Mobloggin'

Im tryin 2 moblog here.xplanz d language. If i get intrstd,may jst b willng 2 moblog my upcmg drive thru rajasthan.wil b drivng most of d tim,so duno when il blog..but lets hope fr d best.. Since iv pland quite a few trips in upcmg months, moblog should b intrstg.. Watsay? I only wish orkut would show blogs on homepg.
So if der r ne suggestns reg wat u lik 2c here..kp em cmg.. Wont hav many fotos tho.. Gprs costs a fortune.. Wid cal prices cmg dn, i guz dis is a potent source of revenue.. Hope dese opratrs intro data plans soon..il b d 1st 2 get it..

Diesel Vs Petrol

So why do we subsidize diesel?
because it is the fuel used for freight..
increase in price of diesel means a direct increase in price of all goods & raw materials..
but the big question is :
SHOULD WE SUBSIDIZE DIESEL?

im not talking of an economist's point of view..
im talking about EXTERNALITIES..
that would give most economists shivers...
maybe a fever to some..

diesel is more polluting than Petrol..
coz it has more sulphur content...and loads of other reasons i wont bore you with..
the point is...
petrol maybe expensive to refine..
but it has less emissions than diesel..
which translates into lesser load on the environment...

the prices of diesel & petrol (unsubsidized) are hardly different...
i agree a few rupees here & there over the whole network is
zillions of rupees
but one look at the dead birds along the highway,
dieseased animals & villagers..
& all the money they spend on health..
considering our poor & highly subsidized health care..
the money is just going into the drain one way or other..
& we are not any more better off..
one day the system will fall apart..

either the healthcare system or the subsidy system..
rather we kill it ourselves than wait for DOOM...
dont subsidize diesel..
convert all freight to petrol or better GAS..
now GAS ..(not american gas but CNG) is more liable to explsion
& considering our accident rates,
we ll have bollywood movie explosions all around..
but its just a matter of technological development..
fire proof stronger fuel tanks....better valve control cut off systems

& maybe i shall live to 80 to revisit this blog & say ...hey i had made a point..
with current conditions..i hardly hope to make it to 50....
talk about quality of life...

Delhi's electric wonder

Talking of our electric cars...
they would be great in a smaller city than Delhi..
travelling distances about 40 km daily max...
& a gas based power plant...less polluting..

if you guys dont know what im hinting at..
AHMEDABAD...

yes, we do have two coal powerhouses..
but i believe some part does come from VATVA GAS based plant

yes, we too have the famed BRTS coming up
& maybe a metro
& also regional rail system
(PHEW............)
but for those who still prefer
PRT (personalized rapid transport)
an electric car is great to drive in ahmedabad
id say the size would make one very happy to zip through unruly traffic
ofcourse, acceleration would be wanting..
but then...traffic really doesnt move that fast here...

what say AMC?
would you cut taxes & give sops for electric cars?
how do you subsidize that?
hey tax those diesel private cars..
our country subsidizes diesel for the only fact that it is used for freight...
those private diesel car users just eat our tax money...
so tax their vehicles more..
& force them to use electric vehicles..

Delhi's electric PRT

i just saw in the news that the Delhi govt. is going to subsidize electric cars..
commendable...
but really? is it worth it?
i mean...come on...
the travelling distances for a normal delhiite would be just about 50-70km daily...
& while our electric cars promise 70-80km drive on charge...
they dont talk about traffic conditions...
70-80km is strictly "CRUISE" conditions..
so why would someone buy these cars?
i think (hilariously) these would end up like the famed Delhi BRTS..
creating more traffic jams (since they run out of battery mid way) than solving them..

so do i have a solution?
or am i just a govt. cursing perfect Indian?
few days back..Honda introduced the Civic Hybrid..
it costs 12 lacs (with normal taxes)
but being a CBU (completely built unit - imported)
it is taxed customs & etc at 105%
so it leaves the consumer poor by 25 lacs almost

but hey it promises 50% more fuel efficiency...
& also wont ever run out on you in traffic..
oh you know what...it DOES NOT need a charger..
yes.. hybrid cars are recharged by regenerative braking...
not that our electric wonders arent..
but then..
one look at our famed REVA for 4 lacs
& another look at CIVIC for 12 lacs
if Honda would get that technology in a small car...
you know what i mean..
(unless ur not a car buff)

so lets not jump the wagon here..
start small..

& what the DELHI govt is doing..with all due respects to them..
is subsidizing a lot of crap..
literally..
coz electric cars just transfer pollution to power stations..
& to talk of electric cars in delhi!!!
poor layman there has to face so many power cuts...
how does one charge the poor car when you dont have power bang when you need it...

also those batteries in electric cars last a coupla years...only..
they may be recycled later..
but our car producers dont have a good recycling policy
and that just adds up lots of lead & mercury into our waste bins...

so think about it...
i dont say carbon fuels are good
but electric cars running on powerhouses burning coal (since petrol is expensive)
id rather run my car on petrol..

Chinese folk-tale..

setting: the Himalayan ranges, summer...

There was once a litte girl...
She was a bright student...
Used to cross two hills to walk to her school daily...
An inspector was to come to visit her school and all the children were going to get gifts for him..
as happens in all stories, this little girl was very poor and had no gift to give..
so...
there she was, on the day of the inspection, walking school..
her eyes were moist because she couldnt afford any gift...
On the top of a hill, she met a fairy...
The fairy asked her: " Why are you crying my child?"
"I have an inspection at school today, and i cannot afford a gift for the inspector. All the students are getting gifts for the inspector."
With a swish of her wand, the fairy created a bowl out of the thin air...
The girl said:" This is an old wooden bowl. I cannot gift this."
The fairy said:" My child, when you go to the next hill, put some snow in the bowl. Give it to the inspector."
The girl had no other options, so she thought of doing that.
At school, the inspector came. He was a smart man wearing a bright smile and a sharp suit.
All the children gave their gifts to him. At last, it was the girl's turn to give her gift.
She looked at the bowl:
The ice had turned into water.
The girl did not know what to do, she was almost in tears.
Trembling, she approached the inspector with the bowl.
The inspector looked at her and the bowl, took the bowl in his hands, and drank the ice-cool water.
His smile turned brighter, and he said: " All you children brought me gifts, but this little girl knew what i needed most. It is not the price of the gift that gives it importance, it is the feeling behind it."
And he patted the girl..

Now, dont get hasty with your thoughts....
We in India, offer water the moment a visitor enters our house... but this is a Chinese story.
And i dont quite know why the children got gifts for the inspector. We just had to memorize lessons when such inspection happened.

And yet...
the story has a pretty strong moral:
Gifting is an important thing, and in this capitalist world nowadays..
you can buy the most expensive things with money...
the daily tabloid comes with tons of news about who's who of the world, who gifted the most expensive IN things to their someones...
just sit back and think...

I once gave my best friend a brinjal...
3 brinjals to be exact..
and i drew faces of people on them... him & his future family
he remembers it to date....
coz i took pains to draw things on brinjals and create a story for him...

My best friends once gifted me a simple white t-shirt..
although they had written so many things on it with felt-pens, and stuck so many things to it..
i still have it with me...
although i could never wear it, coz with one wash it would have all gone away..
but i still like to read the things they have written on it..

i wouldnt have asked for a better gift...

Greed!!!!!

For men may come and men may go,
But I go on for ever...

words from Lord Tennyson that have had a lasting impact on me..
and as i now complete my masters in landscape architecture..
or rather landscape planning.... landscape appreciation.... call it either...
the words have larger than life impact...
where are we going as humans...
the above poem seems almost reversed...
not by the power of human brain, logic or engineering...
but by the sheer power of human greed, to ask for more than one needs
and more than one can ever require...
call it American consumerism, or the hidden capitalist agenda
i am no socialist..
however, the trend has to have a balance..
we will either feel the need to evaluate each step carefully in the future..
more so since we have already caused destruction approaching the limits of peril..
or be ready to just PERISH...
and the day is not far..
its not wars that will annihilate us..
it is us..our greed.. our so called needs..
and our insensitive outlook to nature...

unless...
we use our so called SUPER BRAINS
and find a way to sustain ourselves indefinitely without using any external resources
i would rather laugh at this one & rubbish it to the bin...
we are going to perish & soon.........................