The reality of Indian knowledge based society is: entrepreneurs = money hungry and power thirsty manipulators, managers = contractors and engineers = job-security seeking laborers. Knowledge based society and IT superpower is absolute ignorance. Open your eyes to reality, India is only a servile labor exporter. Is it wrong to be a laborer ? No. What is incorrect is being exploited as a laborer. What have we achieved with the service based model employed in the last 30 years ? Few lakh people could get food and homes, and the wealth of few business dynastic families have swelled by billions of times but India is a nation of 100 crore people. Without any intellectual capital, we will not be able to prosper in the long run. Firstly, cheaper and more efficient economies are on the rise and they have the potential to displace our IT workforce, and in this situation the dynastic business houses will quickly shift their money to a more profitable ventures leaving the employees to the same plight as that of the cotton-mill workers in Mumbai. Secondly, despite having a workforce of the order of 1.5 lakhs, these IT giants can not come up with innovative products and inventions whereas small companies of 100 people in smaller countries are coming up with game-changer products. As a direct consequence of this everyone in Indian IT industry is looked upon as a servile laborer, to whom you can outsource laborious bug-fixing, testing or support work. But more important than this perception is the fact that these companies are not producing any solutions to the problems that our country faces -- every technology is imported which increases the cost and hence the overall burden on the economy. The mark of a good society is one which one practices the values that it preaches -- and we as a nation have a long way to go to achieve that !
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Friday, November 4, 2011
Right to recall
Few questions to those who are rejecting the idea of right to recall as foolish and impractical.
Here are few arguments made to dismiss the idea and my counter-arguments to them:
Right to recall will lead to political instability -
Right to recall will lead to political instability -
If this is a mechanism to recall corrupt politicians. No political party ever admits that majority of their party members are corrupt. Then what is the problem ? We should not have any problem, if say, only 1% of the candidates are recalled and replaced every two years. One-third of the Rajya Sabha members retire every two years. It does not lead to instability. [ We will come to issue of elections later.] Saying that right to recall will lead to political instability is indirectly stating that majority of the politicians in India are and will be corrupt.
Right to Recall will become a weapon in the hands of losers to find a subterfuge way of defeating the winner -
Right to Recall will become a weapon in the hands of losers to find a subterfuge way of defeating the winner -
You are assuming that we can only build system which can be misused. The subterfuge could happen in the elections as well. If you can guarantee that no rigging happens in the elections, you should also be able to guarantee that no rigging happens in a procedure which is as important as the elections. You have to. That is your job, is n't it ? Secondly, in a democracy a person can be elected or voted out only if majority of people think so. So, majority of the voters have to express their dissent. In a country where elections are skipped for vacations, it is very unlikely that majority of the people would go to reject a candidate unless they are totally frustrated. Thirdly, if voters are believed to be capable of choosing right candidates, we can also trust their judgement of rejecting corrupt ones.
Who will verify signatures ?
Why are we talking of signatures ? Are we not capable of building an electronic system ? It is not as complex as rocket science. We can launch satellites, send rockets to moon build nuclear plants. Then why not a computer based system for elections ? We have a post office in every village, town or district of our country. Percentage of these running without electricity should be very less. We can install computers / devices here for the purpose of registering recall votes. A citizen can walk into these centers anytime and register his dissent. At the end of specific period say 1 year or 2 year, these votes can be counted. Internet based services can be used as well. Internet banking has now become common in large cities. Many of our IT companies specialize in creating web based solutions.
Cost of elections
What is the exact expenditure on elections, by-elections, state elections, municipal elections ? To whom is it costly -- for the election commission or the political parties who invest lot of money in winning them ? EVMs are not changed for years, teachers and schools are always available for free. Nevertheless, if we make recalling a permanent system powered by electronic means we can cut down the cost.
At the end, I would only like to say that we can improve any system only if we are optimistic to find solutions to problems rather than being pessimistic and discouraging those who are eager to bring about change. I certainly believe that we can change our electoral system, so that it reflects the aspirations of billion people rather than few power hungry people - like it is today.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Sapno se bhare naina
Saturday, August 20, 2011
India's first computer and history of computing in India
Indian engineers had designed and built a vacuum tube based computer in the 1950's, when very little of computing knowledge was available publicly.
TIFRAC India's first computer a retrospective
Computing: 50 years on
Do read these articles from Indian computer scientists. The story of the first computer is inspiring. The second article describes the evolution of computing in India, reflects how India struggles with computer science research and development 50 years later.
Our political parties try to take credit and win elections, by claiming their prince charming, brought computers to India. We should do our homework well to understand and appreciate the efforts of these great engineers who toiled to develop computing in India. If we see half Indian name of a scientist in the US, we get excited and try to trace his/her lineage to India and start claiming how India runs everything in the world. While we glorify Indian-origin scientists in the west, we forget those who really worked for us.
Most of the glorified IT industry works for providing services and people for people in the developed countries to offload their laborious and unrewarding work. Last 20 years have seen the launch of many innovative products in the software industry. Not one has has come from an Indian IT giant. Its time to think beyond outsourcing.
With Anna led agitation against corruption sweeping across the country, people have started thinking and questioning the conventional wisdom of the leaders who try to concentrate all powers in their hands. The campaign is focused against political corruption, but the effects will trickle to other areas as well. I am very hopeful that new India will support innovation and research and which in turn will bring in development and prosperity.
TIFRAC India's first computer a retrospective
Computing: 50 years on
Do read these articles from Indian computer scientists. The story of the first computer is inspiring. The second article describes the evolution of computing in India, reflects how India struggles with computer science research and development 50 years later.
Our political parties try to take credit and win elections, by claiming their prince charming, brought computers to India. We should do our homework well to understand and appreciate the efforts of these great engineers who toiled to develop computing in India. If we see half Indian name of a scientist in the US, we get excited and try to trace his/her lineage to India and start claiming how India runs everything in the world. While we glorify Indian-origin scientists in the west, we forget those who really worked for us.
Most of the glorified IT industry works for providing services and people for people in the developed countries to offload their laborious and unrewarding work. Last 20 years have seen the launch of many innovative products in the software industry. Not one has has come from an Indian IT giant. Its time to think beyond outsourcing.
With Anna led agitation against corruption sweeping across the country, people have started thinking and questioning the conventional wisdom of the leaders who try to concentrate all powers in their hands. The campaign is focused against political corruption, but the effects will trickle to other areas as well. I am very hopeful that new India will support innovation and research and which in turn will bring in development and prosperity.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Happy Independence Day
The people of India are looking forward to this independence day with great optimism, as they are about to witness a change in the system, thanks to the agitation by led by Anna Hazare against the corrupt political class.
I am sure most people in India will be eager to listen to Anna's address rather than the PM's this independence day. It does not matter whether you listen to PM's speech delivered today or the one five years back. They are always the same. They can very well be substituted with a tape recorder.
The most constructive element of our system has not been the legislature, judiciary or executive, it has been people like Anna. Anna has shown how villages can be transformed, how a "welfare state" can work. He has been instrumental in pushing the RTI act - due to which we are seeing many cases of corruption being exposed. Now, through Jan Lokpal Bill he is trying to make corruption a punishable offense and establish mechanisms to achieve the same. The people see a definite plan in his actions. He has been a person who has delivered in bringing about the change.
It is only the so-called intellectuals, who keep on pointing to scriptures and law books or useless statistics; for they have lost the ability to think by themselves. They obstruct justice by pointing to laws. The laws were made by humans like us, they are not divine. They need to be corrected as per the needs of the society. Laking courage, these intellectuals submitted themselves to the whims and fancies of the pseudo-democratic dynastic regimes, and the anarchy that came along with it. By spreading skepticism or discouraging obstructing the ones who are trying to do something constructive, they have made the situation worse.
However, unlike the intellectuals, the common man, I think, is able to see the larger picture and that is why there is huge support for Anna and great optimism that it will lead us on the right path !
Jai Hind !!
I am sure most people in India will be eager to listen to Anna's address rather than the PM's this independence day. It does not matter whether you listen to PM's speech delivered today or the one five years back. They are always the same. They can very well be substituted with a tape recorder.
The most constructive element of our system has not been the legislature, judiciary or executive, it has been people like Anna. Anna has shown how villages can be transformed, how a "welfare state" can work. He has been instrumental in pushing the RTI act - due to which we are seeing many cases of corruption being exposed. Now, through Jan Lokpal Bill he is trying to make corruption a punishable offense and establish mechanisms to achieve the same. The people see a definite plan in his actions. He has been a person who has delivered in bringing about the change.
It is only the so-called intellectuals, who keep on pointing to scriptures and law books or useless statistics; for they have lost the ability to think by themselves. They obstruct justice by pointing to laws. The laws were made by humans like us, they are not divine. They need to be corrected as per the needs of the society. Laking courage, these intellectuals submitted themselves to the whims and fancies of the pseudo-democratic dynastic regimes, and the anarchy that came along with it. By spreading skepticism or discouraging obstructing the ones who are trying to do something constructive, they have made the situation worse.
However, unlike the intellectuals, the common man, I think, is able to see the larger picture and that is why there is huge support for Anna and great optimism that it will lead us on the right path !
Jai Hind !!
Monday, April 18, 2011
In search of happiness
I sometimes wonder what is that makes us happy? I guess, happiness comes from doing things, small or big, that you enjoy; creating or doing things that will benefit others; being able to drive your life; facing challenges and at times even failures. We often measure success by educational degrees, packages, wealth etc. But do these things really make a person happy? Happiness comes from the satisfaction of doing creative things. Instead of facing challenges, we are often over-protective in guarding against failures. Then, we live in the sorrow of lost opportunity.
Living a capitalist markets of money for labor, we have socialist aspirations of security and surety in life. Creativity has lost is place in our society. We study for scoring in exams, give exams for getting jobs, do jobs for earning money, earn money for raising family, raise family for making our kids do the same. The 'common man' in India has attained nirvana in being emotionless and indifferent. The common man is not supposed to have any ambitions or aspirations in life. The only aim of his life is to be in the rat-race so that he can lead a secure life. He surrenders to the belief that what happens is already decided. Yet, he wanders from temple to temple to magically change things in his life. He travels in a crowded train feeling all alone. He sweats with fear that, not having chanted the mantra today, will surely bring him bad luck. Looking at a huge crowd, he feels with so many people, he has no chance of making to his dreams. Compromise is way of his life. He works mechanically throughout his life.
Can we empower ourselves to enjoy our education, sports, work? Can we have more human than a mere mechanical life? Is it what will make us more happy?
Living a capitalist markets of money for labor, we have socialist aspirations of security and surety in life. Creativity has lost is place in our society. We study for scoring in exams, give exams for getting jobs, do jobs for earning money, earn money for raising family, raise family for making our kids do the same. The 'common man' in India has attained nirvana in being emotionless and indifferent. The common man is not supposed to have any ambitions or aspirations in life. The only aim of his life is to be in the rat-race so that he can lead a secure life. He surrenders to the belief that what happens is already decided. Yet, he wanders from temple to temple to magically change things in his life. He travels in a crowded train feeling all alone. He sweats with fear that, not having chanted the mantra today, will surely bring him bad luck. Looking at a huge crowd, he feels with so many people, he has no chance of making to his dreams. Compromise is way of his life. He works mechanically throughout his life.
Can we empower ourselves to enjoy our education, sports, work? Can we have more human than a mere mechanical life? Is it what will make us more happy?
Thursday, April 7, 2011
A match to watch
Tomorrow will be an interesting day to watch in politics. Will the youth of India follow fast at Anna's Lokpal or enjoyment at Pawar's IPL ? Interestingly, many of the people whose names figure in scams, are running business at IPL and so also liquor and smoker barons. Is the the youth of India really ready to take on the corrupt politicians ? An exciting match to watch !
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