Thinking aloud

Like in many other Indian cities, many people at Kozhikode have also been throwing their domestic waste including the plastics on the road. I guess the Corporation got fed up with this and decided to dump the plastics on the road themselves. Shocked?   Read on....  Kerala is known for its greenery and scenic beauty. I am an ardent lover of its lush green landscapes. But, can you imagine having green roads in your city? We at Kozhikode will have the honour of travelling through green roads soon.  In case you are wondering, a green road does not refer to a road with green surface. It is a road which uses plastic scraps as one of the raw materials. The Kozhikode Corporation has decided to use plastic scraps for the construction of road between the stadium and Puthiyara. This is the first time that a civic body is getting involved in such a process in Kerala.   One tonne of plastic scraps are being used in the process for the three and a half metre wide, 700m long road.  The use of p...

Yesterday’s terror attack at Lahore has once again demonstrated the chaos in Pakistan. I feel for the plight of Pakistani people. I wish Pakistan as a nation has the courage and the wisdom to mend its ways while it still can...

I had posted about the two important incidents that took place in the run up to the elections in Kerala. http://dvnair.blogspot.com/2009/03/national-media-ignoring-critical-issues.html The first incident is historic because this is a marked deviation from the policies of the CPI(M). A party which expelled one of its comrades M.V.Raghavan due to his suggestion of having an alliance with the Indian Union Muslim League(IUML) almost two decades ago has clearly taken a u-turn. In doing so, the party has abandoned the line of thought supported by the late E.M.S.Namboothiripad adopted in the 12 th Party Congress. It has also lend credence to the belief that the LDF Government in Kerala is going slow and soft on the anti-terror investigations prompted by the exposure of terror links in the state.  The second incident is also significant because the CPI(M) state leadership acted in total disregard of the interests of the national leadership. This has once again shown Prakash Karat’s central ...

A session’s court in Delhi has created history by finishing the trial and giving the verdict on a murder case in just 7 days. This is a laudable achievement, one that needs to be followed by the courts across the nation.

The Election Commission has come out with an unprecedented 'advise', asking the BJP not to field Varun Gandhi in this election. It has found Varun guilty of making inflammatory, hate speech and hence the action.  Without going into the debate about Varun Gandhi’s speech, I am of the opinion that the EC should not have given such an 'advise' to the BJP, or to any political party for that matter. It is the prerogative of the party to field whichever candidate it may want to. More importantly, in a democracy it is the prerogative of the people and the people alone to support or reject a particular candidate.    Equally important is the fact that the EC has never shown the courage to stand up to the parties that field candidates with proven criminal background. Even in this election, parties across the board are fielding candidates who would be more at home behind the bars than in the Parliament. These kinds of issues cannot and should not be dealt with arbitrarily.  ...

We Keralites often complain about the step-motherly treatment meted out to our little state by the Central Government. Even when all the twenty MPs from our state were supporting the UPA government, the trend didn’t change. Especially when it comes to the Railways, Kerala has never got even a fair hearing so far. To my dismay, I find that it is not only the government that is ignoring my state. It is the national media as well.   In the era of electronic media, I often feel that the main stream news channels often ignore the significant happenings in the Kerala politics. One has to remember that Kerala has always been a social and political laboratory. From the world’s first democratically elected Communist Government to the successful coalition politics, we have always been the pioneers for others to follow. In this context, the mainstream media has failed to grasp the importance of two happenings in Kerala, this election season.   The dangerous game that the CPI(M)(read as its st...

Over the years, Sachin Tendulkar has done great service to the nation. He has thrilled us with his legendary cricket exploits and has been a source of inspiration for millions around the world. In the first test against New Zealand at Seddon Park, Sachin once again displayed his awesome talent.  His 160 run innings will be remembered for a long time to come. He has made it all the more special by dedicating the innings to the cause of Tiger conservation. This would definitely be a big boost for the efforts to save the big cat. Sachin’s gesture would bring much needed attention and focus to the necessity to protect India’s national animal. Just like me, millions around the world would be gently, but effectively reminded about the fast dwindling count of the Tigers in this country.  Just yesterday, I posted some thoughts on the political scene in the nation. Sachin’s gesture made me wonder whether any of our political parties or leaders has any action plan on issues such as climate c...

I am sorry, but I might disappoint you when I tell you that this post is not about the various types of fear that exists in the mind of a common man like you and me. But, this is about the fear that is evident among the political class of this great nation.  I feel the political parties and their leaders are looking scared these days. No, it is not the fear of the fate that awaits them once the votes are counted after the upcoming general elections. Majority of our leaders are smart enough to align themselves with the winning side when the results are out. It is the fear of committing to any kind of ideology that I am thinking about.  I would have expected the Congress and the Communists to come to me with the issue of Nuclear Agreement which caused such a din in the Parliament. The Congress could talk about the projects and plans that the UPA has undertaken in the last five years, the successful completion of which require a Congress led government at the centre.  The opposition...

One of the earliest posts in this blog was about an injured dog abandoned by its owner in the streets of Kozhikode. Almost a year later, I come across similar reports almost daily in the news papers. There is a small difference though, this time around it is the old, helpless men and women who are being abandoned in the streets of God’ Own Country. Over the last one week, three such incidents have been reported from different parts of Kerala. One fine morning, an old couple was found abandoned in the outskirts of Kozhikode. They were found in a roadside with a bed and some baggage. They were dumped at that spot by their kith and kin. In another incident, the old parents were found outside their own locked home. They were living with their eldest son and family, who left for Bangaluru. While leaving, the son threw out his parents and locked the home. The old couple were found on the car porch of the home with no means of food and proper shelter. This happened in the outskirts of the m...

Over the last 25 years, Pakistan has provided safe haven for terrorist organisations that engaged in anti- India activities. In recent years, Pakistan itself has been the target of inhuman and dastardly terror attacks. Today’s attack on the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team is the latest episode in a series of such incidents which include the attack on the Marriot hotel and the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. The world can no longer ignore the fact that Pakistan has become a failed state. The agreement between the Pakistani government and the Taliban in Swat region is an indication of things to come. It is only a matter of time before the present Pakistani government is de-stabilised completely. The failure of the government to ensure the safety of the visiting team, a team that showed courage and determination to go and play in place of India, is a national shame for the Zardari dispensation. It is a pity that the Pakistani civil society is too weak to challenge the extremist forces. ...