Monday, 20 February 2017

Un-Implementable Laws : Unstoppable Corruption

Mumbai Municipal Corporation is about to implement a “ Pay and Park “ policy for vehicles

THE POLICY

Parking charges will differ – and depend upon :

· Day parking vs Night Parking ( 8 pm to 8 am )

( Night time charges will be 50 % of Day time charges )

· Location Category

A = Prime Areas by Footfall

B = Busy Commercial Areas

C = Other Areas

· Vehicle Category

4 wheelers = Buses / Cars ( Day time : Rs 3960 – 1320 pm )

2 Wheelers = Motorcycles ( Day time : Rs 1650 – 550 pm )

· All rates will be different on Sunday and Public Holiday

· Only one slot will be available per car owner and housing societies will have to get in touch with their local ward office to know the particulars

· For each location category, there will be different rates for “ Hourly Parking “, ranging as follows :

# Cat A = Rs 60 / Cat B = Rs 40 / Cat C = Rs 20 ( for 4 wheelers )

# Cat A = Rs 15 / Cat B = Rs 5 / Cat C = Rs 5 ( for 2 wheelers )

Charges will change “ Parking Duration “ wise ( 1-3 hr / 3-6 hr / 6-12 hr / 12-24 hr )

· Parking will be FREE for certain designated areas

WILL APPLY TO

· There are some 30 lakh vehicles in Mumbai , comprising 17 lakh 2 wheelers and 9 lakh , 4 wheelers ( no idea about vehicles in transit or being scrapped ! )

· Some 500 new vehicles are getting registered DAILY

· More than half of these are being parked on public roads ( day and night )

· Mumbai boasts of 2000 km of public roads

WHO WILL ISSUE “ PARKING PERMITS “ ?

Some “ humans “ sitting in RTO or some other Government Department

WHAT PROOF WILL THEY NEED ?

· Domicile Certificate

· Aadhar Card

· Proof of Residential Addresses ( or Office Address ) from your building Societies

· Car Registration Book ( proof that car belongs to YOU )

· Letters from Society Secretaries confirming that you are not allotted any parking space inside the Society premises

· Letter from RTO re number of vehicles registered in your name

WHAT CRITERIA WILL BE USED WHILE GRANTING PARKING PERMIT ?

· Number of members in applicant’s family

· Number of vehicles in applicant’s family

· Duration of stay in Mumbai

· Duration of ownership of vehicles

· Location Category ( Resi / Office )

· Daily Travel direction and distance to be covered ( to / from )

· Whether Petrol / Diesel or Electric Vehicle

· Reason for not using “ Public Transport “

· Why you cannot use a 2 wheeler in place of a 4 wheeler ?

· Why you cannot work at night instead of in day time ? or a staggered shift ?

· If coming to work from outside Municipal Limits , why can’t you leave your vehicle outside and take a taxi ?

· Why can’t you take your family for a movie on a Sunday ?

CAN A HUMAN REJECT YOUR CLAIM BASED ON THESE CRITERIA ?

· That is the whole idea ! How else can he “ oblige “ you – for a “ consideration “ ?

CANNOT A SOFTWARE ALGORITHM ALLOT PARKING PERMITS FAIRLY ?

· No big deal for a software to decide : “ Who “ gets to park, “ Where and When “

· If actual traffic pattern ( including ,” which “vehicle was stationary – parked – and “ when “ – and for “ how long “ ) can be compiled for a period of 3 months , then , using BIG DATA ANALYTICS , this can be done by a software

WHAT WILL BE REQUIRED ?

· Every vehicle to be fitted with a RFID sensor / GPS locator app

· Exclusive Transponder on a Geo-Synchronous Satellite

CAN ANYTHING BE DONE TO AUTOMATE COLLECTION OF PARKING CHARGES ?

· No problem ! Since the days of coin-operated Parking Meters on footpaths , technology has made tremendous progress

· May be latest version of such meters do not require coins but swipe of a card

· Only problem is that you need an army of Traffic Policemen who can keep roaming Mumbai’s 2000 km of roads , to find out which Parking Meter is showing RED FLAG , indicating expiry of parking time !

And of course , “ hafta trade “ will flourish like anything !

WHAT OTHER TECHNOLOGIES CAN HELP ?

· Shri Nitin Gadkariji has already introduced automated toll gates where car owners need not stop to pay the toll charges . Vehicles which have installed pre-paid RFID sensors can just whiz pass ! Toll amount gets deducted / transferred , automatically

There is no technological difficulty in “ reversing “ this application for stationary vehicles !

· Then there are drones !

An army of drones can keep tab ( 24*7 ) of all stationary vehicles , find those which are stationary at the same GPS location for more than 10 minutes and deduct the appropriate “ parking charges “ from those pre-paid RFID sensors , installed in all vehicles . No rocket science this ! Vehicle batteries will supply power to RFID chips

· And if you do not want to track / monitor / control , an army of DRONES , then just ask ISRO to launch a Geo-Synchronous Satellite to do the same job for ALL the vehicles in ALL the cities of India !

WHY DO WE NEED TO DECIDE , WHO WILL / CAN , PARK WHERE AND WHEN AND FOR HOW LONG ?

Let vehicle owners park any number of vehicles , anywhere and at any time and for any period – if they manage to find a parking slot !

As long as vehicles are installed with pre-paid RFID chips , our Geo Satellite will keep collecting parking charges and transfer to the bank account of Mumbai Municipal Corporation !

NO HUMAN INTERVENTION !

NO ARBITRARY DECISIONS !

NO NEED FOR MILLIONS OF APPLICATIONS TO BE PROCESSED !

NO NEED FOR COLLECTION MACHINERY !

NO ARMY OF TRAFFIC POLICE TO CHECK PARKING VIOLATIONS !

NO SCOPE FOR HAFTAS !

And ISRO will do all of this for , may be Rs 100 crores , which is dirt cheap !

If all 20 crore vehicles get covered by this Satellite , cost per vehicle will be just Rs 5 / -

HOW MUCH CAN BMC EARN USING SUCH A SATELLITE ?

Here is an approx. estimate based on average of parking rates proposed by BMC :

# For Day / Night Parking Slots ( allotted )

· For 9 lakh 4 wheelers ….. Rs 237 Crore / month

· For 17 lakh 2 wheelers…. Rs 187 Crore / month

· For 4 lakh others………….. Rs 60 Crore / month

# For hourly rate parking ( non-alloted )

· All types of vehicles…….. Rs 300 Crore / month

TOTAL …………………………… Rs 784 Crore / month ( Rs 9,408 Cr / year )

Now it is not difficult for NDA Ministers concerned ( Shri Nitin Gadkariji / Shri Venkaiah Naiduji ) to compute such “ Revenue “ figures for ALL other municipalities and conclude that the Geo Satellite will pay for itself in just ONE DAY !

Please , do not misunderstand me

I am not publishing this blog in order to influence the voters in tomorrow’s BMC elections , to vote for that party which promises to implement my suggestion !

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20 Feb 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Sunday, 19 February 2017

Spirit of Israel

Recently following very informative news reports appeared:

· Economic Times / 19 Feb 2017

“ Israel, a startup oasis in the middle of a war zone “

{ http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/israel-a-startup-oasis-in-the-middle-of-a-war-zone/articleshow/57225306.cms }

Extract :

A small country of over 8 million people — mostly immigrants — with no natural
resources, no local market and surrounded by enemies, Israel is a political startup where survival instinct is part of the DNA.

It has 6,000 active startups, 350 MNC R&D centres, has seen exits worth $ 9.2 billion and venture funding worth $ 4.8 billion in 2016

How does Israel do it ?

Lessons from the tiny, closely networked country may not be directly relevant for India.

Yet, in a year when India’s startup world is on a rough ride, both the NDA government and the industry stakeholders would do well to look for some inspiration there.

Government as Catalyst

“Our biggest job is to not stand in the way of the hi-tech private sector,” says Simhon.

For example, he says, a lot of Israeli startups focus on DEFENCE-RELATED TECHNOLOGIES.

And there was a view in the government that a committee should vet which countries can buy these Israeli companies and which cannot.

“Restriction in itself wasn’t bad but it would have unnecessarily created hurdles for the startups. Let’s just say that as of now we have no such committee,”

says Simhon with a smile.

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· Business Line / 20 Feb 2017

“ Hi-tech Tel Aviv to old town Jerusalem ; a whirlwind trip

{ http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/variety/israel-diary-hitech-tel-aviv-to-old-town-jerusalem-a-whirlwind-trip/article9550717.ece }

Extract :

Start-up nation

Israel is the original start-up nation.

And almost all are tech enterprises: from cyber security to artificial intelligence and robotics, Israel’s entrepreneurs are right up there. The numbers are mind-boggling.

The country has something like ,

· 6,000 start-ups,

· 90 venture capital funds

· 200 angel funds,

· 25 incubators

· 70 accelerators,

· 16 tech transfer offices

· 350 multinationals

that have set up R&D centres in the country.

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MY TAKE :

In terms of population , India is 162 TIMES BIGGER than Israel . If we emulate how Israel managed its START – UP eco-system , ( GettingOut of the Way ) , we can become the biggest START – UP NATION on the earth

{ https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/02/here-is-clue-get-out-of-their-way.html }

When our neta ( Shri Narendra Modiji ) meets the Israel neta ( their PM , Netanyahu ) later this year , it is possible that he might ask :

“ Sir , are you not afraid that the defence technologies that your Start Ups develop , might land up in the hands of your enemies , enabling them to copy it ? “

I suppose , Shri Netanyahu might reply :

“ May be !

But there is no way they can copy the Spirit of Israel “

20 Feb 2017

www.hemenparekh.in/ blogs

Saturday, 18 February 2017

Not a BAD idea – only a little EARLY !

Some 9 months back , when I proposed a Universal Mobile-based Attendance System { UMAS } , it is possible that some might have considered it impractical / non – feasible

I invite them to take a look at the following news report appearing in Times of India ( 19 Feb 2017 ) and re-consider ,

From BAD to MAD / 01 June 2016

{ https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/06/from-bad-to-mad.html }

“ New Office Sensors know when you leave your Desk “

About a year ago, in a widely reported story, journalists at British newspaper the Telegraph found little black boxes installed under their desks.

The devices, which had “OccupEye” emblazoned on them, detected if employees were at their workstations.

Not shockingly, writers and editors were suspicious, worried that bosses were monitoring their moves, even their bathroom breaks.

The National Union of Journalists complained to management about Big Brother-style surveillance. The company insisted the boxes were intended to reduce energy costs, ensuring that empty cubicles weren’t overheated or over-air-conditioned, but the damage was done, and the devices were removed.

Sensors that keep tabs on more than temperature are already all over offices—they’re just less conspicuous and don’t have names that suggest Bond villains.

“Most people, when they walk into buildings, don’t even notice them,” says Joe Costello, chief executive officer of Enlighted, whose sensors, he says, are collecting data at more than 350 companies, including 15 percent of the Fortune 500.

They’re hidden in lights, ID badges, and elsewhere, tracking things such as conference room usage, EMPLOYEE WHEREABOUTS, and “latency”—how long someone goes without speaking to another co-worker.

Proponents claim the goal is efficiency:

Some sensors generate heat maps that show how people move through an office, to help maximize space; others, such as OccupEye, tap into HVAC systems

The office-design company Gensler has 1,000 Enlighted sensors lining its new space in New York. Embedded in light fixtures, the dime-size devices detect motion, daylight, and energy usage; a back-end system adjusts lighting levels.

The sensors also learn employees’ behavior patterns. If workers in a given department start the day at 10 a.m., lights will stay dim until about that hour.

So far, Gensler has seen a 25 percent savings in energy costs. It estimates the investment—installation cost the company about $1.70 per square foot, or roughly $200,000—will pay off in five years.

Legally speaking, U.S. businesses are within their rights to go full-on Eye of Sauron.

“Employers can do any kind of monitoring they want in the workplace that doesn’t involve the bathroom,” says Lewis Maltby, president of the National Workrights Institute.

And as long as the data is anonymized, as Enlighted’s is, some people don’t mind tracking if it makes work life easier.

“It doesn’t bother me. It doesn’t feel intrusive,” says Luke Rondel, 31, a design strategist at Gensler. “It’s kind of cozy when you’re working late at night to be in a pod of light.”

A majority of U.S. workers the Pew Research Center surveyed last year said they’d tolerate surveillance and data collection in the name of safety.

Up to a point, perhaps. The Boston Consulting Group has outfitted about 100 volunteer employees in its new Manhattan office with badges that embed a microphone and a location sensor.

Made by Humanyze in Boston, the badges track physical and verbal interactions. BCG says it intends to use the data to see how office design affects employee communication.

Outside critics have called the plan Orwellian and despotic—“It is a little bit invasive,” says Ross Love, 57, a BCG managing partner who volunteered—but the data collected is anonymized, and the company has pledged not to use it for performance evaluation.

Going even further, Enlighted is piloting a BADGE THAT LETS A BUSINESS TRACK SPECIFIC INDIVIDUALS VIA AN ACCOMPANYING APP.

CEO Costello says it’s more efficient to find a co-worker this way than it is to send a volley of e-mails and Slack messages and hope for a reply.

The badges haven’t yet made it outside Enlighted’s offices, but there’s already interest from clients who want to use them to arrange in-person gatherings more easily, like a Facebook group come to life.

“You get used to it,” Costello says. And if you don’t, try not to get too overheated about it and storm out of the building. You might just blast your colleagues with cold air.

19 Feb 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

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Added on 20 Aug 2021 :

Friday, 17 February 2017

Here is a clue : Get Out of their Way !

Two days back , ISRO launched 104 satellites in one go ( against 36 of Russia and 29 of America )

May not be soon , but someday even this record will get broken

How did ISRO manage this “ unimaginable “ feat ?

Short answer : By imagining

Long answer : By government getting out of ISRO’s way !

No doubt , ISRO must be , periodically , sending some documents to the Central Government , but I believe it does not need umpteen permissions / approvals / authorizations , at every step

Nor must it be bothered by visits of “ Inspectors / Auditors “ from ,

· Labour Department

· Pollution Control Department

· Fire-fighting Department

· Building Permissions Department

· Excise / Octroi Departments

· Income Tax Departments …..etc

More or less , it is free to set its own “ Objectives / Targets “

But more importantly, it is enabled to implement the same with minimum ( or “ NIL “ ? ) interference from the governments ( Local / State / Central )

Now , let us look at some other recent , interesting news :

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· Economic Times / 18 Feb 2017

China to face pressure to ensure enough jobs this year - vice premier

China will face pressure to ensure sufficient job creation this year, vice premier Ma Kai said on Friday, even after authorities beat targets and created more than 13 million jobs last year.

The government should increase coordination between employment and economic policies and encourage job creation through innovation, Ma said at a State Council meeting on employment on Friday.

China targeted 10 million new urban jobs in 2016, and said on Monday it hoped to create 50 million new jobs over the five years to 2020 and keep unemployment below 5 percent.

Hindustan Times / 18 Feb 2017

The Zuckerberg manifesto: How he plans to debug the world

His 5,800-word essay positions Facebook in direct opposition to a rising tide of isolationism and fear of outsiders, both in the US and abroad

“ Across the world there are people left behind by globalization, and movements for withdrawing from global connection “

Zuckerberg, 32, told the AP that he still strongly believes that more connectedness is the right direction for the world.

But, he adds, it’s “not enough if it’s good for some people but it’s doesn’t work for other people. We really have to bring everyone along.”

“Looking ahead, one of our greatest opportunities to keep people safe is building artificial intelligence to understand more quickly and accurately what is happening across our community,” he wrote.

Speaking to the AP, Zuckerberg said he understands that we might not “solve all the issues that we want” in the short term.

“ One of my favourite quotes is this Bill Gates quote, that ‘ people overestimate what they can get done in two years and underestimate what they can get done in 10 years.’ And that’s an important mind-set that I hope more people take today,” he said.

· Times of India / 18 Feb 2017

“ Inside Israel’s Hotbed of Global Innovation “

The Sosa complex that’s home to 2,500 ventures, 450 partners and 45 investors, is the country’s next big thing to retain its start-up edge. It has received 150 global delegations

Founded in 2014, Sosa is a hip complex that builds physical spaces and networks to help start-ups, investors and MNCs connect and collaborate.

Routinely, global delegations and multinational corporations arrive here to look up Israeli start-ups.

It was this serendipity that lured Enel, an Italian energy giant, to Sosa last August.

It had landed in Israel two years back, scouting for start-ups in cyber-security, drones, smartphones and IoT.

“Israel has the world’s highest concentration of innovative start-ups and smart engineers,” says Iran Levy, Israel- based MD of Enel Innovation Lab.

[ My note :

Against Israel’s population of 8.2 million , India’s IT industry employs 3.9 million persons . As per recent McKinsey report, nearly half of the workforce in the IT services firms will be “irrelevant” over the next 3-4 years. ]

Enel’s lab collaborates closely with Sosa to screen and shortlist Israeli start-ups it wants to work with.

So far, it has met “hundreds” of start-ups, held four boot camps for delegations from Italy, is working closely with around 20 ventures, has made a few investments and is exploring many more.

Once Enel zeroes in on a start-up, it sponsors a project which could take three-six months to develop the relevant technology applications.

In the volatile world of start-ups, the trick is to find the next wave, stay ahead of the curve and be the first to go in for the kill.

Sosa is one of the many initiatives that Israel, known as the Start-up Nation and among the top five start-up hubs in the world, is doing to retain its edge.

Set up by pioneers of Israeli hi-tech industry, Sosa calls itself the town square of global innovators.

Going beyond accelerators and incubators, it brings together innovative start-ups, hard-nosed investors, supporting incubators and mighty MNCs under one roof.

Now India with 4500 Start Ups , claims to have overtaken Israel

But take a look at the numbers :

The government received only about 1,368 applications,

Of these, only 502 were recognized as start-ups by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion { DIPP }

And an even smaller subset—just the 111 firms incorporated after April 1, 2016,

were considered for tax benefits.

Finally, the benefits were granted to only 8 start-ups.

REASON ?

We have yet to figure out :

* Howto untether, our Start Ups , in the same way we have done with ISRO ? “

{ https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/07/in-wonderland-of-start-ups.html }

* Howto unshackle our Start Ups , in the same way as CHINA ?