Originally published in Envision — the internal magazine of Decos India, July 2011. I served as editor of this magazine. Reproduced here as a personal archive. View original ↗

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Hello all,

I am quite amazed to see the kind of socio-political insensitivity reflected through last month’s Jan Lokpal Bill poll result.

It was heartening to see that 42% of people believe the bill will help root out corruption. But it was sad to see that only 14 people out of 100+ cast their vote. The tendency to not participate is not a good sign — even when it is on an online platform. The problem of corruption has become serious today precisely because we never use the power of our vote. In a way, our tendency to disengage is responsible for much of what we face and suffer. As responsible citizens of India, we should be informed about things that will have a big impact on our political system. I urge you to read more about the Jan Lokpal Bill in this newsletter.

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Culture is the common bond that ties people within a particular region together. It is the bridge that brings individuals into a society. The customs and traditions we follow, the festivals we celebrate, the clothes we wear, the food we eat — these common things bind us together. Slowly, they evolve into culture. And unknowingly, each individual is shaped by the values of that culture.

This month we have seen two such cultural events around us.

The first is an event with over 700 years of history — the Pandharpur Vari, the pilgrimage to Pandharpur. It is a great celebration in Maharashtra where people make the pilgrimage to Pandharpur carrying the Palakhis of the saints from their places of Samadhi. We have seen two such Palakhis in Pune — one of Sant Tukaram Maharaj and the other of Sant Dnyaneshwar Maharaj. Notably, people travel for 21 days on foot and cover 150 km. In this issue you can read an article covering what this Vari is all about and how it is going this year.

The second event took place at our company. Since last year, we have started celebrating Culture Day — an event close to our hearts. Through it, we make a purposeful attempt to understand and refine our cultural values. As an outcome of last year’s cultural day, you now have a blue card with our corporate values — some of you have it on your desk, some carry it in your wallet. This year, different teams worked in different locations. Read the complete article about Culture Day in this issue.

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How can we use the experience of others to achieve success? Mountains are often seen from afar — beautiful, interesting, full of challenge. But what happens when we try to draw closer? A must-read, beautiful compilation: “How to Climb Mountains”.

And there’s more: this time you can learn techniques for creating 3D-enriched web applications, take a tour to the Netherlands with Niranjan, and of course the most-visited pages of our newsletter — birthdays, new joiners, and awards.

Last but most importantly, an article on financial planning will help you understand your finances, the advantages of having a plan, and the means to achieve it.

Go on and enjoy reading!

Subodh Patil