The business called Telangana

Prologue:

If you have been to Gogo's – the blog before, read section (a)

First timers, jump to (b)

Those of you who have landed here by mistake, please continue at your own risk.

a) If you are a regular reader at Gogo's (glad to know you exist) or one who drops by once in a while (intentionally or accidentally), I’m pleased that you are here and I’m sorry about the inactivity; that is if you have noticed it in the first place. If you look closely, unlike the usual Chennai inspired titles about Tamil Brahmins, autos and Rajnikanth, I’m moving to Hyderabad’s burning issues. 

Yes, I have moved base to Hyderabad and so you will be hearing a lot more about Biryani, Reddys and of course, Telangana.

b) WELCOME! And don't think that I don't know that you read part (a) too.

Prologue ends! (You’re welcome)

The T issue is a rather sensitive one, one that evokes extreme responses, both for and against it. If you are looking for my opinion here, then I'm sorry to disappoint you. I'm not that brave.

When bandhs are made to become a part of one’s daily existence, then people have to come up with innovative and out of the box solutions to un-bandh their lives. Kolkata folks, you know what I am talking about ;)

Bandh-istan

src: http://blogs.hindustantimes.com/dabs-and-jabs/2010/07/05/bandh-istan/

Life isn't fair and has to go on and not everybody has the luxury or determination to be out on the streets fighting for a cause or sit at home supporting it. So in such a situation, how do people survive? Here are some of my observations,

The local bus service (the Bakras)

Now this is one group I really feel for. For years they have been the punching bag for all reasons.

We want water from Karnataka --- burn the buses;

We won't give water to Karnataka --- burn the buses;

Chuck water, give us Mallaya and his beer from Karnataka --- Burn the buses;

Relief bus?

For every goddamn reason, the buses are the first to bear the brunt of the agitators. How long can anybody tolerate this? So for once, they have decided to just wait out the agitations and boy are they doing it in style. Over 4 weeks now and no sight of buses. Too bad though that the government has decided against giving them their salaries.

For some people, the bad times just don't end. Nevertheless, somebody's loss is someone else's gain.

Educational institutions (Home delivery services):

Perhaps the worst hit group after the bus service. However, except for the teachers/lecturers and parents, nobody else seems to be complaining. It's not like the students are dying to get back to their institutes. Unfortunately, the exams seem to be following them home, quite literally. A news paper article says that some of the private schools have decided to conduct examinations at the comfort of the student's very home and guess who invigilates? The parents!

How does this work? The parents collect the question papers in the morning of the exam from the school and conduct them at home. How cool is that? Imagine giving exams in your pyjamas with a Frooti by your side and your favourite cartoon running on TV. You don't even have to beg for those extra 5 minutes at the end (otherwise you know whom to blame for the low marks). Nobody fails and everybody is happy.

The auto wallas (The fox)

Talk about opportunists and ways to exploit during a bandh, then these guys take the icing on the cake and the cherry with it. Then they come back and take the rest of the cake too. Some insatiable appetite they have.

This picture is for representational purposes only.
He is not an auto driver, even though you might like to believe so.
src: http://www.8pmnews.com/news/headlines/kcr-calls-for-bandh-on-dec-16th

The auto union pledged their support for a separate state of Telangana by going on a two day strike. Well, they did live up to their word by showing their support by draping their autos in pink (the color of TRS party) and wearing a T – scarf and were out in full force looking for an opportunity to loot hapless travellers. 


A friend of mine who had the misfortune of travelling in an auto that fateful day had to shell out 5 times the normal fare. On trying to argue, the auto driver just had two words for him,

“Jai Telangana”!!

Petrol/Diesel (The elixir of life)

It is often said that cocaine consumption can be addictive; ask them if they have tried fuel. A rumour is enough for people to leave everything else in life and stand for hours in queues outside petrol bunks. 


As expected, panic followed an official announcement and there were traffic jams reported from various parts of the city, thanks to Kilometre long queues waiting for the elixir of life. Henry Ford and the others, see what you have done.

Please repeat my drink
src: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/article371214.ece

Almost every small PBC* shop had an additional item on their display; a bottle of diluted petrol and diesel in shrivelled, old plastic bottles sold at the rates of rocket fuel.

* PAN, BIDDI AND CIGARETTE

Bartender pappu

Personally, I wouldn't want any of that diluted petrol in my vehicle because you never know what the diluting agent was, considering that there is a free availability of similar coloured liquids. And I'm not referring to mountain dew or whiskey.

The restaurants (The social service)

At such troubled times, the local Biryani and pizza place have been a real support to the people, almost a shoulder to cry on. With most of the city crippled and in pain, they were the real heroes. They kept their backdoors open and served people selflessly just to see that smile of satisfaction on their face and to hear that pleasant sound of their cash registers ringing. 

To their credit, unlike the autos, they kept their rates the same because they know that keeping a Hyderabadi away from his Biryani is akin to asking Sachin not to adjust his guard in a match. It's unthinkable! Probably uncomfortable too.

The IT crowd (The Immortals aka the dogs):

This group moves around the city with impunity thanks to their protective shields which is hung around their neck. Once you agree to wear these tags, then nothing else matters. Life and death are secondary concerns, the project and client requirements come first. 

These are just a few groups and their unique ways of un-bandh-ing their lives. There are many many more who are facing a genuine threat to their subsistence because of the complete paralysis of the city and the state. This is probably the last thing a government, which is being attacked from all quarters for various reasons, needed. In its quest for retaining power and taking the right decision (hopefully) life is going out of control. This post is written amidst 7 hours of power cuts in a city which once boasted of being one of the fastest developing in the country.

As a Hyderabadi, all I can do is hope that this doesn't cost us too dearly.

Jai Hind!

The curse of the stereotype - The North Indian Vs South Indian Debate

Selected as Blogadda's "Spicy Saturday Pick" on July 9, 2011

The last few months have been tough on me, thanks to my god forsaken working hours. I’ve been asked to work in the morning shift which requires me to leave home at 6:30 AM EVERY SINGLE DAY. If you think it’s no big deal, then you must be a nerd or an insomniac. Interestingly, this post is on stereotypes.

The morning shift does have its share of advantages, like for instance, it has ensured that I don’t skip my breakfast anymore and it’s my favourite meal of the day. This post is the result of a conversation that transpired during one such breakfast while I was busy dipping my 106^th Dosa* in the 173^rd bowl of Sambar**.

*Dosa includes all varities of Dosas/Uthappams/Pesarattu which may or may not include Masala/Onion/Podi/Ghee.

**statistics for the period of April 1^st – June 25^th 2011

Pic1 ) Dosa - My staple diet today

My company for breakfast is usually project mates, most of them my seniors by 2-3 years and all natives of Tamil Nadu. While I was busy chomping into my Onion Podi Uthappam (my personal favourite) someone spoke in English. I stopped chewing midway, shocked at the atrocity of the event, and looked up dumbfounded to find the brave one who had the courage to break the unspoken protocol by talking in an alien language. He was talking to me; it had to be me considering that I was the only non-Tamil speaking person (amongst the all English speaking people) on that table; how stupid of me.

And the conversation went something like this,

My senior asks, “Hey, what do you do on weekends?”

Pic 2) Caught unaware

“Ummhh??!!” is all I could manage thanks to my mouth being full and also taken aback by surprise at being spoken to in English.

“On weekends; what do you do?” he says again, altering the question a bit, helping me understand the seemingly innocuous statement.

Still a little taken aback, I replied, “Hmmm well the usual weekend chilling out. Hang out with friends, movies, good food, etc; nothing specific or out of the ordinary”.

He didn’t seem too convinced; he gave me a wry smile, nodded his head and got back to his Dosa. I was getting curious here. After a pause for about 10 seconds, I finally decide to ask the golden question.

“Why?”

And the answer came almost immediately,

“Well I have often seen North Indian guys out with girls on their bikes on weekends. So was just curious”.

I did not see this coming. To keep things on the lighter side, I asked him,

“Why? What do South Indian guys do on weekends?”

He promptly replied, “We just look at them (the North Indian couples)”.

We had a nice laugh over his witty reply and got back to our dosas but I couldn’t get that statement out of my head. It wasn’t intended to be hurtful or malicious; it was plain curiosity, at least in this case it was. The senior who asked the question is genuinely a very nice person who is extremely helpful and nice to everybody around. Blame it on the stereotypes which are sometimes so strong that people mistake it for universal truth.

In my 5 years at Chennai, I’ve witnessed one of the strongest stereotypes with practical implications; the North Indian – South Indian divide. I am a Punjabi, born and brought up in Hyderabad, my mom’s family is from Bangalore and I have spent a considerable time there and of course, my stint with Chennai. So that makes me believe that I am as much a North Indian as I am South Indian and that qualifies me to talk about this highly controversial and sensitive issue with an unbiased point of view because I believe I understand both sides better than most.

This divide is by no way a new trend; it goes way back in time. The language barrier, unique customs and limited interstate migration resulted in a lack of understanding about each other which in turn was the genesis of these stereotypes. South Indians were perceived to be conservative, ugly and detached by their “countrymen” up North while the Southern “brothers” thought the “Northies” were flamboyant, immoral and were not as blessed in the grey area department.

However, at this juncture I’d like to point out that amongst the three Dravidian cities (Bangalore, Chennai & Hyderabad) I have stayed in, I’ve felt this divide the most in Chennai. Interestingly, many North Indians refer to South Indians as “Madrasi” (from Madras). So is this more of a North Indian – Tamilian issue?

Hyderabad and Bangalore have had a comparatively more cosmopolitan environment with majority of the population having no qualms speaking English or Hindi in addition to their local language. So that way, if someone from these cities went up North, they wouldn’t have a problem and the North Indians coming to these cities would also feel at home. However, Chennai was never too hospitable in welcoming a foreign language, especially Hindi, and it always treated it suspiciously(read more). 

Was the government right in imposing Hindi as a national language in spite of knowing that Hindi wasn’t spoken in many of the Indian states? Had someone in the government given a thought to the repercussion of their actions, we could have probably avoided this scenario. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.

Let’s make things a little black and white and go back in time to the good old retro days, to the point in time where I “believe” these "North-South" sentiments would have first emanated.

Note: The forthcoming flashback is completely a work of fiction conjured by the hyperactive imagination of the author.

Murugan Swamy decided to spread his coconut empire up North and chose to make a trip to Delhi while Sukhwinder Singh thought it would be a good idea to give Chennai a taste of tandoori chicken. These were otherwise novel business ideas that went haywire and it was utter chaos all around; each experienced a culture shock and witnessed a life style so disparate from their own. In addition, no native individual would have been able to explain to the visitors about their culture and beliefs, thanks to the limitations of the tongue. This might have caused these gentlemen to do what each one of us loves doing, forming an opinion with hardly any substance. This handicap limited the understanding of their “strange” neighbours and their way of life and would have resulted in a highly erroneous judgement of the other.

Now Murugan anna would go to akka and Sukhwinder paaji would go back to babhi and tell them about the “strange” people they met. Since these were times well before twitter, women were the fastest mode of broadcasting information. News passed family to family and each time there was a little “tadka” (spices in hot oil) added and soon a stereotype so strong was born that even years of education, migration and breaking of the language barrier would still not be able to neutralize the impact.

H.G. Wells could not have put it better (and of my all time favourite quotes)

“Crude classifications and false generalizations are the curse of the organized life”.

It is understandable when people who aren’t educated and who haven’t travelled enough develop such perceptions over the years.  The disturbing fact is that a lot of educated folks also have similar beliefs, in spite of being a nation that together celebrated the World Cup victory.

A lot of it has also to do with the kind of upbringing one has; parents play a very important role in shaping the child’s thinking process. If a child is raised in a household which has strong communal and regional tendencies, more often than not, the child grows up to have similar beliefs. So it is important that one makes their judgements based on facts and not prejudice. 

Maybe the next time you make a generalization about a person, gender or community, I urge you to think twice and help bringing us closer to being a more open, tolerant and loving nation.

Jai Hind.

3) Together we make life colorful.

 Disclaimer: The opinions here are based on my experiences and there is absolutely no need for you to have to agree with me and I’d love to hear your point of view, however disparate it might be. Those of you, who do agree with me, help me out if someone who doesn’t, comes to break my head. Peace.

Photo credits:

1)        http://www.facebook.com/pages/trying-to-expain-something-to-someone-while-your-mouth-is-stuffed-with-food/341683684185

2)        http://www.redbubble.com/people/rakeshsyal/art/3644769-unity-in-diversity

3)        http://tiffography.com/?p=578

ANNA HAZARE AND THE RIPPLE EFFECT

People from different races, religions and regions exhibit idiosyncrasies which are peculiar to their group. We Indians, like the others, aren’t short of these peculiarities. In the short span of 22 years, one of the most conspicuous idiosyncrasies that I have noticed is an individual’s absolute aversion to take a lead. In school, when the teacher would ask someone to volunteer to do something, there would be a 10 second pause followed by exchange of glances that said, “You do it. I’ll join you”.

Finally, one of the relatively brave ones would raise their hand. The next second, 20 other hands would have joined him. I have witnessed this similar behaviour in high school, college and today, at work. There are of course exceptions, who have trained themselves to take a lead or are natural leaders. These individuals stand out in the crowd and the others rally around these leaders and support them all out.

1)Follow the leader

2

For years, India has been topping various lists, good and bad, in countless surveys  and has consistently featured high up in the list of the most corrupt nations in the world. However, what stands out in this list are our competitors. Most of them are extremely poor African and Asian countries, plagued with poverty, illiteracy, lack of infrastructure and have a dictator who has been plundering the nation’s resources and wealth for decades. After all the development and progress, what is India doing in that list? We have been in the “10 seconds” phase where we are looking around to find someone to do something about the situation.

In the last few months, news about corruption reached ridiculous proportions. Every single day there were reports about corrupt officials, corrupt government, corrupt cops, corrupt priests and sometimes, even a corrupt god. Corruption had become an integral part of our daily life (only next to inflation). Then out of nowhere, this Gandhian decided to rise, to give people the hope that the 10 seconds are coming to an end and that they finally have someone to rally around.

Anna Hazare

People from all walks of life came out to support this “Modern Gandhi” and his otherwise unknown Jan Lokpal Bill. Most of them don’t know what this bill does or how will it make the situation better. They have blindly decided to support the one who finally made up his mind to stand up and take charge of the situation. Like in school, college, or work, we have found that leader around whom we have decided to rally. Would this man and his famed bill, which promises to be the panacea to the problem of corruption, be able to make a difference? That is irrelevant now and only time will tell. But for now, let us celebrate that hopefully, at least the 10 seconds have completed. Hopefully! 

Picture courtesy:

1) http://connect.in.com/anna-hazare/profile-22123.html

2)http://www.therealtimscott.com/top-mlm-leaders-model/

3)http://anubhavsuvian777.blogspot.com/2011/01/when-you-doubt-your-power-you-give.html

The autos of Chennai...

Chennai has become an unexpected second home. I spent 4 years of my college life here and today, I have my first job in the same city. So my love affair with Chennai has been on for 5 solid years and going strong. Do I like the place? Surprisingly, I do. I like a lot of things about this metro but there are certain aspects that irk me. The heat, humidity, people staring at you for no reason at all, making you feel like an orang-utan that has just escaped from the zoo, are a few that I can think of now. But what tops my list, is the autos of Chennai.

Watch out! Here they come.

 I wasn't a big fan of the autos in Hyderabad either. I felt they were rude, irrational, abused too much, would pester you to pay 10 Rupees over what the meter showed and spat a lot. It's only after I came to Chennai did I realise how much I missed my Hyderbadi autos.

The meters might not look like this but
they function the same way.

I'm lost on where to start about the Chennai autos and am a little worried that the list would go too long for your liking. So I'm going to control my emotions and be as sophisticated as possible in handling it. Bloody #*^*%#*^. Yeah! That feels better.

For starters, autos in Chennai don't run on meters. Is there a regulatory body that takes care of pricing? No. Then how do you decide how much to pay? It varies day by day, driver by driver, and circumstance by circumstance. If a driver’s wife has been pestering him to buy her a Saree for a while and he decides to purchase it on the day you are travelling with him, then boy are you in for some serious trouble. You, the customer have got no control on how much you pay. It's solely dependent on their whims and fancy. To make matters worse, irrespective of the destination, it is customary, almost habitual for them to quote a price 5 times the actual cost and it has to be a 3 digit figure. 

The negotiation.

But what takes the cake, is the negotiation process to fix a price, that takes place every time you want to hire an auto. Plus, if you don’t know Tamil (the local language) or look like you’re from out of town, then god bless you.

Ideal scenario (like what happens in any other “normal” place):

Passenger: Auto!

Auto screeches to a halt.

Passenger: Take to me to somerandomplace.

Driver: Okay/ No.

THE END.

THE Chennai Scenario – (Non-Tamilian passenger):

Passenger: Auto!

Auto screeches to a halt, right in the centre on the road. This is followed by a vigorous to and fro motion of the clenched fist with the thumb pointing skywards which means, “Where do you want to go”?

Passenger (screams): T. Nagar?

Driver: <Puts one hand to his ear and draws his tongue out making a ridiculous, monkey like expression>.

This when interpreted to any “human” language would mean that the driver failed to hear, thanks to the million vehicles behind him honking so mercilessly. They should realize that he is busy and trying to have a conversation. Insensitive lot!

Passenger (screams louder): Teeeeeee Nagar.

This time he hears it and comes over to the side of the road since the destination is worth going to. He gets out, ready for action.

Driver: T Nagar aaah?? (In Chennai, “aah” is the phonetic representation of the symbol “?”, like I have already mentioned in my post – My foray into the corporate world-post prologue )

Passenger:  Yeah!

Driver: T-Nagar blah blah blah? (This is followed by yet another vigorous to and fro motion of the clenched fist. This gesture means he wants to know where exactly in T-Nagar).

Passenger (composed): Anna. Sheraton towers. You go? (You have to talk this way to get them to understand).

Driver: Tower park aaah?? Anna Nagar aah?? (He points to the moon, which is to indicate that the place is really far away. An experienced passenger would know that this means he is mentally preparing you for a major loot)

Passenger (little less composed): Ille ille!! (no no!!) Sheraton towers. Hotel anna. Big hotel. T Nagar only.

Driver: Oooooohhhhhh!!! (He just had an Eureka moment plus the clothes, thankfully). Seri seri, polam. (come come, let’s go)

Then he casually goes into his auto and revs it up to show he is ready to go. This is the tricky part. If you haven’t dealt with the autos in Chennai, REMEMBER – NEVER GET INTO AN AUTO WITHOUT DECIDING ON A PRICE.

Passenger (still composed): Wait! Evalo?? (How much??)

He still keeps revving and looking dead straight, acting deaf.

The irked passenger taps the driver’s shoulder and asks

Passenger (kinda losing it): ANNA!! Tell evalo first.

Driver: You tell.

Passenger (still keeping the cool): No you tell.

Driver: Okay fine. <thinks> Give me 250 Rupees.

Passenger (frustration begins to creep in): 250???? What anna? 60 Rupees correct.

Driver: <More hand gestures follows to tell the passenger that he is crazy and out of his mind> 60 Rupees aah? Fine 240.

Passenger: 80 final.

Refuses and gets back into his auto ready to leave. Just as he starts his auto, he asks.

Driver: Final 150.

Passenger refuses and starts walking away.

Driver watches the passenger take 7 steps.

Driver: <SCREAMS> Saaaaaarrrr!!!  COME!!! 140 last.

Passenger (Pissed off now): 100 Rs final price Anna.

Driver: Come saar. Wokay (read okay).

Passenger (Kinda relieved) comes back

Driver: Come saaar. Sit. 130.

Passenger ( Loses it): What nonsense!

Driver: Okay 120 final.

Passenger (getting desperate): Fine!

THE END.

If the passenger is lucky, he would get dropped to the destination of his choice and for the same price agreed. If you think he got quite a bargain, you must know that the meter wouldn’t have read anything more than 50-55 Rs. That is how pathetic the auto situation in Chennai is and I wish you never have to go through this agony.

For the last 5 years, I have been overspending on these merciless yellow machines of Chennai like so many others. Their misdemeanours are no secret and they break rules with impunity. You try arguing or fighting back and they gather 10 other auto drivers and end up bullying you. Backed by powerful unions who are politically connected gives them the power to openly break the laws and do as they please.

During the course of writing this post, I came across numerous news paper articles and blogs which talk about this problem and inaction on the part of the government. Going by the track record of Tamil Nadu politics, which is perhaps the most corrupt in the country, no respite can be expected.  

And as usual, the common man suffers in silence.

Self explanatory.

Photo sources:

http://shaluhere.wordpress.com/2010/01/27/chennai%E2%80%99s-auto-rickshaw/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/13657368@N00/2492735468/

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Chennai/article799375.ece?homepage=true

http://totalgadha.com/tgtown/360degree/2010/01/16/chennai-auto-rickshaw-a-potential-gold-mine-for-banking-financebfsi-sector/

Mirror mirror on the wall, who is most corrupt of them all?

Think corruption and the first thing that comes to mind is the Indian politician. Corruption is a very integral ingredient of Indian politics, a fact I was aware since grade 2. My definition of a politician hasn’t changed much since then: they were (and are) really good and successful crooks, who excelled in the art of treachery and made enough money and contacts, to keep them out of jail and trouble.

The hue and cry over a minister being corrupt is all humbug. It’s actually amusing to see the astonishment and shock portrayed by the media, the opposition party and everybody else except one group. The one to complain should be the taxpaying common man, whose money is being stacked, year after year, in some bank, with pretty girls at the reception desk, in Switzerland. Then why is he quiet?

The common Indian man has learnt to insulate himself from such news reports because there is no good coming over losing your temper over a “petty” issue such as this. He knows that a politician is to corruption as a Tamilian is to sambar  or as a Gujrati is to dhokla. It’s bloody common sense man!

Be the change you want to see.

The Indian man is happy with his life, his new shiny 2 wheeler, a small house, his plump wife and children, rinku n pinku and their pet Pomeranian Ram Charan Singh. 

However, he would love to have better roads to ride his 2 wheeler, have electricity throughout the day so that his children can study and his wife can watch her favourite soap 3 times a day including repeats. However, he doesn’t think much about it because one gets what is in their “fate”.

In the name of “fate”, the common man has learned to ignore and accept the atrocities of our “leaders” and carry on with their lives. Why? Ask yourself the question, why?

Be the change you want to see.

Time and again, we have observed the victory of evil and powerful, over the good and weak. We live in a democracy of hypocrisy. It’s true that India is a people’s country, a few particular people. We have given up the fight, if ever there was a fight. Giving up is the most pragmatic solution. Giving up is the right thing to do for a common man. The ones who fight and often perish are foolish people, way too emotional for the real world.

Be the change you want to see.

Politicians are bickering on who is more corrupt of the two. Media, news, movies, sports, government and every other business which generates revenue is run by powerful PR professionals for their rich, influential clients. Journalists are being bought, scam after scam unfolds day in and day out but life has to go on. Why shouldn’t the clerk outside every government office still want his chai paani (petty bribe)? In all probability, he might have paid somebody off to get the job in the first place. He needs to get a return on investment. It’s bloody common sense man!  

Be the change you want to see.

Where is this post of mine going? I have no clue. I have no solution and I don’t even know the depth of the problem. But I can feel an anger burgeoning within me. I can feel myself turning into one of these pragmatists, beginning to accept the filth, feel helpless and blame it on “fate”. NO! I will not let this happen to me. I would prefer to be foolish, optimistic and with a belief that things will get better.

I want to see justice, see good, feel trust and live a clean life.

I am being the change I want to see, are you?

Picture Source: 

http://www.indiabuzzing.com/2008/06/30/alarming-level-of-corruption-in-india/

http://saveindia4future.blogspot.com/2010_05_01_archive.html

http://www.hitxp.com/articles/society/bribe-anti-corruption-movement/

http://krnraj.wordpress.com/

COMMONWEALTH GAMES NOT FOR THE COMMON MAN?

This article was written well before the commonwealth games commenced and during the time when everybody “believed” that the commonwealth games were going to flop and were going to be a major embarrassment for India. These very hypocrites were later heard telling, “Oh! I always knew India is going to do it. India is the best.” I actually considered discarding this post of mine considering this drastic change in general opinion but then, I would be a hypocrite myself.

The build up to the Commonwealth Games wasn’t a very smooth one, which is an obvious fact. Credit goes to the media for bringing the various shortcomings to the notice of the common man and the concerned authority (though they were overdoing it by magnifying every scratch and leak in the stadia) which expedited the process in the right direction. News about incomplete stadiums, bad infrastructure and missed deadlines had become a part of our quotidian existence.

However, what caught my attention was something different. When I see figures like 28,000 crores* (maybe a lot more now) being spent on the games and in giving Delhi a facelift, it forces me to ponder, is it really worth it for a country like India?

Sports and entertainment, without a doubt, are a very important part of our existence today, probably the most exciting too. Representing your country in a sporting event like this is every sportsperson’s dream. But what if it’s happening at the cost of somebody’s basic subsistence?

Don’t even think for a moment that I’m accusing these deserving sportspeople of snatching a family’s food or shelter. However, in a country where millions are starving and struggling to survive, this exuberant squandering of the taxpayer’s money is immoral, criminal and pathetic.

One amongst my countless idiosyncrasies is, when I hear of a large amount of money being spent, I think of the countless other ways it could be disbursed. What you could possibly do with a figure like 28, 000 crores is crazy. If you were to give Rs 1 lakh of that amount per poor family, 28 lakh families would have benefitted and assuming that each family has an average of 4 members, then about 1.12 crore Indian people would have benefitted. Farmers could pay off their debts, education could become affordable or a family could simply just “live” for a year without the fear of starvation. Of course, I don’t expect this to happen. But then, is this spending justified?

Do these sporting events have absolutely any benefits?

A paper on “Hosting major international sports events”: by Wolfram Manzenreiter and John Horne” says

“Economically it has been viewed as an industry around which cities can devise urban regeneration strategies. Socially it has been viewed as a tool for the development of urban communities and the reduction of social exclusion and crime.

 Most of these studies, however, have been conducted in advance of the events on behalf of interested parties without adequate measurement of final and intermediate outputs as well as inputs. Critical post-event studies point to their uneven impacts. Research shows that costs have usually been underestimated while beneficial impacts have been overestimated.

Gerd Ahlert (Institute of Economic Structures Research, Osnabruück) outlined a robust econometric forecasting model that has been applied to the Football World Cup 2006 in Germany. The calculation predicts huge pre-event investments and low direct economic impacts. But economic gains can be made indirectly through marketing and nation branding.

For modernizing nations, hosting a mega-event is a clear marker of international esteem for developmental achievements; in postmodern societies, events large and small fulfil the role of image generator.

Economic gains are less likely than social benefits, though this kind of legacy is difficult to plan and control.”

From these studies, we can understand that these events could be passed off as a marketing scheme to show your country in a good light and raise its social standing. This could also bring in some investment but marginal compared to the money invested into the event. Sounds like a bad deal especially for a country like India. In spite of being the 2^nd fastest growing economy and having the might of numbers behind us, India is still considered a poor country. Why? Because these numbers are attributed to the fact that the rich are getting richer and the poor don’t seem to be getting any better.

A study has shown that there are more poor people in 8 Indian states than in 26 African countries, a fact that was raised by Mr. Azim Premji in the 26^th August, 2010 issue of the Times of India. Can we afford the luxury of spending so much money so injudiciously? Then why are we constantly trying to prove our “might”?

India is a proud country and its people think very highly of it, which is a great thing. So much so, that they are willing to deceive themselves by turning a blind eye to reality. The infrastructure and the standard of living have improved manifold times, especially in the urban centres but there is still a long journey ahead before India can begin comparing itself to the developed countries. However, that requires time and patience, which is not one of our best virtues.

China, which was our poor neighbour a couple of decades back is on its way to becoming a superpower and the knowledge that it has left us behind is troubling us. How often do politicians play with patriotic sentiments by calling India the next super power? Feels good, doesn’t it? I am a proud Indian but a rational Indian. I wish, like millions of you, that India becomes the greatest nation in the world but the way to do it is not by just hosting major sporting events. India can never be a super power if it keeps ignoring its poor, who are suffering because this great nation is trying to portray something that it is not.

Only when you recognize and acknowledge your flaws, will you correct them. The Indian government would go to any extent and spend any amount for the West to think highly of us. When Bill Clinton visited Hyderabad, the entire stretch he had to travel, was lined with flowerpots and there were huge billboards on the roads to hide “objectionable” sights.

Why, take the case of the Hollywood blockbuster slumdog millionaire. The kind of furore over the movie in Indian political and social circles was pretty amusing. “How can you show India like this? India is not only about the slums”, they say. Who says it is? But the slums are there and it is true and it is embarrassing. Not showing it in the movies or not talking about it is not going to change anything. Everybody knows it’s there. Aren’t we pushing it too far?

Take the case of the commonwealth games itself, how often did we hear the media and the various boards saying things like, “Oh the price money for the winners is still the same as the Sydney commonwealth games. Why is the infrastructure not as good as the Beijing Olympics? UK has already handed over a few stadiums to the International Olympic Committee for the 2012 Olympics. If you have already spent thousands of crores on this why can’t you spend a few more crores on that and make it as well as them”.

Sounds like a childish competition, doesn’t it? Not when it’s made possible out of honest, hardworking taxpayer’s money. Let me not even get into the corruption charges and misappropriation of crores of rupees that happens every time such an event takes place. I can’t help but wonder if these few are the ones responsible for bringing such events to India for their ulterior benefits. Is the government hand in glove with them? These are only speculations and nothing can or will be proved. This is quite evident and these men know it and move around with impunity.

So when is the right time for India to host such an event?

“We are ready to host the Olympics”, say some officials. It’s not only about having the money to host such events. When you have a country whose people are happy and have a stomach full, when they are satisfied and even then you have the additional funds, then you are ready.

The Commonwealth Games have gone on well and India has managed to save its face. The minimum return that we should have expected to get is some “social-standing”, according to research. The negative publicity, controversies and bad infrastructure has caused enough embarrassment that even a thousand slumdog billionaires wouldn’t be able to match up to. It is like putting the limelight on a ballet dancer with hands and legs fractured. Let’s just hope, for India’s sake, the successful hosting of the games has been able to overshadow the thousands of problems that had plagued it.

The disastrous start to this commonwealth games could have some positive implications too. The next time India thinks about hosting such an event, it would think a thousand times and right on top on its list of questions should be, “Do you want it, oh common man”?    

*Source: Times of India, 21^st August, 2010-08-28