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More to Mirchpur Probe panels do not inspire confidence ON the face of it, the Haryana government’s move to appoint a one-man inquiry commission to look into the incident at Mirchpur is innocuous enough. But it would have carried far more conviction if the government had constituted it immediately after the carnage on April 21 and not waited two long months before doing so.
Leadership
crisis hits police
Oxymoron
of admission
Dark
clouds over China Caste in
census must for social justice Chatterati
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Runaway corruption
The
more things change, the more they remain the same, it seems. In November last, Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee ordered the removal of the chiefs of all 20 railway recruitment boards following complaints that the tests had been rigged in favour of candidates belonging to a particular state. Yet, this Friday, the Railway Ministry had to suspend S.M.Sharma, the Mumbai Recruitment Board Chairman, after his son was arrested by the CBI in a recruitment scam whose very scale takes one’s breath away. The kingpin of the scam was a former Additional Divisional Railway Manager of Raipur, A.K. Jagannatham, at present CEO of the Hassan-Mangalore Railway Development Corporation. The gang in connivance with officials of the Mumbai recruitment board charged Rs 3.5 lakh from each candidate for leaking out the paper of the examinations for posts of assistant loco pilot and assistant station master. It was apparently a well-oiled operation, with agents all over the country. The aspirants were asked to pay huge amounts of money and deposit their original certificates with Jagannatham. Since 444 certificates have already been recovered, there are reasons to suspect that the scam may be worth more than Rs 20 crore. There is need to find out if equally fishy things were happening in other recruitment boards also. It is not only a case of gross corruption but also of public safety. One can well imagine how dependable and professional the candidates who become assistant loco pilots and assistant station masters on the basis of rigged examinations would be. There is need for a thorough overhaul of the recruitment process in the railways. It has become imperative to put in place a mechanism for centralised monitoring of the process. Even that will help only if the central authorities themselves are strictly above board. There are allegations that there has been gross violation of rules in regularisation of the services of contract workers of the Metro Railway in Kolkata, with many of the recent posts having gone exclusively to supporters of the Trinamool Congress or the Congress. |
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More to Mirchpur
ON the face of it, the Haryana government’s move to appoint a one-man inquiry commission to look into the incident at Mirchpur is innocuous enough. But it would have carried far more conviction if the government had constituted it immediately after the carnage on April 21 and not waited two long months before doing so. During this period, after all, administrative inquiries have been done and several fact-finding missions have already submitted their reports. Even the Supreme Court of India has directed two lawyers to independently inquire into the sequence of events and report to the apex court. One more judicial inquiry, therefore, would either indicate that the state government itself is not satisfied with reports submitted by the district officials or it could be conscious of a deepening credibility gap, necessitating the appointment of a retired high court judge to go through the motions all over again. What is also suspect are the terms of reference. The inquiry commission is entrusted with the task of going into the circumstances leading to the death of a polio-stricken girl and her father and identifying people responsible for the loss of life and property. Most importantly, the commission is also to consider the steps taken by the state government and the compensation paid to the affected families. If the terms of reference look comic, the state government has only itself to blame. It dragged its feet for 48 hours after 35 Dalit houses were torched and destroyed and 50 more houses ransacked. It was goaded into arresting 29 of the 43 named accused only after the victims refused to cremate the bodies of the father and daughter, who had been burnt alive. Action was taken against the SHO of Narnaund and a Naib-Tehsildar for dereliction of duty only after sustained public pressure. And it has taken no action against senior district officials even after it was pointed out that the FIRs had not properly mentioned the sub-sections of the SC & ST ( Prevention of Atrocities) Act, which might enable the accused to get away lightly. What was needed far more urgently was a swift investigation by a Special Investigating Team because of the Dalits’ lack of faith in the local police. What was also necessary is the constitution of a fast-track court to deal with the case on a day-to-day basis. |
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What I want is men who will support me when I am in the wrong. —
Lord Melbourne
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Leadership crisis hits police
The
police today have to handle problems which are more complex than ever before. From the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack to the Maoist killings at Dantewada to the derailment of trains, the battlefield has not only expanded considerably but has also become multi-dimensional. The world is constantly and rapidly changing, but the policeman is stuck in the first gear. Sucked into the unstable security environment, he is out of sync with the fast moving events. He makes mere noise, but no impact. Increasing resentment among the people owing to his dissatisfactory performance, unimaginative and uninspiring leadership, clinging to outmoded views, lack of openness and low self-esteem make the Indian policeman a bad joke of society. The Police Act of 1861 has remained unchanged. There is a crisis of leadership in the police. The situation has worsened with many senior police officers cooling their heels in jails. An IGP is undergoing life imprisonment in the Shivani murder case. In the Ruchika molestation case, a DGP is in jail. Another IGP is facing serious charges of molestation. Some time back a DGP-level officer was caught red-handed taking a bribe. Another DGP went to jail for a fake encounter. Recently an STF chief and his team were caught on camera extorting money from a businessman. Mumbai encounter specialists are in jail for having links with the underworld. In Gujrat, senior IPS officers like Vanzara are facing trial for false encounters. The malady is getting widespread. The police is fast acquiring the dark hues of the underworld. How can the public and the juniors in the police department have respect for such police officers? The land mafia is finding in the police a valuable ally. The officers playing the leading role lack the ability to motivate and inspire the force. The result is a multiple-personality disorder. The psychosomatic manifestation is cynicism, diluted loyalty and total loss of respect for seniors. An ordinary cop in the street is adrift in the whirlpool of differing views. He ultimately finds succour in the arms of a small-time “neta”, a goon or a local godfather. The leaders have a flat-footed approach and are hardly aware of the mood of the force and the ground reality. The police department in most states is fast becoming a malfunctioning machine for which there are no spare parts. There is a big communication gap between the cop on the beat and his superiors. A similar situation exists between the police and society at large. What is missing in trust, which cannot be fabricated in an ad-hoc manner. Sincerity cannot be faked for long. Effective two-way communication demands that we easily understand what both sides intend to say. They must learn to speak the language of logic. Decisions are made with little awareness of the situation. The relationship in the police is not task-focused but personality-focused. Subordinates are not bound to perform but to please their superiors. Achievements are not measured by the criteria of contribution and performance. This leads to frustration and a listless approach to duty. The police do not function in a political or social vacuum. Policing is a part of the national ethos. Honest and well-meaning people get an honest and well-meaning police. Ben Whitaker remarked, “The public uses the police as a scapegoat for its neurotic attitude towards crime. Janus-like, we have always turned two faces towards a policeman. We expect him to be human and yet inhuman. We ask him to administer law and yet ask him to waive it. We resent him when he enforces a law in our own case, yet demand his dismissal when he does not elsewhere. We offer him bribe, yet denounce his corruption.” One of the hallmarks of effective police leadership is the translation of positive intentions into tangible results. The law of diminishing returns says that the longer you wait to implement a new idea or strategy, the less enthusiasm you will have for it. Leadership is not about popularity. It is about integrity. It is not about power. It is about purpose. Effective leadership is persuasion, not domination. A skilled leader creates a cohesive and mission-oriented team. Leadership is the recognition of spiritual maturity, proven character and the reputation you have developed. There is a difference between a boss and a leader. A boss depends on authority, but a leader depends on goodwill. A boss inspires fear, but a leader inspires enthusiasm. A leader says “we”, but a boss says “I”. A boss fixes the blame, but a leader fixes the breakdown. The police have more bosses than leaders. There is no such thing as an unmotivated cop; it is only an unmotivated employee. Police bosses are the cause for more fury and frustration than productivity. They rarely inspire. For senior policemen, taking care of the interests of the politician in power is more important than anything else. Drastic steps are called for to make the police deliver the goods. There should be a performance review after 20 or 25 years of service in the IPS. Those not up to the mark should not be given promotion. They should be retired. Around 90 per cent of the IPS officers do not go on Central deputation. They like to live in the comfort of their home cadre and cultivate politicians. Officers with flexible morals and scruples suit the politicians in power. The more flexible and spineless the officers are, the better it is for the political bosses. As long as we have the police as a state subject, the maladies of policing will continue. The best solution will be to make the police a Union subject. The police should be free from political shackles. There is too much government and too little governance; too much talk and too little action; too many laws and too little justice. Those in the leadership role will have to straddle the extremes, incorporating the skills of a generalist and a specialist, a visionary and an operational man with a human touch. The changing scenario demands re-definition of old
concepts. The writer is a former Additional DGP, Haryana. He is currently
training the Delhi police for the coming Commonwealth Games
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Oxymoron of admission ONE of my chums once asked
for my objective opinion about a particular school before
applying there for his son’s admission. He maintained that he had
carried out an elaborate survey about various boarding schools
but found them all extremely average, with amazing dullness.
His only choice ultimately zeroed down to this school, continued
Markanday. I was over-run by the linguistic paradox of the English
language. It is perhaps the only language where two words even with
contradictory meaning can be used concurrently — Oxymoron, to be
precise. The school management is very meticulous, admits only a small
crowd in each class. According to his exact estimate, it was
the least expensive public school in the region. We decided to
visit the campus one Sunday morning with families before dark
sunshine. Having clearly misunderstood me, he invaded my
residence in his Mercedes, which was fully empty. En route, to
our utter dismay, we found the traffic on Pinjore-Parwanoo stretch pretty
ugly, which appeared to be an organised mess created by
traffic cops. They were behaving in a seriously funny manner. We
tried to trace the officer, but he was found missing. Forced to act
naturally, the only option was to fall in line, and keep
crawling at a snail’s pace. Driving on serpentine hilly roads
with sharp curves was a real test of dynamic equilibrium.
I felt proud of my negotiating skills, not shying from forward
retreats at times. I knew, even an ounce of negligence could turn simply
awesome. The headmaster emerged out of his busy leisure to
satiate our queries. The students were rehearsing for the annual event.
There was, nevertheless, deafening silence that ruled the
environs. A few innocent truants who were regularly irregular
had been lined up to uncurl their eccentricities. The bursar confided
an open secret that the students were kept engaged throughout the
day. It was amazing to see the gleaming students wearing glossy smiles
on their sleeves. Luckily, my son and daughter and Markanday’s son
were among eight out of 50-odd aspirants from seven States, who cleared
the written test. It was the parents’ turn thereafter for an absorbing
interview. Eventually the admission was confirmed. Original copies
of certificates were deposited. When we finally dropped our children
in the hostel, the moment turned bitter sweet, bitter because of
separation and sweet because of re-styling of their career in a reputed
institute, in sharp contrast to my own alma mater, TCS Convent (Tappar
Chakk School) in Bawal. As we parted, we were falling like living
dead. We were screaming silently, as we waded back. In our
homes which used to bustle with noise, silence whistled. With
lots of time at our disposal, we felt happily re-married,
re-inventing our old matrimonial contours. You dare not challenge the
statement as a true lie or false truth! ?
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Dark clouds over China
IT has been one globe economically, a global village, for decades now. The war among major economies is no longer fought on the seas, or on land with massive armies, but in boardrooms and markets. That China is a communist state politically is no longer a concern. The competition is economic, for instance, whether China’s semi-capitalistic economy, having already surpassed the great France and Germany, will soon surpass the Japanese to become the second largest economy behind the United States of America. The concern in the U.S. is not which country has the largest navy or nuclear arsenal, but whether China, Japan and the oil exporting nations will continue to buy U.S. treasuries, and hold the dollars in their central bank reserves, happy to be the largest foreign holders of U.S. debt issues. The global village aspect and their economic dependence on each other can be seen in the way global economies enter and exit recessions and depressions together, and see their stock markets enter and exit bull and bear markets together. It is not shocking that the economic worries blowing over Europe this year have circled the globe, including the emerging markets. Chilly winds blowing in China haven’t attracted as much attention yet, but may soon turn into unforgiving storms. China’s economy has been growing at an astounding pace for years, which has not escaped the attention of global investors. China’s stock market gained 500% from its low in 2005 to its high in late 2007. It then plunged 74% in the global bear market of 2007-2009. And it subsequently surged up 109% in the new bull market (while the U.S. market gained ‘only’ 82% to its recent peak). However, there hasn’t been much recognition that the Chinese shares have declined around 28%, officially into another bear market, even as its economy remains one of the strongest. Stock markets typically look ahead six to eight months and react now to what they expect economies to be six to eight months in the future. Is China’s stock market forecasting trouble ahead for the Chinese economic system? That’s a relevant question given how important China’s booming economy has been to the still fragile global economic recoveries. Prosperous Chinese consumers are consuming in the exports of other countries at such a fast pace that China’s imports at the end of March were 65% higher than a year ago (China’s had the largest trade deficit in over six years.) So, what seems to be the potential problem that has had the Chinese stocks unable to stand since July 2009, well before the debt crisis in Europe popped up? It is probable that the real estate in China has developed a bubble, and the stock markets very well know what bursting real estate bubbles do to economies. Real estate prices in the Dragon’s land have been rising sharply for several years and soared at a record pace in March, up an average of almost 12%, but more than 50% in some overheated cities, from a year earlier. Their government is obviously worried, and trying to let the air out of the balloon in a very controlled manner. It has raised the amount of reserves its banking system must hold, thus discouraging excessive lending, raised mortgage rates and the size of required down-payments. Most dramatically it is now requiring 35-40% down payments on second homes in an effort to stop the rampant ‘flipping’ of realty for fast profits by speculators. We have also seen lately that large global investors like BlackRock, the mammoth New York mutual fund group, and Boston’s State Street Global Advisers, are among the sellers of Chinese stocks, BlackRock indicating it believes China’s economic growth has peaked, that the efforts of the Chinese government to cool off its realty will have a negative effect on the overall Chinese economy. The yield spread on $ 350 million of 13.5 per cent notes sold by Shenzhen-based Kaisa last month widened most of the nine issues, expanding to 16.52 percentage points from 11.07 percentage points. China property developers paid coupons as high as 14 per cent to issue dollar debt this year, compared with an average 9.2 per cent for other companies in Asia and 6.2 per cent for U.S. property companies. On average, Chinese property companies are paying a 10.875 per cent coupon. A booming realty market has an amazing effect on economies, creating jobs and business for all manner of supporting industries across all spectrums like producers of construction, electrical, and plumbing materials, furniture and appliance manufacturers etc. Letting air out of the real estate bubble in China is definitely crucial, but it surely raises a lot of questions on China’s overall economy, which is now more than important to fragile global economic recoveries. China’s situation at present quite resembles the Japanese situation in the late 1980s, when the authorities, reacting to the export slump due to the upward revaluation of the yen after the 1985 Plaza Accord, adopted a very low interest rate regime in order to boost domestic demand — and thereby created the conditions that led to an economic bubble. The question arises whether the Chinese economy, and its realty market in particular, is at risk for a similar asset bubble. Additionally, over the last 14 years, China’s economy has grown a whopping eight-fold, to $ 4.9 trillion, and it has quickly soared to become the world’s third-largest
economy. During the same period, the U.S. economy has only doubled in
size. As far as currencies are concerned, the dramatic outperformance of the Chinese economy relative to the U.S. economy would normally be reflected in a much stronger Chinese currency. But China controls the value of its currency. They allowed it to strengthen only 18 per cent during those 14 years — a mere drop in the bucket, keeping the advantage squarely in China’s court. Moreover, since the financial crisis and global recession kicked in two years ago, China has returned to a peg against the dollar, artificially keeping its goods cheap for a weaker U.S. consumer and undercutting its export-centric competitors. Here’s the problem: The global trade imbalance driven by China’s cheap currency is a recipe for more frequent boom and bust cycles. The economic tornados in the great Europe are more than enough potential problems to keep global investors busy, but the economic clouds potentially forming on the Great Wall of China also need to be carefully watched, which could ultimately slowdown the growth rate to 7-8 per cent. Are the great bulls listening? The writer is the CEO of India Forex Advisors
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Caste in census must for social justice Whether
the census operations for the year 2011 should reflect the caste of India’s citizens is hotly debated. Political parties, NGOs, social organisations and professional experts are airing their respective viewpoints through all channels of the media. A complete mess has been created over the issue. At the same time Parliament has failed to give any direction over the issue. Ultimately, the Union Cabinet has constituted a Group of Ministers to ascertain a way out and bring before Parliament the decision of the Government of India for an appropriate solution of the problem. The Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the backward classes have been provided special rights, privileges and concessions in about a dozen Articles which are included in the Constitution of India. The Preamble of the Indian Constitution describes the resolve of the people of India in bold letters to provide for and secure to all Indian citizens justice, liberty,equality and fraternity. It was with these high ideals of universal human society to be established in India that the Constitution was drafted by Dr Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar and approved by the Constituent Assembly in 1950. At the same time the framers of our Constitution realised that certain communities and castes were suffering from extreme social, educational and economic backwardness arising out of the age-old practice of untouchability and other factors such as primitive agricultural practices, lack of infrastructure facilities and geographical isolation. Hence, the need for special consideration and safeguarding their interests for the accelerated socio-economic development of these communities which were notified as the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes as per provisions contained in Clause I of Articles 341 and 342 of the Constitution, respectively. With a view to providing safeguards against the exploitation of the SCs and the STs, as they were grossly handicapped in getting their reasonable share in elected offices, government jobs and educational institutions, it was considered necessary to follow a policy of reservations in their favour to ensure their equitable participation in governance. For the effective implementation of various safeguards provided in the Constitution for the SCs and the STs, various other protective legislation and safeguards are provided under Article 46 which is meant for promoting the educational and economic interests of these castes and tribes with a view to ensuring social justice to them. Article 17 of the Constitution of India is aimed at removing untouchability attached to the castes which are listed as the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes under the President of India’s order, in the year 1955 its practice was made an offence punishable by law known as the Atrocities Act of 1989. The said Act also provides for special courts at the district and state levels, including monitoring machinery, which were constituted by every state government. Article 23 of the Constitution of India provides for a ban on trafficking in human beings, including beggars. Article 25 (2) of the Constitution of India ensures that all Hindu religious institutions are thrown open to all people without the consideration of caste. Articles 15(4), 16-4(i), 16-4(A), 330, 332, 334 and 335 of the Constitution of India provide that all these rights are to be implemented in India keeping in view the percentage of the population of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. There is no way to find out the real percentage of their population without mentioning the caste in the census operation. The non-mention of caste in the national census will mean denying them their fundamental rights enshrined in our Constitution. I, therefore, caution the Government of India against entertaining any suggestion made by the political parties against the inclusion of caste in the census operations of the year 2011. Only strict implementation of this provision will meet the ends of social
justice. The writer is a former Home Minister of India
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Chatterati Tarun is, of course, now a hero in the fashion industry. The designers feel that he has proved that designers have the same stature as artists. Rohit Bal, the king of fashion, has just got back from hospital after a heart attack. He hosted a party at his restaurant Veda in Connaught Place for his friends to appreciate Tarun’s hard work and the tax gift to designers. Tarun and Rohit Bal feel that showcasing their talent abroad is a legitimate means of carrying forward Indian culture and at the same time helps swell the foreign exchange coffers of the nation. Our designers are today appreciated in the West even as India is the flavour of the moment. A Rohit Bal ordinary T-shirt in Selfridges, London, can now cost you up to Rs 20,000 and wedding lehengas from our top designers can cost you up to Rs 10 lakh abroad. But all this has left most of the industry still in the cold. Anderson buddies all Congressmen in Delhi carry cuttings of old newspapers where all this has been quoted. Everybody has come off badly in the aftermath of the tragedy; the government of the day, the investigating agencies and the judiciary. Will 93-year-old Anderson’s extradition now heal the wounds of Bhopal? Why don’t we concentrate on giving a larger compensation package for the remaining victims and ensure it is properly disbursed and then make tighter laws to prevent future Bhopals from happening. Licence for a high Delhi-ites are cheering – cheers for the new licences to smaller eateries to serve beer and wine. Specialised eating places other than the five stars have always been a major draw for those celebrating high life. Today the true literate like to shun the more obvious five-star culture simply because it is so predictable. While hotels too have been forced to upgrade their dining facilities, the thrill of seeking the ‘dice’ is a gourmet’s delight. Now with the booze licences, ‘sada Dilliwalas’ will be able to indulge themselves fully. Will drunken driving and brawls explode as a result? Unlikely, say those who insist that Delhi must host Commonwealth Games like a global, grown-up city.
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Anderson, the Bhopal tragedy culprit, we all now know was flown in a government plane and set free immediately. Was this a responsible act? Personal friendships of businessmen, politicians and bureaucrats can go far above the law. Anderson’s coffers at the time were open for politicians and the bureaucracy. His seven-star company guesthouse was often used by men in power. He funded charities run by politicians. Ruling politicians enjoyed his hospitality on holidays in America. So the use of official machinery to free a murderer was actually a return of past favours. Right after the tragedy, Rajiv Gandhi visited Bhopal and said in a speech that ‘action’ would be taken. Within five minutes Arjun Singh turned the word ‘action’ into ‘compensation’ and said that ‘compensation’ would be given. Unfortunately, the state government eventually made sure that there was neither ‘action’ nor ‘compensation’.