Dirt track racing + F1 circuit...!

Yep, that's true and they are fondly calling it the IT Highway in Chennai.
Well if there are any hardcore racing fans out there, make no mistake; Chennai is the place to head for.

The IT highway that is under construction in Chennai from a place called 'Madhya Kailash' to Siruseri is indeed a bike racer’s dream come true ( pun intended )

The uniqueness about this race track is that the stretch from the start to a place called Tidel Park resembles a F1 circuit. This is incidentally the part of the project that is almost completed.
Mincing no words, the rest of the road is an all out dirt race track. With vertical lifts up to the height of 2 feet that pop up out of the blue and gorgeous potholes filled with water, surprising you with their depth!

The authorities seem to have turned a blind eye to the condition of the present road owing to the fact that the proposed super highway is under construction and is expected to be ready some time next year. Meanwhile hundreds of IT workers on buses continue to enjoy camel rides everyday, not to mention those on bikes who have turned into dirt track racing enthusiasts. .

But yes, a superb job is being done slowly but steadily. A world class highway complete with landscaping, Bus bays, OFC Ducts, Designer streetlights etc. is being built. The first completed stretch is really a beauty to behold now.

So, what are you waiting for, pull out your bikes (old ones preferred though , unless you are ready to cough up some money for maintenance) strap on your helmets, sign up for a credible life insurance policy and set out for the ride of a lifetime.
Mind you, the opportunity would cease with the completion of the project which would be around June '07 going by current schedules.

End does not justify all means

...With all due respects to the German theologian, Hermann Busenbaum (1600-68) who had declared - 'When the end is allowed, the means also are allowed'.

And this little realisation came from a 6 month old Hindi film called 'Gangster’. A film with beautiful screenplay, it shows how a spy actually befriended a gangster's girlfriend as a part of his strategy to catch him.

He did achieve his motive, I agree and no questioning the fact that national security is indeed paramount. But as Narayanamurthy often says, it is not only important to create wealth, it is also important to create it through moral and ethical ways.

Just as in the case of creating wealth, every single task at hand might have a tough ethical way and another unethical shortcut approach.
Be it clearing exams or completing your desk job at work, the joy of success would indeed multiply manifold if the means adopted are universally thought of as moral & ethical.

The old world charm of Madras ...

So it's official now.Bangalore is Bengalooru.It joins the ranks of cities like Mumbai,Kolkata,puducherry etc...
I am not going to analyze the decision taken by our well informed and globalization savvy leaders here, but lets go a bit off beat from the routine talk.

Chennai grabs my attention and stands exception in this.The reason being that the new (yes, I know it has been 10 years since,but still) name doesn't rhyme with the old name unlike others.

Check out for yourselves.All other cities in the list have a name striking similar to their old ones.This is perhaps also the reason why the adaptation of the word Chennai has been far greater & widespread than that of any other city.
I am almost sure that Bangalore will continue being called Bangalore at least for a while.

So I decided to go about trying a small test this time around.I boarded a bus bound for Chennai
from a smaller interior Tamil nadu city called 'Villupuram' and asked the conductor - 'One Madras'.
And my hunch proved almost right.He looked up ,straightened his specs and had a
good look at me.But yes,the old name did work.

I am also observing that some of the institutions have been immune to this change. IIT still
calls itself IIT - Madras . The ET's (Economic times) supplement is still called Madras Plus. And lots of other similar institutions have simply refused to bulge.

Perhaps the charm of the colonial name of Madras still captures nostalgic imagination...