Is India 'Not' a country for the old?

Is India 'Not' a country for the old?

India needs to focus on providing the elderly for health, housing, and dignity.

When could we have a collective sigh of relief for the 87.6 million 60+ people in India? India is expected to be home to 300 million elderly people by 2050; it is time it paid heed to the problems of those who are as old, or even older, than the independent nation itself is today. Else the country will be faced with a large incidence of degenerative diseases, accompanied with serious gaps in the geriatric medical ecosystem, a changing joint family structure, the lack of ‘grey-friendliness’ in public spaces, transport, housing, and a virtually non-existing policy framework to tackle these issues.

Taking care of the elderly
With about 50% of the elderly being financially dependent on others, it is affordable housing, healthcare, and the psychological and social manifestations of ageing that we will struggle to respond to as a country with no social security and dismal elderly care facilities. What will be the combined impact of this trend on small, nuclear families, along with an improvement in lifestyle and an increase in degenerative diseases and life spans, especially for women? Where are we going to live as we grow old and who is going to take care of us?

Clearly Parliament had some of these issues in mind when it passed the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act in 2007. The model Act makes it obligatory for children or relatives to provide maintenance to senior citizens and parents. It also provides for the setting up of old age homes by State governments.

Despite this, however, it is a fact that most people in India would rather suffer than have the family name sullied by taking their own children to court for not providing for them. This need to maintain a façade is combined with a lack of knowledge of rights, the inherent inability of the elderly to approach a tribunal for recourse under the law, and poor implementation of the Act by various State governments.

So what happens to those who have been turned out from their homes, or have lost a partner, or just can’t manage to live on their own anymore, especially since the number of old age homes the Centre supports under the Integrated Programme for Older Persons (IPOP) has seen a decline from 269 homes in 2012-13 to a dismal 137 in 2014-15? The Centre has asked State governments to ensure that there are old-age homes whose functioning can be supported under IPOP, but since it is optional for the State governments to do so, the total number of old-age homes remains abysmally low.

Need for a pragmatic approach
While we hope that the Indian family continues to be stronger than in most countries and provides a caring environment for the elderly, it can’t be the basis for our ability to support the elderly. India needs to take a serious look at the needs of the elderly in a more pragmatic and holistic manner. For starters it could focus on the three key aspects of health, housing, and dignity.

Each of these is a large issue on its own, but it is important to first strengthen the health-care system. If 18% of the population is going to be 60+ by 2050, then it becomes almost crucial to encourage research in geriatric diseases, and push for building capacity in the geriatric departments across the primary and tertiary health-care systems. There also seems to be a growing informal industry of home care providers, which urgently needs regulation and mandated guidelines so that a large pool of certified and affordable trained home care givers can help provide basic support, prevent unnecessary hospital admissions, and keep the elderly in the familiar environs of their homes as far as possible.

Next, there needs to be a network of old age homes, both in the private and public sector. While the private sector has taken the lead in setting up some state-of-the-art facilities, most of these are priced well beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. State governments must be mandated to set up quality, affordable homes.

As traditionally supportive social structures are changing and the elderly are increasingly losing their ‘status’ as the family patriarchs, it is also time that we did our bit to help address the indignities and loneliness that this change is bringing. Businesses could look at harnessing the talent of elders by retaining or hiring older workers and offering flexible working hours for those who want to continue working after retirement. Industry will benefit by retaining their knowledge and experience and the elderly will continue to be financially independent and retain their sense of self-worth. At the community level we also need to increase the avenues for older people to participate in local issues, in resident associations, set up and manage spaces for community interaction, to leverage their experience as a resource, give them an opportunity to share their concerns, and o help them feel that they contribute socially and have a purpose in life.

The one big issue that doesn’t get enough attention today is that old people deserve dignity. Apart from ensuring appropriate medical help, there needs to be more awareness about common degenerative diseases like dementia so that family members, care-givers, and society at large are sensitised to incontinence, the momentary lack of comprehension, the hallucinations — all the painful behavioural, physical, emotional and mental struggles of those who suffer from these diseases.

In a country that still worships Bapuji, can't we hope for setting off a much-needed discussion on the painful issues that senior citizens face today?

Jobless Growth and Lifeless Growth

Jobless Growth and Lifeless Growth

Now we are in the situation of jobless growth. It means that number of costly cars etc on the roads is increasing, while the number of livelihoods is depleting and as a result the amount of poverty is increasing. Suppose that a factory is employing 10,000 people. It means that if each worker has a family of five, that fifty thousand people are depending on the factory for livelihood. The city of fifty thousand will need schools, colleges, hospitals, courts, lawyers, shops, markets..., easily another fifty thousand, that city being connected by transports of various types. Now suppose that a management, finance etc expert arrived at the factory, and succeeded in making the factory automatic, with computers automation etc thus employing only 500 people. That will be disaster to the city while the 500 employees may be going round in very costly cars.

What will happen if the banks to window dress, as the NPAs have devastated them are merged and gradually only computers do all the work. Suppose every undertaking employs mainly computers and reduces the number of employees. But when the fixed deposits are eliminated by the elimination of employment in the economy, after all computers cannot be fixed depositors and if the few remaining fixed depositors are chased away from the banks by the tax on fake income, banks too will close down.

We are forgetting that the employees are the market, the very justification for the existence of any establishment. When the markets vanish, economic depression which is the sum total of millions of individual mental depressions, becomes the main cultural facet. Then there will be the IS economy which we are seeing in Iraq, Syria etc,when most people live in solidified terror as the normal state of mind, with girls in the slave markets etc.

Jobless Growth is the symptom of a gigantic peril. The exact phrase is the ‘loot of jobs and livelihoods’, a horrible atrocity on the people.

The phrase ‘jobless growth ‘is very deceiving. It is the euphemism for a horrible atrocity.

It is simply not possible to design and direct the economy of 130 crore people. There can be only the devising of switches that help the growth of jobs and not the intolerable situation of costly cars on the road and starvation in many homes. The biggest employer is nature and environment only and not industries and occupations that destroy the forests, rivers, air and water. On the basis of the geography of a place—the water bodies, mountains, forests, topography and other natural features, jobs that increase in number shall be devised, leaving to nature the work of creating more livelihoods. Let nature be unshackled. Nature is the best planner and executor of its plan. Cutting away trees and deforestation simply means the elimination of photosynthesis itself and must be made a very big crime. If you cannot deliberately cut the heads of people for say constructing a road, then a tree also must be given equal status, in fact a more important status because every tree performs simply hundreds of life giving functions.

The problem is those who are really needed, are the people who know nature first hand and not university degrees. Not the people ho flaunt PhDs and don't know nature.

Why Pakistan hates India ....

The reasons why Pakistan hates India can be termed as diverse. The reason I will choose to highlight the most will be an ill-planned and executed partition, egoist religious differences and a straight lack of political insight.

Pakistan as a country came into existence from shrewd British diplomatic measures and the lack of foresight among both the contemporary Indian and Muslim politicians at the time of Independence. The partition should never have been accepted. Sadly, India wanted freedom as soon as possible from the British, and for the Muslim politicians of the day, it was the only chance of fame, glory, power and wealth. The partition thus happened displacing millions to each side of the border, and sadly this was accompanied by much shock and stigma that lead to unnecessary blood-shed and bitter scars among the populaces, the scars of which run till today.

By the time of partition, the INDIAN identity was lost and it was subdivided into a distinct MUSLIM and HINDU identities. And when a secular society runs on religious lines with fanatics fanning the flames, tensions and egos are bound to clash. That happened at all its glory and very much persists till date.

Post-independence, Pakistani leaders and populace had a hope that with freedom, the situation there will improve and prosperity will be enormous. Both India and Pakistan grew similarly from that stage. But the twist came that with abundant geographical proportions and population, combined with objective assistance of the Soviets, India made a slow but steady improvement, retaining its secular identity. Pakistani population, who had a secular identity before these events, now rapidly acquired an Islamic identity. It became an Islamic nation because of the whims of its rulers. The populace there had already became a cattle when they lacked the wisdom to identify the motives of the Muslim League, prior to partition. Suddenly, Pakistan realises its mistake to seperate from its erstwhile Indian identity. It perceives an existentialist threat from India along with the constant threat of Balkanization.

Another reason for Pakistan to go seperate was the hope that as a Muslim and Islamic state, it will forge better ties with the Middle-East, to be accepted as one of them.

Yet another reason will be the lack of political insight by Pakistan. Pakistan after independence always hoped to be the new leader to the Muslim world.

Thus, inspite of all the Indo-Pakistan rivalry on the world stage and the conflict over Kashmir, most of the world including the Muslim world sees India as a country with the third highest Muslim population in the world, that offers opportunities of economic benefits and not as the HINDU INDIA that can be marginalized for Pakistan's sake.

Hence, the reason Pakistan hates India is because of its own inferiority complex, its own illogical perceived threat of existentialism from a Hindu country, its social and economic collapse with India fast rising and shining, its inability to secure Kashmir for itself, its inability to marginalize India on the world platform and its degradation in the international and Asian community.

NOW:
Why did Churchill hate India?
    "I hate Indians. They are a beastly people with a beastly religion"

-Entry dated to September 1942 on a conversation held with Churchill in Leo Amery : Diaries.
This is just one of the many anti-India remarks by the man so revered by the British. What was the reason for this hatred?

Churchill may have been an imperialist and a racist, but he was a very intelligent man. He knew that if India were to gain independence, other colonies of Britain would also demand independence.

He was right, wasn't he? Taking inspiration from India's struggle for independence the following countries were liberated.

    Ghana(1957)
    Cyrenaica(1949)
    Libya(1951)
    Uganda(1962)
    Kenya(1963)

Thus, he knew that the most crucial thing to do to save the empire and preserve the British status as a superpower, he had to crush the Indian independence movement.

Lastly, Indians were very superstitious, corrupt, and easy for the British to turn against one another, which might have led him to think of them as stupid. This assessment would only be reinforced by the fact that they followed a bald toothless man, dressed like a beggar, whose grand plan was to gain independence and then completely reject the modern world, so we could return India to its villages and rely solely on hand made goods.

As if to prove him right, we didn't even pause for a moment to celebrate the British departure but proceeded immediately to slaughter half a million of our own and displace 14 million more. That was a pretty beastly thing to do.

It's also sad, looking at the above list of less than desirable traits, to see how many of them still exist in India to this very day. Perhaps, given the landscape of religious riots and caste based voting, we should first ask why Indians hate each other so much?

Where is kali yuga taking our banks and Mother India?

Where is kali yuga taking our banks and Mother India?As it is, for me the Kali yuga is, hounding the savings of the country into the hands of the big business tycoons, some of whom are also big NPAs, via the share market by exempting dividends, profits on mutual funds etc from the income tax and subjecting the fixed depositors to total loss. The principal FD, will be lost because of the inflation, the interest is fake income, the fake income has to be added to the taxable income and now for the sin of taking fixed deposits in the previous years, tax avoided on the fake income of those years is subject to a fine of 45 per cent. Meanwhile the MLAs are put in five star hotels to see that they vote for the party candidate in the Rajya Sabha elections, the MLA bribe dowry appears to Rs 10 crores plus. That fat MLA dowry is not from FDs. Well, when banks are so attacked, denuded of fixed deposits, NPAs treated with kid gloves, where is kali yuga taking our banks and Mother India?

Lokpal Bill: Most urgent need in whatever form ...

Lokpal Bill: Compromises have to be made in this unique experiment of civil society participating in governance

There is no doubt that systemic changes are required to root out corruption which is at the heart of the engine of the government and politics in the country. But there is no quick-fix solution

Subrahmanian SH

An observation came to mind as the movement to end corruption suddenly gained momentum, with disparate organisations and individuals forming the new Civil Society platform. I searched the Mahabharata and found a very similar situation in Medhavi's story in the 'Moksha-Dharma' section of the Shanti Parva, a part of the epic.

Yudhisthira, the eldest of the Pandavas, asks Bhisma, the grand-uncle of the Kaurava clan, (after the end of the Mahabharata): 'Respected Pitamaha, in a situation where the peaceful and harmonious living of people is threatened, what sort of actions can set things right?'

Bhisma narrates the story of Medhavi ('great person' in Sanskrit, whose narrative is recorded in certain renderings of the Mahabharata); how he discussed with his father a plan of action to deal with a crisis that threatened the entire society, namely the existence of violence and selfishness that would cause serious harm to peace and harmony.

Currently, there are two scenarios that are similar to this situation—namely international terrorism and corruption. In our story, the roles of Medhavi and his father are acted by Prashant Bhushan and his father Shanti Bhushan. (It's also nice to note that in Medhavi's story the revolutionary peace initiative was named 'shanti-yajna')!

 In the Medhavi story, what was sought to be changed was the conventional varnashrama-dharma, by including the concept of aapad-dharma. Now we have the 'topic' of the 'Lokpal Bill'—to root out corruption, and the collective appropriating to themselves the name 'Civil Society'.

Let's understand the sane and sound recommendations of Medhavi: "The lack of right education and knowledge are all partly responsible for the social crisis. Delay in taking remedial action will cause greater harm to society."

Medhavi tells his father: "So far you remained too busy studying and practicing law. Kindly change your viewpoint and accept that we all are partly responsible for creating the crises. He stresses the importance of non-violence and 'Truth with firm intention to do good to all.' And he names the special type of yajna as 'shanti-yajna'.

Doesn't this strike a similar note in our present situation?

'Livid Anna sends SOS to Sonia', read a news headline. Anna Hazare had once called Baba Ramdev immature, with "expertise only in yoga". His actions do not make him any better though. For, it would have been better if he had given the inputs of his team towards the draft Bill and left the matter there, without dictating to the government or threatening yet another hunger fast from 16th August.

Isn't he misusing the weapon of the 'fast' ad nauseam? Do fasts have any place in a democracy? Can any one else beat Gandhiji as a negotiator?

We can't understand the logic of totally rejecting the demand to videotape the proceedings of the meeting of the members of the Lokpal Committee.

The recent state assembly poll results are ample proof that people want action. The rise of civil society, especially the middle class, is at best a warning!

Worried at the massive turnout in support of the hunger protests by Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev, the government developed cold feet and tried to foil the agitation.

The intention of the government was dishonest right from day one, and has been exposed by the arrogance of Pranab Mukherjee: "Parliament is supreme and no one can dictate (terms to us). Captain Pranab is now isolated from his team! When will our politicians perform?

 Let's bring in systemic changes.

Corruption is at the heart of the engine which runs government and politics in India. So when we aim at an anti-corruption law, we must be sensible. This is bound to be a long process and there is no quick-fix solution in sight. Let's make a beginning—even if it is a tentative one.

The Cabinet will, strangely, receive two drafts from the joint drafting committee! It's sad that this had to happen now, at the culmination of a process that saw a healthy involvement of the middle class in the political process, something it had shunned for over half a century. The public contributes to the decision-making process through general elections, electing its representatives to office. It has only outsourced its right to make laws and policy to the elected representatives. Now, for the first time, it has been directly involved in legislation and policymaking outside the electoral process. Is the time ripe?

The process has gone awry and the public is being cheated of a unique opportunity to participate in governance. This is a new kind of process which is not validated by past practices. 'Praxis' will lay down the outline of future democratic theory. Hence, trust between partners in the process is essential for its success. Trust is based on the ability to make compromises, not on inflexibility.

The drive of the activists comes from an unusually keen awareness that the people have been denied an anti-corruption law for far too long. It is this awareness that has propelled the movement. The contention is on six issues. But is this so nonnegotiable to the point of jeopardising the entire project? Would it not be better to concede to the government to an extent, establish the office of the Lokpal and develop it further as we go along? The law is not etched in stone. It is legislative action that is always open to judicial review.

For that matter, is the democratic process limited to the polls? No. It includes many aspects of valid political activity outside the 'EVM' (electronic voting machine) system, like public debate, protest, even revolutionary movements, so long as they are not seditious. After all, we haven't yet got a 'None of The Above' (NoTA) option.

One thread of political activity that is widely accepted is the tradition of fasting unto death. It's rather surprising that home minister P Chidambaram protests: "I don't think anywhere in the world, fasting is the way to draft a Bill."

Mr PC, it's perfectly acceptable in India, which became independent thanks to political fasting, even though ministers might call this activity "blackmail."

Finally, is the threat to the sovereignty of Parliament so real, that it would be eroded? It's curious that politicians should express this fear, as they have done all they could to lower the esteem of the House of the People's representatives. Maybe it's not that surprising. For it is a demand that the Lokpal should have the power to move against members of Parliament and members of the state legislative assemblies who take bribes to raise questions or to vote.

These are secondary issues that can be ironed out over time. Because, if we feel there is a real need for the prime minister to be brought under the purview of the proposed law, and/or that parliamentary privileges should be curtailed, let's press home these demands in a manner that no government could be able to resist.

We've tasted the joy of putting pressure on the government and we will persist, hopefully! Anyway, who can dismiss the need for the direct involvement of the people in governance on the one hand, while celebrating public-private partnerships and privatisation on the other?

It is in the public interest to pass the Bill, even in an imperfect form. Corruption is at the heart of the engine which runs government and politics in India, so when we discuss the anti-corruption law we are talking about systemic change. This is bound to be a long process, not something which can be achieved at one go. The important thing is to make a beginning. Even if it is a tentative step.

Obsolescence comes for every gadget. Even a medical icon...!

RIP, Stethoscope?
No. Not at all. Stethoscopes brought about a new level of physical examination, and the application of a more rigorous science to medicine. Once the 'very emblem of a physician', stethoscopes served healthcare professionals for almost 200 years before the advent of handheld ultrasound devices. It will remain so for quite long - for the simple reason - "at best, the price of ultrasound machines may dip into only the $2000 to 3000 range"! Nelson may suspect that individual physicians will begin swapping out their stethoscopes for them. The stethoscope is survived by the long, white coat, and the old leather (doctor's) bag! They certain had a long run. Back before physicians routinely slung stethoscopes around their shoulders, doctors would place an ear directly on the patient. There is some mention of this practice, called immediate auscultation, in ancient Egyptian literature, Nelson says. And the Greek physician Hippocrates described listening directly to the abdomen and chest. But when Rene Laennec invented a wooden proto-stethoscope in 1816, the resulting amplification changed the course of medicine.

"In the next two years, maybe half a dozen companies are bringing devices of this size to the market," says Nelson. Once the price dips into the $2000 to 3000 range, Nelson suspects that individual physicians will begin swapping out their stethoscopes for small ultrasound machines.

It may be several years before ultrasound machines completely replace the physician's trusty stethoscope. But according to Nelson, the end is nigh. "It's not much different than leaps that we've seen in other technologies, like computers or cellular phones," he says.

Obsolescence comes for every gadget. Even a medical icon.

Why you need to plan, Some Good Reasons

What is planning, why you need to plan, 5 Good Reasons

Planning is, perhaps, the most important project management and time management technique. It's just preparing a sequence of action steps to achieve one specific goal. If you do it effectively, you can reduce much the necessary time and effort of achieving the goal. A plan is like a map. Only when following a plan, one can see how much progress towards the goal has been achieved and how far we're from destination. Knowing where we're is essential for making good decisions on where to go or what to do next. One more reason why we need planning is again the 80/20 Rule. It is well established fact that for unstructured activities 80% of the effort give less than 20% of the valuable outcome. We either spend much time on deciding what to do next, or we're taking many unnecessary, unfocused, and inefficient steps. Planning is also crucial for meeting our needs during each action step with our time, money, or other resources. With careful planning you often can see if at some point you are likely to face a problem. It is much easier to adjust your plan to avoid or smoothen a coming crisis, rather than to deal with the crisis when it comes unexpected.
We do have hard-working people putting their best efforts into areas that have little to no effect on strategic success. They’re essentially majoring in the minors—because their activities aren’t aligned with the priorities. We must set direction and priorities, first; Next get everyone on the same page; Priorities make it easier to say no to distracting initiatives. Once you recognize the need to plan, we've the role of becoming the catalyst: for facilitating the buy-in and commitment of our leadership team and the rest of the organization. For a nation it's much more important. Let’s get started.

Why Asians Don’t Always Hug ?

When To Hug Someone. And Why Asians Don’t Always Hug

Hugging. Some of us like to be hugged, and some of us don’t.

I don’t mind being hugged. Don’t mind giving hugs either. Crushing bear hugs. Soft two-second hugs. Group hugs. One arm hugs. Whether we hug someone or not depends on how we feel about them. And how they feel about us.
Post-proposal. Marriage, hugs, and kisses are containers of happiness, warmth and trust | Weekly Photo Challenge: Containers.

Post-proposal. Marriage, hugs, and kisses are containers of happiness, warmth and trust | Weekly Photo Challenge: Containers.

We hug someone we barely know when we like them and feel like we can be friends or more. If we have a nice conversation going and maybe share a laugh hanging out with someone we don’t know well, we might hug them when saying hello or goodbye.

About a year ago I met a blogger friend from the States for the first time. He didn’t mind that I was late to our lunch because I got lost, and we talked non-stop while eating. We parted with a hug. No dramas. Hugging, a show of friendship.

It usually feels okay to hug someone we aren’t best friends with if we have something in common like school or work, and if we don’t hate each other’s guts. Each time I left a job, my colleagues thanked me for my work and hugged me on my last day. Hugging, a show of appreciation.

We might hug someone we know or don’t know when we share moments and emotions together – we probably don’t know what else to do. We hug to celebrate, hug our teammates when we win and strangers when our county scores goals at the World Cup. We hug to make someone feel better when they’re feeling down.

There’s not forgetting hugging those close to us when we see or leave them. Hugging, a show of love. But then again, not all the ones we love are big on hugs. And you can never be sure if that person we just met is okay with hugging.

For some of us, hugging is a special moment. We don’t hug every day and reserve our hugs for special someones. So when someone who we’re not best buds with hugs us, we might resist.

Some of us don’t hug too often because of cultural and religious reasons. In Asian cultures, getting touchy-feely with each other is frowned upon. In countries like Malaysia where thieves are around every corner, we’re wary of people touching us the slightest bit. Arms around us – too close for comfort.

Catching germs and getting dirty is another reason why some Asians aren’t keen on hugging. Being clean is something many of us pride ourselves upon, explaining why we like taking our shoes off at home. More than once I’ve heard my mum say, “Those gweilos hugging. So sweaty.”

Maybe some Asians shy away from hugging because of our nature to be shy. Because we’re respectful of personal space and physical distance.

Growing up, hugging was alien to me. Never saw my Chinese-Malaysian parents hugging each other when I was little. Out of spite my Caucasian classmates pushed me to the ground in the playground. My Asian classmates hid away studying. No one whom I could hug, and no one hugged me.

This changed when I moved back to Melbourne for university. On campus, many of my Asian and non-Asian friends were fond of greeting me with their arms around me. It felt odd. After a while, I decided to go along with this and realised hugging is…nice. Warmth between two bodies. Two people. Two hearts, so close.

My friends say I squeeze tight when I hug them. I suppose I’m generous with my hugs. Earlier this year, I was sitting in a shopping centre and a blonde girl about fourteen came up to me asking for directions. I pointed her the right way. Saying “Thank you”, she bent down and hugged me. Without thinking, I hugged her back. Hard.

When we hug, we love. We learn to give. And above all, we learn to trust.

Do you hug a lot? When do you hug?

Needed an attempt to separate the truth from the noise

We've seen seen the terrorist attacks in Pathankot. And while every terrorist attack is unique in its horror, the coverage tends to follow predictable, not always admirable, patterns: the inaccurate and uninformative phrases that are repeated endlessly; the viral photos that, even if well-meant, tend to be false; the phony experts pushing a political agenda.

Needed an attempt to separate the truth from the noise.

Would we have :
1. Remember, in the immediate aftermath almost everyone will get it wrong. Terrorist attacks are designed to sow mayhem and confusion. Even using best practices, news outlets, witnesses, and governments need time to get the facts straight.

2. As always, local, non-anonymous, and verified sources offer better info. Most news sources will be operating off of second- and third-hand information. Wait for trustworthy, verified reports from those who actually know.

3. Amid all the contradictory statements, focus on consistent reports.

4. The more emotional the commentary, the less reliable the information. Rational thinking is essential in these moments, as well as remembering the lessons of history.

5. Really don’t pay attention to politicians. Incidents like these are uniquely suited to political manipulation, especially in a campaign year, and politicians of all stripes will be tempted to push their favorite agenda.

6. In fact, examine the credentials of all putative “experts.” Just because someone worked in government doesn’t make them a terrorism expert. Even a CIA background is no guarantee of expertise.

7. Pay attention to the language the media uses:

    “Mastermind” … endows terrorists with more power than they have.
    “Sophisticated” … overestimates crudely planned mayhem.
    “Unprecedented” … there is little “new” in terrorist methods.

8. Inevitably, whole populations and religions are scapegoated. Ignore this.

9. Resist reflexive retweeting. Number of shares belies accuracy. Even well-intentioned social media users will get things wrong. Better to wait than to share an inaccurate meme that could have negative consequences. In fact, generally...

10. Be patient. No matter what, the unfolding of the story will take time and mistakes will be made. Allow the coverage to develop and let those who were affected recover and respond in their own way, on their own time.

--

To Plan or Not to Plan is Not the Question

Set Priorities, Align Activit
`To Plan or Not to Plan is Not the Question' -  planning is the most important project management and time management technique. It's preparing a sequence of action steps to achieve one specific goal. If you do it effectively, you can reduce a lot of time and effort to achieve the goal. We do have hard-working people putting their best efforts into areas that have little to no effect on strategic success. They're essentially majoring in the minors -because their activities aren't aligned with the priorities. We must set direction and priorities, first. Then get everyone on the same page.

SUBRAHMANIAN SH Mumbai

Grandparents Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow

Grandparents Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow
If anyone had told us, some years ago, that, someday, as a GF (or my wife as a GM), I would spend part of our time at computer, on a thing called "the Internet," chatting about my life and family with hundreds of total strangers, I would have laughed and thought they were "crazy!" ... Yes, here I am doing it! Save, Social Networking ...

Any substance ... in Free Basics or Net Neutrality ... (market product of govt Masala ...!)
[spying by market or govt].

Anyway, if Net becomes FREE, say, upto 50 MB ... Well and Fine...

So now I'm wondering what changes will take place in the future - and what some future VS, will ruminate of what we talk about here and how we go about it. Will GP (grandparent) caregivers, like me, be a thing of the past or the absolute norm? Will the "family" look much as it does, today, with all the variations it's already experiencing? Or will it have taken on such a new shape that the conversations on sites like this will be entirely different?

Will we even still communicate with each other in this way? Or will technology have brought us whole new forms of contacting each other that we can't even imagine right now? As a GM, my wife always recall when the electronic typewriter was the most modern piece of equipment in the family. Now it seems quite "primitive." Will our ways of communicating seem just as archaic to some future reader?

And as much as I hate to say it, will 'this material' (the 'rubbish', I pour out, here and in Media) even still be here? Or will it have disappeared as the technology became outdated and newer types of communication took over?

Regardless, I expect I'll be talking a lot about changes, as I write here and in a many a blog - those that I underwent as I took on the caregiver role and those I've gone through and am still going through as my role, itself, evolves. But with these kinds of questions in my mind, I almost can't help addressing myself to that possible future, as I write, as well as, of course, those of you who are reading here and now.

That is, if this bla .. bla .. is even still here in the far future and if any reader, at that time, is even interested in what's said by an 'oldy' from the early 21st Century!

Revamp Bureaucracy right away.

Revamp Bureaucracy right away.
The peculiar situation in the State of Delhi, where its officers are bending before Centre, making the wounded Chief Minister talk some sense (all would agree now!) is interesting. Centre can't afford to sit quiet. Let's Revamp Bureaucracy right away. Remember the Indian bureaucracy, the much celebrated, yet much reviled too. The 'once, the 'steel frame' and is now simple 'babudom'. How has it traveled from the 'steel frame' days to being seen as a 'laid back and laggard' phenomenon today? There is great need to introspect on these issues as any sustainable economic development can only be premised on the edifice of a transparent, accountable and ethical governance structure, which is what the civil service is meant to provide. Unless we've bureaucratic reforms with fundamental and structural changes by holding bureaucrats accountable, we'll continue to struggle as political initiatives take painfully long to translate into actions.
Good governance is the need of the hour. The citizen, having come centre stage, demands a more responsive, transparent and accountable set-up which is premised on probity and integrity. Why is it that the Central Bureau of Investigation is called the 'handmaiden' of the government in power. The highest court in the land called it the 'caged parrot'. Caged by whom? Obviously, by the government in power. Caged by the very people who loftily declare that the 'law will take its own course'. How often has the law been allowed to take its own course? It is these piquant situations that create a hiatus between the officers who are willing to stay on the straight and narrow path, as against those who are willing to acquiesce to the political pressure for very narrow career-related gains.

Grandparents Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow

Grandparents Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow

If anyone had told us, some years ago, that, someday, as a GF (or my wife as a GM), I would spend part of our time at computer, on a thing called "the Internet," chatting about my life and family with hundreds of total strangers, I would have laughed and thought they were "crazy!" ... Yes, here I am doing it! Save, Social Networking ...

Any substance ... in Free Basics or Net Neutrality ... (market product of govt Masala ...!)
[spying by market or govt]
Anyway, if Net becomes FREE, say, upto 50 MB ... Well and Fine...

So now I'm wondering what changes will take place in the future - and what some future VS, will ruminate of what we talk about here and how we go about it. Will GP (grandparent) caregivers, like me, be a thing of the past or the absolute norm? Will the "family" look much as it does, today, with all the variations it's already experiencing? Or will it have taken on such a new shape that the conversations on sites like this will be entirely different?

Will we even still communicate with each other in this way? Or will technology have brought us whole new forms of contacting each other that we can't even imagine right now? As a GM, my wife always recall when the electronic typewriter was the most modern piece of equipment in the family. Now it seems quite "primitive." Will our ways of communicating seem just as archaic to some future reader?

And as much as I hate to say it, will 'this material' (the 'rubbish', I pour out, here and in Media) even still be here? Or will it have disappeared as the technology became outdated and newer types of communication took over?

Regardless, I expect I'll be talking a lot about changes, as I write here and in a many a blog - those that I underwent as I took on the caregiver role and those I've gone through and am still going through as my role, itself, evolves. But with these kinds of questions in my mind, I almost can't help addressing myself to that possible future, as I write, as well as, of course, those of you who are reading here and now.

That is, if this bla .. bla .. is even still here in the far future and if any reader, at that time, is even interested in what's said by an 'oldy' from the early 21st Century!

Seniors are to be mature, leaving no space for heart burn.

Dear Members:

Seniors are to be mature, leaving no space for heart burn.
This rejoinder is because I have some personal mails from the community.
True, there are millions of senior citizens, getting pension of Rs 200 to Rs 1000.

    Their sons are there with them in the house to 'grab' the same on the day the govt official visits for giving ....!

The corrupt nEtAs too are demanding more and more form 'our' pockets (tax payments).

"There seems no limit to this so called "deferred" salary".
  -- Former PC defined it as "Salary paid by ex employer .."
I am a Central Pensioner only in connection with CPCs.
In fact I draw "this Salary" and pay taxes as Employees.

Collective bargaining has its own repercussions.
Railway men are separate from other CG employees ... Have better Union power ...
Bank retirees are fighting again. I hear they get less pension than Central pensioners (!?) ...

My desire : Let each segment be happy with what they get.. They're entitled to 'grumble' ... And let them ...!

As a social activist (RTI too) I have taken up this matter in media and interactions with Fora and PMO et al.
I just left the message ... that I have a SOFT copy acknowledgement too. As it'sunder consideration, 
I do hope some positive results for our brethren in this segment.

An Appeal to PM Modi.

An Appeal to PM Modi.
Pre-2006 pensioners who had put in more than 20 years but less than 33 years are getting pro-rata pension. This is iniquitous, and the Apex court on 28-8-2015 dismissed the Review Petition of UOI for Full Pension (in stead of Pro Rata Pension) to Pre 2006 Pensioners with less than 33 years but more than 20 years service. GOI hasn’t so far taken action in the light of apex court orders.
7 CPC has not paid attention to this grievance of pre-2006 pensioners. The pay matrix prescribed by the commission is silent on this point. Clarification is needed whether the pension determined according to pay matrix is subject to pro-rata provisions.
Elder abuse is a common feature in the Indian setting nowadays. Abuse comes in many guises: Physical, verbal, emotional and psychological; fiancial abuse and expoloitation. Children no longer respect the parents’ autonomy. Abuse creates potentially dangerous situations and feelings of worthlessness, and it isolates the older parents from children who can help. Old age starts at 70, when age-related problems set in. Caregiver neglect, arising out of cultural changes, is common in any Indian households. Govt should increase pension @20% for such pensioners as have crossed 70.
The important points, like disparity in fitment formula, denial of benefit on account of upgradation of posts/grades on the recommendations of 6th cpc to the pensioners to the pensioners retired prior to 01.01.2006,denial of medical facilities etc. have clearly been spelt out in the letter. It is suggested to have afollow up action by presenting /clarifying the points in person.
Parity in pension is the demand of the day and it should be implemented in spirit without going in babugiri of payscales. Will Modi do full justice? Let all pensioners, be very careful to check their pension fixation on the implementation of 7th CPC which is going to be effective from 01.01.2016.
Procedure for grant of permission to the pensioner for commercial employment after retirement- revision of Form 25 No.27012/3/2014-Estt. (A) Government of India Ministry of Personnel, P. G. and Pensions Department of Personnel & Training North Block, New Delhi-110001 Dated: 16th-December, 2015 Office Memorandum clearly deals on the Subject: "Procedure for grant of permission to the pensioner for commercial employment after retirement". The same must be implemented in letter and spirit.
CPAO identified cases for revision of pension of Pre-2006 Pensioners Submitted by admin on Fri, 09/11/2015 and to clear 71,515 cases identified for revision of pension of Pre-2006 Pensioners to be completed on top priority. In case any discrepancy is noticed the same may be pointed out to CPAO within three days so that necessary amendment authority may be issued. In case no intimation is received within the stipulating time it will be presumed that the consolidated Special Seal Authority issued by CPAO to banks is correct and final. Remaining 5422 cases have also been provided in PAO and Principal Accounts Office login on CPA Os website. Concerned PA Os may download the same by using the password and login. These revision cases may be completed on top priority.

Battle 'Already won' and the 'War is on now'

Battle 'Already won' and the 'War is on now'
The 'one-man army' pitted against a sophisticated war machine, was 'already a winner' long ago! Going to conventional battle, where he can be outgunned and outnumbered, is a bit of a mug's game. Which is why the wily warrior chose the battleground where he had the natural advantage, and waited to ensnare his enemies in his parlour. Dr Subramanian Swamy, who was for long waging a lonely battle against big-ticket corruption deploying the due process of law, sounded the bugle to signal his guerrilla war effort in 2012, against the Queen Bee, Sonia, and Prince Rahul.
He furnished, purported to establish that the acquisition of Associated Journals was illegal on many counts, and that the 'mother-son' duo; was in technical violation of several laws. Indicatively, in his election affidavit in 2009, Rahul had not declared his shareholdings in Young Indian, and could therefore have been in technical breach of election law. Likewise, Sonia to had misused the government accommodation provided to her at 10, Janpath by holding a shareholder meeting of Young Indian at the premises. Swamy got his accusatory engine warmed up. And drew Gandhis into a legal battle, on turf that he's rather more comfortable with. For precisely the reason that Swamy's earlier allegations were so over the top (and therefore easier to dismiss as the wild and fanciful imagination of a fevered mind), the new charges, for all their chillar nature, sound more credible, in an environment where the lid had been blown off corruption in high places with damaging revelations about Sonia’s son-in-law Robert Vadra.
From all accounts, Swamy's strategy of provoking and Rahul to respond—unlike has already (in 2012) succeeded. A letter purporting to be from "Rahul’s office" addressed to Swamy (but which made it to the media) says Rahul reserved "all options"—including, presumably, the option to sue Swamy for defamation. Which, ironically, was what Swamy wanted: he would like nothing better to get Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the stand, where he can use his right as his own defence counsel to cross-examine them and pose all the embarrassing questions, he’s been shooting at them all these years all along, but which were airily dismissed. In a court of law, however, it’s difficult to get away by sniffing snootily at embarrassing questions.
Swamy had lured Sonia and Rahul out of 10 Janpath, from which comfortable cocoon they had thus far been engaging with the world on their terms. Now, Swamy offered them a juicy bait, with which he got them to venture into the turf where he enjoys territorial advantage: the court of law. The Ganges gharial had to lye in wait, hoping the sharks will stray into the bogs and marshes he knows so well.
Swamy's persistent focus on exposing corrupt elements in higher echelons of power has got due public attention now. With the high reach of the electronic media, we can surely expect some difficult times for corrupt politicians in general. Wish India produces a few more people like Swamy. Congress failed to come clean and dump the corrupt elements from the party, even if they happen to belong to the higher echelons of power. Swamy's petition to EC to derecognize the congress party was a well considered legal master stroke.

Should we rush to pre-judge the case?

Should we rush to pre-judge the case?
Corruption issue is important to us, be it with Cong or BJP. 'Mr Clean' Rajiv (Bofors); Well Next Mr Clean AK Antony (Westland). If there is prima facie evidence in NH case, there is much more in DDCA. What is happening to Indian cricket? IPL scandal, Now 'Mr Clean' Arun Jaitely! Let there be an independent inquiry in DDCA. It's natural that people make money in such projects. Politics has been a reserved field for people specializing in increasing their wealth manifold. Why do we run after posts in Cricket bodies? This government too has such people. Now that the judiciary is on the job, none has any morality left. Jaitley should be asked to step down till he is cleared. Isn'it a fact that Modi first saved, Sushma, Raje and Chavan and now he is saving Jaitley. What kind of PM we have, taking corruption cases so casually? Now that Modi has spoken, belatedly though, that Jaitley has to come out with flying colours (colourful butterfly?), let's wait. Flying Colors for Jaitey isn't like Modi flying different countries. People did not vote Jaitly in election, yet he was made a minister. If BJP adopts fair practices and get the clearance for Arun Jatley, good. People would then have faith in the political system. As of now, BJP hasn't demonstrated, other than defending its men and attacking those who point out any irregularity in its camp. Country would 'tolerate' a stable government, only if it can implement development plans. Right now we have little hope.

A crime is a crime and punishment must be simply commensurate.

A crime is a crime and punishment must be simply commensurate.
The "Juvenile Justice Law" was indeed made under 'public pressure'. Elsewhere, in the media (Indian Express) a report went on : "It wasn't just about sending a 16 year old 'child' to jail"! Sorry, instead it was about sending 16 year old murderer and rapist to jail. Statistics has it that whether it is murder, rape or such atrocities, the juvenile contribution in a negative way is much more than that of an adult. If one is old enough to rape, then he is old enough to be hanged. Why argue around a number '16' - discussed for so long! Why not just the crime! What if, now a much younger 'child', does something heinous, then are we going to make suitable amendments to this law! Again go on lowering the age periodically? A crime is a crime and punishment must be simply commensurate.

There is a lot more to the bill as well. Thank god, our "elders", unlike behaving like "children", for once, became mature adults and discharged their constitutional responsibility. The bill should not have been dragged so long by disrupting the parliament sessions for petty reasons. Nirbaya and a lot more would have got justice!

Pay Panel for Legislators

Pay Panel for Legislators
Disruptions dictate parliamentary agenda, and rightly therefore there's public outcry over the right of lawmakers to decide their pay and perks. Secretaries don't sit and decide on their own salaries. The public pressure seems to be working, as the is ready with a proposal which if accepted by all parties and legislative entities, may take away the right of lawmakers to pass bills for their own salary hike. The Left alone has opposed it, and they're not in the Committee.
We don’t have respectable pension for defence forces who are on hunger strike. Person in defence forces 15 years and he isn't eligible for pension. But an MP with only 4 years gets a life long Pension; and some times double pension if he was an MLA before. No one earns pension of Rs 25K with 5 years work. Why MPs demands pension, when Central and many State Govts have stopped pension to their employees? Every new recruitee is asked to join NPS. MPs too can opt for such scheme. Why this double standard? Modi spared no time increasing MPs pension by 75% (which thus jumped from 10 thousand in 2010 to 35 thousand in 2014 (three-and-a-half times in 4 years).
Let's compare UK, Germany and other common wealth counties and our netas must be worthy. They fight for the people,and hence deserve every bit of hike. In England, Parliament sits throughout the year, except for a few weeks here and there, because there's no provision, (in USA too), for ordinance (lawmaking during recession of Parliament). We have only ordinance route! Hence, Parliament only sits for 80 days or so in a year.
Let's have single permanent pay panel for legislators (for both Centre and states). For the simple reason of their casual behavour, it's unjustified to allow such heavy hikes at such frequent intervals. There should be a grievance cell for people to lodge complaints against such atrocious actions in passing such hikes, simply and unanimously.

Current Trends : "Double-whammy" or "Double-locked"
I believe, the SC ruling on Kerala liquor ban should be taken as "Double-whammy" or "Double-locked" (for want of a suitable coinage!). An important American economist, Irving Fisher, the champion of Prohibition within the profession, organized a round-table discussion on the topic at the American Economic Association meetings in 1927. Here he claimed to have been unable to find even one economist to speak against Prohibition, despite a thorough search. Should we not go for total prohibition? Instead we're pleading for equal opportunity! Is it because women's movements are not strong? Let's forget for a moment on the revenue aspect.
Poor families are ruined by liqour. True, prohibition might tend to drive the trade underground and creates a market for spurious liquor. The political mafias would shift over there! Neither government nor the courts appears to be serious! ior not, let there be law and order and domestic violence should stop.
Only populist decisions impelled by factional politics within parties and campaigns by a section of the clergy on ostensibly moral grounds are available. Alcoholism does critically impact the household budgets of the poor and does lead to domestic violence.

Slogans and meeting Corporates alone won't do!

Slogans and meeting Corporates alone won't do!
Apropos :"Is this the year of ‘Achhe Din’?" (Jani 1), certainly not. Modi has a lot of explaining to do on the economic reform front, something he had promised during the course of the election campaign. During the course of the last year he has come up with slogans like Make in India, Digital India etc., with very little changing on the ground. For 'Make in India' to succeed, things like the ease of land acquisition and electric supply, need to improve. Many state electricity boards all over the country, continue to remain in a mess. Further, the inspector raj that small businesses face, needs to be unshackled. Labour laws reform is urgent, perhaps, he can't! Land ordinance had to lapse: His promise of jobs remains a dream! For acche din to come Modi needs to create jobs for the 13 million Indians who are entering the workforce every year. And for that to happen he needs to unshackle many things that are holding back the economy.
The basic point is that what was Modi’s strength has now become his weakness. During the course of the election campaign last year, Modi came across as a man of action and the bar was set very high with slogans like "acche din aane waale hain". Why GST may not be worth the heartburn; he couldn't hasten even slowly on it!
The ease of doing business has to improve, if India wants to take advantage of the current economic scenario where the Chinese economy is in doldrums. Just coming up with new slogans and meeting Corporates regularly won’t help on that front.