Privatise stage carriage operations.

The Kerala private bus operators went on a strike demanding an increase in fares. It must be assumed that the government silently supported the strike because increased fares will also be beneficial to the state transport corporation too, which is hopelessly in debt and a white elephant. To hoodwink the public the government threatened the bus operators that Essential Services Maintenance Act would be invoked. But the bluff by both the parties was called off due to the intervention of the Kerala High court which decried that any fare increase will have to be with its concurrence.

My suggestion for this recurrent issue would be as follows:-

Instead of invoking ESMA the government should completely withdraw from the road transport sector and leave it to the private operators. The present practice of granting permits, routes, timings and fixing fares should be done away with totally.

Let any willing investor acquire buses and ply on any route at any time and charge the fare he likes as long as he does not compel the passenger to travel in his bus. The consequent competition will take care of the fares, routes and timings. We have the outstanding example of the telecommunication sector before us for falling tariff rates and better services.

The present KSRTC should be made a limited company and allowed to sink or float by competing with the private player’s like the BSNL with their advantage they have in existing infrastructure and prime property throughout the state.

Wishing for low fares and better services is like wishing to eat the cake and trying to keep it. The socialistic mindset of the government as well as the governed has to change for comprehensive development.

WISH YOU A MERRY CHRISTMAS
AND
A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR.

Who am I ?

My friend and fellow blogger Murali Rama Varma http://muralirvarma.blogspot.com/2009/11/some-questions-and-answers.html sent this Q & A to me, "I came across a blog from a most promising and talented teen-aged girl. She had quoted a questionnaire supposedly asked to a celebrity by a media man and had given her own interesting and most original answers, assuming that these questions were aimed at her.This made me to think as to how I would have answered these questions, if it were asked to me. I think, by answering these questions, we express our personality to enable a friend or reader to understand us more."

I would request my fellow bloggers and readers to answer these questions themselves- whether to publish or not- for the fun of it and for a self analyzis. It can be quite exhilarating.Here are the questions and my answers.

(1). Fun to you is...
Party with lots of beer and dancing.
(2). If you were invisible for a day, you would...
Have a look at many that is not possible otherwise.
(3).The one invention you're really waiting for...
Stop ageing.
(4).Would you like to be young forever?
Certainly yes.
(5).What are you reading at the moment?
http://inorite.wordpress.com/2009/10/16/the-reluctant-princess/
(6).Who is your favourite cartoon character?
Lockhorns.
(7).The place you really want to visit and why?
United States of America, because I haven’t been there.
(8).Which film's hero/heroine do you most identify with?
Naren in Robin Hood (Malayalam movie) .
(9).Your idea of a perfect meal?
Buffet Lunch / Dinner in a star hotel.
(10). Lean or brawny?
Lean.
(11). Three people from history you'd like to meet?
John F. Kennedy, Lord Mountbatten, Diana Princess of Wales.
(12).Your worst date ever?
Alas, never had one.
(13). Ethnic wear or Western wear?
Both according to the occasion.
(14). Morning person or night person?
Night person.
(15).What are you addicted to?
I am embarrassed to disclose.
(16).The naughtiest thing you've ever done?
The Answer is censored.
(17).What's your retirement dream?
Buy a plot opposite to my ancestral place, build a home, enjoy the visits of children and friends and visit them. Then, I would want to travel first class to places of interest staying in the best hotels.
(18). Five personal care products you can't do without?
My toothbrush, comb, my garments, chapels and my eye glasses.
(19).Who do you think your partner has a crush on?

She doesn't have time after her worries !
20).Your favourite drink?
Budweiser Beer.
(21).The one food you can never say no to?
Puddings.
(22). Rate in order of importance: fame, money, power.
Power, fame, money.
(23).Your next move?
Putting it up for the world to come to a conclusion about me.

Comments about me are most welcome.

Communist citadel

Don’t confuse the above picture to be from somewhere in China. It is the K.I. Rajan memorial (click on the picture to enlarge), the late communist Member of the Kerala legislative Assembly. It is situated between Pambanar and Vandiperiyar on National Highway 220 connecting Kollam with Theni via Kottayam and Kumily. Before it was elevated to a NH it was known as K.K.road.

Soviet Union may have vanished, China maybe practising communism and socialism in name only but here in Kerala the Idukki District is a communist citadel. The party apparatchiks control everything here with the help of their union members. The amount of funds they collect from the hapless is mind boggling. The communists are to be blamed for the investment unfriendly situation prevailing in Kerala and keeping Kerala still in the socialist backward era. The SFI, DYFI, and CITU, or the students wing, the youth wing and the headload wing of the communist party is the precursor of the present goonda, mafia, quotation gangs.

Jeb We Met

Dr. Titus with glass in hand, Thomas Matthew parackel standing behind

Couple of years ago Kerala Minister Paloli Mohamed kutty made an adverse comment about the Kerala High Court Judges being influenced by the wealthy. The High court initiated contempt of court proceedings against the minister. Two letters, one by Dr. Titus and one by me, both criticizing the minister were published in the Indian Express on the same day. Both the letters were published under the caption ‘Just desserts’. Since I couldn’t figure out the meaning of the caption I searched out Dr. Titus’s phone number from the BSNL online directory and called him. He was surprised by my call and asked me how I got his number. Even he too didn’t know the meaning of the caption which was given by the (sub) editor. Later after finding the meaning of the word he called me back.

Dr. Titus is an avid tennis player. Mundakayam club conducts veteran’s tennis tournament every year in February. Being originally from Mundakayam I happen to be a member of the club. The tournament was taking place in a couple of month’s time and we decided to meet. As planned we met for the first time at the club and talked for the next 2 hours as if we knew each other since childhood! Ever since, almost every day we are in touch with each other either by phone or text message.

It was destiny that brought us together, a letter by me titled ‘Phew what a relief!’ which I had written supporting Dr. Titus regarding (something about children and their studies) was published when we were total strangers to each other and he had preserved the newspaper showing it to his friends and relatives who called on him and whom he thought were interested. As a mark of our friendship he gave that newspaper to me when I called on him at his place.

A couple of months later I got in touch with Mr. Thomas Mathew Parackel, Muvattupuzha , another prolific writer, the same way. It was a coincidence that he knew my father-in-law and was neighbors with my wife’s maternal uncle. Apart from letters to the editor he used to contribute to ‘Time out’ as well. He gave me the email id of Mr. Swaminathan who was handling ‘Time out’ at Express. I passed on the email to Dr. Titus and we too started sending anecdotes to ‘Time out’. Many of which were published.

All three of us got –together for lunch at hotel Windsor castle, Kottayam last year and regally cemented our friendship over a bottle of Chivas.

Kerala Higher Secondary Model Question Paper

There is a raging controversy in Kerala about the question paper for the mid term examination in the Government higher secondary schools. The question papers are set by teachers’ affiliated to the communist unions.
In the mid-term Plus 1 examination, students were asked to comment on the media coverage of the death of Mercy Ravi, suggesting that the death was overplayed because she had been rich and influential.
There was also a suggestion that students write to the editor, protesting against the lopsided treatment of news, giving `undue’ importance to the death. (of the Federal Minister’s wife).

The congress affiliated teachers union could come out with the following question paper to counter their communist counterparts.

Write an essay on one of the following.

(1). Explain why communist parties constantly agitate for increased wages when according to the Dus Capital workers are not to be paid anything more than what is necessary for their daily sustenance.

(2). According to the communist manifesto all land belongs to the state. Then why do the communist parties support redistribution of land to the landless?

(3). Why is it said that communism is the offspring of jealousy?

( Anyone who answers all questions satisfactorily will be promoted to Std.XII immediately).

The Kannur fiasco

There is a big uproar about the enrolment of hardcore communist party voters in Kannoor from other constituencies. The United Democratic Front (Opposition in Kerala) should have considered this scenario earlier as this is what happens when you try to eat the cake and have it too. It’s next to impossible to beat the Left Democratic Front (the communist ruling alliance) in a by election when they are in power. They will utilise the entire government machinery to their advantage not to mention the substantial number of their bogus voters. If the LDF wins they will claim the earlier trend seen during the recently concluded Parliament election in which the UDF romped home in majority of the seats to have been reversed (in the short span of 5months). The UDF should not have pulled out the sitting MLAs to contest the parliament elections and avoided this needless by-election. This is called bad planning and I am reluctant to bet on the UDF.