The idea of Track2Governance

May 8, 2011

These are interesting times for any student of politics and governance in India. While the politics has always been the much talked about subject in this part of the world, governance as a subject of academic discussion is gradually taking the centre stage now. More importantly, governance had never been under so much of public scrutiny and hence there is a need to track the real governance, its agenda, issues and concerns. The collective consciousness is getting vocal on the issues of governance and it is time to shape the public psyche at large.

The Indian media, by and large, has often failed to differentiate between the politics and governance. No wonder, they are often seen to be a party on various issues. Moreover, the public perception and middle class outburst is more based on perception than ground reality. Hence the reactive tone & tenor of India could not be channelized for a positive change in the country.
 

This vacuum demands a governance think-tank platform, something that doesn’t mind going against the collective consciousness if it is not shaped by ground reality. This is where Track2Governance aims to position itself as a news platform with a clear focus on identifying the governance, its policies, plan and agenda. Our focus will be more on channelizing the public perception for constructive politics.
 

Advocacy and activism will be very much part of Track2Governance, and we may be rubbing the government the wrong way on occasion more than one. But then the team of Track2Media that has been behind conceptualizing the news project believes that the real journalism is not about asking the sweet questions, getting the sweet answers and filing the sweet copies. We are coming in the fray with a serious approach and intent to be whistle blowers as well.
 

We will also provide the much needed media support to the deserving movements on governance reforms. But at the same time we will neither be a party to any vested interests nor support any hypocritical media managed show in the name of fighting pro peoples’ causes. We would rather take a stand against attempt to promote extra constitutional mechanism. We are quite conscious of the fact that it will be very often interesting case studies, particularly in the wake of Track2Governance going against the tide.
 

After all, it is easier to sway the collective consciousness with a populist but irrelevant cause. What is challenging to stand up against the hidden agenda and tell the misguided masses that what they think as a legitimate cause is actually lending credence to the vested interests that have a large game plan in the process. Well, the emotionally charged people may not believe us in the short term, but then earning the credibility is always a long term road map and, of course, a challenge in hand.
 

It is not that efforts to launch news projects on governance have not been made earlier. As a matter of fact, there have been very many. A few of such governance news is doing good as well. However, we have made a proper study on competitive market and aim to position Track2Governance on a different level altogether. The existing news projects on governance are too bureaucracy centric in approach with overtly bureaucratic TG in mind.
 

Track2Governance doesn’t want to have bureaucracy as TG for the right reasons. We would be rather happy to note that we are at the wrong end of bureaucrats as our TG. Our real focus would be the impact of governance & policies on the common man. We don’t intent to be a mouthpiece or extended PR machinery of the government, its policies and programmes.
 

The common man’s issues and concerns with the government is what will matter the most to us. That is one of the reasons that we will regularly come out with the survey on various issues that concerns the performance of the government and the people’s expectations with the government and their local elected representatives. 
 

For the first time in the history of independent India the TINA factor is so profound that despite of the series of scams and scandals, the collective consciousness is not ready to trust those who are trying to destabilize the government by means fair and foul. Isn’t time for a fresh approach on governance? Isn’t it time for Track2Governance?

Bihar elections and Barack Obama effect

July 16, 2006

Can Bihar, predominantly seen as one of the most underdeveloped states of India in collective consciousness replicate Barack Obama’s model? I understand the question itself will be seen as cynicism but wait. Give it a thought and there will appear some parallel in these two different poles on various given parameters of governance, development and overall human development index. My assessment, or rather I should say optimism is not based on the phenomenal and unbelievable growth rate of Bihar in times of global recession. Of course, the GDP projection of 11 per cent by an eminent economist and 16.5 per cent by the Central Statistics office would definitely be a cause of envy even to the world’s super power in America.
However, my above assumption is not based on the reports of Bihar revival by the now unquestionable turnaround man in the Chief Minster Nitish Kumar. What has actually surprised me is the sheer presence of the state, its governance and its politics on social networking sites like the Facebook and Twitter. When the Economist magazine analyzed how politicians around the world from Venezuela to Japan and from Greece to Chile are using social media tools to get out their messages to constituents and voters, they had actually no idea about the penetration of the medium further deep.
Considering that LinkedIn was established in 2003, Facebook in 2004 and Twitter in 2006, it no doubt seems to be a fast forward march by the politicians of the state. With some of them without any background in the formal university level education, it is all the more surprising that they are adapting and accelerating quicker and faster medium for political dialogue.
In a way it spells good for democratic institutions in Bihar where wide engagement combines with open sharing of information. It is clearly an issue, as social recommendation becomes bigger the challenge is to engage individuals deeply enough that they will escalate from passive viewer to active participant. Most of the Bihar centric discussion revolves around the performance of Nitish Kumar government and the forthcoming elections. By extension this also applies to those who aim to unseat him.
My Facebook wall is generally full of heated discussions on Bihar elections nowadays. What seems to be the result of the vocal nature of Biharis in general and educated and migrated non resident Biharis in particular is actually more than what meets the eyes. It is not that only the educated Biharis who have migrated to metropolitan cities for a decent living are the ones who are demand drivers of Bihar debate. The young lot in the state with limited access to electricity and even lesser access to internet are as much active on these sites as their non resident counterparts. 
The question as to why development in the backdrop of politics and elections are the only issues to be discussed automatically comes into the mind. Perhaps the answer lies in the restlessness of the youth in the state, which had for around a couple of decades been clueless, have suddenly found a medium to air their grievances. Many politicians from the state too have sensed this transformation and want the first-movers-advantage in the cyber space networking.
The moot point here is that whether it is a natural progression of the state into technology zone or the political parties have taken this first-movers-advantage a bit too seriously. On the basis of Facebook and Twitter discussion Prima Facie it seems a carefully crafted social media campaign has been launched by at least two parties (JD (U) and BJP) in power, with Congress social media campaign racing up along the charisma of Rahul Gandhi, while the other two players (RJD and LJP) seem to be clueless as to what is this hype all about.
My assumption, however, proved to be wrong when some more searches found the presence of even Laloo yadav and Ramvilas Paswan on the Facebook. Not only this, individual ministers and MLAs in the state with relatively less exposure to the technology and global obsession with social networking too have got their own website done, with some of them adding dynamic features. It seems everybody is omnipresent on various social networking sites; even the illiterate ones too have social media managers for shadow boxing.
Easy to dismiss, but less easy to master; the mantra of social media is perhaps yet to come of age in Bihar politics. But its growing influence and ubiquity, particularly among younger voters, cannot be ignored. The complications of this new reality are that 18- to 24-year-olds are not prepared to consume political messages passively. The catalysts to this transformation have been the mainstream media that are largely into the mode of broadcast and not conversation.
The 2010 Bihar campaign can prove to be India’s first true social media electoral cycle, if the momentum picks up and reflects some tangible vote swing. Whether the JD (U) uses these tools to their maximum advantage or whether the BJP or Congress figure out how to employ social media to explain incumbent policies and rally their base will be analyzed in-depth following the November elections. It may not prove to be India’s first true internet campaign, won and lost Obama-style, Bihar elections nonetheless have a distinct Barack Obama effect this time around. 

Clash not class calling Indian youth

June 23, 2010

A British Research Scholar on an Indian visit recently asked me as to how the Indian students, known to be politically volatile and radical in their approach, are more reactive than pro-active to society at large. He was referring to some news clips about intolerance and violence in the Indian universities. The general inference was that in the campus many violent incidents have been witnessed in the past and many more appear to be in the pipeline. University and violence have become synonymous in this part of the world, he suggested.

I must admit here that even though I defended the Indian youth with instances right from a successful JP Movement to the exemplary service by a few young parliamentarians, like Rahul Gandhi, deep down I knew that he was stating the obvious. The Indian youth today seems to be rebel without a cause and pause. The legacy of youth upsurge that toppled the might of the ruling Congress party to dust in the seventies has not been channelised into constructive politics.

The Indian universities are today exposed to the unfortunate reality of mindless violence. Student politics has seen its rock bottom in terms of quality leadership for the future. The phenomenon of violence in Indian universities has actually invited scholars to widen the concept of violence by including in it the concept of institutional violence or structural violence. In the context of Indian society universities have, no doubt, acted as the most vulnerable institutional structure to contribute to the growth of violence.

However, this analysis is not confined at all with the occurrence of violence on the university campus. The sole purpose here is to see how violence in India is related to the role performed by universities. I remember a decade back the brutal killing of CPI (ML) student leader Chandrashekhar Prasad was overtly projected as an attack on the youth politics at large. It was due to an eye over the vote bank on the university campus that the young leader was publicised as more of a student leader than a CPI (ML) activist. The local CPI (ML) leader in Bihar Shyam Narain Yadav was also killed in the same firing in Siwan, but his killing was never a selling point to provoke resentment. But a name linked with the university became so.

The reason for this may be traced in the very nature of our centralised politics, which leads to the formation of a strong central leadership demanding loyalty. This structure in which “Yes Boss” flows from the top to bottom is prevalent in the whole society. Within the universities also loyalty towards power-holders becomes a value. Vice Chancellors are appointed in the universities on the basis of their loyalty to the party in power in general and chief minister in particular. Vice-chancellors, in turn, demand loyalty from the teachers and the teachers from the students. This produces an atmosphere of flattery, sycophancy and intellectual servility.

Moreover, all attempts for educational reforms, meant for using education to improve the lives of individuals, have so far resulted in the rejection of prevailing values and beliefs, including more particularly notions like honesty, duty and discipline. Our universities are, at best, academic cafeterias offering junk food to young minds. At worst, they are breeding grounds of corruption, indiscipline, dishonesty and irresponsibility.

Young men and women, who come out of the universities without a developed critical faculty, are seen by business and government organisations as an asset, for they believe in ends, not means. A corporate boss has constantly to engage in activities which require shrewd execution. Politicians also need shrewd administrators. What people in power desire is loyalty for themselves and the ability to get things done by hook or by crook. Hence, a questioning mind, a spirit for novelty, creativity and scrupulousness has all been relegated to subordination.

The effect of economic inequality on educational institutions has also been conducive to violence. Two particular instances of it may be noted. First, it perpetuates the mass elite gap in India. Children of the upper social strata of greater access to higher education than those of lower strata. Secondly, it has intensified group conflicts. Legislation that gives special privilege to castes and tribes has encouraged many communities to claim more seats in colleges and administrative services, leading to clashes between the backward and forward castes.

Universities are contributing to violence in a subtle way also. The establishment of various regional universities has led to the growth of regional, local and parochial forces rather than a sense of nationalism. The same goes true with the universities and institutions meant for the minority communities as well.

Gone are the days when discipline and non-violence were written with a sunbeam on every student’s mind. Gone are also the days when universities produced students equipped with knowledge, culture, sympathy and fired with devotion to duty. Universities today are producing another kind of fiery lot who are sullenly moving with alcohol in their bodies, guns in their hands and hatred in their heart.

We the Twitter

22nd April, 2010

It entered into the public space as a humble notice board, made inroads into our private space with the hook of fan followers, gradually made its presence felt with occasional scoops posted by the celebrities, started spreading its tentacles into the neo-techy masses and before we realised it had driven the otherwise largely technophobic nation into its tweet zone. From politicians to cricketers, film stars to media professionals; it seems everybody wants to tweet and be followed. Many have become addicted to the social media site and can’t seem to stay away from it. So, what is Twitter?

Is it the new face of expression in a society groping for recognition beyond mere identity of “We the Nation”? Has India readily accepted twitter as the new face of tangible recognition? More the followers the better standing you have in the society, so it seems. Facts suggest more than what twitter is supposed to stay for. In a developing society like India one may have to run from pillar to post to get a ration card or any other identity card, something that is not worthy of flaunting. But for the twitter exposed lot a twitter id is much easier to get and more fancy to flaunt.

When you first look at Twitter, it seems as though it is just a large bunch of random thoughts. It is actually much more than that. It is over hyped, over exposed and over estimated channel of communication. Twitter is being used and abused like no other media vehicle. It is true that one of the biggest scams of the era involving Cricket, Politics, Money and Sex has been exposed on twitter only. But twitter can’t take the credit of any worthy contribution to this. Had the mainstream media not followed it up, this twitter post would have gone as unnoticed as thousands of others in the day.

After all, everybody is tweeting. It seems twitter is the new public address system in the country and every one is busy twitting good, bad and ugly without any censorship-legal, ethical or whatever. However, this is India and definitely the soci0-political spectrum is not as tweety as France where the President asks for public opinion on political and personal agenda through his tweets.

Twitter, as a matter of fact, has been snowballing into the political spectrum of the nation ever since a Union Minister with a fair degree of international exposure during his stint with the United Nations started tweeting his not-so-politically-correct views on various issues. Nobody had then imagined that twitter posts are going to be his nemesis in the days ahead. The accusation against Union Minister Shashi Tharoor by the IPL Commissioner and Mastermind of Gambling Racket called IPL Cricket is just the precursor of the emerging trends of Indian politics. The victim of tweets, Indian politics has added a new vocabulary in its lexicon and vendetta politics will be henceforth referred as Twitter Politics.

The first high-profile casualty of twitter posts is not just the resignation of a Union Minister, or the surfacing of what seems to be the biggest betting racket of India thus far, called the IPL Cricket. The inherent dangers are deep rooted. If tweets are the way to go, I am afraid life in the public space will be less respectful, lesser trustworthy, and even lesser accountable to the democratic institutions. Imagine a minister making policy announcements on twitter rather than in the Parliament. Can a twitter mandate replace the trouble of conducting an exhaustive election procedure?

Probably those who conceptualised the idea of twitter first had no idea as to how BIG IDEA they had been working on. The cost of running a country like India can be brought to almost negligible if twitter has its way. The law makers would not have the trouble of travelling all their way to Parliament from respective constituencies in the remote areas. The easiest possible public address system called twitter is there to take care of the causes and grievances of the nation. Union Budgets will also be tweeted and law makers along with the common man on the streets can retweet their opinion on it.

Twitter was actually meant for interaction limited to commercial and personal reasons. It is now also being used for political and other vested interest purposes. Now that Twitter is in the mainstream, with all of its tentacles reaching as far into society as it does, it is not going anywhere anytime soon. The advocates of tweet politics will soon suggest taking the advantages of twitter and seeing how it can contribute to transform the democratic and institutional fabric of a developing nation like India. Of course, there is a price tag to this universal public address system that demands a thorough cost-benefit analysis. The question is whether the Indian society in its collective consciousness is ready to pay the price of “We the Twitter”?