SOME THING WRITE ABOUT YOU: February 2011

Monday, February 14, 2011

NIIT Technologies became an independent organization in 2004, after spinning off from NIIT Ltd., India’s Global Talent Development Corporation. NIIT Technologies’ genesis, however, goes back over 15 years, to a time when India’s IT education pioneer, NIIT Ltd. began its foray into the software segment. NIIT not only enabled leading Indian corporate and Government institutions to build manpower skilled in the technologies they had deployed, but also helped them make optimal use of their IT investments using innovative frameworks and methodologies.

Harnessing its software engineering knowledge alongside its applications management and systems integration prowess, NIIT provided companies with solutions tailored to their specific needs and helped them realize quick roil from their IT implementations. Over the years, NIIT Technologies has built on this expertise, enhancing its presence in markets such as Application Development and Management and Enterprise Solutions including Managed Services and BPO.

Apart from customized solutions, NIIT Technologies distinguished itself by bringing packaged software to India’s shores and giving a distinctive place to Software as a Solution in the country’s domestic market. By entering into distributorship alliances with global software leaders such as Information Builders Inc., Sybase and a host of other players, NIIT Technologies made available their state-of-the-art offerings to corporate. It was in 2002, as the revenues of NIIT’s software business increased significantly, overtaking the company’s turnover from IT education, that it was decided to flag off NIIT software as a separate entity

Board of Directors

Rajendra S.Pawar

Chairman & Managing Director

Rajendra S. Pawar is a well known face in the Indian IT sector. Recognising skilled manpower to be a very important prerequisite for the survival of the fledgling Indian IT industry, Mr. Pawar helped pioneer the IT training segment to fuel its growth. A visionary entrepreneur, Mr. Pawar also ignited the fire of free enterprise, using the revolutionary franchisee model of education. His contributions to the software business are no less significant. Recognising his pioneering and entrepreneurial work, Ernst & Young conferred on Mr. Pawar its prestigious Master Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1999. His valuable contributions to the IT industry in India also earned him the "IT man of the Year" award, instituted by IT industry journal, Dataquest. A respected opinion leader, Mr. Pawar has spearheaded several IT industry initiatives. His role within the Indian Prime Minister’s Task Force for IT and Software Development and his contributions to the FICCI and CII IT committees, have established him as an industry guru. Mr. Pawar is a part of a panel of six experts in the newly constituted Prime Minister’s National Council on Skill Development, chaired by the Prime Minister of India. The expert panel includes luminaries from the world of business, academia and the Government. The National Council has been conceived as a vision-setting apex body for addressing the challenging task of large-scale skills development in the country. Mr. Pawar’s inclusion in this august panel is a recognition of his immense individual contribution as also that of the organisations’ in the "employability" space.

Arvind Thakur

Chief Executive Officer

Mr. Arvind Thakur is the Chief Executive Officer of NIIT Technologies Ltd., and serves as the Joint Managing Director on its board. Under his stewardship, NIIT Technologies has positioned itself as one of the top software solutions providers in select industry segments with operations across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Mr. Thakur graduated in engineering from the premier Indian Institute of Technology in India. Thereafter he pursued post graduation in Industrial Engineering from NITIE in Mumbai. He started his career as an Industrial Engineer with BHEL, a large engineering corporation with work specialization in systems. He joined NIIT Ltd. in 1985 as a member of the core team, and has since then been handling key organisational roles. He was the President of its Software business before it was demerged to form NIIT Technologies Ltd. He serves on the boards of the company’s overseas subsidiaries and domestic joint venture with ESRI Inc., a global technology leader in the GIS domain. He is also a Director in an innovative venture, Hole-in-the Wall Education Ltd. that enables technology to be deployed to educate the masses. He is the Chairman and Managing Director of the BPO subsidiary NIIT Smart Serve Ltd. Recently Mr Thakur was appointed on the Board of Management of NIIT University, a not for profit institution established in Rajasthan, India.

Vijay Thadani

Director, NIIT Technologies

Vijay K. Thadani is the Chief Executive Officer of NIIT Ltd, a leading Global Talent Development Corporation. As the co-founder of NIIT Group, he has built an organization that is recognised for its visionary role in bringing the benefits of Information Technology, both as a professional skill and as a learning tool. He serves on the Board of NIIT Technologies Limited, Vijay has been actively engaged with many Industry Associations. He served as President of the Indian IT industry association, MAIT and also chaired the Indian Government’s Committee on National Information Infrastructure Policy. He served as the Chairman of the IT Committee of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in USA. He is currently the Chairman of CII National Committee on Education and also serves as the Chairman of the National Accreditation Board for Education and Training (NABET), which works under the aegis of the Quality Council of India. He serves on the board of CompTIA USA, an association advancing the global interests of information technology industry and also as a member of the India Advisory Board of the Maastricht University, Netherlands. He was recently appointed as a member of the Strategy Council of Global Alliance for ICT and Development of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA-GAID). A ‘Distinguished Alumnus’ of the premier Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Vijay was honored with the position of ‘Economic Consultant’ to Chongqing, world’s largest city in the People’s Republic of China.

Subroto Bhattacharya

External Director, NIIT Technologies

Subroto is a Chartered Accountant with over 30 years of experience. A specialist in the field of Finance and Management Consultancy, he has worked as a part of the core team in several reputed organisations.

Surendra Singh

External Director, NIIT Technologies

Surendra Singh is a retired IAS Officer, who has held very senior positions in the Central and State Governments. Having joined the Public Service in 1959, Mr. Singh has been Special Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, responsible for all the economic work in the PMO, Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India, Secretary to the Council of Ministers and Secretary, Ministry of Industry. He was an Executive Director on the board of the World Bank, representing India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan. He has also held directorships on the Boards of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).

Amit Sharma

Executive Vice President & President Asia for American Tower Corporation. Previously

Mr. Sharma was with Motorola, where he led teams in India and Southeast Asia in various roles including Country President, India and Head of Strategy, Asia-Pacific. Mr. Sharma also served on Motorola’s Asia Pacific Board and its Senior Leadership Team. Prior to joining Motorola, he was with GE Capital, serving as Vice President, Strategy and Business Development, and prior to that, with McKinsey, New York, serving as a core member of the firm's electronics and marketing practices. In addition to his role at ATC, Amit serves on the Advisory board of New Enterprise Associates a $8.5 Bn venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs create and build major new enterprises that use technology to improve people’s lives. Mr. Sharma earned his MBA in International Business from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, where he was on the Dean’s List and the Director’s Honors List. He also holds a master’s degree in Computer Science from the Moore School, University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Rabindranath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore

THE TAME BIRD WAS IN A CAGE

(1861-1941)

THE tame bird was in a cage, the free bird was in the forest.
They met when the time came, it was a decree of fate.
The free bird cries, "O my love, let us fly to the wood."
The cage bird whispers, "Come hither, let us both live in the cage."
Says the free bird, "Among bars, where is there room to spread one's wings?"
"Alas," cries the caged bird, "I should not know where to sit perched in the sky."

The free bird cries, "My darling, sing the songs of the woodlands."
The cage bird sings, "Sit by my side, I'll teach you the speech of the learned."
The forest bird cries, "No, ah no! songs can never be taught."
The cage bird says, "Alas for me, I know not the songs of the woodlands."

There love is intense with longing, but they never can fly wing to wing.
Through the bars of the cage they look, and vain is their wish to know each other.
They flutter their wings in yearning, and sing, "Come closer, my love!"
The free bird cries, "It cannot be, I fear the closed doors of the cage."
The cage bird whispers, "Alas, my wings are powerless and dead."

UNENDING LOVE

I seem to have loved you in numberless forms, numberless times...
In life after life, in age after age, forever.
My spellbound heart has made and remade the necklace of songs,
That you take as a gift, wear round your neck in your many forms,
In life after life, in age after age, forever.

Whenever I hear old chronicles of love, it's age old pain,
It's ancient tale of being apart or together.
As I stare on and on into the past, in the end you emerge,
Clad in the light of a pole-star, piercing the darkness of time.
You become an image of what is remembered forever.

You and I have floated here on the stream that brings from the fount.
At the heart of time, love of one for another.
We have played along side millions of lovers,
Shared in the same shy sweetness of meeting,
the distressful tears of farewell,
Old .love but in shapes that renew and renew forever.

FIREFLIES

I touch God in my song as the hill touches the far-away sea with its waterfall.

The butterfly counts not months but moments,and has time enough.
Let my love, like sunlight, surround you and yet give you illumined freedom.

Love remains a secret even when spoken, for only a lover truly knows that he is loved.
Emancipation from the bondage of the soil is no freedom for the tree.
In love I pay my endless debt to thee
for what thou art.

THE GARDENER

If you would have it so,
I will end my singing.

If it sets your heart aflutter,
I will take away my eyes from your face.

If it suddenly startles you in your walk,
I will step aside and take another path.

If it confuses you in your flower-weaving,
I will shun your lonely garden.

If it makes the water wanton and wild,
I will not row my boat by your bank.

THE CHILD ANGEL

Let your life come amongst them like a flame of light, my child,
unflickering and pure, and delight them into silence.

They are cruel in their greed and their envy,
their words are like hidden knives thirsting for blood.

Go and stand amidst their scowling hearts, my child,
and let your gentle eyes fall upon them like the
forgiving peace of the evening over the strife of the day.

Let them see your face, my child, and thus know the
meaning of all things, let them love you and love each other.

Come and take your seat in the bosom of the limitless, my child.
At sunrise open and raise your heart like a blossoming flower,
and at sunset bend your head and in silence
complete the worship of the day.

Valentine's day

History Of Valentine's day

February has long been a month of romance. It is the month associated with Valentine's Day celebrations. We have, time and again, heard the name St. Valentine being uttered before us in this season of love. But just who is this St. Valentine? Why is this month associated with love and romance? Learn about St. Valentine, how Valentines day came into practice as it is today. The origin of this lovers day goes back as early as 270 A.D and started with the clash between a kindly priest and a mighty ruler. To know more, just read on and discover the true meaning of this festival. If you like our little article about the splendid history of Valentine's Day, . Wish you a Happy Valentine!

Valentine meaning

The word "Valentine" has two mgs. It can imply a card sent or given to a sweetheart) on Saint Valentine's Day. It can also indicate any particular person, especially a sweetheart, chosen to receive a greeting on Saint Valentine's Day.

While awaiting his sentence in prison, Valentine is believed to have restored the sight of the jailor's daughter with his reported mystical powers. This earned him the friendship of the jailor Asterius as well as his daughter. A little time before his death, Valentine is said to have asked for a pen and paper from his jailor, and wrote a farewell message to Asterius' daughter signing it as "From Your Valentine," a phrase that lived ever after.

The Roman Empire was soon to fall, and its end brought everything back to normalcy. The people never forgot Valentine and they created a holiday in memory of their loving priest. Along with "Valentine's Day", the tradition of sending personal messages also gained popularity among love birds and such handwritten notes of love came to be known as "Valentine", a name drawn from the signature of Valentine's last letter to Asterius' daughter.

The first modern valentines reportedly became popular from the early 15th century. Following his defeat in the battle of Agincourt, the young French Duke of Orleans was captured and confined in the Tower of London for many years. During his captivity, he wrote many poems to his wife. About sixty of these remain and have been preserved among the royal papers in the British Museum.

When printers came in use, a limited number of cards with verses and sketches began to be produced. However, these were smaller and costlier than the handmade cards which were oversized but economical and elaborate.

By the 18th century, it became a common practice in England to exchange hand-made cards on Valentine's Day. People began to create valentine cards for their sweethearts by themselves out of lace or ribbons, and featuring cupids and hearts.