Now Holiday At a Light House

It is heartening to note that at last some one from the Government of India has seen the latest trend in the world community and properly understood the historical importance of the old light houses in the country . It seems the G.O.I in the Ministry of Shipping is planning to convert light houses into hubs of experience-based tourism very soon. Well done . Better late than never!

Judiciary's Direct Supervision on the Executive' Routine Work

As a former civil servant I feel bad and saddened to learn that the High court has to intervene and appoint a retired  judge to supervise the activities of the sand contractors which should normally be done by a Deputy collector or the Deputy Supt. Of police. A CPI senior leader Mr R. Nallakannu had to move the Madurai Branch of High Court to stay the lifting of sand from the river with machines recklessly spoiling the environment of the habitations on the river banks. When the Judge totally banned the use of machines for the purpose , the state government moved the Double Bench of Madras High Court. The latter adjudicated the matter with the appointment of a committee headed by a retired judge of the High Court to supervise the sand quarries.

The implication is that the state executive has lost its legitimate and expected role to judicial authority at a cost to the state exchequer already overburdened with the deficit.If such a trend continues the people would lose faith totally on the government and its officials even for the routine works. It is a sad reflection on the efficiency and the integrity of state authorities.

Investment Vs Inflation & Interest Rate Hike

Ultimately the institutional investors are making a retreat from Indian stock Exchange on account of inflation and interest rates’ rise. The wide fluctuations in the stock exchange indexes are invariably dependent on the European Stock Exchanges and the political developments within the country or sometimes on the behavior of monsoon. Stock markets dipped to 7-month lows on Tuesday (February 8) with sensex closing below 18,000 declining 261 points or 1.45% as investors sold heavily on concerns over rising inflation and interest rates. Despite the positive improvements anticipated by the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, RBI and the Planning Commission, the food inflation fails to drop below 15%.

Let us have a look at our neighbour China. China’s Central Bank, namely, The Peoples Bank of China, on Monday (February 7) raised the bench-mark one year borrowing and lending rates by 25 basis points, a step aimed at containing inflation. This step basically is meant to cool prices and tighten liquidity. As a matter of fact the Chinese government has fixed a target of 3% for consumer price index. In December 2010 it was measured at 4.6% compared to 5.1% in November, the highest in 28-months.

After the hike in benchmark rates, the one-year deposit interest rate will climb to 3% and the one-year loan interest rate will reach 6.06%. The PBOC has raised interest rates twice in 2010 to deal with rising inflation and soaring asset prices.

It is quite interesting to see both China and India fighting inflation by fixing certain targets. While Indian government is struggling hard with double digit inflation for quiet sometime now, the Chinese government has been very strict and smart not only in fixing a realistic and requisite target but also in trying to contain inflation and enable the economy to register a high level of growth rate as usual.

Central Vigilance Commissioner -- P.J.THOMAS

Thanks to the controversial CVC  Mr.P.J.Thomas, the Apex Court is seized of all the wrong doings happening under the roof of North Block (New Delhi – G.O.I) housing the Department of Personnel & Training and the Ministry of Home affairs. The questions raised by the Hon. Supreme Court especially the Bench of Chief Justice, S.H.Kapadia and two other Justices, K.S.Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar are to the point and exceedingly well-taken.

Points for consideration

1) Only the Bio data of P.J.Thomas was placed before the Selection Panel headed by P.M and no other relevant details certified by the DOPT.

2) Even the aforesaid bio-data failed to mention the posting of Thomas as the Secretary of Food & Civil Supplies in the Government of Kerala.

3) DOPT failed to give sanction for prosecution for seven long years in the case of P.J.Thomas. One would like to know how many Thomases had managed and manipulated to get promotion and postings in the State and Central Government while the requests for such sanction were pending or when some other cases were promptly disposed of and prosecuting agencies were obliged by DOPT whose discriminatory action is indeed unpardonable.

4) CVC clearing P.J.Thomas’s case was with regard to his posting in Government of India. Was it sufficient for the purpose of selection by the high-level panel without the State Government’s clearance and opinion?

5) If a political fight between two Chief Ministers was, as argued by Thomas, the reason for his trouble can he or G.O.I. ensure that such a calamity had not occurred in the career of several other officials from All India Services.

6) How dare the officials of DOPT are prepared to befool the P.M., H.M. & the Leader of Opposition. Such a bold step couldn’t have taken place without a god-father’s role in P.M.O. or any other Power Centre or sans some illegal transaction between Thomas and officials of DOPT

One should thank the God and celebrate the steps of the Apex Court in this regard. A decision will certainly expose the wrong-doers and instill fear in their minds for some time.

March 4, 2011

The God has been kind and great through the land mark judgment of the Hon. Chief justice and his two other colleagues/judges pssed this week and the P.M has to own up the responsibility of wrong selection based on wrong feed-back given by the officials of PMO and DOPT.

We beg before the Hon. P.M that he should weigh the pros and cons of any proposal coming up or put up for promotion / posting / punishment of any All India Service officer hereafter at least.

Danger Signal at the Horizon!

Agriculture in India depends, inter alia, on the availability of labour force for various operations on the farms. Of late its supply is on the decline, thanks to migration of labour towards urban areas. Whaterver labour is available now in the countryside gets engaged in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme due to its reasonable wage with less work or no work at some places. One or two rupees a kilo rice scheme too has made the labourers very lazy.

Who is there to assist the farmers for cultivation? The children of farmers also gradually bid good bye to the farming. In the absence of mechanisation of farming in totality the dependence on the labour can hardly be dispensed with.

The telling example is the condition of farming in Tamil Nadu. The cultivated land has come down to 48 lakh hectares from 60 lakh hectares in the last ten years. The state will have to import more than 50 to 60 per cent of its requirement from other states very soon. 

The farm lands are becoming barren and housing plots very fast in all parts of the state. Who is to blame for such a sorry state of affairs? 

Remedy to public grievance?

A public grievance meant to be solved at the state level should get resolved finally at the level of the head of the government, namely, the chief minister. But when the C.M is either not available or not willing to interfere and get the problem solved with his authority or good will, the public has no other go except to approach the constitutionally empowered authority to interfere in such matters ,namely, the High Court in the state. If and when the high court also feels helpless or unwilling to interfere in day-to-day administrative matters, then the public has no other option except to keep quiet and undergo the suffering.

A typical example of such a situation has arisen in Tamil Nadu. Look at the following episode:

The Hindu - Friday, November 26, 2010

“Court reiterates its order on encroachments” by Special Correspondent

The Madras High Court has reiterated its 2005 order directing the government to identify encroachments on natural water resources in the state and initiate appropriate steps.

In his petition G.Sivaprakasam of Ayyanpettai village in Kancheepuram district stated that there were more than 16000 persons living in the village. They were agriculturists and weavers. As per revenue records, there were six ponds in the village. In the past 10 years the ponds had been encroached upon. As a result, the water bodies which helped the people in their day-to-day needs had been affected.

In its order, the First Bench comprising Chief Justice M.Y.Eqbal and Justice Sivagnanam, said that so far as the question of removal of encroachments on ponds and tanks was concerned, the matter was discussed at length by a division Bench earlier. It had reiterated a judgment of 2005 directing the government to identify all such natural water resources in different parts of the state, and wherever encroachments were found, to initiate appropriate steps in accordance with law for restoring such resources to their original position so that the people’s sufferings due to drinking water shortage could be ameliorated.

The First Bench said, it was disposing of the present writ petition with the direction and observation made in the earlier judgment.

It is indeed a Perfect Disposal of Public grievanceas as per the norms of current thinking and system prevalent in the country.

Critical Analysis:

People at fault or found guilty of dereliction of duty are the following:

Village Record Keeper (V.A.O) who failed to prevent such encroachments in the initial stage and not reporting the matter timely and ensuring preemptive action. He is invariably mixed up with real estate owners or local powerful politicians.

Tehsildar who failed to listen to the villagers and take necessary proceeedinds against the encroachers in time.

Collector of the district who ignored the grievance of the villagers in his weekly Public Grivance Redressel Meetings at the collectorate. Present day collectors are busy in protecting their chairs and unable to devote time for such issues to their logical end in view of the short tenure they enjoy in a particular district and other pressures at work place.

Chief Secretary who failed to devote time for such complaints received at the Secretariat and also failed to monitor the subject of encroachments on public lands from time to time in the Collectors’ Conferences. The poor man hardly has time or the guts to take initiatives on public issues and pursue the matter under the present milieu in the country unless and until the C.M orders for it.

Chief Minister who failed to gauge the public opinion and ensure grievance redressel as and when the petitioners move for such an action. It depends on the C.M’s priority also for such matters. Janata Durbar doesn’t seem to be working in Tamil Nadu.

Revenue Secretary to the State Government who failed to take note of the court’s directives issued in 2005. Normally the Revenue Secretary is flooded with files in his office. It requires an extraordinary and committed officer who only can do the needful in such matters. Such officials also keep changing or getting transferred within a year or two to suit the convenience of the chief minister.

FIGHT AGAINST GARBAGE

We the Indians are notorious for living in filth, litter and gutter. The best example, as reported by the leading Tamil daily of Chennai, namely “Dinamani” on 23rd January, 2011 on the conditions prevailing in Ponneri Town, Tiruvallur District. There are 18 wards in which the population of 30000 are residing. Normally the garbage collected from the town is transported daily to the garbage depot located on the banks of river Arni for burning and disposal. There are many areas in the town where the lorry or trucker cannot enter due to the narrow streets and lanes. The municipality has arranged 3 Wheeler Cycles for transporting garbage. As usual even these Tri-cycles have become a dustbin in the midst of uncollected garbage. The people are worried and the civic authorities are unable to remove the garbage and keep the town neat and clean although the citizens are paying taxes to the Municipal administration. The people expressed concern in this regard and expected the District Collector to intervene.

After returning from the tour of many cities, towns and villages of various sizes both in USA & Canada, I am utterly at a loss to understand why this sort of affairs has not been improved in spite of six decades of planning in independent India. The main crux of problem is that both the elected representatives and the officials working in civil administration are not up to the mark and they hardly work for the public good without any self interest.