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, 29 December 2016

Let Us Begin at the Beginning !



Criteria by which a candidate gets " elected " are simple , viz:

" The one who gets maximum number of votes "

Criteria by which a candidate gets " selected " to contest an election , are equally simple :

" What is the amount that you can spend in fighting the election ? "

And this is always accompanied by another question to the candidates aspiring for a ticket , viz:


" How much money can you give ( in cash , of course ! ) to the party treasurer for funding the forthcoming election ? That is , beyond what you would spend for your own fight "


For parties recognized as " National " parties , the thumb rule for state elections , is :

*  To fight your own battle..............Rs 10 crore

*  Contribution to party.................. Rs  5 crore

So , on an average , it is Rs 15 crore per contesting candidate ( of course ,  all in cash ! )

For the forthcoming elections in 7 states during 2017 , how does this stack up ?

* Total no of seats being contested ............................................ 940

{ UP, 403 / Punjab, 117 / Uttarakhand, 70 / Goa, 40 / Manipur, 60 / Gujarat, 182 / HP,68 }

Average no of candidates contesting each seat...........................  10

*  So, total no of candidates in the fray........................................  9400

*  Total CASH spent ( 9400 * Rs 15 crore ).....................................Rs 141,000 crore


QUESTION :

Even if Supreme Court / Election Commission / NDA government , succeed in bringing down the upper limit for those " Anonymous Donations " from Rs 20,000 to Rs 2000 . will that make any change to the above mentioned figure that those candidates will spend ?

No doubt , Election Commission requires each contestant to file a statement of amount spent but who submits any figure other than what the law ( or EC guideline ? ) prescribes ?

And my oft repeated suggestion to hold simultaneous elections using mobile app ,


{ http://myblogepage.blogspot.com
/2012/12/votesapp.html  }

is not going to make any difference as far as this expenditure by the contestants is concerned

Even with a Mobile App based election ( on asingle day for all the States ) ,  campaigning by the candidates , spread over a few preceding months , will continue

{ http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/11/one-nation-one-vote.html }

And , that is where those Rs 10 crores will get spent / distributed !

Is anyone expecting those 9400 candidates to be making payments using mobile wallets / credit - debit cards / UPI - AEPS / RuPay cards etc ?

It is high time we stop fooling ourselves and hurry up with embedding RFID sensors , not only in Rs 500 / 1000 / 2000 notes , but also in Rs 100 notes !


Why Rs 100 notes , as well ?

Because that is the denomination in which the candidates carry the CASH in the luggage compartments of their vehicles , for distributing among the voters !

Every vehicle carrying , even 5000 notes of Rs 100 each ( totaling Rs 5 lakhs ) , will show up on the Mobile App of the IT / ED / EC officers , in that area !


If NDA government is really serious about eliminating the BLACK MONEY and the CORRUPTION , this ( RFIDembedded currency notes ) , is the ONLY ANSWER !


{  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/03/oracle-has-spoken.html  }

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30  Dec  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

  

Tuesday, 27 December 2016

Less Likely to get Bribed



Humans are better at framing rules / regulations / guidelines / laws etc


But they are susceptible to getting bribed while " interpreting / enforcing " those rules


This is why , we should depend ( as far as possible ) on the TECHNOLOGY , when it comes to implementation / enforcement of those rules


Because technology is less likely to get bribed , since it interprets a violation of a rule , irrespective of WHO breaks the rule ; and even hand out " punishment " in an unbiased way


Remember the " Hot Stove Principle " ?   A hot stove does not differentiate between finger of a poor person and that of a powerful rich person . It just burns !


 Let me illustrate in the context of the following news report in Hindustan Times ( 28 Dec 2016 ) :

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BMC paves way for footpath policy in pedestrian-unfriendly Mumbai


In a move that will benefit lakhs of Mumbaiites, the BMC is drafting a FOOTPATH POLICY to make the side-strips more walker-friendly.


While the policy is yet to be finalised, one of its significant provisions includes CLEARING WALKWAYS.


Senior civic officials said even shops, booths and vendors will not be allowed on footpaths.


WARD OFFICIALS WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR CLEARING GARBAGE, ENCROACHMENT, HOARDINGS, POLES OR ANYTHING THAT CAUSES HINDRANCE.

Citizens, however, are skeptical of the implementation of the policy. Rishi Aggarwal, activist and founder of ‘ The Walking Project ’ said, “These policies should not end up being old wine in a new bottle. We need to work at better implementation as BMC has been coming up with these ideas and policies.”

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I request Shri Aggarwal , to use his influence with the Municipal Commissioner to implement a TECHNOLOGY based solution , as suggested in my following blog ( earlier emailed to many BMC officers one year ago ! )


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Friday, 11 December 2015


2 DOWN : 1 TO GO !



2 months back , Mumbai Municipal  Commissioner, Shri Ajoy Mehta asked all his officers , to prepare a 3 month action plan for removal of commercial encroachments (not religious ) , from footpaths  ( DNA / 04 Oct , 2015 )


He added,

"  Once the encroachment is cleared from the footpath , ward staff will have to ensure that it does not come up again . Prepare lists of encroachments with photographs and video recordings , as evidence "

Questions :

#  How many months are required to prepare a " 3 month " Action Plan ?

#  How often should ward officers take those photos / videos ? Once a month ?

#  Can they re-submit ( again and again ) same photo / video of a cleared footpath ?

#  If footpaths get permanently cleared of the encroachments , what happens to their
    " haftas "  ?
   

Leaving aside the last question , technically , it is not all that difficult to monitor those footpaths , 24 hours of the day

Mumbai Police is installing some 2,000 CCTV cameras all over the city to capture the terrorists

London has 500,000 CCTV cameras to cover every nook and corner ,24 hours  !

So monitoring footpaths of Mumbai , by installing 50,000 CCTV cameras, on 24 hour basis, is not a problem

And funds are no problem either , with MCGM having spent only 22 % of its Rs 33,000 crore budget so far , in the current year  !

On top of that , it is having fixed deposits worth Rs 45,000 Crores in banks  !

After installing those 50,000 video cameras , use following software ( embedded in a computerized CCTV network ) to compute the monthly salary of each ward officer :

SALARY PAYABLE  /  PAYROLL SALARY  =

 ( Length of footpath in his ward clear of encroachment * Percentage of time free of encroachment )

 Divided by 

( Total Length of footpath * Total Hours in that Month )

ie:  Ratio of 


" Clear Kilometer*Hours  /  Total Kilometer*Hours "


Then expect a miracle of E-Governance thru innovative digitization !

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28  Dec  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs



Sunday, 25 December 2016

A Freebie that cannot be Faulted ?



Captain Amrinder Singh ( Punjab Congress ) has promised jobs ( of course, if voted to power in the forthcoming State Election ) , to youth who pledge as follows :


" I promise I will remain free from drugs and make my family drug free too "


By now, some 12 lakh youngsters have signed up


Expect this figure to go up dramatically, considering that , a few weeks back , some 30 lakh youngsters ( 20 % girls ) had signed up to receive a FREE smart phone from  Captain ( " if voted to power " conditions apply )


In Punjab , there are 91 lakh youngsters in the age group of 18 - 35


And a smart phone could well cost Rs 5,000 each


That would cost the Congress Government ( if voted to power ), Rs 4550 crores !


Election Commission " guide lines "  and Supreme Court  " directives " notwithstanding , all political parties have in the past, offered ( and often delivered ) a whole host of " freebies " in order to " buy " votes


Aam  Aadmi  Party ( AAP ) has promised jobs ( if voted to power ) , to 25 lakh Punjab youth


Without asking them to kick the drug habit !


SO , HOW CAN CAPTAIN BE FAULTED ?


What could be more " noble " than to wean away the Punjab youth from drugs ?


And keep them gainfully / productively engaged in a nation-building activity by having a job and supporting their families ?



I suggest that Captain implement the following as far as ensuring that these 91 lakh youth stay " drug free " after getting a job :


As promised , distribute smart phones which are UPI / AEPS enabled Payment Wallets

Those smart phones must have  built-in

    *  " Drug Analyzer " ( similar to Oxymeters , which display oxygen level in blood when
         a finger is placed on the device )

    *   Biometric reading device ( Iris and Finger scan )

    *   Pre-installed Mobile App " DrugFree "


    I have no doubt that leading smart phone manufacturers will come forward with such
    versions , considering the volumes involved and the possibility that the other political
    parties , too , may make similar conditional " Job Promises " in near future !


Every morning , as soon as the Youth reports for work , he will launch " DrugFree " app
    on his mobile, and place his finger on App icon, in the presence of his immediate
    supervisor


*  Phone will display / record the drug level reading and also relay it simultaneously to the
   Server of the Salary Section ( including the time for attendance recording  )


*  This exercise will be repeated in the evening when that Youth leaves for home


No salary will be paid for the day on which drug reading exceeds permissible limit

    This will be done automatically by the Server-based software ( very simple coding )


*  If drug reading exceeds the permissible limits , more than 3 times in a month , the
    Server-based software will automatically issue a " Warning Email " ( keep humans out )



*  Upon issuance of 3 such " Warning E mails " , the Server-based software will issue a
    " Termination E Mail " , terminating the services of the Youth and simultaneously
    instructing the Salary Section to settle his account and issue a " Service Certificate "
    which will mention full Service History



But developing / implementing a fool-proof technological solution ( to determine drug free status of the Youth ) , is the least of the problems


Any number of Start Up in the Health Care domain, will do it in 3 months ! Just ask Practo !


The real problem is :

WHERE - AND HOW - TO FIND JOBS FOR 91 LAKH YOUTH ?



The worst thing would be to create vacancies in Government , which will bring governance to a complete halt and sky-rocket the Corruption ! Don't even think of this !


Sure , new industries can be incentivized to hire a few lakh, by offering free land , exemption from Municipal / State taxes for 5 years , exemption from certain Labour Laws, stipend subsidies if 70% employees are " DrugFree " youth , etc


Even existing industries ( especially , MSME ) can be incentivized by reimbursement of 50 % salaries for 5 years for employing such Youth


But none of these measures can take care of Captain's promise to 91 lakh Youth !


I suggest Captain Amrinder Singhji , to look up my following suggestion for an alternative of

 SELF EMPLOYMENT :



   {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/05/rejoice-you-self-employed.html  }



   {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/10/how-about-virtual-call-centers.html  }



   {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/06/50-million-new-jobs-in-5-months.html }



  {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/05/harness-greed-to-skill-india.html  }



  {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/11/surrogate-cow-farms.html  }



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



  {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/02/create-self-employment.html }



  {  http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2012/01/it-pays-to-be-entrepreneur.html  }



Dear Captain Amrinder Singhji :


Having made a very noble gesture to the voters , please ensure a FAIR & JUST implementation !


I hope Shri Prakash Javadekarji / Shri Amit Shahji , find merit in this suggestion for other
forthcoming elections in States

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26  Dec  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs 




Saturday, 24 December 2016

Online Sale of Medicines ?



Online sale of medicines is unstoppable , if we go by following report appearing in Hindustan Times ( 21 Dec 2016 )

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Soon, all medicines may be sold online

The drug committee, in its report submitted to the health ministry, has said medicines could be sold online, but with changes in several laws .

Currently, medicine sales are banned online.

The report advises the government to amend several acts, including the IT Act, Drugs and Cosmetics Act, Narcotics Act.

“The report does not deny the possibility of medicine sale online. It just says several laws need to be changed. Also, we need a flawless technical system to regulate sales and route all e-pharmacies through a common platform,” GN Singh, Drug Controller General of India, told HT.

The number of weekly online shoppers have increased by 33% since last year, and the number of daily online shoppers have become fourfold from 2013 to 2015.

The government is working on a plan to support e-pharmacies with a strong technology network. It is likely to test the model by allowing the sale of limited prescription drugs in the first phase.

Singh said most of the proposals that the state drug controllers submitted to the government were in favour of the online sale of drugs.

However, patient security still remains a concern.

The government is also planning to tweak the Drugs and Cosmetics Act as there is no clause on the online sale of medicines. “We need to amend several acts and they need parliamentary approvals. This process could take a year or so,” Singh said.

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But , will NDA government cease this opportunity to herald an era of ,


COMPREHENSIVE  HEALTHCARE  ECO-SYSTEM ?


I once again urge NDA government to consider implementation of such a Eco System , based on my following blog / email , sent to NDA ministers earlier :

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Thursday, 24 November 2016


Health Care through Mobile ?



DNA (  22  Nov  2016 ) carries a news report , titled :


" Online e-pharmacy portals to make patients' lives easier "


The details read :

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The formation of a strict monitoring system for online sale of medicines is underway by the Centre, that has come up with a Self-regulation Code of Conduct for the E pharmacy sector for the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( FICCI ).


The e-pharmacy model proposed by the apex business organization provides,


*   digital tracking and traceability of medicines,


*   addressing the problem of counterfeit medicines


*   unsupervised consumption of antibiotics without prescription.


*   improved access and affordability of medicines for patients.



The e-pharmacy model has proposed that medicines must be processed only against a valid copy of a prescription from a registered medical practitioner.



E-pharmacy websites must also ensure no schedule X or other sensitive habit-forming medicines are processed and that there are adequate checks in place to prevent sale of such drugs.



“We are working with private players to develop a centralized online system that involves manufacturers and supply chain managers to develop a fool-proof system for online sale of medicines,”  Drug Controller General of India, Dr G N Singh said.



“Consumers need quality medicines at an affordable price. Drugs and Cosmetics Act is the most poorly implemented — thus making consumers vulnerable to counterfeit medicines and self-medication,” said Bejon Mishra, Founder at Partnership for Safe Medicines (PSM) India.


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Congratulations , FICCI  !



I am happy that you have taken cognizance of my following suggestion , sent to you as an E Mail on 11 Oct  2015


I do hope , in course of time , you will succeed in co-opting all the AGENCIES listed in my suggestion , to ensure for our citizens , a world-class HEALTH CARE


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11  Oct  2015




{ http://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/10/3-d-digital-delivery-of-drugs.html }


( let us call it , " Dispenser " )



On 14th Oct , 8 lakh pharmacy stores will go on strike to persuade Government to prohibit sale of " Prescription Drugs " by e-Pharmacies such as 1mg.com / Zigy.com , not to  speak of e-Com sites like Amazon / SnapDeal / Flipkart etc



Reason advanced :

*  Online sale puts consumers at risk



Real reason ?

*  Loss of jobs of 4 million persons employed by 800,000 pharmacy stores

*  Loss of business worth Rs 80,000 Crores



Current legal provision :


*  Drugs and Cosmetics Act,1940 does not prohibit online sale of medicines



Govt response :

*  Set up a Committee to draft new provisions in Law to regulate online sale



My take :

*  One day , everything will be sold online from web sites 10,000 Km away !

*  There is no way march of EVERYTHING ONLINE can be stopped or slowed




My Suggestions :


 Govt to upload a Mobile App ( DISPENSER ? ) on Health Ministry web site


 All doctors must download it , after proper registration / authentication


*  App will get embedded with full details of that doctor who uses it


*  Doctors to enter Patient Data in App  / then enter prescribed Drug Details


*  Doctor will SMS app data entered , to concerned patient's mobile


*  Patient will SMS entered app data to mobile of Chemist of his choice

*  Chemist will deliver the medicine to the patient with Bill Details in App


*  Chemist will deliver the medicine to the patient with Bill Details in App


*  Every action / transaction on App , will get automatically emailed to web
    Servers of


       #  Health Ministry


       #  All India Medical Association


       #   All India Organization of Chemists and Druggists ( AIOCD ) 



       #   Drug Controller General of India




Advantages :


*   Jobs / business of Chemists / Druggists saved


*   Great convenience for patients / no need to visit Drug Store


*   No chance of Chemist " misinterpreting " doctor's handwriting  !


*   Full History of


     #  Each Patient ( great benefit to Prescribing doctors )


     #  Each Drug    ( great benefit to Pharma Companies  )


     #  Each Chemist Shop  ( great benefit to Govt / AIOCD / Tax Dept )


     #  Each Doctor  ( great interest to All India Medical Association )



This is our chance , not only to deliver world-class healthcare to millions but also to get rid of a huge amount ofUNETHICAL PRACTICES in , what is a HUMANITARIAN PROFESSION !

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25 Dec  2016

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs