The new legislation on H-1B and L1 visa program will make it tough for Indians to gain work permit in the US. The H-1B visa under which Indian professionals are recruited in the US will suffer a set back if the legislation brought to the floor by Senators Chuck Grassley and Dick Durbin is passed by the Congress.
According to the bill that was introduced in the US Senate on Thursday, employers in the US who are willing to hire workers from other countries should make a ‘good faith attempt’ to recruit American workers.
Senator Durbin stated, “Our bill will put a stop to the outsourcing of American jobs and discrimination against American workers. The H-1B visa program should complement the US workforce, not replace it,” he claimed. He further added that the Department of Labor will be given power to scrutinize, audit and penalize abuse of H-1B and L1 visa employers.
Monday, April 27
Monday, April 20
The Prime Minister bazaar
The complaint is as old as the politics of social justice: the hegemony of urban elite over the wretched and the dispossessed. Votaries of the so-called Other India the India beyond the sensations of the Sensex and the temptations of the marketplace never get tired of narrating the conspiracy of the privileged.
Twelve of our 14 prime ministers, they keep reminding us, have been from urban India. Only two, H.D. Deve Gowda and Charan Singh, came from the peasant class, and both were accidental. Now that the politics of cohabitation has made India one of the most crowded and politically promiscuous democracies in the world, the sociology of power has become starker.
The most obvious trend in the India Today Mood of the Nation poll on the eve of the General Elections is the shrinking bipolarity or the thriving multiplicity. There are no clear winners as the ruling UPA and the NDA are separated by only 19 votes. The middle is occupied by that amorphous group called Third Front, populated by provincial pachyderms who think their time has come to be the rulers of India. If they can't, they will decide who will. It may not be the revenge of the regions but it certainly brings out the less-than-national appeal of the national parties.
The only certainty in a fragmented polity is that we have an embarrassment of prime ministerial riches. In the beginning, there was only one, and BJP leader L.K. Advani has been campaigning in true presidential style, that too without an identifiable opponent.
Much belatedly, and less ceremoniously, Congress President Sonia Gandhi said Manmohan Singh would get another term as prime minister if the UPA won the elections. She can only name him, she just can't make him prime minister. Without the support of regional parties with more than 70 members, either Advani or Manmohan can't become prime minister. That support can no longer be taken for granted as kingmakers now aspire to be kings.
As Lalu Prasad Yadav, a Sonia worshipper-turned-heartbreaker, said in an interview with the television channel Aaj Tak, The UPA exists only in Delhi and why can't we consider Ram Vilas Paswan, a Dalit leader, for prime ministership after the elections? Then, why just Paswan? Why not Pawar? The NCP has been projecting its leader and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar as a future prime minister for a while.
He will share a platform with CPI(M) leader Prakash Karat and Orissa Chief Minister and BJD leader Naveen Patnaik at a rally in Bhubaneswar on April 13. That is the freedom of being Pawar. His party is fighting the Congress everywhere except his home state of Maharashtra and Goa. The strategy of each regional party is to contest maximum number of seats so that they can improve their tally of 2004. Obviously, both the Congress and BJP are anxious, and they may end up fielding more candidates than they did in 2004.
The poll provides little cheer to the Congress and BJP. Parties which belong to neither of the two alliances are likely to get almost the same number of seats as the others. Leaders like Lalu, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Paswan, Jayalalithaa, Mayawati and the communists are an independent lot.
Pawar's feet may be on the UPA ground but his heart is elsewhere. And each of these satraps is worth 25 to 30 seats, and their combined strength could go up to 180. Still, they are too volatile a group to remain intact. Will Maya and Mulayam ever be compatible? Unlikely. A candidate sponsored by the so-called Third Front led by the Left and others can't reach 7 Race Course Road without the support of either the Congress or the BJP. In the marketplace of prime ministers, choices are many and the art of bargain alone can ensure a politically profitable deal.
How come we have got so many choices or so many competing ideas of India in the fray? The UPA has been particularly fertile for prime ministers in waiting. Leaders like Lalu and Pawar have acquired a national profile as star Cabinet performers. They used their power at the Centre to expand their regional base. For the UPA, the vote of confidence was the moment when it realised the true worth of its allies. It survived the vote because partners like SP, RJD and DMK not only kept their flock together but broke the ranks of others.
It gave the allies a new confidence. As the poll illustrates, all those regional leaders seeking national glory enjoy more support in their states than the prime ministerial candidates of both the national parties. Mayawati with 24 per cent votes and Mulayam with 21 per cent are way ahead of both Advani (11) and Manmohan (7) in Uttar Pradesh. For the voters of Bihar, Lalu or Nitish Kumar would make a better prime minister than Advani or Manmohan.
With 120 seats, these two states will play the arbiters after the elections. In Gujarat, Modi is the choice of over 40 per cent of voters: Advani gets only 3 per cent. In Maharashtra, Pawar is the second most popular candidate for the top job. In the South though, Manmohan scores over the likes of Gowda, Jaya, Karunanidhi and Chandrababu Naidu. When Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Atal Bihari Vajpayee were in power, there were no regional leaders who could match or come anywhere near their popularity.
This regional eruption in leadership also means the rise of so many little Indias. Post-election, India is all set to stage a thriller of mathematics and megalomania, of oversized prime ministerial ambitions and total repudiation of political morality.
Twelve of our 14 prime ministers, they keep reminding us, have been from urban India. Only two, H.D. Deve Gowda and Charan Singh, came from the peasant class, and both were accidental. Now that the politics of cohabitation has made India one of the most crowded and politically promiscuous democracies in the world, the sociology of power has become starker.
The most obvious trend in the India Today Mood of the Nation poll on the eve of the General Elections is the shrinking bipolarity or the thriving multiplicity. There are no clear winners as the ruling UPA and the NDA are separated by only 19 votes. The middle is occupied by that amorphous group called Third Front, populated by provincial pachyderms who think their time has come to be the rulers of India. If they can't, they will decide who will. It may not be the revenge of the regions but it certainly brings out the less-than-national appeal of the national parties.
The only certainty in a fragmented polity is that we have an embarrassment of prime ministerial riches. In the beginning, there was only one, and BJP leader L.K. Advani has been campaigning in true presidential style, that too without an identifiable opponent.
Much belatedly, and less ceremoniously, Congress President Sonia Gandhi said Manmohan Singh would get another term as prime minister if the UPA won the elections. She can only name him, she just can't make him prime minister. Without the support of regional parties with more than 70 members, either Advani or Manmohan can't become prime minister. That support can no longer be taken for granted as kingmakers now aspire to be kings.
As Lalu Prasad Yadav, a Sonia worshipper-turned-heartbreaker, said in an interview with the television channel Aaj Tak, The UPA exists only in Delhi and why can't we consider Ram Vilas Paswan, a Dalit leader, for prime ministership after the elections? Then, why just Paswan? Why not Pawar? The NCP has been projecting its leader and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar as a future prime minister for a while.
He will share a platform with CPI(M) leader Prakash Karat and Orissa Chief Minister and BJD leader Naveen Patnaik at a rally in Bhubaneswar on April 13. That is the freedom of being Pawar. His party is fighting the Congress everywhere except his home state of Maharashtra and Goa. The strategy of each regional party is to contest maximum number of seats so that they can improve their tally of 2004. Obviously, both the Congress and BJP are anxious, and they may end up fielding more candidates than they did in 2004.
The poll provides little cheer to the Congress and BJP. Parties which belong to neither of the two alliances are likely to get almost the same number of seats as the others. Leaders like Lalu, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Paswan, Jayalalithaa, Mayawati and the communists are an independent lot.
Pawar's feet may be on the UPA ground but his heart is elsewhere. And each of these satraps is worth 25 to 30 seats, and their combined strength could go up to 180. Still, they are too volatile a group to remain intact. Will Maya and Mulayam ever be compatible? Unlikely. A candidate sponsored by the so-called Third Front led by the Left and others can't reach 7 Race Course Road without the support of either the Congress or the BJP. In the marketplace of prime ministers, choices are many and the art of bargain alone can ensure a politically profitable deal.
How come we have got so many choices or so many competing ideas of India in the fray? The UPA has been particularly fertile for prime ministers in waiting. Leaders like Lalu and Pawar have acquired a national profile as star Cabinet performers. They used their power at the Centre to expand their regional base. For the UPA, the vote of confidence was the moment when it realised the true worth of its allies. It survived the vote because partners like SP, RJD and DMK not only kept their flock together but broke the ranks of others.
It gave the allies a new confidence. As the poll illustrates, all those regional leaders seeking national glory enjoy more support in their states than the prime ministerial candidates of both the national parties. Mayawati with 24 per cent votes and Mulayam with 21 per cent are way ahead of both Advani (11) and Manmohan (7) in Uttar Pradesh. For the voters of Bihar, Lalu or Nitish Kumar would make a better prime minister than Advani or Manmohan.
With 120 seats, these two states will play the arbiters after the elections. In Gujarat, Modi is the choice of over 40 per cent of voters: Advani gets only 3 per cent. In Maharashtra, Pawar is the second most popular candidate for the top job. In the South though, Manmohan scores over the likes of Gowda, Jaya, Karunanidhi and Chandrababu Naidu. When Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and Atal Bihari Vajpayee were in power, there were no regional leaders who could match or come anywhere near their popularity.
This regional eruption in leadership also means the rise of so many little Indias. Post-election, India is all set to stage a thriller of mathematics and megalomania, of oversized prime ministerial ambitions and total repudiation of political morality.
Sunday, April 19
Ramayana and Management
Duty has the regular definition of a moral or legal obligation, a responsibility, or a task or action that someone is required to perform. However, in the context of the story of Ramayana, duty, or dharma, has a more specific interpretation. Dharma is a set of laws or principles carried out with the purpose of creating social and religious order in the society. In this story of Ramayana, many times this duty conflicts with other values or personal desires, forcing characters to compare the choices of following the dharma or fulfilling another human value. Within the context of the relationship between Rama and Sita in the story "The Ramayana of Valmiki", duty is worth the sacrificing of love, because his duty is fulfilled to maintain order within the society and above all, order is needed for a society to run well.
For example, teamwork is an important principle in management, and Rama applied the same in search of Sita and was successful in the mission. Another one is in an organisation one must be treated affectionately which Rama did when he met Guhan and Vibhishana. Management principles such as encouraging lower category of employees, rewards for good work, self-motivation, decision-making, recognition, market survey, market exploitation, time management and the art of communication are aligned with instances in the epic. The book is a valuable one, giving new interpretation to Ramayana.
One of the most obvious incidences, in which use management principles is very clearly visible is that of Hanuman going to Lanka. His mission was to locate Sita there and give her Lord Ram’s message. When it became clear that Sita was in Lanka, Jamvant asked Hanuman to go there. He helped him in realising his true potential and motivated him to go in the enemy’s camp. Once mentally prepared for the job and reached there, first thing which Hanuman did was to completely analyse the situation in Lanka. He did a complete study about the Lankans, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, the various threats and opportunities which he had in the enemy’s camp.
This is what management is all about
· Ascertaining the goals, or job to be done.
· Getting mentally prepared for it.
· Having a right plan.
· Analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the competitor and what threats and opportunities are there in the business.
This SWOT [strength, weakness, opportunities and threats] analysis is one of the most important aspects of modern day management. Moreover Jamvant motivating Hanuman is a classic example of a good Manager helping his personnel to realise their potential and acting accordingly.
The other example which I would like to talk about here is that of good and bad managers. A good manager is the one, who can get his work done even from the rivals. In Ramayana Sughriv has shown some of the best managerial characteristics. As a successful manager he had Ram to work accordingly and got his kingdom back from a brother who was far mightier than him.
· A good example of getting into strategic alliance with others to achieve your desired goal.
Using his managerial skills he even had Angad to work for him. Angad was the son of his brother whom he got killed by Ram. Had Sughriv been a bad manager then the same Angad would have proved to be his arch nemesis.
In the same Ramayana, again and again Ravana has shown the signs of a bad manager, and hence led to the demise of his kingdom. From the starting itself he ignored the suggestions of his managers and got his kingdom in the state of war with Ram. Moreover during a crisis, a company needs its best of the managers to bail it out of the same. A good manager listens to what his subordinates has to say and tries to keep them together especially when the organization needs them the most. But Ravana’s mismanagement was responsible for Vibhishan [one of the wisest manager he should have listened to] leaving him amidst a crisis.
It is said that businesses are run on relations. A manager who can nurture good relations with the employees, clients and anyone in whose contact the organization and the manager comes in, can do wonders for his company. Lord Ram was very good at it. He was the master of nurturing relations. His prowess at it was so great that while Ravana was lying wounded in the battle field and was about to die, he shared some important lessons which he had learnt in his life. The same Ravana, who at the same time had not responded to Lakshman, when he was sent to seek Ravana’s wisdom by Ram, was more than happy in sharing his knowledge with Ram.
All these examples and many more like this, tells us a great deal about management. For a manager there is lot to learn from our epics. Not just Ramayana, but Gita, Mahabharat and others as well have a lot to offer as management lessons.
For example, teamwork is an important principle in management, and Rama applied the same in search of Sita and was successful in the mission. Another one is in an organisation one must be treated affectionately which Rama did when he met Guhan and Vibhishana. Management principles such as encouraging lower category of employees, rewards for good work, self-motivation, decision-making, recognition, market survey, market exploitation, time management and the art of communication are aligned with instances in the epic. The book is a valuable one, giving new interpretation to Ramayana.
One of the most obvious incidences, in which use management principles is very clearly visible is that of Hanuman going to Lanka. His mission was to locate Sita there and give her Lord Ram’s message. When it became clear that Sita was in Lanka, Jamvant asked Hanuman to go there. He helped him in realising his true potential and motivated him to go in the enemy’s camp. Once mentally prepared for the job and reached there, first thing which Hanuman did was to completely analyse the situation in Lanka. He did a complete study about the Lankans, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, the various threats and opportunities which he had in the enemy’s camp.
This is what management is all about
· Ascertaining the goals, or job to be done.
· Getting mentally prepared for it.
· Having a right plan.
· Analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of the competitor and what threats and opportunities are there in the business.
This SWOT [strength, weakness, opportunities and threats] analysis is one of the most important aspects of modern day management. Moreover Jamvant motivating Hanuman is a classic example of a good Manager helping his personnel to realise their potential and acting accordingly.
The other example which I would like to talk about here is that of good and bad managers. A good manager is the one, who can get his work done even from the rivals. In Ramayana Sughriv has shown some of the best managerial characteristics. As a successful manager he had Ram to work accordingly and got his kingdom back from a brother who was far mightier than him.
· A good example of getting into strategic alliance with others to achieve your desired goal.
Using his managerial skills he even had Angad to work for him. Angad was the son of his brother whom he got killed by Ram. Had Sughriv been a bad manager then the same Angad would have proved to be his arch nemesis.
In the same Ramayana, again and again Ravana has shown the signs of a bad manager, and hence led to the demise of his kingdom. From the starting itself he ignored the suggestions of his managers and got his kingdom in the state of war with Ram. Moreover during a crisis, a company needs its best of the managers to bail it out of the same. A good manager listens to what his subordinates has to say and tries to keep them together especially when the organization needs them the most. But Ravana’s mismanagement was responsible for Vibhishan [one of the wisest manager he should have listened to] leaving him amidst a crisis.
It is said that businesses are run on relations. A manager who can nurture good relations with the employees, clients and anyone in whose contact the organization and the manager comes in, can do wonders for his company. Lord Ram was very good at it. He was the master of nurturing relations. His prowess at it was so great that while Ravana was lying wounded in the battle field and was about to die, he shared some important lessons which he had learnt in his life. The same Ravana, who at the same time had not responded to Lakshman, when he was sent to seek Ravana’s wisdom by Ram, was more than happy in sharing his knowledge with Ram.
All these examples and many more like this, tells us a great deal about management. For a manager there is lot to learn from our epics. Not just Ramayana, but Gita, Mahabharat and others as well have a lot to offer as management lessons.
Friday, April 17
IPL 2009 - Teams Preview
Owners: Ness Wadia & Preeti Zinta (Bombay Dyeing), Karan Paul (Apeejay Surendra Group) & Mohit Burman (Dabur)
Bought for: USD 76 million
Captain: Yuvraj Singh
Coach: Tom Moody
Highest Paid Player: Yuvraj Singh – USD 1,063,750
Icon Player: Yuvraj Singh
Celebrity Ambassador: Preeti Zinta
IPL 2008 Standing: Three
Last Year Record: Played – 15, Won –10, Lost – 5, Tie – 0, No Result -0
Watch Out For:
Kumar Sangakkara – The mental preparedness and form of the newly appointed Sri Lankan captain will be a decisive factor and will be the sign of things to come for Sri Lankan cricket after cruel terror experience in Pakistan. His positive approach and good show on field will surely boost the morale of other Sri Lankan cricketers.
Shaun Marsh – He was one of IPL’s find last season by topping the scoring charts with 614 runs in the tournament. Opening the batting for the Punjab team he impressed everyone with his superb strokeplay. However, he hasn’t yet cemented his place in the Australian team.
Dark Horse:
Yusuf Abdulla – This 26-year old South African pacer will make his IPL debut this season. He was drafted in as a replacement for injured Jerome Taylor. However, his local knowledge and experience of playing domestic T20 will help the side. In addition, Punjab playing six out of their 14 matches in Durban which is Abdulla’s home ground will be of a great advantage for team Mohali. In the absence of pace trio Sreesanth, Lee and Taylor, Abdulla is likely to play more games.
The Squad:
Yuvraj Singh (captain), Brett Lee, James Hopes, Shaun Marsh, Luke Pomersbach, Simon Katich, Burt Cockley (Australia), Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka), Ravi Bopara (England), Jerome Taylor (West Indies), Yusuf Abdulla (South Africa), Irfan Pathan, S Sreesanth, Ramesh Powar, VRV Singh, Piyush Chawla, Karan Goel, Uday Kaul, Wilkin Mota, Ajitesh Argal, Tanmay Srivastava, Sunny Sohal, Ryan Ninan, Yash Gandhi
Owners: Deccan Chronicle
Bought for: USD 107 million
Captain: Adam Gilchrist
Coach: Darren Lehman
Highest Paid Player: Andrew Symonds – USD 1.35 million
IPL 2008 Standing: Eight
Last Year Record: Played – 14, Won –2, Lost – 12, Tie – 0, No Result -0
Watch Out For:
Rohit Sharma – The Mumbai boy scored a match winning 50 in his debut against South Africa in the ICC World T20 match in 2007. He also was the lone consistent performer for Chargers last year. Rohit will be hoping for another good show at IPL to cement his place in the Indian team.
Andrew Symonds – Mr. Roy has plenty at stake in this year’s IPL. After he was pulled up for unruly behavior six times in last six months he has undergone rehabilitation program with Cricket Australia recently. A good showing on and off the field will help him reclaim the tainted international stature and also confirm his place in the team for T20 World Cup in England.
Dark Horse:
RP Singh – The left-arm fast bowler was out of the Indian team in the recent past due to injury. His form has not been good but he enjoys the confidence of the Indian team captain Dhoni. He was an integral part of the T20 World Cup winning team in 2007. Happy memories of South Africa should help him regain his confidence and form to get back his place in the national team.
The Squad:
Adam Gilchrist (Captain), Herschelle Gibbs(South Africa), Scott Styris (New Zealand), Andrew Symonds, Ryan Harris (Australia), Fidel Edwards, Dwayne Smith(West Indies), Chamara Silva, Chaminda Vaas, Nuwan Zoysa (Sri Lanka), VVS Laxman, Rohit Sharma, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Venugopal Rao, Dwaraka Ravi Teja, Tirumalasetti Suman, Arjun Yadav, Doddapaneni Kalyankrishna, Paidikalva Vijay Kumar, Abhinav Kumar, Manvinder Bisla, Jaskaran Deep Singh, Harmeet Singh, Sarvesh Kumar, Haladhar Das, Syed Mohammad, Shoaib Ahmed
Owners: Shahrukh Khan, Juhi Chawla & Jai Mehta
Bought for: USD 75.09 million
Captain: Sourav Ganguly
Coach: John Buchanan
Highest Paid Player: Sourav Ganguly – USD 1,092,500
Icon Player: Sourav Ganguly
Celebrity Ambassador: Shahrukh Khan and Juhi Chawla
IPL 2008 Standing: Six
Last Year Record: Played – 14, Won –6, Lost – 7, Tie – 0, No Result -1
Watch Out For:
Sourav Ganguly – He is certainly not the fittest player and a vibrant fielder in the tournament but he is also not of the kind to take criticism lying down. Sourav Ganguly is a fighter and he has already started proving his critics wrong by scoring big in the warm-up matches for KKR. The Bengal Tiger is likely to roar big in IPL’s African Safari.
Ishant Sharma – The star bowler didn’t make an impressive performance in the first year after surprising all with an auction price of USD 950,000. Sharing the new ball, Ishant has grown up leaps and bounds since last IPL and he will be raring to lead KKR bowling attack.
Dark Horse:
Cheteshwar Pujara – He had a remarkable Ranji Trophy this season scoring 906 runs at an average of 71.45. His consistent performance in domestic matches earned him a nickname ‘the Wall’ with reference to Rahul Dravid. However a national call is eluding him for a while. This IPL could provide him the big break he is looking for.
The Squad:
Sourav Ganguly (captain), Chris Gayle (West Indies), Brendon McCullum (New Zealand), Brad Hodge, Ricky Ponting, David Hussey, Moises Henriques, Mark Cameron (Australia), Ajantha Mendis, Angelo Mathews (Sri Lanka), Mashrafe Mortaza (Bangaladesh), Debabrata Das, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha, Ashoke Dinda, Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma, Murali Kartik, Iqbal Abdullah, Cheteshwar Pujara, Yashpal Singh, Aakash Chopra, Anureet Singh, Rajesh Verma, Aditya Dole, S Niyaz, Ishwar Chaudhury, Mohnish Parmar, ME Sanauth, Sheldon Jackson, Amit Das, Sanjib Sanyal, Avik Chowdhury, Sachin Rana, Sunny Singh, Gaurav Chhabra, Nataraj Behera, Shatrunjay Gaekwad, Shoaib Sheikh, Rohan Prem, Sanjay Bangar, Gnaneshwar Rao, Bhavik Thakkar, Kedar Jadhav, P Prashant, Prashant Parmeshwar, Kshemal Waingmankar, Murtaza Hussain, Sourav Sarkar, Arindam Ghosh, Ameya Shrikhande, Chetan Suryavanshi, Abhishek Banerjee, Anustup Mazumdar, Dhiran Salvi, Sanju Samson, Vinit Indulkar
Owners: Emerging Media Group & Shilpa Shetty
Bought for: USD 67 million
Captain & Coach: Shane Warne
Highest Paid Player: Mohammad Kaif –USD 675,000
Celebrity Ambassador: Shilpa Shetty
IPL 2008 Standing: One
Last Year Record: Played – 16, Won –13, Lost – 3, Tie – 0, No Result -0
Watch Out For:
Shane Warne – All eyes will be on this magician leg-spinner after he spurred his team of unknown players to a title win last year. Royals will be without Shoail Tanvir and Shane Watson – their top performers last season. Warne has a challenging task at hand to retain the crown.
Yusuf Pathan – He was the biggest gainer from the IPL first edition. His international career took off after IPL and he is now a permanent face in the Indian one-day and T20 teams. Today Yusuf Pathan is a household name in international circuit. All eyes will be on him with expectations of some brutal blows from his willow when he walks out to bat.
Dark Horse:
Shaun Tait– A familiar name but an unfamiliar recent past is the story of this Australian fast bowler. He has been out of the national team for more than a year due to injury and mental stress. IPL will provide him the stage to knock at the selector’s door again. Tait finished the second highest wicket taker with 23 wickets in 2007 World Cup.
The Squad:
Shane Warne (captain), Graeme Smith, Morne Morkel, Tyron Henderson (South Africa), Shane Watson, Robert Quiney, Shaun Tait, Shane Harwood, Lee Carlesdine (Australia), Dmitri Mascarenhas (England), Mohammad Kaif, Munaf Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Siddharth Trivedi, Swapnil Asnodkar, Niraj Patel, Mahesh Rawat, Anup Revandkar, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Salunkhe, Naman Ojha, Siddharth Chitnis, Paras Dogra, Amit Singh, Ahad Malek, Raphi Vincent Gomes, Kamran Khan, Ashraf Makda, Paul Valhaty, Srideep Mangela, Mohammad Arif, Gajendra Singh, Atul Sharma, Pratmesh Salunkhe, Pushkarraj Chavan
Owner: Mukesh Ambani, Reliance Industries
Bought for: USD 111.9 million
Captain: Sachin Tendulkar
Coach: Praveen Amre
Highest Paid Player: Sachin Tendulkar – USD 1,121,250
Icon Player: Sachin Tendulkar
Celebrity Ambassador: Hrithik Roshan
IPL 2008 Standing: Five
Last Year Record: Played – 14, Won –7, Lost – 7, Tie – 0, No Result -0
Watch Out For:
Sanath Jayasuria – He is the oldest player in the circuit at 40 years of age, but his superiority with the bat has not gone down a bit even today. If anyone had seen his recent century against India this year, one can only admire his power hitting. T20 version will suit him the best and he can be a big match winner if he gets going.
Zaheer Khan – He is considered the number one bowler in world cricket today. Zaheer has excelled in reverse swing and consistently troubled the batsmen all over the world. He will play for his home side Mumbai after playing for Bangalore Royal Challengers last year.
Dark Horse:
Dhawal Kulkarni – A street smart cricketer, Kulkarni is primarily a medium pace bowler. His call to the national squad for the New Zealand tour would have done a world of confidence though he didn’t play any matches in the tour His dressing room experience will come in handy in South Africa.
The Squad:
Sachin Tendulkar (captain), Jean-Paul Duminy, Ryan McLaren (South Africa), Graham Napier (England), Lasith Malinga, Dilhara Fernando, Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka), Dwayne Bravo (West Indies), Mohammad Ashraful (Bangladesh), Kyle Mills (New Zealand), Luke Ronchi (Australia), Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Abhishek Nayar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jude Singh, Jaydev Shah, Raahil Shaikh, Yogesh Takawale, Pinal Shah, Ajinkya Rahane, Chetanya Nanda, Rohan Raje and Saurabh Tiwary
Owner: GMR Holdings
Bought for: USD 84 million
Captain: Virender Sehwag
Coach: Greg Sheppard
Highest Paid Player: Virender Sehwag – USD 833,750
Icon Player: Virender Sehwag
Celebrity Ambassador: Akshay Kumar
IPL 2008 Standing: Four
Last Year Record: Played – 15, Won –7, Lost – 7, Tie – 0, No Result -1
Watch Out For:
Virender Sehwag – His murderous form with the bat in the past one year should be a big boost for Delhi. Sehwag has been scoring at an average of above 60 during this period in international cricket and not surprisingly he was chosen Wisden Cricketer for the year 2008.
David Warner - Opening the batting for Australia he blasted 89 runs off 43 balls in his debut T20 match against South Africa. Tipped to be a big hitter IPL should be a tailor-made one for him. It will be interesting to see if he opens the batting along with skipper Sehwag, with Gambhir dropping one down.
Dark Horse:
Farveez Maharoof – A quality all-rounder Maharoof did a decent job with both the bat and the ball last year. His all-round skills will be of most importance to the team as they will not have Shaoib Malik in their side.
The Squad:
Virender Sehwag (captain), AB de Villiers (South Africa), Daniel Vettori (New Zealand), Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood (England), David Warner, Andrew McDonald, Dirk Nannes, Glenn McGrath (Australia), Farveez Maharoof, Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka), Gautam Gambhir, Dinesh Karthik, Manoj Tiwary, Rajat Bhatia, Mithun Manhas, Avishkar Salvi, Ashish Nehra, Yo Mahesh, Pradeep Sangwan, Umesh Yadav, Yogesh Nagar, Tejaswi Yadav, Amit Mishra
Owner: N. Srinivasan, India Cements
Bought for: USD 91 million
Captain: Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Coach cum Player: Stephen Fleming
Highest Paid Player: Andrew Flintoff – USD 1.55 million
Celebrity Ambassador: Actor Vijay
IPL 2008 Standing: Two (Finalist)
Last Year Record: Played – 16, Won –9, Lost – 7, Tie – 0, No Result - 0
Watch Out For:
MS Dhoni – Dhoni has almost won everything as a captain starting with ICC World Twenty20, CB Series, home series against Australia and England and now the New Zealand series. He also took Chennai Super Kings to the final, losing out on the final ball of the match. Now he has also been named the captain of Wisden Test XI ahead of Graeme Smith. All eyes will again be on him to get a hint or two about his plans for the World Twenty20 the following month.
Andrew Flintoff – Chennai Super King’s latest and one of the costliest recruit Flintoff will add the balance to the team with his all-round ability. However, he will be available only for first two weeks of the tournament.
Dark Horse:
Subramaniam Badrinath – a household name in domestic cricket, the right-handed batsman feels that he is yet to get a fair run at the international level. True to his ability and reliability the 29-yr old will keep his hopes floating to find a place in the World Twenty20 in England.
The Squad:
MS Dhoni (captain), Muttiah Muralitharan, Thilan Thushara (Sri Lanka), Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, George Bailey (Australia), Albie Morkel, Makhaya Ntini (South Africa), Jacob Oram, Stephen Fleming (New Zealand), Andrew Flintoff (England), Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, S Badrinath, L Balaji, Murali Vijay, Joginder Sharma, Manpreet Singh Gony, Sudeep Tyagi, Viraj Kadbe, Shadab Jakati, R Ashwin, Abhinav Mukund, Anirudha Srikkanth, Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut, Palani Amarnath, KB Arun Karthik, Nepoleon Einstein, Suresh Kumar
Owner: Dr. Vijay Mallya, UB Group
Bought for: USD 111.6 million
Captain: Kevin Pietersen
Coach: Ray Jennings
Highest Paid Player: Kevin Pietersen – USD 1.55 million
Icon Player: Rahul Dravid
Celebrity Ambassadors: Deepika Padukone & Katrina Kaif
IPL 2008 Standing: Seven
Last Year Record: Played – 14, Won – 4, Lost – 10, Tie – 0, No Result – 0
Watch Out For:
Kevin Pietersen – a destructive batsman and arguably the team’s best bet for shortest format of the game. Being the highest paid player in the league he would like to do some justice to his price tag with match winning performances.
Robin Uthappa – the Bangalore boy is certain to play in all matches and will desperately try to push hard for a place in the Indian team for the World Twenty20 with some eye catching performances. The fact that the tournament is played in South Africa and that he was a part of the winning team two years back by itself will be a huge positive sign for this talented cricketer.
Dark Horse:
Praveen Kumar – he has performed well for India since CB series in 2008 however his weakness in batting and agility in the field might cost him his place in the T20 team. Can he put up a good all-round show? If he does he will be the likely replacement for Joginder Sharma.
The Squad:
Kevin Pietersen (Captain), Jacques Kallis, Mark Boucher, Dale Steyn, Dillon Du Preez, Roelof van der Merwe (South Africa), Cameron White, Nathan Bracken (Australia), Ross Taylor, Jesse Ryder (New Zealand), Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Robin Uthappa, Praveen Kumar, Virat Kohli, Wasim Jaffer, Manish Pandey, Sreevats Goswami, Suteesh R, Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Bhuvnesh Kumar, Karan Sharma, Saurav Bandekar, Tinu Yohanan, Bharat Chipli, B Akhil, Devraj Patil, J Arun Kumar, K P Appanna, Sunil Joshi, Gaurav Dhiman, Jitendra Patil, Udit Patel, Mithun A, Aravind S, Kedar Jadhav, Gautam C M, Raju Bhatkal, Rajesh Bishnoi, Ishank Jaggi and Rohit Sabharwal
Thursday, April 16
Sub Prime Crisis - Origin and Impact
The origins of this crisis can be traced from late 1990s, when the dotcom bubble started. After the crash of the dotcom bubble in 2000s most of the countries including US were facing economic recession. Interest rates were low during these periods and lending standards were not good. This led to the rise of another bubble in 2001 in the form of real estate. The prices of the real estate property sky rocketed during this period. There was a rat-race for buying houses and people were taking loans as it was very cheaply and easily available. Lending agencies used innovative products to attract customers. During 2004 through 2006, concepts like teaser rates became popular in mortgages. These teaser rates (initial low interest rate) applied through varied time period, ranging from few months to couple of years depending on the mortgage creditworthiness. The thing which the borrowers forgot was that at the end of this freedom period the rates can rise rapidly, raising the minimum installment to be paid out of their capacity. During this period lenders were so confident that they qualified borrowers only by their ability to pay the teaser rates.
One may trace the sub-prime crisis to the securitization – conversion of home mortgages into bonds. Securitization had some negative implications on the mortgage standards. Since anyone can originate a loan and sell it to the Investments Banks, which package them and sell them as MBS, it lead to originators writing risky loans as they need not worry about the payback of loan. This problem was dealt by slicing MBS into tranches on the basis of the risk profile. These tranches which may have different maturity period were given ratings by credit rating agencies like S&P and Fitch. The most risky tranches were difficult to sell except for the hedge funds and some pension funds. These hedge funds were so eager to buy these securities that they didn’t care about the huge impending risk associated with these tranches and continued to invest in them.
With the collapse of the housing bubble in mid 2005 real property price declined so much that many owners holding became negative equity, mortgage debt became higher than the value of the property. During the housing bubble, many property owners used their property as collateral to raise money for consumer spending. With the crash of housing markets these lenders faced huge defaulter problem and were unable to recover their losses.
Aggravating the issue was the rising interest rates, coupled with the maturity of the freedom period of teaser rates, which increased the monthly payments. Many house owners felt incapable of meeting their financial liabilities and went bankrupt. Amongst the institutional players affected were the sub-prime lenders, banks, housing developers, and investors like hedge funds and pension funds.
One may trace the sub-prime crisis to the securitization – conversion of home mortgages into bonds. Securitization had some negative implications on the mortgage standards. Since anyone can originate a loan and sell it to the Investments Banks, which package them and sell them as MBS, it lead to originators writing risky loans as they need not worry about the payback of loan. This problem was dealt by slicing MBS into tranches on the basis of the risk profile. These tranches which may have different maturity period were given ratings by credit rating agencies like S&P and Fitch. The most risky tranches were difficult to sell except for the hedge funds and some pension funds. These hedge funds were so eager to buy these securities that they didn’t care about the huge impending risk associated with these tranches and continued to invest in them.
With the collapse of the housing bubble in mid 2005 real property price declined so much that many owners holding became negative equity, mortgage debt became higher than the value of the property. During the housing bubble, many property owners used their property as collateral to raise money for consumer spending. With the crash of housing markets these lenders faced huge defaulter problem and were unable to recover their losses.
Aggravating the issue was the rising interest rates, coupled with the maturity of the freedom period of teaser rates, which increased the monthly payments. Many house owners felt incapable of meeting their financial liabilities and went bankrupt. Amongst the institutional players affected were the sub-prime lenders, banks, housing developers, and investors like hedge funds and pension funds.
Lok Sabha Elections 2009: Curtain Raiser
The greatest democratic exercise in this country, however, has been preceded by one of the most undemocratic and politically churlish phases. The period leading to the current election has seen political maturity and discourse plummet to record lows, dampening the very spirit of democracy and politics. And the culprits range across the political spectrum.
A few days back, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh referred to independent candidates as "spoilers", urging voters in Mumbai to "not encourage them because they cannot win". This statement is not only condescending and pompous but is downright undemocratic. And coming from the Prime Minister of the country, who is eyeing a second term, it also sets a dangerous precedent. If the Constitution of the country permits individuals, who choose not to or are unable contest on party tickets, to stand as independents, then nobody has a right to question their candidature.
By calling independents spoilers and questioning their winnability, Singh has not just reduced his stature as a politician but has also inadvertently disclosed his party's dismissive attitude towards those who choose to contest in their own right and not be affiliated to any political party. Dr Singh, independents are not "spoilers". Perhaps people who decide to lead the country, staking claim to the top post without having the courage to face the electorate are "spoilers" for this democracy.
The prime minister's unfortunate comment, however, was just one of the many off-colour remarks passed in the pre-election phase.
Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi launched an unwarranted, childish attack against the Congress, calling it "budhia" (old woman) and later "gudia" (doll). While Modi's secular credentials are more than just dubious, he has done well for himself by playing up his development plank, which has worked for him at the hustings as well. Mr Modi, by indulging in an unnecessary game of mindless semantics, you are not only reducing your election speeches to at best page 10 entertainment, but are also depriving Indian politics of meaningful debate.
Modi's phrases were so juvenile that they didn't even warrant a reaction. But Priyanka Gandhi decided to humour him and responded with an equally inane statement. "Do I look old to you...Does Sonia Gandhi (Congress president and her mother), Rahul Gandhi or I look old to you," she asked. Better sense prevailed a day later (but not before enough damage had been done to pre-election discourse) when she termed Modi's ‘gudia' comment "ridiculous" and said the focus should be on development issues.
BJP prime ministerial candidate L K Advani has been constantly attacking the Prime Minister as "weak" and Singh has responded with equally acrimonious and un-intellectual barbs.
Unfortunately, the level of political repartee in India has become so poor that it is not just unintelligent and far from being witty but also not entertaining.
Varun Gandhi's now-infamous speech is another example of meaningless, undemocratic rant in the run up to elections. But even worse than his venomous words was RJD chief Lalu Yadav's response, which invited the Election Commission's ire. The heated exchange between Lalu's wife Rabri Devi and JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar was made of the same irrelevant stuff.
Election 2009, which boasts of political assertion by several regional parties, a close contest between various blocs and participation by urbane, intellectual independents, has seen personal mud slinging and a mindless escalation of words, which have done irreparable damage to public discourse. Instead of engaging in constructive and sensible debate and discussion, India's political class has reduced itself to the lowest possible standard.
I do not know who will win the 2009 Lok Sabha election, but democracy, political maturity and public discourse will definitely emerge as the main losers.
A few days back, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh referred to independent candidates as "spoilers", urging voters in Mumbai to "not encourage them because they cannot win". This statement is not only condescending and pompous but is downright undemocratic. And coming from the Prime Minister of the country, who is eyeing a second term, it also sets a dangerous precedent. If the Constitution of the country permits individuals, who choose not to or are unable contest on party tickets, to stand as independents, then nobody has a right to question their candidature.
By calling independents spoilers and questioning their winnability, Singh has not just reduced his stature as a politician but has also inadvertently disclosed his party's dismissive attitude towards those who choose to contest in their own right and not be affiliated to any political party. Dr Singh, independents are not "spoilers". Perhaps people who decide to lead the country, staking claim to the top post without having the courage to face the electorate are "spoilers" for this democracy.
The prime minister's unfortunate comment, however, was just one of the many off-colour remarks passed in the pre-election phase.
Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi launched an unwarranted, childish attack against the Congress, calling it "budhia" (old woman) and later "gudia" (doll). While Modi's secular credentials are more than just dubious, he has done well for himself by playing up his development plank, which has worked for him at the hustings as well. Mr Modi, by indulging in an unnecessary game of mindless semantics, you are not only reducing your election speeches to at best page 10 entertainment, but are also depriving Indian politics of meaningful debate.
Modi's phrases were so juvenile that they didn't even warrant a reaction. But Priyanka Gandhi decided to humour him and responded with an equally inane statement. "Do I look old to you...Does Sonia Gandhi (Congress president and her mother), Rahul Gandhi or I look old to you," she asked. Better sense prevailed a day later (but not before enough damage had been done to pre-election discourse) when she termed Modi's ‘gudia' comment "ridiculous" and said the focus should be on development issues.
BJP prime ministerial candidate L K Advani has been constantly attacking the Prime Minister as "weak" and Singh has responded with equally acrimonious and un-intellectual barbs.
Unfortunately, the level of political repartee in India has become so poor that it is not just unintelligent and far from being witty but also not entertaining.
Varun Gandhi's now-infamous speech is another example of meaningless, undemocratic rant in the run up to elections. But even worse than his venomous words was RJD chief Lalu Yadav's response, which invited the Election Commission's ire. The heated exchange between Lalu's wife Rabri Devi and JD (U) chief Nitish Kumar was made of the same irrelevant stuff.
Election 2009, which boasts of political assertion by several regional parties, a close contest between various blocs and participation by urbane, intellectual independents, has seen personal mud slinging and a mindless escalation of words, which have done irreparable damage to public discourse. Instead of engaging in constructive and sensible debate and discussion, India's political class has reduced itself to the lowest possible standard.
I do not know who will win the 2009 Lok Sabha election, but democracy, political maturity and public discourse will definitely emerge as the main losers.
Indian Premier League Vs Indian Political League
Last month this topic grabbed the headlines of all new channels more than anything else. Several more important issues were given a backseat. Why a cricket tournament is given much importance?. (the 5 letter magic word : MONEY)
The IPL Season 2 has been shifted to South Africa putting an end to a long debate between the UPA government and BCCI over organizing IPL during elections. But this has become a central point of argument for politicians. They have found it very good election masala. The decision of Lalit Modi might have disappointed the cricket fans of India, but somewhere down the line it can be said that the UPA government has taken the right step.
Now cricket-lovers are of the opinion that the government and BCCI can provide full security to the players and there should not be any if's and but's about security issues. But they should know that the if's and but's the results of past incidents. If nothing can be guaranteed then how could security be, that too to an event as large as IPL simultaneously with the elections.
The UPA might have broken the hearts of cricket-lovers but it has spared a thought for voters. And let's accept the fact that any given day elections are a much bigger issue than IPL. It might or might not affect the Congress party's performance in the forthcoming election but if something measurable happens during IPL and election then who is to be blamed.
Will all those cricket-lovers and so called politicians take the responsibility? Few days back Narendra Modi had said that it is a national shame that we could not organize IPL in India, but what will he say if something untoward happens to the players during IPL...national pride? .The matches cannot be held during any other time other than his as the availability of foreign players and international schedules clashes with IPL. And you cannot cancel the tournament for the year as everyone know the amount of money involved in this show and in this economic situation , all club owners would prefer something over nothing.
All said and done, it was a wise move to shift the Indian Premier League to South Africa as both IPL and elections can be conducted smoothly.
After all , the show(s) must go on.
The IPL Season 2 has been shifted to South Africa putting an end to a long debate between the UPA government and BCCI over organizing IPL during elections. But this has become a central point of argument for politicians. They have found it very good election masala. The decision of Lalit Modi might have disappointed the cricket fans of India, but somewhere down the line it can be said that the UPA government has taken the right step.
Now cricket-lovers are of the opinion that the government and BCCI can provide full security to the players and there should not be any if's and but's about security issues. But they should know that the if's and but's the results of past incidents. If nothing can be guaranteed then how could security be, that too to an event as large as IPL simultaneously with the elections.
The UPA might have broken the hearts of cricket-lovers but it has spared a thought for voters. And let's accept the fact that any given day elections are a much bigger issue than IPL. It might or might not affect the Congress party's performance in the forthcoming election but if something measurable happens during IPL and election then who is to be blamed.
Will all those cricket-lovers and so called politicians take the responsibility? Few days back Narendra Modi had said that it is a national shame that we could not organize IPL in India, but what will he say if something untoward happens to the players during IPL...national pride? .The matches cannot be held during any other time other than his as the availability of foreign players and international schedules clashes with IPL. And you cannot cancel the tournament for the year as everyone know the amount of money involved in this show and in this economic situation , all club owners would prefer something over nothing.
All said and done, it was a wise move to shift the Indian Premier League to South Africa as both IPL and elections can be conducted smoothly.
After all , the show(s) must go on.
Wednesday, April 8
Indian Black Money in Swiss Bank
LOOK WHERE OUR MONEY IS GOING????
Revelation on Swiss Bank Accounts "who can save India no one knows
where tax payer money is going "
Revelation on Swiss Bank Accounts
This is so shocking . . . . wish black money deposits was an Olympics event . . . . .
India would have won a gold medal hands down.
The second best
Russia has 4 times lesser deposit.US is not even there in the counting in top five !!
India has more money in Swiss banks than all the other countries combined !!!!
Recently,due to international pressure,Swiss govt. agreed to disclose the names of the account holders only if the respective govts formally asked for it. Indian govt. is not asking for the details . .. . no marks for guessing why ????
We need to start a movement to pressurise the govt.to do so !!This is perhaps the only way,and a golden opportunity, to expose the high and mighty and weed out corruption !!
Is India poor, who says?Ask Swiss banks With personal account deposit bank of $1500 billion in foreign reserve which have been misappropriated, an amount 13 times larger than the country's foreign debt,one needs to rethink if India is a poor country?.
DISHONEST INDUSTRIALISTS,scandalous politicians and corrupt IAS, IRS, IPS
officers have deposited in foreign banks in their illegal personal accounts
a sum of about $ 1500 billion,which have been misappropriated by them..
With this amount 45 crore poor people can get Rs 1,00,000 each.This huge amount
has been appropriated from the people of India by exploiting and betraying them.
Once this huge amount of black money & property comes back to India , the
entire foreign debt can be repaid in 24 hours.After paying the entire
foreign debt,we will have surplus amount,almost 12 times larger than the foreign debt.If this surplus amount is invested inearning interest,the amount of interest will be more than the annual budget of the Central government.
So even if all the taxes are abolished, then also the Central government will be able
to maintain the country very comfortably. .
Some 80,000 people travel to Switzerland every year,of whom 25,000 travel
very frequently. 'Obviously,these people won't be tourists.They must be travelling there for some other reason,'believes an official involved in tracking illegal money.
And,clearly, he isn't referring to the commerce ministry bureaucrats who've been flitting in and out of Geneva ever since the World Trade Organisation (WTO)
negotiations went into a tailspin!
Just read the following details and note how these dishonest industrialists,
scandalous politicians, corrupt officers,cricketers, film actors, illegal sex trade
and protected wildlife operators, to name just a few,sucked this country's wealth and prosperity. This may be the picture of deposits in Swiss banks only.
What about other international banks?
Black money in Swiss banks -
- Swiss Banking Association report, 2006 detailsbank deposits in the territory of Switzerland by nationals of following countries :
Top Five
1. India ---- $1,456 billion
2. Russia ---$ 470 billion
3. UK -------$390 billion
4. Ukraine - $100 billion
5. China -----$ 96 billion
Now do the maths
India with $1456 billion or $1.4 trillion has more money
in Swiss banks than rest of the world combined.
No wonder,everyone in India loots with impunity and without any fear.What is even more depressing in that this ill-gotten wealth of ours has been stashed
away abroad into secret bank accounts located
in some of the world's best
known tax havens.
And
to that extent the Indian economy
has been stripped of its wealth..
Ordinary Indians (now recently named as slumdogs, by proud Indian Film Stars)
may not be exactly aware of how such secret accounts operate and what are the rules and regulations that go on to govern such tax havens. However, one may well be aware of 'Swiss bank accounts,' the shorthand for murky dealings, secrecy and of course
pilferage from developing countries into rich developed ones.
In fact,some finance experts and economists believe tax havens to be a conspiracy of the western world against the poor countries. By allowing the proliferation of tax havens in the twentieth century, the western world explicitly encourages the movement of scarce capital from the developing countries to the rich..
In March 2005, the Tax Justice Network (TJN) published a research finding
demonstrating that $11.5 trillion of personal wealth was held offshore by rich individuals across the globe.The findings estimated that a large proportion of this wealth was managed from some 70 tax havens.
It is further estimated by experts that 1 % of the world's population holds more than 57 % of total global wealth,routing it invariably through these tax havens.
How much of this is from India is anybody's guess.What is to be noted here is that most of the wealth of Indians parked in these tax havens is illegitimate money acquired through corrupt means.
Naturally, the secrecy associated with the bank accounts in such places is
central to the issue, not their low tax rates as the term 'tax havens' suggests.
Remember Bofors and how India could not trace the ultimate beneficiary of those transactions because of the secrecy associated with these bank accounts?
IS THERE ANY ONE WHO CAN SAVE INDIA ?
Revelation on Swiss Bank Accounts "who can save India no one knows
where tax payer money is going "
Revelation on Swiss Bank Accounts
This is so shocking . . . . wish black money deposits was an Olympics event . . . . .
India would have won a gold medal hands down.
The second best
Russia has 4 times lesser deposit.US is not even there in the counting in top five !!
India has more money in Swiss banks than all the other countries combined !!!!
Recently,due to international pressure,Swiss govt. agreed to disclose the names of the account holders only if the respective govts formally asked for it. Indian govt. is not asking for the details . .. . no marks for guessing why ????
We need to start a movement to pressurise the govt.to do so !!This is perhaps the only way,and a golden opportunity, to expose the high and mighty and weed out corruption !!
Is India poor, who says?Ask Swiss banks With personal account deposit bank of $1500 billion in foreign reserve which have been misappropriated, an amount 13 times larger than the country's foreign debt,one needs to rethink if India is a poor country?.
DISHONEST INDUSTRIALISTS,scandalous politicians and corrupt IAS, IRS, IPS
officers have deposited in foreign banks in their illegal personal accounts
a sum of about $ 1500 billion,which have been misappropriated by them..
With this amount 45 crore poor people can get Rs 1,00,000 each.This huge amount
has been appropriated from the people of India by exploiting and betraying them.
Once this huge amount of black money & property comes back to India , the
entire foreign debt can be repaid in 24 hours.After paying the entire
foreign debt,we will have surplus amount,almost 12 times larger than the foreign debt.If this surplus amount is invested inearning interest,the amount of interest will be more than the annual budget of the Central government.
So even if all the taxes are abolished, then also the Central government will be able
to maintain the country very comfortably. .
Some 80,000 people travel to Switzerland every year,of whom 25,000 travel
very frequently. 'Obviously,these people won't be tourists.They must be travelling there for some other reason,'believes an official involved in tracking illegal money.
And,clearly, he isn't referring to the commerce ministry bureaucrats who've been flitting in and out of Geneva ever since the World Trade Organisation (WTO)
negotiations went into a tailspin!
Just read the following details and note how these dishonest industrialists,
scandalous politicians, corrupt officers,cricketers, film actors, illegal sex trade
and protected wildlife operators, to name just a few,sucked this country's wealth and prosperity. This may be the picture of deposits in Swiss banks only.
What about other international banks?
Black money in Swiss banks -
- Swiss Banking Association report, 2006 detailsbank deposits in the territory of Switzerland by nationals of following countries :
Top Five
1. India ---- $1,456 billion
2. Russia ---$ 470 billion
3. UK -------$390 billion
4. Ukraine - $100 billion
5. China -----$ 96 billion
Now do the maths
India with $1456 billion or $1.4 trillion has more money
in Swiss banks than rest of the world combined.
No wonder,everyone in India loots with impunity and without any fear.What is even more depressing in that this ill-gotten wealth of ours has been stashed
away abroad into secret bank accounts located
in some of the world's best
known tax havens.
And
to that extent the Indian economy
has been stripped of its wealth..
Ordinary Indians (now recently named as slumdogs, by proud Indian Film Stars)
may not be exactly aware of how such secret accounts operate and what are the rules and regulations that go on to govern such tax havens. However, one may well be aware of 'Swiss bank accounts,' the shorthand for murky dealings, secrecy and of course
pilferage from developing countries into rich developed ones.
In fact,some finance experts and economists believe tax havens to be a conspiracy of the western world against the poor countries. By allowing the proliferation of tax havens in the twentieth century, the western world explicitly encourages the movement of scarce capital from the developing countries to the rich..
In March 2005, the Tax Justice Network (TJN) published a research finding
demonstrating that $11.5 trillion of personal wealth was held offshore by rich individuals across the globe.The findings estimated that a large proportion of this wealth was managed from some 70 tax havens.
It is further estimated by experts that 1 % of the world's population holds more than 57 % of total global wealth,routing it invariably through these tax havens.
How much of this is from India is anybody's guess.What is to be noted here is that most of the wealth of Indians parked in these tax havens is illegitimate money acquired through corrupt means.
Naturally, the secrecy associated with the bank accounts in such places is
central to the issue, not their low tax rates as the term 'tax havens' suggests.
Remember Bofors and how India could not trace the ultimate beneficiary of those transactions because of the secrecy associated with these bank accounts?
IS THERE ANY ONE WHO CAN SAVE INDIA ?
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