Protests against reservations have now enthralled the nation and the voices of thousands unheard are making their presence felt not only on roads and medical colleges but also in the political corridors. Before riding high on emotions and taking sides, it’s important to identify few critical questions which strangely have been missed out by many. And if we try to look at the canvas from bird’s eye view, these issues may not look of importance however at ground level, the picture is somewhat different.
As the ghosts of mandal return after sixteen years to haunt the Indian middle and upper class, the protests doesn’t seem to be of the same ardor as they were in 1990. Why have we not reacted the way we did in 1990? Why are we tolerating this government and most importantly the man behind this? Arjun Singh’s dreams and ambitions seem to be way ahead of his abilities and power. As he aims to climb the next ladder to become the PM, he doesn’t realize that he is trying to step on crores of Indian youth who at no point would support him or his government. He claims that he has no “personal agenda” in pursuing the quota issue and at the same time, his attitude of airing the whole issue without discussion within the congress party suggests otherwise.
Thousands of medical students have now joined the protests which were started by medical students and junior doctors. Surprisingly a little support is visible from other disciplines. Are we satisfied with the dictatorship of Arjun Singh in the fields of management, technology, journalism, etc?
Every aspiring student in this country prefers to get in to IIM’s or FMS rather than any other private B School, Ask any aspiring techie and his dream institution would be IIT or DCE. IIMC is considered as the best place to learn journalism and mass communication which again is government institution. Won’t the quota regime affect such dreams?
Do OBC really NEED quota? A study done by two IIT Directors indicated that only 50% of vacancies at IITs for SC and ST’s are filled up. Of the remaining half, 25 percent dropout before completing the course. At a government medical college in Kanpur, as many as 50 percent of SC students for the final year MBBS exam failed the issue is not about providing favors to the OBC, its about denying the right of equality for general class and penalizing upper castes for being upper castes.
This one’s haunting me since the beginning of this debate. Can doctors deny treatment to sick people?
What happened to the oath they took for servicing sick? The first and foremost duty of every doctor is to treat sick people. Anger against government has taken over many of them and the services have been interrupted at many places causing huge problems for the patient. Can sick and poor people afford the suffering of the tussle between doctors and government? Though senior doctors have taken steps and have ensured operation of emergency services.
And as I write, I see a headline on NDTV which says that government has asked doctors to resume duty within 24 hours or leave hostel.
I believe the better way would be to operate open air OPDs at the place of protests which would not affect patients and would convey an even stronger message to the government.
The issue if not tackled would result in even further problems and then quota in private sector would no longer be a laughing matter!
In the end, I appeal to all the readers to contribute as much as possible by joining the protests. It would affect each one of us and we must not forget that we r living in a democracy, if our leaders (or rather politicians) don’t realize that, it is our duty to remind them.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Thursday, May 18, 2006
India tour of West Indies, 2006 -II
What makes a champion different from a winner is consistency and when same needed to be applied to the game of cricket, it becomes all and more important considering that this game has produced many one day or rather one series wonder.
Indians started their tour of West Indies in an astonishing manner by comprehensive victory over Jamaica. The performances of batsmen in this match proved the fact that Indian batsmen have learned the game of consistency with dhoni, raina and most importantly kaif found themselves amongst the runs…Though sehwag once again failed to capitalize on a good start, his knock of 33 runs looked solid. However raina in particular took the glory by being the only batsmen in the line up to touch the milestone of half century.
Well, Indians have now experienced an ideal launch pad for the first ODI to be played today. Close scrutinizing of the practice match suggests that Indians had a bit easy time in the field as far as the batting was concerned with no real fast bowler or any senior member from the national team was their to really scare them and that is where Indians need to be a little cautious since the ODi would have the likes of Lara, Sarwan etc who hold a potential to take the game away from the Indians..
Whether India would be able to maintain the winning momentum or not, only time can tell, however seeing the towering sixes by Dhoni and impressive bowling performance by Munaf Patel… It looks like Indians are ready for the task and would make their presence felt by winning the battle before the war starts in the same island in a few months from now…
Indians started their tour of West Indies in an astonishing manner by comprehensive victory over Jamaica. The performances of batsmen in this match proved the fact that Indian batsmen have learned the game of consistency with dhoni, raina and most importantly kaif found themselves amongst the runs…Though sehwag once again failed to capitalize on a good start, his knock of 33 runs looked solid. However raina in particular took the glory by being the only batsmen in the line up to touch the milestone of half century.
Well, Indians have now experienced an ideal launch pad for the first ODI to be played today. Close scrutinizing of the practice match suggests that Indians had a bit easy time in the field as far as the batting was concerned with no real fast bowler or any senior member from the national team was their to really scare them and that is where Indians need to be a little cautious since the ODi would have the likes of Lara, Sarwan etc who hold a potential to take the game away from the Indians..
Whether India would be able to maintain the winning momentum or not, only time can tell, however seeing the towering sixes by Dhoni and impressive bowling performance by Munaf Patel… It looks like Indians are ready for the task and would make their presence felt by winning the battle before the war starts in the same island in a few months from now…
Saturday, May 13, 2006
India tour of West Indies, 2006
As the Indian team takes on the windies.....the wind has started blowing strongly now with the Indian team making its presence felt in the carrebians. The tour becomes more important as the world cup is gonna be played in this island only in less than 10 months from now.....
Here's a update on who is saying what these days from both camps and hows the momento is builduing up!
Five bowlers the way to Test success: Chappell
PTI
May 13, 2006
"It's the bowlers who win Tests and we all know that. I am convinced that India need to persist with the five-bowler theory in order to win more Test matches," Chappell told PTI shortly after the Indiam team's arrival here. Chappell said he expects his young fast bowlers to step up to the task and excel in Tests as well. "It's an opportunity for them to seize the moment and prove themselves in
demanding conditions."
Dravid keen to end the West Indies drought
May 11, 2006
"We're not thinking about the World Cup," Dravid stated emphatically in the pre-series press conference at the Taj Lands End in Mumbai. "We are looking to win this series and if we learn a few things along the way that can help us in the World Cup, well and good. We are keen to improve both as a Test and one-day side and it's important we keep our focus."
Tendulkar's absence unfortunate: Lara
Cricinfo staff
May 13, 2006
"I think it is unfortunate because we are all entertainers. The public would have loved to see Sachin," Lara told The Trinidad Guardian after a practice session at the Queen's Park Oval before his team's sixth ODI against Zimbabwe. "He's going to be here for the World Cup hopefully, but any opportunity to see him would have been great for the public."
Well thats an interesting point...A maestro missing the other one!
For more updates and noinions....keep checking and keep posting ;)
Source: www.cricinfo.com www.espnstar.com
Here's a update on who is saying what these days from both camps and hows the momento is builduing up!
Five bowlers the way to Test success: Chappell
PTI
May 13, 2006
"It's the bowlers who win Tests and we all know that. I am convinced that India need to persist with the five-bowler theory in order to win more Test matches," Chappell told PTI shortly after the Indiam team's arrival here. Chappell said he expects his young fast bowlers to step up to the task and excel in Tests as well. "It's an opportunity for them to seize the moment and prove themselves in
demanding conditions."
Dravid keen to end the West Indies drought
May 11, 2006
"We're not thinking about the World Cup," Dravid stated emphatically in the pre-series press conference at the Taj Lands End in Mumbai. "We are looking to win this series and if we learn a few things along the way that can help us in the World Cup, well and good. We are keen to improve both as a Test and one-day side and it's important we keep our focus."
Tendulkar's absence unfortunate: Lara
Cricinfo staff
May 13, 2006
"I think it is unfortunate because we are all entertainers. The public would have loved to see Sachin," Lara told The Trinidad Guardian after a practice session at the Queen's Park Oval before his team's sixth ODI against Zimbabwe. "He's going to be here for the World Cup hopefully, but any opportunity to see him would have been great for the public."
Well thats an interesting point...A maestro missing the other one!
For more updates and noinions....keep checking and keep posting ;)
Source: www.cricinfo.com www.espnstar.com
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Organised Retailing: Opportunities and Challanges
Retail has no doubt opened up a plethora of opportunities to be explored along with challenges to tackle. Diversity in terms of culture and consumer behavior is something quite unique and that’s what makes the whole scenario even more exciting
Some experts believe that the most important tool to tackle and enjoy the coming wave of retail would be the understanding of consumer behavior, however few others believe that its all about putting the right things at the right place and that is what brings us to a level of deeper understanding of the underlying issues which have been ignored or rather being looked over…
As per the AT Kearney survey, India has been ranked as the most attractive retail market among 30 nations beating Russia and even China. The best part about this survey is that India got the best rank in the “saturation” index supporting the fact that the market potential is immense and a lot of room is there… Talking about the current retail scenario… India hasn’t done too bad…We have been ranked as the 8th best retail market in the world (Retail forward global retail outlook, December 2004). India’s fast growing is forecast to approach Italy’s slow growing market by 2008 as it loosens restrictions on foreign ownership of retail stores. The point highlight the long standing debate about FDI in retail for which the likes of Wal Mart are lobbying in the PMO for a while now… Micheal Duke, Vice Chairman – Wal Mart recently visited India and to a reply to a question asked in an interview about eagerness of Wal Mart to enter India, he said “Is 10 the highest” and then practically answering “10. Or Can I say 10+? We are very eager. We see a terrific country that offers so much opportunity.” (Source: BT, April9, 2006)
Another major area of opportunity is the employment. Retail is the biggest employment generator with employing 75 of the total workforce i.e. approximately 21,000,000. The number is expected to go up by 8,000,000 once the organized retail takes plunge.
Organized retail currently forms just 3% of the total pie… however the growth over the net 3 years would be 30% annually. The unorganized retail in India has a lot to do with the food and grocery shops and the penetration of food and grocery in organized pattern is mere 1% indicating an immense opportunity to explore and grow. Big Bazaar of Pantaloon Retail India limited started a series of “Food Bazaar” throughout the country and it now forms an integral part of their offering. Other players like RPG, Pyramid are also operating on the same lines by understanding the underlying benefits.
Another factor which is contributing to this positive wave is that in India, 53% of population is young (Source: HSBC). The definition of “young” here is a person who is of or less than the age of 25 years. It highlights the growing shopping trend as it’s the modern Indian youth whose average salary is increasing and hence the higher disposable income find its way to shopping.
As they say… there aren’t any free lunches….
The retail opportunity is no doubt big… but are we ready to accept it? Do we have the required resources to avail this goldmine?
Capital investment required is 5 bn US dollars however as per the current trend, the initial domestic investment is at close to 1 bn US dollars, the investors have to look at this perspective and find out the way to cover up the deficit of 4 bn US dollars.
Human capital is other grey area for this sector. The job opportunities in India has changed the employment preference of people especially youth who prefer working in IT/ITeS sector...The most important reason behind this behavior is the lack of awareness about the growth opportunities amongst people. With the growth, the number of persons required would be high and to tackle such fears…, companies like Pantaloon Retail India Limited has tied up with various institutes where there is a specialized program on retail management.
The technology that we use today in Indian domestic retail stores is not up to date as per the western counterparts. Recently the retailers association of India decided about making bar code compulsory for all the retailers to adopt. Whereas the stores like Wal Mart, Tesco etc. are using modern ERP systems with RFID technology to stream line and automate supply chain in order to increase efficiency.
Infrastructure needs to be improved especially if the foreign retailers are to be welcomed in India. Even at the domestic front, the retailers are facing problems with the soaring rates in property which is preventing them from leveraging the benefits of mass reach. Companies like Pantaloon Retail India Limited have established a property arm recently which will take care of the construction and mall management activities.
Overall the opportunity in retail looks big. The business looks promising, scalable and profitable. The challenges are daunting however with the right approach and right policies from government, the way can be made easier and the time to capitalize is… NOW!
Coming Up Next: FDI in Retail
Some experts believe that the most important tool to tackle and enjoy the coming wave of retail would be the understanding of consumer behavior, however few others believe that its all about putting the right things at the right place and that is what brings us to a level of deeper understanding of the underlying issues which have been ignored or rather being looked over…
As per the AT Kearney survey, India has been ranked as the most attractive retail market among 30 nations beating Russia and even China. The best part about this survey is that India got the best rank in the “saturation” index supporting the fact that the market potential is immense and a lot of room is there… Talking about the current retail scenario… India hasn’t done too bad…We have been ranked as the 8th best retail market in the world (Retail forward global retail outlook, December 2004). India’s fast growing is forecast to approach Italy’s slow growing market by 2008 as it loosens restrictions on foreign ownership of retail stores. The point highlight the long standing debate about FDI in retail for which the likes of Wal Mart are lobbying in the PMO for a while now… Micheal Duke, Vice Chairman – Wal Mart recently visited India and to a reply to a question asked in an interview about eagerness of Wal Mart to enter India, he said “Is 10 the highest” and then practically answering “10. Or Can I say 10+? We are very eager. We see a terrific country that offers so much opportunity.” (Source: BT, April9, 2006)
Another major area of opportunity is the employment. Retail is the biggest employment generator with employing 75 of the total workforce i.e. approximately 21,000,000. The number is expected to go up by 8,000,000 once the organized retail takes plunge.
Organized retail currently forms just 3% of the total pie… however the growth over the net 3 years would be 30% annually. The unorganized retail in India has a lot to do with the food and grocery shops and the penetration of food and grocery in organized pattern is mere 1% indicating an immense opportunity to explore and grow. Big Bazaar of Pantaloon Retail India limited started a series of “Food Bazaar” throughout the country and it now forms an integral part of their offering. Other players like RPG, Pyramid are also operating on the same lines by understanding the underlying benefits.
Another factor which is contributing to this positive wave is that in India, 53% of population is young (Source: HSBC). The definition of “young” here is a person who is of or less than the age of 25 years. It highlights the growing shopping trend as it’s the modern Indian youth whose average salary is increasing and hence the higher disposable income find its way to shopping.
As they say… there aren’t any free lunches….
The retail opportunity is no doubt big… but are we ready to accept it? Do we have the required resources to avail this goldmine?
Capital investment required is 5 bn US dollars however as per the current trend, the initial domestic investment is at close to 1 bn US dollars, the investors have to look at this perspective and find out the way to cover up the deficit of 4 bn US dollars.
Human capital is other grey area for this sector. The job opportunities in India has changed the employment preference of people especially youth who prefer working in IT/ITeS sector...The most important reason behind this behavior is the lack of awareness about the growth opportunities amongst people. With the growth, the number of persons required would be high and to tackle such fears…, companies like Pantaloon Retail India Limited has tied up with various institutes where there is a specialized program on retail management.
The technology that we use today in Indian domestic retail stores is not up to date as per the western counterparts. Recently the retailers association of India decided about making bar code compulsory for all the retailers to adopt. Whereas the stores like Wal Mart, Tesco etc. are using modern ERP systems with RFID technology to stream line and automate supply chain in order to increase efficiency.
Infrastructure needs to be improved especially if the foreign retailers are to be welcomed in India. Even at the domestic front, the retailers are facing problems with the soaring rates in property which is preventing them from leveraging the benefits of mass reach. Companies like Pantaloon Retail India Limited have established a property arm recently which will take care of the construction and mall management activities.
Overall the opportunity in retail looks big. The business looks promising, scalable and profitable. The challenges are daunting however with the right approach and right policies from government, the way can be made easier and the time to capitalize is… NOW!
Coming Up Next: FDI in Retail
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
A moment of achievement...a moment of motivation... a moment of satisfaction....
A moment of achievement...a moment of motivation... a moment of satisfaction....
The visitor's count reaches 100 today courtsey the continuous love and support from all of you... Thanks for bearing me and hope to keep u bugging in future as well.....
Together We Rawk!!
The visitor's count reaches 100 today courtsey the continuous love and support from all of you... Thanks for bearing me and hope to keep u bugging in future as well.....Together We Rawk!!
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