Your 14-page special report on the Arab world ( The Economist, July 25/31,2009) sums up the dilemma of the Middle East. It has the means (money) but it does not know how to enhance its human resources development – freedom of thought and expression, promotion of innovation and enterprise which the Arab world had centuries ago. Life expectancy has increased, literacy has gone up, educational and medical facilities have multiplied. The miniscule number of patents of the top five countries in contrast to the large number of the South Korea and Israel illustrates the scientific and industrial gap. Islam, a religion which spread far and wide, with the banner fraternity should have been the natural foundation for democracy but has aligned itself with the unbridled rule of dictators and kings. As Mona Eltahawy, an Egyptian columnist has observed, Israel is 'the opium of the Arabs' and is also an excuse for the suppression of dissent. The oil money has enabled rulers to give sops to the people and buy allegiance. This does not befit a proud civilization.
Of course, change has to come from within. The majority of Arabs are young, educated and exposed to TV and internet and this may stir a new awakening for freedom and democracy. As you have noted al-Jazeera television has attracted attention of the people with its fair reporting of the Arab world. There may be a 'fever under the surface', however, it may require some support ( not a war ) from the democratic countries for a democratic transformation in the Middle East. The world has to bear even if democracy throws up some fundamentalist party for the time being. In addition to this, the Arab intellectuals have to find the democratic and pluralistic roots of Islam to fight the fundamentalist interpretation of Koran which may lead to the clash of civilization. Only this reformation can bring about a renaissance in Islam and allow the Arab and other civilizations to flower and flourish.
While James Lamont (July 16) has highlighted the economic and political shortcomings of India to be a superpower, Strobe Talbot (July 17), a nuclear-fundamentalist, is eager to stop and if possible reverse, fledgling nuclear weapons' programme of India which is purely defensive as it is surrounded by two nuclear powers who have fought wars with it.
Lamont mentions corruption, weak public institutions, supine media ( almost all media in USA/UK supported Iraq War), rising inequality in India. Without disputing the need to overcome them, one has to ask the question , are there any major powers without them ?
When UN was founded China was given a seat in the Security Council to reflect the importance of the Chinese Civilization and its population, not its economic and political power. India was denied that privilege, thanks to Winston Churchill, veteran imperialist, who did not like to preside over the liquidation of the British Empire. India's ancient civilization and its population were of no concern to the Allied Powers though thousands of Indian soldiers fought and died for them. India's consistent support to the ideals of UNO and its contribution to the peace-keeping UN force have also not made much difference to the five permanent members of the SC.
India is guided by its ancient civilization, culture and philosophy which are expressed in the concept of Dharma ( rule of law; that which sustains society/world ;ends do not justify means etc.) acceptance of and respect for diversity andfreedom of thought which are necessary for peace and prosperity of the world. It always cherished the ideal of vasudaiva kutumbakam ( world is a family) from times immemorial. By denying India its rightful place in the Security Council, the UNO and the Security Council would be denying themselves the wise counsel of an ancient civilization.
USA, which over-looked the clandestine atomic weapon manufacturing activities of Dr.A.Q.Khan of Pakistan, and his proliferation to countries such as North Korea and Libya, does not have any moral right to ask India to sign the Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) though it has renounced further testing and declared a 'no-first use' of nuclear weapons policy as a responsible member of the UNO. China is another culprit in the nuclear weapons' proliferation as it aided and abetted Pakistan in these activities.
Until and unless the nuclear powers agree to a universal nuclear disarmament and set a time-frame for a gradual reduction of nuclear weapons, it is futile to expect nations to give up their right to defend themselves. " We will need a strong deterrent,"says James R.Schlessiner, former Defense Secretary, in an interview, " and that is measured at least in decades – in my judgement, in fact, more or less in perpetuity. The notion that we can abolish nuclear weaponsreflects on a combination of American utopianism and American parochialism…It's like the (1929) Kellog-Briand Pact denouncing war as an instrument of national policy.. It's not based upon an understanding of reality." Is there anything one can add ?
In the Union Budget which was presented by the Finance Minister Pranab Mukherji the only measure that should be whole-heartedly welcomed by all citizens is the Goods & Services Tax (GST) which will reduce multiple taxes on the manufacturers, traders andcitizens. However, the Central Government should adequately compensate all state governments who have to give up some their taxing powers. This is all for the good of the country as GST will remove barriers for transport of goods, reduce harassment and simplify collection of taxes. This is just like the single market which has been ushered in by the European Community. This has increased the GDP of EU countries.
Another measure which has to be partially welcomed is more investment is in social sectors especially what is called Bharat Nirman ( rural roads, electrification, housing etc.) as all these years villages have been neglected.. This has been done apparently in the belief that earlier investment in these have helped the party to come back to power. What the government has achieved in this sphere is nothing much to write home about. Till the end of 2008, all that was achieved was : rural road-network (34%), rural electricity to BPL families (13.8%), rural irrigation (50%), rural water supply (about 70%). Then are leakages which have to be taken into account. Nothing much has changed after the Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi observed that only 15 paise out a rupee reached the beneficiary some 25 years ago.
President Roosevelt built oversight into the New Deal programme to ensure accountability, said Paul Krugman, Noble Prize winning economist, in an article in New York Times, some months ago. There seems to be no such auditing incorporated in the Bharat Nirman Programme. Until such measure is taken, this will only receive only one cheer.
All other announcements have nothing much to comment.
Mahatma Gandhi had given a test to politicians to judge their actions – whether that action makes the poorest of the poor to take charge of his destiny. That is, whether it will improve his life in any significant way. If we apply this test , the budget does not get even pass marks.
We still have at least 25 percent of our population below the poverty line. Farmers continue to commit suicides. The scheduled tribes children still suffer from mal-nutrition. There are no primary schools and no health-care facilities in many villages. Water is a scarce commodity in many villages..
Former Prime Minister P.V.Narasimha Rao through his Finance Minister Dr.Man Mohan Singh brought about a structural change in the Indian economy in 1991 by unleashing the potentials of Indian people. The private sector was given a greater role by abolishing permit-license raj. India's growth rate increased and many people were able to cross the poverty line. Toady India requires similar big steps to remove poverty from India.
1. Privatization of public sector enterprises : Take the example of Air India. It is over-manned, still runs old aircraft and has taken old planes on lease, makes large losses but the government still does want to privatize it. Why should a government run airlines and hotels when it has not been able to give drinking water, primary education and primary health care to our neglected villages ? Why government should continue to be the owner of so many manufacturing industry ? Most of the public sector enterprises make losses except those which are in oil industry ( Indian Oil, ONGC etc) or have monopoly. With the crude oil prices going up recently even the oil companies are in losses.
2. Non-conventional energy : Why there is no effort to harness non-conventional energy like solar energy and wind energy ? With almost 300 days of sun-shine, India should have been a pioneer in solar energy. " A hundred years ago, world's fuel was primarily coal. Today, it is oil. In the future, it will be renewal energy. By 2050, perhaps 50 percent of our energy will be non-carbon-based", says Fiona Paulus, head of energy at Royal Bank of Scotland ( The Financial Times, July 8). These energy sources will be ever-lastingand can ensure energy security.
2. Agriculture : Almost 65 percent of Indians depend on agriculture and its contribution has come down to about 25 percent of GDP. Agriculture is still dependent on monsoon in the large parts of the country. India has a large cultivable land and it could be an agricultural power if proper facilities are provided to the farmers – credit ( many still depend on money lenders), seeds, marketing etc. The extension work done during the Green Revolution has not spread all over the country. Drip irrigation, vegetable and fruits cultivation, contract cultivation has potential to increase agricultural production and create more wealth to the farmers.
3. Water resources : We have not harnessed our water resources properly. We have floods in some areas and drought in some other areas. We can collect flood waters and mansoon waters in dams and ponds. Even kings in ancient times had many step-wells to preserve water for use during the summer months. In this age of technology, impounding water should not be a problem at all. River-linking is a project which can give employment to large number of people and provide water to all dry-land. .
All the above require a bold initiatives. Dr.Man Mohan Singh and Pranab Mukherji do not have the boldness that P.V.Narasimha Rao and Dr.Man Mohan Singh had.
The report on the Minneapolis Hindu temple (India Abroad, July 30) is a testimony of the abiding faith of Hindus in their religion and also the liberty of thought and faith assured by the American Constitution to its citizens. That so many people worked so hard for several years to raise money for the temple and work selflessly is an indication of the own. After all, man cannot live by bread alone. It is heartening that young generation is equally enthusiastic to take part in the various activities of the temple. A small library and classes in Hindu scriptures and Carnatak music is truly music to the ears. The scriptures are the foundation of Hindu faith and music is one of the flowers of the faith. Vasudaiva kutumbakam (world is a family) is a part of the foundation of Hindu civilization which was mentioned by the Prime Minister of India Dr.Man Mohan Singh in a note to the recent G-8 meeting. Great thoughts such as man is a spark of the Divine Flame (brotherhood of man and Fatherhood of God) and diversity of routes to reach Divinity ( freedom of thought and expression) were proclaimed by Hindu sages centuries ago which the world today finds necessary for world peace and harmony.
Hindus in USA constitute a small community, and Hindu religion and culture are not well-known and well-understood, sometimes by Hindus themselves. Implications of idol worship ( we keep photographs of dear and near ones ) and the theory of re-incarnation ( what you sow, you reap)is not known to many people. It would be a good idea if the temple authorities undertake to distribute books on Hinduism to the devotees and others who would like to know more about Hindu religion, culture and civilization. The books could be given at a subsidized cost, if not free of cost. Understanding the basics of the Hindu religion byHindus and non-Hindus would promote harmony in the community and country. One of the best books on Hinduism is The Hindu View of Life by Dr. S. Radhakrishan, India's former President and the great philosopher. Though the book is small (about 100 pages), its clarity of thought and expression are great. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and Ramakrishna Mission have many publications which throw light on Hindu thought and civilization. These could be re-printed with permission to disseminate knowledge and information on Hindu way of life.
The initiative that the Harvard MBA students taken as mentioned by Michael Skapinker (Financial Times,London,23/6) is to be welcomed as only this change in attitude can restore faith, to a certain extent, in the financial markets in particular and in free market capitalism in general which has promoted enterprise, encouraged innovation and created wealth forthe mankind. However, there has to be some debate whether the management should be a treated as profession like medicine or law barring entry to those who have not passed through the portals of management institutions, as proposed by Rakesh Khurana and Nitin Nohria, the Harvard professors. Many innovations and enterprises have come from garages from people who had no management degree.
Many crimes have been committed in the name of free market. Many writers have mentioned them in your columns. James Montier ( FT,25/6) has demolished the efficient markets hypothesis (EMH). You either need inside information or you need to forecast the future and there is no scrap of evidence to suggest we can actually see the future. The prime drivers of most of the professional investors are : career risk (losing job) and business risk ( losing funds under your management). Martin Wolf (FT,24/6) mentions the enormous part played by banks to find a way round regulations – the off-balance-sheet vehicles, the derivatives and the "shadow banking system". The limited liability joint-stock company which is at the core of modern capitalism is prone to be abused. Devesh Kapur (FT, 24/6) writes that even academics are not immune from greed. Many scholars have serious business interests and an array of financial ties to the institutions that their studies address – lucrative speaking fees, advisory roles, stakes in private equity and hedge funds, corporate non-executive directorships. Earlier we had heard about involvement of financial analysts doctoring their reports to suit some funds. Then there are 'ponzi' scheme operators.
Giving examples of executive greed, Leo Hindery (FT,25/6) reveals that the average public company chief executive in USA earns an unbelievable 400 times what an average employee makes. No wonder the President Obama has observed that executive compensation is not related to long-term performance andhas "rewarded recklessness rather than responsibility". Not that business is not aware of its responsibility to other stake-holders of the company – employees, customers, communities and the nation. This was mentioned by Reginald Jones of General Electric long ago in 1972.
Mahatma Gandhi had put forward the concept of trusteeship to capitalists. In a democracy, the elected representatives are trustees of the people's interest, not private interest. Similarly, businessmen should be the trustees of the wealth they create. If a President or a Prime Minister of a country does not get a bonus if the GDP grows, why a Chief Executive should get a bonus if under his stewardship the company makes more profits ? Is he just a mercenary ?Is there not enough satisfaction in seeing smiling employees, happy customers, grateful communities and nations ? Is money the only incentive ?
We are all in this together as made evident by the financial collapse and its world-wide repercussions – unemployment, increased poverty, reduced GDP.As John Donne said, " No man is an island entire of itself, everyman is a piece of the continent,a part of the main … never send to know for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee. "The financial superstructure built on greed cannot last for ever just as the regime based on the suppression of human spirit and freedom. There is a crying need for ethics in business. Law is not enough as one can find a way around it. Self-imposed restraint is necessary. We have to be good human beings. Or, is it a tall order ?
