Killing me softly

Thats what the budget for the year seems to be doing.

It seems to be telling that you, a middle-class salaried person will not be affected, but look closely and you will find that it is going to hurt.

Of prime (dis)interest to me is the introduction of 'Service Tax' on leasing of immovable property for commercial purposes. This means that the cost of commercial real estate will increase and companies will have to compensate this loss by cutting down on salaries raises. Salaried people always bear the brunt.

Why cant the service tax net be increased and the rate of income tax be reduced. This would definitely get in greater revenue and ensure a more equitable distribution of tax liability in general.

Lets begin something where tax can be hidden - a self-owned setup... a startup... waddaya say!!

The year of return

The year started with me visiting Nainital, the place where I grew up and did my schooling.
And then in Feb I was in Pune, where I started my career, for a short while.
This year seems to be a year of returning to places which have connection to my past. Will it be a return or meeting of some people also similarly?

What have they done!

Thumping victory at Vizag. Batting works wonderfully. Bowling too does well. And fielding too. They have just raised our hopes for the World Cup. Now I will need to take time out to think about, to follow the progress, to exult in victories and to sulk in defeats during the tournament. Because now I, a quintessential Indian cricket fan, have my hopes, desires and appetites raised.

About Master Plans

Gurgaon and Delhi Master Plans 2021 have been released. A lot of talk of improvements in the one for Gurgaon and compromises in the one for Delhi.

I wonder how is it going to affect me personally. Ideally speaking I would like to live in a city where I can walk on (on the sides) the roads without being honked or continuously staying alert so that I am not run over. I want to enjoy the sun in winters and cool evening breeze in summers. I want to walk to a restaurant near my house for dinner and return on foot in the night.
I want to have the choice of driving or cycling to work.

A lot of us in India have become so used to using vehicles because the roads are not safe for walking or cycling. Either there is no pavement, or if there is then it has been encroached by vendors. Little things that can make a lot of difference in the quality of life.

Another recent development was a ruling by the honourable Supreme Court ruling that in Delhi, 'No food can be cooked on roadside. All the hawkers selling eatables need to cook it at home and pack them and then only will they be able to sell these.' I find this absurd. What about the chat and kulche chole on the sidewalks? What about the momos and kathi rolls? Moreover the logic of hygiene doesnt stand here. On the street I can see how hygienic or not a place is and based on that make my decision whether to eat or not but if the food is packed then for a road-side vendor, I dont know the condition of his kitchen at home so what or who do I trust before eating? I will not have this choice.

World Cup Squad

So... finally THE team has been chosen. No surprises for me in terms of inclusions or ommissions based upon current form (Dinesh Karthik, Sreeshant, Uthappa) and potential due to past reputation (Sehwag, Pathan).
The dice has been rolled. Time to stop criticism of players and their selection. Rather this is the time to show whole-hearted support to them.

All the best gentleman.

A New Read

The time between finishing a book and starting another is just something else. A book does not cost a lot, but still I go to great lengths to make sure I do not end up with a bad one.
Sometimes I do pick out a few in bulk so that I have ready stock to start when I finish reading the current one. And sometimes I am not able to decide which to pick next even after the current one has been finished for a few days.

The habit of reading developed in me thanks to the presence of two Mahanubhavs in the Pune household. One of them being a voracious reader and the other a 'moody' reader.

Anyway, so this weekend I got hold of 'Zen and the art of Motorcycle maintenance'. Heard a lot about it so am looking forward to spending my free-time with it, either tucked up in a quilt or sunning in the grass.

They are back

Saw a cockroach crawling in the loo in the morning. A lizard once again is crawling on the wall. A mosquito was flying around yesterday in my room. They are back from hibernation.
Winter has truly ended here.

Two Wishes

There are times when I get so many ideas to write about but am nowhere near a computer to put in my thoughts. And then when I get to a computer to write, I am at a loss of ideas. Now just this morning while walking to the office I was thinking of someting very interesting to pen down but now at night when I am ready to 'blog' I forget. Life is good!!!

Anyhow, there are a few things in my life close to my heart which I wish I could do or knew how to do. The first one is Poetry. I love reading poetry - Hindi, Urdu and English (especially the philosophical variety). I thouroughly enjoyed reading Vikram Seth's Golden Gate which has been fully written in verse (including the acknowledgement and preface) but I cant come up with verses myself.
The second one is Music skill. I love listening to music. Ihave music sense as well as an ear that can even recognize which instrument is being played but I myself do not know how to play any musical instrument. I had my chance in school but at that time was not motivated enough to learn it.

I wonder if I will fulfill these wishes in this lifetime.

Productive chaos at workplace

Ha! This is for those bosses who insist on more of processes, more of organisation, more of structure, more of predictability in the work of their reportees. Tha article talks about how chaos and 'anti-structure' at work can bring success. This also tells me that probably I am more organised and neat than I should be in my work. Check this out

Reads

Just finished reading 'Shantaram' by Gregory David Roberts. Interesting story. I would not say that it is inspiring but it was good to read and relax with. One person can go through so many varied experiences in one's life. Thats a life full of adventure which overwhelms at times. It colors a totally different picture of Mumbai to me.. a truly cosmopolitan one.

I feel the need to get another book now and am not able to decide which to pick. Any suggestions from out there?

Two events yesterday

Tata Steel bid successfully for Corus and Sachin scored a century in style, raising our hopes for a better performance at the world cup.
What a day of successes and being an Indian :)!

WOW Technology!!!

Saw this article on rediff. And this recording of the event on youtube.

This could possibly be the next leap for technology in terms of human interface after the mouse .... or rather beyond the mouse. It is just a technology or concept which is waiting for applications of it.

He also has an interesting point against the concept of $100 laptop which a lot of people are talking about.

What do the people think and come up with :-)!