Videos From Bhutan

From Bhutan With Love

From Bhutan With Love ---- Whatever I was unable to achieve in Bangalore, I was able to do it at Bhutan. I am grateful to the Principal of Minjiwoong Lower Secondary School, Mr. Rajesh Rai; His Honorable Dasho OC, Royal Bhutan Army and the Dzonkhag (District) Education Officer, Samdrup Jongkhar to give me the opportunity to realize my dream.

As Connector ACF 591 I have been promoted now as the Climate Project Presenter to be happening this December at Royal Thimphu College at Thimphu by joint venture of the Australian Conservation Foundation, World Food Programme and UNICEF.

Do add in your valueable comments for the same. Thank You.

The Web Link:
http://connectors.acfonline.org.au/articles/news.asp?news_id=13

By Arunava Das, Senior Secondary Contract Teacher, Royal Government of Bhutan

“The GODS Will Overcome” ---- FREE TIBET, One World, One Free “Roof of the World”

“The GODS Will Overcome” ---- FREE TIBET, One World, One Free “Roof of the World”

During my sojourn of the really small, yet fruitful stay of six months in Eastern Bhutan, which very well resembles the intricately woven live tale of the golden days of Tibet by Heinrich Harrer in his legendary book “Seven Years in Tibet”, I saw similarity of language, cast, creed, evenness of religious belief and practices and the relief of the country, to say both the countries, the amazing vastness of the Himalayas, the awe that these mountains create on its dumb-founded onlookers is worth it and I believe that as Bhutan, Tibet has every “right” to enjoy freedom at its best from the oppressive Chinese rule.

To my astonishment, I who hail from a country that has been under the British rule for over three hundred years till 1947 never saw or heard of any disfigurement or destruction of any of the national monuments of India and the Britons were kind enough to add some important infrastructure like bridges, roads, railways to India.

I was horrified and literally torn to pieces to learn that 99% of the 6000 sacred buildings have been razed to the ground by the barbarian bastards, Chinese invasion. It makes me realize that the Chinese, who are also Buddhists in their belief, are harming precious Buddhist texts and articles that should have been preserved rather than demolished by the demons. As a staunch supporter of Buddhism, I believe that these ancient relics are great sources of inspiration that one can gather about a religion, its ancient virtue and culture and some knowledge about Tibetan School of Medicine, all that were hitherto unknown to the world.

Through my readings of His Holiness The Dalai Lama (I generally read these books during my lonely times at nights in Minjiwoong as it’s a remote area with no room for electricity.) and many other Buddhist related books and ones own knowledge, I abide by the rule that it is the sin of the highest order to destroy one’s freedom to live. Freedom is a virtue that everyone enjoys from humans to wild animals and plants. Nobody likes to be oppressed or mistreated and humiliated on his land that belongs to him/her by birth. Some great Indian freedom fighter once famously remarked that “Swaraj is one’s birthright and one should leave no stone unturned to get it.” “Swa” means self and “raj” means right of freedom on one’s motherland.

The people who think that they have the right to dominate others, kill people (taking one’s life) are rather fools as “GODS” have the last say. “What Man proposes, God disposes!” If China proposes to take Tibet and part of Bhutan, God will one day have China dethroned because freedom of land and its people come first and I hope that the day is not far away. I hope a catastrophe may paralyze China forever that they may fail to come to the grips of their loss, the same loss that they have so far inflicted on a holy country like Tibet.

That is the point they will realize their mistake; and when they have done so, I pray to His Lordship Buddha and any other Gods for that matter that they lose their backbone forever to stand up again. This is my solemn request I keep as I like and would love to see Tibet free again. I know the people are strong enough to rebuild their treasures as only from ashes of destruction that new things come up.

I hereby, on the behalf of all my Indian colleagues at the Ministry of Education, Royal Government of Bhutan, take the solemn oath of standing by H.H. The Dalai Lama, Heinrich Harrer and the people of Tibet in their fight for freedom.

By Arunava Das, Senior Secondary Contract Teacher, Royal Government of Bhutan

Life At Bhutan

Me with my Wangchuk House. We won the Boys Footbal Interhouse Championship. Me the Proud Coach



Our school and hostels


Thimphu getaway, taken on Phuentsholing - Thimphu Highway on way to Thimphu


Ministry of Education office, my employer....

Ministry of Education building....

Thimphu on morning.....

More images to follow..... along with blogs, please be patient.....

The King Lives On….In Our Hearts.

“We are the World….” he sang. We were the World to him. Now he is no longer in this World.

There are people dying
And it's time to lend a hand to life
The greatest gift of all

There were none to lend a helping hand to him when he was down with financial troubles. Creditors were always circling around him like vultures. They still are.

That a change will only come
When we stand together as one

That change never happened because he was the only one who believed in it.

Heal the world
Make it a better place
For you and for me and the entire human race.

The world was a better place when he was there. Now that he has gone, the world will never be the same again.

Nevertheless, the King of Pop lives on having moon-walked into our hearts, forever.

Long live the King! May his soul rest in peace.

Formula One has averted the crisis - for now

The revolt has been put down, compromises has been made and the show goes on. The eight teams have agreed to participate in the 2010 Formula One World Championship until 2012 and eventually cut costs to the levels of the early 1990’s. In return, the FIA has agreed to impose no further regulations. The 2009 regulations as well as further regulations agreed prior to 29 April 2009 will be in force for 2010 and onwards.

The big cheer is that FIA President Max Mosley will not to stand for re-election in October this year.

Gentlemen, start your engines.

Bengaluru Speaks: NAMMA BENGALURU?

Dear friend,

 

Come join us for the 11th session of

 

Bengaluru Speaks

An evening of uncommon conversation.

 

This Month's theme: 
NAMMA BENGALURU ?

Civic Spaces to Engage, Enhance, Enjoy

SATURDAY, June 27th

4.30pm -7.00pm

 

Goethe-Institut /Max Mueller Bhavan (716 CMH Road, Indiranagar 1st Stage (opposite MK Ahmed Retail Store), Bangalore 560 0380)

Come engage in honest and constructive conversations about issues that matter to you and your city.

Last month's Dialogue was “Dare to be an agent of Change? Your Wish List for the New Government”. It allowed participants to share their thoughts about the role of the government in bringing about real change in the society. Participants brain stormed concrete ideas as to how they themselves could contribute positively to changing the society.

 

Through insightful discussions, groups of participants were invited to understand people who have different backgrounds and perspectives on the issue. Most participants got new insights from the exercise and learnt about ways they could bridge the gap between what the government is doing and what they want at the local level.

 

This month, Meta-Culture Dialogics (MCD) will encourage participants to explore the topic:

NAMMA BENGALURU?

Civic Spaces to Engage, Enhance, Enjoy.

We would like to provide a platform for citizens of Bengaluru to share their thoughts on how they can connect in deeper ways with Bengaluru, and share ideas about how they can improve and benefit from the city.

 

The dialogue will help participants vocalize their hopes and aspirations for our Bengaluru. Participants will share their thoughts on pertinent questions that will be posed to them, as well as, have the opportunity to converse with fellow citizens of Bangalore about relevant issues, in a respectful and safe space.

 

All are welcome.  Invite your neighbours, colleagues and friends.

We look forward to seeing you there!

 

Bengaluru Speaks is hosted by Meta-Culture. We work to build peaceable and sustainable communities by changing how individuals and groups in conflict talk with each other.

For more information about Bengaluru Speaks, Meta-Culture, facilitation, and dialogue, contact us on 080-4152-4785 or dialogics@meta-culture.org or visit our website www.meta-culture.org

Smile plzzz :)

Kimberly Read & Marcia Purse commented on their blog Bipolar.About.com that according to the "facial feedback" hypothesis, the muscle movements of our face tell our brains that yes we are happy because we are smiling or confirm anger when our eyebrows draw together. I usually take tension soon when things are not done my way or if what I wanted to happened does not happen due to some reason. Same situation happened once and my husband asked me to smile. I said him at that moment, “I cannot give u a wholehearted smile now as I am tensed…” He said, “I asked u to smile, because when u smile, tension is released and u will be able to tackle a situation better…” I realized that what he said was so very true! Like an apple a day, keeps doctor away, a smile during such situations definitely helps to keep the tension away! So people lets learn to be happy and keep smiling :)

P.S: “He who smiles rather than rages is always the stronger” - Japanese proverb

Formula One no more!

The news hasn’t sunk in yet. In fact, it refuses to sink in. A formula one race featuring Williams, Force India and a couple of entrants, is simply not acceptable. It is not the Formula 1 that I am so familiar with, having watched the likes of Benetton’s, Jordan’s, Minardi’s, McLaren’s, Renault’s, BMW’s, Ferrari’s jostling for positions at the first corner.

I am still hoping that the FIA and FOTA would put aside their differences and continue racing. But that would only satisfy my greed.

Watching cars trundling around in a procession is not exactly exhilarating. At one point in time, certain manufacturers with deep financial pockets had achieved so much of technological development on their cars; they were ahead of others at least by two years. This resulted in the same old teams racking up podium finishes while the rest were just also-rans, filling up the grid. This made Formula 1 boring. In order to bring parity, the FIA continued introducing fresh rule changes almost every year, thereby reducing the technological gap. It almost paid off this year where the Brawn’s have dominated along with the Red Bull and a couple of other manufacturers putting in competitive performances.

But at what cost? The regulations have made the F1 races less thrilling to watch. Technically speaking, the engine size has been constantly whittled down. The cars are no longer as fast as they used to be in the 70’s and the 80’s. Simply putting it, it is no longer the driver stomping on the gas pedal and going as fast as possible, harking back to the old adage: better the driver faster the car. Just look what technology has done these days. There is no point having a supremely gifted driver driving the car because the car is the limiting factor. There is so much of electronics aiding the driver these days; one does not need to be a Senna or Schumacher.

Formula One is supposed to represent the ultimate, to be the most advanced and most competitive racing formula. However, with budget caps and regulations it is no longer Formula One. High end sports cars these days almost match the performances of a Formula One. That should say it all. Formula One is supposed to be “the next level” that is very difficult to reach. Sadly they have it all screwed up.

I have never seen the yellow helmet race, having tuned in to F1 when the red one was making its mark. We will never see them again. I will probably stop watching Formula One as it has come to embody rules, regulations, budgets and restrictions. It is not about racing anymore.

City Edge

Day: Thursday

Date: June 4, 2009

Time: 6:30 PM IST

It’s Our National Bird!!

Proud To Say That Our National Bird is Peacock?

Check This Out -

The National Bird Of India Is Struggling For Survival. The Bird Is Shoved To Extinction.

I Searched Internet To Find The Number Of This Bird In Our Country. For My Surprise I Learnt That There Is No Current Census Conducted For Peacock.

I Did Not Go In Depth To Know The Causes of The Extinction As I Personally Encountered One Of The Worst Causes. Feathers!!!!!!!

Yes, It’s For Their Long Sexy Beautiful Attractive Feathers These Birds Are Killed.

Recently I Captured These Pictures While Traveling In Public Transport In The City.

Uhhh..

Daring People!

Who Take Action Against This?

Why Do They Sell? Is That Because People Buy It?
Then Stop Purchasing! Educate The Consequences!!

Let Our Next Generation See How Peacock Look Like. It’s Our National Bird!!

Chhattisgarh: Flattering to deceive?

Chhattisgarh, carved out of Madhya Pradesh as the 26th state is largely a forested area dominated by tribals and blessed with rich mineral resources.

The Ministry of Finance, Government of India, the state government has decided to set up four 'Star Industrial Areas in the districts of Bilaspur, Raigarh, Rajnandgaon and Raipur.

Chhattisgarh is rich in minerals. It is endowed with rich deposits of coal, iron ore and bauxite. No wonder Chhattisgarh has integrated steel and aluminium factories. The state also has deposits of copper-ore, manganese ore, rock phosphate and limestone. Most of the mining activity is concentrated in the areas of Raipur (cement), Korba (coal), Durg (iron ore and dolomite) and Bastar (tin and corundum). Though mining holds a bright future for the state, a substantial portion of the regions identified with mineral resources are covered by forest areas and/or occupied by tribal communities, thereby making their extraction impossible.

Anyone reading the above mentioned facts would feel that the state is poised on the cusp of development.

Let’s do a reality check.

I came across a document on the web that labeled Chhattisgarh as “a rich state inhabited by poor people.” It boasts of a Per Capita Income of $ 264 which works out to 72 cents per day. The tribals’ eke out a living by selling forest products. However, even this occupation has been endangered as the government seeks to rehabilitate tribals away from the forests with an eye on the rich mineral deposits. The government has been acquiring land for industrial activities, saying that the ‘industrialization’ would benefit the tribals. I wonder how?

On the other hand, the tribals also have to contend with naxals on one side and the Salwa Judum on the other. They are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea. Reports of Naxals massacring the tribals are plenty and so are the reports that the state government backed civilian militia, the Salwa Judum who loot, murder, rape the tribals regularly with impunity. Ultimately, it works to the government’s advantage as the tribals flee their birthplaces to the neighboring states, thereby posing no threat to the land acquisitions.

The ordeal does not end there. The tribals who have flown the coop to other states are suspiciously looked upon as supporters of naxalites and are being denied basic amenities.

This is the real face of India. The government prefers to cater to mining and industrial lobby rather than the welfare of these dirt poor tribals in Chhattisgarh.

Ramachandra Guha portrays a more vivid picture in his article “A War in the Heart of India.”