Plain Speak

Plastic production across the globe is in an upward trend, whereas the recovery, recycling and disposal are mostly insufficient with millions of tons of plastics ending up in landfills and oceans each year. Invented in the 1860s, it developed as an industry in the 1920s, and has become one of the fastest-growing global industries. From 1950 to 2012, plastics growth averaged 8.7 % per year, booming from 1.7 million tons to the nearly 300 million tons of today.  Plastics replaced materials like paper, glass and metal as packaging materials and in today plastic packaging accounts for more than 30 percent of packaging sales. It is estimated that about 4 percent of the petroleum consumed worldwide each year is used to make plastic, and another 4 percent is used to power plastic manufacturing processes. According to the United Nations, it takes 12 million barrels of oil to manufacture the 102 billion plastic bags that Americans use annually.        Th...

The Jain practice of Santhara or Sallekhana where a person chooses to end life voluntarily by stopping intake of food and water i.e. fast unto death is on the news in the recent past. The Rajasthan High court in its judgement  dated 10 th August, 2015 held Jainism religious ritual of 'Santhara' as illegal making it punishable under section 306 and 309 IPC (abetment of suicide). A petition was filed on the Supreme Court of India against the judgement of the Rajasthan High Court and the SC on 31 st  August, 2015 stayed the Rajasthan High Court’s judgment.  The practice of Sallekhana or Santhara has been prevalent among the Jains since long. Sallekhana means ‘properly thinning out of the passions and the body’ and is generally allowed only when a person is suffering from incurable disease or great disability or when a person is nearing his end. In, other words it can be said as a person’s ethical choice to live with dignity till date. Around 200 Jains ...

What is one's goal in life? It's always to excel, to be better than others in terms of money, status etc. etc. So, everyone thrives to be so and the rat race starts. Once in the race, one has no other option but to be a part and try to win. But, here comes the different factors that play a vital role. The ethical values learned during the upbringing comes into the forefront. A person will a solid value base will always take part in the most honest and transparent manner. He/ she will not try to strive for personal gains at the cost of others. on the other hand majority of the people tend to compromise with their values and trade them for short term gains. They reap the benefits and go up the ladder, until some day the power of the universe conspires and stall them. At that point, they are left alone, all their bosom friends vanish,  and try to retrospect. But, it's too late and their health takes a toll and so on. Analysing few such persons in different aspe...

Lessons of Life... The driver was an aged person who came to pick me up from the airport. It was already late, as my scheduled had changed due to weather conditions and reached Mumbai around 4 hours late in the night only a few moments away remaining for a new day to start. The road leading to my place of stay was conducive for me to start a conversation with him. He was person who has been thriving to earn a living by honest means. The journey was short and I released him after signing the duty slip and paying him some pocket money. The next morning, he came to drop me and on way to the airport he spoke about the problems      created by outsiders in Mumbai. I was quite impressed by his observations and honest speak, and so, to continue with the discussions, I requested him to be with me during my return stay at Mumbai, 5 days away. As he dropped me at the airport, I offered him some pocket money, to w...