Retreating State

                I wonder sometimes why Indian Government needs to struggle so much to enforce a good decision for the benefit of the larger public. See the helplessness of Aviation minister and the way Airlines are browbeating him. Mind you, these were the same airlines begging a few months back for 'Bailout' packages and permission for late payments of dues to AAI. Forget Airfares, even Private Bus operators are also making hay and taking the 'aam admi' literally for a 'ride'. On a busy weekend a typical Bangalore-Hyderabad , Bangalore-Vijayawada or a Hyderabad-Vijayaward Private bus will cost more than 3 times the normal price.
              In this article  in 'The Hindu' the writer clearly explains how this kind of "Corruption" in Neo-liberal regime is getting unnoticed. I guess this is also crony-capitalism (Tata's (talk of )Crony-Capitalism will be a different post altogether). The writer in above article is bang on when he talks about the 'retreating role of the state'. This is clearly outlined by Shri. Pranab Mukherjee himself in 2010 budget: The role of government more as an enabler and less of a provider. So as per this new policy the 'State' goes 'all out' in helping and enabling the Private Companies to garner profits. It colludes with them for land acquisitions in case of Public-Private Partnership projects. There are already enough reasons to worry about even retreating from PDS by using food-coupons and UID. I am not against these measures as long as they improve the 'Public Services Delivery', Transparency and Accountabiliyt.  But the problem seems to be 'Government is unable to rein in these corporations after 'liberating' them'. In true 'liberated' style they challenge the government and 'aam admi' is the loser again. Also i am against this 'blind belief' that 'liberalization' or Privatization is the ultimate panacea for all our problems and the 'not so cool' impression about Public Sector. [ I agree Public Sector should get leaner, younger, trendier and cooler soon to counter this]
                 Land acquisition seems to be the classic case that shows how 'retreating' state can be a bad thing. Recent agitations in UP and Haryan against forceful land acquisitions bought the debate of bringing back 'Right to Property' as a fundamental right. Its a pity and irony that a right which was removed from Fundamental Rights to help in 'distributing' more land from rich to poor and achieve Socialism needs to be resurrected back to protect the 'poor' from acquiring their land forcefully. Things come full circle and Strange things do happen in India.

Sari Woes

                     Lot of opinions and suggestions of even reciprocity and retaliation were expressed by many people in relat ion to the pat-down search conducted on our diplomat. But one thing that worries me is the alleged reason for the search. There was a certain tinge of pain when I read ‘Sari Clad’ woman being singled out. One more instance of ‘Sari’ getting wrong PR. Sari getting endangered is not a hallucination of a fundamentalist but a reality that a prospective groom is coming to terms with. Before I am branded as a male chauvinist who wants to control what women needs to wear, I would like to clarify that I am firm believer of give and take. In these days of aping the West in what we eat, drink, talk (swear), watch and wear I may sound anachronistic talking about the ‘beauty’ of a Sari. On an optimistic note I recollect the wide array of Saris and the diversity in their draping styles displayed during the Common Wealth Games in Delhi. Personally I think of confidence, elegance and empowerment only whenever I see a working woman draped in a Sari. If at all I can suggest anything to anybody after this incident, it’s to Ms. Meera Shankar only – to continue to be what she is and what she does and what she wears and I am very proud of her and happy to see her and many others like her in a Sari breaking all the 'glass ceilings'.

Should we Support Ms. Arundhati Roy?

           First things first. Ms. Arundhati Roy joins an elite club. A case has been registered against her under IPC Section 124(A) for sedition. Lokmanya Tilak & Gandhiji are few great members of this elite list. (Though i wonder if she likes being on the same list as Gandhi). Ms. Roy, Tilak & Gandhiji were charged with the same IPC section for doing the same thing - Supporting 'Azaadi'. What an irony? Lord Macaulay who drafted our Indian Penal Code (IPC) must be laughing in his grave. A few days back, our President asked a Kashmiri woman about what she means by 'Azaadi'? The woman shot back, the same thing you wanted from British. I doubt if our President has any answer.
          Like everyone else, my instant reaction to Ms. Roy's speech a few days back was raw anger. But if you see the bigger picture, i think she has a valid point. She is just saying in a way that 'Kashmir is special'. That's what the state CM said in the state Legislative Assembly. Watch this video and by the same yardstick Mr.Omar Abdullah should also be slapped with sedition. Yesterday i saw the draft Communal Violence bill and guess what ? The 2nd line says - It extends to the whole of India except the state of Jammu & Kashmir'. This single statement in that law should seal the argument in Ms.Roy's favour. What's the point in boasting that J&K is our 'Atoot Ang' when there's a real  problem? Edward Luce in his book 'Inspite of the Gods' quotes this very eloquently. Below is that extract (not verbatim):
             During the 1857 mutiny there were 100,000 British Soldiers in India, when India's population was 200 million. Currently in Kashmir there are 500,000 Indian Soldiers when Kashmir's population is just 10 million. How easy it was for Imperialists to divide India? Or perhaps this is a measure of how difficult it is for India to win Kashmiris.
          So i think we have a problem in J&K. We may have our strategic reasons like the 'chicken's neck' region. But India should try to find some meaningful 'Azadi' within its Federalism and move on from this issue. Imagine Pakistan supporting India for a UNSC permanent membership, once the Kashmir issue is settled amicably. Its much better than the doubletalk where Obama calls India a 'arrived power' in our Parliament and Ms.Clinton calls us a 'self-appointed front runner' in their secret cables.

P.S: I just can't believe the way my thinking evolved on this whole issue. I may not be entirely correct and be sounding too simplistic, but at least i am not jingoistic.

Regulator For Media - Need of the Hour

           In the last few years Indian Media has grown into a big 'Monster'. It progressed (or i should say 'deteriorated' ) from a show like 'KBC' where you can win 1 Crore for your knowledge to a show like 'Sach Ka Saamna' where you can win 1 Crore if you are a morally degraded individual. When 'Rakhi Sawant' gives India 'Insaaf', there is something seriously wrong. Definitely Media is doing a 'lot of good', but equally or more its doing a 'lot of nasty things'. It encouraged and is encouraging 'lynch mob' mentality. News is no more just News, it has become a 'Commodity', so the media houses moved on to 'Packaging', 'Fabricating' and even 'Creating' News - Reminds me of the dialogue 'Tomorrow's News Today' in the movie 'Tomorrow Never Dies'. And another phenomena is this 'larger than life' image of chief anchors and journalists - NDTV is Barkha Dutt and Barkha Dutt is NDTV. Similarly Arnab Goswami is Times Now and Times Now is Arnab Goswami. Traits of our 'idol worship'.
                    The latest story about Media-Corporate-Politician nexus and Niira Radia's conversations with Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi is the 'culmination' of this natural progress/deterioration of Indian Media. See the chain of events - Paid News, Private Treaties. These Journalists have the guts to ferociously defend themselves and their employers don't give a damn about sacking them. Its not that they did something 'illegal', the point is about principles, morals and ethics of Journalism. When we read or listen to them, we think that they are 'true' and the 'Media' sets the agenda and 'influences' the thinking of people. In this article in 'Hindu', Vir Sanghvi says Niira Radia is just one of his 'multiple inputs' for the article he wrote in HT. So, 'We The People' are being fed News/Views/Analysis of these 'kind' of inputs and sources. We can guess the quality of 'other' inputs of Vir Sanghvi.
                  Coincidentally yesterday was 2nd anniversary of 26/11. What about the media excesses on that day 2 years back? Media's talk about Self-Regulation is just hogwash. In the 'garb' of Right to speech and expression, Media crossed all the boundaries. Its time to unleash a 'whip' and stop its transgressions. Its time for 'Legislature' to codify the rules of the game.

Kaun Banega Next PM?

         Our PM filed his affidavit to SC saying that they indeed took some 'action' w.r.t Swamy's letter/plea. I was reading about Lokmanya Tilak a few days back and an Empire Judgment against him where the British judge defined 'disaffection' as 'absence of affection'. Glad that our G.O.P didn't get inspired in similar lines and quote 'inaction' as a form of 'action' in their defense in the affidavit. This form of action (inaction) was notoriously institutionalized by their party's ex-PM Mr. P.V. Narasimha Rao. Glad that they stopped from making it statutory.
         I am not sure if Yuvraj, Rahul Gandhi must be padding up for his innings as a PM, because of this injury to their top-order batsman. May be they can send a night-watchman if they don't want to risk Rahul's wicket or may be they can give the PM a by-runner (by backing him to the core). A few weeks back i read in some Newspaper that there's a lobby who wants Mr. Nandan Nilekani as future PM. For me this is preposterous. They are saying that he has all the qualities like Mr. Manmohan Singh and is a bona-fide successor. I would say in addition to having all the good qualities like Mr. Singh, he will be also having 2 undesired qualities - lacking a ground-reality experience of the real India (or the Bharat as they say) and being a puppet for the real power. Rahul taking over is far better than an arrangement like this, at least he has been doing a lot of ground work among the real masses. Actually i have nothing against Rahul Gandhi, in fact its his greatness that he is still not interested in wielding power. He could have done that long back if he intended. My grouse is against this 'dynasty syndrome' or the nepotism in the Indian context. Its in all fields, but Politics & Cinema are most visible and Politics affect everyone. For me the glaring example of this nepotism is Tushar Kapoor in the movie Golmaal. If he is not a somebody's son, nobody would have given him even that 'dumb' role.My grouse is against this phenomena where son's/daughters of movie stars and politicians are thrust upon us even though when they lack the basic skill.
        Enough of my ranting! I think we should all thank Mr. Swamy for filing these letters and pleas. Kapil Sibal says that these are Swamy's tactics for gaining political space. I would say, that this is a far better way of doing that than other politicians who try to gain political space by raising caste or religion differences. On a lighter note Swamy say's that he doesn't want mid-term polls as he has a pending case against use of Electronic Voting Machines.
           

Manmohan Singh -- Luck By Chance?

        To be frank, i started wondering and doubting the honesty of our PM. Not that we have better options, but just if he is truly worthy of all the praise. The initial doubts started in 2008 with his stubborn attitude during UPA-I for passing the Nuke deal with USA. In 2008, he declared in Lok Sabha that  'India's technology apartheid' has ended. Guess what, only in 2010 Obama removes DRDO & ISRO from the entity list. During the passage of Nuclear liability bill, our PM said that they will take the 'broadest consensus of all'. We all saw their 'bad intentions' in inserting the 'intention' clauses and then using 'and' between 2 clauses. This is definitely not 'broadest consensus'. Now the grapevine is that US has expressed its displeasure and wants our Nuclear liability law to be amended. This is nothing but disregard for the life of 'Third world countrymen'. [ Yeah, its such a contradiction, that we are both a third world country and a power who has arrived simultaneously] US's Price-Anderson act has a liability of $10 billion, but for India they want only a pittance.
        In 2G scam, now the Apex Court has rapped our PM. He is sitting 'silent' on Dr. Swami's plea for investigation on Raja for the last 16 months. Now coming to the genesis of this post - Today by chance i happened to see Yashwant Sinha's book 'Confessions of a Swadeshi Reformer'. I am surprised to learn that 'Manmohan Singh' happened to be very lucky in presenting those liberalization reforms of India. Yashwant Sinha was supposed to propose those in his budget but thanks to Rajiv Gandhi, Chandrasekhar's government fell and India has to mortgage Gold. Yes, our PM is very erudite, but more than that i think he is also 'lucky'. He was at the right time at the right place... And now he is just warming the seat for the 'Yuvraaj'. A stop-gap arrangement..

           

UNSC -- A Misplaced Priority?

                          Obama's remark regarding India's permanent UNSC membership is pleasing to many ears (though the wording is 'near future' and also there are so many caveats). But i think India and Indians should introspect more  and question themselves whether they deserve/desire a UNSC membership and if so for what 'real purpose'? Is it just to side with U.S.A and toe its line and further India's interests (obviously this means we no longer are masters of our foreign policy) or is it for the sake of greater humanity as highlighted in Article 51 of our constitution?

Many voices were raised when India laid out a red-carpet to General Than Shwe of Myanmar. India's compulsions are understandable considering the 'string of pearls' and energy riches of Myanmar. Obama wants India to be upfront in talking about 'bankrupt regimes', but does it end with just being upfront only or does he envision a role for India in NATO? Does he wants India to join US in its adventures of exporting democracies? Like the puppet democracies they installed in Iraq & Afghanistan? Nehru will be turning over
in his grave if indeed India joins such massacres against humanity. And what about India's moral support to Palestine? Israel is more important now considering India's gravest internal security threat and we forget all our moral compunctions. I cant remember India making any noise about 'Gaza' blockade.

Now coming to the sanctity or significance of UNSC? What good is UNSC when it can't stop U.S.A from invading Iraq under the false pretext of WMDs? What good is it when it goes on imposing sanctions after sanctions on Iran when Brazil-Turkey tried a viable alternative? UNSC is a lost cause and its a misplaced priority. If anything India should focus,  it is about meeting the Millenium Development Goals, making the fruits of development inclusive and removing poverty. India should get over boasting its GDP numbers and do something to improve our dismal ranking in transparency, Human Development Index, Mortality rates and education.

P.S: Can Obama's reference to incarceration of leaders be applied to Liu Xiabo? What about behind the scene motivations for giving him a Nobel? Looks like not just UNSC, even a Nobel can be manipulated.

Social Networks & Governance

Facebook recently clocked 500 million users & 'twitterati' keeps growing/glowing. A recent editorial in 'The Hindu'- 'Governance & Fifth Estate' made some valid points about the use of this social network revolution. No wonder all famous anchors/presenters our Infotainment channels like CNN IBN, NDTV etc jumped onto this 'Fifth Estate' bandwagon. Recently i started following PRS Legislative on twitter @PRSLegislative. Its such a cool way to know what's happening in our otherwise boring, but important Parliament. Also i guess its a safer way so that people don't get cynical or violent by watching the proceedings on TV.  I guess in similar lines other important government bodies like Supreme Court, High Courts, different ministries -- what not everything that affects the people should start going 'social'. This increases the 'transparency' and is a good step in the direction of a 'participative democracy'. And i think the role of this 'Fifth Estate' becomes more prominent in these days where the 'Fourth Estate' is getting into murkier deals and is completely driven by corporates & vested interests who talk about the 'selling points' of Paid News, Private treaties.

Distributional Coalitions

        I came across this term in Bimal Jalan's book - 'Future of India'. He explains these as groups or lobbies that affect or influence the 'distribution' of wealth and also country's policies in their favour. Bimal Jalan says that these are a serious threat to India's future. At first glance it didn't strike much, but as i ponder over and relate things - most of the problems of India can be traced to these 'coalitions of interest'. Be it the strikes of different labour unions, the powerful lobby of farmers of Punjab/Haryana that corner the benefits of high MSP for food grains, or the opposition of FDI in multi-brand retail.
        Particularly the current issue of FDI in multi-brand retail - there is opposition from small Kirana stores and some other lobby groups. Its no surprise that these are also 'distributional coalitions'. Currently these Kirana stores provide some employment, but this employment comes under 'unorganised sector' that has no future as there's no growth or skill up gradation. On the contrary with retail employment there can be more opportunities of training and all other advantages of 'organized sector'. Job creation for semi-skilled or unskilled workers is the only way to get rid of poverty. No second thoughts about this. Also another lobby group is the 'middlemen'. FDI in retail can weed away many of these unnecessary layers of  'middlemen' and increase the farmer's recovery prices and also reduce the food prices and inflation. Everyone gains.
       Our government failed utterly in building the rural infrastructure necessary for the growth of agriculture - lack of godowns and food grains getting rotted, 25-30% vegetable losses due to pathetic roads, no cold storage facilities etc. FDI will allow farmer's to grow those that are in demand (fruits, vegetables, pulses) and might also reduce the 'malnourishment' problem. So overall it seems FDI in multi-brand retail has many advantages, but the policy makers should guard towards 'emergence of a new breed of distributional coalitions' under this FDI guise.

Random Vignette

Some recent 'terminology' that caught my attention:
Perennial Underachievers : Obviously this can be no more attributed to 'Spain's Soccer team'. But still this can be used for South Africa's Cricket team. Will the Spain's success on their soil inspire the Proteas? We have to wait till next year world cup in India. And how much can we Indians be worth of this tag? Yeah, i think we too can be referred with this when ever i see Media headings like: "Yet another Indian-American in Obama's team", 'Kerala's rubber for Jabulani Balls', "Famous Wimbledon towels-Now Made In India". If these headings are treated as (under)achievements, then we are worthy of this tag.

Contagious: Not just new words are being added every year (much to the chagrin of the Purists at Oxford), but even the context and usage of many words are changing. Just like you can no longer be 'gay' :) See the new contexts in which word 'contagious' is being used - contagion of financial meltdown, contagious scourge of 'horror killings' or 'communalism'. May be that's why the 'contagious' viruses strike back now and then..

Vuvuzela: This plastic horn of Africa has been voted as the word of this world cup. But the Uganda bomb blasts on the final of the world cup took my attention to the real 'Horn of Africa' - the countries Eritrea, Dijibouti, Ethiopia & Somalia. As per UN Stats, Eritrea is with highest number of refugees per capita and recently 'Somalia' topped the list of 'World's failed states'. Seems like our India- Bharat contradictions, Africa also has its share of contradictions.

Jagannatakam

        Natakam (i.e drama) is an ideal word to describe most of the antics of our politicians. Jagan's 'Odarpu Yatra' (Consolation Yatra) is nothing but one more of this type. Or should we say 'milking the dead cow' ? His father YSR was just another CM, but after his death he was projected as a demi-god. With the aid of media at his hand (Jagan has a newspaper and a news channel), his son is glossing his father's achievements. YSR started so many projects and schemes, but how many were completed is anyone's guess. Also imagine the huge amounts cornered by the whole 'system' in these projects. Recently the current C.M was trying to juggle the state finances to continue some of those mindless schemes. If the yatra shows us anything its the opportunism and the insensitivity of this desperate wannabe. Jagan has paid Rs. 6.6 Crore advance tax in the first 6 months of year 2009-10, whereas his previous tax payment was just Rs 2.92 lakh for the full FY 2008-09.(Source: TOI). No second thoughts about the way he made this much of money in a short span of 6 months.
       If at all anything the people of Andhra need now, its 'Viramam' ie. interval from the stupid bombardment of YSR legacy everyday. Give us a break.

Just Do It / Do The Dew.

                 It seems Indo-Pak diplomats are experts in creative writing and that's why they frequently come up with new and catchy phrases. See some of the terms they use often:
Oper Hearts.
Uninterrupted engagement.
Confidence building measures.
Insulation of talks with the flash-points.
Mountain of Evidence.
Intentions are not being questioned, we need outcomes.

Enough of rhetoric, long back only we have proved that we master English better than an English man.  Is it a hangover from our past - the 'oral tradition' of Vedas making us fastidious about our vocabulary? (Yeah, i am also getting inspired in throwing words like 'fastidious' :)) By the way glad that Pak didnt quote Bhagavat Gita to counter Chidambaram saying 'intentions matter and not consequences' :) Recently even G8/G20 critics are also dubbing these meets as 'talk-shops' with no tangible action. Apparently they also threw some
good vocabulary - Risk of synchronized exit from stimulus, staggered and calibrated exit, tailored to national circumstances. I think time for all politicians of the world to realize that actions matter more than words.

Saina's Secret of Success

              Saina Nehwal is silently achieving what she wants and also achieving it pretty fast. World number 3 ranking and 2 Super Series titles back to back. I have a feeling that she will definitely become Number 1 one day and unlike her other Hyderabadi celebrity player, she will not lose her way in the middle. There can be many valid reasons why celebrity status might not get into this girl's head - Family background, upbringing or individual personality etc. But i think one reason may be her 'Coach' too. Yes, P. Gopichand who has the rare honour of receiving all the 3 Sports awards of India (Arjuna, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna & Dhronacharya Award). [ I couldn't resist from digressing and refer to my earlier post - see the odd name of Rajiv Gandhi in this list, where as the other 2 are named for special reasons of our history]. P.Gopichand is known for his conviction and hard work and achieving things silently. Imagine the conviction needed to refuse signing a cola deal for the belief that they are harmful to health. An amount of 10+ lakhs against a belief. This amount may be a pittance for Cricketers, but its much more than that for a less publicized sportsperson and a sport whose prize-money is also relatively very  less. I guess Saina learnt some of this 'conviction' too and will stay on her course to achieve what she wants.

P.S: By the way Sania Mirza Malik lost in the first round of Wimbledon. Shit, the Media lost an opportunity of one more 'Breaking News' - Sania Mirza reaches 2nd round..Whatever, As if she gives a damn.

Mayajaal

               I think Mayawati needs to be appreciated, at least for one thing - giving it back to the 'First Family of Congress'. She created a 72nd district in U.P with a part of fiefdom of first family of Congress and named it after 'Chhatrapati Shahuji', a social reformed of Maharashtra. I dont know exactly who he is but its good at least in recognizing a 'contributor' to India other than Nehru, Indira and  Rajiv. All the airports, bridges, social welfare schemes etc everything in the name of first family of Congress. Jawaharlal Nehru Solar Mission, Nehru Urban  Renewal Mission, Indira Awaas Yojana, Rajiv Gandhi Rural electrification ... Enough of this crap man. Recognize that India is vast and there are thousands and thousands of local contributors and please do recognize local culture and their emotions. So if any one needs to be blamed for this 'name game' of Mayawati or for that matter even for the giant elephant statues - its Congress. This 'naming' culture is one more contribution of the GOP of India in addition to the 'normalization' of dynasty rule across different political parties and states.

Honour

             'Honour' is a word widely used by military people. Most of the time i hear this word is in some Hollywood War movies. I am talking about 'hearing' it and not 'feeling it'. My personal opinion is that 'Honour' is mostly felt or seen rather than 'heard'. Now associating a word like this with killing your own blood, that will be tough for any one to understand. And this happening in  our 'National Capital of Shame' at a time when we are celebrating Delhi Metro reaching Gurgaon and opening of a world-class Airport Terminal ? This anarchy sounds anachronistic. As they say- Facts reveal more information - Haryana is the state with 2nd highest Per-Capita income in India. It is also the state with one of the lowest female ratio and highest female foeticide. It is also fast turning into a new India where old traditions are being challenged.
             Politicians like Hooda and Jindal toeing the line of Khap panchayats for vote bank politics is deplorable. The courts should try these politicians also under 'abetting the murder'. Now see the governments reaction and steps taken - Instead of arresting the people quickly and set an example, they are going to come up with an ordinance where Section 300 of IPC - i.e definition of 'murder' will be changed. How stupid? In whatever new circumstances or for new reasons if a person is killed in an illegal way - its still a murder. Also the same tone and action for 'Bhopal' - Amend laws and come with more serious legislation. Enough of these laws, we have plenty, they need to implemented. Practice is the need of the hour and not 'principle'. It seems Edward Luce is very apt in quoting that - Indian state has internalised the message of Bhagvad Gita - "Intentions matter and not Consequences". Thus our noble laws and moral stands take high precedence without bothering about consequences. Its high time to have 'consequential' judgements and results and for that tough and swift decisions and punishments are needed. But our 'plural' society doesnt allow us to take swift, collective and decisive decisions. How to get out of this vicious cycle? And can we??

Congress Sycophancy

          In my blog post Halo-ed past i wrote about how Indian leaders want to have only good things about them in history books. This is not just restricted to leaders, but with most celebrities too. But this behaviour is conspicuous in the sycophantic Congress Party. The sycophants doesn't want even a single negative thing about the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. They can go to any lengths and find poor scapegoats or whipping boys. Just see the alacrity with which different Congressmen are trying to shift the blame of Warren Anderson's escapade on Arjun Singh and P.V. Narasimha Rao. Poor P.V. Narasimha Rao was blamed for Rajiv Gandhi's mistake of opening Ayodhya locks and also lost the honour of having Hyderabad International Airport named after him. The Sycophants named the airport after Rajiv and PV has to settle just for a fly-over. Same zeal was shown by Marathi Congress Sycophants in naming Bandra-Worli Sea link after Rajiv. You will roll on the floors laughing to know their justified reason - Rajiv Gandhi was born in Bombay. No wonder Edward Luce dedicated a chapter for 'Long Live Sycophants' in his book 'In Spite of Gods'.

Tax Extradition

        Swiss Parliament ratifying the tax treaty with US, so that the details of tax-evading UBS clients can be revealed is in fact a good news for India. Our government should also pursue the same with Swiss authorities. India should raise more of this issue at international forums like UN or G-20 and work with organizations like 'Transparency International'. As per unofficial figures around $1.5 trillion Indian money is stashed in Swiss banks. Many millions of Indians can be extricated from the clutches of poverty and poor health with this kind of money. In the context of India, a treaty like this can have far-reaching effects like reduction of corruption and addressing the weaknesses in our governance. A noose around final recipients will permeate the change to the lowest level. It's strange that parties like BJP raise this issue only during elections. At least our media should raise this now relentlessly. The earnestness that different stakeholders of our Country will show in this issue is a true gauge of our intentions and resolve for an 'inclusive' society.

Bhopal Tragedy

                  I think i read around 25 editorials of different news papers in the last 10 days or so. After going through the list of atrocities (still being committed) against the victims of Bhopal , i became 'numb'. So all the people who are part of the system says 'Systemic Failure'. So what the use of this god-damn system that has been failing for the last 25 years? As Arundathi Roy says in the case of Maoists, if the system or the so-called Democratic government is against you, to whom you should approach for help? What option you have other than fighting the 'state'?  Honestly i think the correct, but very insensitive and numb explanation for this whole failure can be given in terms of 'Economics'.
                 Its the case of demand and supply. We have more supply of people in India and that too poor people. Therefore there's no demand for their life. So much for our vaunted 'Demographic Dividend'.

"Halo"ed Past

                     A.L. Basham in his famous 'Wonder That Was India' says - "It is perhaps unjust to maintain that India had no sense of history whatever, but what interest she had in her own past was generally concentrated on the fabulous kings of a legendary golden age, rather than the great empires which had risen and fallen in historical times." This is in the context of lack of proper resources to study our history (both Ancient & in the Medeival).
                   Now come to present - Even after 60 years Indian government being coy in de-classifying important classified documents, Indian army rewriting the history of Kargil war and the  missing records of 1971 Indo-Pak war which were possibly burnt. So it seems that this is one more in the list of things that we may call 'our culture' or the way we do things here. Our leaders always want to be in good books and want to have an 'eternal halo' around them. So thanks to lack of history, we commit the same mistakes again and again and re-learn the same lessons. That's why possibly our old Kings never learned the lessons of 'unity', always fought each other and lost to foreign invasions.

Patterns In History

                    History has a strange way of producing coincidences. I couldn't agree more when i see the below things in toto.
World environment day (June 5th) was celebrated a few days back.
Yesterday's judgement of Bhopal Gas Tragedy.
U.S is facing the crisis of BP oil spill.
India is going to take up 'Nuclear liability bill' in the coming monsoon session of Parliament.
                   Are these things in a 'pattern' suggesting us something? Telling us to learn from our mistakes and don't repeat them? Approximately from 6000 B.C man started getting 'aggressive with environment' and now is it reaching the 'climax' where we will go back to those times? But its a tough choice to balance these perspectives - development, sustainability & safety. India is in serious shortage of power. Nuclear power seems to be a 'better' option in comparison with fossil fuels which are serious contributors to global warming. But the way in which Indian government is trying to bend laws in the form of 'Nuclear Liability Bill' needs serious introspection. US governments tried to circumvent many laws for oil companies in their mad rush for oil and now they are facing BP oil spill. Serious lessons to be learnt.
                  What can anyone say about the Bhopal Gas Tragedy judgement that came yesterday? The law, courts and the system have made fools of themselves. People and their future generations lost everything and all they got is an average of Rs.12,000/. Moreover the  money, its sheer failure of the system - 25 years for a judgement with no serious convictions, taking years to rehabilitate people and still not cleaning up the area near Union Carbide site. A scientific team found traces of 'Mercury' in mother's milk from these areas. State clearly letting down its citizens.
                  Government should seriously introspect and plug all the loopholes of Nuclear liability bill so that the law will not be 'open to interpretation'. And its high time for judicial, educational and health reforms before bragging about financial, energy and power reforms.

India's Sweet National Anthem

            The genesis of this post is one of those stupid chain-mails glorifying 'India as a heaven on Earth'. Also a few days back i saw a friend's Facebook status that claims - 'Indian National anthem was voted as the sweetest by U.N' and she is proud of it. Only words i could think of when i come across this kind of stuff is  - false pride, battered egos and hyprocrisy. Or is it we are less fastidious and dont want to go into details. No one cares about the dismal performance of India on different UN indicators like:
1. Infant Mortality rate -We are 143rd  in the world on this parameter. Out of every 1000 infants that are born, 55 die in India before reaching their 1st birthday.
2. Human Development Index  - We are 134th in the world on this parameter.
3. Literacy - We are 147th in the world on this. Even with a very loose definition of being a 'literate' we achieved only 60% literacy.
            Forget these indicators just look out of the window of your car or your house. See the reality. India may be shining, but 'Bharat' is still hungry and malnourished with about 300 million Indians still not sure how and where they are going to get their 2 square-meals. When these numbers cringe you with pain and haunt, how can we forget these when we come across a few 'ethereal' observations glorifying India? Can a 'sweet national anthem' satiate the poor's hunger? Driving home somewhat a similar point with respect to religion, Swami Vivekananda said that its an insult to a starving man to teach him metaphysics. Empty stomachs don't need religion and similarly they also don't need sweet national anthems.
            Moreover this 300 million is a conservative estimate calculated on the basis of a dubious 'calorie intake' mechanism. Recent studies are suggesting that growth of these 300 million is severly getting stunted due to absence of intake of pulses and vegetables, owing to high inflation. Their earnings depend only on their heatlh due to the physical nature of work and a problem like this pushes them into a vicious
cycle. Seriously it seems the middle class of today doesnt want to even take notice or acknowledge these problems.  I felt the same when people were rebuking 'Slum Dog Millionaire' and calling it 'poverty porn'.
People are just happy being indifferent to all this. Its time these people look through their windows before they are shattered by a revolution.

Whose IPL ??

1. Most of the Indian Middle Class loved IPL and a larger percentage are ready to defend Modi. Now is it because of our battered egos ? Because for all these years we don't have any thing to boast about in comparison with an EPL or NBA or NFL ? IPL with its growing might, clout and the crazy dollar auctions gave a boost to flaunt 'Brand India'. So is it our underlying consciousness supporting Modi because he gave us a chance to feel proud?
2. Why auctions are in dollars if its a domestic tournament? Read some where that Rupee is the currency of poor man, middle class wants to upgrade to dollars and rich already talk in dollars only.
3. Middle class keeps often questioning what the government is doing for me with my taxes? Maharashtra government just lost Rs. 5 Crore/- (convert to dollars yourself) and i dont know about other states. So the government made sure that you enjoyed IPL and paid for all the security, power consumption etc etc without getting anything in return but making a few individuals definitely rich. Now Maha CM says we cannot collect tax as the matches are over.
4. Role of 'Media' in this whole tamasha ? The so-called news channels completely lost their purpose. By the way are there any news channels today in India? I think we have only 'Infotainment' channels. On the day of 'Dantewada' massacre Harsh Bhogle was correct in analyzing the match that it might be good for team 'X' and bad for team 'Y', but its a very sad day for India. Media lost track of its priorities. Even today when National UID (which could be the panacea for all the bureaucratic bottlenecks) logo was released, Modi dominates the media space.
5. The main thing that troubles me is the 'Conflict of Interest'. IPL is full of these conflicts. The 'IPL Nights' are hosted by the event management company owned by Arjun Rampal's wife, IPL hospitality is sponsored by Poorna Patel, Praful Patel's daughter, stakes being held by relatives of Modi, Gavaskar & Ravi Shastri getting $1Million for commentary etc etc. IPL is just one big platform where people with vested interests came together and got many tax sops and found an easy way of getting even richer and being in limelight. The talk of more opportunities for sportsmen and more employment opportunities are just by-products. Mallya didnt bid for Bangalore's pride or their winning matters to him. What matters to him is the amount of money he will get as more people throng pubs and bars for watching IPL matches.
6. Coming to the quality of cricket - No doubt it showcased better talent, but i am kicking myself for watching a MRF blip 50 times a day or watching a zoomed Modi or Shilpa Shetty or Preity Zinta. Cameramen and Commentators have clear instructions - Owners & Sponsors are first, Cricket is secondary.
7. What about other contribution of IPL ? Perhaps they did something, but more could have been done. The Police worked hard and extra hours for securing IPL? Can't IPL contribute something to police foundations?? Instead, they are focussing more on innovations like 'IPL Nights'.
8. Peole are saying Modi is not alone in this and there's Pawar, Patel and etc etc. Good, then catch everyone. Don't vindicate Modi by saying others are also guilty. This again seems to be the typical Indian thing - Working class evades tax under false means saying that so and so is not even paying. Two wrongs don't make a right. Who are we cheating?? Ourselves ??

I think someone was apt in comparing Modi to 'Vince Mcmann' of WWE. Both have no qualms about being filthy rich and follow similar style. But i am not joining those who cry for banning IPL. It will be like cutting a hand due to a broken finger that could be cured with a medicine. 1 year is a long time before IPL-4. Before that the IT, ED & Corporate affairs should clean the whole mess. Time to fix things and make all accountable.

My Take On Budget 2010-11

Its exactly 2 months after the Budget was tabled and still i am writing this post just to put my 'understanding' into perspective. I used to wonder if anyone cares to read the special edition of 'Budget' that used to come with 'Economic Times' after the D-Day. From there, today i came to a situation where i downloaded the Budget 'pdf'. The Evolution of Me :)
You can download it from here: http://www.hindu.com/nic/budgetspeech2010.pdf
Key Points:
1. Importance of harnessing economic growth in making development more inclusive. Seems UPA government's motive is very clear.
2. Talking about weaknesses in government systems and bottleneck of our public delivery mechanisms.
3. Paradigm shift - 'The role of government more as an enabler and less of a provider'. This is a 180 degree shift from the Nehru's idea of an 'omnipresent state'. To quote the exact sentence of Fin Min - "An enabling government does not try to deliver directly to citizens everything that they need. Instead it creates an enabling ethos so that individual enterprise and creativity can flourish.
4. Fiscal consolidation - Recommendation of 13th Fin. Commission to cap combined debt of Centre and States at 68% of GDP by 2014-15.
5.Tax Reforms - Simple tax system with minimum exemptions and low tax rates & Direct Tax Code by April 1, 2011. These tax exemptions have encouraged citizens in becoming 'frauds'. Glad that they will be out. The lower tax rates should increase voluntary compliance and widen the ambit.
6. PSU disinvestment to meet capital expenditure requirements of social sector schemes.
7. Nutrient Based Subsidy for fertilizers from April 1, 2010. This trims governments subsidy bill from 100K crores to 49K crores. Also i guess a good step in the direction of 'sustained development'.
8. Additional banking licenses to extend the geographic coverage and improve access.
9. Wastage of grain procured for 'buffer stocks' and PDS due to shortage of storage capacity of FCI. Grains getting rotten and spoiled is a clear sign of the failure of our PDS mechanisms. In 2003 India was storing about 60 million tonnes of grain, enough to provide a tonne of rice or wheat to every single family living below poverty line. Even after this people suffering from hunger is inexplicable.
 To Be Contd..

Tharoor Drama

It's a strange coincidence that i am in Kochi right now, that is the center of this murky saga. So at last the Congress decides to get rid of this embarrassment. I hope that the great writer 'Tharoor' will now understand the meaning of 'Conflict Of Interest'. Below are some of my observations after this saga:
1. Just because a politician is educated doesn't mean he will be honest and good for country.
2. Even dumb guys can go to U.N and become successful on a world wide stage. Honestly i feel that Tharoor was so dumb in this whole episode or in some of his tweets.
3.  How often people who get caught take the refuge of regional or religious chauvinism to stir up emotions and divert the issue? It's a joke that this lady Sunanda Pushkar is bringing her half-Malayali son to divert the issue.
But the positive out of this whole thing is the 'murkier behind-scenes of IPL'. Government and Tax authorities should investigate and probe the sources of these investments. The last thing India wants now is people like Dawood investing into IPL.

33% Women's Resevation Bill

                 Inspite of the Yadav Trio's Opposition, the RajyaSabha ratified the 33% women's reservation bill. I came to know that only one MP - Sharad Joshi, a prominent farmer's leader from Maharashtra and founder of 'Shwetkari Sangathan' voted against the bill. His argument needs attention:
1. In every 5 year term the 33% seats reserved are selected by lottery and will be changed. So all the 33% incumbent women MP's and 50% of male MP's will lose the chance to contest in next term. In this way by 2024, government wants all the constituents to be represented by a woman atleast once. So basically after every 5 years 66% of MP's might be inexperienced. They need time to get adjusted and learn things and by that time 5 years will be over and they will be rotated.
2. Another argument is many male MP's whose constituency gets reserved for women in next term will simple follow Lalu Yadav's example and put their wife or daughter in the fray.
I hope that this bill will not give us inexperienced and puppet women representatives.

P.S: Why the 3 Yadav's of cow-belt are so vehemently opposing this bill?? Is it due to their personality moulded because of their caste or location??

Nice Quote I Can Relate With

"What We Have Once Enjoyed, We Never Lose. All That We Have Loved, Deeply Becomes Part Of Us".

Freedom Of Expression

This is the mail i sent to the editor of 'Deccan Herald' just now regarding the tamasha around 'M.F. Hussain'.

 Sir,
This is with respect to M.F.Hussain's statement that India has rejected him.I felt that your editorial 'Net effect' related to Google & Freedom of Expression as a great coincidence or 'perfect timing' if in case its intentional. I agree with this editorial that freedom of expression cannot be infinite and being offensive, insulting and inflammatory cannot be defended in the name of freedom of expression. In the case of Mr M.F. Hussain, this is exactly what's happening. According to Mr. M.F. Hussain, Qatar will put no restrictions on his 'freedom of expression'. Borrowing the analogy from your article i would like to see Qatar defending his freedom of expression if he desecrates any of their sacred state or religious symbols. It might be possible that instead of slapping court cases, bigots there can chop his hands without even a chance to explain his stand. I am sad to find the so-called secular English TV Media defending M.F. Hussain tooth and nail without giving a hoot to the sentiments of people whose sacred symbols were insulted by him.

Regards
~Phani

P.S: On a lighter note, i hope i am not abusing my 'freedom of expression'. Even though if i do, i think the difference might be i would accept and immediately mend it. So please bring it to my notice if i am abusing my 'freedom of expression'.

First Post From Bangalore/Bengaluru

                      Its around 15 days i resigned from my previous job and left Gurgaon. It was very very emotional leaving all my friends, company and my work. I think i literally lived my last 4 years with my work and the people involved with it :). I felt ashamed as i couldn't remember getting that emotional when i left my parents and sister. May be it's because of the uncertainty - whether i would catch these friends again or not. Because it was not that easy for me to be in touch with old friends, once i moved to a new place, new set of friends and a new life. I hope i can change it now. But part of the problem is on other side also as those friends also "Move On" in their life.
                    Now coming to present, i joined my new company in Bangalore. Its definitely a pleasant change moving 'Down South'. Suddenly i started realizing and listing down all the things i have missed in my last 7 years of life. But immediately i would counter myself remembering all the things i experienced and learned living in North India. I think i have no regrets with my last 7 years of life - all those places i visited and all those people i met and most importantly just the 'experience' and the way my thoughts and my personality developed because of that. But Yes, Change is Always Good and now i welcome this 'change' in my life and look forward to it with clear and open mind....So as they say 'Enjoy Maadi'...

National Integration - Need Of The Hour

                     Its an irony that we need to talk, think about national integration when we are celebrating 60 years of our republic. Yes, its definitely needed in these times of Raj Thackeray, Telangana and more new State movements. So, What's better than the song 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara'. I still remember the way i used to sing the complete song everytime its aired on Doordarshan even though i understand only 1 sentence at that time (of my mother tongue 'telugu'). Now to commemorate our 60th republic day the new re-mixed version of this song was released by Bollywood. Yeah i would say its released by Bollywood because of the screen time and presence given to people like Karan Johar, Shahid Kapoor,  Ranbir Kapoor, Khans and Bacchans. And i defend myself calling it re-mixed because of the way they changed tunes to match Aamir Khan's 'Kya Bolti Tu' song and with typical cliches like Shirtless Salman and Deepika's legs. Thank God Twinkle was not unzipping Akshay's pants in this video and there's no Uday Chopra also. And all our sport achievers are just wrapped up in a jiffy in the end. By the way how can they forget 'Sachin', perhaps one of the very few current icons with whom most of India can relate to. And i think people like Ratan Tata, Metro Man Sreedharan, Abdul Kalam are more deserving to be present. And may be a few honest politicians like Jaya Prakash Narayana of Loksatta.
I couldnt stop but to make the below observations comparing this  new version with the older one:
1. The new version clearly shows the increase in might or clout of Mr.Amitabh Bacchan. In the old version he was just clubbed with 2 other Bollywood heroes Jitendra & Mithun in just one shot. Now its starts with him and also features his son and daughter-in-law.
2. Are the creators of the new version correct in using overdose of Bollywood as the newer generations are becoming more ignorant of other arts, dance and literature forms. Yeah, what actually these days an average family does at home in the evenings other than watching TV. I guess the creators missed one serious type of achievers in this video - they should have shown few more 'Reality TV' achievers in addition to Shilpa Shetty.
3. Another coincidence is the announcement of lot of Padma Awards to film personalities. Saif just grabbed a Padma award and i read an article by Suhel Seth criticizing this decision. He says what Saif has done to deserve this award - popularize the use of bandana, swap girl friends or just has royal blood and is so and so's Son.
4. Pepsi's 'Jaanta Hai Mere Baap Kaun Hai' Ad truly summarizes the situation in any field in India. Just check out the so-called achievers in this ad who are nobody's without their fathers.
5. So what exactly unites the current India (other than final rounds of Beauty Pageants and some sporting events)?? Do we have a national politician with whom the whole of India can relate to and look upto. Is he going to be Rahul, yeah i mean Rajiv Gandhi's Son.. Phew..!