Welcome to Gaurav's Blog - New kid on the blog!

Revisiting Bapu...

2008-10-02T12:05:00.011+05:30

"I shall not fear anyone on earth
I shall fear only God
I shall conquer untruth by truth
And in resisting untruth, I shall put up with all suffering" - Mahatma Gandhi.

Early Years:

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948), also known as Mahatma Gandhi, was born in Porbandar in the present day state of Gujarat in India on October 2, 1869. He was raised in a very conservative family that had affiliations with the ruling family of Kathiawad. He was educated in law at University College, London. In 1891, after having been admitted to the British bar, Gandhi returned to India and attempted to establish a law practice in Bombay, without much success. Two years later an Indian firm with interests in South Africa retained him as legal adviser in its office in Durban. Arriving in Durban, Gandhi found himself treated as a member of an inferior race. He was appalled at the widespread denial of civil liberties and political rights to Indian immigrants to South Africa. He threw himself into the struggle for elementary rights for Indians.

Say "No" to Injustice:

Gandhi remained in South Africa for twenty years, suffering imprisonment many times. In 1896, after being attacked and humilated by white South Africans, Gandhi began to teach a policy of passive resistance to, and non-cooperation with, the South African authorities. Part of the inspiration for this policy came from the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy, whose influence on Gandhi was profound. Gandhi also acknowledged his debt to the teachings of Christ and to the 19th-century American writer Henry David Thoreau, especially to Thoreau's famous essay "Civil Disobedience." Gandhi considered the terms passive resistance and civil disobedience inadequate for his purposes, however, and coined another term, Satyagraha (from Sanskrit, "truth and firmness"). During the Boer War, Gandhi organized an ambulance corps for the British army and commanded a Red Cross unit. After the war he returned to his campaign for Indian rights. In 1910, he founded Tolstoy Farm, near Durban, a cooperative colony for Indians. In 1914 the government of the Union of South Africa made important concessions to Gandhi's demands, including recognition of Indian marriages and abolition of the poll tax for them. His work in South Africa complete, he returned to India.

Satyagrah:

Using the principles of Satyagraha he led the campaign for Indian independence from Britain. Gandhi was arrested many times by the British for his activities in South Africa and India. He believed it was honorable to go to jail for a just cause. Altogether he spent seven years in prison for his political activities

Bringing Independence for India:

When World War II broke out, the Congress party and Gandhi demanded a declaration of war aims and their application to India. As a reaction to the unsatisfactory response from the British, the party decided not to support Britain in the war unless the country were granted complete and immediate independence. The British refused, offering compromises that were rejected. When Japan entered the war, Gandhi still refused to agree to Indian participation. He was interned in 1942 but was released two years later because of failing health.

By 1944 the Indian struggle for independence was in its final stages, the British government having agreed to independence on condition that the two contending nationalist groups, the Muslim League and the Congress party, should resolve their differences. Gandhi stood steadfastly against the partition of India but ultimately had to agree, in the hope that internal peace would be achieved after the Muslim demand for separation had been satisfied. India and Pakistan became separate states when the British granted India its independence in 1947 (see: Tryst with Destiny -- the story of India's independence). During the riots that followed the partition of India, Gandhi pleaded with Hindus and Muslims to live together peacefully. Riots engulfed Calcutta, one of the largest cities in India, and the Mahatma fasted until disturbances ceased. On January 13, 1948, he undertook another successful fast in New Delhi to bring about peace, but on January 30, 12 days after the termination of that fast, as he was on his way to his evening prayer meeting, he was assassinated by a fanatic Hindu. Gandhi's death was regarded as an international catastrophe. His place in humanity was measured not in terms of the 20th century, but in terms of history. A period of mourning was set aside in the United Nations General Assembly, and condolences to India were expressed by all countries. Religious violence soon waned in India and Pakistan, and the teachings of Gandhi came to inspire nonviolent movements elsewhere, notably in the U.S.A. under the civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. and in South Africa under Nelson Mandela.

Market mayhem: Hedgers running for cover

2008-03-16T20:51:00.006+05:30

Mayhem all around! That’s the only way to describe the carnage in commodity and equity markets over the last few days. And we are not talking just India here. There is not a single player left unhurt. The shorts have been killed by margin calls. The longs are caught by surprise. They have no option but to hold their positions. Hedgers are scurrying for cover.

Realistically, there is no way you can anticipate a double-digit rally in fuel, food, fibre and metals within three weeks. Even the most bullish trader didn’t bargain for a 43% jump in coal, or a 23% leap in rice, or a 13% spurt in sugar.

The spikes are baffling. Non-oil commodity prices surged 9% in February due to supply tightness and strong investment demand. There were substantial increases in a number of commodities, particularly for coal and fertilisers, the latter partly due to strong demand fuelled by high agriculture prices.

Crude rose 3% to average $93.4/bbl, and reached $100/bbl in early March, with WTI reaching nearly $106/bbl. Coal prices soared 43% to $131/t, due to a supply squeeze.

Agriculture prices jumped 8.5% in February, led by a 15% gain in grains. Vegetable oil prices were up sharply on strong demand for food and bio-diesel. Beverage prices jumped 12%. Metals and minerals prices climbed 7%, with large gains in lead, aluminium and copper. Silver increased 10% on strong investment demand and as a hedge against inflation and the weakening dollar. But before anyone could catch their breath, US markets in grains and veg oils plummeted. The losses in corn and soya bean defy belief.

When prices show such extreme movements, exchanges have no choice but to collect special margins. For those caught unawares, the sky fell. How do you find a few lakhs in spare (and tax-paid) cash at a day’s notice? That became a huge issue for many. There were unconfirmed reports of some punters on NBoT threatening to commit suicide. Brokerages dealing with small retail investors were equally hit. (source: ET)

However, if you are an indian trader or investor for longer period (I'm talking atleast 2 years here) , this is "the" right time to go for it!! Patience is the key. One thing's for sure, markets have really taken a flip towards short to medium term bearish phase.

Taste Buds - Paneer Pasanda

2008-03-16T12:17:00.013+05:30

Enjoy sunday with your family and a rich dish of Paneer Pasanda with rice or tandoori. Here's how to make this fabulous dish.

Ingredients:

400 gms Cottage Cheese (Paneer)

5 Onion (Pyaj)

4 big Tomatoes (Tamatar)

1 " long piece Ginger (Adrak)

4 Green Chilly (Hari Mirch)

1 cup Cream (Malai)

1 cup Curd (Dahi)

1 big tsp Butter

1/2 tsp Red Chili Powder (Lal Mirchi)

1/4 tsp Turmeric (Haldi)

1 tsp Dried Pudina Leaves

1/2 tsp Garam Masala

1/2 cup Milk

some roaster dry fruits (almonds, cashews etc.)

coriander leaves to garnish

Method:

Cut cottage cheese in samll square pieces.

Chop onion very finely.

Grind tomato, ginger, green chilly.

Heat butter or ghee in a pan.

Saute onions till reddish pink in color.

Then add tomato paste.

Continue cooking it on medium flame till ghee/oil begins to separate. Put off the flame.

Let the mixture cool and then grind the mixture and make a thick paste.

Take a bit of butter in the pan and add the past.

Add cottage cheese, cream , curd, salt, red chili powder, turmeric, garam masala, dried poudina leaves and mix well. Keep it aside for an hour.

Put the pan on the flame and then add milk to the mixture.

Simmer for 5 minutes and then finally put off the gas.

Take off the fire and serve hot with rice or tandoori.

NASA's space shuttle to carry out experiments in space!!

2008-03-16T12:04:00.004+05:30

Washington, March 16 : The space shuttle Endeavour, which was launched on March 14, is carrying with it a set of experiments designed and constructed in the laboratory of Dennis Jacobs, a University of Notre Dame professor of chemistry and biochemistry.

The experiments are part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE), a multi-institutional collaboration to explore how materials degrade in the low-earth orbit spacecraft environment.

The 16-day mission will be NASA's longest space station trip and will include five space walks by the crew of seven, the most ever while a shuttle is docked to a station. (extracts from a news portal)

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2007-01-30T09:46:00.002+05:30

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2006-11-22T23:59:00.001+05:30

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Beginner's Delight!

2006-11-22T23:40:00.000+05:30

Well, this is my first post on the blog I have just created. I new to all this stuff and am trying to learn more about creating a good looking blog. I'm very excited!

Thanks for listening.