Masti ka Pathshala

We were late parents. So – the kids of many dear friends and contemporaries are either well into college enjoying their share of young adult-hood or preparing frenetically for their school leaving examinations. And, the slightly older ones are getting ready for their nuptials – while our darling daughter is just about beginning to discover the joys and tribulations of her early teens – tucked away in the pristine preserves of the Sahyadri hills .

It’s examination season and with nearly 15 lakh kids appearing for CBSE alone, the TV Channels and Newspapers have been whipping up a frenzy for anxious parents – to fill in their prime time slots before Election fever grips the country. We had none of this in our times - so it’s all quite alien to me anyway. But, at a very different level, I have been drawn in over the past few weeks into a conversation on a fellow bloggers site (Cuckoo's Cosmos….click here to read ) between parents who are contemplating putting their children into Rishi Valley – the original Krishnamurty (KFI) institution. The obvious question – which we are asked very often in the context of our sending Jaya to Sahyadri – is, whether children studying in such “non-conventional” schools lose their competitive edge, which most parents – justifiably – believe is so essential for surviving in today’s cut-throat world.

Frankly, I don’t have a strong view either way – each I’m sure has its own merits and downsides. Neither Nina nor I come from a boarding school background. Apart from the children of a few close friends, the only ones in our extended family circle who have studied in a “public school” away from home are my dear cousin (2nd – as she never fails to point out) Tush and her brother Papu. We known a few Rishi Valley “products” – but that was just about it. We were also not steeped in Jiddu Krishnamurty’s philosophy or his ideas on education. But, when we decided to send Jaya to a boarding, we were very clear in our mind that it had to be a school like Rishi Valley.

In what appears like serendipity now in hindsight – we had visited Sahyadri soon after the school was set up in the mid 90s at the behest of a senior colleague of HLL. We had come away very impressed with what we saw. Jaya had just about come into our life and we had no clue at that point that we would ever consider sending her to a boarding. We wanted Jaya to be in a “non-pressure” environment. So Sahyadri was a natural choice. (Read Back to School by clicking here)

For us it wasn't a giant leap of faith (unlike an uncle of mine who pulled his two sons out of school on the instruction of their spiritual 'guru' and taught them at home. Both kids, incidentally, have done extremely well in their chosen fields of academics). We put Jaya there for our own set of considerations which we recognize may not apply to others. Though I’d be less than honest if I were to say that, we don’t have our moments of doubt.

Such moments of self-questioning arise – especially while visiting friends around the time of their children’s exams (not necessarily those in their last years of school but also those in the junior classes) when the atmosphere of tension is almost palpable in the house. Similar thoughts also cross my mind at the Parents Teachers Meeting – when I compare by distant recollection what I studied at her age and worry if they are being taught at a level – that’s a notch lower than what the Board syllabus would warrant for the class.

But then, I also think of the myriad other things they are learning - that we never had the opportunity for in a city school. The results of the previous batches – which though not skewed towards the high nine-tees are not at the bottom of the scale either - also bolster confidence. So they must have cracked the code somewhere and built a method into their system - otherwise, it’s not for nothing that the KFI schools have been around for over 75 years now with alumni straddling different walks of life.

The kids, of course, love it once they get over the initial joining pangs. Till the 7th Standard – it’s virtually a ‘masti ka path-shala’. It is only in the 8th when the hormones and exams kick in – does one notice a few spells of blue that come with the first intimations of reality. But then, like the hormones I am told this too is a passing phase.

But I think it is not just English and Maths or Physics, Chemistry, Bio that matter. Nor is it the Games, Arts and Music. It goes much beyond studies and the extra-curricular add-ons. In fact, the high-end Boarding schools have much more to offer in comparison.

I remember – the time we had gone for the interview the parents sat around the matted floor of the assembly hall for an open question and answer session with the Principal. One of the parents remarked – “But Sir, you will agree that the ultimate test will be ICSE”. The young Principal chuckled a little and said with a smile – “ICSE is an important test – but I am not sure if it’s the ultimate test. They will have to face many other tests in life and hopefully we prepare them for those in some small way”. He couldn’t have summed up our expectation better.

Related Blog Post: "Back to School" (click here to read)

When is CSR Sexy?

Being a born drifter, after sailing through some choppy waters in the last few years – I floated into the world of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) sometime back. I saw in it an opportunity to dip my toe into the social sector – something I had been contemplating for long as a post retirement career option. Unlike some contemporaries who took a plunge into the NGO world only to jump out with a start, it has been – thus far - a rather fascinating journey for me.

Over the years – a veritable industry has spawned around CSR. Now with all brouhaha over Climate Change, Carbon Emission and Sustainability – it is mega business really. Not a single workday passes without my receiving a call or invitation for sponsoring or participating in a conference or seminar on CSR (paid, of course). Consulting firms have also jumped into the bandwagon starting their practices – to advise companies on how to develop their own CSR Strategy and roll out CSR programmes. NGOs big and small come up with proposals for “partnerships”.

Green-wash, Blue-Wash or White-wash?

Without a doubt CSR has come a long way from the days of Merchant Charity and Gandhian Philanthropy to responsible corporate citizenry. It is – understandably – still largely driven top down by the CEO or the owner-promoter, often goaded by a conscientious Board of Directors. Much of it, many would argue, is just lip service for the purpose of publishing in Annual Reports or for making presentation to industry bodies and the government. At times, it is also with some collateral motives - what has come to be known as “Blue-wash”– (where companies aim at distracting attention from the social and environmental consequences of their production and products) or “Green-wash” (polluting industries trying to buy their ‘license to operate’).

Of course, the UN Global Compact and MDG (Millennium Development Goals) have been pushing corporations towards re-organsing their businesses along sustainable lines. But, even otherwise, the movement is beginning to gather steam across the world. A lot of this is because of pressure coming laterally from external stakeholders (Communities, NGOs, Government and share-holders in some instances) and also, very often, from below – i.e. the employees.

The Satyam Effect

Increasingly employees – especially the younger ones – are becoming conscious of the kind of organizations they join and work for. Though’ the discounted head-count of Satyam is still a whopping 40k, socially responsible organizations like Infosys and TCS still command a premium in the employment market. Another phenomenon , which seems to be catching up is employee volunteerism – with more and more people within the organization wanting to contribute their skills and time to the community. Earlier this used to be just a few good souls wanting to do their bit for society, putting in some work for charities in their spare time. Today it is happening in a much more organized form - with groups of employees coming together to help communities around their immediate sphere of activity using their own and the organization’s core competencies. Overseas many organizations have a clear policy for employer-supported volunteerism – where companies encourage its employees to do volunteering work by giving time-off or by making matching monetary contributions for their efforts etc. In India too this trend is picking up. A band of young, passionate social sector professionals are making the difference.


Just Hot Air ?

It’s fashionable these days to try and make a business case for selling the concept of CSR. The standard line is ‘why CSR is good for your business ?’ and the common arguments used are CSR helps in creating employee motivation, brand premium, consumer loyalty etc. While these can certainly be incidental benefits – the logic is far too tenuous to hold water for today’s CEOs who being hostages of the ‘street’ can’t look beyond the quarterly numbers. Therefore, you can’t quite fault Stefan Stern who in a recent column in the Financial Times (Read "The Hot Air of CSR" by clicking here ) writes “now that recession’s here we can forget all that nonsense about CSR and get back to making some money”.

But, CSR need not be through Cheques alone. In fact – some of the best CSR programmes have a very small monetary component, if at all. Good corporate governance, taking care of minority shareholders, promoting work-place diversity are by themselves good CSR.

Much before the term CSR gained currency – way back in the early 80s, Hindustan Lever (not HUL!!) had a Rural Training Program under which every Management Trainee of the company had to compulsorily spend 2 months in a village, in the very backward District of Etah in UP, where the company had a Dairy Unit. During this period the trainees (“Manager Saab” as they were lovingly referred to by the gracious villagers) were expected to provide managerial inputs for the development of the villages. The motive was not entirely altruistic. The visionary Chairman of the company had seen that the survival of the Dairy Unit and economic upliftment of the District were closely inter-linked. A collateral benefit was the solid “grounding” it gave the Management Graduates in the basics of rural marketing.

Often tiny innovations make for great CSR. A chain of Cafes in Kathmandu employ only speech and hearing impaired waiters. Many years back – I remember a small snack bar at the end of Prabhat Road in Pune used to engage needy students. A placard on the table requested customers not to hurt the dignity of the boys by offering them tips. But, instead – if they wished – to put in their contribution into a box, the collection from which would be used for subsidizing the cost of their books and tuition fees. I wonder how many Corporates would think of engaging physically challenged individuals in their pantries and canteens – jobs they can easily do.

Heart, Head or Condoms ?

But, CSR is not just a matter of the heart it’s a function of the mind as well The real answer to Stefan Stern’s provocative thesis, therefore, lies in how CSR can be woven into the fabric of the organization – where it is not an ‘add-on’ or ‘stand-alone’ activity but an integral part of the operations to yield visible and tangible benefits. Strategically conceived, good CSR practices can actually help companies deliver better bottom-line results – which can look especially attractive, when the chips are down. HLL (sorry, HUL)’s Project Shakti and ITC’s E-Choupal are 2 such examples , – which even after discounting the ‘hype’ have significant top-line potential for the 2 companies. The ICICI Foundation’s foray into Micro-financing and Social Entrepreneurship is another good model to emulate.

In the 70s and 80s, consumer product companies like HLL and ITC used to sell Condoms (marketed under the Government's Family Planning Programme) through their Distribution Channels – which, to my mind, was also a form of CSR. So, when CSR is not just ‘good for business’ but it becomes a part of doing business, does it begin to look sexy !!

A weekend of awards

Suddenly Omar Abdullah has become the poster boy of Corporate India. He has certainly got “star appeal” and India Inc, as it has come to be fashionably called, seem to have made this great ‘post-Obamatic’ discovery of “younger politicians” as potential agents of change (keeping the butter warm and soft, ready for application on another scion in waiting – should the contingency arise after the forthcoming general elections, à la circa 1984 - if you understand what I mean!!). Otherwise, it is difficult to explain the choice of this third generation Kashmiri “lion” cub as the Chief Guest for an award function of a respected Business Weekly, in Mumbai last Friday (which I had to attend on a call of duty). His only tenuous link with the city, we were told, was that, he went to college at Sydenham and his “corporate” credentials come from his having been a trainee at ITC and a Manager at the Oberois (who then ran a property in Srinagar, by the Dal Lake)before he took his plunge into the family business of Kashmir politics.

The corporate brass turned out in full strength – including a few odd numbers like a leading Urologist, who probably holds some little secrets of their inside tracts. And, strangely young Omar arrived not just with his wife (which would be understandable) but also his father in tow – like protective mothers of young starlets, who accompany their nubile daughters on out-of-town shoots, presumably to keep predators at bay or to ensure that they are not short-changed on pay and perks.

the Pandit and the Sheikh

Personally, I was never enamoured of the Abdullahs. I find them a bit like the Koirala family of Nepal – on whom successive Governments in Delhi (I am advisedly refraining from saying: the ‘Indian Government’) have over-invested in the past 60 years. Until very recently, New Delhi always thought that the Koiralas were our ‘best bet’ – and continued to back them covertly and overtly through the years. But, everytime the Koiralas came to power - Delhi became a distant friend and they found virtue in other neighbourly and regional ties – be it across the Himalyas to the North or a bit further beyond the western borders of India. The Indian establishment tried to retro-justify this ‘lack of reciprocation’ as compulsions of local politics – only to repeat the folly again in future.

Politics on the Golf Course

The long saga of the Nehru-Gandhi family’s fraternal foibles with the old Sheikh is well known. And, one still remembers the National Conference’s minor flirtation with the BJP and NDA. The ascent of the motor-biking Farooq was greeted with as much enthusiasm as we now see over his son – only to realize in no time that, he is a better partner on the Golf Course than in the political mine-fields of Kashmir. Therefore, I am a bit skeptical about this euphoria over the anointment of Omar as the heir of the ‘riyasat’ and was not in the least surprised, when he declared at the same august gathering ( in the course of an otherwise very impressive speech) - “Pakistan is not an enemy of India …but there are elements within Pakistan ( comprising about 99.9% of the population, I would reckon) who do not want normal bi-literal relations with India”.

The Corporate ‘Dada Saheb Phalke’

If the choice of Omar Abdullah as the G-o-H was intriguing, the selection of Bikki (P.R.S.) Oberoi as the “Businessman of the Year” was equally baffling. I wouldn’t have had a problem if he was awarded a “Dada Saheb Phalke” equivalent award of the Corporate world for his “Lifetime Achievements”. But what was his special achievement in the last year to merit this recognition ? I couldn't simply get it. From the various laudatory speeches, one almost got the feeling that he was being honoured for the 26/11 attack on his flagship property – which, by their own public admission, was the favourite haunt and watering hole of many of jury members (some, infact, had their offices and homes right next to it and, so, had witnessed first-hand the events of those 3 fateful days). By the same token Ratan Tata should be nominated for Bharat Ratna for the onslaught withstood by The Taj.

But, the real entertainment of the evening was 6 top businessmen coming on stage to offer their prescription on how to tackle terrorism. It was hard to believe that, people of their stature with extraordinarily sharp minds could come up with such puerile analysis of and even more banal suggestions. I thought, 6th grade students would have done better if they were asked to write an essay on the subject. The first – an young steel baron – talked of how industrial development was the only way to solve the terrorist problem and offered to fly down with some of his business cronies to suggest ways of industrializing the state. (In his speech – Omar was quick to point out that, he hadn’t come to invite people to set up industries in Kashmir – as his state couldn’t offer the infrastructure and skilled manpower required for it. He would, instead, like them to provide vocational training that would help Kashmiris find jobs in main-land India. A sure conduit for Pakistan to export terrorists from across the border and infiltrate our industries – some security experts might argue!!)

This reminded me of an apocryphal anecdote that used to do its round in my old company. A project team had gone to Srinagar – at the behest of the GoI – in the early 80s to explore the possibility of setting up a Detergent Packing plant in the Valley. On asking about the security situation – it seems a government official told them nonchalantly (he was joking - I’m sure) – ‘what’s your problem? You are a multi-national – so your plant will either belong to Hindustan Lever or will go to Lever Bros Pakistan”.

Tackling terror with paranoia and wazwan

The second was a top banker – who provided a brilliant 3P formula for tackling terror: Pillars, Paranoia and Pakistan. First – he said we need to strengthen the ‘pillars’ of society (very original !!), then we need to create enough “paranoia” and finally tackle Pakistan. Tauba, Tauba !!. ( For a moment – when he mentioned 3Ps – I thought he was referring to the Pakistan Peoples Party).

Then came the flamboyant liquor baron turned air-line tycoon and part time politician (who, incidentally – as I gathered from an impeccable source - had just returned from a ‘self-financed’ junket to Srinagar and Gulmarg – gorging on the fabulous ‘Wazwans’ - to celebrate the accession. Some say, he is angling for a rajya Sabha ticket from the state). Speaking with his familiar élan, he didn’t miss the opportunity to plug his airline and spent some time discussing the problem he has in docking his yacht at the Gateway – from which he surmised that the terrorists couldn’t have landed there without the complicity of the locals. He also shared his worry on the very ‘real’ possibility of one of his airliners being hijacked or blown-up. Both fair points – but not particularly luminescent in my limited view.

But that’s all that I could take. I decided to make a quiet exit (seated on one of the last rows being the habitual back-bencher that I always was). While walking out - I reflected that it’s not the business of corporate honchos to hold discourses on terrorism, just as politicians should desist from lecturing on Corporate Governance.


Part II: 'Scams' accha hai

Yesterday was the mother of all corporate awards – the ET(Economic Times) Excellence Awards (which was originally scheduled for October 28th – at The Trident) for which the Prime Minister had flown down. Needless to say that, anybody who is somebody in the corporate galaxy was there. Obviously, I was not one among them. Have been to some of the earlier ET Awards by default - and found them to be exceedingly boring affairs (like most corporate award functions usually are) despite getting the 'glam-quotient' up with the likes of Katrina Kaif to making star appearances (don't forget VJ's clout in Bollywood and the Glamour world) as Corporate 'item numbers'. In this mornings newspaper I read, the PM spoke at length on Corporate Governance apropos Satyam and Corporate India listened in "rapt attention". I'm sure he must have made some very pertinent observations and recommendations (not for nothing Raju Narisetti - former Editor of MINT and now Managing Ed of Washington Post - had written that he would make an excellent 'op-ed writer). But, Singh is not the most inspirational orator even at his best - so I wondered how many in the audience were actually listening.

It was a wonderful gesture - though, on the part of ET to honour The Taj staff - Karambir, Kang, Hemant Oberoi , Raymond Bickson and Mahavir Rathore (the Head of Security) for the 26/11. On behalf of The Oberois, I believe, the award was received by - who else ? - P R S Oberoi himself. But, it was quintessential ET to claim that, Oberoi had specially flown down from Delhi only for the awards !!


Instead, I went for a very different kind of award function in the suburbs billed as the ‘Product of the Year (POY)” Awards. It was more of lively, 'high-voltage' entertainment and the awards were almost incidental. POY works broadly on these lines. They run some kind of a market research (totally “independent” and “not rigged”, Charu – who heads POY in India, assures me) for the Brands that register and on topping the category they are awarded the “Product of the Year” certificate – which the company can use on the payment of a “fee”. (Click here to read the concept) I asked Charu - "isn’t it a 'scam'?". A ‘scam’ it may be – she threw it back at me with her signature laughter - but a “scam that works”. It seems that, empirical evidence has shown, on an average the winners witness a 10 per cent to 15 per cent upwards increase in sales. “Come for the awards”, she told me, “I promise it will be fun”. And, fun it was for sure.

While driving back home I concluded that, 'scams' are far more interesting than the real awards.

A Road Much Travelled

When I first travelled on the Bombay-Pune highway sometime in 1985, I had no idea that it was to be the ‘road most travelled’ in my life. That road has given me many lovely memories - from very romantic rides to a life-changing journey when we took Jaya home ( read Kats, Rains and The Woods by clicking here). Of course, it was then the old highway - winding steeply across the Lonavala ghats (traversing some 2000 feet in just about 7 kms). There was that mandatory stop at Ramakant in Khopoli for Vada-Pavs and occasionally a beer or 2, when one was not travelling on work.

In the monsoons driving through the ghats was a near surrealistic experience. At one level it was the sheer beauty of torrid rain tearing the veil of low-hanging clouds – like the gushing waterfall guarding the entrance to Phantom’s cave. And, there was that edge-of-the-seat tension – as the rickety old Fiats and rattling Ambassadors struggled to negotiate the bends and curves, their frail wipers flapping feebly - wilting under the force of the downpour and the driver leaning forward with his nose almost touching the windscreen in the mistaken belief that, by doing so he could see the road ahead better.

Aati kya Khandala

By the time we left Pune in 1996 – construction of the new “Expressway” had just begun. Only the small link stretch from Pashan to Dehu Road had been completed – which was generally unused except by lovers for a long drive on a moonlit night. Not for once did I think then - that I would have to keep going back on that route in the years to come.

But exactly 10 years later, the road beckoned me again. On a wintry Feb morning in 2006, I drove up the new Expressway for the first time to check out – what would be Jaya’s new school, nestled in the Sahyadri Hills on the way to Bhimashankar, off the Pune-Nashik highway (Read Back to School by clicking here). Since then, I have been travelling on it – practically once every month, sometimes even twice, more than I do (or have ever done) on any other highway.

Of course – what now appears like a ribbon-like path has been forsaken for the 6 lane racing tracks. The old Ramakant has been replaced by giant Food Malls. (There’s only one outlet that sells decent Vada-pavs – Shree Datta – on the down lane just before the Khalapur Toll-naka). Romance has given way to the thrill of speed.

Earlier it used to be said that, the time taken and cost of travel were roughly the same – no matter which mode of transport you chose – Road, Rail or Air. I remember the fare on the Avro Shuttle flights was then Rs 145 and a first-class ticket on the Deccan Queen Rs 105. The shared taxi was Rs 90 – I think. The travel time on the DQ was three and a half-hour and by road it was a little over 4 hours. Though the flying time was only 20 minutes – taking into account the time spent in traveling to / from and waiting at the airport – it still added to around 3½ to 4 hours.

While the cost equation has gone terribly awry (air tickets now cost nearly Rs 3k and the AC Char Car fare on the humble DQ is Rs 250) – surprisingly, there hasn’t been much improvement on the time factor. Point to point, from one end of the Expressway to the other, one can comfortably reach in an hour and a half (between the 2 toll-nakas of Khalapur/Khopoli and Talegaon - a distance of about 70 kms – I clock an average of 45 minutes). But the entry and exit at both Pune and Mumbai have become a veritable nightmare – of course, Mumbai more so. Getting to Panvel from anywhere in Mumbai can take up to 90 minutes even on a good day. The return traffic can be far worse - Sundays and weekends are no exception. So, all told, unless you are travelling early in the morning or returning very late at night – it still takes nearly 4 hours either way.

Sadly, something else hasn’t changed too. Overturned trucks and tankers were always a common sight on the ghats. Inexperienced drivers of over-loaded vehicles often lost balance on the sharp turns. Frequently one also saw crumpled evidence of some major collisions from the night before. These would generally be found on the Lonavala-Pune stretch where the road was broader and the traffic thin – tempting drivers to step on the gas.

Cousins of Shumacher

Actually, in my opinion, it is the close proximity of Mumbai and Pune – which is the main cause of accidents. Because of the relatively short distance between the 2 cities, many motorists – who would have otherwise not ventured on a highway are lured by the road. This culture of highway adventurism has further increased with the new Expressway. Most people think it is the Indian equivalent of German Autobahns where there are no limits on speed. Probably, at a subliminal level they fancy themselves as distant cousins of Michael Shumacher – and have this irresistible urge to hit the road and burn rubber for vicariously experiencing the joys and highs of Formula One racing .

The official ‘speed limit’ is 80 kmph for the greater part – but most people never drive at less than a 100, often going beyond to 120 or more. Even on the ghat-sections – where the recommended limit is 30kmph – very few drop the speedometer below 80 or a 60 at best. With no idea of the rules of highway driving, let alone etiquette, lane cutting and overtaking is rampant. Staying on your own lane is no guarantee – as vehicles that come hurtling at monstrous speeds would either chase you off the track or overtake dangerously from the left with every chance of your losing control in a momentary lapse of concentration or reflex.

While the long-distance buses and over-loaded Sumos ferrying passengers are a menace, the real high-risk category are the small cars – the Altos, Swifts, Santros and their clones. Apart from overturning easily, these lightweight cars are prone to tyre-bursts at high-speed, which is almost always fatal on an Expressway. Therefore, it is easy to come-by the crushed remains of a car that was flung across the divider and hit a vehicle coming from the opposite direction.

I can understand that, it may not be possible to control lane cutting without highway patrols with their own fast cars as they have in the West. But, why can’t we impose speed control with the help of cameras that are now easily available and eminently affordable. If we wish to catch up with the developed world by building such arterial freeway , we should also adopt some of their good practices too. Basic safety should be a matter of right for the users of a toll-road. The toll operators should be made to compulsorily install speed-control equipments – such as radars and cameras - as a pre-condition of their license. Equally, the state authorities are duty bound to enforce regulations that they themselves have set. But then, human lives always come cheap in our country – be it in terrorist attacks or road accidents.

Vada-pavs on the bend

Without such safeguards, every trip is a test of nerves for which I routinely tank myself with caffeine – at the first gas-station immediately upon entering the Expressway. On occasions when I feel energetic enough to drive right through – usually on the return leg of the journey - I definitely stop for a break before the exit toll-naka – either for a coffee at the new well appointed CCD or tea and Vada-Pav at Shree Datta. But then, I was not cut out for living life on the fast-lane anyway.

Collateral Benefits

The term “collateral damage” has become popular after 26/11 – but there have been also some ‘collateral benefits’ too, if I may call them so.

One among them, is the introspection it has set in motion within the media (we saw a bit of that earlier after the Arushi Talwar case) about their role in covering the event; For the first time perhaps there has been such a public outcry over the TV Channels making a spectacle (some called it a “light and sound show”) out of a national tragedy. The security agencies and the government too have come down with a heavy hand (ham-handedly some might say) to chastise the channels for what they thought was rather “irresponsible” coverage often at the risk of compromising the operations. Advisories are being issued by the I & B Ministry. And there is serious talk about a Code of Conduct being prescribed (one hears - a PiL signed by 19,000 people has been filed to that effect) and mumblings about “self-regulation”. This has put the leading channels - and their star editors – for once on the back-foot, if not veritably on the mat.

So we have NDTV running a scroll challenging ‘unsubstantiated allegations’ and threatening action. Barkha wrote a lengthy defence on the NDTV website (read by clicking here) and Rajdeep valiantly argued his case (and that of his fellow-broadcasters’) on CNN-IBN’s sister channel CNBC-TV18 (in a special edition of “Storyboard” - brilliantly moderated by Anuradha Sengupta).

If there was one up-‘anchor-ship’ among the channels there was also up-commando-ship among the security agencies – each more keen to speak to the camera about the success of their operations only to be proved wrong a few minutes later. Therefore, Rajdeep made a valid point when he said that our establishment must also learn how to manage a 1000-pound Gorilla that 24/7 Television News can be. Our authorities – be it the police, security forces or politicians – need to be put through some basic media training. As the Reuters South Asia correspondent Phil Smith pointed out – you can’t blame the ‘twenty something’ reporters who saw this as an opportunity of a lifetime to shoot into fame a la Christiane Amanpour in Kuwait and Iraq or even our very own Ms Dutt of Kargil fame.

I found Meenakshi Madhvani had an interesting take on all this. She thought what would finally buck the trend is advertisers turning away from channels which sensationalise news – realising that editorial environment is as important than as TRP ratings.

However much we flay the electronic media for sensationalism and over exposure – the nearly 60 hours of non-stop TV coverage that gripped the world across geo-political fault-lines has undeniably played a massive role in rallying the entire nation in our own ‘desi’ version of war against terror.

In all this chatter, here’s one earthy first-hand account of that fateful night (Click here to read the article)