MEDIA: The Game Changer

India is on the verge of witnessing history. The fastest person to become a chief minister from the date of joining politics is about to take oath on 26^th December at the Ramleela ground, New Delhi. I just took a look back about a couple of years before and just wondered how things have changed drastically.

A person who did “Sathyagrah” and hunger strikes for the past 24 years and dedicated his life for the fight against corruption never got recognized. One day suddenly the same agitation he undertook at the national capital changed into a revolutionary moment why? A person who was about to become chief minister for the third consecutive time was declared as the prime ministerial candidate why? The verdict of a gang rape came within a year while many such cases are still pending and awaiting justice why? The answer to such questions according to me is “MEDIA”.



Courtsey: Google Images

The involvement of media nowadays plays a vital role in all the areas like politics, judiciary, parliament etc. Media can make or break an image of a particular person or an organization depending on the way it projects them. Recent examples show how the chief editor of a well known media group, former Supreme Court judge or the famous yoga guru lost their status and credibility even before their crime was proved. A national level political party was forced to declare their prime ministerial candidate based on the media coverage’s and projections. A new political party was formed and is on the verge of making its own government, all this happened due to the attention that they received from media. The thinking of a common man have been controlled by the media, they are being spoon-fed. Media is changing the people’s perception and their own angle of viewing and judging the events happening around them.

Courtsey: Google Images

Apart from politics media also plays a crucial role in the judiciary system of our country. The cases that get media attention are solved on a faster basis and the remaining lie along with the other bunch of files. The verdict of the Delhi gang rape gave justice but two similar cases that took place on the same day are still awaiting justice, the sole reason being not getting enough media attention. Pressure exerted by media on government, judiciary and political persons is immense. If this pressure is exerted in the right direction and for the betterment of our nation then the much awaited revolution is not so far. I can foresee the revolution now it’s upon the media whether to pull it towards or push it away.

The old phrases will change like “Midas touch” will be “Media touch” and “Lady Luck” will be “Media Luck”. No surprise if you find new dialogues in bollywood films like: Vijay: Aaj mere paas bangla hai, gadi hai, paisa hai.......tumhare paas kya hai? Ravi: Mere paas MEDIA hai...!!! (Vijay: Today I have a bungalow, car, and lots of money... what do you have? Ravi: I have MEDIA...!)

 

Heritage Walk- A City Rediscovered

Heritage, to me the word itself says it all. We inherit from our ancestors and that always remain close to our heart, throughout the ages of our life giving rise to a “Heritage”.

Route Map: Heritage Walk

 

The Heritage Walk of Ahmedabad is conducted by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation with NGO, CRUTA Foundation like most Indian cities, has a long history and strong architectural and urban character. The AMC has been, since 19th Nov1997- as a part of World Heritage Week - conducting this Heritage Walk of Ahmedabad as a part of its cherished project "Getting the City to the People”. The Heritage Walk of Ahmedabad is a guided walk of two and a half hours. This daily affair by the AMC is extremely well designed in guidance and co-operation with CRUTA and Swaminarayan Trust, being led by a group of young volunteers. There is also a half hour special slide show running through pages of the city's history unfolding back its birth from a 10th century AD ancient site known as Ashaval to the present walled city re-founded during the period of Ahmedshah and onwards. The two hour walk takes you on a discovery of a city steeped in tradition, history, wonderful Indo-Islamic architecture and lots more. The walk brings you close to the soul of a city which has a rich textile heritage, intricately designed places of worship, wooden carved houses of pol and lots more. The walk begins from the serene Swaminarayan Mandir in Kalupur and ends in the magnificent Jumma Masjids, covering in between the numerous pols, havelis and chabaturas (bird-feeders), secret passages, ornamental facades and workplaces of artisans.

Our walk effectively anchored by our volunteer Mr Nirav Panchal, proceeded from Kavi Dalpatram Chowk - which housed the great 19th century Gujarati poet Dalpatram - in Lambeshwar ni Pol. The century old Kala Ramji Mandir in the Haja Patel in pol with a unique idol of Lord Rams in dark colour gives an innate sense of devotion. A special feature of Ahmedabad is the plan of the old city, comprising numerous pols, self contained neighborhoods, sheltering large numbers of people, traversed by narrow streets, usually terminating in squares with community wells and chabutaras for feeding birds. The walk moving through Doshiwada ni Pol, Zaveri Vad to Chaumukhji ni Pol saw ornate temples with their fascinating wooden carvings hidden under plain exteriors camouflaged beneath the aura of Mughal rule, and lanes punctuated with intriguing chabutras (bird feeders). We also witnessed a high pole which according to Nirav indicated the direction of the flow of underground sewage line that was flowing beneath it. The entire walled city was well planned according to the “Vastushastra” as the houses had their entrance in east-west directions and the lanes were in north-south direction. This also proved a scientific theory that due to such architectural construction the lanes didn’t receive direct sunlight and the houses could utilize the flow of wind maintaining warmth during different seasons. The walk ends at the Jumma Masjid which was built in 1423 by emperor Ahmed Shah who built this city.

After this heritage walk I fell in love with this city and its heritage. The walled city offered me so much that I was unable to notice in past six years while I was roaming through the same streets, may be mind set mattered. The city seemed beautiful in the morning silent and peaceful without any rush of traffic just a group of volunteers roaming around, exploring and the city itself seemed happy in sharing its age long experiences with us. We did enter a couple of houses to see the architectural heritage, amidst of the owners of houses busy with their routines, and not a slightest sign of antipathy on their face for you intruding their privacy giving me a live example of our motto “Atithi Devo Bhavah” (Guest become God). A onetime must visit for every individual living in the city, at least one can spare two hours from their busy schedule. I would love to go through it again and again eagerly waiting for the next opportunity.

Gods own country now Peoples own country

Kerala- Gods own country with the Arabian Sea in the west, the Western Ghats towering 500-2700m in the east and networked by 44 rivers; Kerala enjoys unique geographical features that have made it one of the most sought after tourist destinations in Asia. An equable climate, a long shoreline with serene beaches, tranquil stretches of emerald backwaters, lush hill stations and exotic wildlife. Waterfalls, sprawling plantations, paddy fields, ayurvedic health holidays, enchanting art forms, magical festivals, historic and cultural monuments. The mythological story about Kerala was a land rose from the sea where the axe- landed thrown in penance for waging the terrible war by Parasuram, the 6th incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

Kerala, India's most advanced society. With almost hundred percent literacy, world-class health care systems, India's lowest infant mortality, and highest life expectancy rates, the highest physical quality of life in India. Peaceful and pristine, Kerala is India's cleanest state.

According to the famous phrase “Roti (Food) Kapda (Clothing) aur Makan (Housing)”, the basic necessities of human being are: Food, Clothing and Shelter of which food and clothing are available cheaply in this modern and advanced society. But the major problem faced by the human society today is lack of land i.e. people don’t have their own land. Approximately there are over 1.5 crore landless families all over India.

The prestigious Zero Landless programme of the Kerala government: United Democratic Front (UDF) was flagged off by Congress president Sonia Gandhi in October 2013. The Zero Landless programme envisages distribution of three cents of land each to 2,43,928 families identified across the State. The decision of UDF government to provide ownership of land is set to be a significant socio-economic influence within Kerala. The entire project is estimated to be completed by 2015. Distributing title deeds to 11,118 more people, Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh proclaimed Kannur the first zero landless district in India. 286 scheduled tribe persons also got deeds. He also declared it to be “India’s first big state to be open defecation free.”

“Fifteen years ago, Ernakulam was declared the first district in the country to achieve 100 per cent literacy and today, Kannur acquires a rare distinction of becoming the first zero-landless district. I would suggest that the Kerala government should take the initiative to make use of the Indira Vikas Yojana, and build homes for all the families who get land under the scheme. If the state government moots a proposal to this end, I will give all the necessary support from my ministry for the housing project.” Ramesh said. The minister urged all other states to follow the Kerala example and distribute land among the landless. “Very soon, Kerala will be the first big state in India to be declared open-defecation-free, which is a big achievement.” he said.

It’s interesting to learn that there is a National land reform policy which says that every landless person should get 10 cents of land for building a house. Due to expensive land and lack of availability of land in Kerala the area was reduced to 3 cents which still is an appreciable step by the government. But the question is when we have such a national land reform policy why are the governments of other state not implementing them and why we as citizens not demanding its implementation as it’s our right being a part of the constitution. Currently our leaders are just behaving as good orators and just go on speaking (almost everything false) about the progress and development models being implemented. If any such models are really being implemented then they shouldn’t be just limited to paper but should be applied practically so that the common people can get the maximum benefit out of it.

Strong political will and political decisions need to be taken keeping apart personal benefits in mind by the government just as what the government of Kerala did. Hats off to their effort. Now in true sense one can say that "Gods own country is Peoples own country."

Statue of Unity- Is this all what India needs???

 



While Gujarat and some of its prominent political leaders are taking pride in the recently laid foundation stone of the “Statue of Unity” on 31 October 2013, the 138th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel- “Iron Man of India”, I would like to raise a question- “Is this the need of the hour? Is this all that India needs?

The Statue of Unity is a proposed 182 metres (597 ft) monument of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel that will be created directly facing the Narmada Dam, 3.2 km away on the river island called Sadhu Bet of Narmada River, near Bharuch in Gujarat. The project was first announced on October 7, 2010. The total height of the statue from its base will be 240 metre consisting base level of 58 metre and statue of 182 metre. It will be constructed with steel framing, reinforced cement concrete and bronze coating. A consortium of Turner Construction (consultant of Burj Khalifa), Michael Graves and Associates and Meinhardt Group, will supervise the project. It will take 56 months to complete the project, 15 months for planning, 40 months for construction and two months for handing over by the consortium. The entire project (the statute and other buildings including the memorial, visitor centre, garden, hotel, convention centre, amusement park and research institute) would cost about Rs. 2500 crores. The first phase of the project, including construction of the main statue, a bridge connecting the statue to the river bank and reconstruction of the 12 km road along the river banks is estimated to cost Rs. 2063 crores.

The Statue of Unity will be double the height of the Statue of Liberty in the USA and five times taller than the Statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The construction is estimated to cost Rs 2063 crores, and will be completed in four years. The proposed 182-meter tall Sardar Patel's statue will be erected on a small rocky island in the middle of the Narmada riverbed facing Sardar Sarovar Dam at Kevadia. The iron needed for this statue and other structures will be collected from farmers of villages all around India in a form of donation of their used farming instruments. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust set up 36 offices across India to collect this iron instruments till the construction starts on January 26, 2014.

The question that is raised is when the country and its states are facing problems like poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, inflation and recessions etc. Is it necessary at all to invest such a huge amount of money in building up of such monument that would in no ways directly help towards the development or progress of the nation? The only revenue that the statue would generate is from the tourism department which would directly go into the government funds and not into the hands of common people. Is this what Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel ever dreamed of? The numbers of poor families in Gujarat’s villages have risen by at least 30 per cent over the last decade, going by the state government's own data. In April 2000, there were 23.29 lakh Below Poverty Line (BPL) families in the villages. The number rose to 30.49 lakh as on June 26, 2012, as per the "dynamic list" which the state rural development commissioner's office constantly updates. The highest numbers of poor families were in the tribal districts of Narmada (72.45%), Dahod (71.75%), Dangs (70.14%) and the Panchmahals (50.73%). Even some local people have opposed land acquisition for tourism infrastructure development around the statue. They also claimed that Sadhu bet was originally called Varata Bawa Tekri, named after a local deity and so it was a site of religious importance. People of Kevadia, Kothi, Waghadia, Limbdi, Navagam and Gora villages opposed the construction of the statue demanding back land rights of formerly acquired 927 acres of land for dam and the formation of Garudeshwar taluka.

We live in a country where we have a lot of roads, monuments, Char- Rasta’s (Crossroads), government buildings named after national and political leaders in their honour. We have respect for them in our hearts and even follow their ideologies at least some of them if not all. Still spending such huge amount of money over such monuments causes a hindrance towards the development of society. With the likes of CWG and Adarsh Scams around the corner the common peoples’ faith over such projects seems fading. Instead of such investments implementing of the “Food Security Bill” or any such schemes and programmes for the development and progress of society would be helpful. At least the effect of this can be seen and the common people can access the benefits of the same directly. The most common question that needs to be asked commonly by the common people is: “The Statue of Unity- Is this all that India needs???”

The Great Wall of India

Wait... don’t rush out in search of 21,196 km long wall (The Great Wall of China) or any such sort of a thing along the vast geographical stretch of India because you won’t find any. Confused then???

Rahul Dravid - the name says it all. A gentle giant of the game, he is fondly called, ‘The Wall of Indian Cricket’, after he was called 'A wall' in a Reebok commercial, owing to his strong temperament and mental strength to carry on. Cricket is called the 'Gentleman's Game'. I have often wondered whether this name was adopted after Rahul Dravid arrived on the scene. He is as humble as one could get. Rahul Dravid is the reason I developed a liking for test cricket. He made the defensive technique seem all the more interesting. His batting style is a way of life. Face every challenge head on, stick in there no matter what, and you are bound to be successful more often than not. When he made his debut in ODIs against Sri Lanka on 3rd April, 1996, it wasn’t a great outing for him. But his test debut against England on 20th June, 1996 saw him make a 95 in Lords. That time, one just knew that a future Lord of the game has just been born in Lords. And he proved everyone right too. His hunger was tremendous. He never seemed satiated and always appeared to be game for more. He was a fighter and never went down without a struggle. He just never gave up. A value that is not seen in many players in today’s cricket.

Sachin Tendulkar undoubtedly qualifies to be among the greatest ever cricketers of the world; Virender Sehwag one of the greatest entertainers who can dismantle any bowling attack with sheer disdain; Mohammed Azharuddin the master of the wristy strokes. But Rahul Dravid will always remain the universal role model, on and off the field. On the field, Dravid was always concentration personified, impeccable in his approach; off it, he is the ideal cricketer for innumerable youngsters. Despite his huge demeanor and stature in the game, he has always been down to earth. He has been one of the greatest achievers in the game. Dravid is the second highest run scorer in tests for India, behind only Sachin Tendulkar. It has often been argued that had Dravid played as much as Sachin has, he may have surpassed the Little Maestro too! He has played the most balls in test matches, taken the most catches, and is the first batsman to score a century in all test playing nations. The list of his achievements is never ending. He was always the unsung hero. And instead of being angry about it, he liked to bask in the glory of his other team mates. He was always there for the team. He fielded at every position; opened and batted at different slots in the batting order; came in the middle order and kept things from falling apart; he came in the slog overs and adapted his batting style to get quick runs. And he did this with success more often than not. Dravid brought with him a sense of security, of surety. He brought with him a semblance of calm to whichever team he was related to.

No surprise then that Dravid became the first Indian cricketer ever to give a speech at Bradman Oration in Australia. Rahul Dravid has delivered a stirring speech on the spirit of cricket, proving he is just as eloquent on the podium as he is with a bat on a cricket wicket.

Glimpses of his achievements:

Ø  1998: Arjuna award

Ø  1999: CEAT International Cricketer of the World Cup

Ø  2000: Wisden Cricketer of the Year 2000

Ø  2004: Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy Winner (Awarded for ICC Player of the Year)

Ø  2004: Padma Shri

Ø  2004: ICC Test Player of The Year, ICC Cricketer of The Year

Ø  2006: Captain of the ICC's Test Team

Ø  2011: NDTV Indian of the Year's Lifetime Achievement Award

Ø  2012: Don Bradman Award

Ø  2013: Padma Bhushan

 

Dravid is arguably the most respected cricketer in the world, not only for the way he plays but also the way he conducts himself both on and off the pitch. Hope that others like him will come along and act as guardians of a sport that unites so many people. To India's new cricket audience, Dravid must seem a cricketer out of kilter with the times. He is an education when they fancy a day out; a figure of sanity when what they really want is a figure of fun; a batsman best appreciated by the rheumy-eyed. Rahul Dravid's retirement call may be considered a setback to Indian cricket by many. But it is not. This move by Dravid too, has been well thought of like many of his other moves. He knew it was time to move on and give the talented youngsters waiting in the wings a chance to prove their mettle. Now all we can do is appreciate his call and all the things he has done for Indian Cricket and for World Cricket too. Dravid has been a role model for millions, and a pleasure to watch on the field for even more people. He built his career brick by brick and built a foundation; laid a cornerstone for the next generation. He has given us a chance to reach newer heights and zeniths. Now it's up to the others to build on The Wall's success and build a fortress out of that wall. So as the fact sinks in that we won’t be seeing Dravid playing on the field again, at least we can take some time out to look back on his glory days and all that he has managed to achieve.

No, Rahul Dravid's retirement is not the end of an era or legacy. It is the start of a new one...

Rainy Nights

Brace for a bit of a rain dance. Weather officials conceded that intermittent showers like the one that drenched the city on Tuesday are expected to continue through this week. In fact, the sky is expected to clear only from next Monday. Meanwhile, Ahmedabad has received 46 mm of rain since October 1-this is the highest in the last 13 years for this month. In 1999, the city received 60.4 mm in October. On Wednesday, rain or thundershowers, sometimes heavy, are expected to occur in some areas.

Monsoon refuses to bid farewell to the city much to the disappointment of garba revelers. An over-clouded sky on Tuesday and two hours of heavy downpour had some garba venues in the city cancelling the evening’s event. With the Ahmedabad Met department predicting light to heavy showers in the city for the next three days, what is left of Navratri may turn out to be a damp squib. Gujarat Tourism Department which is hosting the Vibrant Navratri – one of the biggest garba events in the city – at GMDC ground cancelled its event for Tuesday following heavy downpour. The organizer said, “We have cancelled the event keeping in mind public safety. The ground is slippery. It is not possible for us to pump out all the water and get the ground ready for the revelers in time.” A garba event at Godrej Garden City was also cancelled. Vishal Bhatt, a garba enthusiast who had his heart set on attending the GMDC garba on Tuesday said, “I thought the monsoon was over. It feels as if the rain gods are deliberately playing spoilsport. I understand why the organisers had to cancel the event. I just pray that the remaining days of Navratri are dry and sunny.”

Amidst the natural thunders and showers the city also witnessed some protests from the local communities related to the newly released film “RAMLEELA”. Members of Rajput community gathered outside the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel international airport in Ahmedabad on Wednesday to protest Ram Leela star Deepika Padukone’s visit to Ahmedabad. Local police faced tough time to push the protesters outside the airport area. Police had to use some force. At least six protesters were detained. They are likely to be released only after Deepika’s Ahmedabad visit is over. Deepika arrived at the airport in Jet Airways plane. They couldn't come out of the airport building due to protest. Local police contacted the headquarters to seek more force to take the starts safely to their destination. After Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s assurance that the caste words will be replaced by fictitious words, the agitation has ended.

Some garba grounds were wet enough and therefore unfit to host third night of Garba. Some other grounds were water logged. Garba organizers had to work hard to save their sound and light systems from the attack of rain. Some garba organizers also tried to make the ground ready again for garba on war foot basis. Showers – enough strong to force cancellation of Navratri events – are reported at Ambaji, Bhavnagar and other areas of Gujarat too.

There is some good news for Garba goers. The situation of sky was better on Wednesday compared to Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Yes, the sky is still cloudy, but not as dense as earlier days. Added to this, the quality of clouds today is not as rich as earlier days. So you can be positive about your Navratri plans for today and most probably coming days.

To conclude with I think it’s time for our famous word “Jugaad”:  Now is the time for jugaad, replace dandia with pichkari and enjoy Holratri....!!!

FOOD OR VOTE SECURITY BILL???

The National Food Security Bill, 2013 passed by the parliament was signed into law by the president on September 12, 2013 gives right to subsidised food grain to 67 percent of India's 1.2 billion people of which 75 percent will be rural beneficiaries and 50 percent urban beneficiaries and it also provides penalty for non-compliance by public servants. Pregnant women, lactating mothers, and certain categories of children are eligible for daily free meals. The bill was highly controversial, and despite introduction into Parliament in December 2011 was passed only in late August 2013, after initially being promulgated as a presidential ordinance on 5^th July.

The intent of the National Food Security Bill is spelled out in the Lok Sabha committee report, The National Food Security Bill, 2011, Twenty Seventh Report, which states, "Food security means availability of sufficient food grains to meet the domestic demand as well as access, at the individual level, to adequate quantities of food at affordable prices." The report adds, "The proposed legislation marks a paradigm shift in addressing the problem of food security – from the current welfare approach to a right based approach. About two thirds of the population will be entitled to receive subsidized food grains under Targeted Public Distribution System." The Food Security Bill guarantees 5 kg of rice, wheat and coarse cereals per month per individual at a fixed price of Rs 3, 2, 1, respectively, to nearly 67% of the population.

The government estimates suggest that food security will cost Rs 1,24,723 crore per year. But that is just one estimate. Andy Mukherjee, a columnist with Reuters, puts the cost at around $25 billion. The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices(CACP) of the Ministry of Agriculture in a research paper titled National Food Security Bill – Challenges and Options puts the cost of the food security scheme over a three year period at Rs 6,82,163 crore. During the first year the cost to the government has been estimated at Rs 2,41,263 crore. Economist Surjit Bhalla in a column in The Indian Express put the cost of the bill at Rs 3,14,000 crore or around 3% of the gross domestic product (GDP).

This will likely create the world’s largest welfare scheme. It has caused much hand wringing amongst political pundits, economists and the media, asking if India, already suffering from a budget deficit and struggling with a slowing economy and a depreciating currency, can afford this extra burden. India already provides subsidized food to a certain section of its population. The new bill will expand that coverage at a cost of about 1.35% of the GDP. It stars next year in April and that means it will not impact the fiscal deficit target for this year.

The weakest point of the right to food security is that it will use the extremely “leaky” public distribution system to distribute food grains. As Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya write in India’s Tryst With Destiny – Debunking Myths That Undermine Progress and Addressing New Challenges “A recent study by Jha and Ramaswami estimates that in 2004-05, 70 per cent of the poor received no grain through the pubic distribution system while 70 per cent of those who did receive it were non-poor. They also estimate that as much as 55 per cent of the grain supplied through the public distribution system leaked out along the distribution chain, with only 45 per cent actually sold to beneficiaries through fair-price shops. The share of food subsidy received by the poor turned out to be astonishingly low 10.5 per cent.”

The Indian Ministry of Agriculture's Commission on Agricultural Costs and Prices warned that enactment of the Bill could be expected to "induce severe imbalance in the production of oilseeds and pulses, will create demand pressures, which will inevitably spillover to market prices of food grains. Furthermore, the higher food subsidy burden on the budget will raise the fiscal deficit, exacerbating macro level inflationary pressures." The Commission argued further that the Bill would restrict private initiative in agriculture, reduce competition in the marketplace due to government domination of the grain market, shift money from investments in agriculture to subsidies, and continue focus on cereals production when shifts in consumer demand patterns indicate a need to focus more on protein, fruits and vegetables.

Criticism of the National Food Security Bill includes accusations of both political motivation and fiscal irresponsibility. One senior opposition politician, Murli Manohar Joshi, went so far as to describe the bill as a measure for "vote security" (for the ruling government coalition) rather than food security. Another political figure, Mulayam Singh Yadav, declared, "It is clearly being brought for elections. Why didn’t you bring this bill earlier when poor people were dying because of hunger? Every election, you bring up a measure. There is nothing for the poor."

To conclude, the basic point is that food security will turn out to be a fairly expensive proposition for India. But then Sonia Gandhi believes in it and so do other parties which have voted for it. With this Congress has firmly gone back to the garibi hatao politics of Indira Gandhi. And that is not surprising given the huge influence Indira Gandhi has had on Sonia. A lot of critics of this bill say that this is a last ditch attempt by Sonia Gandhi-led Congress to buy votes in national elections due next year. Maybe so, but if along the way a few hundred million starving poor get some food to eat, is that really so bad?