Are we being served?

Few days back there was a news report that "investment in gold" is no more worthy or lucrative? I was slightly shocked and read further only to be pushed into a deluge of market statistics and the vision of some of the pundits who predicted that it would be better to invest even in stocks and shares rather than gold.

On a deeper thinking and dwelling more on the subject, I realized that there are many facets to this argument. One needs to understand as to what is meant by 'Investment' which is being freely defined by everyone, as it suits them. Exactly, that is the point. The definition and term of the word 'investment' varies with every individual or more simply the 'investor' as per his likes, capacity and expectations. It would be unwise to simply follow the arm chair pundits' advice without analyzing as to how close your and his definitions of the word are.

For instance, a youth just stepping into the earning bracket would love to burn some money just for the heck of it - here, he/she may be willing to even lose in trying to understand 'Investment'. A middle aged, deeply into the family may like to make an 'investment' for using the returns towards his son's education or daughter's marriage down the years. One with some grown up children  may be setting his eyes on a return post his retirement which is round the corner!

When I wanted to buy a single bedroom flat in 1985 in a particular area of Chennai, people who 'knew' things advised me against it as my purchase price of Rs 275 per sq feet was way above the then rate of Rs 200/- and that the builder was trying to take me for  a ride. Similar advise poured in when i went for a 3000/- per sq ft flat in 2004 and both times, fortunately , the pundits were proved wrong. The 275/- per sq ft was sold at Rs 1500/- per sq ft 20 years later, ! The 3000 per sq ft purchase turned to be a tip of the iceberg in that had I left that deal I would have rued the decision for ever, as it soon climbed astronomically and now it is somewhere around 15000/- per sq feet - in a span of a decade. Leave alone the profit part of it, now it is not even within the purchasable limit - how can a monthly earner buy an apartment for Rs 1.5 crores !!!

When my friend was about to buy a plot of land in 1990 for a lakh, people looked down upon him. Egged on by our experiences , he went ahead and built a house there in 1998 which is now being asked for a price of over a crore.

In my own experience, I could use the bullion bought at prices varying from Rs 600/ per gram in early 1990s for my daughter's wedding when the prevailing rate hovered around 3000 per gram.

What does these imply? Am I being or have I been wiser ???

 No, the issue I am trying to underline is one must go by the need of the day or in the years to come. In my opinion, these vary from person to person and so no accurate economic prophesies could be closer enough for you  to dip your hand into that proverbial pot of  gold. Its worthwhile to define your own economic policies based on your need, your capacity and your strength to hold on to your investment.

In the light of the above experiences, I am of the considered opinion that generic market predictions and investment guidance are of no use unless tailored to your requirements and capabilities. With such a clear view in mind, one should be able to analyze and enjoy the predictions of these soothsayers but be weary of investing and indulging based on such  irrelevant advises. I only pity those who still believe could make millions in short time and risk even their retirement benefits into those high sounding  'mid-cap" and  'blue chip' investments and pray for them, neigh, their family.

I firmly believe that we have an economist in us and let us pay heed to that inner voice rather than for things written for ratings and other market inducing values.

Are we being served or mislead?

பாரீஸுக்குப் போனேன்

ரொம்ப நாளாக பாரீஸில் ஒரு வேலை - நம்ப சென்னை பாரீஸ் கார்னர் தான்.

 போலாமென்று முடிவெடுத்தப்போ பார்க்கிங்கை நினைத்தாலே அங்கு காரில் போவதற்க்கு  பயமாக இருந்தது. ஆட்டோக்காரர்கள் புது மீட்டர் பொருத்தலமா  வேண்டாமா, பொருத்திய மீட்டரை மடக்குவதா வேண்டாமா போன்ற பல குழப்பங்களிலிருந்து இன்னும் மீளாததால் அதையும் ஒதுக்கியாயிற்று. பஸ்ஸில் போனாலென்ன என்ற அந்த விபரீத (?) ஆசை வலுவெடுத்து, பல வருஷங்களுக்குப் பிறகு நேற்று 21ம் நம்பர் பஸ்ஸில் ஏறி உட்கார்ந்தே விட்டேன். பாரிசுக்கு  நாலு  ரூபாய் டிக்கெட் எடுத்து ஒவ்வொரு முறை கியர் மாற்றும் பொழுதும் ஒரு உதறு உதறிய பஸ் உற்சாகமாகத்தான் ஓடியது.

ப்ரபல எழுத்தாளர் சொன்னது போல் காரில் இருந்து பார்த்தால் ஒரு சதுரத்துக்குள்ளேயே தெரிந்த தெருக்கள், பஸ் ஜன்னலும் சதுரமாய்த்தான் இருந்தாலும், உயரத்திலிருந்து வேறாகத்தான் இருந்தது. ஒரு காலத்தில் சந்தாக இருந்தவைகளெல்லாம் இன்று ஒன் வேயாக மாறி இருந்தது.  மெட்ரோவுக்காக வளைந்து கொடுத்திருந்த அண்ணா சாலையில் பஸ் அந்தக் கால கண்ணாடிக்குள் போட்டு விளையாடும் குண்டு போல் ஓடியது.  பிலால் ஓட்டலும் பாட்டாவும் காணாமல் போய் சரவண பவனும் வஸந்த பவனும் போட்டி போட்டுக் கொண்டிருந்தது. இரவு நேர ரிச்சித் தெரு ரங்கனாதன் தெரு போல் ஜக ஜோதியாக இருந்தது. புதிய தலைமைச் செயலகம் புது தில்லியிலுள்ள புராணக் கட்டிடம் போல் களையிழந்து போயிருந்தது. சிந்தாதிரிபேட்டை தாண்டியவுடன் ஹட்சன் போல் ஒடிய நதி கருணையுடன் கொஞ்சம் துர் நாற்றமில்லாமல் இருந்தது - இதை யாரும் கவனிக்கக் கூடாதா?ஜெயில் அருகில் உள்ள பாலம் மட்டும், புது ரோட்டுடன் பள பளப்பாக இருந்தது - அடிக்கடி பல பெரிய மனிதர்கள் புழங்கும் இடம் என்பதாலோ??

நடந்த சில நல்ல காரியங்களில் பஸ்கள் சென்ட்ரல் ஸ்டேஷனுக்குள்ளே போவது எவ்வளவு உபயோகமானது என்று அங்கு இறங்கி ஏறும் கும்பலில் தெரிந்தது.

பாரீஸ் மட்டும் மாறவே இல்லை. அதே கும்பல், அதே குப்பை, அதே துர் நாற்றம். அதெப்படி இங்கு மட்டும் சாலையில் அவ்வளவு குப்பை? அகற்றுவதே இல்லையா அல்லது அது போதவில்லையா? ஆயிரக்கணக்கான மக்கள் புழங்கும் இந்த சந்திப்பை ஒரு பொது நலத்துக்காகவாவது இன்னும் கொஞ்சம் சுத்தமாக வைத்திருக்கலாம்.

அந்த ராணி சிலையின் பக்கத்தில் உள்ள கார் பார்க் நிரம்பி வழிந்தது- சில கார்களை எடுப்பதே இல்லையோ என்ற சந்தேகத்தை அதன் மேல் உள்ள தூசியில் எழுதியுள்ள "ரஜினி" என்ற எழுத்து ஆமோதித்தது.

இதற்க்கெல்லாம் நடுவில் அந்த பெரிய பஸ்ஸை லாவகமாக ஒடித்து ஓட்டும் ஓட்டுனரைப் பாராட்டியே ஆகவேண்டும். நமக்குத்தான் அப்பப்ப படபடத்து கண்ணை மூடி தெருவைக் கடக்கும் பூக்காரக் கிழவிக்காகவும், தலையை ஒரு பக்கம் சைடு வாங்கி போன் பேசியபடியே குறுக்கே பாயும் மோட்டார் சைக்கிள் காரரின்  உயிருக்காகவும் ப்ரார்த்திக்க வேண்டி இருந்தது.

பஸ் திரும்பும் பிஸி திருப்பத்தில் நட்ட நடுவில் ஒரு பெரிய குட்டை போல் சாக்கடைத் தண்ணீர் கொசுக்களுடன் பள பளத்தது. இதெல்லாம் எங்களுக்கு சகஜம் என்பது போல் யாரும் அதைக் கண்டு கொள்ளவே இல்லை.  அருகே பப்பாளிப் பழத்தை துண்டாக நறுக்கி விற்பனை மும்முறமாக நடந்தது. பிரம்புக் கடை தெரு என்ற  ரட்டன் பஸார் , ஈவனிங் பசார் தெருக்களெல்லாம் புதிய பேரை நீலக் கலர் போர்டில் மாற்றி இருந்தாலும், வியாபாரம் என்னவோ அதே தான்.

 போலிஸ் ஸ்டேஷன் எதிரிலியே தொடங்கி வரிசையாக குறுந்தகடுகள் விற்பனை - 120 பாடல்கள் கொண்ட தகடு 25 ருபாய்தான். அடிமைபெண்ணிலுருந்து விஸ்வரூபம் வரை (ஒரிஜினல் ப்ரிண்ட் ஸார்) எதெடுத்தாலும் இருபதிலுருந்து முப்பது வரை தான். அப்பப்ப ஒருத்தர் பக்கத்தில் வந்து "வேறு ஏதாவது புதுப் படம் தேட்ரீங்களா சார் ' என்று உபசரிப்பு வேற.

மான் மார்க் குடை விற்க்கும் கடை, ரமணனின் பேச்சை நம்பி வரவிருக்கும் மழையை எதிர்நோக்கிக் கதவை விரித்துக் காத்திருந்தார்கள்.

செல் போன் வந்தாலும் வந்தது, மக்கள் இடம் பொருள் ஏவல் பார்க்காமல் பஸ்ஸிலும் சகஜமாகப் பேசுகிறார்கள். "அடுப்புல பால வை, தோ வந்துண்டே இருக்கேன்",  "கூடுவாஞ்சேரியில் நாலு செண்டுக்கு இது சீப்புத்தான், உடனே வளைச்சுடு:, "நாளைக்கி கண்டிப்பா கொடுத்துடறேன் சார்" - இப்படிப் பல.

மந்தைவெளியிலிருந்து போக வர பத்து ரூபாய்தான். உட்கார்ந்து போகலாம். நல்லா வேடிக்கை பார்க்கலாம். ஆனால் இதெல்லாம் காலை ஆபீஸுக்குப் போகும்போது கிடைக்குமா- சந்தேகம்தான்

Its that time of the year for Gandhi

My early memory of Gandhi stem from reading much about him. In my first year college , I was exposed to a lesson "Some Reminiscences of the Bar", which impressed me to a large extent. I read that chapter so many times , the main narrative text of which I could recall verbatim even now- "...Is it not sharp practice Mr Gandhi.... I boiled within...". In fact, I searched Google with these key words to locate the full name of the chapter ! (http://www.mkgandhi.org/autobio/chap122.htm )

During my student vacation days, I used to take chapters from his autobiography to practice my hand writing daily. The reading of  books like "Freedom at Midnight" gave me deeper insight of  this great personality. Though I do not subscribe to hero worship, I regard this old man of India as one whose qualities are worthy of emulation.

In the pre-independence days, it was stalwarts like Gandhi, who led so many struggles, who went under the British baton, who languished under the unbearable heat and humidity of prisons of those days, which lacked even the basic amenities unlike the current day facilities. This was the one man army which held the then Calcutta peaceful, while the rest of India burned. This was the one who travelled in the ordinary second class train compartments and mingled with the common man unlike the later day 'leaders'.  This was one of those who created , chiseled and worked with such personalities as Dr P.C.Ray who took forty rupees of his Eight hundred rupees salary and gave the rest for the freedom struggle;  Was able to change the perception and style of personalities Vallabhai Patel, who was popularly remembered for his focus to continue his peroration in court, even after  he was informed of his wife's demise. This was one man who did not need AK-47s to rock the empire but did it with a pinch of salt!

Compare this Bapu with some of  today's leaders who swindle at the drop of a hat be it purchase of helicopter or fodder or cemetery or footwear or midday meals ....anything on earth where from currency could be milked.

After this 'Gandhi' Indian polity is replete with so many Gandhis, but none of these could match the stature and sacrifice of this 'half naked fakir', who troubled the Crown so much that Churchill was repeatedly questioning as to why he did not die yet !

This bapu drank goat's milk, ate nuts, adopted nature therapy, cleaned his own toilet, gave new dimensions to celibacy and starved for months for the welfare of the common man.

Later day Gandhis and Bapus never drank anything less than apple juice and mineral water; ate at five star luxury hotels with specially ordered items from a la carte menus; could not sleep without conditioned air even while the common man was suffocating under the cruel Indian summers without power for greater part of the day; could travel only in AC coaches and special airplanes; ignoring the natural wealth of medical professionals in the country who are well respected outside, rush to foreign soil more  to 'gaurd' information about their state of health than for 'better' treatment.

There are people who love to hate the Gandhis and the likes of yesteryear and I have no quarrel with them, for they are entitled to their opinion as I am to mine. But, let us ponder whether the current 'bapus' could have survived in those conditions whereas the original 'Bapu' would have  lived with ease even at the current state of affairs. For the "Bapu" had no 'expectations' while those who 'followed' him could not live without them.

It is a matter of satisfaction that we allocate at least a day yearly to reminisce and savor the thoughts of such great sons of this land!
    

If Tomorrow Comes?

It is generally believed that people of our nation are very good in execution but falling short of the skills in planning for the same. That has perhaps, given avenue, to so many of our projects across globe as people who have better planning and driving skills have always used our strength of execution and led their assignment to completion. We are so adept in mastering what we do, we went on to specialize execution, proceeded to derive our 'rights' of execution so intensely, we even forgot that we could also plan and drive. This could be the reason for our slavery over decades, where we allowed ourselves to be mowed down by people with better communication and leadership skills and spent decades again to wean ourselves away from these clutches.

This mentality of executing the end of the chain job could have possibly led us to stabilize ourselves as a hard bargainer of our rights and always made to look up and fight rather than dictate and lead the way. Our leadership and environment are also not helping us either. Whenever a date is set for an activity, people are relaxed under the comfort that this date will be postponed. Be it wearing of helmet by two wheeler riders, removal of dark films from car windows, Aadhar card registrations, Income tax filing to auto meter rate decisions.

That one has to file the IT return by 31 March was well known even on the 1st April of previous year ! Then, where is the need for extending it?

Why is that an extension is necessary? Does it mean that our leaders are unable to plan what could be that 'just enough' time for our citizens to comply with. But then we have precedents of even some national level leaders 'forgetting' to pay the Income Tax !  How then can you explain that only 19 out of the 70+ Ministers have submitted the annual statement of their properties. It is a matter of shock and despair that as per the report, the defaulter list includes our honorable Prime Minister !!

Normally we choose as leaders, those who set themselves as shining examples, who always stick to the nobler and righteous side of things and who are worthy of emulation. Be it reality or movies or politics, we look upon leaders with reverence based on their good deeds and nobler thoughts. People normally look upon their heroes and leaders to inspire, lead and drive them with positive thoughts. Are these expectations any more relevant, one wonders?

Are we a nation of procrastinators? Have we misunderstood / misinterpreted the word 'Procrastination' , as a nation that is under refuge to postponements - procrasti'nation' !! Or have we lost the value of time? As is happening in some of the bank branches, any request other than cash- be it statement or deposit renewal or passbook updates or tax certificates, the customer is promptly directed to come 'later' ! Do we realize what it takes for a customer to come again- cost, time, effort, support in case of senior citizens....?

I have never heard of clients postponing the delivery date for a project , just because the team is unable to complete the job. A date once decided is cast in stone, but for unforeseen circumstances beyond one's control and acts of God.  As a lateral entrant to the IT industry , I have had occasions to face this situation. When I was convinced that the product was not completely ready for shipment and stood in the way of delivery, my boss used to intervene and say that "one can never aspire for a 100% complete product and even if it is 80% ready, let it go, as we should not miss the agreed date".

By 'anticipated' postponements, are we setting the right attitude for our coming generations? I am worried with such indifference to targets, whether we are also unintentionally instrumental in leading the younger ones to think , that these might never happen and will never be implemented! It is time for people concerned to wake up and stem the rot.

Art of appreciation

The two year old grand son of my brother, did not even pronounce the words properly but hurriedly completed the rhyme, was himself clapping and egging on others around to "clap, clap" until everyone complied. The beaming child on hearing the applause all around him was a sight to behold. Without any further prompt, he sincerely proceeded to recite the next rhyme, anticipating a bigger round of applause !

My aging uncle also had this habit of recounting everything from his early days, like when Mylapore area was almost on the fringes of a forest and Adyar was unknown, there were boats plying in Cooum river with firewood etc., Seasoned people around him used to silently listen but if anyone asks for more details , his eyes will open wide and then there will be no stopping him.

Such is the power of appreciation, a tool of recognition from a child to the senior. Everyone wants to be appreciated, applauded, recognized and talked about. Only the performing artistes have no hesitation in accepting that they value the clap of the audience more than the material returns. Of course, there are sports persons who find an empty stand very dampening to play which perhaps is the reason for the greater popularity of cricket in India.

While I was on a business trip to U.S , after a presentation of our capabilities was made by my boss, I was very impressed and immediately shot an email to him, who was sitting at the other end of the horse-shoe table in the conference hall. This was done with all sincerity and meant as a genuine expression of my appreciation, but I was more surprised to get an acknowledgement within minutes, which was written 'thanks' all over.

In one of the organizations I served, the management was astute enough to conduct an "Appreciation day". On this day, people could obtain any number of 'Appreciation card' from the front office and were encouraged to send them to anyone in the organization whom they appreciate.   It need not be from one's own team, it could be from Admin, HR, Help desk, support teams, your boss, your junior most team member or even the President of the organization. It was a treat to watch the good will flowing through the day and whoever came up with the idea need to be well appreciated.

Any unfortunate event, any bad exchange, any sour event could be turned with a single stroke of appreciation with a simple pat on the back. Hope this is also taught in management and training schools for the Managers of this era. In my opinion,  this is the only activity in this world which warms the hearts of both the giver and receiver !

Managing Madness

Last weekend I went calling on my relative - a jovial fortyish guy, whose first look will tell you that the guy doesn't want to miss any fun in the world. Always sporting a smile, close to his family, visits his native village every year , drives long and goes to the refuge of his Mridangam to detox himself. Now a senior project manager with a tier-1 IT major he has come a long way through sheer work and attitude and is in an enviable position for his age. During the chat, though we exchanged notes on the tough IT world he was not complaining, but his black ringed eyes told a different tale. His wife worriedly filled the rest saying that he works through the day and night hardly sleeping,  forever on calls, at times even missing his meal. He also intoned, but with a smile, that he would like to quit soon to enjoy his life. I was rather taken aback, as this was the second guy who talked about quitting the job due to pressures and stress, in that week . The other one was a management grad from a premier institution who was asking me earlier in the week as to how one could spend time after a quitting a busy IT life.

I was introspecting- whether the industry has enlarged its pound of flesh or the present day guys are unable to manage the work -life balance. But these people I interacted with are no mean guys and they understand the world around. In the context , I also remember to have read a piece on doing some work on Sundays too, for a better ensuing week- a moot point, indeed.

Current working scenario, IT or otherwise,  is indeed tough but in my opinion, not unmanageable. As they do for their work, some out of the box thinking and customized plans could go a long way in relieving one of some strain.

After some initial months, one could easily identify the pattern of his line of work- including the unexpected tasks.  I created my own ways of working around:

• I have my own customized spreadsheet detailing my day's activities. This database served as a major reference point  for progress, activities, achievements, shortcomings, trainings , contributions etc., This I found to be very useful while preparing for the annual appraisals and periodical reports
•  Like some Indian in-laws, bosses are born and meant to be tough, as their role demand some toughness. Instead of whining about them, we need to customize our work pattern so that they suit their expectations too. 
• One of my bosses has the habit of expecting weekly updates right from Saturday morning.  I used to keep filling up a template through the week on a daily basis and instead of waiting for Mondays, I used to send them as the last item before I left on Friday. Note the timing, 'last item...' and that is important !!
• Every boss has his/her own idiosyncrasies and seldom they match. Understand your boss's expectations and try to work around the same. This spares you from most of  unwanted tension and arguments.
• Heaping of work beyond one's capacity now has a new connotation akin to a stress test. If you complain, you may be slapped with this argument. So, try to prioritize and also make sure you reason out the same, which will be understood by any reasonable boss.
• Working over the weekend is a pain, but then in the changing scenario, you do not  have much choice. At least, be mentally prepared to work on Saturday. If there was no necessity, you could enjoy or clear some lesser priority items from home. If it happens, it was no more a surprise as you had already planned for it. This I learnt from a project in which I worked through all the Saturdays for more 9 months in that year !!
• Identification and grooming of the trusted next level are a key to one's success. 
• Do not try to dirty your hand with everything. Understand the intricacies and try to distribute it to your other leads. 
• Working for multiple geographies with different time zones is a real challenge. But, if you choose to distribute amongst your leads and Managers you even can be seen to be working 24 hours.
• While on planned vacation do not completely switch off from office. Keep tracking the mails periodically for continuity , but never respond unless it is of paramount business importance. Keeping track helps you to get on line quickly on your return. 
• On return from a vacation, move your vacation mails to a designated folder so that they do not impede with the fresh priorities. When you sort your vacation mails,  you will be relieved to find that many are for information only, so that you could focus on things that require your response.

Nowadays, everyone comes with almost same qualifications and skills. But then how come some are very successful and climb the ladder faster while some get stagnated. It is such customized thoughts and realignment that helps the organization to distinguish between the wheat and the chaff. Importantly, none of the above could suit your type of working. Perfect. That is why it is necessary that you identify or invent patterns that are suitable to you.

Also remember planning is no more a virtue.You may start the week with some 10 top items and end up doing 7 none which were in your original 10. If that happens, be happy that you are managing your tasks well !!

Last but not the least, never allow yourselves to be taken to the 'end of the world' situation. Nothing in the world is so irreversible. For every situation, there is a solution, a workaround and nothing to despair about. Its definitely not worth being short tempered at home mulling over the official tensions. Try not to think of official chores on Sunday and relax with your family, so that you can start the Monday with a fresh mind.

தலைப் பிரசவம்

அன்புடையீர்

வாழ்க்கையின் பல பரிமாணங்களை எதிர் கொள்ள வேண்டும் என்ற ஆவல் என்னிடையே என்றும் இருக்கிறது. ஆனால் அதை  ஒரு மித்தமாக  நேர்க்காணும் தைரியம் எனக்குள் இன்னும் வரவில்லை. ஆகையால் , ஒரு குழந்தையைப் போல் ஒவ்வொரு படியாக ஏற முற்ச்சிக்கிறேன்.

இம்முயற்ச்சியில் முதல் படியாக என் வலைப்பூ(

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  http://kapalicanvas.blogspot.com/)  ஆரம்பித்தேன். இது தந்த உற்ச்சாகத்தில், இதற்க்குக் கிடைத்த வரவேற்ப்பில்  தமிழிலும் எழுதத் துணிந்ததில்  என் தமிழ் வலைப்பூ (

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http://chinthikkiren.blogspot.in/) மலர்ந்தது. 

எனக்குத் தோன்றும் எண்ணங்களையும், அபிப்ராயங்களையும் வலைப்பூ மட்டுமில்லாமல் சிறிது அனுபவமும் கற்பனையையும் குழைத்து ஒரு கதையாக மெருகேற்றினால் என்ன என்ற எண்ணம் தான் , என் முதல் கதைக்கு மனதளவில் வித்திட்டது. சமீப காலமாகப் படித்த பல கதைகள் என் இந்த ஆசையைத் மேலும் தூண்டி விட, விளைந்த சிறு செடி தான் , என் முதல் கதை "பரிகாரம்".

இது தமிழ் எழுத்தாளர்களை ஆதரித்து அவர்களுக்குத் தளமளிக்கும் http://www.sirukathaigal.com/. என்ற இடத்தில் என் உண்மையான  "கபாலி" என்ற பெயரில் இன்று ப்ரசுரிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது.

காக்கைக்கும் தன் தன் குஞ்சு பொன் குஞ்சுதான்- என் கதை வடிவ முதல் கன்றை ஈன்றதில் பெருமகிழ்ச்சி அடைந்துள்ளேன்

முதலடியை எடுத்து வைத்துள்ளேன்- இன்னும் பல கல் கடக்க உள்ளேன்-  தங்கள் வாழ்த்துக்களுடன்

என்றுமே என் எண்ணங்களையும் எழுத்துக்களையும் பற்றிய உங்களின் கருத்துக்கள் என்னை உற்ச்சாகப் படுத்தியிருக்கின்றன, சிந்திக்க வைத்திருக்கின்றன. ஆகையால் தங்களின் கருத்துக்களை ஆவலுடன் எதிர் நோக்கும் :