Cannibalism in N Korea

Addressing starvation should be priority, not nuclear mission

In recent times, North Korea has been the most discussed topic among the newsmakers, more because of their new premier and its nuclear ambitions than improved economic status of its citizens. What has got swept under the carpet in the hype of nuclear testing and America's vindictive reprisal has been the shamefully pathetic state of Korea's social safety net. If the emergence of new leadership of Kim Jong-Un in 2012 and his prospect of economic liberalisation brought hope to the country, it has not translated into any visible inclusive growth measures. Shockingly, while Kim is seemingly busy with his lavish lifestyle and brinkmanship over nuclear tests, citizens are in the grasp of killing starvation because of severe food shortages.

Despite facing famines in past, the country has still not paid heed to social inclusion and social safety programs. The country had gone through an infamous famine (titled Arduous March) during 1994 to 1998 that reportedly took close to 3.5 million lives, but no potent policies were ever drafted to prevent its reoccurrence. The nation continued to ignore warnings from several global organisations. As per the FAO and the World Food Program, the country does not produce enough food to feed its 24 million people. A 2011 Crop Assessment Report highlighted that “3 million people would need outside food help in 2012.” Consequently, the World Food Program made a global appeal for $218 million in emergency food in 2011 but somehow it received only $85 million. Perhaps nothing could be as worrying as the latest reports of cannibalism. The Telegraph reported in May 2011 that defectors had given accounts of "executions of people who had either eaten or sold human flesh." Undercover reporters of Asia Press revealed in a report this week how in Chongdan county, a man "boiled his own child, ate his flesh and was arrested.” Another dug up his grandchild's corpse and ate it. News reports also confirm this week that another man was summarily executed after killing and eating his two children.

Surprisingly, the country has completely ignored (intentionally?) the issues of cannibalism and starvation and has termed these reports to be fabricated. North Korea has been overly vocal about US sanctions over its nuclear missile tests and Kim has vowed to take “substantial and high profile important state measures” to strike back against those sanctions. But not even an iota of that enthusiasm has been displayed for removing poverty and hunger!

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face

BBA Institute

Jealously green?

Is going green the need of the hour in the real estate industry? mona mehta reviews the plans of top builders and how technology is being leveraged by them

The commercial and residential sectors constitute the major markets for the real estate industry in India. These sectors also consume a lot of energy and contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. As per an official draft (Modern Building Bylaws for Construction of Green Buildings) by the Town and Country Planning Organisation, Government of India, "In a typical residential building in India, approximately 60 per cent of the total electricity is consumed for lights, 32 per cent for air conditioning and 8 per cent for refrigeration." Considering this, it's a no-brainer that if investment were not an issue then there's no reason that any building should shy away from the green option.
Infrastructure investors like Kruti Jain, Director, Kumar Builders, whom we talk to, tell us that the concept of green buildings is yet to take off in a big way in India. The awareness of green buildings in India is largely found in the metro cities. Rural areas are yet to wake up to the green building concept. Compared to other Asian countries such as China, Singapore and Japan or Western countries such as the US and Canada, India probably stands at the bottom rung of the ladder. Having said that, the awareness about going green is slowly but steadily increasing.

Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) is one such institution attempting to support the growth of the green building philosophy. IGBC claims that there are 307 buildings in India "certified" as being true to that philosophy. It's quite clear that the numbers we're talking about are extremely miniscule, if not close to being non-existent when one considers the cumulative number of buildings in India. Yet, it's also clear that the glass could be seen as being half full, and the potential for Indian buildings going green be perceived as huge.

So how does one go, so to say, green? Rajat Malhotra, COO, Integrated Facilities Management (West Asia), Jones Lang LaSalle India, opines, “One obvious factor is awareness. The second most important factor is aligning Corporate Sustainability Goals with real estate selection. Green spaces not only allow for 14 to 16 per cent increase in productivity but also reduce the operational cost of the building, consume less energy, water and other resources, leading to offices which are more environmentally responsible and have a lower carbon footprint."

As far as the technological challenges for setting up green buildings go, Jackbastian K Nazareth, Group CEO, Puravankara Projects Ltd agrees that the initial investment is marginally higher (5-15 per cent) than a conventional building, but that differential is apparently diminishing – what used to be a 15 per cent in 2004/05, decreased to 8 per cent in 2010 and is now around 5 per cent. So cost is not really a huge concern. “What we need is greater awareness and adoption of green building practices in construction design,” he states.

The unique features of any green building project include solid waste management, rain water harvesting, irrigation technologies, waste segregation systems, and of course, solar energy. Also, many green building projects fail to factor in many intangible green building benefits (like improved indoor environment quality, improved productivity). These should be accounted for while formulating the cost and benefit analysis.

Will the Indian government over the next few years bring in any regulation that requires mandatory green certification of all buildings in India – something like they've done with products like air conditioners, refrigerators and others? Some believe that such a regulation is just around the corner. Not many know that through an Act passed by the Indian Parliament in 2001, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Government of India, was authorised to develop the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC). The code was subsequently developed and is functional under BEE, although it is in use only on a voluntary basis. There is no doubt that the future intentions of the government would be to make it mandatory for all buildings, as the 2001 Act was originally passed with the mandatory clause (and changed subsequently).

Notwithstanding the ECBC, there are certain top builders who believe that the process of constructing green buildings commences at the site selection and the design level itself. Reasons Boman Irani, Chairman and Managing Director, Rustomjee Developers, “The windows and the doors must be placed in the manner that they cut direct sunlight to reduce heat gain, while letting the rooms get enough air flow through cross ventilation. The site’s closeness to the public transport system too is reckoned, which helps in reducing the dependence on private vehicles that contribute to the carbon emission.” Apparently, post designing, construction material must be procured within the vicinity and must be compliant to the principles of re-use. Instead of bricks, fly-ash concrete blocks for building purposes should be used.

Read more....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year

BBA Management Education

Revolutionary slokas

Maoists in Bihar are mixing Leftist politics with social engagement to increase their mass base, reports Sanjay Upadhyay

On the freezing wintry night of December 27, 2012, a group of nearly 100 men, buried under swathes of quilt and thick winter-wear, gather at the diara or riverine area next to the swirling Baghmati in north Bihar.

In the dark expanse and quiet, save the noise of the river, Giddha in Sitamarhi district is not the kind of place you are likely to see anyone or anything except a congregation like this –  a meeting of some of the top ranking Maoist radical leaders from north Bihar.

This place, considered a positive security hazard for most except this motley crowd present, can hardly be more suitably located, adjacent as it is to the Indo-Nepal border. To be sure, there is more than a hint of fraternal links across the invisible line between the two countries.

Welcome to the Shahid Mela or Martyr's Fair. This meeting is no cold-blooded plan of the radical Reds to rid the society of its class enemies through wanton violence, neither a Naxalite kangaroo court which delivers primordial justice to the land holder for his perceived excesses, all under the cover of darkness.

Instead it is a popular village fair which proposes to turn Mao Zedong on his head, a new paradigm as it were: power does not flow from the barrel of gun, as the great helmsman had once famously wrote, but through social reform, dialogue and raising issues in the most bourgeoisie democratic fashion possible.

It is by no means a lone view. Of the Maoists gathered here, there is an increasing consensus that non-violence will fetch them better results than all the blood shed in the world. This theme dominates their conversation and talks continue through the night until the first rays of sun break through.

Then, the scene is markedly different. In the sparkling sun, with pakoras and jalebis fresh out of the wok, the chattering of children and the queue for piping hot tea, it looks an unlikely place for nearly 50,000 odd revolutionaries to assemble for a political cause.

But then such are the persuasive powers of the influential Nari Mukti Morcha, the largest umbrella organisation of Maoists in north Bihar and the main organiser of the Martyr’s Fair.

At the fair itself – a much-publicised meeting for those who cared to know  – arms and ammunition are the last thing on anyones’mind. Keeping social sensitivities in mind, it is what you would see at any village get together. There is the Meena Bazaar, which is enough to get the women folk chattering: bangles, colourful clothes, sindur and make up. The pattern follows itself; the nights dominated by classic left polemics and the day by the gaily coloured village stalls.

As a symbolic gesture towards changing a degenerate social order, a model marriage is solemnised between Amit, a resident of East Champaran and Sangeena. In what could be considered an extraordinary first, the slokas are recited hand in hand with revolutionary Maoist ballads. A cultural team from the Benaras Hindu University (BHU) is at hand to provide the musical score and it looks like the original fun place.

Read more......

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face

BBA Institute

The simmering danger

The year 2012 saw an outbreak of something that was unimaginable even a few years ago. Mayank Singh examines how frequent and violent conflicts between jawans and officers is a danger signal.

jawan killedThree proud units –16 Cavalry, 226 Field Artillery and 45 Cavalry – have seen openly violent conflicts between soldiers or Jawans and officers in recent times. The incidents predictably sent shock waves in the upper echelons of Army. Lieutenant General Vijay General Oberoi says, "Three incidents of collective indiscipline by jawans in the last few months reflect a breakdown in the traditionally close officer-man relationship and is a growing cause for concern... especially as all three incidents are related to combat units."

The rot runs deeper. Defence Minister A K Antony recently told Parliament that as many as 1,018 soldiers had committed suicide since 2003, with the yearly toll regularly climbing over 100. What adds to this problem is that incidents of fragging (to kill or wound a fellow soldier) have also become a regular phenomenon in the 1.13-million strong Indian Army.
Operating in a hostile counter-insurgency environment against a faceless enemy does lead to certain stress, but that is only one of the factors contributing to the growing disillusionment and disenchantment among jawans. Add to it the problems back home – land disputes, tensions within the family – rising aspirations, desire for better pay and allowances, falling standards of supervision from some officers, and a fatal concoction is ready. Stress levels are bound to zoom northwards. Company commanders who lead field units in counter-insurgency situations also believe that tensions at home become more immediate thanks to instant mobile communications.

Gen vk singhOne more common thread among soldiers from Rajasthan to UP, from Tamil Nadu to Haryana was how little respect they seem to command today in a society which devalues their work. Soldiers these days are better educated and consequently better aware of their rights. This, coupled with falling standards of supervision and control among some of the undeserving officers who have risen to command units, is becoming a major cause for worry. A report by the Defence Institute of Psychological Research had earlier held that "perceived humiliation and harassment at the hands of their superiors" – over and above occupational and familial causes – often serves as the final "trigger" for jawans in stress-related cases in the armed forces.

jawan According to Antony, more than 25,000 soldiers have opted for voluntary retirement in the past three years (10,315 in 2011, 7,249 in 2010 and 7,499 in 2009). He added that during the same period, more than 1,600 officers have either sought voluntary retirement or have resigned (this when the army is already reeling under a massive shortage of close to 12,000 officers). Besides, more than 1,000 jawans have committed suicide since 2003.

Read more.....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

2012 : DNA National B-School Survey 2012
Ranked 1st in International Exposure (ahead of all the IIMs)
Ranked 6th Overall
Zee Business Best B-School Survey 2012
Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri’s Session at IMA Indore
IIPM IN FINANCIAL TIMES, UK. FEATURE OF THE WEEK
IIPM strong hold on Placement : 10000 Students Placed in last 5 year

BBA Management Education

PROF. JAMES L. HESKETT: HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL

“To T. S. Eliot’s prescient words ‘Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?’ we might now add, ‘Where is the information we have lost in data?’”
That’s Paul Nicholas’ (Director, Soul-Chaplain Consultancy) reaction after reading most of the responses to this month’s column. It’s not a bad “sense of the meeting,” in which many contributors offered suggestions to managers wishing to get the most out of so-called big data and avoid paying the price of paralysis in the process. The challenges Big Data pose for managers include “identifying which data are relevant” (Subrata Chakraborty, a retired professor of management) and “seeing through the woods to know what to use and what not” (Pieter J. de Beer, Senior Partner, De Beer & Keulder Legal Practitioners). Scott Waller (VP, M/A/R/C Research) expressed the fear that “the age of Big Data seems to be arriving at the time of death for the Big Thinker.” Gerald Nanninga (Founder, Planninga from Nanninga) cautioned us that “the big risk is that it gives executives a false sense of comfort.” Clifford Francis Baker (Chair, Neffel Corporation) added, “My concern is primarily focused on the possibility of complacency…data derived from data analytics must…be handled with care.” Mok Tuck Sung (Owner, Profit Tools) commented that “technology and knowledge advancement have again developed faster than the managers’ and business owners’ capabilities to leverage its usefulness in their decision making process.” Philippe Gouamba (Vice President – Human Resources, Skyline Windows, LLC) reminded us that “perfection is but an illusion… A successful outcome is almost never the result of perfect information.”

Among the suggestions for managers were these: 1. Help “data analysers consume and translate the data” (Scott Kemme, Senior Business Analyst, ClickFox, who also suggested an alternative title for the column, which I instead used above);
2. Know “what not to look at” (Phillip Clark of Clark & Associates);
3. Work to reduce turnover among business analysts who “tend to be lower level employees and have a high turnover,” creating a “losing battle” through the loss of “institutional data knowledge” (Kim Kraemer, Data Architect, USG Corporation);
4. Avoid the belief that “whatever is new will solve their problems,” concentrating on the appropriate application of Big Data (Seena Sharp, Executive Director, Sharp Market Intelligence);
5. Avoid allowing Big Data to remain the “purview of the select few” only for use for one-off and one-time decisions” (Jonathan Spier, Entrepreneur in Residence, Altos Ventures);
6. Maintain the attitude that “fast is better than perfect” (Mike Flanagan a Purchasing Manager by profession);
7. Avoid the temptation of harvesting just the “’low hanging fruit’ rather than waiting for the analysts to gain understanding (presumably of the decisions to be made)” (Sean O’Riordain of Trinity College, Dublin);
8. Rather than concentrating on the data, focus on “being able to formulate the right questions to ask at precisely the right moment” (Edward Hare, Retired Director – Strategy and Planning, Fortune 250 Manufacturer).
Tom Dolembo (Founder, New North Institute) drew a picture of direct process control in which decisions have to be made “in the flow” in situations where there isn’t time for conventional analysis (at least by humans). Is this a glimpse into the future of decision-making (without analysis paralysis) based on big data for a widening range of decisions or is it confined to a special set of conditions? Will access to Big Data further enable fact-based decision making or analysis paralysis?

Read more.....

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri

and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

 

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

IIPM Global Exposure
IIPM Best B School India
IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM Links
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face

BBA Institute