lunatechian (lunatech-ian) (Entries tagged as life)

The Hidden Tax on Indian Ambition

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 19:13:00 +0000

I spent years losing time I'll never get back. In Bangalore, 117 hours a year stuck in traffic. In Delhi, 76 hours. That's nearly three full days annually spent breathing exhaust fumes, watching productivity evaporate, and feeling ambition slowly suffocate in gridlock.

This isn't just my story. It's the story of millions of Indians trapped in cities that generate wealth but can't govern themselves.

Last week's Economic Survey finally said what we've all been living: India's cities are "economically central but politically peripheral." The top 10 cities hold roughly 9% of the population but generate nearly 28% of GDP—a 3× output multiplier. Yet they raise less than 0.6% of GDP in own-source revenue. They can't tax. They can't borrow. They can't plan their own futures.

The survey's conclusion is damning: "Global cities compete; Indian cities comply."

We've Built a System That Punishes Success

Here's what that compliance looks like in practice: affordable housing in the top eight cities collapsed from 52% of new supply in 2018 to just 17% by 2025. People who build India's economic engine can't afford to live near where they work. So they move further out, where housing is cheaper and commutes are brutal. The congestion gets worse. The tax base hollows out. The cycle repeats.

Meanwhile, the Economic Survey gently suggests cities should "prioritize the movement of people, not vehicles." What it should say is this: we've turned our roads into parking lots for single-occupancy cars while buses remain inadequate and metro coverage stays patchy. First-mile and last-mile connectivity is still an afterthought. Other global cities introduced congestion pricing decades ago. We're still debating it.

Informality Isn't the Bug—It's the Only Thing That Works

The survey notes that "informality is not an aberration but a structural outcome of rapid urbanization under constrained formal systems." Translation: our formal systems are so broken that informal systems have to fill the gaps.

Door-to-door garbage collection covers 98% of wards today. Impressive statistic. But when informal sanitation workers left Gurugram during a labor dispute, garbage piled up overnight. The entire system depends on invisible labor that we refuse to properly integrate or compensate. We'd rather pretend informality doesn't exist than acknowledge that it's the only reason our cities function at all.

We're More Urban Than We Admit

Official Census data from 2011 claims India's urbanization rate is around 31%. Satellite data tells a different story: some regions are functionally above 80% urban when you measure actual settlement patterns instead of administrative boundaries. We're governing 21st-century megacities with frameworks designed for towns.

The Economic Survey concludes that cities need fiscal power, planning power, and enforcement power to move from managing growth to benefiting from it. I'd go further: until cities can tax properly, borrow meaningfully, reform land use, integrate transit, and take political ownership of outcomes, nothing will change. And nothing is changing.

Why I Left

I left India because I got tired of watching ambition collide with dysfunction. Tired of living far from work because that's where housing was affordable. Tired of infrastructure expanding while institutions stayed broken. Tired of hearing about potential that never materializes because the system is designed to disperse power and avoid accountability.

India will keep producing globally competitive talent from structurally constrained cities. And that talent will keep leaving—not because India lacks opportunity, but because its cities can't translate economic productivity into livable realities. Until that changes, the brain drain isn't a failure of ambition. It's a rational response to urban failure.

Winter is ending

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Mon, 02 Feb 2026 00:09:00 +0000

How to use flight tail numbers to track flights

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 04:51:00 +0000

This is a useful tool for people to check the status of a commercial flight using the tail number of the airplane, without the need to subscribe to any services. As a passenger, this is useful because you can see where the airplane scheduled to fly you is currently, which can help keep track of delays and cancellations.

The first step is to find the tail number of the flight that you are scheduled to take. Head to the airports page of flightradar24 and get to the page of the airport that you will be flying out of. For example, if you are flying out of Oakland, California, this would be https://www.flightradar24.com/data/airports/oak. On that page, click the "Departures" tab. This will give a list of flights, along with their tail numbers.

For example, assuming that you are flying on the 8:05 PM Southwest flight to Reno (WN1282), the tail number is under the "Aircraft" column (N8313F).

Once you have the tail number, you can use flightaware.com to track the schedule, current location, flight path. Just put the tail number into the search box. Another useful tool is airfleets.com, which can show complete airplane details, as well as links to adsbexchange.

Milky Way

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 05:05:46 +0000

Looking at the milky way is an enlightening experience, especially if you know some of the science behind it. The Milky Way is the galaxy that contains our solar system. The milky color visible from earth comes from stars that cannot be individually distinguished by the naked eye. The view that we get of the galaxy does not even include phenomenons that we cannot observe: gamma-ray bursts, pulsars, black holes Looking at the milky way and contemplating how vast the universe is and how unique our blue dot is, is a very humanizing experience.

revisiting the play Julius Caesar as an adult

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 00:14:23 +0000

I have had to read and take an exam on the play Julius Caesar. This had meant that I was forced to read the play and not see it performed. I had always assumed the play Shakespeare's Julius Caesar to be about the death (and life) of Julius Caesar. I got a chance to see the play performed by OSF and it has led me to question some ideas I had about the play.

Cassius was not Brutus's puppeteer

One of the impressions I had about Cassius was he was the villain in the play and he was the puppeter who was controlling Brutus's opinions about Caesar and inciting Brutus against Caesar. However, as the play progresses, it becomes clear that Cassius was not a scheming villain and he was perfectly happy to give Brutus the role of the leader of the assassination plot. This is very clear when he wholeheartedly agrees to not bring Cicero into the plot.

Â CASSIUS

But what of Cicero? shall we sound him?
I think he will stand very strong with us.

CASCA

Let us not leave him out.

CINNA

No, by no means.

BRUTUS

O, name him not: let us not break with him;

For he will never follow any thing

That other men begin.

CASSIUS

Then leave him out.

The next time this happens is when Cassius warns Brutus to not let Marc Anthony speak

CASSIUS

Brutus, a word with you.

Aside to BRUTUS

You know not what you do: do not consent

That Antony speak in his funeral:

Know you how much the people may be moved

By that which he will utter?

BRUTUS

By your pardon;

I will myself into the pulpit first,

And show the reason of our Caesar's death:

What Antony shall speak, I will protest

He speaks by leave and by permission,

And that we are contented Caesar shall

Have all true rites and lawful ceremonies.

It shall advantage more than do us wrong.

CASSIUS

I know not what may fall; I like it not.

Another scene when this shines forth is the argument that Cassius and Brutus get into at the battlefield and Cassius offers Brutus his sword to kill Cassius. This way the argument ends shows Cassius

CASSIUS

Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come,

Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,

For Cassius is aweary of the world;

Hated by one he loves; braved by his brother;

Cheque'd like a bondman; all his faults observed,

My spirit from mine eyes! There is my dagger,

And here my naked breast; within, a heart

BRUTUS

Sheathe your dagger:

Be angry when you will, it shall have scope;

Do what you will, dishonour shall be humour.Â

Was the play about Caesar or about Brutus?

The other thing that stands out is that it is a little difficult to say Julius Caesar is the protagonist of the play. A lot of the play centers around the internal struggle that Brutus goes through before and after the assassination of Julius Caesar. Â There are monologs where Brutus tries to resolve his doubts about assasinating his friend and a man who trusts Brutus.

One part that stands out is towards the end of the play, when Brutus comments on how good his life has been

BRUTUS

My heart doth joy that yet in all my life

I found no man but he was true to me.

I shall have glory by this losing day

More than Octavius and Mark Antony

By this vile conquest shall attain unto.

Even his enemies respected Brutus.

ANTONY

This was the noblest Roman of them all:

All the conspirators save only he

Did that they did in envy of great Caesar;

He only, in a general honest thought

And common good to all, made one of them.

This is in sharp contrast to the life of Julius Caesar who was assasinated by people who were close to him and thought of him as a tyrant.

Quote from "The Stranger" by Albert Camus

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 03:24:24 +0000

My dear,
In the midst of hate, I found there was, within me, an invincible love.
In the midst of tears, I found there was, within me, an invincible smile.
In the midst of chaos, I found there was, within me, an invincible calm.
I realized, through it all, that ...
In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.
And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there's something stronger - something better, pushing right back.

Truly yours,
Albert Camus

Is it the start of the American apocalypse?

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Tue, 29 Nov 2016 15:19:16 +0000

From The Intercept's article "Donald Trump Will Be President. This is What We Do Next.", this section captures the most dominant thought I have:

Be not downhearted.

Don't give up. As bone-chilling as this moment is, it also proves that no one's in charge and just about everything in America's up for grabs. After all, Bernie Sanders looks like he's appearing in a role where the casting notice read: "Male, 70s, white, must look exactly like the caricature of a socialist from 1980s right-wing agitprop." Yet from a standing start he almost beat Hillary Clinton.

Young Americans are extremely progressive, so much so that Frank Luntz, the GOP's top pollster, says it should "frighten every business and political leader." To some degree we just need to engage in a holding action until they're running things.

Despite having no resources other than lots of cell phones with the Twitter app, Black Lives Matter has done more to blunt police brutality than anyone in the past 40 years. There should be classes taught around the world about how they're doing it.

However, there is a section of people who might be harmed by the administration. There is no easy way to predict what the targets would be and how they will be targeted.

it's real hard to be free

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Mon, 06 Jul 2015 14:59:43 +0000

Billy: What the hell is wrong with freedom? That's what it's all about.

George Hanson: Oh, yeah, that's right.

That's what's it's all about, all right.

But talkin' about it and bein' it, that's two different things. I mean, it's real hard to be free when you are bought and sold in the marketplace.

Of course, don't ever tell anybody that they're not free, 'cause then they're gonna get real busy killin' and maimin' to prove to you that they are.

Oh, yeah, they're gonna talk to you, and talk to you, and talk to you about individual freedom. But they see a free individual, it's gonna scare 'em.

â€” Easy Rider

Thoughtstream 2013-08-13

nospam@example.com (moblog) — Tue, 13 Aug 2013 14:30:00 +0000

On hipsters

The difference between a hipster and a geek

This is the major difference between a hipster and a geek: When a hipster sees someone else grooving on the thing they love, their reaction is to say “Oh, crap, now the wrong people like the thing I love.” When a geek sees someone else grooving on the thing they love, their reaction is to say “ZOMG YOU LOVE WHAT I LOVE COME WITH ME AND LET US LOVE IT TOGETHER.”

Hipsters On Food Stamps, Part 1 has a line that precisely captures what I think about obsessively posting pictures of food

There's plenty of attention to style, to identity, and regression to our most primitive instinct: eating, fetishized.

On buying

An Interview With Craigslist's Notorious Google Glass Hater

I hate commodity fetishization. I don't mean that in the Marxist sense. I mean the process of deriving of pleasure from the purchase of commercial goods above and beyond the actual value or utility of the product.

visa interview in Chennai

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 18:43:58 +0000

Yesterday I had to go to Chennai for my US visa interview. Chennai is a really sucky city, it sucks even worse than Bangalore . Here is an account of the process.

Documents required

The vfs-usa.co.in site has a list of documents that you require to bring along with you. If you filled the visa form at the vfs-usa.co.in site, you would have received a printout of the forms D156, D157 and an appointment letter mentioning the data and time of your visa interview.

I had packed in all the required documents the night prior to my departure to Chennai. Due to security concerns you are not allowed to carry mobile, CDs, music player or any electronic device into the consulate building. However, you are allowed to carry books and one polybag with all your documents inside. These people are really serious about security - do not bring any stuff which is prohibited. You will not be allowed to carry it inside no matter what.

Since books were not on their Do not carry list, I took along a printout of the MySQL Internals manual for my inflight entertainment.

Reaching there

The American consulate is located in Anna Salai. Once you get down at the airport, you will find a government operated prepaid taxi counter there. They will charge you 240 Rs. (rupees) for a taxi to the American consulate. The people manning the counter were able to understand english.

Since I was returning back to Bangalore the same day, I had not made any reservations in a hotel for my stay. The taxi driver knew the place and he dropped me infront of the consulate gate. The guards there guided me to the gate through which the visa interviewees had to pass.

Passing time

I reached the consulate by 0900 though my interview was at 1230. There was a average sized queue at the gate. I liked the queue managment system at the Chennai consulate. The guards called out the interview time that was mentioned in the appointment letter and people who were scheduled at that time moved ahead in the queue. Since my interview was scheduled atYou will 1230, I roamed around in the streets to pass time.

It is really a hard job to pass time in Chennai. There were no parks or malls in the nearby area. Since I did not know the city well enough, I did not want to wander far off from the consulate.

After killing nearly two hour, I got into the queue at 1100 hours. I was allowed into the consulate at 1300 hours.

Pre-screening of the documents

Once you are inside the consulate, you have to wait to have your passport, forms D156 and D157 verified. The officers check if you are missing something. They are quite efficient. You have chairs available once you get inside the consulate.

By the time I reached the pre-screening counter, it was already 1430. Unluckily for me, the photograph on my form was not of the correct size. The officer at the counter asked me to get a proper sized photograph and come back again in an hour.

There is a market near the consulate and the shopkeepers there understand english and hindi. I asked around and quickly located a place to have my photograph taken. It was a seedy place and the photographer charged me 200 Rs. for four correct sized photograph. My guess is that he charged me at least thrice the price I would normally have paid.

I hurried back to the consulate and showed the guards at the front gate that I had been rescheduled for my interview and I had originally been called aat 1230. He kindly allowed me to go in without waiting in the queue.

This time around I did not have a problem in the pre-screening part and they asked me to go in for my visa interview.

Visa interview

There was quite a crowd waiting for their visa interview. However, the queue managment was again good here and no one was complaining. There were enough chairs around, so waiting was not too much of a hassle.

You first had to get your fingerprint taken and then stand in a queue to have one of the officers interview you. I was quite apprehensive about the interview as I had heard quite a lot of stories about the randomness of the visa interviewers in rejecting the visas. However, I was quite surprised. The visa interviewers gave perfectly coherent reasons for the rejection of the visas. They were direct, but polite in their rejections. They asked pertinent questions and I do not think that hassling the visa interviewees was their aim.

When my turn came, I was asked a few question about why I was going to US and told that my visa has been spproved and I would receive it in 2-3 days . I was quite happy and came out of the consulate. The process ended at 1700.

Back to Bangalore

My flight was at 2125. I killed time till 1830 and then took an autorickshaw to the airport. He charged me 150 Rs. and dropped me at the airport by 1915. I walked inside the airport, found an empty seat and tried to get some sleep. Since I had done lot of walking that day, my feet were killing me. I took off my shoes too and then tried to get some more sleep. Pretty soon the boarding for my flight was announced. I got into the the aeroplane, flew back to Bangalore and was back home by 2300.

All in all, it was a tiring experience, but a productive one.

eight areas of life that need to be balanced

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 16:47:55 +0000

I am sure I have heard these same divisons some place else, but I am not sure where. From what I remember, the speaker told us that imagine your life to be a circle and allocate each of these areas a portion of that circle. The area allocated to each of the areas should be proportionate to the time and energy you spend in that area. An ideal secenario would be that you have a circle in which all the areas are nearly equal.

Without much ado, here are the eight areas

Career/Work - In the ideal world, we all love our work. In the real world, we do not. Find a way to be grateful for your job, and useful. You will spend a lot of time at work, better to have a positive experience while there.
Creativity - This is where hobbies are important. Perhaps you are an artist? Find time to create. A great hobby is photography. You can do it as you walk through your neighborhood. It is also a great way to meet people, and to share experiences with others through your photos.
Intellectual - This is an area which is very neglected. It is important that you keep your intellect sharp. One way to do so is to read the newspaper on a daily basis. Or, dive into classic works of fiction, or poetry.
Health & Fitness - Get in shape and stay in shape. There is no substitute for a great diet either. These are critical for living a healthy, balanced life. People who eat right and are in shape have better attitudes than those who do not. If your body feels better, you will feel better.
Social - You need to spend time with your friends, relaxing and socializing. It is very important to have an active social life, as it keeps you connected and involved with the world. Also, having fun and sharing laughs helps you recharge intellectually and emotionally. Without an active social life, people tend towards depression and isolation.
Family - This can be sensitive for some people who experienced difficulties with their parents when they were younger. Your family can be a great source of comfort and connection, as well being supportive through difficult times. It is common for people to feel challenged in their family lives. However, growing through these challenges forges character and integrity.
Companionship & Intimacy - Ultimately, every person deserves a lasting, meaningful relationship. It can be both nurturing and challenging. Ultimately, it serves to help us be open to another person, and understand the nature of intimacy and love. Intimate relationships are important in any person’s development. The result is a greater sense of ourselves, and a more fulfilling and happy life. Most of you reading this are probably looking for this.
Austerity - Lastly, each of us needs time alone. This is when we recharge and connect with ourselves, and our purpose. Perhaps this is when we indulge in our hobbies, or when we practice daily meditation. Spending time alone helps us reenter the world feeling refreshed and connected.

Link

stuff that sucks

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 11:57:51 +0000

Small list of stuff everyone thinks is cool, but I did not find them worth the price all the electrons had to pay

Second life - seriously people, what is so great about it that you are paying real world money for virtual stuff.
A-list Bloggers - some of them are a bunch of pretentious idiots. Enough said.
Orkut

thinking big

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 11:29:18 +0000

My manager made a very good one-liner today (in context of whether we should concentrate on research or on actual implementation)

Think big and implement in small steps.

desperate to be noticed ?

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 04:04:18 +0000

Seen on one of the mailing lists that I am on

I've heard it said - and find this to be true in enough cases to be useful as a rough guide - that men often try to stimulate conversation by disagreement, while women generally do the opposite (this provides a highly amusing view of teenagers' conversations involving the apposite sex, which tend to illustrate this, or something very close to it.) If so, then the Net often appears to be full of 12-year-old boys, stoned out of their minds on their brand-new experience with testosterone and desperate to be noticed.

Unluckily ( ) Yahoo! Bangalore has seen a big influx of "freshers" these days. Most of them come across as idiots, but I guess it is just their eagerness ( perhaps desperation would be the correct word) to get noticed.

touched by an angel

nospam@example.com (Raj Shekhar) — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 18:29:19 +0000

I was in a very sour mood while I was driving back from work today. When I stopped in one of the frequent traffic snarls that adorn the roads of Bangalore, I saw that next to me was an autorickshaw with a small girl and her family. The small girl reached out and touched the rear view mirror of my bike. I made my don't-mess-with-me face at her and she just smiled at me. My reflex was to smile back at her and my bad mood was promptly broken. Sometimes I wonder how many of these small opportunities to make someone's days better have I have missed.