Redefining Horizons

  Endless Efforts   “Callification?” Your efforts to find out what it means in the dictionary shall go in vain. I just made it up.  Patiently read through it; you will know what it means.     The three submersible pumps working continuously and in tandem could not fill the colony’s overhead tank. The employees kept the pump running. One pump ran dry far too long and burned itself out. The open well also ran dry. They told no one. Why should they? They had nothing to lose. I noticed the unusual activity and enquired. This had been going on for a few days. It should not have.   I did a quick calculation of the flow rates of the pumps, the capacity of the community tank, and the tanks over the individual houses. Considering the endless efforts of the pumps, all the overhead tanks should have been filled and overflowing. It did not happen. I concluded that there must be a leak somewhere in the pipeline. The large amount of water that leaked ...

History The Teacher History talks of many an empire. What could be common to all the empires of the past? The Mauryas, Guptas, Mughals, Romans, Persians, Ottoman, Hans, Spanish and the British, each one a powerful regime, held sway over vast swathes of land and had subjects across geographical boundaries we now recognise. Geographically and chronologically spaced well apart, each one tremendously influenced populace it ruled upon and made lasting contributions to virtually every aspect of contemporary culture. Each came into existence and grew but couldn’t succeed in sustaining themselves to grow into perpetuity. Despite unquestionable powers, and repressive enforcement systems, perpetuity eluded each one of them. Having failed to sustain and grow beyond a time, they now remain confined to pages of history; their significance waxing and waning, at the mercy of contemporary political regimes in their attempt to attain perpetuity. History is a great teacher. Those who do not ...

  Folklore or History Almost every Indian child, schooled or not, would have listened to stories about Birbal, Akbar’s most trusted courtier. Birbal rose to such a position of importance, relevance and trust that the emperor gave him quarters within the palace. He was considered first amongst the ‘navaratans’. Incidents centered around Birbal, true or not, is folklore. While some of the stories going around may be true, most of them are too good to be true, yet substance for interesting folklore.   Perception Shift Birbal’s exploits resonated with my childhood naivety seeking triumphant truth. It was exciting to see how Birbal used wit and intelligence as powerful tool s to help the emperor understand follies, arrive at correct decisions and administer justice. Birbal was the hero. Evil and deceit were detected and truth triumphed. As adolescence kicked in, perceptions changed colours. Birbal’s exploits assumed a different form. How could a powerful emperor be so...

  Difference in Brand Construct After a day-long drive, I checked in to a hotel beside Lake Rotorua, New Zealand. Staff on duty seemed happy, committed, behaved as if they owned the place and impressed me with impeccable their conduct. The experience was different from all other hotels I had ever checked in.  Back home, I wanted to buy an equipment for my house. Influenced by advertisements and impressed by the proprietor’s publicised and principled stand on various socio-political issues, I decided on a brand. Machines, irrespective of make, do fail but services promised should not. Repeated calls to the service centre went unattended. It required persistence and contacts to get my work done! Dr APR is a medical specialist in whom, my trust has grown each day over a decade. I refer my friends and seek long distance pro bono consultancy for many. Three different brands and three different brand images. Hype and hoopla around brand promotion aside, brand image is all ab...

Tricolour with Pride On the Independence Day, our National Flag is hoisted with pride across the country.   Government Institutions, individuals and even commercial organisations hoist the National Flag. While governmental institutions are mandated to hoist the Tricolour, private citizens and commercial entities do it out of pride.   Commercial entities however, do not hesitate to use the event as an exercise in ‘image building’. In fact, I feel, it is good for an organisation to draw on nationalistic pride, provided they really mean it. When, I was approached, by Mr Satish, the manager of one such organisation, to unfurl the National Flag on the Independence Day, I readily agreed . I wanted to utilise the occasion to address the gathering about our duties as citizens and increase awareness about defence forces. Brilliant Organising Skills Having spent most of my life in uniform, punctuality is in...