Dark Cloud Over Horizon ?

Of all the countries in the world , America contributes most to the Global Warming

As a result , over the past few weeks , a white cloud ( Polar Vortex ) , has enveloped entire America , plunging temperatures below zero

In India , a dark cloud has been gathering over the past few years

And it is caused by no ordinary " Warming " !

It is caused by people's anger " Boiling Over "  !

Boiling over the past 15 years , at the rampant ,

>   Corruption amongst law-makers / bureaucrats / low-level government

     officers  / black-moneyed  businessmen  / greedy industrialists  etc

>    Criminalization amongst politicians - turned - mafia

Now with the arrival of AAP government , this dark cloud has slowly started clearing in Delhi

But a dense dark ominous cloud still envelopes  rest of India

Will AAP succeed in clearing it in April / May 2014 elections  ?

If opinion polls published on TV channels last evening are to be believed , it will

And believe me ,

Over the next few weeks , these opinion polls will get , ever more ,

>   Sharper

>   Shriller

>   Deafening

The writing is on the wall  !

But the short-sighted politicians cannot read  !

And the far - sighted TV channel experts are refusing to read  !

Every Saturday ( starting tomorrow ) , Arvind Kejriwal and his Cabinet colleagues , will sit on a footpath outside Delhi government Secretariat  and face the public

They will make themselves " Accessible " to people

They will " Listen " to people

What next  ?

Holding a cabinet meeting in Chandni Chowk  ?

Or , a Delhi Vidhan Sabha session at Rajghat  ?

AAP says ,

"  To hell with procedures / precedents / barricades

    Hail , the power of People

    Come out on the streets

    Clear the Dark Cloud  !  "

*   hemen   parekh   (  10  Jan  2014  /  Mumbai  ) 

Lesson Number 4

Hesitation is your worst enemy

On the battlefield of Kurukshetra , Arjun had doubts

Sure , he had been wronged by cousin Duryodhan , but how can he think of fighting him - and grandpa Bhisma - just to regain his rights  ?

When Gandiv ( the mighty bow ) started slipping from his hands , he sat down on the chariot and told Lord Krishna ,

"  I am confused . I have doubts about fighting this battle  "

It was then that Lord Krishna taught him Karma-Yoga

Rest is history

When Arvind Kejriwal ( Chief Dark Cloud ) , announced launching of a helpline yesterday , the Doubting Thomas  of all respectable TV channels broke into a chorus :

>   Helpline is an eyewash - bound to fail

>   No more than a populist measure to divert people's attention

>   A ridiculous , half-baked idea

>   If people are to conduct sting operations , what will you do ?

>   Going back on promises - what else

>   Corrupt officials will get friends to make fake phone-calls on helpline

     and learn about the " Modus Operandi " of the planned sting

>   If it was this easy to get rid of corruption , Congress would have done it

     50 years back

>   Why did it take you 15 days to announce such a simple thing ?

DEAR   ARVIND

Remember ,

>  Too much analysis produces paralysis

>  No decision is worse than a bad decision

>  Fear of failure is your worst enemy

>  World average is : One idea succeeds after 99 fails

>  Only way to success is by experimenting - by making mistakes

>  Only way to learn swimming is by jumping into water

>  Successful governments all over the World , have a " BIAS FOR ACTION "

This is your Lesson Number  4

BIAS   FOR   ACTION

Learn it well

*   hemen   parekh   (  09  Jan   2014  /  Mumbai  )  

    

       

Referendum in Kashmir ?

Benito Mussolini is supposed to have said ,

"  If you plan to dig a well in the village , you can ask all the villagers , but if you have to declare a war , you have decide , all by yourself  "

That applies to Kashmir situation as well

And not only for the government of India but equally for the government of Pakistan

Neither the people nor the governments of either country would want the Kashmiri people to decide what they want

  

And the Kashmiri people know that either India or Pakistan or both would reject the verdict of Kashmir people !

Sad - but true  !

Equally sad is the fact that there is very little prospect of a " Peacefully    Negotiated " settlement

If there was one , we would have found it after 40 years of negotiations  !

Or , could it be that neither government is looking for one  ?

Could it be that , interests of numerous political parties on either side of the border are best served by keeping the Kashmir pot boiling  ?

Could that be the reason why ,

>  BJP is asking Man Mohan Singh to reveal what was the  " solution "

    that was almost within the reach , a few years back  ?

>  BJP , itself does not wish to divulge the " Kashmir Accord " reached

    between Atalji and Musharraf , during Agra Summit but could not be

    signed ?

>  Prashant Bhushan wants " involvement " of Kashmiri people in solving

    Kashmir issue  ?

>  Why no one dare talk about late Vasant Sathe's practical suggestion

    to convert  LoC  into an international border  ?

>  Militaries of both the countries  continue to justify purchase of billions

    rupees worth of military equipment , year after year , and without any

    audit / kick-back  scrutiny  ?

>   Arms - selling countries of the western world do not want India and

     Pakistan to settle this issue amicably  ?

>  China and America want India and Pakistan to divert billions of rupees to

    missile development , instead of strengthening their economies  ?

It is a pity that the Indian media - and India's  corrupt politicians - are jumping on Prashant Bhushan's throat , instead of raising above mentioned questions

We don't have to agree with Prashant . Just allow him to express his views

How many of us have the courage to tell the truth to our people  ?

*   hemen  parekh   (  08  Jan  2014  /  Mumbai  )

 

Lesson Number 3

Yesterday was a field day for TV channels

Panel experts were screaming :

>  Prashant Bhushan wants to hand over Kashmir to Pakistan

>  Rakhi Bidlan is a compulsive liar, who seeks cheap publicity by alleging

    terrorist attack on her car

>  Kumar Vishwas is hiding communal skeletons in his cupboard

>  Aam Aadmi Party is falling apart

>  AAP has no experience in governing

>  AAP has neither a Vision , nor a Policy on any national matter

>  In trying to contest Lok Sabha elections , AAP is biting off more than

    what it can chew

>  AAP has no clue about financing government expenditure . By subsidizing

    Water / Power etc , it will bankrupt the Delhi government

>  AAP is indulging in populist give-away with an eye on 2014

>  AAP is shying away from catching corrupt Congressmen

>  AAP is a B-Team of Congress / hand-in-glove with Congress / stooge of

    Congress

>  AAP ministers are practicing phony simplicity to fool people

Amidst a free-for-all  " VERBATHON " amongst the so-called experts and the vociferous / dominating TV anchors , these are a few comments I could catch  !

Now , don't blame the TV anchors

Their own annual salary-increase depends upon the TRP rating of the show !

But as far as the experts are concerned , they were engaged in a game of one-up-man ship !

Each was trying to prove that ,

>  he had more negative opinions about AAP

>  he could do a better job of provoking AAP leaders

>  he had , at his command , many more words to run down AAP

But thank God , Arvind and his team ,

>  readily admitted their shortcomings

>  apologized for their mistakes

>  refused to get drawn into a controversy

>  did not get provoked

A classic example of an elephant ignoring the barking of dogs  !

In short , they kept their COOL

DEAR  ARVIND  ,

Congrats  !

You did well in your lesson number 3 , viz ;

KEEP  COOL  /  KEEP  POLITE

*   hemen  parekh   ( 07  Jan  2014  /  Mumbai  )      

Lesson Number 2

Yesterday , Arvind Kejriwal declared ,

"  I will not contest Lok Sabha election but I will actively campaign all over India , for AAP candidates  "

No doubt , a wise decision

A decision to contest a Lok Sabha seat would have carried a dangerously detrimental message , viz: ,

"  For me , getting into Lok Sabha is more important than fulfilling my

    promises to people of Delhi  "

In which case , people of not only Delhi but of entire India , would have wondered ,

"  This person seems to be obsessed with ambition which exceeds the

    commitment he has made publicly - and repeatedly - only a few days

    back

    How can he be trusted  ?  "

For Arvind , a wiser decision would be to leave Lok Sabha campaigning to his colleagues

He must not leave Delhi for the next 6 months

Every day , he must ,

 >    make rounds of Delhi

>     personally assess if his officers are working hard to deliver on poll

       promises

>     tell people , what he has succeeded in implementing , what he is

       working on next , what is at planning stage. In short , present to

       people , his performance card

>     admit the honest mistakes that he - and his Cabinet colleagues - made

       and how they are learning to walk the tight rope of governance

>    tell people what can be done and what  CANNOT  be done - and why

      the limited resources cannot be stretched

Sure , it is exhilarating to see the people's response to AAP , from all over India

Sure , you would like to ride the wave of people's pent-up frustration against corruption , to get 50+ seats in Lok Sabha . Entirely possible

Sure , you would want to galvanize the people's anger against the shameless - and self-serving - politicians , to rewrite , THE NEW POLITICAL ORDER

But,

DEAR  ARVIND  ,

First completing current - and somewhat manageable - commitments  to the people of Delhi has to be your  ONLY PRIORITY

If you succeed , in the annals of modern India's history , it will merit a chapter titled ,

"  THE   DELHI   EXPERIMENT  "

And in World History , chapter on " ARAB  SPRING " will be followed by a chapter on " INDIAN  SUMMER - MAY 2014  "

Let this be your lesson no 2

*   hemen   parekh  (  06   Jan   2014   / Mumbai  )

An Unprecedented Opportunity

While winning confidence vote in Delhi Assembly on 2nd Jan , Arvind Kejriwal re-iterated 18 promises made by AAP to people of Delhi

One of this is ;

Open 500 new schools in 5 years

That is approx one new school every 4th day  !

I was reminded of BJP's promise to people of Gujarat in its poll manifesto released on 3rd Dec 2012 , before Gujarat Assembly elections

Viz:

If voted to power , we will build 50 lakh houses for the poor of Gujarat in 5 years

which translates to, 2,739 new houses EVERY DAY  !

By now , BJP Government should have built  10,27,125  houses  !

But no one - even opposition - is asking ,

" Where are these houses ? "

AAP may not be so lucky , with people of Delhi - and BJP MLAs - asking every 4th day ,

"  When can I send my child to the new school  ?  "

No doubt , AAP , before releasing the manifesto , must have figured out the resources required to build 500 new schools , viz : ,

>   Land  ............  2,500 acres

>   Money  ..........  Rs 5,000 Crores

>   Teachers ........  25,000

>   Annual salaries / Maintenance cost......... Rs 100 Crores

But in case , if at this stage , it appears doubtful to raise such resources , there is a way out  !

Unlike BJP in Gujarat , AAP in Delhi can build 5,00 ( or even 5,000 ) ,

VIRTUAL  SCHOOLS

And do this in 6 months , instead of in 5 years  !

And do this at 1 % of the cost of building physical schools  !

Now all that AAP need to do to impart online education to 3 lakh Delhi children , is :

>   Find 3 lakh donors , each of whom will sponsor ONE Delhi child , by

     donating Rs 2,000 / -

>   With this money , buy 3 lakh tablet computers ,( Aakash 4 specs ), which are pre-loaded

     with all the text books and other instructional materials

>   At a cost of Rs 10 crores , cover entire Delhi with Wi-Max internet .

     Google ( or Bill Gates ) would be happy to help out

>   Grant Rs 10 crores to IIT-Delhi , to create " VIRTUAL CLASSROOMS "

      for each and every subject ( 1st to 10th standards )

      Prof Rahul Deshmukh ( IIT-Mumbai ) who has created such an

      infrastructure for the engineering subjects , should be happy to help

>   Get Dr Sugata Mitra ( the " Hole-in-the-Wall " fame , Delhi educationist )

      to spearhead the entire project - the broad framework being available

      in the Cover Story ( Can Technology Educate Us ? ) of Digit magazine

      of March 2013

If anyone in AAP has lingering doubts re feasibility of such a project , just send him to look at what Subhash Rathod , Principal of a small school of Sanganwa ( 35 Km from Rajkot ) has managed to do , ( and without any government help ! ) , viz ;

>  Wi-Fi enabled campus

>  Smart Classrooms

>  Digital Teaching Aids

    ( using Rs 5 lakhs of insurance money that Rathod received after the

      death of his only son in a road accident in 2011 )

>  Tablet for every child

     (  cost borne by a local industrialist , Jayanti Patoliya )

>  Syllabus and study materials in Gujarati , using special software

>  No school bags  !

People of India expect AAP to innovate , not just in ushering a NEW POLITICAL SYSTEM , but also in EDUCATION SYSTEM  !

ARVIND ,

Don't miss this unprecedented opportunity  !

*   hemen   parekh   (  05  Jan   2014  /  Mumbai  )

Lesson Number One

For Arvind Kejriwal - and his team of ministers and MLAs - lesson number one is :

TALK  LESS   /  WORK  MORE

You did not have to declare ( from roof-top too ! ),

"  If elected , we will shun government bungalows / cars / servants etc  "

No one had asked you for proof of your simplicity

But you went ahead and did it on your own !

Now that you have placed yourself under the microscope , people of Delhi are asking :

"  Why is Arvind moving into a 10 room bungalow  ?

    Why has he accepted security from UP government  ?

    Why are AAP ministers using government cars ( - chauffer driven too )  ?

    What were you trying to achieve - except perhaps fool the public - by

    travelling in metro / auto / Wagon-R , for first 4 days  ?  "

People of Delhi think that ,

>   they have been taken for a ride ( - no doubt , on metro ! )

>   you have pulled a fast one on them

>   you have betrayed their trust

DEAR  ARVIND ,

There was no need for you to have made those lofty declarations

But for your failed attempt to project your simplicity as a virtue , no one would have bothered to wonder why you are moving from a 3 bedroom flat to a 5 bedroom flat

People may have even appreciated that you intend to continue your office work ( beyond office hours ) , in a 5 room office attached to your residence

Every single Chief Minister of India  has to do that  !

More than 50 years back , Dr Jivraj Mehta ( - the first Chief Minister of Gujarat ) , spent a night at my father's modest house in village Vadia

He had just one peon in his retinue ( - apart from his driver ) , who carried a heap of files inside the house

After dinner , he sat down cross-legged , on a bed laid out on the floor and answered questions of the villagers

When I got up next morning , I saw him going thru those files and making notes . My father later told me that the CM had started work at 4 am - still sitting cross-legged on the floor  !

Dr Jivraj Mehta did not have to declare his " Simplicity " to anyone  !

Then 3 years later , corrupt Congress MLAs of Gujarat , who could not stomach the honesty of Dr Mehta , got High Command to replace him  !

DEAR  ARVIND ,

You have many lessons to learn from history

Lesson  No ONE  is  :

>  Do not undertake / promise anything that you cannot sustain

>  Once you promise anything , don't go back on it


>  Always ask , " Will I be able to defend my position later ? "

>  TALK  LESS  /  WORK  MORE

*    hemen   parekh  (  04  Jan  2014  /  Mumbai  )