All Poor are equal, but some Poor are more equal than others

“Poverty and deprivation get covered as events” writes P. Sainath in his critically acclaimed and bestselling book ‘Everybody loves a good drought stories from India’s poorest districts’ “Yet, poverty is about much more than starvation deaths or near famine conditions. It is the sum total of a multiplicity of factors… Hunger-again just one aspect of poverty-is far more complex here. It is more low level, less visible and does not make for the dramatic television footage that Somalia and Ethiopia do.” Off late, with release of movies like Slumdog Millionaire and with tourist coming here solely for the purpose of clicking the deprived class, the poverty and the poor has seen massive dramatization in India and the world. But when it comes to counting them for the purpose of their welfare, the whole task becomes much more complicated as understanding the poverty as a process in India.

The Central Government on Thursday May 19^th, 2011 approved the proposal of head counts of poor in the country, for the sole purpose of better targeting of the numerous welfare schemes it operates. First such census was done in the year 1992 to count the number of families below poverty line. This time it would be a paperless exercise using handheld devices manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited. Apart from counting rural poor, which used to be done earlier, this time urban poor would also be enumerated. The Ministry of Rural Development, Housing and Urban poverty alleviation, which is the nodal ministry to conduct this exercise, along with Registrar General of India would jointly conduct this exercise. A new methodology for determination of poor would be used, according to Business Standard “The new methodology for the rural census would divide the rural poor into three sections. One set of the population would be included in the BPL category, while another set of people — the economically affluent but socially deprived — would be excluded from the BPL category. A third set of the population would be enumerated on the basis of seven socio-economic parameters. The methodology for the rural census would consider the economic conditions of the family and attach only moderate importance to factors like social backwardness. The urban population would be enumerated on the basis of three criteria — residential status, social vulnerability and occupational vulnerability.” However there is a catch, for the first time religion and caste would come into picture, that is, the religion and caste of those counted would also be determined.

Although this mammoth exercise of determination and labeling of poor would be undertaken by the Ministry of Rural Development, Housing and Urban poverty alleviation along with Registrar General of India. But those who will get benefits would be only identified by the Plan Panel. As report in Mint says, “While the Planning Commission estimates the number of poor in the country, the ministry of rural development identifies the poor. The processes used by the two are different: the Planning Commission estimates poverty based on consumption, while the BPL census uses socio-economic characteristics such as household assets.” Therein lays the anomaly. Though data would be determined on a different basis, the information from it would be extracted from it using totally different criteria.

This only shows serious lacunae in Government policy making at the highest echelons of the governance. The editorial in the Mint bluntly puts it like this,” On the list of this government’s most serious lapses in policymaking, this one should rank somewhere near the top. The below poverty line census, due to its methodology approved on Thursday, will identify more poor households than officially estimated. But, because the government has also decided that the official estimates will serve as a ceiling, the additional poor families will not benefit from poverty alleviation schemes. In other words, the government will pick and choose who is to be officially poor and who isn’t. India has always had trouble with the ways and means of defining poverty and identifying the poor. But Thursday’s decision says something about the government’s confusion over the political handling of poverty. It is almost as if the aam aadmi’s government was telling some of its votaries: “You may be poor, but you ain’t poor enough”.”

More than Rs. 612, 000, 000,000/- (Rupees Six Hundred Twelve Billion) is spend annually by the Government on welfare of poor and how much actually reaches them is the mystery of the millennium. As it is no state secret that government programs for welfare of poor are usually not in sync with actual requirement and often the money flows out through the bureaucratic leakages. If they are not, the schemes provide incentives for diverting the resources meant for poor, for example, in National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (or loot if you prefer) monies are given for digging up pits and filling them up and calling it work.

 

Now if to this determination of poor, if we add in the factors of religion and caste, instead of a portable solution to this chronic problem, it would only provide a heady cocktail to the political parties, dry gunpowder which can be lightened up by smallest spark. Further, Supreme Court in many occasions has pulled up Plan Panel for putting a ceiling on the number of poor in the country as if putting a ceiling would end India’s poverty problem. The Mint reports that in one such instance the Honorable Court observed,” The bench made the critical remarks while dealing with a PIL filed by Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) complaining about large scale corruption and irregularities in the PDS mechanism of the country. Questioning the plan panel rational in fixing 36% as the percentage of BPL families in the country, the bench said, “It is astonishing as to how you can fix 36% people in the BPL category in 2011 by relying on the 1991 census data… How can you fix such a limit when the per capita income varies from state to state?... The bench also questioned the Commission for fixing the per capita daily income of Rs. 20 in urban areas and Rs. 11 in rural areas to determine the BPL category…How can you justify fixation of this meager amount when even in the rural areas the amount is not enough”, further the Bench also extolled Deputy Chairman of Plan Panel to file a comprehensive affidavit in this regard. Now with such arbitrariness in determination and selection, isn’t the government is playing with the taxpayer’s money.

Milton Friedman once quipped about government spending,” There are four ways in which you can spend money. You can spend your own money on yourself. When you do that, why then you really watch out what you’re doing, and you try to get the most for your money. Then you can spend your own money on somebody else. For example, I buy a birthday present for someone. Well, then I’m not so careful about the content of the present, but I’m very careful about the cost. Then, I can spend somebody else’s money on myself. And if I spend somebody else’s money on myself, then I’m sure going to have a good lunch! Finally, I can spend somebody else’s money on somebody else. And if I spend somebody else’s money on somebody else, I’m not concerned about how much it is, and I’m not concerned about what I get. And that’s government.” With such anomaly at the highest level which in fact will direct expenditure of billions of rupees, done with arbitrary manner, is it worthwhile to ask, whom the government is trying to please, itself by claiming poverty is down, its finances by claiming they are doing things efficiently or the electorates by providing benefits to chosen few and beating its chest to the rest about reduction in poverty.

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others” writes George Orwell in his famous book ‘Animal Farm’, today a poor might say, “All poor are equal, but some poor are more equal than others.”

© Tarun Mitra

References:-

1.      Mint, “Quick Edit | Uncommon incertitude”, May 20, 2011

2.      Mint, “UPA courts trouble with BPL census”, May 20, 2011

3.      Business Standard, “Cabinet approves BPL census”, May 20, 2011

4.      Mint, “SC slams govt over fixing BPL criteria”, April 20, 2011

The Microfinance Muddle

The saying goes ‘the whole is more than sum of parts’ and when it is applied to the Microfinance institutions, it couldn’t be more appropriate. After all, it is the small foundation of microloans upon which their empires of millions are being built.

It is not the criticism of the business; in a capitalistic economy everyone has the right to do ethical business within the framework of law. Such endeavor is entitled for its benefits, that is, profits. However, a business whose foundation is usually based upon service of the downtrodden without any expectation of profits and this very fundamental character of being not-for-profit gets altered with growth of business surely raises eyebrows. It is the business of Microfinance, where such thing has happened and is happening. It not evil though, provision of credit to the poor, banking to the unbanked. But it is the way and manner of conducting of business which puts this sector into spotlight.

The model of microfinance is not unique to India; it first gained prominence when it was introduced in Bangladesh by Nobel Laureate Prof. Muhammad Yunus. As success has got many relatives, from there it spread across the world from Mumbai to Mexico City touching as many rural and urban poor who are in need of credit.

Microfinance can be defined as provision of broad range of financial services like loans, deposits, payment services, money transfer, insurance products etc to the poor or low income households, for their microenterprises and small businesses, to enable them to raise their income levels and improve their living standards. But what differentiates it from normal banking is its willingness to provide credit without any collateral and for taking such risks it charges rate of interests, which are normally twice or thrice the bank rate. The Microfinance Institutions or MFIs usually bets on the reputation of its customers, because irrespective of any hardship the poor will payback. It is a business of informality, personal touch, relations and contacts, therefore not surprisingly given the scale; millionaires can be made out this very basis of small loans.

In an editorial in The Economic Times, Delhi Edition, Mr. Arvind Panagariya, Professor at Columbia University and Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute, expounded that there are three players in the microcredit market; the Self Help Groups or SHGs which are principally promoted by the government, the Microfinance Institutions of MFIs which are either NBFCs or Body Corporate or NGO or a not-for-profit enterprise and the local money lender. These three constitute the entire spectrum of microcredit to the needing masses.

SHGs works on the principle of applying collective wisdom of the group and peer pressure by which it tries that credit is productively used and loan is repaid. MFIs can be in form of NGO, not-for-profit enterprise or an NBFC, it accepts almost no collateral and since it seldom gets any help from the government it charges interests which can be twice or thrice of bank rate. Local money lender can be any person who may not be registered with any authority and provides credit at a high rate of interest with or without collateral.

From an analysis of the characters of these players it can be deduced, as Dr. Y.V. Reddy former Governor of Reserve Bank of India puts, that MFI is essentially a leveraged money lender, whereas the local money lender normally lends out of his own funds, MFIs are actually borrowing monies from depositors, bankers or from shareholders, private equity funds etc and lending the same. SHGs on the other hand depend primarily on government, and given the political compulsions that ruins a democracy, the government usually shows an eagerness to waive loans. This very tendency creates a moral hazard which leads to non-payment and when a financially strapped member of SHG approaches another SHG for loan it makes the entire structure of SHGs weaker and steroidal. This in turn also gives an impression that for profit MFIs are sound, hiding their weaknesses and coercive practices.

Having come this far, it would be prudent to focus on the type of customers on which MFIs usually cater. Usually at the fringes of the society, they are primarily unbanked and do not have any recourse to credit. Even if they have any, it is usually the money lender who can charge high interest and is coercive in recovery of his loans. These people rank really low on creditworthiness and solvency. On these people MFIs with their borrowed money bank upon.

I am not suggesting that poor do not have any right to grow or they do not have any right to do business, but easy credit is a tempting hazard and that is why more and more people are finding themselves drowned in perpetual debt trap. There can be two reason for this, firstly there is a stiffer competition amongst various MFIs to gain new members, irrespective of their solvency or credit history, and secondly the sources of funds of these MFIs. Since sources of funds of MFIs are banks who lend at commercial or market rate and investors who ask for good return, MFIs have to charge an interest rate which is usually charged on credit cards. Further, there are many MFIs in the market with similar sources of funds all wishing for good return on investment. These very pressures usually lead to cost control amongst the MFIs which can only be done through outsourcing and coercive collection practices.

MFIs cater a market which banks do not touch, that is, people with low solvency. Ultimately, as Mr. Reddy points out, it is some sort of sub-prime lending. This is type of lending where the credit is forwarded to person who have low ability or have no ability to pay back. As a MFI grows in size and institutionalizes, it’s very basis of informality and intimacy between the borrowers and lender ceases. In addition, when a MFI hits the stock market, it is then entrusted with newer responsibilities to governance, return, compliance and performance.

This very sector of microcredit is unregulated, that is, there are no standards of maximum interest to be charged or to whom loan is to be provided. Often it has been found that people, who have obtained loan from one MFI, take loan from another MFI for repaying their first loan and fall in debt trap. This practice plagues the MFIs with the same disease with plagues the SHGs. This story is same across the world wherever MFIs operate and have resulted in converting a boon into bane.

An effective regulation of the sector, in letter as well as in spirit, is the necessity of the moment. Already it is been speculated that many MFIs would shut shop as their sources of finance, that is the bank loans, have dried up and government diktat of controlling the interest rates would lead to loss. It is imperative that the sector is needed to be regulated but such regulation should be only from one authority, which will give some predictability and clarity to this sector. Multiple regulators can only act as nails to the coffins of this ‘sunrise’ sector.

It is a season of scams and scandals, and in this we are lost in the maze of Niira Radia, 2G and CWG. Why not? Once exposed they give us a good punching bag to trade punches without being hit back, and if there is any sense of ‘justice’ left we might even get a scapegoat. But just take out few minutes of time to think about this, whatever may call it, I’d prefer to say muddle, which directly affects our banks, economy and the very person who brings our milk, washes our dishes or even produces our food. This muddle affects them directly, and if you don’t think about it now, few months we might again be arguing. What is government is doing about poverty?

© Tarun Mitra

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microfinance

2. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_52/b4064038915009.htm

3. http://microfinance-in-india.blogspot.com/

4.http://www.bsp.gov.ph/downloads/regulations/attachments/2001/circ272.pdf

5.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/comments--analysis/Getting-it-right-on-microfinance/articleshow/6979476.cms

6.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/interviews/For-profit-MFIs-worse-than-money-lenders/articleshow/6973551.cms

7. http://www.livemint.com/2010/11/22232535/Hollowness-in-banking-a-major.html

The March of the Republic

Amidst all raves and rants, slumber and celebrations, whining and winnings for the last few last few days I was torn apart into two parts to what to write about the Republic Day. Topic was clear, but reasons weren’t.

To celebrate the day by poetic travail with patriotic piousness would be amount to lying to my own beliefs and ideals. And to rip apart into small shreds this imperfect democracy would tantamount to treachery as this very imperfection has surprisingly stood the test of time. Adding on to this conundrum is a book written over 60 years ago, amended more than 100 times, fought over ever since it came into being and still in spite of all still retaining its basic structure guaranteeing the integrity and continuity of the Republic.

In order to get over this confusion, I resorted to read as many articles I can about Republic day; sadly none fit the bill and provided the missing block. Most of them either written by commentators, political scientists, critics, professors or plain journalists either criticized the shortcomings of this imperfect democracy or plainly or rather vulgarly flaunted the naked patriotism. Everyone talked about the Republic, hardly anyone wrote about the book and its continuity. There were talks about corruption, nepotism, politics, but not Constitution. For a citizen while talking about the nation, the problems and its cleavages are the first thing noticeable, but the book which provides for the panacea is not talked about. I am not saying that the Constitution is the panacea, but it provides for the process of panacea.

So what is Constitution? A simple Wikipedia search will put the meaning in this way:

“A Constitution is a set of rules for government—often codified as a written document—that enumerates the powers and functions of a political entity. In the case of countries, this term refers specifically to a national constitution defining the fundamental political principles, and establishing the structure, procedures, powers and duties, of a government. By limiting the government's own reach, most Constitutions guarantee certain rights to the people. The term constitution can be applied to any overall law that defines the functioning of a government, including several historical constitutions that existed before the development of modern national constitutions.”

Therefore it can be safely said that Constitution is a set of rules which determines the conduct of a nation, its government and its people. It put limits to the powers enjoyed by the government and also determines the scope of sovereignty of a nation state. And more than that it guarantees its people, who bestow it upon themselves, that they have certain rights which cannot be taken from them.

Indian Constitution is one of the longest in world, having approximately 395 articles divided into 22 Parts and 12 schedules. It took two years eleven months and eighteen days to draft and was adopted by Constituent Assembly (not parliament) on November 26, 1949. It became applicable on January 26, 1950. The date of applicability was mere symbolic as it is on January 26, 1930 Congress demanded Purna Swaraj or complete independence.

Just like the country itself, the constitution itself is mish-mash of various other constitutions across the world subjected to Indian conditions intelligently worded and subjected to judicial interpretations. Structure of the Constitution is derived from Government of India Act, 1935, Fundamental Rights is inspired from American Bill of Rights enshrined in American Constitution, Directive Principles of State policy is from Irish Constitution, principle of Cabinet Government and relations between Executive and legislature is largely drawn upon British common law (there is no written constitution is Britain), Union-State relation is similar to that of Canadian Constitution and parts regarding trade, commerce and intercourse is inspired form Australian Constitution.

The Constitution operates as a fundamental law. The government organs owe their origin to the Constitution and derive their authority from, and discharge their responsibilities within the framework of the Constitution. Constitution is not to be construed as a mere law, but as the machinery by which laws are made. A Constitution is a living and organic thing which, of all instruments has the greatest claims to be construed broadly and liberally. Any change or amendment in the Constitution can be only done within the ambit of the Constitution itself, without any interference with the basic structure of Constitution. Such powers the Constitution gives to it organs that any change by one organ to detriment of other organ can be rendered useless by the other organ.

The pervasiveness and vastness of the Indian Constitution is such that the final solution to every separatist cause in this vast country with multiple grievances has fallen within the purview of the Constitution. The social cleavages, the wounds in name of every –ism had it solution within the Constitution itself. Hadn’t this being intelligently worded, rigorously parsed, and morally universalistic guidebook of sheer class, India would likely have Balkanized into thousands of splinters by now. But it isn’t, and its credit lies not only to this book but also to its drafters whose foresight helped in management of the largest democracy of the world.

B.R. Ambedkar is known as the father of Indian Constitution, rightly so, but he was not the only one, there were many others. It composed from apart from leaders like JL Nehru, Dr. SP Mookherjee, Sardar Patel, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, people like BN Rau an eminent Jurist, SM Saadullah Muslim League leader and Premier of Assam, Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha, MA Ayyangar first Deputy Speaker of Lok Sabha, NG Ayyangar, AK Ayyar thrice Advocate General of Madras, G Durgabai a criminal lawyer and feminist, TT Krishnaswami, HC Mookerjee, KM Munshi founder of Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, NM Rau from Orissa, PB Sitaramyya and many others who participated in the debates, gave suggestions, protested and asked questions. It is the collective foresight of these individuals that today we have a nation that in spite of problems is still united, still not every constituent of this union is taking up arms against another constituent, still courts are moved whenever there is a problem.

If you have read the preamble of the Constitution it goes like this:

WE THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic and to secure to all its citizens:

JUSTICE, social, economic and political;

LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;

EQUALITY of status and opportunity;

And to promote among them all

FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation;

IN OUR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION.

Read it carefully, it says WE give it to ourselves this Constitution to secure US of JUSTICE, LIBERTY, EQUALITY and FRATERNITY. On each of this word revolutions happened, on each of these words theses are being written and these we give it to ourselves and forget.

Today, almost all of us complaint that we failed to secure all of these, today corruption is rampant, today India is lying low in HDI, today politicians have eaten into the very fabric of this nation, our laws are weak, true. But ask yourselves have we forgotten what we gave to ourselves.

Somewhere I read we have managed to protect the process of democracy but have failed to do justice to its spirit, I wish I could disagree. Our laws our constitution hasn’t failed us, but we have failed it.

Ask yourself how you celebrated the Republic Day? The answer would be in this form:

“Happy Republic Day to you, well I watched the parade, listened to patriotic songs, watched patriotic music, waved flag, felt great about the country blah-blah”

Now I ask this one, on a bright sunny day when temperature touched forty degree centigrade did you went to the polling booth located at 10 minutes walk from your home to exercise your franchise, or did you just chose to give your feet a rest during this one day. At any day you called your fellow countrymen with a slang or abuse based purely on his or her racial feature, categorizing him or her as a foreigner. At any time, as an employer, you rejected a person just because he belongs to certain caste or tribe. At any time you paid a bribe you thought you are doing the right thing so that thing could be easy. At any time you flaunted about the contacts you have. If yes in most of the cases, then take my sympathies, but the truth is you haven’t celebrated the Republic Day.

It is not just the show of patriotism, cherishing the each and every moment of it. It is not the parade, but the ballot. It is not waving but asking question. It is not just about chest thumbing, but of being accountable.

Till now, it was the foresight of the founders which have steered us from all the trouble, but from here it will be our foresight to take us from here to where we wish to go.This march of the Republic is still incomplete. The way is there, so there is means, but the person marching is in tatters. So pick yourself up and march. Because undoing it would just be lying to ourselves, after all we gave ourselves this constitution.

© Tarun Mitra

References

1. Constitution of India with selective comments by PM Bakshi

2. Goodyear India V. State of Haryana, AIR 1990 SC 781:(1990) 2 SCC 71, paragraph 17

3. Minerva Mills Ltd V. Union of India, AIR 1980 SC 1789:(1980) 2 SCC 591

4. Keshavananda Bharati V. State of Kerala, AIR 1973 SC 1461: (1973) 4 SCC 225: 1973 Supp SCR I

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution

6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India

7. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_Assembly_of_India

8. http://www.zeenews.com/news598978.html#

9. Mint, Delhi Edition, January 26,2010

10. Guidebook of Nation, Sreeram Chaulia, Financial Express, January 26, 2010

Will this termite be allowed to last?

“The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) told Chandigarh trial court on December 24 that it wanted to close the case it was investigating against Justice Nirmal Yadav of the Punjab and Haryana High Court not because it was convinced of her innocence, but because the government and the Chief Justice of India refused to grant it sanction to prosecute her”

This is the first paragraph of Headlines of today’s newspaper (Hindustan Times, New Delhi, January 8, 2010 edition) ‘CBI hands tied against judge’. Last few years, especially with the advent of new millennium has seen the judicial hyper-activism in India which aptly established the Judiciary and backbone of Indian democracy. However, in the pursuit of becoming the backbone does Indian Judiciary forgot the termites within it?

There are more than 30 million pending cases in Indian courts; many of them are for more than 30 years. It takes more than 10 years to liquidate a company and in many cases a rape victim gets justice (or whatever left of it) only after becoming a senior citizen. And to add on this there is corruption in the judiciary itself.

It would be myth to say corruption in judiciary is a new phenomenon which got accelerated only after liberalization of economy. It would be debatable to say whether such corruption got accelerated after opening up of the economy. However unanimous agreement is that it is there and has being there for long.

Any common man like us, who has dealt scores of Law Enforcement Agencies, knows what it is like there. How Mahatma Gandhi keeps smiling in every hands it passes through; how virtues of that man, printed on note, is shared. But it is really of recent phenomenon that these are coming into light.

Justice Dinakaran is accused of amassing wealth, Justice Nirmal Yadav is accused of taking bribes and forgery, R. Vasudevan of Company Law Board is mired in a corruption case and this is only a tip of iceberg. There are many to be dug up, many to be discovered. And still a lot stink to be raised.

But here in this given case where government and Chief Justice could have acted to stem the rot they chose otherwise. Approval of Government and Chief Justice is required to implicate a Judge. They refused the same. Will this termite be allowed to last?

© Tarun Mitra

1. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/infotech/software/Arrest-of-CLB-chief-may-raise-questions-on-Satyam-scam-probe/articleshow/5265454.cms

2. http://www.rtiindia.org/forum/2385-nearly-30-million-cases-pending-courts.html

3. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/CBI-cites-CJI-to-close-graft-case/articleshow/5379653.cms

4. http://www.hindustantimes.com/CBI-hands-tied-against-judge/H1-Article1-495023.aspx

India's contribution to Climate Change

The smoke emitting from the pit

It nearly white out

And still we are getting used to it

How Green was my plain or was it ever

The Sanitation officer

These pictures were taken on November 26,2009 from the balcony of my h

ouse to highlight how seriou

s we actually are, as a country and as a society towards the problem of climate change.

The big black spot here is a pit which was originally dug for creating a lake to conserve rain water. But after protest by the nearby residents the plan was shelved and instead it was created to produce compost. But such is the

education and empowerment levels of Indi

a's Government employees (or Sanitation Workers) that irrespective of a Supreme Court order towards

prohibition of burning dry leaves a twigs, still they are burned out quite openly, without even thinking the

gases it emit are one of the premier causes of lung diseases of which people will eventually die.

I might be sounding sarcastic and virile, but it is fact, and to this major contribution is also from common men like us who would prefer to plead innocence in the guise of ignorance. But the fact is in spite of erratic monsoon and strange weather patterns (it is raining in the deserts and even is December Delhi is facing problem of dengue) we are not learning anything, except demanding more.

Mera No. 1

So you all might be savoring the moment where Indian cricket team became No. 1 in the world test ranking. Well, enjoy, I also liked the moment.

But hey!...Relax..

Take a Break

Another news from Down under

Australian Hockey team won Champions Trophy (a premier hockey tournament consisting only top 6 teams of Hockey) for a record 10th time.

And we are still tanning under the sun of winning 8 Olympic golds won 50 years back.

And in Cricket position is still uncertain

The Case of Chinese Globes

A news article appeared in the first page of ‘Hindustan Times’ New Delhi edition on Monday, October 26, 2009. This article talked about the made-in-China globe flooding the Indian market. Nothing was unusual as it has become norm now of Chinese goods beating the hell out of Indian products in India’s own domestic market, I won’t dwell much into that. However, the particular point this article highlighted and that even made into a headline that the in the map of India, Kashmir was shown as separate region, with Aksai Chin under Chinese map. This ‘map’ fully violates India’s integrity and laws relating to maps.

The question here is not what Chinese are doing, democracy in China is well known (either way you take it), but what we are doing. Yes, our acts and action putting our own integrity into stake. These globes are imported into India, mark the word imported, that is it requires an importer. This importer has to have a valid permission (or license) to trade; the person invariably in most of the cases is an ‘Indian’.

“There are layers beneath layers here: Chinese companies that manufacture these misleading maps, importers who misrepresent what they are bringing in to evade customs duty, and shopkeepers who sell the items to make a quick buck” says one Indian official and this underlines the role of ‘Indians’ here. The Indian importer who ‘lies’ to the custom, masquerading globe as a lampshade, just for saving duty on the imported goods jeopardizing the integrity of the country.

This practice is not new, remember just few years back when India and China were beginning to talk trade, there was a flood of Chinese calculators selling Rs. 15 apiece, or were marked up at that price. The dawn of free trade with lesser barriers had dawned over the country, and imports were liberalized. Later, it was revealed that these stuff were not imported as a good, they were used as stuffing for some different product, or were marked up at a such a low price that incidence of the tax on that product becomes negligible; in short, they were smuggled.

Usually whenever a product is imported into the country, especially books and maps, they are usually stamped that ‘maps do not represent the political boundaries of India’, this is because most of the maps occupied territories within the jurisdiction of other countries. This is done, so that kids, who are actual targets of the map, do not get a wrong impression about the borders of the country. It is done so that they could appreciate problems faced by the country in a much better perspective, and not to claim, when they grow up, that this territory is in foreign country. This is why I kept using the words ‘integrity of the country.’

I won’t dwell in the minds that produce such maps. It is useless, as it is the only thing expected. But I must say that those dishonest importers, who for the profit, are selling something vicious, are as good are traitors and to be tried for treason.

Free trade is good. But the free trade must be within the boundaries of responsibilities. Free trade doesn’t means freer trade, where you arm your own enemy to attack you.

© Tarun Mitra

Manipur-The Forgotten State

Ever heard about ‘Irom Sharmila’? Probably not and why would be bothered to know about her, we are more or less preoccupied with our daily lives, soap operas and reality TV shows. But the reality is that ‘Irom Sharmila’ is an ordinary woman with iron strong will-power. This 37 year old is on hunger strike for more than 10 years, reason, she is protesting against the draconian law Armed Forces Special Provisions Act, which virtually gives power to the security person to arrest, jailed or even encounter people on the mere basis of suspicion of being an insurgent. This legislation is in effect in two states Jammu & Kashmir and Manipur, remember Manipur.

Manipur, a small state tucked in India’s north-east, a state which I regret to say India and Indians forgot. That is why state which is going through turbulence since July because of a fake encountered which was carried out by the forces there and fakeness of which was telecast in national media still hasn’t elicited any response from the Centre. Irom Sharmila is from Manipur, and she is protesting the same provisions which gives the security forces the power to drag out civilians, brand them as militants and encounter them; all order to earn medal. No wonder this year Manipur Police won 74 gallantry medals, compared to 138 for the entire country.

Manipur is in state of despair, with rampart poverty, people are screwed by the triad of Politicians, Insurgents and Security Forces. Each has their own reasons, own explanations. Each ready to grab the pie which centre throws at the state and forgets. Rampant corruption ensures that contracts are grabbed either by politicians or by the insurgents. Insurgents who claim to fight for the people fund their movement from same people, by kidnapping them, killing them and robbing them. The business is good, and it pays well.

Irom Sharmila is crying for peace. She is in hunger strike since 2000 when security forces killed 10 people from her village without any explanation. And these things are not uncommon there, and the last one which was shown in national television has crippled the state for last few months. But how could we remember that, after all, that news was adjusted between the news about a program ‘Rakhi ka Swayambar’ and some other news program on reality show, no wonder we got it erased. Death of a person is tragedy but death of many is statistic, Dictator Stalin has rightly observed, and it is a statistics in Manipur not tragedy. If it have had happened in Delhi, Government might have being dismissed. But it pays to have such government there; corruption has always being a very big business.

Few weeks ago, an editorial appeared in the Chinese journal which asked the authority to break up India into 50 countries, all they require is a little push. With our ignorance of such magnitude, a small puff would be enough. They need not do the hard work, because by ignoring our state we have created the groundwork. People like ‘Irom Sharmila’ are just fighting to avert such situation.

But why should you be bothered?

© Tarun Mitra

Reference:-

1. http://www.hindustantimes.com/News/imphal/A-state-in-disrepair/Article1-461204.aspx

2. http://www.hindustantimes.com/Manipur-still-a-part-of-India/H1-Article1-461550.aspx

My Views for Independence Day and Janamashtami

As I began to write this article India has already slipped or slept into its 63^rd year of existence as an Independent nation. While writing this I am not at all concerned about the nation and all its woes but the people and generation which will drive the nation into its next evolution. The purpose is not to give any sermon or to cry hoarse about the state of affairs, but they are simple thoughts that are bothering my mind to last two days. It has no whatsoever bearing on anyone’s or everyone’s particular act or acts but just the abstinence which makes me bother.

August 14^th has greater significance in sub continental history, because on this day the brightest jewel of a limping empire was cut to size on the basis of its contents. However for this year, the 2009, it happened to be ‘Janmasthami’ or ‘Shri Krishan Janmasthami’. I am not going to explain what this Hindu festival is all about, just google it. But yes, what I feel is that people especially the younger lot are losing the interest in it, only if you leave the traditional ‘puja’, there is seldom any interest in it now. Just rewind few years back, say, 1995, as a 10 year old kid I knew the fervor with which we use to celebrate. The whole of streets used to be full of ‘jhankis’ (tableau) created by the kids, using everyday toys, cars, chalks, soil etc. These tableaus used to describe the life of lord Krishna. A lot of creativity used to flow into this, along with a lot of colors. It was not possible that you miss a street where there has being no ‘jhanki’ at all. But today, in my own colony where I’ve being living for past 22 years, there are only few of them, easily countable on the fingers. What is it? Lack of interest or lack of support, or is it plain old ignorance and attitude, let the other do it. I still cannot fanthom the answers.

August 15^th is Indian Independence Day, for many it is just a holiday, but for crazy people like me it is much more than that. Again let’s get back few years, say again 1995, on this day, it was my typical routine, get up early, watch the Independence Day ceremony being telecast live from Red Fort, pester my father to buy kites and see him fly. Kite flying is a science and art, science because getting it fly involves the principles of science, an art because learning to maneuver it and outmaneuver others is nothing short of an art. I never really mastered it, rather I never mastered it, I used to do some ancillary jobs attached to it. But I still liked it, and I still like it. A month before the Independence Day, the sky would be full of kites, of various sizes and shades, competing against each other, for the mastery of sky. But today I can only see few and that too far between and that too on Independence Day. Have we forgotten this art or we have gotten ourselves some really new priorities or Xbox or Playstation has an electronic version? Heaven knows.

The change might be for good or might be for worse. But whatever it should be for, it should not erode our creativity, our competitiveness and our belief in future. It has taken us a long time to shed the habit of saying ‘nothing can happen to this country’. Just don’t let it re-grow it.

These are just my thoughts and all of you are entitled to have your own contradictory view points.

© Tarun Mitra

The Dark Underbelly

The photos of Ambi Mall in Gurgaon fist picture is of the ceiling, second one is the four floor of retail space, third one is picture taken at evening, and last one is seven floor tower.

They bedazzle you; and they have an intimidating presence which leaves the mouths open and eyes wide. They are huge and are off frightening proportions, anyone visiting them first time can be dumbfounded by its sheer dazzle, and by the time he can gain his better senses, he will be glaring at the mannequins and windows designs, wondering whether he is in the same country. Welcome to the world of ‘malls’.

Though the concept is not new, but in India the phenomenon has just caught the fire. Seldom there is any teenager who hasn’t visited the mall. With advent of foreign brands, it is only to grow. With high disposable income in hand, people are willing to spend, who after all cares about the recession. The entire structure also contributes; it provides jobs, taxes and revenue. So it is win-win situation or is it.

I happened to visit Ambi Mall in Gurgaon on Saturday as my one friend has threw his birthday party there. One of largest malls in India, it houses over 300 stores, a hotel, food court, many restaurants and one beer island. The structure is intimidating, as when you enter the complex, first noticeable thing is the serpentine queue of the cars of every make looking for a parking space. And on entering the building, you are flooded by the sea of bustling humanity who are already there going from store to store whether buying or not. With at least four floors and a million and half square meters of shopping space, it is not much difficult to get lost in the place. Some time it does reminds me about the ‘fairs’ that I used to visit earlier, the only difference is the air-conditioning and class of the crowds visiting the place.

But even though we thought we will have a hell of a time. I somehow felt subdued and angry. I am still unable to fanthom the reason for such feeling. But it was there. Was I got overawed by the giganticness of the structure? Or was I got amazed by the spending power of the country which is supposedly going through recession? Or was it something else, something like some child of fourteen helping in construction of a new restaurant. Or the underage maids who were helping out the young moms to manage their newborns, so that the mom can have some fun with their hubbies. The dark underbelly of the Indian society.

As I moved around in the place, doing what other people were religiously doing, moving from place to place, with my eyes moving everywhere, newest trends to beautiful young women and towards the sexy legs going around in the mall. I was still wondering was it still worth. Although I was having a good time but something has kept pinching me, and is still pinching. I can feel it.

With these structures, we can surely satisfy our materialistic needs, the needs which we feel fulfills us. There is nothing bad in aspiring for something. But can we, as a society, accept that our desires are being met by someone whose age is still to nurture dreams. Every time when we visit such place and we see things like this we tend to ignore it. Can these great structures and this great society have such weak foundations? The question is still open, and it is pervasive, not just related malls.


© Tarun Mitra

The funny side of the Annual Budget

Budget making is a serious exercise, it operose when the exercise relates to the government of one-sixth of the humanity. Adding on to this voluminous package, the modern electronic media has ensured that is reviewed by so called analyst, news readers, economist, businessmen, lay man and any other man the agencies can lay their hands upon. Just for the sake of the common man to understand that he has to pay his taxes, directly or indirectly, to fund his government’s expenditure on him. A business of real serious nature, giving someone the part of your money to spend it on you in a manner they like.
But sometimes the budget, the Finance Minister’s speech and the provisions, contains something that might tickle the funny bone. It might be his pronunciation of ‘verb’ as’ bharb’ (commonly done by the Bengalis, even my mother spell it like this only) or some liability which is in existence for more than 60 years now. Seems like a case tethered in Indian Judiciary, well not like that, but it is the debt of Rs. 300 cr. owed by Pakistan towards India as pre-partition debt.
The particular piece appeared in www.expressindia.com, which states that this liability is being carried forward since independent India’s first budget. More interesting thing is that India has met her liability of Rs. 50 cr. to Pakistan, but the good neighbor still owes this money. It may also be added that no interest is being charged on this amount and the amount has also not being inflation adjusted.
Well no body knows or shall come to know how many F-16 (or J-10 if you like Chinese) fighter Pakistanis might have bought out of this money. And for India, if it considers as a big superpower can’t just write the amount off, just as a show of generosity.

© Tarun Mitra

Reference
The data is based on the article appeared on www.expressindia.com (http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Past-receipts-Pakistan-still-owes-India-Rs-300-crore/485726/)