It is Vote for ‘Against All’

The scratch vote is a negative yet emancipating ballot option allowing us noble citizens to vote against all the candidates chosen in an election.

It gives us room to exercise our vote in toto without having to be subjected to choosing & accepting undeserving candidates with no clear agenda or lacking mass appeal. This negative voting would gradually lead to the objective of candidates being chosen by political parties that truly represent the will of the voters.

It would foster cleaner elections and candidates with strong leadership qualities and goodwill to rise above the rest.

We are finally moving towards an egalitarian society where the burgess a.k.a citizens & tax payers can finally press the NOTA (None of the Above) negating all candidates. However, one must truly utilize their rights & opportunity to vote, rather than not, as that would be deemed as catachresis of the electoral ideology.

A complete misuse of the system that is in place to assist us to put forth a deserving candidate and if they are not truly commendable or lack righteous actions then we should exercise our rights to reject them completely, thereby forcing our nation’s political parties to compete with not only the best candidates but who are worthy contenders as well.

The Game of Numbers

Within two weeks of having taken charge Mr. Raghuram Rajan our current RBI chief, has taken the bull by its horns so to speak. The proverbial bull in the china shop- Inflation, has created havoc in our Indian growth story.

At the beginning of the Fiscal year expected GDP growth rate was pegged at 7.5% and inflation nearing 6%. Anyone with half a mind can understand that these kinds of numbers can mean only one thing- economic slowdown. Actual numbers are worse with Q4 FY2013 GDP growth reported as 4.8% whereas the consumer price inflation was 6.1% as on 30 Aug’13.

I believe that Mr. Raghuram Rajan’s stance on balancing the slow growth with accelerating inflation is a correct one. Even though the US fed’s decision to postpone tapering of stimulus has had a positive impact on our stock markets, however the real worry is the economic growth in the long run.

His decision today to increase the repo rate by 25 basis points was a tricky one as its impact will only be clear in the next quarter numbers. Till then we can only strap on our seat belts and sit tight, as Mr. Rajan is yet to prove his steering capabilities.  And hope that he will drive our economy out of the current fiscal mess and towards a more wholesome and shining growth story projected few years back.

I, however, on the other hand have no doubts on his driving skills and believe that we will reach the desired destination safely provided we can avoid the pitfalls of corruption and implement our economic policies effectively.

The Land Bill has finally Landed

The second ace in the deck for the ruling party is the Land Acquisition Bill which is due for discussion in the Lok Sabha today, with the Govt. managing a “broad consensus” five months ago with the opposition.

After the much anticipated Food bill, the pro-poor & mass vote appeal Land bill is highly anticipated game changer for the current populist regime. The idea is to keep the masses happy with “too little too late” public vote garnering Bills which in the end do not meet the intended purpose except to keep the ruling party in power for another 5 years.

Long term planning is out the window as long as short term gains are big enough (think 10,000 crores in scams) to offset the long term discord that the society is being pushed to the brink of. The only light in the tunnel seems to be this ray of hope that the Land bill will provide to all those people whose sole earnings and livelihoods are dependent on this asset.

It intends to protect & safeguard the rights of the land owners, and the as per the provision, 80 % of the displaced people are required to give their consent in case of private acquisitions and 70% in case of Govt. & Public-Private projects.

This Bill is like a candy in a shiny package and sweet coating but with a bitter inner core. And, unless the execution & implementation is done by keeping its true intentions intact it will fail to achieve the mass appeal it has garnered till now. Similar to the infrastructural reforms and several alluring FDI schemes these bills too have made a loud noise but have had virtually no impact in the lives of the common people.

What the Govt. lacks in long term goal planning it has made up through taking up long standing issues at the end of its term, like they do so in the movies where the hero is yet to make a comeback but in a sequel. I just hope that the sequel is better than the original.

The best days of your life!

As I stroll down beautifully manicured lawns, I reminisce the days of my youth when I was entering my college. Those were the some of the best days of my life that I cherish and have fond memories of.  My son too, will now begin this very same journey of life. The period when one is uncertain and not knowing what the future holds yet filled with optimism and youth and hopes of conquering the world & making a difference.

These days are few to come by, in one’s whole lifespan these few years feel like a drop of rain on the parched earth. Just out of school, boards are over and there are no parents or teachers breathing down your neck. You have nothing to worry about, because you are carefree & young.

You are eager to meet new people and make new friends. Studies are no more your top priority. You dress like a film star and party like one too. When the sunrises, you feel as though the whole world is shining.  You love to play your music really loud, rock music to your ears is like listening to the birds singing, even though your neighbors may harshly disagree.

First few days of your college are like the first few days of your courtship. Filled with lots of expectations and mixed with anticipation and high hopes.  It is important that you don’t lose your way however. As I spoke my mind I shared my concerns with my son who had also joined me for my morning walk. I told him that I did not expect much of him except that he grows up into a respectable young man who would not forget his roots, his culture and most of all his family. He said to me “Dad, I will never forget this day. You have given me permission to go and pursue my studies at one of the best colleges in the world and your blessings are more than enough for me”.

His words convince me that no matter where he goes now and whatever he eventually decides to do; he will be a young man just like I was many years ago, ready to take on what life has to offer and to make the best of it. To never give up and most of all to never forget.

India gets its “Chak De” moments

Hockey, a sport that bought India its greatest moment back in history, has lost its sheen and now all that is left of the great sport is a few sepia-tones reminisce of the past.

But amidst this scenario comes a ray of hope. The young girls, virtually unknown even among the hockey followers in India, have brought back the hockey glory to the nation.

Source:Indiatimes.com

The young athletes surprised everyone with a performance that made the rest of the world prop-up to cheer the players on field. Although they lost tamely to the Netherlands in the semis, they did not lose heart and played their hearts out in beating England 3-2 for the bronze medal. And to top it all, our Rani Rampal was also adjudged the best player of the tournament!

Till this triumphant win broke in the news, did you know when was the last time an Indian hockey team won a medal at the World Cup in hockey? The last real big one was a good 38 years ago, a really long period of wait for a nation that gave birth to the great Hockey legend Major Dhayanchand.

Unfortunately, since this was no cricket nor was the media in an overdrive to proclaim that our team was actually in the semi-finals of a world tournament, the sports channels too chose to ignore it and real followers had to depend on the live stream available on the world hockey body’s website.

These girls will return back as heroes and would be feted, and deservedly so. What comes now is the wait, a wait for accreditation for nimble yet mighty players who rightly deserve the best an athlete can be offered. What makes all worry is that the authorities simply don’t have it in them to help the hugely talented youngsters take the next leap, into a world beating competition at the senior level in the near future.

 Some good has happened though. The Hockey India League last year was a resounding success. It brought to India some of the best players in the world. They played alongside our players, juniors, seniors, upcoming. No doubt our youngsters learnt, not just by playing alongside, but spending time with them, how they train, their dietary habits, their discipline and all else. To be fair to the reviled officials, they did a great job in giving the hosting rights of the semis and the finals to Ranchi, which, apart from Punjab and Bhopal, and to some extent Coorg, is easily the nursery of real hockey talent in the country.

The good news for the Hockey players doesn't end there; Hockey India announced that each member of team will be rewarded with a cash prize of Rs One lakh.

So, let us savor the great achievement of these talented girls and hope this is just the beginning of the many more laurels they would get us.

The Game of Blame

Elected politicians and bureaucrats are important pillars of governance. These two pillars need to work in synergy to run the country efficiently. Innumerable time’s initiatives taken by individuals or organizations for the betterment of the society or country at large are hampered or faced with hurdles put up by some elements of society.

The Mid-day meal crisis was not only a horrific tragedy but a revelation. It brought to light the cracks in the implementation of the initiative right from its inception. The countless number of issues regarding the hygiene and nutrition that have come to be known only prove to show how complaints made to the government falls on deaf ears. Seeing the callous implementation of the plan in not only one but all states makes it clear the problem was the core of this programme, the sync between the government and the bureaucrats was missing. The misappropriation of funds, delay in the delivery of recourses and the lack of quality check by the government in all states has lead to such an incident to take place. The government of Bihar claims it to be conspiracies of the bureaucrats while the bureaucrats believes it to be the failure of the administration and the lack of the authority of the law on the people.

But here in India not only initiatives undertaken on a national level but acts attempted by individuals or small group of people to improve society are brought to a standstill by people with power.  The latest example being of IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal who took on a powerful sand mafia in the state and helped curb the illegal mining activities happening in the state.  Soon after which she was suspended by the state government stating it was for ordering the demolition of an under-construction mosque wall in a village in Uttar Pradesh.  Transfer of bureaucrats by politicians is not something unheard of, at least in India. Some of the representatives of the government are actually famous for their tendency to transfer and try and exercise their powers over bureaucrats.

Such incidents and situations give people infinite opportunities to begin the blame game.  Political parties and bureaucrats try and wash their hands of such situations by accusing each other for causing the incident. Many a times it is done to tarnish the others image or is a well thought political move or with personal agenda. Politicizing any situation is not a solution to a mishap. 

We are aware about such incidences but we do not understand the degree to which they are a hindrance to the growth of our society. This leaves me disheartened with a lingering thought, why can’t politicians and bureaucrats forget their personal agenda and instead take accountability for their actions and look out for the public at large.

The politicians and the bureaucrats should come together and rectify this situation and ensure such incidents don’t take place again instead of taking potshots at each other.  Only if they work together and not against each other can such situations not occur in this country. The attention needs to be diverted from accusations to solutions

The Supreme Court does CLEAN-UP ACT

In a ‘landmark judgment’, the Supreme Court of India has said people convicted of crime cannot hold parliamentary positions.

The ruling is indeed a milestone in the country’s political history since there are quite a lot of corrupt and convicted politicians holding offices and important parliamentary positions in India. This is probably one of the many characteristics the countries politics is wrongly known for.

This judgment broadly states that a person cannot fight the Lok Sabha or assembly elections from jail even if not convicted, the Supreme Court has ruled, signaling an end to the practice of politicians contesting polls from behind bars awaiting trial.

Though legislation in India pertaining to convicted lawmakers was more or less the same, that is, the politicians found guilty of a crime were allowed to stay as long as their cases were pending in courts. The different clause this time around is that they can't stay on regardless of appeals to higher courts which is a good step since many politicians in India use their influence and ‘resources’ to constantly keep the appeals alive.

While According to a report out of the 4,835 MPs and MLAs in the country, 1,448 are facing criminal cases. This staggering figure is the highest in the world.

The ruling, which spells more trouble for the political class in an election year, may be yet another check on criminalisation of politics but has the potential to be misused. Political rivals, especially the ruling party or combine, can target each other in the run-up to elections.

Corruption cases mostly don’t even enter the judicial system in India. Even if they make it, the entire process is incredibly slow. Sometimes the documents get lost, witnesses change their statements or complainants withdraw their allegations over death threats.

Apparently this particular ruling passed by the Supreme Court will not allow the corrupt politicians to prolong the cases filed against them. They will not be able to buy time to complete their term in office which is great for the people and will definitely help to clean up the political system but only if the legislation is actually used.

The Election Commission has, in its reports from time to time, been seeking amendment of the law for removal of the incumbent advantage to elected MPs and MLAs convicted of various offences.

But political parties have been resisting change on the ground that ruling dispensations bring false charges to keep rivals out of election process. The political class has welcomed the verdict the Supreme Court verdict.

Yet the fact that a cleansing of the political system was long overdue cannot be denied. This might be a signal to political parties themselves to develop their own internal checks.

The Supreme Court has only made an effort to check the creep of criminality in the legislatures as there has been progressive erosion of public trust of politicians, reinforced by the widespread belief that nothing will set right the political system in control of corrupt politicians. Amidst this cynicism, the Supreme Court’s judgment is a beacon of hope. The right way forward is surely for the top court to devise and enforce procedures that ensure quick, time-bound justice.