BEST WAY TO RECOVER FROM THE PRESENT ECONOMIC CRISIS

 BEST WAY TO RECOVER FROM THE PRESENT ECONOMIC CRISIS

In the Manmohan school of economics

Before MODI came to power,  a stent for angioplasy cost around 10 Lakhs. It was a time of free market.  Now it has been dropped drastically to around ten thousand,  due to government regularised prices. 
The cost of almost all life saving medicines are also on the same trajectory. 

The result was the drastic drop in the GDP index.  The growth in the domestic market has shown a negative trend. 

So let us together make a claim to the government to increase the cost of  these life saving medicines and equipment,  so that the GDP growth is sustained to the higher levels.  It will  also  save Indian economy from crisis. Let us take the advice of economist Manmohan Singh.

The best way is to leave the pricing to the market competition, by way of deregulation of pricing by government. 

That shall be hailed as bold step in the direction of economic reforms. You can purchase enough reporters and writers by paying 10% of the profit generated out of such increase in revenue to glorify it. 


People will believe that they are wise men and the economy is in great shape.

Every family in the evening will boil the GDP data and Sensex along with the other growth indexes and feed their hungry children.

Those are enough for the poor heart patients also.

Manmohan and his economics will declare that Indian economy is in a great shape. 

But unfortunately,  you and me are not existing in the 'India of his definition'..... The economy of 'his India' will certainly be in good shape...

Date: 06 /09/2019 Place: New Delhi

Adv.A.C. PHILIP Supreme Court of India, New Delhi (9769110823) pradeeparingada@gmail.com adv-a-c-philip.blogspot.in

INCREASE IN TRAFFIC FINES, A CRITICAL ANALYSIS

INCREASE IN TRAFFIC FINES, A CRITICAL ANALYSIS

....Adv.A.C.Philip

On comparing the traffic fines with the other responsible democracies in the world, one of my close friend, Shri.Venkat raised two valid questions.

1.       Are we on par with any of these countries to be comparing in the first place?

2.      Why not compare pothole ridden roads with these countries for a change?

So,  Dear Venkat,

Your questions are very valid and I do respect it. While pondering the issues I do have some areas of different opinion.

There is a wide range of criticism for higher rate of fines imposed upon the traffic rules violations. Many people correlate it with the potholes in the roads. But I do not have a reason to correlate both. The increase in fine is not meant for the construction or maintenance of the roads. A welfare state cannot wish that, let there be more traffic violations, so that, we can find enough resource for constructing roads. Government needs to find other resources, including taxes for that purpose. A responsible government shall be happy, if no violations happen and the revenue addition in that respect is zero (at least hypothetically). Hence the increase in traffic fines is not linked to the poor conditions of road, but with the accidents and losses of lives happening due to such violations.

As you know, record levels of National Highways are built up during the last five years, which has been acknowledged by the Parliament, cutting across the party lines. That certainly increases the opportunity for fast moving vehicles; as most of those roads have international standards. (Please do not come to me with the pothole of a local road and start arguing that the roads are like lunar walk. India is a vast country and Union Government does not construct each every local road!)

So, along with the responsible governance, what we need is equally responsible citizens, who abide law and value the life and limbs of others. I do agree that many of my friends love to take two pegs in the evening and go for a joy ride, back home. But how much risk that poses to an ordinary citizen, who goes home after responsible work to tender their families?  Can you imagine the plight of a family of aged parents and small children, solely dependent upon a young man or a lady for their survival receiving a telephone call close to midnight that their loved one has been killed by a drunken driver or a traffic violator? There are many who are perennially paralysed or immobilised. Who will take care of them?  The responsible Government shall sympathise with the violator or with the victim? Can you say that, just because the political formation which is in power is a party to whom you have inherent objections, you sympathise with the traffic rule violators?  Or can we say that, let every inch of road in India including local pathways be of the international standards and then only we will sympathise with the victims of traffic violations?

 When the polity, media and lawmakers together with law enforcers are controlled by the persons who love to violate traffic rules for their personal benefits, including drunken driving, the entire system will sympathise with the law breakers, not with the victims. Each traffic rule violation poses a direct threat to the lives of innocent traffic abiding citizens. It's an attempt to murder of an unknown person.

 Hence, what a responsible Government need to do is to sympathise with the victim and act with an iron first towards violators, not vice versa. If your think in the reverse order, that is only perpetuating crime. Please remember, you can’t every day be on the shoes of a predator, but every moment you are also prone to be a victim of another person’s traffic violation.

Further, you raised a question, can we compare ourselves with the developed nations! Certainly can, what I feel. The value of lives of poor is equitant to the value of lives of rich. When the question of protecting lives comes, we cannot claim that, we are not as developed as the other countries to protect our innocent citizens.  In that context I feel, the fine for drunken driving is grossly inadequate. Al least that shall be equal to the average cost of a family’s survival.  Because every drunken driving places that much on risk. A person who can afford alcoholic drinks can afford a driver or auto/cab to go back home safely.  That will save himself, his family and that of many others apart from giving some additional opportunity for the auto/ cab drivers.

 Beyond that, many claimed that they do not have means to pay fines and hence fines shall be reduced. The claim is very strange! Why don’t they claim that, hence they will abide the rules? Or, are they taking the traffic rule violation as their birth right? Where are we heading? To a law abiding community of civilization, or lawless community of hooligans? Even jungle has it's own law.  So, let us together abide law and save fines.

Two state governments, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan claimed that it will increase corruption and hence the law will not be implemented. I do salute them for such a bold statement. They admit that their governments are thoroughly corrupt to the bottom level. Further they agree that, they have no means and tools to control the corruption of their government from top to bottom.  Beyond that, they have shown boldness to sympathise with the predators, and seek the votes of the victims. When the elections are lost, they are emboldened to blame the EVMs.

Another question came up is, can we stop traffic violations by increasing fines?!  That is only a deterrence and not elimination.  We cannot stop rape of minors by giving death penalty. But the majority felt so, and that is the law. So every punitive law needs to be evaluated, standing on the shoes of victim.

 Compare the potholes with the road taxes and compare the traffic fines with the vale of lives of innocent citizens. Not vice versa.

Thank you Venket for giving me an opportunity to pen it down......

                       

Date: 06 /09/2019 Place: New Delhi

Adv.A.C. PHILIP Supreme Court of India, New Delhi (9769110823) pradeeparingada@gmail.com adv-a-c-philip.blogspot.in