Showing posts with label Delhi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Delhi. Show all posts

Friday, May 31, 2013

More research same results

Everybody knows which is the rape capital of India; a survey nails it again

The brutal gang-rape of a girl in Delhi in December 2012 again justified Delhi's title ignominious title as ‘the rape capital of India.’ The growing number of crimes against women has proved the city’s inability to provide safety to this vulnerable section of society.

According to a recent TripAdvisor survey, "Delhi is voted to be the most unsafe city while Mumbai is ranked as the safest city." Bangalore and Ahmedabad are rated as second most safe cities of India. Around 94 per cent foreign female respondents expressed their fear of visiting India alone, but not when they travel to other international destinations. This fear can be gauged by browsing the records of National Crime Records Bureau. According to NCRB, 24,206 incidents of rape and molestation were recorded in India in 2012, which is a rise of 9 per cent over the last year. Delhi alone recorded over 4,000 rape cases in 2011. More than half of the reported cases had victims between the age group of 18 and 30. A 2009 government crime report said that about 24 percent of total rape cases and above 40 per cent of cases of kidnapping and abduction of women took place in Delhi. In another survey jointly conducted by a women's rights group Jagori and the UN, it waas revealed that two of every three women in Delhi have been sexually harassed at least twice and at the maximum five times in the last one year. Shockingly, 40 per cent of harassment and molestation incidents took place in broad daylight. What is worse, 45 per cent women surveyed felt no cooperation from the police if they approached. Unfortunately, 70 per cent of men interviewed said that they would not intervene and rather be mute spectators.

Delhi Police has earned the reputation of being untrustworthy by local civilians. They have failed to set the environment of 'zero tolerance’ against rape. The conviction rates too are in a complete mess with below average forensic capabilities and very hollow anti-rape laws, despite the recent changes.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2013.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles

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Friday, February 08, 2013

THE SUNDAY INDIAN EXCLUSIVE

A TSI sting operation finds how paedophilia has turned into a thriving business in Delhi, NCR and Mumbai. Taking advantage of kids’ poverty and craze for brands and gadgets, middlemen get rich by supplying minor boys and girls to satiate the desire of sick, rich men, many of them NRIs and foreigners. By Abhishek Kumar and Neeraj Rajput

We could feel that Ansh did not appreciate us having a long conversation with the boy. But since we don’t want to take them to a hotel or any other place, we need all our answers then and there. It’s an uncomfortable situation; but we press on. We said we were surprised that kids were so easily available here in India too. The boy immediately replied that India was getting rapidly westernised and you get to find such kids in virtually every corner of the country. He added he wanted money so that he could buy a Yamaha Fazer motorcycle. Asked if he would feel awkward later, he categorically said no.
Boy-You are from Australia?

TSI- Ya, I am from Australia. You must be studying?
Boy-Smiles

TSI- I am surprised that this all happens here and availability is so easy.
Boy-Everything is getting westernised here too and people are copying everything.

TSI-How do you know him (Ansh)?
Boy-I got in touch with him through e-mail.

TSI- Is this your first time?
Boy- No. Must be 7th or 8th time.

TSI- Are you in touch with others as well?
Boy-Yes, there are many.

TSI- Why did you come into this profession?
Boy- I have to buy a motorbike.

TSI- Which one?
Boy- Yamaha’s Fazer.

TSI- You must be feeling really awkward to do all this?
Boy-Not at all.

TSI- Is this a hobby or for money?
Boy-Mainly for money.

TSI- You have done it earlier as well, hope nothing bothers.
Boy –Not at all. I have already done it 5 to 7 times.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
and Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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Thursday, January 03, 2013

The Confusing Congress Chimera

 Just a few days ago, I was in Lucknow arguing vociferously with my father-in-law. He is a die hard supporter of Congress and would have cast his vote in favour of Rita Bahuguna Joshi. I personally think the chances of her winning are about as high as Shah Rukh’s Knight Riders winning IPL 2. But then faith and optimism are eternal. In fact, my father-in-law, who is a middle class Bihari settled in U.P. is convinced that there is a strong undercurrent in favour of Congress this time in the Hindi heartland. He is almost wistful when he talks about how the glory days of Congress can come back with Rahul Gandhi by the time the next Lok Sabha elections are organised. I have come across hundreds of such Congress well wishers who are sick and tired of regional parties ‘holding the nation to ransom’. I empathize with them, but can’t help pointing out some hard realities that make the challenge of reviving the Congress so formidable for Rahul Gandhi and his well meaning earnestness.

Here is a list of major states where the Congress can hope to win a lot of seats on its own: Assam, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarkhand, Orissa and Karnataka. That works out to about 230 plus seats. Here is a list of states where the Congress cannot hope to win even a few seats without strong regional allies: West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and J&K. That works out to almost 300 seats. The last time Congress won in Tamil Nadu was in 1967; it was 1967 in West Bengal; 1984-85 in Gujarat, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh; 1991 in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and Maharashtra on its own. In the states where the Congress can win many seats on its own, the party already has about 110 out of 130. In the second category of states, the party has about 50 out of 300.

Even a school child will know that it is the second category of states that will be the biggest challenge for Rahul Gandhi and his so called youth brigade. To be able to cross even 200 Lok Sabha seats, it needs to at least double its tally in the second category of states. More importantly, Rahul Gandhi needs to plan and execute a strategy which can help the Congress have even a decent chance of winning a large number of seats on its own in Maharashtra, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand which send almost 225 MPs to the Lok Sabha. Currently, the Congress has just about 50 representatives from these important states.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Technology and dating communities

Technology and dating communities stay in step with the changing times...

Two years ago speed dating came to India with the first event being held in Mumbai. Speed dating is at times described as a, ‘formalised matchmaking process’. In truth, it is nothing more than throwing an equal number of guys and girls together and each guy gets some three minutes to chat with every dame before moving on to the next. Sounds like a dream come true, right? Well, it has its own catch; you would get the girl’s number only if she has also shown an interest in you.

And oh, guys get charged more for the same services! Why? Well, isn’t it obvious? Although yet to take-off fully in India, the concept has proven to be sound and successful and usually safe. The reason could be that as a society we are yet to fully de-stigmatise dating as a concept, with people who take the help of dating agencies labelled as losers or of a loose moral character. Take Sanjana for example, she runs a ‘friendship circle’ (another name for what essentially is a dating agency) in Delhi called Cool Friends. “Our aim is to find like-minded friends for people in this unfriendly world,” she says with a straight face when asked about the friendship circle.

With metros like Delhi and Mumbai serving as a veritable melting pot for all of India’s religions and countless castes, it is getting harder for parents to insist that their child marries within the ‘community’. This, coupled with ever greater interaction between young people of different regions (with the coming of age of the Internet and greater mobility overall) has ensured that dating has been demystified, although risks remain.

“I started dating a guy I met through Facebook. He really seemed wonderful and funny. But I later found out that along with his age, he had lied about many things. He turned out to be four years younger to me after claiming that he was three years elder!” says Monica laughingly. Well, at least he was not a repressed freak…


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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Monday, September 10, 2012

One last time: a realty review!

B&E’s argues why real estate developers in India can go the full hog with their price hikes, at least for now; and we add a cheesy realty review to go along with it one last time this year...

Cheesy, because it’s been done a hundred times before. Interesting, because for once, we’re advising the realty players to actually increase their offer prices. Today’s scenario is a far cry from that of 2009, when the demand for real estate in India clearly reflected the weak global sentiments – absorption rate of both commercial and residential properties had then stood at a miniscule 9% (Q1 2009). In contrast, at this point of 2010, India’s realty sector already shows an absorption rate that’s as high as 21%; and if the trend continues, as per collated B&E estimates through market reports and expert sentiments, India will need another 240 million sq. ft. of commercial space and about 4.25 million units of residential real estate to meet the growing demand between 2010 & 2014.

At the same time, the supply largely remains constrained due to the slow pace of construction activity that happened during FY2009-10. As a result, the demand for real estate across major metros (which includes Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata and Hyderabad) in the country is estimated to become three times the supply during 2010–14 (as per US based real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield). But in a scenario where demand is growing, supply unfortunately is still not growing. It seems that the top builders in India too want to test the elasticity of demand and as such an enormous rise in prices of real estate, especially residential units, can be clearly seen all across India.

As per a recent research conducted, among 2,863 localities across major metros in India, residential property prices have witnessed a sharp rise over the last one year. Mumbai of course is the vanguard of such rise. While property prices in areas like Mahalaxmi in Mumbai have climbed a whopping 63.5% (from Rs.25,117 per sq. ft. in 2009 to Rs.41,056 per sq. ft. in 2010), they have gone up by 57% in Colaba. Other localities too in Mumbai have witnessed a sharp price appreciation in the range of 36%-55%. Similar has been the rise in other metros. While property prices have appreciated by about 35% in Delhi and Bangalore over the last one year, they have gone up by 25-30% in Chennai, Gurgaon and Pune. Kolkata, Noida and Hyderabad too have seen real estate prices rising in the range of 5-20% in 2010. The name’s quite cheesy, but as per Makaan.com Property Index (MPI) – which, unbelievably, is India’s first property index – property prices at a national level have increased significantly by 7.2% in the last one month. The index in August 2010 stood at 1,187 as against 1,107 in June 2010. Compared to August 2009, MPI in August 2010 has moved up by 13.9%.


Source : IIPM Editorial, 2012.
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
 
IIPM : The B-School with a Human Face
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Monday, August 13, 2012

Selling spice from the skies

With many new projects coming up in kochi, this hub of spice trade is trying to make it big in the business of skyscrapers too, says t. satisan

A couple of decades ago, real estate business was not everyone’s envy in Kerala. It was considered as yet another “broker’s job” and as such did not had much acceptability. Well, not to say the earnings were meagre and the job was tough as people didn’t really require expert’s advice to sell or buy properties. Cut to today, and the term “broker” has given way to “real estate player”. All thanks to the booming property prices, the business has turned into a money making machine. These brokers aka real estate players have not only taken up more roles, but are also constructing villas, malls, flats, et al. But then, the success hasn’t come easy to them.

In fact, early birds came from north cosmopolitan cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi and Bengaluru. They not only offered good packages to consumers, but also ventured into construction and raked in big moolah. This caught the attention of local players. They thought if they can win why can’t we? Naturally several local players jumped into the realm of construction and rest is a glorious part of the economic history of Kerala. The visiting builders were taken by surprise when they saw the modus operandi of the Kerala builders. So what is it that makes these local players a tough competition?

First of all, local builders have more credibility. Builders sitting in Delhi or Mumbai are looked at with suspicion. Buyers suspect that these people may disappear leaving incomplete buildings behind after collecting the amount. In fact, some buyers have had such bitter experiences. Secondly, initially, people used to buy properties for investments. Buyers of apartments and posh villas were sitting abroad. But today, the buyers are real users. They are eager to occupy the accommodation at the earliest. Moreover, unlike early days, today’s buyers have their own choice with respect to the prices. In fact, they like to go for apartments within a price range of Rs.2.5 million to Rs.3.5 million.


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Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Policy -GOVERNANCE: PUBLIC IMAGE

Over two years have Passed since a Series of Leaked E-Mails Triggered Doubts over The Extent of Global Warming being Projected by The IPCC, with its Chief, Rajendra Pachauri, having made to beat a Hasty retreat on its stand over Reports on Melting glaciers. But Pachauri, Disappointingly, still enjoys The Support of Various Government Functionaries

The shame that Pachauri has brought on to himself, the country and the cause being heralded by several genuine environmentalists, is also not new to the government. Union Environment minister Jairam Ramesh had termed such forecasts as alarmist and without scientific basis. Stressing on enhancing scientific capability, Jairam Ramesh said that the most important lesson that India must learn from the whole episode is that there is no substitute for domestic scientific capability.

And more critical is the controversy surrounding TERI University functioning and Pachauri’s dubious role within it. The UGC (Institutions Deemed-to-be Universities) Regulations 2010, notified on May 21, 2010, clarified that the chancellor of any deemed university will have to be either a respected educationalist or an esteemed public figure “other than the head of the sponsoring society or his/her relative”. Additionally, the chancellor should not be a member of the society/trust promoting the institution. R. K. Pachauri apparently has no qualms over going against all these rules in TERI University, which is a deemed to be university.

It is very well known that R. K. Pachauri is the Director General of TERI, the parent body of TERI University, which is a deemed to be university. At the same time, he flagrantly holds the post of Chancellor and Chairman of TERI University, clearly contravening the UGC 2010 Regulations. Will the UGC act to immediately cut this blatant contravening? Not till he continues basking in the support of various government functionaries. While individual motives and an absence of the desired integrity quotient have been a well-known factor behind diminishing the credibility of larger progressive human interests, the support that the Prime Minister and other government functionaries continue to display for Pachauri is nothing short of tragedy in itself.

What is more worrisome is that this is not the first time that the media has raised these concerns. After having announced his total support for Pachauri and the cause he was pursuing, Dr. Singh still shares the dais with Pachauri at international events on more occasions than one. Why is it that the Prime Minister of India, hailed by many as an epitome of honesty and integrity, agrees to stand next to a person like Pachauri? At the recent inauguration of the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit, 2011 in New Delhi, Pachauri, in the presence of the Indian PM and foreign and Indian dignitaries said, “It is time for us to ask ourselves whether we have done enough to keep the promises made in these global events.” A good time for some introspection, perhaps, Mr Pachauri?


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