TMC plan for GREENING OF CALCUTTA

Within days of coming to power, the Trinamool Congress shows a very determined, well-planned,scientific way of the GREENING OF CALCUTTA.

Any Calcuttan moving through the streets of Calcutta would have noticed how within the last years, trees have been rampantly felled, in the name of development. Forest cover has gone down from 10% to 8%. This is an official figure. God knows what the real rate of cutting down of trees have been.

So, it makes sense to first PROTECT the trees as is evident from the TOI excerpt.

Following is excerpt from the Times of India -

"The new Kolkata Municipal Corporation board is ready to draw up plans to protect and increase the green cover of the city.

The KMC authorities will sit with forest department officials in a day or two to chalk out a comprehensive plan on this count. MMiC (parks and squares) Debasish Kumar said the process to identify spots where saplings needed to be planted would soon begin.

"The stress won't be on how many new tress have been planted. Our aim will be to protect the trees that have already been planted," Kumar said, adding that efforts would be made to save at least 85% of the existing trees in the city.

KMC also wants to revive and revamp its own nurseries. "Over the past few years, the KMC nurseries have not been functioning properly and there's been a drastic fall in the number of saplings. We may buy saplings from forest department nurseries, but we'll try to use our own resources," said Kumar.

The truth is, afforestation and tree plantation programmes are conducted every year, but the city's green cover has been shrinking rapidly. A forest department survey a few years ago had pegged the city's green cover at just 10%, while the latest estimates put this at 8%."

Mamata Banerjee ready to sacrifice Ministry for GREATER CAUSE

Times Person of the Year may well be TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee.

Yes, I can almost visualize her ......the 1 INDIVIDUAL WHO DECIMATED 35 YEARS OF STALINIST RULE IN BENGAL.

We all know, no Cabinet Minister, especially holding the lucrative position of Railways, would SACRIFICE her berth, IN ORDER FOR A GREATER CAUSE.

But, I was stunned to read that she is willing to do so.

Kindly read following item -

"After battering the Left in the West Bengal civic body elections, railway minister Mamata Banerjee is preparing to deliver it the knock-out punch. She is learnt to be contemplating stationing herself in the state to consolidate the gains of the civic polls and get the momentum going till the assembly elections next year.

“She does not want to leave anything to chance. She thinks it’s time to take the Leftists head-on,” a highly placed party source told DNA. Mamata plans to travel extensively through West Bengal for the next 12 months to build a connect with people, the source said.

The issue was discussed threadbare within the Trinamool Congress (TC), another party source said, adding there was a suggestion that she should retain the portfolio as there was no statutory requirement for her to stay in Delhi as railway minister. Alternatively, she can remain a minister without portfolio. The charge of the ministry could be given to any of her trusted political lieutenants, he said.

Trinamool Congress shows HOW TO DO IT

ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS.

And Trinamool Congress has at last proven it. The very first day's work was to nab the Guilty in the horrendous Stephen Court fire.

All those mumbo-jumbo that got us confused will be taken care of , at least to a great extent by the new KMC Mayor.

Here's an excerpt from the Times of India :

"KOLKATA: Six persons, including the three fugitive directors of Stephen Court Ltd, have been chargesheeted in connection with the March 23 fire at the iconic building that killed 43 people, police said here on Sunday.

The persons who were chargesheeted in the civil court here are three directors - Sanjay Bagaria, Sushil Surekha and Pradeep More, caretaker Tarun Bagadia, assistant caretaker Ramshankar Singh and liftman Jaiprakash Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Detective Department of Kolkata Police Damanyanti Sen told PTI today. "

I hope the KMC Mayor does a water quality sample survey in our Patuli Township neighbourhood.

Mainstream Media overstepping line

Recently, we see that in its quest for money, and more money, Media is overstepping its line.
It is attacking politicians just for one motive - MONEY.
I think politicians of all parties should take a united stand.
Media is minting money from the misery of politicians of all colors.
Some friends recently told me some portions of the Media are spying into a substantial portion of politicians, and then cooking uo 90% of the story....just for selling value.
There has been some sort of a cooked up story regarding Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, who has so much on her shoulders.
An attack on Sonia is an attack on all Indians.

Read the extract from leading newspaper "The Hindu" :

"

Youth Congress members protested here on Saturday against author Javier Moro for “defaming” party President Sonia Gandhi in his book, The Red Sari.

They burnt a downloaded excerpt of the book and blackened Mr. Moro's photo, Rajesh Ingle, vice-president of the northeast district Youth Congress, told The-Hindu over telephone.

“Our main objection is to the claim that his book — ‘a tale of the Nehru-Gandhi family, told through the story of Sonia Gandhi.' The author has used the term ‘fictitious biography' to describe his book in India, whereas, in Spain, Portugal and elsewhere he has said it's a biography. So, people are forced to believe what he has written as the truth. He has also used derogatory language,” Mr. Ingle said.

A youth wing press release said: “Congress workers demanded that the book should not be published in India. The script and depiction of the happenings in the life of Ms. Gandhi [are] distorted, vague and defamatory.” They threatened that they would not allow the book to be circulated anywhere in the country.

“It is perfectly alright for an author to be influenced, motivated by real life characters and take liberty to dramatise certain incidents. But this liberty should be restricted to an extent, where the image of national iconic leaders should not be tarnished and sentiments of their followers should not be hurt,” the note stated. Currently, the Congress and the publishers of the book are locked in a legal battle, Mr. Ingle said.

Congress Team gets bigger, Rahul Gandhi enters

My take is this would strenghten Congress Team at its moment of crisis.
Or rather, our Nation is at Crisis.
I'm 100% sure (Deep in my heart, I do believe....) that West Bengal's Left Front Government should have a strategic understanding with the Strengthened Indian National Congress...
To build a better future for WestBengal.

Read from the Times of India -

"On June 19, 2010, Rahul Gandhi turns 40. That was the age his father Rajiv became prime minister. So what are Rahul's views on foreign policy? On nuclear weapons security? On Pakistani state terrorism? On Maoism? On economic policy? On dynasty? Apart from a few thoughtful issues raised in his private correspondence with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - who at his press conference on Monday endorsed him as a future cabinet minister - we know little of the AICC general secretary's worldview.

While he rebuilds Congress electability in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Kerala - all governed by non-UPA parties and up for assembly polls in 2010-12 - with his charismatic grassroots approach, Rahul must engage a broader national constituency with his thinking on India's key strategic challenges.

At 40, Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had a clear-eyed view of the world. He sought global nuclear disarmament. He implemented Panchayati Raj. He engaged in an entente cordiale with then Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. He spearheaded the information technology revolution."

Does this Woman have a Case ?

I think she surely does.

In today's World Breach of Privacy can even cause one's death. Breach of Privacy is a MORE SERIOUS CRIME than infedility.

I stand by this Woman's Right and hope she wins the Case.

Read this stuff I found in MSN and make your judgement :

"

A woman suing a wireless company for exposing her affair joins others who've been brought down by technology.

Toronto resident Gabriella Nagy is suing Rogers Wireless Inc. for $600,000 after she says it wrongly sent her cell phone bill to her husband. Nagy claims her husband left her after seeing several phone calls to the same number, calling it and confirming her affair.

Rogers responds: The wireless company claims it is not responsible for the breakup of Nagy's marriage.

Does she have a case? Nagy's lawyer calls the case "unprecedented" in Canada, so we'll have to wait and see. (Are there cell phone record laws in the United States?)

My take on T20 Cricket and the WC SCHEDULE

I prefer T20 World Cup to IPL on totally different grounds.

From our childhood to adolescence to adulthood, we have FELT FOR OUR OWN COUNTRY, or even if our country isn't playing, supported a different country.

Fail to understand how people can relate to a team that is a hotch-potch of players from different nations.

Why can't we have more FORMATS OF WORLD CUPS - T20, T10 with 7 player sides bit like baseball, T30 and such.

Below is the T20 World Cup schedule


World Cup schedule start from April 30, 2010 and final match of the T20 World Cup is scheduled for May 16, 2010. T20 World Cup fixture is spread over 18 days. T20World Cup 2010 venue is different locations in West Indies. This is third T20 World Cup.

The opening match of T20 World Cup 2010 will be held between Sri Lanka and New Zealand on April 30th, 2010 at Guyana. The final match will be held on May 16, 2010 at Kensington Oval, Barbados. The first semi final of T20World Cup 2010 Beausejour Cricket Ground, St. Lucia on May 13, 2010 and second semi final will be played at Beausejour Cricket Ground, St. Lucia on May 14, 2010.

Burma - A Case Study of a Totalitarian Military Junta

Do see my earlier posting on Myanmar___boycotting elections by Suu Kyi may be a historical blunder.

Once the world's top rice producer, it now faces severe food crisis (read rice production crisis) due to mishandling of the food distribution system by the military junta.

Reason : Totalitarianism leads to maximum corruption. Which leads to total disruption of all infrastructure.

Quoting from wikipedia:
"Today, Burma lacks adequate infrastructure. Goods travel primarily across the Burmese-Thai border, whence most illegal drugs are exported, and along the Ayeyarwady River. Railroads are old and rudimentary, with few repairs since their construction in the 1800s.^[16] Highways are normally unpaved, except in the major cities.^[16] Energy shortages are common throughout the country including in Yangon. Burma is also the world's second largest producer of opium, accounting for 8% of entire world production"

Myanmar Elections

My take is Politics nowadays should not be approached emotionally, but rather practically.
It's difficult to manage even a team of 20 people using your emotions, so how can you manage the destiny of millions without coolly using your brains, and brains only ?

Take the recent Myanmar elections....Aung San Suu Ki's NLD party had this ONE SHOT to win the elections, and free the country from MILITARY RULE.

But it's boycotting the elections.

HISTORICAL POLITICAL BLUNDER, I SAY

Here's quoting Reuters:
"

YANGON (Reuters) - An election boycott by democracy icon Aung San Suu Ki's party is a gamble that could backfire, some Burmese in Myanmar's largest city said on Tuesday, though others backed the move.

Members of the National League for Democracy party (NLD) voted unanimously on Monday to skip the country's first election in two decades to send out a strong message that the army-orchestrated political process was "unjust" and "unfair.

But some said an opt-out by democracy's brightest ray of hope in the junta-ruled country was foolhardy and played into the hands of power-hungry generals.

"I'm so sorry the NLD used their hearts, not their heads. It was an irretrievable policy blunder," said a high school headmaster in Yangon."

35000 colleges mean opportunities for entrepreneurs

JU'er bondhugan...there is going to be a HUGE EXPANSION IN INTAKE OF STUDENTS. About 35,ooo+ collegea to be built.
This translates into GREAT OPPORTUNITIES not only for Teachers, but for small entrepreneurs like us, in the field of:
1. Book Publishing
2. Content Development.
3. Part-time Teaching Consultants.

Incidentally, 2 of our books have been published -
"Elements of Quantum Mechanics" by Dr. Binayak Dutta-Roy Edited - Debu
and into publication - "Basic Physics for Engineers" by the 2 of us.


Quoting Kapil Sibal's great initiative :

" Union Human Resource and Development (HRD) Minister Kapil Sibal on Wednesday said that India needs at least 800 more universities and over 35,000 colleges in the coming ten years to add to the percentage of students going for higher education.

At present 12.4 percent of students go for higher education from the country, he claimed.

"India has about 480 university and about 22,000 colleges. If we were to increase that figure of 12 percent to 30 percent, we will need another 800 to a thousand universities in the next ten years," said Sibal.

"We will need another 35,000 colleges in the next ten years. We are still below 40 percent which I think is critical," he added.

Speaking at the first contact group meeting of Parliamentarians for Education of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organsiation (UNESCO) South Asia Cluster, Sibal highlighted the importance of human resource development.

Sibal said when the global economy is not doing well and the stock market is on decline, the facts related to importance of education in a developing economy should be realised."

LOOKING FORWARD TO COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS / IDEAS WITH ALL YOU J.U. GUYS.

DEVASTATING FIRE IN PARK STREET BUILDING

Today's fire at Stephen House was probably the most devastating one witnessed in Calcutta. We all have fond memories of Flury's , Peter Cat. Mocambo and Music World.

But it was a real shocker that this 150 year old building ravaged by the flames that trapped 100+ people at one point.

Since this post goes out to all you people, aren't we all reminded of an incident in Chitradurga ?

Kire Aloke....