How to win a Padma Bhushan .......... the Chatwal Way

How to get a 'Padma Bhushan' Award from Government of India?

If you thought the Padma awards were given to people who have had a long and distinguished career and service to the nation, you are mistaken.

All you have to do is facilitate the survival of the Congress led Government in Delhi during a Vote of Confidence by bribing MP's from the opposition.

If you are still in doubt, just ask the NRI Hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal!

He used his influence and his war chest to lure Akali MP's to support the UPA during the Vote of Confidence in the Parliament in 2008. And hey presto! He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in Jan 2010!! Mind you, not just Padma Sri, but Padma Bhushan itself!!!

How demeaning it must be to all the other worthy winners of the Padma Awards to see their life long accomplishments branded with a scum like Sant Singh Chatwal.

Hoax

For decades Volkwagon Beetle pulled off the biggest marketing hoax. The car has been in existence since late 1930's when Hitler came up with the concept of People' Car. Remember that those days, the cars were like boxes, crude and no one was even thinking of aerodynamics.

Why do I call it the hoax? Because VW somehow was able to drill into the customer that Beetle was an UGLY CAR. In reality, it was not (I can vouch for it,  because it was my first car and still the best. Read my earlier post on the subject here). The Beetle was an aerodynamic marvel and absolutely beautiful. It is one of the reason, it is the largest selling model the world has seen, and why it is STILL being marketed, though only the jelly bean shape is common with the original Beetle these days.

Another big hoax, but in a pure negative sense, is what the media and people say - That Manmohan Singh is honest and his integrity is beyond reproach. If this is not a fraud perpetuated on simple Indians, then I don't know what fraud is.

Look at the sheer number of scams under him. And look at how he has facilitated all the Scams. Not many remember, but the Harshad Mehta scam of 1992 happened when he was the Finance Minister. He was the No.2 in Narasimha Rao's Government which bribed Shibu Soren with suitcases full of money just before the trust vote.

MMS was in helm when the biggest 2 G scam of Rs 1.76 lakh crores happened. For years he kept quiet, till his hands were forced by the Supreme Court. The S-Band Spectrum Scam happened when he was PMO and in a ministry under his watch - Science and Technology. He tried unsuccessfully in 2006 to push the candidature of Thomas as CVC. And pushed it through successfully in 2010, only to have eggs on his face when Supreme Court annulled the appointment. The NREGA leaks and the scamsters have virtually hijacked all the money meant for the poor. That he sold our country's nuclear soveriegnity to US in 2008 for a few silvers is an open secret. That he heads a Government that tried to make thousands of crores through dubious land deals under the SEZ scheme is an open secret. Now, the wikileaks has shown him up for bribing MP's to save his government in 2008!

In any other democratic country, he would have been given the boot and prosecuted for criminal complicity. But this is India. Sab chalta hai! 

Will Japan fly high again?

I studied my Management when the buzzword was 'Japanese Management'. Japanese Management, during 1970's and 80's was fast developing as an alternative to the much maligned Western Management System. This was expected to make Japan a super power.

But with increase in wages ushered in by massive industrialization, a break down of the social structure due to western influence which  had an impact on the employment pattern (previously a Japanese employee stayed with a company for his life, and the company took care of him so well that even during times of layoff, he was loaned to another company, rather than being retrenched. Also, companies encouraged and workers prefered to educate and employ the next generation as per the company needs. It was more of a life long partnership) and the reluctance of the Japanese to take the lead in the Services Sector led to the gradual decline of Japanese Economy. By the second decade of the new millineum Japanese economy was in deep trouble.

The Japanese product, though superior in quality, was priced higher than those made in Taiwan or Vietnam or China. It lost its competitive edge in electronics to Korea and manufacturing edge to China. Unfortunately for them, during this period, the consumer preference world over started changing. The product life cycles became shorter and shorter, and consumers wanted good (not the best quality) products that are less expensive but would last at most a year or two. This went against the concept of Japanese products that were of the highest quality lasting longer, but were expensive. When they started compromising on quality for cost, they ended up in big trouble like Toytota did recently. Over the period of time Japan had started accumulating debt. The Country was being run more and more on debt, and it was falling into a debt trap. By 2010, the Public Debt of Japan had reached an alarming 196.4% of the GDP (compare this with US - 58.9%, Germany - 74.8%, India - 55.9%. Even the beleagured Greece had only 144% and Italy 119%. Japan was second in the list, below Zimbabwe)  and its fiscal deficit was 9.4%. Both unsustainable in the long run. Just prior to the Earth quake, the rating agencies were planning to downgrade the rating of Japan, which would have made it difficult and more expensive for them to get additional debt.

By the beginning of 2011, Japanese economy has been virtually red flagged. The unemployment rate was at a high at 5%, as against the long term average of 2.6%. Despite the interest rate being zero, the GDP was showing a negative growth rate (The GDP growth rate was -5.2% in 2009-10). The inflation was 0%, which is not good news, as a minimum level of inflation is required to encourage producers to invest in additional production.Even the exports were sluggish. Japan, like a typical Asian Country, saves more internally than it spends, leading to less reliance on the local demand, but more on the foreign demand.

It was in the above scenario that the Earth Quake and the Tsunami struck. The loss, in human terms, social terms and in economic terms have been huge. With the blast in the reactor adversely affecting the electrical supply, manufacturing could be badly hit. And food inflation is likely to be high, as the epicentre of the Tsunami were essentially the region which was known for agriculture. In the short run, the Japanese economy could be adversely affected.

But there is a ray of hope amidst the pall of gloom. Japan will require massive reconstruction. This means large scale construction activities. Demand for Cement and Steel will go up. And this would also lead to more jobs. More jobs means more wages and hence more money in ciculation, which in turn translates to more demand for products and services. The Japan Central Bank has already pumped in $ 184 billion into the market post earth quake. This is to facilitate lending for reconstruction. Add to this the huge amount of financial aid to be received from all over the world. We could see the Japanese economy reviving in the medium term.

Japanese people are resilient, if not anything else. National catastrophes like the one we saw last week tends to bring out the patriotism in people. They tend to work harder and longer. Remember, this was a country battered and bruised after the World War II. They were shocked to submission by the two atom bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. But from the ashes of those cities, they built the modern Japan, made it the second largest economy in the world (till recently) and gave the world the wonderful concepts of quality management.

Let us hope they show the same spirit this time around too. That is the best way for Japan to pay homage to its earthquake/tsunami victims.

TMT Overestimated?

There is an old adage. A Cold will get cured with medicine in 2 days, or without medicine in 48 hours.

I have always wondered whether our doctors err on the safer side, prescribe unnecessary medicines, which does more harm than good.

I know of a paediatrician who rarely gave medicines, and his patients were none the worse for it. Then there was the case of another acquaintance, who returned from London, set up practice in Calicut, refused to give unnecessary medicines, and found he had no patients. When he enquired, he found out that his target market was predominantly families whose bread winner was in Gulf, and they expected the Doctor to write at least 2 tonics and 3 capsules for any ailment. The poor guy could never reconcile to this. Another anecdote is from rural Tamil Nadu, where the common folk have an obsession with 'oosi', which translates to 'injection'. The doctor is no good if he doesnt give an injection ("Doctor ayya sariyillai. Avar oosi podalai" - Doctor is no good, for he did not give an injection - is a common refrain).

With the concept of family doctor  (I had written about it before) almost vanishing, we are in an era of 'Speciality Doctors' working in Super Speciality Hospitals. The problem with these Specialists is that they tend to have tunnel vision, looking at all problems through the prism of their specialization. Then there is the commercial angle also. Unncessary tests and unwanted procedures, diagnosis aimed at increasing repeat  business for the hospital is a norm than an exception ( I am not discounting that these doctors and hospitals do a stellar job).

My above perception was validated when I read this report on TMT,

The ECG Tread Mill Test commonly used to identify people who are prone to heart attacks is not a fool-proof procedure to know the condition of heart especially among high-risk professionals like pilots, according to a latest study. The study is an eye opener and probably the established criteria for positive Tread Mill Test (TMT) needs revision in order to avoid treating healthy persons as heart patients, its author Colonel M J Jacob, head of the department of Nuclear Medicine, Army Hospital Research and Refferal said. The study has been published in the Journal of Associations of Physicians in India.

With increased prevalence of coronary artery disease, people especiall the young are anxious to find out about their risk of suffering from a heart attack in near future and hence, undergo TMT to clear the doubt.

ECG TMT is one of the main tests routinely used to detect the adequacy of the blood supply to cardiac muscles during rest as well as at times of higher stress. All those who test positive for ECG TMT are put through further tests and procedures.

"A total of 152 people including airline pilots, millitary personnels making it to higher altitudes, submariners and executives who reported positive for ECG TMT were analysed in order to ensure their cardiac fitness in stress conditions.

"It was found that the test grossly over-estimated the presence of cardiac problems and put healthy persons through unnecessary tests and procedures," Colonel Jacob said.

Chest discomfort could have been due to other minor problems unrelated to heart like acidity, chest wall muscle main etc, he said.

He said, "ECG TMT is one of the very common investigations being used in the periodic medical examination of high risk professionals.

"It's time we revise the test criterias. It's time we revise the test criterias in order stop person from being unduly being subjected to coronary angiography," he said.

A beacon of light amidst the pall of gloom

Do you know this gentleman? If not, you should.

He is a beacon of shining light amidst the gloom of darkness pervading and paralyzing our Country.

He had brought back dignity, integrity and sanity to the most  hallowed institution in India.

He is like a breath of fresh air, after the stinch generated by the previous Chief (In)Justice, Balakrishnan, who was corrupt, crafty and universally acclaimed to be the most undesirable and crooked rogue to have held the esteemed post of CJI.

The gentleman in the picture above is Chief Justice of India, S H Kapadia.

Hailing from a very lower middle class family, he started his carreer as an errand and tea boy in a law firm, and worked his way up the judicial ladder through sheer hard work. When he assumed office he wrote a letter to the nanogenarian doyen of Supreme Court Judges, Retired Justice V R Krishna Iyer, "I come from a poor family. I started my career as a class IV employee and the only asset I possess is integrity".

His landmark judgement on the CVC case is laudable. He strictly confined himself to the legal situation, and refrained from making any adverse remarks on the Executive. Judiciary's job is to ensure that governance is done as per the law and constitution of the Country. If there is a deviation, then they shoud reverse the situation and leave it at that. While judicial activism makes good news, it encroaches the powers of the executive, which is undesirable.

Thus it was music to the ears when I read the following (the highlightings are mine),

Chief Justice of India S H Kapadia today said judges must “not give lectures to society” while doing their job and should also not “judge the wisdom of legislatures”.

“The High Courts and Supreme Court are courts of principles... Judges should not speak anything beyond the principles of a particular case. Let us not give lectures to society,” CJI Kapadia said.

“The problem is sometimes we judges impose our own values, likes or dislikes on society,” he said. “Judges should keep in mind that we can’t judge the wisdom of legislatures. We have to work for constitutional principles. I am of the view that if judges take decisions on principles, many of the controversies will not arise.”

Touche!

We can rest assured that the Supreme Court is in good hands till September 2012, when he retires.

Thank god for small mercies.

When the mother nature discarded her benevolence

When the Kurukshetra war was over, the success went to Arjunans head. So when it was time to get down from the Chariot, he, with the arrogance of the victor who feels he has won the war on his own, vainly asks Sri Krisha to alight first, treating him like a mere charioter (more like our VIP's expecting the driver to open the doors for them). Sri Krishna, with a smile, politely tells him to get down first. When Arjuna was still defiant, Krishna gently but firmly pushes him out of the chariot first, and then gets down himself. The moment the Krishna alighted, the Chariot exploded into flames. Arjunan was stunned. Krishna reminded Arjunan that during the war, many lethal arrows were directed at Arjunan, which Krishna, using his divine powers directed towards the chariot and got it absorbed there, thus saving Arjunan. And the moment they got down, the chariot exploded. If Krishna had got down first, as Arjunan wanted, then that would have meant the death of Arjunan. Arjunan was humbled and realized the inadequacy of a mere mortal like him as compared to the divinity of Srikrishna, the incarnation of God, who is nothing but our nature.

I was reminded of this story on seeing the devastation caused by the 8.9 grade Earth Quake and the Tsunami that hit Japan. Benevolent Mother nature absorbs everything for years and we take her for granted. We become arrogant and think we have mastered the World. We do not show humility and take God & Nature for granted. Then the mother nature sheds her benevolence a teeny little bit, and puts us in our place, humbled and shamed. We realize then, our insignificance.

The slide show, which you can view by clicking the link, is self explanatory and horrifying. Words fail me. Let us bow our head to mother nature and pray for her to return to her sedate, normal, benevolent state.

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2011/03/11/world/asia/20110311_japan.html

Amnesia is a blessing, when you are in deep shit

Though academically Manmohan Singh has a Doctorate, as Prime Minister, he is still in UKG. Or at least his behaviour is that of a UKG Student.

What does a UKG Student do if he or she does some mischief and teacher queries him/her?

"Miss, I don't know"

"Miss, I didn't see"

and then as a last ditch attempt,

"Miss, it is this boy/girl near by who did"

All in a cringing, whining voice.

Ditto with our Prime Minister.

When the 2 G Scam revealed Rs 1.76 crores being siphoned off, and when MMS was queried, he replied,

" I don't know what happened. I trusted Raja. Raja is to be blamed, not me. Finance Ministry gave clearances. So they are to be blamed, not me. I had some doubts and wrote to Raja (but he chose to ignore me!! and I kept quiet). Then I don't know what happened." All this while newspapers after newspapers were screaming of the scam for years. He must be deaf and dumb.

When the S-Band spectrum scam by ISRO blew on his face, he again claimed "He didnt know, was not aware of the deal", though ISRO comes under the purvey of a ministry under him.

When everyone and then his aunt and then his little niece knew of P J Thomas being charge sheeted in the Palmolein case, only our PM was ignorant of this. Yesterday I watched him speak in the Rajya Sabha live on this. He was pathetic.Singh said he was not aware of a pending chargesheet against Thomas before attending the meeting of the high-powered panel. The PM then went one step forward. The PM stunned the Rajya Sabha by shifting the blame on to Prithviraj Chavan — now Maharashtra Chief Minister and the then Minister of State in charge of the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) — for not informing him about the chargesheet against Thomas and shortlisting his name. And he didnt say one word about why, when Sushma Swaraj raised the point of Thomas's pending court case, he insisted on going ahead with P J Thomas, and Thomas only.

Two days back everyone knew DMK was about to pull out their ministers from the Cabinet. When MMS was asked about this, he came up with his " I dont know anything" act.

We thought, having a doctorate, at least he will shed some light on why inflation is double digit. But last month, he said, hold your breath 'He didnt know' why the inflation was not coming down.

He never seems to know anything that is happening around him. Is he sitting in a sound proof room or is he deaf, blind and dumb? or does he have Alzhemiers?

Or is it that "He doesn't know' he is the Prime Minister of India?

The UKG teacher had a simple cure to this 'I dont know syndrome'. She gave the 'Cane Treatment' and the concerned boy/girl suddenly found their memory lightning fast.

But then how do we spank a 80 year old man? Or who will take it up to spank a 80 year old man?

Amnesia is a blessing, when  you are in deep shit.