Japan in September

Japan in September was a sweltering mess. It has been more than two decades since I have been so hot. I sweated buckets and the heat with all that humidity was almost relentless. People are gritty and very hard working with an all encompassing fascination with technology. I spent a lot of time traveling with almost a new city every day. Trains are amazing in terms of punctuality, orderliness and attention to detail. I finally got to travel on the Shinkansen, which considering the time it was first introduced still continues to fascinate. Despite all the naysayers here, I still think we need to have such superfast connections here in the country. Especially considering the mess we have at the airports in the eastern corridor. Ever tried to take of on time during peak periods from Philly, New York, Newark or Boston you would know what traffic jam is all about. Put weather in top of that and it is really painful. Japan is well connected with such trains and mostly use planes for longer distances.

I was very impressed with Kyoto, its older quarters and the beauty of the country side. Went to Kofu the wine country and even had a great dinner sponsored by Daihatsu in a vineyard, sampling some of the local vintage. Food everywhere was great. I would recommend Japan except not when it is hot.

August in Toronto

August in the northern climes is always pleasant, especially up north in Canada. This year we spent a wonderful week in Toronto with Anil and family. The cosmopolitan hub which Toronto represents comes to its liveliest corsendo during this peak summer month with everyone trying to take in every bit of the summer breath as possible before the long winter drag begins. This is amply demonstrated in the summer festival downtown with all kinds of local food, music, jugglers et. al. I like Canada, a more serene, less stressful neighbor with vast skies and land to boot. Next time I will explore the local street food in Toronto and take in some of the local music scene.

Baba, Babus and the Bungling Congress

Baba, Babus and the Bungling Congress

Looking at the drama unfold in Ram Lila grounds in New Delhi I am astounded at the folly of our Indian polity. A baba arrives in a private jet and is met with a motley group of senior ministers too terrified at the prospect of what the baba would do. Black money and graft and a long struggle to introduce a bill in parliament which in every self respecting democracy would be a no-brainer. Sitting here in the US I am reminded of a rather red faced President on National TV admitting to an inappropriate relationship not because he had a change of heart but due to an independent investigator and agencies such as the FBI which are outside the control of politicians and bureaucrats. So why the reluctance and delay.

Indian government has become a pure money collection agency for whoever is in power. Congress of course designed the system so whenever they are in power the graft is relentless and so aggregious that even the most die hard congress supporter would have a hard time defending them.

I made up my mind to leave the country because of Indra Gandhi and I see her progenies have kept up the lofty traditions. guys like Kapil Sibal and Digvijay Singh have replaced Devkant Barua and his ilk.

I hope the spark of change ignited by the common folks such as Anna Hazare is kept alive by the long suffering masses. I will be here waiting an watching and hoping.

Jairam Ramesh and the Indian Academics

What was once a shining beacon of scholarship in the Asian context with the likes of Raman, Bose and others have now degenerated into a morass of poor quality research. I applaud Jairam Ramesh for raising this issue especially since such statements are generally followed by a lot of shrill outrage from the parties at which this was aimed. The bottom line is that even looking at the top Institutions such as the Indian Institute of Science or the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research there is very little output in high impact science. I see a huge upsurge however in China. Some may argue that China has put in a lot more resources, however India has had a much longer and frankly freer system in place which instead of growing has decayed. The huge difference is that in India no proper accountability and reward system is implement, instead we have a strange inclination towards seniority. What needs to be done is to make academics truly independent and let the rewards be given on the basis of output. It should also start by ensuring good top line hires. We need to separate top line hires from those needed for purely teaching duties, with top line researchers given selective classes to teach and time for running their respective research groups. Institutions should be unshackled from the Ministry (Jairam are you listening). Do not let the Babus control these institutions, but give them the financial and academic independence they deserve. This starts by hiring the best Directors for the IITs and Universities. I have seen enough political lackies get appointed who have no management experience. Once appointed, these directors should be given the independence to shape the their respective institutions.

I hope I see some of this happen in my lifetime.

Hi jst got news of the Left ouster and so its from the sloths to absolute always a no no for the future of bongs