Monday, September 10, 2012

Activism or Funda-Mentalism?

Blind and fanatical belief in ‘ISMS’, Apart from sheer greed has become the hallmark of activism and ngos in India. hating India is a Democratic right; but not at a cost to India

Allow me to put things in perspective right away. Most of you are painfully aware of the following facts: about 1.5 million Indians die of malaria every year; more than 1.5 million Indians succumb to TB every year and more than 2 million young children are killed every year by diarrhoea and related stomach disorders. I have absolutely no doubt that all right-thinking Indians often feel ashamed by these appalling numbers and the heartbreaking human misery that is hidden behind the statistics. And yet, India is awash with activists and NGOs who keep trumpeting from every available rooftop that AIDS is a kind of Biblical scourge that is devouring India. So persistent, so loud and so powerful are the voices of these activists and NGOs that many Indians think AIDS is one of the biggest killer diseases to stalk India. But how many unfortunate Indians are actually killed by AIDS? Not even one for every Indian that dies of malaria, TB or diarrhoea. Common sense demands: then why ignore TB and malaria and create such a hoopla about AIDS?

You guessed it. It just so happens that a certain corporate baron and philanthropist called Bill Gates and his wife Melinda Gates have been donating hundreds of millions of dollars for tackling AIDS in Third World countries. Yes, they do donate equally well to address some other health issues too, but the very word of AIDS conjures up magic that opens doors to vast donations, funds and incredible opportunities to travel around the world and schmooze with assorted do-gooders. So it is AIDS that everyone talks about – including page 3 people. Try talking and arguing with these activists about why we should be paying more attention to malaria and TB. The best response you will get is a derisive snort while the more ideologically evolved activists will accuse you of being a reactionary, a Neanderthal, a feudal and worse. Forget the jargon, AIDS is sexy. Who cares about TB and malaria?

Don’t you think that just about sums up the state of activism in India?

Let me make a few points here. First: no one with common sense will deny that AIDS is a serious problem. Second, the unfortunate fact is that TB and malaria are bigger problems. Third, anyone who denies this has a serious problem of misplaced priorities. If you are a CEO running a company or even senior manager running a division, you will know that priorities are critical. That’s what students of basic economics are taught: priorities determine the balance between unlimited needs and limited resources. That is what a good politician learns very quickly: how to prioritise the numerous – and often conflicting – demands. That is how societies, nation states and civilisations have evolved: by learning to prioritise and then trying to balance the conflicting priorities.

There will always be a conflict between security and human rights. Both are very important for a young democracy like India. There will always be a conflict between industrialisation and environment. Both are very important for sustainable growth of the Indian economy. There will always be a conflict between infrastructure projects and the people whose lives the projects will disrupt. Both matter. There will always be a conflict between new technologies like GM in agriculture and the preservation of existing pool of seeds and know-how. Both matter. There will always be a conflict between globalisation and the threat it poses to local communities and livelihoods. The real challenge is to nurture both.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
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Saturday, September 08, 2012

So do Aliens really exist?

August 5, 2010: UK Government officially accepts the hushing up of a confirmed UFO incident by releasing 5000 plus pages of UFO reports! So do Aliens really exist? The Scrutiny team does a quick recap of available research in this area!

February and March, 2009: Many holidaymakers in Somerset, UK, witness and record a UFO flying over the coastline in February 2009. The Telegraph reports this, and a month later, also publishes the mobile phone photo shot by Derek Burden of the London Skyline in March 2009, which has four UFOs clearly visible.

December 1, 2009: The British Ministry of Defence on December 1, 2009 silently shuts down its UFO investigations unit, and mentions in an official statement, “In over fifty years, no UFO report has revealed any evidence of a potential threat to the UK... There is no defence benefit in such investigations and it would be an inappropriate use of defence resources.” As per estimates, the closure would save around £50,000 a year of taxpayers’ money.

August 5, 2010: At the end of World War II, a British RAF plane flying over the English coast confirmed that a UFO flew alongside the plane for sometime and then disappeared at high speeds. The plane crew photographed the UFO. But Winston Churchill immediately put a 50 year ban on any reports of the incident, commenting that “it would create mass panic and destroy one’s belief in the Church.”

On August 5, 2010, just eight months after the closure of UFO investigations, and after Churchill’s 50 year ban terminated, the UK government publicly and momentously accepts the WW II incident by officially releasing more than 5,000 pages of UFO reports. The global media more or less misses reporting this.

In summary, government investigations over the years have been quite interesting. The official opinion on UFOs is neutral or negative, despite the unanswered question. As per the recent findings of the French space agency CNES, about 14% of some 6,000 UFO cases studied have remained unexplained. After two expensive American government investigations – Project Sign and Project Grudge – failed to make definite inferences, Project Blue Book concluded that UFOs do not possess a significant threat to mankind and no evidence indicated that the sightings categorised as “unidentified” are extraterrestrial. At the same time, investigations by highly respected media agencies like National Geographic and Discovery put paid to such official rejection of UFO claims.

The biggest hit to the US government came just sometime ago, when US Navy pilot and former NASA employee Edgar Mitchell – who holds qualifications from Carnegie, Harvard and a PhD from MIT – revealed to the Discovery Channel that as per his interactions at Pentagon, the Roswell incident was true, and that there was an alien UFO spacecraft that crashlanded that day; he also revealed that certain specific recent UFO incidents were confirmed alien spacecraft sightings. Edgar was incidentally the Apollo 14 astronaut who became the sixth man to walk on the moon.

Evidently, whether UFOs and aliens exist, is clearly a test of human intelligence and philosophical strength. Imagine the panic that could be generated if Obama were to one day address the world and announce that aliens had finally made contact. The primary reason for this panic would be the current refusal of global governments to educate the masses in a structured manner about the definite possibility of alien existence. When even NASA can now officially confirm that they “don’t deny the existence of aliens,” it’s time global governments accept reality and start taking early steps towards reducing future possibilities of mass hysteria, when and if such an alien contact report is finally made public.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
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Thursday, September 06, 2012

L. N. Mittal and his siblings have been dramatically different

Post the split of the business, the destinies of L. N. Mittal and his siblings have been dramatically different. But one can also find them converging on some fronts now

The tendency to live dangerously does have repercussions, for the one problem both companies have to naturally face with is debt. Arcelor Mittal itself had a debt of $18.8 billion by the end of 2009, an improvement from the high of $32.5 billion by September 2008. You wouldn’t consider that a problem in the case of Arcelor Mittal, but for the fact that the company is equally susceptible to swings in the steel sector. Last year, the company posted net income of only around $75 million compared to $10.49 billion the previous year. The reason was the decline in demand and average steel prices as reflected by the global recession. That is precisely why not having production capacity in a growing market like India pinches L. N. Mittal now like never before.

As far as Ispat is concerned, profitability has been hard to come by, despite the fact that it is present in the booming Indian market. The company recorded Rs.83.63 billion in gross income in FY 2009-10 (a drop by 8.4% yoy). Losses for the year were at Rs.2.53 billion compared to Rs.6.9 billion the previous year. Moreover, its D/E ratio is rather high at 4.1 at the end of the year. By June 2010, its debt was at Rs.71.86 billion. Recently, rumours were rife that the company’s lenders are planning to sell out stake to other companies, which Ispat has denied in a letter to B&E. Ispat’s problems have actually been compounded by the lack of captive iron ore and coking coal. A steel analyst on condition of anonymity told B&E, “Due to the high cost of raw material and debt pressure, the company continues to suffer. They need a sustained steel cycle for some time to be able to get out of that situation.” Moreover, they realize the need to convert debt to equity, which is where the 10% stake sale to Stemcor for Rs.65 billion has come in quite handy. On the raw material front, an Ispat spokesperson tells B&E, “Ispat constantly seeks to ensure security of raw materials, achieve reduction in costs of inputs, improve process efficiencies, rationalize production capabilities and enhance plant performance. Initiatives include commissioning of 110 MW power plant at Dolvi, coke oven plant with annual capacity of 1.0 MTPA and Iron ore pellet plant (capacity of 2.0 MTPA) at Dolvi and Damkodwadvi in Maharashtra.” In addition, the top line has been stagnating for the past few years and must be addressed urgently as well.

While Arcelor Mittal needs to consolidate its operations and make headway into the Indian market, the imperative for Ispat is to ensure backward integration and improved efficiency. Both have to look at their leverage carefully before taking up more aggressive expansions. Interestingly, it seems that their destinies seem to be converging in this sense, an event that has been rather unprecedented since 1994.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
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Wednesday, September 05, 2012

Marvel at the Mahals where they lived and bite into kebabs

Wander in the streets where Nawabs once walked, Marvel at the Mahals where they lived and bite into kebabs that were created especially for the royals; you just might find the city of your dreams waiting for you, here in Lucknow

With its imposing Deewan-e-Khas, a large number of chambers and many basements with access to strategic tunnels, it prompted some European writers to compare it to the garden of Arabian Nights. There’s Shatkhanda, a five-storied replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The Hussainabad Clock Tower, proudly declared by Lucknowites as the Big Ben of India, is a 221-foot high, 20-square feet tower with a 14-feet-long pendulum. The wheel of the clock is 18 inches in diameter. On its four faces, the tower exhibits four clocks of 13 feel diameter.

The Husaianabad Imambara, built by Badsahah Mohammed Ali Shah, Awadh’s third ruler, stands in an architectural complex known as the Babylon of India. A visiting Russian Prince in fact once referred to it as the “Kremlin of India”. It bears the tombs of its builder and his mother enclosed in silver grills.

The Asfi Imambara, a blend of Mughal, Rajput and Gothic styles, is an architectural miracle built without the traditional support of pillars or beams.

Cooking was raised to the highest standards by the nawabs. The food was an eclectic mix of Persian and Mughal dishes, often with a European twist. The city’s elite encouraged experimentation by their well-paid cooks who among other things invented the Dum Pukht style of cooking. While the nan jalebis and the sheer mal were breads which first came out of the kitchens of the nawabs, the humble parantha was refined into the baqar khani. Some of Lucknow’s must-eats include Tunde ke kebab, Wahid’s biryani, Rahim’s Kulche-Nahari, Pandit Ram Narayan’s Chaat, Radhey’s malai gilori and Bajpai’s Puri Kachori.

Spoiled yet cultured, modern yet traditional, like the reflections on the many mirrors of Sheesh Mahal, every person sees a different image of Lucknow. What perhaps binds their vision, is the city’s glorious past and the common dream of a future just as bright.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
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Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Catch me if you can!

Is India ready to become a hot spot for the spotted one?

When the geographical location prefixing the name of certain animal sub-specie changes with each decade, it raises an alarm. So now that the ‘Indian’ cheetah has come to be known as ‘Iranian’ cheetah after a two-decade stint as ‘Asiatic’ cheetah, the Indian Environment and Forests ministry (MoEF) has taken notice. After a failed attempt in 2000 by Indian scientists, measures are being taken once again by India to translocate the cheetah.

The spotted cat, which takes its name from the Sanskrit word ‘citrakayah’ has been extinct from the sub-continent for well over 50 years. In 1947, disgraced Maharaja of Surguja shot down three cheetahs, which were incidentally the last few seen in India. It is the only species to become extinct in India due to unnatural reasons and “the only animal in the last 100 years”, as observed by Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh. “Reintroduction is a matter of national importance”, he added.

With a population of less than 90 cheetahs around the Kavir desert, Iran is very adamant to not part with the big cat. India on the other hand is increasingly persistent on relocating the cheetah. It is contemplating the import of the African sub-specie if Iran doesn’t cohere. The African Cheetah fortunately is relatively predominant in number with Namibia homing 3,500 of them. In all, it is speculated that close to 12,000 African Cheetahs survive.



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Monday, September 03, 2012

Lookout for animes’ invasion of Indian homes !

The anime industry is surely set to grow in India, but many mothers are anxiously monitoring excessive anime viewing, stating the programmes are not good enough or even too aggressive in nature. The Shin Chan series was banned in India in 2008 on grounds of the undesirability of its content. The Hindi version of Manga and Japanese anime that entered India in 2006, although became popular with kids here, its ill effects felt due to the character’s mischievous acts, soon went out of hand.

Despite these minor setbacks, the outlook remains positive as Kojira Uchiyama, Director, Japan Information Centre, who we met during the festival, is optimistic, as he shared, “Japan is known for its animation due to its good quality. Since the popularity of animation has increased over the years all over the world, we wanted to let more Indians know about Japanese animation.” When he came to India two years ago, he was pleasantly surprised to find the prevalence of anime on Indian television. Having grown up watching Astro Boy, like all children in Japan, Uchiyama smiles and confesses his fondness for animation.

Anime is not just for children but it’s a tool, which is widely used by people of all age-groups – from story-telling for toddlers to fulfilling bizarre adult fantasies or fetishes about women. In fact, the Japanese have even gone on to cook-up a story idea for even mundane activities like baking bread and desserts! Keep your eyes wide open for new creative expressions in the baking right here in India too!


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Saturday, September 01, 2012

Can maruti repeat the magic?

While everyone was scampering about, frightened by the slowdown ghost, Maruti peacefully posted a 105% increase in bottomlines during FY 2009-10. Result: it Climbed 21 places to #27 on this year’s list. But can maruti repeat the magic? By Pawan Chabra

If you look at the Q1, FY2010-11 result, the answer is an obvious no. The past quarter has been a party spoiler for the company. Not only did its domestic market share fall below 50% for the first time since it crossed that mark 25 years ago, the company registered a 20% y-o-y dip in net profits too (which fell to `4.65 for Q1, FY2010-11). So what caused the fall? Says Shinzo Nakanishi, MD, Maruti Suzuki, to B&E, “The dip in profits is because of the rising commodity prices and the royalty payments made by Maruti to Suzuki Motor Corporation.” There are other issues too.

Despite the fact that the company managed to post a 25% y-o-y growth in unit sales (of 283,324 units) during Q1, FY2010-11, currently, almost all its car models are facing a situation of undersupply. “All that we are making is being sold. We are producing as much as we can, but it is not enough. Currently, we have close to 15-20% backlog on our books,” says Mayank Pareek, Managing Executive Officer – Marketing & Sales, Maruti Suzuki, to B&E. Thus, Maruti is missing out on the opportunities presented by the increased demand in the Indian car market. Who gains? Its competitors. The Indian car market has grown by over 30% this fiscal, and what is happening is that players like Ford, GM, Volkswagen, Nissan & Hyundai, which had/have spare capacities, are filling the demand-supply gap.

Royalty payments to Suzuki is another itch. But it can do little about it. The company still depends greatly on the parent company, and it has no solution to lighten the burden, at least over the forthcoming few quarters. “Maruti depends on Suzuki for its brands and technology. So, it is very difficult to get the royalty payments down. However, I don’t think it will go above the current 5.1% mark in the times to come,” says Nakanishi.

But there is some good news for investors. The company is trying to prepone its capacity expansion plan to 2012, to solve the problem of undersupply. This will help add an additional capacity of 250,000 units per year to the current production levels. In fact, it has already started its ground work on its 6th plant at Manesar (Haryana). This, coupled with the planned R&D Centre at Rohtak (which have collectively attracted an investment of Rs.1 billion) will determine the success of the company in the years to come. But till then, the company will have to continue bearing the pain of dealing with backlogs.

The outcome for this financial year is clear. Maruti might outshine last year’s numbers in terms of unit sales, but in terms of financials, it will fall a little short, even if it scales back its market share to 50%+. As per estimates by Thomson Reuters, its bottomlines for FY2010-11 will fall by 2% to `24.48 billion. Thankfully, the fall is only marginal. For now though, the company is running hard. But so are competitors, and it knows that.


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