53 - MUMBAI SIGHTS AND INSIGHTS

Yesterday I travelled to Chembur from Girgaon, for some personal work.  The taxi journey was almost two hours long, with endless views of exhaust pipes of buses and other 4 wheelers.  But the return journey by bus,  let me appreciate a few interesting sights of Mumbai.


At the Nana Lal Mehta flyover, near Matunga,  the area beneath the flyover has been transformed into an aesthetic walking space, with a neat pathway and greenery and sitting space.  Public was enjoying the space in the shade.  Wow!  If only the same transformation could be emulated at all other 'below-the-flyover' spaces.  All other similar spaces are a horror, with overflowing garbage bins, haphazardly parked vehicles, beggars living and multiplying and carrying out their daily life  chores in the public eye.



The next beautiful sight was outside the Cosmos Bank at Gokhale Road, Dadar.  Two dead tree trunks have been painted colourfully and each has been mounted with some sculptures to enhance the trunks.  One has a lotus and the other has a peacock.  It looks very natural and calming.



Then the Atria Mall flyover before Haji Ali, had the next 'treat' for the senses.  Just as we pass Worli naka and approach Atria Mall,  the stench of the Worli sewage clearing plant, assaults our senses.  and then the lovely green and fresh climbers that adorn the walls of the flyover, calm the passersby.



At Mumbai Central, either side of the road has a narrow pavement that is converted into an open air mall, every evening.  One side has a display of colourful T-shirts, watches and headphones, bags and books, and fruits.  The other side is home to the nomadic Nepalese woollens sellers.  They have built their make shift stalls all along the sidewalk, almost fifty stalls on one side of the bridge, the other side is the space for the fish and pickle stalls.  It is a soothing sight to watch people earning an honest living, rather than to see a bridge pavement taken over by slums and beggars.



Then I travelled towards the Lower Parel railway bridge.  You can buy clothes and shoes, vegetables and fruit, mobile covers and headphones,  warm clothes and toys, fresh vadapav, chilled beverages.
But when the stalls disappear, you can see the slums with their innumerable naked babies defecating openly and men smoking happily.  The women cooking and conversing aloud.  I personally knew a well-to-do man, who envied these open air slum dwellers.   Hmmmmm.........My advice to such people is that they are free to join the choice of their dreams.











 

52 - WHAT MADE ME SMILE

When the heat is unbearable and it rains,  all heave a sigh of relief,  but it is short lived.  
How can I be happy when some thoughtless driver splashes the muddy puddle all over me, on my way to school?

But that is soon forgotten once I reach my school.    I am not a student.  

At school, today,  the time flew,  with interschool competition practices and reports to be completed.    

When it was time to go home,  as a rule,  I am usually tense..........waiting at the bus stop is a lesson in patience and perseverance...........

My bus is elusive and I am forced to wait at the stop,  today being no exception.      As I wait,  a middle aged man joins the previous commuters waiting at the stop.........but soon I am bugged with his behaviour.  He spits seven times,     until  I cannot just ignore his random spitting,  and I tell him to please stop the public nuisance he is creating by the dispersal of his sputum.  He retorts   'tumhare upaar giraa kya?'      I got upset and scolded him for the dirty habit.  

........and then he boarded the next  bus,  while I had to keep on waiting.

A car tried to park right across the bus stop,    my daily grouse,    and I had to request,  grumble, cajole,  threaten,   until he drove off.      After almost 40 minutes of my life had passed by at the bus stop,  my bus arrived.

 Today I had to stop on my way home,  to  buy vegetables and fruits.   Over laden with my shopping bags,   begging taxiwallahs to let me in...........I was at the end of my endurance.    'kahaa jaana hai?'     and then a shake of the head.....'gas bharraana hai'.......'shift ka time ho gaya'..........I was sooooo   angry  and sooooo  tired.      And then I saw this lady walk by me and she smiled.......I could not place her.........a student's parent???.........no,  she kept smiling and made sure that I too was looking at her and then I had to smile.........thanks to Biba.  She was not Sushmita Sen,  nor was I Aishwarya Bachchan,   because then the scenario would have not  been cordial.  But......................since that was not the case,  the outcome was different.   Her salwar outfit and mine,  were the same.......a bond was created between us........a fleeting moment that made us smile at each other...........without having met before......without any formal introduction...........I felt happy,   an unspoken bond between a stranger and me made me feel that all the problems were by-the-way........and so today my day ended with a smile from a stranger,    a smile that made me smile back and let me  forget the day's  trials. 

51 - PRIME MINISTER MODI AND DEMONETIZATION HUNGAMA

What a stupid and unwarranted decision it is of the Indian prime minister Mr.Modi, to scrap the currency notes of one thousand and five hundred.  Supposedly to bring out the hidden black money of hoarders.  Please note Mr.Prime minister, what these dishonest persons did once, they will do again, and they will be prepared for future such decisions.

And if it is a step to curb the counterfeit currency that Pakistan has infiltrated into our economy, then they will do it to the new currency too.  In fact, if I were a counterfeiter, it would be a very good opportunity to infiltrate the new currency, at a time when Indian citizens are so vulnerable.  Gullible persons will take the new currency at face value and not be able to differentiate between the  real and the fake at this moment.  At least the present currency was something that we had become aware about.  As a layperson in the field of finance, even I had become aware of how to feel and check out the rupees five hundred and one thousand currency notes.  With the brand new notes of 500 and 2000 being thrust onto us, so suddenly,  it will be unknown territory.  I have just viewed the pictures of the new currency on television news.  So when I get currency that looks like that, I will have no means to check its veracity.  At least, the new currency should have been formatted like the plastic currency of Australia, which is so wow and so futuristic too.

Today,  my experiences have made me very infuriated, thanks to the government's rash decision.  I travel by taxi and bus, on my way to and from work, so change of almost eighty rupees gets used.  I had to buy bread (rs.35), two tetrapacks of milk (rs.150),  oil (rs.180),  Muesli (rs.85), 6 eggs (rs.35), a total of rs.485,  and the shopkeeper, from whom I have been shopping the above goods every week, refused to accept my 500 rupee note.  And then I decided to buy paneer, rs.260 for half a kilo, and that shopkeeper too refused to accept my 500 rupee note.  So when I visited the fruit seller, and he too refused.  I needed some medicines and a mosquito spray, but the three pharmacys that I passed were so crowded, that I dared not to wait for my turn in the melee of pushy and impatient men.  And so I returned home with an empty bag, feeling very resentful, that I had to be insulted in spite of wanting to use my hard earned money.

Today I do not appreciate Mr. Arnab Goswami, our very voluble Times Now, TV anchor,  at all.  He is arguing just to appease the Modi government higher ups, it is clear.  The opposition Congress view point is more practical and realistic.  The roads across Mumbai have been bereft of goods vehicles and transport vans, because they are off the road, as their bosses do not want to be paid in 500 and 1000 currency notes, which is the only feasible mode of payment for wholesale service.  The vegetable market was also almost deserted, as no vendors wanted to take these notes. 

If this drastic step by the government is aimed at black money hoarders, then it is not the only prey.  Honest, hardworking persons are suffering emotional trauma caused because of the discontinuance of the currency.  Today, a colleague of mine was continuously in tears.  She is a very middle class housewife and a teacher.  Christians have holy communion scheduled for this month and she is heart broken, having withdrawn almost one lakh to pay for preparations, which would not have been possible with a cheque.  Flower decorators, small time event managers, food suppliers, tailors, even priests, do not take cheque or card payments.  Another colleague had just money-ordered cash to his family in the village, which is needed for a relative's  ongoing medical treatment and is worried how they will manage with the discontinued currency. 

The ruling party in India, who live in lavish bungalows, enjoy travelling by plane, helicopters and expensive suvs, who invest in flats that are priced at one crore or more,  will keep enjoying these perks, as they will keep up with their 'kickbacks' anyway.

How is it that ordinary citizens, suddenly become crorepaties when they become politicians?  They will continue to squeeze their profits through the same routes that they have managed to, for so many years. 

Why sir, did you not announce this step before Divali?  You have not bothered to empathize with the numerous families that have a wedding in the offing.  You are brash and dictatorial.  My cash is 'paseeneh kee kamai' which you have announced is 'trash'.  I wholeheartedly abhorr you for that.

My parting shot to our honourable PM is that, you should walk, and use public transport and live frugally, as a 'chaiwalla' should.  Otherwise please give the exact graph of your fortunes rising so astronomically.  How is it that you were 'honest' and did you not ever accept 'black money' and yet now you have been able to grab the top post and travel in your own 'plane' to countries around the world.

Of course you are representing the country, but along the way, you paved your destiny very favourably and very cleverly, to achieve your present post.  You must admit that  you too have taken advantage of kickbacks and black money to fulfill your ambitions.  The political rallies and public posters, if you take into account the minimum that a rising politician has to spend on, you sir, have not spared any paisa, ever.

Long term???  The people who hoard and earn money illicitly, will continue to do so, and the politicians are the main culprits who demand bribes, and they will do so in the future too.  I do not have an ATM card because I do not want to waste the extra service charges.  I withdraw money according to my needs, and that is in the 500 rupees denomination, for my monthly use.  You, and your political cronies are the biggest black money hoarders, as is proof of the income shown on the names of all your family members galore.



 

50 - THE DEADLIEST TERRORIST IN THE WORLD

In my school there is a very old Anglo Indian church, from the 1850s and it has wall plaques dedicated to Brirish soldiers and their family members who had died in those years, before India's freedom.  Most of the eulogies show that young soldiers and their young family members, wives, children had died due to Malaria.  Malaria caused by the bite of the female anopheles mosquito.

 Recently the Zika virus scourge in Mexico and  south America and Brazil, was spread by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, also known as the tiger mosquito because of its black and white colouring.Its bite affected the foetus in pregnant women, causing them to be born   with microcephaly or serious brain abnormalities. 

These episodes one hears in news and then they are forgotten.  But recently there is an increase in dengue, chickunguniya cases in Mumbai and many of my students were also affected.  So they remained absent, rested, in the absence of any medical recourse for these diseases, certain home remedies are resorted to, eating dragon fruit, papaya leaves etc to increase the haemoglobin count, etc.   But the one disease that does not allow any type of recourse or reprieve is the encephalitis infection caused by mosquito bite and the filariasis disease.

Mosquitoes are vectors or carriers for many deadly diseases, like malaria, dengue, chickungunya, yellow fever, filariasis, encephalitis and the zika fever.   These tiny creatures, weighing a mere 2.5 milligrams, are responsible for the maximum number of deaths, all over the world.  There are 2700 species of mosquitoes and most of them have originated in the African continent. 

The word 'mosquito' is a spanish word, meaning 'little fly'.  The life cycle of a mosquito lasts for about 4 to 10 days, depending on the heat and humidity of the area.  The eggs thrive in wet spots, then they change to larvae, pupae and then the adult flying scourge is born.  Females live for upto 2 months and the males only for about 10 days.  Both male and female mosquitoes feed on fruit and plant nectar, but a female needs blood protein to develop eggs.  Mosquitoes do not posses teeth, so they do not 'bite'.  The females have 2 long proboscis, which is a long serrated mouth part, with which they pierce the skin and locate a capillary, to suck blood.  The other proboscis tube injects saliva with a painkiller and an anticoagulant into the victim.  This process is when infection is transmitted into animals and humans from an infected mosquito. 

The Aedes species is active during the day, so mosquito nets are not so effective to prevent its bite.  Nowadays many repellents are available in the market.  Some are to burn, some are electronic, some are to apply to the skin and a most recent one is a body patch repellent and fabric rub on.  But the best deterrent is to not let the mosquito lay eggs, or to let natural predators thrive.  Snails, ants, spiders, frogs, dragonflies, goldfish, eat the eggs and thus curb the menace.  One toad can eat upto 100 mosquitoes  a night.  But a female mosquito lays upto 300 eggs, 3 times, every 3 days......whew.

In order to save oneself from the mosquito borne diseases, it is important to know what attracts them.  They find hosts by sight, by detecting infra red radiation emitted by warm bodies. Mosquitoes are also attracted by chemical signals, carbon dioxide and lactic acid, from upto 25 to 30metres.  Smelly feet, active fidgety people who sweat a lot, and dark clothing attract them. 

In Pune, a restauranteur got the deadly filariasis disease, and his leg swelled with the worms and had to be amputated, and his son who cared for him also got the infection and both his legs were amputated but after living a painful bedridden life for a few years, he too could not be saved.  Another tragic memory is connected with an uncle who was a chemist in Ghatkopar.  He too contracted the deadly disease from some visiting patient, and died a painful death after suffering with the swollen extremities.  Just recently, I have observed a cycle repairer who used to have a stall near the Babulnath temple, afflicted with the disease.  It is a sad state of affairs, but he must have caught the infection from someone with the disease visiting the temple for heavenly reprieve.  Now he is a source of infection for any unlucky person who gets bitten with a mosquito that bites him.

Sometimes it makes me wonder why God created  this tiny animal which only spreads disease and despair.

49 - WHY FAST?

Nineteenth  of October, or nine days before divali is being celebrated as 'Karva Chauth', a festival that is celebrated by 'suhagans' .  This term, as all Indians know, refers to women whose husbands are alive.  Legend has it that a queen named Savitri, started this custom.

Savitri's husband died and the God of Death, Yumdoot came to collect his soul, she pleaded with him to let her husband remain alive.  Since Savitri had been a devout wife, Yumdoot granted her any wish except her husband's life.  So, Savitri said that she wanted 100 children.  And then her wish was granted and her husband got a new lease of life.  So all devout wives observe this auspicious day as Kavra Chauth and pray for their husband's long life.

So a festival for married women who are not widows.  But what about widows?  Are they dead too that they should not celebrate any thing at all, since they have no husband to pray for?  It is as if religion was made only for married women and all men only.

But every religion has some sort of custom of fasting.  Christians fast during Lent.  Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent and it starts 46 days before Easter Sunday.  The month is in mourning for the death of Christ on Good Friday, and then his resurrection is celebrated on Easter Sunday.  So during the 46 days, Christians may give up something that they enjoy, as a sign of penance, meat or cigarettes or alcohol etc.  Zorastrians give up meat during a few days every month and during the ten days before navroze, when prayers are specially dedicated to the dead. These ten days are known as gathas.  Jains fast during Chaumasa in August and September, known as Santhana.  But that is mainly for older people.  Younger Jains and even children fast for a week eating only fruits, and boiled water, known as Paryushan.  Muslims and bohris fast during moharram for a whole month, but eat and drink before sunrise.  Hindus fast all the time, by mainly giving up whatever is white, like milk, flour products, salt, sugar, rice, etc.  Hindus fast on Mondays if they worship Shiva,  Thursdays are for sant Dattatreya, Fridays are for Santoshima, Saturdays are for Lord Hanuman,   and they also fast during Ganesh Chaturthi, Ekadashi, Mahashivratri,Gokulashtmi.  It is a custom  for Hindus to fast and the women walk barefeet during their fasts.  Fasting is a way to bargain with the gods for favours of a happy family life, a long life for the husband, or to fulfill some endeavour of a new business or job.

These details I have gleaned from my colleagues and my students.  Especially my students, who show so much self control to maintain their fast, although their classmates are eating and drinking during break time.  If only their self control would flourish and grow with age, so that they would refrain from any vices as adults.

So fasting is a way that religion has intervened to help humans to gain health and self control.  And to make a wish come true, because dreams help one to survive and thrive.





 

48 - CHINESE ALL THE WAY

 Today, on 28th October, Mumbai celebrated the first day of Divali celebrations with Dhanteras,  and most Hindu residents had lighted up their balconies with Chinese fairy lights.  Also the shops were all lighted up across their name boards with twinkling lights.  Multistorey buildings look pretty with different coloured lights blinking away, and the walls and trees enclosing their premises are also lighted with pretty lights, mostly made in China.  Chinese fairy lights are not only cheaper than the Indian ones, but also in so many different options to choose from.

So, as I looked out from the BEST bus window, the Kemps corner high rises, were all lit up as though to celebrate a wedding.    I alighted from the bus at Jaslok Hospital, but I dared not admire the pretty colourful lights now, because I had to watch my footsteps.  The footpath at Peddar Road is like the surface of the moon, as are most of the footpaths of Mumbai.

Anyway, today the footpaths have been taken over by the flower vendors, who are so creative in their toran making, with entire families involved.  You can see the obvious husband wife couples, with an old family member, and kids of all age groups, from ten to five to infants.  All are busy doing their bit to complete the finished product.  Yellow, orange, white marigold flowers, interspersed with bunched leaves and golden balls, woven into a lovely display of garlands to decorate the entrances of shops and homes.  These real flower torans are more aesthetic and more in demand than the artificial chinese ones.

The shopping at the Reliance Store at Mahalaxmi, left me riled.  One cannot find the healthy options here, except the uber expensive fruits.  There is nothing special for a 'sugar free' person to buy.  Sugar free biscuits, sugar free chocolates,  slow release cooking livo oil, slow release diabetic atta, sugar free vegetable and fruit juices, jamun sugar free juice, etc will not be found here.   Better than this shop, I got what I wanted across the road, at the other shops.  Mr. Mukesh Ambani, with you being one of the richest persons in the world, I assumed that you would also be the most aware and informed shopkeeper.  But there was a  crowd around the free JIO mobile recharge card table.  So many suckers for 'free' tags.

And then I returned home and observed the various advertisements along the outer fences and gates of the residences and shops I walked by.  Right from the Tata garden, along the majestic St.Stephen's Church, upto the Parsee Sanatorium and the famous Banoo Mansion at Kemps Corner, where   Zubin Mehta grew up to be a world famous conductor especially of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.  His father's home, is still used as the Mehli Mehta Musical Foundation, where music classes are conducted.  Whenever I walk past the Parsee sanatorium and the Mehli Mehta building, it gives me pride to belong to the zorastrian faith.  And then, across the road, just before the flyover is the boarded up unlucky shop, outside the Om Builders office.  I recall visiting this once lively shop, which is under litigation, as family members quarrel over the spoils.  It has been boarded up for so many years now, what a waste.  Four watchmen sit outside the premises, and once I had asked them why the place was shut and they had informed me about the family dispute.  What a waste of prime land.

Then, just at the turn of Kemps corner, is the stately entrance to the Parsee Towers of Silence,  the place where Zorastrians lay their dead to be consumed by birds and in the absence of vultures,  to be incinerated by natural solar energy.  The towering gate posts, display the nameplate,  'The Towers of Silence' were made in memory of the First Baronet of Mumbai, Sir Jamshetjee Jeejeebhoy, on 19th December. 1868.  When I used to visit Mumbai as a child, about 50 years ago,  this entire area was forested and there were no highrises at all,  but now it is a different landscape.

On the other side of the flyover, is Hobby Ideas and Crossword, the book store, a road which is always congested with double parked cars and the stink of the public toilet as one walks along.  Then is the very aesthetic window display of Anita Dongre and then my favourite shop, Biba.  But the eyecatcher of the entire street here, is Meena Bazaar, with the most exquisite sarees and ghagras on display. 

Walking further is quite a torture, as AC drips have to be dodged and footpaths blocked with parked two wheelers and four wheelers have to be traversed like an obstacle race.  The Sah and Sanghi showroom of new cars is the most tortuous, because in spite of a decent footpath, it is mostly blocked by the showroom's customers' vehicles.  The next sore is the now defunct Porsche showroom, whose manager committed a financial fraud and caused the company to be bankrupt at this centre.  That is the gossip that is doing the rounds.  Walking past buildings that have sad pasts, produces bad vibes.

Then further is the New Era School, now a drab and rundown exterior, which once boasted a very artistic mural of the Mahatma.  And on and on, I walked along a very narrow footpath, encroached by electrical pillars put up for road lights, that made it impossible to traverse in most places.

All along the paths that I have described, were NO PARKING signboards, squares of  eighteen inches, made of tin and wired onto gates and fences, where ever possible, with an advertisement painted on them. Some displayed as proper squares and others displayed in the diamond position.  Very innovative and of course free of any rentals.  So now I shall list the various ads that were displayed on these numerous square ad boards.

* Barbeque Nation at Atria Mall.
* My Glamm-Book your at home, spa and saloon service,  download the app.
* 100% gold load from HDFC.
* idp - free counselling to study in Australia, UK, Canada, US, New Zealand.
*Dock to door-Hamvi- no more fish market, you name it, we have it, prawns, pomfret, surmai, rawas,
   rahu, bombil.
* TITAN eyeplus, Wardem road.
* Office chair repairs, just call.
* Pestcontrol, call the experts.
* SENSO hearing aid experts, Kemps corner.
* HRC hard disk repairing, laptop repair, data recovery.
* SAN-hearing and speech clinic, total care.
* Beyond Fitness-cardio, strength training, spinning, zumba, power yoga, kick boxing.
* Career after HSc-NIIT-Grant road (W)

But the most popular one, or rather the most numerous ad was this:
* Free kaali peeli rides everyday, Just download the Ola app and 100% money back on kaali peeli rides.

I found it quite interesting to  read the ads.  They are displayed at eyelevel and of course the latest ones must be replacing the older ones.  My only wish is that if only I could put as many of these ads with the legend "NO PARKING" , no matter what they advertise after that,  at the wall of the buildings that park their BMWs and humangous SUVs and Skodas on public footpaths.  Chronic areas are the August Kranti Maidan entrances on both sides, a certain Dar ul Mulk building with lots of rich and care-a-damn car owners, at Pandita Ramabai Road,  and all the buildings along the Walkeshwar road, beginning from chowpatty and across Sital Baug and White House.   How I wish I had a magic wand, to make the cars parked on walking spaces disappear or get minimised.  Walking is so enjoyable, but in Mumbai, you have to only walk while you are supposed to walk aimlessly, just for the exercise, at maybe Marine Drive or inside Hanging Garden, Phirojshah Mehta garden or the Worli Seaface, or the Mahalaxmi race course, or the Bandra seaface,etc.  You cannot walk your way to work or to shop,  because those paths are not walkable, or blocked with garbage, like the Nagpada area, or parked across with vehicles, as most other places, or full of uneven tiling, which can cause you to trip and get seriously injured. 

Walking to any specific destination is not easy, nor fun at all, in Mumbai.  So that is one reason why the Mumbaikars are so potbellied and obese. 




 

47 - LOCAL SURGICAL STRIKE

Surgical stirkes were resorted to by the Indian army, to avenge the repeated seize fire violations and terrorist insursions by Pakistan into Indian territory.  That is a national issue, but at the local level, often one has to resort to such action in daily life, when faced with a chronic problem that has no other feasible solution.  Here is my take on a local 'surgical strike'.

It would seem that any person who is travelling by a taxi, is so comfortable and happy to be availing of this service.  But it is not such a 'happy' situation for the traveller at most times.

In Mumbai, the first problem is to be able to get into a taxi when one needs to.  And so I have to resort to a 'surgical strike' type of operation, to capture one.  First, I have to keep waving out, hoping that the cab is unoccupied and will stop.  Then the driver slows down and asks where I want to go, and if it does not suit him, he will just zoom off.  But if there is a red traffic signal nearby, then I can 'capture' the cab and forcefully make him take me to my destination.  Often I have to resort to more drastic means to catch a cab.  After patiently waving out to 5 or 6 cabs, in vain, I then just step out in front of one and request any passer-by to help me to enter the cab by blocking it, while I 'capture' the cab and settle in.  Of course, this is a bit difficult, since all passers-by are not too eager to help and until that happens, the traffic behind my 'captured' cab comes to a stand still, with a lot of cursing and honking, until the deed is accomplished.  But that is not the end to my woe.  The taxi driver then threatens to take me for a ride of my life that I will forever regret.  And then is the next step of my strategy.  I insist that he can do so and then answer to the cops who I shall dial on my mobile, and for extra effect, I take out my whistle, blow loudly and challenge the cabbie to take me safely or face dire consequences impromptu.  After two minutes, the cabbie opts to grumble aloud and carry on driving to my destination.  These cabbies grumble about their thankless job, about the sultry weather, or the incessant rains, or the countless potholes, and the corrupt policemen who fine them randomly, the new Ola cabs that have eroded their customer base etc etc.

My desperation to catch a cab is only when I am overloaded with my weekly marketing trip, or when I am desperate to reach my school on time.  Entering a cab, it is sometimes a torture to touch the handle, when one can observe red paan spit all over the exterior of the taxi door.  But it has to be handled carefully and I gingerly avoid touching more than necessary to get the door open.

In the mornings, when I am not tired and on my way to work, I settle into a cab and then follow a fixed action plan.  I turn the window handle clockwise to lower the window on my left, and turn the window handle anti clockwise, on the window on my right.  Until this process is completed, I try to hold my breath.  Once the fresh air has entered the cab, I breathe easily,  because 55 percent of our cabbies have TB or some sort of throat infection, or a persistant cough.  This statistic is only based on my personal experiences.  Some taxi drivers sleep in the back seat during the night and it is their 'bedroom',  which is a very depressing thought for me when I observe that the cab I enter has fabric seat covers.  At least plastic or rubber seat covers tend to be more hygienic and bug free, I suppose.

Then I make sure that the meter has been turned on, because there have been instances when the driver forgets to do so.  The next observation is the car dangler that occupies the centre spot of the wind screen.  If the driver is a Hindu, there is usually a plastic Hanuman in the reclining position, with  a curly wurly tail facing upwards.  Down on the centre of the dashboard,  a colourful ganpati figurine, with a beaded canopy, garlanded with fresh flowers, is displayed.  If the cab driver is Muslim, then a decorated CD, with urdu writings hangs happily, as a lucky taavees, dancing away with the taxi bouncing in and out of the numerous potholes.  Some taxis have a Saibaba statue installed on the dashboard, decorated with vermillion and turmeric, remnants of an early morning pooja.  A very popular centrepiece is also a plastic map of India, with two Indian flags across it.

On a few occasions, the cab driver bad mouths overtakers, or honks randomly,  but as a passenger it is prudent to stay quiet until the journey has ended and then express an opinion.  On one such trip, it was very difficult for me to compromise and be silent, while the driver kept popping his head out of his window and spitting at every opportunity, and at every signal stopover.  This is usually a stopover or slow down at eight key traffic crossroads, and I was very  uncomfortable.  When I was alighting, I gave the fare and also a Happy Dent pack of six to the driver and told him that chewing the happydent would help him to control his spitting which was not a very hygienic habit. 

I always keep an extra packet of Happy Dent with me and gift it to chronic spitters and tobacco chewing taxi drivers.  I wish Mr.Quadros, the taximens' union leader would address this problem.

And if my blog does get through to him, I have another suggestion too.  An unoccupied cab should display a green headlight or toplight, so that when we wave it down, we know that we are waving down an available cab.  Otherwise it is so difficult to surmise whether the approaching cab is free or not, especially in the night.

So, let there be Ola and Meru and TABcab services, but the easiest ones accessible to the common laymen, will always will be the Kaali Peeli cabs of Mumbai.

 



 

46 - FIELD TRIPS

Every school has to arrange for the students to participate in a field trip, at least once a year.  Some schools do it every month, but most just manage the 'once a year' mandatory responsibility.

Not so long ago,  our school picnics or 'field trips' were to "the Governor's Beach", at Walkeshwar, the Vihar lake with its Laurel and Hardy, and Humpty Dumpty statues, the Hanging Garden with its 'Old Lady's Shoe', the traffic garden, the Museum, the zoo, the nature park at Mahim,  and the aquarium. These trips were undertaken only in the supervision of the school teachers.  Students carried their own snacks and shared the food with each other at the picnic spot.  Teachers organised games and gave away prizes to the winners. 

 Then in the late 1999s,  school trips were taken to the Silent Hill resort, the Snake park at Pune, the Lonavla wax museum and to grand amusement parks like Essel World, Tikujini Wadi, Fantasy land, Great Escape resort,   and Imagica at Karjat.  At these spots, the professional groups would supervise the children, with teachers as part of the group.  The students were served a packed breakfast on the bus on the way to the spot.  Lunch would be professionally managed and served by the park management.  The students would enjoy rides or the water park facilities at the amusement parks.

The latest field trip craze is now Kidzania.  It is a kids'  city, built on the second floor of a mall, the R city mall at Ghatkopar.  My school had just arranged a field trip to Kidzania and I am now recalling my experiences to the mall and at the spot.

The buses ferried us to Ghatkopar, across five flyovers and a very bumpy road with potholes galore.  A ride that lasted 50 minutes, fortunately with no traffic jams.   The Panvel flyover was the worst of the lot.  With this bad state of Mumbai roads, we need to travel in some sort of space vehicle, that would ensure smooth transport like they enjoy on the moon's cratered surface.  The flyovers have been enclosed with  perforated partitions that act as sound barriers for local residents, about ten feet tall in some places, making the drive across the flyovers, claustrophobic and boring, with no view of the scenery on either side of the road. 

But in the places that the view was open to be seen, it was a mixed feeling. The view of the defunct Mill grounds at Parel, where so many rapes have been reported, has a spooky aura even in broad daylight.   Mostly tall skyscrapers are visible, or the roofs of low lying homes or slums.  Most of the multi storeyed buildings had balconies with barred or grilled facades, that looked like jails.  Washed clothes were hanging across balconies and windows, as though specially arranged for passers-by to view.  The slums were smothered in large blue plastic sheets, weighted down with stones and tires, as a precaution by the inmates to block out the unseasonal rains.  The tops of the roofs, that were visible, intermittent among floors of old building, were very littered and dirty.  The top floors had obviously thrown trash onto the overhanging shades of lower floors, creating a very sullied scenery for people driving along the higher level roads.  Chembur and Cheda Nagar slums were an unbelievably congested human abode.  Open defecation was being done in full public view,  and two nallas were stinking grossly, as our bus passed by them. 

A few appealing views were also seen.  A large clean payground, with youngsters enjoying football was a welcome sight.  Wherever the roads were lined with huge trees, peepal, neem, rubber, clean and green and so refreshing to the eyes.  As our bus approached Ghatkopar west, long lines of richshaws were visible, aeroplanes could be seen closer to the ground as they were landing nearby,  and one very pretty and well maintained nursery with colourful pots and flowers,  and then the bus depot and lastly our destination.

Each student was made to wear a tracker and given 50 kidzoes, a currency that lets students participate in various activites like making doughnuts, making coke, chocos, Parle biscuits, etc,.  Each glass doored room is an activity centre, run by top brands that have been roped in by Kidzania.  Adults are allowed to view the activities through the glass doors only.

The entire set up, helps students to perform tasks, earn money, then spend it  to participate in enriching educational activities.  There is a dentistry with a proper rubber model and equipment to perform tasks on the model's teeth.  Students can learn dance at the Shiamak academy and perform in the small but well equipped auditorium.  Every activity is a real life programme. A newspaper can edited and printed, all by the students and the Times of India brand.  Yes bank lets students credit the kidzoes in their official account, with a proper credit card too.  Lunch is also served within the premises.  The entire enclosure has an artificial sky, two large plastic trees and is air cooled.

As we teachers waited around while the students participated in the activities on offer, we reminisced about the simple games that we grew up with, which kids nowadays have no clue how to play.  We recalled the fervour with which we used to play, seven tiles, mud and water, marbles, hopscotch, tippry, L-O-N-D-O-N and rounders.  One teacher narrated how she would not be included in her brother's kite flying sessions and would be satisfied with flying a plastic bag.

During the return trip, through the bus window,  large advertisements were visible along the road.  Just before the ITC grand central hotel,  the road is dotted with factory outlets of shoe and bag brands like Nike, Delsey, American Tourister, etc.  As our bus reached Byculla, the majestic clock tower of the Zoo was a soothing sight.  And this reminded me about the new inmates, the penguins.  I wonder if they are in good health, as nothing has been posted on the news recently, about their status.  Soon the tall spires of Gloria Church rose into view, marred with shattered windows, covered with yellow and blue plastic sheets,  with repairs underway. 

The other side of this flyover, offers a view of the Byculla market, where a very large garbage disposal area is visible, public toilets come into view and then the tops of the roofs that shade the wholesale market area.  A very pathetic sight for so many vehicles that drive past daily.  I suggest that the municipality of this area beautifies the roof tops in some way.  Either by growing a lovely lawn across them, or painting some socially relevant message all over, to beautify the view.  Because, every journey undertaken is not only for reaching the destination, but also to be enjoyed along the way.





 

45 - TRIPLE TALAQ

This is the topic under discussion on the television shows today.  It set me thinking about all the persons that I am acqainted with, that have undergone a divorce.

The most talked about separation of the present is of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.  They were together since 2005, so that is almost eleven years and then they had kids and adopted kids and now they have separated.  It is so sad when love turns to hatred.

Muslims have the triple talaq remedy for husbands who want to break off,  but for christians it is not even possible to break away.  I am aware of many christian couples who would  prefer to get a divorce from each other but their religion does not even allow it easily.  It is such a tiring and long drawn out process that many of them just live separately without any legal end to their relationship.
For Parsees too, the process of divorce is full of red tapism and religious rigmaroles. 

Women seek divorce because the husband is violent, and beats her up,  or he is a philanderer and has random affairs with the knowledge of the wife,  or he is impotent or gay and cannot fulfill her sexual needs and desires.  A husband's demand for unnatural sex is also an issue for divorce.  Or if the husband is jobless and is a drunkard and a drug abuser and lives off the wife's  salary.  These are specific cases that I have personal knowledge of.

Men seek divorce because they have fallen out of love with their present spouse and want to enter into a new relationship with a younger woman.  Or if the wife has not been able to become a mother. 
Many intercaste marriages end because the interfering in-laws disapprove of the wife.  Sooner or later, the groom's family manage to poison his mind against his choice of a wife and instigate the divorce.  Saifali wanted to philander with a younger woman,  and Javed Akhtar wanted a thin and rich woman,  so easy for them to walk off and divroce the woman who loved them and produced babies for them. 

So, in this scheme of things, considering the Indian scenario,  triple talaq by a muslim, doesn't seem so cruel.  I think that any divorce is cruel.  And mainly to the woman who is the emotional loser in such break ups.

44 - INNOVATION IN THE CLASSROOM

FIVE INNOVATIVE WAYS TO TEACH ENGLISH TO PRIMARY STUDENTS

 

1.  NEW WORDS TO REMEMBER

When a new lesson is introduced,  it is important to let the students memorize new words. I distribute large cut-outs of certain letters of the alphabet.  These  Partners are assigned the task of finding and listing all words that begin with that letter,  from the lesson, into the space of the cut-outSometimes, the letter given should be the last letter of the words and this adds to the difficulty level of the task.

 

2.  CORRECT THE TEACHER PLEASE

To make prose lively and to ensure participation of every student, I set them the responsibility of correcting my mistakes as they repeat whatever I read.  So if  the text says ‘The hot sun’ I read it as ‘The cold sun’

When students repeat the phrase,  they are expected to correct the mistake and read.   This activity also helps them to understand opposites, sometimes it makes them laugh.The main objective that I set out to achieve, is easily done.

 

3.  SILENCE AND ITS AFTERMATH

I have ‘the silence period’ for my English lesson. Students wear ear muffs & tie a cloth band around their mouth. I write a qs on the board .They ‘read’ silently & write the ans on their whiteboard slates,(laminated A4 size sheets) with white board pens. Each student holds up the slate with the answer.  I just glance at the upheld slates & make a mental note of which student needs more feedback in that particular topic.

4.  THE MOBILE, THE PARENTS AND THE PENDRIVE.

Supervised speaking is sidelined, since each class has upto 45 students.  Oral tests are done but students do not get a chance to ‘speak out’

So,  I assign a topic on which they do research and their parents record their speech at the location of the topic given.   The recorded presentation on a pen drive is then viewed by the class.   The results have been very interesting and even the students who shy away from speaking fluently, participate enthusiastically.

 

 

5.   SAY IT WITH A DIFFERENCE. 

I have made a display  chart of all possible student requests, written in different sentence formats.  If a student wants to visit the washroom, drink water, borrow something etc

So going to the washroom has been worded in 8 diff ways & everyday a different format is displayed.  Students have to read it, memorize it, then come to the teacher & say their request.  This process helps them to format sentences creatively.

43 - AN AD THAT HAPPENED

42 - THE PACKAGE COUNTS

41 - EMOJI CREATIONS

40 - SWACHCH BHARAT ABHIYAAN of PRIME MINISTER MODI

Amitabh Bachchan is the face of the NDTV campaign for swachch Bharat and I was just watching the show.  What an interesting debate, but so futile.

 Mr. Bachchan, if you would walk along the road near your house,  people would love to keep it clean maybe.

 And ms Neeta Ambani,  your home at Peddar Road is a fortress with an almost 20 feet tall wall, but when we approach it, just 10 meters away, there is an overflowing public garbage bin, and no proper footpath to walk.  Not so long ago I visited your 'adda' and had a tough time reaching your barricaded home while very very expensive, imported cars zoomed past.  You only want publicity with taking photo ops with public topics that you profess to support.  Your very own security guards, holding their stenguns, spit randomly as they stand on duty and your outlets allow the customers to park their vehicles on pedestrian footpaths, caring two hoots for the public that is inconvenienced.

What hypocrites these famous people are.  It only suits them to endorse some philanthropic issues and remain in the public eye.

Near my school is a very posh air-conditioned office of Mr.Owaisi.  Large posters proclaim his ownership of the premises.  But they flaunt all public rules.  His driver threatens anyone who parks at the road opposite his office,  his workers and visitors blatantly park their two wheelers onto the footpath, as a matter of 'hamara eelaaka hai'.   I have personally picked up plastic teacups and vadapau wrappers, that his office persons have thrown out of his office and given it back to them, thus getting showered with the worst explicits that they could shout out.  They come out of the office and spit and then go back into the sanctity of "the office".

E ward is just around the corner and yet, no one ever comes to fine the defaulters,  And these defaulters are the shopkeepers in the vicinity.  It is ironic that there are so many schools on Clare Road and the students have to walk along dirty roads and footpaths that are encroached with parked two wheelers and even cars, like the area near the Petrol Pump and the American Express Bakery.

The authorities who have to maintain the law, are absent from the scene.  That is the tragedy of India.

Mr Adar Poonawalla, the mighty, you have beseeched to the public to join hands with you to keep the city clean, but that is not possible with almot one fourth of the people sleeping on the roads of Mumbai.  At night, when I walked from the Grant Road station, upto Nana chawk, along the skywalk, I counted one hundred and seventy six beggars and squatters, sleeping along the skywalk.  Where do you think these poorest of the poor, urinate and defecate, and cook and eat and sleep?  They have nothing to do with keeping 'the city clean' for you and me.  They just need to survive and they will do it with all the squalor and dirt around them anyway.  The government needs to address their problem and provide them with sustainable housing.  At present, these pavement dwellers are ignored and left to fend for themselves.  They live in filth and multiply and add to the future generations of  squatters.  They will not become clean by magic.  They need housing and counselling and education and help to lead a better life.  Then Mr.Poonawalla, will India be a clean place.  The have-nots must be helped. 





 

39 - GENTS COMPARTMENT

On my return trip from the suburb of Virar, it was 9.30pm and so I travelled in the gents' compartment with my son, since it is just crowded enough to be seated, at this time.  Also it makes no sense getting into a ladies' only compartment so late, and the gents' compartments are a safer bet, as they are more populated and one is not caught alone and unsafe.

I had to engage my mind in some sort of activity, so as not to nod off in the all male passenger bogie, which would be inappropriate for a lady to do.  I undertook a survey of sorts of everything that was around me.  The first thing I decided was that I would list the stations that passed, as I am not too familiar with the sequence, having spent my childhood in Pune.  So starting from Virar, Nallasopara, Vasai, Dahisar, Borivli,  Andheri, Bandra, Dadar,Mumbai Central, and then my stop, Grant Road.  Having boarded a fast train, the journey lasted approximately 50 minutes.  During that time, my survey of various statistics were logged by me.  Since there was nothing to watch outside the moving train, as it was very dark, I observed the sights within. 

And of course, the sounds too.  The regular announcements of the approaching stations, with a warning in Hindi, Marathi and English, not to lean out of the open doors, and not to hang out, which so many passengers were indulging in, anyway,  and also the jingle that was repeated exactly 16 times during the span of my journey.  "Swaad sugandh ka raja, badshah banayeh badhiyah khaana,badshah masala, badshah rajwadi garam masala, pau bhaji, panipuri, chaat ka masala, badshah masala,  biryani, pullav, cholle ka masala, badshah masala."  It almost mesmerised my senses into whetting an appetite.

Intermittently, my audio senses were bombarded with some passenger behind me indulging in candy crush on their mobile.  Looking around, I made a survey of how many of the 26 seated passengers within my view, were using mobiles, either typing messages, scrolling or wearing headphones and listening to songs.  Fourteen of them were busy with mobiles, even  standees, were viewing their mobiles in one hand and supporting themselves with the other hand holding the overhanging handholds.  Watching their hands, I noticed that 6 males were wearing finger rings, and one of them was wearing a ring in every finger, hmmmmm.  So I was then assessing the accessories that they were sporting on their wrists.  Ten were wearing very large watches,  five were wearing fancy bracelets, one had almost 6 shiny beaded rakhees on one wrist, two men had thick kadas, and nine males had orange strings tied on one wrist. 

Watching the seated men was an eyeopener as to how males behave even in public.  Two of them were very engrossed in digging their noses, obnoxiously, and one fellow was busy massaging tobacco in the palm of one hand, with the thumb of the other, and then carefully pinching it all up and pressing the lethal mixture into the lower part of his mouth.  One old man was reading what was some sort of hindu prayer book.  Two of them were chatting loudly.

The colour of the passengers shirts was very depresssing.  Three were wearing black shirts, nine males had nondescript checked or lined shirts.  Five were wearing some sort of yellowish shirts,  blue and purple shades were eight of them, only my son was wearing a smart orange T shirt with a black jacket.  Hmmmmm.  Watching their shirts, I noticed that only three had used a pen as a style statement, adorning their shirt pocket.  Only three were clean shaven, one was a very unruly bearded man, six had trimmed beards, and all the rest sported moustachios.  Fifteen of the 26 that I was observing, had backpack bags, one had a large blue plastic bag and five of them were carrying their belongings in plastic bags. 

Comparing the female travellers, I have noticed that they tend to snack a lot.  They also nod off even while standing and travelling, and the mobile is of course an indispensable accessory for all travellers, irrespective of their gender.  But when travelling in a ladies' compartment, colourful outfits, pretty earrings and necklaces, and nailpaint, stylish bags and hairstyles are more interesting to observe.  And of course the conversations are also very engaging.  Besides, the babies and children add an extra angle of interest to me as an observer.  Often there are hawkers too, selling earrings, toys, bindis, fruits etc,  and so travel time seems to fly, although one is pressed and pushed among a melee of screeching females, at every stop.  

38 - THE QUEEN OF THE SUBURBS

Today, I had to travel by the local train upto Virar for some official work.  I only travel by the local train if I have to go very far, very fast, as compared to slow bus travel.  Since I seldom travel by the local train,  the experiences and scenes flash into my senses and get analyzed into statistics.

Although it was a Saturday, being a half day for most office goers and an off day for many academic institutes,  the train was very crowded.  But today, in the crowded ladies' compartment, a good samaritan actually offered me a seat for some time and stood all that while, and then even advised me as to the best place to stand, in order to avoid the onslaught of the incoming crowds that kept boarding the train upto Nallasopara.  It made me so happy to have this empathetic lady share her seating time for a while.

The bad memory was when the train approached Bandra,  the litter along the boundaries of the tracks was disgusting and demoralising and smelly.  An assault on the senses.   How can human beings live in that filth?  The entire length of the track, almost one kilometer before Bandra station, is lined with slums and beyond their ramshackle abodes are piles and piles of plastic, paper, thermocole, rags, and rotting vegetable waste.  Rats, flies and God knows what other pests are breeding in that area.   Please please, Bandra residents,  make the approach to your suburb clean and green.  I beseech to all its famous and rich residents, the Bollywood big shots etc, all visitors need to feel a sense of the 'Queen of the suburbs',  and you should make an effort to live upto its name.  Mr Shahrukh Khan, you have recorded a TV ad about 'swachch bharat',  but you only care for your bungalow and your home in Dubai,  you must GIVE towards improving the suburb that has brought you fame,  but it only has the shame of being a filthy public space mostly.

And then when Vasai was announced on the intercom system in the train,  the nose and eyes had another stinky onslaught from a sewage oulet or a large 'nalla'.   The only saving grace was that, the monsoons have turned the open areas into lush green growth.  So wherever we can view the greenery through the moving train, it is so beautiful and clean.

The local trains are the 'lifeline' of Mumbai but all along the tracks are 'deathlines' of filth, poverty, garbage and open air toilets.  Dear Salman Khan, you sent tankers of water to the drought-affected districts of Marathwada, yet you fail to notice the poverty and squallor of the poor in your very own neighbourhood?  I feel that 'Being Human' does not mean that Mumbai only gets the expensive stores with that logo, but that you do the humanitarian work for Mumbaikars too, please.  Do not forget that it is this city that has brought you your name, fame and where you have grown up.  You could give back by maybe, building good homes for the railway line squatters.   It will also be a more lasting contribution towards society, than the water donation that you had undertaken in 2013 to the drought hit Beed district.

October the second has been declared as THE cleanliness drive day for all Bharat,  and there will be lots of photo ops by politicians and richie riches like MsNeeta Ambani and her ilk.  But nothing really really effective at all.  Nothing that would deplete their pockets,  only silly whitewashed news stories, with brooms and buckets and expensive gloves, for maybe 5 to 10 minutes, just as long as it takes the cameras to flash.  If only each celebrity or large company, would adopt the wards, then it would lead to concrete progress towards cleanliness.  Mr.Amitabh Bachchan, you could easily adopt B ward, and it could be the 'Big B' B ward and compete with the Salman Khan A ward etc.  And the great Neeta Ambani C ward, and the Katrina Kaif D ward.  Not forgetting a E ward takeover by the great Kapil Sharma,  he will of course then be forgiven all the 'gapla' he did at his Versova flat.  And the likes of Anil Kapoor, who only want to rake in the moolah and the name and fame without any give back to society.  You have launched your daughter and now your son,  pray please do spend on beautifying the city that adores your every action and relative.  Come on people, Gandhiji is still revered all over the world, you could be revered at least in your 'karmbhoomi'.

.

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37 - THE POWER OF TEACHERS

TEACHERS AS LEADERS

THE TRANSFORMATIVE EFFECT OF TEACHING ON SOCIETY

Education is the strength that prepares learners for their annual examinations, and also for life.  And it is upto teachers to empower young minds, not only with concepts of language, science and maths, but also with values of human dignity, truth  and fairness.  Most schools advertise the final board results, boast about 100% pass confirmed and how some students score the highest in a particular stream.  So parents strive towards ‘marks’ and pay through the nose, to let their wards join extra classes, so that they can get the ‘highest’ grades.  Learning outcomes based on marks gained, are  easily measured and widely understood. 

In Mumbai, I teach in an ICSE institution, with a co-ed student policy.  Teachers here, as in any co-ed environment, instill empathetic attitudes among students of opposite gender.  Although I teach the primary section, there have been many instances, where I have faced challenges, to sensitize students about each others’  different needs.  Girls are more gentle, compared to boys, who have to be tempered to gentle attitudes during study and play time.  This I strongly believe, will lead to good human beings, better behaved young men and more docile daughters-in-law,  will reduce acts of rape, or road rage and dowry murders.  But why has co-ed education so far, not been successful in reducing such incidents?  In my school, we have special value education periods.  Through the medium of stories, assembly prayers, in house red cross clubs, interact club activities etc,  students get a chance to experience social issues and contribute in a small way to charity.  We observe canteen day and collect funds towards old age homes.  Special days like ‘grandparents’ day’,  parents’ day,  let students and their family form closer bonds.  Such activities involve us teachers, as resource persons, to set up the programmes, organise the activities, which as a teacher, I consider it my duty, as it helps our students to be socially more amicable.  In the words of Benjamin Franklin,  “tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.”   Besides, the above activites,  we directly involve the adults that are connected with each student and so a wider spectrum of society is affected in a positive way.  Very often, schools only emphasize on learning subjects like language, history, science, ICT etc and the spiritual side is reduced to a mandatary morning prayer only. 

Successful and famous persons in the world today are in varied categories.  Steve Jobs was rich and philanthropic,  Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam was famous and empathetic.  But the good examples are few.  How did that come about?   That others are corrupt, greedy and bereft of values and virtues?  Some where in their growing up years,  there must have been a catalyst that made them so.  As a teacher, I strive to be a catalyst of reform in my school environment,  in little ways, and hope that the future students will recall and be better citizens in our society, as adults.  Even at the primary level, students do face stress.  A divorce, or the prolonged illness of a family member, or some financial problems, or even personal medical emergencies.  In spite of these hurdles,  I, as a teacher, must be intuitive, and allow them to make friends with stress.  Stress has positive shades also.  I empathise and help the student concerned to change his mind about stress and thus allow them to change their body’s response to stress.  Maybe my tactics have been instrumental in preventing so many hopeless and  impromptu suicides.  I help students to face their dreads and so learn to accept failure and also realize that failure is transient and hard work does pay in the long run.  A student who cannot write neatly or faces a spelling block,  is then my muse for the effort that I need to put in to change that positively.  I involve parents and his friends and classmates, in subtle ways, to assure the change.  As a teacher, I want to be effective, and not too pushy.  Mentoring is a very effective way of transforming the teacher and the taught.  My school encourages mentoring to improve grades and behaviour.  I have to be a mentor, or in other words, a surrogate parent.  A student spends 3/4^th of their waking hours with teachers, at school, and so an affectionate relationship develops, when students have unshakable faith in the teacher’s words.  As a teacher, I can make a lasting impression  on the mind of the child, by  reinforcing appropriate values and attitudes.The student confides in the teacher and thus realizes that there is no problem that cannot be surmounted.  This will make them more tolerant adults of our society.

As a teacher, I appreciate and whole heartedly participate in the good practices that our school encourages.  Public speaking is encouraged and debates on current topics are held on special festival days.  India has a rich heritage of intercaste festivals which provide a good platform to bring about communal harmony at the school level too.  In simple handwork activities and displays,  as a teacher, I strive to inculcate sensitivity among students of different communities.  Especially the Social Science topics of neighbourhood and festivals, afford a vast arena to teachers, to let students experience and learn, beyond the book and the curriculum.  If the topic covers the main religions, then I include the minor ones too, Hindus, Muslims, Christians and Sikhs,   are taught, then I encompass some information about Jews, Parsis, Jains, too.  In some way,  it widens the thinking limits of my class, as they realize the intricacies involved in divergent communities,  and they realize that there are many more possibilities and traditions and that all should be respected.  If a particular trait is ridiculed,  as a teacher, I feel it is my duty to make students empathise and cultivate an inherent respect for the other community rituals too.  I use stories, videos and drama, until I am satisfied that the problem has been resolved.  This I sincerely believe will also inhibit violent attitudes towards other religions and activities.

I strongly believe that society is shaped by the education that young minds receive.  Their future success is not only in good grades, but the good experiences they go through while in school.  So as  educators, we teachers  create positive experiences for our students.  Experiences that will give them necessary lessons for life. Students learn discipline, punctuality, organisational tactics, by getting a chance to use these capabilities at the school level,  by hosting interschool functions, being fair while judging contests etc.   The young generation of India , on whose shoulders the future of the nation rests, must be made to realize  the strengths like truthfulness, self-control, simplicity, humility, perseverance and gratitude.  Theme assemblies and stories, based on these virtues, is bound to impact the minds that are our precious treasures, to mould positively.  In order to produce highly motivated and self driven liaders of tomorrow,  inspiration has to be an integral part of our education.  As St. Mother Teresa had said, “let us do little things in a great way”,  and she set the example herself.

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. John Quincy Adam.

This quote best summarizes what teachers who are leaders do, each day. Dealing with children means teachers have immense powers to inspire and make a change. And with great power comes greater responsibility. Today’s society is fast-changing. Children are exposed to all kinds of information at a very young age.

Be it the internet where they can Google and learn things without having to open a text book or watching movies and TV where they can learn about all the news and trends around the world.   Filtering this information and giving direction to children so that they know how to distinguish good from bad,   is what teachers do.

Besides this, they also play a pivotal role in being emotional support for students, some who come from broken families and some who have lost all motivation to  study.    It is these instances that make teachers the agents of change  in students'  lives.

I remember the one time I met my student at a mall. It was not the usual school setting. He wished me and then hid behind his mother. The boy, a polite 6-year-old  child, was also an introvert.  We bid goodbye to each other and he went shopping along with his mother.   I forgot about our meeting and got busy with my chores.

 But a few moments later,  I noticed the same boy, do something remarkable.   He picked up a wafer packet thrown on the shopping mall floor by an older man,  walked up to him and requested him to discard it in a dustbin.   I was amazed at this child’s bravery.    I felt as if all the times I reminded children to ensure that garbage was to be thrown only  in the bin , had worked like a charm on him.

This is just a small anecdote that showcases how teachers can bring about a change in society.

Nobel Peace Prize winner, Malala Yousafzai famously said: One child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world. At a time when the world is facing international threats of intolerance in the form of terror, it is only education that can mould young minds into knowing that peace is the only way forward.

So teachers have  an indispensable role to play in forming future society, and I am so proud to be a cog in the giant machine that moves society and shapes our future world.

 

36 - ACID ATTACKS

It is the sad truth that in India, spurned lovers throw acid on their victims.  The girl suffers for no fault of hers, except that she was pretty enough to arouse the monster man's emotions. Preeti Rasthi died because of an acid attack at Bandra teminus, in 2013.   The current news is that Preeti Rathi's murderer was sentenced to death but he was smiling in the courtroom and even threatened the family with dire consequences when he would be released.  So, he is sure that the higher court will consider his 'youth' and a chance to be 'redeemed' and thus let him face a 'life sentence' instead.  And a life sentence in India amounts to a few years in prison and then release.  Such heinous crimes deserve a heinous punishment.  The culprit should also be made to suffer an acid attack as a punishment.  That would be justice and an impediment for future attackers too.

What riled me most when I watched this news was that his lawyer was a female, and she was condoning his conduct and almost announcing that he was blameless and that the sentence was biased because the victim was a girl?   I sincerely feel that this lawyer should empathise with the victim and her family and should not have even represented the felon. Preeti was only 24 years old, young and pretty and perfectly healthy.  She died because of the attack and now the boy involved gets a sentence after 3 years?  The girl's old father is seeking justice for his daughter.  Why did it take so many years for justice and that too, it will be questioned in a higher court yet.  In such cases, one begins to doubt the judicial system and of course the typical response is that 'justice delayed, is justice denied'.

The latest victim of  a gruesome acid attack is the case of 19 year old Reshma banoo Quereshi.  Two years ago, this daughter of a taxi driver, was attacked with acid by her brother-in-law, when she was only seventeen.  This year, Lakhme fashion week in New York, prepped her up and she was the show-stopper, at the event. 

Laxmi Agarwal was only 15 when she suffered an acid attack by a 32 year old man, who she had refused to marry, in 2005.  She fought for the rights of acid attack victims and even hosted a TV show to enlighten the public about the plight of victims.  In 2014, she found love with a social activist, Alok Dixit and they decided not to marry, but to be in a live in relationship. 

Why does a person resort to such a vicious revenge?  How can you profess love and then want to destroy the person physically like that?  I have personal experience about a couple who were so good together and then there was a rift because of family opposition.  Then the boy resorted to verbal abuse, and physical abuse by throwing things at the girl involved.  Thankfully he only used water and juices to vent his anger and frustration.  He went onto make new relationships and I wonder how he is making the new girl in his life suffer, because certain males have a very bloated ego and they repeat abusive behaviour.  It is a sad story for the girls that have suffered with him because they will never trust a male or believe in love, I'm sure. 

Such attitudes should be changed during formative years by the parents and teachers.  But school education only stresses on marks and not on forming characters.  As a teacher, I have to deal with  quite a few children from abusive parental relationships or broken homes.  Such students do not perform well academically and hardly smile.  It is a challenge that I face daily, to make them passionate about any school activity,  so that it brings a smile on their face.