And the Award Goes to!

The GSMA Awards have been announced @ the MWC 2009.

And the winners are

Best Mobile Game
Winner: Gameloft - Real Football 2009

Best Mobile Music or Video Service
Winner: BBC iPlayer on Mobile

Best Mobile Advertising Service
Winner: Turkcell - Tonla Kazan

Best Mobile Brand Campaign
Winner: R/GA London - Nokia Urbanista Diaries

Best Mobile TV Service
Winner: MobiTV - MobiTV

Best Mobile Enterprise Product or Service
Winner: Vodafone - Vodafone Global Enterprise Limited

Best Mobile Internet Service
Winner: Nokia - Nokia Sports Tracker

Best Mobile Money Service
Winner: Safaricom and Vodafone - M-PESA

Highly Commended: Digital Chocolate - AvaPeeps: FlirtNation

Best Mobile Handset or Device
Winner: INQ - INQ1

Highly Commended: Nokia - Nokia E71

Highly Commended: T-Mobile - T-Mobile G1

Best Broadcast Commercial
Winner: KT Freetel – ‘Show is…’

Best Use of Mobile for Social and Economic Development
Winner: Nuance Communications - Airtel-T9 India Consumer Vernacular Messaging Campaigns

Best Network Technology Advance
Winner: Nokia Siemens Networks - Flexi Multimode BTS Software defined HSPA/LTE

Best Service Delivery Platform
Winner: NewBay Software - LifeCache Social Networking Solution 2.0

Best Billing & Customer Care Solution
Winner: Expert System - COGITO Answers

Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough
Winner: RIM - BlackBerry Storm 9500 SurePress Screen

The Green Mobile Award
Winner: Smart Communications - Alternative Power for Cell Sites program

GSMA's CEO Award for Outstanding Environmental Contribution
Winner: Nokia

Government Leadership Award
Winner: The Government of France

GSMA Chairman’s Award
Winner: Research in Motion (RIM)

The 2009 mobile innovation global award champion
Winner: Cootek, China (Most Innovative Wireless Device-centric Technology)

The 2009 mobile innovation global award competiton
Winner: EMEA TOURNAMENT

Most Innovative Wireless Device-centric Technology
Winner: Intivation, Netherlands

Most Innovative Carrier Infrastructure or Platform
Winner: Sunbay, Switzerland

Most Innovative Mobile Application in a Vertical Market
Winner: WorldMate, USA

Most Innovative Consumer Application or Service
Winner: Mobile Nordic AS, Norway

Most Innovative True Mobile Start-Up
Winner: Advanced Receiver Technologies, USA

We appreciate and applaud them for their outstanding contribution to the mobile industry !!!

Lenovo Comes Off Age

Lenovo has launched the ThinkPad W700, claimed to be the first-ever 17-inch widescreen mobile workstation engineered to deliver unparalleled performance to data and graphics-intensive user environments, in India. It incorporates the built-in digitiser and colour calibrator in a mobile workstation and combines these innovations with technologies such as new NVIDIA Quadro FX mobile graphics.

The workstation supports the upcoming Intel mobile quad core processor which delivers the ultimate computing performance for mobile computing professionals. In line with Lenovo’s environmental commitments, the ThinkPad W700 meets and exceeds criteria for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star 5.0 programme for computers, which takes effect in July 2009.

The ThinkPad W700 can be configured with up to 8GB of memory. It includes WiFi wireless connectivity. Additionally, users can connect to other devices wirelessly using mobile workstation models featuring Bluetooth and ultra wideband technology. Models supporting WiMAX will be available later this year. This mobile workstation can also be equipped with dual internal hard drives with RAID configurations, including solid state drive storage.

The notebook comes equipped with an optional 400-nit WUXGA display that provides up to twice the brightness of earlier ThinkPad mobile workstation models and the 72 per cent wide colour gamut provides more than 50 per cent greater colour intensity. A 7-in-1 multi-card reader and five USB ports give users flexibility in transferring and accessing digital content. Additionally, the workstation comes with an optional compact flash reader and Blu-ray DVD burner/ player. RAID 0 configuration help users’ access and save their data faster than traditional disk-writing methods. Users can also opt for RAID 1 for mirrored data redundancy.

An optional mini-dock extends the mobile workstation’s capabilities with eSATA and digital audio ports as well as convenient cabling for power, external monitors and peripherals. The ThinkPad W700 also features BIOS/port disablement and an optional fingerprint reader, a smartcard reader and hard drives with full-disk encryption. It carries more than 20 certifications from independent software vendors.

Priced at Rs 1,49,000, the ThinkPad W700 mobile workstation is available through www.lenovo.in and Lenovo business partners.

SHIFT + DEL Your Computing Dilemmas

The creator of the first keyboard-and-mouse desktop set, Logitech, is up for surprises yet again. And this time their innovation, the Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 5500 Revolution, surely aims to help people navigate through today's complex digital environments with ease. With a warranty of three years, the premium keyboard-and-mouse combination features a cordless laser mouse, a dynamic keyboard display and Bluetooth wireless technology.

The cordless laser mouse will transform many people's expectations about mouse navigation. Its MicroGear Precision Scroll Wheel technology offers people various modes of navigation. Firstly, they can fly effortlessly through long documents and web pages, spinning the scroll wheel freely to move through up to 10,000 lines of a spreadsheet in seven seconds. Secondly, they can set the scroll wheel to click-to-click mode, which allows precision movement through lists, slides or photos. And that’s not all. Its one-touch search, allows people to obtain Internet search results for any word or phrase on a web page or in a document. Finally, the thumb wheel can be set to launch the Windows Vista Flip 3D feature or to zoom in and out of documents and photos. And the rapid-charging stand eliminates the inconvenience of replacing batteries.

Well, the surprises of MX5500 don’t end here. It comes with a dynamic keyboard display which has a 2.95-by-.79 inch built-in LCD screen. It shows the time and date, calculator, temperature, Web site favorites, a keystroke counter, e-mail updates and media information, such as band and song titles.

Last but not the least the cordless desktop MX 5500 features Bluetooth 2.0 Enhanced Data Rate (EDR) wireless technology, which provides an easier setup experience, as well as a more robust and reliable connection than with previous generations of Bluetooth technology. But why is Bluetooth so important, one wonder. Its worth a mention because it allows users to use the desktop at a distance of up to 30 feet (10 meters) from their PC.

And there are no collaboration problems. Because the keyboard, mouse and receiver are pre-paired during manufacturing, people need only plug in the mini-receiver to a computer's USB port to connect the keyboard and mouse to the PC. The MX 5500 desktop's receiver can also be used as a Bluetooth hub, enabling other Bluetooth devices, such as a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone or a PDA, to connect to a computer through the hub. All a computer needs is a compatible Bluetooth stack installed for this mode to be functional.

To top it all the Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 5500 Revolution is priced at INR 11,495 and is available at all leading electronic stores in India.

Rich Cut Back on Payments to Mistresses

Came across a very good article on wall street journal :

You know times are tough when the rich start cutting costs on their mistresses.

According to a new survey by Prince & Assoc., more than 80% of multimillionaires who had extra-marital lovers planned to cut back on their gifts and allowances. Still, only 12% of the multimillionaire cheaters said they plan to give up on their lovers altogether for financial reasons.

A portrait by François Boucher of Madame de Pompadour, the mistress of King Louis XV of France.

“Rich people are getting hit, and they’re all expressing the need to curtail unnecessary spending,” said Russ Alan Prince, president of Prince & Assoc., a wealth-research firm based in Connecticut. “Lovers are part of the same calculation.”

Of course, any study of millionaires and their mistresses should be taken with a large grain of salt. The survey–a subset of a larger wealth study–polled 191 individuals with a minimum net worth of $20 million who said they had lovers of at least a year or more (this to screen out the one-night stands, etc.). About two thirds of the respondents were men and one third women. All were married and all had personal control over their finances, meaning the women and men surveyed were the primary wealth holders in their homes.

The most surprising stats in the study relate to gender and what might be termed “length of service.” Fully 82% of men in the study said they planned to lower the allowances to their mistresses, while more than three quarters planned to provide fewer gifts, less expensive gifts and fewer perks, like jet rides, resort vacations and top restaurant meals.

Women were far more generous to their paramours in the face of financial crises. Less than 20% planned to lower allowances, gifts and perks, while more than half planned to raise them.

Susan Shapiro Barash, who teaches gender studies at Marymount Manhattan College and wrote “Little White Lies, Deep Dark Secrets,” about why women lie, said women value their lovers more than men in a time of economic trouble. “For the women, lovers matter more than ever now because the rest of life is so dreary,” she said. “For the men, they’re just cutting across the board.”

Ms. Barash added that women may value their lovers more today because their husbands are so miserable. “If your husband lost his job on Wall Street and he’s miserable, you need the escape,” she says.

The duration of the relationship also seems to play a role in the economics of high-end cavorting. The study found that more than two thirds of the millionaires who had been with their lovers for three or more years planned to cut back. That compares with less than half for those with a tenure of one to three years.

“What we found in talking to the respondents is that the magic of the relationship with their lover fades after a while, so they’re more willing to let them go,” Mr. Prince says.

The survey doesn’t mean to suggest that all, most or even a large minority of rich men and women have affairs. It simply is a snapshot of a certain sample at a certain time. Yet it suggests that in a time of financial crisis, it is better to be a kept man than a compensated woman.

The Peace in Death

For the grieving mourners of the Mumbai Victims..............and for all of us who are also in mourning..


Part One - The Calling

Let me sleep, for my soul is intoxicated with love and
Let me rest, for my spirit has had its bounty of days and nights;
Light the candles and burn the incense around my bed, and
Scatter leaves of jasmine and roses over my body;
Embalm my hair with frankincense and sprinkle my feet with perfume,
And read what the hand of Death has written on my forehead.


Let me rest in the arms of Slumber, for my open eyes are tired;
Let the silver-stringed lyre quiver and soothe my spirit;
Weave from the harp and lute a veil around my withering heart.


Sing of the past as you behold the dawn of hope in my eyes, for
It's magic meaning is a soft bed upon which my heart rests.


Dry your tears, my friends, and raise your heads as the flowers
Raise their crowns to greet the dawn.
Look at the bride of Death standing like a column of light
Between my bed and the infinite;
Hold your breath and listen with me to the beckoning rustle of
Her white wings.


Come close and bid me farewell; touch my eyes with smiling lips.
Let the children grasp my hands with soft and rosy fingers;
Let the ages place their veined hands upon my head and bless me;
Let the virgins come close and see the shadow of God in my eyes,
And hear the echo of His will racing with my breath.

Part Two - The Ascending


I have passed a mountain peak and my soul is soaring in the
Firmament of complete and unbound freedom;
I am far, far away, my companions, and the clouds are
Hiding the hills from my eyes.
The valleys are becoming flooded with an ocean of silence, and the
Hands of oblivion are engulfing the roads and the houses;
The prairies and fields are disappearing behind a white specter
That looks like the spring cloud, yellow as the candlelight
And red as the twilight.


The songs of the waves and the hymns of the streams
Are scattered, and the voices of the throngs reduced to silence;
And I can hear naught but the music of Eternity
In exact harmony with the spirit's desires.
I am cloaked in full whiteness;
I am in comfort; I am in peace.

Part Three - The Remains


Unwrap me from this white linen shroud and clothe me
With leaves of jasmine and lilies;
Take my body from the ivory casket and let it rest
Upon pillows of orange blossoms.
Lament me not, but sing songs of youth and joy;
Shed not tears upon me, but sing of harvest and the winepress;
Utter no sigh of agony, but draw upon my face with your
Finger the symbol of Love and Joy.
Disturb not the air's tranquility with chanting and requiems,
But let your hearts sing with me the song of Eternal Life;
Mourn me not with apparel of black,
But dress in color and rejoice with me;
Talk not of my departure with sighs in your hearts; close
Your eyes and you will see me with you forevermore.


Place me upon clusters of leaves and
Carry my upon your friendly shoulders and
Walk slowly to the deserted forest.
Take me not to the crowded burying ground lest my slumber
Be disrupted by the rattling of bones and skulls.
Carry me to the cypress woods and dig my grave where violets
And poppies grow not in the other's shadow;
Let my grave be deep so that the flood will not
Carry my bones to the open valley;
Let my grave be wide, so that the twilight shadows
Will come and sit by me.


Take from me all earthly raiment and place me deep in my
Mother Earth; and place me with care upon my mother's breast.
Cover me with soft earth, and let each handful be mixed
With seeds of jasmine, lilies and myrtle; and when they
Grow above me, and thrive on my body's element they will
Breathe the fragrance of my heart into space;
And reveal even to the sun the secret of my peace;
And sail with the breeze and comfort the wayfarer.


Leave me then, friends - leave me and depart on mute feet,
As the silence walks in the deserted valley;
Leave me to God and disperse yourselves slowly, as the almond
And apple blossoms disperse under the vibration of Nisan's breeze.
Go back to the joy of your dwellings and you will find there
That which Death cannot remove from you and me.
Leave with place, for what you see here is far away in meaning
From the earthly world. Leave me.



By: Kahlil Gibran

The New face of Online Shopping

naaptol introduces social shopping enabling interaction between people with similar shopping interests

naaptol, the leading comparison based shopping portal, has announced the launch of its new service ‘social shopping’. This service allows users to interact directly with the other registered customers with similar shopping interests. They can discuss products, give ratings as well as express their views about a product. It is a forum where millions of Internet users connect, express themselves and communicate freely.

Additionally, members of social shopping can list their favourite products and others can view and comment on them. They can also give ratings and suggest dealers from the given list. Well it is not only about shopping alone. Create your own profile, upload your picture and tell others about your interests through social shopping. You can also create your own network of friends on the website.

naaptol holds ground due to its extraordinary functionality to reach out and connect to the offline retailers to give an all round comparison of prices and offers. Every retail store in your locality is listed on the portal defining its range of products bridging the digital divide between brands and local stores. There is location based search too! It has taken product comparison to new level also made product comparison extremely viable by its 10-product comparison feature. The products can be chosen across brands offering more flexibility in product analysis. The site is a pan India venture and is gaining foothold in the metros and spreading out to the interiors.

Registering with naaptol (www.naaptol.com) provides access to making your own shopping groups and also avail many other discounts from varied featured sellers. With such dynamic proposition the site aims at interactive discussions and getting the best reviews of products.

The site has number of categories like electronics, entertainment products, gifts, jewellery, lifestyle products, automobiles and much more. All the listed products are complete with specifications, images and updated prices. Products are accompanied with expert review which comments on the worth of the product covering varied important aspects. The site is constantly updated of the latest products and new launches. The site has a listing of buying guides for their products which enables the customer to make quick shopping decisions. naaptol has given a whole new face to online shopping by combining product features, reviews, sellers and consumer interaction.

Get your passport in three days now!

Tata Consultancy Services, (TCS) has signed a deal with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India, for the Passport Seva Project (PSP). According to the deal the process of issuing a new passport will be now completed within 3 working days while passports issued under the Tatkal scheme will be dispatched on the same day, subject to address and police verification of applicants.

The project cost is valued over Rs. 1,000 crore and will be implemented within a Buy-Own-Operate-Transfer or BOOT framework with pilot projects operation within 19 months. The countrywide roll-out of the Passport Seva Project will take place within six years and the Government will open 77 Passport Filing Centers across the country in a phased manner. TCS will have end-to-end responsibility of implementing this project.

“The Passport Seva Project, based on a public-private partnership model, aims to provide passport-related services to Indian citizens in a speedy, convenient and transparent manner. The sovereign and fiduciary function of granting and issuing passport remains with MEA and TCS will be our technology and operations partner in this project” said Shivshankar Menon, Foreign Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs.

Well, if implemented successfully the Passport Seva Project will enable citizens to enjoy the benefits of a technology-led, service oriented approach ensuring that the proper security, safety and safeguards. Herein applicants will have the option of filling the Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR)-enabled form which along with all relevant documents will be scanned and submitted at Passport Facilitation Centres (PFCs). The PFC will be the primary hubs that will support all activities like biometric capture, photograph, payment and verification and grant of passports in the presence of applicants for most cases. The Passports will be dispatched in three days in case no police verification or post-issue police verification is required based on passport issuance regulations. Complete tracking of process would also be possible in the system. Police nodal offices will be facilitated by TCS personnel and the PP Forms will be downloaded there directly eliminating the logistic delay. A call centre would be established to help the applicants with information regarding passport procedures and the status of submitted requests. Grievances would be tracked and closed.

Welcome to the digitised world of passports! How soon you will see it is a question yet to be answered.

Proud to be a Calcuttian

Calcutta: The land of humanity- Vir Sanghvi

Most modern Indian cities strive to rise above ethnicity. Tell anybody who lives in Bombay that he lives in a Maharashtrian city and (unless of course, you are speaking to Bal Thackeray) he will take immediate offence. We are cosmopolitan, he will say indigenously. Tell a Delhiwalla that his is a Punjabi city (which, in many ways, it is) and he will respond with much self-righteous nonsense about being the nation's capital, about the international composition of the city's elite etc. And tell a Bangalorean that he lives in a Kannadiga city and you'll get lots of techno-gaff about the internet revolution and about how Bangalore is even more cosmopolitan than Bombay. But, the only way to understand what Calcutta is about is recognize that the city is essentially Bengali. What's more, no Bengali minds you saying that. Rather, he is proud of the fact. Calcutta's strengths and weaknesses mirror those of the Bengali character. It has the drawbacks: the sudden passions, the cheerful chaos, the utter contempt for mere commerce, the fiery response to the smallest provocation. And it has the strengths (actually, I think of the drawbacks as strengths in their own way).

Calcutta embodies the Bengali love of culture; the triumph of intellectualism over greed; the complete transparency of all emotions, the disdain with which hypocrisy and insincerity are treated; the warmth of genuine humanity; and the supremacy of emotion over all other aspects of human existence. That's why Calcutta is not for everyone. You want your cities clean and green; stick to Delhi.. You want your cities, rich and impersonal; go to Bombay. You want them high-tech and full of draught beer; Bangalore's your place. But if you want a city with a soul: come to Calcutta.. When I look back on the years I've spent in Calcutta - and I come back so many times each year that I often feel I've never been away - I don't remember the things that people remember about cities.

When I think of London, I think of the vast open spaces of Hyde Park.

When I think of NewYork, I think of the frenzy of Times Square.

When I think of Tokyo, I think of the bright lights of Shinjiku.

And when I think of Paris, I think of the Champs Elysee.

But when I think of Calcutta, I never think of any one place. I don't focus on the greenery of the maidan, the beauty of the Victoria Memorial, the bustle of Burra Bazar or the splendour of the new Howrah 'Bridge'. I think of people. Because, finally, a city is more than bricks and mortars, street lights and tarred roads. A city is the sum of its people. And who can ever forget or replicate - the people of Calcutta?

When I first came to live here, I was told that the city would grow on me. What nobody told me was that the city would change my life. It was in Calcutta that I learnt about true warmth; about simple human decency; about love and friendship; about emotions and caring; about truth and honesty. I learnt other things too. Coming from Bombay as I did, it was a revelation to live in a city where people judged each other on the things that really mattered; where they recognized that being rich did not make you a better person - in fact, it might have the opposite effect. I learnt also that if life is about more than just money, it is about the things that other cities ignore; about culture, about ideas, about art, and about passion. In Bombay, a man with a relatively low income will salt some of it away for the day when he gets a stock market tip. In Calcutta, a man with exactly the same income will not know the difference between a debenture and a dividend. But he will spend his money on the things that matter. Each morning, he will read at least two newspapers and develop sharply etched views on the state of the world. Each evening, there will be fresh (ideally, fresh-water or river) fish on his table. His children will be encouraged to learn to dance or sing. His family will appreciate the power of poetry And for him, religion and culture will be in inextricably bound together.

Ah religion! Tell outsiders about the importance of Puja in Calcutta and they'll scoff.... Don't be silly, they'll say. Puja is a religious festival. And Bengal has voted for the CPM since 1977.. How can godless Bengal be so hung up on a religions festival? I never know how to explain them that to a Bengali, religion consists of much more than shouting Jai Shri Ram or pulling down somebody's mosque. It has little to do with meaningless ritual or sinister political activity... The essence of Puja is that all the passions of Bengal converge: emotion, culture, the love of life, the warmth of being together, the joy of celebration, the pride in artistic expression and yes, the cult of the goddess. It may be about religion. But is about much more than just worship. In which other part of India would small, not particularly well-off localities, vie with each other to produce the best pandals? Where else could puja pandals go beyond religion to draw inspiration from everything else?

In the years I lived in Calcutta, the pandals featured Amitabh Bachchan, Princes Diana and even Saddam Hussain! Where else would children cry with the sheer emotional power of Dashimi, upset that the Goddess had left their homes? Where else would the whole city gooseflesh when the dhakis first begin to beat their drums? Which other Indian festival - in any part of the country - is so much about food, about going from one roadside stall to another, following your nose as it trails the smells of cooking? To understand Puja, you must understand Calcutta. And to understand Calcutta, you must understand the Bengali. It's not easy. Certainly, you can't do it till you come and live here, till you let Calcutta suffuse your being, invade your bloodstream and steal your soul. But once you have, you'll love Calcutta forever. Wherever you go, a bit of Calcutta will go with you. I know, because it's happened to me. And every Puja, I am overcome by the magic of Bengal. It's a feeling that'll never go away.....

A PUBLIC APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE OF BENGAL

What has happened to the people of Bengal ? Have we actually become mindless intellectuals that the people of the world claim we are? Why are we allowing one mad woman to take up a crazy stand with her useless senseless attitude against a set of people whom we all genuinely respect?


When I was young I remember watching a TV commercial elaborating picturesquely all that a company has been doing for its locality – water plants, sanitation, urbanization etc and finally reminding us humbly, that " We also make Steel". With nerves of steel the Tatas came to Bengal albeit for their own investment but also to help us become a slightly more developed state. All through our childhood we have learnt to take the name of the Tatas with reverence not because they are mighty successful industrialists but simply because they are humane, they plough a large share of their profits into the growth process of the people they employ and their accompanying industries.


The Tatas are, to a great extent, single-handedly responsible for changing the face of West Bengal in general and Kolkata in particular. They gave us the magnificent Tata Centre, which they even lit up in the Tri Colour during the half century celebration of the country's independence (remember?). They decided to beautify our beloved Victoria Memorial and lit it up so that the city could see it in the dark nights. Kolkata, once called the Dying City by our erstwhile Prime Minister, was given a total new look by the Tatas.


And today when the Tatas need reassurance, when they need our support in the face of all the madness raised by one mad woman, are we , the people of Bengal going to keep quiet?? Are we going to let our legendary hospitality slip out of the Bengal through Mamata's craziness?


Just take a drive down the highway, (now of course it is out of the question), and you cannot but let out a sigh of despair at the sight of innumerable factories shut down. They have taken the form of horrifying carcasses stinking of shattered dreams of some brave entrepreneur and his family. Years of toil, a lifetime of investment… all gone down the drain because of someone's craziness. Then it was red madness, now it is craziness at the grass root level.


People of Bengal , I ask you, touch your heart and ask yourself, do we really not want this age of insane tyranny to end? 31 years we have been under the red regime, which has finally, probably, (hopefully) learnt its mistake and is trying to steer the state towards a fresh spate of industrialism. We are just beginning to see a faint ray of progress in that red sky. Are we going to allow ourselves to go back to grass root level, only to be trampled under public laughter.


Because that is what will happen to us if the Tatas bid good bye to Bengal .


We will become laughing stock for the world. R. N. Tata will lose nothing if he decides to pull out Tata Motors from Singur. We will lose. We will lose everything, our self-respect, our pride in Bengal , our self-esteem and most importantly livelihood of several hundreds of people of our villages.


My work often leads me to the interiors of rural Bengal . Our little group of three or four people attract hordes of villagers and apart from my professional role I often venture to ask them personal questions about their lifestyle. It has now ceased to surprise me that almost all those people want industrialization. Not that they want to stop agriculture. But they want industrialization of agriculture as well. They want hi tech information, hi tech machinery which will yield better crops and provide them a better lifestyle which in turn will ensure a better `industrial' lifestyle for their children.


Ironical, right? I do not represent either the reds or the grassroots, or the Tatas or anyone for that matter. I am a fiercely patriotic Indian who simply refuses to allow my country to be ruined by a crazy selfish woman. I have been indulging in conversation with several rural people quite near the affected areas of Singur and Nandigram and most of them would rather that the Tata Motors factory begins at the earliest and they embark on a better lifestyle. They sincerely believe that not only will they get a job, they have been paid for their land, a sizable amount which they have invested for their children's future, they are of the firm conviction that working for the Tatas will yield for their families a far better lifestyle which their wee acres of land, divided and subdivided would never be able to.


After all it is the legacy of the Tata Business House to take care of all its people. They are one industry house who do not talk about Corporate Social Responsibility. They live it out and not only we `literate' people, but, `illiterate' village people blindly believe it. Their conviction is written all over their faces.


It is wonderful to dream of a green West Bengal . But what about the nitty gritties for the people who are responsible for the bringing about the greenness of Bengal ? Is Mamata thinking about them? Is she thinking about what they want?


She is like those insecure people who refuse to do any kind of introspection and busy themselves blaming everyone. The Chief Minister should resign if the dog next door sneezes more than a couple of times. The Chief Minister should resign if the cat in Mamata's community decides to elope with a tom cat of a different community. The Chief Minister should resign if he dreams a modern industrialized Bengal . The Chief Minister should resign if… now she has begun to lose track of the number of reasons.


She behaved hysterically every time Bengal has shown the slightest signs of moving forward. I am not saying that the Chief Mister is a saint and she is a devil. (Even the devil would be ashamed). All I'm saying is how long? How long are we going to put up with her antics?


Frankly, I fail to understand why we are putting up with her at all? Why don't we physically throw her out? If she misuses democracy, then why don't we use the power that we have? Our own power. The power of our voice, the power of our pen. The most trusted name in the Indian industrial scenario has uttered the word `unwanted' in our state three consecutive times. Is this what Bengal is? After what the Tatas have done for us?


They bring us light after a long darkness of almost 35 odd years and we turn them out. Who is Mamata to voice the feelings of Bengal ? We are the children of Netaji, the descendants of Vivekananda and several other freedom fighters. Is this what we have become now? A senseless horde of mindless faceless inhuman specimens?


Rise people rise, from your apathy and show the Tata Group of Industries that Bengal cares. Please don't leave Bengal , we beseech them. We share you anxiety but we care for our people. We want progress. Together let us show Mamata that we are not going to be swayed by her cranky madness any more. Enough of bandhs, you mad woman, enough of your crazy heartlessness.


Mamata Banerjee your days are now over. Pack your bags and go elsewhere. We shall bid Tata to you.


People of Bengal, I do not need to tell you that if the Tatas go away then the door through which they leave will be the door of Industrialism, a door which will shut open our faces forever and ever. And then the whole of Bengal will slowly become like that desolate corridor leading up to Chandannagore, with large skeletons of dead factories on either side, only the Singur factory will be looming large in the dead state.

Invitation

To be or not to be is what I think all day long,
To take the plunge or give it a run.

I want to be happy for as long as I can be,
But with marriage will it be… or not to be?

Till now I was all alone…
but now I will have someone to call my own.

To double my joys and share my sorrows,
To be with me wherever life follows.

The vows will bring with it lots of responsibilities,
But for me will it be or not to be?

From now on its 'WE' rather than 'I'
Gosh no late nights for all I sigh!

No more booze parties, no more bachelorhood,
No more girlfriends, no more junk food.

Adjusting to a new life is what I fear,
But I `m all set and moved up the gear!

We are in love and that's all that matters,
Whether its air, land or waters,

It begins as soon as I take the vows,
The start of a lifetime without any sorrows,

I waited baited breath for the wedding day,
Coz its going to change my life forever, with love filling my bay.

We pledge to be together throughout the journey called 'Life'
For me as husband and she as wife.