Its been almost two decades of work life in the US and I feel sabbaticals are well deserved

Incidentally , they always coincide with the change of jobs and I am still trying to figure out which is more overpowering , the need to take a vacation or the need to change the job .

But nonetheless they have happened on a regular basis .

The historical city of New Delhi , the capital of India , with relics of multiple dynasties ,is my home town .Every nook and corner of the city has a touch of history which makes these sabbaticals worth while

New Delhi ,in its monsoon reincarnation is resplendent with its green patches , cleaner air , cooler temperature and bursting foliage .During monsoons , more people are disconnecting from the virtual world and trying to be closer to mother nature People are seen jogging outdoors , doing yoga classes , participating in laughter groups taking in the aroma of wet soil .

India is the Queen of paradoxes . and one can never escape paradoxes in New Delhi , for that matter in India

On one hand connectivity via metros , express highways , railways is at its peak ,on the other hand. the potholes in the streets , in the rainy season, start resembling celestial craters

The Horticulture department and the municipal corporations are putting their best foot forward in beautifying the city but the reappearing trash block the drainage system flooding the streets and further increasing the legendary traffic woes .The multi crore apartment complex in the posh suburbs of New Delhi are turning sea-front The cleaners are sucked in through open drains and are discovered at another location by the search team .

Never a dull moment

Religion is in air in India and it is contagious and hence a visit to India is never complete without a visit to a religious place .This time I happened to visit a temple in Vrindavan . It is run by a private trust and visitations to the temple is not always easy and sometimes not straight forward with chaos at its best To top it all , we have simian trouble , who would unabashedly snatch your spectacles or other belongings and sometimes injure the devotees

But this does not dampen the unflinching devotion of swathes of people from all walks of life. It further reinforces that religion is still the major driving force and existential in India. Incidentally , India boasts of transporting intellectual property to the rest of the world .

In complete contrast , we have another Shrine ,Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine , on the hilltop in Jammu .a state bordering our friendly neighbor “Pakistan “and hence Jammu airport is a” defense airport ” .Jammu boasts of its own prestigious institutes like IIT and IIM .It is a well visited shrine with millions of yearly foot fall .Its run by an autonomous body with clockwork precision .Earnings of the shrine goes in upkeep ,improving infrastructure and modes of transport .Because of its geographic location , security is a big issue but lapses are rarely found .

These sabbaticals humble you and take you closer to your roots but the mystery of paradoxes in India still remain unsolved, as it was two decades ago .India has definitely started its journey of economic prowess but there are still too many speed bumps on the highway which needs structural changes

Great to connect back with you all

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