Mullaperiyar

From the Time of India:

Controversy has dogged the masonry dam since its completion in 1895 by British engineers to address water scarcity in southern Tamil Nadu. The waters of Mullayar and Periyar that are dammed at Mullaperiyar originate in Kerala (then the kingdom of Travancore). The British government reportedly pressurised the then Travancore king to sign a treaty that provided for a 999-year lease of roughly 8,000 hectares of land to Madras Presidency to construct the dam. Water from the reservoir is taken down the steep, eastern face of the Western Ghats to Tamil Nadu, into Vaigai, a rain-fed river which is the lifeline of southern Tamil Nadu.

This daring piece of engineering turned an arid region into a fertile plain. With water, crops and cropping patterns changed. Ballads celebrate the contribution of chief engineer Colonel John Pennycuick who supervised the project. Villages here are dotted with Pennycuick Peravais (forums). Farmers in Cumbum Valley offer prayers before pictures of Cuick before sowing and harvest to this day. Mullaperiyar is not just a dam but an emotion here.

However, many in Kerala believe that Mullaperiyar water was forcibly diverted to Tamil Nadu. This grievance, often aired in irresponsible language including by senior politicians, is one reason why Tamil Nadu is wary of Keralas genuine concern about dam safety. At present, the dam is controlled and maintained by Tamil Nadu. But would Kerala cede sufficient water in the case of a new dam, which would also necessitate a new water treaty? Though Kerala swears it will, Tamil Nadu is not convinced.

Anybody have images or  videos of Pennycuick worship/prayers? No wonder Tamil Nadu never got in too deep in it's opposition of British rule. Tamizhians essentially lost all the Dravidian infighting wars and were receded to the desert portions of the South with no access to water(with Mysore being the cause of many of the fights). Only the British took care of their interests. Karnataka has already started diverting Mysore dam waters in a big way, including upstream. Let see how this plays out in non arid Kerala.

Modi, Tharoor, Pawar, BJP and the end of Congress rule?...

Now the whole kitchen sink is being thrown at Lalit Modi. Looks like Sharad Pawar has provided the sacrificial lamb to Congress party, probably in exchange for protection of his own bank account. While Shashi Tharoor will be happily claiming his innocence and Pushkaring away, Modi will be in a neighborhood prison soon. At this point, this has degenerated into politicians saving their skins. And providing a lesson to people that expose the functioning of the Great Congress party of Mahatma Gandhi in any way. They have the copyright on cheating and anyone that points it out will be figuratively made more naked than Mahatma Gandhi.

The IPL can easily become a casualty, similar to how India is a casualty while politicians shore up their bank accounts while wearing their spotless whites and crooked smiles. I doubt there will be a fourth season.

Another aspect of this story is the "migrant Kerala male". They are renowned for their "setup" in various parts of the country while they earn their living in a place where there are jobs. This behavior can potentially cause a change in power if this gets too close for comfort to Sharad Pawar. Already his daughter is being questioned. If there is one thing Sharad Pawar hates, it is his daughter being troubled for any of his activities.

Bye Bye Lalit Modi...Nice one in the side pocket, Mr. Tharoor...

Knowing how the Indian corruption system works, Lalit Modi will be eased out of his job soon. An MP like Shashi Tharoor cannot pull the strings that caused the initial auction to be cancelled, there are bigger fish in this murky pond. Those folks are not happy that Shashi Tharoor was outed; now the income tax department will find thousands of irregularities in Modi's bank account. I hope Sharad Pawar is still on Modi's side. If he is not, Modi may be out even before the third season of IPL is over. Hopefully is was the NCP leader Sharad Pawar that asked Modi to out the Congress leadership group that was trying to take over an IPL franchise.

That particular Congress leadership group has already made it's move. Modi will now be labeled as a tax cheat and kicked out and will probably end up in jail for a short period. The Delhi franchise that is close to Modi is already in trouble; they have already been hit with crores of tax liabilities and fines. The tax system is India is a complete joke; it will now take around 20 years for these folks to prove their innocence. At which point, they will get their money back, without any interest.

Hopefully this particular shadow group is not bigger than Pawar; at this point, it does look like these are really big politicians dragging Modi to the ground. Sharad Pawar will get his revenge during the next set of Maharashtra elections. The IPL will go on without Lalit Modi, but it will just not be the same sense of adventure and excitement.

How to fight terrorism

As terrorists get bolder and bolder and more delusional, it is time to give them a reality check. Terrorists can never stop and will simply move on to the next target after one disappears. For example, terrorists elements within Sunnis go after Shias if they run out of other groups to hate on.

Here are the steps.
1> There are quite a few people, especially in the US, middle east and UK, that say, "We just send money to terrorist groups to get revenge". Report these people to authorities. Money is what drives terrorism.
2> Keep an eye out for people that have uncontrolled rage against other groups out of nowhere. These are the kind of people targeted for recruiting and action. Again, watch for the word "revenge". Report them directly or anonymously.
3> Watch out for people that say that terrorists are only against government and not the people. These are the people most likely to fund terrorists. Report them directly or anonymously.
4> You are likely to hear such words mostly from friends or other that share a common religious or ethnic background. Report them directly or anonymously. Terrorists are not followers of God, they are the devil incarnate. Hateful conversations from any religious group is bad.
5> Do not donate to charities unless you are absolutely sure what they do. Donate to Prime Minister or Chief Minister relief funds when in doubt.
6> Do not carry money on behalf of others when visiting India or Pakistan. Unaccounted money often ends up in the wrong hands.
7> Do not use hawala or unofficial channels to transmit money. The underworld fanatics get a cut out of those transactions.
8> Do not do unofficial bets on cricket games. Corrupt cricket officials get a cut out of those transactions and they are tied to extortion/terrorist groups. BTW, Pakistan will have a spectacular defeat soon just to mess up the spread, now that Javed Mian gets to select the whole team.
9> Walk away from conversations that are hateful. Terrorism begins in the intelligent mind and get implemented by mindless moron. Sindhi master, Punjabi blaster. (Reference: Mad Max movies)
10> Be the possibility of peace and harmony. This is the most important step. Ofcourse, kill a terrorist before he can do harm. But be an incarnation of peace otherwise.

Allow foreign retiring citizens to be in India...

Here is a crazy rule being enforced in India; retiring foreigners are not allowed to settle in India. With the globalization of Indian commerce (and way of living, to some extent), this will be the case often. Plus these retirees end of spending their dollars and pounds in India and contribute to the local economy.

This is especially bad for states like Goa and Kerala which can have the cultural, tourism and spiritual background to support retirees of non-Indian origin. The main issue in these cases seems to be purchase of land by foreigners which is not allowed under Indian laws.

Maybe there can be restrictions, but there cannot be a ban. I am guessing that this does not apply to persons of Indian origin. Because soon there will be tons of British and US citizens retiring back to India(and doing social work). Either way, retirees should not be stopped this way; maybe a new visa type can be arranged to take care of this. Maybe properties can be marketed to them for rent once the rules are sorted out favorably.

Crazy Sreesanth....

Here is an article by a Malayalee author as to why Sreesanth is not the most popular Keralite. The article also mentions previous interactions between Harbhajan and Sreesanth. The article's premise is now justified.

Sreesanth just does not know when to stop assing around. He has got some enormous loose screws in his head and his actions have caused an end to Harbhajan's international cricket career. Harbhajan is a loose screw himself, but like any hotheaded Punjabi, he goes mad when he is right, unlike Sreesanth, who goes nuts whenever he thinks he has an advantage, which is pretty much all the time.

He got the eight wicket in the 20-20 match against Mumbai, walked over to the other side of the crease and gave the close walk/talk to the player that got out. He did that a couple of times to Robin Uthappa too before that. After the end of the game, Harbhajan slapped him in the field.

Even though it is Harbhajan whose career will be over now, it is Sreesanth who has had the last laugh(or cry) by making sure that everybody knew what Harbhajan did. His revenge against Harbhajan is now complete.By crying and not retaliating, Sreesanth has preserved his own career for now. I am sure he was scared and emotionally hurt and it was not an act.

Whatever it was, Harbhajan's career is done, given what happened in Australia. So we have a case of 20-20 causing damage to the Indian team. There is no better off spinner around in India at this point in time.

I also think that the owners will stop showing up to support their team with the same fervour going forward. Anybody who has support galli cricket and other local forms of cricket knows that supporting your team at close quarters is not a fun experience when you get the see the ugly and unsportsman conduct that usually happens.

The Keralite paradox.

Students in Kerala get to have all their fun in College. They carry their banners and do their strikes for labor equality. They clash with other idealogies and thoughts and someone might even get injured in the process. Their ideas and philosopies are confirmed and reaffirmed.

Then it is time to put bread on the family table and they pack their bags and leave for Mumbai or Dubai. They leave their philosophies and families back home and end up as a capilatist cog in the wheel in some alien part of the world. They either move back to their families or get their families to where they are. Tamil Nadu and West Bengal residents do some similar things too. Apparently they seem to be very comforatable with the paradox.