The Side Effects of Hosting IPL Matches in Delhi

Now then, like thousands of people living in NCR who travel to central Delhi on a daily basis to earn a modest living, and then back home, I was on my way to Noida after a particularly long day at work. It was Friday, and the Let's-make-merry-it's-Friday-afterall feeling had just begun to envelop my now-rising-from-a-deep-weekday-slumber mind, and I had almost started dreaming up plans for the upcoming weekend. It was at this point, when I suddenly realized that my car was not really moving at its usual 45-50 kmph pace. For those who are familiar with the area around Outer-circle, Connaught Place, I was travelling towards Noida via the Dilli Gate route since the route through ITO/Pragati Maidan gets really choked-up after 6 pm.

Anyways, the traffic snarl that pretty much formed an overwhelming part of the local scenery at that particular point in time jolted me rudely out of my daydreams. The driver and I tried to come up with some possible reasons for this jam and to think up of means to escape the madness that threatened to engulf everybody in sight. As you might have guessed by now, we could come up with no alternative plans and resigned ourselves to the imminent fate that awaited us - crawling at snail's pace whenever the opportunity presented itself and waiting for our chance to get out of that mess at the next signal, however long that might take. 

One-and-half lanes of the barely-3-lane road in question were taken up by vehicles that had been parked there (people really have no civic sense, and authorities seem to be apathetic, so to say), and Metro-related construction work was also going, adding to the mess. While we were caught up in that huge jam, there was actually no space to even open your car door and step out, if required. 

Ultimately, it took us nearly 50 minutes to steer clear of the jam on a 2 km stretch, and finally breathe a sigh of relief. Before long, we saw a long queue of people waiting for their turn to get into the Ferozshah Kotla stadium. We realized that there was an IPL match scheduled for that day. And, that jam occurred just because there was an event planned in the vicinity - that too in the heart of the city!! And, now I'm reliably informed that this is pretty much the state of affairs whenever there's any match being hosted at Ferozshah Kotla.

I mean, it goes on to say something about the traffic management skills of our police, and the disaster readiness of the city, on an overall level. It was in that endless moment that I realized that ours is a city which is actually sitting on a disaster waiting to happen. If any untoward incident would have happened at that time, where would that have left us? There was no way one could have gotten out of that place to safety, or any help would have reached the hapless people caught up in that situation - no Police, no Fire engine, no Ambulance, No Nothing! 

I'm not sure that the organizers really think about such trivia - for them, I guess, if the players and the VIPs are safe and secure, their work is done. Maybe, even the authorities who permit such events to happen even in the view of the limited-and-already-bursting-at-seams infrastructure don't place much importance on the lives and wellness of the common citizenry. Maybe the rest us are simply the mob that has no face, no voice, and hence, no noteworthy existence. Amazingly, even the Media that otherwise runs with a mike in hand and camera on the tow to report just anything and everything that transpires in this universe is totally mum on this aspect.

I wonder when the safety needs of not-so-important people like you and me will be given some kind of a priority in this entire scheme of things..

A common sight in Delhi

All Cricket and No Politics is not a Bad Idea...

Okay, so the much acclaimed and revered Sachin Tendulkar got nominated for the Rajya Sabha a few days ago. Big Deal, is what one would like to say! This piece of news is not supposed to be more important and engaging than, say, kidnapping of officers, murders, corruption, economy and the like. But considering that this is just not ANY trivia related to Cricket, this one is actually worth pondering upon since it concerns our Parliament as well.

While people come up with varied threads on this topic ranging from how there are other more "deserving" sports persons for this honor, right down to how it's a poll gimmick by Congress considering the huge fan following that Sachin has; I think we should stop for a moment and look at the issue from the perspective of the election to the highest law making body in the country.

To be among those who would be instrumental in drafting the destiny of our beloved land, one must at least have demonstrated a good degree of concern and understanding for one or the other issues plaguing our society. After all, how can one be expected to solve a problem when one does not even understand it. And no matter how well you have performed in your chosen profession, you need to have a vision for the country when you decide to join this field.

While I really admire Sachin for being a cricketer par excellence, I would think twice before applauding this particular decision regarding his RS nomination, for this is not about electing somebody to chair a sports body. This is about giving somebody the right to take decisions on our collective behalf; it's about placing our collective destiny in someone's hands. For this reason one must not get swayed by Sachin's sports achievements alone. There is a lot more which needs to be pondered upon.

To be honest, I frankly don't remember the last time when I heard about Sachin getting involved with some social cause. Unlike, say, someone like Aamir Khan, he has not been around to engage in any activity meant to generate public opinion on any matter of national interest. This is when even he would know about the sort of much-needed attention which his presence would generate. And as for the claims related to him being the flag-bearer of Indian Cricket in the world, well, all I know is that he chose to remain mum when BCCI decided not to send any team to the Asian Games in 2010, citing the tour of New Zealand as an excuse. This was clearly a time when he could have taken up the chance to represent "India" and not BCCI. In this case, even if the main team could not have gone to the games, a second team could have been sent. It's just that the "God" chose to simply see and not speak out.

When I say all this, I don't mean to belittle his cricketing achievements in any way. I just want us to think whether he is the person whom we really want to be taking decisions on our behalf in the Parliament, decisions that could have far-reaching impact on our fate...      

Starting Afresh

It feels really weird, you know, this writing a fresh post after such a long time. But don't worry; I'm not going to go on a full-on recap mode or something along those lines. In fact, you'd be quite glad to know that I acknowledge the fact, without even the slightest trace of acrimony, that you people wouldn't really be super anxious to know about the absolutely regular and sort-of-everyday affairs of my not-too-exciting life while I was Missing-in-Action. Nevertheless, it IS a different kind of feeling.

It is so very different from the excitement which I had felt coursing through me when I had first attempted a shot at blogging sometime during July 2010; or when I had posted a piece after a long gap of some 4 months, when it was merely about having to choose from such a long list of things to talk about, for the talkative bird in me was fighting against her prime instinct to talk about everything on her mind right there in a single post (now THAT would have, like, made it in the record books as one of the longest posts ever!).

But this time it's like meeting some very old and dear friend after a very long time, when you want to talk about so many things, but you don't know whether you should be saying it all out because the other person may not be able to keep up with you; it's like wanting to bare your soul in front of her but not being able to do that because you think that it may shatter some notions (good ones, of course) about you which she might be carrying around in her head; it's like not being able to look her in her eyes while admitting to something really cheesy which you did, and then being relieved and smiling broadly when you finally look up and don't catch even the slightest hints of disapproval.

Hell, it's like looking at your own reflection in some clear pool with no shadows, after a long time...

And so, here was me, starting afresh and trying to reconnect with you guys after a long hiatus. I'll be back with my regular chatter, really soon this time! Cheerio!

What's in a Name..

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose

By any other name would smell as sweet."

so says Shakespeare's Juliet in the timeless classic "Romeo and Juliet". However, the very recent case involving the renaming of West Bengal to Paschim Banga/Bongo proves the tragedy queen wrong as, apparently, there's a lot "in a name".

As the intellectuals and the politicians fight it out among themselves over whether the change in name "corrects historical wrongs" or not, and whether some other name would have been a more satisfactory change, or whether this change would be able to revamp the image of the state, I guess the concerned people forgot to take note of the fact that it would not change ANYTHING on the ground (you heard it right, Ms. Banerjee). The only differences would be the ones visible on the official letterhead's title, the state's web site's title, vehicle number plates and other such mundane stuff.

I fail to understand how this change is going to BENEFIT - because, in particular, the government is supposed bring about changes for this only - the common man who continues to make endless rounds of the government offices to get even the smallest of things done; or how the poor in the state will get food, shelter, security, education and health care because of this; or how this change will add glitter-effect to the reputation of the state which has seen mass murders and strikes against oppressive policies; or how the scars of the partition of the state can be healed through THIS.

This, according to me, is something that does nothing except waste precious time and, the even more precious and the already widely-squandered-and-abused exchequer's money. I'm sure Ms. Banerjee would be able to win more accolades and goodwill if she were to channelise her energy and efforts in the direction of bringing about socio-economic development in the state, instead of engaging herself in such fruitless exercises. Name-games and blame-games never win you anything, forget about elections!!...

Doesn't change anything!..

I'm a Lazy Girl...

I'm feeling extremely sleepy right now (I can actually feel the effort which I'm putting in so that my eyelids wouldn't shut down all of a sudden), but for some inexplicable reason, I feel like writing something for all of you to read, as well. So kindly take some extra pains to read through this piece, however hard it may seem, for I'm using all my literary capabilities in making this sound as coherent and sensible as I possibly can; and I'm sure this would come as a big surprise to all the regular visitors on this blog, because I'm generally much more sanguine about my writings turning out suitable enough for human consumption.

My thoughts are all muddled-up at this very moment and I'm just not able to think clearly; so much so that I'm quite sure that I wouldn't be able to tell apart a physics theory from a chemical reaction! And so, the question may arise that why, for the love of all things that are holy, am I still sitting in front of my laptop's screen in place of drifting away peacefully to sleep. The answer lies in a very well known saying which goes like "As You Sow, So You Reap". This is, sort of, a confession to an outrageous crime which I've been committing pretty frequently for quite some time now, by not paying much attention to my final-year dissertation. And now, the mid-semester evaluation is due in a few days. So, because of my lackadaisical attitude, I'm a dead duck.

Right now, as I type these words very, very, very slowly (for I have little energy left in me, and also because if I don't do anything to keep myself busy, I'll drop off right here in front of the screen), the financial database Prowess is working at snail's speed in order to retrieve some data which I desperately need for the above mentioned dissertation.

I wish there was some way to avoid the academic fiasco which stares me in the face at the moment. Sigh.

By the way, the database just displayed the required data. So I'm off to sleep. I'll write in again soon if I survive next week's evaluation!!

Sachin Tendulkar

I don't think that I'm going to even think about explaining the title this time around. It is self explanatory, thank you very much. In fact, I had planned to simply put some thousand-odd pictures of this living legend over here in this post instead of writing anything at all. That would have served the purpose well enough, I guess!

Is it even possible for a human being - a mere mortal - to even give a fitting-enough introduction to this demigod who prefers to dwell upon this planet rather than somewhere in the skies above, forget about completing the entire description? So, I'm not going to try doing anything of this sort. I'm only going to try and write something which may not do full justice to his stature, but would also not offend any die hard Sachin fan

Well, I've been held by the charm of this magician ever since I first got introduced to this sport. The way he would swing his bat to send the ball racing down towards the boundary (or above the boundary, right into the stands) - he does that with equal panache even now after so many years - would leave me gaping at the TV screen, no matter how many times he did it - and he did it often enough. The quick runs between the wickets, the unconventional sweeps, the hooks, the pulls, everything, got my pulse racing like nothing else. The way he would slaughter the opposition's bowling attack was more than enough to send any team into a very-justified panic attack at the very thought of having him in the middle while it was their turn to field. The huge pileup of runs scored by him leaves little to be said. However, it is not the sheer number of his centuries and other career milestones alone, but the grit and determination which he possesses, which make me hold him in awe. He has not stopped trying to improve himself even though he has achieved a God-like stature in Cricket.

Today he hit his first century of this year's edition of World Cup - and England constitute a good enough bowling threat. It may not have been one of his best, but the awe factor stills lingers about it. I'm sure there would be many more to follow. But, nevertheless, I wish him All The Best!!