Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Sunday, 5 November 2017

Integrity Index



Business Line ( 04 Nov ) carries following news report :




“ Vigilance panel to roll out Integrity Index “


The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) expects to roll out the “integrity index” that is being worked out with IIM-Ahmedabad by January next year, on a pilot basis, Chief Vigilance Commissioner KV Chowdary said here today.


Chowdary, said the Commission is suggesting the investigating agencies to use online systems to collect data from banks, Income Tax department and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), among others.



MEASURE OF EFFICIENCY

“Integrity Index is to measure what kind of robust process each organisation has and how they are implemented. It is a kind of measure of efficiency and also the performance outcome of the organisation vis-a-vis its services.



PERCEPTION INDEX

“It is not corruption index. It is the perception index on how people perceive the organisation. That hopefully we will be able to do some time by December or January,” Chowdary told reporters.


According to him, the index will initially be calculated for 25 organisations, of various categories such as government departments and PSUs and bodies like Medical Council of India and later extended to all other organisations.



“These sources are tapped and one nodal agency in each department is identified to supply data (to the investigating agency),” he said about the new initiatives suggested by the CVC in corruption and disproportionate assets cases.




Dear Shri Chowdaryji :



Congratulations on an overdue initiative !



I believe , following will help you to “ advance “ your efforts :


=================================================

E - Governance?  [  03  April  2014  ]

 

Break-downthe Silos !  [  16  Sept  2017  ]


 

AGENDAFOR REFORMS   [  01  Oct  2015  ]


 

ISIN  > <  U SIN   [  18  Aug  2013  ]


http://www.hemenparekh.in/2013/08/i-sin-sin-that-could-be-name-of-android.html#.WgAOvmiCzcc

 

=======================================================

06  Nov  2017

www,hemenparekh.in / blogs

 




#Aadhar-the-Irreversible

An  Electronic  Amalgam  ?



In high-school , we learned that , certain ( not all ) , finely ground metal powders  :


·         When mixed and stirred , form a “ MIXTURE “ , which permits those metals to be “ separated “ by mechanical methods


·         Same powders when thoroughly mixed and heated beyond their melting temperatures , create an “ ALLOY “ , which cannot be separated mechanically



This observation is true of BITS of MATTER



Does it hold good for BYTES of DIGITAL DATA ?



To me , it seems so  !


I am tempted to call this phenomenon ,

ELECTRONIC  AMALGAM  !



Take the case of Aadhar , which is our BIO-METRIC DATA ( captured as BYTES )



Over the past 3 years ( - and especially after De-Monetization ) , Aadhar has been alloyed  inextricably with the following other BYTES of DIGITAL DATA , to form an ELECTRONIC AMALGAM  :


·         130 DBT Schemes

·         Bank Accounts

·         Mobile Wallets

·         Ration Cards

·         Credit-Debit Cards

·         PAN Cards

·         Driving Licenses

·         Income Tax Payments / GST Payments

·         E Commerce Apps

·         Voter ID Cards ( soon ? )

·         Online Purchase of Train ( - and other transport ) services

·         Registration on most web sites / all Messaging Apps / Social Media

·         Passport / Travel Documents

·         Appearing for Online Exams / Tests


·         Altogether firmly linked with ,

#     50 crore SIM cards

#     54 crore Bank Accounts seeded with Aadhar

#     118.64 crore Indians who used it for authentication nearly 1217 crore times

#     19 crore Jan Dhan bank accounts used Aadhar for identification

#     9.54 crore MGNREGA workers have used Aadhar to receive wages in accounts

#     1.48 crore pensioners have linked Aadhar to bank accounts

#     1.36 crore Indians got passport based on Aadhar

#     Due to Aadhar linkage, 11.35 lakh duplicate PAN got detected / deactivated


   
List keeps growing by the day !



Therefore , I am not surprised that 2 days back , Supreme Court refused to grant a stay to petitioners for Aadhar Act legitimacy and  linking with Bank Accounts / Mobile Nos



It referred the matter to the 5 Judge Constitutional Bench , formed for this purpose , which will decide by end November



I would be surprised if that Constitutional Bench were to decide :


·         Aadhar Act is “ Un-Constitutional “ and must be struck down



That would be like discovering some, hitherto unknown method of separation / dis-entanglement / dismembering  / destruction , of  an ELECTRONIC  AMALGAM ,


 - a task of erasing trillions of petabytes of 0s and 1s , from millions of computers from all over the World – remotely and without the permissions of those Computer Owners !


The chaos that is bound to ensue, will make us forget the pains of DEMONETIZATION and GST , combined !



We have many examples of “ Un-implementable Laws 


Striking down Aadhar Act will be an example of “ Un-enforceable Judgement “ !



Such a “ discovery “ would merit a Nobel Prize ( - in “ Virtual Unreality “ category ? )


I have no doubt , the Hon Judges of the Supreme Court have heard about :

The Law of Un-intended Consequences




06  Nov  2017





Saturday, 4 November 2017

Who Will Create Jobs ?



Certainly , not BIG companies !


Here is the proof :

Economic Times ( 03 Nov ) carries following news report :




“ Big Cos Not So Big On Job Creation “



For instance, the gross block of top 10 large companies, such as L&T, BHEL and Indian Oil, rose 8.6 % a year since 2008 , but headcount increased at just 0.5 %  a year


The average manpower growth at Manufacturing companies included in the BSE 500 was 2.88 % a year , with more additions at smaller companies



To validate , just take any BIG company’s Annual Report


Find out


( A )…… “ No of Employees “

( B )…" Total Capital ( Fixed + Working ) Employed “


Divide….. B / A


You will come up with a figure of Rs ONE CRORE or more !


India adds ONE MILLION ( 10 lakh ) persons per month to its workforce  ( 12 Million / year )


Let us “ desire “ that , out of this 10 lakh , BIG companies should provide jobs to just 1 lakh persons



That means , BIG companies would need to put in Rs ONE lakh*crore worth of CAPITAL ( Fixed + Working ) , EVERY MONTH !



Even if market demand keeps GROWING for their “ Products / Services “ [ month after month ] , who has that kind of money ?  (  Remember , even the fastest growing markets for  any product / service is no more than 1 % per month ! )



And putting up large / organized sector businesses , take years – especially , factories !



So , what should be the government’s focus as far as job creation is concerned ?



It should be “ Self Employed “ sector , at the “ Bottom of the Pyramid “ !



Obviously , it is not practical to increase the number of “ Licensed Hawkers “ in Mumbai , from ONE LAKH to TEN LAKH , without bringing all traffic ( pedestrian and vehicular ), to a complete stop



But we must find a way to enable ONE MILLION ( 10 lakh ) flat / hut owners to carry on business from their homes / residences , by simply registering as “ Self Employed from Home “ ,  as long as such business / industry / service is non-hazardous ( air pollution – noise pollution – chemical effluent – explosives – harmful radiation – vending of banned items – delivering of banned services etc )



To understand why , read :










Start-UpEco-Systems / USA vs INDIA 

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/10/start-up-eco-systems-usa-vs-india.html



 

A NEWECONOMIC ORDER ? aka " Start Up Act - 2015 "

 https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/09/a-new-economic-order.html



 


Any other approach is “ Bakwaas “  !



05  Nov  2017




Friday, 3 November 2017

#SolarCooker

Solar  Chula  ?  Some  Unanswered  Questions




Today’s news-papers carry following big advertisement from ONGC :



Design , Innovate & Create

Solar Chula to fuel every Indian Kitchen – An initiative for Startup India
In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to promote solar energy, all entrepreneurs, scientists and researchers are invited to come up with innovative ideas to design and develop “ Solar Chula

TIME FRAME

Interested applicants may please register on or before 1st December 2017 at the below mentioned web site 
( For details log on to : https://startup.ongc.co.in )


SUCCESSFUL INNOVATORS

On successful demonstration and testing of performance of a few units , about 1000 units may be initially procured for demonstration in different regions

Financial support may be provided for fabrication of 1000 units



CASH AWARDS for TOP 3 DESIGNS

1st >  Rs 10 lakh ………….  2nd >  Rs  5  lakh ……………. 3rd >  Rs  3  lakh




UN-ANSWERED  QUESTIONS  :


·         On the web site mentioned above , there was no “ Registration Form “ !


·         Nowhere on the web site , there are any SPECIFICATIONS , against which ONGC will carry out those “ Performance Tests “ to decide “ Successful Demonstration


Eg :

For Google Lunar X-PRIZE ( of $ 30 million ) , its web site lays down clear / unambiguous / precise “ Specifications “ as follows :


     #  SUCCESSFULLY PLACE A SPACECRAFT ON THE MOON’S SURFACE


# TRAVEL 500 METERS


#  TRANSMIT HIGH-DEFINITION VIDEO AND IMAGES BACK TO EARTH

 

In total absence of any SPECIFICATIONS , will this ( ONGC ) expensive / time – effort consuming exercise boil down to , “ It is MY word against YOURs “ ?

 

·         In India , solar chulhas have been tried extensively for over 30 years ( - and finally given up ) , due to a total lack of understanding of the needs of an Indian housewife !

 

          Solar chulhas of old consisted of nothing more than a metal box ( mostly

          aluminium ) inside which , lady of the house placed raw food ingredients in some

          utensils , and then left the box on the terrace to absorb the sun light

         Occasional designs had concave metal tops for concentrating sun light

 

         Entire process of cooking ( a small meal ) took 3 HOURS – even  if the lady kept

         rotating the box frequently as the sun climbed in the sky. Just sit on the terrace  !

         

        And for that evening meal , there was no sun after 6 pm !

 

        Even 30 years ago , housewife did not have 3 HOURS to cook a meal !

       Today’s working housewife has no more than 30 MINUTES for that job – even in

       rural areas !

 

       That means , she needs a high-level CONCENTRATED burst of energy for cooking

       That is why , she prefers GAS / ELECTRIC stove. Even a kerosene stove will do !

 

       Hence , the SPECIFICATIONS  for Solar Chulhas would need to be :

 

      #  Chulha should be capable of cooking a meal for 4 persons ( will need to sharply

         define “ MEAL “ ) , in 30 minutes , solely drawing its power from a SOLAR POWER

         STORAGE device , which collects / stores solar power , from solar panels mounted

         on the terrace / roof top . Solar Storage Device should have adequate storage

         capacity for cooking 2 meals before needing re-charge and should be capable of

         being re-charged from standard 210 V / 5 Amp domestic electric outlet

 

     #  Chulha should be of XYZ dimensions , for easy accommodation inside a kitchen

 

     #  Chulha should not cost more than Rs 10,000 / - to manufacture ( which would be

         excluding the cost of SOLAR POWER STORAGE device )

 

     #  ONGC will not have any IPR ( Intellectual Property Right ) for the winning designs

        , which will vest in the INNOVATOR . However , the innovator would be required to

        license any party / person for the manufacture , without any licence fee / royalty

 

I am sure , ONGC can come up with some better / precise specifications – and SOON !

Those who have any doubts as to the URGENT NEED for a Solar Chulha , please read :

 

SAVINGTHE CURRENT GENERATION  [  10  Dec  2015  ]




04  Nov  2017