Why am I silent on the “Lokpal” bill issue?

Switch to any news channel or turn a page of any newspaper and you will notice one thing. Put a few heads together anywhere and this is what anyone and everyone is discussing – The “Lokpal” bill and the “Anna Hazare” movement: The Crusade against Corruption in India.

How can I miss an opportunity this Historic? As many claim, this is an opportunity for our generation to make a difference. Overzealous people have also called this the “2^nd Freedom Struggle”. Considering my thought process, how am I not involved yet?

It did not take more than a moment to realize that I can’t seem to connect with this crusade.

The introspection beyond this point brings out one simple fact.

The entire crusade is akin to scratching the surface alone.

Let’s assume the “Jan Lokpal” bill is passed just the way it is being requested, what next?
We will have another “Lokayukta” office created with just as many suspicious authorities. Does anyone remember Anti Corruption Bureau? Whatever happened to that? What do you do to keep these departments in check? Will we be able to trust them? Why are we fighting for another bill or law when we have enough that are not just being implemented / followed? This is like adding another layer to the existing mess.

Why is this not handled at the grass-root level? And when I’m asking this question, I’m not passing the buck OR expecting someone else to take a lead.

This momentum should ideally be channelized towards correction at an individual level.

We as individuals should ensure WE do not bribe anyone rather than expecting the others to NOT accept. That’s pretty much like expecting zero gravity.

We should not bribe the traffic cop when we jump a signal or ride without a helmet, even better if we do not commit such petty mistakes to begin with. After all these rules are for our safety.

We should not jump the queue by paying special fees – be it in religious places OR any other administrative office.

The core issue is “Corruption”. By booking a few corrupt people, this issue is not going to get resolved. I’m not being pessimistic in my view. But I’m saying the perspective or the dimension we are now looking at is incorrect. Or for that matter, low priority if I may say so.

Top priority is for internal cleansing to be done, so that the necessity of a 2^nd or a 3^rd freedom struggle at our generation OR the next generation will not arise at all.

The only downside I see to this is no one can yield any political mileage from a struggle like this.

After all, the struggle is within.

New Age Pledge for every Indian Citizen

New Age Pledge for Indians
                                                     ~ Srikant Rao

I am an Indian
My identity is my pride

I shall respect every citizen and
I shall respect their freedom

I shall be courteous towards my brethren
I shall be courteous and thankful to my neighbourhood

I shall not become an obstacle and
I shall cooperate in India's progressive development

However, I shall question anything that is against the constitution
and I shall do everything in my capacity to stop such a practice

I shall not let achievements bloat into an ego
I shall not bask in false sense of glory

I realize that I'm only a miniscule contributor
To the culturally diverse sovereignty, our motherland, India

I am an Indian and
THAT identity is my pride

A humble attempt at a Hindi / Urdu poem

A tribute to all my FRIENDS...

अक्षरों को जोड़ के शब्द बनते हैं
उनमे रूमानी मिला दो, अलफ़ाज़ बन जाते हैं

अल्फाज़ों को जोड़ के पंक्तियाँ बनती हैं
उनमे सुर मिला दो, तो गीत बन जाते हैं

क्षणों को जोड़ के दिन बनते हैं; दिन महिने, और महिने साल बनते हैं
उनमे अपने आप को घोल दो, तो यादें बन जाती हैं

यादों को समेटते चलो, सदियाँ बन जाती हैं
सदियों में अपना वजूद मिला दो तो ज़िन्दगी बन जाती हैं

ज़िन्दगी में दो को शामिल कर लो; तो मिसाल बन जाती है
दोस्ती को शिद्दत से निभा दो, तो बेमिसाल बन जाती हैं 

And the Quest Continues...

And the Quest continues...

                                                    ~ Srikant Rao

Mind seeks the occult, the unknown

Always follows the enigma

‘Run of the mill’ simply passé

Anything not unique – a stigma

Such a quest is heavily intoxicating

A heady mix of excitement and anxiety

An uphill task finding that one door

Before having to open enough that is filthy and dirty

The feeling of pure ecstasy at arrival

Simply surpasses the arduous journey

Mind seeks the occult, the unknown

Always following the enigma

And the quest continues...

Unleash your Potential!!!

Unleash Your Potential!

~ Srikant Rao

A walk down memory lane ala time travel

Where the feet feels no tar, grass or gravel

The next moment holding a conversation

Can’t place any context, relevance or juxtaposition

A few continents across, awed by a visual treat

Short-lived experience with no traces of cold or heat

Running down a narrow alley, dark and scary

Chased by a monster, hoping to be rescued by a fairy

Standing on a podium, receiving an award

Unaware of the feat that deserved the reward

Seamless travel through places, time and emotions

Without a dime, card or currency of any denomination

Emergence of an unseen pit, sliding down deep into the rabbit hole

Found myself on the other side with eyes wide open as if I just hit a pole

Our mind can do wonders – Alas! Freedom is availed only when we’re fast

asleep

It’s caged and chained with our prejudices and preconceived notions when

awake... weep!

O! I'm far from being "Perfect" - A Poem

O! I’m far from being “Perfect”
                                                  ~ Srikant Rao

As I wandered around a war museum
Came across a section labeled “Weapons”
Spears, swords, guns, canons and even a chewing gum
Were on display; but could not lay my eyes on the ultimate weapon

I wasn’t really looking for a nuclear warhead
But the true reason for any unrest or war
This weapon is concocted in our head
And is carelessly spew from our lips to leave the first scar

O but to err is human
And To forgive is divine
When we humans err against a fellow human
Why disturb or seek intervention from the divine

We make it seem impossible
But it is actually even far from being difficult
Just speak what is necessary and plausible
Unwanted emotions could be frozen at the catapult

Acknowledge the devastating effects of an ill-spoken word
We could well be on our way to create a world that is perfect
I can already feel the reactions to this thought as absurd
And hear someone blurt out, “O! but I’m far from being perfect”

The Law of “Average”s

There are many meanings of the word AVERAGE excluding the mathematical ones. I’m specifically drawing the attention towards rating someone / something.
In India as we very casually use it, it means anything that is normal and regular and that’s exactly where the issue is. 
There are usually 3 tiers in rating. 
Good, Average and Bad. 
We in India have accepted the “Average” as normal and regular. We do not look for improvements. We’ve stopped looking for Good. We’ve been innovative enough to coin phrases like “Above Average”.
But hey, it’s still not good enough but we do accept them.
Is there a problem with such behavior in a country like ours considering the population? Well, the answer is a resounding YES.

Ironically, with the size and variety available in our country we should be so far ahead looking for the BEST let alone the “Good”. Instead we have lowered the bar and have settled for “Average” because almost everyone behaves similarly and is the new accepted level of performance.

There is a section of parents who pressurize their kids to be the best in whatever they do but that’s such a narrow-minded approach (thanks to the increasing reality TV competition across ages). 
Somewhere we push the child so much that he/she then becomes averse to competition and / or succumbs to the peer-pressure and looks at extreme measures like suicide.

On the other hand the majority still only aspires to be like the few who’ve succeeded and are quite satisfied at reaching 1/4th or ½ that level of achievement which becomes the new “Average”. 
Encouraging is one thing and false appreciation is another. We as a nation need to identify the difference and tread the sticky path carefully.

Take a look at the students with their school projects (in schools that are into such activities) and look at the quality. There would hardly be one child with an exceptional outcome. Rest is poor imitations of projects that were done elsewhere. Try looking at the cultural activities and the performances in schools. Majority of them would be mediocre with an exception. But that’s precisely the point. With the size and variety, we should be looking at a majority of exceptional quality and innovation (innovation being the key word) vis-à-vis the so called “Average” aspirants.

I’ve used the examples from a school life only to illustrate that this is how early this “average chalta hai” habit sets in.
However the trend is visible everywhere – be it corporate life, civic sense or social behavior.
We’ve just accepted the average.

Yet again, we need to remind ourselves that this is a very sticky path. There is a subtle difference between quest for excellence and sheer competition. Its competition when you do it with others but if one would want to outdo oneself that would be quest for excellence. We should encourage individuals to raise their own bar and not in comparison to others. Each would have their respective strengths and the key is to identify it and helping them excel in that.        

It’s time we draw the line and draw it high. Mediocrity should not be tolerated.
Excellence alone should be the new law of “Average”s.