daycare

The high quality daycare that IISER Pune has started will reap huge dividends for them, maybe even in the short term. This I hope will encourage others to follow suit. There are still a large number of women capable of becoming phenomenally good scientists who do not achieve their potential simply because they have children. IISER may see brilliant women scientists coming to join there as faculty. As of now, women enter the work force if they have mothers/mothers-in-law willing to care for the children. This means the older women do not get to live their dreams. This generation of young women may have mothers who agree to give up their dreams for the sake of their grandchildren, but the next generation of grandmothers may still be at the peak of their  own careers when their daughters give birth. Unless we have high quality childcare at work places and a liberal leave policy for new parents, we will lose a lot of brilliant women. We see from the class XII results that girls very often  outdo boys in academics but fall behind along the way. I hope this generation of girls grow up to be great, fulfilled women and the establishment sees that they have a lot to gain by this.
 

When I began teaching, I had no idea if I was doing a good job or not. The first few classes were not very good. In fact, my first year, I floundered. Later I got the hang of it and felt comfortable, but did not know if I was good. This was before the age of student feedback for NAAC.
Once I got this heartwarming email from an old student on how he hoped to teach the way I did and  suddenly I felt maybe I was good. At least for a few students thought so. It also made me realise that I had lost touch with my PhD guide who had been a real mentor. So I dug out an old letter from him and renewed our correspondence, only now through phone calls. I could hear in his voice that it made him happy to hear from me. Luckily, in the last one year, he moved to Bangalore which I visit often, and I was able to meet him and his wife. I am happy I visited him a couple of times before he passed away. 
Over the years, specially on teacher's day, I get a few emails or phone calls from old students and it makes me happy. It is good to be a teacher.

I believe oil "migrated" from ONGC wells to Reliance wells in the KG basin.
Maybe Reliance should have built a Wall.....
Maybe some money will migrate into my bank account from someone else's.