Miranda Musing

 (Originally published in LinkedIn on March 29, 2020)  #Covid19  I am writing this from home as I get used to life within four walls. Occasionally, I pull myself, to go out for a walk or a run to keep myself sane. Life has changed dramatically, with "Social distancing" as the only possible cure for COVID -19, the novel Corona virus. Social distancing to "Flatten the curve" is not new and was the method that worked during the 1918 Spanish flu (Spain had nothing to do with this pandemic and have been stigmatised unfortunately). Is this change in our personal and social life temporary or permanent? Is this just the beginning of the change, this pandemic is introducing in our life, threatening to make it more lasting. In his much acclaimed book "Homo Deus", Yuval Noah Harari writes "Over the past century, humankind has managed to do the impossible and rein in famine, plague and war. Today, more people die from obesity than from starvation; more people d...

          On June 15, 2020, 20 odd Indian soldiers led by their Commanding Officer showed exemplary courage in defending the nation and laying down their life at Galwan valley. This has been one of the commendable acts of courage in the recent times that has attracted lot of attention. It is notably learnt that the Commanding officer and his troops though were tricked under the guise of peace and attacked, demonstrated exemplary courage and instilled a far more damage on the enemy lines and left them overall shaken of their confidence. Thus the Commanding Officer and his troops redeemed the honour and pride of the Indian Army to which they were sworn.           I am sure this is not the first one by Indian Military and also will not be the last. Many acts of courage demonstrated by the soldiers at the borders, sailors in the deep seas and airmen in the sky do not get reported. They don’t get the recognition among the pu...

If you happen to drive from Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) to Kanayakyamari, the southern tip of India, it is hard to miss sight of this towering structure, St. Thomas Church, a Roman Catholic Church, located in a small fishing hamlet called Virapandianpatanam. This St. Thomas church was built in 1886 and is known for its Gothic architecture and grandiose. Flanked by St. Thomas Higher Secondary school on one side and Mother Mary grotto on the other this magnificent church could be seen at a distance from the neighbouring villages. The church has blessed many people including dignitaries like Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi on their visit to this village. August 2011 witnessed the church’s quasquicentennial festal celebration which commenced on 6th August and culminated on 15th August 2011. Central to the lives of people who are born or have made this village their home, this church continues to draw thousands of parishioners from different parts of the world all through the ye...

Today 1st May 2011 Pope John Paul II was beatified. He will hereafter be called "Blessed John Paul II". He is few steps closer to be declared a saint. As a Pope who was head of the Catholic Church for 27 years he left a long legacy not only to the Church but also the world. He was a saintly man but was also a courageous man who is being credited with bringing down communism. He was leader who reinvigorated Catholic church. Wherever he went political leaders came to him, people flocked to him and world loved him. I remember seeing him at close quarters at Chennai near Santhome Church when he passed by in his Popesmobile . The brief encounter and his smiling face left a lasting impression on me. Throughout his 27 years Catholics were proud to call him Pope and their leader. A man who had seen Nazism, Communism he eventually saw their end and worked hard for world peace. His step towards sainthood has come by after year long research and witness to the miracles performed by h...

I have been running half marathon for the past seven years. Barring two editions I have run all the seven editions of Mumbai Marathon. However as I keep getting wiser, read older, I have started running a technical race than the first time when I ran blindly without a technical practice. I wanted to recount the experience of my fifth half marathon with the readers. Prior to the race day, I started having butterflies in my stomach. I started telling myself, why am I nervous. I had been eating mainly Pastas for the past week that my sons started complaining about the food. I was bent on increasing my carbohydrate quotient. I also consumed electrol mixed in water to stop myself from dehydration during the run. I went to sleep early and after tossing left and right managed to sleep well. I woke up at 4.30 am and got ready for the run. When I reached the venue at Bandra Reclamation grounds it was like a mela of spirited runners. The participants have been increasing every year. The air w...

"A slipping gear could let your M203 grenade launcher fire when you least expect it. That would make you quite unpopular in what's left of your unit." Army's magazine of preventive maintenance. "Aim towards the Enemy." Instruction printed on US Rocket Launcher "After the pin is pulled, Mr. Grenade is not our friend." U.S. Marine Corps "Cluster bombing from B-52s is very, very accurate. The bombs are guaranteed to always hit the ground." USAF Ammo Troop "If the enemy is in range, so are you!" Infantry Journal "It is generally inadvisable to eject directly over the area you just bombed." U.S. Air Force Manual "Whoever said the pen is mightier than the sword obviously never encountered automatic weapons." General Douglas MacArthur "Try to look unimportant; they may be low on ammo." Infantry Jour...

The recent rains in India and Mumbai particularly have brought out the woes of infrastructure in the financial capital of India. “India needs $ 320 billion investment in infrastructure alone” said Mr. P Chidambaram , Finance Minister at a conference in London. As India gallops in to a 10% average GDP growth for the next 10- 15 years, the infrastructure needs to cope up with the potential growth. India prides itself in possessing an intellectual labour force, world class business practices, a stable political climate and an effective legal system, however loses out on the infrastructure. How do we revamp the infrastructure and bring it to world class? Sure enough our population is going to be a big challenge, but can also be an opportunity as China showed it to the world. We have a large labour force for infrastructure development, but sadly need the financial muscle for it as the Finance minister pointed out. It can come only from foreign direct investment ( FDI ) in real ...