10th April,2009- What is so significant about this date that I have started writing about it??
Well, It was a Friday and that too a Good Friday- a holiday for many but not so for me. For all other significant events related to this date 10th April please refer this.
However, these things have got nothing to do with this post. It was a significant day for the CAT '08 aspirants and more so for those who had an IIM call as the results were declared on this day.
Now let me tell you about how that day went for me in brief. Well, before I begin you must know what was my status regarding the IIM calls. CAT'08 fetched me three IIM calls- B,I and L.Bangalore interview went really well and I was so confident that I would make it . Indore interview was good but the GD was a fish market. So I was skeptical about it. Lucknow- I should not say anything regarding this- bad GD(abstract topic) , bad interview(don't know but there was a madam who was not quite interested in me- I really don't know why-you need to ask her). So ,all in all, a moderate set of GD/PI for the IIM calls.
On the other hand, I was not doing well in office,specially after the leaves that I had taken for CAT and then the interviews, I had a quarrel with my manager. So , you can imagine my situation at that time . It was like the the famous saying-"Dhobi ka kutta - na ghar ka , na ghat ka". Moreover , one of my colleagues on 9th April showed me a link of IIM Lucknow which was active for around 1/2 hour and there I had checked my results and it displayed a reject for me.Well, that is ,I think will suffice the prologue.
Now the day began at 12 a.m.(12 in the night). I was lying down on my bed but sleep seemed to have deserted me. Tension was building up and I was constantly thinking what was in store for me tomorrow. At 12.30 , unable to sleep , I woke up and just sat there- hoping to ease the tension. Then at 1 a.m. I was back in bed -this time determined to sleep. However, sleeep was hard to come by , and it was only after 2 that I could sleep. At 6 a.m. the doorbell rang- a signal that our cooking maid has come. I got up and opened the door and just sat there on the sofa - the tension coming back once again on my mind. Other roommates of mine were fast asleep. At 7 a.m. the newspaper arrived and I got something to pass my time. By 8.30 a.m. one of my roommate left for office and at 9.45 I too left, but not for office but for an Internet cafe. Why?? Because I was too afraid to go to the office before knowing my fate.
At precisely 10.10 I reached the cafe and opened the IIM-B site as I was confident of converting it.But oh! the pdf file was not opening. My heart was in my mouth and I was continuously praying to god. After trying till 10.40 the pdf opened and there my CAT Tr no.was nowhere to be found -not even in the wait list. IIM-B was a reject and so was L(due to the previous day experience). My throat was going dry - now my only hope was IIM-I. I opened the site and entered my TR no. and there it was - The most happiest moment of my life. It said- Congratulation!You have been selected for admission to PGP Batch 2009-2011 of IIM Indore.
Wow! It was a huge relief to me . I could now proudly go the office and resign. IIM-I saved my day. I went to my office and checked the results again. IIM-I it was for me. I called home to give the big news. I was soon to be a part of this great institute and more so of the prestigious IIM's. The rest of the day went in receiving congrats from my colleagues and peers. But the funniest part was when I went to my manager to say that I am resigning. The first thing that my manager asked me was "Tumhara kahin ho gaya(admission) kya?". Wow! It was a nice thing to hear after the brawl that I had with him a month back.
Then it was time for party- I invited my roommates to Karim's - the only well-known restaurant in Guragaon for biriyani. But my first time experience over there was not good. The biriyani was pathetic - I can cook a better biriyani than that! However, thanks to one of my veggie friend - the paneer dish gave us some respite from the tasteless mutton biriyani. Then at around 11 p.m. we went to our room with Bacardi Breezer- lime n lemon flavors to complete the celebration. After that it was time for me to go to sleep. Thus, 10th April- the happiest day of my life ended after I fell asllep instantly at 12 in the night.
Though the 24 hours was not that eventful, yet it was a memorable one for me as it gave me what I always wanted - admission to one of the IIM's. I will cherish this 10th April as long as my grey cells will work!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
On the Bench?Mast hai yaar!
People in the IT industry often comes across this phrase called "bench". Now what is this bench?Is it really a a wooden board on which employees are made to sit?? Many may have this notion - but the reality is that these are normal employees who are without any project and hence have to pass the time waiting for a new project.
Well , you may wonder after reading the first para that I am repeating something which is known by most of the people - considering the fact that most graduates join the IT industry irrespective of their background and if they are in some other industry then they are bound to have some kin in the IT industry and hence this term "bench" becomes universally known. However, this post of mine is not to explain the known but actually to make you know what goes on in the mind of the people who are on the bench.
When you join the IT industry ,generally, you are put on the bench for a short period(which can become long for some) before you are put into some kind of a project. So, most people go through this phase. Now, this phase is the mast period "on bench" as right after engineering college(where most of us don't do anything) we get a phase in our office life where we can be our old self once again i.e do nothing - come to the office,take a cup of coffee(which is free), check mails,chat with friends(on gtalk or yahoo messenger), do orkut(if it is not blocked) and then go out for tea in the evening with friends(who are also on bench) and then ,maybe, try your hand at TT or badminton(provided these facilities are there in your office) and atlast after such a tiresome day leave for home exactly at 5.30 to catch a few movies or play some games. Sounds mast no? This is the reason people tell that if you are on bench then it's mast.
But consider this - what if you are required to repeat this schedule for months? Frightening isn't it?? How many mails can you check or forward or how much chatting, orkutting can you do? It becomes boring and your life becomes miserable. If you are on bench for long ( where you do nothing) you are bound to forget whatever little you may have gained from college. Thus, when you will be put into a project you won't be able to perform to your potential and then the tough period starts- a desire to perform but the lack of essential knowledge and then your superiors begin to think that you are worthless and you become wretched. Thus, bench period seems to be a curse.
The above para refers to those kind of people who are really serious about their work and want to excel in the technical field. For them a prolonged "bench" period is a curse. However , in the IT industry there is another category of people - people call this category smarter, worthless, liability to the company, undecided, "bhagnewaalas"(as they try to flee from their company) etc. With whatever name they may be called , the reality is that for this people "bench" period is a boon. A large chunk of this population try for CAT and other management exams. Many also try for GRE /UPSC etc. and yet another chunk try to change their company and go to a better one. Thus ,these are those who want to study further or have big ambitions( zeal to do more in a shorter period ).For these people the bench period is the ideal time for whatever preparations that they want to do. Hence the "mast bench period " is suitable for this population.
But whatever it is - a prolonged bench period is a very bad phase that anyone has to endure. For those people whose project ends(these people may be having > 4 years of experience in project) are also forced to come on bench. It is a welcome break for them. However , a prolonged period(something greater than 3 weeks) will hurt these people also because nobody wants to sit idle without any purpose. Imagine coming to a office where you don't know what is expected of you and you don't have any purpose or a objective there - frightening isn't it?? More frightening is the case where your annual performance analysis time approaches and you stll remain on bench, thus making your future in the present company uncertain. You become desperate for a project as you cannot afford to loose your job. You start approaching the managers of the various projects but you do not get an oppurtunity. Your frustation level rises. You see your batchmates, friends and colleagues happily employed in a project and you are made to sit idle the whole day. You loose yor peace of mind.
Thus whatever way you look at , bench period , though it may seem to be "mast" initially , it is full of frustation and loneliness. So the next time you tell someone "On the Bench?Mast hai yaar!" - think again!
P.S. This is posted by someone who had been in bench.
Well , you may wonder after reading the first para that I am repeating something which is known by most of the people - considering the fact that most graduates join the IT industry irrespective of their background and if they are in some other industry then they are bound to have some kin in the IT industry and hence this term "bench" becomes universally known. However, this post of mine is not to explain the known but actually to make you know what goes on in the mind of the people who are on the bench.
When you join the IT industry ,generally, you are put on the bench for a short period(which can become long for some) before you are put into some kind of a project. So, most people go through this phase. Now, this phase is the mast period "on bench" as right after engineering college(where most of us don't do anything) we get a phase in our office life where we can be our old self once again i.e do nothing - come to the office,take a cup of coffee(which is free), check mails,chat with friends(on gtalk or yahoo messenger), do orkut(if it is not blocked) and then go out for tea in the evening with friends(who are also on bench) and then ,maybe, try your hand at TT or badminton(provided these facilities are there in your office) and atlast after such a tiresome day leave for home exactly at 5.30 to catch a few movies or play some games. Sounds mast no? This is the reason people tell that if you are on bench then it's mast.
But consider this - what if you are required to repeat this schedule for months? Frightening isn't it?? How many mails can you check or forward or how much chatting, orkutting can you do? It becomes boring and your life becomes miserable. If you are on bench for long ( where you do nothing) you are bound to forget whatever little you may have gained from college. Thus, when you will be put into a project you won't be able to perform to your potential and then the tough period starts- a desire to perform but the lack of essential knowledge and then your superiors begin to think that you are worthless and you become wretched. Thus, bench period seems to be a curse.
The above para refers to those kind of people who are really serious about their work and want to excel in the technical field. For them a prolonged "bench" period is a curse. However , in the IT industry there is another category of people - people call this category smarter, worthless, liability to the company, undecided, "bhagnewaalas"(as they try to flee from their company) etc. With whatever name they may be called , the reality is that for this people "bench" period is a boon. A large chunk of this population try for CAT and other management exams. Many also try for GRE /UPSC etc. and yet another chunk try to change their company and go to a better one. Thus ,these are those who want to study further or have big ambitions( zeal to do more in a shorter period ).For these people the bench period is the ideal time for whatever preparations that they want to do. Hence the "mast bench period " is suitable for this population.
But whatever it is - a prolonged bench period is a very bad phase that anyone has to endure. For those people whose project ends(these people may be having > 4 years of experience in project) are also forced to come on bench. It is a welcome break for them. However , a prolonged period(something greater than 3 weeks) will hurt these people also because nobody wants to sit idle without any purpose. Imagine coming to a office where you don't know what is expected of you and you don't have any purpose or a objective there - frightening isn't it?? More frightening is the case where your annual performance analysis time approaches and you stll remain on bench, thus making your future in the present company uncertain. You become desperate for a project as you cannot afford to loose your job. You start approaching the managers of the various projects but you do not get an oppurtunity. Your frustation level rises. You see your batchmates, friends and colleagues happily employed in a project and you are made to sit idle the whole day. You loose yor peace of mind.
Thus whatever way you look at , bench period , though it may seem to be "mast" initially , it is full of frustation and loneliness. So the next time you tell someone "On the Bench?Mast hai yaar!" - think again!
P.S. This is posted by someone who had been in bench.
Politiconomics
India Shining - this title may not be apt for India but it is certainly apt for the Indian politicians.
Politics in India today is considered to be a big business considering the fact that Lagadapati Rajagopal declared assets worth 299 crore - a 30 fold increse from 9.6 crore (his asset valuation in 2004). Thus , a five year UPA rule was enough for him to multiply his assets 30 times. Add to it, this a general trend among most politicians irrespective of the party. You just need a to book a seat in your name after the elections and money starts pouring in. Sometimes I think that these politicians should have been businessmen - since in a five year period they can amass so much wealth , then think, if they are given the reins of a company for a longer time they can take the company to new heights which no Ambani or Tata can think of!
Netas were supposed to be the servants of the public and cater to their needs. But today just the opposite is happening - the public is giving money to cater to the needs of the politicians. Another startling fact- an Indian politicians salary(including all allowances) on an average is around 35000per month=4.2 lac/annum. Hence in 5 years his assets can at max be 21 lac(if he saves the entire amount). Then how can you explain a rise in assets for most politicians in crores?
Now it is high time that we think about such discrepancies. Another question that I am often faced with is what happens to taxpayers money? Have you given a thought to this. The espenditure for mineral water in parliament for the MP's amount to several lacs. When they can't provide safe drinking water to most of the peaople in India , how can they afford to have mineral water themselves? Moreover every MP in India is entitled for the following:
Daily DA TA during parliament meets: 500/day
Charge for 1 class (A/C) in train: Free (For any number of times) (All over India )
Charge for Business Class in flights: Free for 40 trips / year (With wife or P.A.)
Rent for MP hostel at Delhi: Free
Electricity cost at home: Free up to 50,000 units
Local phone call charge: Free up to 1 ,70,000 calls.
These are only a select few.Now what are they doing to deserve such lucrative allowances?
To have a fair idea of where the assets of the politicians stand refer to this: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4367826.cm
You will find in this article a startling fact which is as follws:
"Compared to these worthies, the wealth of our former maharajas looks small. Jyotiraditya Scindia's declared assets, for instance, are less than Rs 14 crore. "
However, we should be thankful to these people only for the RTI act that allows us to know where our beloved NETAS stand.
Don't you think that it is time we give a thought to this "politiconomics" and stand united for a change for India and it's people??
Politics in India today is considered to be a big business considering the fact that Lagadapati Rajagopal declared assets worth 299 crore - a 30 fold increse from 9.6 crore (his asset valuation in 2004). Thus , a five year UPA rule was enough for him to multiply his assets 30 times. Add to it, this a general trend among most politicians irrespective of the party. You just need a to book a seat in your name after the elections and money starts pouring in. Sometimes I think that these politicians should have been businessmen - since in a five year period they can amass so much wealth , then think, if they are given the reins of a company for a longer time they can take the company to new heights which no Ambani or Tata can think of!
Netas were supposed to be the servants of the public and cater to their needs. But today just the opposite is happening - the public is giving money to cater to the needs of the politicians. Another startling fact- an Indian politicians salary(including all allowances) on an average is around 35000per month=4.2 lac/annum. Hence in 5 years his assets can at max be 21 lac(if he saves the entire amount). Then how can you explain a rise in assets for most politicians in crores?
Now it is high time that we think about such discrepancies. Another question that I am often faced with is what happens to taxpayers money? Have you given a thought to this. The espenditure for mineral water in parliament for the MP's amount to several lacs. When they can't provide safe drinking water to most of the peaople in India , how can they afford to have mineral water themselves? Moreover every MP in India is entitled for the following:
Daily DA TA during parliament meets: 500/day
Charge for 1 class (A/C) in train: Free (For any number of times) (All over India )
Charge for Business Class in flights: Free for 40 trips / year (With wife or P.A.)
Rent for MP hostel at Delhi: Free
Electricity cost at home: Free up to 50,000 units
Local phone call charge: Free up to 1 ,70,000 calls.
These are only a select few.Now what are they doing to deserve such lucrative allowances?
To have a fair idea of where the assets of the politicians stand refer to this: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4367826.cm
You will find in this article a startling fact which is as follws:
"Compared to these worthies, the wealth of our former maharajas looks small. Jyotiraditya Scindia's declared assets, for instance, are less than Rs 14 crore. "
However, we should be thankful to these people only for the RTI act that allows us to know where our beloved NETAS stand.
Don't you think that it is time we give a thought to this "politiconomics" and stand united for a change for India and it's people??
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