Thought for the day
"It is Homer who has chiefly taught other poets the
art of telling lies skillfully."
-
Aristotle (Greek, 384-322BC)
Word for the day
Moppet (n)
A young child.
(Source: Dictionary.com)
Malice towards none
It is perhaps for the first time that PLA has not done any adventure before
a Indo-China summit.
Love me or hate me, you can't ignore me
The incumbent government will complete first year in office in
couple of weeks. Considering the high expectations it raised amongst all
stakeholders, it is natural that assessment of its first year performance is
evoking keen interest.
Media, political commentators, opponents, supporters, business,
friends, etc. are all evaluating the performance on the parameters that suit
them most. Unfortunately, many do not sound objective in their endeavor.
Media and opponents were elated to find ammunition against PM
Modi in Arun Shourie's outburst
against the government. English media in particular has been overtly critical
of the Modi government.
Many businesspersons, e.g., Deepak
Parekh and Adi
Godrej, have expressed dissatisfaction over government's conduct. Though
some like Ratan
Tata have advocated giving some more time before a meaningful could be
assessment is made.
The opposition parties have alleged in the Parliament that PM
Modi is focusing too much on image building through his much hyped overseas
tours and ignoring important business.
A India
TV-C Voter survey telecast on Monday, found that a majority of people
believe that PM Modi today appears anti-poor and anti-farmer; his image has
taken serious beating in past one year; and Sushma Swaraj is the best
performing minister in his cabinet.
If we juxtapose this criticism from various quarters what we get
is:
*
The government has neither worked for poor not
the rich. Poor find it pro-industry and industrialist find it too socialist.
*
Media finds that that PM Modi has undermined the
authority of his ministers, especially Rajnath Singh (here)
and Sushma Swaraj (here).
But people find them most efficient ministers.
*
Critic feels too much centralization in PMO is
affecting execution. Ministers and bureaucrats feel too much federalization is
undermining their authority.
Good, Bad and Ugly of Modi government
Not satisfied with the objectivity of the popular surveys on the
assessment of one year performance of the incumbent government, I decided to
conduct the one by myself.
Though, my sample is unscientific and tiny, I found the results
consistent and plausible.
For records, I spoke to 74 people across 8 states. Profession
wise, the sample included small farmers, traders, industrialist, politicians,
bankers, students, home makers, government employees, unemployed and petty
workers. The sample covered the lower and middle part of the economic strata.
The higher echelon went unrepresented. Community wise, it covered six primary
religions, and all four caste segments. 12 women participated in the survey.
About 10 respondents were from villages.
There was no structured questionnaire. The survey was based on
free discussions. Respondents were not prompted towards anything specific. They were requested to
give their free and fair assessment.
The key highlights of the responses received are as follows:
The Good
April CPI
Inflation at 4.87%; lowest in four months
*
The global image of the country has improved
materially. Though it may not mean immediate economic benefits, the country
shall reap multiple benefits in the long term.
*
The government has successfully managed the
communal environment in the country. Though, the fringe elements within and
outside the government have consistently raked up controversies, the government
remarkably stayed secular and neutral.
*
The government has initiated healthy debate on
vital issues like corruption, freedom of expression, federalism, freedom of
religion, etc.
*
There is a healthy feeling of competition
amongst opposition ruled states to compete with center on performance and
governance issues.
*
The government has tried to build upon the
existing institutions, policies and programs. It has not tried to disrupt the
status quo in most respects.
*
It has successfully maintained a corruption free
image.
*
The disaster management capabilities have shown
remarkable improvement.
*
The government has taken some positive steps to
improve center state relations.
*
The government has seriously pursued key
economic reforms like land acquisition, GST, financial inclusion, fiscal
corrections and improvement in delivery system.
*
PM Modi has successfully managed to keep the BJP
at safe distance from the government.
The Bad
March IIP growth slows to 2.1%, the lowest level since Oct
2014;
IIP rose 2.8% in FY15
*
The government is taking too long to finalize
the structure of the executive. The confusion in the bureaucracy over the line
of authority is impeding execution.
*
The government has not made any credible effort
to improve skill development.
*
The corruption at lower level continues to be as
rampant as before.
*
The prices of essential commodities are not coming
down, though rate of inflation may have come down.
*
The government is focusing on big agenda,
ignoring smaller issues that impact day to day life of people.
*
The working conditions have worsened under the
current government.
*
The government is planning a shift from
established subsidy provision system to enablement in a "knee-jerk"
fashion. The transition management is poor and painful.
*
The government is obsessed with image
management. It reacts too much and too fast to criticism.
*
The government has wasted too much time and
resources on state elections, compromising on economic agenda.
*
The government has nothing for women safety and
gender equality, besides routine publicity and issuing appeals to people.
*
The PM Modi has compromised on competence and
experience to accommodate loyalty and clean image in construction of his team.
The Ugly
*
The execution on key projects is poor and
worsening.
*
The government has virtually nothing to ease
financial stress in the economy. The banking system is in similar dire strait
as it was in mid 1990s. If not handled proactively, the situation will become
unmanageable.
*
The unemployment situation has worsened.
Trivia
Yet another set of tremors rocked north India yesterday.
Poseidon is really angry.
Who is bothering him most?
(a) Rahul Gandhi
(b) Narendra Modi
(c) Arvind Kejriwal
(d) Judiciary
(e) India Inc.
(f) ISIS
(g) ISI
(h) EU
(j) US
(I) Other, pl specify
Some interesting reads
Thought for the day
"It is Homer who has chiefly taught other poets the art of telling lies skillfully."
- Aristotle (Greek, 384-322BC)
Word for the day
Moppet (n)
A young child.
(Source: Dictionary.com)
Malice towards none
It is perhaps for the first time that PLA has not done any adventure before a Indo-China summit.
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