Superstitious me

For a good part of last fortnight, my left eye had been twitching vociferously. This is not the first time this has happening. It has been there. On and off. Since my childhood. The only question usually was - is it the right eye or the left.

I still vividly recollect my mother telling me " Oh, the left eye twitching? For boys, that is not a good omen at all. Hey Muruga! Protect my son from all evils!".  Over time, I came to believe in that, and thought that the left eye twitching would mean impending trouble.

With youth dawning on me, the rationalist in me overtook mom's voice. And, over the years, I have read about remedies for twitching  on the internet. They ranged from applying hot fomentation, applying tear drops and yes, relaxing and sleeping well. Until the last few years, I had been practising the last two of the suggestions. And soon enough, the twitches had vanished - only to return last fortnight. With all that has been happening over the last few years for me personally, this time, my mom's voice had got a boost, inside my head. Was I going to stare at some trouble and disturbing situation very soon? God, help me!

But soon, the rationalist overpowered mom again. I told myself that I would get over this quickly. After all, I knew what to do. Soon, despite my irregular sleep, I had succeeded calming my mind and relax a lot, in spite of pressures from all quarters. The results were there to be seen. The twitching had stopped completely, since yesterday.

I heaved a sigh of relief. And dismissive of superstitions - " all these superstitions are leading the individual down the wrong path. Negative thoughts were unnecessarily gathering in my mind, and the recent traumas are adding fuel to the fire. I am glad I used my brain to overcome this physiological symptom. Bad event? My foot!" I am learning to get rid of all superstitions in my life one by one, since none of them, including this eye twitching being a bad omen, is working. Hail science! To hell with superstitions!

❤️ D ❤️

PS: ...   and , oh, yes! I forgot to mention...   something really terrible had happened at the workplace today, involving me and a colleague, and I am still rattled by it.

Shaking up a behemoth

This article dt. 5th Feb in "The Businessline" made interesting reading.

In spite of almost 7000 km of coastline, hardly any water-transport worth it's name exists in India. And inland waterways ( rivers) are practically being ignored. Result? This is putting undue stress on the frail infrastructure of the country in terms of Railways and Roads. Minister Nitin Gadkari is finally changing things for the better, making sea-transport within country attractive. There is no big superpower worth it's name, that does not have good water transport infrastructure. Hence, this is a welcome step.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/logistics/cars-from-chennai-take-the-coastal-route-to-gujarat-hyundai-takes-lead/article8199234.ece

I was talking to an old friend of mine, who works in the Rail Bhavan in Chennai.  Some of the facts about the Indian Railways that he shared, were quite revealing:

1. In the past 2 decades, passenger traffic doubled and freight traffic, the roti-and-dal earner for the Railways, tripled. And rail network hardly increased by 5%. It is, therefore, no surprise, that the Railways are bursting at their seams with massive supply constraints. So much so, that many corporates are switching over to road transport, though it is a lot more expensive ( even today, it takes only Rs. 1.38 to move one tonne of freight by a distance of 1 km)

2. So, why cant the Railways spend more on building capacity additions, and invest in much needed rolling stocks, safety equipment etc? The answer is that there simply is no capital available to invest. 2/3rds of the total costs of operation go towards staff costs , and is expected to worsen, with the implementation of the 7th Pay commission recommendations. The Railways are run out of budgetary support, which means every rupee for investment needs to come from taxpayer money, and there simply isn't enough of that left, for the Railways. Alternative ways to raise funds, like privatizing are being stiffly resisted by the uber-unionized workforce. They can, of course, borrow from other countries for modernizing the Railways. But then who will invest? There are enough and more countries willing to extend long term credit, for building new lines, investing in state-of-the art rolling stock and safety equipment. But they don't do it for charity. Which means, the amount has to be repaid. But without proper accounting and accountability, how will repay happen?

This bring focus to the root of the problem. Cash Accounting.

Believe it or not, until recently, the Railways have been doing Accounting using the Cash Accounting methodology, which is based on cash flows, rather than accruals, which is the globally accepted system. Accrual basis is used in most countries and corporates. This renders it impossible to prepare GAAP-compliant balance sheets or P&L statements. Without which, external investors will find it virtually impossible to evaluate key parameters like Return on Capital Employed etc.. and so, private investors will think 10 times before investing. Matters get further compounded with the fact that project-based accounting is non-existent in the Railways. Result? You will never know how much exactly has been invested in a particular project - say, the electrification of railway line in a certain sector. Which is also why, in recent past, separate corporations like Konkan Railways, DMRC, CMRC etc have been created, to circumvent this issue at the project level. Being separate legal entities, booking keeping is mandatory for them, and it is easier to set up accrual-system of accounting there, than changing the behemoth called the Indian Railways.

But hold on!  Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has undertaken path-breaking measures here too. He has hastened the switch over to the accrual system of accounting. We, the people, go gaga over his new initiatives like cleaner stations, swanky rakes etc... but fail to give him credit where it is really due. To me, this is one of the most important steps towards making Accounting and Accountability in the Railways a top priority, so that future funding of investments becomes smoother.

http://www.financialexpress.com/article/economy/indian-railways-to-hasten-shift-to-new-accounting-system/115792/

The average speed of movement of passengers is 35 kmph, and that of freight is 26 kmph... is which abysmal, by global standards. Which means, a goods train will take upto to a week to go from Chennai to Ahmedabad. No wonder, Hyundai decided to literally ships their cars to Gujarat!

The only way this can be fixed is by massive investments in capacity expansion and fleet modernization. Change in Accounting, to Accrual system is the first step. The bigger challenge lies in shaking up the labour force to become more productive, and involve the private sector wherever possible , something the Trade Unions will oppose tooth and nails. But without these much needed reforms, the Railways could soon become as symbolic as the 1920's steam engine parked outside the Rail Bhavan!

My Valentine- 2016

I still remember
Those scared eyes
As you came into my house
On a hot afternoon.

You had to be dragged,
On all fours,
Into your chosen kennel,
Ready for a new life.

Into a new world,
To unknown people,
To unknown surroundings.
Your barks ended up in whimpers.

And how quickly you adapted
Yourself, into your new home
And showered me
With unstinted love.

Your rough and wet tongue
Turned into my daily alarm
As you licked my face out of sleep
With a gentle bark
As if remind me
Of my Office trip.

Everytime I chided you
For spilling food in a hurry,
Those apologetic prostrations
With the tail wagging gently
Like peacock feather
Head placed firmly on the ground
As your eyes rolled
Over every step of mine.
Oh! That was enough for me
To take you in my arms
And give you huggies.

Every Time I returned from work
Forlorn and tired,
You waited for me eagerly
At the doorstep
And as soon as you heard
My car draw in the patio
Your barks grew uncontrolled.

And before I knew, you used
To be all over me
And showered me
With those wet sniffs,
Gentle licks and wanton pranks.

I did not realize eighteen long years
Gone by, without my realizing.
The sunrays woke me up today,
I realized I had to rush to work
But wait! Where is that rough tongue?
Where is the everyday gentle bark?
Where are those fawning smooches?
Where are those captivating whimpers?

Just last week, I was planning
To make you my Valentine, this day!
But lo! It appears
That you have gone away
To meet St. Valentine himself,
In heaven, in eternity!

Photo: Courtesy - the Internet

India's exploding population

Why had India's population exploded in the 21st century?

Well, clearly there had been a misunderstanding by our elders.

Over time "we follow sanatan dharma" has clearly been heard as " we follow santan dharma". ;)

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Laughter in pain

I was waiting for my bone marrow test to be conducted, today. Had to wait for more than an hour.

Suddenly, the doctor, a young lady, perhaps 30 years old, barges in, even while the nurse had laid me down on the table, ready for the doctor to do her job. The doctor comes in, immediately orders me to yank my trousers, and bare my posterior ( the pelvic bone is where the sample is taken from- quite a painful process).

Even as I was writhing in pain, I could not help laugh out loud, thinking " what an ass of a job she has! How many such patient asses does she have to see every day!"

The ultimate irony was, when, looking at me laughing, she quipped " Wow! You are a brave man, laughing even in pain"!!

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Life lessons from a musician

Sulebhavi is a remote hamlet, on the Miraj-Londa railway line, close to Belgaum, in North Karnataka. I remember a day in 1979, when my family was travelling from Pune to Bangalore by train. In those days, it was not easy. One had to take the Maharashtra Express from Pune, in the morning and arrive in Miraj after 7 hours. Then one had to transship from the Broad gauge line, to the Mahalakshmi Express, which used to run on the Metre gauge, and travel for close to another 20 hours, before reaching Bangalore. My father, the eternal railway man, informed us that this route was part of the erstwhile MSM Railways during the British rule.

So there we were, passing through the not-so-fertile North Karnataka villages. Suddenly, my mother raised her voice in excitement, looking at the name board of the passing railway station: “ Look, Sulebhavi!” My brother and I were bewildered about her rather unusual excitement. As if sensing our curiosity, she went on to add: “ do you know that this is the very same village that I was born in?”. This got us more confused than ever. My brother, fours older than me, was quick to quip: “ Amma, how is that possible? We are from Andhakudi, which is a good 1500 km away from here, in Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu… then how is this possible?”

My mother set about clearing the air. Apparently, my great-grandfather, my grand-mother’s father, happened to be station master of Sulebhavi, and my grand-mother travelled for almost three days from Andhakudi to Sulebhavi in a combination of bullock carts and trains, to be with her mother for the delivery of my mother… phew!! Took a while for us boys to figure out.

Cut to 1989. I was in my first job, as a field Engineer, roaming around the remotest corners of the country. My interest in Hindustani Classical music was, by then, increasing with every passing day, and I started listening to the recorded versions of the doyens, on audio cassettes (remember those vinyl tapes that bore music on demand?) and on radio, much to the chagrin of my recalcitrant father.

During one of my official trips, I happened to visit Dewas, in Madhya Pradesh. I was going there for the first time. The town’s culture, food and people were fascinating. I was travelling in an auto rickshaw, and as we passed certain road, the auto driver said “ Sir, you see that house over there? This is where Pt. Kumar Gandharva lives!” I was stunned, for a moment. One of my most favourite musicians, hailing from this non-descript town? I was struck by awe. A strange feeling permeated me. For a moment, I felt as if the Panditji was singing exclusively for me. I was rudely woken up by “Sir, we have arrived at your hotel” by the auto rickshaw driver. I cursed myself for not possessing a camera ( remember, in those days, a camera was a luxury for a trainee, and smart phones were unheard of, and so was the internet). Curiosity got the better of me. I was craving to know more about Pandit Kumar Gandharva (“KG” from hereon).

As soon as I returned to Pune, where I was living at that time, I reached out to my boss V M Desai, an ardent listener of Hindustani Classical music, and pestered him to share more details of KG. He grinned, and said “ Arre, you are the first Madrasi that I know of, who is interested in Hindustani Music. How come?” I simply smiled at him : “ Arre Desai Sahib, help me please!” After a long, probing stare at me, he handed me a book, in English, about the doyens of Classical music. I ran home, and jumped headlong into KG.

KG’s life was a revelation. He had not only impressed me by his unique brand of music, but also by his entire life. Let me capture the essence of it here.

KG hailed from North Karnataka, got interested in Classical Music from a very young age. He turned out to be such a bright student and performer, that he started teaching other students of his guru at the ripe old age of 20! Remember, it takes years of riyaz ( practice) to even get to a professional level of singing in Classical music. KG had aced it all in no time. Soon enough, his fame spread all over, and he became one of the most sought after performers. KG was especially popular, since he refused to adhere to any one Gharana (school of musical ideology). In his own words “ music is too big to be confined to any one gharana”. His mellifluous voice, coupled with sheer genius work with the swaras, took him to the pinnacle of popularity.

But alas, fate would have it otherwise. He got married to a fellow music student, and moved to Dewas. But soon, he was diagnosed with Tuberculosis, then a deadly disease. No cure was available. For 6 long years, he was bed ridden, and could not even speak a word, forget singing. In his wife’s words, he was in contemplative musical meditation, thinking about music, 24*7, and various postulates that hold water to this day. Luckily, medicines started being made available for treatment of TB by then, and after almost 7 years in confinement, he was finally cured of the disease – but not before one of his lungs had completely collapsed. Practically everyone thought that that was the end of his musical career.

But here comes the real twist. Any other singer, in his position, would have given up singing, for, even breathing normally with only one lung would have been difficult, let alone singing. But, KG was not the man to give up. With excruciating early morning riyaz, aided by the research work he had done during confinement, he had developed a very unique style of singing, which, to this day, stands apart from the rest of the crowd. His renditions started bearing the trade marks of signing with one lung – shorter musical phrases, pauses as often as possible without giving up the flavor of the rendition and a very imaginative way of swar-prasthuthi (offering of notes) that actually turned the disadvantage of signing with one lung, to a very unique and enjoyable new style of rendition. His fame never really diminished. KG continued his musical odyssey, with just one lung, right up to his death at the age of 67.

KG had taught me two things in life – One, whatever you do, do it with a passion. Two, never give up. Today, as I convalesce from a serious ailment, I realize that the second learning had come in good stead for me, during this testing period.

Pandit Kumar Gandharva was a legend. And a role model for many people struggling in life. Many musicians were subsequently inspired by his life story, and took strength from his exploits. He had shown the world that it is possible to turn what one would normally consider an adversity, or even a potential show-stopper, to one’s advantage, and still excel in the new paradigm, provided one displays the right attitude.

Ah! By now, by now, you must be scratching your head on the connection between my mother’s birth in an obscure North Karnataka village, and Pandit Kumar Gandharva. Well, he happens to have been born 15 years ahead of her… in Sulebhavi!

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Petrol prices at the pump station

Of late, a see a few memes, which suggest that while global oil prices have come down from a high of $100 a barrel to about $40 now, the price of petrol at the pump-station in India has hardly dropped, and therefore "Modi is indulging in looting the people" (sic). I totally disagree with this vicious campaign. I strongly feel that such malicious campaigns are perpetrated either by people who do not understand economics, or do so, but still spread canards with evil intent. The saddest part is that no one from the government, including the Petroleum minister, has come forward to explain the reasons. Let me try and explain this, as much as I understand.

If the objective of such disinformation campaigns is to see lower prices at the pump station for two and four wheelers ( including diesel), then I am sorry, in an economy like India, that is not practical.

For the record, in 1986, global oil prices had fallen to $16, but the then government too did not drop prices at the pump station. Instead, they created an oil pool, where the surplus was credited into, and was utilized to cushion the common man from oil price shocks when oil prices climbed back to stratospheric levels.

The same is happening now. See this news in Business Standard.

http://www.business-standard.com/…/oil-pool-account-makes-a…

Consumption of petrol for vehicles constitutes hardly 6% of the nett oil import bill... the rest of it goes into downstream petro products that power the economy. Plus, now a days, India has a huge surplus capacity for downstream refining of crude oil, and exports more than the amount of petrol and diesel than it consumes. The nett figure above, is after factoring in the exports.

You will observe that when petrol/ diesel prices go up even by 2 rupees, the vegetable vendor blames it and raises the price of his veggies. Do you seriously expect him to reduce prices of vegetables by 2 rupees when the converse happens? For that matter, why only the veggie vendor? Even large corporations don't do it. Have you ever heard of prices of tablets and syrups ( major consumers of petrochem downstream products) ever go DOWN then oil prices crashed? Have you ever seen the price of Sintex tanks or your plastic buckets that you buy, ever go DOWN in prices? No, they wont.

Reality is, India is very much a seller's market, and lack of awareness is very high among consumers. Hence middlemen will pocket whatever benefits accrue from any such price drop. It wont reach the consumer. It certainly wont reduce inflation.

In order to tackle this, the government traditionally built up an oil pool account, which is significant now, with price drops of crude, to cushion over the vagaries in prices of oil, to shield major consumers of oil , like the fertilizer industry ( that will adversely affect farmers if not done).

Also, remember that petrol/ diesel prices are only PARTLY linked to market prices. Diesel continues to be heavily subsidized , for fear of stoking inflation. FYI, diesel consumption in the country is three times more than petrol, and any increase in diesel will be destructive for the inflationary outlook.

So, instead of a thoughtless campaign like this, it is better to ask for a thorough account of the oil pool money, how much came in, and where it has been used etc.... rather than indulge in rhetoric.

And if you are owning a two wheeler or a four wheeler, thirsty at the pump, and hoping against hope for a 60% drop in petrol prices( corresponding to $100--> $40 drop of crude oil),then well, dream on!

The government is doing what is required. Allow them to. Stop malicious campaigns.

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