Life today is a matter of choices; if we take as much precaution as feasible and yet have the ability to take some risks in the quest of new experiences, it can still be very much worth living
A few months ago a young woman was returning home through a narrow passage in Melbourne and was killed. Just recently, a young man disappeared in the aftermath of the Brussels bombings. Both had just called their families and would have hardly had an inkling of the terrible fate that was in store for them that day. Both were employed by IT firms from India, doing their bit to fly the India flag in foreign countries and build a better future for their families, their firms and their country. What a tragic end!
These are troubled times we live in and hardly a day passes without stories of violence smeared over the pages of newspapers and screaming at us from the TV channels. In such times, it is all but impossible to be completely secure, given the extreme callousness and disregard for their own end that suicide bombers and their ilk are displaying. However, there are still some basic precautions that all of us must take and it would be good if all of us who have some influence over employees, children and any significant others must exhort them to follow some simple safeguards, particularly when they travel to foreign lands. There are some obvious ones_the avoidance of flamboyant behaviour, utmost respect for local customs and culture and yes, in high-risk countries or even in the relatively safer cities of the West, avoid late night forays to places where an altercation could easily result in physical violence. In spite of 30 years of global travel, I still carry my passport with me most of the time and avoid flashing too much money in public places_a sure shot following of the old maxim 'better to be safe than sorry'! When violent incidents are reported even from parts of UK and USA, we all realise the need to exercise caution.
Of course there are times when we all let our guard down and throw caution to the winds. One such time was a few years ago when I was invited by the CII to lead an Aman ki Asha delegation to Pakistan. These were years before business and conference jaunts to Pakistan had become commonplace and it was a surprise for me when a dozen CEOs and spouses signed up for the trip to Karachi, Lahore and Mohenjodaro. The day before we left we were given strict instructions to stay within the confines of secure hotels always and avoid interactions with media or any outside folks in the cities we would travel to. I recall calling my counterpart on the other side, industrialist Amin Hashwani and receiving assurances that all these instructions would be followed and got on to the PIA flight in Mumbai with some trepidation but also relief after this particular conversation.
There are some obvious ones_ the avoidance of flamboyant behaviour, utmost respect for local customs and culture and yes, in high-risk countries or even in the relatively safer cities of the West, avoid late night forays
The fun began when we got through Karachi airport with some difficulty and stepped outside to be confronted by a battery of TV cameras and journalists and a beaming host Amin. He had chosen to disregard all those last min-after our first meeting with our Pakistan CEO counterparts, one of the seven women in our delegation made matters worse by asking about shopping in Karachi. With-in an hour, Amin's wife Faria was escorting all of us on a late night jaunt, getting shops opened in the Karachi streets and showing us the famous Pakistan hospitality that we all hear about.
The next four days must rank among the most exciting trips I have done and all in a very positive sense. Karachi was full of shopping and gastronomical delights, Lahore left us spellbound with its beauty and the grandeur of the main mosque and Mohenjodaro lived up to the promise that had made us request to have it on the itinerary. We sang with local kids on the steps of Mohanjodaro, received a wonderful carpet from our Lahore host Nadeem and made good friends for life _ Humayun Bashir, Head of IBM Pakistan, Jehan Ara, president of the Pakistan Software Association, Beena Sarwar and the team of Jang Newspapers and a galaxy of extremely bright software professionals and students in Karachi and Lahore, many of whom we are in regular touch with to this day! But then, a lot of work was happening by Amin's tireless team in the background to ensure that we only got to see the best of Pakistan on that trip. And we certainly did have a blast, as a member of our group offered us a wisecrack once we had safely boarded the flight back!
The message in the Pakistan story is simple_one can keep getting panic attacks about safety and choose to stay at home but there are awesome experiences you could miss by just choosing to be ultra-safe. Life today is a matter of choices and if we take as much precaution as feasible and yet have the ability to take some risks in the quest of new experiences and building new networks around the world, it can still be very much worth living!
Dr Ganesh Natarajan is Founder of 5F World, a platform for start-ups, skills and social transformation. He is also Vice Chairman of Zensar Technologies and Chairman of NASSCOM Foundation and Pune City Connect.
By Ganesh Natarajan
