Who will stop the all powerful BCCI?

The English and Australian cricket boards dominated the world cricket scene for a long time. In the last two decades, things have changed; the roles have been reversed. The Asian-bloc has become extremely powerful and the situation is such that the ICC can make no significant decision without the blessings of the boards from the Asian countries. With its growing economy and hunger for cricket, India has become the leader of the Asian bloc and home of modern international cricket. With such power and success comes great responsibility. However, the BCCI has not played the role of a responsible leader.

Indian cricket seems to have subconsciously inherited some attributes from its cricket board. In yesteryears, Indian cricketers were renowned for their impeccable on-field behavior. They did not shout, they did not sledge, they did not abuse. Wristy-shots, superb timing and magical spin-bowling did all the talking. In contrast, today's cricketers are not afraid to show aggression and do not shy away from a fight. On one or two occasions, they have been guilty of despicable on-field behavior(Harbhajan and Gambhir are recent examples). But this article is not about the behavior of Indian cricketers; it is about the superciliatory behavior of their caretaker - the Board of Cricket Control in India, in recent times. Fresh in mind are the BCCI's reactions to some admittedly poor umpiring decisions in recent clashes between the Indian and Australian teams and its (lack of) respect and commitment towards the Future Tour Program and cricketing schedules of other countries. However, the most damning reflection of the BCCI's attitude and power has been its successful and monopolistic oppression of the Indian Cricket League. [Latest Update :- Lalit Modi's incredibly insensitive comments about Being Sidelined after the Mumbai attacks(http://usa.cricinfo.com/indveng/content/current/story/380088.html) is probably another close contender to the top spot - but in my defense, this article was written before that]

Despite all the bullying and big-brother attitude from the BCCI, the fact that ICL has been able to get on its feet and run two tournaments within two years is astounding. It is a testament to the demand for Twenty-Twenty Cricket in India and the organizational/marketing skills of the ICL management. It amazes me that such little attention is given to ICL by mainstream media(in India and abroad). Did you know that ICL had its own website - http://www.indiancricketleague.in. I did not!

Why is no one standing up to BCCI's arrogance? Why is no one questioning its abuse of power? Other cricket boards and the International Cricket Council seem to be quite content as long as they get a share of the pie. I won't complain about the ICC - they are weak and pointless. I think the blame lies with us - the Indian cricketers, the Indian media and the Indian cricket fans . Are we turning a blind eye, because we think of this as some sort of redemption? Or do we think it is not patriotic to question our own board's policies?


First and foremost, I am disappointed with senior Indian cricketers. I am surprised that senior statesmen like Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly, Kumble and Laxman are not questioning the board on their ICL policy. Aren't some ICL cricketers their ex-team mates? And surely, they do not want prodigious young talent from the ICL to be prevented from reaching the higher levels of international cricket? With decades of experience and massive fan-follwing, why are they being silent? What about retired cricketers like Shastri, Gavaskar and Manjrekar who have direct access to media? Do they not care about young Indian cricketers? Are they indifferent because so many kids play cricket in India, and the fact that a few are playing in a rebel league doesn't matter?

Second, the Indian media is probably the biggest culprit given its influence and reach. The difference in media coverage between the IPL and the ICL says it all. IPL news occupies entire pages on national newspapers, while ICL is lucky to get a small column. Isn't there a big moral and legal issue here? How was BCCI able to prevent ICL cricketeres from entering cricket grounds? How did the BCCI prevent ICL cricketers(even those from other countries) from playing international cricket or even other Twenty Twenty leagues? In today's world, cricket is a profession and all cricketers including ICL cricketers are professionals. What gives BCCI the ability to prevent other organizations and entities from seeking the services of these cricketers? The same media that celebrates our democracy, our secularism and all those wonderful ideals just watches with folded hands, when the biggest sport in the country is being monopolized using unfair practices. It has failed in its duty by not questioning the autocratic self-serving practices of the BCCI. The Indian media is probably the only thing that can affect the BCCI, but sadly it chooses to focus on national selection issues, team-squabbles, bollywood escapades of cricketers and other similar 'interesting' news.

Third, as Indian cricket fans, we are also culpable. We have failed to question our board's actions and policies. In my humble opinion, the average Indian fan tends to take cricket too personally. We need to be open-minded and objective when it comes to critical issues. We can still be passionate fans, but without being rabid nationalists. We have not been vocal in criticizing the BCCI.

I am not trying to defend Twenty Twenty or dethrone test-cricket. I am just questioning the monopolistic behavior of the Indian cricket board. I am questioning the inaction from senior Indian cricketers, the media and Indian cricket fans. A wise man once said, 'Power corrupts and Absolute Power corrupts Absolutely'. It seems to be true at least as far as cricket goes.

Counter-terrorism and security measures anyone?

I am just reading about the mumbai attacks and I am really sad. Almost hundred people dead and many injured.. I cannot believe that this is happening. May be I am missing my facts here...
How easy is it to target a city, especially the financial capital of India? Mumbai, which has borne the brunt of many terrorist attacks now, will as usual be quick to get back on its feet.

Are we learning from past attacks? Are we doing everything we can to prevent such attacks? Are we equipping our police departments to handle such attacks in the future?

Our government has to learn from the West and start taking more proactive measures. It is not enough to beef up security after the blast. Most of us forget about the blasts within a few weeks. I pause for a moment and think about that. Terror attacks have become so common place in our country, that we accept it and move on very quickly. That is a sad indictment of the state of affairs in our country.

ted.com for inspiration

TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an initiative with a goal of 'Sharing ideas that are worth spreading'. Their website (www.ted.com) has a growing collection of inspiring lectures/talks/performances from pioneers in various fields. Check it out if you haven't already and be inspired!

Some of my favorite talks so far:-
1) vijayanur ramachandran's talk about the significance of the angular gyrus in brain

2) rodney brooks on how robots will invade our lives

3) graham hawkes on deep sea navigation

Law and (No) Order

There is a certain expectation in the society when we talk about certain professions.
A doctor, or an engineer or a lawyer commands the highest respect in the Indian society, mostly in that order. The Indian community puts the well educated in a very high pedestal, probably because much of the country's junta still struggles to put their children through primary education. With such high respect needless to say there goes an expected behavior. We expect these people to be professional, ethical, honest. Well we just expect them to be decent human beings. That is why if you ever hear a scam involving these people, we all go like " Gosh, he was a doctor, can you believe this?"

If you looked at the riot or the mayhem in Chennai Law college, you would change your definition of professional education. It was downright shocking to see students, probably 20 year old indulging in such maniacal acts. 10-20 people beating a single guy to pulp is not something you assosiate with a college, let alone Law college. The irony screams out aloud hoping for some attention.

The reason behind the whole scene would shock you even more. Why all the inhumane acts. "Oh, one section forgot to include Ambedkar's name in a poster". Did anyone go "holy cow, how can anyone do that?". I certainly did not. In a poster! Seriously! And hence the students go around like mad guys beating helpless guys. I find it difficult to breathe for a second when I hear this. So the basis of all this dastardly acts is caste. I am sorry if i dont understand, but did you guys who got involved in this act not attend school when they taught you about secularism. Lawyers like doctors and engineers are probably the highest educated strata of the India society. Is this how an educated class behaves. If so, what purpose is that education to these fellas. A rag picker who respects others is better don't you think so.

Everyone in India who saw that video knows that this was just not a student agitation. It obviously had some political backing to it. What else would explain the police standing there like dolls adorning the living room of a house refusing to take any action. They had people going up to them begging them to take some action, but our very own guardians of law and order stood there, happy to be the onlookers, obviously on order to not do anything. It was a mockery, a travesty of our law and order system.

What next? There will be murder on the streets and maybe the police will join too!

Education with a difference !

In all our cynicism for the government in India we sometimes fail to see a few good schemes that have made a difference to the lives of people . Very often than not , we are victims of the media and we see the country only through its lens . I am no exception to that rule ! Fortunately , I take a class on Indian Economic Policy with two eminent professors here at NUS who happen to know this other side of India , inside out . On of their classes on the Indian Education System , I was told about the Education Guarantee Scheme ( EGS ) in the state of Madhya Pradesh in India.

The EGS is special in that the impetus for education does not come for the government anymore. Instead , it comes from the people. This is what my professor calls self-selection , a new concept that has caught on with many schemes now including the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

So what is self-selection ? It simply means that the government will not conduct surveys to guage the demand for a service anymore. Instead the people will come to the government demanding the service and showing reason for why the demand is justified. The case of the EGS should demonstrate it better .

Under the EGS , the community that has decided that it needs the school will first bring together the students who need education , identify a local resident who can become a gurji/teacher , provide a startup space for the school . They will then approach the Panchayat who will appoint the teacher and refer the case to the government . The government will now participate in the process by providing training for the teacher , paying his salary , providing teaching an learning material for the students and monitor quality peridoically .

For those of you who think that this model will never work , here are some statistics for you cause I know your love for numbers and proof . This is from 2002 Planning Commission report .
There was a 20.2% increase in literacy from 44.2% in 1991 to 64.4% in 2001 and the scheme was implemented only in 1998 ! This is undoubtedly a success story .

To those of you wishing to contribute to this cause

http://www.fundaschool.org/jsa.html

Tamilnadu and Cinema !

Theories on political mobilization talk of how political actors garner support for themselves by playing on the identities of the people . Some , use racial identities . Others use language , religion , geography and many more ! I want to add one more to their exhaustive list . The identities that cinema stars create for themselves in the minds of the people. Tamilnadu is one classic example of how this has been done repeatedly and with stupendous success. There have been other cases all over India ( N.T.Ramarao , Rajkumar , Shathrughan Sinha , Govinda) and even elsewhere in the world . Why , even the United States was not spared ( Remember President Reagan ?? ) But , in Tamilnadu , the pattern seems to be repeating itself again and again ! First it was M.Karunanidhi , then M.G.Ramachandran ( MGR ) followed by J.Jayalaltiha , then Vijakanth and now the Superstar , Rajinikanth , for the nth time , is considering jumping into the political fray !

Cinema stars in Tamilnadu have had the uncanny ability to reach out to the common man. In times , where he has lost all hope in the system , they have been able to create a virtual universe where they question the evils of the Indian system such as corruption , dishonesty , unscrupulousness of the politicians etc on his behalf . They have been able to do on screen what the "aam aadmi" has always wanted to do . Bash the baddies and create utopia where the whole world lives in harmony and happiness. In doing this , they create so much goodwill in the minds of the audience that it is tempting to assume that the stars really mean what they say on screen.
Audience, here , is not an illiterate audience that lacks the ability to discern between the good and the bad . But , an educated urban audience that seems to consciously make this choice . This makes it even more puzzling ! Just google Rajnikanth and you will be surprised to find the innumerable number of blogs that celebrate the arrival of the Superstar into politics. At one point , it is these individuals who complain about the lack of people with the right capacities in positions of importance within the state and at the other we have the same people heralding Rajni as the saviour of Tamilnadu. What they fail to realize is that the system has not changed , only the actors have changed.

Does Rajnikanth really have the political acumen that the complicated nature of Tamilnadu politics demands ? Does he really have the credentials that could support his claim for the highest office in the state ? Doe he have the experience to shoulder the immense responsibility that the position demands ? How much ever hard I try , the answer to these questions are all on the negative. But the people of Tamilnadu , in their quest for change , for the emergence of the choice between Jaya and Karunanidhi have now zeroed in on this man who has no record of any political experience and whose whims and fancies are far more unstable than that of a pampered adolescent .

My sincere to advice to Mr.Rajnikanth is to please stay away from politics . We have enough problems to think of and we don't need him adding to our woes. If he really wants to enter the political arena let him first demonstrate his competence , through other means , rather than throwing out empty promises ! Let him create institutions that show they are capable of bringing the much desired change to the administrative change that the Tamilnadu system needs. If he succeeds , we would all be more than happy to see him in office !

Advani to go to the Barrack way !

I got a chance to look at Advaniji's website , a cool one that too !

http://www.lkadvani.in/eng/

I couldn't help notice that a lot of lessons seem to have been drawn from the Obama campaign .

Some similarities that I noticed

• Campaign Donations
• T-shirts Vs Advani's book
• Links to videos on Youtube
• Blog Vs. Forum in the Advani website.

Interestingly while the Obama website is all "blue" , the Advani website consciously avoids the "Saffron" colour . Perhaps , an indication that the BJP is trying to shed its Hindutva image knowing pretty well that the Congress is going to heavily play the secular card in the coming elections . The ISSUES category in the website has a whole section on Cultural Nationalism where a lot of attention has been paid towards projecting the secular image . Really interesting !

But sadly they seem to be openly supporting the Telangana issue , obviously , an aim at getting a huge chunk of those votes . I do not have much background on the Telangana issue yet . I need to read up on it a bit more . But , personally , the feeling that I have is that there is no need for separation into another state . Telangana , is not exactly what you would call resource-rich . It is one of the driest regions of Andhra Pradesh . So the rationale originally expressed in the Chhatisgarh , Jharkand , Uttaranchal cases does not hold good here . Andhra is not exactly as big as Bihar , UP or MP either . Why does Telangana have to secede away from Andhra then ? I need to perhaps read a bit more about it and put up a post one of these days .

Coming back to the website , the rest seems to be the usual rhetoric ! These elections are going to be a real political treat to watch . Advani has made the first step . Sonia and Prime Ministerji , are you watching ?

Right to Education soon a reality in India

Here is something that I missed to take a look at in the first week of November . The Union Cabinet has cleared the Right to Education Bill in India . The Bill has been referred to the Election Commission considering a number of states are going to assembly polls in the coming days and the introduction of the Bill should not be viewed as creation of a voter bias.

The Right to Education Bill is the enabling legislation to notify the 86th constitutional amendment that gives every child between the age of six and 14 the right to free and compulsory education

Some key features of the Bill

• Free and compulsory education for all children between ages 6 and 14.
• 25% Reservation for children from disadvantaged section in primary unaided schools meaning that the private schools should provide free education to atleast 25% of its available stength especially to those from the disadvantaged sections of the society
• Reimbursement of government to any such expenditure incurred by the schools.
• Prohibition of punishment and detention of students
• Prohibition of screening procedures such as interviews and levy of capitation fees.

It is still unclear if the State has the resources to ensure the succesful implementation of the Bill . But if the Bill is enacted into a law by the parliament it would definitely be a landmark achievement !

A link to the actual text of the act @

http://education.nic.in/elementary/RighttoEducationBill2005.pdf

The story in the Indian Express

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Union-Cabinet-clears-Right-to-Education-Bill/380176/

Sri Lanka rejects LTTE Ceasefire offer

The Sri Lankan Government has rejected a truce offer from the Tigers accusing that they are using the ceasefire as a pretext to re-arm . It is making the "laying down of arms" a prerequisite for considering a ceasefire !

http://uk.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUKCOL10511._CH_.2420

Ajay Shah' Blog

Ajay Shah a leading economist from India has been blogging for quite sometime now on the financial crisis . For those interested , it is worth following :

http://ajayshahblog.blogspot.com/