INDIA, US, UK, Brain and the Flight! Part 1 - the visible reality

There's a lot of talk, only sometimes, about a phenomenon called 'BRAIN DRAIN'. I think it's simply the migration of Indian students to foreign countries and the problem faced by India due to the same. The problem cited by the Indian government is that there is a lot of money, in the order of crores, lost due to this process. This is what we call the Brain Drain. The loss is the amount of money spent in training these students in technical fields in India. I don't know how many people are aware of this, but I came to know of this pretty recently and this irked my mind quite a bit!
Everything has two sides, and this time - the government and the students!

It's always easy to say the wrong things, so I will start with that. According to Mr.Ramesh, IITs are not world-class. True. Think about other colleges then. Come to Tamil Nadu, or any state for that matter; you can find college names which can't be spelled correctly even in Latin. If instis like Anna University cannot be maintained high class by the so-called philanthropic and not-needed-to-mention rich Government, how can we expect students in other top colleges to REMAIN in TN or even India, after studying?
Some students are passionate about MS and research. I don't know why but MS is always antonymous with India. There's no MS in India. I have no idea why.

There are a lot of B-Schools in India, not many come to the top 100 in the world. We need at least a decent number keeping the Under Graduate population in mind. Not just a NUMBER! So... MBA - outside India.
There's always GATE for M.Tech in India. Somehow, M.Tech is always synonymous with 'teaching'. I may be wrong, but ... ask the students! :) Also, the fact that is always sidelined is that, M.Tech is not a specialization! Also, not many opportunities available IMMEDIATELY after M.Tech. Reasons enough for not many passionate M.Teching! "Students are intelligent!"
I really wonder if the bureaucrats ("the men who matter") have ever visited foreign Universities. I am sure they travel abroad, but Universities? I don't think so. Their children do study outside (I am sure they don't slog it out in Anna!), but they are irrelevant here. IITs, as far as infrastructure, facilities, and more importantly, ATMOSPHERE is concerned, DOESN'T even need to be commented! (I have been to IIT-K and I got to say, I love SRM and VIT more!)
I wish politicians wore formal shirts and full trousers and gave everything a thought, with laptops and internet connectivity!
"Desire is the root cause of misery"

Okay, let's come to the students. It's evident that students want to make money. But no one really WANTS to go abroad. It's just that we are NEEDED to go abroad due to lack of 'chances' here. Vitamin-M apart, if India is really good, no one will go out!
If India has the BALLS (if you don't understand what balls are, mail me :D) to remove / limit reservation to agreeable levels, India will definitely improve. Mr.Ambedkar was right.... Right when he lived. We have not moved with the times. And that's the reason why India is still what it is!
"This is the main main reason for the migration!"
Look at the number of "affected people" in the US, that's why there's a lot of Classical Music in Cleveland and Ohio! You fools, they would have been here if not for the reservations! Don't put reservation in anything and everything. College admissions, Cricket team, Jobs, PG Studies, Entrance exams, everything! No exception, but for public transport (Thank God!).
If you want to give education for all, spare a thought for the Arts Colleges too! Why only Engineering and Medicine? If there's an answer for this question, reservation MAY be justified to a little extent. Only little! I don't think there's any counselling for Arts, Science, Humanities and Hotel Management colleges!

"Every living thing!"

There's another thing to consider. It is indeed true that many foreign students (NRIs are negligible) who come to India for academic purposes. However, it does not contribute to the overall globalization of our nation. The magnitude of Brain Drain is much large compared to incoming students of this sort.

On the whole, students can of course be criticized a little bit for ambitiously going abroad after studying, without thinking about the motherland. On the other hand, the harsh reality is that most of these students have no option but to go out!
The Government is fully responsible for this. There's nothing wrong in stating the truth. Upper caste people have already had enough tough times to cope with here. There are limits to endurance too. Moving out of India is the best option. After some decades, there will be very few left here. US or UK may well be our addresses. It's not all that smooth anywhere. Yes. d'accord! It's not going to be easy out there too. But it's definitely NOT WORTH being here for quality education, in this wretched system!
Nowadays, it's getting worse. There are talks about reservations right from LKG in all government and affiliated schools. If this is the case, we are not sending healthy signals to the kids. Also to the "deprived" open competition...
"Long live India"

Don't read this post again. Book your flights! :)
Disclaimer: ALL IS WELL
Part 2 - the invisible ... will come soon, if I have the mood for it!

ak

Rahul Dravid - The King!

Hi all!
I usually write posts when I am happy. This is probably the first time I am doing it with a sad, rather pensive mood. I could hardly read the newspaper headlines today that read "Rahul Dravid announces retirement..." I knew I had tears in my eyes. I couldn't control myself. This is probably the saddest day in 'my' cricket-following history. Dravid had been my single inspiration right from my childhood.
There had been many occasions when I have switched on the Television just to see him bat. Not just the live ones, but the highlights too. And again. My following of Dravid is not just like a fan, there was always so much to learn from him. There's more to this great Indian than meets the eye. You need to follow closely to understand how, many people are feeling, on His retirement, right now!!!
I know there have been many articles in and around the media about Dravid's retirement. But this is my blog all the same! It's my turn!
---> I still remember his debut innings against England at Lord's. This happened long before I saw the chessboard...! This was probably, I don't know for sure, my inspiration to do something in sports; to experience some joy that only sports can bring about...
---> In 1997, I fervently hoped I would meet him some day. It did happen after ten years! He came to my school (Velammal) and gave me a prize! That's one day I will never forget! (No trace / photo of the historic event exists...( )
---> Mr.Dravid has represented the game like no other player ever did! As Matthew Hayden says, "If you want to see what aggression is, in Cricket, look into Dravid's eyes"! No Aussie batsman, or any Aussie cricketer for that matter, would heap such a praise on another country's cricketer, so easily! That says it all.
---> Dravid, (along with Kumble, in most cases) have silent won more matches and FOUGHT more matches for India than any other player for us!
---> His concentration, focus, discipline, learning and technique are stuff that will need new literature to be told to the next generation of cricketers!
---> "The Wall" is not just ANOTHER nickname - it had to be earned! Even though Dravid himself did not like this name, we used it more often to just put-the-load-on-him-and-escape... rather than enjoying it! This is the truth! Silently... he made history!
---> Mostly, we never have honored him as a slip catcher! Now that he has left, we will all see something 'else' that we have just lost!
---> New Zealanders have always placed Dravid a notch higher than Sachin and others (This is an open secret though!). Probably they knew the truth! Indeed, and rightly so, during the years of 2002 to around 2004, Dravid was the most sought-after wicket in world Cricket!
---> According to me, what we will miss above all is the 'sense' of security that was so profound in the Indian batting line-up. Of course, the situation will change in due course, but it will never be the same! "Some players cannot be replaced!"

Dravid in our school, I am visible with my mustache here!

---> I am a GREAT FAN of RAHUL DRAVID!!! And I will continue to be one! Happy to be in the same era and watch him play!!!

Rahul Dravid - the Legend of Test Cricket

Long live the King!!!

Persistence! :) - Never give up! :D

Valentine's Day wishes to all readers! :)
Well well... I am stopping with the greeting. (Leave me from that topic! :D )
GATE exam happened on February 12th (Offline exams) this year and it seems there's a record 7.8 lakh people took GATE this year! Quite a phenomenal number that! Much of the number is due to the consideration of GATE score for recruitment in public sector companies. Not all people want to do the so-called (and of course, dreaded) 'higher studies'! :)
B.Tech itself was cumbersome! No need to say anything about M.Tech! 2 more years of the same branch??? No way!
I also wrote GATE. No kidding, Yes, I really wrote.
I went to the Exam Centre armed with 2 Black pens, 2 Blue pens, a pencil, a calculator and an eraser. For ID proof, my college Id. Of course, my mobile phone too! THAT WAS ALL! I was really amazed to see so much people preparing even at 8.30 AM (the exam starts at 9AM)! Some of them had come with parents. They had food and water bottles for their 'children' - I wondered if they were going for a wrestling match! :D
Embarrassing, anyway, I walked straight up and found out my exam hall. One good thing about being a chess player is that, we find a chess player wherever we go. (Atleast one person! No escape!) Here too, I found my friend Haribalu eagerly checking the notice board!
Coming to the main part, I went to my exam hall at around 8.45 AM. As a surprise, the invigilator was also known to me - she was a chess player's mother!
"Wherever we go, I don't know if Hutch and Vodafone follow; definitely Chess follows!"
As bad luck (or good luck) would have it, I was seated in the very first bench! Oh my god, the very thought of she looking at my answering made me laugh inside! I knew very well... I could answer only the last ten questions. (We prepared in VIT two days back with a GATE mock question paper. Nothing much to say, the mock paper humbled me! :D)
One bad thing about GATE exam compared to SRM Semester exams is that, we cannot leave the hall until the exam gets over. This meant that I had to sit in the same place for 3 hours...
1st 30 minutes - I solved the aptitude and English questions - fairly easy.
I looked at my watch - 9.30 AM :( 150 minutes remained... Fate - cell phones are not allowed. My thoughts went to VIT where the South Zone Inter Universities was still going on. This is the worst thing that happened in the exam hall, I will tell you why - I dozed off at 9.40! Due to 4 years of sleeping experience in SRM, I knew perfectly how to sleep in a classroom but this was different. Unconsciously, I shaded another bubble with 'black ink ball point pen' (this was the only color allowed in GATE)! To my horror, I found that I had already answered that question!

"தூக்கம் கலைந்தது!" (I woke up!)

"The forehead-sweating feeling when you wake up suddenly after a sleep-in-sitting-position is very annoying! You get scared if something has gone wrong - you look around to see if someone caught you sleeping; look what others are doing and later... realize that everything is fine!"

The instructions in GATE paper read something like this ... "Use only black ink ball point pen since it cannot be erased. Hence the candidate must shade the bubbles carefully"

Yeah... Right! They cannot be erased I thought. Then my thoughts went back to something I read when I was young... er... a school-goer!

"In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins...

Not through strength, but through persistence!"

What an Idea! :)

I took out the eraser and started erasing. Initially it did not make any difference. I looked at my watch. "Hell with it, I said to myself. I will keep erasing - I have so much time all the same"! I continued erasing. After ten minutes, some part of the bubble disappeared. And with it, some portion of the top layer of the extra thick ORS sheet. (The usual shading sheet, nothing alien). I continued with the most productive work I did in the exam. After 25 minutes, the whole bubble was erased. I was very very happy at what I had done. Now the question had only one answer. (The IIT people got it wrong - it can be erased! Yaar kitta!!! Tamizhan da!)

Thoroughly elated at my endeavour, I finally gained some motivation to read the technical questions. And how well I did, I managed to answer a few questions and make some intelligent guesses for the others. I also mustered enough tolerance to stop myself from shading answers for all questions - there is negative marking in GATE! I had answered 49 questions out of 65!

And then I answered two more. I crossed 50 and kept my answer count at 51!

There was still some 30 minutes left and I had to sit idle. There was nothing else left for me to do. The other questions were unanswerable to my standards. My knowledge in CS & IT is very limited. As one significant person enlightened me recently, I just "Did what made me happy and left the rest to God!"

p.s. These stunts are performed by professionals. Don't try this in any competitive exam! Prepare in advance!

Phir melinge!

ak :)

Semester 8 Aftermath

Hi all!
Wishing you a Happy New Year 2012!
This is my first post this year, I guess, so, there's no harm in wishing late! Better late than never, they say! :)
And to all those who are not from SRM and other elderly people, I have finished my last semester exams. You can call me 'Engineer' now...! Just project work remains. But for that, I am almost done. Well, ALMOST!


These are really tricky times, REALLY bizarre periods! Life goes so smooth till you suddenly end up with these bloated times which are in such stark contrast with the times you were experiencing for the past three-and-a-half years or so.
Placements - done!
Exams - done!
Project - will be done!
Higher studies - not yet decided! This is not the time to decide. Let results come!
Farewell - done!
What else is left in our college life?
I am not reviling the finishing of semester 8 exams. People just get confused what to do!
I asked my friend... "What are you going to do this month?" He said, "I can play games! Mother can't stop me from anything now! No one can question me!" "Fair enough" I thought. Can't blame him. Lamentations of a beautiful mind!

I can't do that, I am not him. I inquired another one. "There's no way I am studying more! B.Tech was just possible; can't do more!" Yeah Yeah... Of course! It was tough! Can't damn him either. Well done mate!


Life's not that tough for SRMites who got placed in Accenture. They have some odd four-lettered program (HSIP / HSFP I am not sure, who cares?) starting soon. "The American mindset cannot change! They never paid a penny for conducting classes in SRM!"


I asked a girl this time. She said "I don't know. I am placed. But not sure if I will join..." Well well, they can SIT at home. That's an additional option they have. They don't get the bread after all! They have all the time in the world. The queer difference is that, this is an OPTION for them. For boys, this isn't! (I know I know...)


Some people have already applied and achieved MS seats. Fortunate people, they can take rest for some four months without the slightest feeling of guilt! They deserve it after all!


Some wrote CAT, only to see CAT pounce on them like the shrill TIGER! They are still there! Bad rememberings for some!


Whatever it is, some people cannot study Computer Science any more (This may include me... sometime)! Still, we become anaemic you see! It's hard to put time to good use at all times!
Most of the time, we sit in front of the computer with austere faces thinking what to do. Mostly facebook, gmail, FIFA, that's all! We easily become loungers in the afternoons! Text someone, no replies. So... sleep! Wake up in the evenings, tea or coffee or Milo. Come back to computer again. Sleep. Dinner. Sleep. Oh yeah 24 hours... See you tomorrow!


One odd morning, a friend calls and wants a get-together. Why not? That's the only exception to the routine we may get! And after that, the tape recorder plays again!


Don't think; feel, says Bruce Lee. True, just enjoy the moment! Don't think too much. Sing a song, watch a movie, play hard. After all, we pushed a mountain for four years in a row. I repeat, IN A ROW!


Long live engineers!
"One small extension after our names;
 A giant leap for our lives!!!"


ak :)

Men ... Women!

Two and a half men... How I Met Your Mother... Big Bang Theory... FRIENDS... Russell Peters... The list may be long. But there's one person who rocks forever - JERRY SEINFELD - the ultimate genius of all !

Going with the topic, don't expect a detailed essay on this controversial topic. What I am going to share with you here is a funny take on the subtle differences between men and women by Seinfeld. Got to agree, see one of his episodes (Seinfeld 1989-1999) and you will become his fan!

"I swear, I have absolutely no idea what women are thinking. I don't get it, okay? I I I admit, I, I'm not getting the signals. I am not getting it! Women, they're so subtle, their little everything they do is subtle. Men are not subtle, we are obvious. Women know what men want, men know what men want, what do we want? We want women, that's it! It's the only thing we know for sure, it really is. We want women. How do we get them? Oh, we don't know 'bout that, we don't know. The next step after that we have no idea. This is why you see men honking car-horns, yelling from construction sites. These are the best ideas we've had so far. The car-horn honk, is that a beauty? Have you seen men doing this? What is this? The man is in the car, the woman walks by the front of the car, he honks. E-eeehh, eehhh, eehhh! This man is out of ideas. How does it? E-e-e-eeeehhhh! "I don't think she likes me." The amazing thing is, that we still get women, don't we? Men, I mean, men are with women. You see men with women. How are men getting women, many people wonder. Let me tell you a little bit about our organization. Wherever women are, we have a man working on the situation right now. Now, he may not be our best man, okay, we have a lot of areas to cover, but someone from our staff is on the scene. That's why, I think, men get frustrated, when we see women reading articles, like "Where to meet men?" We're here, we are everywhere. We're honking our horns to serve you better."


Until next time,
Enjoy the last week of 2011! :)