My Holy Month of December

Yeah, indeed this month is holy for me. I have enjoyed every day of this month as never before. Eternal peace is what this month has given me. So let me brief the causes that have left me in this euphoric state.

1. My brother got married on 13th.
2. I was visiting my home for the first time after getting employed.
3. I bought some gifts for my family members from my very own income.
4. This time I dint have to ask money for filling the tank of my Caliber.
5. I even filled petrol in my father’s car.
6. Even contributed in buying some grocery stuffs for the marriage ceremony.
7. I won a competition for article writing.
8. I am now a proud owner of a property, though the property here is a Bi-Cycle.

Well the marriage is one of the memorable events that I won’t ever forget in my next birth also. During the early days of this month, I engaged myself in anticipating of events that would come about during the marriage and thought of gifts that would be suitable for the deserved recipients. My home coming rejoiced everyone. It felt as if a Prince has come back to his native after completing his studies from “Bilayat” and all are adulating his home coming. Simply WOW.

Then the much awaited auspicious day of marriage came. And this time I was from the BARAT side. I danced like anything. Many would have interpreted as if a monkey has got released from Nandan Kanan. The marriage was wonderful. Jodi of Bhaina and Bhaujai was perfect. The Brahmin marriage involves lot of fun. The bride and the bridegroom play some games. It’s a very elaborate marriage. The ancillary thing goes for some 8 days. I think no other community’s marriage is as elaborate as of the Brahmin’s.
At last my brother lost his bachelorhood. My Bhauja is very beautiful. All of my relations and the guest who had come for the marriage hailed her beauty. Her demeanors are also very pleasing.

The last few days of my stay in Bhubaneswar were also great. I spent those by looking for gifts for my loved ones and doing some household works. My departure from Bhubaneswar was not at all emotional. I looked forward for my work in Wipro. And once again the good news arrived. I had won a competition in Wipro Technologies. In that competition I was asked to write on a technology that would touch lives of people in the next five years. And I wrote about Fuel Cell. I shared the award with another guy who also wrote on fuel cell. I am still wondering what they are going to give me as a prize.

I bought a bi-cycle, my first worthy possession. It has come as a surprise to many. Even some security guards are surprised at seeing an employee riding a bi-cycle to the Wipro Technologies campus. I believe I am the only employee, of the project engineer and above rank, to come to the campus with a bi-cycle. And moreover the bi-cycle that I possess is no ordinary cycle. It is the best cycle available in the Bangalore market.

Fuel Cell

Fuel Cell is an electrochemical conversion device. Hydrogen on the anode side and oxygen on the cathode side, are used. Usually reactants flow in and product, which is water here, flows out. The byproducts of fuel cell i.e. water, is harmless to the environment. By principle, fuel cell is the most efficient technology for the production of electricity.

The principle behind fuel cell was discovered long back in 1838. It was only in 1960s that it found use in the US space program. But commercializing it has become a real big problem. High costs, environmental drawbacks, early adoption risks and adaptability issues are hurdles for its successful commercialization.

Hydrogen is one of the major components of fuel cell. Hydrogen production by electrolysis is a costly process and is not environment friendly. But now hydrogen can be produced by biophotolysis of water by microalgae and cyanobacteria. Green algae, Scenedesmus, can produce hydrogen under anaerobic condition. Still there are some adaptability issues which are to be dealt with.

Soaring prices of fossil fuels have created insecurity in the minds of humans. There have been many wars to its name. Fossil fuels are not to last forever and are not environment friendly. Fuel cells are the best alternative to fossil fuels. It has got versatile applications. It is the best tool to tackle the problem of global warming.

Because of technological innovations, the gross production of fuel cell is now feasible. Within the next five years it is expected to reach the masses and touch everyone’s life in someway or the other.


Note: This is my first award winning article. I had posted it in a contest in Wipro. The contest was regarding a technology that one feels, is going to affect people's life in the next five years.