Genesis

14 th April 2009, just 2 days after my 24 th birthday (which was as usual a low key affair and as usual most of my friends forgot the exact date and failed to wish me, don’t be sorry, I am used to it) I was standing amid a unbelievably huge crowd in front of the collector office, sundergarh. Don’t think that I was protesting against the price rise or participating in a dharana. I was deputed as a presiding officer for the 1 st phase of assembly and constitutional election in Orissa. The deputation came as a shock for me as for my family members also. I was employed with a private engineering college as a lecturer and I was deputed for election duty. We went through the training session of electronic voting machine (BHEL made) which came from Bihar and the rules and regulations of Indian elections. The micro controller based EVM are simple to operate once you have the basics clear. We were given a booklet where all the procedures were mentioned as how to perform mock poll, how to is...

Out of the many questions a person is asked in his life time one question is asked a fair number of time. And the question is,” who is your role model or who inspires you to get going in the tough road of life?” In my early school days my teachers used to tell us about the freedom fighters like Gandhi, Nehru, Shastri who fought against the British in a non violent ways and I was very impressed by the tales. Then after some days he taught us about the other people who fought against the British in a violent way like bhagat singh, sukhdev, rajguru who were hanged on the premises of Lahore central jail in the wee hours of 23 rd March 1931. There were many young man and woman who gave their life for Indian independence. History books don’t have the space to accommodate all the names. Many people remember the satyagrahis but not many people remember the nameless persons who dared British raj with all guns blazing. There were hanged and no record book shows their names. I was impressed by ...

In an August afternoon a 3 rd year, 5 th semester instrumentation engineering class was going on in an engineering college. From the total strength of 90 students most were present but their minds were out of the class. The head of the department who was a former scientist in RRL, Bhubaneswar was giving an introductory lecture on measurement science. He asked the class, “What do you measure with a clinical thermometer?” Many voices were heard. But all the voices had the same answer. Some said, “Temperature”, other refined the previous answer and said, “Body temperature”. The tall body of the HOD was standing near the black board and he shook his head. He said, “No”. Every body was amazed. There was a murmuring. He continued, “In clinical thermometer (not talking about digital thermometer) often called mercury thermometer we measure the length of mercury column which is in some way or the other related to the body temperature. Measurement is all about comparison of a measured quantit...

"Men are more prone to suicidal tendencies than woman after heartbreak". A survey conducted by some social scientists reveals this fact. So what is the heart break or betrayal? Why does someone irrespective of the gender face the dilemma of heart break and the consequences which follow immediately after heart break? Why relationships turn sour? Different persons have different reasons and explanations for it. They have their own account to share but in general whatever may be the reason of the breakup it really hurts and hurts very much. Just imagine the situation. You love somebody from your heart and soul. Both of you are in technical college doing your graduation and have dreamt of a nice life ahead. Your relationship has seen several springs. How can you forget those late night phone calls, going for lunch in a Punjabi dhabba, that long drive in that trusty old bike, holding each others hand and enjoying the silence of the moment, going for a field trip and ...

In a sleepy November afternoon Abhay, a Ph.D student was in his room sitting amid heap of books and papers trying to solve an inverse kinematics problem of robotics. His laptop was placed in his side and his gtalk state showed idle. Abhay likes this kind of silence where he can actually apply his brain and do some useful work. It was a Saturday afternoon and he was confident of finishing his work by Monday morning to show to his guide. Breaking the silence Abhay’s nokia mobile started ringing. At first abhay thought it was from the service provider who frequently calls to advertise different schemes. But it turned out to be Rohan, his college friend. Rohan works for a software MNC and stays in a nearby town which is a couple of hours drive. Abhay asked him about his well being and Rohan said, “I am fine. Abhay I have news for you, “Shilpa is tying the knot with Dr. Vishal on 22nd Dec.” Abhay was listening to all this in silence. After a pause he asked, “Who told you?” Rohan said, “I...

Before some days I was surfing channels on the TV when I caught a channel which was broadcasting one of the several cine award functions. I can’t remember the name, and I don’t want to do that because I have more useful works to do. The best critics’ award was given to Ms. Deepa Meheta for her film “Water”. She came and made a brief but the most sensible speech. I can’t totally quote the speech but it said that, “It is a nice feeling to be in a stage where people acknowledge your work and to receive an award for your work, instead of seeing your effigy burnt down to ashes and people shouting slogans against you.” I was really impressed by that speech and its meaning. I have watched “water”. It is a really wonderful movie and I recommend those people who are shouting slogans against it to see it just once. It shows the tragedy of child widows along with many others in the streets of Banaras, the holiest city of Hindus. They fight for their survival, their rights which are denied to them...

It is said to be the biggest and the busiest railway junction of India. I was waiting for my train. Hoards of people swarm the platform. I took a look around and found that I might get lost in this crowd. My train was still 1 hour late and I was flipping a magazine to pass my time. Suddenly my eye fell on a person, and instantly I recognized him as one of my college friend. I went near him and called him by his name. He turned, recognized me and made a shy smile. I found a remarkable change in his face. The ever joyful Rohan is looking shy, and one can tell instantly from his facial expression that he is not well (either physically or mentally). I enquired about his well being and he told me that he is fine. But my mind was full of questions. I was meeting Rohan after 1 year and I was sure that something drastic has occurred in his life. He was traveling by another train. So we sat in a bench and I offered him a cup of tea which he took with a thanks. After some time of usual talks I ...