Demand Vs Supply

Kapil Sibal is a Master of Law

But his knowledge of Economics is not negligible

Recently , he proved it by saying ,

"  Prices of vegetables have gone up because poor people now are earning more and want to eat vegetables ( what a cheek ! )

Demand has gone up but supply has not kept pace

And , Law of Economics says ,

Prices go up when demand exceeds supply - and vice-versa  !  QED  !  "

Thank God , Kapil  did not ask poor to stop eating vegetables so that prices can come down  !

Or , ask rich people to stop eating 3 different vegetables at every meal  !

He could have even asked ALL Indians to forgo all meals for one day per week , so that demand gets reduced  !

Or , he could have quoted ,

>   Raj Babbar ( MP ) , who said,

     "  In Mumbai , you can get a rice plate for Rs 12 / -  "

     (  address please ! )

>   Congress Rajya Sabha MP , Rasheed Masood , who said ,

     "   In Jama Masjid area of Delhi , you can eat well for Rs 5 /-  "

     (  He is now getting his meals totally FREE in Tihar Jail  !  )

>    Montek Singh Ahluwalia , who proclaims ,

     "  Any person in a city , spending more than Rs 26 per day , is RICH  "

Now , not being Agriculture Minister , Kapil cannot say why supply failed to keep up with the rising population of 20 million per year ( a well kept secret ? )

But he must be considering it " Utterly Unwise " of his Government to be trying so desperately to bring 400 million people above the Poverty Line ( remember Rs 26 per day ? )

Would not that make them " Rich " enough to demand vegetables  ?

Wouldn't that make matters worse  ?

Why can't we keep them poor like our Lok Sabha MPs , who get their food in Lok Sabha canteen , at the following prices ?

*   Tea............... Rs      1.0

*   Soup..............Rs      5.5

*   Daal...............Rs      1.5

*   Meals............. Rs     2.0

*   Chapati...........Rs     1.0

*   Dosa...............Rs     4.0

*   Veg Biryani......Rs      8.0

*   Fish................Rs     13.0

*   Chicken..........Rs      24.0

And prey , why are our MPs  poor  ?

Because their cooks  /  drivers  /  maids  /  gardeners  / servants  /  watchmen  / peons  ..etc are all poor !

These servants are all staying in out-houses of the small 10 bed-room living quarters of the MPs   !

Of course , rent free since the MPs are so poor  !

 No need to vacate either , when you stop being an MP  !

Why can't Kapil persuade the Lok Sabha canteen contractor to open branches , all over India  ?

*   hemen  parekh  (  24  Nov  2013  )

  

Thank You ! Thank You ! Thank You !

Thank you ,

>   SUSHIL KUMAR SHINDE ,

     -   for ordering a probe into foreign funding of AAP

     because ,

    _   now you have made it possible to expose the funding of other political

     parties , hopefully leading to amendments of Foreign Contribution Act  /

     Representation of the People Act  /  Model Code of Conduct .. etc

>   ANNA HAZARE ,

     -   for deciding not to join AAP

    because ,

    -    if you had , you would have paralyzed the working of AAP , by

     insisting that corruption be eliminated thru a " Change of Hearts " only !

>   BABA RAMDEV ,

      -    for declaring that AAP has hijacked the Jan Lokpal Andolan of Anna

      because ,

       -    to prove you right , AAP will now pass Jan Lokpal Bill on 29 Dec

>   SHEILA DIKSHIT ,

        -    for releasing Congress Election Manifesto on the same day as the

      release of AAP manifesto

      because ,

       -   that gave Delhi-ites, an opportunity to compare , " Apple for Apple ",

       which party will solve their " Top Priority " problems

>   ANURANJAN JHA ,

      -    for conducting a sting operation on 9 AAP leaders , then " Editing "

     ( not " Doctoring " ? ) the video tape and refusing to give a copy to AAP

     (  encouraging , a " Trial by Media " ?  )

     because ,

     -      you would have to expose  your " Sponsors " when Election

     Commission calls you for interrogation

>   DR. HARSHVARDHAN ,

     -     for proclaiming that AAP is nothing more than a " B Team " of

     Congress and may win 1 or 2 seats at the most

     because ,

     -     if for nothing else than to prove you wrong , Delhi-ites will vote to

     power AAP on 4th Dec  ( with 50 + seats ? )

What a fantastic coordination among you !

What a perfect orchestration  !

What a gift to AAP  !

Thank You , all  !

*    hemen  parekh   (  23   Nov   2013  )

Much Ado About Nothing !

American spy-agencies , FBI and NSA , regularly  " spy "  upon , not only its own citizens ( - including its Congressmen / Senators ), but also on foreign dignitaries such as ,

>   Chancellor Angela Merkel   ( Germany )

>   Prime Minister Hollande      ( France  )

>   Prime Minister Cameron      ( Britain )

>   Prime Minister Kerzai          ( Afghanistan )

>   Sundry Indian Politicians...  etc

When revealed by whistle-blowers like Asange / Snowden , American Secretary of State , John Kerry simply said ,

"   All of this spying is crucial for the security of America.  We just cannot discontinue spying even if persons being spied upon are our close friends. If anyone feels hurt , we cannot help "

What Kerry left unsaid is ,

"  Period . Put up or shut up !

   Every country spies on its own citizens .

   If you don't know about this fundamental fact of statehood , you must be

   an ignoramus !  "

Those high and mighty kept quiet , since they are guilty of the spying , themselves  !

So , what is all this hoolaboolu about Gujarat police spying on a girl , as requested for , by her own father  ?

But since opposition politicians have run out of serious election issues , they must clutch at the straw to remain afloat  !

They know this is their only hope of appearing on TV news channels  !

What they seem to forget  is :

TV anchors - and their businessmen owners - know too well that people will stop watching a debate on a 5 year old " Non-Issue " after just 3 days  !

So , if they wish to continue to be invited on TV panel discussions , opposition politicians must find another " Non-Issue " - and fast  !

Much ado about nothing !

*    hemen   parekh   (  22   Nov   2013  )  

The Real Issue

Elections or no elections , there is only ONE real issue before the nation

India's net population is growing at 20 million per year

This perfectly tallies with addition of 100 million first-time voters ( during past 5 years ) , since last general election in 2009

These young men and women, are asking Congress / BJP :

Where are our JOBS  ?

Ans :

Sorry , there are NO JOBS  !

Proof  :

>    During 2004 - 2009 , only 2.76 million jobs were created ( some

    5.5 lakh jobs per year ! )

>   I have no idea how many jobs got created during 2009-2013

>   With 42 million ( 420 lakh ) registered jobless on their rolls , India's

   Employment Exchanges manage to find jobs for less than 1 lakh persons

   per year  ( 1 job for every 420 jobless registered !  )

>   Remaining  4 / 5 lakh jobs must have been found by jobless themselves

Now , both , BJP and Congress Manifesto are promising to create 15 million jobs in next  5 YEARS , if voted to power in 2014

Except that their manifestos are silent on how they will find an investment of Rs 150,000 Crores required to create these jobs  !

I hope it is still not too late for Narendra Modi to announce :

"  If BJP is voted to power , we will facilitate and encourage the businesses / industrialists / politicians / bureaucrats / religious trusts etc, to invest their stashed away - and non-productive BLACK MONEY , into INFRASTRUCTURE / EDUCATION / HEALTHCARE / HOUSING ..etc, thru an AMNESTY SCHEME

 

We will create 15 Million jobs , EVERY YEAR  "

*    hemen   parekh   (  21  Nov  2013  )

Ignorant All !

American Congressmen are not much different from Indian " Congress "-men , when it comes to Modi-baiting  !

They are all , equally ignorant  !

American Congressman , Keith Ellison ( Democrat ) and Joe Pitts ( Republican ) , have introduced a resolution in their House of Representative , demanding that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi should continue to be denied a visa

Except that they don't even know ( or seem to ignore ) , that Modi has NOT even applied for an American visa  !

So , where is the question of " denying "  ?

I pity Mr Pitts  !

He has lost his only chance of being named , American Ambassador to India , when Narendra Modi takes over as Prime Minister of India , in 200 + days  !

But ,

if he wants to sit in the opposition , along with our very own " Congress "-men , in India's Parliament ,

>   India's Congress party , would be too happy to give him,- a " foreigner " - a ticket for 2014 elections ( - they have a precedent to go by  !  )

>   NaMo would be too happy to grant him Indian Citizenship

Provided he formally " Applies " for one  !

No " denying " in advance , assuming that he will apply  !


No " anticipatory denial  "  !

Till then , he , along with his 14 co-sponsors , should continue to welcome - and entertain on American soil , - dozens of ruthless dictators from Africa , Middle East and Latin America , who are still going around killing thousands of their own citizens , year after year

And that includes the Bosses of the Communist Party of China , who continue to torture thousands of Tibetans

Obviously , having " Double Standards " is not an exclusive prerogative of Indian " Congress "-men  !

*    hemen   parekh   (  20  Nov   2013  ) 

Issues Vs Non - Issues

For the forthcoming elections ( State + Central ) , what are the " Issues " for the contesting politicians ?

If that is your question , here is a partial list  :

>   Labeling of Opponents

     (  Shehzada / Sahebzada / Chor / Terrorist / Murderer / Criminal ..etc )

>   Blaming the Incumbent Governments

     (  Riots / Phone-tapping / Illegal Surveillance / Not awarding Bharat

      Ratna / Misuse of CBI ....etc )

>    Running down of Opposite Political Parties

      (  Foreign funding / Lack of transparency  / Freebies in Manifesto /

        Dynasty  /  Giving tickets to sons - daughters  / Opinion Polls...etc )

>    Complaining to the Election Commission

      (  Over-spending / Use of foul language / Paid advertisements /

       Breaking Model Code of Conduct / Religion-Caste based canvassing / Distribution of currency notes. etc )

Do they have any insignificant / trivial issues which are not worth debating ?

I mean , "  Non - Issues  " ?

You bet they have !

 A partial list follows :

>   TB killing 1,000 people per day

>   Starvation killing 6,000 children ( under 5 ) per day

>   20,000 farmers committing suicide per year

>   48,660 malaria-induced deaths per year

>   620,000 pre-mature deaths per year due to air - pollution

>   13,000 new cancer cases per year

>   1,100 people dying in accidents every day

>   8,233 dowry deaths per year ( One every hour )

I can go on and on

But who has time to debate such " Non - Issues "  ?

Because , if you do , you will be asked ,

"  How do you plan to solve these ? "

Why rake up a hornet's nest ?  Let sleeping dogs lie / die !

Mud - slinging is so much easier !

You can speak without thinking  !

*    hemen  parekh  (  19   Nov   2013  )

To Hell with History !

Are voters bothered whether ,

>   Alexander reached Ganga or Godavari  ?

>   Taxila was in Bihar or Bengal  ?

>   Chandragupta was a Gupta or a Gandhi  ?

>   The patriot who died in London was Shyamji Verma or Shamaprasad

      Mukherjee  ?

>    China spends on education, 3% or 30 % of its GDP  ?

In case our political leaders have failed to grasp the truth , even after 66 years of Independence , the simple answer is :

No  ! They are just not bothered  !

Voters couldn't care less for such high level intellectual pronouncements - and rebuttals - on either history or on geography  !

They are telling the politicians  :

"  To hell with history  !

   Do you have answers / solutions to our following current problems  ?

   *  My graduate son is jobless , even 3 years after graduation

   *  My daughter cannot get admission in any college in my city

   *  I have no money to buy medicines for my ailing parents

   *  I must commit suicide because my crop is destroyed without water

   *  Municipality is demolishing my hut to hand-over land to builder mafia

   *  If my 5 year old child does not beg on street , she will die of starvation

  Before we decide which party to vote for , tell us exact date by which you will solve our CURRENT problems

For God's sake , don't waste your time - and ours too - discussing , what " wrong things " long dead people did or what " right things " they failed to do  !

To hell with someone else's long-lost - and now useless -  HISTORY

 

We are only concerned with useful solutions to our own immediate FUTURE  "

*   hemen   parekh   (  18  Nov   2013  )

  

Pied Piper of Gujarat !

Naresh Agrawal ( Samajwadi Party ) says,

"  Any Madaari can attract crowds  /  A tea-vendor cannot have perspective of national issues  / Even if a Sipahi becomes a Kaptan , his thinking will continue to be that of a Sipahi "

May be Agrawal does not consider Tea-Vendor  /  Madaari  /  Sipahi to be respectable professions  !

Apparently , he believes that a tea-vendor's son must continue with his father's profession only  !

How dare he aspire to become  the Prime Minister of India ?

But Narendra Modi is playing a haunting tune

"  Congress hatao , Surajya lao  "

And millions of voters are coming out of their homes to listen to him , making the likes of Agrawal squirm

There is a good chance that voters will follow NaMo to the polling booths and kiss the lotus  !

Why should that happen ?

>   People attending the rallies of NaMo belong to hundreds of "respectable"

      professions such as ,

      *   Welder  /  Carpenter  /  Mason  / Electrician  /  Plumber

      *   Vegetable vendor  /  Dudhwala  /  Paperwala  /  Courier-boy

      *   Delivery boy  /  Bus Conductor  /  Sales Girl /  Receptionist

      *   Panbidi shop owner  /  Tyre Repairer  /  Boot-polish boy

      Endless others . And all earning an honest livelihood

>    These professionals feel terribly offended / insulted by Agrawal running

      down their trades / skills / vocations

>    They are all fed-up of corrupt / criminal / power hungry politicians

>    Forthcoming elections ( State / National ) are their only chance to prove

      Agrawal wrong and re-write their own future

Obviously , likes of Agrawal feel haunted by the tune of the Pied Piper of Gujarat and feel doomed to oblivion  !

*    hemen   parekh   (  15   Nov   2013  )  

Freedom of Speech ?

Today , on Nehru's birthday , I am reminded of his following speeches :

>    Our tryst with destiny

>    A light has gone out of our lives

Then there were other memorable speeches in the distant past, viz:

>    Mahatma Gandhi     (  Quit India  )

>    Martin Luther King   (  I have a dream  )

>    Abraham Lincoln       (  Of the people / by the people / for the people  )

>    Winston Churchill     (  Never have so many owed so much to so few  )

>    Brutus                     (  but Caesar is an honorable man  )

Then I end up comparing some " famous " recent speeches , viz:,

>    Sonia Gandhi           (  Maut ka Saudaagar  )

>    Narendra Modi         (   Khooni  Panjaa  )

>    Rahul Gandhi           (  ISI  )

>    Kapil Sibal                (  No loss in 2G scam  )

>    Manish Tewari           (  Anna is most corrupt  )

>    Ranjeet Sinha            (  Enjoy rape  )


>    Naresh Agarwal         ( a tea-vendor cannot become PM  / even Madari collects crowds  )

No doubt , amongst the living politicians , " Freedom of Speech " has totally different connotations  !

For them , apparently , it means,

"  License to Kill ( - if words can kill  !  ) "

Obviously , Gandhian Anna Hazare  is pained

In his TV interview with Rajat Sharma yesterday , he expressed his anguish at the lowly depths to which , political mud-slinging has descended during current election campaign

Whether he / she is a leader of any political party , all politicians are talking the same language , the language of ,

PHP   =   Power Hungry Politicians

Who cares for ,

C = Civility / Code of Conduct / Courtesy  ?

I  miss T N Sheshan   !

*    hemen   parekh   (  14   Nov   2013  )

Whose Bapu ?

There was a time

When you were our Bapu,

A Mahatma ;

For a life-time long

A tortured Atma ;

To wash away the sins of your children

You died a martyr's death ;

Now those very children

Have opened-up a shop

To sell " Gandhi-ism " ;

They are even maintaining

Two separate books of accounts,

One for income from " Unknown Sources ",

Strictly as required by the law !

Even out of curiosity

Do not venture

Anywhere near ;

No one will recognize you

Without your NSG / Z+ bodyguards  !

And children from city slums

Will chase you , shouting ,

" Ben Kingsley , Ben Kingsley ",

And when they ask you for your autograph ,

Do not sign,

" Mo Ka Gandhi "  !

Just pretend that you are Ben Kingsley,

TV cameras , Reporters , Anchors

Will  follow in your footsteps ;

Just forget that

You were our Bapu  !

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Free translation from my Gujarati poem , dated 30, Jan 1984

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*    hemen  parekh   (  13   Nov   2013  )