Travel safe, travel well

something which they may have co give up if the y are encouraged to migrate to a new country and set up brand new social strucmres.

Abour this time the supply and demand equation for flights to India changes: demand far exceeds suppl y as most Indian Ausualians start their annual pilgrimage to India. While it will n o doubt be a.n invaluable oppormnicy to catch up with friends and family, here a re a few observations of what to expect as yo u 'go back to where you came from'.

On a peop le - to -people basis, those who have elderly parents will experience a surge of guilt for abandoning them in India while they them selves live so far away They wilJ look at options to have them join them in Australia, an d so, there will be much Googling co Look at government rules and regulation But perhaps it will be worth Looking ac the reality of it alJ, and understanding whed1er the mmns and clads ar e happy in their current network of friends and relatives a.nd with their ind ependence,

There will be much socialising w ith friends who, since India opened up its economy in 1991, have n ow establis hed themselves weJJ in the financial fabric of d1e economy. While these friends may be fairly weU set, their c h ildren may well be getting educated in the UK or jn the US, as the demand for good education far exceeds supply of quality institutions

Then, there \,@ be the health issues wbich one will invariably come across. For middle class India, there is r eady availability of alcohol and, with money at hand and limited entertainment opportunities, booze does tend co figure large in t he li ves of contempo rar y urban Indians

The traffic, of course, will not only be different to what you experience in Australia, but also changed from the last time yo u visi ted. The infrastrucn1re in India stiU needs to catch up wid1 the explos ion in va rious type of vehk les • be it the cars or the two wheel scooters o r the buses

There will be robust debate about the new Modi gove rnment. On the one hand there will be those who are worried about the emergence of a single relig iondominated party and what it can do for other minorities of the cmmtry; iliere will be ochers who feel that it's time to have a different gove rnment in power who can take firm reins of d1e \:OU ntry. The passion of politics, fueUed b y a couple of drinks, will definitely feature in the discussions. And ye s, d1ere will be the inevi table discussion about the booming property prices a.nd the scourge of black money and corruption.

Australia wiJJ feature s trongly during your so journ in Jnrua. Cricket will be in season, d espite the loss of yo ung cricketer Phillip Hughes, and as Dhoni, Kohli a.nd the boys battle it om with C larke, Warner and Johnson, chances are you will see a fair b it of Australia in living rooms around India And for sure, you will be asked w h y iliey like Modi so much in Oz

WeU, that's your curtain- raiser to your upcoming trip to India! Regardless, the beauty of a holiday to Indi a is that it will always keep the con n ection al ive with the home country

Po r tho se travelling, travel safe a.nd may this holiday be a memorab le o n e fo r yo u and yours

PM Modi's inspires selfless charity

0n Monday 17 November, it was inspiring to listen to the honourable PM Modi on radio during the news I am inspired to again attempt to convey a message to the PMO, Union Health Minister and Health Secretary

India's public hospitals are 'sick'; poor designs, construction, maintenance, neglect of vital biomed i cal equipment, no preventative maintenance Hospital engineering and h igh-tech micro speciality in public health has been completely neglected A lot can be learned from Australia

I have offered honorary ser vices to the Ministry of Health for implementing the following two expert reports, - Padma Vibhushan P.L Ver ma, expert committee and Padma Vibhushan R.N Gongoli committee

The UPA Government was guilty of ignoring these recommendations and hence the health care infrastructure is suffering bad ly in India Current structures \are the source of inefficiency and corruption Innovative models have been recommended by the expert committees and applauded by the WHO

I request your order as an honorary advi sor (hospital engineering) to MOH and Member of SEC of AIIMS and PGI.

The need is to act and not waste more time in ruining the engi n eering system I request again action My mission is to die i n the ser vice of patients, h ence claimi n g no salary

Dr J.C. Mehta,

Epping NSW

What PM Modi's visit means to Australia

Iwas privilege to be one of the attendees at PM Modi's address at All Phon es Arena in Sydney It was g reat to see an Indian PM fina lly realised the importance of connecting with the Indian d i aspora in Australia after 28 years Indians residing abroad have a deep cultu ral and emotiona l bond with their motherland and the response from them was nothing short of extraordinary Why do Indi ans love Modi, both in abroad and lndia?The answer to this is fairly straig htforward, expectations PM Modi even acknowledged this in his address Indians ate an optimistic lot and this optimism has led to their phenomenal success all over the world This hope and optimism has been rei gnited by the phenomenal mandate Modi and his pa rty received in M ay this year after the dubious stint by the incumbent government.