Alternate to ceremonial nonsense

People take refuge behind traditions to explain away conducting goofy things that has long since lost their relevance.

Take Republic Day Parade for example. If there is a bigger national waste than the RD Parade, then I have not seen it. The Capital city is paralysed for almost a month, the security on the day is suffocating, the invitee list limited to a choice few of the elite thereby ensuring the common man has no ghost of a chance of participating and added to that there is a sameness to the whole event. Millions of rupees spent on this could have been better utilized. Ditto for Independence day flag hoisting ceremony at Red Fort. PM can just walk upto Red Fort, hoist the Flag, that can be telecast live and he should scoot off immediately leaving it to people to decide how they want to celebrate. The spirit behind these two days are to remind us the importance of having Independence and being a Republic. But that is totally lost. How many of the Indians know what is the meaning of the word 'Republic'? I can say "hardly anyone", for I ask this query of my MBA students every 6 months and have not got a single correct answer. I rest my case.

The same can be said of the Ministerial Swearing in Ceremony. Thankfully, these days, it is held in the Rashtrapathi Bhavan. But I cannot for one understand why the President (which itself is an unwanted post and a drain on exchequer) should read out the oath one after another to 80 odd people. If at all oath taking is required, everyone could be made to stand as one and asked to take a mass oath. That should suffice. Anyway the relevant thing is the signing of the documents, and not the more visible Oath recital. For god's sake, I dont stand up in front of everyone and take an oath that I will do my job properly when I take up a new assignment. I plonk my laptop on the table, switch it on and get cracking - and that is how it should be.

Instead, why dont we ask our Ministers to meet an audience comprising of 50 citizens and defend their performance every year. The audience should be allowed to ask searching questions. Imagine G K Vasan being asked about the Cost-Benefit analysis of Sethu Samudram Project, PM grilled on the benefits accrued one year after the signing of the nuclear deal, Finance Minister and Rural Development minister having to defend the leakage in the NREG scheme, Kamal Nath having to explain why the 4 laning of Roads is not yet complete 6 years after its deadline, P Chidambaram in the dock for not arresting a single person associated with Mumbai blast six months after it has happened, PM questioned as to why he has not eradicated the Poverty in 100 days as per his tall claim in an election speech and so on. All telecast live on TV will be fun and will show up the ministers for what they are. It will also bring the much needed accountability in the system.

Seven recurrent blunders as identified by Ganndhiji

In human society, all violence can be traced back to these seven recurrent blunders:

1. wealth without work,
2. pleasure without conscience,
3. knowledge without character,
4. commerce without morality,
5. science without humanity,
6. worship without sacrifice, and
7. politics without principles.
   –Mohandas K. Gandhi

Marketing bloomers

I have come across funny advertisements at local level in India. I have a good collection and shall post it one of these days.



But one would expect top companies, especially trans-naitonals, who spent millions of Rupees on Marketing Research not to goof up!

Cadburys created a majore gaffe in 2002. It compared a brand of chocolate to the disputed territory of Kashmir and describing both as "too good to share".The blunder occurred in an advertisement to promote Cadbury's Temptations brand on India's independence day. The newspaper campaign featured a map of India showing the war-torn area of Jammu and Kashmir shaded over. Written in bold across the shaded area was the message "Too good to share" - the advertising slogan for Cadbury's Temptations brand of chocolates. "I'm good. I'm tempting. I'm too good to share. What am I? Cadbury's Temptations or Kashmir?" ran the catchline. There was a big hue and cry with readers blasting Cadbury for insensitivity. Cadbury's had to do a hasty retreat and apologize. Needless to say, the ad was pulled out.

McDonald's came up with a brochure that showed turbaned Indians, purportedly the Sikhs, in its promotional literature. But unfortunately, someone had taken the picture from National Geographic and did not notice that the original picture had Pakistani men.

Allow me to enjoy a private victory

I am savouring a rare moment of success. Success achieved through the deft and patient handling of a tricky situation that lasted almost two years. It is moments like these that vindicates the faith I have in myself and people. It is a personal and private victory, but it was worth it. Let me enjoy this moment.

Blog will be back tomorrow.

Dignified leadership even in defeat

There was an empty feeling after the IPL season 1 last year. At the end of last years IPL one was left wondering what to do with the evenings till the next IPL. Somehow, this years IPL, when it ended, brought a sigh of relief - that it was over after all. Not that the matches were less entertaining, in fact they were more entertaining as there was an even contest between the bat and the ball most of the times unlike last year, but somehow this seasons IPL did not stay in the mind.

If last years IPL was all about the dynamic showmanship leadership of the charismatic Shane Warne, this yeat it was all about the dignified senior statesman and leader par excellent-Anil Kumble. True, he lost in the final, but how.

Kumble, written off as unfit for 20-20 cricket, took over an under achieving Banglore Royal Challengers team from a totally demotivated, highly priced Kevin Peterson, who has been a unmitigated disaster as a Captain and a Player. The team was set to repeat its last years 7th position standings. Kumble, put some spine into the team, gave them self confidence and led them from front.

The final illustrates the greatness of Kumble. He took upon himself the challenge of bowling the first over to a rampaging Gilchrist. I had wagered a bet that Kumble will open the bowling and get Gilchrist, also that Gilly wont reach double figures. The second ball was a gem. Pitched outside the left handers leg stump, it was a googly (so difficult to turn when the ball is brand new) that pitched, beat Gillys flashing blade and took out the leg stump. Again Kumble came back to clean bowl Symonds who was looking dangerous. Finally, he brought himself on at the fag end when Rohit Sharma was going great guns, deceived him in the flight and took him out followed by Venugopal Rao. 4-16 in 4 overs was a stupendous effort from the old warrior.

It is a pity that he ended up on the losing side. Most of the times, we tend to pay attention only to the tantrum throwers and people who beat their chest, whether in the sports field or in our workplace. The silent, dignified, hard working leader is left unnoticed, till the day he either resigns or retires. Then there is a vaccum and we regret that we have all along taken him for granted and his value is undestood only in his absence. Kumble epitomises that.

Dignity - in life, victory or defeat. That is what Kumbles of this world represents and we are thankful to them for that. Not for Kumble the temper tantrums of Yuvraj (Yuvi as a captain has been a disaster, just look at the way he bad mouths his players and most of the time he couldnt even remember some of his Indian Players names), or the cowardly act of Harbhajan (he took care not to bowl to rampaging batsmen throught the IPL), reprehensible behaviour of Sreesanth, the overhyped aura of Dhoni and Sehway, the arrongance of Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli. Kumble, in contrast put his hand up when it mattered, stood like a rock and backed his team to the hilt. The turn around of his team is what legends are made of. No wonder, for a legend was responsible for it.

It is a privilege to have watched such a great competitor and a gentlemen in my life time.

Thank you Anil Kumble, for restoring the faith in dignified leadership and competitiveness.

New Cabinet -1

The more things change, the more they remain the same.

The first set of Ministers sworn in along with Dr.Manmohan Singh has the same tired old faces. Though it is likely that one might see some new faces when the Cabinet is expanded on tuesday, the Cabinet Ministers, who really matter, are likely to be an inheritance from the old disastrous set.

While Pranab Mukherjee purportedly did a great job as a trouble shooter and head of maximum number of Ministerial Committees, it needs to be noted that most of these committees hardly produced anything worthwhile during the last 5 years. They were more of a tool to put controversial and much needed reforms into the orbit. Making him the full time Finance Minister will also mean that MMS wont have the carte blanche on the economic front as he wanted.

Chidambaram is a reluctant Home Minister, though efficient. He positively did not want this crown of thorns, but he is the best choice under the circumstances.

The defense requires someone more dynamic than AK Antony. Antony is a nice guy, but too nice for this critical post. The Army is quite upset on the one rank, one pay, one pension issue and Antony is a poor decision maker at best. The hardware needs considerable upgradation, but under Antony, though very honest, things are likely to remain status quo, which can adversely affect the Defense's readiness to protect our country from a rogue Pakistan and a China that is chipping away at our borders. Someone like Chidambaram would have made a terrific difference in Defence.

The suave SM Krishna as Foreign Minister is a brave move. But he lacks experience in this Ministry, though he is a good administrator. With India's South Asian policy on the brink, a more experienced, out of the box thinker would have helped. A pity Mani Shankar Aiyer lost the elections. He would have done well, though the Americans would have never allowed him to become the FM. But he is one guy who can shed the complacency that is currently prevalent in this moribund ministry, that is badly in need of a major shake up and policy change. Our Foreign policy is too West Centric and it is high time we looked at Asia and Africa in a more positive way.

Despite Farmers committing suicide, and despite him being an unqualified disaster during the past 5 years, Sharad Pawar continues to be the Agricultural Minister. The reports from the West on the food front is not very great. Looks like we are in for another Food shortage in the immediate future. Pawar has been caught napping in the past, and nothing makes me think that he wont be again.

Mamata as Railways Minister is a disaster waiting to happen. Though Lalu did a good job as Railway Minister, it is to be noted that he has not concentrated on long term development. Not much investments have been made on rolling stock nor on safety. The Railways are creaking and needs a person with long term vision. Nitish Kumar first and Lalu subsequently, had done good work in this ministry and Didi is likely to take it back to the pre 2000 era of mismanagement.

.............................................................................................................. to be contd after cabinet expansion

Organized Retail in India -RIP?

FDI in retail was considered to be a landmark change in Indian market structure. The idea was that creating an organized retail infrastructure, by allowing FDI as well as huge Indian Corporate Investments, will result in a win-win-win situation for the Customers, Retailers and the Producers. The trickle down effect of this was expected to benefit the agricultural sector in the long run, for the retailers would have locked up agricultural produce well in advance.

We saw retail chains coming up in many parts of India. True, they were no patch for what exists overseas. Space limitations, cramped layouts, limited choice, dubious quality of products and hazardous billing procedure turned away the consumers. Our organized retail forgot the cardinal principle of Super market buying. Shopping has to be an experience in a Super Market and not an ordeal, as is the case in many Indian Super Markets.

The Super Market concept thrives on high volumes. It also meant that in a Country like India, so used to the mom and pop shops, there has to be a Consumer Behaviour Change for the concept to become successful. The volume has to come from the middle class, who wont mind buying for Rs 200 per day, for a month but would shrink at spending Rs 5000 for the same goods once in a month, the latter the bread and butter of Supermarkets. Any behavioural change has to be over a minimum 5-7 years span. The super market chains that started initially just did not have the staying power. The overheads were high, mainly electricity charges and rent, making the concept unsustainable. Added to this is the fact that the business model that exists today is a low asset based one. The space is rented, the inventory in the super markets not paid for in advance. The finanical institutions who funded the project initially are fighting shy of this sector once it became clear that the model is not a profit making one and the risk for them is high in view of the lack of asset coverage. Big Bazar started closing shops and now Subhiksha, one of the pioneers and better run super market chains enjoying good brand equity, is on the verge of liquidation after incurring a loss of Rs 800 crores. Even Reliance has not been doing well. The root cause lies in that these so called Super Markets are more like mini markets. The future lies in 2 or at the most 3 major hyper markets per major town. But considering the time it takes to move from one end of a city to another (even in C class cities) due to heavy traffic, I am not sure even this will be a good idea.

So is it back to the neighbourhood shop? Only time will tell.

Of bald head and pot belly

Many make fun of my bald, pot bellied, rotund figure. Not that I care a fig about how I look. But there are certain advantages I have over others because of my Assets(!).

Take the bald head for example. I need to cut my hair only once in 4 months and dont have to worry about greying. Drying my hair after a headbath is very easy. All I have to do is to pass a hand over the head from front to back. No towels and no worried looks at hair stuck to the towels. Hair oils and Shampoos purchased last a life time. And of course, I dont need a comb or a hair brush. And above all I dont have to worry about missus getting lost in a crowd in a shopping mall. All she had to do is to look around at eye level and watch out for a nice reflection from my shining pate. There is a huge plus point. The receding hair line results in an extended forehead that gives me a 'Bujee' look (For the uninitiated, Bujee is a short form for Budhi Jeevi in Malayalam, or a more realistice 'Intellectual Ass Hole' in English). This helps a lot especially when you are working as a Senior Management Professional, essentially advising Top Management on Strategy or when you are working as a Management Teacher. People swallow whatever you tell as gospels truth, since in their view you are a Bujee.

The main benefit of having a pot belly is while travelling economy class in an airplane. The Economy Class seats have a contraption called Tray Table that enables one to place the meal tray in front of you and eat. One needs to be a master acrobat and a wizard in tummy tucking to use it. Sometimes I have wondered whether the airlines have deliberately designed the Tray Table so that the passenger is forced to take in his stomach while eating, resulting in reduced intake. Anyway, I have no such problems. I just sit normally, do not open the tray table, but rather ask the Air Hostess to put the tray on the natural table, i.e my pot belly. I do get envied looks from my co-passengers struggling with their tray tables and meals.

Lest we also follow the same path

Prabhakaran appears to be dead. No one is going to shed tears over his death. He and LTTE doesnt deserve any sympathy, for they lived by the gun and died by the gun.

The tragedy of his death is that the plight of the Tamils in Srilanka is worse off than what it was, when he created LTTE. In the euphoria of the Srilankan Armies victory over LTTE, one must not forget how it all started - the blatant discrimination by the Sinhalese majority against the Tamil Minorities in Srilanka. It is not as if Tamils are such a minority in Srilanka. They form a majority in the North and the North East. They have been terrorised and systematically discriminated against by the Sinhalese over the years. The long drawn LTTE guerilla warfare has also ensured that millions of Tamils have nothing to look forward to other than the doles handed out by the Srilankan Government. It is a pathetic situation. In Prabhakaran and LTTE, they had a voice, however misguided both might be. Now, they are at the complete mercy of the majority who have a vendetta against them.

Ditto the plight of Hindus in Pakistan, hindus in Bangladesh, people of Indian origin in Fiji, Tamilians in Malaysia. But in India? Our own Prime Minister said openly that the minority community enjoys the First benefit of the nations resources, majority community be damned.

Our Country has not gone the neighbours ways because of the tolerence imbibed in our national psyche. We see nothing but failed Nations around us - Pakistan, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Srilanka. Slowly but steadily, the undermining of the institutional fabric by the powers that be, and playing mischief with the religious feelings will ensure India is also not very far from joining the above list. The time to act is now. Tomorrow may be too late.

Passport and Visa

Trivia time again.

We take so many things for granted in life. An international traveller lives and dies by the words, Passport and Visa. I thought the Passport orginated from sea travel as a document that allows a person to Pass a Port. I couldnt be more wrong.

I was surprised to learn that its origin has its roots from a medieval document required to pass through the gate ("porte") of a city wall. In medieval Europe such documents were issued to travelers by local authorities, and generally contained a list of towns and cities into which a document holder was permitted to pass. On the whole, documents were not required for travel to sea ports, which were considered open trading points, but documents were required to travel inland from sea ports. Thus the Passport meant that it allows one to Pass the Porte (gate).

Now to Visa. The word Visa has its origin in Latin word - charta visa, lit, meaning "paper that has been seen. It is an indication that a person is authorized to enter the country which "issued" the visa, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. Of course we know the second part of it, but not the origin of the word

Election Results

Election results are out. UPA has come back with a substantial increase in seats. At least they will be rid of the baggages of the left and other parasites to a large extend. Let us see if Congress can give us a better governance than what it was. But Congress is in a Catch-22 situation. They had done some sleight of the hand accounting during the last few years that ensured that lot of expenses are defered to 2010 and 2011, hoping against hope that another government will bear this cross. Now, this profligacy will haunt them.

I would say this is a mature verdict given by the Indian Voter. They have punished the BJP for being inactive as an opposition during the past five years and for projecting a 81 year old as PM. BJP did not provide an attractive alternative to the voters and they lost. And they still did not give Congress and UPA a clear majority, thus putting them on notice

I would be dishonest if I were to tell you that am not unhappy with the results. I still feel Congress is bad for the Country, but my countrymen dont seem to think so. I have no choice to bow to the superior wisdom of the voters

Pure Genius

The guy continues to amaze me. I am talking about Shane Warne. He managed a ragtag team of non entities last year to the IPL trophy. This year, he is severely handicapped by the absence of Shane Watson, Sohail Tanveer and last heroes like Asnodkar have not fired. The team looks on paper the weakest (including KKR, I have to say). But Rajastan Royals led by Warne are on the verge of Semi Final berth.

Yesterday was a case in point of what a leader should be. Warne picked up a severe hamstring injury in the previous match and was ruled out of the whole IPL. But hey presto! There he was. Thigh tightly strapped, not wanting to lose the one chance to take on his nemesis - Sachin Tendulkar. RR was 15 runs short after their innings, but you can never discount Warne. He weaved his magic, interspersed with some rank long hopes, got rid of Sachin and Jayasuria. Also, he pulled a dramatic victory from a hopeless position when Mumbai Indians had to score just 6 in 9 balls with 3 wickets in hand. He tossed the ball to Munaf Patel, bought the field in and won with 2 runs to spare. He was also cool as a cucumber diving to save the Malinga drive and cooly tossing it to Munaf to effect the last run out. That he was able to ensure Munaf was behind the stumps to collect the ball itself speaks highly of his captaincy, for Munaf must rank amongst the most hopeless fielder in the world, barring none, who just thinks that his responsibility ends with bowling the ball alone. The ball Warne bowled to get Sachin LBW was a gem.

The guy should have been born an Indian. He plays with his heart and is so passionate that his tarzan style cry on winning the match, with him on his knees, arms raised was a joy to behold. Ajay Jadeja, on being queried by Sonali on NDTV mentioned that Warne may not have succeeded as Australian Captain, for Aussies play with logic but Warne plays with his heart may have been wrong. I still feel that it was Australias and World Crickets misfortune not to have seen Warne Captain a Test Team. Genius have a way of adapting to the siuation.

Management students can take a leaf out of Warne while studying leadership. He is a non conformist to the core. But he motivates, backs his youngsters, spots talent and leads from the front. Who said a leader has to wear Harrods suit, pin striped tie, sit in an ivory tower?

Hilarious take on election symbols

I am not much into giving a link to other blogs. But this take on the election symbols of various political parties is hilarious. Click on the link and read on,

http://www.rameshsrivats.net/2009/05/deconstruction-of-election-symbols.html

Long live the Indian Voter

There is something fishy about UPA and its antics this last one month.

Congress, many regional parties and Left formed a ragtag coalition that ruled India for the last 5 years. That the rule was a disaster is common knowledge. The treasury was healthy when they took over with Fiscal deficity manageable and coming down at 5%. After 5 years of profligacy, the Fiscal deficit is a whopping 10% and many hare brained social sector unproductive schemes to be provided for in the coming years.

But close to the elections, the constituents of the UPA started fighting with each other (deliberatively I would say). First left broke off on nuclear deal and started bitching the Congress. Then Mulayam, Ramdoss, Lalu, Paswan and all and sundry. This was deliberate as this ensured that during the campaign, UPA as a collective entity wont have to face unpleasant questions. Everyone was pointing fingers at the other resulting in peoples attention getting diverted from the real issues like Bijli, sadak, paani and other issues like Education, health care, plight of poor people, economic downturn etc etc.

Now that we are on the last day of polling, we see all these "estranged" parties cosying up to each other to save the "SECULAR CREDENTIALS' of the country. What a despicable joke!!

The exit polls will be out by the end of the day, though they have been spectacularly wrong every single time in the past. They will predict a neck and neck race, so that people will be glued to the TV on the counting day. It is a trick to increase TRP ratings. Dont fall for it.

I have refrained from predicting the outcome of the elections. But my assessment is that BJP led NDA will definitely be at least 30-35 seats more than the original NDA excluding Left and Mulayam. My guess is that NDA will touch 200 -205 seats, and dont be surprised if Congress ends up with around 110-120 seats, down from 135 last time.

Anyway Congress have their puppy dog as the President and will use all the tricks in the trade to come back to power. And dont be surprised if all those who broke away from Congress, flock around them to share the spoils.

But something tells me that we are in for a surprise this time around.

Indian voters have always been wise and have booted out non performers every single time.

Long live the voters

Who will bell this Cat?

According to preliminary estimates, the actual cost of running the campaign by all parties in the current Lok Sabha elections has crossed the Rs 50,000 crore. The political parties have reportedly spent Rs 3000 crore on advertisement campaigns. The Election Commission's budget for the 2009 elections is Rs 1,300 crore, which includes the conduct of polls plus transportation and movement of security forces. The state governments and other government agencies have earmarked Rs 700 crore for photo identity cards, electronic voting machines and setting up polling booths.

Now my question is "Where did the parties get Rs 50,000 Crore to spend on the election?" . Corporates are not allowed legally in India to donate to Parties. None of these parties have any sort of base or subscriptions that they can collect to fill their coffers. So obviously, the enitre money has to be black money, got from pliant industrialists, kickbacks from various deals and simple old fashioned corruption. If you and me were to build a house worth 40 lakhs, IT department will ask for the source. Why are they silent on the political parties source of income, as people who have funded these parties will claim their pound of flesh after the elections, to the detriment of the common man in the long run. Who will bell this cat?

Electoral Amendments Required 2

Continuing my previous post on electoral and parliamentary reforms,

It is imperative that each MP be asked to maintain a formal office in his constituency and be available at least 7 days in a month to enable those who have voted him to power to meet him and give ideas and suggestions for improving the overall life in the constituency. Initially, people will come forward with only grievances, but over a period of time this shall become a forum for peoples participation in the development agenda for the constituency. In the modern age where technology runs roost, even if the MP cannot be physically present for these meetings for some reason (though I cannot understand why he cant be in his home constituency 7 days a month), he can still interact with his voters through video conferencing. Government can bear the expenses for maintaining official MP offices in each constituency. It will be worth it.

The most ridiculous thing of the elections is that it is spread over 45 days. In an era of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), which was expected to expedite the voting and counting process, we have the hilarious situation of people having to wait for eons to know who has been elected. The elections have to be held all over India on a single day - period full stop. There should not be any other discussions on this. So many things can change in this dynamic world over 45 days. Remember when Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated half way through the 1991 elections. It created a sympathy wave which resulted in Congress coming back to power. This is unfair. The ostnable reason that Central forces have to be deployed for elections to ensure free and fair polling do not hold water. Not all constituencies are sensitive. In fact majority of the constituencies are peaceful. EC can identify those sensitive constituencies and deploy para military or even the Army to ensure orderly polling. Also, EC and the Supreme Court can set up fast track courts to punish those individuals and parties indulging in Electoral malpractices. They have to give exeplary punishment that will serve as a deterrant to those who capture booths or terrorise voters.

The next one is a little more controversial. The upper house- Rajya Sabha- has to be dissolved. Most of the States, who had similiar arrangements, Legislative Councils - have long since disbanded these Councils. Why not Rajya Sabha? It serves only as a tool to push in cronies of the political parties bosses and today more of a backdoor entry into the parliament for those who have been rejected by the people or those who are afraid to face the people. We had the ridiculous situation of the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and the Home Minister (for the most part) of the current Government taking the Rajya Sabha route. And that is 4 out of the top 5 ministers. This is absurd. It came to such a situation that the PM couldnt be censured in the Loksabha for breach of priviliege in the Nuclear Deal as 'he was not a member of the Lok Sabha'. How can one ensure accountability if the Lok Sabha cannot even query a Minister? Rajya Sabha has to go. I am aware that there are nominated members of the Rajya Sabha from different fields like Education, business, sports, arts etc, though their performance has been patchy to say the least. They can be accommodated as independant consultants for various parliamentary committees dealing with subjects of their areas of competence. Till Rajya Sabha is disbanded, a legislation can be brought saying those who are members of Rajya Sabha has to resign PRIOR to filing nominations for the Lok Sabha elections, and those who have failed in the elections for Lok Sabha SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED INTO THE RAJYA SABHA DURING THE TENURE OF THAT LOK SABHA..................to be contd...........

Electoral Amendments Required 1

That our electoral system requires an overhaul has commonly agreed upon. While the focus is on a major overhaul, which is not likely to happen in the current political scenario, there are minor, yet important changes that can be made without much ado. Let us try and discuss a few of them,

No Candidate should be allowed to contest in more than one constituency at a time. The current practice of candidates standing in multiple constituencies, winning in both, and then resigning from one of them leading to a needless bye election is a criminal waste of money. Why should we , the tax payers, have to pay for the insecurities of the politicians? The Election commission can easily modify the requirements on the eligibility criteria that ensures a candidate standing in only one constituency.

The parliaments tenure can be reduced to 4 years, instead of the current 5. Today, an MP or an MLA knows that he doesnt have to go back to the people for 5 long years and has absolutely no accountability. Having a referendum at the end of 2 years with an option on recall the MP/MLA will keep them on their toes.......................... to be continued

Broad based discussion

My earlier post on Srirams flaws had received some very enlightening comments from Dr.Manish.

Thank you Sir.

I need to make a clarification here. It was never my intention to demean Sri Rama. All I pointed out was a couple of minor flaws in an otherwise impeccable character. That, in fact, adds to the beauty of the charectarisation of Sri Raman.

Most of our epics have undergone changes over the centuries. In fact it is even possible that there could multiple authors over a few centuries. This is more noticeable in Mahabharatha.

Sri Raman is the nearest one can have to an ideal man.

One of my main grouse against how our epics are taught is that a student is not allowed to question. This should not be the case. My raising the point about Sri Ramans minor flaws encouraged the good Doctor to counter my view point. A health debate is the need of our society. It is through interaction that one broadens ones outlook.

I wish I get meaningful inputs in the comments section from my readers.

Blogging will be sporadic for a few days as I am pre occupied otherwise.