Life In America !!

Time flies ... it was not long ago when I was preparing for my departure to the US and it has already been a couple of months after my arrival here. The first ride from the airport to my house is still fresh in my mind .. I was amazed by the cleanliness, organized traffic movement and green cover on the state and city roads. Having been brought up in a city like Delhi, this was an unusual site.

About a week after my arrival I got started with my course work. I found the course work pretty rigorous here. One will not have any reasons to complain for not being busy enough. I took time to settle down with my courses as I was not in the studying mode for almost an year after my masters. So my early weeks in US went with adjustment to a whole new life here. From Walmart to the school, from lakes to the Thai restaurants, hair cut saloons to book shops ... everything here is way so different from what it was in India ... so at every step I encountered a new thing, system, way of life, which initially was very exciting. This phase got washed off pretty soon like in about 4 weeks. It seems as if I have been here for a long time now. I have gotten used to everyday life here .. go to school, work from 10 to 5, get back home, cook for yourself, grocery shopping on weekends ... etc etc etc ...

A lot of times now I doubt whether I am actually in US, staying far away from family. Things have changed in the recent times. The communication technology boom has made it possible for people like me to talk live with the family and not miss them that much. But the only thing that bothers me at times is the distance. You can not just travel back anytime you feel like unless of course you are minting money :D.

It has been a pleasant stay overall. Despite the convenient life here, I still want to go back to my home country and serve there. Nothing ever can replace the joy of being with ones family and friends. Even though I see more humility in people here, but I still miss those who have been around all this while ....

UCF ..

After finishing my bachelors in Economics from Miranda House, Delhi University, I wanted to pursue research in economics as my field of profession. I completed my masters in Economics from Jamia Millia Islamia in June 2007 and took up teaching at Delhi University. In Economics, I realized that PhD is of utmost importance to climb up the ladder in the research field. To start with, I had no idea how to go about the whole process of applying to US universities however, few of my friends who were already in US and some student help sites provided the assistance for basic groundwork. I decided to take my GRE in the month of November’07 that I regretted later as it was too late and I missed many deadlines. Nevertheless, I went ahead with the date and started preparing for it on my own. Due to some unforeseen reasons I could not do enough justice to GRE and scored much below my expectations. The universities that I had short listed earlier seemed like a far fetched dream. Somehow I lost the hope of making it to good schools and thought of taking GRE again in the coming year. In the mean time I spoke to one of the professors at the University of Central Florida (UCF) who convinced me that it is the overall profile (academics, projects, publications, work experience, statement of purpose, TOEFL, GRE etc) that matters and GRE is just one of the evaluation criteria. After a month of contemplation I decided to apply to UCF for PhD in Environment Economics. My experience in the field of Environment Economics in terms of a publication and an internship project helped me to write the Statement of Purpose and added to my background profile for higher level of specialization in the same. Teaching experience at Delhi University gave me an edge, as having an academic profession for a doctoral degree always helps. I got my recommendations from my professors at Jamia Millia Islamia, who are renowned in the research world for their work and contribution. The process of applying ended in mid January and I did not apply to any other university. I was elated when I saw the status of my application as admitted in a couple of months. After that it was a smooth ride to get the visa as I was awarded a fee waiver and Teaching Assistantship. I will be joining UCF in the month of August for the coming fall session. To end this, all I would say is that do not lose hope even if you do not score well in GRE as one exam can not reflect all your abilities. However, this is not to deny that a good GRE score definitely adds to your overall profile. Good luck to all the future aspirants.
www.kaaledge.com

Esprit de Corps !!

Today morning while sipping a cup of ginger tea in the very comfort of my fluffy couch I read about the most unfortunate happening of yesterday night. In a gruesome attack a fourteen year old teen age girl was first assaulted and then murdered by the forty year old domestic helper at her residence in NCR. These incidences make my belief much stronger that it is not that easy to lead a girl's life. My mother who was sitting right next to me commented that it is the sheer fault of the people who keep uneducated helpers at home not thinking that sanity does not always get reflected by one's appearance. I started questioning her argument. The so called comfort of my surroundings started dwindling. I asked her whether only the uneducated men see girls as their own property. I have personally come across cases where the less educated souls behave much more morally and ethically than the educated and decent looking ones. I am sure lot of girls who have probably lived in and around Delhi would agree that most of the times the poor and uneducated Rickshaw Pullers behave more responsibly than those who drive the best of the cars and have the best of the opportunities to be groomed mentally.

The problem is not whether people around are educated or not. The root cause is something else. As one of my very good friend says - "Men who think of themselves as supermen just because their hemoglobin is naturally and genetically higher than women are mentally ill ". The physical superiority rules in majority of cases. We need literate men who are wiser enough to appreciate the naturally gifted assets and not to drop down to a level of brain sickness where they feel they can just do anything.

The number of molestation cases involving little kids has risen so much in recent times. Even animals spare their little ones and apparently man is the most so called "social and intelligent animal". I feel ashamed to call myself a 21st century being looking at such events. It bothers me a lot sometimes as to what goes on in the minds of those who think they can probably play with anything at all. What we lack in our society is the common acceptance that this kind of problem exists. Even though we are all aware of it but mostly just ignore the topic. Parents hardly discuss these matters with their kids and kids on the other hand find it difficult to reach to their parents in the situations where they feel they might just be the target of some assault. Rather than thinking about those who carry out such misdeeds its time when we as individuals fight against it. Kids should be taught the difference between good and bad touch. Give them that assurance and comfort where they can express themselves without any fear. The social framework needs to be updated and enlarged to address such issues publicly.

Tender age for the little ones is to learn to fly and blossom and not to make their life miserable for years to come. Save the child from unwanted harassment and help the society to regain the lost esprit de corps !!

Education ...

Education is no less than a brand today. Most of us seek to get into the best of the college or institute to have a secure and hefty placement.

I spent three years in Delhi University and eventually went to a lesser famous university Jamia Millia Islamia. As soon as we got admitted, my class knew that we would have to put up a group effort without any help from the faculty to compete against the existing brand names like DSE and JNU. We went ahead with the flow .. with a sense of belongingness and did whatever we could to make the department a better place. Department became our second home .. from our HOD to faculty members, Office staff to helpers ... it was no less than a family. Eventually ours was the first batch to get campus placements with 100% success. I clearly remember the last day at Jamia .. where Professor Bhat, the HOD said that this batch would be counted as one which created history by indulging into activities that were never a part of the curriculum .. Might sound pompous ... but that fact remains ... that Jamia was a place where I learned to be on my own ... to use my own potential .. to showcase my own individuality different from the university brand ..

A few days back I interacted with my first year Economics Honors students and I realized that they are nowhere like we used to be in our college days. My students told me that they could not related to the college ... since it is an off campus college, with no sure shot placements and the crowd is not so happening according to the north campus standards. Many of them admitted that they could not acknowledge that they study in Kalindi College publicly as they feel ashamed ... I was so disheartened ... I tried explaining to them .. but felt so handicapped as .. the competition outside actually compels the young minds to think likewise. If you do not get into a good college ... it means lesser bargaining power according to the market trends ... and thus lesser comforts in terms of good packages and profiles ..

Studying is just a way to life now ... what you learn holds no importance ... So if you are from SRCC or Hindu ... and studied a fort night b4 your exams .. you will still end up with good job offers ... I think the whole essence of edution has been lost somewhere ... the process of learning .. has been over taken .. by commercialization.

Freedom .... !!

Dr Manmohan Singh, a prime minister by accident is one of the greatest visionaries that our nation witnessed after Independence. He led the country on the twin paths of liberalization and market economy. He helped our economy to restore back on some freedom that we lost after our Independence in 1950. The industrial and banking sector reforms, under his guidance gave momentum to the economy to move on its own by reducing policy centric rigidities. Step towards globalization was to help the country to become competitive in the world market and give equal right to all to maximize their shares and dues. What remains as a real achievement was the backtrack on the inefficient license raj system, which is held responsible for the past predicament and present laboriousness of our country.

A major issue with policy making is that the models that are prescribed and followed are based on so many assumptions and are mostly case sensitive. India was subjected to the decisions of those who thought we resembled the Soviet Union and ignored the political, social and cultural dissemblance. The Mahalanobis Strategy failed not because it was unplanned and mis implemented but because of the fact that it was not suited to our economy. Heavy industrialization was surely not the way to curb the growing dependence on other nations and to reduce the excess burden of employment on agriculture sector.

After the second five year plan, India was forced to industrialize on certain set parameters that our policy makers thought were suited to our economy as they were to other successful countries. Most of us today hold the industrial sector responsible for lower average living standards due to high level of unemployment in the unorganized sector. Had there been a proper industrial incentive system in sixties, labour intensive industrial growth could have absorbed the surplus labour arising out of the oppressed agriculture sector. During seventies and eighties, we continued with the same policies and thus the pool of disguised employment and unskilled labor force was build over time. In the Indian context it was not a demand side problem, the supply side economics failed because of the inappropriate policy measures that were carved out based on certain benchmarks.

I believe that the word freedom holds good in every sense. Planning and administration gave rise to the concept of power and thus came exploitation. I support the free economy framework that was given by Adam Smith, where the individuals act according to their own interests and in the process, society's interests are maximized.

Welfare encompasses all of us, so leave it on the individual discretion. This was the philosophy that tutored the economic reforms in 1991. The efforts put in by Dr Manmohan Singh and his crew need to be appreciated in larger context where our workers, entrepreneurs, industrial and commercial units gained the independence to act according to market forces. Restrictions will never solve any problems, rather will only exacerbate the existing gap between the developing and developed world. Set the individuals, economies and countries free .... and then see the change !!

Priorities ...

"Lifes ambition occupies my time ...Priorities confuse the mind, Happiness one step behind... This inner peace Ive yet to find" ... these lines probably aptly characterize each one of us. Today everyone seems to be running after career, professional satisfaction, ambition to be the best where ever you land up, achievements in all forms ... In the midst of finding the way through this materialistic world, we forget ourselves, people around, inner peace ... and personal satisfaction!!

Why does one earn? ... for many work is synonymous with earning their daily breads, for some it reflects the desire to live easily with luxuries, for few its about having a name of her/his own (independence) and for a few it is to do with affording a decent life ... but the bottom line is that we earn to live, to afford ourselves, to be respected ... and after all to be content and happy !!

Can earning income alone suffice life? well you do not need to be a rocket scientist to answer this question ... You can earn a million dollar ... can own a mansion, the best of the cars ... can be awarded a distinguished world prize ... but think about it ... if there is no one close enough to share the happiness of being successful ... how would it feel ... ?

This is not to say that one should just forget about work and achievements ... there is a balance that one needs to create between the two - the personal and professional life. Real satisfaction is a mix of both ... one of the two alone, can never be enough ... Yes, focus on the priorities is a must for all of us, but make sure that the priorities do not just revolve around money, fame, status, proving yourself ... there are other things in life that may not look lucrative in the short run but remain with one forever ... !! Respect life, respect your self, respect people around ... thats the simplest way to be content ... and then think about maximizing happiness with other comforts of life ...