It is a MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD, World !

Not many will remember this hilarious Hollywood movie of a few decades back

When the movie was nearing completion , it is said that  the production team in charge of the movie got together to decide upon its name

One team member suggested : Let us call it ,  " It is a  MAD, MAD , MAD , MAD , MAD  world "

After a lot of heated arguments , the team concluded :

" Repeating the word " MAD " for the fifth time , would be clearly " redundant  ! "

Hindustan Times ( 29 Aug 2016 ) , carries a report : War on Black Money : It's m-Wallets vs UPI

Dilip Asbe , CEO , NPCI is quoted :

"  UPI will be an enabler to existing wallets and in fact can be used to fund the wallets

   We have not got wallets under the UPI as it is designed for banks now. Also, wallets offer facilities beyond money

   transfer "

Question is :  How many m-Wallets are too many ?  Which is the next one , which would be " redundant " ?

Purely out of self interest ( to increase their own business - and with no love lost for BLACK MONEY ! ) , expect hundreds of  companies , in each of the following sectors , to come out with their own , branded  m-Wallets :

#   E-Com companies ( Online Market-places ) / Credit - Debit Card Companies

#   Companies making Consumer Goods and even Consumer Durables

#   Banks  / Insurance companies  / NBFC / Hospitals / Railways

#   Large Retailers with nation-wide presence ( Ambani - Adani - Biyani - Walmart etc )

#   Mobile Service Providers / Power-Gas-Water-Internet  Distribution Companies

#   Schools / Colleges / Universities / Coaching Classes

#   Online Entertainment / Service Delivery Companies / Consultancy Companies

#   In short , ALL companies trying to sell ( Goods or Services ) using a Mobile App

There is no doubt , all of this will help billions of  SMALL TICKET  CASH  transactions taking place daily , to become NON-CASH transactions

But neither UPI , nor m-Wallets can :

#   Move 100,000  Currency notes of Rs 1,000 each , from safe deposit locker of the person buying land / property

     / gold  etc , to the safe deposit locker of the person selling it !

#   Motivate a " hafta collector " to accept payment by m-Wallet  from footpath vegetable vendor ,  even if it is a

     single Currency Note of Rs 500 /-

#   At a slightly higher level ( of Corruption ) , which local dada / goon / mafia , has official bank balance of Rs

     10,000 , even though his numerous safe deposit lockers are overflowing with Rs 500 / 1,000 currency notes ?

    

#   And at considerably higher level , any idea how many billions currency notes of Rs 500 / 1,000 are lying locked-

     up in the lockers of corrupt businessmen / industrialists / bureaucrats / politicians etc , beyond the reach of UPI

     or m-Wallets ?

#   Following figures will give you an idea :

   

    Latest available figures for currency notes in India :

   *  Total number of notes ( Rs 1 onwards )........ 76.5 Billion pieces ( = Rs 12468 Billion in Value )

   *  Of the above , share of Rs 1000 notes...........39 % ( ie : Rs 4862 Billion , by Value )

   *  And the share of Rs 500 notes....................  45 % ( ie : Rs 5610 Billion , by Value )

   * Share of Rs 1/2/5/10/20/50 / 100 notes........ 16 % ( ie : Rs 1995 Billion , by Value )

   Therefore , it stands to reason that the predicted increase in those NON-CASH transactions ( going up to 59 %

   by 2025 ) , will mostly eliminate just 16 % of the TOTAL currency-value in circulation !

   There does not seem to be any likelihood of Mobile Wallets , encroaching on the balance 84 % of the currency !

As I have repeatedly suggested , the ONLY way to bring to surface those Rs 500 / 1,000 Currency Notes , is to

embed these with RFID micro-sensors !

I hope , someday , some powerful , non-corrupt , honest ( and dictatorial ? ) Policy Maker will show the courage to

take this  MOST POPULAR / RADICAL / TRANSFORMING / GAME - CHANGING  decision !

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29  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

   

   

Young or Old ?

Following report in Economic Times ( 25 Aug 2016 ) reads :

"  Make Scrapping of Old Vehicles Compulsory : FM "

NEW DELHI:

" The finance minister has asked me to make scrapping of old heavy vehicles mandatory instead of keeping it voluntary. The minister is also in favour of providing financial benefits to people for scrapping vehicles," road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari told ET.

" The minister was not in favour of excise duty exemption but said he could make financial incentives part of his budget proposal. We will now rework the draft proposal as per his suggestions," Gadkari said.

Under the concept note submitted by the Transport Ministry ,vehicles bought before April 2005 or those below BS IV emission standards will be eligible for incentives if replaced.

Government estimates the programme may help replace 28 million vehicles with less polluting ones.

I believe , Shri Arun Jaitleyji  is right when he says :

#   It must not be VOLUNTARY / OPTIONAL to replace a POLLUTING VEHICLE

#   Hence , there must not be any mention of ELIGIBILITY ( as to who gets WHAT incentives and WHEN )

What he meant ( but failed to state explicitly ? ) was :

#   No matter what the " AGE " of a vehicle , it must be replaced if found in violation of Emission Control  Norms

#   If a vehicle is polluting the environment , it just does not matter that it is only 2 or 5 years old

#   On the other hand , let a 20 year old car run , if it meets the current emission level standards

I have no doubt that , if mandated , our  Vehicle Manufacturers  are capable of a TECHNOLOGICAL  INNOVATION consisting of a device that will ,

#    come pre-installed in all NEW vehicles , produced after 01 April 2017

#    be easy to install ( retrofit ) on all existing vehicles as well (  mandatory from June 2017  )

#    measure the actual emission of the vehicle ( PPM / Co2 / NOX etc ) , when running

#    transmit this data to the Servers of Central and State Transport Ministries / all RTOs ( with Vehicle Number )

#    flash a RED light on both the front and the rear fenders , if pollution levels are exceeded ( that will help

      nearest traffic police to pull aside the polluting vehicle and immobilize it till corrected )

#   If there are more than 6 DEFAULT INCIDENCES involving a given vehicle , within ONE MONTH , then RTO

     Server will automatically CANCEL the REGISTRATION of that vehicle ( no matter , how OLD / YOUNG ! )

     This data will be accessible to Traffic Police , all over the country , through a Mobile App ( SCRAPP ? )

#   Owners of such SCRAPP-ed vehicles will need to dispose off their vehicles at Govt Approved Scrap Dealers

#   Scrap Dealer will confirm the " Purchase " through Mobile App , giving vehicle number / purchase price

#   Central Transport Department will transfer the INCENTIVE AMOUNT ( DBT ) into the Jan Dhan A/c of owner

When we are targeting replacement of 28 million vehicles ( even over a 10 year period ) , it is best to eliminate human intervention from the entire process , to the extent possible

Involve humans and this scheme is bound to suffer ! 

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29  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Policy Paralysis : Can be Avoided

Economic Times ( 25 Aug 2016 ) carries a news report titled :

"  Charges Against Coal ex-Secretary may Lead to Policy Paralysis "

The report quotes :

#  Shri Amitabh Kant ( CEO , NITI Aayog )

" He is the most honest officer I have come across in my entire career. Real travesty of justice. Sad & tragic. Errors

 in commercial decision making should be decriminalized. There cannot be a more honest person than Gupta "

#  A current Govt Secretary :

" He is more honest than I am or anyone of us here . If he is jailed, functioning of the government will come to a grinding halt . There are already too many concerns . If such things happen , no one will take any decisions "

No doubt , it is very difficult to conclude whether a decision was just " an error of judgment " or whether it was truly , a " mala-fide " decision to benefit the officer himself or his relatives / friends / business interests !

I request that the  Central IAS Officers Association , consider my following suggestion :

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Friday, 20 June 2014 ( source : www.hemenparekh.in > Blogs )

To err is human

To forgive is divine ( provided it was a honest error )

All of us keep making errors , all the time

But rarely same " mistake " twice

Often , decisions taken at a point of time , turn out to be " poor " , with passage of time

Reasons are simple :

*  We never have all the information - relevant to the problem we are trying to solve - available with us , at the time of taking a decision

*  Even when most of such relevant info is available , we may not have the capacity / competence to " process " such info

*  As humans , we have our biases / prejudices , based on our previous experiences , which influence our decisions

*  Quite often , and often against our own better evaluation / judgment of a given situation , we are wrongly influenced by our peers / bosses / subordinates or even voters - all of whom have different expectations / vested interests !

* Additional - and more relevant - information surfaces , AFTER we have taken a decision (happens all the time !)

To encourage Officers and Ministers to take FAST decisions , Shri Narendra Modi must insist that they carefully " Record " on the files :

*  What are the " Options / Alternatives " available ( with advantage / disadvantage , of each )

* What info / data he wished was available for a better decision

* What different " views / opinions " were presented to him for consideration

* What " Data / Views " he would have obtained if he had more time

* Who all , the decision might offend

* What is the likely " Cost " of postponing that decision,

And finally a Declaration :

* " This decision is not likely to benefit any of my near relatives / friends , directly or immediately "

After all of this , if the decision appears to be " Wrong " in hindsight , it must be " forgiven " and treated as an honest error

To err is human  !

Speaking at the TRANSFORMING  INDIA lecture ( 26 Aug 2016 ) , Shri Modi said :

"  We cannot march through 21st century with 19th century administrative systems . It would involve transformation of governance and mindsets as well as transformative ideas

Further , it would require rapid transformation and not gradual evolution "

I am afraid , despite all of this motivation / exhortation , no officer would want to stick his neck out for fear of it getting chopped off !

Even a trapeze artist in a Circus , needs a Safety Net before he can be motivated to jump !

My suggestion is that SAFETY  NET !

True , Sati Sita had to prove her innocence through fire !

But , in 2016 , no officer would want to go through the public humiliation of a media trial , till the courts prove him innocent !

For him , " No decision " cannot be faulted !

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27  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

  

Still a long way to go !

Times of India ( 26 Aug 2016 ) carries following news report :

"  CVC  TELLS  CBI  TO  SHARE  DETAILS  OF  BIG-TICKET  FRAUDS  WITH  ED  "

NEW DELHI :

" The Central Bureau of Investigation has been asked by the CVC to share details on big ticket frauds with the Enforcement Directorate so that the provisions of anti-money laundering Act can be invoked at the stage of investigation itself. 

The decision comes as there have been cases of corporate frauds involving crores of rupees. 

The CVC has asked CBI to share relevant details on big ticket frauds with the ED so that provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act can be invoked at the stage of investigation itself, officials said today.

They said it will help in taking stringent action against the fraudsters during the investigation stage itself.

There has been cases where ED is roped in at later stage by the CBI and at times, it results in losing out crucial leads and also cause delay in punishing the accused or trace money laundered by them, the sources said, adding that the CBI has started sharing relevant details with the ED. 

In a related development, the CBI has also been made the nodal authority for public sector banks to report high value frauds worth over Rs 50 crore. 

A Joint Director level officer has been authorized in the CBI to receive complaints of the frauds from the banks. After receiving such reports, the officer can recommend investigation by any of the agency's wings ( Anti Corruption, Economic Offences or Bank Security and Fraud Cell ).

The Chief Vigilance Officers, who act as distant arm of Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) to check corruption, of banks have been asked to act as nodal officers to coordinate in reporting such cases to the CBI. 

A total of 171 bank fraud cases involving funds of over Rs 20,000 crore were probed by the CBI last year. "

There is no doubt , this type of co-ordination between different Agencies of the Government dealing with Economic Fraud  will help , but what will bring about a complete SEA CHANGE in the process of quickly catching the culprits , will only happen when my following suggestion ( sent as hard-copy to  PMO on 06 Nov 2014 ) , gets implemented :

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E - Governance ?

Can e-Governance help eliminate corruption  ?

Most certainly

Look at the following , partial list of  Central and State Agencies  set up to fight fraud , money-laundering , corruption , tax-evasion , economic crimes etc :

*  Public Accounts Committee           (  PAC  )

*  Central Vigilance Commission        (  CVC  )

*  Central Information Commission     (  CIC  )

*  Research and Analysis Wing           (  RAW  )

*  Serious Fraud Investigation Office   (  SFIO  )

*  Information Bureau                        (  IB   )

*  Economic Offence Wing                   (  EOW  )

*  Central Bureau of Investigation        (  CBI  )

*  Department of Revenue Intelligence (  DRI  )

*  Comptroller and Auditor General       (  CAG  )

*  Anti Corruption Bureaus ( States ).... (  ACB  )

*  Enforcement Directorate                    (  ED   )

*  Lok  Ayukts    (  States   )

*  Lok Pal           ( Central  )

Despite such an army of Agencies , how do corrupt manage to get away  ?

Or , in case caught , manage to delay delivery of punishment for years  ?

No doubt , there must be several reasons , including , inter - agency rivalry to get credit - something difficult to eliminate altogether

But , I believe , the most important reason is :

Lack of a COMMON  / COMPUTERIZED  database of all offences / cases / persons being investigated

And , which is readily " Accessible " to all of these Agencies , all over the country ( 24 * 365 )

Already , every Agency compiles huge dossiers on " Suspects " in its own 

" Departmental Database " , which is never shared with other Agencies ,

leading to ,

*   Huge amount of duplication of efforts / information

*   Fractured / scattered profiles of " Suspects "

*   Enormous waste of time / resources

What will help  ?

*  Dismantling of individual departmental databases

*  Merging of all Agency-wise databases into a SINGLE / UNIQUE database

*  All Agencies to enter their findings / data / info into this COMMON

     database , with nothing preserved on local computers

*  All data-entry FORMS to be ONLINE . No paper forms at all

*  All local computers connected to ultra-secure Network ( Encrypted )

*  " Access Rights " to individuals , based on Biometric Identification

I believe , not only such an " INTEGRATION  OF  DATABASES " is highly desirable , it is also ENTIRELY POSSIBLE , if there is a POLITICAL WILL

And I don't think , this will require passing of any law in the Parliament

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26  Aug  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs