Sujavna 1:45

Giri at 0850 hrs on 25^th December

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas.

So have you thought about what innovations will come to impact your lifestyle in 2012? I have given this some consideration and I have come up with the following list. I am not sure if my list can stand scrutiny of the experts in predicting the future, and I fear that my list is more about my wishes rather than an objective outcome of an analysis on trends. But for whatever merit it holds, I am ready to stick my head out on this list:

(a)    Innovations in delivery of e-commerce and m-commerce services that will fast-track the adoption of such technologies and services in low-income societies and poorly-penetrated consumer segments. Many of the innovations are likely to be focused on healthcare, banking, trading and public administration services.

(b)   Innovations in political systems or political approaches, in response to citizens’ displeasure on the inadequacy and ineffectiveness of existing systems to tackle core issues.

(c)    Innovations in marketing and branding services, primarily driven by competitive pressures as well as the increasing use and economic viability of new media technologies.

(d)   Innovations in multilateral aid programmes that will see the onset of less of “money allocations” but more “bang for the money”. These innovations will be driven by a despair amongst UN members that the MDG programme has so far not reached anywhere near its target.

(e)   Innovations in remote sensing and robotics will help in managing risks from nuclear power plant meltdowns, tsunami and earthquake predictions and will also have trickle- down applications in homeland security (speaking of which....)

(f)  Innovations that will pave the way for passwords to become defunct.

(g) And regretably, I do not see any innovations in the way homeland security systems will become (non-intrusively) effective.

So then , what is there in your list?

Before finishing, let me thank each one of you for the encouragement, support and shared ideas that facilitated me to publish my blogs all through 2011. The next blog will be on New Year day in 2012 and I look forward eagerly to an even greater year ahead on this blogworld.

Suvna 1:44

Giri at 1630hrs on 18^th December

The more things change, the more they remain the same – I recall this easy explanation from those lazy enough to strive for improving the situations that they find themselves in; and wonder, how do we see through the clutter and recognize changes that have been subtle, yet impactful?

2011 indeed presents us with many such wonderful opportunities to recognize these subtle changes, I would venture to claim. Be it the Arab Spring, Anna Hazare’s rallies to get the Government of India to legislate an anti-corruption bill in India, the process employed as well as the final choice of the new Chairman of India’s leading business house (Tata Sons), the struggles of EU leaders to save a common currency...... all of these have shown us that, while global leaders and local communities use lateral thinking and innovative models but seem to have made little impact, the fact of the matter is that these efforts are indeed the ones that have positively ensured that workable solutions to problems are attempted.

So, what do you think will 2012 bring out in terms of innovations and new approaches to making our lives a little better? Can we do some crystal-ball gazing? I look forward to your predictions? I will let you have mine next Sunday. Until then, wishing you a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:43

Giri at 1330hrs on 10th December

Hello. A bit of a surprise for you in that this is being posted a day in advance. Two reasons - the first is that I have have had the opportunity to interact with a number of people in the last two days on innovation and design and learnt several things that I thought I should share them with you at the earliest; and secondly, I suspect that my day tomorrow will be busy and I may not get the opportunity to sit down and publish this.

So what did I learn in the last two days that I want to share with you? My attendance at a CII Design Summit in Delhi provided me with an opportunity to understand how others are viewing design and innovation, and what sort of creative thoughts and creative processes are being applied to everyday business issues, market issues or social issues. I list below some viewpoints and experiences that were shared:

As Prof Vijay Kumar from Chicago suggested, innovation is all about attempting to apply new and viable options in specific contexts to add value to not only the user and the provider of a product or service but also other stakeholders who may be impacted with the delivery and use of the product or service.

And Richard Eisermann from Prospect London, Nick Talbot of Tata Elxsi, Bangalore illustrated and Prasad Boradkar, professor at Arizona and author of the Long Wide Deep View confirmed true innovation cannot happen if we take short term views and are reactive to immediate problems - start from the end and pull the future towards you - but then there are no simple guides on how to master such approaches!

And young Mamata Gautam, who has worked extensively with the small and tiny sanitaryware manufacturers in Gujarat, very irreverantly, but passionately defended the marginal innovations that these industries are attempting, even when it may be looked at as infringing on IP rights of someone who may have developed some processes in other industries or sectors!

All in all I was pretty much inspired that there is a growing ecxosystem of people continuously working at lateral thinking in India and across the world! And yet I was also brought back to earth, at the end of the two days, when I once again read about the horrific hospital fire tragedy in Kolkatta that claimed 90 lives, mostly of patients. And I once again started wondering - how can we get the Vijay Kumarss, Richard Essarmans, Nick Talbots and Mamata Gautams of the world to work on delivering us from all these manmade tragedies?

Wishing you a great weekend.

Sujavna 1:42

Giri at 0800hrs on 4^th December

Hope you had a great week and are spending a wonderful weekend with family or friends or both.

One of India’s senior-most and top journalist lamented at a media and entertainment conference in Chennai last week that there are no dependable surveys that actually assesses the real penetration of the internet and broadband in India and wondered if the figures of 110 million are indeed accurate.

Statistics and surveys in India (and perhaps the world over) are best understood once we know who has sponsored the survey and what models and data acquisition processes have been employed and who they have targeted for. And this is indeed a compelling reason why we need innovations in the manner by which such surveys are initiated, done and communicated, so that the recipient of such information is able to decide how , and to what extent, the results can be used or understood. Are there any takers for this>

Wishing you a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:41

Giri at 1730hrs on 27^th November

What is the value of human life in India? All of Indian politicians and most bureaucrats will answer this question with a lie and a straight face – we truly hold life as invaluable, they would aver! And most Indian parents will look at the person posing this question with contempt as they live in a fool’s world that they value their precious childrens’ lives higher than those in other parts of the world. And yet, several incidents that were reported across India, during the week that went by, seem to confirm what most Indians all know deep within themselves – that human life in India is rarely valued for its inherent sake and for the potential that it can aspire to attain. Be it the tragedy of the Doon Express fire or the death of a Mumbai school boy due to a combination of badly-designed and installed billboard on a lamp-post and badly-designed window cross-bars in the school bus that the boy was travelling, (or the long-drawn struggle for criminal justice and fair compensation in cases such as the Uphar cinema case or the Bhopal gas tragedy) Indian society is yet to comprehend that in this particular aspect we are still amongst “barbarians” and have to cross several chasms of legal, educational, economic and political value systems to be considered truly developed.

So are there innovations that can facilitate Indian society to cross these chasms? How about taking a clue from the Responsive Care approach that many chemical giants initiated in early 1980s? Perhaps each large employer (employing say more than 200 people) can initiate a CSR programme, for its employees and their families, that aims to (a) advocate and establish the importance of safety and security, (b) support in adopting insurance products, (c) support in legal and financial assistance to those that need any. The government can allow such companies to avail some tax benefits for expenses incurred in such programmes! Other smaller employers (say those who employ 20 or less) may perhaps need to mandatorily send their employees to a day of interactions with the closest CSR programme of a larger company.

Wishing you a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:40

Giri at 1000am on 20^th November

As this Sunday morning brings in a sharp chill in the air (in Mumbai this means sub-twenty degree Celcius!), a lot of ideas continue to swirl in my mind – many of them in response to news and events that surfaced during the course of the last 7 days. I am sure an equal number of ideas, if not more, would have occurred to you as you successfully progressed through an eventful week that went by!

So what are the new ideas that entered my mind in the last few days? For starters, I am wondering why certain private sector health providers in India (such as Fortis Hospitals) cannot incorporate a web-based appointments scheduler, on the lines of airlines web-check-in process, wherein pre-registered patients (OPD) can reserve appointments with doctors on the date and time of their preference and pay online for the consultation fee within a couple of hours if their reservation is to be confirmed through an email from the hospital or an SMS from the hospital? This will facilitate greater efficiency and transparency in customer-care processes?

Yet another thought that my mind keeps churning around relates to the continuing absence of a normative culture of written contracts, especially amongst professional services firms such as accountants, lawyers, company secretaries that specify clearly what a customer (especially small corporates, individuals) can expect for the professional fees that will be charged and what standard time frames can be expected for delivery of services and how does one escalate any grievance with top management of the service provider? Much of this is oral and many times the trust factor does not work in favour of the customer. Can professional bodies mandate such minimum standards of service-care for their members?

Hope you are having a great weekend. Wishing you an exciting and useful week ahead.

Sujavna1:39

Giri at 1500 hrs on 14^th November

Firstly apologies for the delay in this posting this edition; this became unavoidable due to time – mismanagement on a project that I had to complete.

Today Indians celebrate the day as Childrens’ Day and I think it is a day when all adults need to introspect on how they can provide and sustain a positive environment of learning as a fun-filled activity for our children. What contemporary innovations have there been that could be replicated and how do we incentivise adoption of innovative teaching programmes?

If I may, there could be a beginning made by our commercial radio channels – how about every first Monday of the month being reserved by our FM radio channels as the day when they hunt the country for the most challenging teaching and learning assignments that resulted in adoption of innovations for success ; the hunt could be fun-filled with songs and music scores and interviews broadcast to encourage sharing of success. The hunt could end in an annual finale of recognition through awards to school managements, teachers and students who participated.

I am sure you have many more such ideas up your sleeves. I am most eager to read them, so please respond to this blog.

Sujavna 1:38

Giri at 11am on 5^th November

Welcome to yet another edition of Sujavna. I hope that you all are enjoying the weekend with your near and dear ones and rejuvenating yourselves to immerse in the exciting opportunities that the next week may have in store.

But I guess not all of us always look forward to the future, especially those who are in the marginalised sections of society and, who, as someone pointed out to me, repeatedly come out as losers in the Russian roulette of life that they need to play, day after day, week after week. I write this with a sense of exasperation after reading about the death of a new born in a hospital in rural India, because the staff used carbolic acid instead of disinfectant on its mother in a pre-C-section administration. And there have been no criminal cases filed against the hospital staff, the hospital administration!

And yet there are always many who look forward to the future, because they have hope that matters do improve and economic gains do lurk around the corner for those enterprising enough to search for the pot and have a go at striking it.

What innovations in our governance structures can ensure we have more and more numbers in the latter group than those of the former? And how do such innovations become well-accepted norms of civil society? I admit I am totally lost on this – in fact I wonder if these are right questions to be asked? Any one amongst you , who has a better framework of questions to ask in this context or indeed any answers to my questions?

Wishing you a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:37

Giri at 1100 hrs on 30^th October

First of all thanks for those who pointed out the typos in my special Diwali post. Apologies for not taking care to check.

So how was the week that went by, and what exciting things are you looking forward to in the week ahead? Of course if you are someone who accepts the theories that Stephen Hawking (based on the works of many other quantum physicists such as Richard Feynman) proposes in the Grand Design, then there are many probable histories and futures for this Universe(each of which depends on the current process of observations), then my question is irrelevant!

As for me, I am looking forward to reading (and viewing on TV) media reports that will be talking of how F1 motor-racing event made a spectacular debut on the 31^st , in a country (which is my own dear India), which after 64 years of becoming a free country, is still groaning in terms of its abysmal infrastructure for healthcare, primary education, clean water and air, good quality road and rail infrastructure and reliable energy supplies. I look forward to becoming a proud Indian, puffing my chest and adding a swagger to my strides, after being told that the F1 event near Delhi, saw some great European drivers and their Middle Eastern bosses win the races in front of glitzy yuppie Indians; Indians who will still think hundred times before allowing their offsprings to choose a professional sports career over family business or a call-centre job!

And as I expect to raise my glasses in toast for the success story of the week, may I suggest that for every rupee that yuppie Indians spend on future F1 events, they may wish to consider spending 10 paise on any local initiatives in their neighbourhoods, that aim to reduce noise levels or fuel consumption.

Sujavna - Special Diwali 2011 Post

Giri at 1200 noon on Diwali day

As we celebrate the festival of lights, let's apuse for a moment and realize that we need to be both smart and wise if we want to be creative and innovative in our lives. To this end. I have created the following imaginary situation and I hope that you enjoy reading the same. As always happy to read your views and reactions.

A wise Indian and a smart Indian met at a street corner in an Indian city, and were debating. The conversation between the two was overheard by a street-smart urchin (who incidentally never had the time to think about either other Indians, let alone India, the nation). The two debaters turn to the urchin to settle their dispute. Reproduced below is the conversation between the two and how the urchin finally arbitrated.

Greetings to you O smart one.....Wishing you peace and plenty!

Hellos to you O wise one........Plenty of what? I already have a lot.

Hey would you two move away, this is the Urchin’s corner.....

And if I greet you both, would you pay me and leave even sooner?

Tell me O smart one....Do you know the answers to the 5Ws

Why? When? Where? What? Who?

Why

growth and development are difficult...and poverty so easy...to sustain?

hygiene is such an alien concept.... and rudeness is so common?

religion and caste continue to matter in a constitutionally secular country?

When

do human rights overshadow national security...or vice-versa?

do we become an innovative economy?

do we start preserving and showcasing our cultural heritage?

Where

can you spot ethical talent in public and private service?

does one find one find good quality infrastructure...say roads, energy, healthcare, transport?

do senior citizens find the dignity of participating...and children the carefree atmosphere to

play and learn?

What

delivery goals are needed for public-private partnerships?

governance issues should businesses urgently resolve?

educational reforms can ensure merit gets recognition?

Who

                    will take responsibility? the leaders...or those led? the governed...or the government?

                    can deliver better? Private sector?...or public sector?...or PPP?

                    should be trusted? The Fourth Estate and Wikileaks?..or independent judicial commissions?

Spare me the trouble O wise one....

Such dim-witted Ws you place in your questionnaire

Only wise old fools as you, can conjure!

Smart as I am, I can quickly retort

The answer to your 5Ws are hidden in

Statistics&Lies, Electoral Politics, Consumerism&Branding , Not Me Syndrome and

Who Blinks First.

O smart one, yours is a pure gobbledegook, the wise one rebuked.

And O wise one, so was yours, but let’s see what this urchin has to say.

(So saying he threw a few coins at the urchin, who having collected them concluded:)

In the many battles

between Smartness and Wisdom

Was the war ever won, and by whom?

‘Tis a question

Man will always carry to his tomb.

For where was the war, in the first place?

Only myopia placed them in a coveted race

 And, I am sure

As civilisations survived...or even died

Wisdom and smartness in equal measure

Evolved and Expanded ....side by side.

Sujava 1:35

Giri at 1630 hrs on 23^rd October

As the Indian festival of lights (Diwali) approaches, bringing with it the excitement and smiles on millions of human beings spread across the world, millions more continue to stare into a bleak and grim future brought about (in many parts of the world) by a continuation of deprivation of human rights and gross absence of governance and (in many other parts of the world) by the vortex of global recessionary trends.

So do festivals and celebrations such as Diwali have any relevance in today’s world? I believe they do, but not unless we are willing to innovate and provide a new proposition for the core of the celebratory causes that made such festivals acceptable to societies in the first instance. So how about the following propositions?

(a)   New Year celebrations (01 January) will be celebrated by a release of an annual status report on the UN Millennium Development Goals performance in each member state and a UN-subsidy that encourages tourists to travel to a LDC state and bring some additional tourism revenues for the LDCs.

(b)   Festivals that celebrate equinoxes and solstices and festivals that celebrate the seasons (in India these could be the harvest festivals in Baisakhi, Pongal in Punjab, Tamilnadu, Holi...) will include musicals and theatre that reinforce the messages of climate change impacts through wise and optimal use of agricultural resources.

(c)    National days (Independence Day, Republic Day, Liberation Day....) could be celebrated as “free speech” and “free debate” days for youth to congregate in public open spaces (stadia...) and engage in well-moderated debates on what is good and bad in the way nations are governed and what changes youth want to see in the next decade and how they want this to be done. These debates could may be moderated by a retired judges and could also be broadcast for the rest of the world to understand and feedback on their reactions.

(d)   Religious festivals (such as Christmas, Diwali, Id...) could incorporate a concerted communication campaign (involving small pamphlets) that aims to explain the reasons for why the festival is being celebrated, how the festival promotes societal-harmony and why non-believers can also join in the celebrations, if they wish to - all these with some sort of vetting by religious leaders across the spectrum.

So what do you think? Do you have some more and even-better propositions? Wishing you all a great week ahead and Happy Diwali to those who will celebrate this festival of lights.

Sujavna 1:34

Giri at 1600 hours on 16^th October

How does one plan for a vacation that is not so much about travelling and staying in some new destination but is more about experiencing the atmosphere which the place, its inhabitants, their culture, the art-forms and the food styles can offer? This question is increasingly troubling me as I find that in India, there are many standard options for vacations, but very little that one can plan for on limited budgets, taking into account a reasonable factor of safety and comfort in travel and stay.

Travel portals and resorts offer very little in terms of information on options and alternatives to different classes of tourists. Customised tourism is a concept whose time is yet to come in India. Or has it? If so can I know a little more about how this is spreading its wings in India?

So as I continue to explore plans to spend my next vacation, I wish you all a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:33

Giri at 1200 noon on 09 October

The week that went by witnessed the death of Steve Jobs. In his lifetime, I assume Steve must have been inspired by the philosophical maxim ....iThink therefore iAm. Perhaps he even wished iDecree my iPad launches iSmartHumankind. Steve, let me join millions in thanking you for inspiring many fellow-human beings and impacting countless lives.

A debate that continues to hog Indian media is the one on poverty definition. I am appalled that the finest economists and social-scientists seem to end up being caught in a quagmire of controversial definitions. Are we sure they have adequately used the Six Hats to resolve these differences? (Debono Techniques discussed in an earlier post- White Hat thinking focuses on data, facts, information known or needed; Black Hat thinking focuses on difficulties, potential problems and Why something may not work; Red Hat thinking focuses on feelings, hunches, gut instinct, and intuition; Green Hat thinking focuses on creativity: possibilities, alternatives, solutions, new ideas; Yellow Hat thinking focuses on values and benefits and Why something may work; Blue Hat thinking focuses on managing the thinking process, focus, next steps, action plans). I am not convinced that this has been done.

Wishing you a great and exciting week ahead.

Sujavna 1:32

Giri at 1615 hrs on 02 October

Hello. Hope you are all having a good weekend. I am enjoying mine – mixing the pleasures of completing a book that chronicles the mysteries that Satyajit Ray’s famous detective Feluda manages to solve and helping with my dear wife’s preparations for the festive season of Navratri.

And as I mix these pleasures, I am left with some wonderful ideas of how innovative and creatively brilliant the festivals of India can be made for children to enjoy; and wonder why very little efforts are made to create and market social networking games (online, MMOG) or mobile games that build on the concepts of perceptive observations and deductions around solving mysteries through exercises such as Rangolis, Garbas, Holi Pichkaris, and involving folk heros and heroines and contemporary aids. I am sure such games can be both educative and informative and can be a great bond between grandparents, parents and children. It can also be a lot more safer and environmentally leave even lesser carbon footprints.

Wishing you all a great week ahead - with lots of creative juices to advance your success in all that you endeavour to achieve.

Sujavna 1:31 (&30)

Giri at 1530 hrs on 24th September

Hello and apologies for missing on my communications with you last Sunday. I have been travelling in the UK and slipped on my blogging schedule. This Sunday (25th September), I will again be on my return flight to Mumbai tomnorrow, and hence this post comes to you today.

Since yesterday, the media in London (and I guess the rest of the world) has been tracking the diplomatic anxieties resulting from the Palestinian leaders' application in the UN for statehood. Earlier the media, especially in the UK, was also following up on the Representative of the Quartet Tony Blair's conflict of interests between his position as the Middle East Envoy for the Quartet and his position as a lobbyist with TBA. My interest (in reading and listening to views on these news reports) has led me to think about the innovative ways by which ex-diplomats and civil servants and world statesmen are able to influence and change the status-quo in geo-politics, international finance and business and human rights. Are these innovative approaches or just instances of slick and despicable ways of remaining in the limelight and getting handsonmely paid for the same? If there are innovative approaches that these individuals have adopted, can we learn from them to benefit in our daily lives?

I wish you all a great weekend and a wonderful and staisfying week ahead.

Sujavna 1:29

Giri at 0715hrs on 11^th September

Today the world (especially the media) will recall the horrible events that happened in the USA ten years ago. Many will be the platitudes, written and spoken. For those individuals that lost a near and dear one, there will be some moments of anguish, some moments of fond memories, some reminders that they have moved on in their lives.....

But are we any wiser and more mature? Do we want to acknowledge that terrorism is as old as the era when human beings started evolving as social units that encouraged the maxim “might is right”; and will continue as long as this maxim underscores the behaviours of social institutions?

So where do we go from here? What social innovations are required to bottle this genie known as terrorism? Would these innovations be cathartic in nature? I do not believe they have to be, but I would not be surprised if some of them will end up being so. One such innovation that I would like to understand and experience in a country such as India and perhaps in the USA, is that of having a parliament of elected youth (under 30 years) which seeks to debate, carry out referendums and recommends legislation and executive action to the actual parliaments (or Congress and Senates in the USA) and executive institutions in the country. For after all, shouldn’t our growth and development and societal well-being be targeted to ensure that our youth benefit and take responsibilities for?

Wishing you a safe and interesting week ahead.

Sujavna 1:28

Giri at 1500 hrs on 4^th September

What? Why? Who (and by Whom)? When? Which?

Are we inquisitive enough and bold to ask these questions to all aspects of our lives at work, at home and in our interactions with our social communities?

I think these are the basis for any positive changes in our lives. I leave these thoughts for all of us to cogitate as we go about our lives. Perhaps these are the clues for identifying the innovation-machines that I wrote about last week. Until next Sunday.....

Sujavna 1:27

Giri at 1630 hrs on 28^th August 2011

The idea of a time-machine is neither new nor technologically incongruous. But what about a series of innovation-machines? Machines that churn out social-innovations, economic innovations, business innovations, marketing innovations, communication innovations, cultural innovations, entertainment innovations and a medley of other innovations?

Machines imply greater productivity – so what basic input-output factors will drive the scalability and sustainability of such machines? Will such innovation-machines ultimately become recursively innovative?  Is this a scary Frankenstinean thought or will this facilitate and guide human societies to choose and adopt the right mix of utilitarian innovations?

So what will an innovation-machine look like? I intend to research on this a bit more, but in my current ignorant mind, I would think of such a machine to be a funnel that gets switched on by an orbit-shifting environment that processes breakthrough strategies, breakthrough ideas and breakthrough skills to produce the innovated environment that negates any challenges to the continued success of the entity. 

So what do you think about such innovation-machines? I intend to understand how far such machines have been used so far in human existence. So until next Sunday, wishing you a very great time.

Sujavna 1:26

Giri at 1630 hrs on 21^st  August 2011

Why is it important for a civil rights protest to be carried out only from a certain place and for a certain time period? Will the protest lose its power otherwise? These are some of the questions that have been tormenting me (and I am sure a few others, including the organisers of the protest against corruption and the law-enforcing bodies) since August 16^th, when Indian urban middle-class started rallying together for the second time in the last six months, behind Mr Anna Hazare.

And I am not going to fall prey to answering these questions. But what I would like to think about are the following scenarios:

(a)   Mr Anna Hazare and the organisers of the India Against Corruption movement celebrated Independence Day by hoisting the tricolour at Indira Point in Kanyakumari (far away from New Delhi) and exhorting all sympathisers to their cause (and supporters of the Jan Lokpal bill) to send exactly Rs. 1/= by cheque or by mobile payment to the Prime Ministers’ Relief Fund and an SMS to them with cheque /mobile payment reference details before end of August. They could have used viral social media networks to spread the message. This could have been the best Gandhian way to let the government and Parliament realize the extent of support their cause has. Oh, by the way, does the PM’s Relief Fund accept mobile payments?

(b)   The India against Corruption organisation commissions a reality show on prime TV called “Indians are Not Corrupt”. The reality show could be themed around three converging series of events – the first is series of debates for 13-19 year olds on what aspects on India’s constitutional, legal, judicial and administrative systems (in their current forms) tend to facilitate corruption – the second is a hunt for examples around the country (in each of the debate themes of the first part) wherein there is exemplary evidence of how citizens have not only fought corruption but have followed up with attempts to change systems that facilitated long-entrenched corrupt practices – and the third will be a debate between the leaders of the first stage along with the “hunted” exemplars of non-corrupt individuals on the one side and senior representative spokespersons of India’s current constitutional, legal. Judicial and administrative systems. The finale of the third stage could be in front of an invited audience of all parliamentarians. Sponsorship for the show could come out of the CSR budgets of India’s corporate houses and from all national political parties.

Sujavna 1:25

Giri at 1700 hrs on 14^th August 2011

Tomorrow will be the 64^th birthday of a wonderful nation called India; a nation that I am a citizen of, a nation that I am simultaneously proud of and ashamed of – proud that several of its leaders in politics, business and the various professions, as well as many ordinary people have constantly strived and succeeded in creating environments where economic and social growth and development have seen progress, proud of the stability of its institutions (not necessarily their vibrancy!)  – ashamed when I see that many of my fellow-citizens are habitually rude in public behaviour or in social settings, ashamed to know that cleanliness is an alien concept in most of urban India, ashamed that corruption continues to gnaw the sinews of the nation and ashamed that I am still struggling to make sense of how I can make my country proud.

I guess one option will be to move forward to implement a couple of ideas that have been discussed in earlier columns of Sujavna. I do know that the idea of logging these ideas is a necessary first step, which I have been sincerely doing. Has the time for putting some of these ideas to action come? How and when do I take the next steps?

Hope you all are having a good weekend. Wishing you a great week ahead.

Sujavna 1:24

Giri at 1615 hrs on 7^th August 2011

 “An idea whose time has come” is something that we constantly hear about, but do ideas really have a right time (and perhaps a right place)? As a corollary, do ideas always become outdated, as is normally thought so? Three reports in the Indian print media have actually triggered my grey cells into working overtime during this weekend in contemplating on these posers.

The first of these reports, pertains to the downgrading by S&P, of the sovereign rating of the USA. Why does the financial world tremble at the idea that economic superpowers such as the USA can also have a public debt to GDP ratio that is in excess of 100% and that their macro-economic management can also be as grossly mismanaged as a banana republic?  So the idea that economic superpowers will remain so, seems outdated; and the idea that they also are governed by the vicissitudes of economic modelling inconsistencies and institutional arrogance (or greed) seem to be more relevant in understanding and predicting their rise and fall.

The second is a review, of a book titled World 3.0 written by renowned economist Pankaj Ghemavat, which attempts to debunk Thomas Friedman’s belief that the world has become flat (owing to high levels of globalisation that economies of achieved in recent decades). Using very interesting data and analysis, Pankaj propounds the theory that the world (World 2.0 is his version of the current world) is still in a nascent state of globalisation where much activity is domestically-driven (with 90% of all fixed investment still being domestic, 18% of all internet traffic only is international and 90% of the worlds’ population has never left the country in which they were born). The moot point then, is when does the world become truly flat? And why should it become flat? Can it become flat by   focussing as much on services trade as it should on merchandise trade (if not more!)? What are the welfare gains for economies to embracing a flat world? What are the environmental costs to transition to a truly flat world? So where does the idea of a truly flat world start and where does it end? 

The last report is Mumbai-centric and refers to the recent incident of an abandoned ship MV Rak that ran aground and sunk Mumbai’s Juhu beach. Various theories have been suggested to explain why such incidents are increasingly happening on Mumbai’s coastline. The breach of coastal security and imminent terrorist threats that such incidents can lead to have, are also becoming subjects of debate in Mumbai. And, after all the terror plots that they have been continuously been succumbing to in the past 17 years (the latest one just 3 weeks back), the one all-encompassing idea that all citizens of Mumbai want to see implemented immediately is  A Safe Mumbai. There is no right time or place for this idea to begin – the right time is NOW and ALWAYS and the right place is HERE and EVEYWHERE.

Hope your weekend is turning out to be an enjoyable one and the week ahead has lots of positive and enriching experiences for you. So until 14^th Augsust.....

Sujavna 1:23

Giri at 1630 hours on 31^st July 2011

There have been voluminous columns that the Indian print media and the tweeting world have devoted during the past week in commenting on the young Pakistani foreign minister and her visit to India that I dare add more on the same. What I do want to comment upon is the lost opportunity for youth in India to have impressed upon her (and indeed the Indian Establishment) the need for a series of “Indo-Pakistan Youth Forum” exchanges as part of the confidence building measures. Why are young politicians, young businessmen and young media-commentators from both sides of the birder seldom seen to be engaged in any bilateral G2G initiatives? What paradigm shifts on the engagement terms are needed for both countries to ensure mutually-reinforcing and sustainable confidence building measures?

As we enter into August, and as much of the world is eagerly looking out to see how the lawmakers in the USA decide in managing their deficits and avoid defaults, as the emerging fiscal environments that many European economies are being forced to grapple with, as emerging economies such as India and China contemplate on how to sustain the growth momentum, I am reminded of a very simple Tamil song that captures the essence of economic wisdom (I am sure every other culture has a similar saying) –

Varavu Ettanna (50p of income)

Selavu Pathanna (63p of expense)

Athigam Rendanna (13p is profligacy)

Kadaissiyil Kunthanna (leaves one impoverished permanently)

Why do our bankers, wealth-managers, economists and lawmakers forget these simple home-truths?

Wishing you a great week ahead. Will connect with you next Sunday.

Sujavna 1:22

Giri at 1700 hrs on 24^th July 2011

If wishes were horses, fools would ride on them gladly. The tragic events in Norway last week, remind us that there are many riders amongst us who frequently mount horses that only cause despair, agony and destruction. To most of us, the state of human existence in many urban centres has, unfortunately, reached a state of helplessness.

Will our sense of survival as a human species and our innate ingenuity deliver us from the inexorable mess that we seem to have landed ourselves in? How can we pull together a genuinely-effective, international cooperation and partnerships to rid the world of this scourge of terrorism (be it ideology-based or otherwise)? How can governments and law and order agencies be made more accountable on their responsibilities to prevent acts of terrorism? Is there a case for PPP initiatives for homeland security? If so what forms can these initiatives take?

Have we reached an inflexion point in the existence of our cities wherein we need to re-design and socially-engineer them in order to ensure that they deliver maximum economic and lifestyle benefits to their citizens in a safe environment? Do we need to de-clutter our cities in a way that each city is symbiotically linked to a couple of other (neighbouring and distant) cities, yet the symbiosis is a naturally-evolving one? How will this impact on the total carbon footprints of the cities in question? What constitutional, legal, jurisdictional and administrative innovations will these efforts need?

I have to admit that I have too many questions and no ideas on how to move forward. Can you help me?

With my fingers crossed that next week will see a better world, I am signing off for now. Looking forward to interacting with you next Sunday.

Sujavna 1:21

Giri at 1700 hours on 17^th July 2011

Skinning a frog alive, and relishing it as a delicacy. Eating fruit-eating bats, nibbling on their wings and body first followed by munching of their heads in a mouthful all at one go, as another bizarre food option for those seeking adventure. Killing over 20 people and maiming another 120 with three bombs that were blasted in crowded urban centres. Do these three provoke the same levels of reactions in you?

All three were images that were broadcast last week on television; the first two were part of a travel and living channel while the third was news from Mumbai. And I thought that each portrays the psychological degradation and mindless insensitivity that human beings are capable of.

While I will probably comment on the first two in some future column of Sujavna, I would like to comment on the Mumbai blasts here, in this column. The media, and most commentators, have been incessantly commenting on the fact that the police and anti-terrorism agencies have not progressed substantially in their investigations as to who the perpetrators are. “72 hours after, no leads” cry the headlines. I strongly feel, that this is a misdirected enthusiasm that bodes no good for the future of public security and law and order management in India.

What if there are good leads that the investigators are quietly pursuing to ensure that they end up into solid cases for the prosecution? Why do we not give them the professional space and freedom to do their investigative jobs? What will we achieve by pressurising them to show some half-baked investigative results within 72 hours, if those results do not end up in appropriate prosecution or add to the overall intelligence of the terrorist networks that have colluded or plan to collude?

So my idea for this week’s Sujavna is for news agencies and the general media to give the police and investigative agencies at least 1 week notice period before asking them to share the outcomes of their investigation; perhaps the police could mandatorily have a press conference on the progress of their investigations at least once in 72 hours and for as long as the investigation is active. This will promote a healthy balance between the twin objectives of professional investigations of crime and citizen’s need to be informed and assured that the cases are being investigated.

I hope that the week ahead will be more positive and will see more instances of human kindness and love. Wishing you all a lovely week ahead. Till next Sunday......

Sujavna 1:20

Giri at 1200 noon on 9^th July 2011

To those of you who are wondering what happened to my promise of following up on just two of the many ideas that have featured in Sujavna columns – namely, Hug-A-Friend network of centres and NUN, - I admit that I have not really found the time in this intervening period to crystallise my thoughts on how to make these ideas into realities. So I sincerely request for more time.

The week that went by was quixotic, from my perspective; accompanying a boss on business, with no specific tangible outcomes aimed for, and having discussions with interlocutors who were themselves unsure of what they were meeting up with us fo,r did have its interesting moments that called for “smart thinking on one’s feet”, and perhaps has only resulted in adding to my organisation’s carbon footprints. Hopefully this negative outcome will be negated by some future business prospects fructifying soon.

The weekend also brought into focus a passionate debate within the global print and AV media on the ethics of hacking into voicemails as was done by the NoTW, and the media rat race that seems to justify the means to the end. This brings back into focus the idea that was featured in Sujavna’s post of 23^rd May 2011 - How about getting all the main news readers of various Indian TV channels into a room once week, and ask them to read the breaking news that they had reported during the week, but using a different context and making a parody of the situation!. – Perhaps this is something that news editors and media businesses the world over have to immediately implement, so that there is a self-regulated and entertaining mechanism to effect mid-course corrections to non-ethical and illegal processes being employed.

My week ahead looks like a busy one with preparatory business meetings aimed to help me cope with a busy August and September, while finding the right balance for pursuing my home life and personal interests and obligations. I am optimistic that this will prove to be very satisfying and I wish you also a very interesting and satisfying week ahead.

Until the 17^th of July.......

Sujavna 1:19

Giri at 1630hrs on 2^nd July 2011

Firstly apologies for missing my 26^th June tryst with Sujavna. Hope that the weeks that went by brought a lot of positive and refreshing experiences for you. I have to say that they did indeed for me, so much so that the poet in me has been inspired to post this week’s blog in verse form. Hope you enjoy the following:

My heart’s on fire............With many a desire

How do I quell this inferno..........Is what I earnestly seek to know

What efforts do I need to take..........So that my sleeping desires do indeed wake

For them to soar and rise as successful ventures.......I must turn them into eagles, not into vultures

Powered by ideas that act as their wings

Supported by insightful research that make up their eyes

Anchored by smart business plans for talons

And a delivery expertise that whets their beaks.

My heart’s on fire............With many a desire

Can I hope to blow my bugles..........With my own army of eagles?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend and a great week ahead. Till next Sunday, then..........

Sujavna1:17b

Giri at 1730hrs on 19^th June 2011

Hello. Hope the week that went by was one that provided you with a lot of positive experiences and that you are having a great and relaxing weekend.

I have to admit, though, that while the past week was a good one for me, Friday brought me news that made me seethe with anger and really unsettled me. For those of you not tracking local Indian news, I refer to the treasure trove of Rs. 12 crores (approximately US$3million) plus 98 kgs of gold (valued over Rs. 20 crores) and another 307 kgs of silver (valued over Rs. 2 crores) unearthed from the private chambers of the recently-deceased spiritual leader Satya Sai Baba. What angers me is not the actual value, but the fact that leading public figures such as the ex-President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (and a leading businessman from Chennai), an ex-Chief Justice of India (and an active Chairperson for many of the Government of India’s Law Commissions of Enquiry), retired judges of the Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka High Courts, have, while participating (as members of the organisation’s Trust)in the assessment of the treasure trove, have studiously remains silent as to why the Trust has been encouraging the private hoarding of such large treasure troves inside the private chambers of the “godman”. Or why there is no explanation as to what fiduciary responsibilities the Trust really had when the “godman” was alive and how it went in discharging these responsibilities. In a properly governed organisation, such large wealth should have been invested in legal instruments and an audit trail should have been regularly made available to the income tax authorities.

This brings me to my thought of the week, which results from the acts of omissions of our lawmakers and law-protectors – are we Indians pre-disposed to endemic corruption because we are not culturally-inclined to question any form of moral, spiritual, religious, business or political authority?

With my weekend, thus perturbed, I am looking forward to a better week ahead – a week that will bring forth many ,many instances of human kindness, intelligence and sharing of goodwill. So until next Sunday......

Sujavna 1:17

Giri at 1630hrs on 12^th June 2011

Welcome to yet another post at Sujavna, which I want you to know is a part of my “blogging for bhajiyas” – yes I have been promised bhajiyas for evening tea by my dear wife, and I need to be on time for the same!

I am happy to have concluded that the range of themes that all of the previous editions of Sujavna have included, is indeed a wide assortment. Not so happy, though, that further research and comments have not followed many of these. It is my intention to follow-upon two of the themes – NUN (New United Nation) and Hug-A-Friend network of centres – to check on how these could really become feasible, or, (if there is a consensus) how these need to be amended for ensuring feasibility. So watch out for more on these themes in the coming weeks.

As for my experiences last week, the one experience that stands out is the realization from a series of meetings with technology managers of Indian corporate groups, that there are many leading businesses in India that have mindlessly invested in procuring and retaining technology licenses without any business profitability assessments. The idea that crossed my mind as I realized this was: Is there some way by which technology departments of Indian corporate groups can take on a CSR initiative that could leverage and use the unharnessed technology potential within the group (and this would include unused technology licenses, technology skillsets, technology hardware) for facilitating citizen / local government / educational / healthcare initiatives?

What do you think? Looking forward to reading your comments and views. Until next Sunday, then....

Sujavna 1:15

Giri at 1630 hrs on 05^th June 2011

Welcome to yet another post of Sujavna – the fifteenth edition, to be precise, is being composed and published from a cosy corner of my living room in Mumbai, with thunder, lightning and rains heralding the start of what seems to be a good monsoon for 2011.

As I ponder about how the next 15 editions of Sujavna could become better in terms of provoking its readers to comment and react otherwise, as well as in terms of increasing its spread, I am also intrigued about the array of themes so far commented on. Has there been a narrow focus in terms of themes or in terms of geographies? Has there been an adequate follow up in terms of researching further and adding more information and views on themes that have been highlighted in previous posts? Are the posts sufficiently thought-provoking and reasonably candid?

I intend to provide a quick analysis of Sujavna, so far, in my next Post, and would like to hear from you on what you think about my blogs. To help you, I recap, below, 22 suggestions that featured in the last 14 posts (in reverse chronological order). A few readers have additionally suggested 3 themes (water conservation, pollution prevention and carbon footprint calculations).

1.       Can we not redesign our cities “lifescapes” to follow natural weather conditions? (29^th May)

2.       How about getting all the main news readers of various Indian TV channels into a room once week, and ask them to read the breaking news that they had reported during the week, but using a different context and making a parody of the situation!.(23^rd May)

3.       Should there not be a more-concerted India brand strategy for some of these potential sunrise commercial sectors? (23^rd May)

4.       How about a spa-retreat where guests are actively encouraged to play the roles of their alter-egos? (15^th May)

5.       How about a compulsory stint in a naturist camp for all aspiring politicians, civil-rights activists and global business leaders? (15^th May)

6.       NUN (a New United Nations) (8^th May)

7.       Could the royal wedding have been used as a platform to drive home the message with visible demonstrations of how Innovation and Creativity has been helping a commoner as much as they have helped the Royals?(1^st May)

8.       to constitute (in their newly-appointed roles as the Duke and Duchesss of Cambridge) a Royal Chair of Healthcare Innovation in Cambridge University(1^st May)

9.       Perhaps each city should have a “Hug-a-friend” network of centres where depressed individuals could go any time of the day and find volunteers who are ready to give them a hug and say a positively-reinforcing message that ignites a spark in the persons to think positively about the issues that they confront. The network of centres could be sponsored by comfort-food companies as part of their own CSR initiatives! (not sure if this is a good idea, though). (24^th April)

10.   So what are the options for someone who wants to engage a good contractor for civil repairs and maintenance? Is there a case for incentivising this sector to adopt professional work cultures and customer-friendly work practices? (17^th April)

11.   Can Anna Hazare also go on a similar fast-unto-death to coerce each of the India’s top businessmen and traders, doctors and lawyers, Bollywood producers and artistes, cricket stars and sports administrators to agree to a similar vigilante body?(10^th April)

12.   How about using art, sports and culture to resolve inter-state, centre-state disputes (such as river-water sharing disputes) or event the Maoist problem in India!(3^rd April)

13.   Can we not make it mandatory for all local municipal authorities in Indian cities to create large fluorosecent boards with street maps at major road intersections and also have a call centre to help a visitor reach her/his destination using the best possible route? In the absence of a scientific and organised planning of city addresses, this may be a viable option.(27^th March)

14.   It is high time that well-renowned performers of Indian classical art forms seek to use their own performances to “convert” new followers by adding an educative element to their performances apart from the entertaining element.(27^th March)

15.   Can someone calculate the carbon footprints generated annually by all the events organised on the subject of climate change and can there be a penal charge on the organisers of such events that ensures they practice what they preach?(20^th March)

16.   If only we had a well-structured city-wide on-line system (say an e-trust)....we will have an efficient grass-root system of the employed giving back to those parts of society that support them through public services, even as they enjoy a well-deserved office-party. (20^th March)

17.   Event organisers such as Mumbai Marathon or Cyclathon as well as public bodies such as Municipal Corporations and law-enforcing organisations need to identify practice venues and routes and times and keep the general public informed about these too. The costs involved have to be borne by the sponsors and the participants.(13^th March)

18.   Can social networking sites and community radios become the vanguard of disaster management infrastructure in countries such as India?(13^th March)

19.   Urban Indians need to be less rude to their neighbours and fellow-citizens? What will make us be patient with the elderly, infirm, less-powerful and influential.....? Do we instil an award for these and get media to recognize and extol such behaviour?(6^th March)

20.   Would it not be a great idea for public utilities such as post offices, railway and bus terminal ticketing counters, tashildar offices, RTOs, chemists shops to hire unemployed youth and senior citizens at part-wages to man public counters at “closed-for-transaction” times (say lunchtimes, night hours), so that we have 24-hour public services and also partially-solve employment problems?(6^th March)

21.   Is there a case for a continuous round-the-year media coverage or investigative journalism seen (analysis, expert-interviews and sting operations) of how tax revenues are actually spent on key priority areas such as healthcare, education, defence and infrastructure? (6^th March)

22.   Has anyone really worked out the CBA of a complex and convoluted system of taxation and tax-administration in India (with its subsidies, discounts, exemptions and holidays,....) vis-a-vis a simple, standard and low-but uniform tax of say 15% on all income(corporate or individual, direct or indirect) exceeding (say) 20 times the minimum wages?(6^th March)

I hope that my analysis will help pave the way forward for even better blogs in the future. Till next Sunday, then.......