An Indecisive Indian

  Is money God? Or is it trash? Permit me to begin with mock solemnity, almost scriptural in gravity, head bowed, voice lowered, sackcloth firmly in place. This piety, however, will not last long. Very soon, the discourse is likely to descend into inanities, and, not long after, into profanities of a distinctly unholy kind. For the moment, money pretends to be a lofty abstraction, discussed gravely over coffee by people who insist they are not materialistic. Wait a little. Very soon it clears its throat, rattles its coins, and asks who exactly is settling the bill. We publicly scold it as vulgar, privately chase it with remarkable agility, and when the landlord knocks, discover a sudden, sincere, and deeply devotional faith in its divinity. Sad jalva rū-ba-rū hai jo mizhgāñ uThā.iye tāqat kahāñ ki diid kā ehsāñ uThā.iye ( Sad jalva: a hundred grand  appearances, spectacles,  rū-ba-rū: face to face, mizhgāñ: eyebrows, diid: sight, ehsāñ: oblig...

  If you have not read it, do go through this piece: “Indian Railways' major policy shift: Vande Bharat is back, and on fast track” in The Economic times of October 9 th 2021:   https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/transportation/railways/indian-railways-major-policy-shift-vande-bharat-is-back-and-on-fast-track/articleshow/86894808.cms   Let me forward some comments on what it says. That Indian Railways(IR) would   quickly build 75 indigenously designed, semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains by August 2023, referring to the PM’s statement from the ramparts of the Red Fort, that and during these 75 weeks of the Amrit Mahotsav of Independence (March 12, 2021, to August 15, 2023), 75 Vande Bharat trains would connect every corner of the country. That may be a tall order but I am not complaining as the intention is noble. It goes on to say that IR had decided to distribute their production among three factories- 24 in ICF and 10 each in Modern Coach Fac...