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The ‘I’ of Management

August 5, 2012 by ashokbhatia

IMOVATION

Steve Jobs said it. It’s smart to adapt an idea and enhance it. The combined power of imitation and innovation can take your company to dizzying heights. And Apple is not the only outfit which did it with impunity.

Paper money (read credit and debit cards) was predicted by Arthur Hailey in his 1970s book “The Moneychangers”. Diners Club started it. American Express built it up.

In discount stores, Korvett came in first. Wal-Mart globalized the phenomenon.

For fast foods, no one remembers White Castle. McDonald’s immediately comes to mind.

Closer home, in the detergent market in India, Nirma took up cudgels with Surf. But eventually, it gave way to Wheels in the market place.

Shoji Shiba advises managers to “jump into the fishbowl” for a real feel of the environment and change accordingly. According to him, those with a “third eye” do that the best as they think about users at the bottom of the pyramid.

INTELLECTUAL COPULATION AND ORGIESINCENTIVES

Copulation at the physical level often results into the perpetuation of our species. Copulation at the intellectual level often results into newer ideas, which arise out of each partner building on the ideas of the other, thereby resulting into a synergistic orgasm. On the whole, the organization gains.

Once in a while, it is good to push all the routine work away and indulge in intellectual copulation. This could mean intense discussions with a buddy whose thinking matches that of yours, attending a management seminar on a topic of your interest or even sharing your learning and experiences either with youngsters in the team or with students at a nearby management institute. It would keep your learning batteries charged up and ensure that you get back to the task at hand with renewed gusto.

INCENTIVES

Very few outfits have realistic incentive schemes, making each stakeholder a virtual partner in business. Such outfits seldom have IR issues bugging them. Often, the challenge faced by Personnel guys is to link incentives not only to absolute quantities but also to productivity norms. Calling in an external industrial engineer who has some clue as to the way your industry is configured surely helps to design a better incentive scheme.

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SOME BABY STEPS IN MOVIE MAKING

July 7, 2012 by ashokbhatia

Discovering and Cultivating a Hobby

In the restricted circle of friends and relatives that our family is exposed to, it is common knowledge that since the past four years we have been assiduously chronicling the events and occurrences in the family. These chronicles have taken the shape of movies which are more in the nature of a collage of videos and still photos, backed by appropriate musical scores from diverse sources.

The intention of making these movies is surely not to advertise the family or its mundane achievements in life. The basic idea is to share the major events in the family with the extended family members who are spread across diverse geographical locations, as also to preserve the family history for posterity. If the history buffs in our future generations preserve these, our family background would always be just a click away.

Enabling Factors

What have been the enabling factors for the development of these movies? Let me attempt to list a few. One, a healthy dose of movies celebrating the middle class values like caring, sharing, mutual trust and a respect for one´s elders. Two, happy moments and events which leave one´s emotional core stirred and shaken. Three, a fondness for good music, backed by soulful lyrics. Four, a hobby of preserving the family archives, whether in the form of old photos, diaries left behind by our forefathers, and the like. Five, creative juices sloshing about inside one in gay abundance at times, not allowing one to rest till the time a meaningful external expression is found.

Challenges

What could be challenging about arranging some dumb photos in a sequence and backing them up with a few songs, you may well ask. Well, to present something new and unique to my audience every time is one. Also, one has to keep one´s self-promotional tendencies in check – so, no hapless visitor to our house shall ever be strapped to a couch and forced to watch one of these movies! Moreover, narcissism is not considered a virtue; so, each movie´s theme encompasses snippets of even those unsuspecting friends and relatives who are not necessarily a part of the main narrative.

The Journey So Far

Shruti-Vinod

The year 2007 saw our daughter getting married. Gradually, an idea took shape – to make a movie which would not only cover the various ceremonies that took place in connection with the marriage, but would also capture the childhood days and upbringing of both the bride and the bridegroom. Once old photos had been collected, search began for a studio which could transform the concept into reality. However, tradition-bound studios were not too keen to experiment with their own formats. With the help of a friend, we could identify a suitable software. Work started at home with a humble second-hand laptop.

Backed by quotations from Shri Aurobindo´s Savitri, the dvd took about eight months to get composed. Goodwill messages from all those who could not attend the event also got covered. Titled `Shruti Vinod`, the movie was 125 minutes long. Reactions from viewers were encouraging, to say the least.

Hamari Bahu Garima

Come 2008, and our son got married. Our daughter-in-law, Garima, joined the family. Motivated by the first experiment, the canvas of the second movie got wider. Appropriate cartoon sequences were added up, juxtaposed with audio clips of the bride and the groom. Few other special effects also brightened up the proceedings. The end result of this labor of love was a 250 minutes long movie. For the benefit of those in a hurry, a smaller version of 130 minutes was also prepared. This one was titled `Hamari Bahu Garima`.

Dhoom Macha Le

In 2009, our daughter had a toddler of her own. Aptly named Suman, the blossoming of this flower in the family garden at Asker in Norway was greeted with unbridled enthusiasm. A dvd running into about 35 minutes came up first. During 2010, a dvd named `Dhoom Macha Le` was completed and released. An interesting feature of this 100 minute long movie was a special chapter on Suman´s future career aspirations, with examples drawn from a long list of celebrity female achievers.

Both were followed up with another dvd which captured the second year of her life.

X´mas 2009 and God Bharai

This covered the get together of all the children and their families. Both the couples danced to their heart´s content, with Suman witnessing the God Bharai function of Garima.

Shalini´s Griha Pravesh

Lovingly done, this one hour-long dvd captured the birth of Shalini, our son´s daughter, in March 2010. It ended up showing the new-born entering her house in Basel, Switzerland, for the first time.

1962 : A Love Story

As I write this in July 2012, two more movies have got added to the family portfolio. In February, we could add `1962: A Love Story’. It is about 55 minutes long and covers the life and times of my eldest co-brother who completed 50 years of married life on the 8th of March this year. In this work, it was challenging to capture the trauma of partition of India in 1947, faced by the families then.

Shalini – The Beautiful

June 2012 brought about the completion of yet another movie, `Shalini – the beautiful`. Based on the first two years of our son´s daughter, this runs into 108 minutes. A special feature here is the coverage of diverse aspects of Shalini´s personality, as we have seen it evolving over time so far. The thematic peg used for this purpose is the `NAVARAS` concept espoused centuries back by Bharat Muni in his famous treatise on the fine arts, `Natya Shastra`.

An Enriching Experience!

Overall, cultivating this hobby has been a very fulfilling and enriching experience. The effort is highly labor intensive, what with a scheme to be followed for all inputs to be neatly arranged. Exhausting and challenging, yet exhilarating and liberating in more ways than one. Possibly, this is what Maslow meant when he spoke of self-actualization.

Courtesy Bollywood and Hollywood

All the family members have contributed immensely to all these ventures. However, the lion´s share of the credit goes to the creative minds from Bollywood as well as Hollywood. One has drawn liberally from the works of such creative geniuses as Gulzar, Basu Chatterji, Hrishikesh Mukherji, Yash Chopra, David Lean and the like. Movies from the Rajshri stable find a place of pride in our scheme of things. And, of course, renowned music directors whose immortal works have regaled all of us all these years have unknowingly enriched our family archives beyond compare.

One is grateful for all the grace one has received in different aspects of one´s life, including for the baby steps taken so far in capturing family events through the medium of movie making.

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The ‘H’ of Management

July 4, 2012 by ashokbhatia

HIRING AND FIRING

Make the hiring process as comprehensive as you possibly can. A person hired wrongly could prove to be the proverbial millstone around your neck.

Firing is unpleasant but necessary at times, especially when a surgical intervention is necessary. A good manager would not shy away from removing the deadwood from his team, thereby motivating the good people in his team even better.

However, if you keep firing at regular intervals, some introspection might help. Ask yourself if you hired a wrong guy in the first place, or put someone in the wrong slot, or, worse still, if your expectations from the guy were out of sync with his innate capabilities.HIS MASTER’S VOICE

HIS MASTER’S VOICE

It makes sense to follow the golden rule, ‘the boss is always right’ even when he is absolutely wrong and is a perfect fool. However, sycophancy has its long-term limitations. Once in a while, if you do not agree with the boss, find the courage and the right time to register your disagreement. This way, you end up becoming a more effective and a healthier manager.

Beware of juniors who are “yes men”. They could be pretty dangerous to your career progression in the long run.

HR 2.0

Managements and governing bodies world over are putting the social media to good use, announcing policies and eliciting feedback from diverse stakeholders.

HR honchos now have a twin challenge facing them – bringing in policies which are transparent, flexible and agile, and also ensuring compliance with appropriate guidelines on usage of social networking sites by employees during work hours.

Smart executives ensure that no traces of corporate resentments – if any they harbor – are left in behind in the virtual world!

Always keep intangibles in mind when rewarding people publically. Honoring a special achiever? Invite his/her spouse over to the occasion and see the difference it makes.

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The ‘G’ of Management

June 29, 2012 by ashokbhatia

GET TOGETHERSGET TOGETHERS

An annual get together where families also get invited is a good idea to make people feel the humane side of the organization.

Plan entertainment of all kinds, primarily focused on kids and see how much the parents love their day (or evening) out. Ensure that spouses hog the limelight – it is they who support the company’s operations in a silent but effective manner.

GRAPEVINES

Use them to your utmost advantage. If one of your colleagues is close to the top boss and you have been bypassed in the recent spate of promotions, share your concerns with him in a casual setting. You can be sure your message reaches the right quarters without much transmission loss.

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The “F” of Management

June 17, 2012 by ashokbhatia

FAT, REDUCTION OF

For an organization, it is necessary to weed out the deadwood from time to time, and keep itself trim and fit. For an individual, the signs of prosperity and/or frustration can be done away with by undertaking an exercise regimen.

FAVORS

It always pays to have a credit balance in your inter-personal relationships, especially with those who are critical for your area of work.

After receiving a favor, be sure to acknowledge it gracefully. That way, you build up on your inventory of credit balance.

FEMALE POWERFEMALE POWER

Having qualms about reporting to the fairer sex? Take it easy. They are far more professional (and also compassionate) than you imagine. Multi-tasking comes easy to them, what with their having to juggle various roles with aplomb at all times; being a daughter, a wife, a mother, a home maker, a daughter-in-law and a company executive at the same time, and still managing to retain sanity of mind is no mean task, after all.

Nature also gave them the exclusive rights for the perpetuation of our species. Encourage those who wish to re-start their careers after a three year post delivery sabbatical.

However, beware of the Cleopatra who flaunts her assets, flashes her kohl lined eyelids and charms you into making biased and partisan decisions.

FILING F-I-Rs

If you have made a mistake, be the first one to run across to the affected person and file a First Information Report. For all you know, a solution may emerge. In any case, it is better than the aggrieved person coming to know of it from another source and forming a wrong opinion and pre-judging the issue.

FIRE IN THE BELLY

Do not allow it to die down, ever. Be open to accept fresh challenges. Take up new assignments as and when they come your way. Keep sharpening your saw, as Stephen R Covey had said.

The only fire in the belly to be avoided is the one generated by ulcers and cysts; live a stress free life and avoid a contingency of that nature.

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MA’s AWAKENING

May 31, 2012 by ashokbhatia

The night was yet to come to an end

It was the hour before even the Gods awake.

 

As people of myriad races across the world

Obeyed the unforeseeing instant’s urge,

Ma also gradually awoke among these tribes

To lift up the burden of her fate.

 

Her spirit opened to the spirit in all

Her nature felt all Nature as its own,

A solitary mind, a world-wide heart

The lone Divine’s unshared work she rose.

 

At first life grieved not in her burdened breast

Inert, released into forgetfulness,

Prone it reposed, unconscious on mind’s verge

She lay remote from grief, unsawn by care.

 

Then a slow faint remembrance shadow like moved

The Power that kindles mind was still withdrawn;

Sullen, the torch of sense refused to burn

The unassisted brain found not its past.

 

But now she stirred, her life shared the cosmic load,

Her strong spirit traveled back;

Back to the yoke of ignorance and fate

Back to the labour and stress of mortal days.

 

Her house of Nature felt an unseen sway,

Illumined swiftly were life’s darkened rooms;

Memory’s casements opened on the hours

And the tired feet of thought approached her doors.

 

She finally awoke to struggle and the pang divine

Saw the soft sunbeams playing on leaves swaying gently in the wind,

Heard the chirping of the birds outside her window

Mixed with the harsh clang of utensils vying for her attention.

 

Her senses quivered at the faint aroma of fresh tea wafting in

Her soul prodded her out of her slumber,

She arose confronting Time and Fate,

Immobile in herself, she gathered force.

 

This was the day when the new kitchen amma was supposed to report to work!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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WITH A BENEVOLENT GOVERNMENT AROUND, WHERE IS THE NEED TO WORK?!

May 15, 2012 by ashokbhatia

To all those hapless salaried persons who have crossed the age of 50 and are biting their nails trying to figure out how to manage their finances post-retirement, I would say – quit your job now!

Now, don’t get me wrong. I know that you are not a billionaire with tons of the green stuff lying in some Swiss bank account; nor were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth. You have come up the hard way in your life, based on merit and networking. After discharging your obligations towards parents and children, you have somehow managed to create a modest corpus. Inflation and cost of living has eroded your economic self-confidence. You are obviously concerned as to how to maintain a decent standard of living once you are given the heave-ho at your retirement age.

Well, not to worry. Given the virtual a-la-carte of numerous schemes the government has on offer, all you need to do is to relax and look forward to a peaceful retirement which would be well provided for.

Let us look at the food scenario. Thanks to the generosity of the government as well as that of political parties who play a round-robin every five years, sitting at home, you can get substantial quantity of rice and sugar to enable your wife to continue honing her culinary skills for all times to come. To top all this, our benevolent government is already working on The Right to Food Bill. Once implemented, the onus of worrying about your next meal will be on the government, not on you. In due course, as political parties come to power by rotation, the definition of food itself may get expanded to include your favorite chocolates and free coupons for a black forest pastry at the nearby fast food joint.

You also need some cash to spare for your clothing and other requirements. Here is the solution. If you enroll yourself as a worker under the MGNREGA, at the end of each day, you will bring home a tax-free amount of Rs. 155. So, by working for the guaranteed 100 days in a year, you will rake in at least Rs. 15,500, tax-free. Since the Planning Commission has already decided that you can eke out a living for as little as Rs. 32 per day, you would be free to spend your annual savings of Rs. 3,820 the way you like.

Moreover, as time passes by, the MGNREGA wages will continue to get revised upwards. Unlike your corporate working days when you had to either crack impossible targets or beg a slimy boss for getting a miserly annual increment, the government’s flagship scheme will make an annual increment happen automatically!

How about entertainment and other needs? To enable you to easily forget the hardships of queuing up at any public facility, the government has already provided you with a color TV set. Also, who spends on bicycles, saris, grinders, fans, washing machines, laptops and tablets these days? You just wait for the next elections, vote for the party which is offering a gizmo you do not own, and your patience would be well rewarded.

To run the gadgets you get, where is the power, you ask. First of all, get this right – the lesser these gadgets are put to work, the longer they would last. Also, absence of power is a blessing indeed. Follow the old age dictum – early to bed, early to rise, and be healthy, wealthy and wise. The government expects you to remain physically fit; hence, frequent power cuts. In the absence of power, you watch less TV and therefore communicate better with other family members. Then there is the added perk of having candle light dinners with your loved ones!

If you are worried about your health, help is round the corner. There are government dispensaries and hospitals where you can find state of the art equipment, eagerly waiting to diagnose whatever disease you suspect you suffer from. Fine, there is a risk that the doctors or the staff may be on a strike, but surely you can go the next day, now that you no longer report to a boss who is fed up of your excuses of reaching the office late. Sure enough, by the time you have survived the serpentine queues at all counters, you would be fit enough to fight a war!

Education is on your mind? Well, the RTE Act is there to help you. Also, to encourage enrolment, you have a noon meal scheme. Students also get footwear, stationery and school bags! To compensate for the woefully inadequate public transport system, they also get bicycles!! Given the dismal scenario in road development projects, some political mandarins could soon be initiating schemes offering Nano cars at highly subsidized rates to all students who wish to pursue higher studies.

With so much on offer from the government, why do you have to undergo the trauma of making and attending inane power point presentations? Where is the need to sit through utterly boring and endless meetings backed by a steady inflow of caffeine into the system? Or, facing the annual corporate ritual called appraisal and undergoing the trauma of wondering if you are getting the next promotion?

Chuck the drudgery of corporate life, I say. Be done with those deadlines, KRAs and ulcers which are the perks of a manager’s life. Look forward to enjoying your post-retirement days. Rather than cursing politicians of all hues, appreciate the highly benevolent scenario created in India by now. There is really no need for you to work any longer!

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The ‘E’ of Management

April 28, 2012 by ashokbhatia

EDUCATION

Higher education is a good launching pad, but no guarantee of a better performance on the job. You need core skills to meet the demands of a job; you also need good people management skills to be able to get the desired output.

Often companies make the mistake of hiring highly qualified people for menial jobs. In the end, management ends up getting a disgruntled workforce, which is not excited about achieving key results.

ENVIRONMENT

Respect the environment. Be pro-active in implementing environment friendly measures like power savings, diversification of power sources, increasing the green cover in your EXCUSESsurroundings, adapting good waste handling measures and rain water harvesting.  In short, giving back to Mother Nature more than what we continue to receive.

EXCUSES

How many times can I kill my mother-in-law to avail leave?! Excuses for being late to work and for excessive leaves are a sign of weakness of will power and character.

Offering excuses for a fouled up job is just not done. Be bold, accept your share of the blame and make amends. To help your team to grow and zoom, get out of your ivory tower, try to redress their difficulties and demonstrate your leadership qualities.

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THE POWER OF BEING POWER-LESS!

April 4, 2012 by ashokbhatia

Right across India, power cuts are an essential part of living. Getting regular power supply remains a utopia. Every time the government of the day announces an ambitious scheme to assure the hapless citizens that the 24 by 7 power days are just around the corner, there is a sense of severe skepticism and déjà vu.

I propose that we look at the positive side to the present power crisis that we face. I am not only referring to all the entrepreneurs who have shifted to manufacturing inverters of all sizes and shapes and are raking in handsome profits these days! Even ordinary laymen like you and I would also ruefully look back at this period. Let me put across some highlights of the unique experience of the “dark ages” we live in at present!

Just like the advent of the Internal Combustion engine ruined our lifestyles, making us forget to walk, electricity has also played havoc with our lives. We have lost touch with the primordial cycle of the Sun. We tend to live a life which is unhealthy. Within a family, various members live in greater isolation, sometimes depriving the younger generation of our rich cultural heritage and value systems.

In the presence of power, we sleep when we get tired watching the idiot box. We get up when we feel like. If the birds chirp too noisily in the mornings, or early sunlight starts disturbing our slumber, we merely draw the curtains tighter and doze off to catch a few winks more. Most of us have come to believe in the adage that “it is the early worm which gets caught!”

Thanks to electricity, we have lost close touch with our near and dear ones. Like elsewhere, life in a semi-urban environment is heavily dependent on the availability of power. Enter my house on any lucky evening these days – when power is available – and you will find that while the lady of the house is busy watching a cultural program on the telly, I would be fooling around with my desktop in another room. Son would pop up late from work, and get busy with his laptop in his bedroom. Daughter-in-law would be operating either a microwave or a grinder in the kitchen, whereas the granddaughter would be busy watching some inane channel on another TV in the bedroom.

Poof… goes the power. Another unscheduled power cut! Since repeated cuts have drained out the battery, our inverter is not in an obliging mood. With a sense of resignation, the whole family assembles in the outer courtyard of the house. A soothing silence pervades the house. We enjoy a gentle breeze under a clear star-lit sky. A soft moonlight is lovingly caressing all of us. My granddaughter is enjoying the cosmic scenery and starts chasing a bemused firefly in the lawn.

Slowly, as we get accustomed to the natural surroundings, conversation gets around to some key problems being faced by the family. My son’s impending transfer comes up for discussion; so does the need to minimize granddaughter’s exposure to the multitude of TV channels which profess to be meant for kids but are brazenly violent in their content.

The quality of family bonding we get by virtue of being power-less for a few hours is priceless. We end up eating an early dinner. After some more chit-chat, the family gets to sleep rather early. The result is a good night’s rest. Next morning, we wake up early, fully refreshed. I go for my constitutional, whereas son and daughter-in-law go off to a gym nearby. Since there is a feeling that power may go off any time, wife gets busy with her breakfast preparations rather early. Overall, the day starts on a positive note.

Imagine having uninterrupted supply of power – 24 by 7. Shall we not end up losing the power of being power-less? Would we be able to enjoy the same feeling of togetherness within the family then?! Surely, all the family members would need to exercise much greater self-control on their daily habits to be able to live a healthy, harmonious and well-knit life together!

 


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THE MIRACLE OF ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES

March 31, 2012 by ashokbhatia

Allopathic vs. Other Treatments – The Choices Today

In the hurried and harried times that we live in, allopathic treatment rules the roost. Popping a pill appears to be a panacea for all ills. My experience has taught me that the diagnostic tools available in the allopathic realm are invaluable; so is its support in case a surgery becomes necessary. However, in most other cases, alternative systems of medicine offer not only a better cure, but also a better probability of prevention of a disease. As a layman, I feel that an ideal treatment is one which uses allopathic diagnosis, but follows an alternative route for treatment!

Amongst the alternative streams, I find that each one has its own unique advantages. Ayurvedic stream offers a treatment based on herbs and minerals, linked to a diagnosis of the patient’s vaata-pitta-kapha mix. Homeopathic system is primarily based on the type of personality a patient has, and the basic premise that like kills like. Homeopathic treatment could either be constitution based or symptom based.

A unique feature of both these systems is that they tend to treat the patient holistically. This is in sharp contrast to the allopathic system which has by now become so super-specialized and fragmented that a hapless patient has to run from one expert to the next to get a health issue addressed.

I have no knowledge of other systems like Siddha or Unani, but I am sure they have their own unique way of looking at a patient or disease.

Of all the alternate systems, Naturopathy stands apart. The human body is made up of five elements, and this stream offers a treatment which is based on the same. Controlled exposure to all the elements by rotation, as prescribed by an experienced naturopath, put the physical body on a path of regeneration and restoration. Coupled with yoga, which relaxes the mind and also the muscles, one gets a truly refreshing experience.

 

Health Challenges Faced by Me

As a senior manager in the Indian private sector, till the age of 55 years, keeping fit and healthy had never been the uppermost concern in my mind. Career concerns were centre stage, and so were the needs to see children getting settled in their respective lives. The body was taken for granted, as a lowly instrument of fulfilling one’s materialistic ambitions. Mind was supreme – controlling all the body’s actions and coaxing it into living a life which was mentally challenging but sedentary.

However, Mother Nature has a way of tapping one on the shoulders and reminding that one’s physical body was not designed to last forever! Some reminders are gentle, and some are abrupt. The abrupt signals come up because more often than not, one is not in the habit of reading the body’s early signals when it starts creaking up in protest. This is more so in cases where one leads a sedentary life style, spending at least 12 working hours on one’s desk, followed by being a couch potato in front of the idiot box at home.

Possibly around five thousand years back, Yudhishtira told the Yaksha that the most surprising thing in life was people seeing death all around them but still chugging along with their lives as if they were immortal! True to form, I was under a delusion that my body will continue to take commands from my mind!! Until one day, when I was advised complete rest by my doctor. Some tests later, a cardiac bye pass surgery was declared to be the only route to survival. Within a few weeks, my life was in disarray and I was facing the surgeon’s scalpel!

I picked up the threads of my life, moved onto a less stressful working environment and got back to an office routine, enjoying the comfort of the familiar hassles which come to one as perks of being a senior manager.

Four years later, my body came up with another surprise. Within three months, I lost my appetite – even the sight of food became revolting. My weight was down from 70 kgs to 57 kgs, and hemoglobin from 12 to 7.7. I had no strength left in me and even simple tasks like shaving became arduous.

Several doctors and tests later, it was found that there was a patch of cysts in my pancreas. It could have been responsible for my health problem, though nothing could be said conclusively. Doctors advised me to go for a surgery, so the growth could be examined to check if it was malignant. I was told that pancreatic surgery is pretty complicated, as the organ to be operated upon is not easily accessible. The result could be loss of some vital tissues in the abdominal region, reduction in the size of the stomach, and possibly a worsening of my diabetes.

 

The Miracle of Alternative Streams of Treatment

This was the time when I had to take recourse to the alternative streams of medicine. Much against the advice of prominent surgeons, my family decided to take the  homeopathic route. We were lucky to come in touch with an experienced Homeopath, who literally reversed the decline in my vital parameters and put me back on the path of recovery. Prodded by my wife, I also went in for naturopathic treatment.

When I started looking out for hospitals which offer a naturopathic treatment, I discovered Arogyadham. It is located at Sewagram, near Wardha in Maharshtra. It is managed by the Kasturaba Gandhi Trust, with a professionally qualified doctor heading the outfit. Along with family, I enjoyed two sessions of (ten days each) residential treatment at Arogyadham, and found it to be a useful experience. The campus is designed well, with independent cottages which are functionally furnished. Staff is well behaved, courteous and efficient, taking personal care of residents.

Arogyadham is located in the vicinity of Mahatma Gandhi’s abode during the penultimate phase of India’s independence struggle. Vinoba Bhave’s ashram at Pavanar is also nearby, and so is an imposing Bouddha Vihar at Wardha. Overall, the vibrations are pretty positive and invigorating.

Over a period of nine months, my health was restored to normality. Thanks to a combination of homeopathy and naturopathy, I am back to enjoying life, living it to the hilt.

Sir William Osler once said: “One of the first duties of the physician is to educate the masses not to take medicines.” Surely, if one has time and some patience, alternative therapies can do wonders!

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