1) Operation, Desert Sex (Jaisalmer)
2) A sign on the Hoshiarpur-Chandigarh road.
3) A warning sign at Jim Corbett National Park (Uttaranchal, India)
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Wow ! Some signboards, these !
1) Operation, Desert Sex (Jaisalmer) 2) A sign on the Hoshiarpur-Chandigarh road. 3) A warning sign at Jim Corbett National Park (Uttaranchal, India) 
Friday, February 1, 2008
Sikh Diaspora Versus India
During the course of travel for my first book, to the west, I was astonished to listen to some of the views a section of Sikhs held.Even after almost one and a half decades of Punjab terrorism being comprehensively quelled and necessary balm (though not of very high quality) being applied, some of them not only rabidly hold an anti-Indian government stance, but a few still think Khalistan is feasible.
Also, during the travel, I observed that the west, especially America,was never so unsafe for the Sikhs as post 9/11. Many Sikhs had been targeted, some even killed by ignorant people who mistook the Sikhs,because of their turbans and flowing beards, as Arabs.
Being a community that has a natural instinct for survival and enterprise I was particularly interested in examining how the Sikhswere grappling with a post 9/11 America. While one of the significant outcomes of these circumstances has been the unprecedented rise of Sikh activism in America in terms of mushroom growth of Sikh advocacy organizations, the most note worthy is the dual policy adopted by those few maverick Sikhs who think that India as a country is Sikhs worst enemy. A sad situation by all means as India is from where we get our social, cultural and moral values.
Anybody who has traveled to the West in the last six years would agree that for a brown skin person the safest bet is calling himself an Indian. I know of several Pakistanis and Bangladeshis whom I met in UK and USA who have been doing it for years.
Similarly, Sikhs who would enter into an animated discussion over why Sikhs urgently needed Khalistan, when confronted with a situation whereby someone mistook them for an Arab, would call out I'm not an Arab but from India.
Not only do they use this line when fearing a physical assault, but they continuously use it for business enhancement as Indians over the years have carved out a reputation of being hard-working and professional.
"I concede this point", said the Fresno doctor who had got into a heated argument and on the verge of kicking me out of his clinic because of my outburst accusing him has a lunatic expatriate, divorced from ground realities. "But before you leave, answer my one question," he barked? "How do you justify the storming of the Golden Temple, followed by the 1984 Sikh riots?"
A tough one, this!
Khushwant Singh has recently authored 'Sikhs Unlimited' (Rupa & Co). It's a travelogue from UK to USA, featuring fourteen extra ordinary Sikh menand women. This article is an observation, made during the travel.
Also, during the travel, I observed that the west, especially America,was never so unsafe for the Sikhs as post 9/11. Many Sikhs had been targeted, some even killed by ignorant people who mistook the Sikhs,because of their turbans and flowing beards, as Arabs.
Being a community that has a natural instinct for survival and enterprise I was particularly interested in examining how the Sikhswere grappling with a post 9/11 America. While one of the significant outcomes of these circumstances has been the unprecedented rise of Sikh activism in America in terms of mushroom growth of Sikh advocacy organizations, the most note worthy is the dual policy adopted by those few maverick Sikhs who think that India as a country is Sikhs worst enemy. A sad situation by all means as India is from where we get our social, cultural and moral values.
Anybody who has traveled to the West in the last six years would agree that for a brown skin person the safest bet is calling himself an Indian. I know of several Pakistanis and Bangladeshis whom I met in UK and USA who have been doing it for years.
Similarly, Sikhs who would enter into an animated discussion over why Sikhs urgently needed Khalistan, when confronted with a situation whereby someone mistook them for an Arab, would call out I'm not an Arab but from India.
Not only do they use this line when fearing a physical assault, but they continuously use it for business enhancement as Indians over the years have carved out a reputation of being hard-working and professional.
"I concede this point", said the Fresno doctor who had got into a heated argument and on the verge of kicking me out of his clinic because of my outburst accusing him has a lunatic expatriate, divorced from ground realities. "But before you leave, answer my one question," he barked? "How do you justify the storming of the Golden Temple, followed by the 1984 Sikh riots?"
A tough one, this!
Khushwant Singh has recently authored 'Sikhs Unlimited' (Rupa & Co). It's a travelogue from UK to USA, featuring fourteen extra ordinary Sikh menand women. This article is an observation, made during the travel.
Destination Punjab
No amount of flak is reason enough to justify that NRIconclaves, like the one hosted recently, by the Punjab Government and Punjab Chambers of Commerce should not be held, because interact we must.
Having said that, taking this conclave forward, out of the ambit of mere hype, would be something of a challenge which no government has been able to meet, as yet.NRI role in development of Punjab is a 'give and take' phenomenon with the Punjab Government attempting to send a message across that it wasready to meet all the demands, required to make Punjab a preffered destination.
While the NRI's have never failed the 'Punjab Chalo' call, the readiness factor of the Punjab government is always a matter of suspicion. Not that there is any doubt in government's intent, but because of the very way it functions ,the government inadvertentlyputs its own plans in jeopardy.Impolite airport staff, insensitive police and an arrogant bureaucracyhas been some of the main grudges of the NRIs. Given from the business climate the NRIs come from, this treatment does not come as a handy tool to woo them. Perhaps this is exactly what Ujjal Dosanjh, formerPremier of British Columbia, meant when he said, societal change is imperative to attract parvasis.
For many NRI's the attitude only confirms that nothing has changed.A systems check of business environment also does not augur well forNRI investment. Turbulent political climate surely puts them off,reminding them of Punjab's age hold history of power struggles. An ad hoc and opaque system of functioning also ruins Punjab's case. Sample this -a US based software company owned by an Indian has been looking for land in the Mohali IT Park. His fix is that while he is sitting on an investment amount of three million dollars , he cannot, as majorityof the transaction in Punjab is in black money and all his money isaccounted for.Or take NRI Lajpat Rai Munger's case who donated a multi-crore IT centre in Hoshiarpur to the Punjab University just because because he was fed up of corruption. He had set up the institute seven years ago in partnership with California State University, Fresno.
Vision Punjab is a long drawn process, akin to developing a cricket team for the World Cup. Look for quick results and you might end lagging behind even the minnows. Since a start is yet to be made, should Punjab be a destination fornew Gen next knowledge based businesses. Or should it just remain a speculators destination, buying and selling land. Real estate is a great money spinner, but for Gen next businesses and true state building, involving the younger generation Diaspora is imperative.
New Businesses, other than the land lollipop, need infrastructure, HRD resource, high bandwidth, efficient and comfortable transport system,power and roads. Heat, stench, traffic chaos and delays are the other significant deterrents, especially for the young generation. A few years ago a young NRI cardiologist who joined a leading Hospital in Mohali, left in a huff after he was beaten by goons on one of the main highways, while negotiating pot-holes. Taking him as a drunken driver,the doctor was beaten black and blue.
'Agenda Punjab' feel many top notch NRIs should foster to make Punjab a hot destination, where the mind is allowed to flow freely.Something like what a Xerox or Hewlett Packard did to Bay area in SanFrancisco. It has been said that new trends in America are invented inthe Bay Area, amplified in L.A. and then broadcast from New York.Perhaps, that's the way to go for Punjab, powering the mind.
Having said that, taking this conclave forward, out of the ambit of mere hype, would be something of a challenge which no government has been able to meet, as yet.NRI role in development of Punjab is a 'give and take' phenomenon with the Punjab Government attempting to send a message across that it wasready to meet all the demands, required to make Punjab a preffered destination.
While the NRI's have never failed the 'Punjab Chalo' call, the readiness factor of the Punjab government is always a matter of suspicion. Not that there is any doubt in government's intent, but because of the very way it functions ,the government inadvertentlyputs its own plans in jeopardy.Impolite airport staff, insensitive police and an arrogant bureaucracyhas been some of the main grudges of the NRIs. Given from the business climate the NRIs come from, this treatment does not come as a handy tool to woo them. Perhaps this is exactly what Ujjal Dosanjh, formerPremier of British Columbia, meant when he said, societal change is imperative to attract parvasis.
For many NRI's the attitude only confirms that nothing has changed.A systems check of business environment also does not augur well forNRI investment. Turbulent political climate surely puts them off,reminding them of Punjab's age hold history of power struggles. An ad hoc and opaque system of functioning also ruins Punjab's case. Sample this -a US based software company owned by an Indian has been looking for land in the Mohali IT Park. His fix is that while he is sitting on an investment amount of three million dollars , he cannot, as majorityof the transaction in Punjab is in black money and all his money isaccounted for.Or take NRI Lajpat Rai Munger's case who donated a multi-crore IT centre in Hoshiarpur to the Punjab University just because because he was fed up of corruption. He had set up the institute seven years ago in partnership with California State University, Fresno.
Vision Punjab is a long drawn process, akin to developing a cricket team for the World Cup. Look for quick results and you might end lagging behind even the minnows. Since a start is yet to be made, should Punjab be a destination fornew Gen next knowledge based businesses. Or should it just remain a speculators destination, buying and selling land. Real estate is a great money spinner, but for Gen next businesses and true state building, involving the younger generation Diaspora is imperative.
New Businesses, other than the land lollipop, need infrastructure, HRD resource, high bandwidth, efficient and comfortable transport system,power and roads. Heat, stench, traffic chaos and delays are the other significant deterrents, especially for the young generation. A few years ago a young NRI cardiologist who joined a leading Hospital in Mohali, left in a huff after he was beaten by goons on one of the main highways, while negotiating pot-holes. Taking him as a drunken driver,the doctor was beaten black and blue.
'Agenda Punjab' feel many top notch NRIs should foster to make Punjab a hot destination, where the mind is allowed to flow freely.Something like what a Xerox or Hewlett Packard did to Bay area in SanFrancisco. It has been said that new trends in America are invented inthe Bay Area, amplified in L.A. and then broadcast from New York.Perhaps, that's the way to go for Punjab, powering the mind.
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