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Showing posts from October, 2008

Akshta- on the eve of Deepavali

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Dubai Airport Versus Changi Airport Singapore

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Dubai Airport to overtake Singapore Changi in 2008 In mid 70's when flights from India would stop over in Dubai on route to Europe via Rome. Dubai arrived on the scene after fading away of Beirut but since then it has made such long strides that it rivals many airports across the western world . In Asia, now it is challenging Changi airport in Singapore - who has been one of big factors in the success of Singapore. Dubai Airport is all poised overtake Singapore Changi Airport in 2008, in terms of total annual passenger traffic. Dubai is expected to break the 40 million passenger barrier in 2008, after handling 34.3 million passengers in 2007, up 19.2% year-on-year - and well above the targeted 33 million passengers. But would it match the efficiency of Changi ? This is the most acid test for Dubai Airport. In 1992 , when I arrived first time in Dubai , I had got down from mobile ladder and walked towards Terminal walking in the hot sun while business passengers whisked away in moto

Madhav Julian and Indiver -प्रेमस्वरुप आई and Zindgi Ka Safar

When I hear this poetry of Madhav Julian sung by Lata - my eyeballs swell with a blob - as the poem reaches mid way. A fabulous rendition that seems to have bled through damaged heart of this man. Tears don’t come that easily to me. That prerogative belong to Rajesh Khanna in Hindi movies of Anand Amar Prem and Dharmendra in Satyakam . In this poem too tears don’t come because I miss my mother or think of her from a distant land. This poem resurrects a character who has raised in orphanage and became successful to get all the comforts and accolades that a man can strive for. Yet he has remained empty in his heart without the existence of his mother। He doesnt remember her face as she has left long before she made any imprint on his life. Today is my mother’s birthday and I thought it would be appropriate to write about this poem. There is another song – rather second stanza of the song – penned by Indiver in movie Safar also evokes similar anguish। Here the

At Play School in Singapore

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A chance meeting with a teacher on a travel web site is all that it took me to see, know and understand an early education system in Singapore. My limited educational domain had always perceived a ‘play school’ as an essential escape route for working parents to ensure that their kids are physically safe, well fed and have their nappies changed on time. For me, a concept of a ‘play school’ as a temple for nurturing everlasting values in small kids was always a utopian model. Add to that was an Indian mindset that was overeager to slot professions based on the number of alphabets present in an educational degree. With that pre-conceived notion of a ‘play school’ and their teachers, my visit to The Moral Childcare Centre It was past lunch time that I arrived at the school after navigating streets of Alexandra. Curtains were pulled over to create compulsory lullaby siesta time for kids. Most of the kids were already in deep slumber on their kid size foam mattress laid symmetrically on flo