The Hindi Heartland is not India!

A total disconnect between the Hindi Heartland and the South India is shocking. The politicians of North and specifically the Cow Belt are so far removed from the India of Gandhi Ji and Pandit Nehru that it does not feel like one country. How many times has Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi or Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi visited the four southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala or Tamil Nadu, in the last 5 years? For that matter, how many times has the opposition leader Lal Krishna Advani or Bhartiya Janata Party President Rajnath Singh visited the four southern states or the 3 Union Territories in South India? To the best of my knowledge, 230 million Indians live in the southern part of India. They speak atleast 4 distinct languages in these 4 southern states. How many people in the so-called Hindi Heartland have any knowledge about any of these 4 languages in South? Even if you accept that Hindi is our national language, it is shameful for any Indian to have absolutely no idea about a whole region that is part of our great civilization. The same is true about Eastern India! We would never have a strong ‘Central Government’ until our political leadership starts expanding their general knowledge about all the states of India. There are 105 districts in the 4 Southern States and 3 Union Territories of India. It would be our privilege to atleast visit all 105 districts in this region and photograph the entire landscape for our future generations. That day is not very far and my viewers would enjoy the journey with me!

India must increase its Defense Budget to $60 billion…

India is a very large democracy surrounded by huge poverty all around. The Indian sub-continent has been unstable since it’s independence from the British in 1947. Pandit Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India mis-read the situation in the neighborhood and paid a heavy price in 1948. Jawaharlal Nehru had a different vision for India, some good some bad. Now India must follow the ‘Vision 2020’ articulated by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam (the 11th President of India). He envisions India to emerge as a fully developed economy by the year 2020, ready to lead the world with other countries like the United States, China and Russia. It is time India starts taking its responsibilities seriously and act accordingly. If it does not, it would undermine its own security in the long run. There is a power vacuum in South Asia and beyond, since the fall of Soviet Union. If this space is not occupied by a rising power like India, China is bound to spread its influence beyond acceptable limits.

Currently, India’s defense budget is estimated between $26 billion and $34 billion, depending upon what is included and what is not. Either way, it is way too small to reasonably fund its security and humanitarian commitments. At this stage you can not calculate the defense allocation as percentage of GDP. The total footprint is too small and the basic defense infrastructure is virtually non-existent. India must also stop worrying about China’s defense budget. We have very different problems and very different commitments. The next question is, how do you fund such massive increase in the defense outlays? Government of India, for some strange reason, has continued to depend on ‘Public Sector Undertakings’ for major defense procurements, including capital equipment. Besides, all major weapon systems are either imported or locally assembled at the ‘State Owned Enterprises’. This is a major reason why our defense requirements are not being fully funded.

This bureaucratic mind-set must change. India is no more a command and control economy. We have a large and responsible ‘Private Sector’. There are more than 50 billionaires in India, spread across all 35 States and Union Territories. They have the technologies and the infrastructure to start contributing in developing India’s Military-Industrial Complex. Our private companies are large and resourceful enough to form collaborations all over the world and develop the most complicated weapon systems around. But, India needs far more than weapons alone. We do not have any significant lift capabilities by land, sea or air. Earlier this year, India placed an order for 6 Hercules C-130 J military transport planes from Lockheed Martin of USA. The deal is worth around $1 billion and the expected delivery date is 2011 at the earliest. The fact of the matter is that we are immediately short of 20 such transport planes but cannot commit any funds because of budgetary constraints.

India needs a long-term and a medium-term defense procurement policy. Let us say, our medium term defense budget is $60 billion starting April 1, 2010 and increases to $120 billion by March 31, 2020. This budget must be equally distributed amongst all three services. Indian Navy must get atleast 30 percent of the budget, Indian Air Force and Indian Army too should get 30 percent each. The remaining 10 percent must be allotted to a new ‘National Guard’, like the one in United States. But the most important component of this plan is the participation of the Indian Private Sector. To begin with, atleast 30 percent of the budget should be allocated to the private sector and by 2020, increase to 70 percent of all procurement. For example, let us take the case of Super Hercules C-130 transport aircraft. If we need additional 120 Hercules, we would rather assemble them in India than depend entirely on Lockheed Martin, and by implication, the whims of the US Congress. In that case, the order would increase from current $1 billion to $20 billion. Indian companies, like Tata or Ambanis or even Larsen & Toubro, could form a joint venture with Lockheed Martin to produce the required number of transport aircrafts for Indian Air Force, Indian Army and even Indian Navy. This plan would also spur the growth rate of the Indian economy.

The arrogance of Indian Prime Ministers…

Either by the constitution or by choice, the Indian Prime Ministers do not visit the people that they serve. I do not remember any Prime Minister of India who has visited all 610 districts of India. Not even the most popular and the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, ever visited all 35 states (including the Union Territories) of India and their districts. But Nehru atleast communicated with all the Chief Ministers (CMs) of all the states, irrespective of party in power. Pandit Nehru wrote to a lot of politicians and Governors and the CMs on regular basis, to inform them about the state of the union, specially any major ‘Foreign Policy’ initiative that he planned to take. He never took the States of India for granted. Those days are long gone and forgotten. The people of India do not feel vested in the Central Government of India anymore. Therefore, the Prime Minister does not feel accountable to them.

This criticism is not directed towards a particular Prime Minister or a specific policy. My argument is about the center-state relationship. In a parliamentary democracy like India, the ‘National Parties’ contest all over the country and seek the election of a majority of MPs (Members of Parliament) to secure a simple ‘Parliamentary Majority’. Failing to secure a simple majority, the national parties either collaborate with smaller parties or seek the support of ‘Regional Parties’. These formations have resulted in coalition governments at the central government level. The coalition partners do not necessarily agree on all the policies of the ‘Ruling Party’. They have no choice but to agree on some basic policies to form the government. These basic policies are called the ‘Common Minimum Program’ (CMP). These CMPs are either agreed to before the ‘General Elections’ of just before forming the government.

These common minimum programs are becoming more and more vague to hide the differences rather than common principles or agreements within the coalition partners. The result is that the ‘Indian Government’ can not take any bold initiative or fulfill substantial election promises. The idea is to be in power and stay in power rather than govern the country. What is the point? Today, the president of either major national party is different than the Prime Minister or the prime ministerial candidate. Who is the leader of the party and who is going to define the agenda of the party? Very few people in India really understand what the national goals are and which party stands for what? Where are we headed and with whom?

Dr. Manmohan Singh is the Prime Minister of India on behalf of Indian National Congress (INC) which is part of the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA). Lal Krishan Advani on behalf of Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), which is part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), wants to replace the current Prime Minister. As far as I can see, neither is talking to the people of India, person to person. They both need to learn something important from the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi. He went around discovering India and found it. India in return met him, liked him and therefore supported him. It was irrelevant that he belonged to the ‘Congress Party’. India identified with Gandhi and not necessarily with Indian National Congress. Dr. Singh and Advani Ji, are you listening? India wants to hear from you directly. Not through the filter of the mass media but in person, if you want to lead this country. Either one of you, go to all the states and visit as many districts as possible and the people of India would give you the mandate that you seek. India deserves a better government.