GOODBYE SHANTABAI

We love to look for new underdogs, so that we can "look after" them and feel good. This search for the underprivileged has reached ridiculous proportions. Each one of us, an NGO, a Mission, a Trust and now even the cours of law and various tribunals is in this game of finding one's own underdog, which one can cuddle, hug and care for. Even the government departments and ministries such as those for labour welfare, environment, women and child care have decided to jump on the band wagon. So, instead of governing, they too are looking for "victims" and the "persecuted" so that they can rescue them and feel good and worthy in their own eyes. In the same quest the a labour welfare body of the government of India has decided to "protect" the domestic workers, the housemaids and manservants. 

-------------------------------------

These are the new proposals to "protect" domestic help:

Minimum wages: Rs. 9000pm, higher for skilled ones, like cooks .. .. .. Employer's Contribution to Social Security - PF, Pension .. .. .. Great emphasis on Welfare .. .. .. Maid Unions and collective bargaining .. .. ..

Here are my options:

Robotic Vacuum cleaner: 20,000
Washing Machine: 15,000
Dryer: 20,000
Dish Washer: 30,000
A deep freezer: 20,000
A steam iron: 2000 - 15,000
Semi-cooked or pre-cooked food
More home delivery service
(Total: Rs. One lakh approx.)

Or,

Litigation, harassment by labour inspectors, filing of returns, intimidation by maid unions and NGOs.

The choice is clear.

But wait, who are the gainers in this socialist "protection" game - LG, Samsung, IFB, Hair, Philips, MTR, Kellogs, Domino's ... (Koreans, Germans, Chinese, Americans ... ..)

And who are the losers - The maid, who was earlier happy with four thousand Rupees, which paid for her children's school fees, books, milk and enabled some savings. The servant, who could send five thousand Rupees home to his destitute family in Chhotanagpur since all his peraonal expenses were paid for in kind by the employer - food, clothing, medicines, toiletries ...

They will now remain jobless because some labour welfare department has decided to "protect" them!

LET'S APPOINT A COMMITTEE

61,000 High Net Worth Individuals have fled the country. Even considering each one left with just a million dollars each, that would be sixty one billion dollars! I am not even counting the loss of entrepreneurial spirit that went away with it or businesses they have wound up so that they could leave.

Reasons cited for this flight are turmoil in home country, security concerns and children's education. But, I think it was just a pursuit for a better quality of life. The countries they made their new homes are primarily the USA, the UK, Australia and the UAE. 

If only we could stop this flight, we wouldn't need to carry that begging bowl all over the world asking for FDI, which largely remains elusive. Let's appoint a committee to examine this phenomenon. I offer myself as the convenor.

ALLOW ME TO HAIL MY OWN TAXI

Till recently we had to stop a taxi (four wheeler or three wheeler) either by waiving a hand or shouting "TAXI ..." Then came radio taxis, which could be booked on phone for a planned journey. But, a casual commuter in the market still had to hail his taxi the conventional way. Now companies like Ola and Uber have enabled the commuter to call a taxi on the fly by a tap on the mobile phone. And, everyone is up in arms against this unstoppable march of technology.

The new generation taxi owners/drivers are happy for they are enrolling in thousands with the "App". Customers are happy for they do not need to crane their necks and shout. A tap on the phone and the nearest free cab locates you on GPS. They are also happy since the the service is "cashless". The App also provides for sharing of the fare if there are many riders and they decide to go dutch - a revolution in cab sharing and car pooling, easily enabled by technology. The taxi drivers get their payments with unfailing regularity every week from the company after due deductions. Fares have come down substantially and the scope for cheating and overcharging has been cut down significantly.

But, the entrenched taxi owners/drivers, radio taxi companies, TV and Print media, sections of the government and courts do not seem comfortable with this concept anywhere in the world. Conventional taxi drivers went on a nationwide strike in France. There have been protests against and attacks on Uber in China, South Africa and USA.

How can the main stakeholder, the taxi rider be so conveniently forgotten? Just a few months ago retailers of consumer durables, white goods and electronic gadgets raised a hue and cry against online retailers only to be told that there was nothing the government could do to help them. Why this activism in case of taxis.

My prediction - no matter what these guys and institutions do, Ola and Uber and many others like them are here to stay for technology marches unimpeded.