[Assam] Harvard Business School Goes to Mumbai
Harvard Business School Goes to Mumbai http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/dec2005/bs20051214_8411.htm Harvard Business School opened the India Research Center in Mumbai, India, on Nov. 2. Headed by Executive Director Ajay Mookerjee, the center's research will focus on globalizing Indian companies, expanding opportunities for outside companies within India, and helping policymakers create a competitive environment that will facilitate the country's growth. The center also will feature selected executive-education courses taught by Harvard faculty members, including one on negotiation and another on family-owned businesses, already slated for January, 2006. Although several Indian cities were vying to be the center's home, Mumbai won for its role as a hub. "The team chose Mumbai because it's like the New York of India," says Richard Vietor, senior associate dean at Harvard Business School. "All the major businesses are headquartered there." With globalization moving as fast as it is, Mumbai could one day become New York -- and Harvard wants to be there. Also see -- http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/dec2005/bs20051216_4604.htmUmesh Sharma5121 Lackwanna STCollege Park, MD 20740 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]Ed.M. - International Education PolicyHarvard Graduate School of Education,Harvard University,Class of 2005 To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Yahoo! Security Centre.___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] Discovery Channel--Myths in Mahabharat & Bible
Hi, Today I was watching Discovery Channel which discussed the issue in the Bible's Old Testament - of Noah's Ark and the great flood in 3000BC (5000 years ago) where Noah - a farmer built a huge boat and hauled in all animal species in the world (30 million) and sailed before the whole world got flooded. Later it is supposed to have landed where there exists a mountaintop now - Mt Ararat. With great precision and scientific details the documentary was able to show that the story was a grand exaggeration of some flood which took place most likely in SYria in 5000BC and was written down by Jewish priests in 600BC as the story of Noah's Ark. The aim of the story was to inspire the power of God in humans and that if they do not lead an upright life they can be punished. Similalry, I believe the Mahabharat and Ramayan are also based on real life instances but have been embelished to inspire people and make them follow a certain way of life. Ofcourse there are miracles all around but story tellers like to embellish so that people get inspired and would like to read the book -- just like people get thrilled by James Bond movies (which are based on real lives of spies but embellished) or reading thrillers. Similarly another documentary highlighted the brothers and sisters and further generations of Jesus Christ who had been key in propagating his teachings -- but had been kept out of the Jesus story which was written down (as Gospel) 30 years after his death - by his non-blood related followers who also had faced persecution and wanted to promote that he was a son of God and wanted to highlighted a special relation between Madonna and her child (Jesus) - so other children were relegated to background. Similarly when writing any story - real or fiction -- one has to have a great story simply told -- which necetitates leaving out unnecessary details -- and sometimes over time real-tales become legends and superhuman forms. Any comments? Umesh PS: Virgin mothers -- In Hindu scriptures also Ram, Krishna, Pandavas --all were born only with divine intervention. Pandavas were also born of virgin Kunti --like Jesus in Bible's New testament . As was Veda Vyasa (who compiled Vedas and is believed to be immortal ) born of virgin Satyawati. Hanuman - in Ramayan and Mahabharat is considered the ideal devotee - and is depicted as a monkey (Vaanar ) but I believe that Vaanar word means jungle based- tribal (Van= Jungle, Nar = Man) . So Hanuman was an ideal devotee but a tribal -which might have been considered untouchable then - Ram sought his friendship then but the story writers might have thought that the readers would not like such a high status to be ascribed to a tribal (untouchable) so they depicted him to be a monkey.Umesh Sharma5121 Lackwanna STCollege Park, MD 20740 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]Ed.M. - International Education PolicyHarvard Graduate School of Education,Harvard University,Class of 2005 To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Yahoo! Security Centre.___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] CNN.com - Afghan killed for teaching girls - Dec 16, 2005
Title: EMAIL THIS Email Powered by * Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified. You have received the following link from [EMAIL PROTECTED]: Click the following to access the sent link: CNN.com - Afghan killed for teaching girls - Dec 16, 2005* CNN.com will expire this article on 12/30/2005. Get your EMAIL THIS Browser Button and use it to email information from any Web site. *This article can also be accessed if you copy and paste the entire address below into your web browser. http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/12/16/afghan.teacher.reut/index.html ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] [EMAIL PROTECTED] has sent you a page.
Though I felt very much at home among the school kids in DC - mostly Brownskinned (like me) Latinos it did seem that they were from from families who are working hard to make their edns meet. I had to hand over the kids to their mothers at the end of the after-School program where I am working now. Umesh The page below was sent on Friday December 16, 2005 at 7:15 pm ET from [EMAIL PROTECTED] To visit this page, click on the link below or copy and paste it into your browser. http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/2005/1214_kozol.html HGSE News is the news source for the Harvard Graduate School of Education; visit HGSE News at http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/ To subscribe to receive updates of news and research from HGSE, visit our subscription page at http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/subscribe.html ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
[Assam] Indian Bias against Studying Governance at Western Univs etc
Hi, I am surprised that such basic questions as role of civil society in a democracy are not being understood by Indians. I attribute it to the lip service being paid by most Indians to governance and democracy. All the rich Indians who send and pay for their kids to study in US or UK etc -- send them to study MBA, Engineering or Medicine. I think almost all those Indians who study at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government have come on some scholarship or the other. Whereas those at Harvard Business School have most likely paid money from their own pocket - still there are quite a few. I wonder how many of us on AssamNet would take the step to apply to a program at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government ( the leader in its field) - to learn how to make a democracy function in India or Assam state or elsewhere-- and join it even if you got no scholarship. I assume quite a few of us (esp. US citizens) are quite capable of paying the tuition. Any takers? UmeshUmesh Sharma5121 Lackwanna STCollege Park, MD 20740 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]Ed.M. - International Education PolicyHarvard Graduate School of Education,Harvard University,Class of 2005 Play Santa's Celebrity Xmas Party, an exclusive game from Yahoo! ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
Re: [Assam] Indian MPs question bribe - Civil Society
The question remains that whether a democracy is just between individual citizens and their elcted leaders --- or is there a role for advocacy groups/watchdogs also. US being the oldest democracy in modern times (after Greeks and Romans) relies heavily on such groups to ensure the important issues are raised -and discussed in their senate etc. Indian citizens are made to believe that they can hold the govt resposnible just by voting for whom they like and do not realize the importance of media, advocacy groups etc --- to make their voice heard. Result -- politicians are banding together to ignore what the common man has to say -- and doing what they feel. Even when they are inthe opposition - politicians make money- so they are happy with the arragnement which ensures that such advocacy groups are kept out of the arena of democracy. Umesh priyankoo sarma <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:Dear Bhubanda,Thanks for your reply. Anyway, after people's attitude towards almost legalizing MPs taking money from the corporate sector makes me more disillusioned about the Indian parliament. My sole point was that if these MPs take money from corporate sector to ask their questions, how about the questions of the common people? If they fill in all their designated question space with the corporate sector's sponsored questions where is the space for indian common people's questions?Then why does not the Indian constitution make the whole process legalized? Rates for corporate questions 25000 each, common people 1000Rs, if you pay for a question in cash then you get a 10% discount coupon for the questions you ask in the next session*. *conditions apply. The MPs get enough benefits (from taxpayer's money) to do people's work without a penny. The report also said that they take commissions for distributing money from MPs fund. Hold on, now what is the MPs fund? It is the money collected from taxpayers of the country redistributed through the MPs as if the government is giving the money from its pocket. (When I say Taxpayers, they are the people who are in Govt. service sectors who do not have any way top hide their tax, like teachers etc. Xdas Ylal though owns a 5 storey house in Guwahati, still pays 3000 rs as tax every year).>>The questions illustrated by Priyankoo do not seem to be silly to me.**Bhubanda, of course they are silly because all the questions are not based on any facts. They are constructed just to expose the ignorance of the MPs:Whether the Railway Ministry has placed any order for purchase of the Yossarian Electro Diesel engine from Germany? Is the ministry aware that the Tom Wolfe committee report in Germany has halted its induction into the Euro Rail system?>>Yossarian is a character of the novel Catch22. Tom Wolfe is an American journalist.Has the ministry lifted the 1962 ban it imposed on the book For whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway and the 1975 ban on Ken Keseys book One Flew Over a Cuckoos Nest and Hunter Thomsons book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas? If so, when were the bans removed?>>When were they banned?? Whether the government is aware that a domestic flying license has been denied to Cobra Cargo for starting operations in India? Since when has Semper Sursum Private Limited, the holding company of Cobra Cargo, applied for the domestic cargo license?>>Cobra Cargo?? On Fri, 16 Dec 2005 umesh sharma wrote :> Bhuban-da,>> It seems like a comprehensive picture.>> Umesh>>[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:> In a message dated 15/12/2005 20:30:59 GMT Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:> still I would say that it is good for democracy that atleast these MPs are asking questions - for whatever incentive. Many others incl. perhaps Rahul Gandhi never ask questions at all and still still or sleep in the Parilament - wasting the enormous expenses incurred to elect them in the first place. Umesh/Priyankoo>> I am perhaps in a position to deal with matters concerning Questions raised in Parliament by MPs since I happened to be a reporter/editor in the State Legislature of Assam for about 13 years and a Parliamentary Fellow in Delhi for nearly a year. But it was almost half-a-century ago and my knowledge would necessarily be dated.>> It is indeed sad that MPs these days take bribe to ask questions. When the question of bribe appears it is obvious there is some irregularity. In that case the MP is guilty of complicity if his sole purpose of putting a particular question is to elicit information in pursuance of certain vested interest. An MP may be a lawyer and nowadays many MPs are drawn from that profession. If an MP works on behalf of a commercial firm without harming the interest of his constituency, I think he can take money. To make it all legal, he has of course to declare his interest and income as well to the proper quarters.>> The questions illustrated by Priyankoo do not seem to be silly to me. The admissibility of questions in the Parliament is hedged
Re: [Assam] Indian MPs question bribe
Dear Bhubanda, Thanks for your reply. Anyway, after people's attitude towards almost legalizing MPs taking money from the corporate sector makes me more disillusioned about the Indian parliament. My sole point was that if these MPs take money from corporate sector to ask their questions, how about the questions of the common people? If they fill in all their designated question space with the corporate sector's sponsored questions where is the space for indian common people's questions? Then why does not the Indian constitution make the whole process legalized? Rates for corporate questions 25000 each, common people 1000Rs, if you pay for a question in cash then you get a 10% discount coupon for the questions you ask in the next session*. *conditions apply. The MPs get enough benefits (from taxpayer's money) to do people's work without a penny. The report also said that they take commissions for distributing money from MPs fund. Hold on, now what is the MPs fund? It is the money collected from taxpayers of the country redistributed through the MPs as if the government is giving the money from its pocket. (When I say Taxpayers, they are the people who are in Govt. service sectors who do not have any way top hide their tax, like teachers etc. Xdas Ylal though owns a 5 storey house in Guwahati, still pays 3000 rs as tax every year). >>The questions illustrated by Priyankoo do not seem to be silly to me. **Bhubanda, of course they are silly because all the questions are not based on any facts. They are constructed just to expose the ignorance of the MPs: Whether the Railway Ministry has placed any order for purchase of the Yossarian Electro Diesel engine from Germany? Is the ministry aware that the Tom Wolfe committee report in Germany has halted its induction into the Euro Rail system? >>Yossarian is a character of the novel Catch22. Tom Wolfe is an American journalist. Has the ministry lifted the 1962 ban it imposed on the book For whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway and the 1975 ban on Ken Keseys book One Flew Over a Cuckoos Nest and Hunter Thomsons book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas? If so, when were the bans removed? >>When were they banned?? Whether the government is aware that a domestic flying license has been denied to Cobra Cargo for starting operations in India? Since when has Semper Sursum Private Limited, the holding company of Cobra Cargo, applied for the domestic cargo license? >>Cobra Cargo?? On Fri, 16 Dec 2005 umesh sharma wrote : > Bhuban-da, > > It seems like a comprehensive picture. > > Umesh > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > In a message dated 15/12/2005 20:30:59 GMT Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > still I would say that it is good for democracy that atleast these MPs are asking questions - for whatever incentive. Many others incl. perhaps Rahul Gandhi never ask questions at all and still still or sleep in the Parilament - wasting the enormous expenses incurred to elect them in the first place. > > > > Umesh/Priyankoo > > I am perhaps in a position to deal with matters concerning Questions raised in Parliament by MPs since I happened to be a reporter/editor in the State Legislature of Assam for about 13 years and a Parliamentary Fellow in Delhi for nearly a year. But it was almost half-a-century ago and my knowledge would necessarily be dated. > > It is indeed sad that MPs these days take bribe to ask questions. When the question of bribe appears it is obvious there is some irregularity. In that case the MP is guilty of complicity if his sole purpose of putting a particular question is to elicit information in pursuance of certain vested interest. An MP may be a lawyer and nowadays many MPs are drawn from that profession. If an MP works on behalf of a commercial firm without harming the interest of his constituency, I think he can take money. To make it all legal, he has of course to declare his interest and income as well to the proper quarters. > > The questions illustrated by Priyankoo do not seem to be silly to me. The admissibility of questions in the Parliament is hedged by so many conditions. The business community has interests in import licences and various kinds of permits. These questions obviously concern those matters. The business community would not pay money for nothing. > > Now, an MP is not ineffective just because he does not put questions. Why should members of the ruling party put awkward questions to the Ministers like the members of the Opposition (For information of our netters, some of the dumb members of the House are not so dumb inside the party chambers where there is a rehearsal of the next days business and strategy is planned, the speakers nominated etc). > > One of the functions of the Institute of Constitutional & Parliamentary Studies in New Delhi is to train our legislators in the conduct of Parliamentary/Legislative business. I am a Life Member of the Institute though only in name
Re: [Assam] Indian MPs question bribe
We read Machiavelli thus:"People deserve they elect" mm From: "manoj talukdar" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>Reply-To: manoj talukdar <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>To: assam@assamnet.orgSubject: Re: [Assam] Indian MPs question bribeDate: 16 Dec 2005 06:42:14 - The people get the government it deserves. On Fri, 16 Dec 2005 umesh sharma wrote : > Bhuban-da, > > It seems like a comprehensive picture. > > Umesh > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > In a message dated 15/12/2005 20:30:59 GMT Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > still I would say that it is good for democracy that atleast these MPs are asking questions - for whatever incentive. Many others incl. perhaps Rahul Gandhi never ask questions at all and still still or sleep in the Parilament - wasting the enormous expenses incurred to elect them in the first place. > > > > Umesh/Priyankoo > > I am perhaps in a position to deal with matters concerning Questions raised in Parliament by MPs since I happened to be a reporter/editor in the State Legislature of Assam for about 13 years and a Parliamentary Fellow in Delhi for nearly a year. But it was almost half-a-century ago and my knowledge would necessarily be dated. > > It is indeed sad that MPs these days take bribe to ask questions. When the question of bribe appears it is obvious there is some irregularity. In that case the MP is guilty of complicity if his sole purpose of putting a particular question is to elicit information in pursuance of certain vested interest. An MP may be a lawyer and nowadays many MPs are drawn from that profession. If an MP works on behalf of a commercial firm without harming the interest of his constituency, I think he can take money. To make it all legal, he has of course to declare his interest and income as well to the proper quarters. > > The questions illustrated by Priyankoo do not seem to be silly to me. The admissibility of questions in the Parliament is hedged by so many conditions. The business community has interests in import licences and various kinds of permits. These questions obviously concern those matters. The business community would not pay money for nothing. > > Now, an MP is not ineffective just because he does not put questions. Why should members of the ruling party put awkward questions to the Ministers like the members of the Opposition (For information of our netters, some of the dumb members of the House are not so dumb inside the party chambers where there is a rehearsal of the next days business and strategy is planned, the speakers nominated etc). > > One of the functions of the Institute of Constitutional & Parliamentary Studies in New Delhi is to train our legislators in the conduct of Parliamentary/Legislative business. I am a Life Member of the Institute though only in name as the Institute does not encourage overseas members because it is expensive to mail the publications abroad. In my days the Institute held seminars in various state assemblies for the benefit of MLAs. In Delhi of course there are all the facilities one can possisbly imagine. By now things should improve a lot. > > We cannot expect all our MPs to be effective speakers. This is perhaps one obvious weakness of our democracy. Another is that of numbers. But we have to get on with our job,haven't we? > > Bhuban > > > > > >Umesh Sharma >5121 Lackwanna ST >College Park, MD 20740 > > 1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone] > >Ed.M. - International Education Policy >Harvard Graduate School of Education, >Harvard University, >Class of 2005 > >- >Save time, find those important emails with search capabilities for scanning your inbox and folders. Get Yahoo! Mail >___ >assam mailing list >assam@assamnet.org >http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >___>assam mailing list>assam@assamnet.org>http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org ___ assam mailing list assam@assamnet.org http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
