India's National Security and Mandatory Conscription - A Thought

Every morning, from the past few months we have been waking up to the news of bloodshed, terrorist attacks, bombings, refugee crisis and more from across the world. Be it the terrorist organizations like Al-Qaeda, ISIS or ISIL, Boko Haram or whatever the name these organizations go by, they have been posing a great problem to the mankind in the recent years. Currently the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and even the European Union nations are affected by them. 

All these countries have been receiving extensive media coverage due the severity of the problems they are facing at the moment. But closer to home, India is not untouched either. Recently the Indian security agencies have been working overtime, collecting intelligence and acting on leads to arrest and inquire people suspected of links to these organizations. While these things are usually carried out under a cloak of secrecy, the mere fact that it is being reported by media outlets signifies the level of threat the country is facing at the moment.  

India is not new to terrorism as the country has been constantly under threat since its independence in 1947. The country has borne  the burnt of such disillusioned individuals and organizations many times. The forces responsible for such attacks have been both external and internal. The recent attacks on one of the most secure Indian defense installation or the horrific Mumbai attacks have made waves across the world, receiving wide coverage by the media.  

In most of the cases, the attacks are carried out by external agencies and foreign state actors. However, it doesn't mean the country is not facing similar threats from the inside as well. In order to execute any operation, it is essential to have sufficient intelligence, which can't be readily accessed using Google Maps, Google Earth or other applications. There is a need for 'boots on the ground'. These 'boots on the ground' are generally those who have access to target locations. In most cases, these boots on the ground are either members of terrorist organizations who have entered the country and providing intelligence to those planning the attacks or citizens on the country who strongly believe and recognize themselves with such organizations or the cause they represent.  

The arrests in recent times, as reported by the media has thrown light on alleged involvement of individuals who are citizens of the country. Now what influenced these individuals to take such a step is something which is beyond my comprehension except for few possible explanations I have at the moment. There are cases where people are entrapped and blackmailed into sharing intel with these organizations and then there are those who willingly do it after falling prey to the propaganda. All these reasons are reasons good enough to prevent such incidents from happening.  

For a country with over 1.3 billion population, combating terrorist propaganda, identifying those affected by such propaganda and counselling them is a huge challenge, which the country has been somehow managing with great success. However, given the sheer number it is not always 100 percent efficient. But that is not acceptable either as even a single failure can potentially lead to huge loss in terms of life, limb and resources.  

In order to prevent such isolated misses and make a more concentrated effort to combat terrorism on Indian soil, it is imperative for the government, both present and future to implement certain drastic measures. Mandatory conscription is one such measure which the government should implement in order to effectively combat terrorism in the country. Mandatory conscription should dictate every youth (with certain exceptions) to serve the country as a part of the defense forces for a minimum period of one to two years. The very idea of getting the youth actively involved in the security of the nation will reduce the risk of radicalization in the name of ideals, religion and other influencing factors.  

We are a peace-loving country and the chances of India going to war with its neighbors or anyone for that matter is very slim. In such atmosphere, the youth undergoing mandatory conscription are not at exposed to risk any greater than the ones they face without being conscripted. The benefits, psychological and physical are more. The basic training etc. can be considered healthy and according to popular belief discipline building. More important is the fact that their experience in the armed forces and the feeling of contributing towards national security will have far greater benefit for the country's security and well being of its citizens.  

Being part of a bigger team, sharing a common goal of protecting the sovereignty of the nation by combating threats will promote patriotism among the youth. This will psychologically make them less susceptible to terrorist propaganda or any other influence that can influence them to land on the wrong side of the line. It will also make lives of security agencies a lot easier, creating a better and stronger country than it already is.  

However, convincing the entire population to accept mandatory conscription will be really hard. If successful, we can expect a better future, sooner than we had hoped for.  

   

  

  

  

Martial Arts - Self Preservation

Hieroglyphics on a tomb at Ben-Hasan, Egypt depicting Nuba Wrestling

Martial Arts, as the name itself suggests is a form of art practiced and adapted by the military, or at least have its roots in the armies of the olden days. Martial arts involve a combination of specific moves with or without weapons with an intention of attacking an opponent or defending oneself from such an attack.

Everything must have started at some point of time. Where does the origin of these martial arts lie? We can trace the origin of certain forms of martial arts to different regions of the world, but these forms are all relatively new, dating few centuries back.  But, if you ask me the same question, I would say that the origin of martial arts is as old as man itself. The first time a man faced a threat from another, the birth of “pre-historic” martial arts took place. The reason for which is none other than nature itself.

Yes, you heard it right… It came “naturally” to man. Every organism is programmed by default to work towards the only two aims of life and try to achieve it by any means necessary. The two aims being Self preservation and continuation & preservation of species. In other words:  Trying not to die and “making out” with the members of opposite sex with the intention of procreating. But yeah, when it comes to humans the second act serves the purpose of both procreation as well as recreation.. Damn..!! It is getting interesting but got to focus on the topic here.

So, coming back to the martial arts, hope you still remember that I mentioned about the man who is under threat by another. In that kind of “fight or flight” situation the need of self preservation would have kicked in and in fight mode they would have traded blows while defending oneself from the opponent’s blows, jabs, kicks or whatever he throws at him, and hence giving birth to what would later turn into an art.

The martial arts, as we know I today has undergone a long process of evolution since its inception to transform from a crude way of fighting for food, shelter or mate in the prehistoric days to the art as we know it today, used to attack/defend in warfare and also as a sport and self defense technique in day to day life.

There are numerous forms of martial arts, varying from one region to another and the effectiveness of these martial arts depends upon the conditioning of the body and biomechanics in combination with the natural forces. Each form has its own tradition and codified practices. 

Now this is just about how martial arts originated, there is lot more to it once one starts studying individual forms and I hope to check out at least two or three forms sometime soon. 

Source: Image

The Truth About R&D | Recycling Experiences

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Shaken,not stirred

One question I recently came across while working out at the gym: How does protein shakes and increased protein intake helps in burning fat? (He was talking about Whey Protein supplements) Now, I thought the answer is simple for that question as one or two possible explanations popped into my mind at that instant which I told my friend. But after some time, I was myself not so sure about it, even though my reasoning was scientific enough but still I just had to be sure about it. So, I turned to the omnipotent, all knowing internet. And guess what, I managed to find information regarding it, in the form of numerous articles and published research papers. It gave a lot of possible mechanisms through which the body may lose fat as well as reduce weight by using whey protein supplements or including it as a part of the diet. Damn..!! Wasn’t I surprised….???

According to the various studies conducted, it is found that the whey protein may bring about fat loss and reduce weight by following ways:

1) Through the chemical channel, by regulating the hunger and satiety mechanism in the body, which is regulated by various chemicals. These chemicals, better known as hormones along with physiological and psychological factor controls a person’s urge to eat and also the feeling of fullness. One such hormone involve in this is cholecystokinin, which is responsible for the satiety or the felling of fullness one feels after a meal. The cholecystokinin (CCK) is released in the gastrointestinal tract and it interacts with the CCK receptors in the central nervous system and its periphery along with other hormones.

The whey protein intake is found to increase the CCK levels by 60 percent in plasma along with glucagon like peptide [GLP]-1 and glucose dependant insulinotropic polypeptide, post-absorption. CCK and [GLP]-1 are found to bring about satiety and hence check the food intake.

2) It is also found I certain studies that insulin sensitivity improves with high protein diet, which also plays an important role in weight loss. (Higher the insulin sensitivity lesser the amount of insulin required by the body. Increased secretion of insulin leads to increased food intake – happens in case of insulin resistance. As compared to other protein sources, including a diet rich in red meat, whey protein is found to reduce tissue lipid levels and increase insulin sensitivity.

3) In a certain study it was concluded that protein intake a hour prior to exercise maintains the lipid oxidation rate and also increases protein oxidation, supplying energy from both protein as well as lipid sources and simultaneously increasing the lean muscle mass and reducing fat. And this is proven in rats also, so even rats can hit the gym after taking protein supplements and dodge the cats effective afterwards, or even make those cats run for their lives.

4) Whey protein also has considerable effect on the levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter. Serotonin affects the moods and behavior of a person. Higher levels of serotonin means relaxed, calm mood, free from anxiety. An added benefit to all fitness enthusiasts, martial artists and especially the people on diet cutting down their calorie intake who tend to become easily irritable and others whose moods tend to swing like a monkey from one branch to another due to various reasons, whey protein supplements lets people around them breathe easy.

5) A study on people trying to lose weight whose diet is cut down by 500 calories per day and were given a specialized whey fraction or an isocaloric ready mix drink 20 minutes prior to breakfast or dinner over a period of 12 weeks have shown that the subjects who were on whey supplement lost more body fat mass and showed a greater preservation of lean muscle as compared to those who were on other ready mix isocaloric beverage.

Dairy proteins, like the whey protein has calcium in it which is also believed to regulate adipocyte lipid metabolism and storage of triglycerides and in turn reduce fat mass and body weight.

Now, after going through all these, I could breathe easy as whatever reasons I gave to my friend was right, even though I did not know some additional details which I have come to know by the end of this entry.

By the way, if anyone has read or heard about these studies or by chance stumbled across this entry of mine (usually by accident) and decide to binge on whey protein or any other protein supplements to gain lean muscle mass or lose body fat mass, be warned that excess proteins will do no good than burning holes through your pockets, screwing up your liver and kidneys and also increase the fat cells in the body.

I guess I’ve started sounding like a nutritionist or something and all these talk about proteins and supplements reminds me of my old job which I don’t miss at all. But it’s all fine as long as it is for a good cause..

ref: Source-1 

      Source-2 (PMCID: PMC2289832) 

     Photo by: buzzthrill shared under Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) 

Fuelling Doubts.

Most people own vehicles, and if you guys don’t know most of these vehicles run on petrol (gasoline) or diesel. Petroleum business is one of the most lucrative businesses, especially with petroleum being one of the most important materials required to run the whole planet. Thanks to various contraptions made by genius humans, which requires energy to function/operate. Most of the energy is supplied by fossil fuels, among which petroleum is the major source of energy. So, due to obvious reasons, petroleum is a major factor which governs the global economic and political balance.

Now forget the first paragraph. I just wrote it for the sake of writing as I wanted to make it sound important. I’m just writing about an observation I made in the recent days. As we all know, the major players in our country are three PSUs – Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharath Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) along with other private and international players like Reliance Petroleum, Shell, Total and few other companies. We can see a lot of petrol pumps or filling stations spread all over the country, most of them are owned by these public sector oil companies. These are the same PSUs who constantly keep on whining that they are running in loss looking for excuses to increase the prices. I seriously don’t believe that they are losing money or they were ever running under loss.

Based upon my experience, I have found that the quality of service provided by these international players, especially Shell Petroleum is a lot better compared to other players. I have personally found that whenever I fill my bike’s tank at Shell, the mileage I get is higher compared for the same quantity of fuel filled at other HPCL, BPCL or IOCL stations. One more surprising thing: The fuel is cheaper at Shell filling stations as compared to other pumps and they also issue bills for every sale..!!

All these factors make me wonder about the quality of fuel supplied by our country’s petroleum companies. My guess: Either the petrol in these pumps is adulterated or the pumps are not calibrated properly. Either way, we end up losing, or at least I feel I am losing … And not to forget the price and bills… I can’t get this feeling of being cheated out of my mind…!!

Food for Thought

Globalization of education has allowed students from all over the world to go to various countries of their choice to pursue a degree in the field of their choice. It has its own share of advantages as well as disadvantages, but what doesn’t have. Everything has its own share of advantages and disadvantages like the two faces of a coin. But I am not really bothered about any of it, as my motives behind writing this is entirely different and insignificant as well but my inspiration for this post comes from my Facebook “wall”.

I started going through few statistics and I found out that India is one of the recognized centres of education attracting students from different parts of the world, especially from countries like Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Ethiopia, Fiji, Hong Kong, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Japan, Ghana, Malaysia, Lebanon, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Syria. The list is exhaustive, it has got almost all the countries in the region except for Pakistan and China (They have their own reasons I guess, but who cares..!!!). Any ways, Indians are not far behind, the number of students from India going abroad to pursue higher studies is growing every year. According to Times of India, US, UK, France, Australia, Germany and Japan are the most favored destinations for Indian students. China sends the largest number of students abroad followed by India and other countries. Now according to few statistics, India has a low rate of students going abroad compared to global average it seems, but according to numbers, we stand second right on the tail of China. Now come on, don’t be surprised… We have a population of somewhere around 1.2 billion and China has more than us…So when it comes to numbers will always be somewhere on the top.

What do our guys and girls do, after going there…? My guess, they will study hard…attend classes and complete the course work to graduate, which most of them do with flying colors and hopefully they will end up working in some reputed company and earn a hefty salary if they are lucky. Now, everyone knows this, and it does not come as a surprise to most of us. But… most of the people I know (or at least I pretend to know just because I am friends with them on Facebook..!!) do something else which always keeps me wondering…and it has also got me under a perception that they go out to learn how to cook Indian food which they would never have learnt if they had stayed back in India..!!!

Surprised?? Shocked?? Do you smell a hint of sarcasm in my words?? I guess so, but even you will start thinking the same if your Facebook wall starts looking like mine. I can see one or the other (sometimes 2 or more) “friend/friends” uploading pictures of the food they cooked at their place. Let’s say, they are excited to be cooking something new…But pictures of Indian food?? Come on…give me a break, we see and eat it every day or almost every day. If you are one of them and unless you are doing a course in hotel management or learning to be a chef, please concentrate on your work or studies more than garnishing, decorating and then taking pictures of “Indian” food (FYI, the food tastes the same with or without your artistic touch) .

In the end it is Facebook to be blamed for trying to tempt me by displaying the “foodilicious” updates on my wall and forced me to write this entry.

Source 1, Source 2

Disclaimer: If you are one of those people whom I may have intentionally or unintentionally described in this post, then please relax and don’t make any attempts to harm me for I come in peace and I would like you to keep on adding more pictures. J

Namma Metro at last?? Hope So...!!

‘Namma Bengalooru’ (Translated:Our Bengalooru), or ‘Bangalore’ as I prefer to call is ready for ‘Namma Metro’, with the first half of the first phase of East-West corridor stretching across 18.1 km completed at last ( Still more to come, dunno when). One can hear a sigh of relief from lots of Bangaloreans who had lost hopes of going on the Metro in their lifetime and hoped their ‘yet to be born’ children will get to commute in Bangalore Metro. But now they can experience it firsthand and probably live to share their experiences with others. I suggest them not to get their spirits up at least until it is officially inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India on god knows when.


The Metro project is running late by months already, hope the trains will at least run on time and most importantly on tracks..!!  If you find me too pessimistic, then you are wrong, for I still like to believe that every cloud comes with a silver lining (not gold as the prices continue to go skywards) and hence to convince everyone that I do still have few drops of optimism left in my system I applied for Namma Metro Travel Card, and I got it delivered to my home. So much for my optimism, I don’t want my 120 bucks to go waste, so they better get it running soon…!!