WE KILL FOR HONOUR (??)

Family Killing

India is a strange country and having lived here all my life I can say it with a great conviction. We kill for our 'honour' but we elect candidates with a proven track record of extortion, fraud, graft, murders, and so on. The list is endless. Multimillion dollar scams are given a blind eye as we are busy reporting the century of centuries. People like Hasan Ali who are akin to traitors of our nation are blessed with political safety of highest order. I am sure that Enforcement Directorate's custody or a judicial custody will not damage his corruption morals in any ways. While Hasan is being interrogated, the real masters behind the whole Black money trail are willfully ignored. India is full of avaricious politicians who use people like Ali to save their own black money abroad. To sum it up, let’s say our politicians (or criminals) are proactive while are authorities are supine. Consider it for a second, how the hell in the world can a small time horse racing gambler make an amount as staggering as $8 billion. Leave it, else I get emotionally charged.

Take Indian cinema and it’s overwhelmingly powerful hero with impeccable ideals. We all love him but our love and adoration for him ceases to exist once we enter the civilized (use corrupt if you may) society. We almost never follow the exemplary ideals of a hero. We observe with our own blood filled eyes how criminals like A Raja sell rare national treasures like telecom spectrum at throwaway rates.  As I observe in my routine life, people like A Raja, Suresh Kalmadi and Hasan Ali are role models for the younger generation.

Now, let’s come to the Honour killing part of the article. HONOUR Killing? Really? Do we have any honour left? I doubt it. Haryana tops the list of people with maximum honour ratings (killings) followed very closely by Uttar Pradesh. Even after the barbaric and gruesome murder of couples like Manoj and Babli state administration is lagging back on the action. The reason is very clear. The accused are from the Jat community which constitutes a major part of the vote bank for the state politicians. And someone said governments are not privatized.

The government is more prone to manhandling by its own constituents and electors than the opposition it dreads. As a result, botched probes and snail speed are a norm when it comes to investigation to corruption or honor killing cases. And rightly so, akhir baap logon se kaun panga le???

- Sunny Gusain

For God’s sake, those are “Emergency” Pills

To or 'Not To'???

When my long term friend started discussing sex education with me I picked up the courage to ask her if she ever used those ubiquitous emergency pills. And the answer was overwhelming and shocking at the same time. I was bemused to hear that in spite of the emergency tag of these pills she was frequenting them quite often than not. It was even a greater shock to hear that she was using these pills as a regular contraceptive option against pregnancy even shadowing condoms for that matter. Finally as I tried hard to come to terms to what she had just said, I asked from where   she was encouraged to gulp these pills so often after every act of intercourse.  And, not surprisingly, the culprit was none other than the marketing being done by the pharma companies for their respective pills. She was swayed into believing that these are the best options against any kind of unwanted pregnancy that an unsafe sexual intercourse may carry.

A Catchy Advt

The emergency pill market has become humungous and boasts of more than a Rs. 100 crore in sales revenue.  Clearly, the use of these emergency pills has increased exponentially over the years. So what is it that encourages the usually timid Indian populace to consume so much of emergency pill? For one, these pills are available over the counter at any chemist shop and do not require doctor’s prescription for selling. Till now everything good. Customers happy, Pharma companies happy. But wait, the world is not so nice so where is the catch?

The rising sales are a definite sign that women are ignoring the warning signs about these pills clearly written on or stored inside aesthetically designed packing boxes which they come in. Gynecologists and Physicians have voiced their concerns about the flashy adverts which are encouraging indiscriminate use of these pills. As per Dr. Chandra M Gulati, Editor, Monthly Index of Medical Specialties:

•    Pills are only 95 % effective if taken within 24 hrs of the sexual intercourse

•    85 % effective if taken within 25-48 hrs of the sexual intercourse

•    58 % effective if taken after 49 but before 72 hrs.

•    If used mid-menstrual cycle one in every 20 women is likely to get pregnant

Also, as per the leaflet that comes with the pill, it may carry a lot of side effects which range from vomiting, nausea, fatigue, abdominal pain, diarrhea, dizziness, early or late onset of next period to increased menstrual bleeding and vaginal hemorrhage. Every woman in this world has the right to decide whether or not she is prepared to get pregnant. She has a moral as well as a legal right to avoid unwanted pregnancy. We as a society should be more open and communicative to ensure that the youth of today do not get swayed by flashy adverts prodding them to buy over the counter products which could cause long term health problems. If the elders of the society start promoting cheaper and better contraceptive products like condoms who would need those ridiculously priced Rs.100 Pills?????

**Dr. Gulati's views collected through www

-Sunny Gusain

The Missing Link in ''The Anna Hazare'' Story

Anna Hazare, the renowned socialist and a war veteran has finally blown the bugle. His antics at Jantar Mantar marks a new dawn in the democratic setup of our country. Anna went the populist Gandhian way and forced the government’s surrender. Of course, his success would not have been possible if thousands hadn’t rallied behind him. “An oldie fighting for the youth of today” is how I see this whole movement.  The bone of contention was the Jan Lokpal Bill, which envisages fighting corruption in the polity and bureaucracy by forming an Independent body called Lokpal in the centre, and its affiliates in the states called the Lokayukts. Although the government had its own version of the Lokpal bil, its form was not acceptable by Anna Hazare and its supporters.  

The bigger questions arising from the movement are

• Is it appropriate for the outside parliament groups to have a say in the framing of  laws?

•    Is it a good sign for Indian democracy to hold the government to ransom in order to satisfy certain    demands?

•    Should government give in to the demands of a particular group like this?

Now look at the first and second question. Although it is a part of good governance to ask for public comments on drafts of legislation it doesn’t bode well for the democracy if certain groups of public ask for and force the government to put their own bills and drafts before the parliament. If this was to happen in a democracy with a population as large as ours, it will only lead to more chaos and grievances than resolves. This is the reason why Anna’s way should be seen as an exception than a precedent. This is important to prevent vested groups from forcing governments to act like a puppet. Also, in order to ensure the sanctity of our democratic setup such movements should not be made a precedent. We should not forget that the legislators in the Parliament are our own representatives and any overriding of their power and functioning will mean overriding with the power of the electorate masses that elected them. Such a scenario would only lead to social unrest.

Now the third question, Should government give in to the demands of a particular group like this? Of course governments are chosen by the people and should function in sync with the masses but that doesn’t mean that it starts to function on populist demands. Government should use its own prudence and ensure that the spirit of democracy is not killed and at the same time it is not held to ransom by such groups.

-Sunny Gusain

NCR: National (Be)Careful Region

Owing mainly to the migration from the nearby states, the NCR region is the most populous and crime affected regions among the sprawling Indian cities. After having stayed in the whole of NCR region including Noida, Delhi and Gurgaon in the past few months I can say it with much more conviction that the NCR region is undoubtedly one of the most unsafe places in India to live in. We don’t need to analyze the crime data to know this obvious fact.

The recent spate of crimes in the NCR region further states the obvious points of insecurity and the kind of law and order situation the region is in. The city newspapers are full of crime reports ranging from rape to murder to theft and so on. Of course, NCR region is where all our political bigwigs are located. Maybe that explains why so many crime incidents are taking place in the NCR region. The NCR region borders Uttar Pradesh which arguably has the most volatile crime network in the whole country. Firearms and other localized weapons are easily accessible to the criminals and the state has illegal firearm factories operating in concert with the local corrupt politicians and local goons. In fact, unlicensed guns are so easily available in some areas that even ordinary mortals like you and me could go and buy it as long as we have the greens in our pocket. Double standards are being followed here as we have a very stringent gun licensing policy in India. After acquiring the guns it is easy to import them to a sprawling metropolis like Delhi. The one question that strikes the mind immediately afterwards is why can’t the authorities seal the deal by shutting down and taking police action on such illegal factories. Of course, political patronage plays an important role in preventing such action.

The biggest threat facing the NCR region is the growing inequality among the general public which will inevitably lead to a higher crime rate in the upcoming years. We need to see in between the lines here and draft a proper policy framework with attainable objectives if we want to contain this crime menace from getting out of our hands. The primary focus of the police needs to go a tectonic shift from a curing action to a preventive one. Also, we don’t want to see the police in action only when a sensational crime has taken place and the focus should be more on getting to the roots of a crime. In the end, no alibis are acceptable and it is only action on the ground that could change the complexion of the NCR region. Be Safe.

-Sunny Gusain

Poor?? Who?? Us?? No way?? Them?? Maybe!!!!!

We have all been witness to data of all kinds in today’s communication revolution era. Take data on India’s poverty estimates. Tendulkar committee says it’s 37% Indians living below the poverty line. Arjun Sengupta Committee says it’s 77 % Indians living below the poverty line. Also, N.C Saxena Committee says it’s 50 % Indians living below the poverty line. A 2005 World Bank estimate puts India’s poor at 41.6 % of the total population (earning less than the International poverty line of US $1.25). Firstly, it’s funny to notice so many committees being formed on public money and resources going down the drain with no productivity. Imagine if only one committee was formed and a consolidated data prepared instead of labyrinthic data and unsure outcomes, wouldn’t it have been much better????

Now, let’s see and go beyond the numbers on India’s poverty and observe its progress on inclusive growth. Even while taking a small walk anywhere in India, one thing that we observe around us is how wealth is so damn unequally distributed.  While some are enjoying lavish meals inside fancy restaurants and hotels others are waiting outside the same hotel or restaurant waiting for some kind of begging opportunity. Small ( and sometimes smart) kids are begging their hearts out in public places and missing no opportunity to gherao you. As is with the human brain, the general public has taken it as a part of their existence while making no efforts to change the same.  What the innocent public fails to understand is that such inequality is unsustainable and will sooner than later result in civil unrest. Why is there so much apathy among the general public for these people. The standard reply would be why should we care. And that reply is on expected lines. I mean who has the time to look at these NOT SO IMPORTANT souls when everybody is busy making money.
 

A few NGOs and an even fewer government organizations cannot be expected to bring about a renaissance in the lives of these people unless something comes from the civil society itself.  A concerted effort has to be taken by all of us if we want to see the change we desire. A clear cut strategy with well defined objectives should be charted out by local governments to make inclusive growth work.  Centre cannot be expected to carry out the objective of inclusive growth by itself and it should be the motto and the driving force of every state government to ensure growth is made inclusive.

-Sunny Gusain

Fiscal Consolidation: The way Forward

FM: On the right path

The most widely used words in the UPA government regime are fiscal consolidation and inclusive growth. Thanks to the windfall gains from the 3G/BWA spectrum sale, the government seems to be well on course on its path of fiscal consolidation in this fiscal year. Gross fiscal deficit as a percentage of GDP is estimated to be 4.8% as compared to 6.3% in the last fiscal. Needless to say, a major chunk of the drop in fiscal deficit comes from the gains from the 3G/BWA spectrum sale. Revenue deficit is also estimated to be 3.5 % as a percentage of GDP as compared to 5.1% the year earlier. (source: economic survey 2010-2011)

The thirteenth finance commission headed by Mr.Vijay Kelkar has laid down a fiscal roadmap requiring the states to do away with revenue deficit and achieve a fiscal deficit target of 3 % of their respective GDPs by 2014-2015. Such steps by the states need to be taken in a very calculated and systematic manner in order to meet the desired targets within the stipulated time frame. If Indian economy does achieve the target of fiscal consolidation laid out by the Kelkar headed commission, it would become a very attractive investment destination not only for the FIIs but also for the domestic investors. A lot of FDI will flow to the Indian markets if such targets are met.

To achieve the target of fiscal consolidation, it is imperative to reform the current fertilizer and petroleum policy as a major chunk of public non-plan finances are diverted here. The output from such subsidies is very low as compared to the same amount being invested elsewhere on other developmental projects. But above all, the governments need to be bold enough to understand as well as implement the recommendations of the committees it sets up. 

-Sunny Gusain