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Ideation on Indian Railways and the Rail Shivir jamboree

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  There is no significant progress yet on RailTech portal of Indian Railways (IR), intended to connect startups, innovators and industry partners directly with the railway network for open innovation. It is early days, so patience is wiser than judgement. We can wait for meaningful outcomes. IR also set up a designated portal for railway staff across levels to submit innovative safety and efficiency ideas, with senior officials reviewing and implementing viable suggestions (Employees Ideas Portal). IR has been trying to manufacture ideas for as long as I can remember. An idea, like a railway train, needs a track on which to run. And that brought some memories which I will share here. The ideation drama began in IR in the 1980s, when Quality Circles became a fad. Then came Kaizen, borrowed from Japan’s post-war manufacturing renaissance, and German terms such as Ideenfindung and Ideensammlung, idea-finding and idea-gathering. IR was determined not to be left behind. Unfo...
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Riding the Rails Where the Grizzlies Roam: A Rail Journey Through Alaska

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  I have not blogged much about foreign railway travel, largely because I do not travel much on trains when abroad. Of course, even less when in India, because I am a railwayman for life but not really a railfan. After retirement, the last substantial railway journey I undertook was in Uzbekistan. I was fascinated by how Talgo train technology enabled the country to operate Afrosiyob services at speeds up to 250 kmph on infrastructure not transformed into a conventional high-speed railway. There was no fencing, perhaps because it is a sparsely-populated country; nevertheless, during a slower journey, we had a cattle-run-over incident. The way it was handled by staff and locals added an unexpected dimension to my railway education, reminiscent of travellers forming a line to fetch water for a Sri Lankan locomotive which had suffered a Hot Engine shutdown. That story some other day. That Uzbekistan experience earned me entertaining reactions from semi-literate trolls who comm...
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Echoes of Faiz Ahmad Faiz: A Night of Melodious Poetry

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  Andāz-e-Bayān Aur (AeBA) Events  delighted Lucknow with an enchanting evening on 13 September, presenting a musical portrait through the ghazals and nazms of Faiz Ahmad Faiz , in collaboration with FAH Super Specialty Hospital, at Hotel Hometel, Alambagh. The evening commenced with a warm and engaging introduction by Shazia Kidwai and Rehan Siddiqui of Andāz-e-Bayān Aur , an organisation celebrated for curating prestigious cultural events in India and internationally. What unfolded was far more than a musical recital. It was an evocative odyssey into the inner landscapes of Faiz Ahmad Faiz, tracing the delicate interplay of passion, pain and revolution that shaped his poetry, and illuminating the quiet genius with which he transformed it into something at once intimate and universal. The star of the evening was Dr Prabha Srivastava, whose mellifluous voice captivated the hall from the very first note. Her performance opened on a wave of tender nostalgia with Aap ...
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Book Launch: When Chachā Ghālib Met Uncle Shakespeare

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  ( This blog describes the fun the author, other participants, and indubitably the audience had during the launch of the book “Fun with Chachā Ghālib and Uncle Shakespeare”. Before I begin, please note that interested readers may obtain a copy of the book on Amazon:   https://amzn.in/d/07UPbbtg   An evening when two immortals walked out of literature and onto the stage   "Shakespeare and Ghālib collide in an epic literary crossover!" proclaimed the invitation. It sounded improbable enough to be irresistible. On the evening of 1 August, at the intimate Kala Srot Gallery in Aliganj, Lucknow, improbability became reality. My eighth book, Fun with Chachā Ghālib and Uncle Shakespeare , was launched before a packed audience of literature lovers, friends and fellow travellers in the world of words. The book carries a foreword by Suhel Seth, noted columnist, actor, keynote speaker and television commentator, besides endorsements from an illustrious constellatio...
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