Author: veeskitchen

Posted in Food For Soul, Political

Karnataka becomes the first state in India to legalize Euthanasia

Posted on by veeskitchen

Karnataka becomes the first Indian state to implement the Supreme Court’s “Right to Die with Dignity” order, allowing terminally ill patients to refuse life-sustaining treatment.

On March 9th 2018, a five-Judge Bench comprising Dipak Misra CJI, A K Sikri, A. M. Khanvilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan JJ held that the right to die with dignity is a fundamental right. “An individual’s right to execute advance medical directives is an assertion of the right to bodily integrity and self-determination and does not depend on any recognition or legislation by a State,” as quoted by Supreme Court Observer.

Passive euthanasia is legal in India. On 7 March 2018 the Supreme Court of India legalised passive euthanasia by means of the withdrawal of life support to patients in a permanent vegetative state. Forms of active euthanasia, including the administration of lethal compounds, are illegal.

(Inputs from Google/Mint)

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I am truly undecided on this. Earlier I was all support for assisted passive euthanasia for terminally ill patients. Now I am not sure about it for entirely different reasons.

The normal/regular questions that perk up in this case are:

  • Who gets to decide about ending a patient’s life. Patient’s consent when in clear consciousness, or the physician’s will when the patient is unconscious and undecided or the family.
  • What timeframe to heed by when it comes to pull the switch off the life support when it comes to terminally ill patients.
  • What is the legal status of death in this case. Do we have to invent new terminology.
    • Besides ruling out any ground for foul play, is there a foolproof way to conclude that the patient’s condition cannot be reversed in a one-in-a-million off-chance.
    • To die with dignity is noble no doubt. We put down dying pets all the time to give them quick relief. But humankind is a different story.

    I have my reservations about euthanasia after my interests in spirituality started gaining momentum. Also in the past I have always seen unnatural death as something that cannot allow an ‘atma’ to pass on. The soul will be stuck in the earth. Now I am even more convinced that a natural death is the one and only way to pass over quickly to the other side. When we refuse to suffer our karma in this birth, our soul will suffer many more times in afterlife for embracing unnatural death. There is also the question of Karma attribution to different parties in the case of euthanasia. Who will bear the karma of ending the life. The patient or the physician or the attending nurse or the family that decides for the patient on the evidence of apre-drawn will. Of course this is my Hindu philosophical view.

    Personal choice: BIG NO TO EUTHANASIA. Earlier I have somewhere in the blog expressed my will to be put down if at all I would be in vegetative state. For a while I was an active supporter of passive euthanasia. Now as I learn more about Dharma and Karma, I don’t want to die a micro second earlier! I would fight tooth and nail to retain my life be it in vegetative or active state! Mortgage my house to keep me hooked to the machine if it needs to be! I don’t want to be hanging out there in the infinite space after all! Would rather be tied to the hospital bed with IV tubes running all over till my time is out !

    Faiths of the world disapprove of assisted death/euthanasia not without a reason.

    Why, there are so many many million other ways that India can show progress and development. A dharmic nation going against the law of nature is surprising.

    Posted in Economic, Socio-Political

    Why small families are good for the nation.

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    Disclaimer: Before writing on this, I would like to state here that I am against no particular community or individual. I am merely stating this from the point of view of India, the most populous nation in the world with 1.4 billion to feed. We are all entitled to our perceptions.

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    A Kerala friend who is a meat eating Hindu was telling me how as a small family they need to suffer. There are ports/sea coasts/backwaters in Kerala where you can get freshest catch of fish, just about to be frozen. This is that very morning’s catch mostly. There are markets where the meat is freshest and not frozen. The friend lives with her husband and two adult children. Whenever she goes for getting meat or fish in the market especially on sundays, says she, she can’t get good deals because, there are some ‘peaceful’ families with 5-6 kids who want the meaty (pun intended) portion for themselves. With adults such as parents, grandparents in typical joint family system, the size of these families may come to 10 or 12 or more. What happens in that event? Even if my friend who is nuclear family has the resources to pay for HER cut of meat/fish, she is DENIED that little legitimate portion of hers because, there are bulk buyers for the fresh meat and fish. Huge families with 10-12 members and half a dozen children, pay up and take the best cut. My friend is left to crumbles. Says she, this is the plight of all Hindus left to the leftovers even if we can pay fair price for what we want. The sellers in the markets naturally want to close a single big deal and wind up. Half a dozen or a dozen of big families of peacefuls take everything leaving literally nothing to smallest families other than crumbs. Big families buy from markets the way restaurants may shop for their daily groceries/meat: wholesale. She was happiest during the demonetization drive because the big buyers did not have the usual 500 rupee note bundles to pay cash and lift the fish basket right from the fishermen. It was the only time she says she ever got a fair deal competing with big buyers, as a middle class wife.

    So the questions we have here may be:

    • Just by sheer size of family should one be entitled to larger portions of consumption?
    • Take the case of precious resources such as water. A family with half a dozen kids uses far more water than a family with 2 kids. Even if the bigger family may be able to pay the bills, is that even fair? With extra consumption of water, the bigger family is raising the rate/price of water for small families as well. Over consumption can lead to shortage for everyone. So how should one distribute resources in that case? Both a family with 2 kids and a family with 6 kids, let us say, can only receive 10 buckets of water per day. Its left upto you how you manage the water usage. The reason that the bigger and richer family can afford to pay is IMMATERIAL. The small families and the lower middle class families can still afford to pay their fair bills, provided artificial scarcity for water is NOT created by the big unfair consumers pushing up rates. I think this is how societies must function to ensure social justice to everyone. Everyone should have an equal stake in the pie.
    • This same rule about consumption of water also applies to electricity, gas and other resources that we all pay and use for making our lives better. Suppose someone is earning monthly salary of 100,000 rupees and another one earning mere 10,000 rupees every month. What gives the wrong sense of entitlement to the richer guy to imagine that he can use more of water or electricity or gas than the poorer guy when both are willing to foot reasonable bills for modest/rational consumptions of resources.
    • Suppose the kids of the 6 kid family are doing great in academics. Why should 6 kids from one family be allowed entry to elite institutions in the country with scarce resources denying others their spots. Even if the small families may produce mediocre kids, still their 2 kids must be able to win a merit place in universities, competing with the 6 kid family.
    • The impact of larger families on real estate is horrendous. Suppose the 6 kids buy properties in the city on growing up. Unnecessarily the real estate prices shoot up for everyone. The smaller families have to cough up astronomical prices, the result of a needless competition.
    • Only the sky and air and sunlight and moonlight are free for consumption for all family sizes. Rest are all chargeable.
    • Its wrong sense of entitlement on the part of bigger or richer families to assume that if they have the economic capacity to buy something, they can take possession.

    Hindus with small families of 1-2 kids mostly and rarely a third kid therefore face unfair deals everywhere. We are a declining population today – increasing at a decreasing rate. We are losing out to the population j*h*d. This is the sordid truth.

    Land ceiling was introduced in India in the early ’70s when most of the wealthier/landed families gave up their real estates voluntarily for redistribution to small/marginal farmers, rural artisans, and urban poor and the landless. The next land ceiling act is long overdue in India. Amassing of wealth started right after the 70s once again. We need one more correction very badly in current times to ensure that everyone has a toehold in the metro cities and not just the old rich or the new flashy rich. A similar act for family planning will also go a long way in preventing the over exploitation of resources by select few who can buy out anything and everything with their economic capacity. Those of us Hindus with limited family size feel cheated at the end of the day.

    Google BHOODAN MOVEMENT and Acharya Vinoba Bhave who campaigned the movement. Bhoodan means ‘land donation.’ It was a nonviolent, bloodless movement when the landed gentry came forward voluntarily to donate land to the landless in the country. Vinoba ji was Gandhiji’s disciple who followed in his footsteps. He ushered in a revolution in the country which is unparalleled in world/Indian history thanks to which the rural population in India have a chance.

    Some snippets from Google:

    What is the significance of Bhoodan Andolan in agriculture sector in India?

    The Bhoodan Andolan was the brainchild of (Vinoba) Bhave who wanted to redistribute land from landlords and wealthy zamindars to landless agricultural labourers. Bhave hoped that these labourers would be able to use this new land to practice subsistence cultivation and empower themselves

    The Bhoodan movement successfully collected over 4 million acres of land through voluntary donations, with some of it being distributed to landless families. It raised awareness about the issues of landlessness and inspired discussions on land reforms in India.

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    For me, a strong believer in social justice but not necessarily a Marxist/communist, limited natural/manmade resources must be distributed free and fair that everyone stands to benefit from them and nobody is excluded from enjoying what is their birthright.

    Posted in Food For Soul

    Swastika of the Hindus: most misused religious symbol in the world.

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    A copy-paste job here from Google:

    The Nazi use of the swastika stems from the work of 19th Century German scholars translating old Indian texts, who noticed similarities between their own language and Sanskrit. They concluded that Indians and Germans must have had a shared ancestry and imagined a race of white god-like warriors they called Aryans…

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    The German airlines is called Lufthansa. ‘Hansa’ in ancient Hindu language Sanskrit means ‘swan.’ ‘Luft’ means air. The Hindu-German connection is very intriguing. In fact in the Heidelberg university in Germany, there is a full fledged Sanskrit department devoted to research. North Indians are of Aryan stock and the south Indians are Dravidians.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29644591#:~:text=The%20Nazi%20use%20of%20the,like%20warriors%20they%20called%20Aryans.

    But its very unfortunate that the sacred Hindu symbol Swastika got misused by Hitler for genocide purposes. Now swastika is misrecognized as symbol of hatred around the world. Because of this, people mistake us passive Hindus for fascists. Originally from ancient Hindu culture also used by Buddhists, the symbol captivated the west who started using it more freely in the 20th century.

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    Ironically, the two inverted triangles over one another which is a Jewish holy symbol is also a very ancient Hindu sacred symbol. In fact its the basis of much advanced Sri Yantra, a set of 9 (5 and 4) triangles overlapping each other representing Shiva and Shakthi.

    the Sri Yantra
    Om
    some sacred hindu symbols
    swastika, sacred hindu symbol
    swastika with Hindu temple in background

    The Swastika is symbol of lucky charm for Hindus even today. ‘Swasth’ in sanskrit means wellness, goodness. The swastika is a very sacred, holy symbol to us that we adorn our homes and temples with. It is important to spread awareness about Swastika so that the lost glory of the swastika is restored.

    Posted in Political

    One week of Trump

    Posted on by veeskitchen
    • Mass deportation of illegal immigrants to Mexico and South American nations mostly
    • Saudi to invest 600 billion $ in the US after 1 phone call from Trump to MBS
    • India even before launched a satellite from SpaceX and also ordered 460 airbus and boeing planes from the US
    • US displaces India as the largest exporter of petroleum products to Europe. Who knows how or why.
    • What other countries have done to please the US – remains unknown. Business request phone calls extremely productive and profitable to the US.
    • Out of WHO
    • Aid cancellation to all except Turkey and Israel. This is good news for India as aid to Pakistan and Bangladesh stand cancelled
    • Greenland proposal initiated
    • Canada proposal proposed 😀
    • Doge questionmark.
    • Adani loses projects in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (just recently) who knows why.
    • Birthright citizenship cancellation; case in court.
    • H1b new rules yet to be implemented. Win-win for India whatever the case
    • Effects of the missing immigrant workers in agriculture and construction and other areas already felt.
    • But what takes the cake is the Gaza ceasefire.

    This is what we know! What a huge business week for America since Trump assumed office. Also this happened:

    • LA wildfires destroying millions worth property allegedly by AI systems overheating. More like self sabotage. This is what I understand from the you tube videos. I am not sure if I am right on this.
    • America loses the AI battle to China as Deepseek wipes trillions off Wall street.

    Whatever America gained in last 1 week seems to be outstripped many times by losses they have incurred in the same week. What an irony! With huge business losses to the US, world nations are licking their economic wounds and looking for fresh markets.

    Posted in Extras

    What must a boss be like?

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    I am sorry I have to blog too much from the past, digging up from my memories that are over a quarter century old now. But can’t help sharing this. These couple of stories in recent past are too personal. I just thought its okay to share them now in public space.

    I got orphaned before I got married. Right before my marriage, I was the only one female working in an otherwise all-male department of 31 guys including managers, officers and clerks. Of course, I was the youngest. Nobody had a clue about me, but news somehow leaked about my family situation in the department.

    My manager when I got engaged, was Mr. Sanan from north. I am using actual names here. One day my would-be hubby came to my office for the first time by evening to pick me up. Our marriage was scheduled in 3 months’time. The guys in my dept got curious. They even went and reported the matter to my manager who called me aside. Told me, I was a good girl and he was concerned about me going out with a guy given my family situation! Was he safe to be with?! It was the first time he showed me that he cared. I assured him I was officially engaged.

    I invited both my DGM Mr Markandeyan and my AGM Mr Ganapathy to my wedding. Both were on the verge of retirement. Mr Ganapathy would be very tenderly to me, often stopping at my table to have a word. He would laugh and tell me not to get married too soon and that I had a great future in the bank. He said I had a great potential and that I should not opt for domesticity like so many other women did. To this day this man who expressed his open liking for me forgetting his hierarchy has a special place in my heart. He is no more now. My working career, as after all a clerk of lowest rank, was very brief.

    My DGM Mr Markandeyan surprised me saying that his own daughter was getting married the very same day as me. Like mine, her wedding reception was to be the previous evening. But he assured me that he would come. I had no hope.

    Both these elderly gentlemen used to be very kind to me. I think they knew about me from the start.

    On the evening previous to my wedding day, I was surprised and enormously happy to see my DGM and AGM walking in together for my wedding reception. My entire department of 31 guys were present for the girl who had no parents. My DGM who was a very high ranking official, missed his own daughter’s wedding reception for a few important hours that evening to attend mine. He stayed for a very long time like over one hour. He had dinner with the staff. Until today his kindness is something I can never forget. These are the kind of people who have finetuned me lifelong. I am gifted to have had these gems in my life. The next morning my department staff attended his daughter’s wedding which was a very grand event.

    We see how people hire and fire so easily without a second thought in modern scenario. But the bosses I had for such a short time of my life in my very brief career were superhuman by today’s standards. My department guys too were very respectful. Normally talkative, I however used to maintain my distance with them at work not mixing at all with the crowd. But they showed their care and affection for me when all of them turned up for me to be by my side like my parents’ side relative. My only direct blood relative was/is my younger sister. Very few close relatives. The short span of my career therefore is still unforgettable for me. I cleared CAIIB part 1 & 2 exams in that short time as per my AGM’s wish. He wanted me to write the officers’ exams on completing my 26th year when I would get eligibility. I said a polite no to him telling him that I wanted a family that I did not have. He reluctantly agreed.

    Men like my DGM and AGM were old school. They don’t come like that any more. Even my manager Mr Sanan. Like a fatherly figure to me.

    I left my job in 1996. Long, long back. So I have NO idea of work culture from the millennia, or even from before that. In those days in our working atmosphere, we were like a family. IT revolution changed everything. My friends/ex colleagues say I can never fit into present working environs.

    Posted in Political

    Doge vs Goat loans of India.

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    This is from my bank days. Ours was a private one owned by 7 other banks, largest among them being a nationalized one holding majority stake. Other 6 banks were private banks. This was before 1992-93 when banking reforms were signed between bank staff associations and the central govt. I am not clear about the present day scenario as I left my service over a quarter century back. We were then seeing the last of manual banking days as ATMs were beginning to be installed. In 1993, I got my first computer training for bank employees in Bangalore to acquaint us with computerization. A huge computer department came up in my HQ. I recall the monochrome PCs and our own typewriters being replaced with electronic Brother machines in all departments. Yet we were still doing only core banking: BORROWING AND LENDING. Debit/credit cards were issued by very few banks – mostly by the international ones. Slowly we were diversifying. Took India 8 more years upto the millennium to add bill payment, car/housing loans, insurance etc., to banking, and for cards to become huge.

    Most of the international banks in India have now closed down unable to compete with the Indian banks that can give any of them a run for their money – be it when it comes to quality of banking staff or operations.

    But up until at least the early 90s, nationalized banks in India and even private sector banks mandatorily had to run rural branches even if at a loss. Ours ran many. Since I was attached with Advances, I got a picture of these things. Rural advances were for those like goat loans, for buying pesticides and fertilizers (for farmers) etc., and for rural artisans such as weavers for instance to procure fabrics, threads etc. The biggest among them would be a rare tractor loan or a borewell loan. Branches had limited discretion. Mostly branches dealt with them. We used to get the summary (monthly reports) only as the sums advanced were paltry. Recall this branch from near Salem in Tamil Nadu – this rural branch had only villagers coming in for goat loans etc. To fit their convenience, even the branch followed staggered timings up until evening 8. It made a total loss. It still had a manager, an accountant and a clerk! It was a total waste. So many branches worked this way all across India – many many thousands. There was never the profit motive. It was only to serve the rural population and to reach into the most inhospitable terrains. We used to tease the officers posted there for their ‘punishment transfers!’ Once in their service time, every bank officer had to mandatorily work for at least 3 years in a most backward rural branch. So many, many rural outposts with no paved roads. In some pickets, electricity would be erratic. Yet the branches functioned. They still do under nationalized banks. The motto was ‘service to rural India.’

    In 1992-93, banking reforms were signed in. It is at this stage that the NPAs (the non performing assets) started getting classified. Recovery cells/departments were formed for the first time to pursue matters even legally if situation warranted. Earlier, rural loans used to be written off when monsoons failed given the dismal economic background of the small village borrowers. The borrowers were mostly marginal farmers working on leased plots. If you would press them for recovery, they would even commit suicide. They were in very bad shape. Too poor and distressed. Still from 1993, reminders would go to the rural branches strictly advising them on recovery. Once I saw a very poor farmer in dhoti and without a shirt, walking into our department asking for waiver of his goat loan. He had traveled hundreds of kilometers using what little money he had for buying his bus tickets. I am conditioned by these sights and real life stories fortunately or unfortunately. Banks, instead of writing them off, started rephrasing their loans asking them to pay up in installments. There were instances when even legal notices were served on the illiterate farmers. Goats could get seized (!) for non repayment of loans with due interests thereoff!

    Whereas I was also witness to how huge, huge credits were just like that disbursed without board approval when it was ‘suitable’ for the bank. Suppose the urban branch manager had no discretion, and the limit exceeded his powers, still if the party was influential enough, the higherups in Advances would quietly sanction every loan and then apply to the board for ratification. I have seen this with my own eyes and my blood would boil. Huge credits turning into bad loans also happened. Defaulters were still trusted. And after a point, writing off also happened without board approval. What is the board for except for ratifying misuse of powers. But the rural poor were pounded for repayment. I was too young then yet I was painfully aware of this unfair system. My colleagues/friends would ask me not to get sentimental about my job – but I could hardly be like them. Its good I left my service.

    When I see Doge in America and their war cry to cut govt expenses, I am still reminded of the selfless services rendered by nationalized banks of India and even our railways, running the show for just a handful of people at times in remotest corners of the country, even incurring huge losses in the process. They say India is third world, but I have come to respect more and more our values and sense of social justice. The sense of inclusion you see in India in every sphere of life can be amazing. A first world nation like America wants to curtail government expenses. What an irony of situations!

    Now in this digital era, I am so elated that the same rural India has villagers with barcodes (!) and UPI payment apps in their smart phones! You can buy a plate of samosas for snacking from a hawker and the barcode could be printed just on his push cart! Once on a highway I had tender coconut stopping our car. The coconut seller was from a nearby village. He had printed his barcode on the tree under which he was selling tender coconut! Its got that much easy to transact and do business with villagers these days. Increasingly going paperless also. But I am sure rural branches of our nationalized banks continue to serve the very distant pockets of India where loans for agriculture and loans to rural artisans who practise their trades from villages are very important. We are two entirely different nations: America and India. All these social indicators point to why India is not as developed as America. India is a welfare economy that puts the interests of the masses first over anything. Private profit is still secondary to us. Indian economy is mixed economy with both private and public sector participation in equal measures.

    Lastly, kudos to Indian railways whose network covers the last outpost in every nook and corner of the country. They have got every square centimeter of the national geography covered and service the loss making areas without profit motive.

    Posted in Political

    No tears for Vivek Ramaswamy!

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    Just reporting news. No comments. Just got my Atma (soul) cleansed. Don’t want to add negativity in any form back again even if it may be something as impersonal as international politics. Its not our headache! Still couldn’t resist this title at least!

    Before I close, a repeat: KINDNESS IS THE LANGUAGE THE DEAF CAN HEAR, THE MUTE CAN SPEAK AND THE BLIND CAN SEE. Practise kindness. Being human is much more important than being successful or powerful. Pracise HUMANITY. Do you even know the meaning for ‘intellectual honesty?’ I am only a state board educated simple girl who paid a meagre 33 rupees school annual fees for my standard 6 in the year 1979 that my parents thought was still on the higher side! I still know what it means to be intellectually honest. It means, being true to your soul, true to your spirit and true to your heart – NOT you mind. It means having a clear consciousness. Absolutely no ill will towards any politician or bureaucrat. This is their profession. This is how they operate. Politics is not for decent people. Without manipulation, without killing people’s spirit, without crushing people’s hope, without damaging anyone, you cannot become a politician.

    Posted in Political

    Freeze on H1B will be America’s greatest gift to India.

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    A DIRECT APPEAL TO MY PRIME MINSTER SHRI NARENDRA MODI JI

    Its hightime India stops this braindrain. I winced in pain hearing my PM say, ‘there is a huge global demand for Indian visas.’ Obviously this is his polite answer to America. But is that a permanent solution Modi ji. If anyone can plug the braindrain from India for good, it is YOU. China did it. If you want to compete with China, plug this braindrain from India. Cancel passports if Indian STEM graduates who go to America stay beyond 2 years. They have to live illegally in America after the deadline or get back for legal existence in India. This will what will do good for India in the long run. So far we never bothered because we keep producing aspiring young people who are terribly ambitious. But creating an environment within the country to engage them productively will what be the ultimate solution. Which American university did Shri Abdul Kalam attend. None of the ISRO scientists have earned a degree from American universities. In fact some of them or most of them are tier 2 or tier 3 engineering university graduates not creamy tech schools – which means they did not graduate from IIT/IIM, the nation’s premier institutions. We have done enough for America. Its time we do something for ourselves. Build the best universities with the help of those nations like Japan, Israel, Scandinavian nations etc and even with America. Bolster the existing ones with collaboration. Transform India. It will not go down well with the Indian public who will see it as a curb on their fundamental rights – but you can do it. This is my direct appeal to my prime minister. Don’t allow a single Indian graduate to live or work in America beyond 2 years, especially the medicos. Get them all back. You will be truly rendering yeomen service to Mother India for centuries to come.

    Posted in Political

    The Aftermath Of Bangladesh.

    Posted on by veeskitchen

    Adani power plant is reportedly being taken over by Chinese company in Bangladesh. Tata is pulling out of Bangladesh. Besides these two, vast Indian investments in Bangladesh are taken over by their government. This must serve as a big lesson to Govt of India who wants to invest in troubled nations like Afghanistan and Bangladesh. You just cannot reform anyone howmuchever good your intentions may be. Leave them to their destiny.

    https://www.hindustantimes.com/business/tata-group-pulls-out-of-bangladesh/story-sll89v9ArXEkE8wWtizAoM.html

    Tirupur, Tamil Nadu is known as the hosiery capital of the world. With the cotton output in the country, they have been manufacturers for Victoria secret etc., and leading garment manufacturers for global brands like Zara, etc. Tirupur registered dismal growth in last 2 years as all businesses went to Bangladesh. Now there is good news from Tirupur as the importers have returned to this small cotton textile town of Tamil Nadu.

    (copy & paste)

    India’s textile hub of Tirupur is facing a revival of fortunes after nearly two years with a flurry of orders from the US and UK, helped also by political instability in neighbouring Bangladesh. With this, the city’s 5,000 apparel export units are buzzing with activity with their factories operating at 95% capacity.

    https://www.business-standard.com/industry/news/tiruppur-textile-industry-returns-to-growth-posts-13-rise-in-exports-124111101502_1.html

    This is going to affect Bangladesh seriously. Their textiles industry supports a booming lower middle class. The shift back to Tirupur will prove to be a blow below the belt for them.