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It has been a pleasure writing here...with a lot of new friends and learnings...like being in school. Now JoH is moving into college and his writings will be http://www.joyofhaving.blogspot.com/ you can continue to be in touch with him there...wish you all the best

Budget, JoH and Financial Inclusion…

“The popular perception is, “Microfinance” is all about livelihood generation for the poor, whereas “Financial Inclusion” is about the very basic fundamental need to connect a poor person to the financial institution. So livelihood generation is actually a step further…”

Post budget announcements, people like industrialists were calculating the impact of minor tax percentage shifts and how it will impact them in making more money, salaried class calculating how much exemption they have got and of course the journalists, who more often do not have money but it is their job to keep a tab on else’s money. It is an irony that they have to write about millions…and how the country’s economy is doing et al…is it not? Hahaha.

JoH was expecting some fiscal support for people in the middle class who have lost their jobs or whose salaries have been reduced on the pretext of global meltdown…thus facing the music of urban unemployment with rising EMIs…as the finance minister of this country exhibits ever willingness to bail out the corporates in trouble…but alas…

However, what was of interest to JoH was “Financial inclusion”, the new buzzword. This purely means that through budget GoI has proposed to reach out to the poorest of poor even in remote rural areas with financial assistance. This will be done with micro-financial opportunities like micro-credit or small loans, micro-savings, micro-insurance policies and all other micro-financial products that can be made available. Micro-credit is the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. It has proven to be an effective and popular measure in our neighboring Bangladesh. India’s learning is from Dr Yunus, the Noble Laureate from Bangladesh, who pioneered this concept of micro-finance and has established the efficacy of this.

While the entire media is focused on issues like fiscal deficit, stock market impact, reduction of excise duty on certain products, how LCD and luxury cars have become cheaper etc…typical things involving their readers and viewers, government is silently working towards making financial inclusion a reality. For this it has increased budget allocation for NREGS and Integrated Child Development Program as part of rural development plans. It is bound to take time to reach recognizable proportion considering the complex logistical labyrinth. What is of credence to this government however is the fact that through financial inclusion, it is trying to reach out to the rural poor in the right earnest. Micro-finance will be the real clincher.

The challenge however remains in implementation of such ambitious mega projects. How to reach out to people in the remotest areas by involving network of banks, gram panchayat offices, Common Service Centres (CSCs), e-Choupals and others. Another challenge is participation of state governments, without whom these projects will fail. In the first phase state governments of UP, Bengal, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh besides others attempted to derail this initiative. While such attempts may delay the implementation, these should not be a cause of worry to GoI as the recent people’s verdicts in these states have shown.

A very good indicator of government initiative is the large number of new opportunities for employment advertised by banks. In fact banks will play a crucial role in micro-financing…

Amitabh is a legendry actor because he does not act

Funny things happen…In the recent past, during a film award function, Rekha in her everlasting glory was seen sequentially hugging and pecking…Shah Rukh, Abhishek Bachchan, then his wife Aishwarya Bachchan…and then…the man next stood up and just walked away. He did not want to be embarrassed by Rekha’s teaser. He was none other than Amitabh Bachchan. Like many TV viewers, JoH also reacted with “Oh Sh..*%&#”. It instantly brought back images of their chemistry (JoH is only referring to on-screen) which till date remains unmatched…

Talking of Amitabh, JoH often hears comparisons between this living legend and Shah Rukh Khan. In the media, he sees comparative descriptions like … Sahenshah for Amitabh and King Khan for Shah Rukh. While much debate and media space has been wasted on this, there are still non-comparable differences between the two. First, Shah Rukh began when Amitabh had virtually taken an off. Second, their appeals are different; while Shah Rukh’s appeal primarily excites young girls and young ladies, Amitabh at his peak swooped everybody off their feet and of course difference lies in their respective personalities.

Shah Rukh came to prominence with a TV serial and subsequently got his break in movies. His onscreen acting impressions begin with “K..k..k..Kiran” and goes on to what seemed like desperate attempts of portraying a “Devdas or a Don.” When he appears on TV screens during a paid appearance or during IPL season…JoH often wonders “Oh this is the guy who was trying to act a particular character on-screen?” With all due regards and respects to Shah Rukh’s sincere efforts and his commercial success, one can clearly say, when he is trying to act and when he is his normal self. To many this is the way for an actor…

On the other hand, watching Amitabh on TV during IIFA or his interactions with journalists, JoH can’t differentiate between Amitabh, the actor and Amitabh, the natural person. That is the greatness of a living legend…he moulds naturally into the onscreen character he portrays. This is because on-screen Amitabh does not act. He only behaves his natural self in the character that he portrays on-screen. JoH remembers one interview of Amitabh in which he had said that “…for acting I have visualized my father’s death so many times, that in real life I don’t know how I will react when he actually dies…” A candid confession of a great actor…

Rekha-Amitabh’s on-screen pair has become legendary because the two never seemed to act with each other. They only looked their natural self in whatever character they portrayed together on-screen…especially that of lovers. Therefore, imaginations continue…

Gays and Lesbians; Intentional aberration of The Creator

Our very own Baba Ramdev is sucked in the gay controversy...hahahaha...he is not alone. For company he has all the religious heads with him. Only that Babaji has dared the judges to have homosexual sex...hahahaha.

It is sad the way people form opinions and make judgmental comments on issues clearly not understood by them. JoH is tempted to ask all these people …..”Have you seen physically and mentally challenged human beings? Can you stop the creation of “not so fortunate people”? Do you realize that sexual preference is a natural trait? Do you realize that gays and lesbians are born out of parents who are normal people like us?

Gays and lesbians are people with rare mental challenges, who are otherwise normal in all aspects. The only part which makes them abnormal by the larger society is the part of brain which determines sexual orientation or preference. While sex is a subject of natural inheritance, such acts of deformity can only be attributed to mental inadequacy. This is in line with God’s creation of diverse forms of physically and mentally challenged people. Besides this, these people are as normal as we are and their successes in various professional pursuits, only proves their capability.

JoH feels, it is an intentional aberration in God’s creation to make us feel more valuable by creating us “more normal.” The Creator makes human beings realize the importance of being born normal. This realization should only enhance the sense of responsibility, and humility towards fellow human beings and an increased sense of gratitude towards The Creator.

Death defines “Me” and “Mine”

Today morning JoH woke up with this eerie feeling of “loneliness.” After waking up from sleep he was strolling on the roof of his father’s house, enjoying the freshness of morning air and the genteel breeze, thinking about his own life and its relevance with the surroundings. After sometime, he saw the Sun coming up from the eastern horizon. It was bright and the weather was clear, thus increasing the fury of its rays. This is when JoH felt very humble amidst his surroundings.

A question crossed his mind. How long can he enjoy the surrounding? This led to more questions…does he have an answer to this “how long?” What is his relevance in this social existence? Can he call his own, the people around him including those, whom he refer to as friends, relatives, colleagues or even supposed enemies? He started questioning everything and everyone that surrounds him, breathes with him, plays with him; share their joys and sorrows with him. JoH realized that some of them will go away from him or will be taken away from him, while he himself will be taken away someday from all of them through his own death.

When we work to maintain our daily existence, we are only caught up in the vicious fabric of social creations, unmindful and blissfully unaware of the natural reality. Can we then define ourselves? Well probably in relative terms, because our social existence is only relative and never in absolute terms.

What started as a refreshing day, gradually started becoming serious and gloomy, despite the cool morning breeze and bright sunshine. With his thoughts furthering on the subject, he actually started laying his hands on the things surrounding him to feel them, which otherwise he takes for granted. In the meantime, his mother came up on the roof with the morning tea. JoH looked at her and she appeared altogether a new person. She was so attractive, beautiful and full of life. But the lady whom JoH was watching is frail, with white hair and fatigued. This is when JoH felt a chilling shiver down his spine and he sat down.

Everything around him started becoming more meaningful as he began relating himself to them. He realized the creator will take away his mother from him, and also his father who is probably reading the morning newspaper downstairs. He realized that someday he will lose the senses to appreciate the surrounding beauty of the morning and finally all these will be taken away from him through his death. JoH does not know whether he will be taken away before his loved ones or his loved ones will be taken away before him. How does it matter, because he is bound to lose everything and everyone that he claims to be his?

Then what is the significance of me and what is this claim of mine, wonders JoH? He realized that his physical body and his nature or “swabhav” that we call, are the only two things that he can call his own. These are the only two things that will stay with his human existence from birth till death. Also he can claim half of his child to be his own. The half claim is because, while The Creator has created the child as his/her own, he has not guaranteed existence through his complete life time. The Creator has only granted these two and half things to the fortunate few to claim as his/her own. There are the less fortunate ones who are not even blessed to claim his or her child as their own.

Meanwhile, the rays from the Sun were probably getting hotter but he did not feel. Much later JoH realized that he was drenched in sweat…was it the heat of sunrays or was it the chill down his spine? He slowly got up and attempted to walk down…and began writing this…you are reading…

Learning from Punjab government

Punjab government’s recent directive to ban the use of ACs in offices needs to be lauded. Though it was done to cope with shortage in electricity supply, yet such bans have to be imposed for our own good. This decision was seconded by the Haryana government. Likewise, all state governments and the central government have to follow suit.

Not only to reduce consumption of electricity, ACs have become a menace to the surrounding climate. For the comfort of the rich, no government should allow use of devices which are harmful to nature and absorbs high electricity. To make things worse, now we have ACs running in cars as well, which provides comfort inside and are cause of discomfort to people outside. The amount of heat generated by these AC units is the biggest contributor to the increasing heat in our surroundings. Therefore banning use of ACs is not just a solution to manage electricity but also a major deterrent for global warming.

It does not take rocket-science to understand that ACs are harmful because they consume high electricity and cause harm to our surroundings. This is high time that the rich stop talking about global warming and its effects sitting in AC comfort. These devices should be banned immediately to avoid any further damage.

Rahul Gandhi: The unlikely minister

Will Rahul become a cabinet minister? Will he become the PM? … During the last Lok Sabha elections there was a great deal of hoo-hullah in media anticipating Rahul Gandhi’s role in this government. Every political analyst, senior journalists and media of all hues anticipated and predicted that Rahul Gandhi will probably become a cabinet minister. Some also went ahead with the audacious prediction that Rahul Gandhi will take over as PM of the country mid-way during the current Lok Sabha session.

Well, JoH could not write then because a dedicated computer with net-connection was a luxury which he could not afford. He does not know how Rahul was reacting, if at all he watched these on TV. In this regard, JoH has a few questions in his mind; if someone can help him with answers to these…what is Rahul Gandhi’s position within The Congress (I)? Considering his present position, how does Rahul gain (Means in terms of self value-addition) by accepting a cabinet berth? Why would Rahul Gandhi destabilize Manmohan Singh as the PM of his own party? What is of priority to Rahul…a cabinet post, the PM post or strengthening The Congress (I)?

If he wants, when ever he wants and which ever way he wants, he can get things done through ministers of his own party…Therefore, JoH strongly feels that Rahul’s continuance in strengthening his party, developing and maintaining his grass-root contacts are more important for him in the present scenario, rather than binding himself with a cabinet post or even The PM’s post. Either of these won’t enhance his stature because either of them is only a subject of his choice. Positions like a cabinet post or even becoming a PM maybe unfulfilled dreams for lesser mortals like JoH, but for Rahul? Na…na. He has grown with the allocation of such portfolios.

Observing Rahul remotely (because one uses a remote to surf channels…hahaha) on TV, JoH feels that the personality of Rahul Gandhi is not to be tied down by mundane routine jobs and customary duties. He would rather prefer able candidates within Congress (I) to run the day-to-day activities of governance and himself play the role of strengthening his party and increase his grass-root contacts…because, his real identity, strength and future lies in this.

At the end of it, to all the readers…JoH is an insignificant existence in this world of luminaries…therefore, a humble request…please correct him if he is wrong…he is willing to learn.