Rest in Peace DP

I know that I am quite late in writing this but I couldn’t help it. It took me long to come to terms with the loss of one of my close friends. His name is Daidipya Kamble…..lovingly called as DP. He was a smart, suave and sober person who always looked dapper in whatever he wore. Maybe that was because he had an athletic physique which sportspersons generally have (he was the goalkeeper of the VJTI soccer team). I remember I used to make fun of his goalkeeping skills although at the back of my mind I knew that he was really good (that he was in the college team speaks for him). He used to take all that mockery in good humour. Even he used to get back at me for my antics and the way I speak (it’s the speed with which I speak). A couple of our friends and we had an absolutely great time during the ADSP (Advanced Digital Signal Processing) practical sessions in the 7th sem. That was the most memorable period in VJTI for me till today. Sometimes I used to show off my football skills (or the lack of it) to him and we used to have a hearty laugh about it.

Suddenly, these things were no more; never to happen again. It’s like some wicked witch has managed to rob me of a dear friend; and I was all too helpless.

It happened on the fateful evening of 14th May. Some of my friends and DP were in the college enjoying themselves as the final sem exams just got over. DP had got his bike all the way from Navi Mumbai (I wonder why). It was around 6:30 in the evening when DP decided to head for home and his friends saw him off. Sometime later, on the way, his bike skid through at Suman Nagar and he injured himself probably striking a tanker infront of him. Since no one was with him, we don’t know what exactly happened but he suffered severe groin injuries. He was reportedly taken to Juoy Hospital, Chembur (private hospital) but since this was a case of accident and might involve the police, the hospital’s authorities referred him to Rajawadi Hospital (govt. hospital). It was then that my classmates came to know about this from DP’s relatives and I came to know from my friends. To make things worse for the Kamble family, DP’s parents were out on a holiday to Nainital.

But there are a few questions still lingering in my mind: when did DP exactly succumb to his injuries? Was he brought dead to the Juoy Hosp. or did he die on the way to Rajawadi Hosp.?? was there any chance of saving him at any of the hospitals?? How did his bike skid in the first place?? Was there any third party involved in this fateful incident?? Because we surely don’t want to let the culprit roam around freely when our friend had to pay with his life. I cannot even imagine the excruciating pain that he had to go through before he met his end.

I am confused….really confused…..what should I do?? Should I mourn the death of my friend and feel sad that he had to depart for heavenly abode at such an early age when beautiful things were all lined up for his taking but he couldn’t even make the start?? Or should I sympathize with and console his parents and sister who are mentally struggling to accept the fact and are getting emotionally drained more and more with every passing moment. DP’s parents may be blaming themselves for not taking DP along with them as if that would have saved him (such feelings are natural when you desperately try to find out what could have been done to avert the situation). I fail to imagine the emotional turbulence that his kid sister must be going through as she will have no one to turn to to solve her maths problems or to talk her through tough times which generally occur during teenage times (children do not always confide in their parents). On whom will his parents depend when they grow old as that’s when people require the support of their children. DP’s father may be better off at handling this situation as he will stay distracted ( I am being optimistic) with office work but what about his mother?? It will be nauseating for her to spend time within the four walls of the house……..It will be claustrophobic. The person who is gone is gone……..it’s the ones he has left behind who have to suffer from the trauma.

I wish, hope and pray that DP finds peace wherever he goes but it will be difficult for him to find peace as he had a lot of duties to fulfill which the Almighty didn’t allow him to.

Every cloud has a silver lining

Well, this is how the old adage goes. However, does it hold true always??? Maybe the situation we have at hand will help us to decide this to a certain extent.

It’s a regular piece of news that female infanticide, female foeticide and other such heinous crimes are being committed in states such as Punjab and Haryana. It is commendable how efficiently the people over there keep at this activity as we can make out from the fact that we get to read about these incidents every week. (I have always felt that people over there do not have a sound knowledge of biology ; afterall they say ‘Sher da puttar’,’mard ka bachha’…….arre bhai it is the female of the species who give birth; praise the sherni not the sher.)

The Govt. of India has declared the embryo-test kit illegal and anyone using it and/or helping someone to use it is culpable and will be punished by the court of law. This means that the doctor, expectant parents and others who are a part of this fray will all be put behind bars or asked to cough up a hefty fine if caught. However, this has not deterred either the expectant parents or the doctor from conducting the sex-determination test. Infact, the doctors are giving the old saying ‘make hay while the sun shines’, a whole new meaning. They have started to charge exorbitant amounts to carry out the tests and the abortion process thereafter, if required.

‘If required’; now this is where the issue lies. This requirement has given rise to a new kind of crime. I am not trying to explain what this requirement means. The meaning is as old as the hills. ‘We do not want a girl child.’ Period. Everyone around wants a boy (if not all their children then atleast one…..”please God, help me get a boy….I am taking my share of efforts but you don’t seem to understand my plight”….This seems to be the prayer on people’s lips.).
(Forget about the value of a girl child…….atleast consider this: how are we going to start a family without a woman??? It is a genuine issue in Punjab and Haryana where the ratio of the number of females to that of males is not favourable……….and we say that homosexuality is a taboo in India.)

Before I get to the problem, let me just briefly describe the entire procedure that takes place. First nature plays its part. Then we have an expecting mother and the couple wants to know whether it’s going to be a boy (dowry earner, family name bearer) or a girl (dowry loser…..family name loser….what a waste!!!!!). If the test shows that the foetus is a male one then it’s perfectly fine otherwise the dreaded step of abortion has to be taken. Now, since there is a good demand of this thing doctors have raised their surgical charges.

But the doctors’ greed didn’t end there. They have started to falsely state that the foetus is a female one even though it is a male one. Now, this has been going on for some time now. (Even the poor woodcutter didn’t claim the silver and the golden axes when offered but took the humble wooden axe which belonged to him…….and look at our doctors… What a shame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) This entire scenario is the big, fat, dark, dense cloud I was talking about.

However, with proper and abundant media coverage this situation can be brought under control. If required the media should manipulate the data in favour of the law (just increase the number of crimes committed). People should be made aware of this malpractice (false detection) carried out by the doctors. I am quite sure that people will think twice before going to a doctor if at all they go after such incidents. The Govt. need not go about preaching the value of a girl child. This process will stop anyway ; to save the boy child.

So, the atrocious process if continued will surely lead to its discontinuity. Well, we can consider this to be the silver lining (although there will have to be quite a few foetus sacrifices in the process).

But, the feminists may not still be pleased for the simple reason that this process will not stop because there will be an increased awareness of the beauty of having a girl child but about the increased fear of losing the ‘precious’ boy child.

Saved my blushes but.......lost out on the whole

Yours truly is in final year BTech (Electronics) in a prestigious institute.I am still struggling to figure out just how I managed to get this far. Maybe I have the answer here..........

It was the morning of the day when the embedded systems' viva was scheduled to take place. I reached college to find out that my classmates were busy skimming and scanning through what is supposedly a book on ES. I, however had forgotten even the name of the book which I had got for this beloved subject. The class was abuzz with words such as memory, controller, operating systems, programmers and the like.
I was getting more anxious by the minute. Still I maintained a calm and composed look on my face but deep within I knew that apart from the fact that it was ES viva that day, I knew nothing else regarding the subject.
I was thinking and trying to come up with a smart, witty answer to wriggle out of the awkward situation which I was bound to fall in when I would be asked my share of questions. But...........it is so damn obvious that I failed to come up with one...................just look at the adjectives I have associated with the word 'answer'..................need I say anything more!!!!!!!
After having thought for a long time for an excuse and having failed to find one, I gave up and just prepared myself to meet my fate.
There were a dozen people before me. As they went in and came out, the usual practice of stopping each one of them and asking for their questions and answers begun. I realized that they were asked some simple questions but some very difficult questions as well (by difficult I mean it was difficult at that time; when people (barring a few) prepare for a viva by just glancing through the book, any in-depth question is bound to appear very difficult).
I panicked........I felt that I should glance through atleast one topic. I was doing so when a well-wisher of mine walked up to me and said,"Do you feel that you would be able to understand anything that you are reading now?". (Good question!!!!! why now........I never understood anything that I have read till today.......so today would be no different). I, almost instantly experienced mental peace and was able to relax(all this was happening while my well-wisher was busy answering people's doubts right infront of me) .
Then came my turn.............I entered and a female MTech student asked me to take a seat. I was about to say that there would be no need for that as I would not take much of her valuable time anyway.It so began

She: Have you studied ES????
(She must be awesome at face reading!!!!!!!! And I felt that God had answered my prayers without me even offering one........what a question!!!!!!!  now I could take it from there to anywhere I wished to.......)

I:No, ma'am........nothing at all........(Thank God!!! This is what I had been planning to say since    morning. I only lacked an opportunity...........and now I have been given that chance....)

She: Not even a single topic???

I: No, ma'am.........nothing......

She: When is the EST(End Semester Exam) ??

I: It starts on the 29th of April.......

She: So, it's just two weeks................when will you start...........what have you been doing all this         while?

I: Ma'am, I will start a little later as I am busy with the project work (I have heard that 'lies for a     good purpose are forgiven'). I didn't get much time to study because of this.......

She: Ok, so tell me something about your project................
(I got my chance and so I started to blabber about our project)

She: So, your project is mostly Matlab based........

I: Totally..........

She: Alright, you can go now........

Wow!!!!!!!! Absolutely wow!!!!!!!!!!! I might not have got a great grade for the viva but atleast I didn't feel embarrassed when I was in there. I was comfortable all the time. I didn't know anything about ES. So, I would have have never got a grand score anyway. But, atleast I escaped the pain I could have been put through. 
Now lets go back to the reason which prompted me to discuss this. How I managed to get this far. It is because of incidents such as this. The whole viva show is a farce..........the examination system is being ridiculed all the time by our institute. There are people who still manage to gain knowledge without complaining inspite of this mess. But there are students like me, who use the very first opportunity to shun away from studies.
The institute is certainly sparing the rod and spoiling the child.