Perspectives

Well, Going to chennai to meet mom and dad or for a carnatic concert…Everybody does that. But, never in my willdest dreams did I think I will get to chennai to attend a conference on web 2 dot oh and open source. It is heartening, really. You get to go to your home town and also get to listen and share things about stuff that you are doing or always wanted to do.

I was desparate, to the verge of being restless, about attending something in San francisco, where things like this always happen. Just like how no concert ever happens ONLY when I go there, conferences didnt happen either. And I come back, everybody blogs how they are going to meet a group of VCs who is roaming around 101 waiting to give them money.

Here it is, Go check it out. I am beginning to see what I can do about as well. If you are planning to go, let me know. We will meet up there for sure.

Recently, I offered to give chechi[1] 50 paisas as two 25 paisas. She threw her hand up in the air refused to take it from me.

I thought it was a one of case, or maybe she has gone mad. Little did I realise that many more ciggy shop owners ( peddlers) are going to tell me the same thing. Then it struck me.

There is just one more coin-gene pool left. The 50 paisa coin. Considering how quick the 25 has followed the 10 to the graveyard ( It is well inside my living memory and my living memory is not that long), I started getting jitters. Is paisa going to die altogether in another 10 years ? Also, Ours is possibly the only nation where paisas still have some value. Considering the value of a money in other “Rupee countries” such as pakistan, sri lanka or Nepal, I think there is a better chance of the paisa surviving in India.

Is it not our bountiful duty to preserve it ?
What can we possibly do? As techies, work endlessly so that we export quality software, create more demand, start more startups, increase FDI, increase forex and GDP, make the US pay for everything in rupees and somehow hope that the value of money goes up phenomenally.  Or, just start donating paisa coins to the museum nearby and vow to take our kids to show them the wonderful world of paisas.

Just my two, I mean 50 paisas.

[1] Mallu for sister. She runs a shop(kadai) and sells important goods. I spend more time at the chechi kadai than at home trying to do nasty things to my lungs.