Day 268-2011 : Life In The 'Fast' Lane

I have been feeling exactly like that for the last few weeks.  Hours turning into days, days into weeks and weeks into months in a jiffy!

Nevertheless, the one thing that I have noticed in these busy times, is that the phenomenon of 'fasting' is suddenly catching on.  All credit to Anna Hazare.  The latest on the bandwagon was 'Aapno Na-Mo'.  And then it was a case of 'counter-fast', when Shankarsinh Vaghela also started his fast at the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad at the same time.

First up, the Na-Mo fast.  It was very interestingly called The Sadbhavana Mission.  Sadbhavana means, prayer for togetherness.  Togetherness and Narendra Modi?  It just does not sound right.  The man who is accused of telling the police forces to let the Hindus vent their anger and not interfere during the Godhra riots is now talking about togetherness.  Quite farcical.  It was also a 5-star fast!  No...no...I am saying that the rules of the fast allowed 5-Stars to be consumed (similar to a Perk advertisement).  However, the fast was a unique one, conducted in the fully air-conditioned Gujarat University Convention Hall.  Throughout the day, dignitaries from the BJP and other specially 'invited' prayer groups of all religions came to the stage to shake hands with the CM.  The entire bureaucracy from the capital, Gandhinagar, had stationed themselves at the hall as well.  Hence, practically, no work happened during the 3 days in the government corridors of Gandhinagar.  It was also very widely reported in the media that chants of 'Allah-O-Akbar' rented the air at the venue.  Now, were they really 'rented'?

The CM was photographed in various head gears offered by the visitors throughout the three days.  But, the bluff was called when an Imam offered Na-Mo a skullcap, which Modi politely declined to wear.  Boom!  So much for 'Sadbhavana'!  This looked to me as more of a positioning exercise before the next Assembly elections in Gujarat and the next General Elections in the country.  Clearly, the ambitious man that he is, Na-Mo has his eyes set on the national political canvass.

The competing 'counter-fast' did not even get a mention in many sections of the media.  I guess, it is very difficult to be a congressman in Gujarat these days.  So, I shall also limit my references to it on this post.

Talking of fasts, my mother was with us for the last week.  She fasts three times a week!  I have been asking her quit, as by now, I argue, all her wishes might have been fulfilled.  However, she continues to observe the weekly fasts quite fastidiously!  Let me not talk about my various experiments with fasting in the last couple of years.  The latest one is to fast for a day of the week, consuming only water and nothing else.  I am told it has a very good detoxifying effect.  The only thing that I notice it giving me is a severe headache!

In other fast lane happenings, the buzz is on for the first ever F1 race in India and I am slowly revving up my desire to be there.  Still have to figure out my schedule and whether it allows me the diversion during this festive season and the busy time of the year.  Watch this space for that.

Take care.

Day 16-2011 : Vibrant Gujarat!

In a lot of my posts last year I have been mentioning the superior infrastructure in my home city of Ahmedabad compared to some of the cities like Bangalore, Chennai and Mumbai, where I have lived within the last decade. 

I am truly amazed by the amount of development work that has happened in the city.  Some of it is of course very apparent.  The roads are great, wider than ever and no potholes.  The BRTS has been a success.  I saw a note in this morning's papers that the old city is going to get the Monorail on an experimental basis for 15 kms.  The Kankaria lake has been transformed and marketed in a big way.  You can feel the buzz of progress when in Ahmedabad.  And I am told that this focus on development is not only restricted to cities like Ahmedabad.  The interiors of the state are also witnessing a change.  Some of the captains of the Indian industry seem to agree with me as they have endorsed Gujarat as the country's premier investment destination by committing investments of 250000 crores within an hour of the first day of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2011! 



Industry captains @ the summit.



Vibrant Gujarat campaign

How has this transformation been possible from the ravages of the riot ridden state a few years back?  Good governance is the only answer.  However, it is also important to understand the background and the context in which this transformation has been achieved. 

Chief Minister, Narendra Modi has been projected as the main catalyst and change agent for this transformation.  However, just a decade ago, Modi was the face of communal politics for his hard line views on Hinduism and his antics in the Godhra massacre aftermath.  I am no fan of his, because of exactly these reasons.  However, I have to admit that Modi has successfully diverted the attention of the classes as well as the masses from his narrow focus on communal politics, to the larger vision of driving the agenda of development in the state.  There has been a deliberate attempt to 'let bygones be bygones'.  Modi, in this process, has transformed himself into a CEO of the state.  Political stability since 2002, in the state has helped matters.  Something else that has made this work has been the image of the CM as well as his government.  This government is seen as a honest one; integrity being one of the cornerstones of Modi's image itself.  On top of all of this, the decision making process has been super-fast!  A good example is the Tata Nano factory at Sanand.  The land for the factory was allotted in 3 days flat, after Ratan Tata was hounded out of WB by Mamata.  And, last but not the least, the state was the leader in the agriculture sector as well last year, with a growth rate of 9.9%.

All of this makes me very happy.  I hope this good story continues and Gujarat truly becomes the engine of India's growth in the next few decades.  I am still not a supporter of the political views of the CM and his party.  However, I am definitely impressed with what he has been able to achieve on the development front. 

And, there is still a lot to be done.  For example, offer me something which will make me move back to my hometown!

Take care!