Kashmir of Ours

An ingenious example of speech and politics occurred recently in the United Nations Assembly that made the World Community smile.

A Representative from India began: 'Before beginning my talk I want to tell you something about Rishi Kashyap of Kashmir, after whom Kashmir is named. When he struck a rock and it brought forth water, he thought, 'What a good opportunity to have a bath.' He removed his clothes, put them aside on the rock and entered the water. When he got out and wanted to dress, his clothes had vanished……. A Pakistani had stolen them.'

The Pakistani Representative jumped up furiously and shouted, 'What are you talking about? The Pakistanis weren't there then.'

The Indian Representative smiled and said, 'And now that we have made that clear, I will begin my speech. 'And they say Kashmir belongs to them........ ......... ......... ......... .........

Brigadier (Retired) Sukhwindar Singh
http://www.defenceoffsetsindia.com/
(A Global Solution for Offsets)
Credit: Contributed by Sandeep Budhiraja, Sector 33, Noida.

Diwali Greetings!

Dear Residents,

Here is Wishing You All Cheer and Happiness on this Diwali !

MC Members, Sector 33.

The Wisdom of the Ancients

In The Wisdom of Confucius (translated by Lin Yutang, London, 1958) there appears the following exchange:

Zigong asked Confucius “What would you say if all the people of a village like a person?” “That is not enough,” replied Confucius.

“What would you say if all the people of the village dislike a person?” “That is not enough,” replied Confucius.

“It is better when the good people of the village like him, and the bad people dislike him.”

This ancient wisdom (Confucius died in 479 BC) summarizes:

You cannot and should not try to please everyone. Make sure that the Right People Like You, and it will be expected That Others Will Not. That’s how the world works.

Sukhwindar

Leadership: A Good Listener

Listening is a powerful tool of communication. Listening and just hearing has great difference. All of us want to have a companion who is a good listener and most of us aim to be one as well. (Added by the Moderator: And of course, 'companionship in gatherings' are different. Sometimes individuals 'collectively' can have different Motives and Agenda because of their varied backgrounds and value system. To be addressed accordingly).

What kind of Listener We Are ? A deep careful listener, a bored listener, a selective listener, a defensive listener, an interrupting listener or an insensitive listener?

Here are simple tips to be a Good Listener:

Follow the Golden Rule: “Do unto others what you want others to do unto you.”

-Put yourself in position of the one who is speaking to you.

-Make an effort to listen to the person who is speaking by giving your full attention to the speaker.

-Focus your mind to what he is trying to say, and for the unspoken messages.

-Watch for the non-verbal communications like tone of voice, hand gestures, facial expressions and other body movements.

-Listen for the real meaning and not just for the literal words.

-Finish listening first before you begin to speak for you to be sure that you understand what is being said and think clearly how to react.

-Ask questions if you are not sure, to understand what the speaker is trying to convey. Good listening requires practice and patience.

If you hone this skill, you’ll appreciate life more.

Bagchi, Sector 33.

Moderator:

a. Who Talks 'first', and who 'listens' is the crux in any social / informal / formal system. There is always a 'pattern' in any communication. We have a well-established theory called Transactional Analysis, commonly known as TA to its adherents. It is an Integrative Approach to the theory of psychology and psychotherapy, and results in Parent-Adult-Child (PAC) Model. We behave like a Parent, Adult and Child in all our conversations all the time. When to take which Role marks success of the 'transaction'. This Approach is 'integrative' because it has elements of psychoanalytic, humanist and cognitive approaches. Pse Click :http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transactional_analysis to read the 'Transactional Analysis'.

b. You find individuals 'Talking with Compassion/Authority/Forcefully with their Life Experiences in the Backdrop' (Parent), 'Reasoned Talk put Across Diligently Supported by Strong Rationale w/o Favour or Bias (Adult), and 'Indiscriminate Shouting, Sub-Normal Behaviour, Advancing Personal Agenda' (Child). It happens all the time in our Homes/Offices/Other Places where more than one person converse with each other to 'transact' any business. Aim of any 'speak' should be to 'transact' a meaningful business, of course properly 'heard' in a gathering, and 'listened-to' in a 'serene environment'. Environments are important.

A Leader is to understand it all and 'lead' accordingly. And there is also a theory & practice, 'How to Control an Unruly & Misled Crowd/Gathering?

Thanks for reminding Me to get the PAC in focus. Would help Us all,but are all of Us equally 'concerned' !

Kindly help the MC in advocating this 'Thought'. We are trying our bit in various ways.

Kashmir of Ours

Enjoy nature around You !

Sukhwindar

Twitter in the News -- What is It?

Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read messages known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters displayed on the author's profile page and delivered to the author's subscribers who are known as followers. Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends or, by default, allow open access. Users can send and receive tweets via the Twitter website, Short Message Service (SMS) or external applications. While the service costs nothing to use, accessing it through SMS may incur phone service provider fees.

The 140 character limit on message length was initially set for compatibility with SMS messaging, and has brought to the web the kind of shorthand notation and slang commonly used in SMS messages. The 140 character limit has also spurred the usage of URL shortening services such as tinyurl, bit.ly and tr.im, and content hosting services, such as Twitpic and NotePub to accommodate multimedia content and text longer than 140 characters.

Since its creation in 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Twitter has gained notability and popularity worldwide. It is sometimes described as the "SMS of the Internet"[3] since the use of Twitter's application programming interface for sending and receiving short text messages by other applications often eclipses the direct use of Twitter.

Sukhwindar

Credit: Wikipedia

Cyber Attack(s)

We all use computers. Cyber Attack(s) are common these days. Motive for such attacks could be many. We must however ensure that we are safe.

Best defence against such attack(s) is to communicate with known entities, surf minimum / on need basis, and use the computers for the facilities You actually need. Over or Indiscriminate use could land You in difficulties.

The above write-up on the Cyber Attack(s) is well considered.

Sukhwindar
http://www.svipja.com/
(A Global Solution for Offsets)
Credit: TOI

Leadership

'Listening to Others' is always a need. Leaders need to employ this virtue judiciously. Learn the technique in the environment You are operating.

Leadership is a continuum between Autocratic & Laissez-faire Styles of Leadership. When to apply what Style is a crux.

Listening to others is a useful input to a Leader. It refines his decision process.

A well thought out Article on Leadership. All could benefit.

Brigadier (Retired) Sukhwindar Singh
Credit: wellness.com

‘The Idea of Injustice’

(This Posting has been inspired by an Article, ‘Fueled by Injustice’, in The Economic Times today, ET NOW) .

Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen in his book, ‘The Idea of Justice’ which took him 25 years to write, explains Natural Justice. He says ‘Our First Sentiment is One of Injustice Rather than Justice’ as a Natural Sense. He could have named his book ‘The Idea of Injustice’ as well. Knowing what Injustice means, we can then easily move to Justice. It is when we know our ‘weaknesses’, only then we can move to eradicate them and make them our ‘strengths’.

Philosophically speaking, all living beings thrive on ‘The Idea of Injustice’ right from the Womb to Tomb. They develop expertise to live on others, or by marginalizing others in whatever manner. Their energies are directed to unleash their ‘destructive power’, whereas they should be applying it to generate their ‘constructive power’. ‘That makes You What You Are in the Real Sense; physically, mentally, emotionally & spiritually’.

Looking after the less endowed, bothering for concerns of the others, creating ‘right vibes’ in the System, seeing things dispassionately, mitigating ‘self-interest’ to an extent, with a view to optimize delivery to the System are some of the attributes we need to cultivate. It is only then that we are a useful member of the Social System. Mind You, all this pays You directly.

Amartya Sen views that ‘all our policies relate to injustice because none of our policies, even ones like the Employment Guarantee Scheme, will make the world perfectly just, it will only make the world a little unjust’.

We have our Role cut, Friends!

Sukhwindar

Motto of the Indian Military

"The Safety, Honour and Welfare of your Country come first, always and every time.

The Honour, Welfare and Comfort of the Men you command come next.

Your Own ease, Comfort and Safety come last, always and every time".

Can we translate the Indian Military Motto in our ‘day-to-day’ working, and ‘national life’?

'Sector Life' can enrich manifold if we keep the self-interest last. Let Us work for 'Sab Ka Bhala'. Everything should not start from Point A, and also finish in a closed-loop at Point A. Kindly don't see things from Your Angle only.

Sukhwindar

Leadership

All of Us are leaders in our own right; some successful, some not-very-successful, some unsuccessful. We need to be cautious of what constitutes Leadership, and its ground indicators.

NexGen is highly trainable. We must help them imbibe leadership traits , and help develop as 'fearless' leaders in whatever profession they choose.

'A Good Leader is always a Good Follower'.

Sukhwindar

Credit: The TOI.

Innovate to Suit Your Local Environments

Innovation is 'Life & Blood' of Us all living beings. 'The day we stop thinking wisely, we stop living'. Protect Yourself adequately!

Sukhwindar

Sector 33 Through Photographs

A View of Block C Park

Sonu, House No. not indicated, has posted his comments on the Blog with Link to his Photo Album of Sector 33. Pse Click: http://picasaweb.google.co.in/sonusnaps/Sector33Noida# to view the Album.

Leadership: A New Age Leader

We all need to lead on occasions, within family and organisations. Leadership is built on strong foundation of 'personality traits'. These traits are a complex mix, but can be refined and fine-tuned provided we are willing to learn. We learn in all stages of our life. The day we stop learning, it marks an end of our being.

Next-Gen learns from us unconsciously, especially from the parents & elders. It is here that our 'doings' affect them in life, positively or negatively. It is important that we are cautious of this fact in our day-to-day conduct.

Next-Gen is well-informed and critical at times, sometimes without knowing the facts. But they are the future - future of our social milieu. We need to groom and develop them well as a valuable part of our Social System; Sector concerns are then automatically taken care of.

Let Us endeavour to follow the nuances of a 'New Age Leader' in the spirit of the above Article, and develop 'persuasive leadership style' catering to 'individuals' we are dealing with.

Brigadier (Retired) Sukhwindar Singh
http://www.svipja.com/
(A Global Solution for Offsets)

Courtesy: Article Cutting Above Taken from the TOI.

Standard Operating Procedure & Guidelines for MC Members

(These Responsibilities are Expansion or Addition to the Responsibilities in the Bye Laws)

“Fortitude in Crisis is the Mantra of Good Leadership”

General

RWA is essentially a ‘bridge’ between the ‘Residents of Sector 33’ and ‘Govt. & Other Agencies’ servicing the Sector.

In order to optimise delivery to the Residents, all the Residents and the Management Committee (MC) in particular, need to ensure ‘right’ match and interaction between the ‘Aspiration of the Residents’ and ‘Abilities of the Delivering Agencies’. This would optimise delivery and help in welfare of the Residents which is one of the Main Objectives of the RWA.

National Constraints, Environments, Local cultural and ethical Issues, etc, affect our day-today working & living. These need to be factored-in.

We are drawing facilities from the ‘Common User Systems’. These Systems are over-stretched. There is therefore no place for any specialised or enhanced expectations in short term, unless ‘we’ become part of the Planning System. So the need of Half Yearly / Yearly Plan(s) for the Sector.

It is expected that all the Residents and the MC Committee work in the spirit of ‘conscientious awareness’ devoid of their individual perspectives while dealing with various issues impacting the Sector.

It is in this backdrop that we all need to function and deliver to the Sector. We need to ‘optimise’ through persuasive leadership without creating ‘negative effect’ in the System; it does not help any one.

Responsibilities of Various MC Members

Security of the Sector ( Presently with President & General Secretary)

Security is the responsibility of each Resident. They are expected to sanitise their environments.

Due to resource constrains presently, RWA is not able to secure individual Blocks fully. Block Security would be the responsibility of the individual Blocks, till it is taken over by the RWA.

RWA would provide ‘outer cordon’ of Security which includes Security at the ‘Main Gate’ and ‘Sector 34 Side Gate’. All action will be taken by the MC to check / regulate traffic moving through the Sector, sometimes at a ‘minor inconvenience’ of the Residents.

Roving Guard would be deployed at night to patrol the Blocks. Residents to help the ‘RWA’ if this Guard does not visit their Block(s) at least thrice at night. He is to blow ‘whistle’ as he moves through the Block(s).

All important Police, Fire Brigade, and MC Members’ telephone numbers to be available at the manned Sector Gates.

Close liaison with Police Officials, especially Sector 34 Police Post.

Any other points considered important.

Generation of Funds (Vice President & his Team)

Vice President is responsible for generation of Funds for the RWA as per Para 20.2 read in conjunction with Para 8 of the Bye Laws.

Vice President would take all steps to enlarge Membership of the RWA.

Vice President could deploy all legal means for Generation of Funds for the RWA including use of the Community Centre for the purpose.

Treasurer, Jt Treasurer, General Secy, Secy , in this order, would help the Vice President to generate funds. Vice President is ‘free’ to utilise special expertise / contacts of any of the Members of the RWA for the purpose.

All funds generated needless to say, would be properly accounted for with the Treasurer.

Community Centre (Treasurer and Jt Treasurer)

Community Centre will function under the overall management of the Treasurer.

Guidelines laid by Noida and the RWA 33 Bye Laws would be followed. When in conflict, Noida Guidelines stay supreme.

Form for Booking the Community Centre will be standardised and approved by the MC. All ‘Terms and Conditions’ including penalties will be printed on the ‘Booking Form’, and signed by the Treasurer / Jt Treasurer and the Party Booking it. It is a valid contract.

All bookings will be for ‘lawful’ activities.

Dy Treasurer will be responsible for Bookings. All MC Members to co-ordinate with him/her for the purpose before any commitment to any one.

Community Centre will not be considered booked for the date unless the ‘Form’ and the ‘Cheque / Bank Draft’ in the name of the RWA, are received by the Jt Treasurer, and the date blocked in the Booking Register. Cash will not be accepted.

Bookings will be 180 days in advance of the event for the Members, and 90 days in advance for the Non-Members. In case of a tie in the booking date, the RWA Member, Sector 33 Resident, a Party from outside the Sector, in that order, gets the preference.

Security of the function(s) being held at the Centre will be that of the Party booking it.

Community Centre will levy Damages, Penalty for Playing Loud Speakers after 11.30 PM, Electricity, Cleaning charges, etc, as in vogue & appropriate from the Party.

Routine maintenance and upkeep of the Community Centre will be the responsibility of the Joint Treasurer primarily, supported by the Treasurer.

When not in use, rooms /hall of the Community Centre will be kept locked by the Caretaker.

No unlawful activities are permitted in the premises of the Community Center. The Caretaker to ensure this in support from the Treasurer and Jt Treasurer.

Members Power, Sanitary, Water, Sewerage, Horticulture, etc, in the MC

Power Drawal / Consumption, Sanitation, Water Discipline, Sewerage Choking as a Result of the Residents misusages, Horticulture are the responsibility of each Resident. They are expected to use the Systems with care.

Concerned MC Member(s) to liaise with Noida Staff for ‘optimal’ delivery to the Sector.

‘Sector’ difficulties would be taken-up collectively and not ‘Block-wise’.

Prepare a ‘Half-Yearly / Yearly Plan’ for the Sector for Your respective responsibility areas, both short term (6 months) and long term (12 months), discuss in the MC & General Body. Once approved pursue with Noida officials through the JE / Inspector upwards.

‘Escalate’ only when needed and with approval from the General Secretary and the President.

Keep RTI and PIL in focus. At times written communication is important especially with Departments where Officials are ‘indifferent’ to the ‘repeated ‘requests.

Routine trouble shooting as it occurs through the Noida Staff.

Keep visits to the Staff minimum. It disturbs their routine working. In our enthusiasm, one may also ‘rub’ them on the wrong side; spoils working relations.

Take help from the Residents that have been past MC Members, or have due ‘links’ in the Authority. ‘Self-Help’ is the best form.

Reach out to the Authority Officials with Your ‘Knowledge Power’, and provide consulting to them based on your experience if need be. They are all ‘reasonably well-groomed’ in their disciplines. Any other Approach will be ‘self-defeating’.

Keep ’80:20’ principle in view. Most of Us do not follow it.

Employ ‘scientific management and ‘persuasive leadership’ while tackling issues, before ‘punishing’ the System.

When in doubt, consult others, especially Your spouse. His/Her advice would be based on knowing You the best.

It is very important for the MC Members ‘to know what can be accomplished by chasing’, and ‘what can not be done’ due to existing systemic difficulties. Otherwise we would be frustrating all in the chain. Also consult any one knowledgeable on the subject in addn to your spouse.

Any other Points considered necessary.

Member Welfare

To plan events to get the Sector 33 Community Closer. Organize at least Holy, and Diwali functions.

Explore the possibility of organising Tambolas at least once a month to begin with, Cultural Events led by Young at least twice a year, any other Events that are not very costly and help in building Community feeling.

To organize events like Exhibitions, Conferences, Seminars, Workshops, etc, in coordination with Vice President to generate funds for the RWA through valid welfare activities.

Funds for the activities could be made available as per the Half Yearly/ Yearly plan(s) for the Welfare.

Lady Members

They are welcome to contribute to the well being of the Sector 33 Community in addition to specific responsibilities taken by them.

Could help when approached in cases of disputes between Residents of the Sector / domestic disputes / violence and other issues that generally plague our social system, especially for the female gender.

Bring sobriety in the MC and General Body Meetings, when needed.

Any other issues considered necessary for women and children.

President, RWA 33

Disciplining Dogs

Residents take their dogs out for ‘easing’ on roads in front of the Houses of the other Residents. This is irregular and also resented by certain Residents. We need to train our Dog Masters / Servants accordingly who may not know this ‘discipline’.

Till the MC specifies areas in each Block for the purpose, Residents are requested to take the dogs out for easing on the side roads in the Sector / Blocks which are not the lane road(s) in front of the Houses.

And also please avoid taking them into Parks and Other Common Areas used by the Residents.

Pets / Dogs are an essential part of our ecosystem and loved by all. We need to however discipline / train them.

Your co-operation in the matter is highly solicited.

General Secy
for RWA 33

Residents' Social Responsibility (RSR)

“Help RWA to Help You”

Sector 33: Residents’ Social Responsibility (RSR)

Security

-Security is Everybody’s Responsibility.

-Sanitise Your Surroundings Using Whatever Resources You Have.

-Keep a Watchful Eye.

-Question Anything You See Abnormal.

-Sit in Your Lawn / Verandah at least for 2 hours a Day. Gives You Good Health & Helps in Building Security.

-Whenever You Get Up at Night, Switch on Your Room Light for a Few Minutes, Before Sleeping Again.

-Do Not Drive Fast in the Sector Lanes and Honk Unduly. Check Violators.

-Co-operate with the Security Staff. Do not Scold them. They are working Under RWA’s Instructions. They form outer ring of Your Security.

Sanitation

-Keep Your Environments Clean.

-Develop ‘Community’ Attitude. Shed 'block specific' outlook.

-Show Concern for Your Neighbours.

-Do Not Clean Your House and Throw Garbage in Front of Your House, or in Vacant Plots. Please Get it Removed Under Your Arrangements.

-Do Not Let Plastics / Packaging Material Fly About. Check Individuals Doing it.

-Do Not Burn Plastics or Packing Material in the Sector. Throw it in the Garbage.

-Check, but Co-operate with the Sanitary Staff. Train Your maids / servants to be part of the ‘sanitary system’.

-Show Empathy Towards the Poor & Needy.

Note: Please add some more points to this List as per Your Values & Belief, and Request Implement for Betterment of the Community.

President, RWA 33