Dinesh Kamath wishes all his readers a very happy and prosperous New Year

Hi,

I wish my readers a very happy and prosperous New Year. The year 2011 has at last come to an end and 2012 has begun. 2011 was not a bad year for me at least. I hope that 2012 will prove to me a still better year than the last one. I hope my readers will continue reading my works this year too. I promise that I'll come up with still better materials for my readers to read. I also invite my readers' opinions about my works, may they be positive or negative. That way I'll be in a position to improve myself as a writer and cartoonist. Man cannot survive without oxygen and a writer cannot survive without readers. Thus for any writer a reader is a very important person. So I pray to God to continue giving me inspiration to write stuffs which can be appreciated by a large number of readers. Bye!

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (Make this New Year a happy one) that was published in Newsband

Make this New Year a happy one
New Year has arrived. The old year has gone. Navi Mumbaikars need to learn from their experiences of the old year and see to it that during this New Year the problems are eliminated or minimized considerably.
Last year witnessed a spate of crimes taking place in the city. All types of crimes were detected. There were incidents relating to chain-snatching, house-breaks, looting, smuggling, human trafficking etc. Many culprits, who committed these crimes were arrested but many are yet to be caught. It is high time the police department made maximum use of technology to prevent such crimes or solve criminal cases. Use of CCTV scanners and softwares should be made in big way. Investigating techniques need to be improved considerably. Policemen should dwell into the roots of these crimes. This way they will be in a position to prevent such crimes from occurring again. After all, prevention is better than cure. Also, It is better to cure than to endure. So the first attempt should be to prevent crimes. But if in spite of this attempt crimes occur then it is very necessary to somehow or the other solve these crimes. Crimes unsolved will only give a boost to the confidence of criminals who will then go on to commit more and more crimes.
It became evident from the incidents that took place last year that traffic police in Navi Mumbai have real tough time controlling drunken driving, talking on mobile phone while driving, speed driving etc. The punishment for erring drivers should be made more stringent to set examples to the other drivers. This is the only way in which drivers of vehicles can be controlled and in the process road accidents can be averted completely or minimized considerably. Another thing that was noticed last year was people going on protest march for various reasons. One feels relieved to see people resorting to democratic method of expressing their grievances. The fact that residents of the city take resort to protesting rather than rioting, like it would happen in olden days, has provided tremendous relief to the residents of the city. The authorities concerned should also cooperate and solve the protestors' problems promptly so that such protests do not take violent forms. It is not only the duty of the protestors to resort to peaceful expressing of their grievance, but it is also the responsibility of the concerned authorities to whom these complaints are made to take quick, immediate actions against the problems and thus leave no room for any more protest march to take place again. Thus we should learn from our bitter experiences of last year and see to it that during this New Year the past mistakes are not repeated.

Dinesh Kamath's columns on 'Movie and TV World' (Vidya Balan) that were published in Newsband

Dinesh Kamath's columns on Movie and TV World that were published in Newsband

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (What's happening inside Navi Mumbai?) that was published in Newsband

What's happening inside Navi Mumbai?
It is winter time and the clothing stores (especially the branded ones) in Navi Mumbai grandly announce their 'just out' winter collection. But alas when you step inside these places and browse through racks and racks of badly arranged clothes you'll find nothing fit for winter. The colours are the dreary black, grey and brown, you'll never get the size you want and the less said about the tacky fabric the better. Whatever happened to whites, ivories, pastel blues, greens, pinks, the winter lemon and all-weather lavender and the fruity orange?
Another common sight in the hustle-bustle of urban life is rag pickers. Lack of basic amenities and poverty seems to be forcing the lower stratum of the society to continue to practice child labour. The good side is that these street urchins and little tramps do it for their livelihood instead of getting involved in theft or robbery or worse, taking the macabre road to become drug peddlers or gang members. These poor children step out of their homes early in the morning and get back by dusk with a few rupees to show after a full day's of hard work. This is acceptable in rural India. But what about the cosmopolitan city? Who would look after these hapless children who go about daily to collect crates, wooden planks, paper, plastic and waste materials to feed their hunger and families? One begins wondering whether India really has attained Independence.
Broken streetlights add to residents' woes. Streetlights in most sectors in the city are non-functional. Residents rue that roads in various sectors are not safe during night in the absence of streetlights. While most of the dividing roads are plunged into darkness after sunset, the internal roads are no better. At least the roads leading to the residential areas and hospitals and police stations should have proper streetlight. At many places, hardly any action is being taken by the corporation to make the faulty streetlights work. All efforts of the residents fall on deaf ears. Streetlights in some areas have been non-functional for the past few months. The residents are also facing sanitation problems and stray dog menace. Incidents involving anti-social elements are on the rise in these areas. It's high time NMMC took notice of these matters which are not minor problems at least for those who are affected by these problems.
It is good to see Navi Mumbai cops preparing themselves to send drunk drivers to jail. Mumbai traffic police have started a week-long campaign by roping in restaurant, club and bar owners to prevent revelers from causing trouble. Clearly, the authorities are in no mood to let trouble-makers get away this festive season. This is indeed a great attempt to keep instances of drunk driving under control. Traffic police equipped with breath analysers are common sight today and this has provided relief to pedestrians. Navi Mumbai traffic police should continue this good work.

Photographs of Dinesh Kamath, Editor of Newsband, clicked by Amit Kumar Srivastav, Reporter of Newsband, on 28 December 2011

Dinesh Kamath is planning to be a big time English playwright and English play producer

Hi,
I am seriously trying to be a professional English playwright and also Producer of English plays. I've tested myself and I've found that I can write minimum one one-act English play every day. I've also found out that Mumbai is a paradise for those who are interested in English Theater. There are theaters like Prithvi Theater at Juhu, Tejpal Hall at Grant Road, St Andrews Auditorium at Bandra, National Center For Performing Arts at Nariman Point and still more which provide enormous scope for those interested in English Theaters. These places provide the talented ones a platform to display their arts. The best thing is there is a huge audience in Mumbai who can appreciate English plays. That is the reason why I'm seriously thinking of trying my luck in English Theaters. Will I achieve success as an English playwright and Producer of English plays? That only time can tell! Bye!

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (Interesting happenings in Navi Mumbai) that was published in Newsband

Interesting happenings in Navi Mumbai
The peddlers or hawkers on trains are a resilient lot. This holds truer for children and women who adroitly jump in and out of trains with their wares. Some of the girls, barely out of their teens, with babies perched on their waists, are a plucky lot. These hawkers prove the point that 'Might is Right'. When two hawkers selling the same goods board the same compartment, a fight between them ensues and the vanquished has to get down from the train. Older hawkers bully the younger ones thus making the lives of latter miserable. In this world where might is believed to be right many find the need to learn self-defence techniques. Martial Art is no more an art. It is a necessity for every person. In Navi Mumbai, there are useful workshops relating to safety measures, guideline of self-help conducted. These camps get good response especially from the children of the city. There are also classes that teach fighting techniques with the help of which you can single-handedly defend a large group of bad elements at one time. Apart from Lexim and aerobics, technique like 'Manchurian Kung-fu' or 'lathi' is also taught. These techniques are very useful, particularly for the girls and women. Simple accessories like wristwatch, pen, hair pin, ear ring can be your weapons to fight them. Chimei gun, duan gun, chang gun and wudang zhenwu are some of the techniques that are being taught at the camp. There are championships and tournaments relating to these fighting techniques held every now and then and many city residents participate in these events with great enthusiasm. That's really great! Another interesting thing that exists in this city is the cool golas. Kids particularly are attracted to these golas. Even the adults find it difficult to lay their hands off the cold dessert that is available in endless variety of syrupsstrawberry, mango, orange, lemon, khus-khus, rainbow and the eternal favourite kala khatta. Civic authorities keep issuing warnings that the source of ice and quality of syrup with which these golas are prepared are questionable. But yet people find golas irresistible. It is observed that at some places reckless dumping takes place. This sometimes leaves only one lane for motorists to commute. Although it's a two-lane road, due to debris, only one lane is operational. It is high time the municipal corporation created dumping sites by raising walls in those parts of the city where construction work is on. It would not only solve the problem of debris disposal but also help widen narrow roads and reclaim land for building parking places.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (Protesting is better than rioting) that was published in Newsband

Protesting is better than rioting
2011 has been a year of protests not only in India but also all over the world. There were protest in Cairo, New York, Athens, Madrid, Moscow and even New Delhi. People in general have been on the march and protests to oppose injustices. It is clear that people in not only India but also those all over the world have become aware of their democratic rights. They have developed confidence in democratic methods of bringing about a change. They realize that peaceful march and protests can achieve results that violent riots cannot. That's a good change in the attitude of general public that we are witnessing.
Causes for protests haven't been the same everywhere. In some places protests have been against autocratic rule. This led to leaders in four major Arab nations getting toppled this year. It is clear that the days of other Arab dictators are numbered. In Russia too people have begun to embrace democracy since they have become aware of the power that lies in democratic methods. Hence they too resorted to protests against the arrogance of power displayed by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. They are totally against the idea that Putin should run for president, and remain in power for a decade
In the West, protests were against economic mismanagement and deteriorating material condition. In India, civil society protests have focused not so much on the absence of democracy but rather on the limited choice made available by political parties within the democratic space. Here scams after scams were unearthed this year. It has become clear that the government has no fixed ideology as such and just believes in indulging in corrupt practices. In the matter of economic policymaking, no party is offering any real alternative. An average India has lost confidence in the government and he or she is fed up of slow growth and spiraling inflation. The government is just not able to come to grips with the problems and they just hold debates and discussions in Parliament and are not able to arrive at a decision that can please the masses. This is what has led the civil society to protest against this political order. Anna Hazare-led anti-corruption movement is an example.
Our country suffers from leadership deficit. Our leaders are not able to fulfill the needs of an emerging, aspirational, predominantly young India. Such type of agitations will continue if fundamental rights of common man continues to get trampled. If normalcy has to be achieved, it is the common man who should get justice and whose fundamental rights should be respected.

Dinesh Kamath, Editor of Newsband, wishes his readers Happy and Merry Christmas and (in advance) a Happy and Prosperous New Year

Hi,
Today is 25th December 2011 and it's a Christmas Day. During this day I remember Bandra - the place I was born and grew up in. I also remember Vasco Da Gama - the place where I spent six years of my childhood. Both these places were densely populated by Catholics who would celebrate Christmas Day in a big and grand way. On this day there would be loud and sweet music all around. One could get the sight of all the Catholics clad in beautiful dresses going to the Church early in the morning for mass prayer held specially for Christmas Day. Big parties were held in most of the Catholic homes on this day and the sound of party people singing in unison would emanate from houses that belonged to Catholics. One could even get the sight of them dancing to the tunes of popular Western and Indian songs. Christmas Day would be a special occasion for all residing in Bandra and Vasco Da Gama. Varieties of sweets would be distributed and all would wish each other 'Happy and Merry Christmas'. So these are my remembrances of Christmas Days. I take this opportunity to wish all my readers 'Happy and Merry Christmas'. I also wish them 'Happy and Prosperous New Year' in advance. Bye!

Cartoonist Dinesh Kamath displays more of his cartoons on Puno which were published in Newsband

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial (City of opportunity) that was published in Newsband

City of opportunity
Navi Mumbai is rapidly growing into a residential and commercial hub. The planning that has gone into building the city is simply excellent. The residents are enjoying a better degree of comfort and self-sufficiency than they would have got elsewhere in the region. Almost half the population of the city moved to Navi Mumbai because it is a better place to stay. Navi Mumbai's population has multiplied considerably in 10 years and a huge section of the city's workforce is employed in Navi Mumbai itself. Only a small section travel to Mumbai for work. Most Navi Mumbaikars don't travel outside the city to work. Many people migrate to Navi Mumbai because houses are easily available here. Also closeness to the workplace tempts them to settle in Navi Mumbai. This city has excellent infrastructure. The city has transport, water, electric supply and planned settlements and these things attract the home seekers towards this place. While much of Mumbai's workforce soldiers through jammed roads and crowded trains to get to work, many Navi Mumbaikars enjoy the luxury of short walks or drives to schools and offices. The city is beautifully planed and it is no wonder that it is called 'city of the 21st century'. The best thing is this city is growing without falling prey to usual urban ills, congestion. Navi Mumbai is undoubtedly “the city of opportunity”. Another plus-point of Navi Mumbai is that its authorities don't fail to take prompt action when tragedies occur in the neighbouhood. In other words, they learn from their neighbour's experience. For example, after the 26/11 tragedy in 2008, the city fire department tried to match modern technology with sophisticated Sky lifts and other machineries in place. The new-found desire to upgrade has also forced the pot-bellied firemen to become fit and alert all the time to attend to calls 24X7. In one of the mock drills, the fire fighters had demonstrated their speed, agility, courage and valor. They handled very efficiently the imported fire safety equipments. They regularly go through rigorous training regimen. The show was very impressive. The preparedness and promptness displayed by the fire personnel manifested that the residents of Navi Mumbai were in 'safe' hands. Another thing about the city is that in the cooler months of the year the residents get not only the much needed respite from the heat but also they get to witness the best in flowers and foliage. Thus Navi Mumbai is not only a beautiful city but a city which has great future.

Cartoonist Dinesh Kamath displays more of his cartoons on Alooramji that were published in Newsband