Paper Plans

Right to water which includes water for drinking and water for the fields is guaranteed by our constitution.But in reality, we do not have water.It is proposed that this will be made possible by our government's plans.Our Supreme court has approved to link all rivers of India as a part of a grand irrigation plan.But the reality is that rivers cannot be linked with paper plans.The Ganges is the only snow fed river for it originates from Himalayan glaciers,Gangotri and Yamunothri.Other rivers in India  are rain fed as they get water during the rainy season or the monsoons. The actual amount of water flowing in the Ganges is bare minimum and immense pollution in the river has not been controlled yet. Which imaginary river is going to be linked to all fields in India?
Providing water for the people is extremely important but how?Linking rivers is a dream like suggestion. A pre-Independence poet named Bharathi wrote poems about changing the course of rivers and building canals to irrigate whole of India and unify India.Poems have become paper plans and it is a far fetched idea which cannot become reality.

Workers strike to protest

Workers  in India staged a strike today in protest. In major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Bangalore workers did not go to work. Many unions like that of auto rickshaw drivers, taxi drivers, bus drivers also participated.Bank employees and post office employees also took part.They are protesting against the lack of interest of the government on the state of the economy.Cost of living is very high and due to steep price rise basic needs cannot be met; and government is not raising the minimum wages in respect to the rising cost of living.Unemployment is a great cause for concern and the government is not making new livelihoods for the people.The workers have no social security when unemployed and this is a grave problem. No health schemes or insurance or pension. They are protesting against "contractual overlords" who hire and fire without notice.No observance of rates are observed in giving daily wages.When fired, they have no safety net to protect them. The workers are battling to survive in the environment of very high cost of living. Now government has no answers.Just failed policies.  

Challenges in the making of future India

How do we fit in resource utilisation and development with preservation of environment is the main challenge for today’s India in the making of future India.The political elite compromises with indiscriminate industrialisation---depletion of natural resources and clean surroundings.It is permitting degradation of environment by allowing unlimited number of companies which promise to bring progress and industrial development. By making environmental clearances ambiguous with vague and non-transparent policies, Indian government is degrading the environment further and further.This trend is set not by the Indian mind but it comes from those foreign minds which do not want India to prosper.(Why would we destroy ourselves) New form of post neocolonialism has emerged; Indian polity is being used by foreign powers which want to undermine positive growth in IndiaWesternized world wants to keep itself clean, and move industries to developing countries like India.While benefits of organic farming were known and Western world had stopped using pesticides (likeDDT) in farming, they had recommended that India use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Listening to them, we had used these chemicals and  had poisoned our environments.

The poor are the worst affected as they are in constant battle with limited resources and rising costs. For instance the poor need firewood as fuel and they are not able to cut trees which are a free source of fuel as before. Regulations to stop cutting of trees has meant that there is no source of fuel. Government has not made a source of fuel which would replace firewood for the poor.This tightens the noose and the poor are hurt badly, and are pushed into further impoverishment.

People are not part of the growth agenda in India’s growth story. Dams and hydroelectric powers affect water sources and reduce the fish stocks which feed the poor. No fish means no food for the local people. No alternative livelihoods have been offered to the fish-folks; now what would they eat, how will they live? Dams are very important in making of  infrastructure in India, but they are built at the cost of livelihood of the poor  people. Are not dams built for the economic growth of the people? Growth for whom? Dams are needed badly, but the local population should be offered livelihoods first.

Factories are made in tribal lands; promises are made by offering jobs to locals. They only bring further impoverishment of the people who are given bare minimum wages. Factories pollute the water, and poison the land and degrade the environment. Development does not mean loss of environment and impoverishment. People's needs should be met before the infrastructures are built.

We, the educated elite are able to visualise the potential hazards and see how healthy growth is being stopped and subverted in the guise of development. But we are not able to bring to senses the dominant political elite who is not able to see the problems of the people.How fast we realise the danger and how we can stop the making of the haphazard policies will determine the future of India. 

Technology for better governance

India is constituted by multicultural multi-lingual society which are banded together for the joint purpose of national governance. Trade and mobility within the subcontinent (country) is not restricted and this gives the impetus for independent development of private industries, all on their own. Central government only steps in as a regulator and revenue collector. 
Central government must make laws on minimum wages which can be applied to all states, and be implemented too. It is not implemented and therefore is useless.  In paying for welfare schemes also, the states cannot pay its citizens.Even when minimum wages is determined by the central government, the individual states have to contribute entirely and it cannot pay towards welfare schemes.
When tax is collected, the central government should contribute to the development of public infrastructures like roads, electricity, railways, schools, colleges and hospitals in the different states.The central government spends the money it has collected on those states which are already developed. It is like robbing the poor and giving to the rich. State governments resent this step motherly treatment by the central government; they do not have a way to complain about this. Decentralisation of powers and proper allocation of resources to states has not happened and this leads to hampering of progress in states.

Control of state government by central is ambiguous. Needs of approvals and aids from central government are slowing down state governments’ functioning. Indian bureaucracy functions by checks and balances, approvals and counter approvals. There is constant need to get central government’s approvals which is delayed and hence continuity in executing projects is disrupted.

Increased computerisation is helping in bridging the communication gaps between state and central governments. Emails between government’s organisations coupled with videoconferencing can remove the gaps considerably. Better quality of communication can yield better understanding of problems of the states and therefore better allocation of central government’s funds. We are moving towards better governance, so cheer up people!

Human life is precious

Two Indian fishermen who were fishing off coast of Kerala in Southern India were shot dead by Italian marines five days ago. The marines have been charged of murder. The Indian police had arrested them and had taken them into custody. They have been now sent to 15days of remand as this is what is done till court hearing takes place.  This has aroused the local people and protests are going on. They want justice to be done when lives of fellow Indians were lost for no reason.

What is most hurtful is that is our simple fishermen’s lives so cheap that foreign marines take it as fun to shoot them? They had said they had thought these fishermen "looked like pirates"; for these marines, travelling in high seas, a game of “let’s shoot Indian pirates for target practice” was full of fun. Is value of human life so cheap? Do Indians look so so small that couple of lives was nothing to these marines?
Our status in the comity of nations is determined by how well we conduct ourselves in international conventions.It is also determined by how well our people are treated by outsiders.

We Indians have adopted to world culture;and we work as engineers, doctors, and managers,all over the world.We want to be respected.All people need respect,however big or small.We Indians are highly educated people,and we know our rights well. Guarding our Honor is very important to us. We want human dignity. We should to be treated like fellow human beings, and not as any animal—shooting down fishermen! Its outrageous!

A culture that teaches simple living

Wealth of the nations is cannot be quantified because the cultural wealth of its people is immeasurable. People of India had lived with many atrocities and had kept their cultural identity intact. The plundering invasions of raiders from the mid-east in the past, systematic exploitation of the British (colonial India) and the present exploitation by the incompatible political system,are all tolerated and people live through it. Today, we see that if there is an explosion in the streets,the people have learnt to tolerate it too. The ordinary citizens shift those who are hurt to hospitals and then carry on with life. And  normal life is restored, as early as possible. We live with all kinds of calamities, and take life at its stride. No trauma, no stress. ‘OK, this has happened, lets do the needful and go on’ attitude is a positive one.This defines India and its people, carry on with all new exigencies that arise.

A good state is determined by longevity and happiness of its people. You need not measure economical growth with any index, nor note down GDP etc. You need not check power use, or land use to measure progress. You need to see index of the length of life of its people. People of India live with contentment with little wealth, few belongings, ordinary meals and with simple livelihoods. These 'live' lessons in simple living can be learnt by people of affluent countries to solve their economic crisis.

A deeper look at the festivities celebrated by them will show how the measure prosperity has nothing to do with it the rationale of income groups. That means how much a person earns does not matter, but how wisely he spends his earnings is relevant in making his life happier culturally. We Indians are indeed rich in maintaining our culture because we keep happy with our limited incomes and do not get stressed out.

Are we preparing for energy crisis

If power situation gets any worse we would have just turned the lights off. When the need for power (electricity) increases, it is a good sign. It indicates a healthy, growth driven economy. We have seen an increase of 69,353 MW to 185,000 MW within last twenty years. But the need is greater than before. The aim of increasing the supply by 78,000 MW was not realised and only 50,000 MW increase was possible during last five years. Demand for power supply is so high, that this increase is highly insufficient.

65% of our electricity supply is made by thermal power (using Coal). Lack of proper policies has lead to disruption of a steady supply of coal. There is monopoly of CIL (Coal India Ltd) which cannot supply 50% of that it had committed. And import of foreign coal from Australia, Mozambique and Indonesia is restricted by legal regulations and limits.It is too costly.Cost of energy will increase phenomenally.

Mining for coal has to get clearance from Ministry of environment forests; and thermal projects cannot be implemented without environmental clearance and coal supply. Smooth and efficient e-tendering and e-auctioning can make the environmental clearances faster transparently. The indecisive political system is too slow to realise the potential loss due to power insecurity which is here. Energy is centre government subject and environmental clearance is left to the states (it is state government subject). For needs of energy and power, state and central governments have to work together. And when will that be? 

Look out India.....Energy crisis is coming!

Indian forests will make the Future of India bright

Without forest's green cover, clouds will not be attracted to our lands. If clouds move away without giving rains, then there will be no agriculture, no rivers, and no hydro power for electricity. We would have turned the lights off and will have to start learning to live in a dessert. Forest clearance means doom to our civilization.Our top soil would be blown away by wind erosion.

The importance of homes of the birds and pollinating insects has yet to be learnt by Indian forest studies. The birds eat away pests which would cause damage to the crops. Important bird species have disappeared because of loss of forest's green cover. When pests(like locusts) multiply, the use of pesticides becomes compulsory to save crops. Pesticides seep into the water table poisoning the land.And people use the water from the water table for drinking.The incidence of cancer has become very very high where pesticides have been used.

Similarly, pollination of crops becomes automatic process with pollinating insects. Without bees nobody can pollinate billions of flowers in crop production. Nature and human life are intertwined in such a way that we cannot exist without help from these species which have co-evolved and co-existed with us. Life here depends on these small animals like the birds and the beneficial insects which are essential parts of the ecology of the forests of India. The biodiversity, once destroyed, cannot be recreated or replaced.New ecological systems can be made but the old ecological balances cannot be replaced.The loss is for ever.

Forest people or the tribals often get exploited,for they lack knowledge to live in settled cultures;by acculturation through a period of time, they will be integrated into the national mainstream.Their homes could be lost forever unless measures are taken now.They have rights over the forests they inhabit.Their lands have to be protected, till they are integrated.Our forest lands are taken away for mining, for industries and there is no way to stop this. In India, timber yield and growth of teak(for ship building) was encouraged by the British. And even now plantations have been made after removing trees of the forests.Actual measures to save forests came in 1952 by New Forest Policy, it was realised that India needs to keep one third its land as forests and prevent them from becoming grazing land. In 1976, there was awareness that development can take place without destruction by linking forest conservation to tribal economy. In India a recent Forest land records indicate that forest areas (in square metres) have reduced by 36% less than the previous year’s survey.Deforestation is going on at a much faster pace than afforestation measures can replace trees. Although expert committees had been constituted for conservation, no sincere steps have been taken in this direction.Forest conservation Act of 1980 also was ineffective. Information was concealed and accountability of decisions was clouded by the forest department officials,and members of the Forest Advisory Committee had brought to notice this questioning the credentials of the officials.Scientists are needed and the authority of the bureaucratic officials has to be counter checked. Supreme Court ruling of 2007 was enacted to check the environmental clearance issues which had arisen. Centre for Science and environment in 2011 showed the impact of mining in forests; still to revive coal-blocks, new definitions of “go-go zones”and“no-go zones" were made to increase coal production as per needs of the energy deficiencies. E-auctioning by computerised tender bidding is now left to the individual states, and not it is not a mandatory procedure(leaving space for non-transparent ways to gain control of forest lands)Haphazard policies are leading to deforestation and steps have to be taken now to stop this squandering of the national wealth lest our forests  be lost forever.

Supreme Court rules on scam

In India, our (ex)Telecom Minister had said that Spectrum(space in communication satellite) will be allocated on 'first come first serve' basis.This had any company which knew  the actual price would apply first and be the beneficiary. Our Supreme court has now ruled that such allocation was not legal. The illegal allocation of natural resource(airwaves) was,thus,cancelled. Many telecom companies which had bribed to get allocation of Spectrum by manipulating 'first come, first serve' basis as method of allocation had lost their licenses in India. This is a big loss to these companies. Our Supreme court has ruled that hundred and twenty two companies which tried to push through for getting licenses illegally will have to face the penalty of loss of licenses. Soon TRAI or the Telecom Authority of India will allocate new licences.Now there will be a fair auction of the Spectrum and new licenses would be made on current rate.This will bring revenue to the government and politicians will not benefit from the allocation of licenses.

This move will give the corporate world doubts on investing in India.They need not be apprehensive;they can invest but without illegal deals.But this step is necessary, to bring about transparency.Those who make quick deals will be affected--loss of licenses.To the citizens, this brings relief for justness will prevail.CBI(Central Bureau of Investigation) will make a fresh probe and investigate thoroughly.

Some of the companies which had experienced big losses will challenge this judgement of the supreme court.The impact on the companies will be seen very soon.But the righteous law will prevail ultimately. 
The users will not be affected as there is number portability and they will just have to move to another company whose licenses have not been cancelled.

This is a positive development. So far, illegal deals of the political system with the corporate world has led to big loss of the national wealth and people's progress. Such illegal allocation in other sectors like the mining sector should also be investigated and improper allocations have to be counter checked for growth of the nation.

And now time limit and deadlines

In India citizens can make a query on the affairs of the government.. Time limit for  deciding if a government personnel can be prosecuted has been set today.That limit is 4 months. If a government employee is charged by a civil citizen of corruption, the competent authority has four months to decide on giving an answer to the plea.This used to take much longer previously.Sometimes indefinitely long.

We do not need many many ways to deal with corruption, one effective law will be enough.The Supreme court has set a deadline of four months has given us a an important way or a solution. It is a tool with which we can check our government ourselves.

If the answer is not given in four months,even then, prosecution is allowed.In other words, the government employee will be called to court on charges of corruption even if there is no answer from the competent authority.

This is a major step as we evolve a citizen centric democracy.For the people who felt helpless when their  problems are  not addressable, this is sure method which offers  a much needed solution.This was long due. 

We are now changing into a participatory democracy. Such resilient Acts allow us to solve internal problems ourselves.

Now government employees will act more responsibly. Any expenditure of the tax payers money will be accounted for. Now we can ask "why this" to government personnel and call him/her to court.And in four months time, we will know if he/she can be called. We can prosecute with this Act, and set right improper deals.