PF cases may be settled fast...

PF cases may be settled fast... pg 15 The Economic Times 29th Oct 2012
More than 6000 disputes and more than 1500 Crore locked in disputes in Court.
While this would take time to resolve, a better way is for the EPF Management to set up a Website
and every month the amount the Company Credits into the workers account gets reflected.
More than 45 days delay would warrant the local office to investigate the reasons for delay and initiate positive action so that workers who have sweated their lives do not need to be left in the lurch after retirement and seek death in despair..

FinMin Not too Hopeful of RBI Lowering Rates......

FinMin Not too Hopeful of RBI Lowering Rates...... Page 1, The Economic Times 29th Oct 2012.

It says with inflation still high Subbarao may not want to cut rates just yet. Need to know if the RBI Governor's role is merely to increase/decrease rates and CRR. It would have been better if Economists occupying this position are more pro-active. The better way to tackle inflation is to increase production. The first being Food Production. What is the Yield per Acre, and what reaches the Market place or the Dining Table. Bottlenecks are next identified. Support systems created through local Bank's intervention and solutions found. Similar with Clothing and Accommodation. Once the Three Basic needs are met, rest are all incidental. This is where the Governor can guide Banks to act, and not focus on only Industries and ROI etc.

No Bridge to Cross......

With no bridge to reach it, plush new building at LTT remains unused...  Mumbai Mirror, 29th Oct 2012.

It is a shame to see Tax payers money go waste, only because the concerned authorities are now in a blame game. For every Project that uses Public Funds, there has to be appointed a person known as the Project Manager. It is his responsibility, to ensure timely completion of the Project, and if it will accrue the benefits as mentioned prior to start of the Project. The advantages for which any Project is being funded has to be clearly defined. It need not be monetary, but has to have specific benefits to society at large, to justify the investment.

Service Exporters in a Fix

Service Exporters in a Fix as Tax Dept rejects refund claims....... The Economic Times pg 6, 17th Oct 2012

Decisions of Taxes and Refunds have to be Online. When an Individual or Company files a return, the system is designed to consider the activity and decide the Tax to be deducted and or Refund to be made.
This decision cannot be subjective, based on the moods of the Tax collector. It has to be objective, based on data fed and decision made.

What the authorities can do is to design the form and ask the person entering the data to confirm all that is stated is TRUE more than once. This will ensure he does not feign ignorance later.

The authorities should randomly investigate 10% of the data in depth. If the organisation or individual has fudged and misrepresented data, then the fine should be 10X the normal tax to be paid + Rs 1 lakh.
If the data is entered by a CA then for the second incorrect entry the CA stand to have his licence suspended for 6 yrs. This one rule will ensure better compliance and collection, and ensure we are free of corruption.

Doing Good is Good Business.....

Doing Good is Good Business..... page 15, The Economic Times 12th Oct 2012

This is the best way ahead both for the Promoter, The Organisation and The Worker. This is applicable to every Industry. The answer lies in equitable distribution of the wealth created without discrimination.

Firstly it must be understood that the Company is a single entity.The Management and Workers are not in a Us....Vs...Them situation. All are working towards a common goal, of producing a superior product. All are expected to contribute their best towards this effort.

If all are contributing, then the rewards must also be shared by all in a defined proportion.

It is not anybody's right to exploit another- be it shareholder or worker. Once the output of all are defined, and their share in the Pie, then there can never be a bad situation. The solution therefore is about the receivables in any industry or situation. Currently the max perks are received at the top and the crumbs picked off the floor at the bottom of the pyramid. This is a misconceived notion that it is the top alone that deserves the credit for success. Success can be achieved when every player in the game plays his part and contributes to the targeted goal. We need to create a winning situation and a prosperous society where everyone who contributes gets rewarded. Let us assume these are the different levels in an industry.

Chairman & Managing Director,(10x)
CEO,(9x)
Manager,(7.2x)
Divisional In Charge,(6x)
Foreman,(4x)
Supervisor, (2.5x)
workers (1x)

If say x=Rs 10,000, then the CMD gets max Rs 1 Lakh. Once this definition is accepted / legislated, then in a given industry if the CMD thinks he deserves more, he has to ensure the value of x at the ground level in his organization changes. This one act will create a healthy environment within the organization, and within society.

Multiple Scams inflate Dam costs, leave State poorer

Multiple Scams inflate Dam costs, leave State poorer..... page 6, Times of India, 10th Oct 2012

I had suggested earlier the best way to root out this evil. This one way will help root out this evil.

BMC Rejigs tankers for cleaner streets........

BMC Re Jigs Tankers for cleaner streets........ page 2, Times of India, October 10th 2012

A Good idea, as part of the Clean Mumbai efforts.

I would also request the Authorities to permit their  staff to be deployed in their non working hours on this effort.
They need to Publish a  Booklet with Tickets of Rs 50/-, another of  Rs 100/-, and another of Rs 500/-.

These are issued to interested staff at 25% discount. All the staff need to do is have a Tag on him that he is authorized on behalf of Clean Mumbai to collect the fine. Rs 50/- for littering on the street, Rs 100/- for spitting Paan etc, and Rs 500/- for urinating anywhere in public.

This one act will clean the face of the city and a year later we will all have a Clean Mumbai.

Kripa not Grilled despite FIR.....

Kripa not Grilled despite FIR..... pg 10, The Times of India, 1st Oct'2012 

Once an FIR is lodged against an Elected or Public Servant, there must be a defined Time Frame within which investigations made,  conclusions drawn, and Judgement released. We also need to surf through earlier cases of loot of public finances. All wealth in the name of the accused stand frozen and/or credited to a public account, to be strictly used for public welfare schemes once judgement is issued.