The Great Indian Cocktail

THE GREAT INDIAN COCKTAIL

The Moment of Truth

GLOBAL INDIA Inc.

By

Rama Bharatha Varma

It was an ordinary morning for millions of Indians; it was not so ordinary for millions of expectant Reliance Power investors and it was an extraordinary morning for the marathon runner Mr. Anil Ambani . Creating history in the present with tremendous power to extend its energy into the future is a thing that is not very common. Now it has almost become a habit for Indians to create history on a daily basis on all fronts .The middle-class mass is the critical mass which everybody wants to have share. The BOTTOM OF THE PYRAMID theory of the famous Indian management GURU . C.K Prahlad has become a much sought after idea which remains at the conceptual level. There is much truth in his famous theory and the multinational corporations get elated over the concept without knowing how to go near the bottom . There seems to be much distance between the pinnacle of the pyramid and the bottom of it .In fact the Indian pyramid is much more inscrutable than the enigmatic pyramid of Egypt. Both are beauties in their own right but one hides the dead and the other hides throbbing life which struggles to come out in the open . The marathon run of Anil Ambani is suggestive of the long term vision of the young man and is symbolic of the present Indian psyche .

The INDIAN SOCIETY is unique with a mosaic of culture coexisting without any natural culture shocks. But there are enough artificial forces which bring in a lot of shocks in certain pockets which is sometimes a storm in the tea cup and other times something of a tsunami in the sea of humanity. Everybody runs the marathon race, and there is not much worry in anybody about the winning strategies because the inherent strength of Indian culture is patience and belief in fate and destiny. Perhaps our belief in a political system based upon dynastic system, though not special to India alone , might be a product of our thought process based upon these train of thought which has been fossilized in our interiors It is interesting to note that Fidel Castro ,who pushed the small piece of land ,called Cuba , into the international arena ,has also chosen the same route by appointing his brother to head the nation. There are some more interesting parallels too. Castro used to be vociferous in the U.N delivering long speeches purely from his astonishing memory power. Our own Mr. Krishna Menon , former Defence Minister was also known for this. Perhaps there ends the similarity. Castro’s relationship with the erstwhile Soviet Russia has also some parallels with Indo- Soviet relationship Our neighbor has also proved one point that both the countries have something in common .

Dynasty syndrome does not end with politics or nation, it extends itself into the field of business also in the same way . But the implications are different and the stage is different despite parallels. More of this later The vast population of India is like great cake ready to be eaten . But ,for the unfamiliar, only the icing is visible , The cake has its fruits and nuts and only the discerning observer can taste it and understand it. The nuts and bolts of Indian social fabric extremely loose and vulnerable and needs lots of lubrication and tightening at different joints which may also ask for some lubrication which only Indians can give . India has traveled far ,according to statistical calculations . But statistics is known to tell certain things with finality and it is ,most of the time, not very trustworthy. People of India are always subject to the ‘ FATE ‘ syndrome and it gets reflected in all spheres, This is why Indians can bear the weight of corruption rampant in all fields, even in religion and the institutions attached to it. This does not in any way mean that India is alone in this league. It is an inevitable part of human society where any transaction happens with an element of suspicion and doubt about it , though ,sometimes unfounded. This is because of the lack of political will and professionalism .There is no detached excellence. amongst many of the people who run the business of politics. What we see today in the country is development in certain pockets but the pockets are isolated pockets and many privileged hands dip into it but millions of hands have no access to it. As somebody commented ‘ Let us run the nation like a corporate”. We have great examples of great Indian companies which have surged forward through untrodden paths .to the astonishment and sometimes dismay of cynics ,for which there is no dearth in India. The Indian middle class , with limited awareness of what they want , makes comments like:

“The state is at best a necessary evil and at worst a corrupt and inefficient system . We can easily do without it and run the country on corporate lines . This will help avoid the dirtiness of politics.”

But this is just like becoming angry with traffic constables in a metro city because we cannot move and replacing him with a military personnel. This replacement does not seep to the real cause of the vehicular cholesterol that hampers the flow of humanity on the arteries of cities. It is sometimes said that the cities crumble with density of population because of inflow of our village brethren in search of livelihood.. we have a tendency blame upward of growth of population as the reason for all ills. This is just like blaming the coffee planter for a bad cup of bed coffee.. We have to consider population as a result of biology, psychology, physiology ,sociology, the internal drama of the hormones of love, hatred , anger ,happiness ,pleasure and what not. ? It is a complex thing and cannot be simplified in terms of two for two or one for one or none for two .Population has become a political theme, internationally and hence the word is being flogged by all and sundry sometimes without rhyme or reason. The developed world take it as a hammer to pound on developing countries and underdeveloped nations The focus shifts from political to sociological to religious and to personal. As usual, religion owns it as a convenient horse to flog.. However one fall out of the population implosion or explosion is the business enterprises which manufacture condoms of different kinds and the R& D of these companies are active in bringing out innovative products to help unleash the play of passion without the obstruction of fear . A mere recollection of the brands available products is mind-boggling. What started as a weapon for reducing birth has ironically turned into a weapon for fighting AIDS and other STD of the highly degenerating society. The biological man/woman seems to be usurping the moral being ( slowly becoming a concept )

Morality ,though relative , almost limits itself to certain strata of society , famously called “Middle class Morality “ . In this case morality could be replaced with health standards and it would be more appealing to skeptics ,who are in plenty. Recently there was a series of news items and investigative articles in magazines like THE WEEK about the growing number of GIGOLOS or in plain terminology “ male prostitutes” , in cities catering to the taste of high society women who are either frustrated or seeking change and fun. The men involved mainly falls into middle class who aspire to earn while learning the nuances of “LOVE MAKING”! They start with stripping and that essentially becomes the tipping point for the next step on to the bed. Once ,it is said, the Nobel laureate American novelist HEMINGWAY was asked by a woman journalist “ Mr. Hemingway , can you define morality?) . Hemingway thought for a moment , laughed aloud and said “ It is easy ,if you want to do a thing , Do it . If you feel happy after doing it , it is moral , and if you feel unhappy after having done it it is immoral . But if you feel neither happy nor unhappy after having don it it is amoral!!” This definition of morality could be the standard definition in the absence of a definitive one which could be approved by the whole world.

There are signs of an evolving GLOBAL culture which may end up in chaos for there cannot be a final tying up of the loose ends because the heterogeneity is natural and homogeneity is artificial in this case. Global economy , Global society ,Global business and the adjective can be added to anything in the supposedly borderless world.

Innovation takes its shape in many ways. Innovate or perish has become a cliché ,though .In a consumerist society products have to be sold in the midst of tremendous competition and marketing the products is challenging . There was an interesting news in the ECONOMIC TIMES (31 st Jan 08’) with a heading “Fly naked on nudist holiday flight .” German nudists will be able to start their holidays early by stripping off on the plane if they take up a new offer from an eastern German travel firm . The only condition is that the 55 passengers will have to remain clothed until they board ,and dress before disembarking ( so that they need not embarrass the next boarders ! ) But the crew will not have the luxury of removing their uniforms while on board ( for safety reasons!!). These kinds of aggressive promotional strategies may be copied by other flights also as the sky is becoming more populated a mirror image of what is happening on the ground. Unfortunately there cannot be any condoms ( so far ,in my wild imagination) to control its growth , except the government regulations which may act as uncertain condoms with many holes in it !! ( loop holes!! )

The great Indian panorama is full of interesting paradoxes and Pandora’s boxes. If you search for the DNA of India , will we get it ? Science is silent when many of the social complexities have to be understood or explained. The total social and economic environment has to be perceived as an ever changing whole consisting of ever-changing parts. But there is a pattern in this, though not a definite one.

When we speak about Economical aspects of a country, we try to segment it into RICH MIDDLE AND POOR . The real sandwiching makes the scenario clear. The pithy middle of the Indian society is the sweet target of the business houses of the world . But the segment is a riddle as far as the behavioural pattern is concerned. The rich and the middle has a great distance between them but is connected by the aspirational bond but the fact is that the rungs of the aspirational ladder has much distance between them which makes the climbers jittery. But up there one can find a lot of heroes and heroines of business and industry of every conceivable kind who till few years ago were rubbing shoulders with the middle class.

The Indian consumers have , for the last few years .been accepting many products and services, of course, after so much of thought process. They are proving to be very choosy and have asserted the theme “value for money” consistently. The market is flooded with products and services that one loses count on how many competing products are fighting for the mind -space from similar platforms. Indians love communication and they love to be communicated to they talk more and listen more. Few years ago , we had no option but BSNL phones ,the instrument which works at its own whims and fancy depending upon the weather conditions . Our rather servile dependence on BSNL left us hopeless pawns in the hands of khaki clad telephone post climbers. Now can a young boy imagine such a world ever existed . The land phones gave place to cellular phones and has become ubiquitous. The mobile which was a status symbol is now the appendage of millions of Indians and has literally changed their way of life. A number of companies were given license starting from BPL , Aircell to Idea , Vodofone ,Airtel,Reliance Tata indicom , to name a few. It shows , perhaps , the power of Indians or in other words the empowerment of the Indian society cutting across all barriers. The democratization of communication is picking up fast seeping down the pyramid very fast. One can now see a literal forest of mobile towers with hungry dishes looking different directions. Vodofone which took its Indian pie from Hutch has , in a short span of time has reported great growth ( ET 2 nd Feb) . “ India sets cash registers ringing for Vodafone “ The multinational company has shown record growth in a short span of time :

“ Indians clearly love to talk .Close to 40 % of the mobile usage volume of Vodofone , the world’s largest cellular provider is now generated by its Indian arm VODOFONE – ESSAR ..Every service provider is competing to please the consumer with newer and newer features which none of us could have imagined earlier.

But every additional service feature carries a price on it and the customer has to cough up money for it. The culture of freebies has further changed the expectations of the consumer in every field. It is not yet sure who is the winner either the customer or the producer. The market is not yet mature and we have to wait and see whether it is win-win situation or a one –sided win. Vodofone has introduced a service which bars all unwanted calls by preventing the unwanted numbers. But the irony is that many customers are getting many calls from promotional messages which threatens to land on your mobile at unexpected moments. Complaints to mobile providers fall on the trained and stony ears of call center girls and boys whose answers may or may not satisfy the customer.

However cellular users are growing by millions in India . But growth in any area brings with it the negatives. One who lists the negatives may be called a cynic. But the benefits to society is undoubtedly great. Just as cyber world has brought in cyber crimes mobiles have brought mobile crimes. Relationships at all levels whether it be business to business ,boys to girls , man to woman have undergone drastic changes which were unimaginable. Crimes have become easy and more sophisticated, companionship between people have started ending up at the mobile end. Indian population has come of age. The great late Dirubhai Ambani ,the great example of the successful combination of vision, big dreams, hard work and vaulting ambition had a dream of making every Indian own a mobile phone and communicate for less than the cost of a post card. People laughed when he said that , But the spirit of Ambani was carried forth into fruition by his worthy sons who realized their fathers dream by making Reliance communications a reality. The style of communication has changed beyond imagination. Messages and spoken words jump from one tower to another like the bees from one flower to another till it reaches the destination . Mobile phones of different shapes and prices have been flooding the market in drones. The brands are fighting a price war and features war . Integrated communication has become a reality with many functions like games ,internet e-mail etc. have changed our life style. Price war has brought many more customers into the cellular network. But the only problem here is that the customer is not able to comprehend the meaning or the benefits of each scheme of providers because of continuous bombarding of schemes does not give the customers the time to understand the benefits of it. The fall out of the communication revolution is thousands of new jobs ,the entry of thousands of entrepreneurs even in small towns .

Mobile phones have also been helping the police to track criminals and traffickers in a big way. This could be a fallout of the progressive sophistication that is happening in the field of mobile telephony. Numbers that are displayed on the colorful screen of mobiles sometimes start telling stories of love , hate, betrayal ,murder ,abduction and what not. Life is becoming more transparent and also more complex because of the uncertainty of the next moment. Everyday one reads in the newspapers items that relate at least something connected with cellular phones .It may sometimes be from the angle of the providers. Asking for more favours and pleading for more derugulation to make more an more money or it may be from the Government itself ( eg: TRAI ) doing its usual rounds of news gifting to papers to irritate the cellular operators .or sometimes fro the social policemen about the misuse of mobiles or sometimes about a variety of crimes committed by youngsters which is a demonstration of their creativity and to prove a point to somebody. However mobiles always create news ,spreads news ,informs and also misinforms . What is next : An advertisement says it all, perhaps ;CONVERGENCE … EMPOWERING MILLIONS . and asks ARE YOUREADY ? what next is difficult to predict as predictions sometimes fall back upon in unexpected ways just as the experience a KING had in ancient times . Technology dies very fast( but new things are born soon ) but long live technology just as THE KING IS DEAD BUT LONG LIVE THE KING. Science fiction seemed strange few years back but now real things are stranger than science fiction putting SF to shame.

Convergence of anything brings with it both pain and pleasure and any convenience is being misused . We speak of value addition , value for money etc. and these are key words in modern business terminology. But the world is so confused as to differentiate between real value and values with dangerous tags. Value system differs from region to region , clan to clan , group to group. When we provide more value it should complement the accepted value system of the society. Mobile phones , for example , provides many value added services. But how far it ca go is anybody’s guess. There was a small write up in rhe telecommunication magazine VOICE AND DATA ( Feb 2008 ) “ Terror videos now on CELL PHONES “ .’ A different kind of value added service is available for mobile subscribers al over the world ,but the question arises : is it really adding any value to our lives. ? I na recent announcement by al- Quida ,video messages of OSAMA bin laden can now be downloaded on cell phones. “ Communication takes a different turn here because of the far- reaching consequences these types of services can have on society. In the midst of youth e-mail is slowly becoming unpopular and slowly it is being considered as old peoples tool of communication. It is slowly being replaced by the ubiquitous ,addictive SMS . While traveling or while waiting for a bus or waiting in queue we can see youngsters with bent head and fingers moving rhythmically on the small keys of trendy mobiles. It has acquired so much power over the whole communication medium .And mobiles have become fashion statements and the life cycle of a mobile is – at the most 18 months. Hence the mobile companies are continuously designing and inventing newer and newer features and if a company does not innovate it will perish. Nokia is said to bring out or design new models every fortnight. The world is small , it is said . But world is however a large single market for all the players . All sorts of strategies are played out on the field to gain market share and mind share.

The world of today is crowded with communication. The more we communicate the more we confuse ourselves. Incessant communication through all the available mediums create a chaotic situation and we have no time to sift and see what is right and what is wrong. .Conflict arises when communication is fraught with gaps where anybody can step in with ideas to disrupt bringing in friction ,conflict and chaos. Communal clashes are a way of life and verbal war between nations are the order of the day, Political dramas is full of clashes both physical and symbolic ( the difference is thin ). The Global scenario is changing very fast. This affects at the micro and macro level. “ The world is plagued by greater and greater division _ within countries, political groups, families even individuals. We are all in a state of total distraction and diffusion ,hardly able to keep our minds in one direction before pulled in a thousand others. The MODERN world’s level of conflict is higher than ever and we have internalized it in our own lives” ( POWER , Robert GREEN ) Can we measure our nations progress by counting the number of mobile users or the number of television sets or the number of huge malls? In one way , YES !. But in more than one way NO ! Changes in the political system still , as noted earlier has the dynastic overtones everywhere. Democracy has brought in changes but the heroes of democracy are have peculiar thinking patterns and perhaps that is the luxury exclusively for the powerful .

Another regional political heavy weight is also in the process of perpetuating his dynastic ambitions in the SOUTH with an ambition to climb to the NORTH It is very interesting to note how we interpret things taking it out of the context or how we interpret our achievements. Politicians have their own way of getting a kick by making interesting statements . A news appeared in BANGALORE MIRROR ( Feb 6 ,08 ) “ Now MK (KARUNANIDHI) thinks he is modern MAHABALI. ” In his typical style,giving enough for readers imagination to work ,Karunanidhi sought to compare his governance with Asura King Mahabali ,who ,once, ruled KERLA Mahablis reign is considered to be the GOLDEN period, in the history of KERLA. Atheists ( MK is supposed to be one) normally reel out mythology to reject them outright as illogical fiction But stalwart among them like MK has no qualms about accepting them ( may be temporarily) if they help him drive home a point home. But what about SETHUSAMUDRAM ? Mythology or reality ? Another convenient interpretation !! Hierarchies never disappear either from politics, business or any organized activity. He more one tries to break the hierarchical code the more stronger it becomes ,of course , in different forms. MK is considered as the patriarch of Tamil Nadu politics perhaps rightly so, if one can conveniently forget other stalwarts who were “incrementally “ responsible for lifting Tamil Nadu to the present level of comparatively better ( it all depends on how one compares and with whom one compares ).economic status .

But Indian politics has always been proving Charles Darwin’s theory of “survival of the fittest “- a biological truth- ( perhaps any political system anywhere in the world may be based on that since man is called as a social and political ANIMAL!!! ) and this is true at the physical and symbolic level ,if one makes even a superficial observation of what is happening around. Even after 199 years Darwin”s theories and observations holds good in many fields human activities. His great theories were based on incredibly laborious empirical observation and once- in-a millennium insights – which , forever changed human kinds perceptions of itself and of the natural world around. Darwin always believed in a common origin of all Life on the planet life . He drew a TREE OF LIFE in which he was implying all life emerged and evolved from a common stalk. Our politicians throughout the length and breadth of the country ( or the world) also draw their family trees but they always make sure that only the branches of their trees should bear fruit and if possible make sure that no other trees grow beyond a level. They practices Japanese BONSAI in politics .But if one looks at the positive side of human activities and thoughts , Darwin’s ideas have been continuously giving birth to –through inspiration- “powerful images in science ,humanities and the arts. “ according to an essayist IN the magazine devoted to NATURE.

CHAPTER II

Indians are not behind anybody in anything . Of course, sometimes, we are a little slow in implementing even what we feel right. But we have traveled far from our fluid state and we are consolidating in certain areas ( of course except in politics ,for, most of our politicians lack a political will to think at a macro level ) like science , technology, arts literature , medicine , economics ( though we are not yet sure what is the basis of our economic activity which is fraught with contradictions and paradoxes.) IT , pharmacy and a variety of other fields ( the list is long and it will be taken up later as the panorama unfolds ) The most visible area is the field of Information technology where we have put our strong stamp . Our global ambitions started with that and it has taken a strong hold on many areas of activities. Innovations are the order of the day for Indians and our power in the field of IT for example have stunned the western world and they are literally looking forward to India for inspiration . Many Indians are behind many patents registered even in THE US or Europe. Prof. Mohanbir Sawhney ,management guru and Professor of technology at thee KELLOGG SCHOOLO OF MANAGEMETNT ,made a telling observation “ We all underestimated the speed at which change happens in India . A day will come when the real Silicon valley will be called the BANGALORE OF THE US”

.Danish PM Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen also sounded, while speaking to the students of IIM Bangalore , in the same way when he said” India will have a say in the way the rest of the world is shaped “ He added that “ Making the most of Globalization – spreading the benefit and mitigating risks … Banglaore is the right place to talk about globalization, since the city had become the brand which the world associates with globalization and India’s growth story.” But what about the millions who have never even heard the word globalization. Still there is a long way to go to make the shift from “ Developing “ to ‘ Developed “ India. A great sea of humanity is still in the backyard whose face displays a blank look and faces the great wall of poverty and uncertainty. The Danish PM commented that “ We must strive for globalization with a human face ,and ensure that economic growth is inclusive . The flip side is that there is widespread poverty. “ More than one billion are yet to experience the fruit of globalization “ The government and the corporates have to work together and make the darker side experience light . World is after all not flat ,as Friedman says ,in one sense. The poor is not able to see and experience what is happening on the other side. Let us remove the mask of globalization and lay bare the problems connected with it and exploit the opportunities while facing the enormous challenges the change brings.

The Concept of globalization has acquired much fat now and we are not able to define it properly. It may be because it still in the state of evolution. But all countries have not got a level playing field. There is still a big brother attitude despite the tilt in economic and social conditions in favour of third world countries like India. Global warming has acquired enormous proportion and developed countries have contributed and contributing much to this awful scenario. In the recently concluded meeting on global warming and climatic conditions in the world much noise was made by developed countries and India had her own arguments and was successful in obstructing certain moves of the developed countries . India’s opinion on some major issues is being seriously viewed by the international community now. This is ,possibly , because of the great strides we have been making at the global economic front ( the local is dismal, for, millions are still under the BPL and live in the dark abyss crying aloud, but their voices get lost reverberating through the great crevice that separate them from the metropolitan and cosmopolitan India . By the time the feeble cries reach the surface, the’ globalization cacophony’ may drown it. Let us take care to train our ears to listen to the feeble voice of the millions . There is nothing wrong with globalization and it is a reality. But the whole point lies in how we spread its good effects on a vast canvas peopled by the poor and needy.

When there is a stock market crash one can see great headlines ,sensational to the core , TURBULENT TIMES AHEAD . GLOBAL MELTDOWN , BLOODBATH IN BSE AND NSE etc. The pink papers as well as ordinary papers and TV channels will play it day in and day out and present a gloomy picture and many well dressed prophets will come on the stage to make prophesies lie the Oracle of the ancient times . But consider the case of GLOBAL WARMING issue which threatens the whole of universe. The funny thing is that the stock market bounce back riding on the emotions of the investors ranging from fear to greed . But the global warming and the ensuing catastrophe is permanent and there is no bouncing back for we will be neck deep in water waiting for the final wave to make things clean for the next generation to create a new civilization and culture , if there could be one. Praksh Gole,eminent environmentalist writes , in his book, Nature conservation and sustainable development in India ,If economic development results in imbalances in atmospheric ,terrestrial or aquatic life cycles ,restoration of disturbed eco- systems becomes imperative. The carbon blanket brings in warmth which results in ecological disaster and the ultimate meltdown. India should ,along with china , join together to bargain with the developed countries to get their clean technologies at a reasonable cost . stock market meltdown can be reversed but the carbon blanket meltdown will be the death knell of the world .But one heartening fact is that Indian government has been trying to solve the problem ,though slowly by implementing certain laws , which are effective only to a certain extent. The business of carbon trading has acquired huge proportion and it is becoming increasingly complex . Carbon credit system is now very effective and active. India ,along with China could take lead in this area. The function of India to reduce carbon should range from emission during transportation to production processes . Finding out alternative sources of energy is an answer to this issue. TATA group ,for example , has been doing their best to implement this through their innovative solar energy programmes.” So as India buttresses its claim to be a world power, it has the opportunity to accept greater responsibility in world affairs ,and this should be done without making great sacrifices .if India were to cap its emissions at 2004 levels ,its GDP will continue to grow at a pace faster than any other country trying to do similar things . We can do it , but are we ready ? HAVE WE GOT THE POLITICAL WILL TO DO IT?

If we have a look at the cities or ,small towns or even villages in India ( this , inno way, excludes rich courtiers )we can find that environment is the least respected thing and environmentalists are scoffed at by all and sundry. But thanks to the holding power and persistence many of them fight against the rape of nature and the assault of nature for short term gains. If we think seriously about the consequence of the melting ice or the global warming we will not be able to sleep peacefully. A Tsunami- like disaster might come upon the world engulfing the whole life making it a massive universal watery grave. Growth in civilization and creation of more an more materials which can affect our life at one time or the other are real threat to life on the earth. Computers , which are pat of our life is giving warning signals of huge electronic wastes . These are being imported to third world countries like India for use –another convenient word for “ dumping “. Plastic ,a, material which us very useful if, used judiciously, threatens to affect the future generations of life on the Earth. Can our generation be so selfish as to forget the future generations . In many cities in India certain restrictions are being brought in the use of plastics but it is only in words and nothing happens if one breaks the law. It is just like the statutory warning n the cigarette box and liquor bottle “ Smoking ( Drinking ) is injurious to health “ .Smokers smoke more cigarettes and more people consume more bottles of liquor but of course after the ritual of reading it and scoffing at the warning mildly.

THE GLOBAL SCENARIO IS WORSE. Nature stands at a ‘ tipping point”. Recently Some scientists in the west have warned the Governments to be more aware of “ tipping [points “ ,in nature . They have warned that these tiny shifts can bring big ad almost damaging changes such as melting of artic summer sea ice or collapse of the INDIAN MONSOON This is a matter of concern. “ society may be lulled into a false sense of security by smooth projections of GLOBAL CHANGE” the scientists at the British ,German and US institutes wrote in a report commented. The new study has also made it clear that ( according to a news paper report which appeared in THE HINDU Feb 6 th) the disappearance of the Arctic sea ice in summer time could happen in coming decades – earlier than projected by the UN panel that could stoke up more heat than ice and snow. The report also identified risks such as damage to northern forests. The whole world is really in danger fo becoming a victim of the side effects of lopsided ,unimaginative developmental projects without considering the future of the Earth. The developed countries consistently accuse third world countries for making the world a dangerous place to live in because of pollution . But a report that appeared in THE INDEPENDENT quoted Marcus Eriksen as saying “A drifting ‘plastic soup’ of wastes ,stretching from HAWAII to as far as Japan ,is growing at an alarming rate in the Pacific ocean ,American scientists have warned.” The garbage tip –“the world’s largest rubbish dump” – was discovered by the US oceanographer CHARLES MOORE while taking a short cut home from LOS ANGLELES to HAWAII yacht race in 1997 . “ The original idea the people had was that it was an island of plastic garbage that you could almost walk on. It is not quite like that . It is almost like a plastic SOUP . it is endless for an area that ‘s may be twice the size as the UNITED STATES”. Arctic ice and Amazon rain forests will be the first causalities of abrupt climate shifts . the summer sae ice loss is likely to occur long before ,and potentially contribute to Greenland ice sheet melt. Nature really is really positioned at this time at a “ TIPPING POINT” .

We have not spared even the sky. We have populated our skies with a large number of satellites to spy over other nations, to enhance communications ,to predict weather and many more for different purposes. All these carry large quantities of dangerous toxic fuel. Recently US found itself in a fix when a US SPY satellite became ROUGUE and wandered away from its path and that too towards the EARTH .!! The satellite has about 450 Kg. Of hydrazine fuel ,which could be lethal if inhaled in high concentration that could spread over two football grounds. The frantic US satellites specialists blasted it with a missile . the live film of the action was broadcast worldwide. Somebody expressed a doubt about the whole affair saying that the whole exercise was done to prove the power of the US to fight even in space. A declaration of the imperialistic intentions even while going down into an economic mess resulting in recession. There appeared a news item”Satellite is gone ,but questions lingers” . ‘the successful strike in space conclusively proved was not infallibility but a robust and flexible military capability .” the mission was conducted from the Navy warships. So the US can move this capability at will over three-quarters of the Earths surface. At least the missile goes up so what if economy goes down.!!! The American public is a helpless lot.!! Let us not take it lightly while racing forward with technological innovations and no looking at GDP growth every country . In India there are many environmentalists groups which make an uproar whenever developmental schemes are undertaken and everyone of them end up in confusion and litigation between the concerned parties and finally it is forgotten or silenced just as another issue crops up. Vested interests also work overtime to defend their stand with money and muscle power. Cold Ideologies melt down when Hot money comes in . It is far more dangerous than global warming for it has immediate social effects . MONEY has become a magic wand which has the power to overcome any value system.

Nowadays THE RIGHT OR WRONG OF ANYTHING seem to be decided on a case by case basis and not on any established value system. Everything has become a case of CONVENIENCE . For the last 17 years India has been witnessing drastic changes in its total environment whether it be political, sociological ,economical, technological or any other fields. Generation next is already showing major shifts in all fields , sometimes very strange and astonishing. The speed with which the change happens is such that nobody is able to understand the undercurrents that cause the changes. Technological advances have made us think with a global perspective. Millions of youngsters have global exposure and that has made the global corporations’ marketing comparatively easy here. This is because majority of the consumers are aware of the international brands and there is no need to smuggle them from Europe or The USA because all these are aware even I the kirana shops in India. The big brands have even their own outlets either separately or in huge malls. Shopping in metros and even in two tier cities has become a matter of prestige and also a source of entertainment . But many multinational companies still find it difficult to understand the nuances of Indian market and the mind of the Indian consumers. Any consumer is an enigma but an Indian consumer seems to be really unpredictable. Anything has a tendency to become commodity. Global environment at the local level brings in a lot of imbalances and the mindset of the whole nation undergoes changes for good or bad. We call this a borderless world ,but still there are borders and we, the so called world citizens, fight for enlarging it. Money has become a powerful factor in all the fields. More money at a fast pace- that is the mantra of the modern youth. Every one participates in the FROMULA 1 race and the whole country has become a FROMLA 1 track. Symbolically Mr. Vijay Mallya ,the trend setter in Indian industry, even bought one FORMULA 1 team to take Indian dream to the Global arena and thus make India truly feel GLOBAL!! or perhaps to raise the aspiration level of the middle class Indians . A recent example of commodtisation, --making everything a commodity for transaction--- is the auctioning of our CRICKET STARS in an open televised bid.

Commercialization Cricket is not entirely a new phenomenon. It has become a sponsored business involving millions of Dollars ( Of late there is a tendency to replace the ubiquitous DOLLARS with EUROS !!! How the world’s perception changes !! ) Right from the time Kerry Packer of Australia brought in the concept of one day cricket it has been there in different shapes .Till now cricket stars have been getting their extra money fro the corporate world by lending their services to sell various products. In India , where a major part of the sports and games loving population is mad about cricket ,this is quite natural. And cricketers ,like film stars ,endorse all sorts of products from soap to chocolate to soft drinks to petrol and the is never ending. The price of the stars are also quite high ,of course depending upon their performance. When a palyer consistently fails on the field his price erodes . This happened in the case of Ganguly ,Virendra Sehwad ,Dravid etc. he involvement of corporates in the politics of the game also is not ruled out. Every player wants to make the maximum money while in style and hence the scramble . Corporates also join the game as big players not on the field but off the field.

The recent emergence of the LEAGUES has an interesting history of a big corporate big –wig rubbing the BCCI juggernaut o the wrong side. BCCI is the emperor of Indian cricket. It has its own political system , and ridden with controversies because it is the richest sports organization whose funds runs into millions of dollars. While the BCCI was dozing off the corporate maverick and adventurer Subhash Chandra ,chairman of the ESSEL group ( ZEE TV belongs to this group ) announced the formation of a new concept of 20 over cricket ( so far the shortest version – small is beautiful !!) called INDIAN CRICKET LEAGUE with the legendary KAPIL DEV at its helm. The maverick MEDIA BARON Subhash Chandra said:

“ It troubles me to see that a country with more than a billion cricket fans the teams fares so poorly at the international stage. A new approach must be taken for the sports to grow and prosper in the years ahead. We need to provide an environment for the young ,talented upcoming players that will keep them motivated and interested in developing their careers in cricket.”

His logic is clear though it has overtones of the BUSINESS OF CRICKET which , as everybody knows , is big business. But one should thank him for stirring the sleeping BCCI to open its eyes and realize the realities. The cricket patriarch led by the powerful Sharad Pawar swung into action but not before Kapil Dev , thechairman of Icl roped in some international players like Brian Lara , Chris Cairns Dinesh Mongia, ,Rohan Gavaskar etc. BCCI ,swung into acton and formed IPL ( INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE) on the lnc. of ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE . This made the corporates and high net worth of INDIA inc. enter the field ,of course off the real field, with deep pockets in the hope of owning teams. Everybody wants a share in the cricket pie and the cricket loving public are always on the sidelines watching the BIG FUN where big wigs run for run getting swashbucklers of the game.

The recent auctioning of players has evoked much interest and also it has provoked many to condemn it as the most horrible vulgarization of the game _ gentleman’s game !!! there is nothing wrong with connecting money with cricket or any other game. Many former cricket icons like Nawab Pataudi, Bedi kirthi Axzad etc. have supported the idea of money and cricket going hand in hand. But how far one can go or will it all end up in a mess at the cost of cricket as a decent game ( though decency has become a relative term in cricket ) But BCCI nowadays talks more about commercial interest than cricketing interest. The recent controversy and its resolution is a case in point. The Bajji Andrew Symonds affair on the field filled all the sports pages of the newspapers and many debates followed in the channels. The players were so hurt , at least from what they told top the press, that they did not want to continue the tour with so much of humiliation heaped upon them . But BCCI does not listen to such SILLY arguments and asked the players to continue the tour for obvious reasons ( call it commercial gains ). A run for money or a run for run ,the choice is theirs not ours .

In a an article on cricket ( Business and Economy )the present scenario of Indian cricket has been put in the right perspective.

‘ Be it hail, rain or storm ,in a cricket frenzy country like India , the game is bigger than the weather man’s predictions. It is the sport of “ Higher Gods “who are worshipped by millions ready to do or die on a winning day. When this favorite sport of the British ws introduced to the brutally- colonized country more than a century ago ,little did the British royalty know that one day the “uncivilized and dirty dozens “would make blod gush into the hearts of every Indian ,and also the heart of a nation.

“ And what are the so called Higher Gods busy doing ? From floodlights to the spotlight ,the focus of the Blue Brigade seems to be distracted of late. The reasons are many , but the main one that stares you in your eyes is the fact that cricket is no longer a gentleman’s game ; it is commercial ,stupid. Money .money and more money; that is the new mantra for Indian Cricketers rather than that beautiful googly or that sizzling sixer. Posing mindlessly in front of the cameras and listening to “Lights ,camera action” instead of the uproar of the crowds which adore them ,derived out of their “Howzatts!!” to umpires for appeals ,is the new way of life of our cricketers.”

There are two sides for ever coin ,head or tail, and the coin is tossed in every cricket one may gain and the other may lose but it is a symbolic COIN the unit of millions or billions. The PRICE for each of the player was fixed through auctions. The funniest thing is that we still do not believe in ourselves and still have the colonial subjugation and the point is proved by BCCI bringing in a British auctioneer Richard Madley ,a director at Drewaettes auction house.

The former Supreme Court Judge Mr. V.R Krishna Iyer writes : Indian cricketers have damned a fine game into lasting shame by allowing themselves to be auctioned as glamorous commodities . ( like auctioning in slave trade!! ) … can foul money merchandize India’s fine batsmen and bowlers? Can crores tarnish Bharath’s sporting genius and temptation bribe the best Indian eleven ? Never? … Boycott the mercenaries who blaspheme the game . Today cricketers ! Tomorrow Ministers, MP’s Bureaucrats, and others in learned professions will be auctioned.

The new generation will start believing that money is everything and the whole media knowingly or unknowingly will influence the youngsters into believing it by constantly projecting it as a huge success. Harsha Bogle , a popular cricket commentator has aired the sentiments of the other side of the COIN when he said “ It has the potential to be huge because in India the population veers toward one sport and that is cricket ,” he added” This is the first time a big new cricketing idea and the organization to back it ,has come to India . Until now the best cricketing ideas came from Australia .( THE HINDU ) “Howzatts!!” A news item in the HINDU reads “Dhoni ‘slips’ on soap contract” . Karnataka soaps and detergents limited seeks Rs. 40 Lakhs compensation from its brand ambassador Dhoni for breach of contract. The soap contract ended up in lather ! “Howzatts!!”

Where have the other games gone ? Is cricket the true representative of the other side of India’s population where people auction their own babies or women rent out their wombs or men and women simply killed because they were born despite themselves into less privileged communities or castes ? They still lie buried under the cacophony of globalization which is yet to seep down the PYRAMID ?

Champions are popping up from India but only in single digits . A country which feeds upon the fantasies of becoming one of the crore pathy cricketers produced a real champion and he shot into fame by shooting right on the target in the OLYMPICS. And he is none other than Bindra, who brought an individual gold medal to India for the first time. A proud moment indeed. It was reported that he did not show any emotion on his face when he stood on the winners box. Perhaps he could not believe it or it was just another day for him or it might have taken some time for him to come to terms with the new found greatness. He was not new to the victory stands but what was new was the new found stardom . He could not gauge the great positive impact he made on the Indian psyche which have far reaching implications . The whole Indian population stood up to greet the new hero , the epitome of the spirit of success. It would be right to say that the Indian youth got a role model for their success in the from of Bindra. This is very relevant when role models are is a rarity in India ,though our population is rolling ahead without any concern for space or time. There is, of course our Viswanathan Anand who has proved his worth and continues to do so in the difficult field of Chess. His dedication is also worth emulating by our youngsters.recently Anand proved that he is rather an invincible player by defeating Russia’s Vladimir Kramik ,thus joining the band of the all time greats American Fiscerand USSR’s Boris Spasky. He has crowned himself the king of 64 kingdoms fighting hard ,but silently, with a great army of friendly kings., horses elephants chariots and soldiers. A “world war” in which India triumphed without a drop of blood that too in Hitler’s country Bonn, in Germany.A fantastic and consistent hero,a rloe model worth emulating for his discipline, hard work and gentlemanly behaviour with tremendous confidence and the power to bounce back from behind to stay in front. In fact the success stories of these youngsters should be made available even in classrooms from the primary level as a motivational tool. The media , both print and electronic were competing with each other to position him in their own way. They will hold him high till something more newsworthy springs up. He proved . above all, any Indian can compete and win in any international competition. The young India saluted him as her hero while the Indian business started discussing how to use him for endorsement and they started weighing his victory in terms of how much he is worth . 1 crore, 2 crores three crores …. Commercialization of anything has become the order of the day. There is nothing wrong with it but there is something wrong with it in terms of the message it conveys to the Indian public. in general and Indian youth in particular.

Politics is a profession in India but without even an element of professionalism anywhere near it. It is ubiquitous and spares nothing . Everything gets politicized. Any issue , though an orphaned one in the beginning, suddenly finds a political parent and the issue grows on fatty ,creamy, sweet food cooked and provided by uncanny political parents irrespective of colour or creed. Sports ,which pulls on its own , with its own energy and rules also gets caught in the whirlpool of politics and both the athletes and players suffer humiliation and the game or the sporting item gets hurt and sometimes gets amputated for known and unknown reasons. Our Hockey ,which is considered to be our national game , has been in the midst of controversies and misadministration that it has lost all its glory . Now the game is played with political sticks , of course crooked , Egos clash in all games including tennis and a stray player might find a taste of greatness despite the rotten system. The whole scenario is highly vicious and demoralizing. Mr. Gill guillotined the whole game before he was rather forced to leave. Olympics after Olympics we talk of medals in hockey , but this time ,at least, we could not talk for we did not even qualify . The urge to win is different from really winning. Many times Indians do not have even the confidence to imagine BIG and that preempts the energy to give a sincere attempt to do well. But in some exceptional cases individuals ,with tremendous motivation , despite frustrating attempts to demotivate them from thinking BIG , win with awesome confidence. But the interesting thing is that one never knows from where arrows are shot to demoralize the sports persons .It could be from a mosque or it could be from a temple or church. One has to act with trepidation for enemies of good things in life are lurking everywhere. Attacking ,when such an act is not warranted , has become a habit with Indian social and political fabric. Sania Mirza , the ace tennis star, who proved her talent quite early in life , was and is being hunted down for living a life of her own . Individual freedom gets a raw deal and that take a toll on the person,’s enthusiasm to advance further , at least for a short time. Her short sportswear caused unwanted recognition and a set of people ridiculed it which must have demoralized her. But the indomitable spirit of the young girl could not be suppressed by any threat. Thank God for that because she continues to win titles and Indians should be happy about it.

Intervention of the so called custodians of morality has become the order of the day. Some groups attack the VALENTINES DAY celebrations in the name of protecting the moral side of Hindutva. Pubs were attacked and threats were issued to forcibly marry off valentines day couples. A ridiculous way of moral policing which has wide consequences. There could be objections to certain practices which have been imported from the western countries In or own system we celebrate Kama and Manmatha and we have Gods supporting the divine aspect and act of love. Exhibitionism may not be acceptable but the concept of the whole thing cannot be opposed. Personal things are personal and it has to be respected in a democracy. It is true that nothing should degenerate into obscenity and licentiousness which is also subject to relative importance and significance depending upon the eternal TIME and SPACE. Our own KAMASUTRA is rather exhaustive in its treatment sex both normal and abnormal ( the line dividing the two is extremely thin and often overlap) . We cannot disown or deny its existence , instead we are really proud of it as Indians. Our brands of CONDOMS like MOODS have powerfully exploited the nuances of KAMASUTRA( through fantastic visuals) and has established a brand that promises bliss “ through Obstruction!”. Kamasutra has elevated SEX , An ENERGY GIFTED BY God to reproduce into an aesthetic art form to be performed with all sanctity. LATEX to LUST – an admirable journey. What started as a family planning device has grown into non – committal sex which has transformed into a preventive measure for AIDS . children buy innocent colorful balloons for the simple love of plying with it and it is easy for them to graduate into buying colourful balloons ,again to play the game of love. Nothing wrong as the purpose goes on changing and it has to, thanks to the availability of vast quantities of VIAGRA or GINSENG . Many men seem to be beginning their second innings at SIXTY ! he becomes a child at 60 and start buying balloons for fun. Life span has increased and many YAYATIS are evolving. Our moral policemen should make an introspection before the embark upon putting and embargo upon things like Valentines day which are based upon the interplay of emotions. It seems to be a era political correctness which essentially is at he cost of freedom which is supposed to be the hallmark of democracy ( in India the meaning of the word is losing its meaning in many areas of human activities . Sadly it so and it is a fact. ).

Love is universal but it has lost its true meaning because of overuse irrespective of contexts . As in ancient days , when damsels fell for courageous soldiers and fighters , today’s damsels fall for men of sports. Most often we see this in cricket when a Dhoni,or Yuvaraj emerge out of the blue and hit sixes and fours resulting in hundreds followed by brands wooing them and media pumping them up in the “crore” scale and the advertisers queue up in front of their gates to get endorsement for their dying brands ,living brands or would be brands. Rumour mills work overtime with film actresses giving in easily( of course denying rumours, appearing in parties and moving about in beaches ) with an eye on popularity and sometimes with a remote hope or with the bright prospect of a short-term flirting with assured appearance in PAGE 3 .Mutual benefit is assured in terms of publicity since Indian public is either a cricket buff or a film buff or both with their eyes and ears focused on their heroes and heroines. Sometime sa whole lot them fall in love with them and build temples for them like the tamilians built one for KUSHBOO and now a group threatening to build one for DHONI. But the goddess KUSHBOO was pulled won and torn to pieces when she ,inadvertently, or sincerely vouched for “premarital sex”. Even ‘goddesses “ have no freedom of speech. They have to listen to prayers but cannot speak for they are idols Chivalry of the old days has already gone through the backdoor and now it is love for convenience in most cases. It has become a necessity for sportsmen ,especially cricketers to fall in love to maintain ,perhaps , their popularity. It is quite understandable because of the vagaries of the selection process and the waning form of the cricketers. Make hay while the Sun shines . OK no problem . But the problem is that heroes of other games ends up in self pity for there are rarely any suitors for them. Cricket and film go together for Indians in many respects. Hence cricketers and film stars go together as well. But the unsung heroes of other sports and games also love ,marry and beget children though their names never appear on PAGE 3 . Lesser mortals seem to be living quiet, happy lives with les glamorous more loving mortals in the safe but vulnerable middleclass pockets in towns and villages . There seems to be a sort of wavelength between the press , corporates and the cricketing fraternity in the whole ‘vicious ‘ circle of love, fame and money attached to this game.

Cricketers and the lovers of the game have been always playing a love and hate game depending upon the runs the batsmen score or the wickets the bowlers take or the number of wins they make. The game has its own logic and seems to be quite irrational in terms of lending consistency to its players in terms of its performance .Today’s heroes are heckled and shouted at and they have to get out of the hotels and airports through the backdoors for fear of being attacked. The press has a habit of playing in tune with the public mimnd and dumps yesterday’s heroes into stinking mud .