Consumer Notes
Stemming the scams
We have seen several crashes in the share market. They have all been attributed to the carelessness of the regulator, or the greed of the bull. Though one cam find several reasons that helped set off these scams, one thing is certain -- none of the money
that has been lost will come back into the system. A few people in the middle level management are sacked, an enquiry is instituted, and finally after a few months everybody forgets and the share buyers go back into speculation with renewed vigour.
Corporate
Defeating entropy
Entropy, the gradual wearing out and breaking down of everything, is one of the strongest laws of the world we live in. According to the second law of thermodynamics, energy or heat naturally flows from an object of higher concentration to one of lower c
oncentration, from a state of higher organisation to a state of lower organisation. In other words, the universe is in the process of winding down. Galaxies die, stars like our sun die, planets die. Everything wears down eventually including individuals,
organisations and communities.
Miscellaneous
Tune into technology
Get set for a treat if you are a fan of sci-fi films. The Technology Media Group has organised a movie festival, showcasing 28 top sci-fi movies over seven days in leading cinema halls across the country. It is on in Mumbai between May 18-24, then it mov
es on to Hyderabad (June 1-7), Delhi (June 22-28), Calcutta (July 6-12) and Bangalore (July 20-27). On offer are films such as Jurassic Park, Batman and Robin, Godzilla and Star Wars, among others.
Opening windows?
Last fortnight saw the presentation of a study on the education of the adolescent girl child. Called `Opening Windows', it was undertaken by the Janshala Programme, the first joint initiative of five UN agencies -- UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO, UNFPA, and ILO --
to support the Government's efforts to achieve elementary education for all.
They paint for Gujarat
Increasingly, budgets are getting bigger in the boardroom for art. The corporate wants to enhance office aesthetics and create positive flow in the work environment while art as an added investment is also behind aesthetic considerations and astute busin
ess acumen. And the need to donate to a nobel cause also prompts many a corporate chief to buy a piece or two.
A contemporary forum
Flashback to March 1999. Looking into the lapping waters of the paper vat at the Visthar paper-making unit, on the outskirts of Bangalore, Jenny Pinto smiled. As frail clouds of pulp settled on her deckle and mould, she watched her dreams come true. On t
he paper trail, Jenny has since transformed banana, sisal, korai grass and mulberry fibre into eye-catching expressions.
The art of the artisan
``I remember my grandmother working with women weavers of the Tejpur Mahala Hamiti in Assam,'' recalls textile designer Julie Kagti, exploring her current engagement with the art of artisan communities. ``Theirs is a very free-flowing expression. I never
give them designs, only a budget and the kind of look I want. Perhaps all they need is inputs with dyeing and finishing.''
A will has a way
Deserving students who have the will, but not the means now have another avenue of finance open to them. The Apeejay Surrendra Group has launched The Paul Foundation, dedicated to provide an opportunity to needy students to pursue their academic goals i
n the country and overseas.
Technology
Learning @ The Crossing
`` People continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free and where people are continually learning to learn together.''
Travel & Places
Foods that touch the heart
Willing, as they are to eat almost anything and to cook it in every conceivable way, the Chinese have made of Hong Kong a treat all the way. There are said to be some 30,000 eating-places, licensed or un-licensed, or one for every 200 citizens. Sushi par
lours and sidewalk cafes, swanky bars and one-wok noodle joints, minuscule bistros and sea-front al frescos, all jostle for attention on the island's neon-lit streets. Hong Kong does offer a scrumptious spread -- haute cuisine to pub grub.
A village like Sirubari
Nepal is so synonymous with Mount Everest that this image clouds the perception of tourism to the Himalayan Kingdom, leaving a first-time visitor in bewilderment as to what to see and what to do in the country. Thus when we landed in Kathmandu, we had to
grapple with the agenda to cover as many places of interest and still look for something different from the routine. Hence, we were left with little choice but to follow the programme fixed by our hosts, the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB). A chance mention b
y the NTB Chief Executive Officer, Pradeep Raj Pandey, worked up our interest to visit Sirubari, being promoted as a model village for NTB's new product, `village tourism'.
The Pooram magic
The energy in the air is palpable, and as tens of thousands of people begin to fill up the nooks and crannies of the town, it becomes infectious.
