Yes Prime Minister

YES PRIME MINISTER - ONE OF US

June 26th

I couldnt talk to Humphrey about Sir John on Friday. I had appointments all day and so had he. But this morning we had a meeting already pencilled in.

        It was to be about the defence cuts that Im looking for. I decided to have the meeting as planned, and then have a private word with Humphrey afterwards.

        A simple way has emerged of saving three million pounds and the Service Chiefs say it cant be done. Humphrey is backing them, of course, with the argument that any defence savings can be dangerous.

        Anyway, I had to have my private word with Humphrey. I told Bernard that I had to discuss a top secret security matter with Humphrey, and nodded to the door. Would you mind, Bernard?

        He went to the door and, suddenly, threw it open! Then he looked up and down the landing to see if anyone was eavesdropping. I realised he had misunderstood me. So I explained that I wished him to leave us alone.

        He seemed a little crestfallen. I can see why. But he had no choice, and nor do I. I can hardly let Bernard know that Humphrey, of all people, is a security risk at the moment.

        After Bernard left us, probably wondering if hewas considered a security risk all of a sudden, Humphrey and I were left alone. I didnt quite know how to begin, so it was a minute or so before I spoke. Humphrey waited patiently.

        Humphrey, I began eventually, theres something I want to talk about. Something very secret.

        Its something very serious, I replied.

        He assumed an appropriately serious expression. Very serious and very secret?

        I nodded. Humphrey, does the name Sir John ring a bell?

        Of course, Prime Minister. He died only three weeks ago. And he was the subject of a security enquiry ten years ago. I had to conduct it myself, virtually.

        So far so good. I asked Humphrey if hed found evidence of anything incriminating.

        Of course not. He smiled confidently.

        Why of course not? I asked.

        Well, in the first place Sir John was one of us. Wed been friends for years. In the second place the whole story was got up by the press. And in the third place, the whole object of internal security enquiries is to find no evidence.

        Even if the security of the realm is at risk?

        He laughed. Prime Minister, if you really believe the security of the realm is at risk you call in the Special Branch. Government security enquiries are only used for killing press stories. Their sole purpose is to enable the Prime Minister to stand up in the House and say, We have held a full enquiry and there is no evidence to substantiate these charges.

        But suppose you find something suspicious?

        Prime Minister, practically everything that happens in government is suspicious. The fact that you asked Bernard to leave us alone together for a secret conversation could be construed as suspicious.

        This surprised me. But it shouldnt have, hes obviously right. Anyway, Humphrey went on to say that the whole story was nonsense, typical Fleet Street sensationalism.

        He was so confident that it was inevitable that he would feel really stupid when I revealed what I knew. I was beginning to enjoy myself thoroughly.

        There is no possibility, I asked carefully, that Sir John ever passed any information to Moscow?

        Impossible, he asserted. Out of the question.

        Youd stake your reputation on that?

        Without hesitation.

        I went for the kill. Well, Humphrey, Im afraid I have to tell you that he was spying for Russia for a considerable part of his career.

        Humphrey was silenced. But only for a moment. I dont believe it, he said defiantly. Who says so?

        I gave him an apologetic smile. He says so himself. He left all his papers to the government with a detailed confession. MI5 says its absolutely true. It checks out all along the line.

        Humphrey was speechless. This is a sight that Ive never seen before, and I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. He spluttered a bit, and tried to put together a sentence. Finally he said: But, good Lord, I mean, well, he was One of us? I put in helpfully.

        Well yes. He began to pull himself together. Well, that certainly leaves a lot of questions to be asked.

        Yes, I agreed, and Im asking you the first one. Why didnt you ask him a lot of questions? Humphrey didnt see what I was getting at. Why, Humphrey, did your enquiry exonerate him so quickly?

        I pointed out to Humphrey that it was all very suspicious. I asked why he hadnt held a proper enquiry. After all, according to the TOP SECRET file, Humphrey had been given evidence of Sir John surprisingly long stay in Yugoslavia. And shortly after he left Yugoslavia several of our MI5 agents behind the Iron Curtain were rounded up and never seen again.

        And there was one specific interpreter with whom he spent a lot of time. I asked Humphrey what hed found out about this interpreter.

        She turned out to be a Russian agent. We knew that. Most Yugoslav interpreters are Russian agents. Those who arent in the CIA, that is.

        But you never followed her up.

        I had better things to do with my time, he said defensively.

        I stared at him accusingly. Three months later she moved to England and settled in Oxford, a hundred and fifty yards from Sir John’s house. They were neighbours for the next eleven years.

        Humphrey was completely demoralised. He tried to defend himself. You cant check up on everything. You dont know what you might find out. I mean, if youve got that sort of suspicious mind you ought to Conduct security enquiries. I finished his sentence for him.

        Humphreys defence, in a nutshell, was that Sir John gave him his word. The word of a gentleman. And you dont go checking up on the word of a gentleman, especially when you were at Oxford together.

        I listened patiently. Then I was forced to tell him that I had a problem with him.

        He was horrified. But you dont think you cantthink I mean, I mean, I dont speak a word of Russian.

        But you must admit, I said, that it looks as if it must have been incompetence or collusion. Either way I left the sentence unfinished. The implications were clear enough. Humphrey was dreadfully upset. Collusion? Prime Minister, I give you my word there was no collusion.

        Is that the word of a gentleman? I asked ironically.

        Yes. An Oxford gentleman, he added hastily.

        I wasnt really satisfied. Hows the garden? I asked.

        He relaxed and began to tell me about his roses when he realised the full force of my question. No, no, I beseech you, Prime Minister, not gardening leave!

        Why not?

        I have my reputation to think of.

        I thought youd already staked that on Sir John’s innocence.

Death

Tring tring.
tring tring.

Hello !
How is Puja?
What???
Coming to India !
Already reached !
Less time?
Oh my God !!

Good evening dear Toastmasters and friends.

This was my brother in law who had called to tell me about the medical emergency in which my younger sister was. She had been suffering from a liver disease which had become chronic with time. They had tried getting her treated in London and Dubai and as the last option, had returned to India as Liver transplant was the last and only option available.  All other roads were closed and in case of non availability of a donor, the stark reality of Death was looming on us.

Death, my dear friend is a reality and a certainty and will happen to all of us. None of us can escape it but still, instead of enjoying our gift of life, we strive to find ways to ditch death. Believe me, it is not at all in our hands.

Death is a serious matter as I can see around. The sight of Yam, the Hindu God of death, sitting on a buffalo is terrifying to us. You might not agree when I share my thoughts on death. I feel it is liberating and peaceful.
Have you ever seen the relaxed expressions of a dead person? It is the process of dying which is painful and the pain lingers for a long time for the people who are left behind.

There are three kinds of death in the world. First is the physical death we all know about, second is when we are not enjoying the little pleasure of life and become serious at all times, we are actually only surviving, not living and the third and the final one is when there is no network, no signal. Some people feel as if their very breath has been snatched away and start reacting as if it is the end of life.

They say such nice things about people at their funeral that it makes me sad that I am going to miss mine by a few days. Woody Allen said that I am not afraid to die, I just don't want to be there when it happens.
Let us enjoy life and embrace death as no one is going to write on your Epitaphs that he died because he did not forward the message to three groups and ten friends. What would Vinay Kumar's obituary look like "Vinay ko-mar Gaya"

Sometimes I wonder why there is so much aura around death.

Do you remember the famous death scene of "Anand" featuring Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan.

BabuMoshaay.

I will not let you keep quiet, from last 6 months I am hearing your non-sense, you have eaten my head, talk to me, talk to me, talk to me.

BabuMoshaayyyyy.

Life and death is in the hands of God and none of us can change it. We are all puppets of Theatre and our strings are tied in the hands of God , when ? Where ? And who will die, no one can tell.
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha.

In  Hindu mythology, there are three main Gods - Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva . If Brahma is the creator then Vishnu is the preserver and Shiva is the destroyer but Shiva's destruction is not negative. It is a positive, nourishing and constructive destruction which builds and transforms life and energy for the welfare of the world. He destroys in order to revive and regenerate. Through destruction he facilitates smooth transitions from one stage to another. So, this means destruction is not always bad. Destruction of milk leads to Paneer. Golds turns into beautiful jewellery. Coal turns into diamond. Chicken turns into Murgh-do-pyaaza.

So what we perceive as end might not be the end, There might be more to it. There might be a new beginning , a new life after Death which we tend to believe is the ultimate end.

Friends, recently I had gone to a hospital and saw a very interesting poster which said, If you want to continue seeing beautiful girls even after your death, donate your eyes, A simple statement yet profound in its meaning.

Yes, my dear Toastmasters and Guests it is in our hands to turn destruction into creation, a new beginning, a new life and at least seven in this case. We own and possess our body parts, they are in our control and we can be pioneers in creating a wave of resurrection for those living around us and in need. We can donate what we possess, we can pledged our organs to give life to others when our own life is not anymore in our hands. This way, when we are no more alive, when we die, there would be at least seven people who can come to life, Yes, not one, not two but 7 individuals who will thank you throughout their existence. 2 eyes, 2 kidneys, 1 heart, 1 brain and liver. You can also choose to donate tissues and cartilage as well to help further more.

So friends, going back to that call I had received from my brother, I realised that death was staring at us largely at close quarters and we begged for a miracle to happen. Though we were all willing to donate our liver, our tissues were not matching. We had asked for help from everyone we knew. Then suddenly, we found our angel, a long lost friend who did not hesitate twice to donate his liver. He stepped forward to our rescue - Livers grow back - he told us grinning at our grieving expressions.

Prassi, Our God father, if I may say so, stepped in the right moment and saved my little sister. I remain indebted to him for life but that was not enough, I wanted to repay his kindness. How?

When I asked him, he said yes you can repay me but never in cash, only in kind. Pledge to donate your organs when you do not need them any more.
Dumb stuck, I never realised the importance of organ donation till that time. Had he not volunteered, I would have lost my sister. Indebted and obliged, I agreed to his method of repayment.

I came back and registered myself for organ donation. I have taken the first step forward and this decision of mine will save at least seven lives, seven families. When I am no more, I will continue to live through the eyes, heart, liver, kidneys and brain in others.

I ask you whether you too would like to be immortal?

If yes, then login to www.giftyourorgan.org and pledge your organs to help those many lead a better life and do it soon as who knows what tomorrow holds for us?

Teach for India

Teach for India

“Be the change you wish to see” Mahatma Gandhi

India has more than 50% of its population below the age of 25 and more than 65% below the age of 35. It is expected that, in 2020, the average age of an Indian will be 29 years and it is set to become the world’s youngest country with 64% of its population in the working age group, India today stands at a turning point: where we go from here depends in large part on our ability to provide equal opportunities for all children.

With nearly 1 in 4 people below the age of 14 years, An excellent education equips children and youth with the knowledge, skills, values and mind-sets needed to be empowered individuals and responsible citizens.

There is a severe deficit of people at all levels of the education system who are committed to working together to improve the capacity and quality of our nation’s schools. The fact is that teachers alone cannot solve this crisis. The root cause of this crisis in education is because of the leadership. It is very hard to digest that the land of the Vedas is one of the countries with the highest illiteracy levels. Poor education can bring down even the most powerful nations down, so if we are to become a developed nation, we must spread the lamp of education. Our motto should be “each one teach one”. If we are to become a developed nation one of the initiatives is “Teach for India”, whose aim is to provide a platform to educated Indians to provide assistance in basic education to the unprivileged children.

In 2014, I got an opportunity to go to a BMC School in Borivali. I went there as a part of my organisation’s active involvement in Teach for India. I arrived at the school which was in decent condition in terms of structure and very good condition in terms of upkeep. I was guided to the designated class by a fellow of TFI who was supposed to interact with me. I had prepared a quiz on recycling of natural resources. I had thought that whatever I would be talking would be something very unique and enriching experience for the children and they would learn something new. To my utter surprise and amazement, each and every child was already aware about recycling, the types of waste, and the segregation of dry and wet waste. I suddenly realised that I had nothing to talk about with them.

These kids came from a humble background and their parents were auto rickshaw drivers, tailor, mason etc. but their English was such that it would put some English medium students to shame.

Before I left the school, I interacted with the fellows of TFI and realised the kind of efforts they are putting in. In order to build a growing community of leaders, Teach for India has developed a two-part theory of change.

In the short-term, through their Fellowship program, they provide an opportunity to India’s brightest and most promising individuals, from the nation’s best universities and workplaces, to serve as full-time teachers to children from low-income communities in some of the nation’s most under-resourced schools. The Fellows commit two years full-time, to provide the students with the opportunities that can put them on a different life path.

In the long-term, they engage these leaders, their Alumni, and support this growing community to advocate for change.

My question to all of you is that is it the responsibility of a single organisation or few of their fellows to bring about transformation in education sector. The problem of educational inequity cannot be solved alone. Each one of us has to contribute towards in this movement in whatever capacity they can. Everyone cannot be teacher, but we can definitely visit the institutes to motivate the students and fellows. During the last three years I have visited at least three schools and met underprivileged students. I am also a mentor of one of the Fellows of TFI and I am helping her draw her career after she completes her fellowship journey with TFI. Together, we can redraw India to be the country we want it to be.

In the words of Barack Obama “Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”. The time for the change is now, I am ready for it, are you? And if you are, then take this oath with me.

OATH

I AM FULLY COMITTED TO THE GREAT MISSION OF TEACHING.

BY BEING A TEACHER, I KNOW I WILL MAKE AN IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE EFFORTS FOR IMPROVING THE LITERACY RATES OF OUR COUNTRY THEREBY HELPING IN NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT.