[Employing Urdu and Hindi couplets and proverb
deftly, the usually-soft spoken Singh took pot shots at L K Advani, saying the
BJP lost the 2004 polls after its "India Shining" campaign and faced
defeat against in 2009 when they pitted "iron man" against the
"lamb that Manmohan Singh is".]
 |
Manmohan Singh
expressed confidence that India's slow down
in economy will not
persist and that the country will return to
the growth rate of 7-8%
in next two years. Video >>
|
NEW DELHI: A combative Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today hit out
at BJP in theLok Sabha for trying to belittle UPA government's
achievements saying the party will fail at the hustings next year like it did
in 2004 and 2009.
In an apparent reference to Narendra Modi's attack on Congress as "termites" and him as a "night watchman" at the BJP National Council meeting in Delhi on Sunday, he said the party hurled the "choicest abuses" against the Congress leadership and made it clear he would not reply to them in "that language".
Winding up the discussion on the motion of thanks on the President's address, Singh spoke at length on various issues including economy, keeping India's options open on the USresolution against Sri Lankan at the UNHCR vote, ties with Pakistan and the situation in Maldives.
He expressed confidence that India's slow down in economy will not persist and that the country will return to the growth rate of 7-8% in next two years.
Reserving his reposte for BJP, the Prime Minister said "You used choicest abuses against us. It is not my intention to reply in that language because our performance is the best judge."
Employing Urdu and Hindi couplets and proverb deftly, the usually-soft spoken Singh took pot shots at L K Advani, saying the BJP lost the 2004 polls after its "India Shining" campaign and faced defeat against in 2009 when they pitted "iron man" against the "lamb that Manmohan Singh is".
"I am confident that the people will again elect us in the next elections based on our performance," the Prime Minister said amidst repeated thumping of desks by the treasury benches.
"Jo garajte hain, woh baraste nahi (Thunderous clouds do not bring showers)," Manmohan Singh said taking a dig at BJP's use of strong words of criticism.
Singh gave a comparative analysis of the performance of Singh gave a comparative analysis of the performance of his government and previous NDA to highlight that the country has progressed much better under UPA in all sectors, like agriculture and manufacturing.
Manmohan Singh noted that economic growth had slowed down in 2012-13, because of difficult global situation and expressed confidence that the slowdown will not persist and the country will return to high growth rate of 7-8% in next two years.
In his 45-minute speech, Singh noted that the average economic growth rate of the country in nine years of UPA rule was 7.9%, while that of the six years of NDA rule recorded a GDP growth of 6 per cent.
Manmohan Singh said while the current slowdown in industrial growth remains a concern, his government will continue to focus on inclusive growth and would need more investments. There was a need for further efforts to boost growth, he said, adding "Our growth rate is impressive but we are not satisfied ... We need to do a lot more".
He also compared the industrial growth rate saying while the average growth for past nine years was 8.5%, in the NDA regime it was 5.6% for six years. The Prime Minister also said in the UPA period, poverty declined at 2% per annum, while in preceding period the rate was no more than 0.8%.
"Inequality is not increasing ... Even BIMARU states have also done much better in UPA period than previous period," Singh said, adding that the country has fared much better in areas ofhigher education, skill development and environment protection.
Singh further said that the current account deficit (CAD) is "substantially higher than we would like it to be". He further said the minimum wages in agriculture in the 11th plan was 6.3%, while in previous it was no more than 1.1%.
BANGALORE DRIVERS PLEAD CASES IN ‘COURT OF INSTANT TRAFFIC JUSTICE’
[If an accident involves two vehicles of unequal size or value, the onlookers invariably side with the driver of the smaller or less sumptuous vehicle, the seeming underdog. The party whom the crowd perceives to be at fault has to settle with the aggrieved by paying for the damage in cash.]
When a motorcycle rider rammed his car from behind in peak Bangalore
traffic some weeks ago, Nagaraju Mariankiah, a 37-year-old cab driver,
responded as he usually did when he got into an accident. He immediately
stopped the car on the busy street and got out to inspect the damage.
Then, as cars and buses piled up behind, he and the other driver stood
their ground and proceeded to exercise their lungs about who caused the
accident. Luckily, a slew of impatient drivers and their incessant honking
prompted a quick resolution.
“It could have dragged for an hour, but it was the morning rush so he
‘settled’ after haggling for only 10 minutes,” recounted Mr. Mariankiah. “He
paid me 3,500 rupees ($65) for the 5,000-rupee damage he caused.”
In Bangalore, where hundreds of such minor accidents occur daily, only
a tiny fraction of cases gets reported to the police. The others are reconciled
by what some refer to as the Court of Instant Traffic Justice, where a
customary crowd gathers out of nowhere and arguments could turn ugly, even
devolve into fisticuffs.
If an accident involves two vehicles of unequal size or value, the
onlookers invariably side with the driver of the smaller or less sumptuous
vehicle, the seeming underdog. The party whom the crowd perceives to be at
fault has to settle with the aggrieved by paying for the damage in cash.
While this street drama plays out, neither party moves an inch, or is
even allowed to. The fear is that evidence could be lost, hindering the parties
from assigning fault and arriving at the cash compensation figure,
Mr.Mariankiah explained.
Mahi Reddy, an entrepreneur based in Annapolis, Md., who grew up in
Bangalore and is a frequent visitor to the city, said he had witnessed many
such episodes.
“Often, a few in the audience jump in the fray as self-appointed
arbiters, passing judgment in the court of quick public opinion,” Mr. Reddy
said.
He said the scenario contrasted sharply with a “fender-bender”
situation in the United States, where the two drivers pull over to the side,
get out of their cars, call the police to report the accident and then exchange
their phone numbers, insurance and driving license information.
Calling the police is often the last resort in cases concerning minor
road accidents in Bangalore and in other Indian cities.
“Spot settlement is quick and relatively painless,” said Mr.
Mariankiah, who said that he would rather do that than pay bribes to register a
police complaint and then pursue the case in India’s clogged legal system,
which could take years. The police are summoned only in cases involving
grievous injury, death or serious damage to the vehicle that requires an
insurance claim.
Many times, Mr. Mariankiah and the other driver have exchanged
signatures and vehicle numbers on plain sheets of paper to seal the
“compromise” and ensure that neither party later pursues the case with a police
complaint.
Such incidents are a frequent and major irritant on the roads, said
Karan Kamal, founder of Alumnize.com, a career networking portal for college
alumni based in Bangalore.
“As the drivers slug it out, traffic piles up and nothing moves,” said
Mr. Kamal, who was a protagonist in one such situation some months ago. The driver
of the mini-truck that dented his car was a laborer who had no insurance and
could not afford to pay for the damage.
It is often difficult to determine if the fault is entirely on one
side. On Indian roads, drivers need a sixth sense to navigate the unpredictable,
chaotic traffic where the adherence to simple rules like lane discipline or
overtaking another car is lacking.
To streamline the paperwork in traffic accident cases, there ought to
be a mechanism to regulate and decentralize vehicle registrations and licenses,
Mr. Kamal said. “We are solving global challenges with our software skills;
surely we can figure this one out,” he said.
Bangalore, India’s most traffic-dense city, has 4.5 million registered
vehicles, which comes out to one vehicle for every other resident. However, not
even two dozen traffic accident cases are registered daily, said M.A. Saleem,
Bangalore’s additional commissioner of police for traffic, because most of the
cases are not reported as the citizens feared the police and the courts.
“An accident is registered only where there is serious injury, or
serious damage is caused and the party is unable to pay,” Mr. Saleem said.
Drivers’ “uncivilized behavior” in handling traffic accidents hindered
the smooth flow of traffic on already-congested city roads, Mr. Saleem said,
and those obstructing traffic could be booked for creating public nuisance.
But the police rarely did so, he admitted, revealing why offenders
remain undeterred. The fine for being charged for such conduct is 100 rupees,
or less than $2.
Saritha Rai sometimes feels she is the only person living
in Bangalore who was actually raised here. There’s never a dull moment in her
mercurial metropolis. Reach her on Twitter @SarithaRai.
