Times of India 11^th Nov 2010 carried a news item “All four accused held guilty of ragging Aman Kachroo to death” and went on “A sessions court today convicted four medical students accused of ragging their junior Aman Kachroo to death in Himachal Pradesh last year”.

Ragging – is just a word to those who have not experienced it and hence all of us will not fathom the grief of Mr Rajendra Kachroo, father of Aman, when he expresses his disappointment on the quantum of punishment.

Let us try and understand what Ragging is like?

» Continue reading “Times of India 11th Nov 2010 carried a news item “All four accused held guilty of ragging Aman Kachroo to death.””

Would like to start this series with tales that help children understand rational concepts; this way, as we go along, you (the reader) will soon be able to identify the kind of fiction that your child would benefit from.

The first ‘must-watch’ in my list is the animation film ‘Ratatouille’.

Short synopsis of the tale: would you even step into, let alone eat a meal that is cooked by a rat? This story is just that:  a heart-warming tale of a rat who wants to be a chef against all odds (family disapproval, failures and heartache and his being a ‘rat’).   » Continue reading “19 Feb 10, Friday: fairytales and children – part 2.”

First of all, children with learning disabilities are normal and if not more, then as gifted and talented as the rest of the kids out there; having understood and accepted this truth is perhaps half the battle won for parents of children with LD.
Raising a child with LD has its fair share of challenges and heartaches but ask ANY parent and they will tell you that raising a child is literally no child’s play (no pun intended). » Continue reading “18 Feb 10, Thursday: Learning disability (LD)”

A seemingly ‘light’ read which talks about how children who are looked after by grandparents are at a much higher risk of obesity as compared with those in the care of nurseries or other caregivers.
However, the root of this problem is much deeper and more pervasive: the problem of indulgence.   » Continue reading “17 Feb 10, Wednesday: the Times of India (‘ToI’), Tuesday, 16 Feb 10, page 21 “doting grandparents can make children obese”.”

Being a keen reader and lover of children’s fiction, I have often wondered their impact on young minds and this very thought became an idea for my new series of blogs – fiction that promote rational and irrational thinking in children – presenting the introductory chapter to this series.   » Continue reading “10 Feb 10, Wednesday: fairytales and children – part 1.”

Respect, sadly, a term that is myopically understood and applied especially in our culture; I am sure all of us have at some point in our lives heard the instructions ‘respect your elders’ which is often demonstrated by folding of hands or touching of feet; often, this show of respect comes with a life-long unwritten rule that respect means never arguing or having disagreements with the person you ‘show’ respect to.
The truth however, is far away from the reality; respect, if correctly understood and applied can be a key to a treasure trove of meaningful and long-lasting relationships.   » Continue reading “8 Feb 10, Monday: Respect !!”

An alarming number of cases of educated, working men and women causing life-taking accidents due to drunk and rash driving.

Is this an aberration or a pre-cursor to a trend where dangerous and reckless lifestyles and complete lack of regard for law and order will be the gen-next trend? » Continue reading “5 Feb 10, Friday: Times of India, Mumbai, page 14, Tuesday, 2 Feb 10 – ‘young, drunk and reckless at the wheel’”

Parents of the 15-year old boy, who faked his own kidnapping to escape an education where he lacked interest, should be thankful that their child did not resort to suicide as most others in the past have.
Having said that, what this teen did was irresponsible and equally and reckless; however, I’d like to focus here on the dire desperation that would lead a 15-year old to take such a crazy measure.    » Continue reading “3 Feb 10, Wednesday: Mumbai Mirror, Wednesday, 3 Feb 10: page 6 – “Forced into subject he disliked, Thane teen stages own ‘kidnap’””

This news piece where a group of college students beat up two fellow-students who were strong contenders in a fashion show had all the alarm bells ringing.

The future of our country stands in jeopardy as the reason for crimes by youngsters are getting dangerously trivial.
In this case, what caused these 20 year olds to resort to such mindless violence is perhaps this current mantra: “success no matter what”.

While the world is getting increasingly competitive, the competitors themselves are displaying absolute disregard for fair play and tolerance.  It seems that all that matters is success; how one achieves it is irrelevant.   » Continue reading “Mumbai Mirror, page 8, Saturday, 30 Jan 10 – ‘Desperate to win fashion show, students assault two classmates’”

A 14-year old, teenager kills his parents in a pre-planned, cold-blooded manner; stays overnight with the bodies playing video games and expresses no apparent remorse the next day.

Setting aside, just for a moment, the reasons why such a young child would commit such a heinous crime, I ask myself whether there are any early warning signs that could help us identify and help someone with such extreme aggression or should I just assume that the child had psychopathic tendencies and hence would have eventually done something like this?

Aggression amongst children is on a rise; blame it on over-exposure to media or lack of quality time with parents and loved ones; the truth is that children today are showing strong aggressive tendencies. » Continue reading “Mumbai Mirror, page 14, Thursday, 28 Jan 10 – ‘Boy, 14, kills parents over chores row’”