Disruptive Technologies, Education and Some Social Issues » Politics n Media

Smart City and the Vizhinjam Port – Real Estate Conspiracy ?

Kenney Jacob — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 06:55:32 +0000

The following is a well written comment which I got on my blog post about booming real estate market in Kerala. He is skeptical about it, but some of his points are valid. Read the comment below.

Smart City and Vizhinjam port are the trump cards that the “real estate Mafia” is flashing to justify the high prices in kerala. If you could look back a couple of years, the vallarpadam project was also supposed to a project that to change the face of Kerala. But, now that the project has taken off, it is evident that it is a failure. It is not even reaching 10% of the turnover needed to break even.

I am bigining to suspect that the vizhinjam port is also such a pipe dream. Why would ships want to dock at trivandrum and load/unload from here, considering that the industrial regions of India are far to the north in Gujarat and Maharastra; and these places already have ports. Containers unloaded in Trivandrum will have to take the road to reach industrial belt, and i believe that road transportation is considerably more expensive than sea. Even if there is some logistical advantage to taking such an oblique route, the companies will still have to use Kerala’s delapidated roads. Why would they do that considering tamil nadu(and probably gujarat …) has an excellent highway system — Chennai has a 17 KM express highway from the port to the main highway.

Similarly i am not buying the Smart City project either. It is expected to generate 1 lakh jobs? If this is the case, which are the companies that are going to invest here? Why would they want to invest such huge amount of money here when there is no shortage for SEZ elsewhere. Only thing i can think of, that kerala has an advantage in is human resourses. But Keralites are more than willing to go outside and work. And we all know that the cost of operation and setting up in Kerala i bound to be higher.

To me all this seems like a bunch of myths perpetuated by the “real estate mafia” for furthering the prices in Kerala. When i came back to kerala after 2 years, i was really shocked by the amount of money that was there with the prople. Every house had a car and people where spending money lavishly on jewellery. I was left wondering where all this money had come from. There definitely wasn’t any industrial growth to speak about. IT had grown a bit, but is still nothing in scale comapred to Bangalore. tourism supposedly has reduced. Only thng looking up was the Rubber prices; But that alone cannot account for the 100′s of branches of Muthoot group adorning every corner of every city. So, i am left to draw the conclusion that all the money is coming from the real estate deals. Savings that NRIs had that they decided to invest in flats in Kochi and money spent by big name real estate players in building flats that have gone unsold.

What do you think ? Is his analysis valid ? Are we being manipulated by real estate people ?

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Why do Politicians Hate Anna Hazzare ?

Kenney Jacob — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 04:54:26 +0000

I have been interacting in a few forums where many of the members are actively involved with either the left or the congress party. Some of the major points discussed there were

Anna Hazzare is a passing phenomena
People are stupid to think that Jan Lokapl will reduce corruption
Apolitical movements will never be successful
Anna Hazzare is a threat to democracy
Anna Hazzare is a creation of the corporate media
Anna Hazzare is a fascist
He is supported by the CIA !!!

There were many other points against Anna Hazzare and his ways. The general tone of the discussion was against Hazzare and they seemed to be afraid of him and surprised at the support he is getting from normal people. It is not surprising that politicians hate Anna Hazzare, after all he stole the limelight from them.

We have seen strikes and Bandhs and it has come to a point where we dont care anymore. In Trivandrum there was a road block by DYFI and drivers were taking another route, no complains, no emotions neither support nor protest. People have gone totally indifferent towards political parties. Still 200 common people turned out at Vytilla in support of Anna Hazzare a few months back and that scares the normal politician.

The media is giving its full support to Anna Hazzare and thats also worrying the parties, they have been doing these kinds of protests and media seems to report it in a very boring manner, but when it comes to Anna Hazzare the reporter and journalists seem to find a new energy. Media is only looking for some news which people are interested in, today its Anna, tomorrow its someone else. But right now he is getting way more media attention than the cream of politicians out there.

The latest development is that the congress is now playing its cards correct, they are partially successful in establishing a connection between Hazzare and the BJP, I never liked the Swami with Hazzare, it surely gives out a wrong message. The damage is done, and congress and the political parties will surely overcome the Hazzare phenomena, if not congress then its BJP and the difference when it comes to corruption is nil.

Whatever these parties may say or do, Hazzare is successful in one thing, he showed to the entire world that change is still possible and people have not fully lost hope. Lets pray he succeeds in bringing about some change.

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The Need to Extend Democracy to Religious Organizations and Political Parties

Kenney Jacob — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 03:01:39 +0000

The freedom fighters who gave up their lives for India did it so that we could live in a better world, a world where leaders are chosen by the people and a world where fairness is the norm. We look down upon other countries where Kings still rule and where military controls the government. We hold the concept of democracy very dear, still we fail to see or fail to act when its being hijacked.

We kept our mouths shut the lobbying group called inter church council displayed extreme arrogance, turned a blind eye to the wishes of its community, broke laws of the country and acted totally against fairness. They have brought shame to the entire Christian community in Kerala.

Political parties are also not different, during the last election time we saw VS Achuthananthan being sidelined even though he is a popular leader. Orders come from the polit bureau or the high command. Do they care whether its the same thing that the members wants ?

It is time to bring internal democracy to organizations like the Church and the political parties. Its time to say to our religious leaders that your role is confined only to religious matters. For everything else, especially handling the wealth of the community we need a democratically elected committee. Let priests and Bishops handle spiritual matters alone as God has no interest in the worldly wealth.

Political parties also need a similar system, I want to be able to nominate candidates instead of choosing from the ones who are given to me by the party. I dont want to be ruled by someone who is selected by the polit bureau or the so called high command.

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The splendor of Gods Own Country . El Dorado is here world!!

jkeverywhere — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 07:11:56 +0000

The whole world watches in disbelief as the famed El Dorado comes alive albeit in a different time zone to the one that’s was believed to be. The Spartan way of life of the Travancore royal family never matched the splendor of what they endowed to the temple. The treasures, the endowments of the theocratic state of Thiruvithamkoor to Sree Padmanabha the Lord to whom the state was bequeathed, have well remained where it was .

We should thank them for that. Saving riches from greedy eyes of Tipu Sultan and eager beaver British eyes, it must have been a challenge. When North India was plundered by the marauding Persians and the greedy British we lost significant amount of not just money and valuables but a part of us a heritage. It still pricks when I see the Kohinoor adorning the British Crown and wonder who sits on that grand peacock throne sat by Mughal Luminaries now.

This gift what was revealed over the past week whispers to me “Boy your people have not lost it all”. We have something and in fact not just something but plenty to happy about. The furore over who gets it seems unwarranted. We all get it. It is a part of us. But that doesn’t mean it goes the Robinhood style “divided among all”. More than money its heritage for us and all our future generation to cherish and for the rest of the world to see the splendor of Gods own country, to be awed by our artistic skills and a reminder that are we are wealthy still and will be ever more. We make a museum let the world be awed by what we have. Let them see that the God has his personal locker here and not anywhere else. Rejoice for we own a fortune and let it remain for it was intended to be used in times of grave need very grave need. (We must still be ashamed of selling gold pre 1990)

Let the temple itself be the trustee never changing hands but we all get to see it, marvel at it. In the splendor and richness of Sree Padmanabha I rejoice and though we are a democracy for once I say Hail the king!! and may he live long!!. My salutations to the most frugal Royals….those taxes were never squandered.Similar Posts:

To All Brothers in Shivsena From Kerala

Kenney Jacob — Sun, 03 Jul 2011 04:17:47 +0000

Previously I had blogged about a poster I found in Kochi in which Shivsena claims to save Kochi. The post got many comments including threats from many. From those comments I noticed that many in Kerala are misinformed about what Shivsena stands for. Check the comment below.

Another comment

These guys think Shiv sena is the army of Lord Shiva which is a huge misconception. They are a very regional party and its named after the Matratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji. Their main ideology is that Maharashtra belongs to Maharashtrians and everyone else should be treated inferior, they are a party which should not even exist outside Maharashtra.

Check their website.

The entire website is not even in Hindi, its Marathi. The outline image thats shown in the center is Maharashtra, the statue is of king Chhatrapati Shivaji. Why should a Keralite join a movement for Maharashtrians ?Similar Posts:

“Apple A Day” Owners And the Media

Kenney Jacob — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 02:34:52 +0000

I am sure you all have heard of the builder “Apple A Day” who is in a lot of trouble recently. I wanted to write this post because the media is not saying the truth or they are not giving us the correct perspective.

The owners of “Apple A Day” has been portrayed as cheaters, the media reports as if their plan itself was to get money from people and cheat them. But is that the truth ? Is it just another business that went bust ?

“Apple A Day” is a builder, just like any other builder they also play with other peoples money. Builders announce a project, collect money from people and then only they start bulding it. Its almost as if the person who buys the flat is investing in the company or giving them a loan.

“Apple A Day” owners are defenitly not cheaters, they are simply bad business men who could not properly manage their business, its cash flow and hence could not complete projects in time. But how is the media portraying them ?

Lets take the case of a car loan, after a few months if someone fails to pay the EMI will you call them a cheater ? Will you treat him as if he took the loan with the only aim of cheating the bank ? He is simply a person whose plans went wrong. And this could happen to any of you anytime.

We pay taxes, we get many promises and most of them are not delivered. Whom will we call a cheater for this ? Many of you have invested in the share market, if such a company goes bust will you say that the owners cheated you ? Will the media portray as if its a planned scam ?

We all are trying to promote entrepreneurship in this state, if this is how we treat a failed entrepreneur I dont think many will come forward.

To add spice to all of this, is it possible that some other builders were also involved in the failure of this company ? Could is be possible that a few competitors played their cards well to see that this company does not take off. In the businesss world there is no mercy.

I am sure you all have heard of the builder “Apple A Day”, especially from the news papers referring to them as “Apple Scam”. I wanted to write this post because the media is playing to our emotions and giving us a totally distorted picture.

“Apple A Day” is a builder, just like any other builder they also play with other peoples money. Builders announce a project, collect money from people and then only they start building it. Its almost as if the person who buys the flat is investing in the company or giving them a loan.

“Apple A Day” owners being cheaters is highly unlikely, they are simply bad business men who could not properly manage their business, its cash flow and hence could not complete projects in time. They failed to keep promises, and they breached a written contract. For that should they be treated like this ?

We all are trying to promote entrepreneurship in this state, if this is how we treat a failed entrepreneur I dont think many will come forward. The government should create a legal framework to protect the interests of the common man who buys flats and apartments, there should be a mechanism to make sure that the projects are either delivered or the money is given back with interest. Parading a failed entrepreneur like this is not going to help, no matter what the reasons for the failure are.

To add a bit spice to all this, is it possible that some other builders were also involved in the failure of this company ? Could is be possible that a few competitors played their cards well to see that this company does not take off. In the business world there is no mercy.Similar Posts:

The Endosulfan debate, are we blind ?

Kenney Jacob — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 05:08:43 +0000

This post is taken from a Facebook Note Written by Jobin Martin

Friday 29th April is “Harthal” in Kerala. It can be called a state sponsored Harthal, because the ruling Coalition the Left front has called for this Harthal. I think most of the people in Kerala(except for a few UDF leaders) stand in full support for this strike. But I wonder, what do these people know? Or have they tried to understand anything about the Endosulfan problem, other than what they have read from the newspapers? So I am trying to explain something, which was not known to me until yesterday.

Isn’t Endosulfan banned in Kerala?

Yes, it is.

Why does the Kerala Govt want Endosulfan to be banned all over India?

Because we love our country and all the people in it, no matter whether he is Keralite or not

Is Endosulfan available in Kerala?

Yes, though it is banned in Kerala, it is freely available in Tamilnadu and other neighbouring states. So people don’t have any trouble using it in Kerala.

Has the state Govt tried to enforce this ban?

I think so, but don’t have any concrete evidence on it.

Why is the Central Govt keen on using Endosulfan?

Because Endosulfan is the cheapest Insectiside available, which is produced by Hindustan Insectisides limited (HIL) and a lot of other private firms.

So from the Q&A section as we move forward we find that Endosulfan has produced serious health effects in Kasargod district in Kerala. In Kasargod district Endosulfan was used via Aerial spraying by Plantation Corporation and has resulted in Mental retardation and several Congenital malformations. I had the opportunity to work in Kasargod district and during my stay there what I could understand was that, since victims of Endosulfan got so many benefits from the state govt, victims of almost all natural diseases or malformations were enlisted under Endosulfan victims list.So the list kept on growing and keeps on growing even now.

Kerala is one of those states using the minimum amount of endosulfan,and the states which grow agricultural crops and grapes( they dip the full bunch in endosulfan) have not reported any adverse effects. It was the improper usage(aerial spraying) by plantation corporation which resulted in the Endosulfan tragedy.So the fight of V S Achutanandan to ban Endosulfan is not out of sympathy for the poor victims but for petty political gains.

What could happen is Endosulfan is banned?

Endosulfan is and off patent insectiside which is produced in bulk in India at very cheap rates.

We don’t have an insectiside to replace Endosulfan in near future.

Agricultural production is set to drop by more than 25% if Endosulfan is banned.

Kerala is not an agricultural state and it won’t be much affected by this ban, but where does our food comes from?

India will have to rely on patented and costly insectisides produced by corporates once endosulfan is banned.

So the net result will be growing poverty, for just petty political gains for the LDF/VS. I don’t think any of the leaders are aware of the dire consequences of their actions. It is time we think, find an alternative and then voice for ban.

Even though I was not pro LDF, I had supported this campaign, but from many experiences I had in my life, I know that what political campaigns are and how newspapers publish news.Most newspapers won’t publish any news which is against public opinion, so the truth remains covered. I never came across a pro endosulfan report in any newspaper in Kerala. So once I had to choose between my inflated ego and the bright future of my country, I decided to rein my ego and stand by the central govt for a wonderful future.

I was with VS till yesterday, I used to wonder why the Central govt is so keen in promoting Endosulfan,but now I understand what can happen, how our country will be in chaos. At Stockholm convention, India will be looking forward for consensus in preventing the ban from happening. I too look forward to see what is going to happen, let us leave the past as it is and try to heal the wounds and look forward to a bright future where no one is left hungry.

But I wonder, what do these people know? Or have they tried to understand anything about the Endosulfan problem, other than what they have read from the newspapers? So I am trying to explain something, which was not known to me until yesterday.

Isn’t Endosulfan banned in Kerala?

Yes, it is.

Why does the Kerala Govt want Endosulfan to be banned all over India?

Because we love our country and all the people in it, no matter whether he is Keralite or not

Is Endosulfan available in Kerala?

Yes, though it is banned in Kerala, it is freely available in Tamilnadu and other neighbouring states. So people don’t have any trouble using it in Kerala.

Has the state Govt tried to enforce this ban?

I think so, but don’t have any concrete evidence on it.

Why is the Central Govt keen on using Endosulfan?

Because Endosulfan is the cheapest Insectiside available, which is produced by Hindustan Insectisides limited (HIL) and a lot of other private firms.

I had the opportunity to work in Kasargod district and during my stay there what I could understand was that, since victims of Endosulfan got so many benefits from the state govt, victims of almost all natural diseases or malformations were enlisted under Endosulfan victims list.So the list kept on growing and keeps on growing even now.

Kerala is one of those states using the minimum amount of endosulfan,and the states which grow agricultural crops and grapes( they dip the full bunch in endosulfan) have not reported any adverse effects. It was the improper usage(aerial spraying) by plantation corporation which resulted in the Endosulfan tragedy.So the fight of V S Achutanandan to ban Endosulfan is not out of sympathy for the poor victims but for petty political gains.

What could happen is Endosulfan is banned?

Endosulfan is and off patent insectiside which is produced in bulk in India at very cheap rates.
We don’t have an insecticide to replace Endosulfan in near future.
Agricultural production is set to drop by more than 25% if Endosulfan is banned.
Kerala is not an agricultural state and it won’t be much affected by this ban, but where does our food comes from?
India will have to rely on patented and costly insecticides produced by corporates once endosulfan is banned.

Manorama once again sleeps while the world laughs

jkeverywhere — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 09:15:49 +0000

Press was enjoying every bit of it showing off the power of Indian Cricket team which a reader would love to read about. But our own so called biggest news media in the state, Malayala Manorama got a bit carried away and couldn’t event recognize the some funny guy’s “Photoshop” trick. Oops!!

Take a look at the following pictures. The first one is Ricky Ponting’s reaction to a misfield when the game was at the peak of intensity. The other is the victory celebration of Yuvraj Singh whose knock made us through.

Don’t know about the guy who got the idea of merging the two pictures, but I’m sure he would be damn funny. Facebook, twitter and all kinds of Social media were laughing at this pic and even a kid would’ve understood that is some good image editing. That is where Manorama online got it all wrong. The article with ” The Pic ” came in Manorama on March 26th . Seems like the reporters were too busy writing fake stories, they didn’t get enough time to analyze the “Fake” Picture.

And to add to that fact, Manorama recently started a campaign making fun of social media, trying place itself as a controller or score keeper. Maybe they should stop lifting content from social media. Any kindergarten kid can take the largest vernacular bigoted newspaper for a ride.Similar Posts:

Is the LDF government trying to bribe news papers ?

Kenney Jacob — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 03:49:25 +0000

I am not a regular newpaper reading person, but whenever I see one lying somewhere I just flip the pages and these days every newspaper has many ads in it from the government.

Today morning I was flipping through the Mathrubhumi and found 2 full pages of advertisement side by side. One was about governments achievements in the last 5 years and another one was about the university stadium and some flag hand over.

Two Full Page Govt Ad in Mathrubhumi

I felt those ads are a total waste of public money and decided to find out how much ad space is being taken by govt ads. In that 20 page newspaper 5 pages are government ads alone and most of them are created just for the sake of publishing and advertisement.

This is not just the case with Mathrubhumi or just today. Government has been spending money on silly news paper ads at least for the past 1 month in a similar manner.

Is this an indirect election campaign by the LDF government at the expense of tax payers? Or is it an indirect bribe by the government to these news papers to stay soft on controversial and possibly damaging news about the government ?

Whatever be the motive this is total waste of public money. Every time I see such an ad I feel robbed.Similar Posts:

My country on sale … Part 2 of a few more to come

JMJ — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 13:55:51 +0000

Target Rating Point

Click here to read the previous part – The new circus called Media

Where did it all start? Every one has been for the self regulation of the fourth pillar of Demo-crazy. We saw a small glimpse of this self regulation when India’s 9/11 happen in Mumbai. We saw how the self regulated media fought for their TRP’s at the cost of everything else.

And the excuse they gave at the end of the day? In the absence of any specific regulations they did their best at self regulation. So everything is fair in love and war…

This was just the dress rehearsal of of what was to come… Then came the elections. What better time than the elections to implement self regulation. And where would you get better customers than our own dear corrupt politicians. Any and every politician was made to pay for every inch … every second of coverage they got in the media… both positive and negative. And for additional charges they would even show you ahead on the opinion polls.

And our poor little politicians who are struggling to hide all their black money, not very happily parted with some of it. And hey it was all kept black – you dont want to give election commission any reasons to bother you… do you?

Click here to watch a discussion on NDTV about paid news.

Video Clip courtesy NDTV & youtube.com

Thumbnail courtesy discoverohio.comSimilar Posts: