Lokpal Bill or Lokayukta Bill has been passed

Both houses of the Parliament have passed the historical Lokpal Bill on Dec 17 and 18. It had been approved by the Union Cabinet in 2011 itself. So it is now law. This was enacted to establish a way to check corruption in government practices. Few persons staged a walk-out and it did not help; some had voted against it too. The dominant party was weak because of the big loss in the last elections. And the new emerging party had created a new- awakening among the people. It is at this light that the anti-corruption bill got passed. It is called Lokayukta at states.Even the office of the prime minister will come under its purview. Bill lays down time-lines for preliminary enquiry, investigation, and trial; and special courts will established for this. Foreign contribution Regulation Act of Rupees more that ten Lakhs will be under the jurisdiction of the Lokpal bill. All senior government officers will be covered by the ombudsman (excluding personnel in navy, army and the Coast Guard) Any property acquired by the government officials will be noted. These are some of the features which will go a long way to end the corrupt practices which have brought our country down. There is new hope and happiness that India would arise and achieve glory.

Election Results

The election results from  four different states have come. They show that voters have tried to get rid of the ruling party and have tried to bring in new party. The appeal of the "new corruption-free" promise is greater than ever before. High cost of living, cost of electricity, and mis-handling of protests (when a women was gang-raped and murdered in Delhi streets on December 16 last year) made Delhites vote a brand new party. In other three states, lack of development, scams and inflation made voters to vote against the ruling party. Whatever the issue may be people voted for a change and exercised their democratic rights. Arrival of a new party in the capital has set an example for rest of the nation.The whole nation is now aware that they have an option to establish a new order while getting rid of the older one. New view points can be visualized now from a higher level.

A life which is a true inspiration

Nelson Mandela died today and he was great inspiration for all of us. He was one of the greatest souls who had worked for bringing equality among mankind. It is very very sad to know of his death. Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela had inspired each other. Mandela was a living legend  as the process to end to inequality had started long long ago. The continuity in the revolution has been broken with his death. Never-the-less the aspiration to bring greater equality among mankind must go on. Whether we have a leader or not we must think hard and solve problems plaguing humanity. It is a sad day for we have lost him.

Migrating people-seeking livlihoods

Urban areas are plagued by slums--agglomeration of unskilled people. But these people living in congested conditions are the true builders of India. In India, in 2001, 27% of the population was urban but in 2011, it was 31% And this is constantly increasing. In New Delhi, migration is taking place from far away rural areas in UP, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal. They provide raw labour for the growth of the city--flyovers, bridges, metro rail, mega malls roads and all buildings. The un-organised sector or construction workers, manual labourers, servants,pushcart vendors rickshaw pullers, coolies and so on. Contractors hire them informally. They have contributed the most for the infrastructural growth but they are swept aside as they do not ask for their rights.They live and die in the worst conditions possible. They sleep in the side-walks or platforms and provide cheep labour as and when we need. In 1979, Inter-state Migration Act was enacted, so that they get some dignity, some space to stay, some health-care and some money to visit their rural homes. Still they have unprotected lives. This Act is not properly implemented, as all are in the un-organized sector. Some we promised jobs abroad and made to work in the construction of a five-star hotel. After the construction was over, they were thrown out, as unwritten promises are never kept. They are always cheated. Many come to seek livelihoods and all cannot be enumerated. Only the physical slum is visible. Urban jungle is brutal to these innocent masses whose sweat and blood has built the modern urban India. These people were never given their rightful place. They beautify the city by making the parks, pavements and  roads but their lives are far from beautiful. What has the government done for these masses? Farmers who have lost their livelihoods suffer in urban India. And we are doing nothing........We will go on buying food products at high costs and let these farmers die in the streets! This is cruel India, what monument are we creating for the future? Buildings built with sweat of these poor people. We are urbanizing very very fast, and we have to pay attention to these people. Rehabilitation must take place as they must be taught new skills. Not only must more funds allocated by city municipalities for them, the funds must be used effectively. New groups will arrive and the "re-skilling" process will go on and on. Where to accommodate them?

Elections--can we select a leader

All people want are the basic needs of proper roads, electricity, and water supply. But they do not get these whom so ever they elect. Promises are made but never kept. Government's activities are minimum and none of the national goals are ever met. At this time how can we elect a "good leader"? Are they any "good leaders"? All stoop into corruption and gross mismanagement. Can elections have any meaning? High cost of living cannot be controlled but can we withstand it? No we cannot withstand this for long. And by electing a good leader there is possibility that things will become better. We believe in our power to change things. And our expectations are high, so we all voted. In Delhi the voter turnout was highest ever, in 2008, it was 57%, while it was 67% in now. More women voted than ever before. More young persons voted as they have started thinking beyond the stereo-typed "traditionally dressed politician with folded hands pose" (kurtha pajama politician with namastae pose) If there was too much familiarity (like "vote for uncle")  it was strongly disliked by young people.
Women feel empowered to exercise the secret ballot to choose a leader whom their husbands do not like. Issues did matter, there were more scams than ever before, so the reigning party has to go. No leader can give a repeat performance. Rallies did not work out, as nobody turned out. People were inclined to watch on TV itself. Those who did go to rallies had to know what the candidate spoke on, whether he was credible. Charisma did matter in the making of the politician's victory as the results will show. Road shows worked out, as an aspiring leader can address to micro issues in each locality. Visiting localities and residences helped a lot to influence voters. Many issued addressed in live TV, got the aspiring candidate in big trouble. Media would tear things out of context, and keep on questioning. It was irritating the viewers. Social media mattered as the response to the words of the aspiring ones were scrutinized immediately and expressed immediately. How can a candidate give an "ordinary person" image and at the same time give a "sophisticated person" image? What does the voter want? Now that matters more than ever now.  "My vote counts" is what everyone believes in. Let us wait for the results.