2/3/16

Can of Worms


A letter from the first Prime Minister of India was making its rounds across all networking sites be it Face Book or Twitter. It was a letter to England complaining about the great man the late Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

The man who dared GIVE ME BLOOD I WILL GIVE YOU FREEDOM. This was the slogan of our great freedom fighter who had a mysterious death. Its been more than a century we Indians have been kept in the dark from the truth behind Netaji's death.
Lots of books have been been written, research papers have been published but everyone of them couldn't give us the truth.

I remember when I was a child, learning about Netaji, I was told he died of a plane crash but that has not been proven because the black box was not found.
I being a Bengali born in kolkata even had a chance of visiting Netaji's house which has been turned into a museum. I saw numerous pictures of the great leader from his childhood till his last day in his house before he fled in disguise as he was imprisoned in his own house.

The question here is why such a hullabaloo about this. Why the previous governments failed to open the truth to us. Why did Nehru hide the truth? Was it because it could have opened a can of worms , it could have made them loose their power in the country as they were aware that Netaji could have spearheaded in Indian Politics keeping them far behind. 

So this reminds us the present scenario of Indian Politics where our ministers fail to come up with any thing solid fearing they loose their vote banks as it is an age old tradition of India then. 

Don't our ministers think that this is a shame on our part , hiding truth of a legend. Kudos to the present leadership who dared. The predecessors were afraid provided the country loose their faith on
them, after they have ruled the country for the maximum tenure. After all their can of worms is out in public now. 

1/17/16

Abhimanu Gaud-another prey of the drunk driving virus.


Abhimanu Gaud- the late corporal who lost his life in Kolkata recently not in a war but because someone was over speeding, broke all barriers in an inebriated state. Footage shows how he went past all barriers where army personnel were practising parade for the Republic Day. The road was cordoned off and inspite of that the guy decided to break it. We have his friend who was also part of his booze party confirming that they asked him not to drive but this guy decided not to. The other friends were asked not to enter the cordoned off area which they complied but this guy didn't. He sped from the area and even got help from the police how and which way to flee. 

Incidentally this guy is the son of a local politician of the ruling party who along with his son went on a run. They were not to be found. Local police failed to nab them immediately and when voices arose; when protests were galore they were found and arrested. 

This is not the first time we hear headlines of hit and run cases of drunk-driving. This has happened numerous times, we have examples of celebrities too. Drunk-driving has proved to be fatal countless times but we don't learn. It was sad of the police to bail this guy out instead of arresting him on the spot. Why the police failed to stop him and helped him flee? Weren't they aware one day or the other he will be caught? Why immediate steps were not taken by the government? Is it because the police were afraid of the political leader whose wrath they may have to face or the government felt that they are going to loose on their vote banks?

Sambia Sohrab: that's the name of the killer. My Facebook was rampant of photos of this guy and the clip of the CCTV footage of his zooming Audi. How come a 28 year old lad drives a vehicle like Audi? Did he earn it or was it gifted by his father. Did his father buy it through honest means or was it the other way round. 

I remember when I went to USA a couple of years back for a training sponsored by the client; we went to one of our client’s house for dinner. We were accompanied by another man from the same team, He was offered drinks, and he refused. My colleague from India who was with me took the offer and I was a teetotaller. Why did this man refuse the drink? He had to drive back home his wife, us and himself. That's the thought, should be embedded in every one’s mind. If I have to drink outside my home I should make sure that I am not driving, I will ask my friends to drop me if they are sober or else take a taxi. 
  
The Corporal who lost his life doesn't drive an Audi, instead he makes sure that the city is safe. I really hope that his perpetrator gets his correct due and no political influence is paid heed to by the judiciary. 

Why can’t the government start implementing some strict rules across the country against drunken driving? 

A report from Times of India: 

Rs 2000, that's it and we are still waiting for the amount of Rs 10000 to be accepted by all states!!! Why such a lackadaisical attitude against implementing such rules. Why so much time wasted. So many lives lost. I am sure this is not just one case, there are many. Surprising is hit and run cases have increased but conviction rates have decreased. 

There is a strict law about wearing helmets in Kolkata which I haven't seen much anywhere, which I have appreciated every time when I tell this to my colleagues in my present place of stay. Then why not against over speeding and drunk driving???? When will our governments start taking prompt actions and instead of fearing for their vote banks?



1/16/16

0.5% Cess

It’s been long, close to 400+ days I am back to my blog. My last blog was about the Swacch Bharat campaign by our honourable Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi. Now we have a Swacch Bharat cess of 0.5% levied on many services liable for service tax, effective from November 15, 2015, which means whatever you earn or spend you give a 0.5% to the Swacch Bharat campaign along with other taxes like VAT or IT.
Thanks to telegraphindia.com


“Swachh Bharat Cess is not another tax but a step towards involving each and every citizen in making contribution to Swachh Bharat. The 0.5% levy will translate into a tax of 50 paisa only on every Rs 100 worth of taxable services,” the finance ministry said in a statement. The proceeds from this cess will be exclusively used for Swachh Bharat initiatives of the government, it added.

I really appreciated the campaign but I am a little sceptical about the cess factor. Why?  We have a past history of our governments Pandora’s box opening with scams after a while they are in power or after they lost power. Of course blaming it on the ministry would be wrong, there are tons of government servants who sit hungry for a prey to come and this time it is the 0.5% cess in the name of Swachh Bharat.

When the campaign started, there were a lot of hue and cry but we rarely hear or see any. When it was launched we used to see every day almost many organisations, corporate honchos, sports stars, film stars etc. hitting the streets with a jharu (broom) in hand. Many places seemed clean literally.
The big question here is why can’t we keep it going? We are paying the cess but we don’t know what’s happening to it. The media who were going gaga with headlines of different Swacch Bharat campaigns- where they are now?

When such an initiative is taken someone should make sure that the awareness campaign continues. We might have seen our PM with a broom in hand cleaning roads but how many times we have seen a local MLA or a Corporator doing the same. This needs to be done at the grassroots. Every MLAs and Corporators should start such campaigns on a regular basis in their own wards. That way we will be able to increase more awareness and spread cleanliness. Local clubs and organisations should follow. There are millions of local clubs in the country who can create a niche of their own by starting such campaigns at least every fortnight. We see clubs during festivals only be it Durgapuja or Ganesha or any other deities. Don’t these clubs understand cleanliness is next to godliness?
The government have started a very wonderful campaign. When we go outside the country and appreciate the other countries for their cleanliness we forget it’s the common mass that have done it, who have felt the need for it.


11/27/14

Swacch Bharat

I was reading a kids book today where it was talking about many stories starting with Once upon a time....'but now is a time to rethink India with the line There would be a time......


Well that's what our Honorable Prime Minister wants in his Swacch Bharat Campaign. He have made all of us  envision India as a land where Cleanliness is next to Godliness. The photo where we saw our PM cleaning the road was really inspiring- a perfect example of Leading by Example. Till now I have heard of this term in my workplaces only and mostly it has stayed as a philosophy. But our PM has proved the mettle of the phrase.


Thanks to INDIATV
This one photo inspired many. This followed many corporate wizards brooming their way to cleanliness.
Our PMs vision of a clean India by 2019. the birth centenary year of the Father of the Nation.If we all avoid actions of injustice against cleanliness then of course we can create a Clean India.


It is not only the responsibility of our PM to clean India or keep our country clean...but it is the responsibility of every citizen to make sue that our country is kept clean to the too. 



We all citizens should have to make sure that we should not throw any litter on the road , use dustbins effectively. Garbage should be put in garbage bins only. Like wise it should be the responsibility of every MLAs, Corporators, Municipalities to ensure that there are enough garbage disposal systems every where and garbage recycling is done effectively. 



Clean India requires every citizen to maintain effective garbage disposal habits, also bring in and I would say "Teach" every young kid effective garbage and litter disposal system. The new ones or the kids should be taught right from keeping their home clean and thereby keep their motherland clean. Common faults of us being littering, spitting anywhere on the roads makes the roads dirty. Plastics are a big menace. They are also responsible for multiple blockages of the drainage system which causes water clogging during rainy season. This inadvertently takes a toll on the roads too. The roads are full of potholes already and this increases day by day. Just think one small practice of cleanliness can bring in so many changes in the country too. 



This is a utmost request to all citizens of India to practice an effective Swacch Bharat.




9/14/12

Murderers Turned Artisans of Lord Ganesh

Its festival time in India again, time for the Ganesha Puja in a couple of days then followed by the Durga Puja or Navratri for many, Dussehra, and then Diwali and finally we have the Christmas and the New Year.

Day before yesterday a small news caught my attention and I felt very happy. I felt it is a new festive year with a new beginning, with something good happening, cause of these Pujas. I have an opinion that religion brings people together but it also tears apart many too. The numerous riots are caused mainly on the basis of religion and caste.

What caught my attention was a few murderers have turned artisans and is making Ganesha Idols which is selling out too. This has happened in a jail in Gujarat where a few inmates took training in making clay models and are making so nice models of the Lord Ganesha that the Jail authorities are finding tough to take orders, its like Demand is more for these idols compared to the supplying capacity. Whats best is the people who are making are inmates on life terms and they are from all religions specially mix of HINDUS and MUSLIMS. These inmates have forgotten their religious barriers if any and have come together in the making of these Ganesha idols.

This is great example of secularism in our country. Might be its time that out religious leaders and ministers and certain groups who blacklisted secularism in the country takes a learning from these people. These inmates are of the feeling  that they have got a new beginning in their life.

It is highly commendable on the part of the SABARMATI JAIL AUTHORITIES to have come up with such a noble idea and more noble on the part these inmates who showed enthusiasm in learning making clay models and proving themselves to be more than fit for the purpose.

Will our religious leaders call these Blasphemy? or would they appreciate the efforts.I feel many people are actually appreciating and that's why orders are pouring in for more. More over these people are making clay models which is environmentally friendly compared to the normal POP(Plaster of Paris) models.

I feel the government should take in measures to improve the psyche of such people who have turned worshipers of humanity from being a bane to humanity. This would improve the morale of other criminals too thereby making the country better with less crime. These instances should be cited as an example to many. These could be an example to those youths in India who take cudgels in small issues and refuse to mentally accept the truth beyond being a true humanitarian.

I remember a year back there was series in one of the famous TV channels where it portrayed about many criminals who turned themselves to a respectable citizen of the country. There were examples enough which showed us the fact : Criminals are not born they are made. Such instances are there in other countries too I am sure and these are the ones which should be more highlighted instead of only notifying people through media about the ongoing crimes in the society.





9/2/12

Should Barack Obama get a second tenure as President of USA?

America is seeing a lot of political running around now with 2 main presidential candidates running for the post of president: The president himself and Republican Candidate Mitt Romney. News channels are running reports and analysis and trillions are supposed to be spent in this campaign alone.

Now the question arises : Should OBAMA be elected for the second time? When such a question arises there is a lot of backgrounds checks which needs to be done. What has the man done till now for the country, what reforms he has brought in, how many jobs have been regained, etc etc.

On the other hand the other contestant is also placed on the other side of the beam balance and thought given as to what he can do for the country if he is elected.Should Americans take the risk of electing someone else this time or they will think of going on with OBAMA only as he has been there already and given a few more years can bring in more reforms to the country.

Barack Obama is facing a fierce battle on grounds of Outsourcing now. Still now many companies are outsourcing jobs to countries like India, Philippines etc which has created job loss for Americans leading to an increase in unemployment. But those who are pitching this topic that after Obama came in there were reforms brought in and the country as well as the world avoided a second Great Depression.

Here are a few more reasons which might help OBAMA get a second tenure:

  1. He ended Don't Ask Don't Tell.
  2. He signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act,  a bill designed to break down wage discrimination barriers for women which aims at reducing inequality to women in places of work and OBAMA have since then tried to reduce inequality in all sectors of the country which is really awesome.
  3. Of the 8.7 million jobs lost since September 2008 including the 4.3 million lost ,virtually all those lost since his time in office have been regained.
  4. He was instrumental in the removal of the DON'T ASK DON'T TELL policy in USA. This was a US military policy for homosexuals where the military was of the opinion that their presence "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability."
  5. Last but not the least he was instrumental in eliminating one of the biggest threats of USA but also the whole world: Osama bin Laden.

These in short are some of the positives of Obama administration but of course there are detractors. There is no political hero in the world how do not have detractors and who have kept his/her word what was promised before getting elected. No one will ever be able to do so as when someone becomes a leader he also needs to keep many other people happy in his own party too who might as well oppose some of his ideas. Well that's what democracy is all about.

He who wins should be the right person for UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, What Say folks !!.......................feel free to pen down your comments....

9/1/12

Talibanisation of Afganishtan



Few years back I wrote "Blasphemy in the name of religion", I wondered how a person is termed blaspheme if the person don't agree to any religion or rules of a religion. History has shown as many examples where people have been alleged to have blasphemed against religion. Would we forget Galileo or Socrates? But years down the line their words, their research have proved to be beneficial to all. There had been a lot of Galileo s and Socrates who have done good for us but we turned deaf ears to them initially and later accepted the change.

Nowadays blasphemy have taken a new route, where people are beheaded and killed as they entertained themselves by playing music and dancing to it. Can you imagine where we have changed too. The people who beheads others are also humans but they consider themselves to be the protectors of a particular religion. They are of the opinion that they are correct and they know the respective religion unlike anyone. These are people who can cause bloodshed without a chill in the spine. I remember when I was young I saw a goat being killed during the Bengali Kali Puja and I felt a chill. Of course its not that I am a vegetarian but seeing a big goat getting beheaded is something different. Its good that many households in the Bengali community have abolished the ritual.

I am talking of the Talibans in Afghanistan who recently beheaded around 17 people including a couple of women too as they were dancing to music. Talibans have done this before too a few years back, they have killed several innocent Afghanistan in the name of religion and power. They started many rules in the name of religion where they have chained the freedom of women under various laws of Islam, many of them created by them and nowhere is depicted in the Holy Quran too.

Talibans have proved to be in humans who were responsible for the loss of hundreds of lives in Afghanistan a few years back before they were thrown out of power but it seems they are trying to hit back again slowly by showing their deeds if inhumanity in the name of religion. Talibans have destroyed many historical sculptures dating back to centuries as those sculptures were not of Islam. They were of Lord Buddha. The famous bamiyan Buddhas were destroyed even after repeated requests from all quarters across the world, but all requests went to deaf ears. Normally we preserve these structures as these ones are heritage sites. So question arises people who don't know the meaning of heritage , how do they expect to maintain the heritage of a religion which they claim to be theirs.

Is there a way Talibans can be turned to normal humans so that they have some normal human instincts instead of the animal instinct they have. Is it really possible only by gun shots or there are some other ways. I think the famous Divide and Rule policy might work in this. The Afghanistan government need to find out loopholes in Talibans so that they can be brought to a human court to turn into humans. A lot of psychologists need to work days and nights might be to turn these people. 

Hoping for a sunny day for Afghanistan.

8/30/12

Should India wait any more for AJMAL KASAB to be hanged ?

Ajmal Kasab is doing the headlines today as he was gifted with the death sentence today. Well, this man have made headlines many a times though He made himself famous with his pics in the CST in mumbai when he attacked the civilians with a AK47 in hand.

He was also accompanied by another militant Ismail khan who died in cross firing and Kasab was captured alive by a constable who took 5 bullets still held on to Kasabs gun so that he can be captured alive. I still remember that day, every news channel was showing LIVE the CST, Tajmahal hotel and other places hit in the attack, police, firemen were here and there trying to douse the fire. So many people lost their lives including police officers and security personnel.

The next few days the headlines had only details of the Mumbai attacks, news of people who lost their lives, news of security personnel who braved all odds. It was a black day in our country. Every body mourned the deaths of the ones who braved their lives for the safety of others.

Kasab if that's his actual name as there were many confusions on his name too initially because of language difference. India have spend close to 50 crores for the safety of the man who according to the courts of India waged war against the country. He was responsible for multiple innocent deaths and loss of millions of money.It was told that the government had to construct a special cell for him which cannot be destroyed by RDX too.

So why are we waiting to hang him to death. The government have got enough time to take out information from him. Initially Pakistan denied his existence as a Pakistani but later even Pakistan agreed that he is from Pakistan when many reporters traced him to his village faridkot in Pakistan.

We spend a lot of money in petting these dreaded terrorists who take our country as a place where they can do anything. Our judiciary system being slow indirectly makes the country loose more money in keeping these people alive. Moreover the almost abolishment of capital punishment have made things more worse. The judiciary should have a special system for people like KASAB. No further choices should be given for appealing to a higher court. There should be a fast pace system of coming to a judgement for these people.

AS the present uproar in the country says that KASAB should be hanged soon, I completely agree to this as no further taxpayers money should be wasted for people like this. Of course chances can be given to live and improve but to those who feels guilty about their deeds but people like KASAB don't. There were instances where he went on record saying that what he has done is for the good. He agreed to the ideas of the militants who derived the plan of bombing mumbai.

People like Kasab should never be given a chance to live , only then it might bring in changes to the ones who still idol worship him. Exceptions should be given to those who understands their guilt and seeks forgiveness. 

8/28/12

Is it time for BLOOD PLATINUM now?

Diamonds are said to be a woman's best friend. They are like immortal, we have heard stories of famous diamonds across the world. Kings and Queens used to adore them. Many empires used to fight for certain diamonds.There are more such stories on diamonds.

Now diamonds which was a dream of many have become a household jewelery for many now. Even the middle classes are running for diamonds now. For a few thousand rupees one can get a good diamond earrings or rings or empty your pocket a bit more and you get necklaces and what not. Diamonds are not that dream for the middle class and a sign of prosperity for a few.

But how many of us know what goes on in a diamond mine, what goes on to those miners. How many of us know that this diamond mining industry involves child labor too. Not only child labor there are so many miners who suffer from malnourishment, poor wages, severe health issues, and moreover they are made to stay in places near the mines which is next to hell. Many types of diseases are rampant in these areas too.

All these at the cost of a overpriced diamond which we die for. The people who are actually getting the diamonds for us are paid a measly wage and sold off in the market at a higher price. There are places in the world like in certain regions of South Africa diamonds are mined by terrorists outfits and sold in lieu of guns and bullets. Children as young as 9-10 are made to work in these places as they comes in cheap. There are children in such places who are bonded for life as their parents might have taken a loan from these people and since the rate of interest is high the paybacks which they do goes off for the interest only and the main amount is not paid. Moreover illiteracy is also another factor which eats in the roots , its like those feudal lords in ancient India.

The movie BLOOD DIAMOND shows the pathetic conditions of such laborers. The recent news about the conditions of the laborers in the platinum mines in South Africa adds one more example to this. The fault of these people was they protested against the low wages for which they got paid with bullets. Platinum is another such costly metal after which we are running nowadays. I remember years back when Ben Johnson or Sachin Tendulkar had a platinum on them we used to say that it suits them. Now you can get platinum also for a few thousand bucks. The reason: savvy marketing of platinum have also increased like we see for diamonds: DIAMONDS ARE FOR EVER. So now would it be the time for BLOOD PLATINUM like BLOOD DIAMOND.

8/27/12

Death of a Legend-NEIL ARMSTRONG

I remember during my childhood when I was going through a book on space , I learnt about the 1st man to land in space. It was a book I got as a prize from my school. It had pictures of the great men who went to space. Likewise Neil Armstrong was the 1st man on moon , Yuri Gagarin the 1st man in space and Laika the first animal in space, not to forget our own Rakesh Sharma to be the 1st Indian in space.

Then years later there was an email which wanted to prove the landing of Neil Armstrong to be all false, it said that it was all made up and gave all sorts of reasons to prove that it was a hoax. It seemed that history has been changed. The email was trying to say with all pictures of the landing, telling something of the shadows of the man which fell on the surface. I found it really hard to believe what was being sad. So at last after much fight within myself I ended up deleting the email.

Later I googled about this and found some details of the theory which the email suggested. It seems that there were mainly  three reasons which  seemed to be more significant than the others offered:
1: USA had to win the space race against the then called USSR.

2: Cold war was on and USA had to prove it was well ahead of the USSR as USSR had been sending unmanned spacecrafts to the space and if USA sends a manned shuttle to space it would automatically go ahead of all including USSR who was at the epitome of technology during those days.

3: It is also claimed that NASA faked the landings to avoid humiliation and to ensure that there is not stoppage of fundings for its different programs.

After going through all this I felt what famous actor TOM HANKS told "We live in a society where there is no law [against] making money in the promulgation of ignorance or, in some cases, stupidity" when he was asked about his opinion on these theories after his movie Apollo13 and documentary FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON was a complete truth.

While I was a child I always wished to be an astronaut so that I can go to space and see the beauty with my own eyes. Well that didn't happen after all.yesterday when the news came that Neil Armstrong is no more,these memories came back. A man who was the first to land on the moon is indeed a task to reckon and remember for years to come. This is of course history which cant be changed like we read histories of our kings and queens years back which cant be changed. Can anyone deny the inventions of the likes of Galileo,Copernicus, Albert Einstein, Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose,Satendranath Bose or Subramanyan Chandrasekhar. NO, we cant as their theories and inventions have made history and is learnt still now. we will keep reading about these people for years to come. Even though we will not read about these people in our history text books but will remain immortal in science books to all. As NASA says:"As long as there is history, there will be Neil Armstrong".  

8/25/12

Are Rioters BORN or BORNE?


Who are these people who we call rioters? Are they are part of us-the common man. Do they eat,drink,sleep? Do they have jobs to go to everyday?

A lot of such questions arises in my mind when I think of riots. Today morning I saw that civil riots have claimed 100 lives in Syria. Well, Syria is far away , what about  the ongoing riots in Assam? So many lives are lost, and in a nation where we are already reeling with many natural issues like floods and drought at certain parts of the country such a riot means wastage of tons of money.

Where do these rioters come from? Are they made or they are born rioters. Here I remember writing an essay during my school days : Are criminals born or they are made? Well the essay aptly fits this purpose. Rioters are none but criminals only the nomenclature is different.

So how do a normal human being become a criminal. There are quite a lot of opinions on this . Many say its the family they are from and many say its their nurture which makes them a criminal. But there are other opinions too. The famous psychologist Sigmund Freud was of the opinion that every humans have a criminal tendency but the socialization process curbs down the criminal tendencies.

Theres a saying that every human being has a good element as well as a bad element in his/her. It depends on a lot of factors which one comes out. I feel it also depends on that person as to what he wants to be.There could be a lot of reason for a criminal mind. A child witnesses crime in his/her home, stays in an area where crime is rampant can make him a criminal or might make him a very good person who hates crime. Thats where a psychology of a person comes into picture. But these are exceptional cases.

We mostly see  crime getting in ones nerves , which is contrary to many who say crime is in the blood. A doctor can have a child who in years to come can become a criminal , on the other hand a criminals son can become a doctor for the poor.

I personlly believe that crime is not born in an individual, it is borne. The greatest example being the hundreds of militants in different parts of the world-they are recruited in a good name, their brains washed and made into an animal who lacks all human touches. They become so out of the world that they fail to recognise their own parents, relatives and friends. Moreover there are certain terrorits who are well eductaed ones too and come from a good family background. So how comes they turn into criminals? e.g Osama Bin Laden- the dreaded terroist whose head had a million dollar bounty from USA. Not only Osama bin Laden , but there are more such militants across the world who chose the wrong way. There are many scientists who are found to be a part of these groups. Even it has been found that people in a country's army were in cahoots with a terrorist group.

Coming back to rioters who are also criminals after all, are not born but borne. They are either brain washed to cause damage to society and take law in their own hands. Think of the various riots in India itself. Starting from Independence , the most common riot in India has been based on religion. The main two religions in this subcontinent, the hindus and muslims have fought since time immemorial. Whether you talk about the Bombay riots or the Godhra riots or the 1993 ayodhya riots which shook india and its tremors are heard still now in Indian Courts.

What do these people gain from riots. Crusades and riots have never helped anyone since time immemorial. The 9 crusades which the world knows off happened to regain back religious territories like Jerusalem being a important place. The first crusade was launched on 27 November 1095 by Pope Urban II in response to an appeal from Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, who requested western volunteers to help him repel the invaders from Anatolia. Here again we learn that he asked for volunteers but nowadays are any one asked to volunteer, people just raise their voices to promote themselves and people surprisingly do fall for the trap too.

So we humans have a long way to go , righfull education is not the only way to avoid riots and innocent people turning criminals, there is a special need of psychological education so that one donot turn to a rioter. Proper education, not in terms of pure bookish knowledge but a knowledge find ones spiritual self to maintain oneself in the righteous manner and not against the law is of utmost importance.