The Man Who Stood Firm When Everyone From Left to BJP accused him of Destroying Livelihood of lakhs of people in 1991 when he opened up the Manufacturing Sector .While Everyone in Left to BJP agrees if that was implemented in 1991 we would have never seen our GDP zoom through 7 % to 9 %.
In India NDA which proposed 100% FDI in Retail is today changing it’s stand on the issue .While Congress which opposed FDI in Retail in 2002 is For it.
Is it necessary for Government and Opposition to have opposite views on any issue ? .Are we in such a bad state that our MP’s are not even ready to discuss issues on floor of the house?
What will be the impact of rollback on FDI in Retail which made headlines in the world? Will India’s Investment Climate be affected ? PM is even Ready to pledge his Job For the cause.Last Time we saw Aggression and Determined Manmohan was during Indo US Nuke Deal?
It’s a matter of Pride for PM .He has even made it clear he will Quit his Job if Forced to go back.Retail Needs Modernization with Cold Storage and Modern Technology .With more than half of Produce Rotting in Go-downs and consumer facing heat of inflation and Farmer suicide @ an all time high .This will benefit consumer and Producer .why should consumer and producer suffer because of middlemen .After aim of any supply chain is to look after consumer interest.I just wish our PM succeeds in this venture and we soon see Target ,walmart and carrefours in Major Metros of our Country
When Domestic GDP Growth @ 6.9 % and Projected GDP growth for FY12@ 7.5% .The outlook globally is also grim
With Euro Crisis no where close to coming to an End and UN ringing alarm bells of possible recession n FY12.People are forced to stare @ uncertain future. While RBI’s 30 year old approach of hiking Interest Rates is killing domestic growth prospects. There has been about 12 + hikes RBI in past 12 months as result Expansion Plans of many Many SME’s , Small and mid tier and Real Estate all have taken a hit .
Last Nail in Coffin was opening of FDI in Retail without protection to domestic retailers .
Are Small Retailers Right in Rising Decent about Government Move?
When Farmers are given Loan @ 3% ROI why not Retailers for their Expansion as they have to take on Global Retail Big Names who are cash rich
Global Retailers First Agenda is to Eliminate small Traders to capture Market which will give them monopoly in ever growing Retail Market
No Fixed Body like TRAI to fix prices to bring in Fair Place
Low Quality Goods from China will Stack up As competition shoots up there by compromising on Quality
According to Studies Larger Stores attract more people which implies Grade A clientele will be eliminated by smaller stores as they do not depend on credit
Smaller Retailer will be next to commit suicide if Interest Rates are as high as 11%
Let’s talk the weather. This city has had many dog-tags to it. One of its pretty sobriquets has been ‘air-conditioned’ city.
The city may not be an air-conditioned one anymore, but it surely is an air-cooled one. For most part of the year, the weather is very livable and wanting-to-live-in.
Add to the weather the even more cool nature of the Kannadiga. I think we are one of the most tolerant species: all-embracing and welcoming to all. We hate fights and controversy. Jingoism is not for us. Everyone is welcome in Bangalore, and the welcome sign makes it an even more livable proposition. Bangalore is a mixed city as well. We are a ‘Bisi Bele Baath’ city of our own, with a healthy mix of every national and international ingredient in our midst.
Bangalore is today the capital of many a movement: end-to-end IT services industry, BPO industry, biotech, and nearly the capital of luxury retail, with our very own version of luxe street, if I may call Vittal Mallya Road that! Bangalore boasts of every cuisine there is to try — Vietnamese, Korean, Thai or our very own ‘raagi mudde and bas saaru’. There is every variety of food to eat and drink, the people are friendly and there is little to quibble about Bangalore, save the weather.
Bangalore is livable for the rich, the wannabe rich and poor alike. Just as you may buy a meal for all of Rs1,600 a plate, you can pick the best plate of sambar-rice and a ‘bajji’ or boiled egg for Rs 20 on the street. Believe it or not, the nutrition value is the same, and possibly the street fare tastes better than the 5-star dishes.
You can live in Bangalore the way you want to: you want a lifestyle of living in the cocoon of your home, your car, your golf course, your specialty gym, your club and your office, you can. If you wish to live the public life with the spanking new Namma Metro, the streetside darshini and your PG digs, you can! Bangalore allows you your space.
And how do we make it more livable? I believe Bangalore is a city that needs to strive to be a better place to be in. It is time for Bangalore to adopt an ethos that is more-embracing. It is time for Bangalore to go green and inclusive. “Green” and “inclusive” are global mantras which speak the language of the future. Bangalore has the potential of emerging a top-notch livable destination on both counts. The city has lots to do on the count of water-harvesting, for a start.
Time to invest in green practices that embrace every bit of our commercial activity as well. Time to look at CNG as a fuel for public vehicles. Time to look at curtailing vehicles on the road with a colour-coded day pass which will allow only 25% of the vehicle population of Bangalore to use the roads on selected days. Pollution levels need to be checked for Bangalore to be even more livable.
We have the very rich and the very poor. Time to make this an equal-footed city with investments from the rich and those who have much too much, to improve the mite of those who don’t have enough. That will help us remain on top of the chart of the most livable cities in the world: looking forward to that list in 2021 then!
From Even UPA allies like the Trinamool Congress, DMK, and parties like the Samajwadi Party and BSP have registered strong opposition to FDI in retail. Meanwhile, the Kerala Congress unit is unhappy. And at least one Congress MP from Uttar Pradesh, a state going to polls shortly, Sanjay Singh, has protested against it. Sanjay Singh has targeted commerce minister Anand Sharma, saying a Rajya Sabha MP cannot understand the problems of the poor. That is the nub of the matter. And it goes beyond Sharma. If a Lok Sabha prime minister like Narasimha Rao chose to mediate reforms and failed, what chance does a nominated PM like Manmohan Singh stand? Whatever his redeeming qualities, the prime minister has never exhibited political sense. He is also adamant. He held UPA-1 to ransom on the India-US nuclear deal whose fruits, if any, look very bitter after the Fukushima disaster. Now, he’s done it again with FDI in retail, saying at a Youth Congress conference that there will be no rollback. Typical of Manmohan Singh, the whole thing was hurried up. After big businessmen spoke of policy-making paralysis following the 2G scam expose and Anna Hazare’s movement, the PMO was anxious to counter criticism with a silver bullet. But India is not China where policy can be imposed by fiat. India is also a very poor country. Don’t be misled by growth figures. When AK Antony and Jairam Ramesh opposed FDI in retail in the Cabinet, it should have caused some rethink. Ramesh has his ears to the ground and Antony has sound political instincts. But the policy change was rammed through, meeting with implacable opposition in Parliament. An elected prime minister would have squarely faced the opposition if he was sure of his position and convinced them. Alternatively, he would have made bold to threaten going directly to the people, as Indira Gandhi would surely have done were she convinced FDI in retail was pro-people, which appears doubtful. Instead Manmohan Singh retreats to safety, and the negotiator for all seasons, Pranab Mukherjee, steps in. Mukherjee, of course, cannot take decisions. He has to get clearance from the PM, who, in turn, has to get clearance from Sonia Gandhi. Is this a democratic government or a crypto-dictatorship? It is not as if no one understands the perils of continuing with Manmohan Singh. In the Congress, he is called a ‘floater’, in the sense that he does not even make the effort to swim. At some level, the Congress leadership is reconciled to losing the 2014 general elections. Rahul Gandhi hopes to turn the tide with a grand victory in UP. But if he fails as expected, the party will continue with Manmohan Singh. The Congress leadership is so subconsciously reconciled to a defeat in 2014 that it is unwilling and unable to superannuate Manmohan Singh, even though he has become a serial blunderer. In lay language, that is called a death wish.
