Priorities for the New Government

Most of us have voted in the recently concluded general elections and did our bit of the democratic duty. Some others, who were disillusioned with the type of politics being practiced in India, didn’t vote as they had already lost their belief in the system. Whether you belong to the former category or the latter, one thing is sure; the policies and actions of the new government are going to have an effect on your life. So it is always good to have an idea about the priorities that the new government must make, or probably will make. During the week that followed the 60th Independence day of India in 2007, I had posted an article called 'Setting Priorities on the 60th Birthday.' This post is similar to that one, the only difference being that this one is for the new government that has taken charge at the centre where as the previous one was for the whole country. The following is the list of things that the new government would be having in its mind in the various sectors.

1. Agricultural Production and Distribution – The agricultural sector or the primary sector is perhaps the most important sector in a country. If the monsoon fails and the agricultural production diminishes, that invariably results in slow economic growth and sometimes inflation in an economy as inflation is “too much money chasing too few goods.” So the new government needs to make decisions to improve the agricultural production in the economy, make sure that farmers are getting good prices for their crops, remove middlemen from the system, find direct market for the farmers, create irrigational facilities and develop robust and efficient logistic and infrastructure systems for the betterment of the agricultural sector. We in India are now facing the irony of ‘scarcity amidst plenty.’ We have overflowing granaries of wheat, but still have about 20% people living in poverty and hunger. The new government needs to find a solution for this state of affairs. The public distribution system in the country needs to be perfected to overcome this impediment.
2. The Social Sector – Even when India is considered as an emerging super power, a majority in this country lives in poverty and lack of social amenities. The new government needs to bring some revolutionary changes to improve this pathetic situation. The government needs to tackle malnutrition, pass the right to education bill, give importance to skill development among the young population, take steps to increase literacy, strengthen NREGA scheme, give emphasis in improving the living conditions of the urban poor, give more importance in bringing e-governance and implement actions to improve the social infrastructure system of the country.
   
3. Internal Security – A nation just can’t develop if its people are insecure about their lives and future. That would mean that the new government should take steps to make sure that another 26/11 will not happen in the future. The internal security system of the country must be made robust so that terrorists from outside the country and from inside would find it to be impregnable. Intelligence agencies like RAW and IB should be modernised, investigative agencies like the CBI should be made more efficient and accountable, should dramatically increase the number in the police force and bring in police reforms, make action plans to tackle terrorism and look afresh at the Naxalite issue.
   
4. Foreign Policy and Diplomacy – The new government will face one of its most difficult challenges in the foreign policy front as India now has a neighbourhood on the boil. We are confronted with a lot of diplomatic challenges in our neighbourhood and in our region. The militant Taliban that is gaining strength in Afghanistan and in the North Western Frontier Province including Swat in Pakistan, humanitarian crisis in the island nation of Sri Lanka involving the Tamils, China’s growing clout in Nepal, a Bangladesh that recently had a military revolt, anti-outsourcing issues with the United States, North Korea’s nuclear ambitions etc. are some of the foreign policy issues that we are facing now. The new government needs to take steps that would force Pakistan to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure in their land, strengthen the pro-India democratic government in Bangladesh, pressurise the Sri Lankan government to address the alienation of the Lankan Tamils, confront China from playing the Nepal card against India, use diplomatic prowess to solve outsourcing issues with the United States and work along with the United Nations to prevent Pyongyang from kick-starting a nuclear arms race in the region.
   
5. The Economy – I saved the most important issue for the last. The most pressing need of the hour is the revival of the economy. It is an acceptable fact that the earlier UPA government was able to protect the Indian economy to some extend from the global economic meltdown. But more need to be done and the new government has got a clear mandate to press ahead with the good work they have been doing. The new government has to implement economic stimulus plan, bring new investment to highways and power sector, re-skill people who have lost their job owing to the economic slowdown and help them find new jobs, take measures that will bring back confidence of the exporters and the small sector, make prudent decisions on diluting the PSU stakes, bring reforms in insurance and banking sector and take steps to bring back global confidence on the Indian IT sector after the Satyam Fiasco.
   

The people of India have given the UPA alliance a clear majority and they will expect a good show by the incumbent government. We, as a country, are going through a very important phase and we need to take some decisive steps to strengthen our economy and our social sector and this is the time to do it. 

(Republished from Vox SEO, the SEO writing forum in Calpine Technologies)

Five AR Rahman Compositions You Mustn’t Miss

Since he got two Oscar awards, it has become some sort of a fad for people to write articles on AR Rahman. Being a Rahmaniac, I always love reading all those articles that celebrate the genius of the master musician. But I am not pursuing that often tread path again and would try to bring your attention to five Rahman compositions that you mustn’t miss. I am not going to speak about his popular numbers like say, Chayya Chayya, or Chinna Chinna Asai, but about those great compositions, that for some strange reasons, didn’t catch the notice of the general public. Make note that like all other Rahman compositions, these would also not attract you at once, but would overwhelm you only after you hear them for a considerable number of times.

1. Luka Chupi from Rang De Basanti – One of the most outstanding songs composed by the master. The song has been made as a conversation between a son, an Air Force Pilot, who got martyred in a war (most probably made with the Kargil war in mind) and his mother. In the song mother asks his son to come back to her as it has become evening, where as the son who is in the other world tells his mother that it is not possible for him to come back to the world where his mother lives. An emotional number that has been efficiently rendered by the great Lata Mangeshkar and Rahman himself. They compliment each other very well and the song has been extremely successful in bringing forward the great affection between a mother and her son and shows the listener how painful the life of a mother is when her son becomes a deceased soul. It is not often that in a duet Lata Mangeshkar get out-sung by her partner, but this certainly is one such occasion. In the latter part of the song, when Rahman starts singing the alaap he follows the style of his favourite singer Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and surprises all Qawwali pundits with his breath taking Hindustani Classical rendition.

2. Oru Poiyavathu Sol Kanne from Jodi – This song comes in a very rare genre in Tamil film music – Ghazal. There are three renditions of the same song in that film by three different singers – Sujatha, Srinivas and Hariharan. But it is the one by Hariharan that makes you understand that this is not yet another ordinary song that you have grown up hearing, but is a rare jewel from the music maestro. It is a love pathos song, made in the Ghazal style, sung by one of the greatest in the Hindustani classical music, Hariharan. The way in which Hariharan gives sound to the emotions of the song is really amazing and the beauty of the music is enhanced by its lyrics. This is a one-of-the-kind song and is a must hear for any music lover.

3. Sonnalum Ketpathillai from Kadhal Virus – The song starts with the use of one of Rahman’s most favorite musical instruments, the flute or the ‘pullanguzhal’. This semi classical soulful romantic number from the album Kadhal Virus is without doubt one of the best songs in the semi classical genre in Indian film music. The Carnatic music training received by both singers, Unnikrishnan and Harini, is very much evident in this great song. The clever use of chorus singers, one trademark quality of Rahman, is also quite apparent in this melodious number.

4. Theme Music of Duet – One of Rahman’s best orchestral numbers, where the song begins with an intriguing lull followed by Rahman’s trade mark humming of the chorus. Then saxophone takes the lead with the soulful rendition of the legendary Kadri Gopalnath in Kalyanavasantham raga. The song starts with silence, then picks up some pace, again silence and then takes some enthralling notes, ending up with the sound of waves crashing against the rocks. To make the composition more interesting, Rahman has added some sounds similar to that of birds in between this composition. The song moves from silence to various levels of Carnatic classical made from this very western-style musical instrument. Once you get the feel of this music after hearing it couple of times, it will take you to another world. Best heard in an environment of silence. A truly great composition that shows the musical genius of the great man.

5. Khwaja Mere Khwaja from Jodhaa Akbar – Another Rahman special, an extremely spiritual song, sung by the great man himself. One of the most amazing things about this song is that it is a “layered” song where by one singer sings the song but the listeners would feel that it has been sung by different singers. Sung in the Qawwali style, this song takes its very peculiar character because of the raw nature of Rahman’s sound. The spirituality in Rahman’s voice is the most striking feature of this song. The vocal of Rahman is being supported by harmonium, strings and hand claps. By singing this song, Rahman has shown that he is not only a great composer but also a skilful singer capable of treading new heights. A master piece and inarguably one of the greatest compositions in Indian filmy and non-filmy music.

These are just five among the umpteen numbers of great compositions by the master, whom the Time Magazine referred to as “The Mozart of Madras”. When you get some time off, don’t forget to listen to these songs as these are some of the greatest musical compositions of all times in any form of music.

(Republished from Vox SEO, the SEO writing forum in Calpine Technologies)