India and the Neo-anarchist state

A Perfect political system they say is an oxymoron. Each system brings its own positives and negatives so how does a country adopt a system. Surely such a serious thing cannot be enforced on any country and ideally a nation has to choose a system that suits its intrinsic genius, a system which allows its people to bring out their best and make it a progressive country. Which begs the question whether we in India have chosen the correct political system. And given the evidence before us we cannot say a resounding 'Yes'.Even after 60 years of Independence a third of our population is below the poverty line, communalism is rampant and the rich-poor divide is widening.

The roots of our current political system lies in the erstwhile British raj whose sole agenda was to deplete the country of its resources. This necessitated a system where power was centralised ( in British hands of course) and devolution of power was despised. Whenever the Indians protested for greater power the British threw in a few rudimentary 'power-crumbs' and continued to eat the bigger pie. This system worked wonders - for the British that is - for nearly two centuries. This hardly changed after independence with the masters replaced from the British to fellow Indians. So long as the leaders were benevolent and competent this worked fine but once their integrity faltered then the political system got infected with the cancer of corruption. Since power was centralized it pumped the malaise of corruption to each and every corner of the Indian society.Things have come to such a pass that the people have turned cynical instead of becoming angry.

Is there a way out of this quagmire? There must be. As a possible solution let me draw attention to an old idea an ideology in fact which was famous during the 19th century. This was called Anarchism. This in fact was a left-wing ideology espoused by the liberals in Europe at that time. In a nut shell it called for elimination of all compulsory government i.e. the state and stressed on self-organization. Its core idea being the assumption that humans by nature were good and were perfectly capable of governing themselves and thus a formal government was not needed. However this ideology failed because it was impractical because society is not like nature to be left on its own , it has to be regulated and managed either by individuals or by groups of them. However we in India can take some good points espoused by it and use it to our benefit, lets call this neo-anarchism. These being limiting the scope of the government and devolving power to self-organized local bodies.

Lets look at the first one. The current government with its almost complete control over the country has led to vote-bank politics, populism and political one-upmanship whereby the politicians put themselves above the country. Add to it that most of our politicians are not exactly highly educated or of high integrity it results in chaos. Also with so much heierarchy the citizen does not know who is responsible for his needs, is it the corporator, the MLA, the MP,he's confused. Its almost like everybody is responsible for nobody and each of them passes the buck to the other when any question is raised. All these factors call for limiting the governments powers and devolving it where it is used efficiently.

Limiting the scope of the government is nothing new , it has been tried successfully in the field of Indian business. Until 1991 Indian business was shackled due to the licence - permit raj which as the name suggests was centralized power where the govt of the day gives you a license to produce goods. Over the years this lead to rampant corruption. But post-1991 key business areas like IT,Telecom etc were thrown open to privet enterprise and the result is there for every one to see. Hence which ever areas where the government's power was limited progressed exponentially. Now we need to extend this principle to the general society too and restrict the influence of the government.

OK, so the scope of the government is limited but where will the power get dispersed? For this we need to make our local bodies potent and powerful. This means giving more power and money to local bodies such as municipalities and corporations. This will help in providing localized solutions to local problems hence will be more effective. For eg. if a road in any locality is not proper then i can approach the local municipality to repair it. Money accompanies power therefore these local bodies should get the loin share of our taxes so that they can take more responsibilities and heed to their citizens. The corporates could be involved in this as well, like exempting a company from giving taxes and instead make them take up some social initiatives such as funding infrastructure construction, providing books , uniforms to school children etc. In this way the various parts of the society gets to play a role in the upliftment of the society.

As things get 'localized', what will be the government's role. The government will be concerned with broader issues such as foreign relations, maintaining law and order in the country , providing for regional imbalances, providing better laws etc. These are some of the crucial things that the government can handle. As the latest financial crises in the US showed the government's role in regulating the economy is crucial. Hence the government should clearly know what it should and should not do. This will result in a state with a loosely coupled and truly federal character where the government takes care of 'global' issues whereas local bodies take care of 'local' day-to-day issues.

This sort of a set up is suitable for India and will surely bring out the best in us. Here's why. There are two situations that call for a strong state involvement one where the country has a mature polity and the other where the citizens cannot self-organize themselves. The Scandinavian countries fall into the former and China for example falls into the latter category. However India fails on both counts , it does not have a mature polity and its citizens are perfectly capable of organizing themselves. Hence this calls for having a light-weight loosely-coupled state where the citizen gets to do more instead of an overpowering state.

The picture is not entirely rosy, there are some cons to this system. Localizing will also mean some local bodies will always be stronger and have more corporate support than others, contrast karnataka and mizoram for instance. In these cases the smaller/weaker bodies get left behind. This can be countered by having the government acting as a balancer whereby the smaller bodies get their due.

Its not like this system is new for India. Ancient India was based on smaller village republics with each village having its representative body ( something like a panchayath) perfectly capable of governing itself with the king at the top concerned with global events like conquests , invasions , economy etc. These village republics flourished irrespective of whatever happened at the top. Even in the modern world the US can be described as a neo-anarchist state with the states governing themselves with the centre providing a strong constitutional bedrock.

All in all going for a loosely-coupled neo-anarchist model will be better suited for India than the current centralized-state system and will help unleash the potential of her people and help India fulfill her destiny.

Bharatha Bhagya Vidhatha

As one more independence day passes over, we rejoice and look back at the past 61 years with pride and a modicum of disappointment. Proud for all the achievements made and disappointment at the thought that much more could have been achieved. This independence day was made even more special by the Indian performance at the Olympics. After 28 years the world got to hear the Indian national anthem thanks to Abhinav Bindra. As I cherished the moment and went through the anthem in my mind a thought struck me.

We have recited the anthem since we were kids and do so even now, but how many of us really know the meaning of the anthem or at least want to know its meaning? I was particularly struck by the line "Bharatha Bhagya Vidhaatha" in the anthem and a question rose in my mind. Who is this "Bharatha Bhagya Vidhatha" - "the dispenser of destiny" referred to by the poet. In fact he appears twice in the anthem and is said by the poet to be praised all around the country.Is he God as Tagore himself said. Is it George V - the king of England at that time - as argued by some of Tagore's critics.

I guess that's the beauty of poetry, each one can interpret it to his liking and each one may be different and correct at the same time.As I went through the anthem again with the quest of finding this 'Vidhata' I could not imagine anyone as the 'Vidhata' other than - the common man.Yes, the common man. Doesn't he guide India's destiny? Hasn't he been witness to the joys and travails of India?. Yes the most uncommon of those beings, the common man.

He does not have a face but we all see him.He doesn't have a voice but still we hear him. He does not have a presence but still we feel him. No matter what the challenge thrown at him by destiny he has carried on bravely, facing all obstacles with courage.He was present when India was enslaved, he fought for her freedom and rejoiced when she achieved it. He laid the foundations of democracy and enabled India to become the largest democracy in the world. He has endured famines and natural calamities, but still he has marched on.He was present when bombs exploded, he was victimized in the riots.He endured it all silently. He liberated the economy and carried it to new frontiers. He started the IT/Telecom revolutions which gave jobs and aspirations to millions like him. India celebrated when he won the world cup. India was made proud when he won a Gold at the Olympics.Indians were elated when he bought prestigious MNCs abroad. He has achieved success in which ever part of the world he has gone and resided in, not forgetting the homeland.As the future beckons, he is once again at the fore front to guide India's destiny. He wants to regain India her lost prestige and glory. There might be hurdles but he shall overcome them as he has done in the past.

Through thick and thin, good fortune and calamity, he has marched on guiding the destiny of India and will continue to march on in the future too. Yes, its him, he is the one who can be called the 'Bharatha Bhagya Vidhatha'- 'the dispenser of destiny'.

Private rights Vs. Public welfare

As India and China barge into the future and become topics of discussion in bien-pensant circles, it pits two ideologies against each other. No, I'm not talking about Capitalism and Communism. China, Post-Deng Xiaoping has abandoned the road of communism and switched to the freeway of capitalism and can now probably claim to be as capitalistic as the US. The Chinese comrades wave the red flag even as they eat a McDonald's burger.The battle of the ideologies I'm referring to is the conflict between Private rights and Public welfare.

India being essentially a democracy almost always errs on the side of preserving private rights i.e safeguarding the interest of the individual. Take Narmada bachao andolan for example. The coming of the dam will benefit lakhs of farmers in the dry bed of saurashtra at the cost of a few thousand villagers who lose their villages as a result of the dam. In this case the government has tacitly sided the andolan protesters and has stalled the construction of the dam. This is a classic instance of the government going out of its way to safeguard private rights at the cost of public welfare.

A plethora of such instances can be found in India. It could be the building of the Bangalore International airport where it took 20 years for the government to acquire land or the reluctance of the finance ministry in doing away with costly/uneconomic food and fertilizer subsidies, India always tries to put the individual's rights above anything else.

Contrast this with China. The Three gorges dam being constructed across the mighty Yangtze river will ease the annual flooding of the catchment area as well as provide essential power to the ever-hungry Chinese economy ,but it would come at a cost - a huge displacement of over 3 million villagers. But China IS willing to bear this cost knowing fully well the huge benefits the dam will bring. This attitude is demonstrated in almost all government policy which in turn lead to better roads, better water, better road/air connectivity and a huge amount of social welfare in general as decisions are taken without hesitation and considering only public welfare in mind.In effect China abandons individual rights in favor of social welfare.

I'm not trying to justify one over the other since China's human rights record is as dismal as our infrastructure. But instead we could take the undoubted positives present in the Chinese system and compromise to an acceptable level individual rights when it necessitates public welfare. In a perfect world public welfare will happen in unison with preservation of individual rights, but alas our's is a very imperfect world.

The Brown man's Burden

The great imperialist Rudyard Kipling exhorted the 'virtues' of colonialism and called it the 'White man's burden'. The phrase was later used to justify the policy as a noble enterprise aimed at benefiting the world as a whole. In reality it was nothing but an arrogant euphemism coined by a greedy, power hungry, cavalier colonist.

More than a century later the wheels of time have turned full circle and the phrase looks like it needs a bit of modification. Going by the events of the past decade especially in the world business the phrase 'Brown man's burden' seems rather appropriate. What with all the Indian companies going on an acquisition spree of oversees companies. Be it the high-profile and sometimes hostile Mittal acquisition of Arcelor or the Tata-Corus deal or more recent Tata bid for jaguar and land-rover, the Indian companies have come of age and are bursting out of the national boundary and into the international playground of business.

The recent surge in the number of Indian born CEOs is also a pointer in this direction. Some of the biggest foreign business houses - ranging from UK to the US - feel a need for an able and efficient leader. A requirement the Indian born business leaders are able to fulfill with great aplomb.

But this 'Browning' of International business is not without its pangs. The recent Tata bids for Jaguar and Orient hotels have also brought out age old prejudices to the fore. May be its sub-conscious in nature but there is a mild element of racism which stops some of the international business establishments from accepting an Indian connection. This is downright foolish and can hurt their long term growth and they need to understand that if an Indian company taking over makes sound business sense then so be it, they should not - and need not - hanker based on obsolete ancient prejudices. In the long run these same business houses will reap the benefits of having an Indian connection.

The advent of Globalization over the past 25 years has created a level playing field for all involved and hence provided erstwhile marginalized countries like India a chance to show their prowess. That is exactly what is happening and will continue to happen in the coming days and the world will be better off adjusting to the changed condition.

The Two Indias

The recent celebrations of 60 years of freedom gives us an excellent opportunity to look back at the road traveled by India and the road that lies ahead. The 60 year road has been bumpy for most of the times, rarely smooth and the Juggernaut of India has proceeded sometimes with a puncture or two but proceeded nevertheless. As Ramachandra Guha points out India may sometimes have been the most exasperating country in the world but it has always been the most interesting. So India's 60 year journey has been interesting to say the least.

There is an almost unanimous agreement that India's 60 year report card will show "Well done,Can do better" and the task cut out for the next 60 years will be to turn this remark into "Great work, keep up the good work". As Nehru proclaimed in the historic Tryst with destiny address "The future is not one of ease or resting but of incessant striving" and so its left to us the people to strive incessantly and fulfill our Tryst with destiny.

They say there is a proverbial "Jekyll and Hyde" dual element in every individual- a good and a bad side. This concept may be true of countries too and the last 60 years have witnessed two Indias with the above dualistic bent. And unquestionably India's fate has been and will be determined by the fate of these two Indias.

One of the Indias, sees itself as a victim of history and circumstance and wants to 'right' the wrongs of the past. It traces its future path on the roads of the past. It has no time for the present nor for the future. It expends its energies in intoxicating the people with the opium of religion, caste and language instead of expending it on activities that bring about the betterment of its people. This India manifests itself in communal riots, caste based violence, discrimination based on language, regionalism and petty politics.

The other India, sees itself as a product of synthesis and assimilation over many centuries and prides itself on being a monochromatic culture and cradle of a great civilization standing out like a beacon for the rest of the world. It treads gracefully on the newly carved pathways of the future, self-assured, confident and always looking ahead. It has no time for petty feuds based on religion, caste or language instead it looks to invest its energies towards the betterment of its people. This India manifests itself in its entrepreneurs, engineers and scientists ,in the many private firms that dot the urban landscape, in the thriving democracy and in the secular outlook.

These two Indias have existed simultaneously for the past 60 years, looking face-to-face at each other, one wrestling the other for supremacy, one triumphing over the other at various points and at all these points the common man has looked on as an eager spectator knowing well that his fate hangs in the balance. India's future inevitably depends on which of these two Indias triumphs and for goodness' and humanity's sake lets hope its the later.

The Cricketer's Pilgrimage

According to legend, there are three ways to find out the arrival of summer in England. The green lawns on the country-side, the chirp of the birds and the sweet sound of bat hitting ball. Well that tells a lot about the place of cricket in England and English society notwithstanding the huge following for football. Cricket is probably the most English of all games and I have come to admire the pristine setting of the game at its home - England.

As I watched the test match between England and India unfold at Lord's I was amazed by the whole atmosphere. The terracotta pavilion filled to brim, the lush green outfield, the almost deafening silence as the bowler ran into bowl and finally the sweet sound of bat hitting ball. It almost seemed blissfully idyllic. No wonder playing in England is every cricketer's dream I thought. For a cricketer going to England is akin to going on a pilgrimage.

Cricket in England lapses back to the halcyon days of the amateurs when it was a gentleman's game and the trappings of commercialization and business hadn’t maligned it. A time when bowler's applauded when a batman caressed him through cover and the batsman walked when he knew he'd nicked a feather edge. It would be naive to believe anything of that sort will ever happen, but it’s always good to hark back to the past and cricket in England provides an excuse to do so.

Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité!

"Liberty Equality Fraternity" - With this clarion call the French revolution stormed into this world 218 years ago this very day when angry Parisian mobs led by the San-Culottes engineered the "Fall of the Bastille". Like all revolutions this one came uninvited into the ball room of History and by the time its dance was done it had altered the structure of the World beyond recognition, forever and for good. Like the flood that enriches the very bank it wreaks havoc on its upheavals brought with it the light of enlightenment into this world. "Liberty Equality Fraternity" were no longer words confined to the books they jumped out and captured the imagination of the public.No event in modern history has altered the world we live in as much as the French revolution. It was a time of great suffering and also a moment of great joy and as Charles Dickens's opening line of "The Tale of Two Cities" puts it "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."

There are principally three kinds of revolutions - Political, Economic and Social. The one we are seeing in India and China for instance is economic in nature. But out of the three the most significant and far reaching is the Social one and the French revolution stands out as an example of a social revolution. It brought to an end the tyrannical rule of royalty and laid the foundations of the modern democracy where people were governed by themselves and not by some snob who ruled because it was his birth right. The intensity of the revolution is best felt in the French national anthem the 'La Marseillaise' which is one of the most passionate of all anthems and shows us the sacrifices made during the time for things we take for granted today, namely - freedom and equality.

Come to think of it the revolution could not have happened anywhere else but France. For 18th France with such thinkers as Voltaire and Rousseau had the intellectual wherewithal required for it, also the ineptitude of the monarchy also was a decisive factor and these two factors merged with the frustration of the people helped to precipitate the revolution. Since french culture pervaded throughout Europe at that time, the revolutionary principles spread throughout it , and since Europe ruled the world the principles pervaded throughout the world, far and wide like a wild-fire.

The revolution stands as a testament to the indomitable human spirit that craves for freedom and equality. It also rings a warning bell for tyrannical rules and dictatorships that subjugate their people.If i had to pick few of my favourite moments in time, then the revolution will be among the very best. Its sense of drama,euphoria,passion and not to forget its far reaching consequences have enthralled me for years and will always remain one of my favourite passages in time.

The rise of the Neo-Bourgeois

"The most perfect political community is one in which the
middle class is in control, and outnumbers both of the other classes."

Thus spake the great philosopher Aristotle while he sat and spoke to his disciples on the steps of the acropolis. These words ring as true now as they did 2500 years ago. This fact is proved by the political, economic and social growth of India in the last decade and a half. Though government policies and global conditions have helped India's growth, it is the zest and vitality of the Indian Bourgeois (middle-classes) that has made the greatest impact.

And this isn't the first time the middle-classes have played a pivotal role in the nation's fortunes.The Independence movement wouldn't have been a success had it not been for the hard work and sacrifices of the then middle-classes. So history has repeated in its inimitable way and the new middle-classes - the Neo-Bourgeois - find themselves pitch-forked in the middle of the Indian success story.

Right from the blue-eyed techie walking into his state-of-the-art IT firm to the first generation entrepreneur starting off on his mission with handful of cash and heartful of vigour to the Young graduate coming out of a B-school ready to take on the world , this breed of Neo-Bourgeois is all set to take India and the World by storm.

The primary difference between this generation and the previous has been the confidence with which it attempts any task. The attitude is more 'Why not?' than 'Why?'. The opening up of the economy provided this new generation with the ideal catalyst to turn from bronze to Gold. India moved from a "Socialist" set-up which was beyond its sell-by date that believed in an over-powering state to a "new third way" state that acted as a facilitator and encouraged Private enterprise. This proved to be incredibly beneficial as budding entrepreneurs mostly from the middle-classes spun high-end jobs for the rest of the society which in turn triggered a chain reaction of yet more jobs in the market. This unleashed the market forces which has brought prosperity and financial support to millions in the country. Though huge disparities still exist between the rich and the poor, they are perennial problems faced by even the developed nations and the next wave of the Indian success story should therefore focus on bridging this gap so as to ensure the foundation of the country remains rooted in solidity.

Finally to borrow Lenin's quote - during the Russian revolution, when asked to comment on the ability of the common man in changing history - the Indian Neo-bourgeois can indeed "give history a hand" and change the course of India's history and fulfill its tryst with destiny.

Failure of the Parliament

The word Parliament was allegedly taken from the French "Parler" which means "to speak" and today our politicians in the legislature do just that - "talk" and most of the times 'rubbish'. So the Parliament which ought to have been a place for discussion and decision making has been reduced to a mockery owing to our Politicians. So this raises an important question...Has the Parliament failed the nation? If you ask me the answer would be probably yes.

The reasons are not too hard to find. Take for instance the Budget presented for the last three years, all have been passed without a trace of discussion on the topic. After all who ever cares for a mere 100,000 crore budget that would power India into an economic powerhouse when there are other pressing issues like scams and sting operations. It just illustrates the appalling state of affairs. So it would be safe to say that the country is moving forward despite the best efforts of the politicians to hold it back. Also parliament instead of being the jewel in the crown of democracy is turning out to be its biggest embarrassment.

So now lets focus on the solution rather than the problem. One of the things that can be done according to me is having a minimum attendance for each legislator per session. If one does not attain this mark he would be forfeiting the perks that come with being a legislator and also puts a black mark against his name which will hurt his public life. How does that sound, pretty radical but then again what do they say - desperate situations demand desperate measures.

Finally how about this remedy. India being the largest democracy in the world can hark back to the past to take a leaf out of the book of Classical Athens- the cradle of democracy. In Classical Athens there was a yearly practice called 'Ostracization' which was more like a 'unpopularity' contest wherein all the citizens would gather and vote for the most unpopular politician and the unlucky man was exiled for 10 years, basically rendering him politically defunct. The Athenians got rid of many a tyrant owing to this practice. This seems rather dramatic but it can be implemented in some form or the other so as to achieve the ultimate goal of making the politician accountable. I wonder how many parliamentarians will stand the test of 'Ostracization' in today's India.

Shakespeare's Italy

I have been reading some of Shakespeare's plays (in their abridged version) these past few weeks and as always found it very fascinating as i was transported to a completely different world every time i read it. Every time you read Shakespeare you discover something new which you hadn't noticed earlier.

Likewise, as i was reading the plays this time one thought struck me - Why an English playwright writing for an English audience set most of his plays in an Italian backdrop. In this day and age of neo-nationalism its hard to find any contemporary writer setting his work in another country ,for instance when was the last time harry potter left England. But Shakespeare's most famous plays were based in Italy probably Greece comes a distant second.Sample this - Romeo serenades Juliet in Verona, The merchant comes from Venice,The two gentlemen are from Verona, The shrew gets tamed in Padua, Ceaser gets assassinated in Rome, Othello hails from Venice etc etc.

Some theorize that he was a sailor in his youth and spent a lot of his time in the ports of Italy while some others argue that he was in fact an Italian immigrant who came to England and became a play wright in the guise of an Englishman (which i find a touch funny). Personally i think there could be two reasons for this.

Firstly, the fact that Italy unlike other European countries until the middle of the 19th century existed as a collection of cities similar to the city states of classical Greece lent itself to portraying drama. For what better place to find warring families,princes at each other's throat than medieval Italy.In his plays Shakespeare showed the vices of mankind which can be more vividly shown in a feudal setup rather than in a republican one.

Secondly the fact that Italians are some of the most passionate people in the world came in handy to etch the characters. For a taste of Italian passion try listening to a bunch of Italians conversing in a bar.The Italian unlike the romantic Frenchman or the sober German was more easy to be portrayed as a passionate person and since drama was all about passion it fitted in well with Italian characters.

Whatever be the reason Shakespeare's Italy is one of the most fascinating places to explore the inner mind and persona of men transcending the borders of nationality,race and time.

A nation of Engineers

In the early 19th century at the height of the Napoleonic era Napoleon mockingly said when asked about England's threat by labelling them "A nation of Shopkeepers" and said that they are no good at war. If he were to be alive now he would probably have similarly labelled India as "A nation of Engineers".

As an engineer coming from Bangalore sighting another (software) engineer is as common as sighting fish in a pond. So you almost get a feeling here that every other person you meet is an engineer. The word Bangalore has become synonymous with the IT industry and its engineers. And every family wants to have a blue-eyed software engineer son/daughter.

Without a doubt the profession has done immense good to the country by contributing enormously to its coffers and providing the youth with a sense of financial security that the previous generations of it lacked. But all said and done some how i get a feeling that the profession has also seceded in overpowering other essential fields of social relevance such as pure sciences, arts , sociology etc. The Indian society has almost become monochromatic with the advent of the IT brigade. So much has been the 'ITfication' of India that the other fields of learning have become secondary in importance and attract very few talented individuals.

In a perfect world every individual pursues his/her passion but in today's less-than-perfect India people are coerced to take up engineering for the desire of a settled and stable life. In the long run this trend could be disastrous as you need more than engineers to form a healthy society, after all an engineer cant help you with your history lessons nor can he help you discover the hidden treasures of science. The responsibility not only rests with the children and their parents but also with the government of the day which being the custodian of the society is obliged to make sure that each field of learning gets its due importance and its fair share in the job market.Unless we address such anomalies we will just remain 'A nation of Engineers'.

The dragon Awakens

Last week the whole of the china and its diaspora celebrated the coming of the 'Year of the Pig' and this event got a great deal of coverage from the world media which used to shy away from third world countries like China and India and treat them like second class nations. So what has changed between now and then? This event is a case in point of the coming of age of modern china, indeed its the 'awakening of the dragon'.

If one has a glance at the histories of India and China they almost run parallel.They remain two of the oldest and continuously flourishing civilizations of the world that have contributed a great deal to world culture. Both had their glory days and fell on hard times in later days with India being ruled by the British and China suffering a 'Century of humiliations' at the hands of the western powers during the 19th century. And both are experiencing an economic and social resurgence during the 21st century.

Lets have a closer look at China. The Chinese up until the 18th century most often than not had a pretty prosperous time with several royal dynasties. A great change had taken place during the 18th century during which Europe had the industrial revolution and was strutting around the world greedily eyeing colonies. India fell easily with no strong central governing authority but china did not fall as a colony as it had some semblance of a central authority but got divided among the great powers into 'spheres-of-influence' which is a byword for exploitation. Thus began the 'Century of humiliations' right through the 19th century where china was humiliated to give up territory and pride.

The communist revolution though improved the situation it did little to bring relief to the masses but something really interesting happened in 1980 where for first time a communist country opened itself for foreign capital thereby throwing open china which brought and is bringing prosperity to the masses. India followed the path a decade later and still has to do a lot of catch-up.

What china has succeeded in doing is change the rules of the game viz. manufacturing which had traditionally been a 'Better-quality-more-expensive' business into a 'Better-quality-for-same-price' business which gives it an undoubtable edge over its competitors. This is similar to what India has done to services , hence no wonder the two countries are the fastest growing economies of the world. If this trend continues the future of the world might well be written in India and China and the dragon will keep raising its head.

Team of the Century

In my idle time off-late I have been musing over a queer point - what would be an all time cricketers XI. Actually this thought has been there ever since the turn of the century when every sport was nominating its greatest-Pele for football,Laver for tennis etc.. So i thought it would be great if I can pick such a 'dream team'. Here goes my selection...

1. Sir Jack Hobbs

You just cant argue with a player who has 60000 first class runs and 197 centuries, this in spite of missing out on his golden years due to World war I. In fact there was a saying that the greatest player before Hobbes was Hobbes himself before the war.

2. Sunil Gavaskar

He could pile up runs like pages in a thick book on his day. 10000 test runs and 34 centuries -13 of them against the great west Indian attack - is enough to put the little master in the team. But what these statistics don't reveal is the grit and determination of the man.

3. Sir Don Bradman

The greatest batsman of all time, the great man comes in at one down. Need I add more?! A career average of 99.94 should suffice.

4. Sir Viv Richards

The man who had the 'Me-and-my-chewing gum-against-the-world' attitude comes in after the don. Quite simply the most destructive of batsman who played in the most destructive of sides.

5.Brian Lara

He is one of my favorites. There was competition for this spot what with the likes of - the three Ws,george headley,tendulkar etc. - but i'll go with lara for he's a real math winner and with scores like - 375,501,400 - he has to get in.

6. Sir Gary Sobers

The best cricketer to have graced the field, ever. The no. 6 slot is for an allrounder and so the greatest of allrounders comes in here. He could do everything for you - bat and score hundreds,bowl chinaman, bowl left arm swing,field superbly anywhere.

7. Adam Gilchrist

The greatest no 7 of all-time comes in at 5 down. He has revolutionized wicket-keeping for ever. No more is the keeper a clinical man behind the stumps and keeps the tail enders company in front of it. Now he is the key man in the side and on the same plane as batsmen and the credit for this transformation goes to this man.

8. Shane Warne

Down to the bowlers now and the greatest of them all leads the pack. Another of my favorites. A true genius with the ball in his hands he's the quintessential match winner who can turn the match with his ball as well as his attitude.

9.Wasim Akram

The greatest left-armer of all time comes in as first change. Like warne he's a true blue match winner with close to a thousand international wickets and four hatricks and innumerable super spells.

10. Malcolm Marshall

The new ball will be taken by the best of the west indian fast men. A genuine fast bowler who can bowl close to 100mph at both Perth as well as Peshawar, a truly rare breed of bowler.

11. Dennis Lillie

Sharing the new ball will be 'Dennis the menace'. The great Australian had a big mouth and a bigger heart and raw pace to boot.

Well, I'm done with it and looks like inadvertently I have picked a team which has players belonging to most of the major test playing countries. So there it is the team of the century...Cant see anyone waiting to line-up against them :)

L'amour de jeux

"L'amour de jeux" this was the slogan of the Paris Olympic comitee for the 2012 olympic bid. The bid failed but the slogan stuck in my mind with me being an avid sports lover. It roughly translates to english as 'Love of the games'. It embodies the french spirit of sports and is pretty apt considering the french connection with sports viz. the resurrection of the olympic games, the genesis of the football world cup both of which had frenchmen Pierre de coubertin and Jules rimet respectively behind them.

Sports i feel is a microcosm of life itself as it has all the emotions that life has to offer. Be it Joy,sorrow,heart break,nostalgia you name it and sport has got it all. A sportsman will experience all the myriad emotions in a span of 10-15 years that a normal person expiriences in his entire lifetime.

This explains why sports persons generally have a longer,fitter and wholesome life. Extending this logic from the individual to societies and countries we find that countries that have a sports culture like australia and Italy are more happier ,prosperous and holistic than the others.So the writings on the wall,if you want to be a holistic and healthy society invest in and encourage sports.

The Spell...

For the past couple of months I've been under a spell - not that of some oriental magic - but that of a spell-binding book. This book or rather a Tome goes by the name of 'Glimpses of World History' written by our very own Jawaharlal Nehru. Never have I been so smitten by a book as by this one. I had always preferred Fiction over Non-fiction but of late I've come to believe that fact can be as compellingly interesting as any fiction.

This book is a must read for all the history buffs out there as Nehru remarkably covers the rise and fall of empires and civilizations,discusses great men who made a difference to the world we live in. I was awe-struck by the breadth of Nehru's knowledge and his understanding of history's lessons. And to think of the fact that this book came out as a series of letters from a dingy old Indian prison where Nehru did not have any recourse to reference material you are filled with admiration for the man.

As things stand I'm still mid way through this book and I think I will be as spell-bound by the second half as I was by the first one. Ciao.