Ghumakkad in Hindi means 'the wanderer'. That is what I am. On the move any time anywhere!
This blog chronicles Ghumakkad's travels/teachings/learnings around the globe as picture stories. In addition, there are Picturesque Quotes (PQs) created using my pictures. Enjoy it.
If you have also been to the places/topics described here, please feel free to add to the content.
Your comments/ suggestions are welcome.
42 years ago, Ghumakkad then a Lieutenant in the Indian Navy, had 'dedicated' his Master's Dissertation on Naval War Gaming at IIT Kanpur to its 'own obsolescence'. Am reproducing the dedication below as it answers the opening questions:
"It is not pleasant to think that warfare is fundamental to the nature of man, and indeed it may not necessarily be so. However, through all recorded history we find this unfortunate trend. Perhaps, some day the present effort will become pointless/irrelevant i.e. when wars will no longer exist. In that light, this work is dedicated to its own obsolescence."
Independent India has witnessed many wars. 1971 war fought both in the eastern and western sectors, gave birth to a new nation Bangla Desh.
Swarnim Vijay Varsh स्वर्णिम विजय वर्ष - meaning the Golden Jubilee Year of the Victory- is being celebrated in India. The Prime Minister of India had flagged off four Victory Flames- Vijay Mashal विजय मशाल - from the National War Memorial in New Delhi on 16th Dec 2020. India had won the war on 16th Dec 1971. The Victory Flame is traversing the length and breadth of the country including the villages of PVC (Param Vir Chakra परम वीर चक्र ) and MVC (Maha Vir Chakra महा वीर चक्र ) gallantry awardees of the War. The Flame after visiting A&N Islands onboard a Naval ship and other towns in southern India by road, arrived in Secunderabad on 9th Sep 2021.
Naval units and Veterans of Secunderabad received the Flame with honour and reverence at a ceremony held at Navy House Secunderabad on 11th Sep 21. This story briefly recreates the solemn occasion. Naval children in station energised the audience with their inspiring performance. Naval band from the Eastern Naval Command, needless to add, brought nostalgia for all Veterans like me. The whole event was coordinated by Lt Cdr Akhila Somaraju a lady officer of Indian Navy. Hail the women of the world!
Glimpses of an unforgettable morning.
The Victory Flame was received with the dignity and reverence. See the short video clip below.
Naval war veterans were felicitated on the occasion. Though in their 70s and 80s, the josh in the veteran officers and sailors was visible. See the picture below.
The Naval Band enthralled us all with number of performances. Here is Indian Fleet March played that morning. In case you are unable to view the YouTube video, you may click this link.
The climax of the event was dance performances by Naval school children of Secunderabad. Drawn from different schools and age groups, the children reside in different locations in Secunderabad. It was admirable to see such excellent collaboration and coordination despite Covid restrictions. Am sharing three of their performances here. The first performance was based on Teri Mitti from the film Kesari. YouTube link is here.
In the next clip, the children enact 'How is the Josh' and other numbers. YouTube link is here.
They also gave an electric performance based on AR Rahman's famous song Jai Ho from the movie Slumdog Millionaire. YouTube link is here.
After their performances, I went backstage to congratulate the teachers and the students. They were a spirited lot as you can see in the picture below.
As mentioned in the beginning of the story, the whole program had been put together by a lady officer. Ghumakkad requested her for a picture.
As the Victory Flame moves on to cover the rest of the country, we once again salute the brave sons of India who laid down their lives during the 1971 War. All the four Victory Flames will converge at the War Memorial in New Delhi. The Prime Minister will formally receive the Flames on 16th Dec 2021 on completion of Swarnim Vijay Varsh. Proud of India, proud of our Armed Forces.
Jai Hind!
- Harsh Bhargava-the-Ghumakkad and former Commodore, Indian Navy/ 18th Sep 2021/ Secunderabad
Teachers expect their students to score 10/10. But are the teachers themselves 10/10? If they are not 'perfect', how can they become 10/10? This was the theme of Ghumakkad's workshop for 200+ teachers of St Mary's Educational Society in Hyderabad on 1st June 2017. Part of an annual two-day orientation program for all teachers, it was a great learning experience. Held at the compact campus of Sancta Maria International School, it caught the eye of Ghumakkad's lens as well.
The open-air theatre does not guzzle power for ACs.
Ghumakkad as 'teacher's teacher' had many such opportunities in recent past. One criticism against college education is that it is distanced from reality.You can browsea one day workshop titled 'Bringing Realism into Classroom'--conducted separately for Management and Engineering faculty members. Similarly, how to make 'Classroom a Fun Place' --you can get few practical ideas from Ghumakkad. Teacher 10/10?
We all remember our teachers. Or, at least one such teacher who made an impact on our life and how we learnt things. What was one distinguishing quality of such teachers? An on-line query on social media led to 200+ responses in 24 hours. Summary of desired quality/attribute in a teacher who could be called 10/10 follows. We validated these qualities with 200+ teachers present in the workshop. It was a perfect correlation. We thus felt satisfied with our methodology. We categorised the desired qualities into six groups. Next challenge for us the teachers-- is how to develop each of these qualities? We shared some personal experiences on each of the six attributes/qualities. Am sure teachers will find it useful- both at college as well as senior school levels. More suggestions are welcome. Summary of points discussed in the workshop are given below.
Ghumakkad first thanked all his teachers as well as students for all the learnings in his life. Some of the organisations/institutions where Ghumakkad has taught are represented below.
A live query was made to all the teachers present in the workshop. Their responses are summarised in the slide below.
Summary of teachers' responses matched perfectly with on-line crowd sourcing done a day earlier! Whether you are a teacher or not, does your response match with the six groups of attributes which every teacher should have?
Having identified the attribute how to develop it in a teacher? Few practical suggestions from Ghumakkad follow.
Universities and colleges have lofty visions and catchy tag lines. But as a teacher are you able to walk the talk?
To conclude, the diagram below says it all. Teachers must know the difference between teaching and learning. When the two merge magic happens!
As someone said..
We hope it has helped fellow teachers in soul searching. Please do not hesitate in reaching Ghumakkad for further help, if any. Ghumakkad's session was followed by a very interesting session titled 'What Leaders should NOT do?' Taken by renowned management professional Prof Abhiram Krishna, it charged up the audience. Pictures.
Mr Reddy Chairman of the Society presented a memento to me. It was a framed painting done by a school child. Very thoughtful indeed.
As we say it's a small world. After the session, one of the faculty members came forward to introduce herself. She comes from a Naval family. Delightful meeting Miss Jyotsna.
While I was taking few pictures after my session, Prof Mathew caught me in the act. Picture below courtsey him.
Ghumakkad wishes to thank the organisers for a wonderful workshop and for the opportunity. Thanks for browsing - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad/ 1st June 2017 hbindia@gmail.com
