India: A Country of Cheap Public-Gossips

There is nothing called public discourse in India; what exists is public-gossips. I may sound cynical, but I am simply frustrated by the complete silence in media/public forums on the issues that matter to the people– issues that are related to the development of people and their quality of life – how India is generating resources and preparing itself for the present and future challenges – what systematic reforms are required and carried out in order to establish transparency and accountability at each level of governance. The Planning Commission of India lists “Twelve Strategy Challenges” for the 12th five year plan (2012-17):

1. Enhancing the Capacity for Growth

2. Enhancing Skills and Faster Generation of Employment

3. Managing the Environment

4. Markets for Efficiency and Inclusion

5. Decentralisation, Empowerment and Information

6. Technology and Innovation

7. Securing the Energy Future for India

8. Accelerated Development of Transport Infrastructure

9. Rural Transformation and Sustained Growth of Agriculture

10. Managing Urbanization

11. Improved Access to Quality Education

12. Better Preventive and Curative Health Care

More details about this list can be obtained here: http://12thplan.gov.in/displayforum_list.php

My cynicism stems from the following experiment:

• On any day go to any of these Indian Media (print/TV) sites

       o NDTV

       o CNN-IBN

       o Aaj Tak

       o India TV

       o Hindustan Times

       o The Times of India

       o DNA

       o The Indian Express

• Count stories/articles/videos which are relevant to India’s strategic-challenges in12th plan as mentioned above.

I have attempted this experiment and have had results varying between 2%-20%. And when I counted articles/reports based on any research studies, there was none. You can do the same experiment. There are hundreds of news-papers/channels, so pick up the one that interests you the most and start counting. I am sure your result will not be more different than that of mine.

It is a disheartening fact that the media is completely indulged in the cheap gossips of personalities of four areas – cricket, cinema, corporate, & politics. There is just not enough constructive discussion on issues that matter to you and me.

Nonetheless, I think media is in-a-way reflection of the society. Media’s dumbness points out that the masses are interested in a few people’s lives, and not in pondering how their own life will ameliorate.

Some people would argue that this status quo has been challenged by the unprecedented popularity of the new talk show “Satyamev Jayate”… But, to my mind, it only corroborates the fact that masses are so uninformed about what’s going on in their country. If you did not know about the wide spread problems of female feticide, child sexual abuse, or malpractices in healthcare, I wonder if you can be considered educated at-all!!! Do we really need Aamir to sensitize us? Can’t we be self-aware and fine-tune our actions in the direction of solutions???

Just in case if you are still in denial of Indian media's flaws, here's Mr Umesh Aggarwal’s documentary, “Brokering News”, released by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT) that exposes the depth of corruption in the mainstream media. It shows corruption in the political coverage of elections, news on business and industry and even movie reviews.

   Directed by Umesh Aggarwal
  Assistant Director & Editor – Naveen Samhotra

  Script – Anirban Bhattacharya

  Narration – Roshan Set

Can BJP replace Congress?

It is no secret anymore. People of India are very frustrated by the UPA (United Progressive Alliance), and especially, the Congress party. By all accounts, the present central government of India is perceived to the most corrupt government of all time. In addition, the country desperately needs urgent proactive measures in almost all sectors, whether it is human resource development, public health-care, agriculture, infrastructure development, defense & internal security, or economy in-general. The economic growth projections are falling; and it is said that we’d be lucky to touch 6.5% -7% by end of 2012; whereas the planning commission desires growth-rate of 10% sustained throughout 2012-2017 for the 12th plan (more info: http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/planrel/12appdrft/appraoch_12plan.pdf). How the heck are you going to do that and provide funding for all ambitious projects? Making the things worse, the Congress-led government is simply dysfunctional... The prime minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, and the UPA chair-person, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, who are directly accountable for the mess, are hiding away from the media for years now [in fact, I highly doubt if the main-stream media would even take up issues that upset them, something which they have never done so far]. And the highly irritating Congress spokesmen (and women) who appear almost every day on talk shows (rather verbal WWE) have absolutely no listening skills, and foolishly keep pointing fingers elsewhere saying –“Ok… we (Congress-ies) all are dogs; but what about others being donkeys and calling themselves lions???”   
   
Amidst this grim scenario of the present Government of India, the thing that disheartens me more is how BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) is acting. In fact it does not act, it only reacts. The only other pragmatic option that any Indian has for replacing Congress at center is the BJP. But the party does not have its basics right. It simply lacks a strong leader at center. Its standard response is –“We all are lions; and after hunting those dogs (in elections) we shall decide the king”. 


My response to them: 
Arre bhai, haven’t you heard that story? 
A group of lions led by none 
gets defeated by the group of dogs led by one. 


The leadership matters. The reason why you lost last election is mainly because of your poor prime ministerial candidate choice, Mr. Advani. With all due respect, that person simply does not have the charisma of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Some people are suggesting Narendra Modi’s name. Frankly, if India has a system of primary elections (within party) for BJP’s prime ministerial candidacy like the US has for president-ship, quite undoubtedly, Modi would win it (as pointed out by Swapan Dasgupta). However, keeping in mind India’s diversity, international relations, and how Modi is perceived nationwide, that maybe an extremely fatal step. The Congress’ campaign will be completely negative and the entire liberal-class will join-in naming him “Hitler” & “Merchant of death”; and your total energy will be lost into defending him rather than targeting Congress for its mis-governance and massive corruptions. Reserve him for the future though, as public perceptions may change over time. For the present, how about someone like Sushma Swaraj, or Arun Jaitley? Ms. Swaraj definitely has a public appeal; and her assertiveness will suit to your hard-liner supporters as well. Also, India hasn’t had a female prime minister for a few decades now. On the other hand, Mr. Jaitley is well known for his intellectual sharpness. Though he has not fought any Lok Sabha election, but what’s wrong with a prime minister from Rajya Sabha? If any of these two take a complete charge of the party, and if entire BJP carry out coherent attack on the government, we may very well see early elections, may be within an year. 


Another big fault-line in BJP is the mismatch between ideology and actions. Ideologically, it claims to be a nationalistic, progressive, and pro-market (and minimum government interference) party. However, it behaves as an opportunistic one. A few examples:
• When Vajpayee was in power, the relations with the US significantly improved despite the nuclear tests. It would have been his government’s top priority to convince the Americans that India is ready for civil nuclear deal. However, when BJP set in opposition, it vehemently opposed the deal.
• Fact that a party which talks about including private players and opening up markets can oppose opening up of retail sector is simply not digestible.
• Again in Vajpayee era, Indo-Pak relations improved dramatically despite the Kargil war and attacks on parliament. But, now BJP completely opposes even to have dialogs with Pakistan. Why this mood-swing?   


Despite innumerous loopholes the government is surviving only because the opposition is not addressing its inner fault-lines. At state level, BJP led NDA (National Democratic Alliance) governments are doing a much better job whether it is in Gujarat, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh or Karnataka (more info: http://www.thesundayindian.com/en/story/NDA-states-better-than-Cong-led-states/254/29560/) as compared to congress-led states. However, if BJP wants to secure its position at national level, it has to fix its house in order first. It seems that BJP has realized that inclusive developmental politics is the key. No nonsense issues like Temple & Mosque anymore, please... Let’s focus on Human Development Index and Knowledge Development Index. If you still want to argue, let’s educate all, improve health of all, and ameliorate everyone’s life-style, first, and then we can continue arguments like the developed nations do.  

Satyamev Jayate – Truly honoured to be part of this connection

It’s almost 2am. I am supposed to submit a research paper-draft to one of my colleagues tomorrow; and so far, I have prepared only a rough version. I need to and I really want to work on it. But, something happened this evening and my mind has been completely occupied since then. One of my friends had sent me a youtube link of the theme song of Aamir Khan’s Satyamev Jayate in the afternoon. I did not pay much attention to it then, as I was analyzing data. But, in the evening I watched it in a complete isolation at home and went through something inexplicable. Even after the video was over, I remained motionless for a few moments, and then tears started blurring my vision. I am not the kind of guy who cries easily. Now that I have resettled, in order to make sense of the turmoil in my mind, I am writing this article. 

Prasoon Joshi, you are one of the most gifted people on this planet. You have found words to express something that people like me have always struggled with expressing. In fact you not only touch the depth, but you also cover the entire construct of being in love with the collective conscience of fellow countrymen.  The beauty is that you have addressed the song saying “Tu” (meaning ‘you’), and that’s sufficient for conveying the meaning. It is a personal conversation between ‘you’ and ‘me’, underscoring the closeness of the relationship. You had done this earlier in the song “Maa” from Taare Zameen Par, and the magic is working here as well. 

The common mistake that I make at times in wishing very best for India is that I want India to look great so that I can call myself a proud Indian. In this case, I am waiting for the collective conscience to do a more positive posturing, while I sit back and relax. I forget to check that if I am not contributing positively, am I eligible to be part of this collective conscience? What is my contribution? I have only remained insignificant for most parts. Nevertheless, India does not kick me out from its collective conscience. The belongingness for me is unconditional. Even if I change passports, my soul is always networked to that collective-soul. Of course, there are some fault-lines and challenges associated with this connection. But, those things are absolutely nothing as compared to the warmth that this connection provides. I am indeed honoured to take the responsibility for bridging those fault-lines. Yes, this demands self-purification, which is painful, but I am highly obliged by and grateful for that connection. This central idea of being humble and striving to be worthy of this unconditional   connection redefines patriotism in current times.  

Ram Sampath, this composition of yours is right on the cards for becoming not only a commercial, but an emotional super hit as well. With a marvellous mixture of a catchy tune with moments of percussion-less rhythm, it will definitely capture imaginations of everyone from children to old age people. Fusion of soft rock with a shade of Sufi, usage of guitars with Rajasthani morchang, very well represent the sound of modern diverse India. 

Lastly, Aamir, I cannot thank you and your creative team enough for providing such precious visuals. I have always wondered – there are innumerable divisive forces in India (e.g., caste, religion, language, regionalism, class, gender and so on), but what are the cohesive forces? How is India maintaining social cohesion? This video answers this big question in less than 5mins. 

This video has fuelled in me the desire for making myself worthy of the incredible connection with the collective conscience of fellow human beings; and has reminded me that as along as my commitment is true, I am guaranteed succeed – “Satyamev Jayate”.

   Composer: Ram Sampath
   Lyricist: Prasoon Joshi
   Singers: Keerthi Sagathia and Ram Sampath
   Production House: Aamir Khan Productions Pvt.Ltd.                                            
   Music: T-Series