Ground Reality

Modi govt second anniversary: A perspective Neeraj Bajpai  Amid positive projections regarding India’s economic growth by United Nations and international rating agencies and the BJP-led NDA dispensation’s poll victory in the North-Eastern state of Assam, the Narendra Modi Government marks its second anniversary in office, side-stepping critics who nurse suspicions regarding successful completion of a plethora of schemes – more than 50 launched during last two years. A critical assessment of the Government’s performance is underway by various quarters-common man, executive, opposition parties, wizards of various disciplines for the ground reality check up on narratives of promises and deliveries. Common refrain among growth drivers is massive development will be both palpable and visual soon as they have now riveted eyes on ground for time bound implementation of plans rather than unveiling new plans. War of perception is being waged on the government’s performance an...

Deep in the woods of majestic Himalayas’ foot hills lies  leisurely   a non-descript hamlet  Sathkol, perched on a height of 6000 feet above sea level. Whistling pine trees impart suspense to the environment which is filled with wafting  fragrance of  wild flora and fauna. Reading “Save wild life and  forests” small tin plates kiss an internationally famed meditation  centre's  outer fences.  The centre, cocooned in  mesmerizing breathtaking  environs, holds a raft of intriguing attractions like Heartfulness meditation in surreal calmness. Ice capped Himalayan peaks paint a befitting background. The serene tranquility here is punctuated only by chirping of Himalayan birds. Abhyasis (Practitioners) who get a chance to visit what they call ”Sathkhol Ashram” are a few in numbers. Only small batches are permitted at a time due to limited capacity of two dormitories.  One gets this chance only once in a span ...

It is all about a Dog.  But,this is  not a famous piece of 20th century –“All about a Dog­'',  an Essay by AG Gardiner. It has  another elements,too.Two lives -a puppy and an injured (road accident victim) were saved by a  24 ­year ­old architect Aakarsh Tyagi on a pitch dark night in New Lodhi Colony in New Delhi a few months back. Dr Khurshid Guru,a New Yorker, shot into prominence when he saved the life of a  a two­ year old  on a flight from Spain to United states in Otober last year when had made a make shift a device to help the asthmatic toddler , he made the nubulizer by an oxygen mask ,a water bottle and inhaler. But who Knows  about Road Warrior Aakarsh.? When the world woke up to mark the Rabies day on September 25, 2015, ...

It was a nail biting finish in true sense when India humbled Bangladesh this Wednesday in a sensational Cricket match in Bengaluru. It   was a lessons   giving historic story of one run victory of India over Bangladesh on march 23,2016  in world T20/match. After 39.3 overs of a contest ,Bangladesh  was smelling fragrance of the victory and seemed to have a first ever T20I victory against India.Two runs needed off three balls, with Mushfiqur Rahim on strike and spectators were holding their breath. The game should have been dusted  away  and India were staring at an early exit .  Bangladesh proceeded to remarkably offer India a way back into the game, with Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah both being caught in the leg-side boundary off Hardik Pandya. Two needed off one, and suddenly, it was Bangladesh was in doledrums. Pandya ran in for the final delivery, bowled outside Shuvagata Hom's reach, and MS Dhoni, who had earlier pulled off a sensati...

It was early morning and a motley crowd of onlookers was craning necks to catch a glimpse of their master. He was to arrive among them for meditation in a green and serene corner of otherwise concretized Gurgaon, at the outskirts of India's capital on a  Sunday  morning. A hushed silence was conspicuous by its presence as if the meditation was already underway by the huge assembly. People from all walks of life and faith occupied every inch of space available on the sprawling swathe. Cuckoos call and birds chirping at flowering trees in spring were the only melodious distraction. Fragrance of water soaked mud hung in the tranquil air.   Dressed in blue cotton shirt, white trousers and a brown jacket, a smiling face with reassuring demeanor got down from a vehicle, and briskly walked to a spick and span room. He gently bowed before a hanging medium seized frame of a black and white photograph of his master.             ...