Rajiv Dixit was an Indian scientist, orator, and and one of the leaders of the modern Swadeshi movement in India. As a scientist he worked with Dr. Kalam, then in France in the telecommunications, before dedicating his entire life in the service of Mother India. For the last 20 years he has been promoting the concept of Indian Swadeshi (self-sufficiency) from foreign goods and businesses. He is known for his associations with Azadi Bachao Andolan and Bharat Swabhimaan Andolan.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
A Tribute to Rajiv Dixit (30 Nov 1967 - 30 Nov 2010)
Rajiv Dixit was an Indian scientist, orator, and and one of the leaders of the modern Swadeshi movement in India. As a scientist he worked with Dr. Kalam, then in France in the telecommunications, before dedicating his entire life in the service of Mother India. For the last 20 years he has been promoting the concept of Indian Swadeshi (self-sufficiency) from foreign goods and businesses. He is known for his associations with Azadi Bachao Andolan and Bharat Swabhimaan Andolan.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Impact of Corruption in India
Definition:
Corruption is not just an exchange of money between two persons. It is misuse of public office for private gain. Taking money in a dowry is not a corruption its an extortion. Congress party recently accused Ramdev Baba that he is corrupt because he accepts black money and they didn’t have any explanation. Only reason they said is he accepts money in cash. Suppose a corrupt person with huge black money hires a taxi, and thus he pays the money to the taxi driver. Now since that taxi driver accepts that money cannot be called as corrupt. He doesn’t know about it and there is no misuse of office.
e.g. a) If a Police man gives you a parking ticket. Takes money and cancels your parking ticket that’s misuse of power and it is corruption. b) if a Minister gives license to a person who is not deserving. That is misuse of power and office and it is corruption.
Misuse of public office to deny the choice by merit. People who should get something on merit don’t get it. And people who don’t deserve get it because they pay money.
History:
The process of corruption started because of Jawaharlal Nehru’s wrong choice of policy of adopting Russian Soviet Union’s economic model. Which meant government control of everything.
Impact:
The impact of corruption is very wide spread and you would never image how our leaders have mastered the corruption by tweaking our laws for their own benefit. I would like to explain you certain simple examples on how corruption is eating our nation.
1. Govt raises a tender to construct a road, and its official announces that whoever wants the tender should pay him this much money. So the person who buys the tender will not be left with a choice to put quality road material as he doesn’t have enough money left since he has already paid huge money to the official. So he will use substandard material on the road, which will be washed away in one monsoon.
a. We have horrible roads in India, not because we don’t know how to build roads. We build the best roads in the world. Like Malaysia, Nigeria, Iraq. During president Bush visit American tanks went from Basra to Baghdad, Bush not knowing that the Indians had build that road in Iraq he complimented Saddam Hussian for it. Fact is, those roads are built by Indians. We build very good roads in the world except in India because of corruption. Because of the choice is not made through merit consequently substandard materials are served to the public. Electricity is not available there is power cut because of the corruption. Electricity is being stolen and to make up for you they give power cuts. So the public suffers because of the lack of choice on merit. Those who want to do things on merit are being discouraged. This is the first impact it demoralizes the public.
2. When you get huge money, you cant use cheque to spend it. Because it will be traced. What do you do with this money? Well there are many things which is being done now. You cant build a factory, because it will come under the notice of Income Tax. So you need to spend the money. You go and dine in five star hotels. You hold big weddings. You will put AC in every room including the bathroom. You buy six Mercedes cars. Buy corporate jets. These are something which ends up promoting luxury goods industry. The highest rates of return in Indians economy today are not producing clothes for the millions. Its not in producing food grains for the people. Its not in producing consumer goods which common man uses. The highest rates of return today is in Five Start hotels, Air Conditioners, luxury cars, etc. These are the places which is getting maximum returns. Thus the market forces to propel you to invest more and more in luxury goods and less and less in common mans goods. With which whole investment priorities of a country gets distorted. Today in India over 70% of our investments goes directly/indirectly in to producing luxury goods. This is unacceptable because so many people are poor and they require better life.
a. Similarly the money is being used now because forward trading is allowed in food grains and agricultural products. So when farmers bring their crop to the market the industrialist with black money or politicians with black money prevent the grains from entering in to market. They buy it and keep it in godowns and then the prices rise they sell. Because of such activity there causes inflation in the market. India is having a growth rate of 9% per year and Inflation rate is 16% per year. This is against the laws of economics. If the supplies expand the prices should come down. But in India supplies are expanding and prices are also going up.
3. Service charges on the huge deposits of our black money in Swiss banks had become a pain to our politicians. So they used to pay money to keep their money. To overcome this our honorable ministers have come up with an idea, to earn money out of this. Thus a new financial derivative was invented by Govt of India which is called Participatory Notes. Except India, no other country had this participatory Note in the World. What is this Participatory Note? You send your money by Hawala abroad and take that cash to some investment company. With that cash you will get a participatory Note from the investment company. Participatory Note is just a piece of paper with only amount written on it. With this Participatory note you will buy shares in India. After intimating RBI about the participatory note. This will be done by mutual funds. With this money infusion came in to the stock market raises the stock market prices suddenly. Once the stock market prices reaches the peak you will sell out yours stocks. With that money you get from stock broker (in Rupees) with that Participatory Note you will go to RBI and as per the law RBI should convert the entire amount in to foreign exchange and give it to you. And you can take it abroad. A law has been passed to exempt the Participatory Note examination by SEBI (Security Exchange Bureau of India) otherwise SEBI has right to question anyone if he/she is planning to buy/sell a share, like where is the money from etc. But on Participatory Note SEBI will never question.
a. There is one problem in this, it is capital gains tax. To avoid this our honorable minister (PC) has made a exemption if the money come via Mauritius route – since Mauritius is a poor country, brotherly country, we are going to exempt Mauritius. No capital gain tax on that route. Today Mauritius is the largest supplier of foreign investment to India. Larger than United States. Mauritius has nothing just beaches and gambling casinos. How can they invest so much? It is very straight forward. It is your money going by that route and coming back.
b. Thus stock market is being ricked, agriculture market is being ricked. Investment priorities are being ricked. The whole economy is being ricked and unstable. So we see lot of stock market collapse etc. Look at the impact of corruption it is not just a minister is getting money and getting rich. It is impacting whole economy.
c. National security is also impacts. Hawala transactions are usually done with the help of foreign organizations. Thus they know who is putting money abroad. So, they know whose money it is and where it is going. They can blackmail the you and know anything which they want about your country or security. RBI buys the currency papers from a England based company called Delaru but the Intelligence Bureau said not to buy it from Delaru because they sells the currency papers to even Pakistan. Thus Pakistan can ask to print Indian forged notes and bring it in India. ISI is supplying 15% of money supply in to India through fake currency notes. Thus these money is being used for financing and nurturing terrorists. So national security is begin affected. Once greed for money is growing you are prepared to do anything to get it.
d. This is what happened in 2G spectrum case. The amount of money is enormous. 1Lakh 76k thousand rupees loss to our nation. This is the magnitude of corruption being happening in India, because of the growing economy. How and what is this 2G spectrum? When you speak on cordless phone only your voice can go, in long cycles (as waves), whereas if you want to send emails and sms you needs to have higher frequency that is nothing but (Second Generation) 2G spectrum. Many people doesn’t know what is 2G, in fact Manmohan once said what is 2G, he said SoniaG and RahulG. So its higher waves frequency for more information. If you want to send videos or see each other while talking on phone then it needs 3G, which needs even higher range of frequency. So the sky has to be partitioned for each spectrums/sections. Since it is a limited resource, the demand goes up and the price for spectrum must go up. Raja and Chidambram were empowered to decide the price of the spectrum. They decided the spectrum will be given in 2008 at the price that was prevailing in 2001. The price in 2008 was ten times more as compared to 2001 prices. If it was sold at market price in 2008 then the country would have got 1Lakh 76k crores extra.
Corruption has become so much powerful that even opposition leaders are being taken care of. They don’t do anything, they don’t object. They just do a walkout. Because of corruption today our economy is distorted, development therefore affected, financing or terrorism is becoming possible. The impact of corruption is an extraordinary serious dimension we have to fight it now.
Note: This article is based on comments of Dr. Subramanian Swamy’s lecture at Hindu Mahasabha held at Houston, US July 2011.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
50 Plus Years of so called Independence.. A Deceit!!!
India is governed by Italian mafia rackets and not the so called Manmohan singh goverment. Dont believe me?? We are in a deep sleep. We are completely unaware of whats happening in Indian politics. For Us we feel it doesnt matter. But Read this article(linked below) written by Dr Subramanian Swamy(National President, Janatha Party). I hope you become aware. I know nowadays you all are spending lot of time in watching cricket for hours together. You can spend some time reading this extremely knowledgeble and trustworthy article given with artifacts and proofs. This situation was bestowed upon us, because of our negligence towards elections. How many of us voted last time? If you have voted, I really appreciate you, but few people including me have not voted. Reasons were many. As election Day is declared as a Holiday, educated cattle like us think its 'Our Day' to relax, watching some recorded cricket match again for that matter when hundereds of illeterate, hungry, Poor are standing in long queues to cast their votes. Now dont think they are voting the right person. They are voting the person who has distributed them money, liquir, and so on. Every time the percentage of people voting never crosses 50%. As a result, the elections are just a mere joke. Or should i say a very expensive joke rather. Because the money spent on the elections comes directly from your pockets. Remember filing your income tax returns? You might have lots of money to pay and that doesnt matter for you, as your CTCs might be sky high. But is this limited only to you. And are you not under the Inflation poking you every now and then. Are you okay with buying a coconut for 17 rs. Onions for 70 kg, garlic for 500 kg. Has anyone heard, in maharashtra a lad stole some garlic in a shop. Can you think of the coming disaster if this inflation continues. People killing each other for food. You might be buying all your grossary including vegetables and fruits in the super markets, flashing your sodexo's proudly? When you pick a packet, have you bothered to check the price om it. You buy it when its 100Rs. Next time the same packet you pick, and pay 200Rs for the same. These are the things we need to think on.We are all surrounded by Terriosism, Inflation, Corruption But still How can we be at so much ease? The only thing a common, educated person can do is cast a vote. But again you might argue on the theory of "Sab Chor Hai" which is more or less true. But i can assure you, The ruling party has crossed all the limits of being the most corrupt party of india. Now we can say "Brick is softer than a Hard Rock". So lets opt for a brick for time being to atleast put a break on this. You might have seen on the news, how people's power moved Egypt and Libya. I wrote these words after reading the below article, which i am passing on to you to read and decide by yourself. I expect you to pass this on to your near and dear ones, to your friends, to everyone you know. This is not just a forward, I have spent some time searching it on net, and framing a mail. You can go to http://www.hindujagruti.org/ site for a more detailed version of this article with proofs.
Jai Hind!!!
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Fertilizer: A slow poision?
आपने इस बारेमे कभी सोचा भी नहि होगा। हम लोग गेहरे अन्धेरे मे है। जो direct आर्थिक लूट हमारे देश कि हो रहि है उसके बारेमे हम सब् सचेत हो गये है। लेकिन जो indirect लूट होराहि है, वो कुछः इसस प्रकार है।
हमारे किसानोमें कीट नाशको और खादो का दिनरात प्रचार कर, उन्हे मजबूर किया जा रहा है, bank से loan लेने के लिये। इन किसानोको कीट नाशको और खादो का उपयोग कर, उल्टे नुकसान हो रहा हैं। जिससे ये bank का loan चुकता नहि कर पाते, और bank उनका लोन माफ़् कर देति है। लेकिन अगर इस बारेमे आप गेहरायि से विचार करे तो पता चलेगा कि हमारी Govt इन् विदेशी कंपनियो पर मुफ्त में पैसा लूटा रही है। इसका सीधा मतलब ये हुआ की यहा फायदा ना हमारे किसान भाइयो का है ना हमारी सरकार का। इसमें तो फायदा है उन् विदेशी कंपनियो का जो आये दिन, हमारे किसान भाइयो को फुसलाकर इन् जेहारिले खाद और कीटनाशको की बिक्री को बढ़ा रहे है और देश का बहोत बड़ा आर्थिक नुक्सान करवा रहे है। इसके साथ हमारी उपजाऊ जमीनोंको बंजर बना रहे है। इस दुर्दशा के ज़िम्मेदार है हमारे ये भ्रष्ट नेता जिनको करोडो रुपियो की घूस, ये कंपनिया देरहीहै ।
Here is an article published on Hindu.com, which i found informative:
Fertilizer subsidy: what is good for the farmer and the farm?
Copy right Hindu - February 27, 2011
Is the chemical fertilizer-based food production system sustainable? As a result, what happens to the soil and the larger issue of food security?
The past debate and NBS
The government has been spending a huge amount of money to support chemical fertilizer production and its usage. It has touched almost a lakh crore in 2008-2009. This investment has always been under criticism as it was promoting an overuse of chemical fertilizers and thereby catalysing soil degradation. As a result, agricultural production in the bread baskets of the country has stagnated and even started to decline, posing a threat to the food security of the country. The drylands have never received the benefits of the crores of money being given out as fertilizer subsidy, as most farmers in these regions are, by default, organic as they cannot use chemical fertilizers; water being the limiting factor.
There have been concerns raised by several policy experts and others that the fertilizer policy of the country is only helping to move out the Indian tax payers' money to foreign petroleum companies and fertilizer producers. It is to be noted here that fertilizer production is highly dependent on fossil fuels, and that most fertilizers are imported.
In 2009, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee gave us a glimmer of hope when he announced a fertilizer subsidy reform and introduced the NBS system with a promise that the subsidy amount would be disbursed directly to farmers. In 2010, this policy was made effective, but there was no transfer of money to farmers. One year down the line, the NBS is proving to be a complete failure. Media reports point to the fact that after the introduction of the NBS, urea usage has gone up leading to a further degradation of the soil. Now, with the government increasing the fertilizer subsidy, it is also clear that the NBS has also failed to reduce the burden on the exchequer. It is neither helping the farmer nor the Government.
Soil degradation: farmers' view
In the mad rush to balance the chemical fertilizer kitty with global prices, policy makers are forgetting a huge problem that is staring us in the face — the deteriorating soil in the country and the resultant threat to food security. However farmers are aware of the crisis, but are helpless in the absence of support systems from the government. A recent Greenpeace India report, “Of Soils, Subsidies and Survival,” based on social audits conducted in five Indian States, has revealed that 96 per cent out of the 1,000 farmers surveyed were of the opinion that the use of chemical fertilisers led to soil degradation but they continue to use them as there was no other option. Ninety-four per cent of the surveyed farmers believed that only organic fertilisers can maintain soil health. However, only one per cent of the farmers received any kind of support for production and the use of organic fertilisers. Ninety-eight per cent of the surveyed farmers were ready to use organic fertilisers if they are subsidised and made easily available.
Further, only 34 per cent of them knew that chemical fertilisers are subsidised. Of those who knew, only seven per cent knew that a new subsidy system (NBS) was introduced by the government for chemical fertilizers. Even at the subsidised rate, 94 per cent of them thought that chemical fertilisers are unaffordable and not economical.
These are some of the eye-opening revelations that the government should look into. Whenever a fertilizer sop is announced, it is lauded as a farmer-friendly measure. But farmers are not even aware. They are more worried about the soil, a resource on which their livelihood is dependent. But the government tends to ignore this.
Support for alternatives
It is a well-accepted scientific fact that organic matter is the lifeline of the soil which is critical to maintain the health of this ecosystem. Measures have to be taken to promote the generation of sufficient biomass in a field to be added to the soil. Ecological fertilization offers a range of ways to nourish the soil, with no damage to the ecosystem, be it in irrigated or rainfed regions. Indian farmers were once aware of these practices. However with the mad promotion of chemical intensive agriculture in the country, invaluable, traditional knowledge has faded away. From a knowledge driven system, agriculture production in the country has become an external input–driven system. This is when the crisis started to emerge.
The agriculture research system in the country has always neglected an eco-friendly means of soil nutrition and never approached it in a holistic way. It has always revolved around a chemical intensive agricultural model. There is an impending need to refocus scientific research to identify the value of the traditional knowledge available with a farmer. Scientific research should go hand in hand with farmers' wisdom to help the country tide over the crisis.
The government should think about how long we can depend on a volatile fossil fuel-based agriculture system. How long can we be dependent on fertilizer imports? How long can we ignore the state of the soil in the country? And how long can we ignore a farmers' plight?
Now is the time for the government to start building an alternative support system which is both farmer and farm friendly. This can open up a lot of rural employment opportunities and contribute to the livelihood security of a farmer. This will also bring prosperity to rural India.
(The writer is Member of Parliament and former Union Minister of Rural Development.)
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Indian traditional Drinks or Caramel Tequila milkshake
You know what!!!!!! Baskin Robbin's Large Heath Bar Shake will take about 240 minutes of running on a treadmill to burn.
Found an interesting article today, that is worth to be shared. Here it is:
It's time to get back to masala chai and ragi malt… Indian traditional drinks that cleverly balance and blend a variety of flavours.
Caramel tequila milkshake anyone? A blend of vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, milk and a couple of shots of tequila it's seems perfect for our iron-pumping, vitamin-popping, club-hopping generation.
After all, grabbing a chilled glass of milkshake chunky with ice-cream seems so much more hip that sipping archaic ragi malt from a gaudy steel tumbler. You might as well trade your slick Schwarzkopf gels for sachets of herbal hair powder. Your assiduously-gelled Mohawk for jasmine-scented plaits. Your Swiss skiing holiday for a weekend in Pichavaram. Right?
Actually, they're all pretty good ideas. Now that we finally have the benefit of hindsight, we're realising that our grandparents — none of whom needed to spend every morning sweating over elliptical machines — had many of the answers to today's lifestyle dilemmas. Natural products for their hair and skin. Local holidays, easy on both the pocket and the environment (currently reeling under the soaring air miles of the migrating masses.) And far fewer dangerously empty calories.
Unlike today's kids, reeling under too much sugar, chocolate and additives, most of us were brought up on glasses of warm milk intelligently flavoured with healing ingredients. Calming turmeric sweetened with caramelly jaggery and stirred into your bedtime cuppa, perfect for the tense and sleep-deprived. Almond-honey milk, spiked with cardamom, which — amongst its other virtues — soothes the digestive system, strengthens the immune system and counters depression. Then there's that powerhouse of nutrients, good old ragi malt, — unapologetically bright, stubbornly dowdy and deliciously comforting.
People say food is one of the most powerful triggers for nostalgia. However, there's nothing quite as effective as a childhood drink to make you feel about 10 years old again. I was recently with a bunch of tough and appropriately cynical journalists at an old-fashioned Irani café, when one of them discovered rose milk on the menu. Despite mocking laughter and much bullying, he ordered it, stating that he, like many Malayali children grew up on tall glasses of after-school rose milk. The transformation was astounding: One minute he was belligerently arguing foreign policy, the next he was blissfully sipping his embarrassingly pink drink with a big, goofy smile.
Still not convinced? Fine, I'm bringing out the big guns. An average milkshake (or frappe/ cold coffee/ smoothie — call it what you want, it's still going to eventually give you the behind of a bus) contains anything from 300 to 1,000 calories, most of them empty. According to Yahoo Health, America's unhealthiest drink is a Baskin Robbin's Large Heath Bar Shake. It has 2,310 calories. That's will take about 240 minutes of running on a treadmill to burn.
Luxuriously creamy masala milk, on the other hand, is not just far less dangerous but also has benefits thanks to its Ayuvedically-approved ingredients: honey, saffron, cardamom and almonds. It might not be a dietician's dream beverage, but it certainly beats fattening yourself with the empty calories, additives and (quite often) corn syrup of conventional milkshakes. Even overly-indulgent thandaai includes healthy natural ingredients such as fennel, cloves, pistachio and melon seeds.
Indian traditional drinks are actually extremely sophisticated, cleverly balancing and blending a variety of flavours. They are also intelligently created, with each ingredient serving a purpose. Even the temperature's deliberate. Ever wondered why so many of our milk drinks are warm, while the western world celebrates chilled milk? Ayurveda states that cold, unspiced milk eaten with unsuitable food can be bad for health. Boiling milk makes it more easily digestible. The spices — cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and black pepper — also work better.
Naturopathy also promotes milk with ingredients such as grated nutmeg, coriander, fresh ginger and cardamom — depending on what your ailment is. They even suggest adding a couple of teaspoons of ghee to warm milk to aid sleep.
Yes, I know what you're thinking. Tequila will probably work as well. But no, that's the one thing I couldn't find in desi retro milk records. Sorry. Perhaps you can drown your sorrow in saffron-tinted masala chai instead?
...
Found an interesting article today, that is worth to be shared. Here it is:
It's time to get back to masala chai and ragi malt… Indian traditional drinks that cleverly balance and blend a variety of flavours.
Caramel tequila milkshake anyone? A blend of vanilla ice cream, caramel sauce, milk and a couple of shots of tequila it's seems perfect for our iron-pumping, vitamin-popping, club-hopping generation.
After all, grabbing a chilled glass of milkshake chunky with ice-cream seems so much more hip that sipping archaic ragi malt from a gaudy steel tumbler. You might as well trade your slick Schwarzkopf gels for sachets of herbal hair powder. Your assiduously-gelled Mohawk for jasmine-scented plaits. Your Swiss skiing holiday for a weekend in Pichavaram. Right?
Actually, they're all pretty good ideas. Now that we finally have the benefit of hindsight, we're realising that our grandparents — none of whom needed to spend every morning sweating over elliptical machines — had many of the answers to today's lifestyle dilemmas. Natural products for their hair and skin. Local holidays, easy on both the pocket and the environment (currently reeling under the soaring air miles of the migrating masses.) And far fewer dangerously empty calories.
Unlike today's kids, reeling under too much sugar, chocolate and additives, most of us were brought up on glasses of warm milk intelligently flavoured with healing ingredients. Calming turmeric sweetened with caramelly jaggery and stirred into your bedtime cuppa, perfect for the tense and sleep-deprived. Almond-honey milk, spiked with cardamom, which — amongst its other virtues — soothes the digestive system, strengthens the immune system and counters depression. Then there's that powerhouse of nutrients, good old ragi malt, — unapologetically bright, stubbornly dowdy and deliciously comforting.
People say food is one of the most powerful triggers for nostalgia. However, there's nothing quite as effective as a childhood drink to make you feel about 10 years old again. I was recently with a bunch of tough and appropriately cynical journalists at an old-fashioned Irani café, when one of them discovered rose milk on the menu. Despite mocking laughter and much bullying, he ordered it, stating that he, like many Malayali children grew up on tall glasses of after-school rose milk. The transformation was astounding: One minute he was belligerently arguing foreign policy, the next he was blissfully sipping his embarrassingly pink drink with a big, goofy smile.
Still not convinced? Fine, I'm bringing out the big guns. An average milkshake (or frappe/ cold coffee/ smoothie — call it what you want, it's still going to eventually give you the behind of a bus) contains anything from 300 to 1,000 calories, most of them empty. According to Yahoo Health, America's unhealthiest drink is a Baskin Robbin's Large Heath Bar Shake. It has 2,310 calories. That's will take about 240 minutes of running on a treadmill to burn.
Luxuriously creamy masala milk, on the other hand, is not just far less dangerous but also has benefits thanks to its Ayuvedically-approved ingredients: honey, saffron, cardamom and almonds. It might not be a dietician's dream beverage, but it certainly beats fattening yourself with the empty calories, additives and (quite often) corn syrup of conventional milkshakes. Even overly-indulgent thandaai includes healthy natural ingredients such as fennel, cloves, pistachio and melon seeds.
Indian traditional drinks are actually extremely sophisticated, cleverly balancing and blending a variety of flavours. They are also intelligently created, with each ingredient serving a purpose. Even the temperature's deliberate. Ever wondered why so many of our milk drinks are warm, while the western world celebrates chilled milk? Ayurveda states that cold, unspiced milk eaten with unsuitable food can be bad for health. Boiling milk makes it more easily digestible. The spices — cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and black pepper — also work better.
Naturopathy also promotes milk with ingredients such as grated nutmeg, coriander, fresh ginger and cardamom — depending on what your ailment is. They even suggest adding a couple of teaspoons of ghee to warm milk to aid sleep.
Yes, I know what you're thinking. Tequila will probably work as well. But no, that's the one thing I couldn't find in desi retro milk records. Sorry. Perhaps you can drown your sorrow in saffron-tinted masala chai instead?
...
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
India Drained - Act Now
Fast food, tobacco and alcohol are pouring into India, promoting a consumer culture. India should beware. It must not repeat the mistakes of the West.
India is so lively and refreshing. From here, the West looks somewhat old, gray and struggling. Indeed, India looks all set to regain the centrestage it occupied a few centuries ago. But while it is developing very fast and its elite is striving to match up with the West, is it not, at the same time, putting at stake much of its precious environment, culture, traditions and values? Of course, the great country has absorbed influences of many previous invaders and colonizers without losing its identity. But presently, its “westernization” seems to be taking place at a frightening speed.
Foreign trade delegations are rushing into the country even during the hottest months of the year. Starry-eyed businessmen, dressed in crisp black suits are hopping from one five-star hotel to another, cracking mega deals. Market scales and huge figures make them drool. They all want their chunk of the great Indian curry. However, the West is not always exporting its very best to India. Because it’s not just higher standards of safety or environmental friendliness, or valuable technologies and know-how that are flowing from the western world.
Fast food, tobacco, alcohol and toxic skin-whitening creams are pouring into India. This wave is promoting a western lifestyle based on consumerism, individualism and meaninglessness. And the pace of consumption is indeed picking up in India. Manufacturers of goods as different as cars, clothes or cellphones have noticed that in recent years the life cycle of products has shortened.
While the older generation of Indians would buy a new product only when the previous one’s useful life had ended, the young generation tends to fall for novelty. People want the latest generation of gadgets because they have more money and more access to such goods. But mostly, they are made to believe, by ever increasing and omnipresent publicity, that they will feel happier with the new product. To encourage this shopping frenzy, a quiet revolution is taking place in the form of rapidly increasing credit penetration.
For historical and cultural reasons, well-to-do Indians traditionally avoided indebting themselves. This may be one less talked about reasons why the country’s economy avoided major trouble during the recent crisis. Only 20 million Indians possess a credit card and personal loans represent about 10% of GDP. Whilst in most western economies, the latter account for approximately 100% of it. But all this is about to change with a booming credit industry.
These trends may be healthy ingredients for thriving capitalism. But they may not prove soothing for the soul. Even if they all possess their own television, car, washing machine and fridge, Westerners are not necessarily a happier lot. Surveys show that their happiness has declined in correlation with the development of consumerism since World War II. Moreover, most people in the so-called developed nations suffer from obesity, loneliness depression and addiction to prescribed drugs. Maybe once upon a time they danced, sang songs and told stories, but now, free time often means watching TV or shopping.
To meet the growing demand, natural resources are now being exploited in India, displacing millions of tribal people towards urban slums, fuelling growing pockets of civil war-like conflicts across the country. Efforts may be made to fight the old caste system, but a social stratification based on consumption power is emerging. Along with this, India’s comparatively good criminality track record is bound to go on the rise in the coming years.
From an environmental perspective, the current scenario is downright terrifying. Mountains are being blown up, forests are being shaved, soil and sacred rivers are being polluted to cater to the endless production of goods that are meant to be replaced as fast as possible. And whilst the West exports its toxic junk to places like India, where it is “recycled” in dangerous conditions by the informal sector for peanuts, where will the Indians’ rapidly growing waste be dumped?
Maybe 50 years ago, the effects of massive consumption were largely ignored. But today, most people acknowledge many planets would be required if everyone picked up American consumer habits.
Even the western toilets have become a status symbol in Indian middle-class homes. Millions of fancy flush toilets are added every year to new trendy restaurants, malls, condominiums and five-star hotels in Indian cities. Instead of adopting unsustainable imports from the West, there are areas wherein India should inspire the latter. With its traditional squatting toilet for instance. Not just because it is cheaper, more hygienic and better adapted to the human anatomy, but mostly, in a context where clean water is increasingly rare and pricy, because it requires much less of it. Countless other sustainable concepts, values and products from India could benefit Westerners. Strong extended family ties, respect for elders, kriya yoga and tongue-scrapers are just a few of them.
Indian needs to avoid repeating the West’s mistakes. Only enlightened citizens can show the way towards a more viable economy by putting pressure on government, stressing India’s success should not be measured by GDP growth rates and spending habits alone. Nor should it aspire to become like the US or China.
Concerned and responsible Indian citizens can encourage sensible consumption behaviour — by shopping less and wasting even lesser. By buying local products to keep the cottage industries, bazaar culture, traditional crafts and wisdom alive. In essence, by valuing their rich heritage and living simple and meaningful lives, Indians can set an example, and show the West that Mother India is much more than a well of business opportunities. It’s not just a matter of common sense; it’s about our survival.
ref: link
India is so lively and refreshing. From here, the West looks somewhat old, gray and struggling. Indeed, India looks all set to regain the centrestage it occupied a few centuries ago. But while it is developing very fast and its elite is striving to match up with the West, is it not, at the same time, putting at stake much of its precious environment, culture, traditions and values? Of course, the great country has absorbed influences of many previous invaders and colonizers without losing its identity. But presently, its “westernization” seems to be taking place at a frightening speed.
Foreign trade delegations are rushing into the country even during the hottest months of the year. Starry-eyed businessmen, dressed in crisp black suits are hopping from one five-star hotel to another, cracking mega deals. Market scales and huge figures make them drool. They all want their chunk of the great Indian curry. However, the West is not always exporting its very best to India. Because it’s not just higher standards of safety or environmental friendliness, or valuable technologies and know-how that are flowing from the western world.
Fast food, tobacco, alcohol and toxic skin-whitening creams are pouring into India. This wave is promoting a western lifestyle based on consumerism, individualism and meaninglessness. And the pace of consumption is indeed picking up in India. Manufacturers of goods as different as cars, clothes or cellphones have noticed that in recent years the life cycle of products has shortened.
While the older generation of Indians would buy a new product only when the previous one’s useful life had ended, the young generation tends to fall for novelty. People want the latest generation of gadgets because they have more money and more access to such goods. But mostly, they are made to believe, by ever increasing and omnipresent publicity, that they will feel happier with the new product. To encourage this shopping frenzy, a quiet revolution is taking place in the form of rapidly increasing credit penetration.
For historical and cultural reasons, well-to-do Indians traditionally avoided indebting themselves. This may be one less talked about reasons why the country’s economy avoided major trouble during the recent crisis. Only 20 million Indians possess a credit card and personal loans represent about 10% of GDP. Whilst in most western economies, the latter account for approximately 100% of it. But all this is about to change with a booming credit industry.
These trends may be healthy ingredients for thriving capitalism. But they may not prove soothing for the soul. Even if they all possess their own television, car, washing machine and fridge, Westerners are not necessarily a happier lot. Surveys show that their happiness has declined in correlation with the development of consumerism since World War II. Moreover, most people in the so-called developed nations suffer from obesity, loneliness depression and addiction to prescribed drugs. Maybe once upon a time they danced, sang songs and told stories, but now, free time often means watching TV or shopping.
To meet the growing demand, natural resources are now being exploited in India, displacing millions of tribal people towards urban slums, fuelling growing pockets of civil war-like conflicts across the country. Efforts may be made to fight the old caste system, but a social stratification based on consumption power is emerging. Along with this, India’s comparatively good criminality track record is bound to go on the rise in the coming years.
From an environmental perspective, the current scenario is downright terrifying. Mountains are being blown up, forests are being shaved, soil and sacred rivers are being polluted to cater to the endless production of goods that are meant to be replaced as fast as possible. And whilst the West exports its toxic junk to places like India, where it is “recycled” in dangerous conditions by the informal sector for peanuts, where will the Indians’ rapidly growing waste be dumped?
Maybe 50 years ago, the effects of massive consumption were largely ignored. But today, most people acknowledge many planets would be required if everyone picked up American consumer habits. Even the western toilets have become a status symbol in Indian middle-class homes. Millions of fancy flush toilets are added every year to new trendy restaurants, malls, condominiums and five-star hotels in Indian cities. Instead of adopting unsustainable imports from the West, there are areas wherein India should inspire the latter. With its traditional squatting toilet for instance. Not just because it is cheaper, more hygienic and better adapted to the human anatomy, but mostly, in a context where clean water is increasingly rare and pricy, because it requires much less of it. Countless other sustainable concepts, values and products from India could benefit Westerners. Strong extended family ties, respect for elders, kriya yoga and tongue-scrapers are just a few of them.
Indian needs to avoid repeating the West’s mistakes. Only enlightened citizens can show the way towards a more viable economy by putting pressure on government, stressing India’s success should not be measured by GDP growth rates and spending habits alone. Nor should it aspire to become like the US or China.
Concerned and responsible Indian citizens can encourage sensible consumption behaviour — by shopping less and wasting even lesser. By buying local products to keep the cottage industries, bazaar culture, traditional crafts and wisdom alive. In essence, by valuing their rich heritage and living simple and meaningful lives, Indians can set an example, and show the West that Mother India is much more than a well of business opportunities. It’s not just a matter of common sense; it’s about our survival.
ref: link
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