r2i forum

I recently came across some buzz about a new book being launched, "Transforming India".

You can read the entire book here, or buy it using links there. For purchasing, it's only $5 before discount.

http://www.transformingindia.in

As I started reading the initial copy procured, I got sucked into it more. It's a futuristic book that starts in a "Developed India" in 2040, then using the typical Indian movie's flashback format, revisits policy by policy that turned a much poorer India into a Developed country in 3 decades. A small 160 page book, but powerful in ideas & stats. Some are obvious like, in 2010, power shortage was so severe that 98% of Indians did NOT have uninterrupted 24x7 power supply. Some are systemic analysis like there are 3 kinds of freedoms; Political, Economic & Personal. Indians today don't have the last two. Some are sad like the number of malnourished children in India is almost same as UK,Australia & Canada's combined pop! Some are hard hitting like when a government is a player, along with being a referee, the country is destined to be poor.

Some are absolute eye-openers like this:
In 1950: For every $100 earned by an American, an Indian earned $7.1 and South Korean $7.6. But by 1995: For every $100 earned by an American, an Indian earned $5.2 & South Korean $42.4. So effectively our generation got poorer compared to an average American, thanks to Nehruvian socialist economic policies! The author goes one step further to replace the "Hindu rate of growth" term with "Nehru rate of growth" :)

Then I got involved with a bunch of volunteers to arrange for a series of book launch & lecture series in Bengaluru. We thought it would be worth to have this University of California, Berkley, professor to talk to at least 500, if not 1000 brilliant young minds of our city. The program took off! Starting today, Dr.Dey is on a series of seminars & interactions at prestigious institutions like IISc Bangalore, National Law School and BMS Institutes. On Saturday, we have a 300 seat auditorium, Yavanika, in central part of the city for a big event for him to speak to mostly PG students from over 25 colleges of Bengaluru. Wish us good luck :)

I also got the opportunity to interview this brilliant economist. Since this is my first ever interview of a published book's author, it got off a bit on the shaky side. But by the middle of 2nd part, we were cruising :)

Why India is a Poor Country? Interview with Atanu Dey, Part 1
http://indiawires.com/3732/news/national/interview-with-atanu-dey-author-of-the-book-transforming-india-part-1/

India Doesn’t have Economic Freedom: Atanu Dey – Interview Part 2
http://indiawires.com/3752/news/national/india-doesnt-have-economic-freedom-atanu-dey-interview-part-2/

We Need an Urban Vote Bank: Atanu Dey – Interview Part 3
http://indiawires.com/3760/news/national/we-need-an-urban-vote-bank-atanu-dey-%e2%80%93-interview-part-3/

We all wish India should get rid of its poverty and develop. But do we have the real solutions? This brilliant professor from California seems to have most of the answers.

Do watch the interviews, comment on his passionate ideas and my interview *style* :wink
Your feedback, if any, is greatly appreciated.

You can also pose questions which I will try to take to the 300 seat auditorium session on Saturday.

KirKS;421798 ...
I also got the opportunity to interview this brilliant economist. Since this is my first ever interview of a published book's author, it got off a bit on the shaky side. But by the middle of 2nd part, we were cruising :)

...
Do watch the interviews, comment on his passionate ideas and my interview *style* :wink
Your feedback, if any, is greatly appreciated.

wow! I just watched the beginning so far. Not shaky at all. When you picked up the book and displayed it to the audience/camera, I was reminded of Jon Stewart introducing books/authors. Will watch more.. if I am more interested in interviewer's style, not my fault. : )

I have been subscribing to his blog (http://www.deeshaa.org/) to keep tab on what he is up to.

history, there was no india before 1947. It was just a land of mass with some 500+ princely states and 50 % of the total land is controlled by british. At independence and years after our leaders were struggling with putting together all the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle. The Idea of India as a country came in 1947 only after violent religious seperation of some of its land today called Pakistan. Post independence, it was a daunting task on the incoming independent government to stand and survive as country having so much diversity in language, religion, people, food habits, culture plus poverty let alone putting free market policies which may have result into Prosperity. These socialist economic policies were no doubt bad from western capitalist thinking point of view however in those testing times they were necessary when our survival as a country on stake and balkanisation or fragmentation was immidate threat. I cannot stop myself giving of some famous/infamous quotes and predictions from western observers about India during those times...
"The Sikhs may try to set up a seperate regime. I think they probably will and that will be only a start of a general decentralization and break-up of the Idea that India is a country, whereas it is a subcontinent as varied as Europe. The punjabi is a different from a madrassi as a scot is from an Italian.The british tried to consolidate it but achieved nothing permanent. No one can make a nation out of continent of many nations".
-------------General Sir Claude Auchinleck - Britishi Indian army 1947
"As the years pass, British rule in India comes to seem as remote as the battle of Agincourt"
------------------- Malcolm Muggeridge, Broadcaster and auther in 1964
"The disapearance of the british raj in india is at present and must for long time be simply inconeivable. That it should be replaced by a native government or governments is the wildest of wild dreams... as soon as the last british soldier sailed from bombay or karachi, India would become the battlefield of antagonistic racial and religious forces..and the peaceful and progressive civilasation, which gGreat Britain has slowly but surely brought into India would shrivel up in a night"
---------------- J.E Welldon, Bishop of Calcutta 1935
"today, India is the first of the hungry nations to stand at the brink of famine and disaster'. tommorow 'the famines will come' and riding alongside will surely be riots and other civil tensions which central government will be too weak to control leading the country into dis-integration"
-------------American journalist for Atlantis magzine in 1965
"Few people contemplating Indira Gandhi's funeral in 1984 would have predicted that ten years later India would remain a unity but the soviet Union would be a memory"
----------------- Robin Jeffret Historian year 2000
so I storngly feel that Author is looking past of India from merely capitalist economist point of view but not challenges it faced.. No doubt Nehru's socialist policies were bad and continuation if it for long involved heavy cost.but they were necessary that time to build basic structure of country like Trust in Parliament, establishment of democratic institution, presenting India as a country and all required functions to survive as a nation .. and I believe he did it faily well on those grounds..

A very through analysis on Economic policies of Independent india and what went wrong.. however author misses on very critical point while putting all these in 2010. Author is taking independence in 1947 is merely an event which came and gone in the life of country India..with local browns replaced british government. However If we go back to history, there was no india before 1947. It was just a land of mass with some 500+ princely states and 50 % of the total land is controlled by british. At independence and years after our leaders were struggling with putting together all the pieces of this jigsaw puzzle. The Idea of India as a country came in 1947 only after violent religious seperation of some of its land today called Pakistan. Post independence, it was a daunting task on the incoming independent government to stand and survive as country having so much diversity in language, religion, people, food habits, culture plus poverty let alone putting free market policies which may have result into Prosperity. These socialist economic policies were no doubt bad from western capitalist thinking point of view however in those testing times they were necessary when our survival as a country on stake and balkanisation or fragmentation was immidate threat. I cannot stop myself giving of some famous/infamous quotes and predictions from western observers about India during those times...
"The Sikhs may try to set up a seperate regime. I think they probably will and that will be only a start of a general decentralization and break-up of the Idea that India is a country, whereas it is a subcontinent as varied as Europe. The punjabi is a different from a madrassi as a scot is from an Italian.The british tried to consolidate it but achieved nothing permanent. No one can make a nation out of continent of many nations".
-------------General Sir Claude Auchinleck - Britishi Indian army 1947
"As the years pass, British rule in India comes to seem as remote as the battle of Agincourt"
------------------- Malcolm Muggeridge, Broadcaster and auther in 1964
"The disapearance of the british raj in india is at present and must for long time be simply inconeivable. That it should be replaced by a native government or governments is the wildest of wild dreams... as soon as the last british soldier sailed from bombay or karachi, India would become the battlefield of antagonistic racial and religious forces..and the peaceful and progressive civilasation, which gGreat Britain has slowly but surely brought into India would shrivel up in a night"
---------------- J.E Welldon, Bishop of Calcutta 1935
"today, India is the first of the hungry nations to stand at the brink of famine and disaster'. tommorow 'the famines will come' and riding alongside will surely be riots and other civil tensions which central government will be too weak to control leading the country into dis-integration"
-------------American journalist for Atlantis magzine in 1965
"Few people contemplating Indira Gandhi's funeral in 1984 would have predicted that ten years later India would remain a unity but the soviet Union would be a memory"
----------------- Robin Jeffret Historian year 2000
so I storngly feel that Author is looking past of India from merely capitalist economist point of view but not challenges it faced.. No doubt Nehru's socialist policies were bad and continuation if it for long involved heavy cost.but they were necessary that time to build basic structure of country like Trust in Parliament, establishment of democratic institution, presenting India as a country and all required functions to survive as a nation .. and I believe he did it faily well on those grounds..

What a passionate gentleman..........thanks for the video-links.

allama;421975 so I strongly feel that Author is looking past of India from merely capitalist economist point of view but not challenges it faced.. No doubt Nehru's socialist policies were bad and continuation if it for long involved heavy cost.but they were necessary that time to build basic structure of country like Trust in Parliament, establishment of democratic institution, presenting India as a country and all required functions to survive as a nation .. and I believe he did it faily well on those grounds..

allama, Thanks for the nice quotes. That Soviet quote was just awesome!

Actually I accept your objection to the Author's criticism of early independent India's policies to some extent. I am absolutely no fan of Nehru or his policies, but I do believe that he had too many other things, non-economy related, to take care.

Watch the second part of the interview closely. When the author says "India had Nehru Rate of Growth", I did step in as the interviewer, reminding him about elections India had, Nehru's achievements like Bhakra Nangal/heavy industries etc.

In fact, if you watch closely between the 5th and 8th minute, I asked exactly what you were raising, in the interview. I asked the author "did we have any better choice considering the situation immediately after British left".

[YOUTUBE]yvFBC0ZU2Zs[/YOUTUBE]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvFBC0ZU2Zs

Then listen how the author goes ballistic again...

This is like watching Fox channel. Nehru bashing at its best! What's new? We have 2 Nehru bashers instead of 1 in a Cannity like show.

Why is this NRI bashing India? Doesn't he have unpaid dues. Doesn't he owe to education system provided by Nehru? Is this phenomenon a means to internalize and process their guilt of unpaid dues? r is this a useful crutch to hold on in assisting them with a justification to never return? Or perhaps an anger at their own fate for having been born in a country they could never be taught to love and respect? Is it hard for such people to live with themselves?

Author's arguments are plain one sided. When the British left who does the author want to rule India instead of Nehru? Godse's friends? Nehru had the clout to at least keep the country together. If anyone other than a broadminded person like Nehru wasn't at the center at that time, some of the states such as Tamil Nadu wouldn't be even part of India. Talking of South Korea, South Korea has US troops and is that what the author wants, independant India an US stooge ? When India got independance India was reeling in poverty. Capitalist nations always want something in return when they give something. Socialism was not a choice but a must at that time.

What is the opinion of Atanu Dey on Mahatma Gandhi who said one has to spin his own cloth to wear? What did Nehru do different than Mahatma Gandhi?

As they say, TALK is cheap!

Life is cozy in Berkeley and there will be a lot of profit selling those books to dumb Indians! Voila!

Some excerpts (rephrased in some cases, with my comment in parentheses) from the first 4 chapters of the book: http://www.transformingindia.in

For an objective reader, these are enough to explain, why India is poor and who caused them in most cases due to faulty policies and even faultier execution. The fifth point sums up everything! Unless we honestly accept that India is ruled by dishonest people, right from the beginning, whose poor policies failed immensely, there is no point in pondering over the solutions of the author, in the subsequent sections.

[LIST=1]

In 2010, power shortage was so severe that 98% of Indians did NOT have uninterrupted 24x7 power supply. http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter1.htm

"The correct explanation for India’s slow growth is the extensive use of controls by government." http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter1.htm

There are 3 kinds of freedoms. Political, Economic & Personal. Indians today don't have the last two. http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter1.htm

The number of malnourished children in India is humongous. {Almost same as UK, Australia & Canada's combined pop!} http://transformingindia.in/chapter1.htm

The greatest betrayal of poor in India is the License-Control-Permit-Quota Raj employed by govt:( http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter2.htm

The biggest impediment for India's educational reforms is the tight govt control. Criminal! http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter2.htm

When a government is a player, along with being a referee, the country is destined to be poor. http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter2.htm

Even if not ONE case is filed in courts hereafter, it takes 300 years to clear the current ones! http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter2.htm

1950: For every $100 earned by an American, an Indian earned $7.1 and South Korean $7.6. 1995: For $100 earned by an American,an Indian earned $5.2 & S Korean $42.4. Thanks to Nehruvian socialist economic policies! {So, 1995 Indian actually got poorer compared to 1950 Indian, relative to America !!! :(} http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter2.htm

India has only 11 cities of population 3 million or above. For 120 cr population, that's too less. http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter3.htm

Building 10000 kms of high-speed track cost $100 billion. {2G scam loot could have built 4000 KM!} http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter3.htm

For 4 decades, leaders closed India off to foreign trade, in sharp contrast to the open economies. http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter4.htm

"Educated People are the Ultimate Resource" http://www.transformingindia.in/chapter4.htm {But Amethi 40% literate after Nehru family rule! }
[/LIST]
By the way, we had 5 major seminars already. We started with a business school in south east Bengaluru on Thursday. Thursday evening was in National Law School in the western part of the city. That seminar was pretty *hot* with lots of heated Questions & Answer sessions (what do you expect from future lawyers? :))). This morning, we had Dr.Dey inaugurate a 20-college fest at the reputed BMS College, followed up with discussions with students. Then he addressed 100 law students again, this time from BMS law college. Again, the law students were vociferous about Anna Hazare movement which the author dumps as just another bureaucracy enhancing patch work in progress.

Just now the prestigious IISc Bangalore had the privilege of hosting his seminar & ideas to transform India.

Now doing prep for tomorrow's big event at the 300 seat auditorium. Expecting lots of activity. Yes, when authors take clear position & call a spade a spade, like in this case, strongly criticizing Nehru's failed economic policies, which the 9th point above makes amply clear, it might irk Nehru fans. That's expected..