‘Very bright economic horizon ahead for Indian youth’
1 Jan 2014 11:13 PM GMT
In the just completed Assembly elections in five states, the youth’s participation was
phenomenal. What is your opinion on the youth’s interest in the democratic process?
There are two aspects of the matter. First, they represented the feelings of people because the common man is fed up of corruption, laxity, delays in administration and poor quality of governance. This is a big contribution towards democracy which the media and everyone supported.
At the same time, it also attracts a lot of responsibilities, because to maintain the production line, to operate as a successful governing instrument, to ensure the supply lines, to ensure comfort to the people, is another challenge which is very difficult. No doubt our current government managed very well when it came to finances, arrangements and managements. The whole world is in an economic crisis but on this front we have managed very well till now.
Is corruption the price we pay for democracy?
To express the voice against corruption is like a pressure cooker which will burst if overheated. Democracy is a thing that will ventilate the pressure the moment there is a discomfort. If it was a dictatorial regime, it would have burst and not ventilated. At the same time if a government presents difficult promises to its citizens, it will have to stand true to it.
Are the youth well-informed?
The youth has always raised questions whenever there has been a discomfort, they resonate the feelings of our people. There are a lot of inconveniences that people face —in government offices, in service institutions, with police, sales, revenue, Nagar Nigam and even the private sector is filled with corrupt personnel. This corruption is irking everyone in the country, including the youth and the 16th December 2012 crime of rape has also contributed to the fact that things were not going well and can be retaliated by the youth power as a movement.
Also, if power is enjoyed by any group for a long time then a lot of aberrations arise. Rajiv Gandhi once introduced the ‘Prevention of Corruption Act’ and when the bill was introduced, people felt that corruption would be eradicated but has it yet? The same is with the Lokpal Bill. It is we, the people of India and the attitude of operators which has to be changed.
Do you foresee a similar enthusiasm for the coming Lok Sabha elections as well?
If you see the collective wisdom of the population of Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Nagaland and other backward places, then the collective wisdom of those places is better than that of Delhi. In Delhi, they have not chosen a government as an instrument. So who will govern you? You will have to create an institution to govern you. Lok Sabha is a whole country affair. Everytime, a new, more youthful team of voters joins and the old ones go out. Media is very fast, it is changing, things are changing, parameters that decide the elections are changing very fast. The collective behaviour of our people as a democracy is very mature. So something good will emerge.
Is democracy making India lag behind?
Democracy is the best method of governance. We cannot have situations like Syria and Egypt. We always ventilate our grievances through democracy. Yes, we are a bit slow because this is not a dictatorial system and man does not live by bread alone. Hence, we have to have a comfort level, with a good philosophical and intellectual environment. The collective performance of a democratic country is far better than other kinds of systems.
What would you advise the youth?
I think there is very bright future ahead for our youth. Our service sector, which is one of the best in the world, is our asset. The more one improves the quality of training of our youth, their education facilities, we can expect more great things in the future from them. Our growth has been well-sustained, for example, now the governor of the Reserve Bank declares policies which give results instantaneously. If we will go on being effective like this, soon we will rule the world. For this, our youth only will create a world class workforce.
The Indian economy is not growing, so how will the luxury segment grow?
This government has managed things very well. Now, rupee has stabilised against dollar after so many fluctuations which is a big achievement. Even though we have slowed down, but still we are the second fastest growing economy in the world. Hence, the growth is not erratic. However, some of our institutions are managed in such a way that some of the decisions tend to go against you. For example, we are self-sufficient when it comes to coal and iron ore but due to some scandals we are now forced to import it from other countries which deplete our foreign exchange stock. Thus, some of these democratic institutions are operating well but some need proper management.
If there is a change in the government, will it affect the real estate industry?
With the Regulatory Bill coming, with the land bill becoming more practical, the bigger operators will not suffer. We have roti, we have kapda, the only problem is makaan. I think the industry will stabilise. If the working is transparent everything will go well, if not, things might become difficult. But I don’t think it will affect the industry much.
Are there more sellers than buyers?
Yes, the whole equation is limited to a category who pays more, so there is more supply. Then there are categories where people require the products but there is no supply. It’s a market connection so you will have to enter the area where there is a market and margin. There is zero risk but lesser gain.
What’s your vision for 2014?
Our vision for 2014 would be to increase our productivity, to give better facilities to our
intellectual force to compete in the world and to develop highly paid job centres for renovation of the economy to lead in the higher segments of jobs and not just call centres.
phenomenal. What is your opinion on the youth’s interest in the democratic process?
There are two aspects of the matter. First, they represented the feelings of people because the common man is fed up of corruption, laxity, delays in administration and poor quality of governance. This is a big contribution towards democracy which the media and everyone supported.
At the same time, it also attracts a lot of responsibilities, because to maintain the production line, to operate as a successful governing instrument, to ensure the supply lines, to ensure comfort to the people, is another challenge which is very difficult. No doubt our current government managed very well when it came to finances, arrangements and managements. The whole world is in an economic crisis but on this front we have managed very well till now.
Is corruption the price we pay for democracy?
To express the voice against corruption is like a pressure cooker which will burst if overheated. Democracy is a thing that will ventilate the pressure the moment there is a discomfort. If it was a dictatorial regime, it would have burst and not ventilated. At the same time if a government presents difficult promises to its citizens, it will have to stand true to it.
Are the youth well-informed?
The youth has always raised questions whenever there has been a discomfort, they resonate the feelings of our people. There are a lot of inconveniences that people face —in government offices, in service institutions, with police, sales, revenue, Nagar Nigam and even the private sector is filled with corrupt personnel. This corruption is irking everyone in the country, including the youth and the 16th December 2012 crime of rape has also contributed to the fact that things were not going well and can be retaliated by the youth power as a movement.
Also, if power is enjoyed by any group for a long time then a lot of aberrations arise. Rajiv Gandhi once introduced the ‘Prevention of Corruption Act’ and when the bill was introduced, people felt that corruption would be eradicated but has it yet? The same is with the Lokpal Bill. It is we, the people of India and the attitude of operators which has to be changed.
Do you foresee a similar enthusiasm for the coming Lok Sabha elections as well?
If you see the collective wisdom of the population of Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Nagaland and other backward places, then the collective wisdom of those places is better than that of Delhi. In Delhi, they have not chosen a government as an instrument. So who will govern you? You will have to create an institution to govern you. Lok Sabha is a whole country affair. Everytime, a new, more youthful team of voters joins and the old ones go out. Media is very fast, it is changing, things are changing, parameters that decide the elections are changing very fast. The collective behaviour of our people as a democracy is very mature. So something good will emerge.
Is democracy making India lag behind?
Democracy is the best method of governance. We cannot have situations like Syria and Egypt. We always ventilate our grievances through democracy. Yes, we are a bit slow because this is not a dictatorial system and man does not live by bread alone. Hence, we have to have a comfort level, with a good philosophical and intellectual environment. The collective performance of a democratic country is far better than other kinds of systems.
What would you advise the youth?
I think there is very bright future ahead for our youth. Our service sector, which is one of the best in the world, is our asset. The more one improves the quality of training of our youth, their education facilities, we can expect more great things in the future from them. Our growth has been well-sustained, for example, now the governor of the Reserve Bank declares policies which give results instantaneously. If we will go on being effective like this, soon we will rule the world. For this, our youth only will create a world class workforce.
The Indian economy is not growing, so how will the luxury segment grow?
This government has managed things very well. Now, rupee has stabilised against dollar after so many fluctuations which is a big achievement. Even though we have slowed down, but still we are the second fastest growing economy in the world. Hence, the growth is not erratic. However, some of our institutions are managed in such a way that some of the decisions tend to go against you. For example, we are self-sufficient when it comes to coal and iron ore but due to some scandals we are now forced to import it from other countries which deplete our foreign exchange stock. Thus, some of these democratic institutions are operating well but some need proper management.
If there is a change in the government, will it affect the real estate industry?
With the Regulatory Bill coming, with the land bill becoming more practical, the bigger operators will not suffer. We have roti, we have kapda, the only problem is makaan. I think the industry will stabilise. If the working is transparent everything will go well, if not, things might become difficult. But I don’t think it will affect the industry much.
Are there more sellers than buyers?
Yes, the whole equation is limited to a category who pays more, so there is more supply. Then there are categories where people require the products but there is no supply. It’s a market connection so you will have to enter the area where there is a market and margin. There is zero risk but lesser gain.
What’s your vision for 2014?
Our vision for 2014 would be to increase our productivity, to give better facilities to our
intellectual force to compete in the world and to develop highly paid job centres for renovation of the economy to lead in the higher segments of jobs and not just call centres.
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