Thursday, February 28, 2008

What to buy and when to buy............

Friends,

I am asked by my readers that it is now time to give a list of stocks which I feel looking good and fits in to become a multibagger in future...
But the real aspect of making money is abandoned by small investors as well as some big players as well and that is ,How will the market be in coming times, say for a year, 2 years or 5 yrs.....
The real money is earned only when one is sure about market course and that is what we have to learn.Buying and selling is easy....buying is even more easy then selling because while when one buys the price can be low but while selling GREED always grips us.....
For making fabulous return , one should be able to hold stocks convincingly.....
Have you ever saw Rakesh Jhunjhunwala selling his shares , where he has stake, now and then?Like say, Titan.....do we see RJ selling Titan or BEML or Nag Const or Punj Llyod selling today and again buying after few days?Never....means the big return lies in holding stocks...and not trading into them.....Let the stock grow, give time to prosper ....and reap the harvest.....
It is very clear that the success of RJ lies in his visioning of the growth in Indian Econimy right from 3000 to 21000 and he still is bullish atleast upto 2010.
So this is the conviction of the market trend , bullish, is where RJ has been able to succeed and made billions of rupees....It is said that RJ is not less then Rs 10,000 cr......which wealth he accumalated in last 3-4 yrs...by investing and not trading......
So, friends, take a Vow from today onwards that you will never trade ..whether it is daily or for a week.....No one has made money while trading.......
Investing is holding and not trading......don't trade for 5-10 %....if you are doing so , that is ST, then forget big return.....it shows that your mentality is to make quick bucks and that will somewhere land you in big loss or smaller loss day by day which will become big one day...in totto...
One need to put money ....you have to sow and then you reap.....if you do not sow how would something comeout without doing it.....
So the bottom line here for making big return is to able to judge the market trend and after doing that have coolness and calmness to hold stocks for 1-2 yrs to let them grow......
I have been asked to give again a list here of Multibaggers......but as i have written many times,readers must also do some homework like noting down my list of stocks I gave here and write at what price I recomended it and now what is the price....and if they are down so much then they becomes an immidiate buy.....
Try to find the last list of 21 stock I gave and also stocks which I individually discussed, like SKS Ligistic, JCT, Sujana Tower etc and see where are they and if they are down then buy it......
Well, I am disturbed to see that My call of Allied & Computer has not worked well and people has lost money there.....Ofcourse I have always written to buy for LT and hence it is just 2 months passed and the price can again come back ....
But for them I have one sugesstion and that is convert Allied Comp to Southern Bio fuel ltd and hold it for a year....
Well,I have one more suggestion.....if anyone feels that the stock is not moving and actually going down then he must be quick to sell it and convert it to some other stock which have more value to compensate the return.....It is always going to happen that not all stocks are going to run......out of 10 stocks one own,5 will be nonperformer,2 will give negative return and 3 may become multibaggers.....and hence one should be quick to analyse such situation and take decision accordingly......

Regards,
Rajeev

Sunday, February 24, 2008

How to pick a multibagger....Amuthan Angappan........a blogger has copied my original writing.....

Friends,
I have been intimated that this blog writer has copied my original writing...which is as under..which I wrote at ISG(Investmentsupergrowth)gr at Yahoo gr...I have stopped writing there but it is natural that this has been copied from there....
Those who are my followers/readers at ISG Yahoo gr (run by Mr.Kukku )since long must be knowing this and must have read it.....Readers like....bsebull(Shankar)Sundara Rajan,VickyKhanna,even Kukku himslef, Chanish,Carlos ,KKP to name a few must have read it...I would like to elaborate that Mr.Kukku also writes in Money Times magazine....
But I am writing it here again so that my readers would also benifiited from my writing which I was going to write it with some more angles ......but will add that angle next time.....

This is the bloggers link:http://amuthanangappan.blogspot.com/2008/01/how-to-choose-multibagger-stock.html

How to choose a multibagger stock

1)First and the biggest preference will go to Low Equity.Because low eq. is an advantage when company plans expansion and Eq dilution takes place.Even a right of 1:1 or even 2:1 will not expand the eq in a big way and hence earning can match the eq.Another reason for low equity preference is even though the earning is not coming because of slow down of economy or a bad year for the company , then when the tide turns and with slightest turnaround company can show good EPS which is one of the most important criteria for investing as it is related to P/E.

2)Next is Promoters Holding.I have many times just invested in stocks on just looking at one parametres.Promoter s Holding, apart from ofcourse Low eq.Above 55% is almost a must , with exception in IT Sector where it is seen that you almost get very less company where the promoters holding is above 55%.I will give an Example for this.I bought Narendra Properties at just Rs 18/- at just looking at promoters holding which was as high as 72% and moreover one of the promoters was also hodling some 8% in Public holding.Of course the sector also palyed a role for me to take a decision fast.Narendra Properties is in Construction Sector.Narendra Properties touched Rs 77/-.Another is Lancor Holding.Promoters holding is as high as 72% and almost over 20% is held by FII's.I bought at Rs 166/- and now it is Rs 481/-.Both these stocks I bougth after May Carnage and one can calculate what return I got and am still bullish on both of them.Both have very low Public holding and that is a trigger according to me.

3)Sector also plays a very important role while choosing stocks.

4)Now the most improtant criteria is earning visibility.This is very important.eg. Navin Flourine.Though it comes in Chemical sector actually I see it as a Carbon Credit Story.A very very big CC story.Never try to look at inetrnational prices of CC.They fluctulates. No need to worry on that front.What I compare is if Guj Flouro a 2 paid up stock can quote at Rs.630/- then Navin a 10 paid up stock will quote much much more.The reason is both have almost equal CC to sell.But thing for Guj Flou is that they have already started to sell CC while Navin is still on nascent stage and hence it is available cheap.


5)I almost do not go for already splitted stocks.It is obvious that splitted company say, 2 paid up has to earn more to show higher EPS as it is splitted in 2 paid up.Same is the case of 1 paid up.Unless you are sure of the earning of that company that it will be able to match the splitted shares one can buy. Like Aftek Info where the earnig is coming in a big way. Actually I try to find stocks which have the capacity to give exponential earning(eg Navin) and can go for Splitting rather then buy which have already splitted and hence gives fabulous return.Means that I will not buy stocks that have already become a mutibaggers by already becoming XB or XS or XR.No use to buy those stocks that have become XB,XR,XS.Of course if even after it looks good after XB and XR then one can buy it.eg JMC Project.It is still a buy even after JMC has given 2 right issues.

6)Now comes the promoters Gr.I dont think one should look at it in a big manner.I do not put much weigh on Management.Who was knowing Narayan Murthy when Infosys came out with IPO in 1990's?Those who went for lookig at management lost the oppertunity to invest in bluest of blue chip.

7)Yes,P/E is important.eg, Garnet Const.It is still available at just around 8p/e.A stock which is in hot sector where the P/E is high Garnet is available under 10 p/e is a bargain.

8) Now comes the BV(Book Value).I have invested in stocks just looking at BV and come out winner.eg.Titagarh Ind which I bought at Rs 3/- and sold at Rs 30/-.I bought it just because I saw that price of Titagarh Ind was very very less then BV.I remeber when I bought Titagarh Ind the BV was over 30or 40 and price was just Rs 3/-.I just went and buy it.Though I am not a big player I bought just 1000 shares.So BV also plays an important role while buying a stocks.One more example I would like to give.Maestros Mediline.It' s BV is as high as 75 and it is available at Rs 18/-?I am holdong Maestros since long.

9)I use to buy everything I like buying.I do this because no one knows which is going to turn out as multibbagers. I have written elsewhere that buy even 100 shares.Even a small exposer is enough to give you big returns if it turns out to be a big big multibagger.

10)Hold the position.Hold it as much as you can.I bought MilkFood Ltd at Rs 40// and I remember I also recomended here at the same time and some of the members have bought also.Whether they have sold or not I donno , but I am still holding MilkFood which I purchased at Rs40/-Everybody knows that MilkFood is making newer highs and is at Rs/- 380.

11) Try to find all info where you have put money.This is very very important.These will help you in taking decision whether to hold or sell.

12)Try to find stocks on your own because this gives more conviction because conviction plays bigger part in buying stocks as well as holding it.If one have no conviction about the company you sell it cheaply.

13)Almost never buy stocks above Rs 100/- If you are buying stocks at Rs 500 how it can become a multibagger?

Saturday, February 23, 2008

An Optimist Outlook from Warren Buffet..........

Friends,
I am pasting here what Warren Buffet spoke on USA Economy.......
Hope it will throw some light to investors Vision on US Economy and Emerging Market market there upon.....


"Eight for '08"
Warren Buffett became one of the wealthiest people in the world by making predictions and putting money behind those predictions. Every time he buys a stock or a business or some other investment, he's forecasting the future. Judging by the incredible returns of his holding company Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett and his colleagues are very good at making those predictions. Of course, it helps when you can give your predictions plenty of time to come true. That's one reason Buffett's favorite holding period for investments in "outstanding businesses with outstanding managements" is "forever." After all, "We don't get paid for activity, just for being right. As to how long we'll wait, we'll wait indefinitely. "
1. Recessions can't be avoided forever.In the last few days, Buffett told that if unemployment picks up significantly, the "dominoes" will fall and the U.S. economy will fall into recession in 2008. He's not sure, however, that unemployment will go up next year. In fact, he's surprised that all the weakness we're seeing in housing hasn't affected the jobs market ... yet. Here's what he is sure about: "It is the nature of capitalism to periodically have recessions. People overshoot."
2. We'll survive future recessions just as we've survived past problems. As Buffett told in August, "We've got a wonderful economy... There's never been anything like that in the history of the world. We live seven times better than the people did a century ago on average... We've had problems all along. If you look at the last century, we had that Great Depression and World War Two, we had the Cold War, we had the atomic bomb, but the country does well."
3. Recessions will create opportunities. "I made by far the best buys I've ever made in my lifetime in 1974. And that was a time of great pessimism and the oil shock and stagflation and all those sort of things. But stocks were cheap."
4. All stocks won't be cheap. Like Ted Williams waiting for the right pitch, a successful investor waits for the right stock at the right price, and it doesn't happen every day. "What's nice about investing is you don't have to swing at pitches. You can watch pitches come in one inch above or one inch below your navel, and you don't have to swing. No umpire is going to call you out." You get in trouble, Buffett says, when you listen to the crowd chanting "Swing, batter, swing!"
5. The crowd will make mistakes. Buffett cites this piece of advice from his mentor Benjamin Graham: "You're neither right nor wrong because other people agree with you. You're right because your facts are right and your reasoning is right—and that's the only thing that makes you right. And if your facts and reasoning are right, you don't have to worry about anybody else."
6. Investors will mistakenly think falling stock prices are bad."If they reduce the price of hamburgers at McDonald's today I feel terrific. Now I don't go back and think, gee, I paid a little more yesterday. I think I'm going to be buying them cheaper today. Anything you're going to be buying in the future, you want to have get cheaper.
7. Good times will prompt bad decisions. In his 2000 Letter to Berkshire shareholders, Buffett compared the crowd that buys big when prices are high to Cinderella at the ball. "They know that overstaying the festivities - that is, continuing to speculate in companies that have gigantic valuations relative to the cash they are likely to generate in the future - will eventually bring on pumpkins and mice. But they nevertheless hate to miss a single minute of what is one helluva party. Therefore, the giddy participants all plan to leave just seconds before midnight. There's a problem, though: They are dancing in a room in which the clocks have no hands."
8. There will be more dancing at another wild party followed by another painful hangover.
Looking back at the Internet bubble, Buffett is quoted as saying,
"The world went mad. What we learn from history is that people don't learn from history."

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala Talks:...........

Rakesh Jhunjhunwala Talks:

A) 'Enter the market when no one else does'
February 15, 2008
Jhunjhunwala takes the cue from Warren Buffett when he says: "Most people get interested in stocks when everyone else is. The time to get interested is when no one else is. You can't buy what is popular and do well."
Don't follow stock picks by big investors
Remember: the market is always right
You can never be taught about market, you have to learn it
You must balance fear and greed
Jhunjhunwala says he is 'well invested' in key growth areas like banking, retailing and infrastructure, all of which are based on India's domestic performance.
His private equity interests offer more detail -- education (private schools in Mumbai), hospitals and health care, a security company, pharmaceuticals, and dredging.

B)
'Markets are like women -- always volatile'
February 15, 2008
"Markets are like women -- always commanding, mysterious, unpredictable and volatile," 'Big Bull' Rakesh Jhunjhunwala had told a gathering in Mumbai a few months back.
For Jhunjhunwala, trading by the hunches is the best thing to do. "If in doubt, listen to your heart," is what he tells young investors. Given below are some investment gems from him:
Be optimistic
Be opportunistic
Study the market thoroughly
Maximise profits and minimise losses
Invest in a business not a company
Have an independent opinion, always
Be happy with your gains but take losses in your stride
Be prepared for risks
Despite sharp corrections, early this year Jhunjhunwala predicted that the Indian markets will reach its peak by 2010
C)
'Markets plunging? Don't sell in panic'
February 15, 2008
Jhunjhunwala states that there is nothing to fear despite a sharp plunge in the Sensex this year. He assures investors thus:
Nothing has changed as the Indian market is 'deep-rooted'
Corrections, however sharp, are indispensable
Panic selling during a sharp fall is the worst thing to do
Stay invested and calm when the markets nosedive
The country is poised to soon achieve a double-digit economic growth along with an impressive corporate profit growth
This is bound to drive the bourses
It does not take rocket science to understand that India's economic growth will be in double digits
D)
Tips for beginners
February 15, 2008
And for beginners in the stock market, this is what he has to say:
Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it
Do something you love
The means are as important as the end
Aspire, but never envy
Be paranoid of success -- never take it for granted. Realise success can be temporary and transient
Build a fighting spirit -- take the bad with the good
When you see a horizon, it seems so distant. When you reach that horizon, you will realize how many more horizons are within reach
Jhunjhunwala said enormous wealth was created over the last five years because opportunities in India have grown manifold.
Admitting that gains were going to be moderate in future unlike the manifold rise over the last few years, he advised investors to be realistic in their expectations.


My Comments:
Well, I am no match to Rakesh Jhunjhunwala nor with Warren Buffet......and hence anything what I write here should be taken as what I have learned from reading such quotes of RJ and WB....

A)'Enter the market when no one else does':

We have discussed many times that ours entry should be before anyone gets in.....I gave a call of JCT Ltd,Khandwala Sec,Artson Eng,SKS Logistic etc etc......on same thoery that buy when no one is buying........if everyone knows then it is over.........

B)'Markets are like women -- always volatile'

This aspects also we have discussed in detail frequently........I have not to elaborate it.

c)'Markets plunging? Don't sell in panic'

Same for this line as well...........

Saturday, February 16, 2008

Budget Rally starts..............

Friends,
Seems the budget rally has started.
This can be seen while looking at Dow which tanked by 175 points on Ben's view that slow down is seen,but Indian market ignored that news.........
For the time being , untill budget is presented, the rally will continue , taking little clue of world market..But from these one can say that whenever Indian Market wants to decouple it from world market, it can do......
And that is the bottom line......
So there is no use in thinking in that line whether we have decoupled or NOT!
I have wrote last time, sub 10k level aired by Shankar Sharma is not possible....I remember he also spoke same when market tanked from 12670 to 8800, that 7000 is possible and even 5000 is possible.......but that never came....
Friends, one should have his own thinking on market...like when SS says that market can go to 10k-11k level, one must see what can happen then if that happens?
In this massacre, all stocks were down by 50-70% from the high..now one should think what can happen if market goes to 11k?WE gets bulest of Bluechip, like say, L&T, ABB, Ril Ind,Tisco,Telco,Areva etc at 20% from the high.....can that happen?That is the question one should ask oneself....and if the answer is NO then he should not PANIC.............
I again reiterate that, whenever market tanks like it did ,this time, never PANIC......
If you can't SELL,no problem,sit quite....stop looking at prices...at portfolios...this will make you take wrong decision.....When one sees his portfolio eroding, one tends to take some insane decision....So the best thing is just stop looking at CNBC, NDTV Profit,Business papers, especially ET, BS, FE..etc.......just skip reading them...just read it for companies news...
Well, one would say, that if he do not read or see paper and channels then he may miss selling and will end in more loss....but where is the question of LOSS comes when market is tanking at 2000 points per day.....
One is feared of any massacre only if he has invested from borrowed money or taken a loan agianst F.D or shares......I advice my readers that never do any of the both....
Only invest those money which you will not need for 2-3 yrs atleast....
Alawys invest in market with money you would have put in NSC or KVP for 6 yrs....Just think that these money are as good as in NSC or KVP.....
Stock market has always given great returns in Long Run....Remember this....One has to SIT on the stocks....and hence one has to invest in fundamentally good stocks...
Remember, I will never give a speculative call.....never .....I still say that any stocks I have discussed here are buy at this time....Just BUY and forget for a year or two....
Never think for ST....never......
Coming back to market,lots of FII's buying is seen in F&O as well......someone must have shortsold and has to come back to cut that position...maybe this month, maybe next month....if it gets carried forward..maybe after that month...but he has to come to cut short.....
We have to just see what happens then.....
Well, friends , I am still sure of my targets of 28k-30k.......by Dec 08......
It is still a long way to go...we have even not passed 2 months.....

Thursday, February 14, 2008

A Day after..............

Friends,
After a long spell of bear run we saw a good runup yeseterday.
I read what Shankar Sharma(ss) spoke at CNBC in Taking Stock.But I do not consider his view seriously because he is not reliable.Once he was saying that if China can have P/E of over 50 then why not we?He was damn sure of 28k then and now he says we can go to the level of below 10k
That is rediculous.....
At 16300 level if stocks are down by 60-70 % then just imagine what will happen at 9999 level?It would mean "THE END" of the India SHOW to the WORLD.............
and that cannot happen......but if someone thinks like that, he may sell everything lock stock and barrel.
Well,the wound will take time to heal and that healing process can take couple of months more.
But according to me the maximum we can see is again 15800-15500....that is what I can see.The 12k or 10k targets are humbug....
I am actually concerned about the Industrial slowdown which should not have happened.
This slow down may impair a bull run for sometime and hence we consolidate between 15500 to 19000 for some time....
It is a matter of time the growth again become visible and a new Bull run will start again and that I think we can see anytime during July/Aug this year.............
Uptill that time we may remain in a range which I mentioned earlier.
Rpower has suked Rs 12,000 cr, $3 bn , and that is a big amt.People have lost heavily in F&O.Hence all these carnage happened will take time to get healed....any upmove will be dealt with selling and hence don't be in a hurry to buy.If one buy at lower level and gets 20% quick return sell to again buy at lower levels..maybe the level where he bought...
I think there is nothing wrong with the fundamental story and hence no need to worry...
Just hold on your position.....be it Midcap/Smallcap or A gr..........
But now those who have getin at high price , the holding period will be more.......and hence get ready for that...mentally..........

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Stay Invested........

Friends,
Well, seems 500-600 ponits up and down is now the order of the day.
Unless subprime crisis cools down,unless selling of US funds cools down, seems we will see lots of volatility uptill then.
It is natural that when selling will come volatiltity will be at the highest.
Well,decoupling is bound to take place sooner or later.India growth can't be ignored by the world.Moreover the US economy will also do well from second half as I have written here in past.
Many fund managers are sceptic about the decoupling theory, but time will come when we will see decoupling taking place as well.
My targets of 28k-30k are still intact which I gave here in Jan08...which could be achieved within a year .
If one must have seen, the retail participation in IPO of Ril Power was big enough to see that FII's investment though was of rs 17,000 cr, was way behind the total of retail participation in Rpower issue which was as big as 1 lac cr and issue was subscribed for total value of Rs 7 lac cr.
Here one is able to see the clear demarcation happening now between local money coming into play.It is obvious that those who will not get allotment will opt for buying RPower on listing day ,but the thing to be observed here is,the money which were in savings bank a/c come out for application for RPower and now will come to secondary market and thus will increase the stake of Public participation in Indian Market context and hence I feel that the day is not far off when FII's will not be able to take the call on our market.

Someone asked me , that some Rs 145 cr cheques went in Stop Payment for RPOwer IPO due to the recent meltdown, but when an issue is oversubscribed by 86 times at over Rs 7,00,000 cr , then what makes the difference for Rs.145 cr...It is just peanuts for the entire issue.
As I have written at the Heading..Stay Invested.........India story is not to end so abruptly......we have still a long way to go.India is where China was 15 yrs back.Try to understand what I am upto.
I have written couple of weeks back that someone sold heavily the futures of Nifty in our market and as Prashant showed, it was the biggest speculator on the earth,Mr George Soros who seems have done the damage, Viz:according to what we read in dnamoney paper.Don't know whether he has unwind his short position or not....
But the same George Soros has taken stake in Ril Entertainment.
Here I am putting that article which I read in Business Standard paper:

Soros invests $100mn in Rel Entertainment
BS Reporter / New Delhi February 07, 2008
George Soros has picked up 3% stake in Reliance Entertainment for $100 million (Rs 400 crore). The stake sale puts the value of the company at around $3 billion (approximately Rs 12,000 crore).Reliance Entertainment is the flagship and umbrella entertainment company of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and 100% owned by Anil Ambani.Reliance Entertainment has three main lines of business - Internet and new media, film entertainment and TV broadcasting.A Reliance Entertainment spokesperson confirmed the development, and added: "We are delighted to have a sophisticated investor like George Soros as a stakeholder in the company that operates in a high growth and high potential entertainment sector offering a complete bouquet of innovative products and services to its audience."Reliance Entertainment, under its Internet and new media initiatives, has already launched a number of ventures: Zapak, a gaming portal; Big Adda, a social network and social media venture; Big Flicks, an online and offline movie rentals business; and Jump Mobile, a mobile entertainment venture.The company has signed up frontline directors like Farhan Akhtar - for an estimated Rs 300 crore for six films - Madhur Bhandarkar and Vivek Agnihotri for production. It has recently acquired controlling stake in India's largest production studio - ND Studio. It has also initiated allied ventures such as Big Music (music CDs), Home Video(video) and animation & special effects.

Now if George Soros is so bearish on India then why the hell he is BUYING in Indian Market that too unlisted co?Well, I have again tried my best to pacify the recent shocks which market is still giving to us....
I hope , this is not the time to panic... but to buy stocks which have fallen sharply....

Though I have not to write this I still would write here again:
These are all my views and I may go wrong horribly....and anything written for anyone personally are my own view and read and understand while reading somewhere else....
I again cautioned all my viewers that take your own judegment and act judiciously taking advice from more concrete person.I am not the best judge of the situation individually...and hence one should act accordingly to his behest....




Tuesday, February 5, 2008

A wonderful Incidence...worth a read

gThe following may take few minutes, but worth reading in its right earnest

Thnx & rgds to all who read it very patiently...
I have read it somewhere else send by my friend, Mr.Pankaj Parmar, and I am highly indebted to him for sending me this incidence to me...........

My Commnets:
The question one should ask to himself, after reading this episode, whether one is paid more for what he does?and if he feels so then one should have no grievences for anything in his life............and I have been just talking with my brother-in-law who himself is BE, MBA...at Surat....this happened before I read the following
I told him,Ojas(his name)do you know, Bill Gates have a Philanthropic institution in which is the major DONAR and Warren Buffet donated a huge amt in it?
He said yes, he knows that.I told him, this type of Philanthropic work can only have been done by Bill Gtaes and with Warren Buffet sharing major piece....of donation....the figures were mindblowing, is it?Why it should have been Bills Gates?because he was a noncollegiate...........he has not even completed colloge.....and hence one can say he was not highly qualified for what he has acheived........hence he knows that it is his luck that has given him so much in life and that it is not his qualifiaction for which he is earning so big...and hence only those who feel that all what he is getting in his life is not his but something else has helped him in getting this and hence he should give it back to society.......
Otherwise , one thinks that what he is getting in his life is due to his qualification , that he was so brilliant that he ought to be there where he is now.............but that is not the case......as we see, Dhirubhai Ambani, Bills Gates, Warren Buffets , Kishore Biyani , Azim Premji...all are not BE's or IIT's or MBA still they made big...........


Read on:


Vivek Pradhan was not a happy man. Even the plush comfort of theair-conditioned compartment of the Shatabdi express could not cool hisfrayed nerves. He was the Project Manager and still not entitled to airtravel. It was not the prestige he sought, he had tried to reason with theadmin person, it was the savings in time. As PM, he had so many things to do!!He opened his case and took out the laptop, determined to put the time to some good use. "Are you from the software industry sir," the man beside him was staring appreciatively at the laptop. Vivek glanced briefly and mumbled in affirmation, handling the laptop now with exaggerated care and importance as if it were an expensive car."You people have brought so much advancement to the country, Sir. Today everything is getting computerized. ""Thanks," smiled Vivek, turning around to give the man a look.He always found it difficult to resist appreciation. The man was young and well built like a sportsman. He looked simple and strangely out ofplace in that little lap of luxury like a small town boy in a prep school.He probably was a railway sportsman making the most of his free traveling pass. "You people always amaze me," the man continued, "You sit in an office and write something on a computer and it does so many big things outside." Vivek smiled deprecatingly. Naiveness demanded reasoning not anger. "It is not as simple as that my friend. It is not just a question of writing a few lines. There is a lot of process that goes behind it." For a moment, he was tempted to explain the entire Software DevelopmentLifecycle but restrained himself to a single statement. "It is complex,very complex." "It has to be. No wonder you people are so highly paid," came the reply.This was not turning out as Vivek had thought. A hint of belligerence crept into his so far affable, persuasive tone. " Everyone just sees the money. No one sees the amount of hard work we have to put in. Indians have such a narrow concept of hard work. Just because we sit in an air-conditioned office, does not mean our brows do not sweat. You exercise the muscle; we exercise the mind and believe me that is no less taxing." He could see, he had the man where he wanted, and it was time to drive home the point."Let me give you an example. Take this train. The entire railwayreservation system is computerized. You can book a train ticket between any two stations from any of the hundreds of computerized booking centres across the country. Thousands of transactions accessing a single database, at a time concurrently; data integrity, locking, data security. Do you understand the complexity in designing and coding such a system?"The man was awestuck; quite like a child at a planetarium.This was something big and beyond his imagination. "You design and code such things." "I used to," Vivek paused for effect, "but now I am the Project Manager." "Oh!" sighed the man, as if the storm had passed over, "so your life is easy now."This was like the last straw for Vivek. He retorted, "Oh come on, does life ever get easy as you go up the ladder. Responsibility only brings more work. Design and coding! That is the easier part. Now I do not do it, but I am responsible for it and believe me, that is far more stressful. My job is to get the work done in time and with the highest quality. To tell you about the pressures, there is the customer at one end, always changing his requirements, the user at the other, wanting something else, and your boss, always expecting you to have finished it yesterday."Vivek paused in his diatribe, his belligerence fading with self-realisation. What he had said, was not merely the outburst of a wronged man, it was the truth. And one need not get angry while defendingthe truth. "My friend," he concluded triumphantly, "you don't know what it is to be in the Line of Fire".The man sat back in his chair, his eyes closed as if in realization. When he spoke after sometime, it was with a calm certainty that surprised Vivek. "I know sir, I know what it is to be in the Line of Fire." He was staring blankly, as if no passenger, no train existed, just a vast expanse of time.

"There were 30 of us when we were ordered to capture Point 4875 in the cover of the night. The enemy was firing from the top. There was no knowing where the next bullet was going to come from and for whom. In the morning when we finally hoisted the tricolour at the top only 4 of us were alive." "You are a...?""I am Subedar Sushant from the 13 J&K Rifles on duty at Peak 4875 in Kargil. They tell me I have completed my term and can opt for a soft assignment. But, tell me sir, can one give up duty just because it makes life easier. On the dawn of that capture, one of my colleagues lay injuredin the snow, open to enemy fire while we were hiding behind a bunker. It was my job to go and fetch that soldier to safety. But my captain sahib refused me permission and went ahead himself. He said that the first pledge he had taken as a Gentleman Cadet was to put the safety and welfare of the nation foremost followed by the safety and welfare of the men he commanded... ....his own personal safety came last, always and every time.""He was killed as he shielded and brought that injured soldier into the bunker. Every morning thereafter, as we stood guard, I could see him takingall those bullets, which were actually meant for me. I know sir....I know, what it is to be in the Line of Fire."Vivek looked at him in disbelief not sure of how to respond. Abruptly, he switched off the laptop. It seemed trivial, even insulting to edit a Word document in the presence of a man for whom valour and duty was a daily part of life; valour and sense of duty which he had so far attributed only toepical heroes.The train slowed down as it pulled into the station, and Subedar Sushant picked up his bags to alight."It was nice meeting you sir."Vivek fumbled with the handshake. This hand... had climbed mountains, pressed the trigger, and hoisted the tricolour. Suddenly, as if by impulse, he stood up at attention and his right hand went up in an impromptu salute.It was the least he felt he could do for the country.PS: The incident he narrated during the capture of Peak 4875 is a true-life incident during the Kargil war. Capt. Batra sacrificed his life while trying to save one of the men he commanded, as victory was within sight. For this and various other acts of bravery, he was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, the nation's highest military award.Live humbly, there are great people around us, let us learn!

Monday, February 4, 2008

My first post from USA.......

Friends,
I have reached the destination,USA safely, by the grace of God and by all the good wishes of you all.
Well, I would again write that , our market will be back to normal in due course of time.
I have no doubt about it and stocks which has gone down will be back to normal as well.They may take some more time , but they will come to the previous level.
That includes Allied Comp,SKS Logistic, Kir Ferro etc etc........Some may take more time some may go up early.