Three Able Children

Once upon a time, there was a middle-aged person, in his fifties, living in a small town. He was an honest citizen. He used to go in time, to office. Did his work faithfully. Paid all his Bills in time. He used to spend his time with the children, in the evening. He valued education. His perpetual advice to his son was to be study hard, get a government job and then retire in peace. This was the only way to make money, he knew.

But he could not inspire his son. There was always a scarcity for money, all the time. Son could not see any movie in a theater. Could not drive a motorcycle. Once the father took the family to a restaurant, the day he got a promotion. Limited food was ordered. All of them pretended to be full. On reaching home, mother had to cook once again. Could not attend weddings, because he never had proper clothes or shoes.

Son did not want to follow the footsteps of his father. He wanted to make money, come what may. One night he runs away. Changes his name as well as surname, so that his parents need not be ashamed of him. Grew beard so that the no one in his town, recognizes him, if he is caught.

Initially he sold an elephant tusk. Made huge profit. He lived for a couple of months.  He then sold Tiger skin. This time it was a super duper profit. So he specialized in animal products.  He lived happily there after. Goddess of Wealth was kind to him. He has not one but several properties. Has an account in Swiss bank.

He got married and had children. Like his father he gave the best of education to his kids. He wanted to have three children, one of them to be a police officer; to make sure he is not caught. Second one to be a judge. Incase he is caught, judgment could be tilted in his favour or delay the proceedings. After his death he wanted to spend time in heaven, therefore third one has be a priest.

God was kind to him, once again. Gave him three able children. Instead of protecting helpless citizens, the kids have one and only one agenda; to protect their father.

This is a definitely a work of fiction. But it could very well be a factual case study.

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A Shattered Dream

Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, there happens to be an island. It is inhibited. The populace till recently were agrarian. Food gatherers and pastorals co-exist. It was cut off from most of the world. The people were poor. Needs were limited.

Huge reservoir of Iron ore has been discovered. It can last for generations. It could make the nation and its people rich, the way oil did to the Arab countries. There is no factory to make steel or car. The entire production of ore is exported, as there is no demand in the island.

After exporting ore for nearly 3 decades, the people are still poor. All the money that the nation earned seems to have evaporated. The mining company, politicians, contractors, engineers and the bureaucrats seems to have cornered all the benefits. Salaries of government employees who constitute one percent of the population, have quadrupled in a short span. The social benefits are unmatched anywhere in the world. Mining companies export at market rate, huge bonuses are paid to senior staff, commission to the CEO. Government collects its dues through taxes and royalty.

For decades there is hardly any visible social development in the island. Most of them are forced to believe that the airports, shopping malls and parliament building are symbols of development. All the tax collection goes into salary, pension and interest. The retired armed force personnel, living happily on the pension, is asking for more. On the other hand there is no social security for is farmers and un-organized labour.  No money is left for school, hospital, canal or road. The people, who once lived upon the mining sites, have been evacuated, without any compensation. They have no claim over the land. It all belongs to the Government, like the erstwhile king.

A new party takes power in the island. It wants to eradicate poverty on war footing. It puts a ban on the export of iron ores.  The country would like to sell steel.  It  would like to  encourage steel plants. From the very next day, iron ore export is banned.

Greenfield steel plants are set up all over the country. In the first phase they are set up at the constituencies of the Party President, Minister of Industries, Minister of Iron & Steel.  No clearance from Environment ministry is required. Public Sector Banks are asked to fund on easy terms.  Special Economic Zones are created on coastal areas. Tax Holidays for ten years are provided. Land is provided on long lease for less than hundred Dollars. Electricity is subsidized. Roads from mine to factory to port are constructed, in the name of development and progress. Entrepreneurs smell an opportunity. Steel plants are set up far away from the raw materials, market or port. Property Dealers with connections are now steel barons; as licenses are distributed on first come first served, like railway reservation tickets.

Excess steel is produced than consumed. No takers of steel in the domestic market. People are poor to make houses. Government is broke to invest in school buildings, hospitals, cemented roads and canals. Capacity is not fully utilized. Industry is not able to pay interest, forget clearing principal. Loan is restructured again and again. Non performing assets of banks pile up. The Central Government creates a cell by the name Steel Exports promotion Council to look for market abroad.

Chinese come to the island. They are keen to buy every ton of steel that it produces. They are willing to pay international price. A committee is set up. It is against steel export. It will make our islanders further poor. Chinese will be richer by transforming steel to white goods and cars. Government then decides not to export. It imposes 100% export duty. Instead it now encourages entrepreneurs to set up manufacturing plants to make automobiles.

So we have cars all over the place, made with technology imported from the west. Loans for automobiles are provided at cheaper rates than education loans. More cars are produce than required. Poor islanders can’t buy the cars, except for a few chosen ones. Upper middle class can afford a car, but does not have money for fuel. Rich prefer to import.

The think tank of the nation decides to export car. Our manufacturing cost is cheap. The five-year plan is to make the island into an automobile hub. We will export cars, not steel, not iron ore.  We can manufacture car at a fraction of cost, to the developed world. Special economic zones are created.

So the cars are supplied to the developed world. The developed world puts stickers on the cars- front, back and the third one on the steering wheel. With international brand names, cars are sold at double the selling price in the poor island.

So there is a catch again. Why should Ford, General Motors, Fiat make money. Why can’t we develop our own brands?  We will sell cars in America or Europe with our brand names. If Japanese can sell why can’t we.  A delegation is sent to Japan.

Brand names are developed. Names are inspired from their rivers, mountains and ministers. These brands are not selling in international market. Factories have a pile of unsold cars. Banks are unable to recover loan. Non-performing assets are high. Tax collection is all time low. Government is functioning on borrowed money. Fiscal deficit is high. Inflation refuses to come down. But who cares as long as the salary and pension is available on fist of each month.

The dream is shattered. The poor islanders blame their fate and ancestors.

Health Wealth Character

Like most schools, my school, had a notice board that was used for quotations, to inspire us, to be good citizens. There used to be a Header, QUOTE OF THE DAY, followed by the content that used to be short and precise, written in multi-coloured chalk. One of the favourable quotes; that I continue to remember is :

When Wealth Is Lost Nothing Is Lost

When Health is Lost Something Is Lost

When Character Is Lost Everything Is lost

As children, in boarding school, one and only way to make money was to study and study hard, to become an employee. Given a choice join the Government service. Second choice was the public sector. Private sector was not high on our agenda. Profit was considered a dirt word.

We were not inflicted with life threatening disease. Occasionally we had fever, throat infection, loose motion, bruises, swelling and ringworm.  Character was not understood very well. Occasionally we stole our friend’s homemade biscuits. And often we told lies to get sick leave, to exempt from Physical Training.

I am now in middle age. I am beginning to understand the depth of the three magical words. I see people who are healthy. I also come across persons who are wealthy and on a few occasions, an honest person. Rarely a person combines all the three elements. It appears that health, wealth and character; come in stages.  Between 25 to 50 years of age we are interested in wealth; and ignore our health and character. In the late forties, quite a few of us, are afflicted with lifestyle diseases like Hypertension, Uric Acid, Cholesterol and Diabetes. It is like a wake up call. We visit the doctor, who invariably advises us to buy a pair of jogging shoes. By then it is usually too late.

Whenever I go for a walk, I come across obese middle-aged persons trying to cut the fat. Even when they manage to trim themselves, the diseases are irreversible.

I understood this when I was eighteen. I was not satisfied with my height. I was a vegetarian all these years, but started on a protein rich diet. Instead of growing vertically, I expanded horizontally. On a few occasions I told my father that I would have been a few inches taller, if he had fed me chicken regularly.

My son is five inches taller than me. He has no reasons to crib or complaint. Now he is thinking to go slow on meat.

One of my neighbours, with one foot in grave, was pushing his friend’s car that refused to bulge. After a few seconds his knees gave up. I wonder if he had pushed any vehicle, when he was an adult.

This morning, on a rainy day, I was unable to change the tyre of my friend’s car, who was drenched in the rain. I was going on an assignment and I did not want to get wet. Both of us looked at each other helplessly. In the evening on my return, I looked at the tyre. It was still flat. I am still carrying the guilt.  And this article is an outcome.

The wording on the board should have been:

When Wealth Is Lost Everything Is Lost

When Health is Lost Something Is Lost

When Character Is Lost Nothing Is lost

CONTACT DETAILS

Sanjay Agrawal
A 603 Daffodils Apartments
Plot 36, Sector 6
Dwarka
New Delhi 110075
India

Mobile : +91 9811004066
Landline : +91 11 – 42415477
E Mail : sanjay629@gmail.com
sanjay_agrawal@yahoo.com

The Emerging Middle Class In My Colony

I live in a middle class co-operative group housing society in dwarka, a suburb in Delhi. It has 120 flats. To most members the original cost of the flat was close to eight lakhs in 1997. Today after 14 years, it fetches more than 65 lakh rupees. Most of the residents are delighted to discover that they are multi millionaires.

Most of the owners happen to be in services. A majority of them are government employees and the rest are in private sector. A small fraction is self-employed.

Gradually, people are retiring, from services. One of my neighbours has retired from government service. He receives a monthly pension of 18,000 rupees. He does not have additional source of income. He is single. The money is more than sufficient to run his household expenses. He is a contented man.

The washer man of the colony is Babulal. He has migrated from Rajasthan. He lives three kilometers away at Palam. It was once a village. He owns a house on a fifty square meter plot at Palam. Babulal comes each day on a bicycle, and irons clothes in an open car parking space, in the colony. Babulal’s wife irons clothes at Palam village.
On an average Babulal irons close to 150 clothes a day and charges 1.50 rupees per cloth. He thus makes 300 rupees in a day. His wife also makes 300 rupees a day. Both of them together make 600 a day or 15000 a month. Only expense is the coal, which is roughly 1500. Thus take home is 13500.
The washer man has a monthly income, close to our retired friend.

One late evening, while I was taking a stroll in the colony, the Watchman enquired about my daughter and asked, “ I do not see her these days?”
I said she is studying engineering near Mangalore in Karnataka.
“Is it Manipal?’
I was surprised.
What subject is she studying?
She is studying a subject that is a branch of Electrical.
Is it Instrumentation?
I was amazed at his knowledge. How do you know so much about engineering?
In fact my second son is studying engineering in Delhi.
How much fees do you pay per year?
It is close to 80,000.00 Rupees.

I could not believe. I thought this happens only in Bollywood. Even in my wildest dream, I could not have imagined that a Security Guard of my colony, who earns 4500.00 rupees a month, can afford high tuition fees of an Engineering College.
Literally for the past three years I hardly have any savings. I find it difficult to afford the tuition fees for my daughter.
“How do you manage?” I asked
“My son takes tuition in the evening. He earns 2,500.00 rupees a month. My eldest son is in police. He contributes 3,000.00 a month…… I have a shop that fetches a monthly rent of 2500. I contribute close to 1000.00 a month from my remuneration. We are somehow able to manage.”

We have a twenty-five year resident in the colony that tried but could not get admission in a good engineering college. He is now working in a call centre.
The watchman’s son in due course of time will be economically better off than the some of the children of the residents.

The vegetable seller, who is self-employed, like me, sets up a shop, each evening. He must be earning more than 7500 a month. One evening after I bought the vegetables, I asked him to weigh it. He said he is not charging any of his regular customers this evening. His daughter has completed her four-year Chartered Accountancy papers in one go.
I was surprised. When I look at the residents, there is one student who have taken six years and is yet to complete his Chartered Accountancy.

25th March 2008

Our daughter has completed her Engineering and employed at Tata Consultancy Services, a prestigious IT Company. Her salary is 24,000 rupees, whereas the vegetable seller’s daughter is earning 35,000 rupees, earning close to one and a half times.

When she misses the company bus, she takes a public transport bus run by DTC (Delhi Transport Corporation). The salary of a permanent driver with more than three years of experience, will earn more than a software engineer. One day, while traveling in a DTC bus, a passenger sitting next to me, mentioned that he works as a peon, for a public sector company, ONGC ( Oil & Natural Gas Commission) earning a salary of more than 80,000 rupees. That is three times that of a Software Engineer. I said to the co-passenger, “If there is a vacancy of peon, at ONGC, do let me know”.

My close friend, the retired officer had a heart attack, last year. He was hospitalized for a week. He did not feel the financial pinch. All the cost was borne by the government. His pension has been increased by 70%, courtesy Sixth Pay Commission. His pension is now close to 30,000 rupees.

Babulal also had a heart attack three months back. He was treated and he has recovered. It made him poorer by 2,50,000 rupees. The residents voluntarily contributed 50,000 rupees. He borrowed 2,00,000 rupees, interest free, from one of the relatives who is a serving government servant, in the income tax department. Babulal is under debt. Whatever money he saves, goes into debt servicing.
His wife, who is 42 years of age, is not keeping good heath. She has discontinued ironing at Palam. Second source of income has dried up.
Their second son, a student, helps his father. Both of them irons 200 clothes day. He has increased the rate to 2 Rupees per cloth.

I had visualized that in one generation, Babulal’s family, will catch up with one of the residents. However with the heart attack, he has lost the race.
But I have not lost hope. The new emerging middle class, often semi literate, through their hard work and entrepreneurship, will sure catch up with the typical English educated and employee mindset.

12th March 2011

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