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

Thursday, 27 January 2022

What is price of your Vote ?

 


 

For past few months, the question that political parties seem to asking the voters, is ;

What is price of your vote ?

Ø  Free smartphone / laptop / cycle / scooter / ration / gas cylinder / education ?

Ø  Jobs / scholarships / monthly cash for girls / mangal-sutra / flat ?

You name it – and we promise ( * conditions apply )


But the Supreme Court is saying :

Promise of freebies in polls a 'serious issue', asserts SC  /  Deccan Chronicle  /  25 Jan 2022


Extract :


The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued notice to the Centre and the Election Commission on a plea seeking to curb the political parties from promising freebies in their election manifestos, thereby putting under further strain the exchequer of already debt-ridden state finances.


Describing the issue as “serious”, Chief Justice N.V. Ramana, heading a bench also comprising Justice A.S. Bopanna and Justice Hima Kohli, expressed his doubts  on how to go about the practice of all the political parties promising freebies to the electorate on the eve of state Assembly elections.


The court gave both the Centre and the Election Commission four weeks’ time to reply.


“Tell us how we can manage it. We must also know how we are going to control it,” CJI Ramana told senior lawyer Vikas Singh who had appeared for PIL petitioner and BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay.


Singh referred to an Election Symbol order and told the court that if a political party does not desist from promising freebies, then Election Commission can use this in the next election to freeze the symbol and deregister it.


Senior lawyer told the court that the Election Commission did issue guidelines to curb freebies but they are toothless and can’t be enforced.


The court also asked Singh to read from an earlier judgment of the top court where the court had adversely commented on the announcement of freebies including cash transfers at the time of the elections and had described them as corrupt practices.


At the outset of the hearing as Vikas Singh told the court that all political parties were announcing freebies, CJI Ramana asked him, “If all parties are doing it, why did you name just two parties only” in your petition.

 

MY TAKE :

Congressmen are Confused ! ………………………………[ 31 Dec 2013 ]

 

Bribing The Voters ………………………………………………[ 28 April 2014 ]

 

Extract :

Even the almighty Supreme Court seemed helpless, when it held recently :

 

 

"  Although promises of distribution of freebies may not technically constitute  corrupt practice , under the Representation of People Act , they vitiate the electoral process by influencing voters and disturbing the level playing between contesting parties "

 

 

And since there is no difference of opinion between the political parties when it comes to exploiting the poverty of 400 million BPL ( Below the Poverty Line ) voters , I would not be surprised if the next government at the Centre , introduces a  ,

 

 "  Bribe ( given ) Politically ( is ) Legal ( BPL ) Bill "

 

 in the very first session of 16th Lok Sabha  !

 

Expect it to be passed unanimously - and without a debate  !


Political parties are firm believer of what Kaushik Basu ( onetime advisor to PM ) once said ( - although in a different context ) ,

 

Giving bribe must not be treated as crime

 

Ordinary citizens are forced to give bribes when they are denied , service that is legitimately due to them

 

If they are held innocent , they will come forward and report all instances when they were forced to bribe bureaucrats

  

Only bribe-takers must be punished  "

 

One Up on Free Wi - Fi ? …………………………………[ 11 Feb 2015 ]

 

Advantage , Incumbent ?........................... …[ 05 Sept 2016 ]

 

Extract :


On 22 Feb 2014 , following Supreme Court directives , the Election Commission , revised , " Model Code of Conduct " , containing guidelines on what kind of poll promises , political parties can incorporate in their poll manifestos

  

GUIDELINES

 

 *   Parties shall make only those promises which are possible to be fulfilled

  

*   It is expected that manifestos also reflect the rationale for the promises

     and broadly indicate the ways and means to meet the financial requirements

      for it

 

 *   Party in power shall stop advertizing for publicity of achievements

 

 

Now, no one expects our Parliament to :

Ø  Incorporate EC’s “ Guidelines “ in a statute ( law ) which carries stiff punishment for political parties which violate such a law ( no political party will support such a bill )


Ø  Enact a law ( or an amendment to any existing law ), which gives Election Commission the POWER to disqualify ( temporarily or permanently ) any political party which violates above mentioned GUIDELINES ( - with , of course, a provision for aggrieved party to challenge in Supreme Court )


Ø  Pass a law which makes all promises ( Political Bribes to Voters ), legal !


Given this scenario, if MEDIA were to conduct a survey of the voters which asks :


Ø  Would you support conducting General Elections ( for LokSabha ), every 3 years ? .. YES / NO


Ø  Ditto for State Elections ?...YES / NO

 

-   Then I believe 80 % of ALL voters would respond with a resounding… YES  !   

Hey, I can get a new laptop, every 3 years !

 

With regards,

Hemen Parekh / hcp@RecruitGuru.com / 27 Jan 2022

 

Related Readings :

Election Reforms " Summarized………………………… [ 18 Aug 2017 ]

 

Model Code of ( Hypocrite ) Conduct ?................. [ 07 Jan 2017 ]

 

  

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, 26 January 2022

Cogratulations, Shri Rajaramanji,

 


 

Context :

Public wifi hotspots have potential to generate 2-3 crore jobs this year: Telecom Secretary

 

Eco Times / 25 Jan 2022

Extract :

 

Setting up of 1 crore public wifi hotspots across the country by this year as envisaged under the present telecom policy, has the potential to create 2 – 3 crore jobs , Telecom Secretary K Rajaraman has said

 

“ Given the conservative estimate of each hot spot generating 2 – 3 direct / indirect employment opportunities, the creation of 10 million hot spots as per the NDCP ( National Digital Communication Policy ) target by 2022, would potentially generate 20 – 30 million job opportunities in the Small and Medium Scale sectors “, Rajaraman said  

 

“ Sprawling manufacturing units will be needed to produce millions of access points for PM WANI which is the core of the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Mission and would, therefore lead to more job creation “ Rajaraman said

 


According to PM WANI portal, over 56,000 Wi Fi hotspots have been deployed across the country till date

 

Rajaraman said he wants more entrepreneurs to join PM WANI program facilitated by C DOT

 

“ We will be happy to facilitate existing entrepreneurs in local neighbourhoods , especially,

 

#  local cable operators,

 

#  internet service providers,

 

#  tourism operators etc.,

 

-        to come forward and help proliferate WANI access points across the country “ , he said

 

 

Cogratulations, Shri Rajaramanji,  

(  secy-dot@nic.in  ),

  

Following are extracts from my earlier e-mails in this matter :

 

 

7 YEARS ago :

 

If Mohamed cannot go to Mountain …………………………( 26 July 2015 )

 

Extract :

 

#  In today's internet era , an equivalent would be :

 

         " If people cannot go to where jobs are , let jobs go to where people live "

 

 

Remember, in 2015, it is much easier / cheaper to import " digital service " based jobs into India , then to export people to foreign countries , where they will face a lot of resistance / animosity from local citizens

 

Examples :

 Call Canters  /  BPO  /  RPO  / LPO  /  KPO ....any PO ( Process Outsourcing )

 

      #   Under " Digital India " program, let Union Government provide a 100 Mb

           broadband connection to each such " School-cum- Call Center " , free of

             cost

 

            That will also help the students to freely access digital education content

            throughout the day

 

 

Reminder :

Slow and Steady wins the Race ?.............................. [ 03 Oct 2016 ]

 

 

Dear Shri Rajaramanji,

 

In order to generate those 2 – 3 crore jobs , I urge you to consider suggestion that I made in my following mail ( 5 YEARS ago ) :

 

How About Virtual Call Centers ?................................. [ 04 Oct 2016 ]

 

Extract :

 

But then , in today's totally interconnected World , why should it be necessary for housing 10 / 20 / 50 persons in ONE place , under ONE roof , for collaborating on execution of COMMON tasks ?

 

 I am sure , in any given ONE square km of a small town , there are 50 unemployed - and quite possibly , GRADUATE - youngsters , who would be more than happy to " work from home "

 

 They will be happy to set aside , in their homes , a 5 feet by 5 feet space , as a " Home Work Station "

 

 Now , that subsidy of " Rs 1 lakh per seat " that the IT Ministry has promised , is quite sufficient to set up a :

 

VIRTUAL  CALL  CENTER ,

 

by connecting those 50 youngsters through a  , VPN ( VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK )

 

 And since these youngsters are working from their homes , they can be asked to work in 3 shifts of 8 hours each , providing " Round the Clock " service to customers !

  

If Uber-Ola are adding 5,000 " Ride Sharing Taxies " EVERY MONTH , by providing lease finance to the drivers or even buying the cars themselves and giving to these drivers , then what is holding back the IT Ministry to follow their suit and enable 5,000 youngsters to become " Self Employed " , each month ? or even 50,000 ?

 

Dear Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad-ji :

 

Why give a subsidy to a prospective " OWNER " of a Call Centre ?

 

Why not give it directly ( DBT / Direct Benefit Transfer ) to those youngsters ?

 

Of course , this subsidy transfer should take place , only AFTER , the Call Centre Owner , certifies that it has entered into a " Contractual Retainer-ship " with a particular youngster

 

I would request you to consider the following aspects of my suggestion :

  

*  No new building premises needed

  

*  All technologies for a VPN, are existing / well proven  / reasonably priced / easy

    to implement quickly

 

 *  MSPs / ISPs and your own Ministry are pushing internet connections to every

     corner of India

  

*  Moving from " Ownership of Assets " to " Assets as Service " scenario ( ala

    Uber-Ola-Airbnb etc )

 

 *  Moving from " Employment " to " Self Employment " with direct transfer of

     subsidy to beneficiary

 

 *  Has the potential to raise India's share in global BPO business from current 36

       % to 50 % in one year

 

 *  Can earn billions of dollars in foreign exchange

  

*  It would become a LIVING PROOF that DIGITAL INDIA can help our un-

   employed graduates to earn a living

 

*  Google  /  Microsoft  / Facebook , would be happy to help since " Next Billion "

    is their topmost agenda

 

 

In an age where the " Fast and Furious " are out to overtake the " Slow and Steady " , the meek are unlikely to inherit the earth !

 

 

With regards,

 

Hemen Parekh  /  hcp@RecruitGuru.com  /  27 Jan 2022

 

 

CC:

 

Shri A K Tiwari

Member(Technology)

membert-dot@nic.in

Shri Dilip Padhye

Member(Finance)

memberf-dot@nic.in

Shri Ashok Kumar Mittal

Member(Services)

members-dot@nic.in

 

 

Related Readings :

 

#WiFi #LiFi #Broadband #Internet …………………………………[ 08 April 2018 ]

 

Monday, 24 January 2022

Thank You , Shri Sanjiv Mehta

 


(sanjiv.mehta@unilever.com )

 

What For ?

For thinking about the URBAN poor


Context :

Need MGNREGA-like scheme for urban poor: HUL chief   /  TNN  /  24 Jan 2022

Extract :

The government could look at extending the outlay on MGNREGA till the economy fully recovers and the rural markets and consumption goes back to its normal beat

 

However, in the last 2 years, very little has been done for the urban poor

 

During the pandemic, restaurants, hotels and tourism have been impacted in a big way

 

We have been asking the government that we need to look at a MNREGA equivalent for the urban poor

 

The same can be customized to the urban needs

 


Dear Shri Mehta,

 

Thank you for suggesting a MNREGA equivalent for the urban poor


For specifics of such a scheme, you may want to look up my following mail to Cabinet Ministers / NITI Aayog :


MGNREGA : Can it morph into UBI ?................................. [ 11 May 2020 ]


Extract :

 

MGNREGA should be re-named, MGNRUGA ( Mahatma Gandhi National

    Rural Urban Employment Guarantee Act )

  

Ø  Besides RURAL households, it should cover URBAN households as well

  

Ø  Besides “ Unskilled Manual Work “, it must also cover “ Semi-skilled / Skilled “ work as well

  

Ø  The daily wages payable , must be the “ Minimum Wage “ at the start of each Skill level grade and periodically revised upward, depending upon CPI

  

Ø  Number of “ Guaranteed Days of Work Employment / year “ should be :

 

#  Rural Areas …………………………… 300 days ( up from current 100 days )

 

 #  Urban Areas :

 

          Class II towns ………………… 200 days

 

          Class I Cities……………………  100 days

 

 

Ø  On MGNRUGA website , there will be provision for,

  

#  Jobless persons to register ( providing full personal data / job locations

    preferred / Skill level /  prior experience etc )

      

#  Companies / Establishments to register , providing full details of vacancies

#  Match-making / Allocation etc

  

Ø  If an Urban establishment provides work to any of the REGISTERED UNEMPLOYED

 referred by MGNRUGA web site, it will not be required to pay wages ( to

those  persons ), for periods mentioned above.

 

For them, the wages will get paid directly by the Ministry subsidizing, at rates prescribed under the Act ( DBT ) .

Any wages paid in excess , will have to be borne by the establishment concerned

 

This “ Wage Subsidy “ will be available ONLY to those establishments, who install in their premises, Mobile-based Attendance System , as described at :

      

From BAD to MAD                   [ 01 June 2016 ]

    MAD goes to Mandi                  [ 02 Jan 2020  ]

 

HOW WILL THIS HELP ?

 

Ø  This modification of Scheme will cover jobless persons, all over India – not only Rural India

 

Ø  The scheme as it stands now, covers “ works “ related only to ,

             #   Soil and Water Conservation

             #   Ground Water Recharge

             #   Irrigation

             #   Drainage

             #   Plantation

             #   Land……. Etc

 

           My suggestion will extend the scheme to cover urban offices / factories /

          shops etc , where millions have been rendered jobless due to lockdown

           

 

          Current rural schemes have to be monitored by govt officers / panchayat

          office-bearers, who may lack supervision skills and / or lack “ motivation “

          to ensure that each MGNREGA worker puts in honest / hard / productive

          work, at the end of the day !

          

 

          As against this, when organized / profit driven establishments ( in Urban

          setting ) are supervising such  workers, productivity of “ Asset

          Generation “, will be very high !

 

          { Read : 

     {  https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/11/discovering-obvious.html  }

 

 

Ø   Because of this Wage Subsidy ( better name it CORONA EMPATHY – so as not to

     run foul of WTO ) , MSME will revive faster , with less worry for Cash Flow .

     Products will become cheaper

  

Ø  By providing jobs and enabling people to earn their own living , there will be no need for Delhi-type “ doles “ – which are unsustainable in long run

 

Ø  This ( scheme ) overcomes the major objections against UBI ( Universal Basic Income ), viz :

  

#  How to decide whom ( defining “ poor “ is difficult ), to give UBI

  

#  People will become too dependent on “ Sarkar Maa-Baap “ and become lazy /

    stop looking for work

  

Ø  It is better than the Unemployment Allowance of USA ( now for 33 million persons, sitting at home )

  

Dear Shri Narendrabhai,

  

It is time to think about a PERMANENT SOLUTION to this problem of UN-EMPLOYMENT { even beyond COVID }

 

Please consider my suggestion

 

With regards,

Hemen Parekh  /  hcp@RecruitGuru.com / 25 Jan 2022

 

Related Readings :

 

How to Alleviate Urban Poverty…………………………… [ 10 Sept 2020 ]

Urban Poor : Existence Admitted !..................... [ 21 June 2020 ]

Discovering the Obvious ? ................................ [ 30 Nov 2017 ]