Ø
Be responsible for
your own choice and not for someone else’s.
Ø
Be specific in asking
for what you want.
Ø
Be specific when you
talk and bring in facts to support your position.
Monday, October 1, 2018
Friday, August 31, 2018
MEMO FROM NARA
Food is the primary input for all living organisms including
the humans. If we miss a meal, we feel hungry and tired. Then we come to know
the importance and necessity of food. Millions of people do not get the minimum
food required for their livelihood. Thus starvation struck some of the poor
countries of the world, and thousands die because of that. People are displaced
owing to natural calamities and political unrest. The basic need, if not
available what can anyone do except accepting death?
The developing and developed nations are very particular in concentrating
on the food production or import to meet the food needs of the people. The
major food crops like rice, wheat, maize and tapioca are given utmost importance
to harvest maximum out of them. Many international institutes governed by the
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and supported
by an international donor group are working for achieving this goal.
International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) with headquarters in the
Philippines focuses on generating and disseminating rice-related knowledge and
technology of long-term environmental, socio-economic benefits. Rice being the
staple diet the world over, is the base on which an overall improvement in
social and living conditions can be based. The rice eating population is
economically weak and as a result most of the people are subjected to
starvation. It is not only the food,
but also the work is essential to pull on life.
Food
shortage may occur due to many reasons. Food production is subjected to
drought, flood, diseases and pests and the like. Scientists are trying to do
their might to stave off starvation by producing miracle rice and other
possible management practices which are not fully utilized by the farmers
because of certain limitations they face. Productivity increase is the motto on
which agricultural scientists concentrate. The stagnating productivity is the
crucial challenge. Degradation of soil was found to be one of the reasons for
such stagnation. By 2020, we may have miracle rice which can revolutionize the
rice production of the world.
During Green Revolution period, IR8 - a dwarf rice and
Mexican dwarf wheat could significantly increase the productivity and stave off
the starvation of millions of mouths. No one can deny that. The demand for food
is growing day by day because of the growing population. China, the world’s
largest rice producer introduced the hybrid rice technology and introduced the
hybrid rice technology and increased the productivity considerably. There is
little room for expansion of area for growing rice in Asia. So the only way out
is to augment the productivity by using all our scientific knowledge. That is
what all rice research institutes of the world are engaged in. résistance to
biotic and abiotic stresses is a very important research area agricultural
scientists go after. Of late, genetic engineering of crops to solve many of the
problems at the gene level is thought of. Although there are controversies
regarding the genetically modified crops and their produce, scientists go ahead
with the needed research to stave off starvation and help the human beings.
On the one hand, one has to look into the dying millions
without food and on the other hand, one has to consider the safety of the food we produce for
our population. Certainly we have to take mid-decision to drive away the hunger
from the world. Once basmati rice was
grown for export purpose, but now the neo-rich Indians are after it. As the
life-style and standard of living have sky rocketed in the urban population in many
developing countries including India, the food preference have gone towards
scented rice, organic rice or wheat and their products. At the same time, it is obvious that the farmer
who toil in the field and the traders who bring food to the door steps of the
consumer are to be appreciated and properly compensated because
it is a great service they render for all of us. They are
the people who are really responsible to stave off our starvation.
STAY PEACEFUL AROUND THE STRESSED
1. Not
living in the moment. Always wishing you were somewhere else, doing
something different with other people.
2.
Blaming your problems on your past. Although the past affects us, it need
not define us. We can choose, decide and act – and take control of our lives.
Don’t let your past heartache and pain affect who you become.
3. Running
away from problems. It’s pointless to bury your head in the sand and
pretend that things are fine when you’re dealing with a problem. Face reality,
take action and work to turn things round.
4. Being
ungrateful. Being thankful sets you free in your heart and mind. It
inspires all that’s good and, also, oils relationships. But an ungrateful
person will wear others down. It destroys your spirit, and it saps your energy.
5. Being
angry and bitter. Refusing to forgive and bearing grudges against others
will slowly poison our personality. It’s much better to release them and to
focus, instead, on living a happy and fulfilling life.
6. Letting
your expectations rule your life. Life rarely goes smoothly and according
to plan – and people disappoint us and let us down. Accepting this is normal
takes some tension out of life.
7. Disrespecting
yourself and others. Every single person deserves respect, and every single
person is fighting their own battle. So focus on being kind, understanding and
forgiving.
8. Neglecting
important relationship. A relationship that’s built on unconditional love –
where a person accepts us for who and what we are – is truly a gift and is
worth fighting for. Don’t take it for granted – recognize that it’s a gift.
9. Loving
people who are bad for us. Not every person will build into your life. Be aware
of those who who’ll use you, or who want to bring you down, or who want to hurt
you, or destroy your confidence.
10. Never taking risks. If you always
play it safe, you’ll find you end up going nowhere. You must be ready and
willing to take risks. If you don’t, you may regret it as you’ll miss so much
in life.
THINGS THAT CAN WRECK YOUR LIFE
1. Not
living in the moment. Always wishing you were somewhere else, doing
something different with other people.
2.
Blaming your problems on your past. Although the past affects us, it need
not define us. We can choose, decide and act – and take control of our lives.
Don’t let your past heartache and pain affect who you become.
3. Running
away from problems. It’s pointless to bury your head in the sand and
pretend that things are fine when you’re dealing with a problem. Face reality,
take action and work to turn things round.
4. Being
ungrateful. Being thankful sets you free in your heart and mind. It
inspires all that’s good and, also, oils relationships. But an ungrateful
person will wear others down. It destroys your spirit, and it saps your energy.
5. Being
angry and bitter. Refusing to forgive and bearing grudges against others
will slowly poison our personality. It’s much better to release them and to
focus, instead, on living a happy and fulfilling life.
6. Letting
your expectations rule your life. Life rarely goes smoothly and according
to plan – and people disappoint us and let us down. Accepting this is normal
takes some tension out of life.
7. Disrespecting
yourself and others. Every single person deserves respect, and every single
person is fighting their own battle. So focus on being kind, understanding and
forgiving.
8. Neglecting
important relationship. A relationship that’s built on unconditional love –
where a person accepts us for who and what we are – is truly a gift and is
worth fighting for. Don’t take it for granted – recognize that it’s a gift.
9. Loving
people who are bad for us. Not every person will build into your life. Be aware
of those who who’ll use you, or who want to bring you down, or who want to hurt
you, or destroy your confidence.
10. Never taking risks. If you always
play it safe, you’ll find you end up going nowhere. You must be ready and
willing to take risks. If you don’t, you may regret it as you’ll miss so much
in life.
JUST TO LAUGH
Mrs. Brown was complaining to her doctor that
his bill was unreasonably high.
“Don’t forget, “he reminded her, “that I made
11 visits to your home while your son had the measles.”
“And don’t forget,” she
countered, “that he infected the whole school.”
TIPS TO REMEMBER
When we’re around people
who are stressed and negative it can upset our own sense of inner peace and
calm. Here are some suggestions to help you with this:
1. Imagine there’s
an invisible shield that separates you from them. See their attitudes,
reactions and high expectations as being their choice and decision- they’re not
a part of you. You are two separate people – don’t let them influence you.
2. Disconnect from
the source of negativity. End the call, close your email, or get up and walk
away. When we feel stressed and angry we’re more likely to react – so maintain
your control by taking steps to decompress.
3. Avoid toxic
people if you possibly can. Avoid people who guilt trip you, or are constantly
complaining, or who like to sit in wallow in their misery. They’ll quickly
drain your energy and drive you to despair.
4. Be a positive
person. Go on the offensive and reach out to people who need some
encouragement, a smile or a kind word. That will keep you feeling peaceful and
positive.
5. Spend time with
people with whom you can connect, and who inspire and motivate you to be a
better person. Look out for people who improve your self-esteem, who are
positive role models and live life to the full. They’ll broaden your capacity
to give and grow as well. (So let them be your focus – and not the stressed out
people!)
LINES I LIKED
Ø Be a host
instead of a guest in life.
Ø Be confident
in who you are.
Ø Be
dependable and consistent.
Ø Be moderate
in eating, drinking, and working – everything you do.
Ø Be ready to
take change and lead from the front.
Tuesday, July 31, 2018
MEMO FROM NARA
Countries have to think of good roads as the best infrastructure.
Developed countries of the world realized this long ago and paved good roads
all over. As a result, transportation increased and movement of goods and
people from one place to another was accelerated. Settlement of people came on
either side of those roads. Developing countries, by looking at those
developments started thinking about the good roads for their own economic
progress. Bad roads are there everywhere, paved or unpaved. Pot holes, speed
breakers, damages in patches, narrow ones are the status of roads in many
developing countries including India.
Allotment of budget for this vital sector is thought of only
recently to link north to south and east to west of India. Huge amounts of money
is required to make the already existing narrow roads to four lane ones. Mostly
the World Bank loans are availed for this purpose. Highways/motorways have to
be improved to the level of the ones we find in developed nations. They are
going to be the lifeline of a nation. Good roads have to be maintained frequently
to give a better service to the users. Bad roads cause fatal road accidents
very often. The traffic police take lots of measures to prevent road accidents.
If the roads are bad, they will be helpless to implement those measures.
Effective
steps have to be taken to lay good roads with signboards and proper lighting.
Design engineers are responsible for laying good roads for the country. The
system of construction through corrupt practice makes the proposal for good
roads, a mediocre one. Within a short period after the construction, the roads
become unusable, and such is the situation in most regions of our country –
India. There are experienced construction companies in India who laid very good
roadways in other countries, but they are generally ignored by the politicians.
They cannot get their required commission from such reputed companies.
Therefore the development is poor and our progress in road infrastructure is
retarded to a considerable extent. India being one of the important growing
giants in the world certainly needs good roads throughout the length and
breadth of the country. Four thousand years ago the ancient cities of
Mesopotamia was paved with stone. That was the first man-made roads.
Later,
Roman roads formed the most extensive network in Europe and Middle East. The
motorways of the 20th century are built on a firm, thick base of
pebbly material with a layer of concrete laid over top. Above this is a layer
of tar or rolled asphalt. Rubberized roads are also coming up in certain
regions in India. Even plastic wastes are also mixed with tar and applied on
the top of the road. Innovative road building techniques are invented and
applied wherever possible.
A country which managed with single lane roads for seventy
long years after independence realize today the necessity of this important
infrastructure on which many other developments depend. National highways
connecting various states help in interstate business, transportation of goods
and people. In fact, India is moving towards the dream of a developed nation.
While making good roads, there are many hurdles the country
has to face. Towns and cities have to be connected by roads of short distances.
So the interfering structures have to be removed or demolished. Sometimes
rivers have to be crossed, so bridges have to be constructed. The engineering
technologies have improved so much that constructing various kinds of bridges
is possible nowadays. Wide roads were made in town and cities, but the paved
roads are only half the width of the planned roads. Avenue trees occupy some
area on either side of the road. Similarly the electric and telephone poles
also take away some space. Unauthorized constructions like projection of roof
structures by the shops on either side steal away some space. As a result we
will be left with a narrow road in the cities for the vehicles to pass by. It
is really sad to see such bad roads in many parts of India. Every time the
local administration tries to remove the unauthorized occupations, there will
be resistance from the public who are affected. They go the extent of filing a
case against the administration in the court and stay the work. We know the
court takes its own time to clear such cases. Another set of people who get the
votes of these people also support them and will not allow the administration
to do its job. Thus road remains as it was. We have seen many times such sights
in every town. In a democratic country with about 40% illiterates, it becomes
difficult to interfere with peoples’ proper or improper activities. It is one
the reasons that India could not progress fast and reach the status of a
developed nation. With all these limitations, India has a hope to come up in
the Global level as a developed nation with good roads in the near future.
ARE YOU ADDICTED TO APPROVAL?
Signs
of being addicted to approval include:
1. You are very aware of the
expectations of others. They also affect how you feel about yourself.
2. You are constantly worried about how
others view you/ what they are thinking about you.
3. You choose NOT to do things that
others don’t approve of for fear of judgment and rejection.
4. You DO things you don’t want to do
as you fear others making fun or you, putting you down, or talking about it.
5. You feel anxious and upset if you
think you have upset or irritated someone – and desperately try to make things
right.
6. You think the views and opinions of
others are more informed and valuable than yours.
7. You agree when others criticize and
put you down. Then you start to attack and feel ashamed of yourself.
8. You reject yourself if other people
reject you, and basically believed that at core you are flawed.
TO QUOTE
v Life is a
tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot. – Charlie Chaplin
v For every
‘inside’ there is an ‘outside’ and for every ‘outside’ there is an ‘inside’,
though they are different, they go together. - Allan Watts
v Life would
be tragic if it weren’t funny. - S . Hawking
JUST TO LAUGH
“This
gay came by trying to sell me a
talking dog for $10,” related the bartender
“I said, Get out of
here!”
But the dog said,
“Please, Sir, this man is mean to me; he never takes me for walks, hardly feeds
me, …’
I said, “Hey, he
really can talk. Why are you selling him for only $10?
The guy said, “I’m sick and tired of all his lies.”
When you wallpapered your lounge room,” Fred
said to Peter, “how many rolls did you buy? Our room is exactly the same size.”
“Twelve,” Peter
replied. About a fortnight later, Fred complained that he had six rolls left
over.
“I’m not surprised.” said Peter. “So have I.”
The lecturer had
reached one of his most telling points: “He who gives in when he’s wrong is
wise; but the man who gives in when he’s right is ---“ Married,” came a voice from the audience.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)