Hi Friends,

Even as I launch this today ( my 80th Birthday ), I realize that there is yet so much to say and do. There is just no time to look back, no time to wonder,"Will anyone read these pages?"

With regards,
Hemen Parekh
27 June 2013

Now as I approach my 90th birthday ( 27 June 2023 ) , I invite you to visit my Digital Avatar ( www.hemenparekh.ai ) – and continue chatting with me , even when I am no more here physically

Tuesday 23 February 2016

HOW TO TRANSACT BUSINESS IN PARLIAMENT


International    Exchange   Program


We have all heard about these programs under which , ( for example ) students from India would go to USA , spend a few weeks with American families and even attend local universities


In turn , American students would spend similar period in India ( may be , with the parents of those Indian students who went to USA  ) and attend Indian Colleges


In the process , both groups learn the customs / traditions / life-styles of their host Societies


I suppose , they also learn quite a lot about the Education Systems of host countries


Which would include , academic pursuit and teaching methods


But , above all , they would learn how the students behave in the class rooms and how the teachers maintain discipline


I believe , it must be a " Shocking " experience for those Indian students to find that professors in USA wield unimaginable  power , unfettered by the Dean or Chancellor of those colleges

Eg :

*   A professor's is the final word in the evaluation of any student ( no court of higher appeal )

*   Quite a lot of that evaluation is based on the number and the quality of questions asked by the students

*   " Shot-gun "  exams are a teacher's way of judging the progress of the students

*   If any student absents from class room without a satisfactory reason ( ie satisfactory to the subject teacher ),
     the teacher can simply tell him to stop attending the classes ! Heavy rains or snow storm does not count !


And the Dean cannot question the professor's decision


*   Teachers don't prescribe any text books , but they may suggest a dozen books to refer to

*   Many teachers just " refuse to teach " ! They insist that the students come to class , having " self taught " the
    subject and the class room is only for the purpose of "solving difficulties" faced by students while self-teaching !


*   Emphasis is not on a student remembering the exact mathematical equation but on knowing which equation to
     use  !

     Hence , most professors will allow a student to look up any book during an exam  !


*   Even arriving at the exact / precise " answer " is not considered important . It is your " approach " to solving a
     problem that counts more .

Were you able to suggest a non-traditional and distinctly innovative " approach " ?



MORAL   OF  THE  STORY  :



How about Shri Narendra Modiji ( himself , a champion of " Out of Box " thinking ) , signing an " Exchange Agreement "  with President Obama , under which , a batch of 40 Indian Legislators ( to begin with , opposition members of Rajya Sabha ) , are deputed to USA for 6 months ( or till GST Bill gets passed ? ) to attend the sessions of US Congress / Senate , to learn / imbibe their ways of conducting official business ?


Of course , our deputed legislators must be paid a " Copycat-ing Allowance " of $ 100 per day while in USA  !

After all , cafeteria in American Congress building does not provide "dosas" @ Rs 2 per piece !


While readily agreeing to the Indian request , it is quite possible that President Obama may politely decline to send the American Legislators to attend our Lok Sabha / Rajya Sabha's budget session  ! Entirely understandable  !


Dear Shri Venkaiah-ji :


 You may get much more cooperation from all parties after 6 months  !


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23  Feb  2016





Warm Regards,

Hemen Parekh

(M)=91 – 98,67,55,08,08


A   Laughing   Matter  ?


Last evening, TV channels showed the traditional " Halwa Ceremony " in the Finance Ministry building

With this , the process of preparing / printing of the Union Budget starts

The people involved will stay " imprisoned / incommunicado " till FM completes his budget speech on 29th Feb , to ensure that the budget provisions do not leak out

That does not stop the experts ( - and some non-experts like me ) , to make predictions such as :

Revising limits for personal Income Tax slabs

Reducing rates for TDS

Rationalizing procedures ( assessment scrutiny / tax refunds / tax litigations etc )

Launching new Schemes / Funds for savings and investments

Increase / decrease of Excise rates on products ( watch out smokers and drinkers ! )

Increase / decrease of Import Duties on products to protect local industries / stop dumping from China

Recapitalization of Banks ( to write-off Rs 7 lakh*crore of NPA with tax payers money )

Write-off DISCOM debts of Rs 4 lakh*crores by passing the buck to State Governments ( tax payer burden ? )

Write off loans to farmers - what with elections looming in 5 States ( but I support this  )


News papers report that the Government have received budget suggestions from some 7,000  persons and that , this time around , Prime Minister himself is closely involved in the budget making exercise

Now , with all this obsession / seriousness / paranoia , surely this secrecy surrounding the budget document , cannot be a laughing matter  !

Unless you ask ,

* some foreign software geeks ( eg: Sundar Pichai / Satya Nadela / Vivek Ranadive / Ray Kurzweil etc )

* some Indian BIG  DATA  ANALYTICS geeks ( Mukund / Krishnan / Sanjay / Srikant / Raj / Anurag etc )


Because , if you do , they will laugh and tell you :


Just give us the actual budget documents of the past 60 years ( including the accompanying budget speeches ) and we will process these documents using Big Data Analytics software and predict what will be the provisions in the forthcoming budget ( with a probability of 99.7 % - ie ; plus or minus six standard deviation )


And then , we will process those past budget speeches with a PARAPHRASING software ( ala Kurzweilai.net ) and give you an advance print-out of Shri Arun Jaitleyji's speech on 29th Feb  "


But of course , Shri Jaitleyji could cheat the PREDICTIVE ANALYTICS , by announcing following unpredictable  :


*   Total Abolition of Personal Income Tax ( or at least , reducing incremental tax rates in each higher slab )

*   Decreasing Incremental Corporate Tax Rates , linked with each higher slab of " Permanent Employee Number "

*   Perpetual Amnesty Scheme for all CASH deposits made in Jan Dhan Accounts , if invested in tax-free Infra SPVs

*   Transfer of 1.8% of GST (from 18%) into buyers' PPF a/c , to ensure all citizens get PPF a/c for tax-free savings

     This amount to be used for paying premium for COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH INSURANCE to cover all illnesses

*   Introduction of plastic Currency Notes of Rs 500/1000, embedded with micro RFID sensors ( stop Black Money )

     Surest way to ensure that almost all payments are made thru official channels !

*   Introduction of BTT ( Bank Transaction Tax ) @ 2% to yield Rs 15 lakh*crore of revenue ( against revenue loss
    of  Rs 2.5 lakh*crores caused by abolishing Personal Income Tax )


Now such announcements , besides being " Unpredictable " , would meet Shri Narendra Modiji's following announcement at Make in India week on 13th Feb  :


There is no time for incremental changes . We want a quantum jump  "


Any other budget provision / announcement , would be a laughing matter  !

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20  Feb  2016
    
 
   



Warm Regards,

Hemen Parekh

(M)=91 – 98,67,55,08,08


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