96% women in Delhi say they feel unsafe

I was watching a discussion on a TV news channel earlier this evening about a recent study that has revealed that a whopping 96% of women in Delhi say they feel unsafe in the capital- whether it is in CP, Chandni Chowk or Rohini. What is particularly disturbing about the findings is that girls as young as 10 years are reported to be the most vulnerable.

Now, one had always heard from lady friends that eve-teasing was common in Delhi and the perpetrators were not too subtle about their techniques. But that was maybe 10-15 years ago. One would have thought that things would have improved (in terms of greater public awareness or willingness to help)- but obviously not.

But then, why pick only on our capital? I am sure young girls and women all across India face similar insecurities. Over the last couple of years, many incidents involving women tourists have been reported. The question is: what are we as a nation going to do about it?

“Depleted” Australia still scalp India

Irrespective of the outcome of the last ODI in Mumbai next week, the Australian cricket team has won the series.

What makes the win remarkable is that Australia were without many of their “big guns” – Michael Clarke, Nathan Bracken, Brad Haddin etc. A spate of injuries in the first 3 matches saw Tim Paine (Haddin’s replacement), Brett Lee, Moises Henriques and Peter Siddle too returning home to Australia, further depleting the visitors.

India, on the other hand, were without Zaheer (and of course, Sehwag and Gambhir were unfit for a couple of games). They were playing at home, in familiar conditions and in front of an unabashedly partisan crowd. But I am unable to fathom why our top-order batsmen consistently failed to perform. Sachin was brilliant in Hyderabad and single-handedly scored half of the runs needed. But the remaining 10 players were unable to score the balance 50%- and we lost. In sport, there will always be winners and losers; ending up on the losing side is fine if the contest is well-matched. Admittedly, a  couple of games in the series were close, but clearly, our cricketing demi-gods have not delivered.

Indeed, cricket is a mind-game and the result proves how true this is. Perhaps lack of familiarity with some of the members of their “B team” did us in or maybe we can blame some of the many poor umpiring decisions. But how does one honestly respond to the question “if we lost to their B team, how would we fare against a full-strength Australia?”

Well played, Australia! The better team has indeed won.

“natak” in Karnataka

Recent events in Karnataka highlight the nexus between politics and money- as if we needed a reminder! Not that this is unique to Karnataka. Nor am I an apologist for the beleaguered CM, B S Yeddyurappa. However, I feel annoyed that a few politicians are able to hold the entire state to ransom- pretty much for their personal gain.

If the Reddy brothers are indeed so worried about governance and development, (even if the interest is limited to the Bellary and the erstwhile “Hyderabad Karnatak” area), they should have focused on flood relief work. The timing of the revolt is also suspect, as it comes soon after a toll was imposed on trucks carrying iron ore (the proceeds were to be used for flood relief and rehabilitation work, but that’s another story). And of course, with YSR’s untimely demise in neighbouring AP, the Congress government there has started tightening the screws on the Reddys’ alleged illegal mining activities in that state. (It has been widely reported in the media that the Bellary brothers were close to YSR and that let them get away with a lot of things although they were in opposite political camps).

Maybe Mr Yeddyurappa should seriously consider resigning and letting the Governor figure out whether to invite the Congress or JD or simply recommend President’s rule in the state. If the BJP (or indeed, any other party) cannot keep its rank and file above petty politics, then in my view, that party does not deserve to be in power. Period. It would be interesting to see how many of the “rebel MLAs” who are allegedly holed up in a resort in Hyderabad would be keen to face the people so soon after what has happened (sadly, public memory is short so 12 months later, all will have been forgotten).

Calling mid-term polls would not be in the interest of the state/country, as it would impose a huge drain on our exchequer. But I am rapidly veering to the view that spending a few hundred millions on elections (and hoping the people vote sensibly) may be better than cause protracted loss to the state’s economy- and of course, the nation’s as well.

Premature recognition for President Obama?

The Nobel Prize committee has pleasantly surprised, shocked or simply outraged millions around the world with its decision to award the 2009 Nobel Peace prize to President Obama.

As far as I am concerned- and to be honest, my concerns matter little to anyone other than myself- the wise men would have done well to wait for a few years to see the tangible outcomes of various proposals that President Obama has beem making over the past 9 months or so.  Otherwise, they make themselves vulnerable to the accusation that this year’s Nobel Prize for Peace has gone to someone who has so far only announced good intentions. Extending the same logic, I (or indeed, millions of other  earthlings) might qualify for next year’s Nobel Prize by just stating that “I plan to discover a process whereby pollutants in the air are converted into fuel, with pure water and clean air being the by-products”. Heck, I may have no clue yet how to do this- but I’d like to!

An ICC final without a team from the sub-continent

I haven’t bothered to check the stats re when this last happened, but at a gut level, it sure hits you that the Champions Trophy final in 2009 will not have any participation from the sub-continent (or South Africa or the West Indies). While India and Sri Lanka exited even before the semi-finals, an under-rated New Zealand got rid of Pakistan yesterday to make the finals an ANZ affair.

To say that West Indies cricket is messed up due to contract issues would be stating the obvious. And I honestly have no clue as to why the Proteas imploded yet again. But I think this year’s CT also raises the larger question of bench strength in each of these three countries. Mohamed Aamer, Umar Akmal and Kandambi apart, there has hardly been any spectacular talent coming out of India, Pakistan or Sri Lanka in the last 12 months or so. India’s “young brigade”, comprising Rohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Suresh Raina, Sreesanth, Irfan Pathan et al has all but disappeared- or failed to deliver the goods.

Or is it that there has been so much T-20, that the younger cricketers cannot adapt to even the ODI format- and are consequently not able to deliver what is required?

Air India’s “in-fight” entertainment

With the strike behind it, Air India is apparently trying extra hard to innovate and differentiate itself from competition. This time, they have come up with the idea of live, in-flight entertainment in the form of crew members physically assaulting each other. This apparently happened between the pilot, co-pilot, a male purser and a female stewardess on a flight to India from the Middle East. Wonder how many passengers will claim to have been “delighted” and choose to fly Air India again!

The Air India saga

Air India is bleeding- indeed, it has been for some years now. The recent strike by executive pilots has only added to the accumulated losses (more than Rs100 crores, by some estimates). I sympathize with the Executive Pilots for feeling bad about a cut in their variable pay. However, the concept of variable pay is not new. Indeed, the essence of variable pay structures is to allow companies the flexibility to cut expenses when times are bad, and hand out hefty bonuses/variable payouts when the good times return. Almost every other company in every industry has some for of variable pay. Several in the IT industry have not paid out the variable components of employee salaries for last year; indeed, some have actually reduced salaries- especially for senior executives- which is what these executive pilots are.

At a time like this, what is needed is for everyone at Air India to work together, improve productivity, reduce costs wherever possible, improve service so that passengers are attracted to the airline and load factors improve.  Only then will the airline remain viable. If the airline closes down, thousands of employees will lose their jobs, not just variable pay. Spare a thought for on-ground staff who are not as well-paid as pilots or cabin crew.

Given the general state of the aviation industry, buoyancy in revenues won’t happen in a hurry. And given Air India’s cost structure, if personnel costs are not managed urgently, there will be little leverage for achieving the level of cost savings required to become profitable.  The short-term option is to pump in equity- derived from taxpayers’ money- which may only delay the inevitable. By giving in to the striking pilots, the government has signaled that it is willing to risk the future of the airline.

Warped sense of priorities

I watched with amusement a news report that Karan Johar had to apologize because “Mumbai” is referred to as “Bombay” in his recently-released movie, “Wake up, Sid”. I say I was amused because the report suggested that some politicians were affronted by this “lapse”. Frankly, hundreds of thousands of people all over the world (including in India) continue to refer to “Mumbai” as “Bombay”. Is it not more important for politicians, people in government and ordinary citizens to worry about the city’s infrastructure, pollution, security, law and order… well, you get the drift I hope.

How referring to a city by a name that, I daresay, is better known than its official name, denigrates the city or the people of that city or state, is beyond me. Can someone enlighten me please?

India in danger of exiting Champions Trophy 2009

Pakistan has all but qualified for the semi finals, and unless we beat Australia and the West Indies, we’re pretty much out of the ongoing Champions Trophy tournament.

Even before the team left Indian shores, we knew it would not be easy, given that our bowling attack was depleted by Zak’s absence and our batting by Sehwag’s and Yuvraj’s absence. And yet, somehow, the manner in which we lost yesterday leaves a feeling of annoyance, or of betrayal. Barring Ishant (who had not been very consistent over the last 9 months), none of our bowlers made any impression. On a sub-continent type track that assisted the slower bowlers, Bhajji conceded over 70 runs in his spell of 10 overs- a dubious first for him. And although he is only a part-time bowler, Yuvraj has been so valuable recently that his bowling was missed.

We will find out tomorrow how we fare against the Australians, who, it must be said, have not been quite the disciplined, ruthless team that they have been for ages (never mind the 6-1 win over England). And speaking of England, they haven’t done too badly in the tournament so far, have they? A win over Sri Lanka and a solid performance with the bat at Centurion earlier today may well see them get the better of the Proteas as well… now, wouldn’t that be a surprise?

India-Pakistan relations: a stuck gramophone record

India continues to demand that Pakistan stop adding and abetting terror before talks resume. For its part, Pakistan continues to assert that the evidence provided by India linking specific individuals from Pakistan to the 26/11 attacks is inadequate. It also constantly reiterates the need to seek a resolution to “all outstanding issues”- a not so oblique reference to Kashmir.

It now comes to light that “back-channel diplomacy” came close to achieving significant breakthroughs during Gen. Musharraf’s tenure as President on Sir Creek and also, Siachen. But frankly, it suits interests in both countries to keep the problem simmering, as it affords politicians on both sides the opportunity to divert attention from domestic problems.

Kirsten’s performance mantra: sex before a match

Whether or not a roll in the hay the night before a match will contribute to the players’ performance is a moot point. But what the disclosure of Gary Kirsten’s dossier has done is to give the media (and opposition teams) lots of masala. Imagine an opposition fielder asking a batsman if he had a good time last night- perhaps a lot more crudely. And it would not even be called sledging! And if someone doesn’t perform well (in a strictly cricketing sense, I hasten to add), well, the mind boggles at the possible jibes that will be hurled at him.

Maybe testosterone levels will go up after a night of good sex and that will drive aggression and performance on the field. But surely, this advice could have been given verbally on a one-on-one basis or at least, not documented and disseminated, as it supposedly was.

Who knows- maybe a bowler being “no-balled” will come to mean something very different in the days ahead. Just as a “half-cock” shot might show up a batsman in bad light!

Wake up call or portent of what’s coming?

Yesterday’s inexplicable capitulation to New Zealand in the only warm-up game India has in the Champions Trophy is surely cause for worry. As expected, our bowling attack was not very incisive, and we allowed the Kiwis to post a massive score of 300 runs on the board. Dravid and Karthik started sedately, but soon raised the tempo and we were going along at a brisk run rate of almost 7 runs an over. Once both of them got out, it was pretty heavy weather. Wickets kept falling with metronomic regularity, and but for Abhishek Nayar and Amit Mishra essaying a fine rearguard action, India may not even have scored 150 runs. Even before they left for SA, our bowling and fielding were areas of concern; now, even batting seems to have become one.

The China factor

In a world that is today largely unipolar, China is clearly looking to displace the US as the world’s superpower in another 15-20 years. India’s growing economic prowess, and its consequent impact on India’s military strength and political clout globally is therefore definitely a worry for our northern neighbor, as it means there is competition for the top slot.

The government has assiduously sought to downplay media reports on reported “incursions” by the PLA into Arunachal Pradesh, even as the Army Chief has sought to reassure the nation that India is well prepared and that a 1962-like situation will not recur. All that is well and good, but India needs to figure out a more permanent solution. A military conflict is not the answer, but political dialogue has not got us very far either. So I suppose the only solution is to make our economy so strong and resilient, and our development processes equitable and all-pervasive, so that our people are not tempted to succumb to any foreign lures.

Good luck, India!

The Indian cricket team is on its way to South Africa for the Champions Trophy, which sees the top 8 cricketing teams compete for the trophy.  India has Pakistan, Australia and the West Indies in its group, so getting to be one of the top 2 teams is not easy. Pakistan has a solid bowling attack- exactly what India seems to lack at the moment. And the Australians will have their tails high after creaming England 7-0 (technically, it’s still 6-0 at the time of writing and it may end up as 6-1, to be fair to England). And with the ICC leaving the door open for the Windies to field its top team if the issues between the Board and the Players are resolved in the next few days, they can’t be discounted fully either.

But what of India? The win in Colombo last week would have helped them get their confidence back. But the Wanderers is not the Premadasa. Indeed, at the start of the South African cricket season (remember it’s the southern hemisphere and summer is about to set in), pitches there will favor seam and fast bowling. And India is without Zaheer Khan. But that is exactly what champions are made of- when the chips are down and the world has all but written them off, true champs come right back- and knock the opponents’ socks off. So good luck, India!

Should “austerity” be such a big deal?

For the last few days, Indian media has been working overtime to carry stories about which MP or political leader traveled economy class, who went by train etc. Well, I have news for our mediapersons. To be brutally honest, as an “aam aadmi”, I don’t give a damn about our political leaders’ preferred (or forced) modes of transport. There are other issues of far greater importance that I think the media should focus on!