DISCLAIMER -TO HURT ONE AND ALL

Four Children . No, make it five .

 Abki baar bachche chaar ! Someone added , Nahi paanch !   After all its about a mandate for 'chappan inch ka seena' (56 inches chest size ) .

Everybody is a Muslim screeched Assadudin Owaisi .

Sakshi to Owaisi , respected Parliamentarians  of the Indian Democracy come out with the most disrespectful statements and get away with it .
Do they deserve to be seated in our Parliament , not worth asking, because black and white answers will never be forthcoming . So what is expected from us - Enter the mode of #SeedhaSawal losing breath over no jawab .

Incident 2
The Censor Board Chief resigns over MSG release, alleging coersion and corruption . So how powerful is the 'Rockstar Baba ' ? No guesses, considering he has a #LoveCharger . No, it is a #LoveCharzer .
In between all the hashtags of #iSupportMSG , CBI likely to summon Dera Sachcha Sauda Chief Ram Rahim to Delhi where an FIR has been filed against him in Castration Case . This will be the third CBI investigation that the Dera Chief will face.
Meanwhile in real life too , he plays God and has his way .His film is to be released.Baba sure rocks.

Every Baba has his day in this country .
Incident 3
Now Baba Ramdev .His company Patanjali Ayurved is about to reach the 2000 crore mark. He claims it a victory of Swadeshi over multinational fmcg 's. Question is , is it linked to Bjp's victory. When those in power share stage with those who run business , even companies that have gone broke ,suddenly start minting pathbreaking revenues . Baba Ramdev's humble reply to this accusation is, "Modiji is fond of me but I have never seeked any favours . Yes the Congress govt always caused hindrance to our growth" .
And did I tell you he registered severe protest in a live interview with me when I called him Businessman Baba . He says it over and over again , "I have no shares in the company." I promptly asked , "Who is the CEO?" He answered, "Acharya Balkrishna, the company belongs to him " . And dont we know Acharya Balkrishna belongs to Baba Ramdev !

 Incident 4
Meanwhile away from the babas , with a distraught heart many see this headline coming .
No One Killed Sunanda
After No One killed Jessica , we witnessed the unwritten headline , No One Killed Aarushi, and now this .
Justice . Denied Again ? The delay kills the case at every step after the actual killing. Fudged up investigation and pathetic forensic labs ensure the murder of every case . Foul play was evident from day one but took Delhi Police one year to even raise such suspicions in their investigations and apply Sec 302
Justice can wait yet again .

While shameless poltical agendas are carried forward with statements based on religion by elected Parliamentarians , while accusations of coersion and corruption fly in the air over Babas that succeed in playing God by bypassing rules or manipulating them, and justice continues to be captive of shoddy  or manipulated investigations , the country awaits, with a great sense of pride , Obama's visit .

Yes, we shall dress up Agra and Delhi . Just for your information Agra has no airport till today . As per reports Obama is sure to get a flower treat. The report in ET says 35,000 exotic cut flowers and 20 quintals of loose chrysanthemums and marigolds are to be used for Republic day celebrations .  The exotic flowers ordered for the occasion include 4,000 Holland variety tulips , 3000 cut Anthuriums, 15,00 Oriental Lilies and 1000 golden Orchids .

The flower budget for Obama R-Day appearance exceeds PMO's quarterly expense.
 Let me sum it up like this ..

उम्र भर यही गलती करते रहे
धूल थी चेहरे पर
हम आइना साफ करते रहे

Great Job Growth! Now Where’s That Raise?

Today's employment report marks the end of what has proved to be an outstanding year for U.S. job growth. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for wage growth -- and until it can, the Federal Reserve has ample reason to keep its economic stimulus efforts going.

The Labor Department estimates that nonfarm employers added 252,000 jobs in December, bringing the total for 2014 to almost 3 million jobs -- the biggest year of gains since 1999. The unemployment rate declined to 5.6 percent from 5.8 percent in November, and its lowest level since June 2008. That said, the job market is still far from normal: Only 77 percent of people aged 25 to 54 have a job, compared with the pre-recession average of 80 percent.

One big question now is how much more the Fed can do to generate employment. Some economists worry that keeping interest rates lower for longer will stoke an inflationary spiral of rising wages and prices, as employers compete for a shrinking pool of available and qualified workers. So far, though, the data suggest that this is far from the case.

If anything, wages aren’t rising fast enough. As of December, the average hourly wage for private-sector workers stood at $24.57, up only 1.7 percent from a year earlier. That's just barely enough to keep up with consumer prices, which are estimated to have risen 1.7 percent during the same period -- lower than the Fed's target inflation rate of 2 percent. Here’s a chart showing the rate of wage gains since before the economic recovery began in mid-2009:

To some extent, the decline in global oil prices may be holding U.S. wages down. The average wage in mining and logging, a category that includes oil extraction, has fallen at an annualized rate of almost 5 percent during the past three months. Here's a breakdown of wage gains (and losses) by sector:

All told, the evidence suggests that U.S. workers are overdue for a raise. Until they get it, and as long as there's a chance that a stronger job market will bring people out of desperation and back into the labor force, the Fed need not rush to start raising interest rates.

Approve Keystone and Move On

At this point, Keystone XL has more value as a political issue than as a pipeline. That's why President Barack Obama should just approve it already and put this absurdly politicized issue to rest.

True, the president has said he will veto the current congressional effort to force approval of the pipeline, but his objections seem more bureaucratic than substantive. And last week, the highest court in Nebraska, through which Keystone will run, quietly opened the door to allow him to approve the project through the proper channels.

To reiterate: The pipeline from Alberta, Canada, to the U.S. Gulf Coast is neither a threat to Earth's climate (as its opponents claim) nor a boon to employment (as its proponents argue). The construction is expected to create only about 10,000 temporary jobs; only a few dozen permanent employees will be needed to run the thing once it's built. And the pipeline's actual impact on the environment is minimal.

What's more, with the price of oil hovering around $50 a barrel, the economic rationale for the pipeline is shaky. Nonetheless, the wisdom of allowing TransCanada Corp. to build the pipeline remains as sound as it ever was: In the long term, it can make the U.S. more energy-secure.

As an immediate side benefit, U.S. permission could also be used to help coax Canada into a climate agreement with the U.S.

The Keystone XL has been a hot-button issue for some environmentalists, in part because extracting oil from tar sands creates more pollution than drilling for oil. But the pipeline would be a net gain for the climate if it could help prod Canada to cut carbon emissions.

This shouldn't be so difficult. Canada has always matched U.S. pledges on greenhouse-gas targets -- even if, so far, it has not done as much as the U.S. to make good on them. Both countries vowed to lower carbon emissions 17 percent from their 2005 levels by 2020. In a recent climate deal with China, Obama upped the ante to 26 to 28 percent by 2025. Canada should follow suit.

Finally, there is the reality that, even if the Keystone pipeline is never built, Canada's oil won't stay in the ground. Even as oil prices have dropped over the past several months, extraction from the Alberta oil sands has continued. And even if $50-a-barrel oil causes some producers to slow production, oil prices will inevitably rise again, making oil-sands extraction economically viable. This crude will get to market via rail and ship -- as it has been -- and possibly via pipelines that are in the works to Canada's east and west coasts.

Keystone will not create many jobs for the U.S., and its delivery of 830,000 barrels a day won't keep the price of gasoline low. But the U.S. still needs to import oil -- and better to get it from Canada than, say, Venezuela. Obama has no good reason not to say yes.

Uniting Against Boko Haram

In France, terrorist attacks killing 17 triggered a demonstration of support by dozens of world leaders and millions of marchers. In Nigeria, a new attack by Boko Haram terrorists killed hundreds and caused barely a shrug.

French President Francois Hollande called for national unity and ordered more than 10,000 security personnel to protect his country's schools, public buildings and critical infrastructure. In Nigeria, after the atrocity in the northeastern town of Baga, President Goodluck Jonathan was all but silent -– just as he stayed mute for weeks last spring after Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls.

Hollande's call for unity was hardly necessary: In France, solidarity comes naturally in the face of such a crime. In Nigeria, it does not. History has carved deep sectarian, ethnic and economic fissures across the country. Governments, both military and civilian, have failed to close them. The parties contesting next month's elections must strive to change this. Boko Haram cannot be defeated otherwise.

The group has been ruthless in its efforts to carve out an Islamic republic in northern Nigeria and the surrounding region. The conflict has already claimed as many as 20,000 casualties, displaced more than 300,000 people and disrupted the lives of millions more. There are no bounds to the depravity of a movement that uses children as suicide bombers. Yet the brutality, venality and incompetence of Nigeria’s government and security forces have empowered the enemy.

Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country, its largest economy and its biggest producer of oil. It has vast economic potential -- but poverty is nearly three times more prevalent in the Muslim north than in the Christian south. Long-standing animosities divide followers of the two faiths, as well as herders from farmers, settlers from so-called indigenes, tribes of the oil-bearing Niger Delta from those of other parts of the country. “Corruption is so pervasive in Nigeria,” reported Human Rights Watch, “that it has turned public service for many into a kind of criminal enterprise.”

The head of Nigeria’s central bank once estimated that 10 percent of gross domestic product was lost each year to fraud. About the same proportion of the country's oil is simply stolen. The army and police are notoriously abusive. The U.S. State Department has compiled information about human-rights abuses that implicates about half the units in the Nigerian military.

Boko Haram’s emergence in Nigeria's poor northeast was no accident. Its origins lie in legitimate grievances, and its quest for an Islamic state with sharia courts began nonviolently. After bloody clashes between Christians and Muslims and growing repression by security forces, the movement took a more radical turn. In 2009, more than 700 were killed in a crackdown; the group's leader, Mohammed Yusuf, died in police custody. After that, the movement splintered and became more violent, burning schools and churches, and bombing railway stations.

Boko Haram aims to delegitimize next month's vote by suppressing turnout: Predictably, the violence has worsened ahead of the election. The parties contesting the vote can best respond by toning down their mutual antagonism and bloodthirsty rhetoric. The government must also try harder to provide security for polling places, especially in the north, and speed up its introduction of biometric voting cards. More international observers, deployed for longer, would help.

There's a limit to what outsiders can do, though. The U.S. and U.K. have curtailed cooperation with Nigeria's beleaguered army because of human-rights abuses. Specific, vetted units might still be receptive to training and assistance. Beyond that, strengthening the ability of Nigeria's neighbors to prevent Boko Haram's incursions might be the best outsiders can do.

After the election on Feb. 14, the winner must start to address the grievances that have fueled not just Boko Haram but also scores of other disenfranchised groups driven to violence by the impunities and inequities that have dimmed Nigeria's promise. In Nigeria, making common cause against violent extremism won't be easy, but there's no hope of peace without it.

Weiss Consents to Warren's Advice

Liberals are cheering Senator Elizabeth Warren for derailing the appointment of Antonio Weiss, President Barack Obama's nominee to be undersecretary of domestic finance at the Treasury Department. But by essentially spiking his nomination, she may have done him a favor.

Rather than endure the tough questioning (and predictable grandstanding) that comes with a Senate confirmation hearing, Weiss will waltz into the Treasury Department as a counselor to Secretary Jack Lew, a job that does not require Senate approval. There, he may have more influence over a broader range of issues than he would have had as an undersecretary. Whispering in the ear of the king can be more powerful than being one of his feudal vassals.

Yes, Warren gained a political victory. It comes at a cost, however -- to the federal government’s ability to attract talent. Obviously people who leave the private sector for the public are willing to accept less pay in exchange for more power. But their calculus may change if a prerequisite for a government job is a public flogging.

Of course the legislative branch acts as an important check on executive authority, and the Constitution subjects the president’s power of appointment to the “advice and consent” of the Senate. But it's reasonable to ask how far its advice needs to go, and how much of its consent is necessary.

As the federal government has grown, so has Congress's reach into the agencies. There are now approximately 1,200 executive branch jobs that require Senate confirmation, mostly deputies and other underlings who report to bosses who also must be confirmed by the Senate. More than 30 positions at the Department of Defense, for instance, require Senate approval, including the assistant secretary for legislative affairs -- the poor soul whose job it is to deal with Congress.

The Senate has granted itself veto authority over nearly every agency’s senior staff, as well as those the president seeks to place on small commissions and offices, such as the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund or the Foreign Claims Settlements Commission. (No, senators probably don’t know what these boards do, either.)

In 2012, Congress trimmed the number of positions requiring Senate approval by 163. It was a good first step. Moving 1,200 appointments through hearings and votes is not a good use of the Senate’s time. Moreover, delays can hurt agency productivity and produce power vacuums that get filled by less qualified people exempt from Senate approval.

Limiting the use of advice and consent is consistent with the Constitution, which authorizes Congress to remove itself from reviewing the appointment of “inferior officers.” In a 1997 ruling, the Supreme Court defined such “inferior officers” as those whose boss is someone other than the president. Yet the president picks his executive-office staff without any advice and consent, while hundreds of agency staffers must endure Senate hearings.

Clearly this system is out of whack. Maybe further congressional oversight of White House appointments is not such a great idea; the president deserves a lot of leeway in choosing who works for him. But the Senate should certainly be more selective about where and how far its advice and consent applies.

Shocked by the Swiss Franc? Blame Europe

Anyone feeling wrong-footed by the Swiss central bank's surprise decision to stop holding down the price of its currency should consider placing part of the blame elsewhere -- on the abject failure of Europe's leaders to revive their sinking economy.

Global financial markets went into gyrations today after the Swiss National Bank announced that it would end its more than three-year effort to keep the value of the franc from rising above about 0.83 euro. The franc immediately jumped to about 0.96 euro, dealing a blow to the country's export and tourism industries, to traders who had bet against the currency and to foreigners who owe money in francs.

Switzerland's move is a kind of capitulation. With the European Central Bank on the verge of extraordinary stimulus measures that will probably weaken the euro, Swiss central bankers realized that the franc -- long a haven for investors fleeing the euro -- will come under renewed upward pressure. A voluntary appreciation now, they believe, will be less disruptive than one that's forced on them later.

Tiny Switzerland's travails underline the bigger issue: Europe's inability to restore economic growth. After the 2008 financial crisis and amid the subsequent European debt crisis, Europe's leaders -- Germany's policy makers, especially -- have erred repeatedly. They have forced too much austerity on the weakest members of the currency union, while the strongest have pared back investments needed to boost growth. They have been far too slow in forcing banks to recognize losses, raise capital and get back to business as usual. They have opposed much-needed monetary stimulus. As a result, the euro area has endured serial recessions and is now teetering on the brink of deflation.

It's widely believed that the ECB is finally about to start quantitative easing, announcing what could be as much as a trillion euros in bond purchases. A possible legal obstacle fell away this week. Whether or not QE works, it will put new pressure on foreign-exchange markets, as the outlook for interest rates in euros increasingly diverges from the rest. Switzerland is not alone in feeling the repercussions. The U.S. dollar has gained some 14 percent against major currencies since mid-2014 -- a shift that some economists worry could spell trouble for non-U.S. companies that have trillions in outstanding dollar-denominated debt.

Europe's leaders -- and particularly German Chancellor Angela Merkel -- can still make a difference by boosting investment, offering relief to embattled countries such as Greece and letting the ECB do its job. They should do this for the sake of their own economies. If they fail, the damage won't be confined to the EU.

A Journey to 1000 That Has to be Cherished

Roger Federer is no numbers man. But upon racking up his 1,000th victory on professional tour — bracketing him alongside three other giants of the game — the Swiss admitted he couldn’t but feel the lustre of the particular number. “All those (milestone) numbers didn’t mean anything to me, but for some reason 1,000 means a lot because it’s such a huge number,” he was quoted as saying. This coming from a man who has a record 17 Grand Slam titles. To watch Federer in his elements in itself was an ethereal experience, those gliding legs, flowing arms, more like an extension of his body, the caress of the racquet and mellifluousness of strokes that cajoled than forced mistakes out of peers.

It’s his journey to 1000 that has to be cherished than the statistical triumph. Ranked number two, aged 33, and father of two sets of twins, the master doesn’t move as fluidly as he did. His aura of invincibility left him some time ago. He chases with the pack he once led indisputably. But he still has a sparkling array of shots and a remarkable tennis brain. He has honed what already was a forensic serve. He seeks to curtail the attrition with a serve-and-volley game that conjures images of an era past. He has a bigger racquet engendering more power and fewer errors.

It is his love for the game, not to mention his enormous self-confidence that sustains him. He is fit and appears to have shaken himself out of the slump that meant he was vulnerable enough to lose to Sergiy Stakhovsky in the second round of Wimbledon the year before. He did not want us to remember him like that, flailing against a serve-and-volley challenger. He wants to go out on a high and when he does leave us, it will be on his terms. That will be a sad day. But it is time to stop pushing him towards the exit door. The 1000th win was a gentle reminder.

Odisha Must Revamp Its Water Supply System

The Hepatitis E outbreak in Sambalpur which has claimed 20 lives and afflicted more than 2,500, not only lays bare a grossly ineffectual public health monitoring and management system in the state but also the utter failure of the government in ensuring access to clean and safe drinking water to its people. The Western Odisha city was let to grapple with the outbreak caused mainly by contaminated drinking water supplied through dilapidated and leaking pipelines for over six months. With death count rising and realisation of its gravity finally dawning, chief minister Naveen Patnaik in December announced a `100-crore project to revamp drinking water supply system in the city.

While the situation in Sambalpur shows signs of abating – more due to the self-limiting tendency of the Hepatitis virus than belated interventions – virtually every city and town of the state epitomises the same malaise, lying exposed to waterborne disease outbreaks, thanks to years of neglect and disrepair. Even though ever increasing population pressure along with demand has led to fast-paced development of urban infrastructure, attuning  drinking water supply systems to the changes has been forgone. As a consequence, supply pipelines, aged and derelict as they are, now lay crushed under roads and entangled in drainage systems as sitting ducks for  leakages and contamination.

The millennium city of Cuttack, in fact, is the most vulnerable of all urban centres of the state with almost the bulk of its 550 km-long pipeline network dating back to more than half a century. The state needs to comprehensively re-examine the water supply systems and draw-up a strategy for complete overhaul of the aged ones. The task at hand, no doubt, is onerous but access to clean and safe drinking water is a human right of the people that the government cannot afford to absolve itself of.

United Effort May Yield Kerala Rich Dividends

In a rare show of camaraderie, Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy and Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan together met prime minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday. The unprecedented message that came out was that the Congress-led UDF and CPM-led LDF could indeed join hands for the cause of the state, which had had otherwise got used to witnessing the two fronts at each other’s throats on issues and non-issues alike. Never willing to lose any chance to cast BJP as enemy number one, Modi’s trademark business-like approach would’ve played a significant role in getting the Kerala leaders to go calling on him in a renewed bid to find relief to issues such as a downbeat rubber plantation sector.

That the state leaders too meant business was evident as the issues addressed included the drastic fall in natural rubber procurement price, directly affecting about 11 lakh growers, with a plea to ban NR imports and also bring in other policy. Among the other issues taken up, the lone area with a distinct political footprint was the joint  plea for Modi’s personal intervention to prevail upon Tamil Nadu to maintain the Mullaperiyar dam water level at 136 feet, and to get the neighbouring state to agree to a new dam.

The united team took the initiative to another level by by broaching  critical areas such as the deteriorating fiscal scenario and the continued neglect by the Railways in scripting the state’s development when they met finance minister Arun Jaitley and railway minister Suresh Prabhu. The new-found mantra of having Kerala leaders talking business found a resonance from Delhi when the finance minister promised that all issues bogging down the ambitious Vizhinjam port project would soon be resolved. For the leaders from Kerala, often reconciled to indifference from the the central government even when politically sympathetic parties have been at the helm, the empathetic response of the NDA government led by the BJP could only have been a welcome change. Surely, the takeaway from this for Kerala can only be that it pays to build political consensus. Now, it is time to wait for results.

Voting from abroad

Given the large NRI community dispersed globally, this move will undoubtedly have an impact on the country’s electoral politics in significant ways.

The Union government has agreed, “in letter and spirit”, to implement the Supreme Court direction and the Election Commission’s recommendation to allow Non-Resident Indians to vote from overseas through postal ballots. Given the large NRI community dispersed globally, this move will undoubtedly have an impact on the country’s electoral politics in significant ways. Parliament passed the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act in 2010 to introduce Section 20A that enables a person who is a citizen of India, and is away from her ordinary residence in India for employment, education or other reasons, to be eligible to be registered as a voter in the constituency mentioned in her Indian passport: before that amendment, only “ordinary residents” could cast their vote. Although the 2010 amendment intended to include NRI participation in national politics, Section 20A had required NRIs to be physically present in their respective constituencies at the time of elections. Making it impractical for voters, this requirement defeated the intention of the legislature. A petition was filed in the Supreme Court praying that Section 20A of the Act be read down so as to allow NRIs to vote from abroad without having to be present in India. The petition argued that the provision was in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution to the extent that it impliedly treated persons on a different footing based on economic classifications. The Supreme Court and the government agreed with this contention without hesitation.

The traditional argument against such external voting has been that only citizens who are present in the territory and affected by the consequences of their vote should be entitled to vote. As per this argument, since NRIs lacked sound knowledge about domestic conditions, they would be irresponsible in their electoral choices. But this argument is fast being disproved by empirical evidence. With the rapid increase in cross-border migrations, the concept of nationhood and political membership is increasingly being decoupled from territorial locations. India’s move towards enabling voting from overseas is an instance of a larger global trend towards increased citizen participation. The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, an inter-governmental organisation, lists different voting methods that can be employed, such as “personal voting”, where voters can cast their vote at diplomatic missions abroad; “postal ballot method”, where votes are sent by regular post; “proxy vote” and “electronic voting”. From amongst these alternatives, the government has decided to employ the postal ballot route that the electoral system already uses for absentee-voters on official duty.

Expansion and crisis

The move completes the accession of the three Baltic constituents of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — to the three main western institutions.

To see Lithuania’s euro adoption this month as an entry into a losers’ club is to miss the geopolitical picture wherein several of the ex-Warsaw Pact states have staked their future on forging a European identity — to the consternation of Russia. The admission of Vilnius into the single currency bloc represents a landmark of sorts. The move completes the accession of the three Baltic constituents of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania — to the three main western institutions. These are the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union (EU) and now the eurozone. The European ambitions of another erstwhile Soviet state, Ukraine, as demonstrated by its Parliament’s vote in December to join NATO, underpins in no small measure the ongoing separatist conflict in Kiev. Slovenia and Slovakia are the only other former Eastern bloc regions that have similarly acceded to all the three institutions. Against this backdrop, the flow of western investment, greater export potential and low borrowing cost resulting from integration into the eurozone would seem far more attractive to the Lithuanian population of a few million.

The country has long felt the lock-in effects of a fixed exchange rate as the litas, the national currency until 2014, was pegged to the euro some years ago. Lithuania’s entry was not without its share of controversy when some legislators expressed scepticism about the country’s preparedness to sacrifice the flexibility of a national currency. But the continuing crisis in the eurozone would have deterred Vilnius. With the exception of the United Kingdom and Denmark, accession to the EU implies a commitment to eventual adoption of the common currency by member-states once they have complied with the economic convergence criteria. Lithuania has so far been the lone euro aspirant whose 2006 bid was put on hold as Vilnius narrowly overshot the inflation limit for eligibility. But the expanded euro area comprising 19 countries is not expected to witness further enlargement in the foreseeable future. Except Romania, which has set itself a 2019 target, none of the other states has even given itself a euro-entry deadline. Realising the eurozone targets on fiscal deficits has been among the more ticklish issues within the bloc, with major economies and the architects of the rules themselves found to be in violation. Greater macroeconomic policy coherence is an admirable objective and an imperative for countries that use a common currency. But such an ideal must be balanced with political pragmatism as long as national capitals remain in charge of policy-formulation. That is the lesson from the euro’s 15-year history so far.

Teaching in Government Schools a Matter of Concern

The 10th annual status of education report is as depressing as all the previous ones were. Despite near-universal enrolment in the 6-14 age group, basic learning achievements of students in reading and mathematics remain low and dismal. One of the highlights of the report is that if 59 per cent of Class V students in government schools could read Class II texts in 2006, only 39 per cent could do so in 2014. In other words, a large majority of the students in Class V have not acquired basic reading and mathematical skills. They will not be able to cope with the academic pressures as they get automatically promoted to higher classes.

It is in government schools that the problem is acute. There are many reasons for it ranging from the absence of quality teaching to the policy of all-promotion, which was to curtail the high drop-out rate. It is no surprise that the report found that one-fourth of the students in rural areas had the benefit of private tuition. It is a sad commentary on the state of teaching that parents have to engage private tutors for even primary class children. Over a decade ago, Nobel-laureate Amartya Sen demanded a ban on private tuition following the finding of a study undertaken by his Pratichi (India) Trust, which showed that many of the tutors had themselves failed to complete matriculation.

A silver lining in the otherwise dark horizon is that the students in Tamil Nadu have registered considerable improvement in their reading skills. The Centre should in consultation with the states try to address the problem, drawing appropriate lessons from Tamil Nadu’s success. Holding remedial classes for the weak students is one solution. If private schools can provide quality education, why can’t government schools? As a rule, teachers in government schools are better qualified, as they are selected through a more rigorous system of recruitment. Yet, if they fail, it is only because their work is not monitored or assessed. The students’ failure is the failure of their teachers.

We Can't Refrain from Uncomfortable Questions

The French satirical weekly, Charlie Hebdo, has published a cartoon of Prophet Muhammad on the cover of its first issue since the Islamic extremists killed 12 people at its offices. In the backdrop of the fact that Charlie Hebdo’s past caricatures of the prophet had prompted last week’s attacks, part of the worst terrorist rampage in France in decades, this is a brave show of defiance against the onslaught on freedom of the press. France saw its biggest demonstrations on Sunday as millions turned out to show unity and defend the freedom of expression.

The reaction is not confined to France as the slain journalists have become symbols of the world’s determination to defend democracy and free thought. The lesson from Paris is that we cannot shirk from asking uncomfortable questions about the interweaving of politics, society, and religion. By returning to the theme which enraged the Islamists, the weekly has robbed the extremists of their intention to silence their targets. If the world refuses to be intimidated, then the merchants of terror will be at a loss about their next step.

After all, even they cannot be unaware that each act of carnage exposes the radicals and their organisations, including the so-called sleeper cells, to progressively more intensive police surveillance with the result that their ranks will be gradually depleted. Notwithstanding their professed love for martyrdom in aid of a perverted cause, they cannot bank on an endless supply of gullible young men and women who are willing to die. Yet, if the terrorists do not respond to the weekly’s latest challenge, they will be losing face before their demented followers inside and outside France. The point which the psychos have missed is that if they choose to live in a country, they must willy-nilly accept its way of life, including the penchant for mocking people and faiths at will even if immigrants find the habit offensive. A nation has to live on its own terms.

Technology Brings Ancient Flavour to Net

There are many things that add a distinct sweetness to the Pongal celebrations in Tamil Nadu today. The signature ‘sweet pongal’ dish and the crunchy farm fresh sugarcane are just two ingredients that traditionally make the festivities complete and also delicious. But the delightful Pongal gift from Tamil Nadu for modern scholars should be the government proposal to digitalise historic records at Government Oriental Manuscripts Library and Research Centre in Chennai. That 26 lakh pages of documents will be uploaded on the website was a sweet news that wafted in on the eve of the Pongal holidays.

So those immersed in research on a plethora of subjects in far away countries can do away with the long distance journeys that have to undertake hitherto to lay their hands on relevant manuscripts, some of them palm leaves. In fact, tracking the required text, buried in heaps of documents, strewn randomly in dusty shelves inside musty high-ceiling halls of old libraries too has always been a drudgery for those coming looking for historic evidence.

Now, such physical searches will end with the complete treasure trove of knowledge, hidden inside what is considered one of the best manuscript libraries in Asia, going online. So, what would be available at the click of a mouse is  50,180 invaluable palm leaf manuscripts, 22134 paper manuscripts and 26,556 reference books in languages like Tamil, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Urdu, Arabic and Persian. The subjects those documents cover include mathematics, astronomy, siddha, ayurveda, unani, veda, agama, architecture, music, sculpture, fine arts, history, grammar and literature. Scholars anywhere can remain seated in their desks, glued to their computers. Will that prompt more young minds to embark on academic research to explore the hoary past of the Orient, particularly Tamil Nadu? 

Concerted Action Must for Industrial Growth

The index of industrial production grew by 3.8 per cent in November, according to the figures released by the government on Monday. It is the highest growth rate during the last five months. What makes it all the more satisfying is that the previous month registered a 4.2 per cent drop in growth. The statistics suggest that the factory output figures showed revival, albeit mild, except in consumer goods and durables. The Modi government has reason to be satisfied, as the numbers show an improvement in the overall economic scenario, particularly in manufacturing and fresh investments. True, a 2 per cent growth rate is not something to write home about, though it marks an upturn.

The encouraging signs are the relatively consistent rate of growth over the last few months. If anything, it is a pointer to the fact that the country is on the right track as far as industrial production and investment are concerned. The main constraint for accelerating both remains infrastructure, which should receive the  government’s urgent attention. Unless facilities like power and communication are provided, no manufacturer, whether domestic or foreign, would like to invest. They would go to places where those facilities are available. It may appear strange but it is true that many Indian companies have also set up units in other countries for not only logistic reasons but also for lack of infrastructure in India.

The Modi government has simplified environmental clearances, giving little scope for delays. This was one of the major bottlenecks investors faced in the country. There are many projects, involving thousands of crores of rupees, which have been pending for a long time. The simplification would have, hopefully, resulted in the clearance of many of them. The Centre and the states should work in concert to make India a favourite destination for investment.