN Security Council called for not only an immediate ceasefire, but also a plebiscite to determine the wishes of the Kashmiris.

Ignoring the advice of his Home Minister Sardar Patel and the army commanders that India should not agree to a ceasefire before the area captured by the invaders are reclaimed, Nehru went ahead and not only ordered an immediate ceasefire but also agreed in principle to the plebiscite. A promise that has not been kept.

The reality

This is the instance used to castigate India for not only breaking the spirit of the UN resolutions but also ignoring the legitimate aspirations of the Kashmiri people.

But just look at what UN Resolution 38 of 17 January 1948 actually says about the run-up to the plebiscite--

"The Government of Pakistan should undertake to use its best endeavours: To secure the withdrawal from the State of Jammu and Kashmir of tribesmen and Pakistani nationals not normally resident therein who have entered the State for the purposes of fighting, and to prevent any intrusion into the State of such elements and any furnishing of material aid to those fighting in the State".

Please read that again.

The much-bandied resolution used to whip India with, by the critics clearly states that Pakistan will "withdraw" all "Pakistani nationals" and "tribesmen" who infiltrated on October 22, 1947 from the soil of the whole of Jammu and Kashmir as it existed then, without exception. This was the UN resolution's 'first condition' for the beginning of the process towards the plebiscite.

Has that condition been fulfilled by Pakistan? Has the land 'occupied' by the Pakistanis and the tribesmen in 1947 been vacated? Isn't the reality that Pakistan occupied and continues to occupy more than one-third of the territory of Kashmir.

As a way to fulfill the mandate and hold the plebiscite, will Pakistan be willing to vacate PoK now; 63 years after the resolution? The answer is written on the wall.

For all intents and purposes the UN resolution on Kashmir is as good as dead.

No wonder then that the wily but pragmatic General Musharraf gave up the usual Pakistani harping on self-determination in Kashmir for a more practical and doable out-of-the-box solution, which unfortunately is being disowned by the present Pakistani government.

Myth-III

Pakistan has always stood by Kashmir, as against the brutality of the Indian security forces in the Indian side of Kashmir

Pakistan in Kashmir

a) Pakistan has carved out the Northern Areas (now called Gilgit-Baltistan, almost 72,971 Sq km) from Kashmir into a separate administrative and political unit. This area which was part of the undivided Kashmir at the time of Pakistan, has been 'annexed' by Pakistan as it where and separated from Kashmir.

b) In 1963, Pakistan illegally ceded 5,800 sq km in the Trans-Karakoram Tract to China. The Tract was part of the original state of Jammu and Kashmir.

c) Pakistan actively encourages "other people" to settle in PoK and have even allowed the Chinese a huge presence in Gilgit-Baltistan, ostensibly for developing the infrastructure of the region.

In contrast:

a) Territorially the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir is the same entity that existed in 1947, except for the portions gobbled-up by Pakistan/China.

b) The Freedom House Report, 2010, on the level of 'freedom' in PoK characterised it as "not free', while the Indian side of Kashmir was defined as "partly free".

d) No non-Kashmiri can buy as much as an inch of land in the state of Jammu & Kashmir. There has been no attempt by India to change the demographics or the state's ethnic character. The only demographic change that has happened in the state has been the "ethnic cleansing" of the Kashmiri pundits from the Valley. A mass exodus which has largely been ignored by the media and the powers-that-be.

Therefore, there is nothing much really that India has to feel defensive about. Whatever Arundhati Roy or others may put out. 

Don't forget the Oats

"An Englishman and a Scotsman were discussing oats. The Englishman, with his nose in the air said "In England we feed oats to our horses, and in Scotland you feed oats to your men...", to which the Scotsman replied "...that's why in England you have such fine horses and in Scotland we have such fine men!"

A Counsel On Oats...

A tough, old cowboy once counseled his grandson that if he wanted to live a long life, the secret was to sprinkle a pinch of gunpowder on his oatmeal every morning.

The grandson did this religiously and lived to the age of 110.

He left four children, 20 grandchildren, 30 great grandchildren, 10
great great grandchildren and a 50 foot hole where the crematorium used to be.

"Don't forget the Oats."

Oats are the fourth most important crop world-wide. They were once considered a weed which grew right with the barley and wheat. One day farmers decided to "join 'em rather than fight 'em," and oats started being planted as a crop by itself. It fares best in cool, moist climates, which is why they are such a popular staple of the British Isles like Scotland, Ireland and Wales. The grain was introduced into the Americas in 1602 by a sea captain who planted them in one of the islands off the coast of Massachusetts. They were a popular grain, but corn had a better yield per acre crop, so their popularity wasn't as great as corn. Today, nearly half of the world's oat crop--more than 4 billion bushels a year--is grown in the United States and Canada.

Nutrient Values and Virtues of Oats

Oat kernels look very much like wheat in structure. They have an outer covering of bran which protects the starchy endosperm and the germ that sits at the bottom of the grain. Because the oat kernel is soft, the nutritious bran is not removed. Whole grain oats contain seven B vitamins, vitamin E, and nine minerals, including iron and calcium. The quality and quantity of the protein in oats is far superior to that of wheat and most other grains. 30 grams of oats has TWICE the protein of wheat or corn flakes. But the most important nutritional advantages are the soluable fiber and the GLA (gamma linoleic acid).The soluable fiber is what gives it the gummy texture, and it helps lower cholesterol levels in the blood. GLA is considered an "activated" essential fatty acid. Very small amounts of it fill the metabolic pipelines and allow the body to make other essential fatty acids, and all this is part of the hormonal control (took this from Harper Collins:).

Forms of Oats

Oat grains are enclosed in two tough husks that must be removed. The grains are cleaned and toasted, husked and scoured, resulting in whole oat kernels called GROATS. These contain nearly all the original nutritional value of the grain. Oat groats are much softer and quicker cooking than wheat berries, and can be used in many other meals that breakfast. They are not refined before or after processing, so they retain most of their nutrients regardless of the form in which they are eaten.

Here's a nice but quick recipe for Oatmeal.

Apricot Honey Oatmeal

• 3-1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 cups Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned
• uncooked)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)

In  saucepan, bring water, apricots, honey, cinnamon and salt to a boil.

Stir in oats; return to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium; cook about 1 minute for quick oats (or 5 minutes for old fashioned oats) or until most of liquid is absorbed, stirring occasionally.

You can replace apricot with any other dry fruit you like.

What a mess..Arundhati Roy !!!

There's one thing in india, which is worth noting..You get absolute freedom of speech. I know that many countries have freedom of speech but they also have some strings attached to that right. You cannot contempt or insult the country. But in india people generally get away with these kinds of irresponsible use of the basic right. 


Arundhati Roy's comment on Kashmir created a lot of spark and fire. It came at a time when the violence and unrest in the state is at an alarming stage and armed forces are worried about the ongoing discussions to soften the armed forces special power act in the state. The booker prize winner has a track record of some high voltage human right activism. But generally human right activists are zero on political and practical situational awareness. Arundhati says that "What I say comes from love and pride. It comes from not wanting people to be killed, raped, imprisoned or have their fingernails pulled out in order to force them to say they are Indians."  Now three things can be done here


1) Let go kashmir and merge with Pakistan: What!!...Last time i heard pakistan is slowly moving towards becoming a failed state. Pakistan's political system, economic system and social system are all screwed up. The country is totally overwhelmed with it's own problem and is totally confused about it's own future. I seriously don't think that kashmiris have any future there.


2) A seperate autonomous state: Oh my god! quite an imagination but how 's this seperate state gonna live. No industry, no employment, no education. Think that azaad kashmir can manage all those things seperately. I don't think that hurriyat leaders and people like Geelani have the balls to do those kinda things. Seems like a pretty bad option


3) Integrate it more with rest of India: Uh..what good that gonna do. India is prosperous, mighty and a growing economic, cultural and military giant. India can provide right enviroment.. a hope and a chance of better survival and life to normal kashmiris. Trust me! their life would be much more pathetic in above two situations. 


To me the third option seems the best. The state is burning but why? I don't remember the separatists doing anything to bridge the gab between government and kashmiris. I find them agenda-less. Who are these jokers? Are they the chosen representatives of kashmiris. Nope! I don't think so. The state has been under a state of conflict for almost 4 decades. People have died saving that piece of land which is PART OF INDIA. So stop jerking around and stop promoting yourself a  messiah of people. We have enough of them. Instead use your grey material  to write another book. I think your grey matter is depleting..fast. Put it in some good and meaningful work. Or is it your publishers are not happy with you and you want to get your share of pulicity. Oh ..is it that? You are then probably suffering from Rakhi Sawant Syndrome.


To be honest..Arundhati..I really liked your interview with Christopher Lyden but your comment on kashmir utterly disappoints me.

Lemon Chicken Tikka

Happy Dussehra to alll... and Subho Bijoya to all bong souls!!!!

The festival is the mark of good's win over evil and is celebrated with great joy and warmth. One of the most joyous moment is that of entire family feasting on delicious bengali delicacies. Infact bijoya dashami has always been an excuse to gorge on delicious bengali dishes. I always liked lemon chicken with strong tastes of wine and tangy taste of lemon. There are different ways of cooking lemon chicken and that makes huge differences. Ask any punjabi and he will say that add lemon in the tomato rich gravy and that's lemon chicken( ya! that's absurd)..I know! punjabis are not good with non veg food. They can eat but they cannot cook a "tasteful" non-veg dish.

Well, to be honest i also used to cook that way. But i guess i have evolved a lot. There's a more elegant and tasteful way of cooking lemon chicken. Here's the way out

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup cornflour
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 750g chicken thigh fillets, cut into 2cm-thick slices
• 1 tsp salt2 Tbsp Chinese rice wine
• 1 cup salt-reduced chicken stock
• Extra 1 Tbsp Chinese rice wine
• 1 Tbsp hoisin sauce
• 2 tsp oyster sauce
• 2 tsp salt-reduced soy sauce
• 3 tsp caster sugar
• 2 lemons
• 2 Tbsp plain flour
• Oil(mustard), for deep-frying

• Put 2 tablespoons of cornflour in a large mixing bowl, add water and stir until smooth. Add chicken slices, egg yolks, Chinese rice wine and salt and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
•  Put chicken stock, extra wine, sauces and caster sugar in a medium heavy-based pan and stir to combine. Bring slowly to

the boil and simmer for 10 minutes or

until slightly reduced. Juice 1 lemon and add 1/4 cup juice. Thinly slice remaining lemon and add to sauce. Simmer for

2 minutes. Remove from heat.

• Add remaining cornflour and flour to chicken and stir until well combined. Heat oil in a wok or medium, deep pan. When hot, add one-quarter chicken slices and cook for 3 minutes or until golden. Transfer to a large plate covered with paper towel. Repeat with remaining batches of chicken. Serve chicken with lemon sauce.

Corn flour really tastes well with chicken and than it gives that rusty and crispy feeling to the pieces.

Enjoy the meal and enjoy the day with your family!!!

Vision is Everything

“The poorest man is not he who is without a cent, but he who is without a dream.” 
– Pennsylvania School Journal


Hey!!

Maybe you have heard of the tale of the two salesmen who went to Africa. The story goes like this.

A western shoe salesman went to Africa to scout the market. He wired his manufacturer, ‘I want to come home. Nobody wears shoes in this part of Africa.’

They brought him home and sent another salesman. The new salesman hurriedly wired an order, ‘Everybody here needs shoes!”

Seeing everyone bear-footed in that area of Africa may have discouraged the first salesman.

He must have thought, “Geeesh, nobody uses shoes here, not even a hand-made footwear. How in the world can I sell shoes here when they don’t see the benefit of it? I better go home.”

He missed the opportunity to make it big. He could not see.

On the other hand, the second salesman thought, “If I can only convince them to wear shoes. If I can show them the benefit. I can almost imagine whole villages buying my shoes. Wow! Aside from helping them enjoy the benefit of wearing shoes, I am going to make a great profit! I can get married and start a family and I can buy that dream house…”

When I first heard this story, I said to myself, “I am determined to be the second salesman who saw the opportunity rather than the trend.”

I must admit though that there were moments in my life that I stayed on the “what is” and accepted it rather than on the “what can be” and dared to make a difference.

Now I cannot imagine life without vision. It is not worth living

This is one of those days when i look back and try to understand why i decided to build my own business. The month still has 7 more days to go and i am facing some tough financial crunch. These are moments when you think - "Why the hell i spent money on this stupid business plan ?". Hard times are synonymous with an entrepreneur, but how to explain that to your heart. One of the most challenging thing in entrepreneurship is that it's a constant struggle- to stay alive. For me, My business is no less than a vision and i guess that's how it should be. There will be many occasions when money would be tight and credit would be unavailable. I call them the "Moment of Decisive confrontation". This is the time when you can test your will and your commitment for your vision.


It's easy to lose hope from time to time. It's important to look back on the journey you have made so far and to hope that you will get many more delightful moments in future. It helps to stay on course. The whole thing is about creating something out of nothing and exposing yourself to the world through your idea and commitment. It takes lot of courage to stand up and work on an idea. But courage alone will not do..There's the need for "selective honesty" and ruthlessness. Sounds strange ..isn'it? Simple honesty will kill you..add some "spices" into it and you will find a better taste of honesty. Ruthlessness will help you to control your heart. I want to have tuna sandwich on every weekend but it costs 5 euros. It's not much but it's definably more for a startup entrepreneur. You see entrepreneurship is not just about making money and living a lifestyle you think that successful entrepreneur lives. That's all well and good. This journey is about understanding yourself, your business and drawing others into your ideas, dreams and hopes.Also to let people know that you have something valuable to offer them. 


I always loved the principles of Bhagwad Gita. You have to be willing to accept things as they are and not get attached to the end results. The creations of your vision is only limited by your imagination. Play the game and just do it. Face and enjoy the realm of possibility.


Living out a vision and trying to make it a reality is a worthy experiment. It gives a great sense of accomplishment and contentment.