Not focused on economy

Since we are badnaam as "Bhakts", no harm in writing such posts.

Now through the last few months and especially since the GDP suddenly began to get noticed and more so after CAA fasad, the common thing we hear is "This govt is focusing only on divisive issues, not focusing on economy...chee chee". On the other hand, one was reading on twitter and in news of the FM i.e. Nirmala Sitharaman (NS) doing press conferences galore to announce something or other. Being the nosy self that one is, I decided to dig further and see what was happening. I did a google search "Nirmala Sitharaman press conference" and found the following. You decide by yourself whether this looks like lack of focus or interest. This is only about focus and effort, results or whether they are enough is another matter. I am writing a blog on what happened to the economy tomorrow where we can judge whether what has been done is enough.

Broadly, it is agreed that the sectors in trouble were auto, real estate, banks, NBFCs and dampened demand in market amongst people due to “sentiment”. So go through the chronology of the PCs of NS and judge.

23rd August: 

- 70k crore into public sector banks. move is expected to generate an additional lending and liquidity in the financial system to the tune of Rs 5 lakh crore

- Rollback of enhanced surcharge on foreign portfolio investors

- Surcharge on long term and short term capital gains tax removed

- Data showed FPIs have pulled out Rs 23,000 crore from domestic equities in July and August, as the Budget proposal to levy a surcharge on higher tax-income groups affected 40 per cent of FPIs, operating as trusts or AoPs, and made investment in Indian equities unattractive. 

- RBI cuts to directly pass on to borrowers through MLCR reduction

- Angel tax removed

- Pending GST refunds to MSME within 30 days. Otherwise, MSME GST returns to be paid in 60 days

Auto – BS IV vehicles phase out delayed

2nd September:

- Merger of banks – 

o Oriental Bank plus united bank plus PNB to create second largest bank after SBI

o Canara bank and syndicate bank to merge

o Andhra and Corporate bank to merge with union bank

o Indian bank with Allahabad bank

- Cash infusion into banks of 70000 crore

7th September:

- Task force was set on 7th Sep to draw out a plan for a National Infrastructure Pipeline

16th September:

- The government to infuse INR 20,000 crore affordable housing package to benefit around 3.5 lakh home owners. The government  proposed a special financing window in a bid to restore stuck housing projects.

- Automated Electronic Refund System: The government to provide automated electronic refund system for paying GST credits to businesses; the move will be implemented by September.

- RoDTEP: The government announced the introduction of a new scheme for remission of duties or taxes on export product (RoDTEP) to replace the existing Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) from January 1 next year and revised priority sector lending norms for export credit that will release an additional INR 36,000 crore to INR 68,000 crore as export credit under priority sector.

- INR 1,700 crore for Export Guarantee: Granting relief to MSMEs , government also made a statement regarding Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) will increase the scope of Export Credit Insurance Service to offer higher insurance cover to banks lending working capital for exports. This is expected to reduce overall cost of export credit including interest rates, especially to MSMEs.

- Annual Mega Shopping Festivals: Dubai-like annual mega shopping festivals are proposed to be organised in 4 places in India across March 2020 in 4 themes (gems & jewellery, handicrafts, yoga, tourism, textile and leather).

23rd September

- Big bang reform - Corporate tax rate cuts – 35% to 25% - at par with other Asian economies mostly

6th  November – 

- The government has approved setting up of a Rs25,000cr bailout fund to finance 1,600 stalled housing projects to kickstart incomplete real estate projects.

- The government will establish a "special window" to offer priority debt financing for completion of stalled housing projects in the affordable and middle-income housing sector.

- An alternative investment fund (AIF) will be created. The government will put in Rs10,000cr and others, such as SBI and LIC, will create funds of Rs25,000cr in total.

- This investment will be used to complete housing units worth less than Rs2cr in Mumbai, Rs1.5cr in Delhi-NCR, Chennai, other metros, and Rs1cr in other cities.

21-November – 

- Disinvestment of 5 major PSUs announced – BPCL, Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), Container Corporation of India (CCI), THDC India Ltd, North Eastern Electric Power Corp (NEECP)

- Story of BPCL will follow later – which is a brilliant move by this govt

31-Dec – 

- National Infrastructure pipeline declared. Task force was set on 7th Sep to draw out a plan

- 102 lakh crore investment across country – roads (19.64), urban and housing (16.29), Railways (13.69), Conventional power (11.76), Renewable energy (9.3), irrigation (7.73), Rural infra (4.11), drinking water (3.62), Digital infra (3.2), Industrial corridors (2.99), Petroleum natural gas (1.95), Health (1.69), atomic energy (1.54), airports and ports (2.44) and so on 

- 42% are in implementation stage while 31% are in conceptualisation stage

- Centre and states will pitch in 39% each and private sector 22% which will increase to 30% by 2025

- 18 states have come on board so far

- 51 lakh crores spent so far in 6 years so this is a big jump

And now, we see reports of PM himself driving conversations with industry leaders, economists and others for the budget and revival of economy.

Considering above, does this look like a government not focused or caring about setting the economy right?

Birth of the Khalsa - part 2

Birth of the Khalsa: part 2

We saw how Guru Tegh Bahadur's son Gobind Rai cremated his father's head as a 9 year old and resolved to make the faith a martial one. He thought deep and hard as he grew up and in the meantime started modelling the Sikhs into a martial mode. He moved the court to Anandpur where he wrote and reared his family He pondered on the disunity and decadence in the movement by Guru Nanak and came up with new ideas. He did a few things:

1. The Gurus for Sikhs were living beings till him. Each Guru nominated the next one before he died, sometimes it was relations or progeny, some times complete strangers e.g. Guru Nanak chose Angad, a favourite disciple rather than his sons as the second Guru. Due to these selections, there were conflicts as a rival would inevitably stand up and there would be factions. It was also possible for the Mughals to capture and execute the Guru thus setting back the movement. Gobind Rai decided to replace the living Guru with a book, the Holy Guru Granth Sahib. The Granth became the Spiritual Guru of the Sikhs for all time to come. Gobind Rai proclaimed that he was the last living Guru of the Sikhs and the Granth would be the guide from now.

2. On matters other than the spiritual, there was the institution of the Panchayat which all Punjabis were familiar with. These were elected representatives of the community and they became the secular guides or gurus for the faith. Thus the faith became Guru Granth Panth. There was also the institution of masands who started off as missionary type people to spread the faith but over a period became their own institutions, mini Gurus, money lending, meddling in communities, often in the conflict after new Guru took over. Gobind Rai abolished this institution too and from then on, only the Granth and the Panchayat became the structure of the Faith.

3. Then came the fateful day at Anandpur. Gobind Rai had to give his people something positive to replace what he had destroyed. He had already created a martial spirit and expectancy of military action. He decided to go a step further. He invited all followers of the faith to Anandpur for the festival of first of Baisakh. Many came, he also asked specifically the Sikhs to come with their hair and beards grown.

He then appeared before the congregation and asked for five men to be sacrificed, drawing his sword. One man rose, he was taken into a tent. The Guru came out in some time with his sword dripping in blood and asked for one more victim. Thus, five men were taken into the tent for "sacrifice". Then the Guru came out with all 5 alive, it was goats who had been slaughtered. These 5 were called the panj pyare (beloved five) and were going to be the nucleus of the new community he would raise called the "Khalsa" or the pure.

He baptized the five men by mixing sugar in plain water, churning it with a dagger to the recitation of hymns. The 5 were asked to drink the water, to signify that they are all casteless now. They were all from different castes before this. Their names were changed and they were given one family name "Singh", their father was Gobind Singh (renamed after his own baptism).

We all know the 5 emblems for the Sikhs, Hair and beard (kes), Comb (kangha), Pair of breeches (kachcha), Steel bracelet (kada) and the sabre (kirpan). All members of the khalsa were to carry these. After the baptism of the 5, the Guru asked them to baptize him thus signifying no hierarchy and merging his entity into the Khalsa.

The khalsa spread especially among the Jat peasants who were strong and sturdy and the brave, fighter Sikhs we know of today emerged as a force over a period.

I think we need something for today's Hinduism, considering what has happened to this society. More on this tomorrow.

Reference: History of the Sikhs: Khushwant Singh: Volume 1

  

Road to 2046

It was about 100 years ago that the Khilafat movement was launched in India. 1921. Muslims in undivided India were unhappy that Turkey was made a "secular" country by Ataturk Kemal Pasha and the Caliphate was abolished. He did that with the help of the British who were overseeing the Middle East wit France (regions divided amongst them in what were called Protectorates).

The Muslims in India led by the Ali brothers started an "agitation". The Indian freedom movement had become leaderless in 1919 and Bapu had just entered the scene. Jawaharlal was still not in the scene and Jinnah was practicing law and advocating freedom struggle jointly. Bapu seized the opportunity to get the Muslims to join in the struggle so lent support to the Khilafat movement.

Lot of "protests" happened in the country and ended with the gruesome Mopalah rebellion and massacre of Hindus in Kerala. The below the surface mobilization of Muslims as a separate community suddenly came to forefront. To be fair, they were already being given separate electorates and cribbing on them being separate and special (like it is happening now) was in place.

Within 25 years, Jinnah had emerged as sole leader of the Muslims. In the Muslim seats (they had separate electorates remember), Muslim League which stood for a separate country for Muslims won 90% majority and won all seats. This was an endorsement for a separate country from most of the community in India.

This coupled with Direct Action Day in Calcutta and other places that caused riots and killings unnerved Bapu and Chacha and they agreed to partition.

Compare what is going on in 2020 with what happened in 1921. Look at the rhetoric and attitudes carefully. Then we can track the route to 2046 together as an academic exercise. There seems to be a clear route there.

Birth of the Khalsa: and a template for the future: part 1

Have been thinking over this for some weeks. Story first.

Sikhism was founded by Guru Nanak (about 1499 CE) who mixed the teachings of Hinduism and Islam and his own philosophies to create a new social order and eventually a religion. It was appealing for it was casteless and shorn of hierarchy. The Gurus after him built on it. Guru Arjan Dev (1563-1606) , who was the fifth Guru was the most prolific, he built the cities of Amritsar, Kartarpur the holy lake city of Taran Taran. He also compiled teachings of the previous Gurus and his own compositions plus inputs from other religious authorities to create a formal Holy Book, the Guru Granth Sahib (1604). Unfortunately, Jahangir's ascent to throne turned the tide against Sikhs (after a benign period under Akbar) and Guru Arjan Dev was arrested, tortured and eventually died.

Sixth Guru i.e. Guru Hargobind onwards, the faithful began to acquire martial capabilities amidst continuous persecution from the Mughals. Guru Teg Bahadur (1621-75), who was the ninth Guru was brutally tortured by Aurangzeb and eventually executed (in 1675). His head was sent to his son (who was 9 at that time), Gobind Rai who cremated it.

Gobind Rai grew up observing and thinking and resolved to change the nature of his religion from pacifist at core to warrior like. His main contention was "ALTHOUGH LOVE AND FORGIVENESS ARE STRONGER THAN HATE AND REVENGE, ONCE A PERSON WAS CONVINCED THAT THE ADVERSARY MEANT TO DESTROY HIM, IT WAS HIS DUTY TO RESIST THE ENEMY WITH ALL MEANS AT HIS DISPOSAL, FOR THEN IT WAS A BATTLE OF SURVIVAL, NOT ONLY OF LIFE, BUT OF IDEALS".

How did he bring about this transformation? We shall cover tomorrow when we conclude this story. Therein will be thoughts for what we should do in the future...

Reference: History of the Sikhs, Volume 1, Khushwant Singh.

NRI

As a NRI and bhakt, the one charge that is always thrown at you in an argument is that you dont live here, and your knowledge is only from social media etc. Now there is an element of truth in that but there are some advantages tuned in NRIs like me have which probably score over the people making those arguments and they are from lived experience.

1. Moment you go abroad, you meet indians from different parts of India, so you make friends with people from Punjab, Rajasthan, karnataka, Tamil Nadu, bengal, orissa etc. All these people give you real time info on what happens in their state as well as you get to know details of their history, geo, politics, nature etc. Really doubt those living in India in one place would get this kind of exposure to people this diverse. This broadens the world view for us as well as gives more knowledge.

2. Tuned in NRIs like me who travel a lot also get a pan India view, we stop thinking of ourselves as bound to a state, and the additional resources we acquire due to enhanced earnings also enable us to travel far and wide and see the country more than locals. So I went to Varanasi and Kanyakumar, trivandrum in the same year.

3. The very process of lifting yourself from parochial identities, then makes you think of all Indians as your own and combining that with the perceptions you build from observing how the west built itself, makes you more committed to the cause of indias development. And enables one with ideas to do that.

So it is not entirely a lost cause even though the charges of hypocrisy will always be levelled.

Don't worry about the 2G verdict

Bhakts - don't worry on the 2G verdict..this is still the lower court....like everything that is karma driven...this is going to come back and bite the rejoicing Cong and its ecosystem as this govt will file an appeal with a vengeance and to protect it's reputation...and like everything karma driven...a verdict overturning this one will come just when it is needed...mark my words..😀😀

Excellent analysis and eye opening research on the Maya Kodnani case by Madhu Kishwar

OMG...an in depth analysis done by Madhu Kishwar done on this case...such gaping holes...inconsistencies...wow...I have long been convinced of her being guilty and mass murderer etc based on this judgement and the media hoo-ha and then this one article (Madhu is a credible and veteran journalist who doesnt take sides which is why i read it in the first place)...read through and make your own conclusions...

https://swarajyamag.com/politics/case-against-maya-kodnani-convicted-in-2002-riots-seems-pretty-thin