And the Parliamentary debate on price rise etc.
Parliamentary vote would bring cheer or?
Central government faces real crisis situation
Parliament debates price rise etc
Voting in Parliament would open up new wounds and won heal old wounds
The DMK is in the dog house. The ally of the Congress and if you are to trust the PM or the Congress President, they both claim the DMK to be their trusted ally! The ally is top leaders, one minister and another an MP are in Tihar jail for now about six months! The ally would play ball with the Congress this time, when the debate comes for voting?
Or, who are the new allies to join the UPA to see through the Parliamentary game?
So, the UPA-II is not in a not so very comfortable position nor the party that leads the government is in any clear sense or in any clear position as to where it stands now and for what purpose it leads and does things as it is doing over a range of issues.
The broken promises of the UPA? Yes, the current governance system under Dr.Singh all look so shaky that it might not even complete the full-term of government.
Yet, the UPA-II seems to have become more adamant and more confused as to what stand it takes on such critical issues like passing the Lokpal bill. Instead of co-opting Anna Hazare, after all a non-political person and he only wants to fight corruption in high places, the UPA has turned him into a national hero, he is certainly now!
Why the changing positions of the PM? First the PM wanted his office also included and then he changed his position. So, Hazare now calls the liars in the government and he wonders and this evoke a national echo at many levels, that even if the PM can’t be trusted for his words where else to turn?
This is a serious challenge, this challenge of the NGO leader and the rest of the civil society groups that are ranged on the side of Anna’s fast threats.
The government is almost now at a standstill. There is not much governance taking place in Delhi.
One doesn’t know how far and how much the Prime Minister is taking interest, as he seemed to be, till a few months ago, in foreign affairs. He was shuttling abroad often with a serious-looking agenda, to all sorts of countries. Now, there is a lull. Even there is pause in the pursuit of his pet project. The civil nuclear deals and there doesn’t seem to be any clarity or any signals that the foreign nuclear power plant suppliers are coming to India. Certainly, the US suppliers are nowhere to be seen. And except for the French agenda, even they seem to be in two minds, there are still some doubts and questions as to the French technology’s tested certainties, with the Japanese Prime Minister firmly against nuclear power, he refused point blank all talks about nuclear co-operation, we are left with only the President Prathibha Patil’s baggage from South Korea, of all major countries, with a new nuclear deal!
So, where are the big plans of the UPA for the so-called much talked about energy security?
Nowhere!
The other more contentious foreign deal, highly sensitive and otherwise, the more highly realistic option of brining in the Iranian gas through the long talked about pipeline that would criss-cross Afghanistan, Pakistan and that would have multi-faceted aspects that would serve so many other strategic advantages for the region, certainly for India-Pakistan relations.
The just visited Pakistan foreign minister, the pretty face of Pakistan, the young and educated and otherwise highly qualified peace maker can surely apply her mind to this highly sought after essential energy security to the volatile region. Otherwise, the very prosaic pursuit of power generation and power self-sufficiency is very much dependent upon the better governance mechanism we can achieve in the states that are ruled by different parties with their own agendas, good and bad, very narrow populist politics included.
Now, as for the other, again, prosaic agenda of many developments, both serious and strategic, from road infrastructure to civil aviation to social sector projects, economic and commercial regulations, there are enough problems arising almost every day, we have so many unfulfilled promises.
The Sonia Gandhi inspired, very pollulistic schemes like right to food, food security and land acquisition bills they are all pending for various reasons. May be only when the next elections come in they may be taken up for discussion and popular imagination!
Now, the country is bogged down with the very many scams and scandals.
The very name and credibility of the Prime Minister is at the moment involved.
Is the PM guilty of bad judgment or is he complicit with the micro-managing of the 2G scam. Is the PM directly responsible for the scam taking this gigantic shape and dimensions?
The Supreme Court is facing the issue squarely and the whole thing may end up in a whimper!
After all, as Arun Shourie, has pointed out in a TV interview, even if we assume the PM, the very Executive is to be held responsible for this scam of the decade can the Supreme Court can slap a contempt of court notice against the Prime Minister? It can’t.
So, the whole noise and buzz may amount to nothing! The precious time the government, the UPA, has wasted on no substantive governance and achieving of the targets for much of the social sector, infrastructure and such precious issues that might really affect and generate much progress in the lives of millions of people is all lost? Lost forever? It looks like that.
So, the country needs a real change. May be a new government, sooner than later is the real remedy to the present standstill!
Box: Insurance FDI was promised up to 49 percent. Still on paper. Microfinance bill palpsed and it is yet to be introduced.GST bill remains enacted. New banking licenses not yet issued. Draft guidelines are not out.
Poverty reduction.2009 promise to halve BPL population by 2014 impossible now to meet.35% of population is still below BPL.
Infrastructure: One crore hectares under irrigation. This a real achievement. Connecting all weather village roads, drinking water to 74,000 habitations, electricity to I lakh villages, phone connectivity only to 66,822 villages.
Highways: The promise of 20km a day is still a dream! It is now only 4.28 km a day! Where is the minister, Mr.Kamal Nath? He seems to have fallen silent! Why?
Ministers’ performance: Near zero! Why burden the ministers with more than one portfolio? The PM is image?
It is near bottom. For many who started on such clean image, now he is suspect to have been made a scapegoat!
Image Source : yespunjab.wordpress.com