Let them blossom!

Have you ever noticed

those delicate little hands

who polish your shoes

prodigious you stand

Have you ever noticed

in the mayhem of town

weavers of dreams 

you curse upon and frown

Have you eve noticed

bright twinkling eyes

while they mop the floor

in a hope to rise

Have you ever noticed

the zest in their hearts

when they serve you silently

and you leave them to starve

Have you ever noticed

those burnt fingers

in your noise and celebration

their pain lingers

Have you ever noticed

the teary eyes

when you abuse and stab

pleasing your mighty pride

Have you ever noticed

the innocent why's

you left them to be gobbled

in a handful of lies

Have you ever noticed

the trembling bud

when you harassed her

and threw in a mud

Have you ever noticed

the dolls you carry

when for materialistic whims

you forced her to marry

Have you ever noticed

the sweat they shed

not to read and learn

but to beg instead

Have you ever noticed

the severity of your crime

selling the priceless pearls

for less than a dime

Have you ever noticed

when a boy you sodomize

its not just him

but a generation you victimize

Have you ever noticed

that you noticed not

little blossoming flowers

our worlds garden has got

Notice them now!

running wild and free

they are our greatest gift

nurturing them is victory!

Modern health care and you!

Mrs. Shah, a school teacher and mother of two teenagers has been diagnosed with stones in the gall bladder (cholelithiasis) . The doctor advised her surgery.

Surgery? asks an anxious Mrs.Shah.

I can't take a months break to undergo surgery, its just impossible! My job is demanding and who will look after my family? She continues helplessly.

The doctor smiles and explains her about the latest 'Laparoscopic surgery'. Also called band-aid surgery/minimally invasive/keyhole surgery.In this abdominal operations are performed through small incisions which reduces pain and bleeding.
 A week later not only has Mrs. Shah got rid of her stones but is also carrying off her daily chores with ease and health.

No doubt modern health care has arrived as a boon in today's health conscious yet extremely busy and nerve wrecking competitive scenario. Many like Mrs. Shah have been befitted by techniques like endoscopy and laparoscopy whether it be for gall stones or hernia's.

Laparoscopy being performed.

Take another case of Mr. Singh. He was diagnosed with Diabetes Mellitus about 3 years back.His work demands regular visits abroad.

 In such a situation it was extremely difficult to keep a check on his fluctuating blood sugar levels but thanks to portable blood sugar monitoring devices popularly known as 'Glucometer' testing is a just a minute away. All they require is a needle prick and the meter displays your sugar level. Very similar pocket size devices are available to keep a tab on your blood pressure and other vitals levels too.

Four generations of blood glucose meter, c. 1993-2005.
 Sample sizes vary from 30 to 0.3 μl.
 Test times vary from 5 seconds to 2 minutes
 (modern meters typically provide results in 5 seconds).

Technology undoubtedly, has been the greatest invention of our century. It has bridged connections and made not just communication but over all life easier and very comfortable. Our health sector has experienced a tremendous bloom owing to technology.

Being a medical student I very well understand the worth of a life, the cost of every single breath.
Thanks to well equipped modern emergency ambulances also known as 'hospital on wheels' the cost of life elevates many notches up. They have all the basic life supporting systems installed in them.
For an accident victim or a heart attack patient those few deciding minutes are in our hands now.

Now imagine if at the age of 75 you have all your check ups and vitals monitored without you moving from the bed? No worries of going to the hospital or tolerating the traffic and noises? you ask me if it is really possible and I say yes! 
All praises to 'Tele medicine'. It is the use of telephones in place of health care devices inside a patients home. This is indeed a great tool for patients who need proper health care but cannot manage to come to hospitals or clinics.

Tele medicine set up

What used to be the most painful part during growing up? And we all would say in a chorus its injections!
They have been dreaded by children and parents alike.
 But with the advent of new 5-in-1 vaccines called 'pentacel' which inoculates against diphtheria,tetanus, whooping cough, hepatitis B and polio all at once! So visit to the doctor gets pain free now.

pentacel vaccine
(available in India)

Our medical infrastructure has been growing by leaps and bounds. The technology used in our country is at par with the developed countries like U.K. and USA but all cost effective. So its  not surprising that medical tourism is a blooming sector of our health care today.

'Medical tourism' is basically travelling abroad for medical purpose in order to obtain a relatively cheap treatment than one's home land.
India has now become a hub from patients coming from Africa and other countries especially for heart surgeries,hip replacements and cosmetic corrections.

How things work - medical tourism

Heart surgery reminds me of someone called Mr.Anand. At 60 he suffered a massive heart attack. The doctors called it as 'coronary artery disease' which is basically narrowing or hardening of arteries due to excessive cholesterol levels.
Mr. Anand has lost almost all hopes of life when 'Coronary stenting' came as a bright ray of life. 
It is the placement for a small wire mesh tube called a stent to help the artery open and decrease the chance of it narrowing again.

 Stenting is combined with 'angioplasty'  sometimes.

 The health care continues to make advancements every second. Robotic surgery, stem cell technology  gene sequencing, uncountable investigative techniques like CT-scan, D & C, MRI that continues to get better, cataract surgery, bypass, organ transplants and grafting and collaboration with IT are only a few names.

All we need is a better connectivity with the population residing in less developed areas and cost effective techniques. Once we are able to amalgamate modern health care with a practical reach and connectivity we would have accomplished one of the greatest achievements history has seen or will ever see!

Fortunately with hospitals like Apollo on the frontier it sure will touch not just skies but a million lives year after year! 
For more details, developments and what Apollo has to offer, check this-apollohospitals.

'Live healthy

Be wise

let modern health care

touch your life....today!'

For better, for worse....!!!

We live in a country where 'love' and 'marriage' are considered two issues poles apart. While marriage is considered to be a family affair, love is still looked down upon as an act of misdeed. And it is due to this disparity that 'love' and 'arrange' marriage hold a debatable position in the Indian society.
Now everyone can have a different understanding of the two so before proceeding to provide reason and opinions firstly I would like to define them.

A love marriage according to me is the one in which individuals themselves choose their life partner which means that the decision is purely a personal one and often not acceptable to the respective families. The reasons for which may vary from differences in caste/religion to social status.

On the other hand in an arranged marriage its the parents who decide the person their son/daughter would get married to. So in this case the individuals may or may not have known each other earlier but the families are consenting and mutually agreeing to connect.

'Love-cum-arranged' is a pleasant amalgamation of the two and in my opinion can be a very successful event owing to mutual understanding of all those involved. The debate we have here is however,between 'love' and 'arrange'.

Now the basic point is- in an arranged marriage all decisions are collectively discussed in contrast to love marriage where individuals decide their future. A collective opinion coming from more experienced members of both families definitely holds better chances of survival and success than an individual one.

Moving ahead, we all know that marriage is a bond of lifetime (at least in a country like India) but no one can spend their entire life being dependant on a single person no matter how much you love him/her. We all need relation and support of other people and not just the spouse to lead a truly happy and satisfactory life. Which is usually missing in a love marriage at least in the initial years.

Moreover, in case of any clashes or friction between the couple, which is inevitable they have their elders and naturally wiser people of the family to guide and advice in the arrange marriage set-up which tends to save them from a lot of problems.

No doubt that in love marriage the bride and groom have known each other from a certain time span and there is trust and understating but they also have 'pre-built' hopes and expectations of their better half.
On the contrary in arrange marriage the two individuals can only 'presume' that the decision taken by their elders is a good one. So after marriage when things begin to get 'real' and attributes like tolerance and patience give a back seat to love, expectations begin to tear apart. The individuals begin to feel 'this is not the person I decided to marry' . That's when love marriage attains an extremely vulnerable position and a series of ego clashes and disappointments may crop up.

In arrange marriage too the disappointments and ego clashes can occur but the blame automatically is forced on the 'deciding elders' and 'destiny' rather than the spouse which saves the situation to a great extent. Also the two individuals try and overlook a lot of differences knowing well that it takes time to develop understanding and healthy frequency between to newly met people.

There also is a sense of insecurity and added responsibility in case of love marriage as the burden of all blames and accountability of all actions is totally singular.
In arranged one, the blame and accusations seems to be a collective fault since the decision was a collective one.
Another point favouring arranged marriage is something called the 'initial spark' which develops after the couples get to know each other and gradually tend to get familiar. Each day is a surprise and mystery since you are in process of discovering your partner.

In love marriage however the initial spark goes missing and marriage comes as a point where the time for mushy romance is spaced up for mundane responsibilities, although the sense of security and trust maybe much more in this case the missing spark does make it appear bland and monotonous.

Belonging to a family where arrange marriages out do love marriages in number, I have seen them to be immensely successful and blissful. You should trust that your parents can never take decision that's not in the best of your interests. And since both the individuals realize that now they have been tied for a lifetime so the rights and duties somehow find a place even before love comes into picture which only strengthens the bond of admiration and respect in future.

As for those who feel that how can the most important decision of 'who I would spend my life with me decided by others' I'd say - life is game of chance rather than choices and those big and small chances that we take each day makes this experience a marvelously exciting and magically enchanting one !!

PS : The above opinions are strictly personal. I am not against love marriages but would prefer an arranged one over them. The bottom line however is, that for any relation to be successful and long lasting mutual understanding and trust marks the first step follwed by love and patience.
PS 2 : While exploring google image search I found this image particularly amusing ;)

To explore more on 'Love ya arrange' follow the facebook link here.

uff ye shaadi ;(

In our country, as soon as a girl bids farewell to her teenage she inadvertently welcomes a huge trouble for herself. A problem that will change her life for the better, no bitter.OK! I am not very sure for what!

Yes, you prompted it correct in your mind ( so no prizes for guessing) - She has unwilling/unfortunately/unconsciously been transformed into a 'potential marriage material'.

From distant relatives to D-block wali Dadi (assuming you reside in say,Z-block) every one's prime concern seems to be your doli ka uthna or mandap ka sajna!

And its your own 'mother' who has been constructing the tallest dreams. Taller than Burj Khalifa in Dubai!

But the trouble arises when she starts realizing that her dreams so tall, are made of trump cards ready to not just be blown but put on fire by her very own 'aaj kal ke zamaane ki beti'.

She can apply nail polish with newton's accuracy at mechanics but breaking an egg gives her jitters.

Her mascara never dares to smudge off but her cupboard is a mess. The skirts shiver to touch her knees and cell-phone is her soul-mate. She has neither seen the face of the kitchen nor the morning sun!

But mom ain't any gullible creature so that's when she decides to grab her most tried and tested tool. NO! its not the chimta (tongs) or karchul( ladle) anymore. C'mon they are so passe ( I doubt if they even exist in kitchen now a days). Its the 'verbal bullets' humbly known as 'taane'.

"sasurral mein jaake mobile hi chalana"

"saas aag laga degi inn skirts ko"

'tumhari shakal dekh kar pati ka peit nahi bhar jaega"  

ye make-up thop lene se zindagi nahi kat ti"

 Now, excuse me for the lack of space (and what fun in repeating things which you yourself hear almost everyday ;) )

So what I wonder is how can our beloved mothers predict such a grievous future of ours?

And Since they have already forecasted it how do they expect us to become a perfect 'marriage material' after listening to such horrifying stories?

Had they narrated us the 'Cindrella and snow white' tales they did when we are kids we might as well have tried to co-operate in their scheme of plans. Don't they remember how eagerly we wanted to get married then?

But the situation seems more 'real' now. And I ought to be petrified!

So your Burj Dubai dreams need to be seriously tackled mom. Where is the matchbox I ask?! 

Of 'BAI-S' and 'BYES' !!!

As I step into my house after a monotonous yet exhaustive day at college, my mother yells " you kids live in your own fantasy lands/nobody cares as to how the house is running/can't even pick up your own clothes/when I was of your age I took care of the whole house while my mother simply sat in a corner and instructed! Plus a special one specially thrown on me - what will you do in your sasural/get out of the illusion that your mom-in-law will cook for you!"

And the moment my ears vibrate to such a noise I instantly knows that 'our dear maid is on leave today'!!

In today's era when each one of us is so terribly bounded by time which ticks at a lightening speed, interdependency on 'helpers' comes natural. In fact they are our lifelines much the same way as Internet and cell phones. And going by the ever increasing demands our 'bai-s' happen to be one of the most dominating people of our society today. 

At times I seriously wonder if we medicos or engineers or bankers play a role as pivotal as these women clad in suits with a bun do?

And so our dear bai-s come up with their own set of demands and pay packages.

They need a holiday on a Sunday plus an additional off every two weeks never hurts HER (it does ruin my weekend though) when a shopping plan is murdered brutally as my mom drags me verbally to the kitchen!

Last week our bai turned up after a long 4 days holiday(it seems much longer to me for obvious reasons) and on being interrogated told that she had a marriage to attend tomorrow! Imagine being away from work 4 days prior to 'neighbour's marriage'..am sure you can't afford it even in your wildest dreams but she is our Bai. She definitely can!

To top it up the lady wanted a brand new sari, to which my mom agreed almost instantly (poor thing she got no choice) and I was red with rage. c'mon I wore an old sari even for my farewell, now isnt this pure bias?!

Not only this she comes every day to work with a fresh gajra in her bun teemed up with matching earrings and bags. Needless to say she has a cell phone too!

Coming to the resignation rules,our dear bai has none! I mean she can resign any day, any hour and at any instant. For reasons which vary from exceeding workload to bizarre ones of not being offered tea and snacks in the evening!

One of our neighbours maid quit the job because their little 4 year old kid spilled milk on her. I dearly sympathize with him going by the serious trauma that innocent soul would have faced from her mother after this lady left in cold blood.

Well ,enough of sulking now ( but believe me that sari thing really hurt). 

I am seriously planning to do some part time course in 'being-bai' because the future seems to be more secure and lavish with that degree now-a-days. And by the way, when I told my mom about this idea all she had to say was 'beta, today is a Sunday, go wash the utensils' !

P.S : Our maid owns a Nokia N-97! I am NOT exaggerating, I swear!  :P

Sabke 'bus' ki baat nahi....Degrading DTC scenario!

"Little deeds of kindness

little words of love

help to make our earth an Eden

like the heaven above"

We all have read these few yet extremely eloquent lines in our kindergarten days but growing up shoulders on bigger responsibilities and somewhere these untold gestures loose relevance in between the pages of a moribund book called 'life'.

I happen to be a daily commuter of DTC buses. Now, Delhi is a busy city. in fact, this is an understatement. its bustling with a huge flock of people running anxiously in all directions , at all destinations , all the time. yes, that's how it appears to be.

Morning and afternoons being the worst case scenarios ,with a population mounting up to a whopping 1.67 crore no wonder the buses are scanty in number and the number of commuters running hysterically behind each one of them 'to edge' a place are manifold.

this is a routine commuters life in DELHI!

And thanks to the 'phasing out' of old buses and bluelines the situation has degrade to the level of new 'low floor'.

 These red and green (and recently started orange) buses happen to be wider with automatic doors no doubt but what purpose they are to serve when those rash impulsive drivers speed them away in a 'devil may care' attitude while an old crippled lady stands helplessly for hours on the bus stop?

Let me add to your knowledge that the campaign for these giant size , low floor buses were initiated in order to favour the elderly and crippled citizens. Pedestrians were laid down and there were talks of providing wheel chair service too.

but what is the use of such campaigns and promotions, when the drivers, the very in charge of this running system are ill mannered and ill practiced?

the bus that should be stopped centimeters away to the bus stops is distanced metres away and at times not halted at all. They are sped away mercilessly while a young school child strangles with a foot in air.

It is this inherent disregard for the value of human life , upbringing to various precautions, it is this numbness to everyday chaos that actually holds away the very finger of the bus driver for the door to close and bus runs away.

To top it up , our system puts up a material gloss on its insufficiency and thereby brings momentary false hopes not just to its citizens but also gives a pseudo emerging India picture! The internal diagnosis would reveal how crippled we are in our thinking..no really!!

forget about those unsaid , unselfish acts of kindness, we are unable to even handle our own jobs honestly!

when I see commuters blindfold themselves to this and many such mal practices each day, it instantly crosses my mind as to what purpose is our knowledge serving? 

We are so ignorantly busy in creating a heaven for ourselves without giving a a thought to the fact that what roads are we taking..will it really 'make our world a better place' or would it bring us to a 'hell unknown'?

CRICKET - country's pride or government's ploy ??

The season of hits and catches is back !!!
And India seems to be going bonkers on anything remotely related with cricket.. As the cricket mania sweeps us to our couches, do we care to know whats happening in our mainstream politics? or whatever happened to the 11% inflation ?


Cricket - no matter how esteemed or ecstatic it may appear, at the end of the day is just another 'sport' - a form of recreation and entertainment. then how can it kick back the economic and social happenings of a country? Who has to play a pivotal role in it? We, the government or the media?
It is actually a vicious circle of government and bureaucrats puppeting media person and the junta in turn being a silent , gullible puppet of the media's hullabaloo.


Media has always been the most influential tool for all sought of communications to and within the masses. what they show us is what we not just see but also believe and preach.
As Noam Chomsky , one of the greatest living thinkers alive puts it - 'media today is the channel which rules the minds of the people' .    


Not long ago, in the midst of CWG 2010 , India shackled and drenched in in numerous scams - from Prime minister or states minister, each one was caught to be a sinister. But what did the media show us? Uncompleted CWG sites, preparations that didn't speed up even as we watched them and disgusted ourselves 24x7. Did our respect degrade more when the bridges collapsed or did is collapse more when the genuinity and dignity of our dear PM was at stake?  Behind the media blitz of energetic sporting events lies governments dark curtains to hide off corruption and loot of wealth , peace and prosperity. Doesn't it sound peculiar that 'IPL buying and selling of players' can be a national headline when India was being tagged ( or was on its way to be tagged) as the SCAM CAPITAL OF THE WORLD?


History presents before us a classical example of the same. The Romans inaugurated a 150 days of games- the Olympics, at the time when people were being oppressed and killed, what was the need of 150 days of games in a year? It was in reality their tactics to loot the other civilisations , inhabitants and near by empires. These Olympics which were being played at the expense of the state.on the front they showcased youthfulness and bravery but behind it lay more darker objectives of repression , subjugation and economic loot.

Aren't we facing something similar today? Or what is the need for IPL, 20-20 , one -days and now the world cup?  Even the standard news hours of the day are not spared of repeated telecasts of each little petty issue on and off the field. Does it really make a difference to know who 'buys' whom and for 'how much' when on the real stage we are paying a high price for even our basic amenities? Do the glittering brand endorsements by a handful of players matters more than the bitter reality that 1/3rd of the Indian population continues to be below poverty line? Does Sachin Tendulkar's century come above the cost of loosing a child every 15seconds due to unhygienic health conditions? 

If it does than we deserve to be where be are even after 62 years of 'glorious' independence. but if it doesn't than we need to rip open those curtain and desire to seek something substantial rather than blindly going batty over ulterior motives of silly puppeteers !!