Inflation, Infrastructure and Defeat

1) Inflation refuses to die. It is becoming a structural or systematic problem rather than a one-off issue. The Indian economy is growing over more than 8% annually but our infrastructure growth is not able to keep pace. Our capacity is restrained with respect to demand leading to price rises.

RBI should not keep squeezing liquidity in the system. The top policy makers should device a law for lending money but they should not suck liquidity across the board. This will kill the growth. I think RBI governor should be convinced by now that merely squeezing the liquidity will not control inflation. Let Agriculture and other ministries wake up and take appropriate measures to control inflation.

Controlling inflation through short-term methods will aggravate the problem in the long run and remember, we are paying a cost for it or our future generations will pay an even higher cost for these short-term methods.

Indian needs to take rapid steps to boost infrastructure and promote it through private-public partnership otherwise inflation devil may totally go out of control. We need cheaper and 24 hour power. The power generation capacity is woefully short what was projected in last 5 year plan. We have not been able to bring enough private participation in power projects. Our SEBs are in financial mess, T&D losses highest in the world and collections for electricity bill are pathetic.
The golden quadrilateral road project is running out-of-schedule and will shortly start running in cost-overruns. Our irrigation network has not expanded enough and demands more money. The government is going to invest in irrigation network which is a good idea.

The solution is to bring telecom type private players in the market and carry the reforms in these sectors through government regulation. But one difference is that for infrastructure projects, the main input is land and it changes the whole picture. Land acquisition brings politics and rehabilitation issues and halts these projects. The government needs to be fast on rehabilitation laws and needs to finalize it with long-term vision. It is easier said than done.

2) One issue is our top institution doesn’t work. Our honorary members of parliament are involved in bitter politics on different issues and try to resolve the issues by power rather than fruitful discussion in the parliament. It is detrimental to very basic fabric of democracy. Our politicians or members of parliaments lack basic values and are involved in cheap vote bank politics all the time. This politics is thrived through bitterness, unfair practices and ‘might is right’ rules rather than driven by efficiency and honesty. Our top institution has diluted its values and integrity by successful and unwanted marriage of politics and criminals which goes back to slow judiciary processes. A person can fight elections till his guilt is proved in a court of law. The criminals are very well educated that how they can slow down these processes even further through their might.

Remember: Each minute of parliament session costs INR 20,000.

Coming to slow judicial processes, India is still very much a jungle raj. If your near relative is a politician or top bureaucrat, the whole country has to come together to get punishment for you for any gross wrong doing. Priyadarshan Matto case and many other pending cases are glaring examples.

I am very much convinced if income tax department starts its work honestly and efficiently against top politicians and bureaucrats, India doesn’t need to charge tax to its citizens for at least one year. This country can be a total-tax-free-country for one whole year. It is one more example.

We are a very inefficient country when it comes to implementation of law. This country needs discipline and it has to start from each segment of the society.

3) Cricket: The time has come when Indian public has to look for other sources of entertainment rather than hurting their emotions for these 15 useless fellows and a BCCI which runs Cricket in this country.

These 15 men are not accountable to this country and its people. BCCI made this point amply clear in the court. So, why should they should be answerable to the public and care for the 1 billion people who wake and sleep following cricket. These men are accountable to BCCI and have done more than enough to bring revenues to their employers. BCCI is growing faster than top companies of India.

This team doesn’t have zeal to win. They want other team to loose the game rather than they win it. They hardly show fight. They can’t bat on fast pitches (look what happened in South Africa) and they can’t bat on slow pitches. So, the real question is whether they can bat on any surface to win matches?

The fundamental question is if they want to work hard? Why will I work hard if I have earned enough for my grandsons and achieved a GOD like status among 1 billion people? Why I should listen to my coach and remove the weakness in my batting? The whole world knows how Mr. Tendulkar is susceptible to incoming delivery. My mind goes back to Lahore test match in 2004 where Umar Gul claimed Sachin out through an incoming delivery and their coach, Javed Miandad revealed this fact in media. I have seen Sachin getting out in the similar fashion on many occasions. Has he done anything about it? And if Mr. Tendulkar can’t win crucial games for India, he is not good enough to be in the team. Scoring runs against depleted attacks is one thing and scoring a marvelous century in world cup final match (like Ponting and Arvinda Desilva) is a separate thing all together.

Why things don’t happen for team India in field? Is there a co-relation between non performance on the field and the attitude? Rahul Dravid doesn’t need a McKinsey like consultancy to put fielders in short cover and short mid wicket to stop singles. Mahela Jaywardhane applied the same fielding from the very first over and put pressure on Indian batsmen on an easing pitch. Rahul Dravid fails to impress that his thinking cap is on all the time. He looks helpless in the field and totally out of control of the proceedings. He looks searching for answers rather than asking the tough questions to the opposition. My soul was screaming when Lankans were taking singles on each delivery and our fielders in 30-yard circle were mute spectators. These singles and 'Hang on, We can do it' attitude were the difference in the end.

There are many questions which will go unanswered. India will go to Bangladesh in May and win all the matches. The ho-ho spirit will be back and a new coach will be making strategy for 2011 world cup probably with a new captain.

On a comical note: Our reforms in fielding department are on for last ten years now. I had heard Azharuddin talking about it and we still talk about improvements. Well! We still can't hit stumps directly as Aussies do. I don't know what it takes to do - apart from dedicated training sessions and offcource, an willingness to do so.