FACTS  AGAINST  MYTH                           The past decade has seen India's total fertility rate fall from 2.7 to 2.2. Muslims have recorded  the  highest total fertility rate (TFR) decline from 3.2 to 2.6 while Hindus have fallen from 2.8 to 2.1.  All other communities have gone below replacement levels. Big states with sizeable Muslim  population like Jammu & Kashmir and Bengal have one of the lowest TFR (1.6). This explodes the  myth of Muslims outnumbering Hindus over the years, as propagated by right wing organizations.                                            (a report in Times of India, January 15, 20...

                                                           THE OLD LADY                  Seeing an old lady bent over with age, a youth asked:                  "what have you lost, search of which makes you sad?"                   Replied old lady, "I lost my childhood in ignorance,                     In my youth, like you, I was crazy and senseless,                    G etting older when my body was losing its vigor,                  I did not turn to God, in pursuit of fleeting pleasure.                  Dalpatram is ...

                          USA PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION: 2020           The great relief out of the the election results is that we have gotten rid of Donald  Trump. Mr. Trump lacked the basic decency for the office of  USA president. Character counts. Joe  Biden is at least a known and mature entity. He will reestablish the credibility of USA among the  international leaders.           Unfortunately, Trumpism is not gone. There are still a large number of his supporters in the  country. There has not been a so called blue wave in the election. USA remains a polarized country. Racism still prevails among a sizable number of people of  USA. The fact remains that ours is a  polarized country, though a  plurality of people are leaning close to the center (neither far left nor far  right). Note: Please forward this to your friends who h...

                            INDIA'S ECONOMY: NEXT THIRTY YEARS           Compared to many developed countries of the world, one positive aspect in favor of India is its  relatively young population (More than 65% of its people are below the age of 35). This is India's  demographic dividend. We better take advantage of it over next 30 years, in order to uplift  the poor out of poverty.                      There are some cultural handicaps in India's path. Majority of Indians spend a significant amount  of time, on a daily basis, after religious rituals and worship. They also frequently attend gatherings of  religious festival and discourse. Hindu (religion of the large majority of India) philosophy places  emphasis on predetermined destiny. Many Indians believe in the law of karma: 'One reaps the fruits of...