Gandhi Jr. must Rethink His Strategy

Bikash Choudhury




Rahul Gandhi must rethink on his broad strategy afresh to take over as Prime Minister after general election-2014. More so, after the verdict of media on completion of a year by the UPA II Govt. which is average, keeping in view the improved mandate in comparison to UPA I and factoring the absence of belligerent Red. In spite of the noble intent of incumbent Prime Minister and his impeccable team in the cabinet and his peers with blue turban in planning commission. It would be a mere repetition to enumerate failings of current Govt.; a few of them would read like this-- could not control price rise, failed to keep their date with infrastructure, unable to forge a national consensus to deal with Maoist and on top of it, failed to implement their own plan completely, due to lack of coherence and co-ordination with State Govt.. If the trends continue like this, by the end of the current term of parliament UPA II would have lost a substantial portion of their mandate and therefore making it more difficult for Rahul, to bid for the coveted office which was adorned by four generations of his family.

They say ‘Time and tide waits for no man’ is just apt; and Rahul must revisit his strategy afresh. Apparently, his current strategy revolves around regaining UP for Congress Party and rebuilding Youth Congress. No body can fault Rahul visiting dalit homes either; which has potential to replenish support of dalit and eventually a vote bank into the coffers of Congress Party. Neither, his twin plans are at any fault; but, leaving the Govt. unattended could create a waterloo for him as it did for his father; if he manages to take over as Prime Minister after E-14, due to lack of administrative exposure and experience in governance. Politicking-winning election and Governance are two separate ball game and need uniquely independent skill set to survive and much more to triumph. Gandhi Jr. must be aware about the legacy of his father Sri Rajiv Gandhi, who was admired even by his detractors for his sincerity and vision for the country. Information & Communication Technology (ICT) revolution was one of his many contributions for the country. Rajiv Gandhi also devoted his entire time in party before taking over as Prime Minister; all of a sudden, following tragic death of his mother Mrs. Indira Gandhi. Rajiv Gandhi begun with a clean slate and a massive mandate; many political commentators say he lost the mandate because of his inexperience in Governance. That reminds me of quotable quotes of Confucius “What I hear I forget. What I see I remember. What I do I know?” Now, Rahul must revisit his assumptions and revalidate; keeping in view the performance of his coalition Government.

If I were his advisor; I would have suggested him to join the cabinet as Deputy Prime Minister; that would give representation to over sixty five percent of registered voters in the cabinet, as defacto number two. In order to add much needed enthusiasm to the cabinet of wise men and also to offer a new & fresh direction to the policies and decision of his coalition Govt. intended to benefit majority of electorates that is all our young people. Further, Rahul would be able to grasp the nitty gritty of governance and very essential parliamentary experience from treasury benches. He can also put his advisory experience to good use by working with each ministry on a consultative role; setting goals, overseeing execution, evaluating the outcomes and validating the processes of each ministry to gain a ring side view of all the issues that matters in governance under able guidance of Mr. Manmohan Singh and his senior colleagues. Rahul won’t get a better school for training in the job of premiership. It may so happen;

Ms. Priyanka Gandhi Vadera would call it all quits; to her domestic responsibility and take the place of Rahul Gandhi in the Congress Party to complete the long pending restructuring of grand old party?? That would be a real icing on the cake for millions of younger people who are sold out on brother & sister team and hope their voice would resonate in the highest policy making body of the Govt.. May wiser counsel prevail?



Author: Bikash Choudhury, Chief Executive of Strategy Consulting Firm based at Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India. Contact: Mobile: 00 9853426657 Email: streben.market@gmail.com & bikashchoudhury@sify.com

Aircraft with Fire Prevention & Protection System

Bikash Choudhury


In last six months we have come across more than five fatal passenger Aircraft accidents across the world taking a heavy toll of human life;the recent one at Mangalore involving Air India Boeing 737-800;where 158 passengers lost lives,looked an avoidable one.However,passenger Aircraft Industry,at least now, must invest in R&D to develop passenger aircraft incorporating suitable technology to prevent & control fire in case of crash landings and other such accidents. Aircraft Industry would stand to benefit from inducting such a technology;therefore, Industry must and should invest in developing the technology sooner than later. This can also be outsourced to technical institution like IIT/IISc/NIT/DRDO and many others to cut cost and time.

Dissent within UPA Govt.

Bikash Choudhury

Dissent or independent opinion in democratic parties and even in Govt. is welcome till such time a collective view is taken in the matter; thereafter, the same issue can only be debated at appropriate time to review the decision vis-à-vis the outcome in the comfort of party forum or in Govt.. Free for all debate publicly on sensitive issues like internal security and foreign policy would weaken the leadership of party and Govt. and create confusion which may suit bureaucracy to defer decision making and halt action in important issues of State. Consequently common people will suffer. Otherwise, hard nosed politician of Digvijay Singh’s stature can’t afford to air his personal opinion in public pertaining to strategy on Naxalism which is in variance with the current policy of his Govt. His broadside at Mr. Chidambaram “intellectual arrogance” was also an indecent proposal which could have been avoided in the interest of his party and Govt... Jairam Ramesh’s comment against home ministry in foreign soil is absolutely condemnable. Chidambaram’s comment ‘limited mandate’ is also equally deplorable. Ministers must follow a check list before speaking to media out of turn; sound bites must be either in the interest of country or Govt. or at least the party.

Secret Power of Mr. Singh

Bikash Choudhury

One year completion of UPA II. “Manmohan Singh as politician has arrived” the phrase has been repeated again and again in media, to my mind quite unnecessarily; because, without being an ace politician with impeccable political acumen no one can administer a country of India’s complexity, consecutively for six long years. Politicians both from ruling party and opposition were equally surprised at the smooth tenure of Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. The secret weapon that he wields is nothing but his patent humility in spite of holding the most powerful office in the country; apart, from his low key style of functioning which endears him to the people at large. Former Prime Minister Lalbahadur Sastri and Atalbihari Vajpayee practiced identical style of leadership and held considerable power over Governance quietly.

Holiday Trip for US President in India

Bikash Choudhury



God of the World, Sri Jagannath and Chief Arbiter of the World, Barak Obama, President of USA must meet to stop violence and promote peace across the World. Lord Sri Jagannath (God of the World) lives in his temple and comes out once a year to give Darshan to all his devotees irrespective of cast, creed, religion and race. This event is popularly known world over as Rath Yatra at temple town Puri attended by over million people with enthusiasm, excitement and great religious fervor. 13th July 2010, Tues Day is Rath Yatra at Puri.This could be a unique opportunity for the US President to pay a visit to God of the World to invoke spiritual blessings on his agenda of Peace and Development for the world. This could also be first family holiday for US President’s family outside USA; and, that will throw an opportunity for US President to connect with the culture of east. Further, US President could visit historical landmarks like Dhaulagiri near the site of Great Kalinga War where Emperor Ashok took to Buddhism after seeing the bloodshed in war. Impeccable Handicrafts of Odisha, tribal habitat and culture could be of great interest for the first lady, Michele Obama. Bhitar Kanika and Similipal wild life sanctuary could be of great interest for the two daughters of the US President. This will also be a great professional accomplishment for the US Ambassador to India.

Real Freedom

Bikash Choudhury



India got freedom from colonial power full sixty three years ago; but, are we really free? Country may have attained freedom in a physical dimension but our thinking, actions, even our State machinery and other manifestation of State apparently, still remain under chains of colonial regime. Otherwise, how could a chunk of our own country men dare to start armed revolution against their own elected Govt.? Colonial regime established a system of governance to collect maximum revenue and spend as little as possible in order to repatriate wealth to the coffers of their parent country. Slowly people come to discover that same colonial mechanism of administration continue even today with minor cosmetic changes. People in Government treat ordinary citizens more or less as their subjects and follow a culture of licking at the top and kicking at the bottom. Further, in their work they absolutely don’t use their faculty and prefer to follow precedents, established customs against their better judgment to be safe. We continue to use colonial terminology Collector for the administrative head of a district. If any body approach a police station in the country for protection against mischief; it is more likely, he would receive a treatment not much different from that of colonial days. We still religiously follow the same Indian Penal Code that gained currency under imperial authority. We still love English language more than our National language Hindi and put our children in school to become clerk in Govt. office. Our rich people prefer to hoard their cash in foreign banks and top bureaucracy is designed & designated as I.A.S not much different from their colonial avatar I.C.S. Perhaps, five hundred years of colonization of the country has effectively transformed our DNA from master to slaves. Therefore, we have lost the ability to think independently. We need to regain our old habit of independent thinking as an independent country at all levels to become master of our own destiny; otherwise, at best we could be left as the clones of our colonial masters. Freedom to think independently as a free nation would constitute real freedom.

Tail piece: Govt. employees are both producer and consumer of government services; if some day at a given time all the employees of Government both central and state in the country decide to apply consumer centric approach in their transaction with common people and to works related to the welfare of people then overnight Govt. policies, programs and their execution would see a substantial improvement and bring in double digit growth of our economy with equity.

WATER CONSERVATION-ACTION PLAN

Bikash Choudhury


Why water conservation is important?: Global temperature going up due to climate change phenomena. Consequently average temperature during summer is rising across the country at alarming rate. Our green cover is continuously depleting under the pressure of development as a result of which ground water table is sinking year after year. Further, the pattern of rainfall is also changing, creating havoc of flood followed by draught in substantial part of our state; that has ruined State economy to an extent for many years. Simple solution could be water conservation in general & saving of rain water during monsoons. Odisha can grab the leadership position in the country on the subject by making water conservation & rain water harvesting a popular public movement by using the services of Biju Janata Dal party leaders & workers to launch a movement in the state.


Objective:• To generate strong public opinion in favor of water conservation and saving of rain water and, to create a new mindset among residents of our state.
• Target 20% savings in per capita consumption of water in homes and organizations.
• To popularise installation of rain water harvesting system in homes & offices.
• Facilitate renovation and maintenance of all water bodies and natural water channels.
• Facilitate implementation of farm pond scheme of state Government.
• Encourage research in educational institutions to develop new and better methods & technology for water conservation, recycling and harvesting techniques.
• Facilitate plantation on the embankments of water bodies.
• Collaboration with Industry to create business models for water conservation & harvesting.


Strategy: To mobilize party leaders and workers of BJD to organize domain experts, Media and General Public to create strong public opinion in favor of water conservation & harvesting of rain water by house holds and organizations. Create an organization for the purpose involving party workers, local residents and commercial establishments of a small locality to conserve water & harvest rainwater in the locality.

Action plan:

• Biju Janata Dal leadership would nominate members for the central committee on Water Conservation.
• Central committee on Water Conservation at BJD HQ would create an advisory body comprising domain experts to frame process & methods to achieve the objective. Central committee would also monitor the progress of work in regular intervals and offer moral & material support to local committees.
• Central committee would identify five political workers of BJD in each locality who have interest in the domain and wish to mobilize people for the cause in their respective area.
• Local committee can be constituted with five BJD members and five local residents for each locality to accomplish the objective in all respects.
• One local public meeting can be organized in each area to generate awareness in the locality.
• Local committee can involve Educational Institutions in the area to recruit volunteers and generate resources required for the mission.