"Mumbai Metro is coming our way!"

 Woo hoo! Finally after years of speculation and anticipation, the first stone has been laid for the ambitious Mumbai Metro Project. Even if all goes well (lets really hope so) it will take at least 2 more years (thats the official estimate) before the first phase is completed.

Metro master-plan

* Phase I
Colaba-Andheri-Charkop: 38.24 km
Bandra-Kurla-Mankhurd: 13.37 km

* Phase II
Charkop-Dahisar: 7.5 km
Ghatkopar-Mulund: 12.4 km

* Phase III
Bandra-Kurla Complex to Kanjurmarg via the
Airport: 19.5 km
Andheri (East)-Dahisar (East):18 km
Hutatma Chowk- Ghatkopar: 21.8 km
Sewri-Prabhadevi: 3.5 km

The transition period is going to be really tough. The roads are gonna be dug up again resulting into traffic snarls. Lets just hope that when the project is completed travel within the city is eased up a bit. But just the metro isn't gonna solve all our problems. Simultaneously we should improve our existing railways and public bus transport. These 3 should complement each other.

Another ambitious project still to be completely realised is the Bandra Worli Sealink. The hovercraft project was started a few years back but then I guess it was a few years ahead of its time and it failed to take off as expected. But now with the metro around the corner it would be the right time to give the hovercraft another shot.

"Raindrops are falling on my head"

The monsoon has arrived in Mumbai although a bit early this time. The rains arouse mixed reactions among the people. We have sort of a love-hate kind of a relationship with the rains.

We love it for giving us respite from the scorching summer months, for filling up the water bodies which ensure smooth water supply through out the year, for the fresh smell of wet earth, the grilled corn (bhutta) with the roadside vendor, the idyllic afternoons spent at home sipping tea along with piping hot bhajiyas (personally I don't drink tea or coffee but I love the bhajiyas). We love the rains and it is the perfect time to spend some quality time with your loved ones. Going for long drives to scenic waterfalls surrounded by lush mountains tops my list.

But then we equally hate it when the trains are late and the roads are filled with muddy potholes. We hate being in damp clothes (although getting wet in the rains is a thoroughly enjoyable experience) not to mention travelling in crowded local trains, getting late for appointments, the vehicles passing by splashing muddy water all around, etc. The rains have a peculiar knack of showing up exactly when we leave our house and stopping when we reach our destination and vice-versa.

When we are tucked away safely in our houses shielded from the rain and the wind, we tend to enjoy it. But what about the people who live on the streets of Mumbai. They have no shelter to protect them from the lashing rains or the howling winds. What about the fishermen who risk their very lives in the choppy seas to earn a living. What about the building collapses and the water borne diseases that plague us. We tend to look away from these harsh realities of life.

Like any other stuff, Monsoons too have their share of good and bad things for us. Life is too short too be spent cribbing and complaining, so enjoy it as much as you can. 

"Road Manners in India - A distant dream"

The other day our Prime Minister commented that building good roads alone ain't enough, it should be complemented with better road manners. I thoroughly agree with him. In India Road manners are virtually non existent. As with any other case, there is no one single party to be blamed.

The RTO officials are corrupt only because we are ready to bribe them. How else could I manage to get a license at the age of 16 (the official age here is still 18 unlike most of the western countries) without so much as even giving a driving test (the officer just asked for my name and that was it).

The so called Driving schools are a scam. They don't teach you about lane discipline, how to parallel park...heck I didn't use the reverse gear even once during the entire duration of the course (which by the way is 1 month). Sometimes they are not even bothered whether you really know to drive or not, but you will get your license as long as you pay up their fee.

The infrastructure in most parts of india really isn't meant to observe road manners. The signals don't work most of the times so do the street lights, there are no lane markings and no crosswalks. The pedestrians occupy the roads since hawkers occupy the sidewalks (if there are any). The pedestrians don't give a shit about the motorists and the motorists reciprocate the gesture. It may sound funny but I was on my bike and suffered a minor wrist injury because a man, blindly crossing the road to catch a bus, dashed into me instead of being the other way round.

Truckers on the highways are much well behaved inspite of being illiterate, its the spoilt rich brats in their flashy cars who cause all the mayhem. Autorickshaw drivers are in a league of their own. They'll cut in front of you, make U-turns, stop in the middle of the road without a warning. I won't even start with the incessant use of the horn (very irritating).

But then all this has its (sort of) plus points too. Where else can you drive without the fear of being pulled over by cops for speeding. Burn rubber on the highway, weaving in and out of traffic as if you are runnning a race. My brother used to drive here in India but being used to the US roads he now shudders at the very thought of taking over the wheel here.

Before leaving I would like to mention that road infrastructure is being improved to world class levels on the major highways and the newly planned cities. Its just us people who have to catch up. 

"Is Mumbai really rude?"

I for one don't think that Mumbai is rude or very polite either for that matter. It treats you the way you treat it. Its just a matter of "as you sow, so shall you reap". Mumbai can be indifferent and apathetic at times but really generous and selfless at other times. The never say die attitude is typical of Mumbaikars and it makes Mumbai the wonderful city it is. It welcomes every one with open arms. For every cheat in mumbai we will find atleast 10 honest people.

Its really unfair to measure Mumbai by western standards coz our culture is totally different. First of all english is not our mother tongue and we aren't raised according to their culture. So forgive me for supporting the mumbaikars who don't mind their P's and Q's. Its the warmth and love that these people have to offer that counts. Which other country lives by the saying "Atithi devo bhava" (The guest is an incarnation of God).

And to top it all New York is supposed to be the most polite city in the world according to these so called researchers. Do I need to present any more arguments in punching a hole in the credibility of the report? I really don't think so. I rest my case. Its upto you to decide. 

"15 seconds of fame"

People are ready to do anything (and I mean ansolutely anything) for their 15 seconds of fame. There is no limit to how low they can stoop to achieve it. All this for what, to share a bit of the limelight only to be pushed into the darkness of obscurity when someone else comes up with something even more scandalous.

Case in point is the recent ruckus created by one Miss Rakhi Sawant. It seems as if this girl and scandals are inseperable. No longer does she get out of one than she steps right into another. I won't elaborate on this coz the media has already discussed it more than required. One look at the series of photographs and any sensible person with a little bit of common sense can understand that it is nothing more than a cheap publicity stunt. The female was, shall I say, over friendly with him.

There were a lot of factors in play the item girl tag, the booze, the media, etc But this does not justify whatever he did. He should have been smarter (I think he is smart considering the amount of publicity they got). Now Miss Rakhi Sawant forgot the saying "What goes around comes around". A few months earlier she had caught someone else by surprise and kissed that person. But then it was a female and she didn't press charges. That female later on went to declare that it was sudden and she felt embarrased. Although the pictures show her puckering up and kissing with her eyes close (what a surprise).

What surprises me though is the extensive media coverage provided. For one entire week I couldn't go through any news report, paper or magazines without stumbling upon this topic. Is there a dearth of serious news in this world or has the reader lost all intelligence and self respect that he has to put up with this mindless shit (please don't mind my language). Only one question comes ahead "Whatever happened to responsible journalism?" 

"Retirement...?"

How's this for irony, all through the college and exams I was actually looking towards the vacation. And now that it is finally here, I am already bored. We have been so used to our daily routine that now we don't have a reason to get up in the morning anymore. How long can one watch television? Even the movies from the previous night are repeated in the morning. Catching up with old buddies is a great idea but it too lasts just for a few days.

Is this what retirement feels like? I really gotta find something interesting to do in the meantime or I am gonna go nuts. Any suggestions?  

"Last Exam..."

 Giving the last exam arouses in us mixed feelings. You are tensed preparing for the exam and at the same time you are relieved that after this you will be free for a while. But this anticipation of the vacations can cause some trouble. Being the visionaries that we are, blessed with foresight, we often start planning stuff to do during the vacations even before the exams get over thus causing a lax in concentration. That is why we often score less marks in those papers (not necessarily true for everyone).

But giving the last paper of engineering is a whole different experience. You know that this is perhaps the last time you will be giving an academic paper. The college won't be reopening after the vacations. No more submissions and assignments (to be copied and completed at the very last minute). No more xeroxing the notes. No more bunking the lectures and hanging out in the canteen. No more doing mischief sitting at the last benches (or any other bench, in my case).

The tension (this paper can make or break your life) and the anticipation (of the future) can be nerve wrecking. I am going to miss college life a lot. But it is an experience worth remembering.

"True Friend...!!!"

A girl asked a guy if he thought she was pretty,

He said...no.

She asked him if he would want to be with her forever....

and he said no.

She then asked him if she were to leave would he cry,

and once again he replied with a no.

She had heard enough. As she walked away, tears streaming down

her face the boy grabbed her arm and said....

You're not pretty you're beautiful.

I don't want to be with you forever, I NEED to be with you forever.

And I wouldn't cry if you walked away...I'd die...

I got the above story from a friend of mine (it is a different case that it was a chain mail) and I thought I'ld share it with you guys. For me this story captures the two different aspects of friendship that I identify with, naughtiness and sensitivity. Inspite of the guy's blunt responses to her queries, he came through when it mattered the most (making a girl cry doesn't always necessarily mean that you are insensitive or mean).

Men always need to be tough on the outside but give them a little time and understanding and you'll come to know the real them.

"Technology and us..."

Internet is one of the greatest inventions of mankind. It has found a variety of useful purposes in almost everyfield. It wouldn't be wrong to say that it has greatly influenced the way we live and think. Almost anything and everything you need is readily available to you within a few clicks and that too free. "Free" thats a word we Indians love.

Music, we all love music and what we love even better is free music. There was a time when sites used to host music files for free downloads, but then they had to be shut down due to strain on the resources and issues with copyright infringement. Then a college kid came up with a brilliant idea and application based on P2P (peer to peer) technology called Napster. It was a big hit, so big that it made the music industry sit up and take notice. They somehow managed to crack the legal whip on such applications.

Now, the human mind comes up with the most ingenious solutions when faced with such tight situations. It was not long before we were presented with something known as "torrents". It is a wonderful protocol for file sharing of any kind and it also manages to circumvent the legal copyright infringement issues. So if you wanna download anything from the net for free (movies, music, games, ebooks, etc) then torrent is your best friend.

Download a client like Azureus, Bit Torrent or Bit Comet and log onto sites like www.thepiratebay.org, www.mininova.org or www.desitorrents.com and believe me your life will never be the same again.