Hail ho! Its Republic Day

Today, this twenty-sixth day of January, we celebrate our Republic Day. A significant day in our lives, this day marks 2 important beginnings in this country's fight against British power. This day was supposedly selected to be the Independence day of India after our great leaders negotiation process and the Ahimsa movement by Gandhiji. But dates kept delaying and thus, our Independence was finally granted on - you guessed it right - 15th August, 1947. 

The other important beginning this day marks is shown in the Preamble of our constitution. As written in it, " In our Constituent Assembly, this twenty-sixth day of November 1949, do hereby adopt enact and give to ourselves this Constitution." So its clearly stated here that the Constituent Assembly of India was adopted on the 26th of November, 1949. yet, it was only properly accepted on 26th January, 1950. You know, due to important paper-work and sorts.... (seems the habit of delaying Government work has been in practice since the early years of our Independence!)

Today, the Republic day parade was broadcasted live from Janpath Road, overlooking the wondrous marvel of architecture, the India Gate. Defence minister A.K. Anthony was escorted to India Gate where the martyrs were paid homage by playing the Bugle. The great torch was lit, and a wreath place on the Black Marble-stone. A. K. Anthony was then handed the visitors book, in which he penned his thoughts and emotions he experienced after paying homage to the martyrs at the India Gate. His views are now one amongst the views of many great leaders and personalities.

It was then time for the ministers holding important portfolios to arrive at Janpath Road for the proceedings to begin. Smt. Pratibha Patil arrived with the chief guest of the occasion, the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan. Ministers like Lalu Prasad Yadav, L.K. Advani, P. Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee were among the VIPs that arrived.

Then the events started with the various Awards like Ashoka Chakra, ParamVeer Chakra, etc. In lieu of the recent Mumbai terror attacks, brave Police men like Hemant Karkare, Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar and two other Police men were awarded the Ashoka Chakra. Their awards were accepted by their wives. 

The march was an exciting one. In the beginning, the various award winners saluted the President of India on Jeeps. Then the various regiments followed. Their perfect synchronized movements were a wonder in their own. The regiments that particularly caught my eye were the Maratha regiment, 61st regiment(their bright coloured turbans), Rajput regiment( on camel-back) and the Jatt regiment. Their valour and courage are an example to the world. Then the various missiles, tanks, aircrafts and helicopters exhibited their talent. (Not the missiles, no! They would have created havoc and wide-spread destruction!) 

Then there were moving exhibitions of the various States. Their bright and vibrant display caught the attention of one and all, even a few foreigners who looked on in awe though bogged down by the merciless heat! Then there were exhibitions on India's research and excellence in a wide variety of fields. The DRDO and ISRO exhibitions were eye-catching stalls that clearly stated the amount of pains the respective organizations for this one-day event. 

Finally, the march ended with a display by the human pyramid formations on bike and a stunning display put up by the Air Force. All this while, the main attention was on Smt. Pratibha Patil, the President of India. She was saluted by all the participants that walked the long road. This day might be one of the unforgettable days of her life!

All in all, a fine show put up by all the organizers and the men and women involved in it to make the morning a memorable one. This show was a display to one and all, featuring to many the perfectionist outlook of the country and the various accomplishments of it. The very citizens of this country were awe-struck at the superb display. The army and the air force's display was an encouragement to hundreds of young children possessing a fresh mind and heart. It might have, for certain, put an ambition in the children to grow up to be an army officer or an airforce pilot. After all, as Gandhiji said, " The children of the country are the greatest treasures in its possession."

We hope that the Prime Minister of Kazakhstan was and is highly impressed with India and the varied culture, heritage, power, arms and ammunitions and the ambitions of this country!

I would like to end this post with a strong slogan - Bharat mata ki Jai!!! 

Death penalty - right or wrong?

The death penalty, commonly termed as 'Capital Punishment' has been under fire for several years. This punishment is meted out to severe criminals like murderers, rapists and the like. Putting an end to the convict's life is a punishment that many claim to be wrong, while quite a few justify to be right.

Capital punishment is served in 64 countries, including India. India has seen a fall in death penalties during the last decade or so, compared to other countries. But Human Rights Commission asks of its complete abolition. This may not be accepted by quite a few. I myself am in favour of sentencing brutal murderers and rapists the death penalty. I justify my claims with a suitable explanation, as follows:

There are two purposes of giving Punishments. One is to right the wrong done by the member of the society. Capital Punishment does not do justice to this. But the other purpose of punishments is to give an example to other members of the society so that no other person commits such a crime. Capital Punishment is a big example to people in the society, putting fear in people's hearts. This is a certain category that is undecided.

The other purpose of the Death Penalty is that the guilty may not commit the same crime again, ever! But many Humanitarian associations are against this judgement, saying that the guilty should be handed out some other alternative punishment so that he may be rehabilitated and may be of some good use to the society.  But then there are certain cases where the convict has grown stone-cold and he will commit the same crimes again and again! So in such cases, there is no other but death service. 

If the death penalty is not meted out in a country, its citizen might feel that "Hah! If i commit this crime, they cant hang me, can they?" and they wont think twice before committing crimes. Death Penalty is a glaring thought-blocker in such situations. The fear of the death penalty makes a person think twice before committing a crime, and possibly stop a person from turning into a criminal from a responsible citizen.

All in all, the point remains, it is virtually impossible to remove death penalty from a country until and unless the law and order enforcement within it is regulated and checked. There should be better Police back-up so that criminals may not get away unscathed. Plus, there should be more job opportunities in a country so that unemployement can be reduced. This will help people earn their daily bread and butter without resorting to unlawful activities. 

So, on this note i take leave from you. But before i leave, id like to ask you a few questions so that you could ponder over it: How responsible a citizen are you? Are you ready to help others in their pitiful situations? Can you, for sure, say that you help make the society a safer place to live in? Do you FOLLOW THE LAWS???

Goo bye, take care, and please - be a Responsible Citizen!

Why don't Indian movies win Oscars???

The 81st Oscar Awards will be hosted by the end of this month. But this time, the oscars may well be dominated by one movie - 'SlumDog Millionaire.' The movie directed by Danny Boyle has stirred deep interest within very-many people. For the first time, an Indian movie is extremely anticipated to win an Oscar. But the question arises: Since the times of Dadasaheb Phalke Bollywod has made an amazing amount of movies. Then why hasnt bollywood won one Oscar?!!! 

SlumDog Millionaire has been vested with the hopes of 'millions' of Indians. Atleast this film should win! A R Rahman is the mastermind behind SlumDog's music. His brilliance is well exhibited in the movies' score. 'Ringa-Ringa' and 'Jay ho' are on the lips of many fans! So Mr. Rahman is leading the race for an Oscar.

But all these things aside, the question still remains: Why havent we brought home one damned Oscar??? The answer can be split into two. Firstly, the west has a negative impression about India. They want to see the 'real India' - poor people - hungry people. They want to see the famished Indians, unemployed youth, helpless men, women and children. But they fail to realise that India is one of the quickest rising Economies in the world. Mumbai is the capital hub! India is Booming!! Its a happening country!!! So its quite natural for them to want movies like SlumDog. But im sorry to say, the west has seen nothing but the tip of the iceberg. Movies like Lagaan and Eklavya were in the race for the Oscars for quite sometime. But Taare Zameen Par didnt make it! (Frankly, i dont get the logic behind this.)

The second reason is: So many movies, and quality movies only few! 'Bahut Naa-insaafi hai yeh!' Movies like 'Style' and 'Xcuze Me' are typical examples of the extent to which these directors and film producers can fall to. There needs to be an eye-opening event for these people. Thats when the common Indian will be in for a treat, and maybe Bollywood's status and style quotient may rise a few notches.

So, with this frank and honest note, i take leave from all you movie-enthusiasts out there. See ya later, then !!!!!!!!!! Adios.

PS: (pray that SlumDog Millionaire makes India proud, its really worth an Oscar. Please pray for it!) 

 

Obama: A man with the key to America's success...

Barack Hussein Obama.....a man with a mission. This Afro-american personality has today been officially designated as the 44th president of the United States of America. He is now the first man to the white house who is from African descent. This man is on a mission to pull out his great country out of the economic crisis, something that Bush left the office as a puzzle for Obama to solve

This man, with great poise and superb leadership skills, has shown the bleak yet possible frontiers America can scale. USA may well be the first country to pull its head out of the global recession. Iraq may slowly yet surely be handed back the reigns of its country, thereby re-instilling sovereignty back. Obama may clean out the mess George Bush left in his office during his eight years in power.

His grand swearing-in ceremony was filled with pomp and show, but world issues were of more importance to him. According to reports, he already has made calls to leaders in the middle-east. A prayer service was attended by him. These are signs that show us all that America might well be in the right hands.  The White house is really going to look forward to a sound four years of American rise to success and glory.

India, among the several countries, is really looking forward to Obama taking office, as he brings to us many exciting thoughts that may help strengthen ties between India and the US. A symbiotic relationship is in the making now that Obama is the man behind matters.

All in all, we wish Obama all the best for the future. May his heart-warming smile spread across the globe, bring people closer, strengthen bonds, weaken terrorism and may we have a peace-filled world.