All Charged Up ?

Economic Times ( 21 July 2016 ) carried a news report titled ,

"  All Charged Up , Tesla could Make in India "

It talks about Shri Nitin Gadkari's visit to Tesla's electric car plant in USA , and his talks with Elon Musk

Upon return to India , here is what Shri Gadkari said :

" They ( Tesla ) have path breaking energy storage technology . I told them , India could be one of their largest manufacturing facility and we would be the most cost effective "

Shri Gadkari has invited Tesla to set up a manufacturing plant in India ( next to a port of their choice ) and make it , its export base for the rest of Asia . All facilities / support / changes in rules-regulations are promised

The fact that Tesla Electric Car Model 3 , costs approx Rs 23 lakhs is not much of an issue for thousands of rich Indian buyers

And those rich Indian buyers will also be more than satisfied with the following features of Model 3 :

Size / Sitting Capacity / Interior  / Design / Style / Auto Pilot / Navigation Console / Acceleration / Battery Life etc

They would also feel quite comfortable with its " Range " of 346 Km per charge ( 215 miles )

And , as far as the " Charge Time " of 75 minutes is concerned , India's rich will ask their drivers to go to a Charging Station , late into night , to ensure that they don't have to wait at the station , during office rush hour !

Nor would India's rich be worried if their charging cost per km ( for an electric car ) , goes up to , equivalent to Rs 10 per km ! ( @ Rs 70 per litre of petrol , giving 10 km per litre for existing expensive cars )

But will that motivate Elon Musk to consider India , over his declared intention of putting up a plant in China ?

I seriously doubt !

Consider the following :

#  In 2015 , China produced 142,800 battery operated electric vehicles ( mostly cars )

#  By that time , China also had a nation-wide network of 160,000 " Electric Charging Piles " ( 50,000 Public /

    50,000 Private / 60,000 Commercial )

#  By now , Tesla itself has managed to put up only 624 Electric Super-Charging Stations world-wide ( of which,

    500 in USA itself ) - with 480 V power supply

   

Setting up lakhs of electric charging stations , all over India , is unlikely to happen anytime soon , due to :

#  It is a " Chicken or the Egg First " type of situation !

    No one will buy an electric car unless there already exists , a wide spread network of electric charging stations

   { and obviously , if no one buys, then no one would want to manufacture ! }

    No one will send his driver ( even after 8 pm ) , if the nearest charging station is 30 km away !

    And which private owner would set up a charging station where only 3 vehicles turn up for charging in a day ?

   (  I mean , in a night ! )

WHAT  IS  THE   BREAK-THROUGH  NEEDED ?

#   A " LOW COST " Charging Station that can fully charge an electric car in " 5 MINUTES " - and at " HOME " !

    ( or , at the most , in the  Cooperative Housing Society , where you live )

IS  SUCH  TECHNOLOGY  AVAILABLE  ?

The three-year old Israeli startup, named StoreDot, is working on a prototype EV battery that can charge in as few as  FIVE MINUTES , and provide 300 miles of driving range.

StoreDot’s  “ FlashBattery ” technology is based on proprietary inorganic compounds and a hybrid multifunction electrode (MFE) and promises a theoretical “instant” charge for smart phones and electric vehicles.

 “If this chemistry works as we show, there’s no reason we couldn’t charge a car in FIVE MINUTES ,” says CEO / Founder of StoreDot , Doron Myersdorf.

LESSON :

#  We don't need Tesla to set up a plant to produce a Rs 23 lakh car when our own Mahindra's REVA e20 model

    [ costing Rs 7 lakhs ] , can run 90-100 km on a single charge ( but needing 1-5 hours for charging ! )

    All that is needed to replace millions of smoking / polluting / killing , petrol / diesel vehicles is a Joint

    Venture Collaboration between :

   #  Manoj Bhargava  ( Free Electric  /  BillionsinChange.com )

       I am sure , given a challenge , he will come up with  higher capacity Electric Power Generating Bicycles which

       can charge  StoreDot's  FlashBattery , which , in turn will charge the electric cars at night , parked in the

       compound of a Cooperative Housing Society

      Health-conscious Members of the Society , will be , more than happy to " pedal " such bicycles , housed in the

      common Gym of the Society , after returning from office !  

     What's more , each Member's " One Hour of      Pedaling " will earn him , one car recharge of 5 MINUTES !

     Besides providing a " vastly economic ( free ? ) " car recharging solution , this will improve the health !

   #    StoreDot

      I believe , Doron Myersdorf will be too happy to provide FlashBattery technology, considering our, about to be

      rolled out , NATIONAL ELECTRIC MOBILITY  MISSION  ( NEMMP ) , which aims to get  6 Million

      electric vehicles on the roads by 2020

  #   SOCIETY  of  INDIAN  AUTOMOBILE  MANUFACTURERS  ( SIAM )

     SIAM will lay down the  Design Specifications  for :

     #  2 or 3  " Standard " models of Rechargeable Battery Power-packs to be installed in Electric Vehicles

     #  Standardized " Replacement Cycle Times "  for these power packs ( Battery Pack Life )

     #  Output parameters for Electric Power Generating Bicycles ( Voltage / Kwh etc )  

     #  Charging Standards for FlashBattery ( Ampere-Hour / Time etc )

In past 3 years  ( 2012-13 to 2015-16 ) , the total number of vehicles on Indian roads has gone up from 172 million to 186 million ( some 4.5 million per year ! )

For " Implementing NEMMP , and to strengthen the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles " , government has set up a committee consisting of Transport Ministry / Power Ministry / Heavy Industries Ministry and Environment Ministry

To those who agree with my suggestion , I request that they share this blog among their contacts and request them to do likewise

If implemented in a hurry , I believe Shri Narendra Modi would want to speak about this achievement in his Independence Day speech from the ramparts of Red Fort on 15 Aug 2017  !

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15  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

     

Missing the Woods for the Tree ?

One dictionary describes this idiom as :

" If someone can't see the wood for the trees, they are unable to understand what is important in a situation because they are giving too much attention to details "

This is the danger facing a 12 member committee of government secretaries ( headed by Shri Amitabh Kant , CEO - NITI Aayog ), appointed to look into :

#  Liberalizing the E-Commerce policy to give a further boost to this sector

#  Rethink of Online Marketplace rules

#  Issues related to Foreign Direct Investment ( FDI )

Economic Times ( 10 Aug, 2016 ) reports :

#  E-Commerce Market in India was $ 17 billion in 2014 and expected to grow to $ 70 billion in 2019

#  E-Commerce Sector suffers from lack of policy clarity

#  Attempts to create a level playing field with Offline Retail has shackled the sector

#  Committee will suggest measures to liberalize the sector

#  Rethink on Online Marketplace rules also likely

#  Committee will review complex regulations

#  Changes in FDI policy will also be suggested

In 1905 , Albert Einstein published " Theory of Special Relativity " and by 1915 , he came out with " General Theory of Relativity "

For him , it was like moving on from a TREE ( Special Theory ) to the WOODS ( General Theory )

Obviously , he did not want to miss out on the larger picture by focusing on a single pixel !

It is no different when it comes to the Laws governing ECONOMY

" E- Commerce and Foreign Direct Investment " are the " Special Theory of ECONOMY " , whereas " Commerce and Investment " are the " General Theory of ECONOMY "

And at this very moment , the Super-Ordinate Goal of our ECONOMY is :

#  Create millions of Self Employed ( 400 million to start with and 12 million per year , thereafter )

E-Commerce and Foreign Direct Investments, are merely " Means to achieve that End " - no more

It was only a few days back when Shri Amitabh Kant said in a TV interview :

" Laws / rules / regulations etc will need constant tweaking / revising , to remain relevant with the advancing technologies

There is no way , the March of Technology can be halted . Laws must catch-up ".

While debating the issues ,the Committee may want to keep in mind how following technologies will change the Commerce Landscape , within the next 2 years :

#  Everything ( Goods and Services ) will be marketed / sold online

#  No business / industry will , solely remain OFFLINE

#  When goods are not being delivered at your doorstep using Drones, your table-top 3D Printers will print out

    all kinds of Consumables ( including Food ! ), by downloading Designs from internet . Houses will be 3D printed

#  Services of all kinds ( Patient-care / Health care / Psychological / Consulting / Coding / Remotely operating

    Devices and Machineries / Teaching / Curating / Controlling Riots etc ) , will be carried out ( hopefully, by

    Indians  if Committee takes the right , far-reaching decisions ), remotely from 10,000 Km away using Virtual

    Reality / Augmented Reality / Holographic Tele-presence / Hepatic gloves etc

#  Entire cycle of Designing / Manufacturing / Marketing / Selling / Order-taking / Delivering / After-sales Servicing

    / Logistics / Collecting Payments / etc , will get spread so thinly across Countries / Continents / Companies /

    Individuals , that it will become next to impossible to keep track of " WHO " is adding " WHAT " value to the

    process , and " WHEN " , and from " WHERE " !  No one will be able to unravel this GORDIAN KNOT !

#  Industrial Robots will play ever-increasing role at each step of this process , connected through IoT

The best that the Committee can recommend is adoption of the following ,

Parekh's , " 3  Laws of E-Commerce Economy " - to be incorporated as 123rd Constitutional Amendment

( with apologies to Isaac Asimov's 3 Laws of Robotics ! ) :

LAW  #  1 :

Asimov :

        A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

Parekh :

 Rules / Regulations of E-Commerce shall not come in the way of unfettered creation of SELF EMPLOYMENT

    

 Any existing Law / Rule / Regulation that hinders a person to become Self Employed, shall be treated as

  

 ultravires

Further , any Law / Regulation of " E-Commerce / FDI " which slows down Investment ( Foreign or Local / Official

or through channeling of BLACK MONEY ), shall be treated as " bad in law " and struck down

LAW  # 2

   

Asimov :

       A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First

       Law.

      Parekh :

      Laws / Regulations governing " E-Commerce / FDI " shall be subservient to Laws / Regulations governing  

   

      " Commerce / Investment " .

      Whenever any Public Authority / Court finds conflict between the two , laws / regulations governing " Commerce/

      Investments " , shall prevail under all circumstances , and in favor of the self employed

     LAW  #  3

   Asimov :   

     A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

    Parekh :

   Laws / Regulations of " E-Commerce / FDI " which get over-ruled under LAW # 2 , shall immediately " Self Destruct "

   in favor of unobstructed progress of TECHNOLOGIAL ADVANCES

   Before drafting its recommendations , the Committee may want to look up my specific suggestions at :

#     In defense of FDI in Defense

 

  
#     Start-Up Eco-Systems / USA vs INDIA

 

#       A NEW ECONOMIC ORDER ? aka " Start Up Act - 2015 " 

 

#      WHO WILL OBSOLETE WHOM ?  

#      In  Wonderland  of  Start Ups

#     Defining E - Commerce

      
#     FDI : By any other name ? 

#     Making India a Tax Haven ? 

 

  
#     E - Commerce is Easy Commerce !  

#      FDI in India Post ? 

#       50Million  New  Jobs in  5  Months ? 

#        Level  Playing Field  ? 

#        3D  Printed Office 

#        Rejoice, You  Self  Employed ! 

#       How  to stop  the  Start Ups ! 

#       Hire  when you  Need :  Fire when  you  don't 

#       Create  Self Employment 

#       Robots, Robots Everywhere , Not a Soul  to  See  !  

#       Age  of Automation  

#      Tech  World turning  Imagination  Real 

#      Second  Industrial Revolution 

#      Back  Factory of  the  World 

#     Competitive  Advantages are  Transient 

#      A  Virtuous Circle 

Dear Committee Members :

Please , overlook  the TREE   /   focus on the WOODS !

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12  August  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / Blogs

    

 

       

        

Unlawful ? May be !

Ex-Supreme Court judge, Shri Katju had following to say about the Supreme Court and the Lodha Committe , in relation to BCCI mismanagement / corruption ( as reported in HINDU / 08 Aug 2016 ) :

“ If the parent [the judgment] is illegal, the Justice Lodha Committee’s recommendations also goes. The judgment has not only violated the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act but also the Constitution ” 

“ The Supreme Court had over-reached itself and indulged in judicial legislation unmindful of the fact that there are several larger Bench decisions prohibiting the same. ”

“ This order is legislative in nature and could not have been passed validly by the Court. ”

" The Supreme Court could have no doubt forwarded the Lodha Committee’s recommendations to Parliament with their own recommendation that they be enacted as a law by Parliament, but to direct itself that the recommendations be implemented is clearly a legislative act not within the court’s domain. ”

 “ Here, the Supreme Court has not only usurped the powers of the Registrar of Societies, but also outsourced the power of punishment to a committee of retired judges. All this was done under a PIL [petition]. This is nothing but a violation of the Constitution and the relevant statute... It is time the judiciary learnt self-restraint, ”

In a TV interview, Shri Katju went to the extent of calling the Supreme Court judges , " Emperors / Dictators / Arrogant "

What Shri Katju chose to forget ( on purpose no doubt ), is that , for the poor / suffering / starving / oppressed people of India , the Supreme Court is the " Court of last Resort "

A Court which ( of late ) , has come to the rescue of the suffering citizens of India , when the Legislative Wings have miserably failed to address their problems and the cancer of corruption has corroded the Executive Wing !

Will Shri Katju explain his deafening silence during his tenure as Supreme Court judge when :

#  Minority Parties in Lok Sabha held to ransom , the Women's Representation Bill for 37 years

#  Congress held up GST Constitutional Amendment Bill for past 2 years

#  A succession of Congress Governments, aided and abetted ,the parallel economy of BLACK MONEY for 50 years

#  Even as 1.2 million children ( under 5 ) die each year due to starvation, millions of tons of grain rot in open

#  Some 360 workers of FCI collect salary of Rs 4.5 lakh per month by " outsourcing " their work to contract labour

#  Companies blatantly siphoned off Rs 7 lakh*crore worth of loans from accommodating bankers and the govt

    decides to bail-out those banks by handing over tax-payers money , even as 17,000 farmers commit suicide

    each year because they cannot repay loans of few thousands of rupees

#  Lakhs of crores of rupees pocketed by politicians and bureaucrats in hundred of SCAMS relating to government

    contracts / purchases / so-called auctions / licenses / leases / allotments / advertisements / any excuse !

#  Lakhs of crores of rupees lost by hundreds of PSUs over the past 60 years, while govt kept these alive on a life

    support system of tax payers money, even as their workers played cards in factories

#  Thousands of poor people dying prematurely because of floods / droughts / fires / accidents / building collapses

    / hooch / adulterated food / fake medicines / arsenic-laced water ( just look up morning headlines )

   All of these are preventable , only if the Executives ( government officers ) did their job honestly / diligently

#  Thousands of crores of rupees of poor people swindled by PONZI SCHEMES operating with political blessings

#  Millions of tons of our Mineral Resources getting pilfered each year under the protection of politicians

#  Thousands of tanneries polluting Ganga / Yamuna rivers and turning them into gutters , over past 40 years

#  Millions of small children working in brass / leather / cracker factories for 14 hours per day , on a slice of bread

I can go on and on

Dear Shri Katju :

What the Supreme Court did ( in BCCI and a few other similar situations ) , may not be " correct " in the eyes of the law but it is the " right thing to do " in the eyes of the poor people of India

But for such judicial interventions , I am afraid the day is not far when the poor people sleeping on the rain-drenched footpath outside my home , just walk in and occupies my bedroom !  or your bedroom ?

I may not like that but can I grudge their " Moral Right " to do just that after 60 years of silent suffering ?

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10  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs