Gujarat- a land of entrepreneurs

Ever since I started studying Economics, I have always wondered why some societies/communities are more developed than others even while existing within similar constitutional and legal boundaries. The conventional factors of 'poverty' or 'development' given by text books and professors are like 'endowment', 'opportunities', 'saving/ investment', 'skills', 'infrastructure', etc. But none satisfied me. 

My understanding changed completely when I started living in Gujarat. It was in late 2005 I came to Gujarat for the first time. I saw relative development everywhere, even in villages in tribal areas. The tribal villages of my state Odisha and those in Gujarat are completely different- income levels, livelihood options, roads, electricity, water....everything. Why? I wondered.

Then I saw the law and order situation. On the very first morning, I saw motor cycles and cars parked outside houses all night, a thing that is unthinkable in Odisha and many other states. 'Theft' and 'murders' are rare events; in my 8 years in Gujarat I have hardly come across a street fight or fight in the public. Girls and women can roam around in the cities late in the evening all alone without fear. 

So, why are people prosperous and peaceful in Gujarat?

I think I have got the answer- 'entrepreneurship'; it is in their genes, in their culture, in their tradition; entrepreneurship is a way of life in Gujarat. A common farmer, a carpenter irrespective of the occupation, the Gujarati knows how to start a business and flourish. It is this spirit that makes the Gujaratis apart from others. They neither have the need nor time for criminal activities. When one can create wealth, one would hardly be interested in illegal ways of income. 

In Odisha, parents would marry their daughter to a low-earning government servant rather than a high-earning business man (exacly opposite in Gujarat). I have seen pretty salary earners in Gujarat come home in the evening and open a petty shop in the evening (a phenomenon unthinkable in Odisha). There is virtually no Gujarati family with only one source of earning. Once I met an auto-rickshaw driver who told me that he had just retired as a class-I officer in the Government!!! (huh....!) Another important thing is that they are aware of their wealth and invest their money very intelligently. One would be surprised to see the large number of housewives investing in the stock market. The people hardly think any work is small as long as the returns are positive and their time is productively utilized. 

As a development professional, I do not have to push people into any business; I just have to show them that it is a positive-worth business and he/she has the skill to do the same. Then the rest is taken care of by him/her. This explains why government projects are relatively more successful in Gujarat rather than in other states.

Gujaratis understand the value of money like no one else. I had read 'Reach dad poor dad', but I learnt the value of money more by living in Gujarat. Once I was travelling with a Gujarati friend; I paid one rupee for him to the auto-rickshaw driver as he did not have the change. I was amazed to see him return the rupee to me the next day. Though I resisted accepting it, I had to take it back in the end as he insisted on the same.

Though the factors of development mentioned in the first paragraph are important, the most important factor is the 'entrepreneur'. In the absence of this, all other factors are useless; on the other hand, 'entrepreneurship' can develop all other factors. The biggest positive in Gujarat is that the whole society is entrepreneur. The politicians and leaders are just an extension of this society; so most of them have always been progressive and development oriented. 

Since pre-independence time Gujarat has been developed- both economically and politically. Two of the most important leaders of the freedom struggle- Gandhi and Sardar were Gujaratis. Ahmedabad and Surat were known all over the world as a major industrial destinations. So, it is but natural that in the post-independence period the same continued, both under the Congress and BJP Governments. One of the few successful industrialists of the pre-1991 era, Dhirubhai Ambani was a Gujarati. Most of Mumbai's (and India's) business is controlled by Gujaratis. They are everywhere on the earth; a prosperous and peaceful community. I am lucky to have come here to study,work, live and marry! 

The AAP phenomenon

Two years back,when the Anna movement against corruption started, I was a little sceptical about the whole thing. Though as everyone else, I wanted to see some concrete action against corruption, I thought there was enough institutional mechanism in place and the need was to make them work. However, Anna and Arvind thought differently. Even after two years, when the act has come to life, I think the idea of of Lokpal will succeed only if there is enough political will and for that the political leadership needed to change. 

This is why when Arvind and co. formed this new entity (Aam Admi Party), I thought it was a good idea. The system can be changed and made to work from within; the scope of doing so from outside is very limited (though the pressure groups can work to some extent, there role is very limited by their nature). However, a political entity in power has tremendous power and authority to make the system work. Forming a party is one thing and winning elections is another. The first challenge before AAP was the Delhi elections; the passed the examination in flying colours. A wind of hope is blowing in India like never before. A political party within its first year of formation would form a government, is unprecedented. 

 What does the AAP symbolize?
- AAP represents the aspirations of the common man
- They have shown that elections can be won without muscle and money power
- They have changed the VIP culture in the country
- They have shown good intentions can stop corruption in this country Their success has led to a huge churning in the political system in India already.

These are all good news.
- The traditional national parties
- Congress and BJP have started to look inwards and change themselves.
- The vast numbers who wanted a good alternative to Congress and BJP have got one; Congress is corrupt and arrogant; BJP is majoritarian and authoritarian (not in the rigid sense). India deserves better
- The youth of the country who wanted to join politics but had big entry barrier to cross (money and power), now see a good opportunity
- Democracy is all about options; for the first time, people will not be voting for a 'lesser evil', they can vote for a 'better one'

However, AAP's success is not guaranteed. Their inexperience at governance is already showing. Subsidies and freebies have never solved any problem. Saying no to decent accommodation and offices, etc is not required; you can live decently and govern well. So, AAP needs to focus on governance rather than silly changes here and there. Facilities have to be institutionalized; populist measures are not going to help. If AAP can not deliver, the good revolution will fail. people will lose faith in revolutions. 

The challenges in front of them are very big; but with good intention and efficient people in their ranks, they can succeed in course of time. We can give time to this new and novel phenomenon; it is worth an experiment.

Renewing the interest in blogging...

The last time I posted a blog article was in may, 2010. I don't know why I discontinued the practice...but some of the possible reasons may lie in a few questions in my mind: - Is blogging really useful? - Can a not-so-famous person reach out to the public at large through blogs? - Is the time and energy put into writing a blog worth it? (in my initial times of blogging, I had very limited success) I do not have the concrete answers even now. However, I do realize that it may help in the long run; there is a strong possibility; let me explore. Thus, this year I have renewed the interest and have decided to write regularly.

Naxals cannot be allowed to dictate terms

The recent carnage at Dantewada that saw more than 30 innocent people lose their lives exposes the Naxals. I always sympathized with the Naxals to certain extent for their cause, even though I did never approve of their violence. I thought these are people who have been left out of the India growth story. When India is growing to become one of the most influential nations of the world, both economically and politically, a huge number of these people languish in abject poverty throughout India. Hence I thought their anger against the state is a natural outcome of their desperation. But the latest mayhem has left me asking me two questions:

- Do these Naxals really care for the people they say they are fighting for? If so, how come they can kill the same people!
- Have their political ambitions got bigger than their so-called fight against injustice?

It seems that the Naxals have lost sight of their vision. They need to quit the path of violence and fight for their cause peacefully. There are a lot of people and organizations who support their cause.

Development is a slow process; whatever the Government is doing would take some time to reflect on the field. Besides, 'Development' is a complex process; even with best of endeavours, one finds it difficult to achieve it. The Government is trying to push forward the ‘Development’ agenda in the Naxal affected regions. But the Naxals seem to be non-cooperative and desperate.

The Government must now adopt a two prong strategy: (i) Establish the rule of law in these places; the Naxals can not be allowed to dictate terms to the state. It is one of the primary duties of the state to protect its citizens (ii) Accelerate the development process.The efforts of development must be immediate and on a war footing. Better education, health facilities, public distribution system, employment opportunities, etc will go a long way in solving the problem.

Behind the veil of honour and culture !

A few days back, I got an sms from a friend which read like this: "Once upon a time, there was an island where all the feelings lived together. One day, there was a storm in the sea and the island was about to drown. All the feelings were scared; but 'love' built a boat to escape. All the feelings boarded the boat except 'ego'. 'Love' tried and tried, but 'ego' did not move. Everyone asked 'love' to leave him back and move. But 'love' was meant to 'love'; she remained with 'ego' and drowned! 'Love' died because of 'Ego'".

I remembered this message when I heard the incident of Manoj and Babli being ordered to be killed by the 'Khap Panchayat' for same 'gotra' marriage in Haryana.

It is disgraceful that in a democratic country like India this can happen. This is barbaric and ruthless killing in the name of honour. There is no honour in killing innocent people just because they loved each other and wanted to marry. The civil society must condemn this act in the strictest terms and not allow this medieval practice to continue.

It questions strength of our liberal values as a nation and as a society. India has emerged from one of the oldest civilizations of the world. Gandhi is revered the world over for his teachings of nonviolence. Buddha was born this very land. Today, we boast ourselves as one of the very few liberal democratic countries! We must carry on the tradition.

We should respect people's and community's wisdom and culture, but things which are not acceptable in a civilized society must go. Traditions like 'Sati' and 'child marriage' were in vogue at a point of time, but people like Raja Rammohan Roy fought against these crusades and they are no more accepted. The same way, this must go now.

It is shameful that some of the leaders are sympathizing with the Khap's cause. This politics of vote banks is disgusting, to say the least. The leaders are supposed to lead the people in the forward direction and not backwards. They must not bow down to the pressures from some sections of the society. The same holds true for the judges who decide these matters. Recently, after deciding against the 'Khap Panchayat', the judge got a threat call and requested a transfer. It only encourages the perpetrators of such heinous crime. The judges too should not show their fear in public like this. We must resist these forces at any cost. The Chief Justice of India was right when he appealed for the need for showing greater tolerance and acceptance for lovers (He actually said that one do not check out the other's 'gotra' before falling in love).

Thousands of young people become victims of honour killing every year through out the world; India is among the top countries in this list. In India, it is not anything new. It's very much prevalent in different parts of the country, mostly in Bihar, U.P., Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. What is more perplexing is that it's prevalent among the middle class and so-called educated section too. In 2001, a middle class family from Punjab settled in Canada did the same to their daughter for falling in love with a Kabaddi player from Punjab and marrying. In this case, the mother herself ordered the killing of her daughter!!!

It's beyond comprehension how can a mother murder her daughter! The big 'EGO' of false honour and prestige does it. It's high time the society realizes this.

The Kasab story: A lot remains to be answered

It was an important day for India as millions of people awaited the judgement of the special court on the Mumbai terror attack accused. There were three accused: Ajmal Amir Kasab- 86 charges including murder of 72 people, Faheem Ansari- Mapped targets, and Sabauddin Shaikh- delivered Ansari’s maps to the LeT men in Nepal.

The court has finally given its judgement that the terrorist Kasab was found guilty on all accounts. But the other two were acquitted of the charges of criminal conspiracy because of lack of sufficient evidence.
It is a matter of happiness that (1) the terrorist has been found guilty and will be punished accordingly (decision pending), (2) it proves the independence of Indian judicial system (no one is punished until credible evidence beyond doubt is produced).

However, it has created new questions: How did the two conspirators escape scot free? Why the investigators could not produce enough evidence for a case running for more than a year? Is this the efficiency of our premiere investigating agency? Has the investigating agency deliberately hidden evidence against the two to clear Indian hand in the event and push the ball to Pakistan’s court squarely (as the Pakistanis allege now)? Is there going to be another round of legal battle? When is the saga going to end?

OVER-CONSUMPTION IS THE MOTHER OF GLOBAL WARMING

There are numerous reasons of Global Warming; all emanate from the use of energy, however. Why is energy used? It is for producing something. Why is something produced? Because, it is consumed by someone. So, consumption is the fundamental cause of all carbon emissions, and ultimately, Global Warming. When the earth was less populated, it never mattered how much we consumed. But with population going ballistic, and the very nature of modern lifestyle being high energy consuming, it is time we reviewed our consumption pattern.
Have we noticed how much we consume? Some examples:
• Some people pack their cupboards with so many clothes that a garment shop can be opened; accessories are no less; most of these are not used more than once a year
• When we travel, we consume 100% more packed food than what we actually need, mainly as a habit; it is neither healthy nor eco-friendly
• We would not walk even 100 meters to buy our vegetable (rather we would start a vehicle)
• Is it really necessary to go down the stairs in a lift all the time?
• We would buy invariably a lot more than what we need at a time, giving space to the producer to store his produce in our houses
The list can go on.
If we can observe how we consume, and how we waste, we can really bring down the carbon emission considerably.
Don’t wait for others. Start from you, set an example and others will follow, for sure.