IIPM Institute: March 2013

Thursday, March 28, 2013

From Janvani to Janata Ki Vaani

As an event, it was unique, unusual and unprecedented. Some of the senior-most journalists of India gathered together; not to excoriate the political class, but to hold a mirror to themselves. Virtually 25 years after that iconic programme Janvani first appeared on the small screen on Doordarshan in 1986, The Sunday Indian organised a seminar to ponder, debate and argue whether the Indian media really represents the voice of the aam aadmi or not. Virtually, the who's who of Indian media was present at Kamani Auditorium on March 12, 2011 for the seminar. And the fabulous success can be gauged from the fact that the seminar – scheduled for two hours – actually went on beyond four hours and finally came to an end only when the staff at Kamani virtually forced us to cease and desist!

The Editor-in-Chief of The Sunday Indian, Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri kicked off the proceedings in his characteristically candid manner, pointing out how it was his dream and passion since his youth to launch a media house because he was convinced that Indian media didn't really bother much about the common man. Giving the example of the rotten judicial system in India where a poor man would die before getting justice, Professor Chaudhuri blamed the ownership pattern in Indian media for its indifference towards what we can call the real Janata ki Vaani. He strongly advocated a cooperative model of media ownership so that it can then write and telecast news fearlessly and without succumbing to pressure.

The Editor-in Chief of The New Indian Express Prabhu Chawla echoed the views of Professor Chaudhuri, giving numerous real-life examples of how Indian media catered mainly to the elite and the upper middle class consumer while ignoring the common man. Mr. Chawla, one of the senior most journalists in India, frankly admitted that there have been occasions in his career when he had to bow down to 'extraneous' pressures.

Well-known anchor and Managing Editor of IBN-7 Ashutosh preferred to be more optimistic, insisting that the largely positive role played by the Indian media is bringing about revolutionary changes in the country. Of course, Mr. Ashutosh did agree that the period 2004 to 2009 was arguably a disgraceful period particularly for electronic media as it went overboard and over the top. But he argued that things are back on track once again. Another well-known anchor and television personality Punya Prasoon Vajpayee was of the view that the 'profit' motive was the most harmful trend for Indian media. Senior Executive Editor of NDTV India, Sanjay Ahirwal, argued that there is still space for credible and honest journalism and it is up to seniors in the profession to uphold high standards.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Monday, March 25, 2013

Wars are Tough, & Peace is Tougher

Armies of The World now Increasingly have a Mandate to Provide for The People who Suffer in conflict zones, and The Indian Army has led by Example through Operation Sadbhavana

Countries may or may not win wars. But people, more often than not, lose them. And when it comes to people who are unfortunate enough to be living in conflict zones, the losses are often incalculable and beyond repair.

In that sense, their disdain or even detestation for the very forces that are meant to protect them is hard to question. But then, the Army’s prime responsibility is to protect the borders of a nation and its people from external attack. Aren’t armies across the world doing enough by risking their lives and fighting the enemy in conflict zones? Or should their role indeed go beyond it?

“If you look at all the conflict regions of the world, for example Afghanistan, Libya and also within our country, be it Jammu & Kashmir or the North East regions, the Army is extremely functional in protecting and safeguarding the boundaries and the people”, says P. K. Shah Jahan, Assistant Professor, Centre for Community Organisation & Development Practice, Tata Institute of Social Sciences. However, it is also true that a number of human rights violations have been reported against the Indian Army, which have tarnished its image. To cite an instance, Amnesty International had highlighted the issue of mass graves of hundreds of people being found near border areas in J&K. While the Army claims that they were armed militants, conflicting reports claim they were bodies of a number of civilians. To be true, allegations outnumber official reports by large numbers, and it is tough to confirm or discount such claims. But it is important to realise that these reports significantly enhance the negative perception in the minds of people in conflict zones, ironically for the very forces that are trying to protect them.

Protecting the rights and privileges of countrymen on the basis of feuds related to religion, ethnicity and nationality, protecting them from external attacks, handling extreme mishaps and situations, et al are only one side of the coin. Armies today are expected to play an important role when it comes to promoting peace as well as building bridges. In recognition of this fact, Operation Sadbhavana was a unique programme launched by the Indian Army in 1998.

The underlying objective was to bring back peace and faith in the lives of people of J&K, who were totally ravaged by terrorist attacks and the resulting clampdowns. Rampant blazing of schools, government buildings and other important centres had spread terror all around. An immediate program to ensure the safety of people as well as helping them move back to normal lives was required. The Northern Command took help of Operation Sadbhavna to promote developmental activities. The underlying theme of Operation Sadbhavna has been to ‘help the people of J&K to help themselves’.

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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Check in Time So That ‘Too Much, Too Young’ Doesn’t Leave you with 'Too Little, Too Late'...

Is Your Child Growing up Too Fast? Check in Time So That ‘Too Much, Too Young’ Doesn’t Leave you with 'Too Little, Too Late'...

Precocious puberty, which is the medical term for children attaining puberty before the age of eight, is a rather unfortunate reflection of changing lifestyles. It has been linked to obesity, another common cause for concern in the 8 to 18 group. Puberty requires the body to reach a critical weight, and evidence of increase in average body mass index (BMI) in children the world over explains why there are more boys dropping out of church choirs – unable to hit the high notes – and more girls discussing inner wear with their mothers. Early signs of secondary sexual characteristics however are more than a sex education alert, as Dr. Trehan points out, “If a child shows signs of precocious puberty, it is important to get him or her checked, for one, it could be a symptom of a life-threatening disorder. And secondly, precocious puberty prevents the child from reaching his/her maximum adult height, which can be treated.” Timely diagnosis helps check if the bone age and health is at par with sexual maturity, and rule out possibilities of hypothyroidism or even brain abnormalities – tumour, infection, injury – which have been also known to blow the hormonal fuse. Besides, studies putting early ‘maturers’ at greater risk of breast cancer in the later stages are disconcerting enough to consider the trip to the pediatric endocrinologist.

Puberty and teenage years are possibly the most stressful in the parents’ lives, but the fact that they must take the hand of their cherubs and reassure them about the impending world of adulthood can’t be overemphasized. Your precious can be precocious in a lot of better things.

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Wednesday, March 6, 2013

For the sake of Daddy Warbucks!

They say Multi-Billion dollar deals are supposed to get signed when you play golf with the plutocrats. Strangely, the Nabob Parvenu class in India hasn’t quite resonated with such fables despite golf’s presence for quite sometime in India. Thus, just to put paid to current perceptions of the pseudo-club, B&E does a quasi-subjective survey of the sport (and is surprised)

Daddy Warbucks was a fictional individual in the cult legacy comic strip, Little Orphan Annie. Introduced in 1924, Warbucks represented the rugged individualist turned lumpenproletariat turned richling millionaire who did not need group-think or nepotistic support to succeed in life. In other words, Warbucks represented a philosophy that flew exactly opposite to what is currently represented by the peddle that the sports of golf propagates – that the sport assists in business relations developing and in deals getting signed. In India, despite the flim-flam wasted over years, golf hasn’t quite managed to drive the promised business perception that well! Realising that the chaff needed to be separated now more than ever, B&E jumped into the pseudo-survey of this sport; of course, for the sake of the nation and Warbucks!

We jump directly into the figures. First, the flat indices, and we were surprised at the optimism within the industry. The Asian Golf Course Owners Association, for one, has created a fund worth Rs.6.70 billion for the development of golf in India alone. The cumulative prize money for all professional golf tournaments played in India has gone up by nearly 50% this fiscal over the last one from around Rs.110 million to Rs.150 million. Padamjit Singh Sandhu, Director, Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), the sanctioning authority for all except three professional golf events in the country, told B&E that he expects a 25% annual hike in prize money this year. Prize money apart, the number of international professional golf tours played in India in the next fiscal would be around six, up from three last year, with the likes of Avantha Masters already an established tour. Now, we’re told, even the Kensville Indian Open is coming to India from January 2011, with 108 international players vying for sumptuous prize money.

So are we still striking deals on the golf course? Gen (Retd.) A Parmar, Director General, Indian Golf Union, tells B&E: “That paradigm is now history. Business is being made in golf, around golf and also, as of old, over golf.” In short, golf itself has apparently become serious business. Consider this: the IGU (which is the governing body for golf and controls all amateur golfing in the country) runs the Indian Junior Golf Tour, and the national amateur ranking of a player depends on his scores in this tourney. This year, the event is being played in Delhi, Gurgaon, Panchkula, Coimbatore, Ooty and Kolkata. According to an estimation by SportzPower.com, the prime portal in India’s business of sports, the total spend on the tour is around Rs.70 million. An expert explained that we have an increasing number of amateurs wanting to contest, and from 70 or 80 till about 5 years ago, they had 200 applicants this year for the contest. That means 200 children are playing, going from city to city, with either one or both parents moving with them, spending on airfare, hotel stay, private taxies, eateries, calling home over mobile phones – it’s big business activity. And this is just about one amateur event that does not even have prize money. So if just one junior tour can re-circulate Rs.70 million, it is an easy guess how much an international event like the Kensville Open or Avantha Masters would impact the economy as a whole.

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Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Gandhamardhan - The new trouble spot

Amidst speculation of a possible alternative to Niyamgiri, Gandhamardhan hill may once again become the soft target for Vedanta. Ajit Nayak reports on the possibility of history repeating itself

Just two days after Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF)’s refusal to give forest clearance of Niyamgiri mining project of Vedanta, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Lanjigarh (August 26, 2010) was a clear indication of the ‘cautious’ approach adopted by the Centre as against the blind-industrial policy of the state government. It has also exposed the proclivity of the Naveen Patnaik’s BJD government towards the Vedanta group as ruling BJD organised a ‘protest rally’ at the same site to criticise the visit of Rahul Gandhi to Lanjigarh. Though senior BJD leader Pyari Mohan Mahaptra claimed Rahul’s visit was politically motivated and was a part of anti-Orissa strategy of the Centre. Meanwhile, the state government has been left with no other option, but to bail out ‘Vedanta’ by finding a substitute location which can cater to the bauxite requirement of Vedanta.

Vedanta has its aluminum refinery plant at Lanjigarh, which operates with bauxite from Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh since August 2008-09. Had centre cleared Vedanta’s mining proposal of Niyamgiri Hills, it would have helped the company expand its production capacity from 1 million tonnes to 6 million tonnes. Now, when the company is putting pressure on the state government to provide alternative bauxite arrangement for its Lanjigarh refinery, environmentalists have started demanding the ‘closure of the refinery’ which according to them is adversely affecting Niyamgiri’s ecology. “After the refusal of forest clearance on the Niyamgiri, government should ask the company to shift the refinery plant from the place as it will put a negative effect on the surrounding of the Niyamgiri hills. Why is the state government so inclined towards Vedanta? “I don’t know but in any case we will not allow the government to set up industries at the cost of the environment of the state”, eminent environmentalist and social activist Prafulla Samantara said. He adds that it is not only the question of Niyamgiri or Gandhamardhan, it is also the question of Panchamali (Kasipur), Bafilimali and Kodingamali (Koraput) which are the prime sources of water for the tribal people living around the hills. “Several water sources that are coming from these places will be dried out in case of mining in these areas. So we warned the government to refrain from uprooting the innocent people from their living”, Samantara said.

But the company wants to put pressure on the state government to provide alternative arrangement of mines to cater to the requirement of bauxite. The company officials argue that it is the duty of the state government to provide bauxite to the company as per MoU signed between the company and government. The MoU has a binding on the state government to provide 150 million tonnes of the mineral to the Lanjigarh refinery plant. “We have appealed to the state government for alternative arrangement of bauxite mines closer to the plant. The company will have no problem in case it is allotted within 30-40 km radius of the plant,” a senior officer of the Vedanta Refinery said. However Gandhamardhan hills in Bolangir/Bargarh district is the most preferred location.

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Sunday, March 3, 2013

Fifteen years later, they just 'Figo'ed it out!

From a company that was normally counted as an interesting niche player in India, Ford has suddenly become the flavour of the season with the Figo. Our editorial team member walks through Ford one fine lazy afternoon and gives ‘the scoop’ by Sanchit Verma

The first time I laid my eyes on a red Ford Ikon way back when I was in 9th standard, I could not help but get fascinated with this well-engineered and crafted as well as well-marketed 'Josh machine'; the rage of the youth in those days. As a brand, Ford had captured the imagination of my peer group as the ultimate in sports cars, thanks to our myriad exposures with, and obsession for the American way of life.

It seems like the rush of old days once again when I step into Ford’s manufacturing plant near Chennai, south of India. My ostensibly honest objective is to understand the strategic intent behind Ford’s latest moves; dishonestly, of course, I intend getting ‘the scoop’, whatever it means in the automobile industry. The Ford plant is basically located at a classically named Maraimalai Nagar – 45 km from Chennai. The huge 350-acre plant pumps in the much-needed adrenaline rush as it gives an overall feel of the Ford campus. A company official chaperoning me tells me about their initiatives to maintain an environment friendly plant. As he shows me the way towards the heart of the plant where Ford's latest sensation (Figo) takes birth, he gives me a pair of glasses and a metal cover as I prepare myself for the unique Ford experience. But more of that later.

Ford India unveiled their plans to expand their plant capacity to 200,000 cars per year and a launch of small car in 2008. The current Ford plant has a capacity to manufacture 250,000 engines and is based on a flexible line, thanks to the $500 million investment made by Ford Motor Company into the Indian market. In fact, hard market figures for Ford in India aren't exactly 'Ikon'ic, even after 15 years since it re-entered the market with Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M). In the mid-size segment, which has been its main focus area until recently, Ford is at fifth position as per sales for April-June 2010, with sales of just 3,610 units (a drop of 33.4% yoy, figures from SIAM). Even in the B1 segment of Utility Vehicles, the highly up-market Ford Endeavour fights a lone battle for the company, which lags behind M&M, Toyota, Tata Motors and GM in terms of cumulative market share. So far, Ford has been visibly playing the premium segment game, which changed only this year in March, when it launched the Ford Figo. During the launch, Mulally had exclaimed: "We are confident the Ford Figo will be a product that Indian consumers really want and value.”

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