WEEKEND LIGHTER: VISHWAROOPADARSHANAM
WEEKEND LIGHTER: VISHWAROOPADARSHANAM
(August 27/28, 2016, No. 35/2016)
Weekend Lighter is posted every Saturday @mgwarrier.blogspot.in
I
Opening Remarks
Rajan
II @ Mint Road
Days before appointment
of Urjit Patel as RBI’s 24th Governor, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
had told media persons that they should not be inquisitive about the process of
selection to the governor’s post and they would come to know when a decision
was taken. He was, indirectly making the point that we are yet to put in place
transparent processes and procedures for selecting candidates for top-most
positions and if most of the time we get the right persons for the right posts,
that could be attributed to the good luck of the country. While deciding on the
appointment of the present SBI Chairperson also something similar happened
about the ‘processes’ of selection.
Now that there is
certainty about a smooth ‘change of guard’ at Mint Road, which will also ensure
continuity of policy stances of the central bank, many are inventing new
directions in which RBI should move from September second week. I too will join
the debate. But, for now, let Rajan complete his present tenure.,
The elevation of the
senior-most Deputy Governor in whom the outgoing governor had so much of
confidence and with whom Team RBI loved to work, has several advantages which
need not be listed. The icing is, there is no need to wait for the next
Monetary Policy or the new governor’s first media interaction for the world to
know Urjit Patel’s mind. Except for the added serenity and grace the person
will derive when he enters the sanctum sanctorum of India’s central bank, Urjit
Patel may be Rajan II for all practical purposes as far as the stakeholders are
concerned.
M
G Warrier, Mumbai
II
Recent responses
1
Savers’ concerns*
This refers to
:Institutional credit to rural sector must get more attention: President” (The
Hindu Business Line, August 24). During the three years Dr Raghuram Rajan has
been heading RBI, India has seen several reforms initiatives in the financial
sector, both on institutional and infrastructure fronts and on policy and
perception relating to savings and credit management. Rajan era saw RBI
asserting that it would be the central bank’s objective to bring all
institutions doing banking business within its regulatory and supervisory
ambit. It is another matter that if Dr Rajan had explained his objective so
transparently, the conversion of some of the NBFCs as banks or setting up of
Postal bank would not have seen the light of the day.
The unfinished agenda
left for Urjit Patel in streamlining processes and procedures in banks and
institution building by the outgoing governor is huge. This is in addition to
certain areas like rural credit management and revamping the banking
channels(cooperatives and RRBs) in the rural sector which did not get adequate
attention since the beginning of economic reforms circa 1991.
While referring to the
trust savers repose in banks in regard to expectations about safety and a
reasonable return, in fact President was voicing the concerns of the majority
of millions of middle class savers who provide the resources for banking
business. To restore common man’s faith in the banking system, measures like
improving recovery of loans, reducing costs in management of funds by banks and
ensuring that the workforce remain secure and satisfied are all important.
M
G Warrier, Mumbai
*The Hindu
Business Line, August 25, 2016, Letters
2
Encashing need and greed
Quoted below is the concluding observation from RBI Governor Raghuram
Rajan’s opening statement to the post-policy press conference on August 9, 2016:
“If you get
an email from me or any future governor promising to transfer a large sum of
say ₹ 50 lakh to you if only you send a small transaction fee of ₹ 20,000 to a
specific bank account, delete the email. The reality is such emails are not
from me and the RBI does not give out money directly to ordinary citizens, even
though we print plenty of it. While the emails usually contain very convincing
reasons why you have been chosen to receive money, ask yourself why I cannot
simply deduct ₹ 20,000 and send you ₹ 49.8 lakh. If you think for a moment, you
should not fall prey to such emails.”
Recalling this
in the context of a report relating to an FIR filed by police after duped
kidney ‘donor’ tried to end her life published in a leading newspaper on August
25, 2016. The report, inter alia says:
“The Borivili
police on Wednesday registered an FIR in connection with the case of a 23-year
old woman being defrauded by a kidney agent, driving her to attempt suicide.
The agent had offered Rs 35 lakh to the woman if she agreed to donate her
kidney. The catch was that she would first have to pay up Rs 80,000 as fees for
registration and medical examination”
I think,
media should give wide publicity to the parting message given by the outgoing
RBI Governor which in essence means that if someone is going to give you
something free or intend to make a huge payment for whatever reason, one need
to remember that it is ridiculous for the giver to collect in advance a
relatively small sum towards expenses like registration fee, medical
examination, handling and forwarding charges etc. The person can as well give a
gift of smaller value or make the payment after deducting costs.
Let us not
allow others to encash our need or greed!
M G Warrier, Mumbai
PS: An edited version appeared in The Business Line on August 26,
2016. Every day people are offering themselves for being cheated by
unscrupulous guys…
3
Distorted priorities
This refers to the
interesting piece “What’s in a name? Plenty” by two lawyers Arvind P Datar and
N L Rajah (The Hindu, Legal eye, August 24). I have no views on the subject
discussed in the article. My quarrel is with waste of resources like time,
media space, professional expertise of lawyers, courts’ working hours,
taxpayers’ money and so on, on issues like this (change of names) at a time
when several more important matters from recovery of loans to serious criminal
cases (including those which affect lives of prisoners awaiting trial and their
families) are kept pending at various levels in courts and government offices.
A citizen is being framed
for sedition, for saying something like ‘there are human beings like us in the
neighbouring country also’.
May be we need to
consider:
·
Building consensus to segregate cases
before courts into two categories, one, which directly affect lives of people
and two, those having only historic importance or are of just academic
interest. The second category can wait till pendency of cases in the former
category reaches a manageable level.
·
The legislatures, from Parliament down to
panchayat level too can have a similar approach in taking up legislative
measures.
M
G Warrier, Mumbai
4
‘Call’ for change
This refers to Pulapre
Balakrishnan’s excellent article “Looking for some change, Governor” (The
Hindu, August 23). Once one completes reading, the concluding observations
lingers on and the smiling face of S S Tarapore who regularly wrote a column
(Maverick View) in The Hindu business Line comes to my mind. I am referring to
the skill with which Pulapre has woven common man’s concerns into the fabric of
economic theory and monetary policy. Tarapore would have presented the case
same way, in a more piercing language which he considered his prerogative,
probably because of his long association with RBI.
Loss of focus on research
and more importantly the institutional confidence to speak out central bank’s
mind really did get diluted since 1990’s. The HR background for this can be
traced to the treatment meted out to professionals working in research
departments in RBI. The general side had an aversion to specialisation,
something similar to the caste system in government where a particular class
(IAS) looks down upon other services, defence and foreign service personnel,
scientists and economists. Definitely, change is in sight for the better in the
outlook of post-1990’s entrants.
The evolution of the role
of RBI as a central bank in the Indian context brought out in the article need
to be taken note of by those who are making effort to redefine RBI’s
responsibilities. Minting and making available coins of smaller denominations
(irrespective of costs involved) will send out a positive message down the line
about the concern of GOI and RBI for the common man. More importantly, GOI and
RBI should prioritise mapping of idle resources lying idle in the vaults of
private organisations including religious bodies and social outfits doing
commendable work in supporting charity. It is not just about possibility of
corrupt practices. A nation has the right to know its real net-worth.
M
G Warrier, Mumbai
III
LEISURE
Revelation of cosmic form*
(Vishwaroopadarshanam)
Arjuna shares his extraordinary experience of beholding the Lord’s
cosmic form which tries to represent and reflect His Infinite Glory that none
can fathom. It is awe inspiring in its grandeur and limitless sweep.
So too is the form shown by child Krishna to Yasodha on two occasions
which Suka describes in detail, pointed out Sri B. Sundarkumar in a discourse.
The first time it happens when He is in her lap and yawns very casually.
Yasodha is bewildered to see the whole universe in the child’s mouth. But she
forgets this vision and sees Krishna as her mischievous child.
On a later occasion, some boys complain to her that Krishna has eaten
mud. Yasodha, ignorant of His Paratva, is frightened that He would fall sick
and in anxiety chides him.
She asks Him to open His mouth to look out for traces of mud. She is
instead taken aback to see an amazing vision in His mouth: she sees the whole
of the sphere called earth and also the entire universe.
There are forests, oceans, and spheres such as rasatala, patala, etc,
men, demons and celestial beings including everything else that exists.
Yasodha sees all these and also sees Him as the Parama Purusha in the
milky ocean, and then as Mahavishnu in the Supreme abode of Vaikunta and again
as her child standing before her. It is a vision of the Lord in His numberless
forms.
Not content with revealing this cosmic form within His mouth, He also
reveals another face and mouth of His with all the worlds and yet another and
so on endlessly to indicate the infinite nature of His creation.
But this flash of illumination in Yasodha is only a brief one and soon
the Lord brings her back to her role in samsara.
*Source: The Hindu, Faith (For more on this read
Chapter 11 of Bhagavad Gita or Google search vishwaroopadarshanam and read “The Yoga of the Vision of the Universal Form”)
S2-4-S2’s PROBLEM!*
I have a simple solution (S2) for (4) Subramanian Swamy’s (S2) immediate
problem, which is one of remaining in limelight at the cost of eminent personalities
who do not have the kind of idle time to engage in spars in the media. Having
accommodated Swamy as a Rajya Sabha MP, his well-wishers should now reserve
some media space Subramanian Swamy wasting his time and media space on
non-issues.
Incidentally, like many
others, I am writing this with the sole selfish interest of finding my name in
print, once again!
M
G WARRIER, Mumbai
*Online comments posted@Financial Express in response to a yet another comment from Swamy that Dr Raghuram Rajan has no economics degree.
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