Blog

Saturday, 28 October 2017

#Aadhar

Fait Accompli ?

Those fighting Aadhar are fighting a “ lost cause “

They have filed in the Supreme Court , petitions / public interest litigations ( PIL ) , to :

· Scrap Aadhar Act , altogether

· Stopping biometric profiling

· Seeding bank and mobile databases with Aadhar

Will anyone tell them :

· Government has mandated that all Smart Phones are pre-installed with BHIM

· RBI is insisting that ALL Mobile Wallet Apps become “ interoperable “ through UPI

· All Mobile Wallet Apps need to be linked to user’s Bank Account Numbers

· All E – Commerce Apps , anyway , need to be linked to user’s Bank A / C

· All other FINTECH apps also have to be linked with Bank A/C

· All Debit / Credit Cards are always linked to Bank A/C numbers

· Aadhar is mandatory for 130 Welfare Schemes for DBT ( Direct Benefit Transfer )

into the Bank A / C of each beneficiary . And these beneficiaries Mobile Number

are part of the registration for these Schemes

· Linking of Aadhar with PAN ( while filing tax returns ) is mandatory and taxes are paid by Cheques / E payments

· Registration on ANY web site ( governmental or private ) always requires providing Mobile Number

· All Messaging Apps ( WhatsApp / WeChat / Skype / FaceChat etc ) work on Mobiles

· All apps by any Transport Service Provider ( eg UBER / OLA / Indian Railways / and soon , local Municipal Bus Services etc ) need linkage with , both , your Mobile Number and your Bank Account

· All types of Apps by ANY KIND of paid Service Provider , links mobile with Bank A/C

· Before long , Credit / Debit Cards will become “ Obsolete “ !

· In 5 years , “ wearable / thinner than skin tattoos “ will replace Smart Phones, unless , by that time , Augmented Reality Headsets have already obsoleted Mobile Phones !

And , whether this happens or not , one thing is most certain

Either some profit-motivated PRIVATE company or a security-motivated

GOVERNMENT agency , will LINK UP , all the above-mentioned personal

databases , without your permission and without your knowledge !

May be the petitioners should read :

Suprememay Propose : Technology will Dispose [ 23 July 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/07/supreme-may-propose-technology-will.html

29 Oct 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Thursday, 26 October 2017

#BlackMoney

8^th Nov : Anti Black Money Day ?

Whereas Opposition Parties ( primarily , Congress ) want to celebrate 8^th Nov as a “ BLACK DAY “ , NDA government has announced that it will be celebrated as “ Anti Black Money Day “

Although opinions are divided as to the DeMo having succeeded or not in getting the economy rid of the BLACK MONEY , one may ( grudgingly ? ) concede that this could be considered the FIRST STEP in that direction

But , it would be a pity if 8^th Nov 2017 , ends up being no more than a series of celebratory and derogatory speeches on the merit / demerit of Demo !

Quite like paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat , every Nirvana Day , by offering flowers and the ritual of going around the memorial !

If NDA government is really determined to get rid ( permanently ) of existing STOCK of BLACK MONEY , and also FUTURE GENERATION of Black Money , then on 08 Nov 2017 , PM should announce introduction of RFID nano-chips in high currency notes of Rs 2000 ( existing ones to be replaced with new Plastic ones) - and forget re-introduction of Rs 1000 note

Exactly as suggested by me , ONE YEAR before the DeMo Day , in my following blog / email dated 03 Nov 2015 :

Networkof Currency Notes [ 03 Nov 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/11/network-of-currency-notes.html

Followed by another 38 emails sent to the Central Cabinet Ministers between Nov 2015 and the date of DeMo announcement ( 08 Nov 2016 )

For those 38 links , look up :

Havea good Suggestion ? Send it to PM [ 09 Nov 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/11/have-good-suggestion-send-it-to-pm.html

Those who doubt the feasibility of this technological innovation , please read following :

australian economy / 03 July 2017

Cash crackdown boss floats nano-chips in notes

THE man charged with cracking down on the “black economy” has revealed how he would like to keep track of your $100 and $50 notes.

Hi-tech nano-chips would be implanted in Australia’s “disappearing” cash under a plan floated by Michael Andrew, the head of the federal government’s Black Economy Taskforce.

“You could put a trace on some of these notes to see where they would go. YOU CAN USE NANO TECHNOLOGY TO PUT LITTLE CHIPS IN SO YOU COULD THEN TRACE IT.”

For full report , click :

http://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/australian-economy/cash-crackdown-boss-floats-nanochips-in-notes/news-story/05db2212948c7d02e822532de63c170d

As to the feasibility of this suggestion , here is what a leading authority on RFID chips wrote to me :

25 March , 2016

Dear Mr. Parekh,

Yes, placing tags on money has certainly been considered in the past. I think it is a matter of time before it happens. I do agree with your idea.

----------------------------------------------------------------

13 Nov 2016

Hi Hemen,

It can be brought down to about 3-5 cents with scale.

Meanwhile check out a variant of the technology which is cheaper:

http://cdn.intechweb.org/pdfs/14423.pdf

Sanjay [ Sanjay Sarma ,

35-206 MIT. 617 253 1925 (T). 617 253 7549 (F).

Email : 'SESARMA@MIT.EDU'

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

27 Oct 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

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

When I emailed Sanjay re the development in Australia , here is how he replied :

Dear Sanjay ,

Your prediction is about to come true !

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

Indeed !

- Sanjay Emani Sarma

<sesarma@mit.edu>

(The wisdom is Siri's, the typos mine.)

Wednesday, 25 October 2017

#BankRecapitalization

Only Rs 7,000 per Family ?

Gujarat Samachar ( 25 Oct 2017 ) carries following news report :

( loosely translated by me from Gujarati )

“ To bail out Public Sector Banks , each and every family will need to fork out Rs 7,000

Banks may not lend to citizens but citizens must pay

This amount ( Rs 2.11 lakh*crore ) will have to come from the government treasury . That means , this is tax-payers’ money !

Finance Minister calls this a “ Bold Step “ !

In normal course , banks are supposed to help out the citizens but , in India , it is other way around !

That is not a “ Bold Step “ !

At present there are 30 crore “ families “ in our country . Hence this bail out works out to Rs 7,000 per family

So , this amount will get transferred to these bankrupt banks without the knowledge of these families

So what is government doing ? Transferring citizen’s tax-money instead of reforming the bank administration !

This will only lead to worsening of their position

This has happened earlier also . History repeats without banks mending their ways !

If they are guaranteed repeated bail out , where is their incentive to improve ?

In the end , only the tax payers will foot the bill

More than 2 years ago , I sent the following blog to the Policy Makers :

Tuesday, 23 June 2015

Bank Re-Capitalization ?

Here is a layman's understanding :

* Bank executives give Rs 4 Lakh Crores worth loans to Industrialists / Businessmen ( who , sometimes happen to be close relatives / friends )

* Bankers " forget " to examine past records of loan-repayments by these individuals

* Banks do not share among themselves info about " black-listed " borrowers

* Banks " forget " to inquire if a loanee is a " Benami " company

* Banks do not incorporate stringent clauses in loan agreements (on purpose )

* Banks adopt " Forget & Forgive " approach to defaulters

* For loan recovery , bankers wait for other bankers to take the lead

* Before taking action , bankers check-out with people in power

* When sinking under the burden of NPA , bankers run to Government of India to bail

them out through " Bank Re-Capitalization "

* Government oblige by giving money to stressed banks, so that they can survive

* Government rationalize its bail out by saying, " depositors must be protected " .

Sounds so reassuring !

* Government then goes out and raises taxes ( direct + indirect ) to balance its books (

Current Account Deficit ? )

In a nutshell :

* Eventually , honest tax-payers foot the bill, one way or the other

* 7,000 + loan-defaulting swindlers spend vacation in Switzerland with family ( and

their politician friends ) - till they are ready to borrow more !

* Bankers vie with each other to " Re-Schedule Payments " and advance fresh loans to

pay off old loans ( Rs 4 lakh Crores of NPA ).

If EU / IMF can do this for Greece , why cannot we ?

* Government will take pride in " Bold Banking Reforms "( to please IMF ? )

* As a Nation , we are very compassionate ! We cannot let any institution die !

We are obsessed with keeping it alive at any cost . We must, forever, keep it alive

with artificial ventilation / blood transfusion !

It is time to re-think :

When a person or an Institution just cannot be kept alive , it must be allowed to die ,

in a dignified way !

Would it not be far better to protect the small bank-depositors by returning their

deposits , rather than infuse Rs 4 lakh Crores into these banks , by way of re-

capitalization ?

Am I missing out on something that economists know better ?

25 Oct 2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Tuesday, 24 October 2017

Citizen Monologues

News paper headlines speak of problems facing the country

Political , Social , Economic Problems

Almost everyone has some suggestion to offer but most shy away from expressing themselves - quite often by saying :

“ What’s the use of speaking up ? Who listens / reads / cares ? “

If you send hundreds of E Mails to the Policy Makers and do not receive , so much as an acknowledgement , it is natural to become a cynic !

But , “ giving up all hope “ , is easy . To persist / persevere , is quite difficult

I have chosen the difficult path and have sent following emails to Policy Makers , against problems highlighted by these news-paper headlines :

Economic Times ( 13 Oct 2017 )

“ Secretaries for One Revenue Authority “

My View :

E Governance [ 03 April 2014 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2014/04/e-governance.html

Economic Times ( 13 Oct 2017 )

“ Minimum Wage is a Frankenstein for BPOs here “

My View :

Howabout Virtual Call Centres ? [ 04 Oct 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/10/how-about-virtual-call-centers.html

DNA ( 18 Oct 2017 )

“ Aadhar can be sole ID for voting : Former CEC “

My View :

Poll Reforms : Time for a consensus [ 21 Aug 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/08/poll-reforms-time-for-consensus.html

Progress : of a doubtful kind ? [ 19 Oct 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/10/progress-of-doubtful-kind.html

DNA ( 13 Oct 2017 )

“ India’s political funding mess “ [ Article by Shri Niranjan Sahoo ]

My View :

Transparencyin Political Funding [ 06 July 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/07/transparency-in-political-funding.html

Times of India ( 11 Sept 2017 )

“ SC seeks govt , EC reply on ways to check veracity of netas’ assets “

My View :

Filtering Candidate Information ? [ 18 Sept 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/09/filtering-candidate-information.html

Economic Times ( 08 Sept 2017 )

“ DIPP to move Cabinet Note on Guarantee Fund for Start Ups “

My View :

Spirit of Israel [ 19 Feb 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/02/spirit-of-israel.html

Economic Times ( 07 Sept 2017 )

“ Three Wheels and an Electric Engine "

My View :

ARickshaw by Any other Name ? [ 20 Aug 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/08/a-rickshaw-by-any-other-name.html

Economic Times ( 07 Sept 2017 )

“ We’re Working on Steps to Boost Exports in Shortest Time : Prabhu “

My View :

Export Strategy ? [ 30 June 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/06/export-strategy.html

Business Line ( 07 Sept 2017 )

“ NITI Aayog sets up task force on Employment , Exports “

Economic Times ( 05 Sept 2017 )

“ We’ll bring Scale , Speed to Skilling “

Times of India ( 05 Sept 2017 )

“ Pradhan gets set to raise army of skilled workers “

My View :

“Make In India “ is Skilling India [ 17 July 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/07/make-in-india-is-skill-ing-india.html

DNA ( 07 Sept 2017 )

“ Road accidents claim 17 lives each hour in 2016 “

DNA ( 10 Sept 2017 )

“ Software can help avoid accidents “

Times of India ( 16 Sept 2017 )

“ All 1300 RTOs in India to be linked / From next year, you will need Aadhar to drive “

My View :

Internetof Vehicles ( IoV ) ? - [ 04 March 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/03/internet-of-vehicles-iov.html

Intelligent Transport System [ 07 Oct 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/10/intelligent-transport-system.html

Economic Times ( 05 Sept 2017 )

“ Will take States on board for Labour Reforms , says Gangwar "

My View :

Agenda for Reforms [ 01 Oct 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/10/agenda-for-reforms.html

Times of India ( 05 Sept 2017 )

“ Confident of meeting targets : MoS housing , Hardeep Puri “

My View :

Shelter@ Speed of Snail ? [ 21 Sept 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/09/shelter-speed-of-snail-s-3.html

Times of India ( 03 Sept 2017 )

“ On the Double : Electric Cars Go From 1M to 2M in 1 YR “

My View :

Gadkariji is Angry ! [ 12 Sept 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/09/gadkariji-is-angry.html

DNA ( 04 Aug 2017 )

“ Satellite images to spot slavery in India “

My View :

Leveraging NaviC ? [ 30 May 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/05/leveraging-navic.html

Economic Times ( 07 Sept 2017 )

“ US’HTT to build India’s First Hyperloop , link Amaravati & Vijaywada “

My View :

Makingof an NPA ? [ 20 March 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/03/making-of-npa.html

DNA ( 15 Oct 2017 )

“ Spend no more than Rs 28 Lakhs in HP polls : Chief Election Officer “

My View :

Transparencyin Political Funding ? [ 06 July 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/07/transparency-in-political-funding.html

Hindustan Times ( 15 Oct 2017 )

“ New rules set to protect interests of home-buyers “

My View :

Self Certification For Builders [ 04 Nov 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/11/self-certification-for-builders.html

DNA ( 15 Oct 2017 )

“ Ban on plastic cups, plates likely by ‘ 18 “

Hindustan Times ( 22 Oct 2017 )

“ BMC mulls using plastic to build city roads “

My View :

DiscouragePlastic : Encourage Greed [ 21 March 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/03/discourage-plastics-encourage-greed.html

Kenyashows the Way [ 30 Aug 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/08/kenya-shows-way.html

Plastic Skyscrapers ? [ 15 March 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/03/plastic-skyscrapers.html

DNA ( 15 Oct 2017 )

“ None can stop resolution of Kashmir issue : Rajnath “

My View :

TheBitter Truth [ 07 June 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-bitter-truth.html

Economic Times ( 12 Oct 2017 )

India could provide UBI (Universal Basic Income) of Rs 2,600/year by ending Sops : IMF

My View :

Universal Basic Income [ 20 Jan 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/01/universal-basic-income.html

DNA ( 12 Oct 2017 )

“ India had the highest number of underweight children in 2016 / According to a study , 97 million of the world’s underweight children live in the country “

DNA ( 18 Sept 2017 )

“ Soon states to be ranked on nutrition - Shri Amitabh Kant , CEO – NITI Aayog “

Times of India ( 19 Oct 2017 )

“ Saving Mothers and Children “ ( article by Shri Amitabh Kant – CEO , NITI Aayog )

My View :

BANMALI is the TOTAL Solution [ 14 Nov 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/11/banmali-is-total-solution.html

A Mobile App named “ BANMALI “ [ 15 Sept 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/09/a-mobile-app-named-banmali.html

CanAkshay-Patra banish Mal-nutrition ? [ 05 June 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/06/can-akshay-patra-banish-malnutrition.html

Saving 1.2 Million Kids [ 29 June 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/06/saving-12-million-kids.html

Times of India ( 10 Oct 2017 )

“ Govt okays Rs 2,000 cr to set up Aadhar centres in post offices “

My View :

FDI in Post Office ? [ 11 July 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/07/fdi-in-india-post.html

Economic Times ( 06 Oct 2017 )

“ Commission Not Fully Ready Yet for Simultaneous Polls : Officials “

DNA ( 09 Oct 2017 )

“ Parties need to be on board for simultaneous polls : EC

Economic Times ( 30 Sept 2017 )

“ Counting costs and KURTA–TAILS “ { Article by Vikram Doctor and Aanchal Bansal }

Times of India ( 13 Oct 2017 )

“ Case for Simultaneous Elections “ ( Shri M Thambi Durai / Dy Speaker , Lok Sabha )

My View :

OneDay Polling is possible [ 31 March 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/03/one-day-polling-is-possible.html

One Poll : One Time [ 06 Sept 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/09/one-poll-one-time.html

Simultaneous Elections : What do you think ? [ 09 Sept 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/09/simultaneous-elections-what-do-you-think.html

One Nation , One Vote ? [ 29 Nov 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/11/one-nation-one-vote.html

Reforming Elections and Lok Sabha ( REAL ) - [ 20 Dec 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/12/reforming-elections-and-lok-sabha-real.html

Indian Express ( 06 Oct 2017 )

“ Prasad : Govt is working on regulatory framework for E-Commerce companies “

My View :

Defining E Commerce [ 14 July 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/07/defining-e-commerce.html

Ifyou cannot lick them , join them ! [ 24 July 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/07/if-you-cannot-lick-them-join-them.html

Who will obsolete Whom ? [ 20 Aug 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/08/who-will-obsolete-whom.html

E Commerce is Easy Commerce [ 15 Nov 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/11/e-commerce-is-easy-commerce.html

Lessons from History ? [ 07 Jan 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/01/lessons-from-history.html

One day ,Everything will sell On-line ! [ 29 March 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/03/one-day-everything-will-sell-online.html

Missing the Wood for the Tree ? [ 12 Aug 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/08/missing-woods-for-tree.html

Business Line ( 02 Oct 2017 )

Designing a Demand Stimulus { Ashima Goyal – Member PM – EAC }

DNA ( 27 Sept 2017 )

Will a fiscal stimulus work wonders for Indian Economy ? { Dr Sanjiv Bhatia }

Indian Express ( 17 Oct 2017 )

“ Niti Vice Chairman : Do see a case for fiscal stimulus “

My View :

Biggest problem with ZERO TAX [ 02 Oct 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/10/biggest-problem-with-zero-tax.html

What would happen ? [ 28 Sept 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/09/what-would-happen.html

Hindustan Times ( 18 Sept 2017 )

“ Public Investment set to get a leg-up in the Budget “ / What Next ? Govt eyes aggressive fiscal push following slump in GDP growth “

Economic Times ( 18 Sept 2017 )

“ Prabhu may seek Investment Pledge from 30 Indian Cos “

Economic Times ( 05 Oct 2017 )

Crack Open That Piggy Bank ( Mohan Guruswamy / Centre for Policy Alternatives )

My View :

Don’t Ask , “ How “ ? [ 07 April 2014 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2014/04/dont-ask-how.html

Time is NOW ! [ 02 Feb 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/02/time-is-now.html

Innovative Financing ? [ 06 March 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/03/innovative-financing.html

How to raise $ 500 Billion [ 17 Sept 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/09/how-to-raise-500-billion.html

Indonesia Shows the Way [ 23 Dec 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/12/indonesia-shows-way.html

Economic Times ( 28 Sept 2017 )

“ Centre , States to Fill Up 2 million Vacancies “

DNA ( 18 Oct 2017 )

“ Against job reservations in private sector , says Niti VC

My View :

Mythof Job Creation ! [ 13 Sept 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/09/myth-of-job-creation.html

No Interviews for B – C – D ? [ 25 Oct 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/10/no-interviews-for-b-c-d.html

Have a Degree : Will Sweep ! [ 22 Jan 2016 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/01/have-degree-will-sweep.html

Hindustan Times ( 19 Oct 2017 )

“ Cycle Track likely in your area soon / Civic Chief asks all 24 ward officers to identify roads that can be used to create dedicated cycling tracks “

My View :

A Sensible Solution [ 03 Sept 2017 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/09/a-sensible-solution.html

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

Hindustan Times ( 20 Oct 2017 )

“ A shield for domestic help ( Editorial ) “

My Views :

Maidin India ? [ 10 Aug 2015 ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/08/maid-in-india.html

Times of India ( 19 Oct 2017 )

PMs don’t enjoy absolute authority in coalition govts ( Shri Pranab Mukherjee )

My Suggestion :