October 29, 2011

I wonder…

“LET THEM EAT F1.”
Reminiscent of an apocryphal statement attributed to Marie Antoinette, the former French queen, nearly three centuries ago, we have the local state administration of one of India’s biggest states thrusting BIC F1 down the throats of the poor in UP reeling under unprecedented encephalitis deaths of thousands of infants and entrenched poverty if not outright starvation deaths.

Yet another demonstration of India shining, I suppose.

US $ 450 million price tag for the extravaganza by a crony capitalist arrangement and the razzmatazz is dazzling the chattering classes of NCR. Closely following some Rs. 680 crore “park” inauguration in almost the same district. Islands of obscene public and private expenses amidst appalling poverty!

Proving yet again that India is a land of monumental (pun intended) indifference to human suffering. No significant media voice questioning the need for these extravaganzas being played out at theatres very near our institute.

Michael Moore, the US conscience keeper, who has recently joined the Occupy Wall Street protestors, made the point that how the US Senators, House Representatives and the US Government have been captured by the one per cent. Hence, the sit in and protests by the 99%. No such luck here.

I wonder whether our conscience in India will ever be piqued in a similar manner. The zoom and vroom of the F1 engines have extinguished the still small voice.

Just to think that even one twentieth of the money going up in fumes would have eradicated the encephalitis menace of the state!

History holds out no hope – circus has always substituted for bread since the Roman days.

Happy F1!

Prof. K.K. Krishnan

FALSE DICHOTOMIES, LOSS AVERSION AND OTHER DYSFUNCTIONAL BEHAVIOUR…

I no longer wonder why social science disciplines are not an exact ‘science’. Just look at the live social laboratory of ANNA Vs MAN MOHAN reality show now being played out across our country. At the end of Round 3, its Anna 2: Man Mohan 0. No surprises here, what with the learned doctor’s unstoppable penchant for scoring own goals on every conceivable opportunity.

In this great churn of Anna – vs. – Man Mohan, many false dichotomies have been thrown up, courtesy spin miesters of both the camps.

They are of course puerile hypotheses, but are dangerous. Let’s take a look: “Elected representatives do not represent the people” is one such. Reason: These representatives get elected through dubious means and moreover, five years is too long a stretch to claim continuous “representative – ness”. Hence only plebiscite-type movements are “authentic” vox populi (irrespective of who ‘inspires’ that). Clearly, any one can see the slippery slope this argument will lead to – erosion of trust in the parliamentary system itself.

- “People, not parliament is supreme” is a another variation of the same theme. Yet another false and dangerous legerdemain often used by authoritarian forces when they set out to capture power by manipulating “democratic” means. (Rise and Fall of the Third Reich).

- Why not abandon these misleading dialetics and focus on solutions is the question that aam admi would like to ask.

Shedding dearly held shibboleths induces in us the ‘loss aversion syndrome’ (behavioural economics). That is because of our innate tendency for risk aversion. We are OK with ensuring loss prevention (of ideology) rather than enhance the riches (of rewarding solutions) which would come about when both parties choose to work together for a solution.
- I wonder why both the parties do not embrace warmly the 5 point solution put forward by CNN – IBN’s Rajdeep Sardesai and Prof. Yogendra Yadav. It goes like this:

(I) The Government drops its bill (II) Anna’s Camp does so likewise (III) Let a group of eminent people (APJ Abdul Kalam, Rajinder Sachar, Ela Bhatt et al) scrutinize all versions of the bill, existing and proposed (IV) This group arrives at an agreed draft bill in a month (V) Parliament deliberates on this and passes a new Lok Pal Bill in its wisdom before Diwali as a new Year Gift to the Nation in the form of a workable and effective Lok Pal Act!

I wonder if common sense, debate, discussion, and compromise, which is the sine qua non of democracy will find any traction with the chattering and ruling classes of our country.

Prof. K. K. Krishnan
Chairperson
Centre for Corporate Relations

I’ve always wondered why is it that in our country’s streets (unruly) demonstrations by “people” for any cause coexist with “debates” on the same issues in parliament or state assemblies? Surely one of them is redundant.

Or am I missing something here? Are “people” saying that the elected reps are doing a very poor job of “representing” the people. If that be so, several questions. Are’nt we “grown up” enough to solve issues through debates and discussions? Are the gargantuan expenses on question hour, debates in both houses worth it – especially as no one, including the reps attach any value to the “processes” and would much better prefer blood letting on the streets to “solve” issues.

Why are our netas so anxious to prove the dictum that all Pakistani dictators have been putting forward since 1951: “The South Asians, especially in the Indian subcontinent, are not good enough for the representative democracy of the Westminster model. Here people respond only to the danda.” Therefore, what is the point in wasting time on debates and discussions? Oh, how miserably low have we fallen! (I hope I am wrong, but I read in today’s paper that a very senior leader of opposition party is alleged to have stated that her party would decide whether the parliament should run or not on any given day!)

Sad musings on the eve of the 65th Independence Day of a self – styled emerging super-power. I am reminded of a comment in the US media about the recent political debate in Washington on debt ceiling. “The only adult in the Capitol Hill is Ben Bernanke.”

And pray, can you see a single adult in the corridors of our parliament or state assemblies? If you cite one, please respond post haste. Happy Independence Day!

How long can you hang on to the No. 1 position or rank? Recent days have witnessed many a dramatic tumbling. Starting with Dhoni’s cubs sliding 2 – 0 (not decisive enough?), Yes – We – Can Obama got his aura dented by the debt – siege (not bold enough?) and finally the toppling of that great US of A from its AAA perch by a notch (not enough common sense, the Chinese said). A new reserve currency, anyone?

Poor Mr. B. O! To witness 300+ points knocked off from Dow on your happy birthday must have been galling – the show of nonchalance notwithstanding.

And who’s laying down the debt and deficit law and reading the riot act to nations and striking terror in to the hearts and minds of FMs and PMs of rich nations and their monetary edifice? None other than the redoubtable Mr. David Beers, the “mustachioed, chain smoking” boss man of Standard and Poor’s, the rating agency which axed one ‘A’from US’ triple A. He is the same guy who sent the Greeks to the cleaners and put the fear of of (downgrade) God in the minds of Mr. B.O. and his nemesis Mr. John Boehner, the House speaker and the heavies of the Eurozone. Heil the new tsar of international finance!

Who do these rating guys think they are? WM Ds? (Remember their inglorious role in the CDO induced global meltdown of 2007 – 08?) And who gave them the right to wag fingers at legitimate governments? And as the legendary Mr. Paul Volcker put it, how did these guys insert themselves into the serious debate on national debt and fiscal deficit?

Full marks to Mr. Thomas Friedman (of the World is Flat fame) who was prescient about these extra – constitutional power centres. He wrote in 1996: “There are two superpowers in the world today. There’s the United States, there’s Moody’s bond rating service. The U. S. can destroy you by dropping bombs and Moody’s can destroy you by down grading your bonds. Believe me, its’ not clear sometimes who’s more powerful.”

Copycat Indian business establishment (globalizes all of them) lost no time in imitating Dow. Sensex went lighter by 600 odd points! And the high profile political wizard for all seasons said it is “grave” and he will hold his tongue for the time being. And just to think we in India were singing hosannas to two decades of liberalization and globalization only a week ago!

O tempora, o mores!

Prof. K. K. Krishnan
BIMTECH

I WONDER…..
Thank God Almighty that the CWG is finally over and done with. Without taking away anything from the performance of the brave athletes from 71 countries, one heaves a sigh of relief that there won’t be anymore daily litanies in the media about the inept Organizing Committee’s follies, foibles and faux pas! I wonder……

• is there any specific human gene for ‘uprightness’ or ‘malfeasance’ for that matter?
• is crookedness or tendency to bend rules and regulations a specifically desi proclivity (a la Diabetes and cardiac problems.)?
• Is there a separate Indian gene for jugaad? (Which after all made the CWG possible.)

To add to the general confusion on these matters, there was this very recent international media report about football corruption. No, it was not about match fixing. The BBC, CNN and ESPN Sports carried the story of Nigerian and Latin American office bearers of a high power football world cup venue determining FIFA Committee being caught virtually with their grubby fingers in the cookie jar. The redoubtable FIFA chief,
Blather (?), promptly suspended the alleged offenders. Contrast this to what transpired in the CWG saga. Some more thoughts on the blight:

• There was this recent depressing report about dope testing in this year’s CWG with an Indian middle distance runner ascending the podium of infamy.
• In this year’s CWG, our female weight lifters gave us many medals (Jai Manipur!). In contrast, a few years ago, there was a near collapse of the team with almost all members testing positive – thanks to their pre-bout training stints in Uzbekistan Kazakhistan etc. Thank God for history not repeating!
• Some six months ago, few of our serving (?) four star generals were found to be involved in a land scam imbroglio for clear personal gains.
• And very recently, Mr. Shanti Bhushan, a highly respected Supreme Court lawyer and civil liberties activist presented an affidavit to the Supreme Court naming eight corrupt judges on the Bench, past and present. There is deafening silence from our exalted lordships about Mr. Shanti Bhushan’s affidavit.

What is one to make of all these? That corruption is endemic, intractable (like elephantiasis?), ineradicable and all systems of public governance have collapsed? Is there any hope? Have been there any silver linings? May be. You have one in the unique story of the Konkan Railway and Delhi Metro, which have been delivered to the nation sans massive corruption. Any lessons? They say fish rots from the head… What do you think? Post your thoughts pronto….

…Bye for now!

Prof. K.K. Krishnan

Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg address had eloquently outlined the principles on which the edifice of a democracy is built “all men are created equal….and that Government of the people, by the people, for the people.” It is generally accepted that these principles are not just limited to the United States, but also equally applicable to any democracy in the world especially India, which is considered to be the only nations in the world with representation of so many communities in the helm of affairs can be leader in sustainability movement. So the public is indeed the Government and the elected representatives are their nominees in running the administration on behalf of the people.

Unfortunately, the Governance is getting increasingly alienated from the people. The corrupt and the powerful have in many cases usurped the power and have been dictating terms and the people are at the receiving ends. There is a day light robbery of our natural heritage and most of the people choose to turn a blind eye due to the fear of inviting wrath of these unscrupulous criminals.

Of course there are a few people like Amit Jethwa, who had used the Right to Information Act (RTI) to find information about the illegal mining around Gir Forest Reserve and had singlehandedly fought against the perpetrators of this crime. Unfortunately, he was also felled by their bullets right in front of the Gujarat High Court.
Month and years will pass on to get the culprits to the book of justice which is so indifferent in our judiciary system. In a country where it takes ages for a case to get heard in various courts, justice is not only delayed, but also throttled if the aggrieved party is unable to pursue it with doggedness. In such a scenario, there are not many people to take on the corrupt and wrongdoers. The unscrupulous criminal elements exploit this reluctance of people and continue with their nefarious deeds
Of course some say that there have been more audacious murders – right inside a court premises – I feel debating about the audacity of the crime or the fearlessness of activist or the seeming inability of the police in tracking down the real culprits has sidetracked us from driving important lessons from this tragic incident. Hence the murder of a fearless activist results in demotivating the already dwindling number of activists.
So what do we do?
Do people stop raising their voice out of fear for their lives? Do we get cowed down and keep quiet when there is loot of our wild heritage?
Obviously not.
Any man, however powerful and courageous he may be, will find it difficult to face a large number of enemies. A lion heavily outnumbered by hyenas is forced to leave the kill. Strength lies in numbers!
It is important for us the Sustainable Development Specialist in making to get organized with knowledge and skills to take on the challenge of the mighty and the corrupt. In the past, people have been threatened of physical assault in the field. In such situations, it is important to not lose our mind, but to immediately look after our own physical safety and then plan an alternate approach. One may feel that he/she retreating from the field when challenged is akin to losing a battle. Your ego may be deflated. However, please be reminded that you may lose a battle but the goal is to win the overall war.

There are many persons playing important roles in saving our wilderness areas by working behind the scenes. For them, the satisfaction of seeing the goal come to fruition is more important than public adulation. I have seen lot of youngsters tempted to hog the limelight in print and electronic news channels by using information gleaned through the RTI Act. It may give you two seconds of glory, however anything that is not planned well can hurt you as well as the cause.
Please remember that aggressiveness is a state of mind. It need not be displayed in our physical interactions with the “enemies of sustainability”. We are all committed individuals. Our life is important. However, we don’t have to give up our commitment towards preserving the last tracts of vanishing sustainability. I am just asking you to change our ways of doing it. Let us be the Change Agents for the sustainable world.
These days it is easy for us to network. Please harness the power of the “we”. Instead of rushing headlong all alone please act as a group. Of course if you want to look like a hero in the eyes of the common man, then it is a different story. I don’t think trying to create a flash in the pan is the right approach. It is important to follow a cause that you believe in and follow it to its logical conclusion.

This will be the logic behind establishing the Sustainable Development forum – to nurture and use the power of the “we”. Shri Wajahat Habibullah, Chief Information Commissioner concurred with this view. Excrepts from one of his postings on the Internet “It is likely that individual activists will continue to be targeted. The remedy is through social audit of an area or project. Instead of an individual, a group of people can come together and seek a social audit under Section 2-J of the RTI Act. This Social audit can be conducted under media glare and take the corrupt people headlong”.

I would like to request all of you to keep the overall goal and at the same time look after your safety. After all, getting thirty five committed and passionate people is not easy these days.

excellent points and the details are more specific than elsewhere, thanks.

- Thomas

I wonder whether comebacks are as grand as the original version or do they fall flat? Iconic personalities, products, faiths, ideas – anything can be resurrected in their redux mode and often are. In their second coming do they inspire the same awe and shock or evoke your pity for being such damp squibs. Let’s examine the evidence.

• Item: MICHAEL SCHUMACHER, the Teutonic uber hero at the wheels of Ferrari. The nerves – of – steel demi – god has been looking a pale shadow of his former jaunty self after clocking the 5th or the 6th position on his unheralded re – runs.

• Item: TIGER WOODS, the man who delivered excellence in an accented manner. Not much of joy from the current 7th or 8th rank finishes. And if you batted your eyelids while watching the recent Ryder Cup exertions, you would have missed him! It’s a case of the eagle not lading but dragging his shots. From glory days to dog days!

• Item: KIM CLIJSTERS. The jury is still out on this. In redux, she has pocketed one masters and lost in another, probably in the first round itself. What gives?

• Item: KAPIL DEV. Paji reincarnated with the club instead of the willow. Rather a sad misadventure. Rationalisation: its recreational golf after all. Ahem…

• Item: BEETLE (The). The darling of the contrarians, die hard individualists, the original lemon – das (small) auto from the land of precision engineering. The redux with its pricey tag has sold its soul for a mess of potage! Give us the ugly old pug face any day!

• Item: PEPSODENT – On again off again and now on its second or third avatar in India, generating the moolah for good old HL. A great marketing time is being had by all!

• Item: FAITH. Religious card, playing with. Much diminished returns for both the protagonists now, what with new interpretations from Allahabad. They are in shock that the ever reliable card is not pulling the damn numbers as it used to. The fanatics and manipulators have been told that the world has moved on. Do they get the message? Who knows?

All this second comings generally falling flat. Where does this leave the god old redemption theory? Tell us.

Bye for now!

Prof. K.K Krishnan

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I wonder how can one handle or optimise “three” Happy Birthdays cascading on a single day. To demystify, we are close to a very famous date, to wit, October 2. To aam admi, this date signifies the tryst with history of two very great Indians – Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri (a great sishya of the former who shied away from the limelight). The third birthday is that of an important institution which may not be as historic as yet compared to the two epoch making great Indians – namely, your very own BIMTECH which was born in 1988.
• Birthday musings: What’s common between G and L? Both were very effective communicators. Both had what may be called the ‘common touch’, granting them instant rapport with their target audience – the huddled masses of India.
• What else? Their ability to undergo great personal sacrifice for overarching goals. Did not both pay with their lives for causes which they held dear? Also their pluck in taking tough, even unpopular decisions. Look at Gandhiji’s last ditch stand against the partition of India and Lal Bahadur Shastri’s imposition of ‘no-fine-grains-day’ once a week, all across the country to manage food grains shortage in the 1960s. Both scored high on standing–up-for what’-s right and d… the consequences stance. Talk of mailed fists in silken gloves!
• Both these men grew and grew in their ‘jobs’, if such a description is appropriate to the CEO of India’s freedom struggle and the Prime Minister of India. They did not allow their jobs to overwhelm them.
• Another common characteristic. Both were extremely humble human beings – almost to the point of being self – effacing by instinct.
• How will history judge these two greats? There’s an apocryphal story (many a version of it) of the irascible Wintson Churchill’s classic response to a question about how would history treat Julius Caesar? “We’re too close to history now to pass judgment. Let some more time lapse”. Are we too close to the Gandhian / Lal Bahadur Shastri epoch to pass judgment now? Or do we concur with Albert Einstein that future generations would find it hard to believe that such a man walked the earth. What do you think?
• Now, what should be Bimtech’s concerns (atma chintan) on its 23rd birthday? Reinvent itself? What should be its vision and mission in this day and age? Tell us what do you think.
Bye for now………………

Prof. K. K. Krishnan
Chairman, Centre for Corporate Relations