Updating my view

Three of our S5 exams have been postponed to December. Now that I have some time for blogging...here goes!!

I thought I 'll be eclectic with the contents of the upcoming posts coz there are loads of news comin' in everyday -Obama-The new US President, the Financial Crisis gripping the entire world, India beating Australia (2-0)in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, our beloved DADA and Kumble bidding goodbye to cricket ...and lots more!!!


Democrat Barack Obama is chosen as the 44th and the First Afro-American President of United States of America after he beat his counterpart Republican Mc.Cain.
Thus people of America proved that they were totally against the racial discrimination that had been prevailing in the country for more than a century - the verdict of the election bears testimony to that fact.
Obama with his good orator skills convinced the nation that he would be there to relieve America from clutches of financial meltdown, unemployment,health problems and the bad reputation it has gained under the Bush Administration.
But Obama is taking up the President's role at a time when America is struggling to stand upright and thus he has to show great resilience and leadership by converting his eloquent campaign rhetoric into efficient governance.
Will his win affect India's IT sector?? Will Obama be seriously taking up his "anti-Outsourcing" strategies??The Indian IT Companies are going through jittery moments and they are crossing their fingers and hoping that it would be difficult to stop something that is as deeply rooted as outsourcing coz it contributes 50% to US revenue.
Hope its just another election rhetoric, otherwise I can't imagine the plight of thousands of IT engineers going jobless after their BTech from the next year...that includes me too..



Sourav Ganguly, the most daring and successful captain Indian cricket team has ever had, has called it a day. His passion for cricket, his aggressiveness, leadership etc..have been beyond questions...A true hero of Bengal-Indian cricket...His comeback into the Indian team after a long gestation is the epitome of a spirited and motivated cricketer...junior cricketers must learn a lot about dedication from him....
I'll miss his elegant front foot sixers and waving of his T-Shirt from the gallery......Goodbye DADA!!

Filling in....

Its been a long time since I have posted something seriously, though a couple of draft posts are in the basket.....cant point the needle of excuse on "lack of time" anymore.....talk about laziness and its effects.....

For the last 4 days, I was occupied by the Thriller novel "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown...hell of a book, its got lots of information on Antimatter, CERN, Illuminati brotherhood,Ambigrams, Holy Conclave etc etc....,though some of it are fictional...It appears that I have just toured Rome and Vatican City in a few days....a must read...

Lot of events engaged me during this sem....They include my S5 Industrial visit to Goa and Mysore ;IIT Madras visit for taking part in Shaastra, their tech fest ; NIT,Calicut for Tathwa ;Arrival of my S4 results(84%)etc....I wanted to reserve a post for each of these events. I believe they are on the cards.

Days are leaping forward...5th sem university exams round the corner,starting on Nov 4th..the exam schedule is very tight this time....

Music classes,entering my 4th month, going on as usual though its slowing down considerably....

Most of the sundays busy with Cat coaching in TIME... but haven't opened a book of their's at home...

Hope to come back soon with my next post.....

Indo-US Nuke-Deal

I have written an article about Indo-US Nuclear Deal for my college magazine and I wish to put it here too...

Indo-US Nuclear Deal

After the2nd World war, the major powers of the world (US and Soviet Union) decided to form a group or organization to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weaponry so as to promote world peace and harmony. Thus came in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was set up that controlled the movement of nuclear materials between the signatories of the NPT. A Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) came under this concept that functioned to supply nuclear materials to the signatories of NPT.

India, one of the nations suggested for a Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, upholding its sovereign rights towards nuclear energy did not sign the NPT and CTBT. This was because India believed that rather than achieving the goal of non-proliferation, this treaty would create haves and have-nots of nuclear energy in the world i.e., those countries with abundant nuclear resource would always remain as super powers and those countries without much nuclear resources would remain poor and undeveloped forever. So also it would deny the prerogative of any independent sovereign country to develop nuclear energy for its use. Over 189 countries have signed the NPT except India, Israel, Pakistan, Iran and the like.

Why India needs nuclear energy?

Nuclear energy is clean and eco friendly. It is extensively used to generate power and it finds its varied use in agricultural, industrial and military sectors. Harnessing the nuclear energy requires modern sophisticated technology because the fissionable materials like U-235 produce intense radiation, which has hazardous repercussions and after effects.

The nuclear powers of the world share their latest technologies only with the signatories of the NPT. Since India has not signed the NPT it does not enjoy any privilege of a declared nuclear state under the NPT. As a result, India is banned from getting technology and resources from the NSG. In effect India could not meet its committed requirement of power generation of 2700 MW by 1985 and it is still running on meeting this committed production even after 24 years.

Even though India has uranium and thorium deposits, it does not have the necessary technology to mine them and make them fissionable. So there is a dearth of sophisticated technology and resources as a result of which most of the nuclear reactors in our country are working only to half of its actual potential. If this scenario continues the reactors will have to be shut down due to deficit of fissile uranium. If this is the case, the estimated energy deficit would become 1,50,000 MW by 2030 and 4,12,000 MW by 2050, according to our External Affairs Minister, Mr.Pranab Mukherjee. Thus by 2050, India will have to import 1.6 billion tons of coal for our energy needs which will not in any way materialize due to exhaustible resources of production. If India has to progress along with the developed countries, it has to fulfill the energy needs of the country. At present the various sources of energy available in India are,

Thermal power 66%
Hydel power 26%
Solar plus wind 05%
Nuclear energy 03%


Since coal is exhaustible and causes pollution, there need to be dramatic decrease in the dependency on coal. Even though more hydroelectric projects can be taken up, due to widespread hue and cry over the environmental issues and consequent results of the climatic change and Global Warming, the expected range of production of energy cannot be obtained. Since nuclear energy will narrow down the energy deficit considerably, it must be given more importance and it should emanate as the major energy resource that would support the economy of our Country. Nevertheless, smaller hydro electric projects wherever feasible, along with the utilization of solar and wind powers should be prioritized.



This has resulted in drafting of a civilian nuclear agreement by Prime Minister Mr.Manmohan Singh and US President Mr.George Bush in 2005. The agreement came to be known as 123 agreement. The section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of US, which generally allowed US to deal with the signatories of NPT, was modified in terms of Hyde Act to accommodate India to enter into a nuclear deal with US. Under this arrangement, India agreed to separate its civil and military nuclear facilities and place its civil facilities under IAEA safeguards thus receiving all privileges of a signatory of NPT. For this, India has to place the existing 14 indigenous thermal reactors under the safeguards apart from the new installations under this deal and allow supervision of working of the reactors.

Among the major hurdles like the IAEA, NSG, US Congress etc.,the first and the foremost that India has to face was its Political imbroglio. There has been many views for and against the operationalization of the Nuclear Deal. Since India, being ruled by a coalition Govt ( UPA+Left) , the deal could not be operationalised without the overall consensus of all the members of parliament as left parties deferred from supporting the agreement.

The Left parties alleged that the deal would undermine the sovereignty of India's foreign policy and also claimed that the Indian government was hiding certain clauses of the deal, which would harm India's indigenous nuclear program. As the Left parties are against the imperialistic nature of US, any policy and activity with US was strongly opposed by the Left Parties. And quite promptly and glibly they questioned the verity, integrity and genuineness of the nuclear deal on many grounds. To add fuel to the fire, the Government did not reveal certain clauses in the agreement which made the Left parties more aggressive. On July 9, 2008, the Left Front withdrew support to the government reducing its strength to 276 in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the parliament). The government survived a confidence vote in the parliament on July 22, 2008 by 275-256 votes in the backdrop of defections from both camps to the opposite camps.

At present, the need of the hour is to get the technology and resources to generate the nuclear energy which is indispensable for India’s overall development. The requirement is to put the existing reactors under the safeguards along with the new nuclear reactors proposed in the agreement. The only condition is that all the reactors will be subject to supervision for safeguards and utilization.

It is indeed a good opportunity for India because it is enjoying the privileges of the signatories of NPT, without becoming a party to it. So in response to this gain, it has to allow the supervision to see if the nuclear materials imported for the purpose are not used for the military purpose.

In order to achieve the energy requirements, which otherwise is not possible without signing the 123 agreement, India has to bear the supervisions as a testimony to its nonproliferation intentions. Moreover, a US support for India is beneficial in the long run in other fields of developments also.

India would become more powerful and secure and any intentions of attacking India by any of our neighbouring countries will become a far cry if US becomes a closer friend of India through this deal. Other non-signatories of NPT like Pakistan are also demanding similar agreements for which further consideration will be made by US if India donot sign the pact. Getting the waiver from NSG, India will be in a position to enter into agreement with other nuclear powers of the world like France, Russia etc., for enhancing its resources of energy production.

With safeguards and care on disposing of the nuclear waste without radiation problems, it will be a good buy for India for going into this agreement and achieve the development so that we should not in any way be demarked among the developing countries of the world in the coming decades.

It should also be taken for consideration that India being the largest democracy in the world, it should keep all the values of democratic governance and set up an example of a real model of democracy in the world.

Any views for or against the topic are welcome, thereby making a healthy discussion possible.

Let India overcome all its hurdles and crusade towards becoming a developed country very soon.
Jai Hind!!!

Taare Zameen Par : A Review.

I had decided to write a small epitome of this film, as soon as I finished viewing it for the 2nd time and here it is....my feelings about this exemplary movie . I wouldn't be doing justice to my conscience if I fail to recognize some of the key aspects of this movie that incidentally turned it into an emotional feast for its viewers.

Messages and Inner Meanings conveyed through the movie:

1. The actual role of an ideal teacher: To impart knowledge with a missionary zeal.

2. The role of parents in dealing with their children: Most parents want their children to become either an engineer or a doctor.As a result the children are subjected to rigorous working and comparisons with the outstanding. They forget the intense stress that the children undergo trying to cope with current competitive scenario where "Survival of the fittest" has become the reality.

3. Real Meaning of Education: Education shouldn't result into mere copies, rather it must encourage innovation and creativity.

4. Every child is special i.e has his/her own inborn talents and it should be the parents who must become instrumental finders of these talents and they must find ways of nurturing them.

5. With determination and will power, a person with any mental disorder, can conquer the challenges of the world, to reach the zenith of perfection.
Quintessential examples are: Albert Einstein, Thomas Alva Edison, Agatha Christie, Leonardo Da Vinci, Abhishek Bachan etc...

6. Disparaging and derogatory remarks will result in the abrupt culmination of growth of the young mind, after which, restoring it back to normalcy would be an excruciatingly painful task.To picturize this, a nice story about Solomon Islands is told in the movie where the inhabitants of the Island kill a tree by standing around it and calling it bad names.

7. Normal people are so lucky in life compared to those suffering from mental diseases and poverty. So make the best use of the gift of god - this life.

Some Areas that I felt truly emotional:

1. The boy left alone in the Boarding School. His feelings are genuine and emotional.



2. The Boy(Ishant Avaste) sees his own picture drawn by Amir Khan and cries due to unexplainable happiness.

3. Boy collects his prize after winning the competition and then hugs his teacher (Amir Khan)with immense gratitude.

4. Amir Khan explains what true caring is, to Ishant's father, father comes down, sees his child and then realizes his folly and leaves, crying silently. His feelings are genuine.

It is one of the best movies I have ever seen, some wonderful acting by the boy and Amir Khan, inspiring songs and some really good messages to take back home. A must-see movie for all parents.

Trust Vote: 22 July, 2008

The UPA sails through quite comfortably in the trust vote, amidst unprecedented drama scripted by the BJP in the Lok Sabha. The controversy about "Cash for Vote" was brought into the notice of the speaker about 2 hrs. before the trust vote. What began as a case of corruption is now finally turning into the dirtiest scandal the Parliament or for that matter the whole nation has ever witnessed. It is clearly understandable from the circumstances that BJP realizing their losing stand and to cover up their ignominious faces, fabricated verbal attacks on Govt., that some of the MP’s had taken bribe from the Samajwadi Party to vote in favour of the Government. Why wasn't this allegation lodged earlier to the police?
The sight was extremely deplorable and how the MP's of BJP brought the money inside the Parliament amidst huge security is still a mystery.

The 2 day Debate initiated by the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, had not many surprises in the 1st day. The major dignities who spoke during the 1st day were Manmohan Singh, Opposition Leader LK Advani, Pranab Mukharjee etc..But the debate heated up in the 2nd day. The most entertaining speaker came out to be Mr. Lalu Prasad Yadav, who with his exhilarating talks made many laugh amidst tensed moments prevailing b/w the parties in the Lok Sabha. Another remarkable and inspiring talk favouring the Gov. was given by Mr. Rahul Gandhi.

The other interesting point to note was the resilience shown by the Speaker of Lok Sabha, Somnath Chaterjee who, after being asked to quit by the Left as the speaker prior to the Trust vote , continued performing his obligations most responsibly. He upheld the dignity of his seat and did not submit to the Communist persuasions, which resulted in the Left expelling him from the party.

Now as to whether the Nuke-Deal is really beneficial to India, lot of questions still remain unanswered. I will reserve an exclusive post for that topic after a detailed study.

Model Engg. School

Life is becoming really tough now-a-days. Uncountable amount of work is being put on our head by the teachers in the early 5th sem itself. This wasn't the scenario during the beginning of our 3rd and 4th sem.

The 1st week of this sem itself witnessed tight schedule. Each day we had one work or the other to do. It would be either an assignment or a class test, not to forget the nightmarish lab preparations that we have to do prior to every lab class on tuesdays and wednesdays!!!! I had forgotten the concept of class tests(known as snap tests in my school days) until recently when such things were getting introduced at our classes in the college.
One another surprising thing that happened a few days ago was the Open Book Assessment Test we had in one of our subject. My God!!

There was a time in college when everybody was happy, easy going and free as a bird. There were no stringent rules that bound us to anything. Yet, we used to manage our studies and plays equally well. After all we have matured and know where to draw the line .But with new changes brought to the college under the new "regime", things have gone haywire in the minds of the students. To get into the details of confinement is nothing but merely bugging into my time as well as my reader's. Rightly, the name of the college now deserves to be Model engg. school rather than a college.

Anyway, I cross my fingers and pray to god, for the restoration of peace and tensionless days back to our lives. College lives are really meant to enjoy and these are the only available time of this semester when we can concentrate on activities other than that prescribed in the syllabus.

Carnatic Music and Raaga Sense

There are a lot of things I would like to write about carnatic music and raagas.....the very thought about it brings Anandabairavi, Arabhi, Darbar, Naata, Sriraagam etc..in my mind. Many of the renderings make my hairs stand upright...
Thanks to the great connoisseurs of classical music - Thyagaraja, Muthuswami Dikshitar, Chembai etc...

Until I joined a music class very recently, I used to understand raagas by correlating them with film songs. This helped me in identifying raagas of the various common songs in kacheries. But I know that without knowing the Arohona and Avarohana of the various raagas it is useless and that is why I have decided to join a music class. Its better late than never. I have even tried my hands at the Violin but havent been able to go far. More than performing on a stage, I prefer understanding the beauty, the vast richness and the arithmetics of the various raagas. That will be my aim while I study my music lessons.

There are lots of hit songs in the raga Kapi:
Some of them that I can recollect now are:

Kaadhal Rojave, Film: Roja ; Singer: SPB
Uyre Uyire: Film: Bombay
Ennathavam: Film: Thillakam
Poovukul : Film: Jeans
Thumbi Vaa Thumbakulathil : Film : Olangal
Varamanjaladiya: Film: Pranayavarnangal
Karimizhi kuriviye: Film: Meesamadhavan
Kananakuyile: Film: Mr.Bramhachari.
I have seen people choosing a number of these songs to make Mix Masala.

One another commonly used raaga is Anandabairavi:

Kainiraye venna tharam: Film: Baba Kalyani
Vaalkanezhuthiya: Film: Paithrukum

I will come up with more film songs and their raagas in my future posts...Right now signing off..bye!!!

A Medical Thriller - COMA

I am a great fan of Robin Cook. For those who don't know who he is, Robin Cook is the author of some of the greatest ever "Medical Thriller novels" written.

I dunno why I am very much inclined to his novels....maybe its because I had studied Biology in classes 11 and 12 and that every piece of medical jargon that he uses in his novels apparently seem to make perfect sense to me....maybe my field was medicine!!!

Most of his stories revolve around the impossibilities faced by the medical world and how he has solutions to some of the deadliest diseases mankind has ever faced. He has solutions to diseases ranging from Myloblastic Leukemia (Cancer) to Seizures. What binds one to his novels are the thrilling event sequence that he builds up which finally ends up into a totally unprecedented climax.
Some of the Must-Read novels of his are Vector, Fever, Coma, Brain, Outburst, Blindsight, Mindbend etc...

2 of his books have been converted into hollywood movies..- Coma and Sphinx.
It was yesterday that I downloaded Coma, a A great Medical Thriller made in 1978.
The movie is directed by Michael Crichton, the director of Jurrasic Park.

Some patients of Boston General Hospital, one of the biggest hospitals of the country, seem to become brain dead or get into irreversible Coma after very simple surgeries. Dr. Susan Wheeler finds a pattern in these abnormal deaths while rest of the doctors around tries to evade her away from her findings...Finally she finds out the deadliest truth. The Chief Doctor who is also the owner of the hospital is involved in the deadliest illegal organ transplant business for which he victimises some of the patients by pumping in carbon monoxide in the anaesthesia, which permanently damages the brain due to lack of oxygen. The climax shows the main character, Susan, being made a victim of this and how she manages to escape.
A good movie with lot of breath-taking scenes....

Pranayama - The Control of the Life Force.

This is a very interesting topic that has caught my attention and has made me dwell deeper into this fascinating world....Some of the things that I read, have been abridged in the following paras.

The knowledge of Prana/Life Force is an inevitable wealth a person must gain irrespective of his caste, religion or language.

We know that man can survive for months without food and water but cannot live for more than 30secs (normally), if he is denied of his breath.

In our busy day to day lives, the last thing we care about is breathing. We just know that breathing in of oxygen is vital for our sustenance. Nothing more..We dont even care to understand the huge importance of breathing. As a result, our breathing is short, fast and shallow. We use only a little capacity of our lungs. This is indeed detrimental for our health in the long run.

Prana: Prana, the life force or vital energy, is the center of all Yoga Practices. It is in the air, but it is not in oxygen. It is a subtle form of energy carried by the air, food, water and sunlight, and animates all forms of matter. Through best breathing practices (in the form of Pranayama), more Prana is taken in and stored in the body bringing great vitality and strength. (defn. frm web sources).

Pranayama involves controlling the intake and giving out of oxygen in the form of a specialized, beneficial process that includes giving appropriate pauses b/w inhalation and exhalation. It is one among the 5 principles of Yoga.

Here comes some scientific facts that backs up the effects of Pranayama:
Did you know?? We use only 10% of our brains...There are hidden areas in the brain comprising of the other 90% that is capable of providing humans with great potential capacities like Clairvoyance, intuition etc...
Life force/ Prana is said to have been concentrated below our stomach region called the Kundalini.
By doing Pranayama heat energy is produced in this Kundalini region that travels upwards along the right side of our spinal cord and reaches a lower portion of the brain called the Ajna Chakra. When this is practised regularly, the amount of heat energy accumulates in Ajna Chakra that will then penetrate into the the Hidden areas of the brain, thus helping us see the life and the world around us in its true unique sense....

Thus effective utilization of our brain is possible that will lead to a higher level of living in this world of illusions or Maya.
Mental problems, depressions, diseases etc. can be kept at bay. A true sense of bliss can be achieved in life. It is the sole solution to unsolved mysteries of the world.

This must be the reason why people are now turning into Yoga and pranayama now a days. In spite of its origin in India, the other countries are making the best available uses of these techniques that keep them fit and healthy.

It is a good sign that in this chaotic world, people all over the world are turning into these to lead a more balanced life.

5th Semester starts

I still remember the 1st day at college....I feel like it was yesterday...The days have flown by, 2 years at college went in a flash. Time needs no rest. Now I have landed in classroom 410 of MEC for my 5th semester..

New Subjects, now digging deeper into core Computer science: Software Programming, Computer Graphics, System Programming, Engg.Maths-3,DBMS(Database Management Structures)etc...
Lot of activities and events in store, this year. Placements being the number one, to come in the early 6th sem. Hope everything goes fine for me and my friends in my class...

I cant imagine after 2 more years, I will be leaving my home, keeping behind all my freedom and wander elsewhere working for some company, adhering to their strict rules and taking up responsibilities...(bah!!)
No wonder people say childhood is the most sweetest part in your life...
I wish that the 2 more years to come in college will give me some of the most unforgettable and beautiful memories to cherish in my life...

Lopsided Educational System

Real Education

Education is a continuous process of learning new concepts, understanding the reason behind the evolution of these concepts and then applying these at proper situations/ places.
The Introduction of a new concept to a learning child creates many links in the child's brain. The ability to apply these concepts on different occasions depends on the strength of the link formed in the brain.
If the bond formed is pretty strong, it leads to the development of many other links which leads to the formation of what are called the "Ideas".
A tight and strong link is formed when somebody gets an elucidative and explicit introduction to a subject/topic. This can be achieved with the help of an experienced or interesting teacher. You would have often noticed how one becomes interested in a particular subject if the teacher of that particular subject makes a good and interesting introduction to the subject. Creativity and imagination emanate and dwell in the minds of such students..
A weak bond or link is formed when the child is either not interested in the subject or when the teachers fail to create a good impression about the subject.
This hinders the child from proper application of these concepts and he often finds himself devoid of any new ideas. The child can't certainly be blamed.

The Educational System plays a pivotal role in shaping up the future of a child. Right from his childhood, great importance must be given in the nurturing of the brain. The appropriate age for building a good solid foundation for brain development is from 7-16.

The present Educational system rightly does the opposite. It has more of the same (MOTS) type of learning. It rightly discourages the thinking process. A small child will have 100's of questions as he moves forward in his life and society. Those discouraging a questioning mind is suppressing the natural thinking abilities of the child.

Children mug up the contents to be studied because the question paper encourages mugging up; it involves few application question that demands thinking, as a result of which the brain gets rusted up.
When the students enter their Professional Courses, they understand their folly . This is also the reason why students find difficulty in coming out with flying colors in their entrance exams, where more application question make up the majority of the question paper. This is why many find IIT-JEE etc.. tough to crack...!!

The Paradigm Shift

CBSE has indeed done the right thing, now...Shifting to HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills) has atlast become a relief to the budding youngsters of the nation.
It is better late than never. I believe India will now produce great thinkers and scientist and the standard of living of our people would certainly improve.
It is sure that the dream of India to become the superpower lies within the hands of the upcoming generation.
MAY INDIA PROSPER!!

J2EE at NIIT

Dunno what prompted me to join NIIT to study J2EE. It maybe because of my friends who joined course after course in various centres or because I got a scholarship through their All India NITAT exam which they had conducted......

Anyways, I had some work at hand during sundays after the 4th semester examinations. I was given around 12 books as the material for my J2EE course. I had some basic knowledge in java because we had our Data Stuctures based in Java in 4th sem.

I was told my first examination would be on 8th june.The topics for the exam were as follows:

1. Java Fundamentals
2. Programming in Java
3. Packages and Streams
4. JDBC and Java Beans
5. Remote method Invocation (RMI)

These subjects started interesting me once I started to really look into them. The JDBC and Java bean concepts were really interesting.
Finally the day arrived and I had the exam at 9 in the morning. The exam consisted of around 52 Questions(Multiple choice). The pass mark was 50%. If we couldn't pass, we had to write supplementary exams in order to get a Merit Certificate. the duration of the test was 80minutes. The result would come out 5 minutes after the exam. I got pretty ok questions and I managed to finally get 75%.
My J2EE classes shifted to weekdays.

Outsourcing Business Development

Its my vacation time now...after my 4th sem exams, we got 2 months of summer holidays...
I was very much interested in working at a call centre coz it would immensely help one in improving the following:

1. Communication Skills
2. Spontaneous Thought generations
3. Accent Neutralization.
4. Personality Development
5. Self-Confidence

It was at this time that , I decided to go for an interview at Spectrum Softtech Solutions Pvt.Ltd. (www.spectrum.co.in) Spectrum is an IT Company where they gave training in Software development (Linux and Windows System Applications) and Medical Transcription.

Medical Transcription, now known as Medical Analysis, is the process of converting voice dictation (typically either cassette or digital format) into a permanent written record utilizing word processing equipment and software.
Since the doctors in foreign countries donot have the time to write down prescriptions to patients, it will be difficult for patients to apply for Insurance facilities. Hence these doctors speak out the various medicines being prescribed to their patients and then it is recorded and sent to India. In India, there are many medical Transcriptionists or Analysts who decipher their voice and put them in hardcopy. these are then sent to the patients.

Why India? Because in India it is cost Effective and we are ahead of the United states by 11.5 hours.


The interview was pretty nice...I was asked to describe about my qualities and then they asked me if I was ready to work in the night coz my shift time was from 6pm to 2am...
After the interview, I had a Voice Test where they tested my listening ability of foriegn accent and I was made to write down a recorded voice tape. This too was pretty simple......
2 days later, I was informed that I had been shortlisted for the job . My post was "Outsourcing Business Development Executive" for a monthly salary of Rs.6000. My job was to make outbound calls to doctors in United States of America and enquire if they needed a medical transcription facility. If so, I had to fax them various schemes my company had in this aspect...

Outbound calls also have another common name called the "Cold Calls". The key to outbound sales is to never give up!

The trouble with making outbound sales calls is you usually have absolutely no idea of the level of interest of the recipient until you have called them. It may be that the first ten people you call are all interested in what you have to sell. Alternatively, it may be the last ten! You role is simply to find those people that are interested and temporarily eliminate those that are not.

I may have to make around 200-250 calls per day....

At the end of the day, when all the people on your prospect list have been called and you're just about ready to throw in the towel, there's still one more task to complete. You need to remember that an outbound campaign is just like any other business campaign - it needs to show a ROI (Return on Investment). Management need to be made aware of its success or its failures.

But there is an uncertainty in my continuation in the company coz the timings are extremely hectic. Work from 6pm to 2:30 am is not a child's play. I will have to sacrifice my sleep as well as my studies once my college reopens.

I guess the right time for somebody to do this is when he is free and seeking for a job. As a BTech student, I feel it would be extremely impossible to take both of them in hand.

Aha!!..I have not been posting for the past 4 months...
My 4th sem exams are over...Let me make a very quick synopsis of the events that made up my 4th semester.
In fact, classes started only in January. We had our exams in April.
Lot of happenings in this sem...January and February witnessed many events like LINUX WEEK, EXCEL 2008, ARTS - 2008, El-Jeugo (Inter college Football match), 1st Series etc...
Linux week was a memorable one...the 2nd years conducted Linux workshop for the 1st years, we had a Linux Distros exhibition exhibiting distros like Geexbox, Puppy Linux, Damn Small Linux, GParted, Backtrack, Ubuntu, Fedora, etc.... This got news coverage from the India Vision channel...
Special mention about Geexbox: An 8MB Linux distro, Made only to view multimedia files, eg. Images, Songs, Movies/Videos and I was the one exhibiting this distro in the exhibition.
In february, there was 3 days of Arts in our college...and then we had our 1st series exam too...

Ubuntu 7.10-Gutsy Gibbon

Finally, I found a linux distro that could be installed in my pc..Ubuntu-7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon)
Since I had an Intel Motherboard with a 102GGC2 chipset (unfortunate), most of the distros (Debian 4.0 (Etch), Ubuntu 6.10 (Fiesty Fawn) etc..)that I had tried before hadn't worked...

With the Gutsy installed, I was now free to tailor my desktop environment. Few things I did were
install the KDE ("sudo apt-get install kde" in the terminal), enabled the compiz fusion effects
(installed the following packages in the Synaptic Package Manager:compiz-bcop, compizconfig-settings-manager, compiz-core, compiz-dev, compiz-fusion-plugins-extra compiz-fusion-plugins-main etc..
Compiz working fine..the rotating cube was just amazing...