In the late 80s and early 90s Narendra Modi  was virtually unknown. He fought very hard to accomplish the tasks given to him by the Senior Leaders of BJP. Towards the later part of the decade, we saw a belligerent Modi moving closer to his political ambition of becoming the Chief Minister of Gujarat.

In 2001, Narendra Modi became the Chief Minister of Gujarat, got promoted to the office at a time his predecessor Kesubhai Patel lost the by-elections. In July 2007, he became the longest serving Chief Minister.  Later the same year, he was re-elected for the third consecutive term as the CM.

In 2001, just when he took office Modi was given the task of rebuilding Gujarat. This was in the wake of the biggest natural calamity India had seen – The Gujarat Earthquake which killed nearly 20000 people and another 170000 injured.  Modi was a man on a mission

In 2002, he faced the biggest test of his life – There was a communal riot in which Hindus and Muslims killed each other following a Godhra train incident. The riot killed nearly 2000 people and about 150000 were displaced.  The entire nation was pitted against him and some even went to the extent of terming the Godhra incident as an attempted genocide, a largescale massacre.

Modi did not sit quiet. What followed was a successful stint – one after the other. In his first term as the Gujarat Chief Minister, the economic growth touched 10%. In 2007, the growth touched a stunning 11.5% reducing the fiscal deficit of the state economy by a stunning 50%.

Other noticeable achievements included infrastructural developments, electrifying rural Gujarat, the Narmada success story etc.

Narendra Modi’s leadership and his extraordinary capabilities made him the darling of media. And soon a brand called Moditva emerged. Modi translated excessive criticisms and a burgeoning popularity into mass votes which made gave him a landslide victory in his third time.

Advani once said about Modi

A leader who, after being subjected to a malicious and prolonged campaign of vilification, has been able to impress even his critics with his determination, single-minded focus, integrity and a wide array of achievements in a relatively short time.

The year 2008 saw Modi take a complete u-turn with industrialists and politicians alike yearning for a piece of the pie in the Gujarat success story. Budha’s pain was Modi’s gain. Under the leadership of Modi, Gujarat opened the doors for Tata and Sanand became the Nanoland.

Modi did not stop there. He continues to woo Bangalore based IT and BPO companies to set up their units in Modiland. 

If this was not enough, Modi surprised all his critics as late as last week. He embarked on a demolition drive of “illegally built temples” in Gujarat including that of a Sai Baba and a Hanuman shrine. Facing the axe are another 161 illegally constructed temples.

Modi invited widespread criticisms for his actions especially from VHP – the erstwhile ideological partner of the BJP. In fact Ashok Singhal, of the VHP compared his government to that of Aurangazeb’s. Modi loyalists however argued that he was painting a picture of a Nationally acceptable, Secular Leader

Read the words once again – “Nationally Acceptable, Secular Leader.” Wow !!!

That made me think a dozen times before I wrote this article.

Is Narendra Modi really trying to lead by example ? Your comments please…

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Credit: The funkyman

How did it happen in a state ruled by a communist government? One of the only two remaining communist states of the country faced the worst defeat. It was hard to believe that Mamata won over Buddhadeb.

If this was really a matter of justice for the poor, how did Buddha fail to see it? Communist parties may have failed in India and may not have been able to be the real voice of the common man, but there were quite a few of us who believed West Bengal was liberated enough and communism almost meant a religion there.

So has communism lost the battle of for the people, of the people, by the people?  TATA’s departure from Singur raises many concerns.  Mamata may be an over dramatic woman but is also being seen as the voice of the oppressed now.

Could this be an awakening we all have been waiting for?  Do we now have a politician who is really concerned about what the people need and will fight for it? Making it happen not just for them but for a whole course of political era in India.

Well, that probably is an over rated statement. But it can be possible too. This should wake up Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and other fast developing states who have been buying lands for the rates of peanuts from farmers and selling them for gold’s worth to MNCs and other SEZs.

One state again has showed that it’s not difficult to put the imperialistic industrialists of in place. So what if TATA moved to greener pastures in Gujarat, this can be the starting of a time when big business houses will work on some ethics while trading with the not so lucky in life.

Couple of months ago I was doing some land hunting on the Srisailam Highway belt. The whole way there were real estate company’s signs, boards, and banners. The names were oh so international, Sydney (with a picture of Kangaroo, hilarious), Aliens space station (whatever that means), XXX township etc. All farm lands, poultries, grape yards or just plain greenery that you would love to see on a long ride.

But with the advent of corporate real estate it’s not an illusion but a reality that in a few years those lands will turn into concrete forest. All these lands have been bought for almost 1/3 of the rate that they are being sold to customers. If I’m to believe talk, farmers have realised that they are being cheated cheaply; some of them have turned into real estate agents themselves. Can this be called true progress?

It’s time for more Mamatas and Medha Patkars to evolve. India awaits a true revolution from leaders who are persistent, patient and can give a life time to a cause. It’s time communist leaders learn how to win battles for us. If the Nuclear deal with US states doom for us in years to come, communist leaders would have lost another battle.

Popularity: 8%

Firstly before I go over the IPOD NANO I would like to give you a brief history about what made me opt for an Apple product (of all the myriad choices available in the market). The choice of the Nano went through enough deliberation as my previous purchase of the IPOD shuffle was one which left me smiling for 4 years. This also meant that I needed a player which could handle my appointments (outlook synchronization), my podcasts, and also have the time to show me some pictures and movies with crystal clear sound (tall order eh?).

Though there are a lot of Apple fan-boys out there, I don’t think Apple makes the best hardware (audio) as Iriver. Creative can beat them on pricing and very good sound. I went for the Nano as I needed reliability which I had found in my earlier purchase of the shuffle. I was lucky that I got this as a gift – a gift when unwrapped was beautiful to say the least. I can’t blame Apple for holding the market to ransom with their products. Their presentation has always been impeccable.

Anyways, I unpacked the package and there are the usual accessories USB dongle/charger (charging for some reason for Apple has always been through the USB though there are chargers which are available in the market which allow you to use the standard Power Socket to charge your pod), Nano Quick Start Guide, Apple Earphones, Nano Dock Adaptor and of course the Nano 3G.

On the first look (I got a black pod) it looks a beauty. Simplicity pervades every part of the Nano experience. May it be just going through the menu or transferring your songs onto the Nano (through ITunes). On a more detailed note let me break down all aspects of the IPOD NANO Xperience (XP is integral

Look and Feel

Smooth finish. Though prone to smudges due to the glossy finish, with the core being the touchpad which is core to the Nano and allows you to access all menu functions. The screen has a 5 cm wide screen (color) supporting a resolution of 320 * 240 pixels. The best thing is that the small size of the screen is not an impediment to viewing small movies (long movies might be a bit too tough on the eyes).

Sound  

Music/Photos/Videos (post conversion) are transferred through ITunes. I don’t use ITunes personally as I find it easier to use Winamp to manage my music collection and also manage the POD (Winamp plug-in).

Though there are some things where it is inevitable that you use ITunes, like managing your podcasts, videos and of course to use your POD as a drive. What you use is per your convenience.

Headphones

The standard pair of headphones needs to be discarded and you would need to invest in a good pair of head/ear phones to love the sound that the pod delivers. I use a Creative EP-630 which augments the aural response and is also a snug fit. The sound is impeccable with correct highs, mids and lows and I love listening to the podcasts, music and movies with the pod. I am not a music connoisseur so I can’t comment on the perfection of sound

Overall the pod 3G experience has been wonderful. Will give a more in-depth coverage in the 2nd part of this article.

Popularity: 14%