18 hindustantimes
WE DN ESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2018
e sta b l i s h e d i n 1 9 24
Portrait of a
corrupt leader
Jaya’s picture in the assembly
undermines probity in public life
I
t’s been more than a year since the death of former Tamil
Nadu chief minister, J Jayalalithaa. Two things stand out
about the state government she headed and her party, the
AIADMK: One, the government is yet to get back on track
(and is moving from one controversy to the other). Second,
the AIADMK leadership is desperately
hanging on to the legacy of Amma, as
Jayalalithaa was called by the party
cadre. On Monday, both these aspects were evident when a sev-
en-foot portrait of Jayalalithaa was unveiled in the Tamil Nadu
assembly by Speaker P Dhanapal. The AIADMK government’s
decision to put up the portrait in the face of reservations from the
Opposition, and when there is a PIL in the Madras High Court
against the display of photos of convicted leaders in government
buildings, is unfortunate. That Jayalalithaa was a leader who
served time in jail on corruption charges amplifies the mistake.
The AIADMK’s argument that Jayalalithaa’s contribution to
the state cannot be ignored is not acceptable. This is because in
all likelihood, had she been alive, Jayalalithaa would have been
in the Bengaluru Central Jail, like the three co-accused,
including close aide Sasikala, in the disproportionate assets case.
The Supreme Court’s observations in the case leave little room
for doubt about Jayalalithaa’s corruption. Given this, unveiling
her portrait in the assembly compromises the essential principle
that probity in public life is non-negotiable. It also discredits
her party.
The portrait finding pride of place in the assembly in many
ways whitewashes her image. It also sends out the message that
dishonesty and corruption are fine as long as the person con-
cerned is seen as a mass leader and a saviour of the poor.
Had they not been driven by short-term gains, the AIADMK’s
Palaniswami-Panneerselvam combine could have signalled
their intolerance of corruption in their own ranks. But they
chose to try and consolidate the AIADMK’s fragmented vote
base and further sideline rebel leader TTV Dhinakaran. It would
seem then that like their late leader, the EPS-OPS government
attaches little premium to raising the bar of probity in public life.
§
Make it tough for NRIs to
desert their wives
TheStatemustchange thelawto
confiscatepropertiesoferranthusbands
T
here are too many instances of marriages between an NRI
man and an Indian woman turning abusive and violent,
and numerous cases in which the man has, shortly after
the wedding, abandoned his wife. Stories of NRIs who abandon
their wives but don’t give up custody of children and husbands
who seize the passports of their wives to prevent them from trav-
elling to India are familiar to all of us. Once the woman is away
from her familiar surroundings in a new country, it is often diffi-
cult for her to break the cycle of abuse. Also, owing to lack of
awareness about legal options, fighting in the courts against
unscrupulous men becomes tough for the families of the women.
It comes as no surprise then that the government is considering
changes in the criminal law that will allow confiscation of the
property of NRI men for deserting their wives and not respond-
ing to notices issued to them.
The ministry of external affairs (MEA) has written to the
home ministry, proposing changes to the Code of Criminal Pro-
cedure (CrPC) that will allow summons posted on the website of
the MEA to be considered legally tenable. If three such notices
have been served on the site and the offender doesn’t respond, he
will be treated as an absconder. Enforcement agencies can then
attach the properties of such persons and their families.
Although there is no consolidated data available with the gov-
ernment on the number of women who marry NRIs every year,
on December 21, 2017, minister of state for external affairs minis-
ter, VK Singh, told Rajya Sabha that Indian missions abroad had
received 3,328 complaints from Indian women about marital dis-
putes with their NRI spouses since 2015.
Modifications in the CrPC to ensure that such NRIs appear
before law enforcement agencies are welcome. Bringing the men
to book is one part of the solution. But families also ought to exer-
cise diligence when arranging weddings with NRI grooms.
R. N. I. No. 530/1957 ● Postal Reg. No. DL(ND)-11/6058/2018-19-20 ‘Licensed to post without prepayment’ LICENCE No. U(C)-113/2006-08, AIR SURCHARGE: Raipur and beyond by Rail or Road - Re 5/-, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Chennai, Cochin, Goa, Hyderabad, Khajuraho, Mumbai, Trivandrum, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada and beyond by Rail or Road - Rs. 10/-;
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§
citysmart
SWATI RAMANATHAN
CanourcitieslearnfromNewYork?
Business Improvement Districts can encourage
hyperlocal action by businesses and residents
A
t the first meeting of the Special
Purpose Vehicle for Benga-
luru’s Smart City Plan last
month,themayorasked–‘What
isthepurposeoftheAreaBased
Development (ABD) boundary
requirement in the Smart City scheme?’
Across SmartCityplans,thesizeandlocation
parameters for ABD vary vastly, and seem
ourtake quite random. Contrast this with another
boundary evolvingforurbanredevelopment
--theBusinessImprovementDistrict,orBID.
BryantParkisa10-acre cityparklocatedin
theheartofNewYork.Likethemorefamous
Central Park, it, is considered a Manhattan
landmark.Thiswasnotalwaysthecase.Inthe
1970s, ridden by incidents of crime, rape, and
drug dealings, Bryant Park was notorious. It
was popularly known as “Needle Park”.
Attempts to close down the park failed,
until a revival wasundertaken, ledby stake-
holders outside government. With initial
fundingfromtheRockefellers,thedesignand
transformation of the park was spectacular.
Today, Bryant Park is a jewel in the neigh-
bourhood,aprideofthecommunityandlocal
businesses,boastingvibranteconomicactiv-
ity and land values.
It is now managed by a private not-for-
profitcompanycalledtheBryantParkCorpo-
ration (BPC), financed by private funds ,
GAININGCURRENCY
n Pedestrians look at prices of virtual currencies at the Bithumb exchange office in Seoul,
South Korea. While prices for the cryptocurrency are falling on exchanges around the world,
nowhere have the declines been faster than in Asia’s fourth­largest economy. GETTY IMAGES
We can’t miss out on the
blockchain revolution
Equating digital currency investments to ponzi schemes
shows a lack of understanding of these currencies
ANIL K
ANTONY
ANKUR
PRASAD
T
he income-tax department recently
clamped down on cryptocurrency
exchangesduetofearsthatthesecur-
rencies may be used to launder
money. This is understandable: Cryptocur-
rencytransactionsarehigh-riskinvestments
and their prices are volatile. Due to a lack of
regulation,insidertradingiswidespread.Bit-
coincrashedfromanall-timehighof$20,000in
November to $9,000 by mid-January.
Stillequatingdigitalcurrencyinvestments
to “ponzi schemes” shows a lack of under-
standingofdigitalcurrenciesandblockchain,
the technology behind it. While it’s an over-
simplification,blockchaincanbedescribedas
a way for people to share the extra space and
computational power in their computers to
createaglobalsupercomputerthatisaccessi-
bletoeveryone.Inlaymanterms,blockchain
doesforcomputerswhatUberandAirbnbdo
for drivers and homeowners respectively.
Bitcoin is the first successful application of
blockchaintechnology.Everycomputercon-
nectedtotheBitcoinnetworkisreferredtoas
anode,andmaintainsanup-to-datecopyofall
transactions in the network.Thisis different
from a bank, where only a trusted authority
maintains records.
innervoice
THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK
FOR YOUR WORDS CAN HURT
AS WELL AS HEAL
Rajasthan Patrika Pvt. Ltd., Sector-V, Phase-IV-E, Near Bambala Pulia, Opp. M.P.S. School, Pratap Nagar, Jaipur (Rajasthan).
BOARD: (011)23361234 ● EDITORIAL: (011)66561234 Extn. 1254, 1268 ● CIRCULATION: (011)66561111 ● ADVERTISING: (011)66561389 ● FAX: (011)66561270.
MANAGING EDITOR: SOUMYA BHATTACHARYA
comment
largely from local merchants, property own-
ers, andphilanthropists. Theprojectdemon-
strates the link between the revival of public
space, community benefits, and economic
interest.Attheheartofthistransformationis
a new kind of public-private partnership --
‘Business Improvement Districts’ or BIDs.
ABIDisadefinedareawherelocalbusiness
andpropertyownerspayan additionaltaxor
fee to fund projects . BIDs identify localised
goals and shared priorities of the area, with-
outdisturbingthelargermunicipalplanning
and delivery framework. While the city con-
tinues to provide regular services, the BID
community allocates funds towards these
priorities — capital improvement ones such
aswaterfronts,publicspaces,parks,andpub-
lic toilets, or improvement in civic services
suchas traffic control, parkingsystems, and
public safety.
Currently there are over 1000 BIDs across
America’scities.New Yorkitselfhas over75,
includingmorethan30%ofallretailbusiness,
and 50% of all office space in the city. Mayor
Bloomberghadthistosayabouttheimpactof
BIDs,“BIDsrepresentpublic-privatepartner-
ships at their very best. Time and again, they
have proven effective in revitalising neigh-
bourhoods and improving business condi-
tionsincommercialdistricts–injectingvital-
ityinto thecommunity.” Theideahasgained
Mining of data, however, consumes mas-
siveamountsofenergytorecordtransactions
ontoblockchain. TheBitcoinnetworkislim-
ited to less than 10 transactions per second.
Visa in comparison can support 40,000 trans-
actions per second. This raises questions
around how big the platform can be.
The overall value of the global cryptocur-
rencymarketsurpassed$700billion thisyear.
The trust verification technology of block-
chain can further revolutionise multiple
industries such as insurance, real estate and
art. Tron, a startup working on a blockchain
project, will let digital content creators have
controlandownershipofthedatatheycreate.
With these impending innovations, it is not
hard to envision a more evenly distributed
economy in the future, in which every Inter-
netusercouldreceivemicropaymentsforany
original data they share in the digital space
such as ratings, reviews and blog posts.
During his budget speech, Finance Minis-
terArunJaitleyindicatedgovernmentinter-
est in exploring possible blockchain applica-
tions.Thisisapositive.However,withseveral
countries including the US, Japan, Russia,
UAE and Saudi Arabia reportedly contem-
plating the creation of state-backed crypto-
currencies, India risks lagging behind on
what has the potential to be the biggest wave
of innovation since the Internet became
popular in the 1980s.
Anil K. Antony is executive director of Cyber India and
the Vice President of Navoothan Foundation; Ankur
Prasad is head of marketing at Amazon App Store and
partner at Exa­Hash that invests in blockchain startups.
The views expressed are personal
Bidyut Kumar Sanyal
Speaking is an art. When delivered in an
artistic manner, it has the capacity to
enthrall us. Even an insignificant matter
when spoken of in a certain way, becomes
effective and can touch our hearts. An able
speaker can articulate the most compli-
cated of arguments, and make it easy
enough for lay people to understand.
Speech is one of our most potent means
of communication, the thing that sets us
apart from the rest of the animal kingdom.
H INDUSTAN T IMES , NEW DEL H I
n Bryant Park in New York City has become
the pride of the community REUTERS
tractionin theUK, CanadaandSouthAfrica.
ThesuccessofBIDsisbecauseitisahyper-
localaction,ledprimarilybysmallbusinesses
andsupportedbyresidents.Thecompactness
of BIDs helps find a consensus around local
priorities,aswellasthebestmeanstoachieve
these withinareliabletimeframe.BIDscreate
a unique opportunity for leadership and col-
laboration across the polity – government,
business, and citizens – born of enlightened
self-interest. Most importantly, they tapinto
much needed money, skill and management
capacities to address civic challenges.
CanBIDsworkinIndia?India’scitiesdon’t
have a hundred thousand problems; they
The PM’s West Asia tour
was significant, historic
New Delhi is redefining its ties and forging independent
links, signalling continued engagement with the region
ANIL
WADHWA
A
hallmark of Prime Minister Nar-
endra Modi’s visits abroad has
beentheemphasisonpluggingthe
gaps in engagement with the out-
sideworld,lookingforrenewedalignments,
investmentopportunitiesanddiasporaout-
reach. As a part of this effort, Modi was on
historicvisitsto Palestine,theUnitedArab
Emirates (UAE) and Oman from February
9 to 12. Thetransit,viaJordan,toPalestine,
afforded an opportunity for discussions
with King Abdullah on counter radicalisa-
tion and regional developments.
A traditional supporter of Palestinian
independence, India has been extending
financial support for its reconstruction,
development,andinstitutionbuilding.Dur-
ing this first-ever visit by an Indian PM to
Palestine,PalestinianPresidentMahmoud
Abbas conferred the Grand Collar of the
State of Palestine on Modi, the highest
award in Palestine, reserved only for a
select few world leaders. Palestine, which
has turned away from a US-led mediation,
now counts on India to support a multi-
countrymechanismtorealisethetwo-state
solution. Modi stressed the importance of
dialogue as opposed to violence, assuring
Abbas that “India is bound by a promise to
takecareofPalestinianpeoples’interests”.
Six new agreements worth nearly $50 mil-
lioninhealth,agriculture,ITandeducation
were signed during the visit.
ThenextstopwastheUAE.ItwasModi’s
secondvisitthere,highlightingtheserious-
ness with which he is pursuing the Look
West policy in the near neighbourhood.
HometoninemillionIndians,theGulfCoop-
eration Council (GCC) has emerged as a
strategically and commercially important
region for India. Modi’s vision of SAGAR
and developing the blue economy with lit-
torals in the Indian Ocean requires strong
partnerships. Equally, a developing India
hasemergedasanimportantmarketforthe
Gulf oil economies, their aviation compa-
nies,aproviderofappropriate andcheaper
technologyandhumanresources,resulting
MODI’S VISION OF SAGAR AND
DEVELOPING THE BLUE
ECONOMY WITH LITTORALS IN
THE INDIAN OCEAN REQUIRES
STRONG PARTNERSHIPS
But with this great ability comes great
responsibility. Words have the power to
hurt, and also to heal.
Therefore, it is important to use our
words and speech judiciously. The conse-
quences of ill-thought-out speech can be
devastating in many ways, and we might
end up paying a great price for it.
Many times, we end up speaking without
thinking, and in doing so we may cause a
lot of pain to someone else. The important
thing is to always consider the effect that
our words can have on those around us.
have a hundred problems repeated a thou-
sand times. Each solution must be situation-
specificneedinglocaladaptation.Whatworks
in Mumbai will not in Meerut (indeed, what
worksinChandniChowkisunlikelyto inLaj-
pat Nagar). Solutions will only be effective
when they are locally defined, designed, and
implemented. Cities are the wastelands of
unkept government promises. With most
municipalities starved offundsandallbereft
ofqualifiedresources, municipalauthorities
by themselves cannot solve our problems.
BIDsoffercredibleon-the-groundactionforat
least some of our pressing challenges.
BIDs don’t work in every location. There
must be substantial economic presence of
retail and commercial owners to engage in
action.Butsuchengagementcanreleasegov-
ernmentresourcesforotherdeservingareas.
From an operational standpoint, the success
of BIDs is dependent on well-defined institu-
tional structures, representation and proce-
dures, functioning transparently. It is also
dependentuponthebuy-infromamajorityof
residents and local businesses in the area.
BID is neither an idea we can rush to
embrace, nor the panacea for all the challen-
gesthatour citiesface.But itprovides citiesa
much-neededhyperlocalspatialfocusandthe
ability to revitalise neighbourhoods. Hope-
fully,somesmartstateswillpilotBIDswithin
the ABD plans of their smart cities.
Swati Ramanathan is chairperson of Jana Urban Space
Foundation, and co­founder of Jana Group. She has pre­
pared the Benguluru Smart City Plan
The views expressed are personal
inenhancedaccommodationonissuessuch
as labour rights, technology transfer, and
cooperation in counter terrorism.
Important MoUs related to the energy
sector, railways, manpower and financial
servicesweresignedduringthevisit.Signif-
icant among these is the MoU between an
Indianconsortium(OVL,BPRL&IOCL)and
AbuDhabiNationalOilCompany(ADNOC)
for the acquisition of 10% participating
interest for $600 million in Abu Dhabi’s off-
shoreLowerZakumconcessionfor40years
—thefirstupstreaminvestmentbyIndiain
UAE’s oil sector.
The joint statement reiterated the inten-
tion to hold the first-ever joint naval exer-
cises in the Persian Gulf, deplored terror
andstressedtheresponsibilityofallstatesto
control “non-State actors” operating from
their soil, a pointed reference to Pakistan.
Modi addressed the Indian community at
the Dubai Opera House and witnessed the
ground breaking ceremony of the first
Hindutemple in AbuDhabi.Deliveringthe
keynoteaddressattheSixthWorldGovern-
mentSummitconvenedinDubai,on“Tech-
nology for Development”, he emphasised
the role of technology for progress as
opposed to destruction.
On his first visit to Oman as PM, he was
received by the charismaticSultanQaboos
bin Said al Said, the ruler of Oman since
early1970s,whoisastudentofformerPresi-
dentShankar DayalSharmain Pune.Stay-
ingneutralintheYemenconflict,Omanhas
kept its options open in the intra-GCC con-
flict with Qatar, while maintaining close
links with Iran.
IndiannavalshipsregularlyvisitSalalah
andDuqmforoperationalturnaroundwhile
engaging in anti-piracy operations in the
Gulf of Aden. Cooperation in trade and
investment, energy, defence and security,
food security and regional issues was dis-
cussed resultingin eight agreements in the
military, legal and judicial cooperation,
health, tourism and outer space sectors.
While Adani Ports and Duqm Special Eco-
nomic Zone Authority already signed an
agreement in 2017, India would also like to
useDuqmforlogisticspurposes.Ahighlight
of the visit was Modi’s address to 30,000
members of the Indian community.
Newdevelopmentsandalignmentsinthe
world have allowed India to dehyphenate
ties with Israel and Palestine on the one
hand, and forge independent links with
estranged players in the region such as
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Iran on
the other. King Abdullah of Jordan and
PresidentHassanRouhaniofIranwillbein
New Delhi shortly, signalling a continued
Indian engagement with the region.
Anil Wadhwa is former Indian ambassador to Oman
The views expressed are personal
But words also have the power to heal. A
few well-chosen words spoken in sympa-
thy and affection can help someone recover
from even the most grievous hurt. We
must, therefore, try our best to use this
power as much as we can.
By using our words judiciously, we can
not only help in healing some of the hurt in
the world; but can avoid spreading more
hurt in the world. It is indeed a great power.
Inner Voice comprises contributions from our
readers. The views expressed are personal
n Innervoice@hindustantimes.com