If you want to do a survey for India, what are the various categories you have to cover – so that your survey captures the whole country?
A. ZONE
1. North+Central
2. South
3. West
4. East
5. North-east
B. LOCATION
1. City
2. Town
3. Village
C. SEX
1. Male
2. Female
D. AGE
1. Young
2. Middle-age
3. Old
E. CLASS
1. Middle class
2. Lower class
3. Poor
F. CASTE
1. Upper-caste
2. OBC
3. SC/ST
4. Other
So total number of survey categories = 5 x 3 x 2 x 3 x 3 x 4 = 1080!!!
Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
Showing posts with label India. Show all posts
01 June 2015
India's Complexity: Religion, Language, Caste
India's complexity (religion, language, caste):
| Country | |||
| India | |||
| China | |||
| America |
Total number of combinations possible in India = 7 X 15 X 5,000 = 5,25,000.
24 May 2010
India's States and Europe's Countries: Population
Here is a comparison of the population of India's states and European countries:
| European Country | |
| 1. Germany | |
| 2. France | |
| 3. Britain | |
| 4. Italy | |
| 5. Spain |
| Indian State | |
| 1. Uttar Pradesh | |
| 2. Maharashtra | |
| 3. Bihar | |
| 4. West Bengal | |
| 5. Andhra Pradesh | |
| 6. Madhya Pradesh | |
| 7. Rajasthan | |
| 8. Tamil Nadu | |
| 9. Karnataka | |
| 10. Gujarat |
29 March 2009
Robert Kaplan on Modi, Gujarat and India
Robert Kaplan's profile of Narendra Modi in The Atlantic has all the usual lies and myths about the man, the 2002 Gujarat riots and Hindu nationalism. But it also has some interesting facts and insights.
On Modi:
His machine-like efficiency, financial probity, and dynamic leadership of the government bureaucracy have made Gujarat a mecca for development, garnering more internal investment than any other state in India. Migrants, both Hindu and Muslim, from throughout India have been streaming into Gujarat to find work at its expanding factories.
He is so honest that gifts for him are regularly deposited in the state treasury – a far cry from the corruption and nepotism that are so routine in Indian government.
By all accounts, after the riots, he manically dedicated himself to development, sleeping less than four hours every night, up at 5 am to check his e-mail and read the local papers, visiting about 3000 of the 7000 villages in the state, and empowering the lowest reaches of its bureaucracy through his slogan, "Less government, more governance."
On Gujarat:
Gujarat had experienced 10.2 percent annual GDP growth since 2002. It had eight new universities. In recent years, almost half the new jobs created in India were in Gujarat. The state ranked first in poverty alleviation, first in electricity generation.
He rolled off his accomplishments: "modern roads, private railroads with double-decker containers, 50,000 km of fiber-optic networks, 2200 km of gas pipelines, 1400 km of drinking-water pipelines to 7000 villages, 24-hour uninterrupted power in rural areas, the first Indian state with private ports, a totally integrated coastal-development plan, two LNG [liquefied natural gas] terminals and two new ones coming on line."
On India:
The British, by contrast, brought tangible development, ports and railways, that created the basis for a modern state. More important, they brought the framework for parliamentary democracy that Indians, who already possessed indigenous traditions of heterodoxy and pluralism, were able to fit to their own needs. Indeed, the very Hindu pantheon, with its many gods rather than one, works toward the realisation that competing truths are what enable freedom. Thus, the British, despite all their flaws, advanced an ideal of Indian greatness. And that greatness, as enlightened Indians will tell you, is impossible to achieve without a moral component.
(And that moral component is, of course, Dharma)
On Modi:
His machine-like efficiency, financial probity, and dynamic leadership of the government bureaucracy have made Gujarat a mecca for development, garnering more internal investment than any other state in India. Migrants, both Hindu and Muslim, from throughout India have been streaming into Gujarat to find work at its expanding factories.
He is so honest that gifts for him are regularly deposited in the state treasury – a far cry from the corruption and nepotism that are so routine in Indian government.
By all accounts, after the riots, he manically dedicated himself to development, sleeping less than four hours every night, up at 5 am to check his e-mail and read the local papers, visiting about 3000 of the 7000 villages in the state, and empowering the lowest reaches of its bureaucracy through his slogan, "Less government, more governance."
On Gujarat:
Gujarat had experienced 10.2 percent annual GDP growth since 2002. It had eight new universities. In recent years, almost half the new jobs created in India were in Gujarat. The state ranked first in poverty alleviation, first in electricity generation.
He rolled off his accomplishments: "modern roads, private railroads with double-decker containers, 50,000 km of fiber-optic networks, 2200 km of gas pipelines, 1400 km of drinking-water pipelines to 7000 villages, 24-hour uninterrupted power in rural areas, the first Indian state with private ports, a totally integrated coastal-development plan, two LNG [liquefied natural gas] terminals and two new ones coming on line."
On India:
The British, by contrast, brought tangible development, ports and railways, that created the basis for a modern state. More important, they brought the framework for parliamentary democracy that Indians, who already possessed indigenous traditions of heterodoxy and pluralism, were able to fit to their own needs. Indeed, the very Hindu pantheon, with its many gods rather than one, works toward the realisation that competing truths are what enable freedom. Thus, the British, despite all their flaws, advanced an ideal of Indian greatness. And that greatness, as enlightened Indians will tell you, is impossible to achieve without a moral component.
(And that moral component is, of course, Dharma)
15 March 2009
Aurobindo's Letter to His Wife
In 1905 Aurobindo Ghosh wrote a letter to his wife Mrinalini Devi. Here are some excerpts:
I think you have understood by now that the man with whose fate yours has been linked is a man of a very unusual character. Mine is not the same field of action, the same purpose in life, the same mental attitude as that of the people of today in this country. I am in every respect different from them and out of the ordinary. Perhaps you know what ordinary men say of an extraordinary view, an extraordinary endeavour, an extraordinary ambition. To them it is madness; only, if the madman is successful in his work then he is called no longer a madman, but a great genius. But how many are successful in their life's endeavour?
Among a thousand men, there are five or six who are out of the ordinary and out of the five or six one perhaps successful. Not to speak of success, I have not yet even entirely entered my field of work. There is nothing then for you but to consider me mad.
I have three madnesses. The first one is this. I firmly believe that the accomplishments, genius, higher education and learning and wealth that God has given me are His.
My second madness has only recently seized me. It is this: by whatever means I must have the direct vision of God.
My third madness is that while others look upon their country as an inert piece of matter – a few meadows and fields, forests and hills and rivers – I look upon my country as the Mother.
Half my life has been wasted – even the beast finds fulfilment in stuffing his own belly and his family's and catering to their happiness. I have three hundred million brothers and sisters in this country. Many of them are dying of starvation and the majority just manage to live, racked by sorrow and suffering. They too must be helped.
The power of the Kshatriya is not the only one; there is also the power of the Brahmin, the power that is founded on knowledge. This feeling is not new in me, it is not of today. I was born with it, it is in my very marrow. God sent me to earth to accomplish this great mission. The seed began to sprout when I was fourteen; by the time I was eighteen the roots of the resolution had grown firm and unshakable. I do not say that the work will be accomplished during my lifetime, but it certainly will be done.
(Link courtesy Nithin)
I think you have understood by now that the man with whose fate yours has been linked is a man of a very unusual character. Mine is not the same field of action, the same purpose in life, the same mental attitude as that of the people of today in this country. I am in every respect different from them and out of the ordinary. Perhaps you know what ordinary men say of an extraordinary view, an extraordinary endeavour, an extraordinary ambition. To them it is madness; only, if the madman is successful in his work then he is called no longer a madman, but a great genius. But how many are successful in their life's endeavour?
Among a thousand men, there are five or six who are out of the ordinary and out of the five or six one perhaps successful. Not to speak of success, I have not yet even entirely entered my field of work. There is nothing then for you but to consider me mad.
I have three madnesses. The first one is this. I firmly believe that the accomplishments, genius, higher education and learning and wealth that God has given me are His.
My second madness has only recently seized me. It is this: by whatever means I must have the direct vision of God.
My third madness is that while others look upon their country as an inert piece of matter – a few meadows and fields, forests and hills and rivers – I look upon my country as the Mother.
Half my life has been wasted – even the beast finds fulfilment in stuffing his own belly and his family's and catering to their happiness. I have three hundred million brothers and sisters in this country. Many of them are dying of starvation and the majority just manage to live, racked by sorrow and suffering. They too must be helped.
The power of the Kshatriya is not the only one; there is also the power of the Brahmin, the power that is founded on knowledge. This feeling is not new in me, it is not of today. I was born with it, it is in my very marrow. God sent me to earth to accomplish this great mission. The seed began to sprout when I was fourteen; by the time I was eighteen the roots of the resolution had grown firm and unshakable. I do not say that the work will be accomplished during my lifetime, but it certainly will be done.
(Link courtesy Nithin)
27 February 2009
The Spirit of India
'India Today' magazine once ran a series of promos with India as the theme. The first in the series was a beautiful poem on (what I would call) the spirit of India. If memory serves me right it went like this:
In India, to be a complete man, you have to be half a woman.
Opposites are complimentary, not contradictory.
Softness is not weakness. Logic does not conquer love.
Giving is as important as receiving.
And death is merely the beginning of another life...
India has always had a grasp of the immutable Truth.
An all-embracing view of life.
A wisdom that recognises the oneness of man and his universe.
Values that speak not just of a glorious past,
But are also the foundation of an equally resplendent future.
Which, by the way, are one and the same.
In India, to be a complete man, you have to be half a woman.
Opposites are complimentary, not contradictory.
Softness is not weakness. Logic does not conquer love.
Giving is as important as receiving.
And death is merely the beginning of another life...
India has always had a grasp of the immutable Truth.
An all-embracing view of life.
A wisdom that recognises the oneness of man and his universe.
Values that speak not just of a glorious past,
But are also the foundation of an equally resplendent future.
Which, by the way, are one and the same.
14 February 2009
Mission: India Superpower
The RSS's mission is to make India a superpower. This sentiment is beautifully expressed in these lines:
Hum ne use diya tha
Samskrutik uccha simhasan
Maa jis par baiti sukh se
Karti thi jag ka shaasan.
Ab kaal chakra ki gati se
Wah toot gaya simhasan
Apna tan man dhan de kar
Hum kare punah samsthapan.
(From the song "Hum kare rashtra aradhan".)
Hum ne use diya tha
Samskrutik uccha simhasan
Maa jis par baiti sukh se
Karti thi jag ka shaasan.
Ab kaal chakra ki gati se
Wah toot gaya simhasan
Apna tan man dhan de kar
Hum kare punah samsthapan.
(From the song "Hum kare rashtra aradhan".)
17 January 2009
The New Indian Order
By Tarun Vijay:
"The creators of a new Indian order will certainly do it better. Have power, will win. That's the key to success. India is struggling hard, is bleeding and yet showing winner's traits. This inner strength is essentially the civilisational gift, which runs into our veins. Call it Hindu or anything else. It is the defining life force of all of us. Eliminating terrorism ruthlessly, recapturing land lost to the enemy neighbours, rejuvenating the economy and infusing new blood into our educational and agricultural sectors are the new markers of our unstoppable journey to power-peak.
"I see clearly a rise of the intense Hindu values once the present young generation takes over. To me, the Hindu Right remains the last hope and an instrument to revive the glory and the wonder of India. And we know, the best and the brightest still are found in the various folds and facets of this segment, if we can train our eyes to look beyond the political organisational framework.
"If those who qualify from IITs and IIMs leave their lucrative options abroad to join RSS work in Meghalaya or Port Blair, then we still have hopes for India's rejuvenation. If the youngest force on this earth finds a suitable job to work for scheduled castes and tribes as RSS pracharaks, then no power on this earth can stop the ongoing march of the people who believe in the good of all sans borders of faith, caste or creed.
"The most delighting factor of a new Indian order is the young faces in the camps of Swami Ramdev, in the discourses of Sri Sri, in the congregations of Mohan Bhagwat (the youngest CEO of the largest Hindu organisation on this planet), or glued to the deep knowledge banks of K S Sudarshan (chief of the Hindus' greatest consolidation).
"Temple or no temple, gods or no gods, the only factor that must matter is the survival of a Hindu India – unabashedly, unapologetically assertive and Himalayan in its heights. It means everyone. It means all faiths and colours."
"The creators of a new Indian order will certainly do it better. Have power, will win. That's the key to success. India is struggling hard, is bleeding and yet showing winner's traits. This inner strength is essentially the civilisational gift, which runs into our veins. Call it Hindu or anything else. It is the defining life force of all of us. Eliminating terrorism ruthlessly, recapturing land lost to the enemy neighbours, rejuvenating the economy and infusing new blood into our educational and agricultural sectors are the new markers of our unstoppable journey to power-peak.
"I see clearly a rise of the intense Hindu values once the present young generation takes over. To me, the Hindu Right remains the last hope and an instrument to revive the glory and the wonder of India. And we know, the best and the brightest still are found in the various folds and facets of this segment, if we can train our eyes to look beyond the political organisational framework.
"If those who qualify from IITs and IIMs leave their lucrative options abroad to join RSS work in Meghalaya or Port Blair, then we still have hopes for India's rejuvenation. If the youngest force on this earth finds a suitable job to work for scheduled castes and tribes as RSS pracharaks, then no power on this earth can stop the ongoing march of the people who believe in the good of all sans borders of faith, caste or creed.
"The most delighting factor of a new Indian order is the young faces in the camps of Swami Ramdev, in the discourses of Sri Sri, in the congregations of Mohan Bhagwat (the youngest CEO of the largest Hindu organisation on this planet), or glued to the deep knowledge banks of K S Sudarshan (chief of the Hindus' greatest consolidation).
"Temple or no temple, gods or no gods, the only factor that must matter is the survival of a Hindu India – unabashedly, unapologetically assertive and Himalayan in its heights. It means everyone. It means all faiths and colours."
04 June 2008
Books on India
Today I will talk about the books I have read on my favourite subject: India.
1. The Idea of India – Sunil Khilnani
This was the first book on India that I read. A short but impressive work, it is written from a Nehruvian viewpoint. Khilnani uses a lot of difficult words, so keep a dictionary by your side.
2. India Unbound – Gurcharan Das
A paean to the brave new India that was born in 1991. Written in simple language. The only sore point is that the reader is subject to the story of Das and his family too, along with the story of India.
3. No Full Stops in India – Mark Tully
Though a foreigner, Tully has understood India better than many Indians. This collection of essays is a sympathetic look at our country. It had been criticised by some people for its apparent defence of the caste system.
4. Million Mutinies Now – V S Naipaul
The final book in the India trilogy. In this book Naipaul changes his formerly negative view of India. He travels across the country listening to people's stories, and narrates them to us in his masterful prose.
5. Continent of Circe – Nirad C Chaudhuri
This is a classic from the old curmudgeon. Provocative, politically incorrect and sometimes outrageous – this is Chaudhuri at his best. His analysis of India, though fanciful, is scholarly and full of insights.
6. From Midnight to Millennium – Shashi Tharoor
Tharoor is a Nehruvian secularist and an admirer of Sonia Gandhi. Still this book is worth reading – especially for its analysis of how India's institutions decayed and crumbled during the Indira Gandhi years.
Other books on India I haven't read:
a) Heart of India – Mark Tully
b) Great Indian Middle Class – Pavan Varma
c) Elephant Paradigm – Gurcharan Das
d) Elephant, Tiger and Cell Phone – Shashi Tharoor
e) In Spite of the Gods – Ed Luce
Please let me know of any good book you have read on India :-)
1. The Idea of India – Sunil Khilnani
This was the first book on India that I read. A short but impressive work, it is written from a Nehruvian viewpoint. Khilnani uses a lot of difficult words, so keep a dictionary by your side.
2. India Unbound – Gurcharan Das
A paean to the brave new India that was born in 1991. Written in simple language. The only sore point is that the reader is subject to the story of Das and his family too, along with the story of India.
3. No Full Stops in India – Mark Tully
Though a foreigner, Tully has understood India better than many Indians. This collection of essays is a sympathetic look at our country. It had been criticised by some people for its apparent defence of the caste system.
4. Million Mutinies Now – V S Naipaul
The final book in the India trilogy. In this book Naipaul changes his formerly negative view of India. He travels across the country listening to people's stories, and narrates them to us in his masterful prose.
5. Continent of Circe – Nirad C Chaudhuri
This is a classic from the old curmudgeon. Provocative, politically incorrect and sometimes outrageous – this is Chaudhuri at his best. His analysis of India, though fanciful, is scholarly and full of insights.
6. From Midnight to Millennium – Shashi Tharoor
Tharoor is a Nehruvian secularist and an admirer of Sonia Gandhi. Still this book is worth reading – especially for its analysis of how India's institutions decayed and crumbled during the Indira Gandhi years.
Other books on India I haven't read:
a) Heart of India – Mark Tully
b) Great Indian Middle Class – Pavan Varma
c) Elephant Paradigm – Gurcharan Das
d) Elephant, Tiger and Cell Phone – Shashi Tharoor
e) In Spite of the Gods – Ed Luce
Please let me know of any good book you have read on India :-)
25 March 2008
Friends, Indians, Countrymen!
Don't you want India to be free from poverty? Don't you want India to be a developed country? Don't you want India to become a superpower? Don't you want India to overtake China and America? Don't you want the 21st century to be the Indian century?
Every Indian will answer "Yes!" to these questions. Then the next question is: What are YOU doing to make this dream come true? Typical answers to this question are:
A. Nothing
B. I don't have the time
C. I obey the law and pay my taxes
D. I am too busy with my job and my family
E. It's the job of politicians and bureaucrats
Obeying the law and paying one's taxes are the minimum duties of a citizen. In an ideal world, this would be enough. But we don't live in an ideal world. Our country has so many basic problems that we have to do more. And it's not enough to say that this is the job of politicians and bureaucrats. JFK said, "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." Today we should say, "Don't talk about what others should be doing for the country. Tell me what you are doing for your country." The hard truth is we have to do something so that our country becomes a better place. It won't happen on its own.
My fellow Indians, I am not sure if you know how lucky we all are. To be born in India in the 20th century. To be Indians in the 21st century. This is the best time and the best place to be in. The greatest adventure in the history of mankind is taking place in front of our eyes. A great and ancient civilisation is emerging as a modern nation – strong and prosperous. One sixth of the human race is taking its rightful place under the sun. India is the light of the world. After centuries of darkness, she is ready to blaze forth again.
In this great adventure, every one of us faces a choice. We can either stand on the sidewalk and watch, as spectators, reading about it in newspapers and watching it on TV. Or we can be participants, we can get involved. We can be the ones who make it happen. Every one of us believes that he/she loves the country. Well, 'love' is not just a noun; it is a verb. Love is not just what you feel; it is what you do. Every one of us has to ask the question, "What am I doing for my country?" Even if you don't care about society at large, do it for yourself and your family – what kind of a country do you want your children to live in? Our destiny is in our hands. Our future is what we make it. We all have to do our bit.
Every Indian will answer "Yes!" to these questions. Then the next question is: What are YOU doing to make this dream come true? Typical answers to this question are:
A. Nothing
B. I don't have the time
C. I obey the law and pay my taxes
D. I am too busy with my job and my family
E. It's the job of politicians and bureaucrats
Obeying the law and paying one's taxes are the minimum duties of a citizen. In an ideal world, this would be enough. But we don't live in an ideal world. Our country has so many basic problems that we have to do more. And it's not enough to say that this is the job of politicians and bureaucrats. JFK said, "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country." Today we should say, "Don't talk about what others should be doing for the country. Tell me what you are doing for your country." The hard truth is we have to do something so that our country becomes a better place. It won't happen on its own.
My fellow Indians, I am not sure if you know how lucky we all are. To be born in India in the 20th century. To be Indians in the 21st century. This is the best time and the best place to be in. The greatest adventure in the history of mankind is taking place in front of our eyes. A great and ancient civilisation is emerging as a modern nation – strong and prosperous. One sixth of the human race is taking its rightful place under the sun. India is the light of the world. After centuries of darkness, she is ready to blaze forth again.
In this great adventure, every one of us faces a choice. We can either stand on the sidewalk and watch, as spectators, reading about it in newspapers and watching it on TV. Or we can be participants, we can get involved. We can be the ones who make it happen. Every one of us believes that he/she loves the country. Well, 'love' is not just a noun; it is a verb. Love is not just what you feel; it is what you do. Every one of us has to ask the question, "What am I doing for my country?" Even if you don't care about society at large, do it for yourself and your family – what kind of a country do you want your children to live in? Our destiny is in our hands. Our future is what we make it. We all have to do our bit.
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