Protect Bangalore - from "maddening" developments

March & April 2009:

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike (BBMP) decides to put 100 feet wide road cutting through the verdent and biodiversity rich University of Agricultural Sciences (GKVK Bangalore). BBMP officials have ruthlessly broken the processive wall of the campus on the Yelahanka roadside and illegally felled tens of trees and started the road building exercise in blatant violation of the law.

ESG-India and other volunteers held a protest against this on 9th April 2009.

April 9, 2009:

Puttenahalli Tank was handed over by Karnataka Forest Department to BBMP for a Rs. 12-crore development project that includes a jogging track, children’s play ground, butterfly park, illumination and introduction of ornamental fish.

(Source: http://www.hindu.com/2009/04/09/stories/2009040959110300.htm )

On 16 March 2009, the Division Bench of the Hon'ble High Court of Karnataka consisting of Chief Justice Mr. P. D. Dinakaran and Justice Mr. V. G. Sabahit directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahangara Palike (BBMP - Bangalore's civic authority) to strictly comply with the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act (KTCP Act) and Karnataka Tree Preservation Act (KTP Act) when dismissing BBMP's appeal to carry on its ambitious mega project of road widening unconditionally.

(Source: http://www.esgindia.org/campaigns/Tree%20felling/Hasire%20Usiru/press/PressRel_ESG_HC_KTCPappliestoRoadWidening_020409.html )

April 13 & 14, 2009:

Earlier this week(April 13 and 14), the Bangalore Metro Rail corporation (BMRCL) has demolished over 500 feet of Lalbagh's wall and cut down 5 eucalyptus trees inside Lalbagh. BMRCL proposes to have a Metro station inside Lalbagh itself - Bangalore's distinctive botanical garden!

• 1135.18 square metres of Lalbagh Botanical Garden has been acquired for a Metro Station.
• When BMRCL sought clearance, it claimed that trees on Nanda Road will only be pruned, not cut. Now in response to an RTI application BMRCL has confirmed that 323 trees will be cut on Nanda – RV road. That is ALMOST ALL TREES ON NANDA ROAD WILL BE CUT.
  

On 16th March 2009, the High Court of Karnataka ruled in a PIL filed by Environment Support Group and ors. (WP 7107/2008) categorically instructing all urban infrastructure development agencies to "strictly follow" the provisions of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act (KTCPA) and the Karnataka Tree Preservation Act. This order is binding on the BBMP, BMRCL and BDA.

So...

• Where are we heading to?

• What are we trying to achieve by taking on the trees in the name of infrastructure for a "developed" nation?

• Is the quality of life going to improve by replacing the trees with Metro rail system, or a wide road?

• Assuming that the city needs a Metro system, is not there an amicable way of achieving it?

• Is the course of development in infrastructure end at the completion of currently planned Metro and other road-widening projects? Or, have we decided to put an end to all trees in the city in the years to come?

Q. What is that you as a concerned citizen can do?
A. Answer is very simple. Join your hands and participate in the protests called by organizations like Environment Support Group (http://www.esgindia.org)

Q. Are you thinking if the trees of Lalbagh & R.V.Road be saved by few protests and PILs filed by an organization like ESG India?
A. Trees may not be saved! Probably all 323 trees marked for felling would disappear in next few weeks. Authorities may go against the court directives as all of us know how powerful is the money lobby. BUT... What is important is YOUR participation. It is perfectly alright as long as the future documents - "Metro system and other development projects in Bangalore were built over the death of hundreds of trees, against a protest where large number of citizens took part"

Q. Why is it "alright" to lose the game when the concern is genuine?
A. If I could draw an analogy, when you are asked to exercise your franchise, you have to vote for the most eligible candidate. The candidate you voted for, may not get elected. Because, who gets elected is what the majority votes for. Should that stop you from voting for the right candidate? Not at all. We have to vote for the right candidate. But, who gets elected to the parliament is what the majority voted. WE GET THE GOVERNMENT WE DESERVE (as a majority).

- madhukara

What can Captain Gopinath do as a MP?

Over morning breakfast chat, my friend asked this question.

What can Captain Gopinath do as a MP?

I replied, "I DO NOT KNOW. I DO NOT HAVE AN ANSWER"

This question is not just limited to Captain Gopinath, or just Bangalore South loksabha constituency. Applies to all decent individuals who are contesting this time.

Some thoughts on this, with Captain Gopinath just as an example

1) Captain Gopinath, if at all gets elected, can not do more harm than any of the established politicians

2) If he wins, that may bring confidence in more and more of the responsible citizens from participating in future elections

3) Win of people of the kind of Captain Gopinath... hmm... even though not a win, ... a defeat with respectable number of votes would bring an awakening "locally" in the beginning, and "across the country" over a period of time. Many such small changes in our politics may transform the way public thinks about their participation, over a period of time

4) Gradual public awakening may change the way our current-politicians think of the public
Any positive change in the current scenario, however gradual, is always welcome.

At the end, we get the government we deserve. That is perfectly okay, as long as we voted honestly for the right candidate.

So, our duty ends in exercising our franchise in electing good candidates. Results of that should be left for the time to decide. Is not that the whole idea behind GITA?

Why vote for people like Captain Gopinath?

Coming Loksabha election is something special. Some of the prominent public personalities have submitted their nominations. Captain Gopinath, Mallika Sarabhai, Meera Sanyal are standing as independent candidates. Mona Shah, an opthalmic surgeon, is representing Professional Party of India in South Mumbai. Just read the news in the morning newspaper that some swamiji - Sri Gowrishankara Swamiji - is standing for the election in one of the loksabha constituencies in Tumkur representing Samajvadi party.

I am from Bangalore South. At least in the Bangalore South loksabha constistuency, all these years there was no deserving candidate to vote for. The only options are - vote for the best among the worst, or invalidate your vote. Unfortunately, in my secular socialist democratic republic of India, voting is caste and religion based. Majority of the Brahmin votes go for a B.J.P candidate. In case of other two "higher-castes" of Gowda and Lingayat, it highly depends on the caste of the candidate. Congress party used to bag most of the muslim vote bank, and the votes of the backward sect is sold based on metres of sarees and litres of liquor.

News of Captain Gopinath contesting from Bangalore South as an independent candidate has come as a respite to many of the confused voters. I have just few points to say why we should elect people like Captain Gopinath:

1. He is not making any false promises. He is not promising colour TVs, broadband connections to the poor. In his own words:

I envision a governance guided by a Citizen’s Committee, which would serve as a platform for every individual’s voice to be heard. A platform where problems and issues could be discussed and solved in real time instead of the usual political strategy of filing it with a false promise of dealing with it in time. I want to be the most accessible People’s representative in India.
(Source: http://votecaptaingopi.com/Captain_Gopi.htm)

2. He is not trying to coo any community. He is not a representative of either "pseudo-Hindutva" practised by BJP, or "pseudo-secularism" practised by Janatha Dal or Congress. He is facing the election as an Indian.

3. He has a proven track record. He has made a difference to our society. He is not corrupt. He is a visionary.

4. Nobody can challenge that he is the best, in the present scenario, among all the candidates contesting from Bangalore South.

Just because few of the educated Indians vote for him, he may not win this election. I am least worried if he loses the election. Our duty as Indians - I repeat, "Indians" (not Brahmins, Gowdas, Lingayats, Hindus, Christians and Muslims, etc) - is to think well before exercising our valuable vote.

By voting for people like Captain Gopinath, Meera Sanyal, etc., irrespective of whether they win or lose, Indian public is going to write a preface to a new era in Indian constitution. Such an action may bring a transformation in our constitution, governance in the years to come.

- madhukara
gpitta at gmail dot com

(Opinion expressed here is purely of the author. The website is no way responsible for this.)

Nokia, and the Falling Consumer Demand

Nokia’s warning on fading consumer demand a wake-up call for rivals

PHONE MAKER FACING TOUGHER COMPETITION IN ENTRY MKTS, ITS POWERHOUSE TILL NOW

NOKIA blamed price-cutting by rivals for its loss of market share this quarter, but its warning may be a sign that profitable growth at the rates the industry has been enjoying is nearing its limit.

   Coming at the end of a week in which the world’s top wireless chip maker said it was seeing signs that consumer demand for phones was slowing, the news from Nokia, the world’s biggest cell phone maker, sent out waves of alarm to investors primed to flee at the first sign of trouble.

   Nokia has lost more than 18% of its value since August 29, including an 8% plunge for its US shares on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.

   Although most analysts agreed the market reaction was overdone — Nokia shares fell to their lowest level in nearly three years — there was bad news for the wider industry in the company’s short statement and later conference call.
   Nokia cited weaker consumer confidence in several markets after bearish comments from chip makers Qualcomm and Texas Instruments earlier in the week. The phone maker said it was facing tougher competition in entry markets, its powerhouse in recent years.

   Nokia said it was protecting its profit at the price of losing market share if necessary, saying it had made a tactical decision not to be drawn into a price war. But several sources said rivals such as Samsung, Sony Ericsson and LG as well as a host of smaller phone makers had likely been responding to price cuts from Nokia, which commands a 40% share of the market.

   Nokia, which said on Friday that phone and services margins would likely dip below 20% this quarter from just over 20% last quarter, may simply have reached its limit. Nokia, as far as we can make out, has been slashing prices quite a lot over the last few months or so.

It’s the first time I can recall such a bearish comment since shipments of their iconic 3310/3330 candybar phones collapsed overnight in first quarter of 2004.” Nomura analyst Richard Windsor said it could take a quarter or two “before normality resumes.

Chronic Oversupply: Nokia stuck to its forecast, raised two months ago, for the overall handset market to grow at least 10% in volume this year from the 1.14 billion phones that were sold last year — although it has said the market will shrink in euro terms.

   But many question if the industry can afford to continue cutting prices at such a rate that a billion plus new phones are sold every year.
   Growth is already slowing from the 16% increase seen in 2007 as mature markets such as western Europe and the US become saturated.

London, Learn to Showcase Your Prosperity the Beijing Way

Olympics: A showcase of China's prosperity

China's monumental showcase, the Olympics, begins on the auspicious Chinese "eighth of the eighth" - August 8, 2008, at 8 pm. Since it won the Olympic bid in 2001, it has pulled out all the stops to weave a spectacular "Tong yi ge menxiang, Tong yi ge shij" (or "One world, one dream") event.

For China, the Games, with a whopping $2 billion budget (but short of Athens's $2.4 billion), is not a mere sporting event but a chance to show the world that after three decades of reclusive socialism, it has leapt into the big league following three decades of economic "open door".

The technocratic fourth generation of leaders under President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao want to use the Olympics to showcase how prosperous and advanced the country really is.

As a result, China is under intense media scrutiny. The press has raked up its human rights record and put the dormant issues of Tibet and Taiwan under the scanner. It has also put a spotlight on contentious domestic issues such as unrest in the Uighur province of Xinjiang and widespread Tibetan protests in provinces such as Gansu and Qinghai.

More recently, the epic 130-day Olympic torch relay ran amuck in cities such as Paris, where it was hijacked by a blitzkrieg of Tibetan activists. The relay also enraged environmentalists protesting against the highway up to Mt Everest.

But China is leaving these dampeners behind as it edges towards the stunning opening ceremony directed by veteran film director Zhang Yimou (Raise the Lantern, Hero). The nation has roped in Cai Quoqiang, a New-York-based artiste known for his work with gunpowder, who will apply his talents towards the pyrotechnics at the opening and closing ceremonies.

Though the details are a closely guarded-secret, Zhang told the The New York Times, "The Olympic circle is round, the National Stadium is circular and there is Cai's circle in the sky", indicating that Cai is likely to create a mesmerising artistic display involving the circle.

But it is China's monumental venues featuring cutting-edge designs that will be the centre of all attention, beginning at the gateway to the Games - the Beijing Airport. The airport has been designed by British architect Norman Foster, who beat stiff competition from artist Damien Hirst (among others) to bag "Britain's Best 2008" in the arts category.

Terminal 3 is an architectural gem, its surface area larger than all of Heathrow's five terminals. The airport, estimated to handle 50 million passengers by 2020, has a distinctive silhouette that shows off its blazing yellow, orange and red lights (the Olympic colours).

In comparison, the recently unveiled Bangalore airport, designed by a Swiss consortium, has proved a disappointment. It waits to be seen if Delhi's slated Terminal 3 by an Indian consortium will put it on the world design map - hopes are high, since the same consortium put up a nicer airport in Hyderabad.

The showpiece of the Games is the 230-feet tall, $500 million "Bird's Nest" or National Stadium, which will play host to the opening and closing ceremonies. It is a unique structure of metal lattice built with 45 tonnes of unwrapped steel. It has been designed by Swiss architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron, who also designed Tate Modern, London, and more recently, Barcelona Forum in Spain.

The Bird's Nest, marked as one of the most iconic buildings of this decade, boasts an innovative green design and features a rainwater collection system and a translucent roof to provide sunlight for the grass.

Other jewels in Beijing's crown include the National Aquatics Centre, also called the "Water Cube", built using more than 100,000 sq m of lightweight, transparent Teflon over a steel base to replicate the natural formation of air bubbles.

There is also the Wukesong Cultural and Sports Centre, the main sports venue; the Laoshan cycling cluster with a 250-meter circumference wooden cycling track designed to produce new world speed records; and the Laoshan BMX venue, reportedly the most difficult track in the world.

With the Commonwealth Games slated to be held in Delhi in 2010, Delhi may well take pointers from Beijing. Beijing city, with a 17 million population (Delhi, 15 million), has been spruced up for an estimated 10,500 athletes, 200,000 accredited personnel and 6 million spectators.

Beijing's infrastructural makeover includes a network of new subway lines that will carry between 200,000-300,000 people a day, ring roads (such as in Delhi), power plants and water treatment facilities.

It also boasts of a slew of new cultural facilities such as the China National Grand Theatre, west of Tiananmen Square, designed by renowned French architect Paul Andreu - a bubble-shaped, glass and titanium wonder.

Beijing has enrolled its taxi drivers for English lessons, and a nation that loves its "Double Happiness" cigarettes has started posting "No smoking" signs inside its 66,000 cabs to create a non-smoking Olympics.

One of the most incredible things about China is the safety that cabs and public transportation affords women - and while Delhi is pumping $6 million on sanitation and $230 million on its Games village, it needs to work on ensuring a safer Delhi. Beijing had eliminated the use of ozone-depleting substances in 2004, six years ahead of the Montr�al Protocol's target date.

The city has employed 1,000 doctors and nurses with a volunteer team of 3,000 doctors to treat athletes, journalists and VIPs at 170 medical stations and 140 ambulances, and the Beijing Olympics call centre will operate 24x7.

State-of-the-art systems have been devised to guide people to tourist spots, and 5,000-plus high-tech public toilets with remote sensor flushing and piped music (which cost $57 million) have been completed. 

Beijing has used 1,109 kg of silver to make 6,000 medals, and much of that silver, China hopes, will end up in Chinese hands. Unlike India, where athletes have to struggle for funds, China has a system of rigorous athletic schools.

Athletes join national teams from the age of 18, but in exceptional circumstances they can do so from 12 years onwards. Those who make the team receive generous state allowances along with medical, life and accident insurance policies.

Cheering on the sidelines are the mascots Fuwa (literally, good luck dollies) - a group of five: Bei Bei, the fish, which signifies prosperity; Jing Jing, the panda, which signifies happiness; Nini, the Tibetan antelope, to signify vastness; and Ying Ying, the swallow, representing the infinite sky and good luck; all surrounding Huan Huan, or the fire of the Olympic Flame.

Each of the Fuwa has a rhyming two-syllable name, and collectively the first syllable of each results in the phrase "Beijing huanying ni" or "Beijing welcomes you".

In order to ensure the Olympics go off without a hitch, China has embarked on an ambitious security programme following reported threats by the Uighurs. It has deployed Red Flag 7 missiles. The US, Britain and Interpol have issued travel warnings even as Interpol's help has been sought to gather names, fingerprints, photographs and DNA profiles of anyone who might pose a threat.

For the duration of the Olympics, China will have automated access to Interpol's passport and visa application screening processes, giving it the most advanced early detection system against fake travel documents and criminals.

Critics claim much of the terror threat has been fabricated to provide an excuse for a crackdown on dissenting groups. Any marches, demonstrations or other large gatherings exceeding 1,000 participants need prior authorisation.

What is less known is that so nervous is the government that it has tightened visa restrictions for both visitors and foreign residents living in China. Prior to the games, foreigners could get year-long work visas with little hassle through a number of agencies in Hong Kong, but since the spring of this year these same foreigners, many of whom had been living in China for as long as eight years, discovered they could no longer renew their visas.

No official explanation has been issued. And tourists wanting to visit China for the Games have had to undergo a huge rigmarole to obtain visas, with demands that they provide proof of tickets and notarised invitation letters if they choose to stay anywhere but in a hotel.

Some visa seekers at the Chinese embassy in London, having endured four-hour waits, have given up. The visa restrictions are hurting China. Beijing has 120 Olympic-contracted hotels with a capacity of 32,000 rooms, but even by late June, hotels in Beijing and Shanghai reported occupancy rates at 60 per cent, well below those during the normal summer season, and at last count there were over 1 million Olympic tickets left unsold.

Even though the cup of nationalism is overflowing with slogans such as "New Beijing, Great Olympics" or "Unite together towards the Olympics", not everyone believes in them. The massive scale and cost of operations have raised questions.

While the design, quality and speed of construction of much of the infrastructure are impressive, many of the totems of patriotism have been designed with the help of foreign architects. There was controversy in Beijing where the massive projects involved relocation of over 6,000 families, even as thousands of underpaid migrant workers slogged 24 hours a day across the city's numerous construction sites.

Some of those originally involved in the Olympics have lost faith in the dream. Hollywood director Steven Spielberg, the artistic adviser, resigned on grounds of China's Darfur policy. Actor Mia Farrow slammed the Olympics as "Genocidal Olympics". Celebrated Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei, associated with the Bird's Nest, criticised the government for using the Olympics to whip up a false sense of nationalism.

Learn Online, but don't ask for Job Guarantee

Online course? Job no guarantee

Bangalore: Are you feeling better prepared for the job market with your online MBA? You could be in for a surprise if your interviewer isn’t too impressed.
   Though online education is fast catching up among students, not all courses are recognized in the industry. Industry insiders said that online courses do not carry the same value and credibility that traditional classroom courses get.
   “In the current job market, online courses have no value addition other than the student feeling happy about the degree/diploma and certificate,” says B S Murthy, CEO of recruitment firm Leadership Capital Consulting.
   While companies recognize online courses offered by globally accredited institutions, most of the courses which are offered with tieups from lesser known national or international institutes don’t carry much value.
   “Although the content for most of the online courses is good, the impact on the student is limited. Online courses work best internally in a corporate learning setup as the course is more informative than competency building,” says Murthy.
   Recruiters say that most of the candidates who opt for online courses are usually those who are struggling to get an entry level job. These students would have secured second class or below in their undergraduate degree.
   “We also see employees who aren’t able to go back to college,” says Stephen Smith, chief marketing officer, InterGlobe Technologies. He says that typically, the candidates come from either a lower socio economic strata or a rural area or both.

Certified online courses okay with industry


Bangalore: Online education may be fast catching up among students, but not all courses are recognized in the industry. Industry insiders said that online courses do not carry the same value and credibility that traditional classroom courses get. But hat has been no deterrent.
   U21 Global, an institute that offers online courses, has seen a steep rise in enrolment in the last two years. In 2007-08, 3,000 candidates enrolled for various online courses globally, of which nearly 30% of them are from India. In 2008-09, the number shot up to 5,000 candidates, of which 45% are from India.
   “We have partnered with around 50 companies in India and this number is rising every month. As our pedagogy is application-oriented, participants apply their learnings at their job, giving immediate returns on education,” said Shrikant Sinha, U21 Global, director (south and west India).
   IT majors recognize technical courses that come with certifications from companies like Microsoft, Oracle and Cisco. “Typically acceptance depends on accreditation from national or international educational bodies. If the course or programme has these endorsements, we will accept them,” says Smith. Sun Microsystems is one of the IT companies that conducts professional certifications in Java and Solaris which are widely recognized in companies around the world.
   “Our exams are conducted by third party certification bodies like Prometric and Pearson VUE at an authorized test centre under the supervision of test coordinator,” says Pratima Amonkar from Sun Learning Services.

TV: Who ate my "Ad Pie"?

Online video stealing TV’s ad pie

   ONLINE video advertising is slowly eating into the television marketing budget as generic and TV content goes online and new medium benefits from its inherent advantages of RoI measurability, customisation and interactivity. Experts are of the view that with about 15-million broadband users, timespends are substantially moving in favour of the internet.
   With broadband prices becoming dirt cheap even in India, over the next three years, this medium is positioned to become around 10% of the TV market.
   A 15-second online video advertisement can be placed either before the content after it or by overlaying it along with the content. Similar to the television model, advertisements can also be embedded in the content by which the news clip or movie stream is paused for the advertisement to play.
   Online video advertising, currently estimated at Rs 60 crore, makes up for less than 1% of the annual TV ad spending of about Rs 7,000 crore. But this is seen changing rapidly as advertising growth rates in the online medium outpace TV. Mr Bhatia says that in three years, online video ads will account for about a tenth of total TV spends, rising to 15% in four years. Total ad spending on the internet is estimated at about Rs 400 crore.
   Customisation is buoying the growth of online video advertising, with publishers targeting ads based on viewer profiles and serving these in a particular language linked to the IP address. Publishers claim that geo-targeted advertising can be done with 80% accuracy. Unlike television, online video also allows more interactivity.
   “The next few years will see it grow into a de facto engagement medium, and internet on the mobile will push this trend,” says Sameer Pitalwalla, head of Zoom digital, which has recently begun video advertising on ZoomTV.in.
   FMCGs are using the medium by offering discount coupons based on location, when the viewer clicks the ad for further information. While an average video advertisement costs between $20,000 and $30,000 to create, startups are offering alternatives. US-based online video advertising company Jivox, which is enabling small and medium enterprises create advertisements through its platform for free, made an Indian foray this year. At least 60% of Jivox’s clientele now targets the overseas audience. The NRI population, which accounts for a half of this, is a major market for financial services, real estate and travel and matrimonial sites.
   “The ad inventory is a function of content and publishers in the industry. As media companies start diversifying content from traditional mediums to web portals, as is happening exponentially now, publishers will leverage it and advertising inventory will grow further,” says online video ad publisher VentunoTech CEO Subbu Murugan.
   Companies are trying to find their footing in the online advertising space now. The growth of broadband fibre optics in the last mile will also push this trend, say online marketing service analysts at Regalix.