Let the deserving get the jobs.

Ours was a 3 yr higher secondary course ( i.e. 9th, 10th, & 11th). As we had to select subjects in class ninth, I had opted for Sanskrit which had always been my strong subject.

One such Sanskrit book that I studied in class eleventh was "Dootavakyam". Just for information, the word "Doot'" means ambassador or messenger and "vakyam" means the utterance. And so if you can guess, the small book only contains the conversation between Lord Krishna and Duryodhan before the commencement of the epic battle-Mahabharat.

As per the book, Lord Krishna, who is on the side Pandavas and later on also becomes the charioteer of Arjun, goes and speaks to "Suyodhan" ( That's how he always addressed him as!) and asks him to give a part of the kingdom to his cousins. Duryodhan rejects it outright.

Infact all throughout the book, Lord Krishna put forward what Pandavas have said, and Duryodhan turns down every request. Duryodhan does seem horrid, but what he finally says on the last page is truly important for he literally steals the show from the Pandavas- " Dear Messenger! You don't ask for kingdom. Nor do you give it just because somebody has asked for it. If my cousins want to rule, they should take up arms and fight with me. On my part, I will not give them any land! Not even equal to the size of the point of a needle. "

I remember having crammed the answer as per the Delhi Board expectations. But somewhere the lines made a strong impression on me. For, in my most difficult moments, these lines have always come to me and I have fought with all my might. My arms have always been hard work and sincerity. And yes, however difficult I have eventually always overcome the challenge.

I feel pained when students say agitatedly in classrooms and seminars," What's the use, we don't get jobs!" As is my job, I do check the answers they write in the exams. The spelling mistakes, and the grammatical errors are atrocious to say the least. As Madhya Pradesh is a Hindi Belt area and Indore falls in this state, I am often faced with loud protests when I teach in English. But while checking the papers I find their Hindi weak too- to the point of being pathetic.

At such times I feel utterly hopeless. Every job has its own demand. And the demand has to be met. It is absolutely sickening to see a graduate not writing a single sentence correctly. Or a D.T.P. operator not knowing the difference between an "exclamation mark" and a "question mark"!

If that's not enough, we have ministers like Arjun Singh who have spoiled the situation even more by saying that spelling mistakes have to be ignored. Has he thought of the consequences? It is really sad that libraries remain unfrequented, and books /newspapers remain unread in an institution. The general attitude is, "Offence is the best form of defence." The worst part is that almost all political parties in a bid to win votes have said that they will ensure jobs to all if they come to power. I really don't know what will happen of the country!

Looking at the state of affairs, I sometimes wonder how many from the younger generation will be able to fill admission form or write leave application for their children! I am genuinely worried at that.

Death due to Ragging

My heart felt condolences to Aman Kachru's family. It is really sad that this19 year old boy died due to ragging, in a medical college in Himachal Pradesh.

I really don't have words. It's the person who faces the loss knows what it is. And so I only pray to God to do speedy justice.

There are so many dreams and aspirations when a baby is born. The dreams grow with the child. And if the same child were to get into medical, what better luck could one have! And then suddenly news of death?And all dreams coming crashing down. It is not fair! It is just not fair!

What were those senior boys trying to achieve? And what were all the witnesses (of several days) thinking? That they would relate the tales of ragging with much spice later on? How could the "future doctors " be so cruel and inhuman? I also wish to know how the accused boys secured admission to the medical college. What disturbs me most is how did this ragging last so long? As per me, ragging means a simple question-answer session, which sets a rapport between the seniors and juniors. A bit of song and dance, by which the talent is detected. And finally, this is something which is enjoyed by both the juniors as well as the seniors. And normally, this kind of interaction gets over with the Freshers' Night, i.e. in a month's time. But then, it is best to ban this harmless act also, if decency is going to be trespassed each time.

The academic year is coming to an end soon. At least, next year we should not have cases of ragging or brutality. One thing more. Every hosteler must have a Local Guardian. This should be made compulsory. Secondly, we must have more medical colleges so that students will be nearer their respective homes. How come engineering colleges are dime a dozen? And that, they also succeed in meeting the requirements of the AICTE i.e. All India Council For Technical Education? But the medical colleges invariably fail to meet the expectations of the Medical Council Of India? In fact, a sword always hangs on every medical college. I have seen this in Indore.

Besides this, there is a need for UGC to try and make other courses interesting too. For, there will always be some who will be interested in Chemistry, Economics, etc. The students need to be shown hope here. Besides, the world cannot just run on engineers and doctors. I am sure by working on this aspect, several students will be nearer their homes at the under-graduate level . Naturally, they will be happy, secure and relaxed.

We cannot afford to lose our younger generation this way.

On this note I end ."Happy Gudi Padwa"- Marathi New Year.