Why It is Difficult for Government Institutions in a Democracy to Become Pioneers in New Technologies?

A couple of days ago, two senior level executives from a new foreign equipment manufacturer visited me. Their purpose was to introduce a few of the latest innovative process plant equipment that their company has successfully designed in the recent years. A few companies in the world who are keen to take advantage of modern innovations have already installed those in their factories and are taking advantage of those equipment.

As a matter of every day life for those involved with the engineering and technology business, this is nothing very unique. As for every business, there are consumers and suppliers in the engineering and technology business as well.

Engineers working in engineering and technology oriented line of business may have to work as a supplier or a consumer either at the same time or at different occasions.

Inside an Indian Public Manufacturing Facility-It is Too

Difficult for New Technologies To Be Adopted Quickly!

Researching, designing and commercializing new innovative machines, equipment and systems are the core business for some. Taking advantage of those new innovations for improving their own business activity is equally important for some others.

Humans of the advanced type are inherently innovative. They take advantage of the opportunities and innovate. In business innovations are dynamic process and is an essential requisite for existence. Those who fail to innovate perish or go out of business after some time.

Unfortunately all humans are not intellectually equal. All are at varying abilities at any given time as of now. Hence, there is the danger of the intellectually higher order humans keeping their lower order cousins perpetually under their command and disposal. Remember, in the olden days, the physically stronger ones had been doing exactly the same.

Higher ability does not necessarily mean that they are also higher in their spiritual qualities such as love, compassion, justice and character. Thus, there is a potential danger of the characterless but cleverer types keeping the inferior types always at a disadvantage.

Present day democracy is in its nascent state of development. But it came in to existence after testing all other forms of government in the past. Though it is not perfect as of now, it is undoubtedly the best form of government that humans can have.

Democracy gives some powers to the majority of those intellectually inferior humans to checkmate the potential onslaught of the superior minorities among their lot.

Thus, all democratic governments  try to ensure a leveled playing ground for all players in all human activities, including business.

Monopolistic and restrictive trade practices are not encouraged as a result of this. 

Are you wondering why I have written all these?

I shall try to clarify it now. Suppose that some superior humans invented some new technology which is beneficial to others in several ways. This benefit is likely to cause a high demand for this new technology. The group who pioneered this could now exploit this situation fully to their advantage. They can monopolize it and charge a high premium from the users which would enhance their returns several times their legitimate cost of developing this technology.

Had they been people with human values, perhaps they would not have done so. But, as of now, we have more number of clever characterless people than intelligent humanists.

Thus democratic governments and governmental institutions adopt the widely accepted practice of tendering for acquiring any types of goods or services. Justified practices which give equal opportunity to all stakeholders are kept as the ideal. All these processes are subjected to various kinds of checks and audits for finding and preventing violations.

Inducements of various kinds are often practiced and tried by some unscrupulous players to circumvent the rules of tendering and get undue advantages. As the time passes, more and more information on the types of inducements are gained by others which results in more and more rules and regulations in the public tendering processes.

As a result of this, over the time, public procurement procedures by the tendering process become very complex to such a situation that it is no more easy for government institutions to procure some thing for public benefit in the right time and in the right manner.

Now let me come back to the case of the two business executives about whom I told in the beginning. No, doubt, their company has a technology which is unique and very useful for my organization. Perhaps, my organization, which is a governmental one, could benefit both directly and indirectly if this technology is implemented. There are tangible and intangible benefits.

But perhaps, going by the rules and regulations which have matured over the years, it would be extremely difficult for my organization to make use of this new innovation. The reason for this is because the new technology is almost unique that we may designate it as 'proprietary'. A proprietary technology or equipment has no competitors and any attempt to procure such things by any governmental organization can cause doubts and suspicions on any body who tries to favor it. Due to this, many public servants who are responsible for public procurement shy away from taking decisions that involve proprietary technology or systems or equipment. It is not that we do not have some solutions to this kind of a problem. It does exist. But regrettably, the rule book solutions are mostly impractical as of now.

Some three decades ago, when I was a young engineer, such a thing was not so difficult. We had more freedom to take decisions in favor of our organization. But the scams and unscrupulous acts of others have caused problems for those who are not of that kind as well. Perhaps the overall benefit to the organization stands more or less similar then and now, though for different reasons. Then it was due to the offsetting effect of bad acts of some over the good acts of some. Now it is the effect of the complexity of rules and regulations tying the hands the good people to take beneficial decisions for the overall benefit of the organization while the bad ones keep doing damaging acts either clandestinely or due to ignorance. 

Some time ago, I wrote a blog about the damaging effects of rules and regulations made under certain compulsions thoughtlessly and ignorantly.

The situation is similar in the case of public procurement procedures as it stands now. Unfortunately, we have a severe shortage of experienced people with all round expertise to draft rules and regulations which are both effective as well as simple.

This kind of a situation is not unique to any one nation or society. It is more or less the same everywhere, where democracy has taken roots.

Perhaps, we may have to wait till our individuals mature as wise citizens for matured nations to evolve. Till such time, we may have to live with such problems in varying degrees!

Is privatization a solution to this?

Would you like to share your views? 

Progressive Ideas for Creating More Jobs and More Income for Governments that Care!

Many of you might have come across this Chinese proverb: ' Give me a fish, I will eat for a day; teach me to fish, I will eat for the life time!'

Have you really understood the meaning?

Many of our philanthropy even now work on the principles of the first part of the above proverb. We try to help others by giving them a fish or some money or some other such thing  that they take it , consume it and fall back to the level that they were earlier. We do not try to create a situation wherein those whom we help do not fall back to the situation they were earlier. Simply put, we simply do not care to facilitate people to live a meaningful life of their own!

Many governments do the same thing. My country, India is a typical example. The Indian government reportedly spend or reported as being spent a good part of its earnings to give subsidies to the poor! They try to distribute subsidized food, LPG, diesel, kerosene, electricity, water, housing, etc by making these things a few rupees cheaper for the people who are not able to earn an income above some prescribed minimum levels. 

Let us find how it goes by some examples. Suppose that the electricity production cost as per the prevailing inputs is some thing around Rs.4 per KWh or unit. Suppose that the government make a scheme by which they are giving a subsidy of Rs.1 per every unit consumed by a house hold which is declared as low income whose electricity consumption is only about 30 units in a month or 360 units in a year. India perhaps has over 100 million of such houses. So the one rupee subsidy means a whopping 360x100x1= 36000 million rupees per year. Effectively the poor people got a benefit of 360 rupees per year or 1 rupee per day. It is less than the money you normally give to a beggar. Perhaps some  beggars might even abuse you if you do that.

But imagine the great money the government lost. They could have used the money for doing some great and useful work such as making some hospitals run better, making some existing roads well maintained, etc etc.

It is just an example. These subsidies do not make any impact in the life of any of the beneficiaries. Perhaps it helps the government officers and staff to adopt corrupt practices and corner a big chunk of that money for themselves. Perhaps some politicians in power also might get some of it from the officials by doing some arm-twisting tactics!

Same is the case with all the other subsidies. India is indeed a country of subsidies. It is the best and the easiest method by which the government can waste the governmental income. Giving a rupee each to thousands of beggars really does not require much effort! And it is also the best method by which public money could be spend without the auditors taking note of any irregularities!

Instead of giving the people a fish for a day, it would have been much better for the country to enable the people to fish. That is enabling the people to fetch for themselves by providing opportunities for them to fish. In other words, it means creating opportunities for people to get meaningful and remunerative employments or jobs for themselves that they no more require the peanuts given by the government as subsidies!

But creating opportunities for jobs is not as easy as giving alms and escaping from the greater responsibilities. For that the first and foremost requirement is to have a government that really cares for the people. You need a government made of matured and visionary leaders who could drive the governmental systems to perform.

Such governments would make laws and rules and ensure such rules actually work in facilitating the country to progress in such a way that unemployment levels keep declining year after year.

If the unemployment levels keep increasing, that merely shows that the government is ineffective and useless. It is a direct indication of a careless and non-performing government.

Now the question is whether it is possible for a government to enhance employment opportunities without it actually getting bankrupt? In my opinion, it is possible. Let us see how a government would move ahead in this case and what are the various options that the government could attempt.

Step No.1 : Government should spell out its policy of plans clearly with a time bound manner. If privatization is a policy, government should declare the list of businesses and services which are not to be done by the government. 

Step No.2 : Government should stop all subsidies and the money so saved should be distributed for existing and new ventures to improve government services and functions. If more people are required to be employed for this it should be done without hesitation. Money may also be given to private enterprises as grants for developing systems where the activities cannot sustain economically initially. For example, government may give subsidy to start new air routes, rail routes, bus routes etc where there is not enough remunerative traffic initially till such times the volumes of business become sustainable.

Step No.3: Government should consider lower corporate income tax and other tax concessions to all companies who keep growing with regard to direct employment with individual employee incomes with taxable incomes. Companies who use their surplus incomes to idle or used to acquire assets and employment abroad should be taxed at higher rates.

Step No.4 : Companies that earn export incomes by exporting locally manufactured items should be taxed at lower rates. However, those companies which export ores and minerals should not be considered for this benefit.

Step No.5: Incomes and profits out of educational services and agricultural activities above a minimum limit should be made taxable. Lands which are kept non productive should be levied penal taxes or should be made liable for take over by the government.

Step No.6: Substantial incentives to be provided for industries and businesses to set up offices and facilities in smaller cities. Unsustainable growth of metros should be prevented.

Step No.7: Corporate expenditure towards Research and Development, import substitution efforts, environmental management and workmen safety should be tax free provided the companies substantiate growth in these areas by employment creation. 

Step No.8 : Laws should be made that would allow real estate development for rental purposes. Real estate developers should be allowed to establish estate management companies.

Step No.9 : Law should be made to make the private hospitals to provide mandatory and time bound medical reports to patients and their medical insurance companies. It should be mandatory for the hospitals and doctors who provide medical services for a fee, to give such reports with proper bills which should enhance employment opportunities.

Step No.10: All government services such as land records, property registration, national identity, voter id, vehicle registration, licencing, company registration, policing, judicial services, infrastructure, etc should be enhanced with the involvement of private participation. Job creation data in these areas should also be maintained. There should also be a national job safety fund similar to the national pension fund, which provide subsistence allowances to its members during the time they become jobless. 

There are hundreds of such things that the government could do if they are really caring for the people!

And it is always to be remembered that more employment in the country means more income to the government. More income to the government means more effective its performance.

So more than any thing else, the first priority of any progressive government should be to generate jobs. Not merely the jobs that provide peanut incomes, but jobs that provide decent incomes!

Out of many parameters to judge, job generation should be the first criteria to assess the performance of any government!

[You may also read about enhancing employment in India]

   

What Are The Essential Precautions to be taken by Modern People to Prevent their Governments to Hamper Progress?

The following is a commentary with an advice given by one invisible member of the universe administration keeping a watch on the evolutionary progress of human beings of earth, to those modern day humans who have attained reasonably higher levels of maturity and intellectual capacities: 

“The great struggle in the evolution of government has concerned the concentration of power. The universe administrators (consisting of the members of the invisible beings under the authority of God) have learned from experience that the evolutionary peoples on the inhabited worlds (such as your world, earth) are best regulated by the representative type of civil government when there is maintained proper balance of power between the well-co-ordinated executive, legislative, and judicial branches.

“While primitive authority was based on strength, physical power, the ideal government (for human like beings) is the representative system wherein leadership is based on ability. (Remember) in the days of barbarism (of the past centuries) there was entirely too much war to permit representative government to function effectively.

“In the long struggle between division of authority and unity of command, the dictator won. The early powers of the primitive council of elders (in your world) were gradually concentrated in the person of the absolute monarch. After the arrival of real kings, the groups of elders persisted as quasi-legislative-judicial advisory bodies. Later on (as it stands now), legislatures of co-ordinate status made their appearance, and eventually supreme courts of adjudication were established separate from the legislatures.

"In the past, (in the majority of your nations) the king was the executor of the mores, the original or unwritten law. Later he enforced the legislative enactments, the crystallization of public opinion. A popular assembly as an expression of public opinion, though slow in appearing, marked a great social advance ( in your world)

"(Your) early kings were greatly restricted by the tradition or public opinion. In recent times some of your  nations have codified these traditions into documentary bases (known as constitutions) for the governments (to function).

"You are entitled to liberty; you should create your systems of government. You should adopt your constitutions or other charters of civil authority and administrative procedure.

"And having done this, you should select your most competent and worthy fellows as chief executives.

"For representatives in the legislative branch you should elect only those who are qualified intellectually and morally to fulfill such sacred responsibilities.

"As judges of your high and supreme tribunals (and courts) only those who are endowed with natural ability and who have been made wise by good experience only should be chosen.

"If you wish to maintain your freedom and good systems of government you must document your constitution properly and ensure that the provisions of the same are wisely, intelligently and fearlessly interpreted in such a way that the following are prevented from happening:

1. Concentration and use of unwarranted power by any one branch of your government

2. Crafty plots and ideas of ignorant and superstitious people

3. Retardation of scientific progress.

4. Dominance of average and mediocre people in key positions of administration

5. Domination by vicious minority groups of your peoples

6. Control of government by ambitious and clever would-be dictators.

7. Disasters and disruptions of your systems by unnecessary panic.

8. Exploitation of your people by some unscrupulous people among you.

9. Taxation enslavement of the citizenry by the state.

10. Failure of social and economic fairness.

11. Influence and control of your governments by your religious groups

12. Acts that prevent justified personal liberty.

"The above should be the purposes and aims of constitutional tribunals acting as governors upon the systems of your representative governments. It applies not only to you earth peoples, but also to all evolutionary peoples of all worlds in the universe.

"Mankind's struggle to perfect government on earth has to do with perfecting channels of administration, with adapting them to ever-changing current needs, with improving power distribution within government, and then with selecting such administrative leaders as is truly wise.

"While there is a divine and ideal form of government, the same cannot be revealed to you now. It is divinely mandated that humans of earth and all other such planets discover and adapt the ideal form of government slowly by their own experience and wisdom during the course of their progressive evolution forward".

First Railway Budget of Modi Government Proves This:If There Is A Will, There Is A Way!

Today at around 1.30 PM I could watch  glimpses of the TV news coverage of the first railway budget of July 2014 as introduced by the Railway Minister Mr Sadananda Gowda under the new Indian Union government under  Prime Minister Narendra Modi . I also watched the DD News debate and the PM's address to the nation regarding the railway budget for a few minutes. 

Great! That was my first impression. 

First things first. The DD News and the presenters now appeared much more professional and knowledgeable. It has become more pleasing and acceptable now. (I used to skip DD News earlier!)

The PM's address to the nation through DD News was highly appreciable. For the first time in the last several years, a PM has given his frank clarifications regarding the railway budget after it was introduced in the parliament in a voice and tone that was too appealing with regard to his vision about the future of the railways has to play for the progress of the nation.

Obviously, the Narendra Modi government has begun to show its presence and positive actions!

Later I could see the highlights of the railway budget as it appeared in the online news sites. 

All the proposals are good and progressive.

Some of  those which needs to be specially mentioned are:

1. Proposal for dedicated freight corridor

2. Novel and progressive ideas proposed for housekeeping, security and cleanness including mechanized laundry 

3. Proposal for setting up of the Railway University for skill training in the field of railway engineering, technology and management

4. Improvements in e-ticketing and e-administration with introduction of paperless railway office working

5. Employment generation and use of railways as an economic driving force for India.

6. Thrust for speedy completion of ongoing projects by better administrative follow ups

Together with the rest of India, I earnestly hope this is just a beginning for a better tomorrow for India.

If there is a will, there is a way! That is what this railway budget is telling us!

Best wishes to the PM and his team! 

Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP/ Petrohol): An Opportunity Lost for India due to Maximum Government!

Recently, the Obama government in the USA made an apparently atrocious policy declaration that in effect was equivalent to a declaration of war on coal. What the policy actually meant is the reduction of coal based power production facilities in the US as a commitment towards saving the planet from global warming that the environmentalists are worried about much. Because, fossil fuel burning causes too much of carbon footprint with enhanced presence of green house gases in the atmosphere responsible for global warming. 

Fox News observed that this policy is 'all pain and no gain'. 

I am not going to enter in to that debate. But I feel that the US president has given too much thought to it before making such a declaration. It is time that we start doing some thing seriously to reduce our dependency on all fossil fuels which are going to be permanently out of stock some time later.

It is not that we reduce burning coal in our thermal power stations to make electricity. We should also reduce burning petrol and diesel in our automobiles and airplanes.

There are plenty of alternatives to fossil fuels which we now call as the renewable energy sources. Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) which is sometimes also called petrohol is widely used successfully in Brazil for the past many decades. The USA too has advanced much in this field (Read this official article about ethanol use in the US) EBP is nothing but a mixture of normal petrol and ethanol in the ratio 85:15. In the USA all gasoline sold now is blended with about 10% ethanol. Thus, USA has achieved a reduction in the consumption of petroleum to the extent of 10% which is remarkable. It seems they are planning to make further progress in this field. Brazil is the pioneer in this technology. In Brazil EBP is mandatory and the ethanol mixing is as high as 25%. 

Bio-diesel is another alternate renewable liquid fuel which could be produced without much difficulty. It could be easily used in all auto engines that use petroleum diesel.

While India spends much money for importing petroleum products and much is dependent on the prices of petrol and diesel, people like me who are in the technical field keep wondering why our Indian leaders keep inactive on taking any decisions in line with Brazil or the USA while politicizing the petrol price issues as much as they can!  

Petroleum is big money for some and it is a big item for international trade and economics. There are many shrewd economists and policy advisers who can manipulate petrol price fixing an issue not easily understood even by the professionals who toil hard with the complex technologies of producing these fuels. I had earlier written about this in a previous blog article. 

Recently I had gone through a paper on ethanol blending policy authored by some policy researchers attached with the ICRIER ( I could find the full form of this acronym only after some web research. It stands for Indian Council for Research and International Economic Relations. Its website declare that it is a is an autonomous, policy-oriented, not-for-profit, economic policy think tank.

Typically this is the manner in which our technical people associated with governmental affairs handle things. They bring out many facts and figures and finally give out some recommendations which would never be anything concrete, but confusing. In my opinion, this kind of policy papers make things complicated for the decision makers.

No wonder then why India keeps on dilly-dallying with the various alternate energy programs. No wonder why EBP and bio-diesel are yet to hit the Indian markets.

It should not be any thing of a big issue when two big nations, Brazil and USA have gone ahead with the production and marketing of EBP and bio-diesel in a big way including many policy decisions. But of course, that happens only when vested interests give way to national interests.

If India is determined to produce industrial alcohol for the production of mixed petroleum fuel such as the EBP, the farmers would benefit much. Millions of jobs would be created. India as a nation would spend less for importing petroleum.

But a government surrounded by all kinds of researchers and advisers who are good at making sophisticated research publications and economic policy papers with inconclusive recommendations to the government are not going to do any good. 

Will the new government make any difference?

Only time would tell.

Principles of Right Government and the Right Administration-Some Great Confucian Thoughts!

With the right men the growth of government is rapid.

Therefore the administration of government lies in getting proper men. Such men are to be got by means of the ruler's own character. That character is to be cultivated by his treading in the ways of duty. And the treading those ways of duty is to be cultivated by the cherishing of benevolence. 

Benevolence is the characteristic element of humanity

Righteousness is the accordance of actions with what is right, and the great exercise of it is in honoring the worthy.

The sovereign (Ruler) may not neglect the cultivation of his own character. Wishing to cultivate his character, he may not neglect to serve his parents. In order to serve his parents, he may not neglect to acquire knowledge of men. In order to know men, he may not dispense with a knowledge of Heaven. 

Knowledge, magnanimity, and energy, these three, are the virtues universally binding.

Knowing how to cultivate his own character, he knows how to govern other men. Knowing how to govern other men, he knows how to govern the kingdom with all its states and families. 

All who have the government of the kingdom with its states and families have nine standard rules to follow;-viz., the cultivation of their own characters; the honoring of men of virtue and talents; affection towards their relatives; respect towards the great ministers; kind and considerate treatment of the whole body of officers; dealing with the mass of the people as children; encouraging the resort of all classes of artisans; indulgent treatment of men from a distance; and the kindly cherishing of the princes of the states. 

By the ruler's cultivation of his own character, the duties of universal obligation are set forth. By honoring men of virtue and talents, he is preserved from errors of judgment. By showing affection to his relatives, there is no grumbling nor resentment among his uncles and brethren. By respecting the great ministers, he is kept from errors in the practice of government. By kind and considerate treatment of the whole body of officers, they are led to make the most grateful return for his courtesies. By dealing with the mass of the people as his children, they are led to exhort one another to what is good. By encouraging the resort of an classes of artisans, his resources for expenditure are rendered ample. By indulgent treatment of men from a distance, they are brought to resort to him from all quarters. And by kindly cherishing the princes of the states, the whole kingdom is brought to revere him. 

Self-adjustment and purification, with careful regulation of his dress, and the not making a movement contrary to the rules of propriety this is the way for a ruler to cultivate his person. Discarding slanderers, and keeping himself from the seductions of beauty; making light of riches, and giving honor to virtue-this is the way for him to encourage men of worth and talents. Giving them places of honor and large emolument. and sharing with them in their likes and dislikes-this is the way for him to encourage his relatives to love him. Giving them numerous officers to discharge their orders and commissions:-this is the way for him to encourage the great ministers. According to them a generous confidence, and making their emoluments large:-this is the way to encourage the body of officers. Employing them only at the proper times, and making the imposts light:-this is the way to encourage the people. By daily examinations and monthly trials, and by making their rations in accordance with their labors:-this is the way to encourage the classes of artisans. To escort them on their departure and meet them on their coming; to commend the good among them, and show compassion to the incompetent:-this is the way to treat indulgently men from a distance. To restore families whose line of succession has been broken, and to revive states that have been extinguished; to reduce to order states that are in confusion, and support those which are in peril; to have fixed times for their own reception at court, and the reception of their envoys; to send them away after liberal treatment, and welcome their coming with small contributions:-this is the way to cherish the princes of the states. 

He who possesses sincerity is he who, without an effort, hits what is right, and apprehends, without the exercise of thought;-he is the sage who naturally and easily embodies the right way. He who attains to sincerity is he who chooses what is good, and firmly holds it fast. 

The superior man honors his virtuous nature, and maintains constant inquiry and study, seeking to carry it out to its breadth and greatness, so as to omit none of the more exquisite and minute points which it embraces, and to raise it to its greatest height and brilliancy, so as to pursue the course of the Mean. He cherishes his old knowledge, and is continually acquiring new. He exerts an honest, generous earnestness, in the esteem and practice of all propriety. 

When occupying a high situation he is not proud, and in a low situation he is not insubordinate. When the kingdom is well governed, he is sure by his words to rise; and when it is ill governed, he is sure by his silence to command forbearance to himself.

[Reproduced in part from "the Doctrine of the Mean" by Confucius of China. To read all the major works of Confucius other classical writers of the world, look for the 'World Classics' under the 'Read Great Books Online' at the Right panel of this blog page. Click it to open the 'Select Author' page. Look for the author name  and click to open the list of their works on the left panel of the page that opens. Click the titles to read these great works on line] 

The New HRD Minister of India and Her Declarations about Educational Qualifications: Should it be a Big Issue?

As a very ordinary citizen of India, but with some wishful thoughts on the governance and administration of the country biased with some vested interests of seeing my nation progress in all fields for the benefits of  its people like me, I had come to the conclusion that Mr Narendra Modi would be a better choice for India as its new Prime Minister . I considered this after due comparison of all other options carefully. And like any other commoner, I too became happy when my wish became fulfilled eventually a few days ago.

But Indian media keep picking up sensational news pieces to be brought in to the notice of the opinion makers among the Indian society about the new Indian PM , his ministerial colleagues and their portfolios.

The PM himself has been in the news limelight prominently for what he is or is doing or would be doing. Some news researchers have brought the educational backgrounds of the new ministers in to public attention. 

The Modi government, they informed the people, has a 5th class pass minister and a few other ministers whose educational achievements have not gone beyond the school level.

More importantly, the new HRD minister and the youngest of the cabinet, is an attractive lady with good command in the essential languages but doesn't have any formal university degrees. The Human Resources Development minister of India herself is not much educationally developed! What can you possibly expect from such a government? The media brought out the feelings of the people!

Soon this news spread and has become a hot topic of debate in India. An online news portal brought out the ' strange case' about the ministers false declarations to the Election Commission of India. The issue was raked up apparently by a leader from the outgoing UPA government resulting in a fury of hot debate both against and in favor of the new HRD minister.  

I feel the current controversy is unnecessary. So long as the Indian electoral laws do not specify any minimum educational qualification for the candidates seeking to file their nominations for getting elected as the member of the parliament (MP) or becoming a minister of the Indian Union, it is not appropriate to question the wisdom of the new PM to nominate his ministers, even if they may not be eligible for getting any employment with any governmental organizations. 

Moreover, it should be remembered that we had many such ministers even in the past and no previous governments felt it necessary to change the Representation of the Peoples' Act 1951  amending the relevant clauses accordingly.

Of course, knowledge, leadership qualities and such other skills may be of great advantage for any minister who is supposed to hold immense responsibilities on behalf of the people and for doing good to the people. But it is an erroneous idea to think that such desired skills and knowledge are possessed only by those people who have formal degree certificates. If that were so, the best political leaders would have emerged only from the bureaucrats or the technocrats. But we know that is not true at least in the present time. 

So let us not pre-judge any ministers of the government based on their formal educational qualifications. They are leaders any way and all of them have some qualities different from the common people like me.

The new government and its actions would reflect on the nation positively or negatively after some time. The new government is only a couple of days old. It has already fixed its 100-day priorities agenda.

Let us watch and hope for the best instead of making a big issue out of some minister's educational qualifications or declarations!

Career Opportunities and Salaries in Post Liberalization Era in India!

India had been a country which followed the socialistic pattern of economy ever since it got independence way back in 1947 till its economy got partially Americanized some time in the Nineteen Nineties. The period before 1990's is called the pre-liberalization era and that afterwards till date could be called the confused era of liberalization.

In the pre-liberalization era of administered socialism, the salaries of all employed people in India were governed by certain limits mandated by governmental directives. No person in India was allowed to draw a salary more than what the President of India got in those days. Rs.10,000/- per month was that sacrosanct figure. In those days it was also mandatory for the government and the private sector companies to publicly announce the details of salaries that they paid to their respective employees.

All employment advertisements from the government and the private organizations routinely announced salient details of the salaries. It was easy for any one to actually know how much an employed person legitimately made as salary. What was not known to the general public was the legal income of businessmen and the illegal income of salaried people especially those employed by the governments.

One of the remarkable achievement of the government of India in the post liberalization period was the removal of the sacrosanct limit of salary for the private sector. I consider this event remarkable because this was done by the bureaucrats of India without raising much protest as their own salary remained lower and limited.

The liberalized government also allowed even loss making private company boards to fix limitless salaries for some of the key members of their own boards, a much liberal rule that allowed many small companies getting drained of their initial and working capitals too soon to become non-existential. 

Post the so-called Y2K digital confusion of year 2000, the software and IT enabled companies of India got enormous opportunities to get dollar remuneration from the USA due to the high IT-outsourcing trend that this country adopted. This enabled many Indian companies who earned their incomes from the dollar economies to pay higher salaries to their Indian employees. 

Then developed the age of private industry opportunism and favoritism in the guise of market forces. As the government did not enforce any thing with regard to the salaries of private sector employees, the initial euphoria of high salaries in private sector soon died out with the majority of private sector employees earning much less while a few of their top favorite managers earned incomes disproportionate to their real contributions. The Indian private sector has degraded as an organized system of exploited managers as many of the white collar private employees are designated as officers or managers without any collective bargaining power. Besides, the private sector pay have been becoming more and more secretive as the employees seldom realized the pay and perks of their colleagues and seniors. 

As such a few of the Indian private sector began to mimic the elite corporations of the USA and such other developed nations where salaries are determined by the educational elitism or educational branding of their managers rather than their actual worth and contribution to the company. Some board level and below board level managers got the opportunity to draw salaries unimaginable by many in the world while the majority of their employees slogged for their respective companies to keep them going without getting even a minor fraction of such high salaries. However, a good majority of Indian private sector in the manufacturing and production fields struggled hard to make income and to pay even some comfortable salaries to their employees and managers as they were all required to play in an uneven ground.

In the mean while, the government officers and those in the government got the opportunity to compare themselves with their elitist private sector companies. The consecutive pay commissions began to take some cue from the private sector average remunerations and began to fix the government officer's salaries. Since this was mostly on the basis of some average, the top government officials could not earn exorbitant salaries. However they have done many other things to compensate their so-called low salaries. Now many of them fly quite often to foreign lands, travel in chauffeur driven luxury cars, have government paid servants at home and office and have many comforts and facilities that their counterparts in private industry do not have. As they are the administrators, executors and interpreters of rules and policies, private industry big wigs often Que up to meet them which indirectly provide many benefits. 

Governments-both central and states- own many public sector companies. Some of them are large and key economic drivers and contribute significantly for the economic well being of the country. A few of such companies had been privatized in the past with the government selling of the majority stake. However, a large number still remains with government as the majority stake holder. Such companies have government nominated boards but are actually run by company officials and managers who are generally recruited by the concerned company. They are called the PSU officers and managers. The PSU officers are deemed public servants with all the responsibilities of public servants, but with hardly any defined authority. They have been a disadvantageous group with regard to their salaries and perks for the past many decades. Only in the recent past, their salary scales have become comparable to that of their counter parts in the government. However, excepting a few, the majority of them are never given any opportunity to prove their skills and professional competence. As their career advances, most of them degrade as 'frogs in the well' due to various reasons which could be a topic of research for any one interested to find the truths. However, the public sector had been the poaching ground for experienced professionals for the growing private sector initially.

As the governments could not take any decisions regarding the future of the public sector companies with regard to the question of they be privatized or not, the public sector companies of India suffered much with regard to their succession planning . As a result, there have been practically no recruitment of officers and workmen in the PSUs for the last several years. Many PSUs now have very senior officials drawing secretary level salaries waiting for their retirement in a couple of years and working too independently. They have no subordinates whatsoever under them. PSUs of yester years which used to simmer with many fold economic activities in the past with thousands of employees have closed down many of their activity centers and losing their collective experience and expertise. Many of them are just waiting to be closed down as their experienced people are getting reduced in numbers with time. When all around the world governments are trying hard to generate employment to their citizens, India with its highest unemployment levels, is undetermined about the future course of actions with regard to the huge industrial infrastructure it had created in the past in the public sector.

Now coming back to the salaries of officers and managers of India. It is difficult now to get clear idea about this. But with some research I am giving some idea about the salary and perks of officers and managers working in India in private sector, public sector and government (The salaries given are approx gross p.a) :

Category                Indian Private Sector     Indian Public Sector   Indian Central Govt 

                    

Entry Level Officer          Rs.0.2-0.6 Million      Rs.0.4-0.5 M         Rs.0.3-0.4 M    

(1-7 yrs)

Entry Level Mgt              Rs.0.5-1.5 Million          -Do-                         -Do-

(1-7 yrs)

Middle/Sr Mgt                         -Do-                 Rs.0.8-1.0 M        Rs.0.8-1.0 M

(7-12 yrs)

General Mgt                    Rs.1-5 Million            Rs.1.5-2.5 M        Rs.1.5-2.0 M

(12-25 yrs)

Top Mgt                        Rs.2.0-20 Million        Rs.2.5-3.5 M         Rs. 2.5-3.0 M

(15-35 Yrs)

The career growth in central government is smooth and steady with seniority playing the major factor. For top postings political patronage is essential. 

In the PSU's both seniority, luck and mentoring by seniors do the magic of career growth up to general management levels. Bureaucratic and political mentoring are important for CEO levels and board level postings. Salaries are a bit better for the officers and managers of large central PSUs. However, they have comparatively not much opportunities for proving their abilities. Their public image and status is also not very charming except for some top management positions.

The pay, perks and facilities of private sector officer and  management career depend on the type and size of industry coupled with the mindset of its management board or promoters. The variations are too high. While some get extremely high salaries and perks, a good majority are underpaid when compared to their work loads. The private sector job is secure only when it is doing well financially. The internal politics in some private companies are too high that people with a straight forward mind might find it too difficult to survive. Hence, most private companies have a high attrition rate. Since the government has not yet openly allowed the hire-and-fire policy, many companies resort to retrenchments in a clandestine manner. Indian private companies are yet to learn the benefits of retaining their managers! While a few managers of Indian private companies are able to get pay and perks many times more than their counter parts in the PSUs and government, there are also millions of them without ever enjoying such benefits. It is also common that the promoters appoint themselves to key positions with extremely high salaries which professional managers cannot even dream of.

Except for the civil services of the government, there is no regular intake of officers either for the Indian PSU and private sector. The recruitment in both private industry and the Indian PSUs are done with no long term vision or planning. At entry level, either they recruit in large numbers or refrain from it for years together. As a result, the career growth and experience opportunities in many private and PSU companies are not so motivating for many of their managers.

In the government, there is a periodic system called the Pay Commission to revise the salaries of the central government officers. In the Central PSU's such an arrangement may or may not be adopted. In the private sector such a thing is practically absent. Unlike the private sector, reservations play and important role for the selection and promotions in the government and PSU jobs.

Government and PSU jobs may not give much satisfaction to one's job due to many factors. High individual performance and competency may sometimes cause career shocks. However, in the private sector, individual performance and competency are mostly recognized and rewarded. 

In the overall analysis, as things stand now, private companies of good track record provide the best career options and job satisfaction. The least of it as of now could be in the PSUs.  

What Do I Expect From the New Central Government of India to be Formed in May 2014?

Media men and women of India have been  chasing the common men and women on the streets for the last many days with their microphones and camcorders for capturing  the latter's voices on their expectations from the politicians who would get elected to form the national government shortly. 

The folks on the streets may not have high aspirations from any government because that is what time has taught them. Yet, they are too enthusiastic about the general elections and are eagerly siding with some party as their own this time. Some of them might even risk their lives for their preferred parties and their preferred candidates even while they know that their support would not give them any real or lasting benefits. For that matter they might even do the same for their favorite cricketer or film star! It is like being in a big game and elections in a democracy are indeed big games that some people play and want to play at the cost of the majority whose roles end the moment after they return from the polling booths.

And there also exist a large group of people who are neither any party members, candidates or their near and dear ones and also not the enthusiastic voter who support and vote for the sake of getting the thrill of being in a contest. And they are the people like me, who are merely silent observers who may or may not go for voting realizing pretty well that their votes and opinions make no difference to any one even while some pseudo intellectuals preach otherwise! They are knowledgeable and responsible citizens who are concerned with their nation's progress, development and governance but are shy to raise their voices or try to assert themselves because experience has made them realize the folly of their gentlemanly behavior among the majority who have no such self imposed restrictions!

Being a wise and gentle person having some good human nature is not some thing that could draw some regard and respect from those who haven't acquired these qualities yet. A man who stands for principles and ethics cannot be a political leader who could win the confidence of the majority people of the present day. He or she could be considered as a weakling who could not be depended upon. What the people of the present day want is a leader who would not hesitate to assert his authority to have his way. If it hurts the people, they might moan, but yet they might feel proud of their authoritative leader. A circus lion has the strength to tear its trainer, but it won't do it so long as the induced fear resides in its mind. Common people are like such lions! The lion in the circus cage would be happy if it gets its meat and the cage floor to sleep and it won't mind those occasional lashes from the trainer!

The political leaders are like those circus trainers. They know pretty well to engage their caged lions dance to the tunes of the circus band! They know pretty well about the needs of their caged lions and the lions would sleep for hours in the cage if they are not fed well. If they roar in protest, those whips are sufficient to keep them under command. 

So what do I expect from the new government of India? If I am like the circus lion, what I expect is nothing to be elaborated much.

If I am like one of those lions in the wild, perhaps I may expect not to be caged just as those other lions who are there. Better hide away from the circus trainers!

I do not want to be either way. I do not also want that the political leaders to be like those circus trainers.

I want to live like a human being in this country. I also want the political leaders who form the central government to be like human beings and facilitate people like me to live like human beings. And not exist like those caged lions!

Sharing Some Advanced Thoughts on War and Peace; Evolution of Government and Civilization!

Primitive humans evolved from animals a million year ago on earth slowly resolved their problems of making a living, at least partially. Their population increased to millions.

They were then confronted with the task of regulating human contacts. 

The development of industry demanded law, order, and social adjustment; private property necessitated government.

On an evolutionary world, antagonisms are natural; peace is secured only by some sort of social regulative system. 

Social regulation is inseparable from social organization; association implies some controlling authority. 

Government compels the co-ordination of the antagonisms of the tribes, clans, families, and individuals.

Government is an unconscious development; it evolves by trial and error. It does have survival value; therefore it becomes traditional. 

Anarchy augmented misery; therefore government, comparative law and order, slowly emerged or is emerging. 

The coercive demands of the struggle for existence literally drove the human race along the progressive road to civilization.

War is the natural state and heritage of evolving man; peace is the social yardstick measuring civilization's advancement. 

Before the partial socialization of the advancing races man was exceedingly individualistic, extremely suspicious, and unbelievably quarrelsome. 

Violence is the law of nature, hostility the automatic reaction of the children of nature, while war is but these same activities carried on collectively. 

And wherever and whenever the fabric of civilization becomes stressed by the complications of society's advancement, there is always an immediate and ruinous reversion to these early methods of violent adjustment of the irritations of human inter-associations.

War is an animalistic reaction to misunderstandings and irritations; peace attends upon the civilized solution of all such problems and difficulties. 

There could be no such phenomenon as war until society had evolved sufficiently far to actually experience periods of peace and to sanction warlike practices. The very concept of war implies some degree of organization.

With the emergence of social groupings, individual irritations began to be submerged in the group feelings, and this promoted intra-tribal tranquility but at the expense of inter-tribal peace. 

Peace was thus first enjoyed by the in-group, or tribe, who always disliked and hated the out-group, foreigners. Early man regarded it a virtue to shed alien blood.

Warfare persists because man is human, evolved from an animal, and all animals are bellicose (ready to fight).

In past ages a fierce war would institute social changes and facilitate the adoption of new ideas such as would not have occurred naturally in ten thousand years. The terrible price paid for these certain war advantages was that society was temporarily thrown back into savagery; civilized reason had to abdicate. 

War is strong medicine, very costly and most dangerous; while often curative of certain social disorders, it sometimes kills the patient, destroys the society.

War has had a certain evolutionary and selective value, but like slavery, it must sometime be abandoned as civilization slowly advances. 

Olden wars promoted travel and cultural inter-mixing; these ends are now better served by modern methods of transport and communication. 

Olden wars strengthened nations, but modern struggles disrupt civilized culture. 

Ancient warfare resulted in the decimation of inferior peoples; the net result of modern conflict is the selective destruction of the best human stocks. 

Early wars promoted organization and efficiency, but these have now become the aims of modern industry. 

During past ages war was a social ferment which pushed civilization forward; this result is now better attained by ambition and invention. 

Ancient warfare supported the concept of a God of battles, but modern man has been told that God is love. 

War has served many valuable purposes in the past, it has been an indispensable scaffolding in the building of civilization, but it is rapidly becoming culturally bankrupt—incapable of producing dividends of social gain in any way commensurate with the terrible losses attendant upon its invocation.

At one time physicians believed in bloodletting as a cure for many diseases, but they have since discovered better remedies for most of these disorders. And so must the international bloodletting of war certainly give place to the discovery of better methods for curing the ills of nations.

Do not make the mistake of glorifying war; rather discern what it has done for society so that you may the more accurately visualize what its substitutes must provide in order to continue the advancement of civilization. And if such adequate substitutes are not provided, then you may be sure that war will long continue.

Man will never accept peace as a normal mode of living until he has been thoroughly and repeatedly convinced that peace is best for his material welfare, and until society has wisely provided peaceful substitutes for the gratification of that inherent tendency periodically to let loose a collective drive designed to liberate those ever-accumulating emotions and energies belonging to the self-preservation reactions of the human species.

But even in passing, war should be honored as the school of experience which compelled a race of arrogant individualists to submit themselves to highly concentrated authority—a chief executive. Old-fashioned war did select the innately great men for leadership, but modern war no longer does this. 

To discover leaders society must now turn to the conquests of peace: industry, science, and social achievement.

[As told by the Urantia Book; Visit Urantia-India Site to know More about it]