'Make In India' Version 2.0: Better or Worse

On the day of 25th September 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi coined the term 'Make in India' at a function in Vigyan Bhavan. Since then it has become one of the best fruitful campaigns long needed in India.
Focusing in skill enhancement, job creation on 25 sectors of economy hopes to increase the tax revenue and GDP growth.Even though the campaign was designed by one of the largest independently owned advertising agency, known for its advertising for Nike, created huge ripples in the waters early this year. Since last September to August this year government received US$17 billion worth of proposals from companies interested in manufacturing in India in terms of the campaign. But the actual stir was caused by the recent order of the things.

• 24.8% of smartphones shipped in country this April-June quarter made up in India compared to last year's 19.9%
• Spice Group to start manufacturing mobile phones in Uttar Pradesh with an investment of 500 Crores with the memorandum signed with the government in January this year
  
• Hyun Chil Hong, president & CEO Samsung South Asia proposed a joint initiative with the MSME(Mininstry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises) for 10 Samsung Technical Schools to be established in India along with the Samsung Z1 manufacturing in Noida this Jan-Feb term
  
• 8 months ago, Huawei invested US$170 million in its new R&D campus in Bangalore and is in process of setting up a telecom hardware manufacturing plant in Chennai, approval already granted by the Central Government
  
• During the same time, Xiaomi propsed to manufacture smartphones at Foxconn-run facility at Sri city and on 11th august, this year introduced its first manufacturing operational unit Xiaomi Redmi 2 prime assembled at the facility
  
• On August 18th, 2015 Lenovo announced to manufacture Motorola smartphones at Sriperambudur near Chennai by Flextronics Int. Ltd., a Singapore-based contract manufacturer having seperate lines for Lenovo & Motorola & came up with the first smartphone manufactured in this facility as the 4G model of Moto E(2nd Gen)
  

          Apart from the Telecom Kingpins, the technological companies like Hitachi which plans on increasing its employees from 10,000 to 13,000 and set up an auto-component plant at Chennai in 2016; whereas L.H Aviation a France-based company signed the MoU(Memorandum of Understanding) to setup a drone manufacturing plant in India this June.

But this was all 'Make In India 1.0'. The level 2 of it is all set to release with new definitions and dimensions, with all new threats. It aims at turning it to a people's movement on the lines of  'Swadeshi Movement' which could make everything go out of place, if not taken care.

       Moot Points:

• First, it focuses on new campaigns such as Digital India, Skill India & Start-Up India that could be a Big Fetch, revolving around upgrading the skills of India's workforce
• Second, in New Delhi an investor-outreach programme with several countries to bring global best practices in India  
• Launch of 'Make in India: Mittelstand' a business support programme for 30 ''High End'' German companies to invest in India
• Government has already opened up sectors including railways, medical devices, insurance and more for FDI, while Start-Up India would be under the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion

Well, even though the measures do promise of a yielding future and the campaign plans to have a interactive session with the PM and top global CEOs around the world like Ford Motors, IBM, PepsiCo, Du Pont, Qualcomm, Abott etc to understand & address the concerns of global companies on policy issues on One-Year completion (September 24) in New York, but it's the present scenario which could prove to be a turning point in India's economy ever.
With the Chinese Economy at its fall ever, India could emerge as the magnet if it makes best of it. Starting from Higher taxation of cheap oil to having a seperate secreteriat with constantly liasing with business to remove the cramps, and the investors invest with time India could transform to a new Economy haven.

Even though the beginning of the 'Make in India 2.0' started with a bang with the announcement of 'Digital India', it's the past that dwells in the present to pose a threat. The contours to follow up on the base of Swadeshi Movement could mean harm to this innovative campaign. The framework of Swadeshi Movement was more political than economic with demands & supply suppressed by patriotism as the last refuge; India & the world at 2015 may not come in terms with it.

Though, few of us know that 'Zero Defect Zero Effect' a slogan coined again by NaMo himself, signifying production mechanisms aiming to prevent products developed from India from being rejected in the global market has few traditional food to be promoted in this campaign such as:

• Aarisa Pitha of Odisha
• Gushtaba of Kashmir
• Chicken Curry of Punjab
• Khandvi & Khakhra of Gujarat
• Bamboo Steam Fish, Vada & Medu Vada of South India
• Khaja & Inarsa of Bihar
• Kebab of U.P
• Puran Poli of Maharashtra

And, along with Samosas and other Indian snacks already made popular in the global market by Indian manufacturers, the above list would soon take up new figures worldwide.

Love & its Fears

Love, the word itself has always been vastly misinterpreted. Somewhere it is read as synonym of commitments, fun or sex; whereas elsewhere it is judged as the ultimate way of slow-self-destruction.
Love has always been associated with fear lurking at the back of the head, the fear of getting betrayed, losing or even breaking up. Fear of falling in love or Fears after being in love, either ways it is 'Fear' that is dominant. Whereas in reality, true love rises endless opportune and infinite success, with all those Fears torn apart into the back of one's mind. Well, it may seem poetic but there's a bit more of science in it than we actually think.

• True Love, in the first place doesn't mean finding the right partner who makes you feel complete. It means to live the present full, being positive and finding the center of one's life. All this comes from the balance of one's conscience.
  
• Once one's conscience is stable, the urge to 'feel-good-as-myself' gains and chances being in a positive circle increases.
• Then just like the old alchemy saying ''Like dissolves Like'' the vibrations find a similar positive center around. 
• Once found, the emotion itself would silence all the fears in its own tiny yet intense ways and before one realizes, they end up healed being in love.
  

It's just that the emotional sides of us are messed up by those erratic songs, movies that hover around the television and our minds alike. While scientists say 'Loving and Being Loved' is a natural urge in humans, but we no-matter-what cling to our excuses, superstitions or fears about love that makes us either harsh or desperate about it. It bothers such, that we forget the basic of all. One's salvation can never be reached by another person unless and until the former loves oneself to the core, forgiving  and letting to spread one's wings. Love gives us immense strength, that one couldn't have had on their own, ever. And with strength comes immense spirit that makes the hawk glide through the skies even in rough winds and highest terrain.
True enough to say Love Brings Out Everything Good In and Around Us.

Sex Education: why we need it ASAP

India has always been land of education. From Taxila University to IITs, it has been home to some of the most prestigious institute in the world. But unfortunately we have been lagging in providing quality education to the poor. The government schools are in desperate need of help.

Along with that, the curriculum provided in all the school is really very outdated. Majority of the class room are still under equipped and please don’t get me started on the unavailability of computers. But today, I would like to talk about sex education.

Now in India, even mentioning the word “sex” aloud is a taboo. It is something which has been discussed by the last benchers of classroom, often giggling when the biology teacher draws a weird looking vagina. Back in my days, young boys get to know about birds and bees via some really shady magazine or by a “bhaiya”( an elder and “experienced” boy of the neighbourhood). Taking notes from those guys is the worst thing any curious mind can get, but hey this is how the cookie crumbles in most parts of India. Things which I’m talking about are of course pre-smartphone and pre-easy internet era. And how can I forget those times, when our peers used to exchange those shiny discs of *ahem*, never mind. My point is that sex education is not available to the young mind and that it should be introduced as soon as possible.

I was shocked to read an article today, which was about a 9 year old boy who raped a 6 year old girl. This news is hard to digest but the incident was confirmed with help of medical examination. Now to be honest, these sorts of incidents are bound to happen. Young minds are not sure of the change happening in their body and because of exposure to pornographic material so easily, they tend to commit mistake. Now the boy have to spend time at juvenile remedial centre, but it could had been easily avoided if he knew that what he was experimenting was wrong.

 Sex ed curriculum around the world starts from a young age of 6-7 . They discuss about private parts and how it is inappropriate to be touched by strangers or others. This is the best way to keep a child safe from paedophile and save him/her from being targeted by those predators. Imagine the trauma a child will go through, when he will grow up and remember those horrific incidents. It would be only then, when he will realise that he was molested and by that time it would be too late to punish those demons of society.

Sex education is also necessary to preach young minds about safe and healthy sex. Even if they try experimenting from young age, proper guidelines will keep them safe from any Sexually transmitted disease as well as unplanned pregnancy.

When a child is given proper knowledge from a young age, he would have clear idea about maintaining his sexual health. It would also help him in family planning later in his life, and this is the most urgent need of India at the moment. Things are definitely changing and we are moving forward. Sex education has been included in some school boards but only a small aspect of it has been discussed. Sex is a hush-hush topic in major part of the country but it is now finding a place in many healthy debates

Time has come when talking about”birds and bees” will actually mean talking about birds and bees! Oh and yes, I have no shame in saying my thoughts aloud. And before we Indians gasp at this word one more time, let me spell it out to you again... S-E-X, SEX!

Making India Swacch:

Now a days there is a huge cry in our nation about staying swachh or clean! And why not...

Staying clean is one step closer to being healthy. I am actually very happy that the government has started this program. I’m not sure whether the government could fulfil its promise of handing over a clean India to the Indians on 2^nd October 2019, which would mark the 150^th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi ji always propagated the idea of keeping our surroundings as well as our mind & soul clean.

 Even though government may fail in its project ( I sincerely hope they don’t), a good thing which has come out of this program is that everyone is talking about it. The media is airing about this mission almost every day. Many people have conducted cleanliness drive in a hope to get 30 second of fame in the Indian media. I think people who conduct such drives should definitely get this appreciation as it would encourage them to continue doing this work as well as ignite passion in mind of other people.

Now conducting these cleanliness programs are obviously necessary, but I think along with that we have to also educate people about its benefits. India is a country where majority of people suffer from NIMBY syndrome. NIMBY stands for “Not In My Back Yard” syndrome. It means that the citizen don’t care about the disposal of garbage until and unless it is not dumped in their own backyard. They will keep their own home clean but wouldn’t care about the cleanliness of the streets or neighbourhood. Now, how to combat with this syndrome? Well, we have to wake up our inner conscience. We need to realize that the society where we live is also part of our home. So next time, when we go through the cleaning spree of Diwali or any other major festival, please make sure to clean the path outside your doorsteps along with your home!

One of my major arguments of today would be the availability (or rather unavailability)  of toilets. Unfortunately, 53% of population still used to defecate in open in 2014. This unavailability of toilets not only spread disease but also plays a major social role in rural India. Girls refuse to attend school because they don’t prefer to urinate in open during school hours. 30% percentage of Rape crime against women could have been avoided if they were not forced to defecate in open. So construction of toilet is a must in many areas.

Answer me this please. How many times where you forced to urinate in woods while travelling on road, because the next closest toilet was at least 50km far and that too was in an old and dilapidated petrol pump??!! I’m not only accusing lack of facility. We Indian men are notorious enough to pee in almost every public place. Construction of the toilet is not the only solution. Report says that even after toilets where made in their home, some people still prefer to defecate in open because it provides them an opportunity to take a morning walk, see their fields, and take in the fresh air. They obviously have no idea that it would in turn affect their health. We need to educate them about its pros and cons before mindlessly conducting these “safai abhiyaans”.

Swacch Bharat program is hands down the best initiative taken by the Modi government and we, the citizen of India should make sure we contribute to this program by keeping us and our neighbourhood clean. Because the sweepers can’t clean every paan stains from the walls or collect those plastic bags which we throw away in streets without giving a second thought.

A big salute to those hardworking sweepers, who strive hard to keep our country clean.

With warm wishes of Gandhi and Shastri jayanti , I hope we will definitely succeed in our mission of Clean India. 

Spotlight: India In A Day by Google Inc.

For all the readers who have a keen heart for framing the world around them, here's an interesting project started by Google Inc. in India. According to them, anyone anywhere on October 10th can capture anything random into their phones or even a professional camera and send the clips to them on the link given below.
And that's not enough..
The selected clips would be merged and made into a film called 'India In A Day' directed by 'The Ridley Scott'(Yes, the famous filmmaker of films like 'Prometheus', 'Aliens' and the much-awaited 'The Martian'!), Richie Mehta(Director of 'Amal', 2008) and our very own Anurag Kashyap.
Even more, the selected clip-makers/contributors would be even listed as co-directors according to the Google inc. press release. Now, isn't that something? 
For those who already have their minds on the run, here's Scott's words that the footage could be from anything small to personal from riding a bike or calling out your mother, it's the clip that matters. The film is scheduled to be released next year.
So, get yourself a break that's worth such fun. See you on 10th October. Click!
To participate, please enlist your email address in the link below:
https://indiainaday.withgoogle.com/en/

Gifting Ideas: What to give my Girlfriend/Boyfriend as his 'First Job' gift?

First things First, Congratulations to your partner for that new job! And congratulations to you too for being such a support!! :) Celebrations are in order, though the days will now be much empty with the other one trying to make place into the new dimension of life..

Is it the reason you're hiding beneath that smile?

Well, if it is then there are still some super cool ways in which you can make your partner feel loved even while he/she's away from you crunching numbers..

For gifting Girlfriends:  Honestly guys, girls love nothing more than a sweet, caring partner who's always there for her(Obviously she would need a bit of Pampering every now & then, but she'd have to earn it. And she has now, hasn't she? ;) )

• First, give her ample no. of hugs and smiles that expresses how proud you've been coz of her success(Now, that's not that difficult, is it?) Try wrapping her hands into yours as you both celebrate it. Speak more with your eyes and gestures. Sneak a few kisses as others celebrate(Catch her by her surprise!).  Try to have as much as private time with her. Make her feel that through every phase of her life you're there with her, like now.
• Second, when it comes to gifts girls can be a bit confusing; but hey, you know your girl, right? So you know what she likes. Try giving something that's handy. For example: If your girlfriend has to work till late hours at her new office,or has to move to a new place for the job, it means you won't be around till late until she reaches home. You can always give her a GPS tracker(monitored)App for her phone that would tell you where she's now and which bus she's boarding. It's available at Playstore, Windows Store, itunes for free. It's a Must-Have for everyone! :) 
  
• Third, Give her a Memoir. It can be literary(Notes, Scrapbook) or even photographic(Collage, Album) and can include events of some of your special times together or even just random thoughts or phrases you both use(especially include any inside jokes or one-liners!)Try adding up anything that includes both of you or even pictures of her family too. Be careful to not get it all cluttered or too scattered. Score it with some of her favorite tracks(Sneaky check her Zune to customize!), or even add any chords you used to play for her. It would always bring up a smile onto your girl's eyes:)
  

• Lastly, give her your time. Wish her luck on her first day, Call her when you know she's free, Drop-in some sweet messages through (A few smileys would do :) ) Know how was her day and Voila! That's all she would ever need. And oh, yes even flowers can make it work too on the busy days! 
  

       When it comes to the Guys, well it's not that difficult to decide. Even a smile or a  wink works. But you can always pamper him with care and affection. Don't forget you're his Venus.

      
         For gifting Boyfriends:

• The first point goes the same. Though don't try to overboard it. There could be times when the room is crowded with his 'guy' friends with whom he's not too comfortable with.
  
• Well, well a guy can be mostly in need with something that's handy. For example: You can always give him a refreshing body cologne of your choice that would keep him fresh till late and stressful hours at work. Or, maybe you can give him a nice formal tie that would build his first impression. Or, if he has to go places too much you can give him a nice pair of shades to stay close by his eyes.
• Give him his Good-Luck charm. Well, Good-Luck charms are very well-known pieces of gift items in every culture across the world. Though you both may even decide on a Good-Luck charm yourselves based upon any funny or memorable experience in the past. For example: If you both had first met on a beach and had time of your lives there, you can always give him a small shell key-ring to keep by his side.
  
• For boyfriends who have to find a new home miles away for the new job, you can always give him a small night-lamp covered with both of your cut-outs or even a bedside photo-frame containing both of you's pictures. Sometimes, even pleasant sounding wind-chimes help.
  

 

        Wishing you all the luck, love and success for your new life ahead :)   

Of Modi's digital India

               I am on Facebook, but I hardly log in it. The News-Feed are filled

with all the “happy” post about my friends, which makes me burn from

inside. Because “happy is overrated” (courtesy my current favorite

series 'Shameless') . So yesterday my mommy dearest (who logs into

Facebook everyday) showed me her News-Feed filled of people, who have

changed their dp with a tricolor filter. She told me that it has been

launched by Facebook as a initiative for #ISupportDigitalIndia (because

every good change start with a #, right?) . And now everywhere we can

see Indian people becoming cyber-patriotic and changing their dp with

this new tool. Because hey, when you need to change India, the first

thing you need to do is change your Profile picture! Oh and by

changing, I mean strictly technologically. Socially we still choose

remain ignorant because as far as I remember very few people choose to

change their dp with rainbow filter, to show their support for the

LGBT community.

    The initiative is undoubtedly good. We are in an era where everything

is getting 'Digitalised'. Be it money transaction, communication or even

our beloved Bollywood. I really liked the idea of making the “Brain

Drain” as the “Brain Gain”, as sharing of information is now possible

even from the seven seas. As our Prime Minister explained, with help

of digitization, we can help curb the corruption as it bring

transparency and obviously helps in Indian getting connected to

internet and use its ultimate power. All these ideas sounds too good

to be true for a country, whose citizen’s still lack basic amenities.

I’m not saying that Government shouldn’t initiate such great plans,

but they should make announcement based on ground realities only. 

     Few months ago I read an article that how engineers are having hard time

in laying optical fiber in Varanasi(constituency of Honorable Prime

minister ), because monkeys kept destroying it, and the locals don’t

want the monkeys to be thrown away in cages because they consider them

sacred. We are talking about increasing bandwidth and providing 4G

networks, but in reality we rarely get 3G networks (which also fails

to deliver 1mbps speed). I’m still waiting for the chirpy Airtel girl

to visit my town and challenge me. Well how is she going to download

in 4G when we barely get 2G network in my town??

And why is Facebook helping India to get Digitalized? Well, it’s pure

business and not philanthropy.They are trying to introduce the infamous Internet.org 

which “claims” to provide free internet but

actually poses a great threat to net neutrality. First, it

would be available to only a particular operator(in India's case, it's Reliance)

The Internet.org would only give access to 50 partner

websites and thus restricting us from whatever we want to surf on

internet, which is a major violation of Net Neutrality. The start-up

would heavily pay it's price, and as the sites that would pay more would

obviously find it's place in the internet provider's list.

Congratulations to the Bansal brothers of Flipkart for making it to

the Forbes list. I hope they are not the only pair of siblings from

India to make it to the Forbes, because we all know how these

manipulated free internet causes threat to the start-up.

All said, Digital India is a great but distant dream!