Capt. Shaji Kumar

Tag: AOSPL

  • Time…Part I.

    Yesterday, while in the middle of a training program, something about time came up and I thought it best to share some of my thoughts on TIME. How often in any given day do we hear this oft repeated lamenting remark, “I just don’t have the time”.

    I have personally practised this my entire life, where I rise quite early in the morning and in the matter of exceeding programmes, I have managed to accomplish as much in one morning hour as in two evening hours.

    We are all quite familiar with the phrase “Time is Money”, in fact Time is a great deal more than money. If you have time you can obtain money—usually. At the same time you may have all the wealth in the World, you cannot buy yourself a minute more time than what you have. The scientists & researchers have explained space, but no one has been able to explain time. It is the inexplicable raw material of everything. With it, all is possible; without it, nothing.

    Time is also an astonishing daily miracle. Every morning as soon as you wake up your time purse is filled with 24 hours magically, yours to spend as you deem fit. And everyone – the richest of rich and the poorest of poor gets exactly the same measure. It is the most precious of possessions. No one can take it from you, it is un-stealable. And no one receives either more or less than you receive. Use it as you like – there is no punishment for right or wrong. It is not like the ones who “use” time better are rewarded by an extra hour or two. Waste your infinitely precious commodity as much as you will, you will still be rewarded with a fresh 24 hours tomorrow. No mysterious power is going to come bearing down and pass any judgement, “this man does not deserve time, and cut him off the meter”. You cannot waste your tomorrow, it is kept safe for you, you cannot even waste the next hour, you can only waste the Present hour.

    We never shall have any more time. We have, and we have always had, all the time there is. It is a profound and neglected truth.

  • The World at War?

    This Covid-19 pandemic has gripped the entire World in a vicious vice, well almost the entire World but for one – where it all began. It has now been proven beyond  doubt, that if the alert had been sounded and strict measures enforced just a mere two weeks before it was eventually acted upon, we would all still be going about our lives as “old normal” instead of trying to adapt to a “new normal”. How the severity of the spread has been targeted or diverted more towards the developed part of the World, where despite the most advanced health care system, these Countries have grappled helplessly as the pandemic spread throughout, leaving in its wake an unpreceded toll.  All these years, ever since the last World War, nations have been foolishly spending enormous amounts of money, in stockpiling weapons & weapon systems including the lethal nuclear arsenals. We always tried to visualise a World, as how it would be, the day after a nuclear holocaust. Never, has anyone in their wildest dream imagined a parasitic holocaust. Biological warfare – yes, but it was always deemed to be restricted to a vicinity of geographical area and much less potent than a nuclear holocaust.  Who would have thought that devious minds enshrined in God knows what agenda, would work silently to create a situation where the entire World is brought down without lifting a single finger or ordering the troops out of their barracks. Introducing – “The Parasite” that would rule the World.

    This World is at War!! People are inside the cover of their homes, not because of an imminent bomb raid, but to protect themselves against a far more viciously lethal enemy – an enemy which can’t be seen with naked eyes. Like a seasoned predator this particular enemy can wait patiently, lurking on some surface always ready to invade the body of an unsuspecting victim, the moment he lets his “mask” down. As leaders across the Universe are trying to take a sneak peek and test waters by announcing cautious lifting of Lockdowns, the coming few weeks and months will be the deciding factor on which way this situation is going to swing. While all this has been going on, there is but one Country which is preparing, to go shopping. Pick up the spoils of the war from the devastated battlefield, just like the old times where the victorious troops would be allowed to scavenge off the corpses, whatever precious things could be scavenged. Like a soap opera, the plots and sub-plots keep changing. The days, weeks, months ahead would be very interesting to see how this drama unfolds.

    The truth is that human behaviour all over the World has made pandemics like this inevitable. We have shrunk the natural habitats, thereby giving more opportunities for viruses to combine and create lethal iterations. Then with the current socio-environmental set up in our cities, we give them more opportunities to spread, making the demarcation line very thin. Then we have provided ample opportunities. Just remember that, there’s always something to panic about, worry about or generally be in fear of. There always has been and there always will be. What’s upsetting or disturbing us now is, no more, or less serious than anything we have ever faced in the past. Over-react to it and it will get worse. Deal with it calmly and confidently and it will go away again – as ever. It is said that Good always prevails over the evil. This is what we have always been led to believe. We need to get faster at containment. We need to catch the virus at source. We know what it takes and fighting every pandemic since life on earth began – and no virus has ever beaten us yet. Historically whenever a pandemic virus has invaded causing destruction, all of human ingenuity has been brought to bear together to bring them down. It is only a matter of time…

  • Taking care of our senior citizens.

    What other developed Countries are already experiencing will sooner than later be applicable for India as well. As a nation we need to focus on capacity building at the grassroot level in order to use technology to successfully address the needs of our ageing population. Growing old is as natural a phenomenon as being born – a fact that we must all gracefully accept. However, it can become an issue in the absence of proper care, love and support from family. Thanks to the advancement of medical science, life expectancy is expected to increase further to 75+ over the next few decades.

    The government in 2017 had announced that it will come up with a new programme under which NGOs will take care of senior citizens, who are living alone, at their homes, besides bringing in a law to provide day care facility. There are about 100 million senior citizens in the country based on 2011 census. The current senior citizen population is expected to more than double to 300 million to constitute 20 per cent of the population in the next three decades. With a rapidly growing senior citizens, India is faced with the mammoth task of providing basic senior-friendly urban infrastructure.

    Organised Caregiver Communities

    These days most aged people are left alone at home, confined to solitude with minimal care and support, while their adult children are out at work. According to a study, 64 per cent of senior citizens living in an urban setup fall prey to loneliness and depression. The loss of physical independence along with mental and societal insecurities due to retirement or death of a partner can take a toll on the elderly as well.

    Caregiver communities: will offer independent living for senior citizens through senior-friendly infrastructure and trained personnel for elder care. The care-givers help with daily chores, medication and movement so as to make the seniors feel secured, empowered and cared for and can lead a stress-free life in a amicable social environment.

    Home Care

    Most senior citizens do not want to leave the comfort of their home even when faced with chronic ailments. Under such circumstances home-based care becomes crucial. There is a need to offer specially trained nursing and support assistance to the elderly at home. These professionals will be specially trained to handle various physical and mental ailments. They also assist in non-clinical care such as housekeeping, daily activity support, counselling and organising social group interactions.

    Use of Technology

    The Government has also started a program under the Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana (RVY) launched in March 2017, where the government plans to reach out to beneficiaries in three years through NGO’s. The use of wearables and sensors for detection and recording of patient vitals, automated logging systems, real-time data updates, etc. are some ways in which technology is transforming the way we look at healthcare. Use of modern technology like for instance a health app can not only accurately record, analyse and update patient vitals such as blood pressure or heart rate but also relay any inconsistencies immediately.

    Caregiving has to rapidly evolve. The notion of professional homecare is growing in India with technology-based innovation. As a nation we need to focus on capacity building at the systemic level in order to use technology to successfully address the needs of our senior citizens as it is both our duty and responsibility.

    Astute Outsourcing Services Pvt. Ltd. under the aegis of Chaque Jour Aashirwad Social Welfare Trust plans to start its “Elder Care” program soon.

  • Occult & Mysticism.

    Astrology, Palmistry, Numerology, Tarot, and a whole lot of other occult sciences are used to “predict” the future. The quest to know what lies ahead is more prevalent now than ever. Even though it has always existed in all cultures and across continents, the yearning to know what lies ahead is gaining momentum – much more than ever. Consequently it has been a catalyst in creating a vocational Industry in itself. The soothsayers might have never had the going so good. The more your yearn to know about what lies ahead, the more you make the essence of living life a pain. The beauty of life is in living each day as it happens, and not by trying to stay ahead. This can never be done as it is absolutely impossible to “predict” to the point as to what is going to happen. Anyway even if it is predicted, there is no way it will happen without making the requisite effort.

    The key to success now is to maintain focus, keep a sense reality and, most importantly, plan all of your moves carefully and strategically.

  • MSME’s : Wither to?

    India houses more than 63 million MSME’s contributing 29 percent of the GDP, 45 percent of Industrial Production, providing employment to millions of Indians. However, it has always been beset by inherent issues which unfortunately has largely remained unattended to. Despite a dedicated Ministry setup by the Government there still remains a huge gap between the cup and the lip. The most unique challenge that MSME’s endure is access to low cost capital. This despite having dedicated channels like SIDBI in existence. Authenticated reports estimates that the credit gap for MSME’s stand at approximately INR 15 lakh crore. And with the advent of technological advances, initiatives like GST and the formalization of the economy, the back of this sector is already at a capacity stretch. Only 20 percent of the MSME’s are being financed by the formal banking system, that leaves the rest 80 percent to scrounge for “finances” from the informal sector at atrocious rates of interest. This lack of adequate access to timely and affordable credit continues to remain one of the sector’s biggest challenges, restricting its growth and future potential. There has been some initiatives led by the Government like the 59-minute loan, co-organisation between banks and NBFC’s for affordable credit, however despite these initiatives being laudable at a macro level, it still leave a huge gap at the micro level, as it does not translate into anything.

     

    The dream of growth and pushing the GDP to get to 5 trillion, with a budding young India and initiatives like start-up India, pushing the young Indians to explore avenues of entrepreneurship & self-employment, the Government needs to step up its act and ensure that the hand holding translates to grass root level. The hand holding has to be more visible. There is no other way around the crisis of employment, and it is only logical to push entrepreneurship and self-employment. The large businesses may only contribute just as much to this 5 trillion target, than the 30 percent sector which can be pushed to clamour and contribute as much as possible – and it can. This is the only way that a young vibrant India having 70 percent of able bodied under thirty raring to go population can take us to the finish line.