Amandeep Hindustani

You can make this better bro! Ask the creator to make food, water, and shelter available to everyone. Wait for a while, and lets see what happens! I "stargaze" while you search for invisible friend in the sky! Well, at least the star gives off some light. BTW, I was just talking to a family friend who is a local leader in the Gurudwara over here in Toronto. He says people call into ask what type of sabji is being cooked today, and how many different kinds.

Prevented 300 deaths? Thats it? The Army based on satellite and other information prevented thousands. Yur talking to the wrong person. I have very little compassion or sympathy, unfortunately. I feel nothing. Hindus or otherwise. Ultimately, its Gods will, no? Is that what your taught to believe when you fork over cash? Enjoy that Langar bro!

Exactly. Its been drilled into Indian people for generations as to what to eat or not to eat. I'm glad though that meat, grain, milk etc.. production and consumption is up significantly. Hmmmmm.....chicken! Yum Yum..

A person can't eat what he wants because our granth, religious institution, guru or avatar said so! Really? A malnurished child should not be allowed to eat egg, pork, beef, chicken for nutrition? That is the message that I get from India's religious institutions... But........the silver lining is that you can ask your God, to whom you donate billions, if not trillions yearly, to step in.......can you do this for us? You see a true Humanist pretty much is ambivilent towards the concept of God and religion....and rather believes human beings are the doer.

Humanism? You mean sitting in you air conditioned room somewhere in the west, logging onto your iphone or computer and making comments that are detached from reality? I wonder if you are the type of person who would have prevented inventions and technology in past in your quest for begumpura. The same technologies directly or indirectly employ hundreds of millions, if not billions of people across the globe. How many trillions did your western world steal from places like India and China? Are you culpable in the grinding poverty of developing nations?

Like I said earlier. Poverty in India, or anywhere is a result of mistakes committed by the government, people themselves, religious institutions and corporations. The solution to these problems has to be solved by all of them together. You can start off by telling "the people" to do a few things outlined below: a) Have less kids - unless of course you want the government to come into your bedroom and wrap your lingam for you. b) Open up a bank account under the Dhan Yogna Scheme (190 million accounts opened so far) money and benefits will be directly transfered to your accounts. Effectively cutting out the middleman. c) Do not give that rishwat! Refuse and report! d) Pay taxes for service used. So, the government can have more funds to spend on infrastructure, education and healthcare. e) Give up subsidies, if you dont require them. f) Donate less to the religious institutions - more to yourself.

I'm not an idealist but a realist. Money makes the world go around. Do you think the noble langars served in the Gurudwaras are done for free? The maintenance of temples and creating new ones are done for free? Social programs? Nothing is for free. Even when you go to Gurudwara or Temple you probably bring with you 5 dollars. Simple Formula - Money = more opportunities. I'm surprised by you. Here you are probably sitting in a capitalistic society yet you wish socialism upon your people in Punjab.

Right now it is the worst but at some point it was very good. Social development amongst the Christian nations was just as bad up until about 150 years ago. Those are just civilizational cycles. There is no use in comparing islam, hinduism and Christianity to Sikhism. These are massive civilizations that span several millennia. Keep in mind I do see Sikhism going the same way as others. Right now your population is only about 25 million wait till it hits 100 million or 200 million.

Btw, the Hindu temples are willing to part with their trillions in gold to help the nation move forward. Are you and your community willing to do the same?

Lol! Think for a moment, if this taxpayer took his 5 rupees and gave it a poor person instead of handing it over to some religious institution. Or how about sponsoring a family or child? Meaning poverty reduction is everybody's responsibilty not just the government. The government, people, religious institutions and corporations are all equally responsible for their fate. While your at it tell your SGPC to start paying taxes.

I guess you missed the post " economic benefits of the space program" before you make such a sweeping and lame declaration. Did you take into account the data? Do you even understand the data? Or you just chose to ignore it?

These nerdy, goofy types are the ones that eventually run the world. While others sit on tractors and sing about the dust on their crops. Or show off their tatoos standing in front of a rented Maserati.

In Southern India a story that sounds like the plot line of a Hollywood adventure is unfolding. Over the past week, on orders from the country's Supreme Court, a panel has found a treasure estimated to be worth $22 billion in the underground vaults of a Hindu temple in Trivandrum, India. The AP reports: Inside the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, investigators were counting the staggering hoard of gold coins and statues of gods and goddesses studded with diamonds and other precious stones. Outside, small groups of armed policemen patrolled the temple grounds in the heart of the Kerala state capital, Trivandrum. Metal detectors were hurriedly installed at temple entrances after six days of searches revealed a treasure trove of artifacts, statues and temple ornaments made of gold and embellished with jewels. The valuables were donated to the temple by devotees over hundreds of years, and India's erstwhile royal family has been the custodian of the treasures. The vaults had not been opened in about 150 years and the treasure spans some 500 years. India's Supreme Court ordered that the vaults of the temple be inventoried after a man filed a suit that worried about how the trust was caring for the riches. In some ways, that's where the story gets interesting. With the find, India is in the middle of a heated discussion about what rights to afford former royalty and what should happen to riches like these that include historic pieces destined for museums. The Christian Science Monitor offers a condensed family history: The temple is controlled by descendants of the royal family of Travancore, the former princely state of the region. It is believed the former rulers donated much of their wealth to the temple, where it lay in safe keeping for decades. Offerings by the many worshippers making pit stops there along the global trade routes probably also contributed to the treasure. It was no stumbled-upon find, however. While the vaults have been kept under lock and key for around 150 years, the wealth has been on the public record. Still, $22 billion (yes, billion with a "B") is a lot of money. We wondered why it wasn't put to use. The Hindu newspaper reports that the royal family ruled Travancore as "padmanabha dasasas," which means they were servants of the temple's deity. The BBC explains a bit better in between some legal history: The Supreme Court stayed a ruling by the high court in Kerala, which ordered the state government to take over the temple and its assets from the royal trust. It also ordered the trust to hand over responsibility for the temple's security to the police. The members of the Travancore royal family entrusted their wealth to the temple because they consider themselves to be servants of its presiding deity. The deity, Padmanabhaswamy, is considered by devotees to be an aspect of the Hindu God Vishnu in eternal sleep. But there was a public outcry when the Maharajah attempted to retain control of the temple by citing a special law, with many arguing that the wealth belonged to the people now. The panel appointed by the Supreme Court has opened five of the six vaults. The panel managed to open the sixth vault but found an iron wall inside it, reports the BBC. As if the story couldn't get any weirder, The Hindustan Times reports the sixth vault has a snake on the front door and quoting an unnamed royal family source, it reports that opening it "might be a bad omen." The Guardian reports that the sixth vault has "special locks" but experts should be able to examine them and open it by Friday. The Guardian also reports that the inventory is being conducted under the watch of police, but no pictures or video of the vaults will be taken or released because it "is strictly prohibited" within a "sacred space." Update at 9:30 a.m. ET, July 6: "India's Supreme Court Takes Steps To Protect $22 Billion Treasure." Update at 2:43 p.m. ET. On The Value Of The Treasure: As we said, $22 billion is an almost unimaginable number. But that is likely a conservative estimate. The Hindu reports that the panel is simple counting and weighing the valuables. "Their value, including antique value, is not being assessed," The Hindu reports. http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2011/07/06/137627235/some-22-billion-in-gold-diamonds-jewels-found-in-indian-temple

Its because religion and god are not held up to the same standards as governments and people. I'm not singling out Sikhism either. Hindu Temples hold 1 Trillion Dollars in Gold! Modi wants to monetize all this wealth. http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/up-to-1-trillion-in-gold-is-held-by-temples-in-india-now-modi-wants-them-to-monetize-this-vast-hidden-wealth

I'm more concerned with the creator of the universe whom you worship completely ignoring the misery, pain, suffering and hunger of the entire world not just "Hindustanis" after all these issues could be solved with a twinkle of an eye by the creator. No? Yet, you still fork over the cash, and have for millenia. How many trillions will your God take? And where are the results, not for myself, but for these poor people? I guess your're no different than the people of India. You just have a different sarkar.

Since the agony of the poor bothers so you so lets get a list of what you have done for the poor? Or is it all just lip service? I bet you are sitting here in the west enjoying the dollar or pound while extolling your relatives to ask for more freebies from the Punjab government - gareeb kissan nu panni de do, gareeb kissan blah..blah..blah..

Chill out and drink a glass of milk or something! 993 crore budget for what? What do you do to deserve that kind of money from the private tax payer of punjab?

Governments do have a duty to look after their citizens. But don't citizens also have a duty to look after themselves? Who is asking for freebies in Punjab? The government or the citizen? Does the citizen know that freebies put immense pressure on the government and empty their coffers?

Since your cost benefit analysis was kind of lame. I have added some information to the discussion about the space program. Additionally, how much gallons of milk are wasted in washing the floor? I would like a number. In the olden days the concept of langar was created to feed the poor, hungry and pilgrims that came from far and wide. What I see (correct me if I'm wrong) is that a lot of people are using the langar to avoid having to cook and spend money at home. Heard it from several Sikh families here in Canada. One gentlemen told me " We are trying to buy a house so we need to save money" we avoid buying food at home and periodically eat at the Gurudwara and come back. Also, I have donated thousands of dollars over the last few years to both Hindu temples and Sikh Gurudwaras but have yet to see a return of any type. I'm sure you're the same. Did you get any tangible return on investment? Yet, you still persist. What is more absurd?

7. Economic Aspects of India’s Space Program Prev Chapter 10. India’s Space Enterprise — A Case Study in Strategic Thinking and Planning Next 7. Economic Aspects of India’s Space Program By the early nineties, all the four major components of the space programe, namely, Satellite Communications, Meteorology, Earth Observations and Launch Vehicles had entered the operational stage. The Satellite-based Communication Services (SATCOM) Policy of 1997 and the Remote Sensing based value added services envisaged opening of the space industry to the private sector. Therefore it was considered timely and appropriate to commission a study on the economic aspects of the Indian space program through the Madras School of Economics (Sankar 2006a; 2006b; Sankar et al. 2003). 7.1. Space Expenditures Accumulated space expenditures since inception to the last fiscal year ending on March 31, 2006 amounted to US$ 7 billion. These expenditures category-wise are given in Fig. 4. Fig. 4 As is obvious from the figure, 39 per cent investment is on launch vehicles, 36 per cent on Satellite communications and meteorology, 14 per cent on earth observations, 6 per cent on space sciences and the balance on other items. About three-fourth of the total expenditure was incurred towards development of technology in the case of launch vehicles, whereas in the case of satellite communications, meteorology and earth observations, three-fourth of the investment is for building operational systems based on service needs of the country. The space expenditure of India as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) today stands at 0.09 per cent. Compared with the current annual government space budgets of US $2.5 billion for Japan, and US$1.5 billion for France, India’s space budget is US$0.60 billion. 7.2. Methodology For the purposes of economic analysis, it is useful to classify space activities into two stages, namely, (i) design, development, testing, manufacturing and launch of spacecrafts into desired orbital slots (construction stage), and (ii) applications of satellite services to different uses (exploitation stage). The output basket of the space program contains a mix of private goods, public goods, social goods and strategic/incommensurable goods. Research in space sciences, most meteorological services and information are public goods. Equity considerations are important in provision of certain goods e.g. access to public telephone, access to radio and TV. The social goals dominate in public sector radio and TV programs. Use of the space program as an instrument for guaranteeing strategic, political, scientific and economic leadership yields strategic and incommensurable benefits. The methodology adopted for the two stages, category-wise, is given in Fig. 5. Fig. 5 7.3. Construction Stage Regardless of the nature of goods / services provided and whether it is produced by a public firm or private firm, cost minimization is a valid criterion. The economic costing methodology requires (i) a rational basis for allocation of costs among the payloads of a multi-purpose satellite (ii) apportionment of common and joint costs amongst various ongoing programs of the organization / institution (iii) investment expenditure, their time pattern and cost of capital and (iv) output streams, their time pattern and discount rates for present value. The global market for communication transponders is generally com­petitive with many private and public suppliers and many customers buying the transponders. Government induced market distortions are relatively less in this market. Hence, the international market prices can serve as a benchmark for assessing the cost effectiveness of INSAT transponders. A detailed study on economic costing of INSAT transponders with 10 per cent cost of capital on investments and 5.5 per cent discount factor on future returns has brought out the cost advantage of INSAT transponders by at least 25 per cent of the prevailing international prices. The cost performance of INSAT system has been considered to be commendable keeping in view the relatively high capital cost in India and the dependence on some foreign components in the production of the satellites. A comparative analysis of remote sensing satellites and launch vehicles is rather difficult due to non-availability of reliable estimates of the costs of foreign systems and also due to differences in capabilities. However, preliminary estimates show that the costs of Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1D) is very much lower than the reported costs of similar LANDSAT and SPOT satellites. Similarly, the development cost of India’s PSLV and GSLV is US $1.3 billion as compared to about US $ 4 billion for the European Ariane 1 to 4, though there are some capacity variations in these systems. 7.4. Exploitation Stage For measurement of the benefits, the role of satellite technology is considered under three different categories: (a) where the technology is unique, (b) where the technology is a substitute to existing technologies, and (c) where the technology is complementary to existing technologies. In the second case, one can measure cost savings due to satellite technology compared with the existing technology. If the technology is superior to the existing one, one has to estimate the incremental value of the improvement. Where the space technology is used in conjunction with many other technologies, one has to rely on a cost allocation procedure or a benefit sharing method or on expert opinion to estimate the benefit attributable to the space technology. The INSAT system has played a key role in augmenting Broadcasting, Telecommunications and Meteorological services in the country and has contributed immensely to economic and social development. Satellite communication technologies are terrain and distance independent and they enable governments to achieve goals such as the development of backward and remote areas at low costs and in a short time and thereby achieve technological leapfrogging. 7.4.1. Television The Major benefits of the INSAT system to Doordarshan (public TV) are expansion in area coverage from 14 per cent in 1983 to 78 per cent in 2005, population coverage from 26 per cent in 1983 to 90 per cent in 2005, increase in the number of channels from 2 to 32, remote area coverage, satellite news gathering, dissemination of weather and cyclone warning and use of TV as a media for training and education. A detailed analysis show that for enhancing the population coverage further from 90 to 100 per cent with the distribution of a bouquet of 20 DD channels by the public broadcaster Doordarshan, the capital cost and annual operating cost through terrestrial technology is Rs.34560 million and Rs.5184 million respectively while a satellite based solution with direct reception at homes, would involve a capital cost of Rs.6380 million and annual operating cost of Rs.357 million. Thus, given the unique physiographical feature of India, the satellite communications is the least-cost option for achieving 100 per cent population coverage. The growth of satellite TV has also aided in the emergence of new econ­omic activities. The advent of satellite TV contributed to the growth of sev­eral industries like the manufacturing of TV sets, cables, receiving antenna and other equipment and program production. There are about 100,000 cable TV operators and about 35 million cable TV households in the country. The gross earnings of cable TV operators is nearing Rs. 10 billion. 7.4.2. Telecommunications Remote area communication is an important objective of public policy. There is considerable cost savings due to use of satellite technology compared with the alternative of optical fiber cable network in remote area communication. The cost of connecting 393 remote areas, currently served by INSAT, by optical fibre cable would be Rs.23580 million while the comparable cost for satellite technology would be Rs.10460 million. It may be noted that there are 30,000 remote villages of similar nature needing connectivity. The other uses of satellite technology are: alternative media back up for terrestrial services, business communications, portable terminals for disaster management, Tele-medicine and Satellite Aided Search and Rescue. Apart from the cost saving, there are many external benefits which are diffused economy-wide. In case of Andaman and Nicobar (AN), rapid expansion of telecom since the mid-nineties facilitated the integration of AN with the mainland thereby boosting the growth of industry, trade and tourism and raising the growth rate of gross state domestic product to more than 8 per cent. 7.4.3. Meterology Satellites have made significant contributions to the generation of meteorological information by extending observation to oceans and remote areas on land, enabling generation of new types of observations, facilitating new concepts of data assimilation into models, reducing costs of a few types of observations and enhancing the reliability of certain types of data. Meteorological services are recognized as public goods. The major contributions of satellite technology are in the areas of weather technology (cloud motion vector, wind-sea surface temperature and outgoing long wave radiation) and tropical cyclone (identification of genesis and current position, intensity of change and transmission of cyclone warnings). A comparative study of 1977 (before INSAT) and 1990 (after INSAT) cyclones which hit Andhra Pradesh, shows that even though the two cyclones are similar, due to the successful tracking of the cyclone in 1990 with the INSAT imaging instrument (VHRR) and the success of preparatory steps taken by the government, the loss of lives in 1990 was only 817 compared with 10,000 in 1977. This is an important incommensurable benefit of satellite technology. 7.4.4. Remote Sensing The advantages of remote sensing are synoptic coverage, multi-spectral capability, multi-temporal capability and digital capture of data. Remote sensing technology is being used in three different situations. It is an exclusive tool for estimation of snow melt run-off, rapid assessment of areas affected by natural disasters, identification of potential fishing zones in offshore areas and mapping of inaccessible areas. It is a substitute tool to conventional methods in mapping of land use, waste lands, and urban land use; preparing ground water prospect maps, watershed development plan, coastal zone management plan etc; and in monitoring forest cover, urban sprawl, status of environment etc. It is a complement in cases like area and crop forecasting and urban development plans. Its advantage is that it yields unbiased, timely and enhanced information. Based on case studies of applications of remote sensing in India’s development programs, Table 3 provides estimates of investments, direct returns, and economic benefits. Apart from the major benefits enumerated above, the policy of self-reliance has also enabled internal competence building and technology development and spin-offs to non-space sectors. For example, the spin-off outputs till 2005 include 224 Technology Transfers, 165 patents, 10 trademarks and 17 copyrights. ISRO has nurtured a symbiotic partnership with more than 500 Indian firms. The flow of funds to industry currently is about 40 per cent of the space budget. This partnership has generated significant spin-off effects to the industries in terms of improved manufacturing processes, quality control and management practices. Table 3: Investments and Benefits in Remote Sensing A Investments Rs. Millions Operational Missions 10,080 Data Reception, Processing and Applications 5,540 B Direct Returns 1. Returns from sale of Satellite Data and Value Added Products by NDC 1,600 2. Returns from ANTRIX through access fees and royalty 600 3. Opportunity cost (cost of foreign satellite data equivalent to IRS data used). ~ 5,000 4. Cost saving due to value addition ~ 12,000 5. Cost saving due to mapping using RS data ~ 11,000 C Economic Benefits Rs. Millions Program Nature of Benefit Estimate from Case Studies Potential Benefit to the country in the Long-run 1. National Drinking Water Technology Mission Cost saving due to increase in success rate 2,560 (5 States) 5,000 – 8,000 2. Urban Area Perspective / Development / Zonal / Amenities Plan for Cities / Towns Cost saving in mapping 50.4 (6 Cities) 16,000 – 20,000 3. Forest Working Plan Cost saving in mapping 2,000 (200 Divisions) 11,860 4. Potential Fishing Zone Advisories Cost saving due to avoidance of trips in non-PFZ advisories 5,450 16,350 5. Wasteland Mapping: Solid Land Reclamation Productivity gain 990 (UP) 24,690 6. Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development: Horticultural Development in Land With and Without Shrub Gross income Rs.0.20 to 0.40 (per hectare) 13,000 – 26,000 7. Bio-prospecting for Medicinal Herbs Value of Indian life saving drugs 800 Note: 1US $ = Rs. 45. Prev Up Next 6. Relevance of Space to South Asia Home

True. I'm on the side of technological development and the opening up of other sectors. Its is inherently more stable. Agricultural should be no more than 10% of the economy. Now, when individuals are trying to open up different sectors people are having hissy fits. I have nothing against the farmer or agricultural but for me they are just another profession. Smart people are leveraging their land assets to get an education or open up a business. Also, not a fan of some of the other social ills that purely agricultural based communities produce (female infanticide, caste and religion based violence, endless freebies, superstitions etc..)

The Indian Space Research Organization has spent >80% of its monies in two fields - satellite sensing for fisheries and agriculture (the biggest program in the world) and commercial launch (a very profitable enterprise). The Mars effort is expected to test technologies beneficial for both streams - The total budget of the Mars effort is $75M, the amount that Europeans would expect to pay a top football star annually.

No, I believe the Mangaalyaan is tied into a larger issue. Should a state put all its resources into poverty reduction ignoring every other sector, or take a more balanced approach like every other nation in history? Should private institutions, gurudwaras, temples, mosques play their part by selling off their massive landholdings, buildings and pump all money into poverty reduction? What role do religious institutions play in promoting hunger and malnurishment? (cant eat this, cant eat that) BTW, the Indian Space Program has done hundreds of launches for the United States, Brazil, Europe in the last couple of years with a chance to grab a slice of the multi billion dollar space industry. The space program is paying for itself. Sure, start a new thread. I'm going to argue that the major religions of the world are the biggest leaches. Far worst than any government.

Oh...and I have a better idea. Its actually brilliant. If farming is not working for you (cant make a profit or a decent living) how about you change professions? One thing that poor people in India have in common is that they are mostly farmers. That is your root problem.