Understanding the difference between Active Directory and Azure Active Directory

There has been an explicit sharing of ideas in regards to if Azure Active Directory and Active Directory are the same. It is one of the very common questions is: Is Azure AD the same as AD? Can I replace it? The short and simple answer is no. AD (Active Directory) can belong to multiple versions of various technologies. However, it is more complicated. Let's have a look at similarities, differences, and combinations.

                     (Image credit- Jumpcloud)

Active Directory Domain service is basically a database, where you can have all your computers, users and others organized. Active Directory not only organises centrally connected applications and users but integrate them in such an useful manner that they can talk to each other. It provides authentication and authorization to applications, file services, printers, and more on-premises resources. AD uses protocols such as NTLM and Kerberos for authentification and LDAP for resource discovery. With a great feature Group policy, you can distribute settings throughout a whole network. There are many security groups, user and admin accounts, passwords, identity and access rights, and that's why securing AD is the key. Nevertheless, the important point of view is that AD was not designed to cope with the world of web-based Internet services. As the world has shifted to cloud and web based portals, the synergy and dynamics of correlation has completely been taken over to cloud based networking.

Azure Active Directory is not Active Directory, unfortunately, its name leads to much confusion. However, AAD has a similar function with the authentification and authorization of applications. Compared with AD, Azure Active Directory was designed to support web-based services that use RESTful interfaces for Office 365, Google Apps, etc. It also uses different protocols for working with these services (SAML, OAuth 2.0.). You could say that AAD is an "AD service in the cloud". Another difference is that there is no such thing in AAD as forests and domains. Instead, you are a tenant representing your whole organization and you can manage all users with their passwords, permissions, etc. A user with one identity can sign on to thousands of SaaS applications and not just into Microsoft's Office 365, SharePoint or Exchange online. And he can do it without a repeated requirement to log in.

Nowadays, there are various models of using Active Directory services and every company has different needs and possibilities. In case your organization doesn't need the missing features of AD, you can move to Azure Active Directory and decommission the classic Active Directory. There are various scenarios containing Hybrid Azure AD, which means combinations of AD and AAD. This type of architecture offers a combination of both and thanks to Azure AD Connect your user/password data are synchronized. In the end, you can use just classic AD, however, you can hear every day more and more about the advantages of moving to the cloud. 

The Sad reality of Indian Real Estate!

Wherein we are all aware of various scams going on, there are few hidden scams which we are not aware of! One of them, woefully being the Real Estate Industry in India, specially the residential ones. This blog is completely based on my and my circles personal experience which i believe should be bought into limelight for every citizen of this country as well as abroad to not stay aloof.

To erect a home, you need to erect a house! That is where the real estate builders have an ode to perform. But unfortunately, ranging from naive to big shots in the industry, all have benevolently ruptured into a cuckoon of corruption and scamming leading to customers pivoting themselves in a position where they either give up or pay a massive premium to pull out of the ties. Lets have a look into the ways these Real Estate Builders try to forge their services and lay out innumerable vindicates to justify their forgery:-

Image credit- ndhrs.com

1) Government rules and Act of God:-

                                                           These builders have a very orthodox way of giving excuses in the name of Government policies and Act of God to hide their failures. They tend to bestow excuses specially in times of Covid and also the GST/Demonetization/ NGT tribunal for pollution to wrap up their course and tactically claim to have work haulted. Wherein if you see the real picture, these events wont delay any work by more than 6 months. If you visit the construction site, you will always see few labours working. Shockingly, when everything is up and running, and no interventions are actually put in place, you wont see labours working in the construction site, that too during peak working hours and days. That clearly suggests the intention of the builders and some other dispute that could have a bitter smell.

Image credit- nrilegalservices.com

2) Dispute between partners or land:-

                                                           During the purchase of the property, these sweet gullible will have your heart! They will claim that everything is good, everything is on track, everything is on time, the land is at the best and most safe location, company is very dedicated for future projects and business to come in. During the course of development, they will all of a sudden claim that there has been a dispute, RERA (Real Estate Regulation Authority) has some issues with this property, the partners have moved to court against each other and the project has no deadline. So under a nutshell, your investment has no direction and timeline of return. On asking for refund, they will claim that investment has been made and that money cant be given back. Instead the offerings they provide is a a different level which is mentioned in the next point.

Image credit- getyarn.io

3) "Sir we cant deliver the previous project but we have a new one where we can adjust your amount and fool you by charging almost double of the actual price and would adjust your investment for the non delivered project" :-

                                     They wont deliver the existing project and come up with another project whose price they will hike by 100 percent and enhance agreed of adjusting the previous amount. With no guarantee of that project also being delivered on time (or even delivering), they will again start selling dreams of your own house. On top of that in the name of Pradhan Mantri Yojna and Din Dayal Upadhayay Yojnas of Government, they will ask you for a major amount to be paid in cash (reason known to all). For people who work hard and are honest tax payers, their IT return doesn't allow for so much of cash withdrawal as well. Moreover this makes honest tax payers promote corruption.

Image Credit- blog.ipleaders.in

4) RERA (Real Estate Regulation Authority) was not present before 2016:-

                                                             RERA was introduced as a body on 1st May, 2016. So any property where investment has been made before that, builders have a solid excuse of passing the bait to RERA and Government for the previous properties. They claim to have applied that particular property for RERA registration and that doesn't get approved in years wherein it doesn't take more than 6 months for RERA to approve if there are no disputes against the land or property, But these builders keep on giving reasons for RERA approval wherein in reality they don't even apply for RERA registration.

For all these reasons, the ultimate loss is being faced by the customers. These mostly occurs with properties where the possession date is 2-3 years or more from the time of purchase. Neither will they ever refund your amount which you have invested and you are left with no other option than to go ahead with some other properties of the builder where they take advantage of your helplessness. They take that as n advantage to charge almost double of the actual price of the other properties. As we all know the legal system, that takes a lot of time, effort and money to be spent and in this busy world, people don't have that time and money to invest for so much of a hassle. So its always advisable to be very careful and sharp while choosing any residential property for your living. Market research, price comparisons and knowing about the real estate industry as a whole are few of the key components to decide for the best property.

Best methods to choose the best property for yourself and your family:-

1) Make sure the property is RERA approved.

2) Its always better to go ahead with ready to move in properties instead of future possessions. But we also know that ready to move in costs high. Even if you prefer to move ahead with future possession properties, do ensure that the construction is not stopped and never go for a property whose construction has not even started.

3) Make sure you don't go for any cash transaction as you wont have any record of that payment and you cant have a bait to fight.

4) Compare prices through different portals like 99 acres or Housing.com before getting into your purchasing decisions. 

5) Always ensure you have 5-6 builders to compare prices, possession timeline and quality.

6) Never be fooled by the number of properties a builder has or their revenue. Its not a big deal to forge facts and show a virtual picture. Always use your own brains by checking on the construction status and check reviews of the builders online as well as offline with their existing customers. 

With years of fighting and dealing with these, i can definitely help you out with any property that you plan to purchase. Do drop me an email at dasshivarjun.iipm@gmail.com if you need reviews or suggestion for real estate purchases. 

Facebook Policies: Is Venomous?

 

Amidst the humongous controversy revolving around the policy that Facebook adheres to, it has always been fringing around legalities and sues by different countries and organizations. Since its foundation, Facebook has always been in the news of Lawsuits apart from it being one of the richest organizations in the world? The Prima Facie always being on privacy violations, approval of inappropriate content, harming the harmony of a nation and a plethora of illegal and unethical practices that Facebook has dwelt into forever. Raising a very pivotal question... Who will bell the cat?

Before we get into the details of the Lawsuits and illegal practices Facebook has, lets understand the importance of biding by the legalities of a nation, harmony and privacy of any person who has trusted a platform for their personal share. Platforms are business models that create marketplaces to match different parties with complementary interests, relying on what economists call ‘indirect network effects.’ Dating sites, eBay, Facebook, YouTube, and operating systems such as Android and iOS are all different types of platforms. Social media platforms connect consumers with digital content creators and typically monetize their interactions through advertising revenue. Since platforms do not generally create their content, they contend that they are not responsible for what users produce and are thus exempt from the libel, defamation, and other laws and regulations that govern traditional media like newspapers and television. Hate Speeches, content, anti-peace interests are quite easy to publish in social media sites by any user which can act as an influencer to create an environment of worry and distress. This doesn’t indicate a stumbling block to the freedom of speech at all but this definitely has to come under sedition charges. All demographics across the globe aspires to learn from Social Media platforms but most of which is woefully exposed to farce content, false news and derogatory remarks and notions around Facts and figures. Post false and undecisive actions, there are marketing tools that are being exploited to ensure that a false content is manifested among bulk audience creating a massacre and sometimes violent means.  

I would agree to the fact that there are million users in Social Media platforms and scrutinizing every user is a task to do. But Social media must work with the Government to fabricate a system in place to ensure that false and hate content should not be spread and should not be imbibed into minds of people creating a travesty in an environment. Facebook has always been into the limelight of election meddling, illegally sharing data of users to 3^rd party organizations, harming harmony and interfering in internal matters of a nation or economy. This has got nothing to politicizing the matter for one nation but maintaining peace and harmony in the world. Social media is the new age source of learning, information, branding, socialising and discussions. Another abhorrent capacity with Facebook is the biasness that lies within internal employees. This has been time and again proven across the Globe that employees of different nation for Facebook has been very biased to market those posts which the person finds to be useful and contended with. This is not something that should be tolerated as being an open source platform there should be all liberalism and unbiased arena where all views, understandings, opinion should be respected and conceded till the time those are again an act of sedition, unethical and false content.

Facebook now should act like a watchdog against their policies and revamp the same to make it better in accordance to the rules and regulations of a country and the legalities. In the last 2 years, on records there has been cases filed against Facebook from 86 nations across the Globe. From all continents there has been some miscreants by Facebook that has damaged the Goodwill, privacy and integrity of individuals and nations. Everyone is well versed with the Election Meddling campaign and sharing data of 1.2 million users in 2019 without user consent. The law and order should strictly bind Facebook and other social media platforms to abide by their respective constitutions. Amidst the ongoing debate of Social Media being regulated, I find it to be the thirst need of the hour. Facebook has done enough damage to individuals, entities and nation and it should not be dispensed a freehand in this regard.

We as individuals should also stick to moral and social responsibilities. We should strictly ignore false and hate content, learn about facts and figures. Post our own analysis and research we should create an opinion and act instead of getting into the trap of all illegal solicitations Facebook has in store.

Trip to Land of Kangaroos

(Brisbane Airport)

Being Adherent to a family of Excursionist, our bags were packed once again with our mind and soul beaming towards a new adventure altogether to the Land of Kangaroos and amidst the Pacific Ocean, the beautiful country of Australia. With our excitement at peak, seldom did we realise that the picture of Australia would be far far contrasting than what we created in our minds. Not holding my horses, i will straight away unveil our journey and take those back to a sweet memory lane ensuring that readers and vividly live on the journey with us.

Brisbane:-
                 Our first destination was Brisbane as per the itenary and we were all set from Delhi Airport with our Singapore Airlines Flight to Brisbane. With a hault in Singapore for few hours, we had landed at Brisbane Airport commencing our mental journey to move out and live our dreams! After the immigration procedure and collection of Baggage, we moved out to convulse our journey. We boarded the cab that was already pre-booked and directed towards the Hotel. We reached our hotel in the evening and was accompanied by drizzles in Brisbane. The drizzle seemed to glaze up the city view more with bewitching architecture on all sides! Even surreal, when we reached the Gold Coast Beach near to which our Hotel was located, the rain gathered higher momentum welcoming us with a thrilling view across. When we reached the hotel, the rain had stopped and we checked in to our rooms. To our Surprise, all rooms had beach view from the Balcony that made our stay at Hotels quite pleasant along with charming rooms and facilities in the hotel. The same evening we strolled across the beach and an open market, treated ourselves with Mc Donalds, came back to hotel and dozed off.

(Warner Bros Theme Park)

The next day after some workout and jogging across the Gold Coast Beach early morning, we had our itenary for Warner Bros Theme Park. On reaching the park, we never thought that it would fascinate us nothing less than Disney Land. With some horrific roller coaster rides and bizarre car stunts, we were mesmerized by the animated shows and delicious food too. The implausible moments spent there got even Patriotic when we saw the Indian National Flag hoisted up and high with flags of 7 other countries.  With a matter of pride and some mind boggling experience there and enough to spend the whole day, we remitted back to our Hotel, freshened up and with the memories of the entire day spent so cordially, we treated ourselves with some delicious Sushi and Lobster at a restaurant. With our Taste buds partying hard, we returned back to our hotel and had a good sleep.

Commencing the 3rd day at Brisbane, we had our trip to the Sea World. Similar to the last day, we had to wake up early in the morning and after breakfast we had left for the Sea World. Sea world had another pool of thrilling experiences for us where we got to visit a range of Sea and Wildlife which Australia had in store along with a electrifying Helicopter ride which gave us an aerial view of entire Gold Coast and Brisbane. With more time spent with Dolphins, Penguins, Kangaroos and Sharks, we moved out to enjoy a motor boat ride on Pacific Ocean. Relishing a drive on boat embarking a speed of 150 km/hr on water, we had all we required to smile for the entire day and get back to our Hotel. Again after a delicious dinner and stroll across the beach, we came back to our Hotel and slept well to depart next day to Cairns.

(Aerial View of Brisbane from Chopper)

(Playing with Koalas in Kuranda Rain Forest)

Cairns:-
            After a beautiful Tour to Brisbane, we were all set to head for our next destination which was Cairns. So we boarded a local low cost airline from Brisbane and landed at Cairns Airport. Whenever anyone asks me the best place in Australia, i always mention Cairns as i am more into scenic beauty and adventures!! Another reason to like it the most is the Great Barrier Reef which is a pack of beauty altogether. The moment we landed at Cairns, we did not check in to the Hotel but we had our Itenary for Kuranda Rain forest Experience. On heading there and witnessing the Beauty of the Rain forest, it was a mere long walk across the forest in different zones. All the zones had to be traveled in Cable Cars as all zones were at higher elevations.

(Sky Rail at Kuranda)

With also attaining the knowledge of Kuranda Rain Forest being the only source of Water for Australia in 15th and 16th Century, the beauty of the Rain Forest Quadrupled itself. After the excavation of the forest, we had spend some extravagant time with Koalas and also had a quality time with the Wildlife there. After the Kuranda tour, we got back to our Hotel in Cairns and spent the evening strolling across the street near to our Hotel, With some amazing Indian cuisine there, we restored our way back to sleep.

(Scuba Diving at Great Barrier Reef)

The next day is what i can call my personal favorite day in Australia and i am always filled with excitement whenever i mention the day's experience. This was the mighty day to visit the Great Barrier Reef and go on a cruise. To make the day more adventurous, Cairns has been witnessing rain for continuously 48 hours and even on the day of Cruise. Those rain made the sea go wild and the Cruise ride to one port of Great Barrier Reef was a complete adventure all together. With many people getting the Sea sickness including my Mother and brother, we somehow managed to sway with the wilderness of the sea and reached the port. On reaching there, we decided for Scuba Diving as that was a dream wish list for me and my brother. Wherein the Tourist guide and the Scuba guide was all ok, others were really petrified over the wild ocean. All were commanding enough to not let us go but we were stubborn with our dreams too as that would be a lifetime experience and one of our dreams come true. After many arguments upsetting people, we got into our diving costumes. Then after a short briefing by our Scuba guide, Benny, we were all set to board a small boat that would take us to the Diving point.

On reaching there, we had held our bravery and dived 10 feet into the ocean and spent half an hour with the marine life with an experience that still lustres my eye balls making it unbelievable. Post that we had spent some time at a beach and also had a submarine ride with sea creatures, specially the glossy sea turtles. Wherein i feared that i would be eaten by sharks in the scuba diving, it happened the other way round when we returned back to our hotel :p We had some toothsome sea food and called it a day.

(Shark Meat in Cairns)

Melbourne:-
                    After the snorkeling experience at Cairns, we headed our journey to Melbourne in a local low cost airline again. Melbourne happens to be an industrialized area with all corporate offices and IT parks. Being a corporate employee myself, that was not as gleeful to me as Brisbane and Cairns were. Yet taking stroll across the streets and gazing the succulent architecture all over, it was a treat to the senses altogether. But on the second day we were again welcomed with some scenic beauty, which was the Great Ocean Road. Few Kilometres away from Melbourne, in Victoria, we had the Great Ocean Road which is a drive of 90 mins along a stretch of 240 km.

(Great Ocean Road)

That was another enraptured experience all together where we had halts at different spots with their own relishing specialty. After enjoying that drive and going to beaches and zoo feeding the Kangaroos, we were back to our Hotel by evening. Again a beautiful stroll on the streets of Melbourne and good Sushi and sea food, we had ended our day. The Next day was a city tour to some Churches, political buildings and the famous MCG Cricket ground, we had departed for Sydney.

(Streets in Sydney)

Sydney:-
              After our trip to Melbourne we had departed for Sydney in a low cost Australian Airline. Similar to Melbourne, Sydney is also an Industrialized area where we did not have a lot of places to explore and Experience. It was just a day tour where we visited some famous Hotels and Casinos in Sydney and ending our trip with visit to SCG Cricket ground and living with the cricket life and records created by Legends on the ground, we had a cruise trip with a ride of 2 hours with dinner and drinks served and live music in the evening. Then we made our way back to Sydney Airport where we caved our way back to India.

(Cruise evening in Sydney)

Hence ending our Trip to Australia with ravishing experiences and moments, we were back to our normal lives where daily work, worries, success and failure take its due course. The entire experience is well captured in camera as well as memories, we still miss those days where we were all into congenial explorations and excursion. As all travel diaries create a story line, Australia is always one of the best stories our life has to reveal and we cant ever express the lovable and adventurous trip but just wait for another story to be created, told and lived!! :)

(For travel Vlogs, do email me at dasshivarjun.iipm@gmail.com)

Walkaway through the Land of Romans and Renaissance!

A long awaited trip in my Wish list was sewn up when my family decided for a Trip to the Land of Renaissance and the Romans to unleash the historical greenwood of the world. Belonging to the Genre of History addicts, there could have been no better place than Italy to relive the times of Ancient Romans, the Paleolithic age and the civilization on the Banks of River Tiber. So we swayed our way from Delhi to the Capital city of Italy, one of the best cities on the planet, Rome. We had our way via Dubai and it was a total journey of 11.5 hours with 6 hours hault in Dubai.

Usually after tucking over a journey so long, humans tend to discern a fatigue nature and also some Jet lag due to the major time difference. But to our surprise, Rome had a different bombshell for us! The moment we stepped out of the airport, we were saluted with a pleasant weather and an amazing Landscape amidst the suburbs. Viewing the scenic astonishment and comparing the roads and driving in Rome with India, we gradually entered the main city with some astounding architectures build with Traventine stones and amazing techniques to keep the city clean and protect the greenery. On reaching the hotel, we decided to give up resting and start exploring the city from the very first day itself. That night we had an itenary of a Roman exhibition which we had booked earlier. But prior to that we had a time span of 6 hours and had to splurge that wisely! So we decided to take a stroll down the glamorous lanes and work on some Vlogs with my History knowledge of the Romans. (For my video blogs, you can contact me on dasshivarjun.iipm@gmail.com). Apprehending the alluring beauty of the city, we decided to board a metro to Roma Termini which was minutes from our hotel as a pedestrian. We took a ride to the Colossal Metro station which glorified us with the stunning view of the Colosseum, which was a part of our Itenary the next day. So we haulted for some photographs and kept of strolling across the lanes. We then boarded a cab for the location where the Roman exhibition was held. With the exhibition of Gladiator wars, Roman culture of Wine, dance and food with some thrilling stunts and detailing, the night came to an end with us back to our hotels. With some good hamburgers and a can of beer, we were off to sleep and get ready for the next day.

There we go with the 2nd day in our Itenary. This was a City tour which included the Historic Colosseum and the Roman Forum. So with some delicious Roman breakfast, we were all set to explore the breathtaking historic monuments and get to know more about their history. We walked our way to a spot where we came across our tourist guide who guided us towards the Colosseum. They picturesque Amphitheater built by the Flavians had so much to explore and to gather knowledge about, that an entire day would not suffice the purpose but we had to settle with few hours. Ranging from the trials by Byzantines and other tribes to capture the amphitheater, to the Roman gatherings inside with the Gladiator fights and shows and then we moved on to the Roman Forum which is also at a walking distance from Colosseum. The Forum had a plethora of Caesarian monuments including Churches, Temples and Graveyards and some conspiracy theories with no proof to be true. With a pool of knowledge and brushing up Roman history, it was time to get back to the hotel and take some rest before we take a night tour to Rome. The night tour included mostly some monuments and artifacts built by Augustus and Marcus and the famous Trevi fountain built by Panini in 1762 to make up for the water scarcity at that time and also to welcome Augustus. That bought an end to a fabulous day and we were back to our hotel.

The third day itenary was of the great Vatican City. The smallest country in the world had a surfeit of Roman art and culture. With the residence of Pope and the astonishing Sistine Chapel built in the name of Pope Sixtus IV, it provides you a complete picture of the talent which Roman painters had which modern day painters still lack in terms of creativity and adolescence even after technological advancements. St. Peters Basilica is also one of the tourist spot which happens to be the largest Basilica in the world.



Post traversing the astounding city of Rome, we boarded the train from Roma Termini and headed towards the land of Renaissance, Florence. After covering a distance of 1.5 hours, we reached the Florentina station. With all traventine architecture, Florence gave us a breathtaking view of its brick and stone lanes with all modern and luxury brand showrooms and shops! But the best moment was during the evening, when we commenced exploring the historical relevance of the city which is considered to be the land of Renaissance. Post exploring the Dante Alighieri Museum, Statue of David by Michelangelo, the first Renaissance sculpture by Rocco, famous painting by Donatello, Botticelli and the Medici family which also had 2 Popes in their name, we proceeded towards the Akademia. Unfortunately, due to a long queue at the Akademia, we could not move on to explore more other than the replica of the Statue of David also built by Michelangelo. Original statue was portrayed their earlier until it was shifted to Academia for political reasons. Had some delicious Italian cuisine and wine post that and were back to our hotel for some sound sleep.

The next day we had to head towards Pisa to witness the historic 14th Century Leaning Tower of Pisa and a Cathedral, Cattedrale de Pisa. It was a bus ride for 1 hour from Florence to Pisa. On reaching the location, we found out an open market filled with different handicrafts, local products and restaurants. Most of them were run by Bangladeshi immigrants and that led our way towards the Historic monuments in Pisa. The tourist attraction spot in Pisa wont concede an area of more then 5 acres. The actual point of attraction was the Leaning Tower of Pisa built by Bonanno, another Renaissance painter and the Cathedral dedicated to the assumption of Virgin Mary. Theory of US army planning to attack the Tower for doubting German army to keep an eye on them and also experiment by Galileo Galilei of object descent also exists but with no solid proof or witness to back them up. Another interesting fact of the building being tilted in Pisa is because of the weak soil on one part. It just doesn't make the Tower of Pisa lean but also the Cathedral and the trees lean. We returned to Florence after that and the bus journey was a marvelous one with green patches of the suburbs on both side accompanied by slight rain late in the evening.

The next day we departed for Venice, again a train journey from Florence. It was a journey of 1 hour and we departed to a city which has no mode of transportation apart from water boats as the city is engulfed within canals. Venice is a city that no one can delete ever from their memory once anyone steps in. The ecstatic water boat ride and the architecture of Churches and buildings are the real eye catchers that enthrall your senses. On reaching the location of the hotel on a boat, we were all engaged in feeding the Pigeons who tends to place their claws on your hands and eat the food provided. Strolling across the lanes between canals and taking the Gondola ride covering the entire city, we ended that day with some delicious Pizza and Beer. The next day, we took a Water bus and traveled across 3 nearby islands, Murano, Burano, Torricelli. With some factories and local markets, these islands were peaceful, calm and had some awe-inspiring views. That engulfed the entire day until evening and then we were back to our hotel.

The next day was en-route Lake Como which was again a train journey of 2 hours. Lake Como had a vivid view of low altitude mountain and the Lake view from the hotel balcony was stupendous. Lake Como has always been known for a wedding destination inside Ships and a very happening place in Italy. That is normally a vacation destination for Italians and a weekend transit for some cool experience. With some delicious Lobster Shrimp and wine, we took a stroll on the lake side, went to a Super Mart to purchase some local delicacies and sat at the balcony until midnight to unleash the spectacle hardly found anywhere. The next day was like a dooms day when we had to depart for India from Milan airport.

A gazing experience it was and i could rather name it to be my best experience ever in life. Italy is actually a dream come true destination and an experience that would never fade away. I am thankful to be the lucky person to have explored the wonderful city and unleash its history even more wide. I cant thank Italy enough but promise to land on their soil again. Grazie Italia, Pronto!!!

Chakrata- The hidden treasure!

Belonging to the genealogy of excursion lovers, its a Mandate for travel and gathering experiences for souls like us to pack our bags as the clock strikes the slate of being free from our daily work. Following the plethora, this year too during the onset of summers, we decided to relieve ourselves from the scorching heat across North India and sway across our path to Nirvana among the valleys and hillocks. Breaking the stereotyping, we ended up to arriving at a hidden treasure which was completely contrasting to the other destinations we have been to earlier!

Commencing from Gurugram, we have undulated our way through some cities in UP, crossing Vikas Nagar, Kalsi and excavating our route to an isolation, the marvelous Chakrata! On reaching the destination, we hardly had any idea that the first impression would rather not be the last impression of this place. On reaching Chakrata, we were welcomed with narrow hill roads and utmost silence that can be expected. We opted to hault in an Eco friendly lodge where we put up in tents made of fabric.

On stepping into our tents we were were miles away from being gleeful. Not only because the ambiance didn't provide us the mindset of having a nice vacation but also due to some glitches within our group due to some external factor. Sooner did we realize after a great sleep that it was not the ambiance but our glitches that didn't accord a good start to the trip! It gave us an illumination to realize that we have got wrong tendencies to blame for bad experiences without realizing the fault in us. Post that hardly did we know that a pool of experiences were about to escort us till the end.

So the trip starts... Not when we reached the destination, but when we woke up from a good sleep late in the afternoon. There we go with the classification of 2 days:-

Day 1:- (Unwanted beginning but a great end)

It all started with a mutual decision by 5 of us to stay withing the premises of the Lodge that evening to relieve ourselves from the long journey and to avail the utmost scope of natures beauty and the cool weather (which was prevalent only post evening). The Lodge had a lot to provide us with its ethnic location and the divine atmosphere pleasant for all age groups and demographics. The tents were paralleled by a common lane across the valleys that leads to trekking spots across the steeps.

All of us sitting across the lane with our gossips and beverages on, the view of the rocky mountains and the layer of canyons was the delight that our senses were craving for! Along with the view, ambiance and the freshness in the atmosphere which is predominant in the hills, what actually added the cherry on the cake was the understanding and bonding we had as a group. I always believe that only a good view and ambiance doesn't create memories but the bondage leaves no stones unturned to a happy soul! All engulfed into gossips, food, beverages and the atmosphere beauty, the lodge had an arrangement of Bonfire which was few steps up from our tents. Again not to forget, the Lodge itself was a trekking point and to reach at any point withing the premises of the lodge, slight trekking has to be done and thats the real gratification for all.

The Bonfire welcomed us with a comfortable feat along with interaction with few other hoteliers who were all boosted up like us to make it an evening worth recalling! Followed by music and dance, we were all set to come down to the lane across our tents where 6 of us would again commence our talks and enjoy with our group. Sooner we found that we had a fan from the Bonfire group who did follow us to our tents and started talking about a lot of matters. I wont say it was irritating but we wanted to spend time with our group so had to indirectly ask him in a polite manner to excuse us :p Post that we did bring an end to the night with some delicious food for dinner and our never ending gossip and fun.

Day 2:- (When the betterment fusions up)

After a mesmerizing day 1 with all ups and downs, we were all set in the morning for breakfast and then leave for a tourist attraction spot in Chakrata, the Tiger Fall. All set and ready, we departed at 11 a.m. and it was a journey of 1.5 hours from the lodge to the destination. Accompanied by the hill views and the spiral hilly roads, we did hit an ecstatic momentum on the go! Some narrow hilly roads were the fierce moments some of us had as the narrow lanes were something not very common with the other hill stations in North India.

Along with the hilly view, we also earned a beautiful spectacle of Terrace farmings everywhere and trifle streams engulfed with their own flow to infinity. Tiger Fall did surprise us with its pace and the flow beauty and we could not resist ourselves from taking a shower. As we drenched ourselves in, we were shivered by the level of cold it had. But it was absolute fun after few minutes as we get adjusted to the temperature. We did take a good shower there for few minutes but the pebbles under water were too sharp to bruise our legs and we had to advance towards the banks. Even after all, the experience was up to another level and could hardly be explained. We willed to have our lunch at the spot but it didn't bestow the food we require so had to travel back to Chakrata market to find a suitable place to fill our stomachs. Then trekking a kilometer more we reached the other phase of the market where Shopaholics tried their best to find objects to purchase but the husbands were lucky :p

It was a distance of an hour from Chakrata Market to Viratkhai where our lodge was. Again we had a gala time across the lane of our tents and the awe inspiring bonfire. With the only dissimilarity of we being the only group that evening in the lodge. With some soothing music and a good chat session with the lodge staff, we were back to our tents and again had a gala time with music, leg pulling sessions and some ghastly talks to share some shit out!!!

Day 3:- (The walk to remember):-

So now was the day to return but it seemed that Chakrata was too upset to let us go. So they cried wielding rain in cats and dogs with too bad a weather. Had there not been a compulsion to return, we would have take sojourn for another day. With the bad weather accompanying us, we all departed after a good breakfast. The journey was thrilling with heavy rains with the hilly roads. The rain started sedating and we were 10 kilometers away from Vikas Nagar which is a plain. All of a sudden there was a jerk from our Innova car with the sound of a flat tyre. One of the sharp pebbles had its pin under the wheels and we confronted a puncture. Unfortunately the stepney was not air packed too and was not capable enough to carry us for 10 kilometers until we find a puncture shop in the plains. There was a time of distress again as the rain too gathered back its momentum.

Once again we had a turn and the distress was soon turned into glee when we found out some help with the tyre. The one driving had to go down to Vikasnagar with a localite who fortunately passed our car in that isolated place and get the tyre inflated. With no other alternative, we had to settle by that. But what would we do with that 1 hour time? We decided to walk as much as we can until we find a lift until the plains. Now that's what i would call a walk to remember. The rain has ceased by then and we got a more clear environment to walk across. As it wasn't an elevation but had to descend, we were quite comfortable. Strolling down the valley we had commenced boosting each other up. We started mocking at our luck while coming and going and the ladies were engulfed in photography at every step. Not that uncommon right??? From the steep valleys we reached a point with all gold leaves spread across giving one of us a remembrance of the Hindi movie 'Mohabattein". Sooner did she realize that her hero was with her only. No no, not SRK but her husband :p We started discussing on how to survive in such a place where we were struck with no conveyance. We then had more respect for Bear Grylls then!!!

With un-ending laughter, talks, photos, walk we found an SUV carrying 2 aged women. It was 4-5 kilometers more and we were dropped to Vikas Nagar. That 4 kilometer drive with an amazing localite with a modest approach was something more beguiling. Another realization of getting rid of distress is to mock at such situations and find a solution and relieve yourself instead of worrying too much. By the time we had our lunch there, our car was back and then the rest till Gurugram was again filled with laughter, gossips, and some sound sleep.

Sometimes heading towards some destination where its not at all easy to avail provisions but walk few extra miles or climb extra slopes to get your necessities is also an experience. We can live the life of people at stone age too sometimes and brace ourselves at rest. We learn how to find one good matter among all the bad ones. All destination has its own beauty and their own beast. With people of common mindset and fun loving souls, we find the best out of worst.

So we bid a goodbye to our trip and bestowing a heavenly farewell, we now look forward to another astonishing destination with the best people in life. Thank you to Rahul bhai, Adi, Rashmi bhabi, Mini bhabi and the little angel Anya! Love you all :)

Statue of Unity: A waste of Money or Valued Possession?

A lot of political, social and phenomenal debates circulating across the country revolving around the justification to build the Statue of Unity in the state of Gujarat. Letting a whole lot of bush to settle down for a moment, lets first have a look at the ideological prospect to this debate. I have recently been on a vacation to the Land of Renaissance and the Roman empire. With a pack full of learning and encounters, something i can hysterically mention to similarise with the base of this debate. Even after hosting itself as a land of Sculpture and Colossal, Italy has never stopped the relay of building them even at the present. They dont leverage the thought of expenses (also because they dont lack funds and capitals) at the cost of feeding poor people (also because they hardly have any). But keeping all the rationality aside, this sets a perfect example of maintaining a balance between uplifting the rural population and working simultaneously on development and tourism.

The whole set of conventional debate rotates primarily on the need to erect up the statue instead of feeding the poor and meeting expense of the Rural regions. Before we get deep into the intellectual part of it, lets reorganize some facts regarding the Statue of Unity. 3000 workers were deployed, 250 engineers were put to action and Brain storming. Its the tallest statue in the world with an elevation of 182 meters. Now getting back to the base of this debate... If political parties claim to not have build the statue on Rural upliftment grounds, lets ask one simple question... Who were these 3000 workers? Were they some rich brats with millions of dollars in their bank account? Or were they superiorly uplifted in the society with a good and healthy living? They all belong to the same Rural class who has been fed, paid for themselves and their family. Taking into consideration for a minimum of 3 members in each workers family, this wont be erroneous to say that the Statue of Unity has been feeding at least 9000 people in the Rural area and taking care of their needs. No worker or any report has mentioned any low wage or torture claims by any of the workers and they live with pride for being a part of erecting this Colossal statue. Looking at a wider perspective, the largest statue in the world is now apprehensively going to attract a lot of tourists across the globe which will absolutely bring a major revenue which could be utilized to meet the expenses of the rural class people laying below poverty line. This would require a lot of maintenance, nearby clearances and the Rural people would constantly be deployed to work which would be a continual earning source for a bulk of Rural population in that area. We should rather be proud of having such a Statue in our country representing one of the most prominent leaders and freedom fighters of the country and i believe Colossals should be built for other prominent Freedom Fighters too in different states which could be a stimuli from the Western culture to remember and preserve the remembrance of our struggle and personnel leading to our Freedom. In the recent reports from NASA, we should rather be proud to have this statue visible from Space too rather than politicizing the whole matter which has always left an amateurish mark on our culture and political system.

Lets get one fact crystal clear. Sacrificing developments in a country to uplift the Rural population is not at all a legitimate idea or behavior. Upliftment of Rural society should always be one of the priorities but Development and globalization is the new fish in the trend.Without it, no country can ever move towards a prosperous culture or heritage. Like always, i have no interest in Politics or any other political party (before someone claims me to be a BJP/ Congress/AAP) supporter. I am always obsessed with my Motherland and something good happening here always exhilarates me to the bottom of my soul! Feeling for the rural development and supporting it is truly exemplary and everyone blaming the Statue of Unity should instead keep working themselves in Silence for the Rural development and feel the happiness from inside. Talking of funds, i dont think people speaking against the Statue of Unity lack funds in their party. Development and tourism in a country is the necessity to generate revenue, catalyze GDP and using that revenue for welfare of Rural people. Under a nutshell, the Statue of Unity is a great work and hats off to all 3000 workers, 250 engineers, Mr. Ram Sutar and L&T.