This is anything but Hahhahhaha..
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Pl watch and weep for these children..
Then take a pledge to spend at least 30mins every week to do something to improve the eduaction standards of a young child (or ideally, a few children) near your home or work-place).
Together, we can Reclaim India – the India where literacy rates were higher than Britain just 200 years ago…Jai Hind, Jai Bharat!

Some photographs from the Leadership Development workshop in Pune…
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and some from the various meetings related to “Saluting Our Heroes: The Param Virs of Bharat” book launch…
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Related Posts: 18-hour workdays, too many ideas… and “Saluting Our Heroes” – The formal launch/
P.S. You can order your copy of the book here: “Saluting Our Heroes” – The formal launch
P.P.S. More photos from various meetings and outreach events here

Dear All: Sorry for having fallen somewhat behind on the blog… Last few days have been unusually intense due to work-related deadlines, the leadership development workshop in Pune (successfully concluded yesterday) and preparations for the imminent launch of “Saluting Our Heroes“ – the book on Param Vir awardees (watch out for a promo video snippet later this week).
Please stay tuned for updates on all this over the next 2-3 days. In the meantime, below are some comments & feedback on the Leadership Development Workshop. I hope to upload video snippets soon… …

…it feels good to be loved!
I got an email yesterday from “Indian Top Blogs” that  || Satyameva Jayate || is now ranked amongst the Top 14 blogs in India (according to their ranking) in the category of “Platinum” blogs.  The list of 14 “Platinum” blogs include only four that can be loosely categorised as dealing with socio-political issues (Acorn, DCubed, Sepia Mutiny and yours truly). I wish there were more in this list.
This post is a BIG Thank You to ALL of you for being part of this journey …

Although I disagree with some of Paul Krugman‘s views on various matters, I found myself nodding in vigorous agreement while reading the concluding lines from his recent post. From “Not-A Does Not Imply B“, an excerpt (emphasis added):
Just a thought suggested by some economic discussions I’ve followed, including the comments on this blog: many people seem to have a hard time accepting that there are intermediate positions
This inability to make distinctions was really on display in response to my recent Argentina post. My point was that you really can’t use …

Those of you who are also on the facebook page will recall a brief post last year about an extraordinary institution called “Chanakya Institute of Public Leadership” (CIPL).
For those who may not know or remember, Chanakya Institute is school for the political leaders of tomorrow. Based on the eternal political principles of Chanakya (also known as Kautilya or Vishnugupta) given in the Kautilya Arthashastra and Chanakya Niti this school equips students in the ‘Art of Thinking’ besides training them to apply modern technology and specialized management techniques in the political …

In the season of hot tempers, high emotions and midnight dramas, this is brief reminder to myself to watch my tongue (and my words)… This brief post was prompted by Sanjeev Sabhlok’s post yesterday, calling Baba Ramdev a coward, Anna Hazare an intellectually challenged and India Against Corruption a “one-trick pony”.  He is of course not alone in voicing such sentiments. Similar words and phrases have been used by others..
In an internal FTI post, AAryan reminded us to…
..maintain a political demeanour and acuteness when we comment or write on Political matters …

Dear All: I’ll be undertaking a “Digital Fast” over the next 3 days.  Although the idea has been on my mind for the last several month, something prompted me to say “enough” yesterday evening. Perhaps it was the urge to check my email one last time before switching my laptop off..or perhaps it was the strain I felt in my eyes after almost 10+ hours of screen time..or the realisation that my “To Read” list of books/articles is continuously increasing.
I am undertaking this “fast” in the hope I’ll be able …

Thanks to KV Sarma J for alerting me to this image. KV mentioned that the image reminded him of “Gada-dhari” Hanuman doing “Ram-naam jaap“. I agree.

Wikipedia informs us that:
The howler monkey god was a major deity of the arts – including music – and a patron of the artisans among the Classic Mayas, especially of the scribes and sculptors…
…it are the two large statues of simian figures shaking rattles (see fig.), found on both sides of the ‘Reviewing Stand’ of Copan’s temple 11, that approach much more closely the standard representation …

Two weeks ago, I spent a couple of hours with a remarkable group of youngsters in Pune who truly lifted my spirits. The experience was humbling and inspiring. And it reminded me – once again – how fortunate most of us are and how little we realise this fact.  These youngsters are part of the Niwant family.
“Melting the thick barricade and the wall that is built between the sighted and the people with no sight (in  just the physical sense of the term)” is the mission of Niwant.
It helps visually …