DK Kapila The Oracle

Coincidence and What not and Entertainment Dinesh K Kapila We all have episodes to relate from our lives, personal or otherwise. Or official. Many stay in our memory long after we have moved on to other issues and walks of life. Some such incidents do elicit a warm smile as we recollect them. Coming to sheer coincidence, confusion and a near arrest, this one is rather too much. In one District in a State known for its sandy dunes and forts, a certain Mr M was the District Development Manager. One day he was informed that a certain Mr X, on promotion to Officer rank, would be attached with him for a fortnight so as to familiarise himself with rural areas and governance. Mr M sighed, Mr X was a rather loquacious and too curious and too complex a guy and he could stretch the most mundane of issues and discussions till eternity. Well, he advised Mr X to stay at a particular hotel on arrival and then to call him. Well Mr X would have none of it and after his own assessment, he decided to st...

  An insight into Aapka Family Farmer (AFF)– FPC - Success and Failures – A personal account.   Dinesh K Kapila and Ashish Gupta (Dinesh K Kapila, CGM (Retd) NABARD and Ashish Gupta, MBA IIM Indore, Entrepreneur and a former FPC Founder in HP).   The idea came one day, that we ought to work out in detail as to why FPCs fail. To be assessed dispassionately by someone who has passed through the stages himself. From the concept to the ideation, planning, execution, operations and withdrawal. A sort of direct sharing of the hands on experience. The thought always was that Ashish was ideal for the sharing, he had the credentials and had undertaken a wide range of activities including tying up with markets (mandis) and setting up a functional website with real time pricing of the products. The interaction began with this message and thought after a discussion on the phone.   Hi Ashish, I know I am troubling you but even withdrawing from a project / FPC has reason...

  Don’t get overwhelmed by the challenges India poses  Don't let your passion overwhelm you.    Dinesh K Kapila  Many of us are passionate about nation and it’s progress. Some who are in a position, how so ever the role or position, can certainly contribute much much more to development. But do not get over over involved or distraught to the extent you lose your own joy of life or the company and comfort of your friends and family. This is a perspective which comes with time but is most important to explain to yourself, there is only so much you can do and contribute. And any programme or institution  or policy in a developmental context does not change overnight or in response to the market but is often addressed after extensive rounds of consultations among the stakeholders and is then calibrated carefully. Speedy technological changes in the private sector cannot be acted upon or reacted too in the a government or its major institutions until and unless ...

  Beige Cafe - The New Eclectic Cafe in town ! Beige Cafe is Nidhi Gupta’s project. And dream. I don’t think I can peg it against most cafe’s in our city or nearby. It’s in a league of its own as it brings a uniquely European Style cafe to Chandigarh. It’s just had a soft launch and is onto full fledged operations as the days pass. Open spaces, tables and seating ensuring you have the privacy with each corner giving a different feel of its own. The designing and concept reflect Nidhi’s concept of a place where the planters and the wonderfully covered courtyard, fully air conditioned, let you just sink into your own corner and space.,The music is in the background, from a collection which in a way silently soothes you and encourages conversation and interaction. It’s a place as she says where you can be with your internal and external being, with your the inner being and to connect with yourself and your inner place. And yet connect with your company and think of it as place of your...

  “The Dogs have it ! The Dogs have it!” Dinesh K Kapila In our Parliament there has been a convention to say when a bill musters a majority, ‘the ayes have it, the ayes have it’! Not for a moment am I comparing or casting any aspersions. Simply I got an inspiration and insight from this convention, considering the way dogs are getting upgraded, from pets to just about equal to humans to maybe an even more exalted status. The upgradation and the perception is rather perplexing but post Covid there has been a major change. In the cultural context and attitudes. We had the song long back, The Age of Aquarius, well now another pop group should sing The Age of Dogs. It’s their time !!! I am a dog lover and have been keeping pets since long. Only in the last few years I have not kept a pet, mainly being rather preoccupied. Now to the subject. We have judges at the Supreme Court stating stray dogs cannot be moved from the locality they frequent. We also have a rather voluble politically ...