A month ago the Global Hunger Index was published and India was found languishing at 107^th position out of 121 countries. Obviously in our country , it is the politics that overtakes everything even at homes and instead of discussing this issue of Hunger seriously , we rather politicised it, made it Modi-Rahul debate and trivialised a serious matter like Hunger ,

So, instead of tackling the issue in its right earnest, our media, Govt and its stooges started shooting the messenger , claiming that the methology was wrong, the sample size was wrong, the survey done was faulty etc etc, instead of looking at the malaise within.

Afterall, year after year we have been languishing around this position.

So, instead of getting into this debate of METHODOLOGY and our Position on the Hunger index rather we should focus on FOOD.

First , lets have a look at the data.

In India out of every 1000 kids almost 27 die before reaching the age of 5 years. When we compare this figure with other countries we find that it is pretty high. In France and Germany it is barely 4 whereas in, China etc it is 7.

So following questions arise ;

Why do they die within 5 years of their birth?

Are they weak?

Is their immunity poor?

Do they die because of some disease that had spread in that area ?.

It is an accepted fact that the cause of children dying before their fifth birthday, is because of the fatal mix of inadequate nutrition, unhealthy environments and because their mothers are not getting enough nutrition.

Malnutrition not only makes a child and mother weak but also sick and prone to infection because of poor immunity.

So Why is this mal nutrition?

Why could they not get proper Nutrition?

Why could this issue of mal nutrition not be addressed for decades?

Why have the States not been able to address this issue in last two decades?

Is this not mis governance ?

What a Child needs to be healthy ?

After all, a person barely needs 2000- 2500 calories, approx 60- 90 gms of Protein and 45 gms of Vitamin C per day to remain healthy. A Child needs lesser calories - 1200 to 1500. And that, one can get from very basic ;

1. Breakfast ; One glass of milk, One roti/ paratha in the morning
2. Lunch ; Two- three Rotis, Dal, Sabji and Rice in afternoon and the same at night during Dinner.
3. One Lemon a day.

So the next question arises, are these kids not getting this much also, and our Battery of Govt Officials earning more than a Lac per month, could not arrange this, despite these reports ?

Lets look at the answers as to Why are n’t they getting three meals and a glass of milk?

Besides the misgovernance, I think the answer can be ;

One. Its expensive for their families to afford this much.

Two. Their food habits are such that they are unable to get 2500 calories and desired level of Protein.

But the fact is - No mother would  love to give birth to a Weak child? So, Malnutrition can not be a Choice but is a matter of COMPULSION.

Secondly, How can the data be wrong year after year ?

Hence, this high child mortality rate can not be due to Mother's choice, but is rather a RESULT of their inability to afford Nutritious diet and offcourse MISGOVERNANCE.

The Answer ?.

My Office Boy earns approx Rs 23000/ month, when I asked him about the milk , fruits and eggs intake. He bluntly replied ; he cannot afford a glass of milk every day and can afford fruits/ eggs only once in a month.

Obvioulsy, with Atta touching Rs 35 per kg, vegetables costing almost 70-100 per kg and most of the pulses APPROX Rs 100- Rs 150 per kg, its natural that they must be relying on potatoes and Dal full of water. So, his Family's protein intake is grossly inadequate.

We all know that in India people earning more than 20000/ month fall amongst the top 10% as far as income is concerned , so if my Office boy who still does not have a child to support , earning Rs23000/ month cannot meet his needs of Vitamin C, Minerals and Proteins what would be the plight of 90 percent population.

I leave it for the people now to take a call ;

Why are people malnourished?

If those earning 20k / month cannot afford nutritious diet, What kind of diet those people might be taking who are earning on barely 10k per month.  

Its high time we Consider all those who can not afford minimum 2500 calories of food daily as ; Hungry, because they can not afford One Glass of milk, Enough Rotis, Dal, Rice and vegetables to eat.

It is ridiculous to tell these poor people that - NO, No  , you are not Hungry , you are only Malnourished, particularly, when we know that, they can not afford to buy this Thali ; 

What happened in Bangalore recently due to rain was expected to happen some day.

Bangalore ( Bengaluru) in 1980s boasted of hundreds of lakes and ponds, rather it was called as a city of lakes and gardens but a recent report on lake encroachment, in Bengaluru Urban district, mentioned that  88 lakes covering an area of 1,307 acres have completely disappeared and 80% of the existing lakes are contaminated.

In 2018, Bellandur lake caught fire due to toxic waste floating on the water surface that raged for almost 30 hours. Being the largest lake of Bangalore it carries bulk of city’s sewage. In addition to raw sewage, illegal effluents are also dumped into the body containing chemicals and oils.

Till a few years ago, another lake , called as Varthur lake was a hub for migratory birds from South Asia but as the sewage started seeping in aquatic life terminated, and eventually birds stopped visiting.

The issue is not only contamination but also of disappearance. The greedy politicians, bureaucrats, contractors, after Bangalore became the IT hub constructed shopping complexes, office complexes over the Ponds. The environmentalists, the right minded citizens kept warning the people and the Administrators but as usual they were humiliated , harassed and called ; anti Development, urban Naxalites, libtards and the construction , and degradation of environment went on ; some times in the name of Development, at times in the name of religion and traditions.

People from all parts of the country kept walking in for jobs and Bangalore kept expanding and kept submerging the lakes to accommodate the increasing population and politicians, bureaucrats and contractors kept pocketing the riches.

So, we ourselves destroyed the Beauty and as Gandhiji had once said ; EARTH HAS ENOUGH TO MEET OUR NEEDS BUT NOT OUR GREEDS. The nature has paid back this year.

Today is the time to ask ourselves ; HOW MANY PLOTS/ SHOPS/FLATS  DO I OWN ? 

As a matter oof fact we need just ONE House to Live. 

This is the story of every Indian city be it Delhi, Mumbai, Simla, Mussorie, Nainital, Dehradun , Bhopal , Pune, etc., It is not only about lakes , we have not even spared the air.

The AQI of Tokyo which has a population of 3 crores plus is 36 whereas Bangalore which has a population of one crore plus has an AQI of 53 and Delhi hovers around 145 and above.

Our greedy politicians , beuraucrats and businessmen are destroying each and every city.

The WHO recommends at least 9 square metres of green space per capita, in Bengaluru, it is only 2 two square metres per capita. What is in your city ? Is it not worthwhile to find and tighten the politicians of our area on this who are sanctioning Buildings and Buildings and pocketing huge sums of money for themselves and their party.

We are virtually sitting on an environmental disaster, if Pakistan has faced it this year, it could be India’s turn next year.

There are few lessons to be learnt from what is happening around us in particular on the climatic front ;

One, Changing names of cities and roads and Symbolism does not matter. Nature is too powerful.

Two. Being religious does not matter. Nature does not care which God you worship, How you worship and What traditions you follow, what Hawans and Yagayas we do.

Three, The Politicians and the Administrative machinery they control are defunct, corrupt to the core and lack vision.

Four. Nature has intelligence, Consciousness and patience - what we call the threshold level. Once we cross that threshold level and test its patience long enough, the nature reacts and no one can then withstand its fury even the mountains and rocks crumble down.

Five. Nature wants us to live in harmony with everything around ; trees, water bodies, animals, plants , human beings and so on.

The message is LOUD AND CLEAR ; If you do not care for nature it will hit back with all its fury.

Many scientists are saying that we have already crossed the tipping point so tokenism is not going to work.

There is only one God and that is MOTHER NATURE and it does not care whether you worship it every morning or not  , all it looks at is ; Do we genuinely Care  for it , love it, nurture it and live in harmony with it.  

Mr Rishi Sunak on Tuesday scripted history when he was appointed by King Charles III as Britain's first Indian-origin Prime Minister after being elected unopposed .

However, British minister Mr Alok Sharma, a minister of Indian Origin lost his position in the cabinet in a reshuffle by new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

  I am as proud and delighted, as I was when Dr Amartya Sen and Dr S Chandrashekhar won the Nobel, when Ms Indra Nooyi and Mr Sunder Pichai became the CEOs of  Multinational Companies. There are many others who attained similar accomplishments and their achievements always gave me delight and offcourse a message. 

To understand that message we need to read the following between the lines and grasp the quintessential elements.

The First Interview 

In his first interview after becoming the PM of UK , Mr Rishi said ;

“ Right now OUR country is facing profound economic crisis.

He would confront the "profound economic crisis” with compassion and lead a government of “integrity, professionalism and accountability at all levels.”

He also lauded former UK PM Liz Truss, paying tribute to her he said ;

“ SHE MEANT GROWTH FOR THE COUNTRY AND AS A RESULT WAS A LITTLE RESTLESS TO GET THINGS MOVING AND MADE MISTAKES”.

He vowed to earn the trust saying, "Trust is earned and i will earn yours”.

Read his speech carefully and we would realise following ;

1. He said ; OUR COUNTRY i.e UK so, he is a Patriotic Britisher. Patriotism does not come by Birth and which God one worships and how one worships as many in India these days are prophessing. Patriotism is nurtured.  

2. He talked of Earning the Trust, which is an alien value here. Here what matters is Power, deceit, treachery and to understand that - 

Please go through the events that took place before Mr Rishi was selected by the Conservatives as their  PM  ;

Truss had to resign just 44 days after becoming PM, Boris Johnson resigned after serving for approx 3 years, Theresa May had resigned as PM and before that David Cameron had resigned because of the Loss in BREXIT refrendum. They were all from One Political Party.

No one had to huddle their Ministers in AC Coaches and Chartered planes to some remote place / hotel and keep ministers as hostages to remain in power. When their Ministers felt uneasy , they left their Leader and the PM bowed down. 

So, things are different there . Rise of Mr Rishi Sunak in a Conservative Party is like the rise of a Muslim or a Christian leader in BJP. Although, it was not like this in UK always. 

Meghnad Desai a renowned Indian economist settled in UK, therefore, very rightly said ;

" Indian commentators are all talking of an Indian running the UK and hoping that the free trade agreement will now be an easy walkover. Steady on, I would advise. The UK needs its new prime minister to look after itself. It is a matter of pride that a person with ancestral roots in India is now the prime minister of the UK . But he will be no more Indian than Barak Obama was Kenyan".

Such a lovely refreshing evening drink for 79 million Indians- Liquor, is in news these days for all bad reasons.

It is really perplexing and confusing, that a country where almost 79 million people consume this refreshing drink have little knowledge about the policy that governs its sale and manufacture, the attitude is ; . humey to peeney sey matlab hai !

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Having served in a liquor manufacturing company many years back , although for a short duration, I realized that due to our hypocrisy and double standards the rules pertaining to liquor trade are not only outdated but they out rightly encourage corruption, the state Govts have virtually turned a blind eye to this corruption in the guise of performing its social responsibility and to earn revenue.

It is therefore important to know the rules, so that  we do not inadvertently become a part of this politics over liquor and also at the same time be able to raise voice to stop this corruption.

Let me explain this.

This is one product for which almost 25 licenses are needed to start a (liquor) manufacturing plant .

So obviously, when there are so many tables and hands through which your application has to pass, it is needless to emphasise the important role, money would play.

Two. Right from the plant/ factory/ distillery to the retailer it is the Govt which monopolizes the whole process. ( Its difficult to find one service that Govt is able to manage efficiently and effectively ; education - No, Health care - No, Railways -No, Law and order - No ).  The excise department officials are posted in the Distillery / Plant , so that all the (liquor) bottles right from the assembly line are accounted for. So, even the Store in the factory is under the control of Excise department. Some may claim what’s wrong in it? Imagine what 3-4 Govt officials posted in the liquor distillery, would be doing the whole day , yes you guessed it right ;  when we all go to bar to enjoy the drinks the excise department officials posted at the distillery might have to just go to their office to get sozzled up and for that , the owner of the factory would not mind obliging them by offering a car also. So, the Store ledger maintained in the factory is fudged/ manipulated, for instance ; instead of showing 5000 bottles manufactured, may be only 3000 bottles are taken on charge. What happens to the balance 2000 ? Please go further.

Three. The State Govts manage the ware houses where all liquor that is to be sold in the specific region is kept. The demand/ requisition for liquor mentioning brand and quantity is sent to the ware house by the retailer. The ware house is also controlled by a senior excise department official.  there may be many ware houses in the region/ state, all manged by the Excise officials.

On receiving the demand, the Excise Commissioner or any District Excise Officer authorised in that behalf by the Excise Commissioner, managing the Ware house , intimates the licensee i.e the manufacturer who shall forthwith dispatch such quantity of liqour as may be required from the distillery and this will then be supplied to the retailer. The ware houses have their own specific area to cater.

So far so good, prima facie looks to be a good procedure. But as they say there is more to it than what meets the eye, the manufacturer by obliging the officials at the plant has already manipulated the distillery ledger and has 2000 bottles unaccounted for, which are not shown in the ledger( refer serial two above). So, he has created a separate avenue to escape the tax dragnet. This unaccounted liquor is sent straight to the retailer / shop and not via ware house. This shop as a matter of fact might be owned by the manufacturer himself.

Four. The Govt has not left any stone unturned to ensure that there is corruption every where. So even the retailers have to apply for license and the shops are allotted through a process of auction, which is also not fair due to issues like ; cartelization, monopolies etc of the retailers. Invariably one would find that the manufacturer himself would also be owning number of liquor shops in various towns. Now, its so simple a portion of liquor is supplied through ware houses and a portion comes straight from factories to the shop.

Everyone in this business is hand in glove ; the liquor traders, the manufacturers , the excise department officials and off course how can the politician and bureaucrats be not part of it.

As a result , liquor in India is sold at shops where you cannot spend more than a minute, there are very few decent bars in the town and if there are any, they are very expensive (so people carry their bottles to dhabas on the high ways) the liquor that is sold at the shops is expensive because of heavy taxes levied on it (In many states the Govt collects almost Rs 85 via taxes out of every Rs 100 spent by a buyer.

Why can’t the liquor be sold in malls/ shopping complexes, why cann’t wine be available on grocery shops, why the liquor be taxed so heavily? Why do we get poor quality liquor? Why are we forcing our countrymen to consume liquor which has high alcohol content? Why cann’t the liquor be purchased on line ?

There is no denying the fact that Liquor is harmful for health if taken in excessive quantities and we often find its adverse consequences on the individual’s health and also on their families, particularly in low income groups.

If the Govts are serious about the health and happiness of its citizens , they must either close down all liquor manufacturing facilities and retail shops or else remove these unnecessary barriers which encourage corruption and are making good quality liquor inordinately expensive and beyond the means of a common man.

So, not surprised, when Kejriwal tried easing up the norms and removing few barriers, obviously there has to be politics. The only mistake that he committed was that when the LG( Lt Governor) changed the policy at the last moment , he should have just called off its implementation. 

It would be naive to believe that the Govts and its huge machinery would not be knowing all this, but then the question arises - why are n't they opening up, why are n't they removing these barriers ? 

Its high time we realize that - Hur gate pey Chowkidar baathaney sey Security nahin acchi hoti hai, phir chowkidar key upar bhi chowkidar rakhna padta hai aur phir uske upar bhi and it goes on.