YOU ARE MY PRECIOUS VISITOR NUMBER

Translate this page

Friday, October 2, 2009

An E-Mail from Mr P.Shankar..... Reply to Mr P.Shankar.....

Hello Mr P.Shankar, thanks for your visit on the blog and kind words about it...I am publishing your mail as asked by you for a healthy debate and the enlightenment for the CSE aspirants....keep blogging.....
**********************************************
REPLY TO MR. EDUCATOR
Dear Mr. Educator,
I appreciate your concern for my query and a quick expert comment which was very much expected from any layman educator because you simply failed to study my intense analysis inherent in my question put up to neutralviews of improving one’s performance in CSE.I am a bit surprised that an educator did not understand my question who boasts that he has literally taught students and on the other had we have Mr. Manmauji who is a part of virtual world in educating successful and aspiring CSE aspirants and has never made a deliberate attempt to disclose his identity on the lines of neutrality and anonymity. Well, what all I can say is that UPSC is very much capable of identifying great talents and one amongst many is Mr. Manmauji.

Here is a short reply of your analysis of my query:

(1)Indeed neutralviews is a platform where not only CSE aspirants but also those hardworking fortunate individuals who get through this coveted exams ask about their queries which consists of the nature and type of service, training schedule, their day to day activities,etc. Thus, it is an unique junction of all aspiring and successful bureaucrats. Hence, neutralviews can not only be judged in terms of "number of queries" it gets. For me it would be an under evaluation of a great person's selfless effort who apart from his training and other day to day activities takes out precious time in replying our doubts.
(2)You also mentioned to offer a reply in neutralviews's way which is far away from the principal on which neutralviews operates because neutralviwes's reply is always positive, optimistic, to the point, and gives very less room to further generate queries from his reply and to a larger extent Mr. Manmauji is also able to provide an appropriate reply to each and every query in a way which solve the doubts of persons concerned. Your reply is full of value-judgments (dos and don’ts).You have presumed that all aspirants waste their time in figuring out a 'formula' which is a great generalization and a vagueness personified. As Mr. Manmauji has rightly pointed that at the end of a day "number matters a lot".
(3)You are also not fully right is stating that all students opt for IAS as their first service preference. Let me tell you that quite a lot prefer for IPS,IFS,IRS(IT),and even IAAS as their first service preference. You can go through "Pratiyogita Darpan" and find out the facts yourself and various other articles are available on Internet suggesting that changing trend. Here, again your argument fell in stereotyping.
(4)Gone are those days when a person used to work tirelessly and spend days and nights in studying each and everything just to gain knowledge without even thinking of the end result. The yearlong process of CSE exam compels the individual to have some fallback career option not only for his/her own sake but also for those who are dependent on them. Probably you will agree with me that CSE aspirants are made up of various categories- well-to-do families, upper-middle class, lower-middle class and lower class. My basis of this classification is solely based on the financial status of the person and his/her family members. Thus, one can not study for CSE in an intellectual and scholarly manner and afford for arm-chair discussions .CSE aspirants needs to know from each and every walks of life in a generalist way without philosophizing and complicating things. Thus one can gain knowledge to empower but should draw the line as well where it exceeds. You have rightly said that students learn when they have a reason.
(5)Should I presume that being an educator you have read about School Culture-Rituals and Ceremonies, about J.Krishnamurty(a great educator of India,KFI Schools),Gandhi's views on Education, John Dewey, Durkheim’s views on Education, An Ethnography of Life in School by Meenaskshi Thapan. These are a few basic texts which any so called "Educator" can read before giving any expert advice. These articles are mentioned in some of the great works done in the field of education. I would request you to please read at least about Dr.Radhkrishnan so that an educator's viewpoint is naturally reflected in your further comments.
I would also like to thank Mr. Manmauji in giving you an opportunity to reply/comment to my question. This is truly democratization.
Thank You So Very Much!!

The Ex-President of India DR. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam 's Speech in Hyderabad

"Why is the media here so negative?
Why are we in India so embarrassed to recognize our own strengths, our achievements? We are such a great nation. We have so many amazing success stories but we refuse acknowledge them--- Why?
We are the first in milk production.
We are number one in Remote sensing satellites.
We are the second largest producer of wheat.
We are the second largest producer of rice.
Look at Dr. Sudarshan , he has transferred the tribal village into a self-sustaining, self-driving unit.
There are millions of such achievements but our media is only obsessed in the bad news and failures and disasters.
I was in Tel Aviv once and I was reading the Israeli newspaper. It was the day after a lot of attacks and bombardments and deaths had taken place. The Hamas had struck. But the front page of the newspaper had the picture of a Jewish gentleman who in five years had transformed his desert into an orchid and a granary. It was this inspiring picture that everyone woke up to. The gory details of killings, bombardments, deaths, were inside in the newspaper, buried among other news.
In India we only read about death, sickness, terrorism, crime.
Why are we so NEGATIVE?
Another question: Why are we, as a nation so obsessed with foreign things? We want foreign T. Vs, we want foreign shirts. We want foreign technology.
Why this obsession with everything imported. Do we not realize that self-respect comes with self-reliance? I was in Hyderabad giving this lecture,when a 14 year old girl asked me for my autograph. I asked her what her goal in life is. She replied: I want to live in a developed India . For her, you and I will have to build this developed India . You must proclaim. India is not an under-developed nation; it is a highly developed nation.
Do you have 10 minutes? Allow me to come back with a vengeance.
Got 10 minutes for your country? If yes, then read; otherwise, choice is yours.
YOU say that our government is inefficient.
YOU say that our laws are too old.
YOU say that the municipality does not pick up the garbage.
YOU say that the phones don't work, the railways are a joke,
The airline is the worst in the world, mails never reach their destination.
YOU say that our country has been fed to the dogs and is the absolute pits.
YOU say, say and say.. What do YOU do about it?
Take a person on his way to Singapore . Give him a name - YOURS. Give him a face - YOURS. YOU walk out of the airport and you are at your International best. In Singapore you don't throw cigarette butts on the roads or eat in the stores... YOU are as proud of their Underground links as they are. You pay $5 (approx. Rs. 60) to drive through Orchard Road (equivalent of Mahim Causeway or Pedder Road ) between 5 PM and 8 PM. YOU come back to the parking lot to punch your parking ticket if you have over stayed in a restaurant or a shopping mall irrespective of your status identity... In Singapore you don't say anything, DO YOU?
YOU wouldn't dare to eat in public during Ramadan, in Dubai .
YOU would not dare to go out without your head covered in Jeddah .
YOU would not dare to buy an employee of the telephone exchange in London at 10 pounds ( Rs.650) a month to, 'see to it that my STD and ISD calls are billed to someone else.'
YOU would not dare to speed beyond 55 mph (88 km/h) in Washington and then tell the traffic cop,'Jaanta hai main kaun hoon (Do you know who I am?). I am so and so's son. Take your two bucks and get lost.'
YOU wouldn't chuck an empty coconut shell anywhere other than the garbage pail on the beaches in Australia and New Zealand.
Why don't YOU spit Paan on the streets of Tokyo ? Why don't YOU use examination jockeys or buy fake certificates in Boston ??? We are still talking of the same YOU..
YOU who can respect and conform to a foreign system in other countries but cannot in your own. You who will throw papers and cigarettes on the road the moment you touch Indian ground. If you can be an involved and appreciative citizen in an alien country, why cannot you be the same here in India ?
Once in an interview, the famous Ex-municipal commissioner of Bombay , Mr. Tinaikar , had a point to make. 'Rich people's dogs are walked on the streets to leave their affluent droppings all over the place,' he said. 'And then the same people turn around to criticize and blame the authorities for inefficiency and dirty pavements. What do they expect the
officers to do? Go down with a broom every time their dog feels the pressure in his bowels? In America every dog owner has to clean up after his pet has done the job. Same in Japan . Will the Indian citizen do that here?' He's right... We go to the polls to choose a government and after that forfeit all responsibility.
We sit back wanting to be pampered and expect the government to do everything for us whilst our contribution is totally negative. We expect the government to clean up but we are not going to stop chucking garbage all over the place nor are we going to stop to pick up a stray piece of paper and throw it in the bin.
We expect the railways to provide clean bathrooms but we are not going to learn the proper use of bathrooms.
We want Indian Airlines and Air India to provide the best of food and toiletries but we are not going to stop pilfering at the least opportunity.
This applies even to the staff who is known not to pass on the service to the public. When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child! and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home. Our excuse?
'It's the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forgo my sons' rights to a dowry.' So who's going to change the system? What does a system consist of ? Very conveniently for us it consists of our neighbor's, other households, other cities, other communities and the government. But definitely not me and YOU.
When it comes to us actually making a positive contribution to the system we lock ourselves along with our families into a safe cocoon and look into the distance at countries far away and wait for a Mr.Clean to come along & work miracles for us with a majestic sweep of his hand or we leave the country and run away. Like lazy cowards hounded by our fears we run to America to bask in their glory and praise their system. When New York becomes insecure we run to England . When England experiences unemployment, we take the next flight out to the Gulf. When the Gulf is war struck, we demand to be rescued and brought home by the Indian government. Everybody is out to abuse and rape the country. Nobody thinks of feeding the system. Our conscience is mortgaged to money.
Dear Indians, The article is highly thought inductive, calls for a great deal of introspection and pricks one's conscience too.... I am echoing J. F. Kennedy 's words to his fellow Americans to relate to Indians.....
'ASK WHAT WE CAN DO FOR INDIA
AND DO WHAT HAS TO BE DONE TO MAKE INDIA
WHAT AMERICA AND OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES ARE TODAY'
Lets do what India needs from us..."
Source: An E-mail from Friend