The United Nations (UN) on Tuesday announced that the world population meter recorded the eight billion mark. In a statement, the UN attributed the growth to human development, with people living longer thanks to improvements in public health, nutrition, personal hygiene and medicine.
It also added that it is the result of higher fertility rates, particularly in the world's poorest countries, as well.
Now amidst this announcement, internet users reacted to this news with hilarious memes and messages. While some users shared live recordings of the moment when the count hit the eight billion mark, others jokingly wrote, "8 Billion people and I'm still alone".
Swami Advaitananda Giri, Chairman, International Meditation Foundation said that “Education is, that which Liberates. Education is that which leads us to the flowering of our utmost potential as human beings. If what we study in our schools and colleges is Education, then education must lead us to a loving, joyful, and peaceful world. However, the reality of education is the other way around. Despite many resources and technological advancement that makes human life much easier, the impact of the present education system is reflected in the increase of stress, anxiety, depression, unhappiness, and heartlessness like what we see in the Ukraine war right now.”
Swami Advaitananda Giri further stated that “To fix this problem we must have one class period every day dedicated to the practical transmission of human values in our schools & colleges. This one class period will make Human Values as the foundation of the education system instead of ambition driven blind race right now.
The gap in the quality of teachers in the roll-out of this type of program can be addressed by online video materials. All who specialize in it should come forward and help Government in the development of open-source training modules for teachers, students, and parents. The modules should be playful, maximum practical than theory & should cover different age groups. The training modules for human values should be able to practically transmit the wisdom to be loving, truthful, honest, and overall, a good human being. The National Education Policy 2020 is a great step forward in this direction however the policy will be as good as it gets rightly implemented”
Vice Chancellor, JC Bose University of Science and Technology (YMCA), Faridabad, Prof S k Tomar, made the students realize the futility of entering a rat race with others. Students should learn to remain happy by means of self-restraint and by exercising control over their thoughts.
Prof Lokesh Shekhawat, National President of the All-India Association of Vice Chancellors, and three time VC of JNVU University, Rajasthan, said that India has produced so many Rishi and saints and is the land of the Vedas and the Upanishads. We should be proud of our culture and traditions and the rich contributions india has made towards the well-being of the whole humanity.
Dr Randeep Singh, General secretary, AIAVCA, also inspired the students to be proud of their heritage and dedicate their time and energy towards some noble goal which can bring about a positive change in the world.
Dr. Savita Bhagat, Officiating Principal, D.A.V. Centenary College Faridabad elaborated on how in the Indian tradition all animate and even inanimate objects are considered as forms of the divine. It is in our culture only that we worship land, water, trees, and the sun. We should not lose sight of our rich Vedic culture as only that can help make human life rich and worthwhile.
Brexit has ushered in a period of political instability in the UK. During the last six years, as prime ministers came and went (David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and now Rishi Sunak), economic programs have been on the back burner and overseas investors on tenterhooks writes Gaurie Dwivedi.
Rishi Sunak, the fifth prime minister in the UK since 2016, has many firsts to his credit: he is the first Asian and first Indian-origin prime minister of the UK. But what remains to be seen is will the youngest PM of the UK become the first leader to arrest the biggest decline of the country since the 1930s. A sea of economic challenges besets the UK, and the task of tackling them is bigger than what many envisage since the problems have been growing for over a decade.
Earlier this week, the Bank of England raised alarm bells when it warned that the UK is likely to slip into a protracted recession. The UK's Central Bank has also cautioned that the economy is performing worse than the US and the Eurozone. Significantly, post-Covid shock all advanced economies have recovered and are now faring better than the UK. The British economy, meanwhile, is showing signs of collapsing under the weight of its systemic problems. The Bank of England also warned that the UK's recession may be its longest and unemployment figures could double in the next two years.
On its part, the Bank of England, like other central banks around the world, is resorting to the only tool in its arsenal: tightening the monetary policy. But it has its own peril. When banks hike rates to tame inflation, growth is adversely impacted. The Bank of England, in a bid to contain record high inflation, hiked interest rates by the biggest percentage since 1989. The aggressive increase has taken the base rate to 3 per cent. This is the highest level since the global financial crisis in 2008.
The rate hike will only compound Sunak’s problems as he tries to shore up confidence for his government, both among the British people and global investors. The sharp rise in rates will hit the poorest 10 percent of households very hard, since this segment spends twice as much of their budget on utilities and food, compared to the richest 10 percent. As per reports, for 8 million people who have fixed-rate mortgages, the rise in annual mortgage payments will kick in once their existing loan contracts expire. On average, this will be to the tune of 3000 pounds in additional pay. For more than 2 million households who are on variable-rate mortgages, the hit will be immediate.
Every politician worth his salt knows that rising mortgages are unpalatable, more so in an economy that is battling record-high inflation and unemployment. And Chancellor Jeremy Hunt acknowledged the pain that lies ahead when he said the rate rise was “going to be very tough for families with mortgages up and down the country.”
As Prime Minister Sunak and Chancellor Hunt work away in their next-door offices, they have just about a fortnight to deliver a statement that will repair trust in the UK economy. Or at least, avoid a political implosion that will make global investors even less wary of investing in the British economy. Sunak’s predecessor lost her job after investors began selling the pound against the dollar. Chancellor Hunt stressed this aspect of his job when he reiterated, “The most important thing the British government can do right now is to restore stability, sort out our public finances, and get debt falling so that interest rate rises are kept as low as possible.”
But rising interest rates will be just one of the many grievances that the MPs will have to address as they head back to their constituencies over the next few days. The economic situation for the average British is set to become tougher.
Both the Prime minister and his finance minister (officially referred to as the Chancellor of Exchequer) are preparing for tax rises and large public spending cuts. These are the textbook replies to international investors who are worried about the UK’s rising debt and its falling currency (which makes debt repayment more costly). But to voters, these are measures that will reinforce the recession and contract an economy that has been in a state of inertia and low growth for over a decade now.
Welfare cuts have become a part of British politics and economics since 2010 when the age of austerity was rushed in. During the tenure of former chancellor George Osborne, except for the National Health Service, schools, and aid spending; all government budgets were slashed. Public sector pay was also frozen and taxes rose. These measures were in line with the publicly declared commitment to lowering the UK's high budget deficit, which was next only to America.
Three years later, though the government came close to achieving its fiscal consolidation target, these measures planted the British economy on a path of consistent underperformance of productivity and real GDP. Long periods of low productivity suck demand out of the system, which in turn stifle investment. In 2015, UK productivity, as measured by GDP per hour worked, was lower than the remaining G7 countries by a whopping 18 percentage points. The same year, David Cameron won a general election that was contested on a promise to further cut public spending. And of course, the following year came Brexit, which was touted as the panacea for all the ills and worries of the British economy and its future. Except that it has not.
Since 2016, the UK's political leadership has been in a state of Brexit-induced flux. And since many of its economic problems predate Brexit, they are now systemic and run deep. The UK's productivity growth, since the financial crisis in 2008, has fallen behind other advanced economies like France, Germany, and the US. This has resulted in median incomes in the UK being lower than its neighbours. This scenario is likely to remain, at least in 2023 when the UK is set to fare worse than all G20 nations, barring Russia. As per the Office of Budget Responsibility, which is the nodal body of Government finances, Brexit would further reduce productivity and UK GDP by a massive 4 percent. These official figures indicate that there is no easy quick fix for Sunak, a passionate Brexitter.
Brexiteers like Johnson and Sunak had claimed that exiting the EU would deliver favourable trade deals for the UK. The UK has indeed signed 71 trade deals since exiting the common trading platform of the EU. But these deals are similar to earlier agreements under the EU. Considering this, it is estimated that the UK's GDP will increase by 0.08 percent by 2035 on the back of its trade pact with Australia. The UK has also signed trade pacts with Japan and New Zealand, but these are likely to yield similar results.
Brexit has ushered in a period of political instability. During the last six years, as prime ministers came and went (David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and now Rishi Sunak), economic programs have been on the back burner, and overseas investors on tenterhooks.
For the Tories, though, stability tantamounts to more cuts. It seems UK’s long-awaited infrastructure schemes like the HS2 high-speed rail line, which has been delayed by nearly 15 years, could be one such casualty to the upcoming tough economic calls by Sunak’s government. As cuts deepen, so will any hope of reviving investments. And as investments dry up, so will the prospect of a long-term change in the UK's economic trajectory.
Osborne’s austerity measures in 2010 came at a time when interest rates were at a record low. And with energy bills under check, the Tories could push through the relentless slashing of public budgets. In 2022, Jeremy Hunt has no such luxury; his austerity drive will have both economic and political ramifications. It may be a quick fix to soothe the frayed nerves of global investors, but it will not be able to bring back growth.
With a general election in two years, Sunak needs to turn around the economy and fortunes of Tories, who are facing record-low popularity figures.
Almost fifty years ago, the UK faced stagflation, a global energy crisis, a current account deficit, and huge labor unrest. It had to be bailed out by the International Monetary Fund. It remains to be seen if the UK can avoid a similar outcome now. As the long British winter sets in and the Ukraine crisis shows no signs of ending, the scenario does not seem very far-fetched.
All eyes will be on Hunt’s November 17 statement.
(Courtesy The Pioneer: Gaurie Dwivedi is an author and a senior journalist. She is also faculty at the Department of International Relations,OP Jindal University.)
Xi’s re-election spell trouble for India, world
The National Congress of the Communist Party of China last week re-elected Xi Jinping to lead the country for at least the next five years. The Congress reiterated that after Mao, Xi was the most powerful leader in China’s modern history, even though Xi may like to believe otherwise.
Xi’s vision of China is one that is expansionist, and will not shy away from using military power to make territorial gains. “We have developed well-conceived and complete strategic plans for advancing the cause of the Party and the country in the new era. We have put forward the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and proposed promoting national rejuvenation through a Chinese path to modernisation. We have made well-coordinated efforts to advance our great struggle, our great project, our great cause, and our great dream,” said Xi in his opening speech to the Congress.
What he hinted was using force to, if need be, reclaim territories, that China considers its own. The model for governance in these reclaimed lands would be what it has been evangelising for nearly two decades, One Nation Two systems” (ONTS). The exhibits of the success of ONTS are Hong Kong and Macao, according to China.
To an external observer what this system has achieved is, provided a highly centralised governance model in place in these two regions with the remote control being operated by the mainland government and local autonomy achieved through China-appointed “patriots” in key government positions. Xi warned during the same speech: “We will crack down hard on anti-China elements who attempt to create chaos in Hong Kong and Macao.”
The next step for ONTS is resolving the Taiwan issue which emerged as a key commitment from the Congress meeting and Xi’s re-election. It was amply made clear that China would not shy away from the use of force, if need be, to achieve its stated target of complete reunification and integration of Taiwan with the Mainland. This is the scenario many China watchers had been pointing out in the run-up to President Xi Jinping’s third term.
The parallels they drew are with Russian President Vladimir Putin who has been at the helm of affairs in another globally powerful region for nearly a decade now. Putin, to stay at the helm of affairs, rekindled the nationalist nerve and vowed on the great Russian past, thereby claiming historical ownership over Crimea and now Ukraine. The world is now aware of what havoc a leader elected through undemocratic processes can bring. Millions of people in Europe are looking at a hard cold winter, while many developing countries across Asia and Africa are staring at starving citizens, all due to high energy and food prices. Now China’s stated policy to use force for reunification of Taiwan opens up another war front.
This theatre of war would be closer to India and much of South and Southeast Asia, which is home to nearly one-fourth of the world population. This conflict zone, if it blows into a full-fledged war, could be the ground for the Third World War where Western powers would face off against China and Russia.
India would have to take a stance, on whether it wants to maintain its agile multilateralism, i.e., pick and choose and align with global powers on commonalities or go in with one bloc. At this point in time given Sino-Indian relations at historical lows, over the military clashes in India’s north-western regions and China’s historical claims over Arunachal Pradesh, chances are bleak that India will partner with the Russian-Chinese bloc. Meanwhile, India has to engage more deeply with its Western allies and secure their trust in key strategic areas.
(The author is a foreign affairs commentator, this article is courtesy of The Pioneer)
Consensus among political parties is needed to avert the financial disaster that freebies will lead to in the long run
India has already suffered a lot because of freebies. Unfortunately, all the regional parties, and to some extent, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress, indulge in mindless populism and imprudent welfarism. There can be justification for free education and healthcare, but none for the distribution of grinders, washing machines, television sets, laptops, subsidised pilgrimages, free electricity, and farm loan waivers.
Freebie culture is blamed on political elites only, while bureaucrats drafting policy go scot-free. The judicial system conveniently ignores its responsibility to correct the course since it will displease the political class and, of course, the media will never discuss the issue since the government advertisement inflows will be hurt. The poor taxpayers of the country enjoy the visual site of watching their own elected government ripping hard-earned money distributed to large sections of the population seeking the comfort of sitting at home since the government has no vision to generate employment for a dignified living. It is all about failed governance and bribing voters to overcome this monumental failure.
Real income growth of the bottom 30 percent of Indians slowed down from 1992 when India first began ‘opening up’ and ‘liberalising’ its economy by encouraging the private sector. Since everyone has a vote, that means politicians cannot ignore them. The sops and freebies to the poor buy the requisite votes. It is a small price that India’s affluent have to pay to ensure the economy continues to disproportionately reward them.
The political parties in India try to outdo each other in luring the Indian voters with assorted goodies called freebies. This trend has gained more momentum in recent times with the political parties being innovative in their offerings as the ‘traditional free water and electricity is no longer sufficient as election goodies. The political dialogue built around freebies is fraught with danger as it shakes the root of free and fair elections to a large degree.
The unviable pre-election promises adversely affect the informed decision making by voters. This calls for fixing the gaps in the design, execution and accountability of freebie culture. It is not that nobody earlier warned against the consequences of populism. It is a “race to the bottom” and “a quick passport to fiscal disaster.”
The results are for all to see. A recent RBI study said, “We can identify a core subset of highly stressed states from among the 10 states identified by the necessary condition, i.e., the debt/GSDP ratio. The highly stressed states are Bihar, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengal.” GSDP is the state GDP. The states with the highest debt-to-GSDP ratio in 2021-22 include Punjab at 53.3 percent, Rajasthan at 39.8 percent, West Bengal at 38.8 percent, Kerala at 38.3 percent, and Andhra Pradesh at 32.4 percent, whereas the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act recommended a debt-to-GDP ratio of 20 percent for state governments (40 percent for the Centre) by the financial year 2022-23. This level of debt is extremely concerning and is largely the result of committed expenditure and subsidies under populist schemes coupled with slow growth in revenues.
Most of the states, however, post a healthy picture of their finances which is aided by the fact that much of the borrowing that funds these freebies happens off-budget, beyond the pale of FRBM tracking. The States borrow on the books of their public enterprises by pledging future revenues to the State as a guarantee. Effectively, the burden of debt is on the State exchequer, albeit well concealed.
The debt-GSDP ratio of Punjab is the worst and worsening. Instead of being concerned that the state debt to GSDP ratio has not gone below 40 percent for the past six years, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government instead announced that around 51 lakh households won’t pay any electricity bills from September. This is in accordance with the AAP’s election promise of 600 units of free power per billing cycle starting from 1 July 2022.
A case in point is Latin America which provides key learning lessons on populist politics. Populism was active during the 1920s through to the 1970s, when the working poor united behind icons like Brazil’s Getúlio Vargas and Argentina’s Juan Perón over their dissatisfaction with industrialisation. Populist governments resorted to inflationary financing to grant benefits to the poor. By the 1980s, uncontrolled public spending resulted in excessive fiscal deficits, unsustainable public debt and intractable inflation. Latin America’s ‘Lost Decade’ followed.
Growth at 5.6 percent in the 1970s shrank to 1.3 percent and stagnated for another decade. By the 1990s, inflation had reached 1,000 percent in countries like Brazil, and the poor suffered exponentially. Large economies including Mexico, Argentina and Brazil languished, and up to half of Latin Americans slid into poverty. It will augur well for India and its political stakeholders to imbibe the lessons of Latin America and how the first generation of fiscal reforms introduced in Latin America introduced political stability in the early 2000s. Going down the same path as Latin America may result in a ‘lost decade’ for India also.
The problem with freebies is a political one; the way out is simple: all parties (at the Centre and in states) sit down together and draw a list of don’ts, a negative list of things that none of them would do. With states running astray, it is the responsibility of the Centre to work together with states to advocate fiscal conservatism while ensuring states still retain their freedom in the spirit of federalism. This requires the Centre to walk a tightrope and requires strong visionary leadership at the helm. More emphasis and confidence should be placed in the legislation already in place to check fiscal spending which is the FRBM Act.
Constructive debate and discussions in Parliament are difficult since the freebie culture has an impact on every political party, whether directly or indirectly. Therefore, judicial involvement is required in order to propose measures. The Election Commission of India can anticipate enforcing the ‘Model Code of Conduct’ for ‘Guidance of Political Parties and Candidates’ effectively to regulate election manifestos in order to prevent the manipulation of informed voter behavior.
Since getting elected is not a license to kill, the elected representatives must not act arbitrarily. The system of monarchy and practicing democracy have a clear distinction, wherein in the latter system the leader is accountable for all the actions, while in office including the finances and its management. In India, many regional and even national leaders consider themselves the incarnation of god. The reckless way these leaders spend public money is just unacceptable in an orderly society and there have to be reasonable restrictions to be imposed on them while they systematically corrupt the society by offering freebies over quality governance, so as to safeguard the macro interest of the society and the growth of the country.
In 1885, with the intent to provide a public platform and facilitate the process of nation-building, the Indian national congress was established. The party continued to receive overwhelming support from the people after independence and assumed the figure of an “umbrella party”, however especially in the past decade the party‘s image has plummeted and has invited a lot of criticism due to the prolonged leadership of Gandhi’s. The once-called umbrella party is now struggling hard to avert tiny rain showers also.
Undoubtedly, the party‘s leadership for the past 24 years has remained in the hands of Gandhi‘s. After Sitaram Kesri‘s tenure, the party has been headed by Sonia Gandhi and for a momentary period of two years by Rahul Gandhi. As a part of the reform, the party has decided to change the president but I argue that this might generate aversive consequences and a “win-win” situation for other political groups.
Consequences for this move:
The first implication of changing the party President can be the “generation of factions” in the party. By shifting the leadership, I believe that there will be two sets of loyalists, out of which one would be loyal to the party President and another one to the Gandhi‘s. This will generate a rift in power-sharing. Also, whether the new President will be independent or not is a big question. The independent sphere of the party head is necessary otherwise changing the party supremo won’t make any sense.
Whether the decisions taken by the Party Supremo will be implemented by the office bearers or not is another challenge. The party has substantial leaders and Gandhi’s aren’t considered one of them but above them. And when they will step-aside than these substantial leaders will act according to the party President or not is a crucial issue because the new head of the Indian National Congress will be among the substantial leaders and these senior leaders will continue to see him either as their colleague or as head of INC will decide the course of the party.
Also, on one hand, Bharat Jodo Yatra is receiving support from people at large under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, simultaneously the party is awaiting the arrival of a new leader. When the Yatra is receiving a formidable response then it is the right time when Rahul Gandhi should be portrayed as a leader and savior ( Massiha) who will end the trouble of people. This Yatra has offered an opportunity not a certainty to the party. But at the same time, elections within the party will put the people in a “state of confusion” that, about whom they should look at as their Prime Ministerial candidate. For instance, Bharatiya Janata Party portrayed PM Modi as the face upon which the party contested elections in 2014 and 2019. Such a clear image also has to be bestowed by Indian National Congress. Meanwhile, Mallikarjun Kharge’s comment that “ If you survive in BakraEid, you will dance in Muharram” also points to the uncertainty on the party’s Prime Ministerial face.
Also, both the claimants in the race of Party Supremo come from South India. Mallikarjun Kharge from Karnataka and Shashi Tharoor from Kerala. While looking at the current scenario, the party needs to be strengthened in the north Indian states because here, the party has a lesser appeal in comparison to the South. Next month Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh and next year Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh as well as Rajasthan are about to witness elections and in such circumstances the Party Supremo if replaced, then should have been from the north, but no leader from the North is in the race for the same. So, possibly there won’t be any great enhancement in the party‘s image in the north Indian States.
What the party today needs is a charismatic leader who can appeal to the people at large and who can connect with the people easily. But on one hand, Mallikarjun Kharge, who is an aged politician and is not in a position of speaking Hindi and English properly, and on another hand, Shashi Tharoor, who is an elite English-speaking leader is contesting the elections. The party is also doing a differential treatment towards one of the candidates in the race due to “unknown reasons “ which raises the question are these elections democratic. Kharge has been declared the official candidate of the party and is being warmly welcomed by the representatives of INC in different states. Moreover, Ashok Gehlot‘s U-turn from the race and KN Tripathi‘s nomination rejection represents a lack of fairness and will invite consequences within the party.
Lastly, in the process of election, only party delegates are casting their votes with minimal options. Elections could have involved party members at block, Zila and state levels also but, such arrangements have been absent.
Mending the party‘s position through reforms is important. But, when Gandhi's are serving as the head, then they are criticised for leadership and for generating anti-incumbency and when someone else is about to become the head of the party, then also it may result in severe consequences which I mentioned in the article. Due to this, it seems like BJP is in a win-win situation. However, the party needs to remember that trends and voting pattern changes with time and it can get back on track again by working on grass root level and by making a leader who is respected by all as the face of the next elections.
A national conference highlighting the contribution of saints in the preservation of nature and culture was organized at Raj Bhawan, Uttarakhand. Governor of Uttarakhand Lt. General (Retd.) Gurmeet Singh hosted the “National Conference on Contribution of Saints in the Preservation of Nature and Culture”.
Yoga Guru Swami Ramdev, Swami Advaitananda Giri, Chairman of International Meditation Foundation,Swami Chidanand Saraswati President of Parmarth Niketan, Acharya Dr. Lokesh Muni President World Peace Centre, and Chairman of Dream & Beauty Charitable Trust Anil Monga were among those who attended the national conference.
Speaking at the event, Governor of Uttarakhand Lt. General (Retd.) Gurmeet Singh said: “All the great beings like Lord Mahavir, Guru Nanak Dev Ji, etc. gave the message of preservation of Nature and Environment. I am glad that today a ceremony has been organized at Raj Bhavan on the Renunciation Day of a saint who has dedicated his whole life to the protection and promotion of nature and culture.”
Chairman of International Meditation Foundation Swami Advaitananda Giri highlighted the contribution and role of saints in preservation of nature and the promotion of real education. He appreciated the tireless work of Acharya Dr. Lokesh Muni to bring peace, trust & communal harmony to the world by walking twenty thousand kilometers bare feet.
Swami Advaitananda Giri said: “Education is, that which Liberates. Education is that which leads us to the flowering of our utmost potential as human beings. If what we study in our schools and colleges is Education, then education must lead us to a loving, truthful, compassionate life. Education should not be limited to means of livelihood only, it should teach us how to live life to its fullest potential.” Swami Advaitananda Giri stated that “the aim of education should not be to impart literacy and skills to enable them to earn a livelihood only but the overall objective of education should be to develop children as good human beings with life skills.”
Swami Advaitananda Giri further added that “Every child should plant a tree, and to grow the tree he should get marks in the education system. Govt. of India started doing it in central schools, it should be done in all the state govt. owned schools and private schools as well. The budget given to the forest department should be given for growing a tree, not just for planting a tree.
Speaking at the event Swami Ramdev said, “one can have one acre of land in some areas where it’s not so expensive, have a small house in it, you can grow what you need in one acre sufficiently, you can have a few cows for milk and life is well settled. Rest one can go on behind desires and there is no end to it.”
Anil Monga, Chairman of Dream & Beauty Charitable Trust, said “the way Swami Ramdev contributed and brought Yoga back into everyday life to millions worldwide, and the way Adi-guru Shankaracharya re-established the Sanatana dharma, we need to have a vision of that type to address current days challenges to uplifting humanity. Hunger alleviation, care for Orphan children especially after covid, care for senior citizens, Livelihood for vulnerable youth in rural areas, and Healthcare for most marginal people like in the slums inspire me and I will continue to work on it as DBC Trust has been working on these agendas from the last 27 years.”
In 1885, with the intent to provide a public platform and facilitate the process of nation-building, the Indian national congress was established. The party continued to receive overwhelming support from the people after independence and assumed the figure of an “umbrella party”, however specially in the past decade the party‘s image has plummeted and has invited a lot of criticism due to the prolonged leadership of Gandhi. The once-called umbrella party is now struggling hard to avert tiny rain showers also.
Undoubtedly, the party‘s leadership for the past 24 years has remained in the hands of Gandhi. After Sitaram Kesri‘s tenure, the party has been headed by Sonia Gandhi and for a momentary period of two years by Rahul Gandhi. As a part of the reform, the party has decided to change the president but I argue that this might generate aversive consequences and a “win-win” situation for other political groups.
Consequences for this move:
The first implication of changing the party President can be the “ generation of factions” in the party. By shifting the leadership, I believe that there will be two sets of loyalists, out of which one would be loyal to the party President and another one to the Gandhi‘s. This will generate a rift in power-sharing. Also, whether the new President will be independent or not is a big question. The independent sphere of the party head is necessary otherwise changing the party supremo won’t make any sense. Whether the decisions taken by the Party Supremo will be implemented by the office bearers or not is another challenge. The party has substantial leaders and Gandhi’s aren’t considered one of them but above them. And when they will step-aside than these substantial leaders will act according to the party President or not is a crucial issue because the new head of the Indian National Congress will be among the substantial leaders and these senior leaders will continue to see him either as their colleague or as head of INC will decide the course of the party.
Also, on one hand, Bharat Jodo Yatra is receiving support from people at large under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, simultaneously the party is awaiting the arrival of a new leader. When the Yatra is receiving a formidable response then it is the right time when Rahul Gandhi image should be portrayed as a leader and saviour( Massiha) who will end the trouble of people. This Yatra has offered an opportunity not a certainty to the party. But at the same time, elections within the party will put the people in a “state of confusion” that, about whom they should look at as their Prime Ministerial candidate. For instance, Bharatiya Janata Party portrayed PM Modi as the face upon which the party contested elections in 2014 and 2019. Such a clear image also has to be bestowed by Indian National Congress. Meanwhile, Mallikarjun Kharge’s comment that “ If you survive in BakraEid, you will dance in Muharram” also points to the uncertainty on the party’s Prime Ministerial face.
Also, both the claimants in the race of Party Supremo come from South India. Mallikarjun Kharge from Karnataka and Shashi Tharoor from Kerala. While looking at the current scenario, the party needs to be strengthened in the north Indian states because here, the party has a lesser appeal in comparison to the South. Next month Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh and next year Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, as well as Rajasthan, are about to witness elections and in such circumstances the Party Supremo if replaced, then should have been from the north, but no leader from the North is in the race for the same. So, possibly there won’t be any great enhancement in the party‘s image in the north Indian States.
What the party today needs is a charismatic leader who can appeal to the people at large and who can connect with the people easily. But on one hand, Mallikarjun Kharge, who is an aged politician and is not in a position of speaking Hindi and English properly, and on another hand, Shashi Tharoor, who is an elite English-speaking leader is contesting the elections. The party is also doing a differential treatment towards one of the candidates in the race due to “unknown reasons “ which raises the question are these elections democratic. Kharge has been declared the official candidate of the party and is being warmly welcomed by the representatives of INC in different states. Moreover, Ashok Gehlot‘s U-turn from the race and KN Tripathi‘s nomination rejection represents a lack of fairness and will invite consequences within the party.
Lastly, in the process of election, only party delegates are casting their votes with minimal options. Elections could have involved party members at block, zila and state level also but, such arrangements have been absent.
Mending the party‘s position through reforms is important. But, when Gandhi’s are serving as the head, then they are criticised for leadership and for generating anti-incumbency and when someone else is about to become the head of the party, then also it may result in severe consequences which I mentioned in the article. Due to this, it seems like BJP is in a win-win situation. However, the party needs to remember that trends and voting pattern changes with time and it can get back on track again by working on grass root level and by making a leader who is respected by all as the face of next elections.
What is Global Warming?
Every one of us is familiar with the term Global Warming. But, we are still not clear on its meaning. Hence, in layman’s language, global warming means a gradual rise in the overall temperature of the Earth’s atmosphere. There are various activities taking place which have been increasing the temperature gradually. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the global annual temperature has increased in total by a little more than 1*C. Controlling global warming; however, is not unmanageable. The first and foremost step in controlling global warming is to identify its root cause.
Causes of Global Warming: It can be either 1) Natural like the release of greenhouse gases, or the eruption of volcanoes etc. 2) Man-made including fossil fuel, intensive farming, waste disposal, overconsumption, mining, excessive use of automobiles etc.
Effects of Global Warming:1) The increase in temperature and climate change disturbs the animal and plant reproduction cycle resulting in the disappearance of many endangered and endemic species of plants and animals.
2) Melting of ice at poles
3) Increase in the sea level
4) Scarcity of food and energy for consumption
5) Untimely and excess floods, drought, hurricanes, cloud bursts etc
Prevention of Global Warming :
Overcoming global warming is not an impossible task, but it can be controlled or stopped when combined efforts are put in. For that, both individuals and governments have to take steps to make it possible.
Ours is a vast country with the biggest geographical area spread from Kashmir to Kanyamkumari and from Gujarat to Assam. At every point or corner of this country, there are many means and ways, where we can work to reduce global warming to restore the balance of nature.
For this, firstly we have to carry out a detailed study of the weather and soil condition of these areas and should grow commercial and traditional trees suitable to that habitat.
Secondly, there was a time, when our country was abundant in rivers and lakes. Now with the passage of time and in the name of development, deforestation took place by cutting trees and plants. This has resulted in lesser rain and the death of rivers and lakes. So, in order to restore these, all rivers are to be recharged and bought to life.
Thirdly, the boring of wells in hilly areas should be banned and stopped. Due to boring activity in hilly areas, the moisture level of soil below the ground becomes lower resulting in the weakening of the roots of the trees which leads to the uprooting of trees. All these results in the devastating of hills and the felling of mountainous rocks. To overcome this, we should build a retaining wall along the border of these hills while developing roads. Once these retaining walls are built, they will prevent the fall of these mountainous rocks and helps in maintaining the moisture of the soil. Also, provisions should be made to grow more and more creepy plants along these to hold the soil tightly and properly.
Fourthly, mangroves should be developed and maintained below the sea, so that the sea animals, reptiles, amphibians, and creatures should sustain their life and can maintain the ecology of nature. With all these, we can reduce global warming of the earth and can restore the balance of nature for future generations.
Apart from all these, other common ways and means to reduce global warming are:
1) Reduction of greenhouse gas.
2) Moving towards renewable energy like solar, wind, biomass etc.
3) Use of energy-efficient equipment and water-saving techniques.
4) Encouraging the use of more and more public transport and carpooling.
5) Reducing CO2 by implementing electric and hybrid vehicles.
6) Reducing CO2 from building by using the sustainable infrastructure.
7) Develop a responsible consumption habit, may it be food, clothing, cosmetics etc.
8) Encourage them to use more and more natural resources.
Toronto (Canada): 6 October 2022: The largest Bhagwad Gita Park outside India has been set up at Brampton City in Canada. Navratri & Dusshera were celebrated at various temples and community centers in Toronto and other cities of Canada.
Addressing the participants at Bharat Sevashram Sangha in Toronto, Mayor of Brampton Patrick Brown said “We have created the largest Bhagwad Gita Park outside India in our Brampton City. We hope that the Bhagwad Gita Park will help in transmitting the values of Gita among people. Bhagwad Gita teaches us selfless service & egoless-ness, Bhagwad Gita park is a symbol of that.” Mayor Patrick Brown further added “The Garba has started to celebrate in the streets now. People are wearing colorful and decorated clothes and dancing in the love of goddesses. Tonight nearly 8,000 people are celebrating Dusshera in Brampton.”
Speaking at the event Swami Advaitananda Giri, Chairman of the International Meditation Foundation said: “The Dusshera & Navratri festivities symbolize the victory of good over evil, light over darkness. From removing the toxins of the body to reducing lethargy and dullness of the mind, and deepening meditation, the auspicious festivities benefit us in many ways.” Swami Advaitananda Giri further stated: “These nine days are days of the feminine. From the data, it's evident that despite tremendous scientific advancement and prosperity created during the last century, western models of modern society are not bringing happiness, peace, and harmony to the people or the human societies of the world. Instead, it has caused stress, sleep disorder, anxiety and depression, violence, drug addiction, fears, and worries.
Swami Advaitananda Giri appealed to Mayor Patrick Brown “that the aim of education should not be limited to imparting literacy and skills to enable our children to earn a livelihood only but the overall objective of education should be to develop children as good and skill-full human beings. Children should learn art to lead their lives. They should be continuously trained to be loving, honest, generous, and accountable human beings.”
Apoorva Srivastava, Consulate General of India, Toronto, Canada stated that Swami Advaitananda Giri’s vision to imbibe Sanskar in our children is the need of this time. The development of human values among children is a prerequisite for building a harmonized and peaceful society which is also a pre-condition for the overall development of the nation and harmony in the whole world.
Freebie culture is blamed on political elites only however, bureaucrats drafting policy are left scot-free. The Judicial system conveniently ignores its responsibility to correct the course since it will displease the political class and off course, the media will never discuss the issue since the government advertisement inflow will be hurt. The poor taxpayers of the country enjoy the visual site by watching their own elected government ripping hard-earned money to be distributed to large sections of the population seeking the comfort of sitting at home since the government has no vision to generate employment for a dignified living. It is all about failed governance and bribing voters to overcome this monumental failure.
In 2009, the Congress government led by Manmohan Singh waived off Rs 70000 crore of farmer’s loans to win the general elections, and in 2019 - the Modi government announced a Rs 6,000 gift to all farmers in India, both were hailed as political masterstrokes. When opposition parties announce similar schemes ahead of any assembly elections, our mainstream media write editorials against ‘freebies’ and ask questions about their financial feasibility. Pundits fulminate on Twitter about how we are sliding into ‘socialism’ and why such sops kill productivity and innovation.
The bigger question is why do political parties need to promise sops to the poor before every election? The answer lies in the utter failure of our economic policies to create a decent livelihood for a vast majority of Indians. If anything, both the RBI-KLEMS estimates for employment since 1981, and the employment surveys done by the Centre for Monitoring India’s Economy (CMIE) since 2016, have shown that employment growth initially slowed down from the 1990s, and then has turned negative over the past few years. It is obvious that if people don’t earn enough to get two square meals a day, they will be unlikely to vote governments back into power.
Real income growth of the bottom 30% of Indians slowed down from 1992 when India first began ‘opening up’ and ‘liberalising’ its economy by encouraging the private sector. At the same time, this income had to be reoriented towards spending a disproportionately higher amount on education and health, from which, the state increasingly withdrew. The poor today also spend on things that appear to be luxuries; cellphones and data-packs are two such examples that are shown as signs of India’s increased affluence. In reality, these have become essentials in the gig economy, where mobile numbers act as permanent addresses for itinerant workers, where they can be contacted by potential employers. For migrant workers, the mobile phone helps them keep in touch with their families back home, or do a quick video-call to see how their infant is learning to sit up or crawl.
If we take CMIE’s latest employment data, we find that less than 38% of Indians above the age of 15 had paid work in December 2021. The situation wasn’t significantly better before Covid hit us. In February 2020, less than 39% had some sort of employment. ILO data suggests that the global average at that time was about 57%. A large number of Indians have got so used to not getting paid work that they have stopped looking for it altogether.
Sadly, however, they have a vote. That means politicians cannot ignore them. This is why they must promise income support or subsidies on essentials, whether in cash or kind. These sops ensure that a majority of Indians can stay afloat in a fiercely difficult economic environment. Without this, they might throw governments out of power, or even begin to question what media and public culture feed them. A democracy that is controlled by a corporate-dominated ruling class requires popular support for its rule to continue. The sops and freebies to the poor buy it the requisite votes. It is a small price that India’s affluent have to pay to ensure the economy continues to disproportionately reward them.
The political parties in India try to outdo each other in luring the Indian voters with assorted goodies called freebies. This trend has gained more momentum in recent times with the political parties being innovative in their offerings as the ‘traditional free water and electricity is no longer sufficient as election goodies. The political dialogue built around freebies is fraught with danger as it shakes the root of free and fair elections to a large degree. The unviable pre-election promises adversely affect the informed decision-making by voters. This calls for fixing the gaps in the design, execution and accountability of freebie culture.
Focus on Skill Development Rather than Freebies: Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime. It is always better to provide useful skills to people than to give them freebies. The subsidies for basic necessities such as giving free education to younger children and offering free meals at schools are rather positive approaches. If the political parties go for effective economic policies where the welfare schemes have a good reach to the targeted population, then infrastructure and development will take care of themselves and the people will not require such kinds of freebies.
In fact, the country has already suffered a great deal of damage because of freebies. Unfortunately, all parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), indulge in irresponsible populism and mad welfarism. While there can be justification for free education and healthcare, there can be no justification for the distribution of grinders, washing machines, television sets, laptops, subsidised pilgrimages, free electricity, farm loan waivers, and so on. It is not that nobody earlier warned against the consequences of populism. In May 2019, a few days before the results of the general elections were declared, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das underlined the problems with state finances. A November 2021 RBI report also flagged farm loan waivers as a major concern. A few months ago, 15th Finance Commission chairman NK Singh strongly berated the economics and politics of freebies and populism. It is a “race to the bottom” and “a quick passport to fiscal disaster.”
How does freebie culture threaten to hurt India's story?
The results are for all to see. A recent RBI study said, “We can identify a core subset of highly stressed states from among the 10 states identified by the necessary condition i.e., the debt/GSDP ratio. The highly stressed states are Bihar, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengal.” GSDP is the state GDP. The states with the highest debt-to-GSDP ratio in 2021-22 include Punjab at 53.3%, Rajasthan at 39.8%, West Bengal at 38.8%, Kerala at 38.3% and Andhra Pradesh at 32.4% whereas the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act recommended a debt-to-GDP ratio of 20% for state governments (40% for the Centre) by the financial year 2022-23. This level of debt is extremely concerning and is largely the result of committed expenditure and subsidies under populist schemes coupled with slow growth in revenues.
Most of the states, however, post a healthy picture of their finances which is aided by the fact that much of the borrowing that funds these freebies happens off-budget, beyond the pale of FRBM tracking. The States borrow on the books of their public enterprises, by pledging future revenues to the State as a guarantee. Effectively, the burden of debt is on the State exchequer, albeit well concealed. This fact has been highlighted by the Comptroller & Auditor General and ex RBI governors from time to time.
The debt-GSDP ratio of Punjab is the worst — and worsening. Instead of being concerned that the state debt to GSDP ratio has not gone below 40% for the past 6 years, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government instead announces that around 51 lakh households won’t pay any electricity bills from September. This is in accordance with the AAP’s election promise of 600 units of free power per billing cycle starting from 1 July 2022.
A case in point is Latin America which provides key learning lessons on populist politics. Populism was active during the 1920s through to the 1970s, when the working poor united behind icons like Brazil’s Getúlio Vargas and Argentina’s Juan Perón over their dissatisfaction with industrialisation. Populist governments resorted to inflationary financing to grant benefits to the poor.
By the 1980s, uncontrolled public spending resulted in excessive fiscal deficits, unsustainable public debt and intractable inflation. Latin America’s ‘Lost Decade’ followed. Growth, at 5.6% in the 1970s, shrunk to 1.3% and stagnated for another decade. By the 1990s, inflation had reached 1,000% in countries like Brazil, and the poor suffered exponentially. Large economies including Mexico, Argentina and Brazil languished, and up to half of Latin Americans slid into poverty. It will augur well for India and its political stakeholders to imbibe the lessons of Latin America and how the first generation of fiscal reforms introduced in Latin America introduced political stability in the early 2000s. Going down the same path as Latin America may result in a ‘lost decade’ for India also.
CORRECTIVE ACTION AND STEPS
The problem with freebies is a political one; the way out is simple: all parties (at the Centre and the State level) sit down together and draw a list of don’ts, a negative list of things that none of them would do. With states running astray, it is the responsibility of the Centre to work together with States to advocate fiscal conservatism while ensuring States still retain their freedom in the spirit of Federalism. This requires the Centre to walk a tightrope and requires strong visionary leadership at the helm. More emphasis and confidence should be placed in the legislation already in place to check fiscal spending which is the FRBM Act.
FRBM Amendment: The FRBM, being comprehensive legislation, which was passed to curb fiscal profligacy also needs to be amended to ensure that state governments disclose their complete liabilities including explicit guarantees and any other servicing obligation.
Judicial Intervention: Constructive debate and discussions in parliament are difficult since the freebie culture has an impact on every political party, whether directly or indirectly. Therefore, judicial involvement is required in order to propose measures. The Supreme Court has recently recommended creating an apex authority to provide recommendations on how to regulate gifts given out by political parties.
ECI Model Code of Conduct: The Election Commission of India can anticipate enforcing the Model Code of Conduct For Guidance of Political Parties and Candidates effectively to regulate election manifestos in order to prevent the manipulation of informed voter behavior.
Change the type of expenditure: The author does not believe that all expenditure that results in a deficit is bad, however, the increasing trend of borrowing to finance revenue expenditure which does not create asset creation is concerning.
ROADMAP
Since getting elected is not a license to kill, the elected representatives must not act arbitrarily. The system of monarchy and practicing democracy have a distinction wherein in the latter system, the leader is accountable for all the actions taken in the seat of power including the finances and its management. In India, many regional and even national leaders consider themselves the incarnation of god. The reckless way these leaders spend public money is just unacceptable in an orderly society and there have to be reasonable restrictions to be imposed on them while they systematically corrupt the society by offering freebies over quality governance to safeguard the macro interest of the society and the growth of the country.
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