Virus, Vista and Vedas

The receding second wave of the #ChineseCommunistVirus in May 2021 has witnessed a much higher death toll than the first wave and that has naturally led to further fraying of emotions. I saw multiple arguments afloat during this time, that focused on targeting any activity/expenditure from the government or even private institutions that was not directly connected to fighting the pandemic. The notable targets were the Central Vista and the ongoing construction of the Raam Mandir. In today's blog, I intend to present certain perspectives at play divided into three sections - one, base facts on the health sector & more; two, a micro-level inspection of the fabled Temple vs Hospital or Religion vs Science or Economic Projects vs Human health arguments and three, a macro level presentation on Bhaarat's Temple Ecosystem. I am hoping that the write-up will nudge the reader to give a nice thought - take what appeals to him/her and leave everything else behind.

In Queue, In Quandary

A few days back, I had posted a small Facebook write-up - a set of three Q&A on vaccine pricing with a hope that it would answer queries of those genuinely interested in seeking answers while demonstrating either the ignorance or the malice of the other kind, aka Left Liberal educated intellectuals. Today, I am going to present a write-up offering perspectives on the process which preceded vaccine pricing, i.e. its supply chain. This blog is an outcome of my wife's insistence for presentation on this topic as she is totally peeved with unreasonable charges being thrown across the table ignoring the supply chain management concepts of queuing, run-rates, inventory, cash conversion cycle and capex (or capital investment). Letting her stay peeved is not in my best interests - physically as well as emotionally, hence - In Queue, In Quandary. Using basic daily life examples and avoiding complication of the financial terms mentioned in the previous sentence, I'll present a simple food-for-thought perspective on this topic. By the end of the write-up, I am hoping I would have unboxed few of the answers to some of the questions swirling around, such as the following:

1. Why the Centre doesn't procure vaccines for all its people unlike some western nations?

2. Is there a vaccine shortage and production deficiency? If so, why not ramp-up?

3. Why have we not halted vaccine exports and rather, why are we not importing additional vaccines?

Costs of a Crisis

In Sep 2020, I had written a blog titled Greenwoods for the GDP on the backdrop of massive liberal & opposition outcry as the FQ12021 GDP fell by 23.9% y/y. In the blog, I had presented the economic background on why the fall was inevitable, how it stands in context of our country's fight with the #ChineseCommunistVirus as well as certain socio-economic comparisons with the developed world. I had also mentioned how our leadership chose to take the middle road by attempting a balance between lives & livelihood, the two twins in any crisis. Eventually, I had remarked that how the Left Liberal Ecosystem would have gone to town over fatalities if not the GDP fall had India chosen to be as brazen as say the USA when it comes to restrictions and safety protocols. Seven odd months down the line, the ecosystem has found that long lost twin called lives ironically in the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar. Given that the fabled ecosystem has found this twin after pompously expressing mock concern over the other twin called livelihood back in Sep 2020, I thought about taking up this opportunity to present the twin sides associated with any crisis taking the example of Kumbh Mela in Haridwar.

Private, Reporting for Duty!

"Government is selling India! Government is selling all our prized assets! Government is selling the country." 

Such statements from the opposition were not unexpected post the 1st Feb 2021 Union Budget with the push of BPCL, Air India etc disinvestments and further information of four PSBs up for sale being released by the Finance Minister. A working class raised in Nehruvian Socialism and a society fairly broken from spirit of entrepreneurship of ancient Bhaarat, naturally might resonate with such headlines and comments. The ghost of privatization is difficult to shake off for some but then what do we stand to achieve with it? Is it all bad or all good or is it somewhere in between? Is there a sweet-spot that one can aim for between the poles of Privatization (broadly, Capitalism) and State Ownership (i.e. Socialism)?

To answer these questions, one needs to ponder over the question, "What is any government's core job?". A government is supposed to provide for its people economically and socially while ensuring internal & external safety and security. When one says 'provide', one has to acknowledge that for anything the government has to give to Raam, it has to take something from Shyam. For anything it has to give to Laxman, it has to take from Raam and for anything it has to give to Shyam, it has to take from Laxman. This something can be a direct cash transfer as done through Kisan Samman Nidhi, it can be good roads/public infrastructure, it can be having a good night's sleep with a robust law & order system, it can be security from foreign/local terrorists so on so forth. Put simply, to provide or to spend money on welfare, infrastructure and security, government needs taxes. For the government to earn enough taxes to cover rising annual expenditure, it has two levers it can employ:

Faith and Fragility

A famous tale is told of Gautama Buddha - he was peacefully meditating under a tree when an angry traveler arrived on the scene and started hurling abuses against Buddha. Unmoved by the tirade, the glow and peace of Buddha never changed and the radiating energy had a calming effect on the traveler whose anger slowly settled and awestruck, the man patiently waited for Buddha's meditation to come to an end. After some time, Buddha opened his eyes and with a serene smile looked at the man. The now not-so-flustered traveler enquired, "Tathagata, I insulted and abuse you, yet you never reacted. Did you not feel bad or hurt?". Buddha calmly responded, "Suppose you would want to give me a gift and I refuse to accept it, with whom will the gift stay? You, right? It is my choice whether I accept the gift and it is also my choice whether I accept the abuse." 

A Hindu society which has grown up on a steady diet of such stories - stories from the Panchatantra, from the Jataka, from Mahabharat, from Ramayana or from the Upanishads - such a Hindu society is geared to be at poise, be graceful and be calm. Whether or not, a child has been read out such stories by his/her grandparents, parents, uncles, aunts or teachers, the natural centuries of conditioning shines through making the child (and his/her future adult version) less susceptible to a violent reaction to abuse or hurt inflicted later on in life.

Having grown up like this, it is now but natural to wonder why does this Hindu society respond/react in the times today (especially since May 2014) with a rush of adrenaline, with anger and with 'intolerance' towards any abuse thrown at its gods, at its scriptures and at its symbols - case in point, Amazon Prime's Tandav web-series (the background can be found here and here). Are we over-reacting as a society? Are we, as many liberal individuals have pointed out, so fragile that our faith gets threatened at the drop of a hat?