Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

shiv
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Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by shiv »

Famosity may sound better than fame - but it's here either way

http://www.rediff.com/netguide/2003/aug/16bharat.htm
Kapil
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kapil »

Hey,whos the guy with the beard pic taken by a webcam? :)

cheers all

Kapil
shiv
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by shiv »

It must be a psy-op conspiracy to split us up on url lines. Still working for me.
member_201
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by member_201 »

Glad to see a few of the team members online. Keep up the good work guys.
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Sridhar »

Congratulations to the entire BR team. And thanks for putting together this great initiative for a great cause.
Adi
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Adi »

Cawngritulitions... BR regiment ka jhanda ucha rahe...

I remember that a favourable article on BR by Sevanti Ninan of The Hindu nearly sparked off a DDM sympathy wave on BRF.. :D

So should we now await orders to go soft on DDM? :lol:
Prateek
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Prateek »

Congracts BR !
Originally posted by Aditya_C:
Cawngritulitions... BR regiment ka jhanda ucha rahe...

I remember that a favourable article on BR by Sevanti Ninan of The Hindu nearly sparked off a DDM sympathy wave on BRF.. :D

So should we now await orders to go soft on DDM? :lol:
Nope ... Not until they belong to the DDM brand !
George J

Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by George J »

Jee guys i donno if Rediff singing our prise is a good thing or not. Not too long ago they rubbished us as a Raksha Bandhan site...

Now i know most jingos are in lau with V.Bhosle and her ilk, but I'd rather see BR being praised in the print: TOI to be precise. Now i know you dont like TOI but take it from me it makes a world of a difference if you get featured in TOI over any other newspaper.

Oh yeah..hey Vishnu how bout doing a feature on BR???
Ananth
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Ananth »

Congrats to BR Team.

-Ananth
Surya
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Surya »

George

Varsha is not Rediff.

just like a few jingos are not BR
Kuttan
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kuttan »

So should we now await orders to go soft on DDM?
Hardly. The author of that article did accurate, painstaking research, and stayed in the background, letting the article's subjects do the "talking".

We don't attack articles which are that good :D

I note that they have not appreciated the value of BRF/BRM in the strategic arena, but that's for another day...

Gee! Some of the toughest admins actually smile like humans! What a revelation!
Victor
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Victor »

Thank God for the BR team. Without them, I would not have a little emotional oasis to go to in the desert and a sea to dive into when needed! Very well deserved recognition. Congratulations!

In good time, I have to believe that even the most misguided of our DDMs will come around or risk becoming an increasingly marked species.
Div
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Div »

With all this talk about BR I am sure that it will continue to grow. And for that I think there needs to be some thought on where the website (not the forum) sees itself in a couple of years. I think there is need for some design updates...basic stuff that can help conserve bandwidth and create a better user experience.
Umrao
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Umrao »

Some how I suspected that Seetal must be from Gandipet ka pani (eech) aadmi hai :) .

Congrats to all for the sterling efforts. Keep it up.
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by neeraj »

Could someone please post the entire artical here as for some strange reason mu ISP is saying bad link
Guest

Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Guest »

Originally posted by neeraj:
Could someone please post the entire artical here as for some strange reason mu ISP is saying bad link

 

Fascinated by the forces

A common interest in India's military brings together the bharat-rakshak.com team

Anita Bora | August 16, 2003 00:31 IST

Over the space of a few years, bharat-rakshak.com (BR) has established itself as a definitive source for information on the Indian military.

It all started in 1996 when several individuals put up personal pages dedicated to different wings of the Indian armed forces. Since they were only a handful, the owners came together to collaborate and set up a resource under one umbrella. BR was born in July 1997.

Images of a few old and serious men with horn-rimmed glasses discussing India's nuclear capabilities is quickly dispersed after meeting young and enthusiastic Kapil Chandi, who looks after the navy section.

"We are all young enthusiasts, who started acquiring more and more information. We are all young. We don't have any biases or fixations. Growing up in liberal India has brought to the site freshness and new perspective," speaks Kapil for the team. None of the members have any professional training either.


For those who are always time strapped, BR's core members could probably teach a valuable lesson in the art of time management. "If a significant function takes place; like yesterday, a new ship was commissioned by the navy, then there is more demand of time and resources. The important thing is to find a balance," says Kapil.

The site is also managed out of their own pockets. While the expenses don't seem too much, there are overheads. "Internet connections are relatively cheap nowadays. But it is still expensive if we have to travel out-station on assignments, purchase and develop film rolls," points out Kapil. He's not complaining either. "People spend on so many different things. We spend on our hobby. So it works out okay."

Seetal Patel, who works out of London, explains about how they run the site. For monthly or quarterly site updates, the information is collated from all their sources. Articles are then reviewed by administrators. The bi-monthly emag, BR Monitor, has a team of editors with their own deadlines. The various sections of the site are updated at different frequencies. There are also special updates and contests on occasions, an example being the India in Space – 2020 essay, organised this Independence Day.

In general, only open source information is published. Else, it would have to be written by a verified source. Seetal says they take care not to publish information based on hearsay, or from an obscure source. "We do a good job and err on the side of caution," he adds.

With members scattered over the world, time zone differences, according to Seetal, can work both ways. "It helps people moderate the forums round the clock. It hinders in getting a quick consensus on certain issues."

The individual Web masters generally make the initial contact with freelancers and continue to be the main source of contact for future articles. Development and uploading takes place mostly in the US, UK and India. Kapil reveals that they usually have a bank of writers who volunteer to contribute. On occasions, they also approach people.

On BR's policies regarding presenting information, Seetal says, "It promotes an Indian perspective on issues of national security and response to issues is shaped by this perspective."

And has the Indian military's official site taken a back seat in the process? "At BR we can never match the official site in information content, but the freelance nature of our site means that the way it is presented is more interesting," replies Seetal.

There are, of course, challenges in running an extensive site of this nature. Some of these, according to Seetal, are a lack of access to official history of the various units and lack of ex-defence personnel who come forward to record their experiences.

Talking of its achievements, Seetal lists the team's fund raising for Kargil as one of their memorable efforts. "The forum participants raised funds for the army and their initial calls to the army woke it up and resulted in setting of the fund for Kargil martyrs." The Amar Jawan site maintained by Sachin P K is also another effort they are proud of.

The team probably has it a little easier today, since the army's attitude has changed, says Kapil. "The armed forces are opening up, though maybe not as much as we would like. But they are very helpful and cooperative."

Regarding clash of interests, Kapil says this has never happened. "History is what we basically focus on. And more than 99 per cent of the time, it can be done. Current matters might be a little more sensitive."

The feedback, has kept the team motivated. Even officials from the US Navy and military use the site. "An US naval officer told me during the India Fleet review that he went through the site so he could learn about the Indian Navy before coming to India. Now that's something!" exclaims Kapil.

Most feedback is put up on the site, and replies are sent whenever there is a specific query. The documentaries about Indian armed forces that are on sale, have met also with a good response.

About the future, the team is still excited and raring to go. "There was hardly any information when we started. Every schoolboy will know more about the Titanic than about our own INS Vikrant. In bookshops, there is nothing about the India military. We want to fill that gap. That is why we exist," says Kapil.

"It is said that those who forget history are condemned to repeat it, and we want to remind people of their rich heritage," he adds.

The enthusiasm has obviously not faded, when I ask Kapil about how much longer they can sustain their efforts, He says, "We are young and we all have age on our side. We have not gotten disillusioned yet. We are doing it only for the passion and we have not come across any obstacles to stop us."

The thousands of people who visit their site will be relieved to hear that too.

http://www.rediff.com/netguide/2003/aug/16bharat.htm

Faces behind the site
From Philadephia to New York, from Bangalore to Mumbai, meet a few members of the BR team
A team of about 25 people work across different time zones to bring this rich reference source for civilians, military enthusiasts and even the media. And for all of them, it's a hobby they are very passionate about.
Ashutosh
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Ashutosh »

Seetal spends wonly 2 hours on BRF? With such low mileage, he might even get banned! :D

And here are some nutcases who spend close to 10 hours on BRF ...
Guest

Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Guest »

Originally posted by Ashutosh:
Seetal spends wonly 2 hours on BRF? With such low mileage, he might even get banned! :D

And here are some nutcases who spend close to 10 hours on BRF ...


He's probably already on the 'Hit-List' of the j!h@@di Badmins! :D :lol:
Rajit
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Rajit »

Kewl Guys! Keep up the good work! next feature on CNN?? ;)
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kaushal »

Now i know most jingos are in lau with V.Bhosle and her ilk, but I'd rather see BR being praised in the print: TOI to be precise. Now i know you dont like TOI but take it from me it makes a world of a difference if you get featured in TOI over any other newspaper.

BR has been mentioned in TOI about a year or so ago
Kuttan
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kuttan »

This should be a lesson to the Admins.

All that fame and glory for the Mil Forum (well-deserved, of course!)

But .. just IMAGINE the possibilities if the Romance Forum and the Cricket Forum were also here. There would be no one left with enough seconds in the day to browse REDIFF to read such articles!
Rajeev
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Rajeev »

if the Romance Forum and the Cricket Forum were also here.

Hmmmm … I am worried you will be banned should Rahul Mehta , George et al be in ear shot :)

Well , it could be a ploy from rediff to cajole BR to go easy on them , only sometimes back , BR members were furious on rediff and demanded boycott of the site when dear
Dilip D'Souza went over the top with his (in)famous suggestion of Iraq type invasion on India .

While media coverage is always good , rediff is not exactly a brand name to be proud to be associated. One wonders what took them so long to understand that BR is the best unofficial indian defence website , period.
Harsh
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Harsh »

If that is true, and it may very well be, then this is another indication that BR has graduated from passive to active "psy-op" influence
Kuttan
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kuttan »

Since I consider myself to be totally representative of desis :D here are some crucial statistics to remember:

I do browse Sulekha to see where I can post the occasional comment and do some damage to assorted worthies - also to gauge various protagonists because I occasionally may contribute articles there - and have to defend them. Maybe 15 minutes a day, unless there's a particularly interesting battle in progress. Nowadays most of that time is spent on the Sulekha Newshopper.

I do browse REDIFF. Maybe 5 minutes on average, with most of the time spent on the cricket news or the occasional story which triggers my interest.

I do spend quite a lot of time on BRF (better take the Fifth Amendment here on details). The replacement of the HICCUP Forum by the KumbhKarna Rakshak Forum (KKRF) has probably saved my career and cured insomnia at one shot ...

Point is - I spend far less time on REDIFF compared to even a year ago. And none at all on sites like TOI, The Hindu, IndianExpress etc. which I (mistakenly) thought were good sources of news/opinion a few years ago.

I don't actually spend any money subscribing to ANY newspaper or weekly or monthly except professional stuff and whatever Supreme HQ subscribes to keep track of important developments in the movie/TV/social world.

As my dear friend used to say:

"Bhot Kolkotta Dhoes Todhay Indhia Dhoes Tommorrow"

Replace "Kolkotta" with "narayanan" and "Indhia" with "desis worldwide" and you see why REDIFF should be getting a bit concerned.
As for The Wimpu, Islamabad Express, Times of Islamabad, well... may they stay blissfully unaware of developing trends as they go down the tubes.

I DO read those on the plane from Mumbai if I ever get to visit the matrubhoomi, or while there, when web access is less convenient than lounging on the veranda parapet wall.
JCage
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by JCage »

Congrats!Positive reports about BR Zindabad!!
MN Kumar
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by MN Kumar »

Great going by the BR team. Keep up the good work.
eas
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by eas »

Good show, BR.
Am Privileged to a member of this forum!

Great to see some of the ppl behind BR... :)
venkat_r
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by venkat_r »

Good report on BR. One stop reading about Indian defence.

Should we put some Badmin phutus in the BR site?
JE Menon
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by JE Menon »

>>Should we put some Badmin phutus in the BR site?

My vote: Nyet, non, na, nein, ohhi, la, nahi, NO.

Our mugshots might scare off half the members, plus drive away any female who might be lurking (yeah, I know, fat chance).
amarnath
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by amarnath »

Menon

We BRites are so brave that we arent scared even of the sacriest things on earth :D :D :D so bring'em on atleast on a thread ..i havent seen a admins face yet :lol:
Nikhil Shah
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Nikhil Shah »

Originally posted by Venkat R:
Good report on BR. One stop reading about Indian defence.

Should we put some Badmin phutus in the BR site?
Sorry couldn't post earlier. I was busy with the blackout. Here is <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/ima ... g">mine</a>

Enjoy!
Aditya_M
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Aditya_M »

No wonder that the power problems were traced to a dimb bulb in the white House :D
Nikhil Shah
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Nikhil Shah »

Had there been more tax cuts, there would have been more money to spend and a new bulb could have been procured :)
venkat_r
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by venkat_r »

Our mugshots might scare off half the members

> talk about Jelabi hardend posters

Nikhil, You look just like my Uncle ;) whom i support every month.
Kuttan
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kuttan »

scare off half the members, plus ..
Come on now, JEM! With those pictures, the rest of that statement HAS to be "flood our email inboxes with fan mail.."

I knew it! The BRadmins deleted the Romance Phorum out of pure jealosy, so that they could post their own phutus and attract all the fan mail.. Unfair trade practices, I say.
Nikhil Shah
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Nikhil Shah »

[quote]Originally posted by Venkat R:
Our mugshots might scare off half the members

> talk about Jelabi hardend posters

Nikhil, You look just like my Uncle :)
Amber G.
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Amber G. »

Sorry couldn't post earlier. I was busy with the blackout. Here is mine
I hope the the admin will not get mad and N^3 will not become more jealous if I divulge the following fan site: who is real badmin?
Kuttan
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Kuttan »

Supreme HQ pointed out to me the other day that the Original James Bond Character was Shri Hanuman. I mean - here's a secret agent, going alone into hostile territory, walking into the Baddie's palace, getting captured, remaining totally cool, and then eventually burning the whole place to the ground.

Very apt. I can see it in my mind: Hanuman walks into the Galle Face Hotel, down the street from Ravana's SPECTER HQ:
My name is Man. Hanu Man.
Now, seeing what Amberji has so kindly posted, I must comment on the handsome visage and the sheer magnetic personality as well....
Amber G.
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Amber G. »

BTW this may be old news here but BR link has appeared in CNN BBC washington post Hindustan times etc ...
Div
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Re: Bharat Rakshak on Rediff

Post by Div »

Originally posted by Amber G.:
BTW this may be old news here but BR link has appeared in ... BBC
That's a nice 20mm NTW sniper rifle. :D
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