Westernisation or modernisation
The modernisation of Indian society was a matter of concern for those who assumed power when the country became independent more than 50 years ago. The intelligentsia, as a whole, viewed modernisation with favour if not enthusiasm. This was true not only of India but of newly-independent countries throughout the world. Decolonisation was viewed as an opportunity not for a return to the past but for a more effective and meaningful participation in the modern world. It was tacitly assumed that some countries had travelled further along the road to modernity than others but that the others too could and should catch up with the former.
The modernisation of society was regarded as not only desirable for its own sake but also as a precondition for the development of the economy and the advance of democracy. Economic development was an urgent task in a country in which poverty and stagnation were widespread. Much of the blame for the poor state of the economy was laid at the door of colonial rule. With the removal of that constraint, the road to economic development seemed wide open. But there were internal constraints as well in the form of age-old social habits, practices, customs and institutions. In the newly-independent countries of Asia and Africa, the obstacles to economic growth were not only technological, they were also institutional. The removal of those obstacles or the modernisation of society was thus viewed as essential for growth and development.
The advance of democracy also required some recasting of traditional social arrangements. Indeed, the idea of `political development' soon took its place by the side of economic development. The creation of democracy did not stop with the adoption of adult franchise and the holding of regular elections, important as they were. It required effective political socialisation and political participation, in short, education in citizenship.
The impulse for modernisation came from many different sources and not just from the requirements of economic development and democratic politics. In the wake of Independence, Indians looked forward to participating in the modern world as free and equal members. The political leadership under Jawaharlal Nehru was modernist and not traditionalist. Independence created new opportunities for breaking free from the cobwebs of the past. The Indian middle class wanted a modern and not a traditional education for its children. The urge for a modern, not to say a western, education for their children has expanded and intensified among middle class families in the last 50 years.
The seeds of modernisation along with those of democracy and development, were planted in Indian soil during the colonial rule. Independence and decolonisation brought in new elements and new configurations, but at least in India they did not lead to a complete break with the immediate past. Neither Nehru, the first Prime Minister, nor B. R. Ambedkar, the main architect of the Constitution, wanted such a break; and even Sardar Patel threw in his weight in favour of retaining the ICS, till then regarded as the steel frame of imperial rule.
Attitudes to modernity and modernisation have changed between the middle of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. Fifty years ago, the modernists held the field because the traditionalists spoke in a weak voice and post-modernism was yet to be born. There are various reasons why modernisation has lost some of the appeal it once enjoyed. First, as the process unfolded its social costs became more and more apparent, and to some at least they seemed to outweigh its benefits. In some areas and in certain phases it tends to increase rather than reduce the gap between the socially advantaged and the disadvantaged. Second, certain homogenising tendencies inherent in modernisation make it appear as a perpetual threat to the social and cultural identity of the nation as a whole. The prophets of doom declare that modernisation will rob Indian society and culture or its identity and yet leave Indians far behind on the path of progress.
Apprehensions of loss of identity are not easy to dispel; one can at best try to see that they do not assume pathological forms. In its origin and evolution, the idea of modernisation has been tied inextricably to that of westernisation: that has been the poisoned chalice for many ardent nationalists who want their country to progress. Many might like to subscribe to modernisation but they would not like to submit to western hegemony. Is it possible to have a modernity that will be completely untainted by any association with western ideas and values?
In an important study of the Arab world conducted just after decolonisation began, Daniel Lerner spoke by preference of modernisation rather than westernisation. He explained his preference by saying his Arab readers would be more comfortable with the first than with the second. They welcomed modernisation but were deeply ambivalent towards the West.
In his Tagore lectures barely a decade later, M. N. Srinivas decided to face the issue squarely and chose `westernisation' instead of `modernisation'. He pointed to the complexity of westernisation and to the depth of its penetration in Indian society. Although it had spread widely, its spread was not uniform. It started during colonial rule, but the end of colonial rule did not bring westernisation to an end. Rather, as Srinivas noted, "the process has become greatly intensified, in many ways, since 1947 when India became independent." Further, there was, according to him, a change in the motive force by which the process was driven. In the 19th century, the desire for social reform took precedence over the urge for national freedom, but the priorities became reversed in the course of time.
Srinivas' account of social change in modern India, published in the mid-1960s, is remarkable for its depth of historical insight and its freedom from ideological cant. He gave the due share of credit to British rule but did not fail to point out that the British generally acted in their own interest, which was not always the interest of their Indian subjects. Nor did he believe that "the mindless imitation of the West" was all that there was to the process of westernisation. Although by no means uncritically admiring of India's modernising elite, he gave its members credit for their capacity for adaptation and innovation.
Indian society has moved too far along the road to modernity for it to be able to turn back now or even to stay at a standstill. No society can today opt out of the modern world without doing irreparable harm to itself. Being part of the modern world means remaining open to influences from all around. There will be blind imitation, no matter how much we deplore it; but there will also be intelligent adaptation as there has been in the past. Too much anxiety about the loss of identity and authenticity puts the brakes on a society's natural growth process.
Modernisation has not led all societies to become carbon copies - or caricatures - of any one society, and is unlikely to do so in the future. The modern world allows choices to be made, but the choices are not unrestricted. There are those who say that the modernity that emerged in the West in the wake of Enlightenment is irredeemably flawed, and that we should turn our back on it and create our own alternative modernity. That would be a vain and hopeless pursuit. Modernisation is not like a bus which one boards as one chooses and from which one alights as one pleases.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
NT Bureau
There is a perceptible shift from foreign-dependent mindset to India-centric approach to handle globalisation due to geopolitical reasons.
The intellectual Indians initially failed to grasp the fact that instead of welcoming and advocating globalisation, the nation had to face this new trade war designed by the West as a strategic game-plan to sustain its dominance in the world economy. But now, even elite Indians are trying to benchmark this global phenomenon from Indian standards, said S Gurumurthy, chartered accountant and convener of Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an economic forum that supports native enterprise.
He was speaking on 'What Price Globalisation' at a meet hosted by The Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the city yesterday. 'Indian economy is driven by community and family entrepreneurship, unlike in America where individuals run big corporations. So, when the West has conceived something like WTO, it is primarily for its own benefit and not for the rest of the world,' he said.
It is rather immature to talk of globalisation driven by world trade. 'For every bit of world trade is managed by the West. There are powerful civilisational and religious influences that have a say in the evolving globalisation,' he said. Citing the recent studies of Francis Fukuyama and Alvin Toffler, well-know authors in geopolitics, he said that even as technology would be a determinant in world economy, the market dynamics will be managed by the private sector and the governments of the West to keep America on its consumerist binge.
The intellectual Indians initially failed to grasp the fact that instead of welcoming and advocating globalisation, the nation had to face this new trade war designed by the West as a strategic game-plan to sustain its dominance in the world economy. But now, even elite Indians are trying to benchmark this global phenomenon from Indian standards, said S Gurumurthy, chartered accountant and convener of Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an economic forum that supports native enterprise.
He was speaking on 'What Price Globalisation' at a meet hosted by The Madras Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the city yesterday. 'Indian economy is driven by community and family entrepreneurship, unlike in America where individuals run big corporations. So, when the West has conceived something like WTO, it is primarily for its own benefit and not for the rest of the world,' he said.
It is rather immature to talk of globalisation driven by world trade. 'For every bit of world trade is managed by the West. There are powerful civilisational and religious influences that have a say in the evolving globalisation,' he said. Citing the recent studies of Francis Fukuyama and Alvin Toffler, well-know authors in geopolitics, he said that even as technology would be a determinant in world economy, the market dynamics will be managed by the private sector and the governments of the West to keep America on its consumerist binge.
Behind every woman... lies history
Behind every woman... lies history
Using a well-worn axiom, namely that `behind every woman lies... ( unstated).. a man', Supriya RoyChowdhury has argued (The Hindu, 21 April, 2002) that the effort to `empower women' by reserving seats for them in local self-government, has not only been a farce, but it has distracted from developing a more genuine voice of women, for removing the age-old discrimination.
To quote "many of the emerging features of women's role in panchayats indicate that first, reservation, in itself, is insufficient as an instrument of empowerment. Second, reservation in fact may turn out to be a handicap insofar as an obvious insignia of empowerment detracts attention from deeper, structural sources of powerlessness and the need to address these through movemental struggles rather than through institutionalised power'' . . .
She questions the elected women's "capacity to effectively represent the general interests of the community, and second, more specifically, their capacity to conceptualise and effectively represent the interests of women in the community. . .''
She notices, "There appeared to be a hiatus between the projects that the women seemed to uniformly want to implement in their villages, and the absence of a vision of overall economic betterment, which would provide, above all, employment and higher wages . . .'' and goes on to say, "More importantly, perhaps, their political placement in these institutions in relationships of dependence to locally powerful persons prevents them from evolving a broader political agenda to push for the interests of the poor in the community. Effectively, the women remain tied to the project / grant discourse which reinforces the power of the local strongman.''
``In such a context, participation in institutionalised forms of power, through mechanisms of state-sponsored affirmative action, has only limited possibilities of addressing larger issues of justice and equality.''
She builds her argument from her interviews / interaction with elected women in Karnataka, who informed her that they were stimulated, guided or ordered to stand for elections by their husbands; that they did not see women as their constituency, as those whom they represented, that they perceived themselves as representing the area or perhaps their class, caste or political party. Further, that many of them belonged to the contractor or landlord class.
Thus apart from being male and elite-driven, her investigations showed that women are not representing women. Some labouring women she interviewed said they had not really heard about anything called panchayat, but one said that they were happy that some drinking water arrangement had been made for them - and she believed by the panchayat.
Her critical analysis, she suggests is (I quote), "necessary in the context of the present euphoria over women's role in panchayats''.
Taking the first finding of Ms. Chowdhury, namely that women were there because of their men. The seats reserved for women, have been "taken'' from men, - a reallotment of an occupied seat. In the first instance, it is quite natural that the dislodged man would put his women - be it wife, daughter or daughter-in-law - as a "proxy''. But what is missing from Ms. Chowdhury's commentary is the fact that in many constituencies, areas, especially in the second round of elections, women have gained more than 33 1/3 per cent of the seats reserved. In Karnataka, in successive elections, it went up to above 40 per cent. So also in Kerala, Himachal Pradesh etc
In those areas where women fought in non-reserved seats, they have come out on top because of their own political drive and show it too. A pilot study with 60 women G.P. members (Stephen 2001), who had undergone a three-phased training, revealed that one-third were still functioning as proxy candidates, one-third did not face any constraints at home but found it difficult to overcome gender-subordination within the gram panchayat and about one-third were functioning effectively and have gained some power within the family.
Secondly, in many parts of Karnataka for example, women who belong to the Mahila Samakhya Sanghas fought electoral battles not because their men told them to, but because they could see this as a natural next step to the evolution of what could be called a consciousness of themselves as citizens, as persons with some special voice, issues on which they required power to redress their subordination. Here and in some areas where there have been strong women-led community-based organization, or women support centers, women are their own agents. In some constituencies, resolutions have been passed removing a woman sarpanch, after manipulating non-attendance. In as many places, local women's campaigns have had them re-instated. Thus important battles are being fought in local areas between women and men, and the historically male-dominated political arenas, restructuring gender relations which would not have been possible without the Amendment and the reservation.
Here are interesting findings from conversations with groups of political Elected Women Representatives (EWRs). First, it was women as different in their opinion from their men, in Karnataka as far back as in 1987 when Karnataka introduced reservation of seats for women in local self-government (prior to the Constitutional amendment) who objected to the clause in the Bill - (which has now been unfortunately passed) that elections to Gram Sabha are to be held on a non-party basis. Their explanation was that it is through party membership and party participation that they could rise in the political sphere. This mature political sense shook the women NGOs.
In consultations, in several States, "EWRs'' have said they see themselves as representatives of the area. "We are interested in all the issues and development initiatives." Why, we asked. Again, if they associate themselves only with one social category, they feel they cannot gain the area support which is what they need when it comes to fighting elections.
Thus women at the grassroots are getting politicised. As they understand and deal with hard politics, they also push for its transformation to accommodate their own location and needs. This political astuteness has to be recognised, rather than demeaned.
Behind every woman who attempts to claim power lies a history - a complex experience of exclusion, requiring deep understanding of her attempts to emerge from the underground. It may look like scratches on the surface; but the one million women released through the reservation of seats in local self-government, will crack open that chink in the contemporary political armour.
Using a well-worn axiom, namely that `behind every woman lies... ( unstated).. a man', Supriya RoyChowdhury has argued (The Hindu, 21 April, 2002) that the effort to `empower women' by reserving seats for them in local self-government, has not only been a farce, but it has distracted from developing a more genuine voice of women, for removing the age-old discrimination.
To quote "many of the emerging features of women's role in panchayats indicate that first, reservation, in itself, is insufficient as an instrument of empowerment. Second, reservation in fact may turn out to be a handicap insofar as an obvious insignia of empowerment detracts attention from deeper, structural sources of powerlessness and the need to address these through movemental struggles rather than through institutionalised power'' . . .
She questions the elected women's "capacity to effectively represent the general interests of the community, and second, more specifically, their capacity to conceptualise and effectively represent the interests of women in the community. . .''
She notices, "There appeared to be a hiatus between the projects that the women seemed to uniformly want to implement in their villages, and the absence of a vision of overall economic betterment, which would provide, above all, employment and higher wages . . .'' and goes on to say, "More importantly, perhaps, their political placement in these institutions in relationships of dependence to locally powerful persons prevents them from evolving a broader political agenda to push for the interests of the poor in the community. Effectively, the women remain tied to the project / grant discourse which reinforces the power of the local strongman.''
``In such a context, participation in institutionalised forms of power, through mechanisms of state-sponsored affirmative action, has only limited possibilities of addressing larger issues of justice and equality.''
She builds her argument from her interviews / interaction with elected women in Karnataka, who informed her that they were stimulated, guided or ordered to stand for elections by their husbands; that they did not see women as their constituency, as those whom they represented, that they perceived themselves as representing the area or perhaps their class, caste or political party. Further, that many of them belonged to the contractor or landlord class.
Thus apart from being male and elite-driven, her investigations showed that women are not representing women. Some labouring women she interviewed said they had not really heard about anything called panchayat, but one said that they were happy that some drinking water arrangement had been made for them - and she believed by the panchayat.
Her critical analysis, she suggests is (I quote), "necessary in the context of the present euphoria over women's role in panchayats''.
Taking the first finding of Ms. Chowdhury, namely that women were there because of their men. The seats reserved for women, have been "taken'' from men, - a reallotment of an occupied seat. In the first instance, it is quite natural that the dislodged man would put his women - be it wife, daughter or daughter-in-law - as a "proxy''. But what is missing from Ms. Chowdhury's commentary is the fact that in many constituencies, areas, especially in the second round of elections, women have gained more than 33 1/3 per cent of the seats reserved. In Karnataka, in successive elections, it went up to above 40 per cent. So also in Kerala, Himachal Pradesh etc
In those areas where women fought in non-reserved seats, they have come out on top because of their own political drive and show it too. A pilot study with 60 women G.P. members (Stephen 2001), who had undergone a three-phased training, revealed that one-third were still functioning as proxy candidates, one-third did not face any constraints at home but found it difficult to overcome gender-subordination within the gram panchayat and about one-third were functioning effectively and have gained some power within the family.
Secondly, in many parts of Karnataka for example, women who belong to the Mahila Samakhya Sanghas fought electoral battles not because their men told them to, but because they could see this as a natural next step to the evolution of what could be called a consciousness of themselves as citizens, as persons with some special voice, issues on which they required power to redress their subordination. Here and in some areas where there have been strong women-led community-based organization, or women support centers, women are their own agents. In some constituencies, resolutions have been passed removing a woman sarpanch, after manipulating non-attendance. In as many places, local women's campaigns have had them re-instated. Thus important battles are being fought in local areas between women and men, and the historically male-dominated political arenas, restructuring gender relations which would not have been possible without the Amendment and the reservation.
Here are interesting findings from conversations with groups of political Elected Women Representatives (EWRs). First, it was women as different in their opinion from their men, in Karnataka as far back as in 1987 when Karnataka introduced reservation of seats for women in local self-government (prior to the Constitutional amendment) who objected to the clause in the Bill - (which has now been unfortunately passed) that elections to Gram Sabha are to be held on a non-party basis. Their explanation was that it is through party membership and party participation that they could rise in the political sphere. This mature political sense shook the women NGOs.
In consultations, in several States, "EWRs'' have said they see themselves as representatives of the area. "We are interested in all the issues and development initiatives." Why, we asked. Again, if they associate themselves only with one social category, they feel they cannot gain the area support which is what they need when it comes to fighting elections.
Thus women at the grassroots are getting politicised. As they understand and deal with hard politics, they also push for its transformation to accommodate their own location and needs. This political astuteness has to be recognised, rather than demeaned.
Behind every woman who attempts to claim power lies a history - a complex experience of exclusion, requiring deep understanding of her attempts to emerge from the underground. It may look like scratches on the surface; but the one million women released through the reservation of seats in local self-government, will crack open that chink in the contemporary political armour.
Behind every woman... lies history
Behind every woman... lies history
Using a well-worn axiom, namely that `behind every woman lies... ( unstated).. a man', Supriya RoyChowdhury has argued (The Hindu, 21 April, 2002) that the effort to `empower women' by reserving seats for them in local self-government, has not only been a farce, but it has distracted from developing a more genuine voice of women, for removing the age-old discrimination.
To quote "many of the emerging features of women's role in panchayats indicate that first, reservation, in itself, is insufficient as an instrument of empowerment. Second, reservation in fact may turn out to be a handicap insofar as an obvious insignia of empowerment detracts attention from deeper, structural sources of powerlessness and the need to address these through movemental struggles rather than through institutionalised power'' . . .
She questions the elected women's "capacity to effectively represent the general interests of the community, and second, more specifically, their capacity to conceptualise and effectively represent the interests of women in the community. . .''
She notices, "There appeared to be a hiatus between the projects that the women seemed to uniformly want to implement in their villages, and the absence of a vision of overall economic betterment, which would provide, above all, employment and higher wages . . .'' and goes on to say, "More importantly, perhaps, their political placement in these institutions in relationships of dependence to locally powerful persons prevents them from evolving a broader political agenda to push for the interests of the poor in the community. Effectively, the women remain tied to the project / grant discourse which reinforces the power of the local strongman.''
``In such a context, participation in institutionalised forms of power, through mechanisms of state-sponsored affirmative action, has only limited possibilities of addressing larger issues of justice and equality.''
She builds her argument from her interviews / interaction with elected women in Karnataka, who informed her that they were stimulated, guided or ordered to stand for elections by their husbands; that they did not see women as their constituency, as those whom they represented, that they perceived themselves as representing the area or perhaps their class, caste or political party. Further, that many of them belonged to the contractor or landlord class.
Thus apart from being male and elite-driven, her investigations showed that women are not representing women. Some labouring women she interviewed said they had not really heard about anything called panchayat, but one said that they were happy that some drinking water arrangement had been made for them - and she believed by the panchayat.
Her critical analysis, she suggests is (I quote), "necessary in the context of the present euphoria over women's role in panchayats''.
Taking the first finding of Ms. Chowdhury, namely that women were there because of their men. The seats reserved for women, have been "taken'' from men, - a reallotment of an occupied seat. In the first instance, it is quite natural that the dislodged man would put his women - be it wife, daughter or daughter-in-law - as a "proxy''. But what is missing from Ms. Chowdhury's commentary is the fact that in many constituencies, areas, especially in the second round of elections, women have gained more than 33 1/3 per cent of the seats reserved. In Karnataka, in successive elections, it went up to above 40 per cent. So also in Kerala, Himachal Pradesh etc
In those areas where women fought in non-reserved seats, they have come out on top because of their own political drive and show it too. A pilot study with 60 women G.P. members (Stephen 2001), who had undergone a three-phased training, revealed that one-third were still functioning as proxy candidates, one-third did not face any constraints at home but found it difficult to overcome gender-subordination within the gram panchayat and about one-third were functioning effectively and have gained some power within the family.
Secondly, in many parts of Karnataka for example, women who belong to the Mahila Samakhya Sanghas fought electoral battles not because their men told them to, but because they could see this as a natural next step to the evolution of what could be called a consciousness of themselves as citizens, as persons with some special voice, issues on which they required power to redress their subordination. Here and in some areas where there have been strong women-led community-based organization, or women support centers, women are their own agents. In some constituencies, resolutions have been passed removing a woman sarpanch, after manipulating non-attendance. In as many places, local women's campaigns have had them re-instated. Thus important battles are being fought in local areas between women and men, and the historically male-dominated political arenas, restructuring gender relations which would not have been possible without the Amendment and the reservation.
Here are interesting findings from conversations with groups of political Elected Women Representatives (EWRs). First, it was women as different in their opinion from their men, in Karnataka as far back as in 1987 when Karnataka introduced reservation of seats for women in local self-government (prior to the Constitutional amendment) who objected to the clause in the Bill - (which has now been unfortunately passed) that elections to Gram Sabha are to be held on a non-party basis. Their explanation was that it is through party membership and party participation that they could rise in the political sphere. This mature political sense shook the women NGOs.
In consultations, in several States, "EWRs'' have said they see themselves as representatives of the area. "We are interested in all the issues and development initiatives." Why, we asked. Again, if they associate themselves only with one social category, they feel they cannot gain the area support which is what they need when it comes to fighting elections.
Thus women at the grassroots are getting politicised. As they understand and deal with hard politics, they also push for its transformation to accommodate their own location and needs. This political astuteness has to be recognised, rather than demeaned.
Behind every woman who attempts to claim power lies a history - a complex experience of exclusion, requiring deep understanding of her attempts to emerge from the underground. It may look like scratches on the surface; but the one million women released through the reservation of seats in local self-government, will crack open that chink in the contemporary political armour.
Using a well-worn axiom, namely that `behind every woman lies... ( unstated).. a man', Supriya RoyChowdhury has argued (The Hindu, 21 April, 2002) that the effort to `empower women' by reserving seats for them in local self-government, has not only been a farce, but it has distracted from developing a more genuine voice of women, for removing the age-old discrimination.
To quote "many of the emerging features of women's role in panchayats indicate that first, reservation, in itself, is insufficient as an instrument of empowerment. Second, reservation in fact may turn out to be a handicap insofar as an obvious insignia of empowerment detracts attention from deeper, structural sources of powerlessness and the need to address these through movemental struggles rather than through institutionalised power'' . . .
She questions the elected women's "capacity to effectively represent the general interests of the community, and second, more specifically, their capacity to conceptualise and effectively represent the interests of women in the community. . .''
She notices, "There appeared to be a hiatus between the projects that the women seemed to uniformly want to implement in their villages, and the absence of a vision of overall economic betterment, which would provide, above all, employment and higher wages . . .'' and goes on to say, "More importantly, perhaps, their political placement in these institutions in relationships of dependence to locally powerful persons prevents them from evolving a broader political agenda to push for the interests of the poor in the community. Effectively, the women remain tied to the project / grant discourse which reinforces the power of the local strongman.''
``In such a context, participation in institutionalised forms of power, through mechanisms of state-sponsored affirmative action, has only limited possibilities of addressing larger issues of justice and equality.''
She builds her argument from her interviews / interaction with elected women in Karnataka, who informed her that they were stimulated, guided or ordered to stand for elections by their husbands; that they did not see women as their constituency, as those whom they represented, that they perceived themselves as representing the area or perhaps their class, caste or political party. Further, that many of them belonged to the contractor or landlord class.
Thus apart from being male and elite-driven, her investigations showed that women are not representing women. Some labouring women she interviewed said they had not really heard about anything called panchayat, but one said that they were happy that some drinking water arrangement had been made for them - and she believed by the panchayat.
Her critical analysis, she suggests is (I quote), "necessary in the context of the present euphoria over women's role in panchayats''.
Taking the first finding of Ms. Chowdhury, namely that women were there because of their men. The seats reserved for women, have been "taken'' from men, - a reallotment of an occupied seat. In the first instance, it is quite natural that the dislodged man would put his women - be it wife, daughter or daughter-in-law - as a "proxy''. But what is missing from Ms. Chowdhury's commentary is the fact that in many constituencies, areas, especially in the second round of elections, women have gained more than 33 1/3 per cent of the seats reserved. In Karnataka, in successive elections, it went up to above 40 per cent. So also in Kerala, Himachal Pradesh etc
In those areas where women fought in non-reserved seats, they have come out on top because of their own political drive and show it too. A pilot study with 60 women G.P. members (Stephen 2001), who had undergone a three-phased training, revealed that one-third were still functioning as proxy candidates, one-third did not face any constraints at home but found it difficult to overcome gender-subordination within the gram panchayat and about one-third were functioning effectively and have gained some power within the family.
Secondly, in many parts of Karnataka for example, women who belong to the Mahila Samakhya Sanghas fought electoral battles not because their men told them to, but because they could see this as a natural next step to the evolution of what could be called a consciousness of themselves as citizens, as persons with some special voice, issues on which they required power to redress their subordination. Here and in some areas where there have been strong women-led community-based organization, or women support centers, women are their own agents. In some constituencies, resolutions have been passed removing a woman sarpanch, after manipulating non-attendance. In as many places, local women's campaigns have had them re-instated. Thus important battles are being fought in local areas between women and men, and the historically male-dominated political arenas, restructuring gender relations which would not have been possible without the Amendment and the reservation.
Here are interesting findings from conversations with groups of political Elected Women Representatives (EWRs). First, it was women as different in their opinion from their men, in Karnataka as far back as in 1987 when Karnataka introduced reservation of seats for women in local self-government (prior to the Constitutional amendment) who objected to the clause in the Bill - (which has now been unfortunately passed) that elections to Gram Sabha are to be held on a non-party basis. Their explanation was that it is through party membership and party participation that they could rise in the political sphere. This mature political sense shook the women NGOs.
In consultations, in several States, "EWRs'' have said they see themselves as representatives of the area. "We are interested in all the issues and development initiatives." Why, we asked. Again, if they associate themselves only with one social category, they feel they cannot gain the area support which is what they need when it comes to fighting elections.
Thus women at the grassroots are getting politicised. As they understand and deal with hard politics, they also push for its transformation to accommodate their own location and needs. This political astuteness has to be recognised, rather than demeaned.
Behind every woman who attempts to claim power lies a history - a complex experience of exclusion, requiring deep understanding of her attempts to emerge from the underground. It may look like scratches on the surface; but the one million women released through the reservation of seats in local self-government, will crack open that chink in the contemporary political armour.
Software Industry
Software Industry
The Indian software industry truly symbolizes India’s strength in the knowledge based economy. Highly skilled human resources coupled with low wage structure and world class quality have transformed India into a global powerhouse in the Information Technology (IT) software services and solutions sectors.
The Indian IT industry has grown from US$ 0.8 billion in 1994-95 to US$ 10.1 billion in 2001-02. The figure below illustrates the growth of the Indian IT sector. Software and services exports are expected to account for more than 50 per cent of the sector turnover in 2001-2002.
• Despite a slowing global economy, Indian Software exports grew by 23 percent in 2001-02, while overall exports fell down by 2 per cent.
• India currently exports software to around 95 countries around the globe and more than 250 Fortune 500 companies have outsourced some part of their software requirements from India. North America and Europe accounted for 86% of Indian exports in 2000-2001.
• The growth of India as a software hub has also been facilitated by the initiatives taken by the Union and State Governments. Many State Governments have set up Hi-Tech Parks and implemented e-governance projects.
• Many global software majors have set-up operations in India. They include Microsoft, Oracle, Adobe among others.
• The government has also announced incentives for adhering to Quality Standards such as ISO 9000, SEI CMM by providing import duty concessions. Similarly, Exim bank subsidises the cost of acquiring the quality standard by around 50%.
• The growth of the sector has also been enhanced by a flourishing venture capital (VC) industry. The VC industry was estimated to be worth around US$ 408 million in 2000 and is expected to grow to US$ 10 billion by 2008. This shows a CAGR of around 50 per cent.
Policy Initiatives
• Besides Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and Export Promotion Zones (EPZs), the government is encouraging the setting up of Software Technology Parks (STPs). STPs offer zero import duty on the import of all capital goods, special 10 years income tax rebates, availability of infrastructure facilities such as high-speed data communication links, etc.
• Foreign companies can set-up operations in these zones either through incorporation of the company as per Indian Companies Act (with 100% equity holding), through a joint venture with an Indian company or through a wholly owned subsidiary.
Opportunities
• Strong cost value proposition, driven by the low cost of quality manpower and high quality work delivery.
• India has a large base of English speaking, skilled manpower resource with experience on state-of-the-art hardware and software platforms. This is supported by a flourishing IT education market, producing high quality software professionals across different areas in the field.
• The government has announced software export sector tax incentives-setting up of STPs and a VC funds.
• India has a well developed infrastructure support to aid connectivity and data transfers.
The Indian software industry truly symbolizes India’s strength in the knowledge based economy. Highly skilled human resources coupled with low wage structure and world class quality have transformed India into a global powerhouse in the Information Technology (IT) software services and solutions sectors.
The Indian IT industry has grown from US$ 0.8 billion in 1994-95 to US$ 10.1 billion in 2001-02. The figure below illustrates the growth of the Indian IT sector. Software and services exports are expected to account for more than 50 per cent of the sector turnover in 2001-2002.
• Despite a slowing global economy, Indian Software exports grew by 23 percent in 2001-02, while overall exports fell down by 2 per cent.
• India currently exports software to around 95 countries around the globe and more than 250 Fortune 500 companies have outsourced some part of their software requirements from India. North America and Europe accounted for 86% of Indian exports in 2000-2001.
• The growth of India as a software hub has also been facilitated by the initiatives taken by the Union and State Governments. Many State Governments have set up Hi-Tech Parks and implemented e-governance projects.
• Many global software majors have set-up operations in India. They include Microsoft, Oracle, Adobe among others.
• The government has also announced incentives for adhering to Quality Standards such as ISO 9000, SEI CMM by providing import duty concessions. Similarly, Exim bank subsidises the cost of acquiring the quality standard by around 50%.
• The growth of the sector has also been enhanced by a flourishing venture capital (VC) industry. The VC industry was estimated to be worth around US$ 408 million in 2000 and is expected to grow to US$ 10 billion by 2008. This shows a CAGR of around 50 per cent.
Policy Initiatives
• Besides Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and Export Promotion Zones (EPZs), the government is encouraging the setting up of Software Technology Parks (STPs). STPs offer zero import duty on the import of all capital goods, special 10 years income tax rebates, availability of infrastructure facilities such as high-speed data communication links, etc.
• Foreign companies can set-up operations in these zones either through incorporation of the company as per Indian Companies Act (with 100% equity holding), through a joint venture with an Indian company or through a wholly owned subsidiary.
Opportunities
• Strong cost value proposition, driven by the low cost of quality manpower and high quality work delivery.
• India has a large base of English speaking, skilled manpower resource with experience on state-of-the-art hardware and software platforms. This is supported by a flourishing IT education market, producing high quality software professionals across different areas in the field.
• The government has announced software export sector tax incentives-setting up of STPs and a VC funds.
• India has a well developed infrastructure support to aid connectivity and data transfers.
Conditional access system for cable TV watchers boon or bane
The Indian Readership Survey 2001 reveals urban cable penetration of 84.7 per cent in towns and 32.7 per cent in villages. Cable/satellite broadcasters have current revenues of Rs 3600 crore mainly from advertisement revenues with the expected growth by 2006 to Rs 8100 crore largely on the strength of subscriber revenue.Herein lies the rub.
The average growth in the TV segment sector has been 38 per cent. Naturally the broadcasters want a greater share of the cable pie and local cable operators are unwilling to give in easily to demands of full declaration when no broadcaster is willing to reveal his cost of acquisition of content or operating costs and when the whole trp audience rating issue has become tainted with controversy. In the past two years broadcasters and multi-system cable operators have resorted to bitter litigation on various issues and inevitably settled out of court.Broadcasters have had to face flak from advertisers for not providing assured connectivity. Cable operators have had to face wrath of consumers for blank screens.
The cable industry is 'governed' by the Cable Network Regulation Act 1995 which only provides for post office registration and is otherwise a toothless and technologically redundant law. Ultimately the Convergence Bill will become law but in the meanwhile government has been resorting to piecemeal legislation to take care of burning issues affecting the electronic media. These include major amendments to the Cable Act in 2000, a local (satellite) up-linking policy in 2001, and DTH guidelines in 2002. Now the government has accepted the Rakesh Mohan task force report on introduction of a conditional access system for pay channels. This mandates that all pay channels would be available only through a set top box to provide the consumer the choice of viewing and an option to pay for what he chooses to watch. Free-to-air channels would continue to be available through present receivers at an' affordable price' to be determined by the government.
After the initial round of euphoria in the cable industry, various queries are being raised mainly by broadcasters and consumer organisations: Is the set top box a feasible solution for ensuring that broadcasters are paid? Broadcasters have been able to double their subscription revenue in the last one year forcing cable operators to raise rates to Rs 300 per month in Mumbai. Any further raise will not be tolerated. Will consumer choice be reduced by government mandated solutions? All that the government is doing is restoring the right of choice of watching channels to the consumer who will only now pay for channels he chooses to watch. Who will bear the costs of regulation? Obviously, the consumer will bear the cost of the set top box. The cable operator will bear the cost of the subscriber management system. The broadcaster will have to fix a maximum retail price to compensate the cable operator for use of the infrastructure and system upgrade including the subscriber management system.
The government has to chart the road ahead once conditional access becomes mandatory. Government has to continue to take a proactive consumer stance by taking the following additional measures immediately: 1) Ensuring a three-phase roll out to cover metros in the next six months, mini metros in the next 12 months and the entire country in 18 months. 2) To ensure easy acceptability of set top boxes and subscriber management systems for cable operators all duties including central/state and local levies be waived for a period of three years. 3) As government has decided to fix a maximum retail price for free-to-air channels, it should also freeze all current pay channel rates till deployment of set top boxes is actually in place. Thereafter the broadcasters would have to persuade customers to subscribe to their channels both in terms of attractive content and pricing. 4) As the Convergence Bill is still being scrutinised by a standing committee of Parliament, an interim arrangement to settle all disputes in the TV segment between broadcasters, cable operators and consumers may be considered by enlarging the function of the Telecom Regulatory Authority or appointment of an ombudsman.
The average growth in the TV segment sector has been 38 per cent. Naturally the broadcasters want a greater share of the cable pie and local cable operators are unwilling to give in easily to demands of full declaration when no broadcaster is willing to reveal his cost of acquisition of content or operating costs and when the whole trp audience rating issue has become tainted with controversy. In the past two years broadcasters and multi-system cable operators have resorted to bitter litigation on various issues and inevitably settled out of court.Broadcasters have had to face flak from advertisers for not providing assured connectivity. Cable operators have had to face wrath of consumers for blank screens.
The cable industry is 'governed' by the Cable Network Regulation Act 1995 which only provides for post office registration and is otherwise a toothless and technologically redundant law. Ultimately the Convergence Bill will become law but in the meanwhile government has been resorting to piecemeal legislation to take care of burning issues affecting the electronic media. These include major amendments to the Cable Act in 2000, a local (satellite) up-linking policy in 2001, and DTH guidelines in 2002. Now the government has accepted the Rakesh Mohan task force report on introduction of a conditional access system for pay channels. This mandates that all pay channels would be available only through a set top box to provide the consumer the choice of viewing and an option to pay for what he chooses to watch. Free-to-air channels would continue to be available through present receivers at an' affordable price' to be determined by the government.
After the initial round of euphoria in the cable industry, various queries are being raised mainly by broadcasters and consumer organisations: Is the set top box a feasible solution for ensuring that broadcasters are paid? Broadcasters have been able to double their subscription revenue in the last one year forcing cable operators to raise rates to Rs 300 per month in Mumbai. Any further raise will not be tolerated. Will consumer choice be reduced by government mandated solutions? All that the government is doing is restoring the right of choice of watching channels to the consumer who will only now pay for channels he chooses to watch. Who will bear the costs of regulation? Obviously, the consumer will bear the cost of the set top box. The cable operator will bear the cost of the subscriber management system. The broadcaster will have to fix a maximum retail price to compensate the cable operator for use of the infrastructure and system upgrade including the subscriber management system.
The government has to chart the road ahead once conditional access becomes mandatory. Government has to continue to take a proactive consumer stance by taking the following additional measures immediately: 1) Ensuring a three-phase roll out to cover metros in the next six months, mini metros in the next 12 months and the entire country in 18 months. 2) To ensure easy acceptability of set top boxes and subscriber management systems for cable operators all duties including central/state and local levies be waived for a period of three years. 3) As government has decided to fix a maximum retail price for free-to-air channels, it should also freeze all current pay channel rates till deployment of set top boxes is actually in place. Thereafter the broadcasters would have to persuade customers to subscribe to their channels both in terms of attractive content and pricing. 4) As the Convergence Bill is still being scrutinised by a standing committee of Parliament, an interim arrangement to settle all disputes in the TV segment between broadcasters, cable operators and consumers may be considered by enlarging the function of the Telecom Regulatory Authority or appointment of an ombudsman.
Kids today are not what they used to be
Kids today are not what they used to be
The following points could be discussed under this topic:
The environment in which kids grow today are different. kids today are exposed to different kinds of media like radio, television Internet etc. They learn many things quickly and mature faster.They have a lot of information in their access compared to before. There are a lot of negative influences too. Kids are more demanding. Also exposure to these media can cause negative effect on them.
From the education point of view, competition has become so fierce that it forces them to compete from the beginning. This leads to non inculcation of values like sharing and giving.
From the parents aspect, we have a scenario where both the parents are working and are able to buy the kids all materialistic things but are unable to spend time with them...etc...
The following points could be discussed under this topic:
The environment in which kids grow today are different. kids today are exposed to different kinds of media like radio, television Internet etc. They learn many things quickly and mature faster.They have a lot of information in their access compared to before. There are a lot of negative influences too. Kids are more demanding. Also exposure to these media can cause negative effect on them.
From the education point of view, competition has become so fierce that it forces them to compete from the beginning. This leads to non inculcation of values like sharing and giving.
From the parents aspect, we have a scenario where both the parents are working and are able to buy the kids all materialistic things but are unable to spend time with them...etc...
Economic freedom not old fashioned theories of development will lead to growth and prosperity
Economic freedom not old fashioned theories of development will lead to growth and prosperity
As my colleague and I walked down towards immigration at the airport in Bali, we saw a large banner which read, 'Welcome Delegates.' Before we could absorb the pleasant surprise of being welcomed by the government of Indonesia, we spotted the rest of the message, which clarified that the welcome was for delegates to a meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development.Wrong number. We were in Bali for a meeting of the Asian Economic Freedom Network (AEFN) organised by Friedrich Naumann Stiftung.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the World Economic Freedom Index created and computed by the Fraser Institute in Canada and to assess its findings for Asia. The contrast between the two meetings is instructive. There is a vast difference in the fundamental concepts, principles and policies that were discussed at the two meetings. Economic freedom refers to the freedom to engage in economic activity without interference from the government as long as the freedom of others is respected. The delegates at the AEFN meeting discussed what empirical variables capture this idea and what policy changes are required to increase economic freedom.'Sustainable development', discussed at the other meeting, begs some fundamental questions: sustainable for how long? For whom? And what is it that we're trying to sustain? Are we to sustain the amount and distribution of natural resources that exist today for future generations? Or the current standards of living, the amount and distribution of material goods and services? Should we sustain whatever it is that we agree to sustain only for future generations of Homo sapiens or also for other species of flora and fauna? And how long are we planning to sustain these-ten generations, a hundred, or longer?
The absurdity of the concept becomes clearer with a hypothetical example. Suppose we live in a period when charcoal is the main source of energy in the world. Charcoal is made by burning wood and destroy forests and ecosystems and generate greenhouse gases. This world does not seem sustainable.So, the Charcoal World Summit for Sustainable Development is called by concerned international agencies, NGOs, and businesses. The heads of state and governments present at the summit agree on time-bound targets to reduce charcoal use and production of greenhouse gases, to offer official assistance to less developed countries, and to subsidise the discovery of alternative fuels.A Charcoal Summit could have occurred about 150 years ago when Malthus' worries about population growth overtaking production were prevalent. The dire predictions of Malthus did not come true. A world powered by charcoal can't sustain 6 billion people. Would subsidies for the discovery of alternative fuels have reached the right individuals and would they have found coal, petroleum, solar and wind power or fuel cells? Given the history of government subsidy programs, it seems quite unlikely.
I am thankful that no Charcoal Summit took place 150 years ago, that we didn't have too many concerned agencies and NGOs then, that we were allowed to grope our way and discover new fuels. The forces of supply and demand are more powerful than any bribes by governments in focussing human ingenuity to solve problems. Market forces took us from whale oil, to charcoal, to coal, to petroleum. The forest cover in the industrialised world today is higher than it was 150 years ago, and large quantities of coal are lying underground. No one can predict what will be the next source of energy, but the historical achievements of the human mind give us great confidence that we will have it well before any emergency. Then large quantities of petroleum will be left underground and future generations will grin about how primitive our energy sources were in the 21st century.What kinds of policies are pushed by the confused proponents of sustainable development? The Draft Plan of Implementation issued on June 12 by the UN Commission on Sustainable Development is 77 pages of dense text. It covers all that the humanity would have ever wanted: gender equality, racial harmony, fair income, equitable access to education, healthcare, water, sanitation, including the mandate to reduce by half, by the year 2015, the proportion of the world's people whose income is less than $1 a day and the proportion of people who suffer from hunger and, by the same date, to halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water.
The market keeps producing prosperity and the commissions keep setting target dates.The consequences of the edicts of the final Johannesburg meeting in late August would resemble those of our hypothetical Charcoal Summit. The difference would be of magnitude, but the pattern would remain the same. Fundamentally, ecology and economy are similar-none can stay stagnant for long, it must either grow or decline. The choice is between a growing and a declining economy.The most critical ingredient for economic growth is economic freedom. The Fraser study concludes that no country with a persistently high economic freedom rating during the last 20 years failed to achieved a high level of income. All 17 countries in the most-improved category experienced average per capita GDP growth of 2.7%. In contrast, all 16 countries which declined the most on the index of economic freedom declined at an annual rate of 0.6%. As incomes increase, people demand higher quality, of housing, education, healthcare, and environment.
At higher incomes - studies suggest above per capita income of $2,000 - people begin to invest in the quality air and water, sanitation, visits to parks and wildlife. The vision underlying the two meetings in Bali was antithetical. We don't need sustainable development, but sustained development. For the sake of humanity the next official welcome should be for
As my colleague and I walked down towards immigration at the airport in Bali, we saw a large banner which read, 'Welcome Delegates.' Before we could absorb the pleasant surprise of being welcomed by the government of Indonesia, we spotted the rest of the message, which clarified that the welcome was for delegates to a meeting for the World Summit on Sustainable Development.Wrong number. We were in Bali for a meeting of the Asian Economic Freedom Network (AEFN) organised by Friedrich Naumann Stiftung.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the World Economic Freedom Index created and computed by the Fraser Institute in Canada and to assess its findings for Asia. The contrast between the two meetings is instructive. There is a vast difference in the fundamental concepts, principles and policies that were discussed at the two meetings. Economic freedom refers to the freedom to engage in economic activity without interference from the government as long as the freedom of others is respected. The delegates at the AEFN meeting discussed what empirical variables capture this idea and what policy changes are required to increase economic freedom.'Sustainable development', discussed at the other meeting, begs some fundamental questions: sustainable for how long? For whom? And what is it that we're trying to sustain? Are we to sustain the amount and distribution of natural resources that exist today for future generations? Or the current standards of living, the amount and distribution of material goods and services? Should we sustain whatever it is that we agree to sustain only for future generations of Homo sapiens or also for other species of flora and fauna? And how long are we planning to sustain these-ten generations, a hundred, or longer?
The absurdity of the concept becomes clearer with a hypothetical example. Suppose we live in a period when charcoal is the main source of energy in the world. Charcoal is made by burning wood and destroy forests and ecosystems and generate greenhouse gases. This world does not seem sustainable.So, the Charcoal World Summit for Sustainable Development is called by concerned international agencies, NGOs, and businesses. The heads of state and governments present at the summit agree on time-bound targets to reduce charcoal use and production of greenhouse gases, to offer official assistance to less developed countries, and to subsidise the discovery of alternative fuels.A Charcoal Summit could have occurred about 150 years ago when Malthus' worries about population growth overtaking production were prevalent. The dire predictions of Malthus did not come true. A world powered by charcoal can't sustain 6 billion people. Would subsidies for the discovery of alternative fuels have reached the right individuals and would they have found coal, petroleum, solar and wind power or fuel cells? Given the history of government subsidy programs, it seems quite unlikely.
I am thankful that no Charcoal Summit took place 150 years ago, that we didn't have too many concerned agencies and NGOs then, that we were allowed to grope our way and discover new fuels. The forces of supply and demand are more powerful than any bribes by governments in focussing human ingenuity to solve problems. Market forces took us from whale oil, to charcoal, to coal, to petroleum. The forest cover in the industrialised world today is higher than it was 150 years ago, and large quantities of coal are lying underground. No one can predict what will be the next source of energy, but the historical achievements of the human mind give us great confidence that we will have it well before any emergency. Then large quantities of petroleum will be left underground and future generations will grin about how primitive our energy sources were in the 21st century.What kinds of policies are pushed by the confused proponents of sustainable development? The Draft Plan of Implementation issued on June 12 by the UN Commission on Sustainable Development is 77 pages of dense text. It covers all that the humanity would have ever wanted: gender equality, racial harmony, fair income, equitable access to education, healthcare, water, sanitation, including the mandate to reduce by half, by the year 2015, the proportion of the world's people whose income is less than $1 a day and the proportion of people who suffer from hunger and, by the same date, to halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water.
The market keeps producing prosperity and the commissions keep setting target dates.The consequences of the edicts of the final Johannesburg meeting in late August would resemble those of our hypothetical Charcoal Summit. The difference would be of magnitude, but the pattern would remain the same. Fundamentally, ecology and economy are similar-none can stay stagnant for long, it must either grow or decline. The choice is between a growing and a declining economy.The most critical ingredient for economic growth is economic freedom. The Fraser study concludes that no country with a persistently high economic freedom rating during the last 20 years failed to achieved a high level of income. All 17 countries in the most-improved category experienced average per capita GDP growth of 2.7%. In contrast, all 16 countries which declined the most on the index of economic freedom declined at an annual rate of 0.6%. As incomes increase, people demand higher quality, of housing, education, healthcare, and environment.
At higher incomes - studies suggest above per capita income of $2,000 - people begin to invest in the quality air and water, sanitation, visits to parks and wildlife. The vision underlying the two meetings in Bali was antithetical. We don't need sustainable development, but sustained development. For the sake of humanity the next official welcome should be for
Is the patents bill good for India
Is the patents bill good for India?
Global pressure, coercion, ignorance, cowardice and conspiracy and not national interest are forcing India's Parliament to amend our exemplary Patents Act 1970 under threat from WTO and its TRIPS treaty.America's Super 301 places India on 'priority watch' threatening sanctions.
India has buckled supinely. Public debate was throttled. Signing WTO was deliberately not fully discussed in Parliament.Bills to implement TRIPS are being cascaded through on voice votes and minimum attention. The Joint Committee (1999-2001) ignored most suggestions and toed the line - with many legal stalwarts barely attending meetings. Parliament became Geneva's rubber stamp.The issues are simple. A patent is a monopoly which, in a free trade treaty is, itself a contradiction. But, we know that 60-90 % of patents are, and will be, owned by foreigners.
Why has India followed TRIPS to grant 20-year monopolies to foreigners through patents? The argument that research will stop without the incentive of luxurious returns is bogus.Research gets huge tax benefits. Good returns follow in 3-4 market years. India's sovereign Parliament could have declared a shorter patent of 5-10 years from the date of sealing.To protect public health, patents should be given only for molecules. Patented combinations can last forever. Researchers are troubled by issues relating to micro-organisms, genetic research and steps in basic research being patented.This will stifle basic research. Doha required stronger compulsory licensing provisions, fixed royalties of around 4 % and better public interest provisions enabling a modified licence of right as scheduled by the government for health, food and energy and research.Poor nations with ailing needs should be empowered to break corporate monopolies at will to meet their needs. The Parliament cannot mindlessly translate treaty into law.American law declares that its law will prevail over the WTO. India would have been better off telling WTO that its sovereign parliament does not accept certain provisions.It was cowardice not to do so. The promise of a possible third amendment is illusory. Yet, another ruse.
Global pressure, coercion, ignorance, cowardice and conspiracy and not national interest are forcing India's Parliament to amend our exemplary Patents Act 1970 under threat from WTO and its TRIPS treaty.America's Super 301 places India on 'priority watch' threatening sanctions.
India has buckled supinely. Public debate was throttled. Signing WTO was deliberately not fully discussed in Parliament.Bills to implement TRIPS are being cascaded through on voice votes and minimum attention. The Joint Committee (1999-2001) ignored most suggestions and toed the line - with many legal stalwarts barely attending meetings. Parliament became Geneva's rubber stamp.The issues are simple. A patent is a monopoly which, in a free trade treaty is, itself a contradiction. But, we know that 60-90 % of patents are, and will be, owned by foreigners.
Why has India followed TRIPS to grant 20-year monopolies to foreigners through patents? The argument that research will stop without the incentive of luxurious returns is bogus.Research gets huge tax benefits. Good returns follow in 3-4 market years. India's sovereign Parliament could have declared a shorter patent of 5-10 years from the date of sealing.To protect public health, patents should be given only for molecules. Patented combinations can last forever. Researchers are troubled by issues relating to micro-organisms, genetic research and steps in basic research being patented.This will stifle basic research. Doha required stronger compulsory licensing provisions, fixed royalties of around 4 % and better public interest provisions enabling a modified licence of right as scheduled by the government for health, food and energy and research.Poor nations with ailing needs should be empowered to break corporate monopolies at will to meet their needs. The Parliament cannot mindlessly translate treaty into law.American law declares that its law will prevail over the WTO. India would have been better off telling WTO that its sovereign parliament does not accept certain provisions.It was cowardice not to do so. The promise of a possible third amendment is illusory. Yet, another ruse.
Media is a mixed blessing
Media is a mixed blessing
WHEN Hindus vandalise Muslim places of worship and plant small statues of Hanuman in each of these mosques, what does the media do - tell it like it is? In a State that is already burning? Star News and Aaj Tak decided not to show these Hulladia Hanumans as they were called, in Gujarat last month, even though neither news channel has much of a reputation for restraint. The Gujarat Samachar however saw no reason not to report this. On March 1, 2002 it carried a front-page box item, which said, "Reaction of Godhra in Ahmedabad. Several Mosques and Dargahs Ravaged - Hanuman Idol installed after destroying mosque at Paldi. The new idol is named Hulladia Hanuman."
Pictures of these Hanumans were not hard to come by in Ahmedabad. Vendors were hawking them in front of the District Magistrate and District Commissioner's offices. Yet how many of them did you see carried in the much-maligned metropolitan press? The Indian Express did carry one day a picture of one of these Hanumans planted on the razed remains of a mosque.
The more developed countries are much more evolved in the area of media ethics. Our media is still young, our regulations still in the pipeline. But while their ethical dilemmas are more conventional, ours defy imagination. Just pick a few examples from Gujarat. Should TV and print report that a foetus was ripped from its mother's womb and then burnt? Should they report that people were electrocuted in a room by avenging mobs? Should they carry pictures of bodies in wells?
So what do we do about media ethics when all hell is breaking loose?
Gujarat's leading newspapers did not tie themselves into knots asking the questions that the rest of the media has been torturing itself with since the violence broke out. They went right ahead and took the decisions that they thought would endear them to the popular mood. On February 28, Gujarat Samachar carried photographs of the dead on the Godhra platform and the burning bogies, above its masthead. Its banner headline below the masthead said (translated), "Most barbaric and shameful incident of the country at Godhra station". And below that, "60 roasted in the train". A box item enshrined Bal Thackeray's by-now famous quote about Hindus cowering like dogs with tails between their legs.
Its rival Sandesh, while matching the photographs and the banner, was more graphic. It said bodies of the burnt victims were glued to each other. The paper bristled with horror stories. Inside it said that two mutilated bodies of young girls had been found, something its rival, Samachar, denied the next day in a three-column story. Later the editor of Sandesh would tell the Editor's Guild team which went to Gujarat to look at the role of the media, that he had a paper to sell, and a rival to out-manoeuvre. His paper's circulation during the month of massacre was up by 150, 000, he is reported to have told them. The Guild team was shown a letter of congratulations sent by the Chief Minister to some Gujarati newspapers, for their coverage. And of course, none of those asked for his resignation as the press in the rest of the country did.
While on the subject of media and massacre, let's hark back not to the Gulf War, which is held to be the first milestone in live conflict reporting, but to Tiananmen Square in 1989 which was believed to be a watershed moment in defining different roles for television and print journalism. "Television became the raw `news' and print became the analysis and research-based reservoir of facts. While newspapers used to set the news agenda for both television and print, that was reversed by the live shots from Beijing." (Turmoil at Tiananmen. A study of U.S. press coverage of the Beijing Spring of 1989, The Joan Shorenstein Barone Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy, Harvard University, 1992)
In retrospect, though some Pulitzers were won for the memorable coverage there, it was found to have suffered from biases, and endangered those whom it featured. It set a pro-student framework for the coverage: there was not enough objectivity about the students' movement, and the not-so-positive aspects of it. The technology outpaced the journalism, which created some serious problems. Lopsided access created lopsided coverage. The use of new technology allowed the inclusion of misleading or irrelevant materials, including unverified rumours that were hard to check and resist in the competitive pressure to provide something new. Some Chinese sources who appeared in news reports suddenly found themselves in danger. They were identified by authorities.
WHEN Hindus vandalise Muslim places of worship and plant small statues of Hanuman in each of these mosques, what does the media do - tell it like it is? In a State that is already burning? Star News and Aaj Tak decided not to show these Hulladia Hanumans as they were called, in Gujarat last month, even though neither news channel has much of a reputation for restraint. The Gujarat Samachar however saw no reason not to report this. On March 1, 2002 it carried a front-page box item, which said, "Reaction of Godhra in Ahmedabad. Several Mosques and Dargahs Ravaged - Hanuman Idol installed after destroying mosque at Paldi. The new idol is named Hulladia Hanuman."
Pictures of these Hanumans were not hard to come by in Ahmedabad. Vendors were hawking them in front of the District Magistrate and District Commissioner's offices. Yet how many of them did you see carried in the much-maligned metropolitan press? The Indian Express did carry one day a picture of one of these Hanumans planted on the razed remains of a mosque.
The more developed countries are much more evolved in the area of media ethics. Our media is still young, our regulations still in the pipeline. But while their ethical dilemmas are more conventional, ours defy imagination. Just pick a few examples from Gujarat. Should TV and print report that a foetus was ripped from its mother's womb and then burnt? Should they report that people were electrocuted in a room by avenging mobs? Should they carry pictures of bodies in wells?
So what do we do about media ethics when all hell is breaking loose?
Gujarat's leading newspapers did not tie themselves into knots asking the questions that the rest of the media has been torturing itself with since the violence broke out. They went right ahead and took the decisions that they thought would endear them to the popular mood. On February 28, Gujarat Samachar carried photographs of the dead on the Godhra platform and the burning bogies, above its masthead. Its banner headline below the masthead said (translated), "Most barbaric and shameful incident of the country at Godhra station". And below that, "60 roasted in the train". A box item enshrined Bal Thackeray's by-now famous quote about Hindus cowering like dogs with tails between their legs.
Its rival Sandesh, while matching the photographs and the banner, was more graphic. It said bodies of the burnt victims were glued to each other. The paper bristled with horror stories. Inside it said that two mutilated bodies of young girls had been found, something its rival, Samachar, denied the next day in a three-column story. Later the editor of Sandesh would tell the Editor's Guild team which went to Gujarat to look at the role of the media, that he had a paper to sell, and a rival to out-manoeuvre. His paper's circulation during the month of massacre was up by 150, 000, he is reported to have told them. The Guild team was shown a letter of congratulations sent by the Chief Minister to some Gujarati newspapers, for their coverage. And of course, none of those asked for his resignation as the press in the rest of the country did.
While on the subject of media and massacre, let's hark back not to the Gulf War, which is held to be the first milestone in live conflict reporting, but to Tiananmen Square in 1989 which was believed to be a watershed moment in defining different roles for television and print journalism. "Television became the raw `news' and print became the analysis and research-based reservoir of facts. While newspapers used to set the news agenda for both television and print, that was reversed by the live shots from Beijing." (Turmoil at Tiananmen. A study of U.S. press coverage of the Beijing Spring of 1989, The Joan Shorenstein Barone Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy, Harvard University, 1992)
In retrospect, though some Pulitzers were won for the memorable coverage there, it was found to have suffered from biases, and endangered those whom it featured. It set a pro-student framework for the coverage: there was not enough objectivity about the students' movement, and the not-so-positive aspects of it. The technology outpaced the journalism, which created some serious problems. Lopsided access created lopsided coverage. The use of new technology allowed the inclusion of misleading or irrelevant materials, including unverified rumours that were hard to check and resist in the competitive pressure to provide something new. Some Chinese sources who appeared in news reports suddenly found themselves in danger. They were identified by authorities.
Can the economy achieve an 8 percent growth rate
Can the economy achieve an 8 percent growth rate?
In an economy where the GDP has been growing at 5-6 per cent, it's difficult to believe that growth can be pushed up to eight per cent during the next five years. Prospects of drought have made people more sceptical.
Achieving the ambitious target of eight per cent depends both on an increase in investment and on more efficiency. While these may be technically feasible, they are unrealistic for the Indian economy.
A government that is quick to roll back even the smallest unpopular measure at the slightest opposition, can hardly be expected to take on the long list of tough decisions that are needed.
Looking at the scenario built by the Planning Commission, we see that the share of GDP invested should rise to 33 per cent. This has to be financed to some extent by foreign capital but largely by domestic savings.
For the last three years, household savings have been increasingly financing government consumption rather than going into productive investment. This can be easily corrected by raising taxes and cutting expenditure.
But these affect voters and interest groups. As a result, steps such as reducing public sector employment, cutting subsidies and raising user charges, will face political opposition.
Equally difficult will be the policy changes needed to increase productivity. For achieving a growth of eight per cent, industry has to grow by 10 per cent. In the last 10 years, this sector has grown at about seven per cent.
As the role of the public sector gets reduced, the onus of growth falls on the private sector. Creation of an industrial policy environment that will push up private sector investment and lead to improvements in growth is not simple. There are deeply-entrenched vested interests that would oppose such moves.
For instance, a recent ordinance aims to improve the system by which banks and other financial institutions can recover their money from defaulters. But there is huge pressure by industrial lobbies on the government to change it.
Loans to the order of a mind-boggling Rs 1.5 lakh crore are owed to lenders. Some of them, such as the IDBI, have been pushed to the verge of bankruptcy because of these defaults.
When the government saves them by doling out tax-payers money, it effectively channels public money to corrupt industrialists. But since those who gain from the current system are those who fund elections and contribute to parties, the pressure on the government to weaken the ordinance might well work.
Another policy that has restricted growth has been the reservation for small-scale industry. There is little rationale for this after allowing foreign companies to compete with the SSI units. Other than pandering to some petty industrialists, there is no reason why this policy should be continued.
Thus, the question is not whether the target of eight per cent growth is feasible, but whether it's realistic to think that the BJP has the strength to resist pressure from the support base of its voters and financiers.
And this, unfortunately, is why it may not be achieved.
In an economy where the GDP has been growing at 5-6 per cent, it's difficult to believe that growth can be pushed up to eight per cent during the next five years. Prospects of drought have made people more sceptical.
Achieving the ambitious target of eight per cent depends both on an increase in investment and on more efficiency. While these may be technically feasible, they are unrealistic for the Indian economy.
A government that is quick to roll back even the smallest unpopular measure at the slightest opposition, can hardly be expected to take on the long list of tough decisions that are needed.
Looking at the scenario built by the Planning Commission, we see that the share of GDP invested should rise to 33 per cent. This has to be financed to some extent by foreign capital but largely by domestic savings.
For the last three years, household savings have been increasingly financing government consumption rather than going into productive investment. This can be easily corrected by raising taxes and cutting expenditure.
But these affect voters and interest groups. As a result, steps such as reducing public sector employment, cutting subsidies and raising user charges, will face political opposition.
Equally difficult will be the policy changes needed to increase productivity. For achieving a growth of eight per cent, industry has to grow by 10 per cent. In the last 10 years, this sector has grown at about seven per cent.
As the role of the public sector gets reduced, the onus of growth falls on the private sector. Creation of an industrial policy environment that will push up private sector investment and lead to improvements in growth is not simple. There are deeply-entrenched vested interests that would oppose such moves.
For instance, a recent ordinance aims to improve the system by which banks and other financial institutions can recover their money from defaulters. But there is huge pressure by industrial lobbies on the government to change it.
Loans to the order of a mind-boggling Rs 1.5 lakh crore are owed to lenders. Some of them, such as the IDBI, have been pushed to the verge of bankruptcy because of these defaults.
When the government saves them by doling out tax-payers money, it effectively channels public money to corrupt industrialists. But since those who gain from the current system are those who fund elections and contribute to parties, the pressure on the government to weaken the ordinance might well work.
Another policy that has restricted growth has been the reservation for small-scale industry. There is little rationale for this after allowing foreign companies to compete with the SSI units. Other than pandering to some petty industrialists, there is no reason why this policy should be continued.
Thus, the question is not whether the target of eight per cent growth is feasible, but whether it's realistic to think that the BJP has the strength to resist pressure from the support base of its voters and financiers.
And this, unfortunately, is why it may not be achieved.
outsourcing really bad for the US
The debate over American companies outsourcing jobs is often tainted by misconceptions and anecdotal evidence, which the media tends to accept at face value. But as outsourcing emerges as a hot-button issue in the presidential election , it is time that some of the most common myths about outsourcing be dispelled.
Radley Balko, Fox News
There is still a real danger that politicians working with incomplete or incorrect information will hobble American competitiveness. Scapegoating poor Third World countries, “Benedict Arnold CEOs,” and free trade will not improve the US economy or labour market, but would likely cause great harm.
Tim Kane, Brett Schaefer, and Alison Fraser at Heritage.org
Political and emotional baggage has made outsourcing an explosive issue, especially in countries which offshore work. Here are some myths about outsourcing and the truths behind them.
Myth No.1
Outsourcing takes jobs away from Americans
The truth
It is usually taken for granted that when a company creates say 1,000 jobs abroad, they will take away these 1,000 jobs from the US . But the truth is far from that.
Go to Techsunite.org, the Website run by an 'IT workers union', and you will find that there is a board declaring the number of jobs outsourced and lost. Starting April 1, 2001 till date, 160,785 jobs were outsourced. At the same time 99,556 jobs were lost in the US , meaning many more jobs were created abroad than were lost in the US .
Also in case of companies like JP Morgan and EDS many more jobs were outsourced but that did not come at the cost of US jobs as such. (JP Morgan created 5,840 jobs abroad at the cost of 800 US jobs. In case of EDS, 17,600 were outsourced at the cost of 2,750 US jobs only.)
Radley Balko, Fox News
There is still a real danger that politicians working with incomplete or incorrect information will hobble American competitiveness. Scapegoating poor Third World countries, “Benedict Arnold CEOs,” and free trade will not improve the US economy or labour market, but would likely cause great harm.
Tim Kane, Brett Schaefer, and Alison Fraser at Heritage.org
Political and emotional baggage has made outsourcing an explosive issue, especially in countries which offshore work. Here are some myths about outsourcing and the truths behind them.
Myth No.1
Outsourcing takes jobs away from Americans
The truth
It is usually taken for granted that when a company creates say 1,000 jobs abroad, they will take away these 1,000 jobs from the US . But the truth is far from that.
Go to Techsunite.org, the Website run by an 'IT workers union', and you will find that there is a board declaring the number of jobs outsourced and lost. Starting April 1, 2001 till date, 160,785 jobs were outsourced. At the same time 99,556 jobs were lost in the US , meaning many more jobs were created abroad than were lost in the US .
Also in case of companies like JP Morgan and EDS many more jobs were outsourced but that did not come at the cost of US jobs as such. (JP Morgan created 5,840 jobs abroad at the cost of 800 US jobs. In case of EDS, 17,600 were outsourced at the cost of 2,750 US jobs only.)
Can China beat India at BPO game
Whatever goes up, comes down. The cassandras of the world are confident that India's booming IT and ITeS sectors are heading for a bust! And they are hoping that the balance of BPO power will tilt towards China this time. And this notwithstanding the 30% growth, translating into $16 billion revenues till April this year.
The much-touted English speaking capability of the Indian, which had been so far giving it an edge in the BPO stakes is under attack by the Chinese. In fact, India is not even the largest country of English speakers after the US . It is the Philippines!.
India's detractors argue that While English is still an elitist language taught in certain schools, China is making it a national priority for people to learn English! The results, they say will certainly be a tilt towards China in the near future. And who knows? China may emerge as the country with the largest number of English speaking persons then!
US Congressman, Jim McDermott, currently visiting India is certain that India is losing jobs to China . "Companies would naturally move over to destinations where they can get their job done for less. "India is losing jobs to China," he said.
Ironically, though India has been the butt of most anti-outsourcing anger, it is not even the largest outsourcing destination for the US. Ireland is.
It is true that offshore wages in India are going up thanks to higher salaries and fresh hiring brought about by the booming state of the Indian BPO industry. Over the years, India's greatest attraction for outsourcing companies, its cost advantage, is bound to come down. Slowly wages in India will go up and that in the West will come down. But even then there is bound to be enough difference between the two extremes for the outsourcing balance to rem ain with India.
Michael Beckman writing in Australia's The Age points out that India's competion is coming up in the form of countries like China, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Romania and South Africa. These countries exhibited their capabilities at last month's OutsourceWorld Conference in London.
Why stop there? There are countries like Malaysia, the Philippines, Russia, and even Mauritius, all whetting their apetite for a piece of the action.
China In The Forefront
Chinese IT companies for long have been providing outsourcing work to MNCs. Now, they are trying to emulate the Indian success and trying their hands in outsourcing. The Chinese city of Dalian is trying to emulate Bangalore's success and the mayor of Dalian visited the Indian software hub for picking up tricks of success.
Already there are some Chinese outsourcing giants. The Beijing-based IT United Corporation is one such company. Its clients include Airbus, British Airways, Cisco Systems, Siemens, and Kraft Foods.
The company has around 100 mostly Chinese staff. It now offers its web and IT-based solutions and call centre management services not just to companies based in China or with operations there but to companies worldwide.
IT research company Gartner estimates that China has 6,000-plus software companies against India's 3,000-plus. Add to this China's domestic software sales of $4.3 billion aginst $2.06 billion for India.
It is not that Indian companies are not aware of the Chinese threat. IT giants like Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys have picked outsourcing to China as a future trend and are hiring Chinese staff and opening branches in China.
Agreed, there are some black and white criteria for showing China's superiority. Like, both have billion plus populations but China has always the favourite FDI destination with $800 billion poring in that country against $20 billion in India in the last 20 years.
Gross domestic product per capita in China is $5000 against India's $2,900.
All that may be true, but equally true is the emergence of India as a more favoured destination MNCs in recent times. Also, last year in the third quarter, India's GDP growth had been the highest in the world, beating even China's.
By all accounts India and China are the superpowers of the future with Goldman Sachs predicting that even if the Indian economy continues to grow over the next 20 years at just the same pace as it has over the past ten years (about five and a half per cent each year), it will become the third largest economy in the world, after US and China. If it can match China's growth rate (more than seven per cent a year) its economy will, within 50 years, exceed China's and be the world's second largest economy!
The much-touted English speaking capability of the Indian, which had been so far giving it an edge in the BPO stakes is under attack by the Chinese. In fact, India is not even the largest country of English speakers after the US . It is the Philippines!.
India's detractors argue that While English is still an elitist language taught in certain schools, China is making it a national priority for people to learn English! The results, they say will certainly be a tilt towards China in the near future. And who knows? China may emerge as the country with the largest number of English speaking persons then!
US Congressman, Jim McDermott, currently visiting India is certain that India is losing jobs to China . "Companies would naturally move over to destinations where they can get their job done for less. "India is losing jobs to China," he said.
Ironically, though India has been the butt of most anti-outsourcing anger, it is not even the largest outsourcing destination for the US. Ireland is.
It is true that offshore wages in India are going up thanks to higher salaries and fresh hiring brought about by the booming state of the Indian BPO industry. Over the years, India's greatest attraction for outsourcing companies, its cost advantage, is bound to come down. Slowly wages in India will go up and that in the West will come down. But even then there is bound to be enough difference between the two extremes for the outsourcing balance to rem ain with India.
Michael Beckman writing in Australia's The Age points out that India's competion is coming up in the form of countries like China, Sri Lanka, Egypt, Romania and South Africa. These countries exhibited their capabilities at last month's OutsourceWorld Conference in London.
Why stop there? There are countries like Malaysia, the Philippines, Russia, and even Mauritius, all whetting their apetite for a piece of the action.
China In The Forefront
Chinese IT companies for long have been providing outsourcing work to MNCs. Now, they are trying to emulate the Indian success and trying their hands in outsourcing. The Chinese city of Dalian is trying to emulate Bangalore's success and the mayor of Dalian visited the Indian software hub for picking up tricks of success.
Already there are some Chinese outsourcing giants. The Beijing-based IT United Corporation is one such company. Its clients include Airbus, British Airways, Cisco Systems, Siemens, and Kraft Foods.
The company has around 100 mostly Chinese staff. It now offers its web and IT-based solutions and call centre management services not just to companies based in China or with operations there but to companies worldwide.
IT research company Gartner estimates that China has 6,000-plus software companies against India's 3,000-plus. Add to this China's domestic software sales of $4.3 billion aginst $2.06 billion for India.
It is not that Indian companies are not aware of the Chinese threat. IT giants like Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys have picked outsourcing to China as a future trend and are hiring Chinese staff and opening branches in China.
Agreed, there are some black and white criteria for showing China's superiority. Like, both have billion plus populations but China has always the favourite FDI destination with $800 billion poring in that country against $20 billion in India in the last 20 years.
Gross domestic product per capita in China is $5000 against India's $2,900.
All that may be true, but equally true is the emergence of India as a more favoured destination MNCs in recent times. Also, last year in the third quarter, India's GDP growth had been the highest in the world, beating even China's.
By all accounts India and China are the superpowers of the future with Goldman Sachs predicting that even if the Indian economy continues to grow over the next 20 years at just the same pace as it has over the past ten years (about five and a half per cent each year), it will become the third largest economy in the world, after US and China. If it can match China's growth rate (more than seven per cent a year) its economy will, within 50 years, exceed China's and be the world's second largest economy!
Is the consumer really the king in India
Is the consumer really the king in India?
Thursday was a red-letter for consumers in the country. Parliament put its seal of approval on the National Legal Services Authorities (Amendment) Bill. The Bill, which among other things, puts lok adalats on a permanent basis, offers a much-delayed but sorely-needed alternative mechanism for dealing with disputes.
Consumers, long at the receiving end, especially in their dealings with public utilities, will now have an alternative avenue for redressal of their grievances. About time too.The steady deterioration in the quality of governance over the past few years, has been matched by a corresponding decline in the quality of delivery in public utility services. Unfortunately, consumers had very few avenues where they could take their grievances.
Sure, they could take their complaints to the consumer courts but the latter could barely cope with the pressure. Consumer courts, moreover, can address only 'consumer' complaints. This effectively keeps public utilities such as health and civic services out of the purview of these courts. The amended Act also gives the adalats adjudicatory powers.This is a major improvement over the erstwhile system under which they could only try to settle disputes on the basis of a compromise formula. Especially since the decision of the adalat will be binding and treated on a par with the decree of a civil court. It is not only consumers who have reason to be happy. Lok adalats have made a significant contribution in settling industrial disputes and in disposing of cases where banks have filed suits against erring borrowers.
Given the numbers involved -according to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs there are 24 million cases pending in different courts - lok adalats can offer only one kind of remedy for a legal system that is close to choking. Part of the reason for the huge backlog of cases is the inadequacy of judicial officers. There are only 10.5 judges for every one million of our people as compared to 107 in the US. Moreover, the majority of our laws are antiquated.The remedy, therefore, lies in tackling the problem on many fronts: making our laws more relevant to the times, strengthening the judicial system, allowing courts to function uninterruptedly and dealing severely with litigants who deliberately create delays. Lok adalats can only help at the margin.
Thursday was a red-letter for consumers in the country. Parliament put its seal of approval on the National Legal Services Authorities (Amendment) Bill. The Bill, which among other things, puts lok adalats on a permanent basis, offers a much-delayed but sorely-needed alternative mechanism for dealing with disputes.
Consumers, long at the receiving end, especially in their dealings with public utilities, will now have an alternative avenue for redressal of their grievances. About time too.The steady deterioration in the quality of governance over the past few years, has been matched by a corresponding decline in the quality of delivery in public utility services. Unfortunately, consumers had very few avenues where they could take their grievances.
Sure, they could take their complaints to the consumer courts but the latter could barely cope with the pressure. Consumer courts, moreover, can address only 'consumer' complaints. This effectively keeps public utilities such as health and civic services out of the purview of these courts. The amended Act also gives the adalats adjudicatory powers.This is a major improvement over the erstwhile system under which they could only try to settle disputes on the basis of a compromise formula. Especially since the decision of the adalat will be binding and treated on a par with the decree of a civil court. It is not only consumers who have reason to be happy. Lok adalats have made a significant contribution in settling industrial disputes and in disposing of cases where banks have filed suits against erring borrowers.
Given the numbers involved -according to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs there are 24 million cases pending in different courts - lok adalats can offer only one kind of remedy for a legal system that is close to choking. Part of the reason for the huge backlog of cases is the inadequacy of judicial officers. There are only 10.5 judges for every one million of our people as compared to 107 in the US. Moreover, the majority of our laws are antiquated.The remedy, therefore, lies in tackling the problem on many fronts: making our laws more relevant to the times, strengthening the judicial system, allowing courts to function uninterruptedly and dealing severely with litigants who deliberately create delays. Lok adalats can only help at the margin.
Education and success-Is there a correlation
Education and success-Is there a correlation?
The following points could be discussed under this topic:
This is a topic which provides ample scope for dialectics. One can argue for and against it.One of the best examples is Bill Gates who went on to become the richest man in the world despite dropping out of hid education. Closer home we have the example of Dhirubhai Ambani. What a person learns and what he really wants to do has no correlation many a times. A person succeeds only if he likes what he does.The argument for education will be that , in practice, it is your marks and qualifications that opens doors for you.While one can become successful without education, education brings about a richness in one's life. One is able to appreciate many facets of life due to the extended knowledge that education provides. It opens a new window and provides a different perspective towards things, ability to distinguish between ethical and unethical, moral and amoral ....etc.......
The following points could be discussed under this topic:
This is a topic which provides ample scope for dialectics. One can argue for and against it.One of the best examples is Bill Gates who went on to become the richest man in the world despite dropping out of hid education. Closer home we have the example of Dhirubhai Ambani. What a person learns and what he really wants to do has no correlation many a times. A person succeeds only if he likes what he does.The argument for education will be that , in practice, it is your marks and qualifications that opens doors for you.While one can become successful without education, education brings about a richness in one's life. One is able to appreciate many facets of life due to the extended knowledge that education provides. It opens a new window and provides a different perspective towards things, ability to distinguish between ethical and unethical, moral and amoral ....etc.......
Should businessmen run the finance ministry
Should businessmen run the finance ministry
The objective of the finance ministry cannot be merely to bolster the prospects of business and industry.The finance ministry's primary goal must be the welfare of the people in keeping with the obligations the Constitution imposes on the Union government.Viewed in this context, the appointment of a businessman as one of the ministers in the finance ministry would seriously undermine the very purpose for which the ministry exists.
That apart, the decade and more of economic reforms in India has been characterised by crony capitalism of the worst order.Acts of omission and commission by the government in this direction continue to grow by the day as scam after scam has shown.Given this background, putting a businessman in a key ministry like the finance ministry can only compound the problem of crony capitalism. All major business houses are borrowers to the tune of thousands of crores of rupees from public sector banks and financial institutions.
In many cases, the loans have turned into NPAs for banks and FIs. When NPAs are worth thousands of crores and we need tough action against defaulters, it would be anachronistic to make a person from a business family a minister in charge of banks and FIs.In the specific case being talked about now - that of R N Dhoot of Videocon - there are also other conflicts of interest that would arise.Videocon has expressed an interest in bidding in the disinvestment of some PSUs. For someone from the bidders to be simultaneously a minister in the government is an obvious conflict of interest.There is another kind of conflict of interest that cannot be ignored either.
That is the conflict of interest between rival business groups.When these are becoming increasingly heightened, appointing a businessman as a minister in the finance ministry could turn the ministry into a playground for advancing narrow business interests to the detriment of all others.In the final analysis, if a businessman is appointed to the finance ministry, it would mean legalising the unholy nexus that already exists between business, the bureaucracy and politicians in power.
The objective of the finance ministry cannot be merely to bolster the prospects of business and industry.The finance ministry's primary goal must be the welfare of the people in keeping with the obligations the Constitution imposes on the Union government.Viewed in this context, the appointment of a businessman as one of the ministers in the finance ministry would seriously undermine the very purpose for which the ministry exists.
That apart, the decade and more of economic reforms in India has been characterised by crony capitalism of the worst order.Acts of omission and commission by the government in this direction continue to grow by the day as scam after scam has shown.Given this background, putting a businessman in a key ministry like the finance ministry can only compound the problem of crony capitalism. All major business houses are borrowers to the tune of thousands of crores of rupees from public sector banks and financial institutions.
In many cases, the loans have turned into NPAs for banks and FIs. When NPAs are worth thousands of crores and we need tough action against defaulters, it would be anachronistic to make a person from a business family a minister in charge of banks and FIs.In the specific case being talked about now - that of R N Dhoot of Videocon - there are also other conflicts of interest that would arise.Videocon has expressed an interest in bidding in the disinvestment of some PSUs. For someone from the bidders to be simultaneously a minister in the government is an obvious conflict of interest.There is another kind of conflict of interest that cannot be ignored either.
That is the conflict of interest between rival business groups.When these are becoming increasingly heightened, appointing a businessman as a minister in the finance ministry could turn the ministry into a playground for advancing narrow business interests to the detriment of all others.In the final analysis, if a businessman is appointed to the finance ministry, it would mean legalising the unholy nexus that already exists between business, the bureaucracy and politicians in power.
Globalisation is good for developing countries
Globalisation is good for developing countries
MOST developing countries are both integrating with the world economy and devolving power to local governments and communities. This combination of globalisation and localisation is best called glocalisation. The centralised nation-state is giving way to both supra-national and sub-national institutions.
Underlying both trends is a single force: the empowerment of individuals and communities at the expense of the monolithic nation state. Glocalisation improves the voice, participation and prosperity of individuals and communities. It is an idea whose time has come.This reverses decades of centralized rule and autarkic economic policies in developing countries. Colonial experience led them to believe that globalisation meant imperial enslavement. And many claimed that political decentralisation could spark secession, endangering their new-found nationhood. Alas, too often centralisation and autarky proved to be excuses for concentrating all political and economic power in the hands of ruling cliques, thus disempowering citizens.
A few countries like India genuinely sought to use autarkic centralization for the public good, and made some modest gains. But most developing countries suffered economic stagnation and political oppression. Self-sufficiency and centralization did not produce prosperous, united countries. Instead they produced more than 100 weak, misgoverned countries which, by the 1990s, needed to be rescued by the IMF. The collapse of the Soviet Union and rise of Deng's China showed that more socialism was not the solution. And so developing countries began moving in two new directions, globalisation and localisation.Why did post-independence leaders in developing countries go so badly wrong? Mainly because they equated globalisation with 19th century colonialism. They failed to see that, in the late 20th century, globalisation was not political conquest but economic partnership, creating unprecedented opportunities for the poor to rise.
This faulty interpretation led to faulty policies aimed at de-globalisation.Indian socialists cheered as India's share of world trade fell from 2.5 per cent at independence to 0.4 per cent by 1985. They thought such self-sufficiency was a passport to prosperity, and derided outward-looking countries like Singapore and Taiwan as neo-colonial puppets. Alas, the supposed puppets rapidly became rich while India remained poor. All colonial masters extracted large sums from their colonies. The net transfer of capital from India to Britain averaged 1.5 per cent of GDP. The drain from Indonesia to Holland was as high as 10 per cent of GNP. To make these payments, the colonies had to chalk up large trade surpluses, and so were very export-oriented. India's export-import ratio ranged from 172.5 per cent in 1840-69 to 133.4 per cent in 1913-38.
Socialists like Nehru interpreted this to mean that export-orientation was a tool of colonial exploitation, and free trade a ploy to help Britain dump its manufactures on a de-industrialised India. He and other Third World leaders knew that globalisation in the 19th century had produced alien rule, poverty and transfer of wealth to colonial powers. They assumed that 20th century globalisation would do the same. They were wrong in several ways:u19th century globalisation represented colonialism. 20th century globalisation has been the era of decolonisation.uIn the 19th century, wealth flowed from colonies to their imperial masters. In the 20th century capital has flowed the other way, through aid and FDI.19th century globalisation yielded GDP growth rates of no more than 3 per cent annually in the fastest-growing countries like the USA. But 20th century globalisation has yielded GDP growth rates of up to 10 per cent in many developing countries, creating huge opportunities for the poor. Indians moan today their GDP growth rate is only 5.4 per cent, but this is double the British rate a century ago.In the 19th century, the rich imperial powers grew fastest.
MOST developing countries are both integrating with the world economy and devolving power to local governments and communities. This combination of globalisation and localisation is best called glocalisation. The centralised nation-state is giving way to both supra-national and sub-national institutions.
Underlying both trends is a single force: the empowerment of individuals and communities at the expense of the monolithic nation state. Glocalisation improves the voice, participation and prosperity of individuals and communities. It is an idea whose time has come.This reverses decades of centralized rule and autarkic economic policies in developing countries. Colonial experience led them to believe that globalisation meant imperial enslavement. And many claimed that political decentralisation could spark secession, endangering their new-found nationhood. Alas, too often centralisation and autarky proved to be excuses for concentrating all political and economic power in the hands of ruling cliques, thus disempowering citizens.
A few countries like India genuinely sought to use autarkic centralization for the public good, and made some modest gains. But most developing countries suffered economic stagnation and political oppression. Self-sufficiency and centralization did not produce prosperous, united countries. Instead they produced more than 100 weak, misgoverned countries which, by the 1990s, needed to be rescued by the IMF. The collapse of the Soviet Union and rise of Deng's China showed that more socialism was not the solution. And so developing countries began moving in two new directions, globalisation and localisation.Why did post-independence leaders in developing countries go so badly wrong? Mainly because they equated globalisation with 19th century colonialism. They failed to see that, in the late 20th century, globalisation was not political conquest but economic partnership, creating unprecedented opportunities for the poor to rise.
This faulty interpretation led to faulty policies aimed at de-globalisation.Indian socialists cheered as India's share of world trade fell from 2.5 per cent at independence to 0.4 per cent by 1985. They thought such self-sufficiency was a passport to prosperity, and derided outward-looking countries like Singapore and Taiwan as neo-colonial puppets. Alas, the supposed puppets rapidly became rich while India remained poor. All colonial masters extracted large sums from their colonies. The net transfer of capital from India to Britain averaged 1.5 per cent of GDP. The drain from Indonesia to Holland was as high as 10 per cent of GNP. To make these payments, the colonies had to chalk up large trade surpluses, and so were very export-oriented. India's export-import ratio ranged from 172.5 per cent in 1840-69 to 133.4 per cent in 1913-38.
Socialists like Nehru interpreted this to mean that export-orientation was a tool of colonial exploitation, and free trade a ploy to help Britain dump its manufactures on a de-industrialised India. He and other Third World leaders knew that globalisation in the 19th century had produced alien rule, poverty and transfer of wealth to colonial powers. They assumed that 20th century globalisation would do the same. They were wrong in several ways:u19th century globalisation represented colonialism. 20th century globalisation has been the era of decolonisation.uIn the 19th century, wealth flowed from colonies to their imperial masters. In the 20th century capital has flowed the other way, through aid and FDI.19th century globalisation yielded GDP growth rates of no more than 3 per cent annually in the fastest-growing countries like the USA. But 20th century globalisation has yielded GDP growth rates of up to 10 per cent in many developing countries, creating huge opportunities for the poor. Indians moan today their GDP growth rate is only 5.4 per cent, but this is double the British rate a century ago.In the 19th century, the rich imperial powers grew fastest.
India
India's nuclear balance sheet
Nuclear weapons have already proved incapable of conferring great power status on India.
Four years after the nuclear tests of 1998 is a good time to assess India's stock as a regional and global strategic player. Great power status and consolidation of India's claims to it were claimed to be the primary aim of the tests. The `resurgence of India', which the tests were supposed to herald, seems today some long distance away. In fact, the mood at present is one of despair within and disquiet outside the country, on the prospects of its political stability, economic buoyancy and strategic reliability. India's military is in its battle stations against Pakistan. The Government at the Centre is reduced to retaining power through political deals, which both defy ideological ideals and violate electoral promises to the people. The follow-up required on achieving the stability of nuclear deterrence is missing. Nuclear deterrence seems to have failed both the country and its leadership in making the nation more secure. It would be appropriate to posit that the political leadership which obtained nuclear weapons has not yet understood their essential meaning.
The nuclear reality in South Asia is one of loss of direction after the big bangs of May 1998. India has done no more than raise a few Prithvi regiments for the Army and Air Force. The Agni tests have evoked hardly a ripple in and outside the country. They are soon to be inducted in the defence services. Doubts nevertheless continue to be expressed by scientists in and outside India about its capacity to miniaturise the nuclear warheads adequately to mate with existing missile delivery systems. The Government is unwilling to set these doubts at rest. The first principle of deterrence stability, that of leaving no doubts in the adversary's mind on one's capability, is thus being disregarded. The nuclear doctrine of the nation hangs in limbo, with neither its authors nor the Government claiming it to be official, legitimate or authoritative. There is no known nuclear command authority; the chain of command is unclear to both friends and adversaries. There is no nuclear risk reduction dialogue among the Indian, Chinese and Pakistani Governments.
As far as public perception is concerned, there was a time soon after Independence when the perception was that a few Ministers were corrupt (in the general sense in which we are using the term) and that very few, if at all, senior officers were corrupt. It was also believed that the honest ones, both among Ministers and officers, not only more than made up for the dishonest ones but also kept the latter reasonably under control. The current perception - purely as an informed guess - is that the majority of Ministers and quite a few senior offices (still a minority) are corrupt, and that the honest ones have very little control or influence over the dishonest ones who are, in fact, believed to be in real control. Neither public perception nor any study on politics or public administration seems to support the contention that the real, sole villains are the officers and that the Ministers are more sinned against than sinning.
Nuclear weapons have already proved incapable of conferring great power status on India.
Four years after the nuclear tests of 1998 is a good time to assess India's stock as a regional and global strategic player. Great power status and consolidation of India's claims to it were claimed to be the primary aim of the tests. The `resurgence of India', which the tests were supposed to herald, seems today some long distance away. In fact, the mood at present is one of despair within and disquiet outside the country, on the prospects of its political stability, economic buoyancy and strategic reliability. India's military is in its battle stations against Pakistan. The Government at the Centre is reduced to retaining power through political deals, which both defy ideological ideals and violate electoral promises to the people. The follow-up required on achieving the stability of nuclear deterrence is missing. Nuclear deterrence seems to have failed both the country and its leadership in making the nation more secure. It would be appropriate to posit that the political leadership which obtained nuclear weapons has not yet understood their essential meaning.
The nuclear reality in South Asia is one of loss of direction after the big bangs of May 1998. India has done no more than raise a few Prithvi regiments for the Army and Air Force. The Agni tests have evoked hardly a ripple in and outside the country. They are soon to be inducted in the defence services. Doubts nevertheless continue to be expressed by scientists in and outside India about its capacity to miniaturise the nuclear warheads adequately to mate with existing missile delivery systems. The Government is unwilling to set these doubts at rest. The first principle of deterrence stability, that of leaving no doubts in the adversary's mind on one's capability, is thus being disregarded. The nuclear doctrine of the nation hangs in limbo, with neither its authors nor the Government claiming it to be official, legitimate or authoritative. There is no known nuclear command authority; the chain of command is unclear to both friends and adversaries. There is no nuclear risk reduction dialogue among the Indian, Chinese and Pakistani Governments.
As far as public perception is concerned, there was a time soon after Independence when the perception was that a few Ministers were corrupt (in the general sense in which we are using the term) and that very few, if at all, senior officers were corrupt. It was also believed that the honest ones, both among Ministers and officers, not only more than made up for the dishonest ones but also kept the latter reasonably under control. The current perception - purely as an informed guess - is that the majority of Ministers and quite a few senior offices (still a minority) are corrupt, and that the honest ones have very little control or influence over the dishonest ones who are, in fact, believed to be in real control. Neither public perception nor any study on politics or public administration seems to support the contention that the real, sole villains are the officers and that the Ministers are more sinned against than sinning.
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