Yesudas and Seven Notes….

Golden Jubilee of the Golden Voice.

A Glorious Career...

Yesudas started on this pilgrimage of music from Cochin Harbour Terminus at Willingdon Island. It was in the year 1961, now 50 years passed; the Golden Jubilee year of the Golden Voice. He was on his way to Madras (present day Chennai) by train, to try his destiny. He was 21 years old, deprived and sick. A benevolent taxi driver named Mathai who dropped him to railway station shared the only money he had; with Yesudas. It was 16 Rupees and the cost of ticket to Madras was 11 Rupees. 

He landed in Madras in the early hours of next day. His stomach was empty but his heart was full of music. The perilous and penniless journey made him sick, he was suffering with typhoid. He was laid up and due to that he lost the only chance for which he came to Madras. Five months passed without any chance. The trials and tribulations he was undergoing during the time shaped him for the future. Always his strength was his love for music and that gave him enough energy to go ahead. 

 M.B.Sreenivasan(Music Director)

End of the period of agony appeared as a chance to sing. The song so recorded at Bharani Studio started with “Jaathi bhedam Matha dwesham…” the meaningful lines of a great soul Sree Narayana Guru, who strived for removing the caste complexes and other social malpractices of the society he was born in. The lines hinted at a casteless and religion less land. The film was “Kaalppadukal”, the composer of music was legendary M.B.Sreenivasan, better known as MBS and the year was 1961, the day being the 14th of November. . 

The meaning of the verse is given here…
Devoid of dividing walls of Caste
Or hatred of rival faith,
We all live here
In Brotherhood,
Such, know this place to be!
This Model Foundation!

The song was okayed in the first take itself. The young singer is the biggest contribution by Mr.MBS to the world of music. When MBS sought the opinion of the sound engineer Mr. Koteeswara Rao about the young singer his remark was legendary. He said “Patthu varsham mudinju pakkalaam” means not to worry for the next ten years. Ten years have passed five times since Rao’s prescription or prediction and the century turned 21. Still we see the singer active in the world of singing, listening to his melodies everyday. 

Kattasseri Joseph Yesudas (KJY) was born in Fort Kochi, into a Catholic family, to Augustine Joseph and Alicekutty. His father, who was a well-known Malayalam classical musician and stage actor, was his first guru. Later he joined the R.L.V. Music Academy in Thrippunithura and underwent training. Later he studied in Sree Swati Thirunal music college, Thiruvananthapuram under the training of Late Semmangudy Sreenivasa Ayyer.But he could not complete his studies due to financial constrains. For a brief period, he was with Sri Vechur Hari Hara Subramania Iyer, after which he took advanced training from Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar. 

Chembai Bhagavathar

KJY still gratefully remembers the kindness shown by Semmangudi who allowed him to occupy his car shed at Trivandrum near Swati Tirunal Academy so that he could save on expenses for lodging, dispelling the exaggerations of those with vested interests about untouchability. But KJY still had to fill his stomach with the water from the public taps which was fortunately available in plenty in Trivandrum City and the water was potable with no contaminations. KJY recently pitied the present state of affairs when water is found in the numerous potholes on the roads and no potable water in the taps. Chembai launched him into the Classical music world by encouraging KJY to come to the forefront and sing out aloud. Most of the popular classical numbers sung by KJY owe a lot to the training given to him by Chembai.

                                                                       

Mr. Augustine Joseph (Father)>   

                        

The highly religious way he was brought up by his parents has really moulded KJY into a great man. The humbleness and God fearing nature he imbibed helped him to scale heights. His father used to insist that every evening all members of the family have to sit together and pray. KJY was made to read out the Bible aloud during such sessions ensuring that his pronunciation was perfect. These sessions really helped him in acquiring the best control over pronunciations, an essential element of music.

                               

He never allowed his religious rituals to be restricted to any one religion alone. While he visits the churches whenever he gets the opportunity and time he visits important mosques and temples. He visits every year without fail the Holy Temple of Mookambika  near Udippi on his birthdays paying his respect to Goddess Saraswathi , who is believed to have blessed him with celestial musical talent as she does to all the artistes and  scholars. He visits the hill shrine at Sabarimala, duly observing the 41 day “Vratam” (fasting). All these have invited the choicest blessings of the Almighty on him making him “Gana Gandharvan”(Celestial Singer). Harivarasanam, a devotional song composed by Sri Kambakkudi Kulathur Srinivasa Iyer, recited before closing the temple at Sabarimala was sung by Yesudas. Though there have been many different renditions of this song by many different renowned singers, Sabarimala officially uses K. J. Yesudas' voice for Harivarasanam every day.

With his rich vibrant voice and a ringing tone, Yesudas’ music had a direct appeal to his listeners. Special mention must also be made of Yesudas’ total mastery over his voice, achieved from rigorous practice of the techniques of rendition. To Yesudas, the main factors that contributed to the development of a musical personality were the intuition of the musician, his sound knowledge of ragas and swaras and firm control of sruti and laya and the capacity to evolve an individual style of expression suited to one's voice and aptitude and ideas distilled through the variegated experience behind him.

He is the only singer who has been accorded the title Asthana Gayakan (Official singer) of Kerala State. He has been awarded the Padma Shri in 1975 and Padma Bhushan in 2002. In 1970, he was nominated to head the Sangeetha Nataka Academy of Kerala and was being the youngest person ever to occupy that post. In 1971, Yesudas with his musical troupe travelled all over Kerala to raise funds for the Indian Prime Minister's National Defense Fund during the Indo-Pakistani War. He also became Senate member in the International Parliament for Safety and Peace.  On November 14, 1999, Yesudas was presented with an honorary award by UNESCO for "Outstanding Achievements in Music and Peace" at the "Music for Peace" event in Paris, a concert held to mark the dawn of the new millennium and whose attendees included artistes such as Lionel Richie, Ray Charles, Montserrat Caballé, and Zubin Mehta.The number of music awards he has won so far remains an unparalleled record. Seven National Awards, 24 Kerala State Government Awards, Awards of Karanataka, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh State Governments, Sangeeth Natak Academy etc etc are a few among the many. Yesudas has recorded over 50000 songs covering various languages of India and foreign ones like Arabic, English, Malay, Russian except may be Kashmiri, Konkani & Assamese.

After winning the Kerala State Award for Best Playback singer on numerous occasions, he asked that he be ruled out of contention so that to give his peers and newcomers a chance of winning. Despite his request, he was still awarded this award multiple times. He also has helped other singers to come up as play back singers. It happened as playback singer Unni Menon, who was singing track songs for other prominent singers, got a break when Yesudas, after hearing the track songs Unni Menon had sung for the Malayalam film Kadathu, asked the music director Shyam to record and release the songs as they were. Yesudas was of the opinion that the songs did not need to be rendered by him, as Unni Menon had already done it well and there was no need for improvement.

Acting with Adoor Bhasi in the film

Kayamkulam Kochunni

He has also tried his hand at Music direction and acted in a few films. He has sung under the music directions of all the composers and lyricists. Many of them say that when the singer is KJY, they feel like giving their best into their compositions. The branch of “Devotional Music’ covering all religions is said to have grown to the present extent mainly because of KJY. Earlier we had M.S. Subbulakshmi and our P.Leela who had rendered popular devotional albums. KJY made this a wide spread field with his sweet numbers.

In 1980 Yesudas established the Tharangani Studio at Trivandrum. In 1992 the office and studio were moved to Chennai, Tamil Nadu and the company was incorporated in the US in 1998. Tharangni Studio and Tharangni Records became a recording center in Kerala which, for the first time, brought out audio cassettes of Malayalam film songs in stereo. The record company also had a voice mixing studio in Studio27, Chennai. The studio continues to produce and present events of Yesudas both for film and Indian classical music concerts throughout the world.

 With Devarajan Master and Vylar Ramavarma

On this 50 th year of his musical career let us felicitate this septuagenarian for his simplicity, humbleness and contributions to the world of music. He is really a golden Gift of the God to mankind and music lovers. Let us also thankfully remember Koteeswara Rao and M.B. Sreenivasan along with composers like, Baburaj, Salil Chaudhury, Devarajan, Raghavan, Chidambaranath, Dakshinamoorthy,Ravindra Jain, Bappi Lahiri and good lyrics given by-Vayalar, ONV Kurup, Sreekumaran Thampy,P.Bhaskaran etc . When he came in to the film world the scene was dominated by greats like Kamukara Purushothaman, Udayabhanu, AM Raja and PB Sreenivas. We must also thank them for not playing dirty politics to deny him the right chances but whole heartedly encouraged him. With so much of accolades showered upon him, if KJ Yesudas still remains at the top as a popular and respected singer, it is only due to his humble beginning amidst poverty, God fearing upbringing by his blessed parents and hard work. His wife Prabha and sons Vijay, Vinod and Vishal also share his views and outlook on life.

 With his Family

Let us all bow our heads at the greatness and simplicity of this Great man and pray for many more years of golden voice and musical life to him. The younger generation can definitely emulate him in leading a purposeful but humble life. “Koti Koti Pranam” to the Almighty for blessing us with this genius and his seven notes.

Free Media Journal Contributor-

Mr. Vinayachandran is a singer and  music enthusiast. He is a senior official of State Bank of India Contact-vinchand59@gmail.com

Read more »

Posted in: By S. Vinayachandran

Mullaperiyar DAM -The Lethal WATER BOMB

An Award Winning Documentary on Mullaperiyar Dam Issue..

by Director: Sohan Roy, Director of DAM 999

Read more »

MULLAPERIYAR - SAVE 3 MILLION LIVES

A documentary by C-Dit on Mullaperiyar Dam. A "must see" 

for people of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.  

Dam failures are deadlier than Nuclear Bomb Explosions...

It was a night in August; Morvi town in Gujarat, India; was sleeping, families with their dear ones. Some people who were awake heard a big boom sound of the rushing water. Before they could realize the sound the entire town was flooded by the rushing water from the Morvi Dam.

The Morvi dam failure is the worst flood disaster to happen in independent India. On August 11, 1979, the Machchu-2 dam, situated on the Machhu, river burst and that sent a wall of water through the town of Morvi in Indian state of Gujarat killing 15000 people. It was caused by excessive rain and massive flooding. The spillway capacity provided for 5663 m³/s. But during the intense rainfall on that day became 16307 m³/s; 3 times what was designed - that caused the collapse of the dam. Within 20 minutes the floods of 12 to 30 ft height inundated the low-lying areas of Morvi industrial town located 5 km below the dam. During reconstruction of the dam the capacity of the spillway was increased by 4 times and fixed at about 21,000 m³/s. The town of Morvi is situated on the river Machhu, 35 kilometers from the sea and 60 kilometers from Rajkot.

Another August; the Banqiao Dam collapsed in China. The Dam was designed to survive a once-in-1000-years flood (300 mm of rainfall per day). In August 1975, however, a once-in-2000-years flood occurred, produced by the collision of tropical storm Nina and a cold front. More than a year's rainfall fell in 24 hours (new records were set, at 189.5 mm rainfall per hour and 1060 mm per day, exceeding the average annual precipitation of about 800 mm), which weather forecasts failed to predict. According to Beijing-based Central Meteorological Observatory the forecast was for rainfall of 100 mm. On August 6, a request to open the dam was rejected, because of the existing flood in downstream areas. On August 7, however, the request was accepted, but the telegrams failed to reach the dam.

The dam was completed on June 1952. The dam was made of clay and was 24.5 metres high. The maximum discharge of the reservoir was 1742 m³/s.Cracks in the dam and sluice gates appeared after completion due to construction and engineering errors. They were repaired with the advice from Soviet engineers and the new design, dubbed the iron dam, was considered unbreakable.

In August 1975; the sluice gates were not able to handle the overflow of water, partially due to sedimentation blockage. On August 7 at 21:30, the People's Liberation Army Unit which was deployed on the Banqiao Dam sent the first dam failure warning via telegraph. On August 8, 0:30, the smaller Shimantan Dam, designed to survive a 1-in-500-year flood, failed to handle more than twice its capacity and broke upstream, only 10 minutes after Unit 34450 sent a request that would open the Banqiao Dam by air strike. A half hour later, at 1:00, water at the Banqiao crested at the 117.94 m level above sea level, or 0.3 meter higher than the wave protection wall on the dam, and it too failed. This precipitated the failure of 62 dams in total. The runoff of Banqiao Dam was 13,000 m³ per second in vs. 78,800 m³ per second out, and 701 million m³ of water were released in 6 hours, while 1.67 billion m³ of water were released in 5.5 hours at upriver Shimantan Dam, and 15.738 billion m³ of water were released in total.

The resulting flood waters caused a large wave, 10 kilometers wide and 9.8–23 ft high to rush onto the plains below at nearly 50 kilometers per hour almost wiping out an area 55 kilometers long and 15 kilometers wide, and creating temporary lakes as large as 12,000 square kilometers. Seven townships were inundated, as were thousands of square kilometers of countryside and countless communities. Although a large number of people were reported lost at first, many of them returned home later. Tens of thousands of them were carried by the water to downriver provinces and many others fled from their homes. It has been reported that around 90,000 - 230,000 people were killed as a result of the dam breaking.

Nine days later there were still over a million people trapped by the waters, relying on airdrops of food and unreachable to disaster relief. Epidemics and famine devastated the trapped survivors. .

Dam failures are generally catastrophic if the structure is breached or significantly damaged. Routine deformation monitoring and monitoring of seepage from drains in and around larger dams is useful to anticipate any problems and permit remedial action to be taken before structural failure occurs. The main causes of dam failure include one in 1000 year flood, Earthquakes, Structural weakness and inadequate spillway capacity.

Mullaperiyar dam in Idukki district, Kerala, India is now in the news after the successive tremors in the area  during the month of November 2011 and also with the release of an English movie titled ‘999’ on 25^th November. The film is based on the award winning short documentary DAMs - The Lethal Water Bombs and the Banqiao dam disaster of 1975 that claimed the lives of 230,000 people in China. The movie also portrays a lost love against the backdrop of the story of a dilapidated colonial dam.

The Mullapperiyar dam was built in 1895 using lime surkhi morter; by the British Government. Now it is more than 116 years old. The useful life of a well-designed and well-built dam is generally considered to be about 50 to 60 years. Thus the dam has already exceeded its normal lifetime by 40 to 50 years. Earthquakes in the area have further highlighted safety issues and concerns over disastrous consequences of the dam bursting because of structure weaknesses and earthquake tremors with adverse impact on the lives and property of nearly 3 million people in Kerala.  

The name Mullaperiyar is derived from Mullayar and Periyar Rivers; hence the dam came to be called Mullaperiyar. The Dam is constructed at source of the Periyar River in Kerala, India. The Periyar National Park, Thekkady is located around the Periyar reservoir.

Historical background of the dispute

Periyar River is a west-flowing river of Kerala State. The river flow its full course entirely through Kerala, and derives its water exclusively from catchment area inside the State. The dam stops the west flowing river to form a reservoir, which is also exclusively located in Kerala. Tamil Nadu collects water to the eastern side of Western Ghats via a tunnel.

On 29-10-1886 a lease indenture for 999 years was made between Maharaja of Travancore and British Presidency of Madras. The lease indenture inter alia granted full right, power and liberty to construct, make and carry out on the leased land and to use exclusively when constructed, made and carried out all such irrigation works and other works ancillary thereto to Secretary of State for India (Now Tamil Nadu).

After Independence, both the entities became non-existent. Further, according to India Independence Act, 1947, all the treaties between British Government and Indian Princely States have lapsed. Article 131 of the Constitution barred enforcement of pre-constitutional agreements between princely States. Kerala argued that the agreement is not an equal one, but imposed on the local King by the mighty British Empire. Even in the absence of any treaties after independence, Tamil Nadu continued to use the water from Periyar for extending irrigation facilities, and later for power generation on the basis of informal agreements between the governments of the two states.

 In 1970 the Kerala and Tamil Nadu governments signed a formal agreement to renew the 1886 treaty almost completely for a period of 30 years, which lapsed in 2000. The Idukki Hydroelectric project, located 30 km downstream was completed in 1976 by the Kerala government is still the major resource for irrigation and electricity needs of Kerala. After Independence the areas downstream of the Mullaperiyar become heavily inhabited, as Kerala has a very high population density.

In 1979, safety concerns were raised by Kerala Government after a minor earthquake, after which a few leaks were detected in the Mullaperiyar dam. A state agency had reported that the structure would not withstand an earthquake above magnitude 6 on the Richter scale. The then Tamil Nadu government lowered the storage level to the current 136 feet (from 142.2 feet) at the request of the Kerala Government to carry out safety repairs, after which it was suggested that the storage level could be raised to the full reservoir level of 152 feet.

Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu government had increased its withdrawal from the reservoir, with additional facilities to cater to the increased demand from newly irrigated areas. One article estimates that "the crop losses to Tamil Nadu, because of the reduction in the height of the dam, between 1980 and 2005 are a whopping Rs. 40,000 crores. In the process the farmers of the erstwhile rain shadow areas in Tamil Nadu who had started a thrice yearly cropping pattern had to go back to the bi-annual cropping.” But Kerala did not object giving water to Tamil Nadu. Their main cause of objection is the dam’s safety as it is as old as 116 years. Increasing the level would add more pressure to be handled by already leaking dam.

Security concerns regarding the downstream inhabitants prompted Kerala to backtrack on the 1970 Agreement in 2000. Another argument put forward by Kerala on the basis of a report on a study conducted state agencies suggested that the loss of habitat to the fauna of Periyar National Park would occur due to flooding after the increase in the storage level. IIT Delhi conducted a study which stated that the dam safety would be affected even at a level of 136 ft, IIT Roorkee conducted structural stability study on the Reservoir had found that the structure would not be safe in the event of an earthquake. In addition the Dam safety and Disaster management problems have assumed crucial importance in view of the recurring earthquakes and the frequent increases in the seepage of water through this aging dam.

The Dam is located 3900 feet above sea level on the High Ranges of Western Ghats in Thekkadi, Idukki District of Kerala. Earthquakes in the area have further highlighted safety issues and concerns over disastrous consequences of the dam bursting because of structure weaknesses and earthquake tremors with adverse impact on the lives and property of nearly 3.5 million people. Various issues are still being adjudicated by the Supreme Court of India. Mullaperiyar has been a hot issue politically and legally between the two Southern States of India, namely, Tamilnadu and Kerala.

The Periyar River originates in Kerala, and the major part of the catchment area falls within the state. If a proportional division of waters is done, Tamil Nadu will get zilch. If the dam bursts, they will be loosing the water sources now they are using.  It is the magnanimity of the people of Kerala that waters the arid plains of Theni. The people of Kerala do not want to stop the water transfer. They are not even demanding their fair share. They just want to live without the fear of the dam breach. If the dam burst, four districts in Kerala will be completely devastated and 3 million people perish. They are facing destruction right on the face. However, the Politicians of Tamil Nadu care nothing about the security of the lives of the people of Kerala. The gravity of the issue is rising with every passing day that could catapult to grave proportions.

The Mullaperiyar dam breach and the subsequent downstream flood may cause failure of Idukki arch dam, Cheruthani dam and Kulamavu dam. As a worst scenario, Arch dam or Cheruthoni dam failure flooding the Periyar, reaching Kochi from north through Neriamangalam, Thattekkad, Malayattoor, Cochin Airport and Aluva. Kulamavu dam break flooding Muvattupuzha River reaching Kochi from Vembanad, submerging Thodupuzha, Muvattupuzha, Piravam, Vaikam, Cherthala, and the entire Alappuzha district. There is no time to delay. Let us realize the impending danger before it is too late. Precautionary measures have to taken immediately to reduce the water level and to start the construction of the New Dam. If the breach happens, Kerala will not be the same after. Let wisdom dawn on the Politicians?

Read more »

Education Loans..A Debt trap with a Death trap...

Government and the Bankers should reconsider to reduce the overwhelming interest burden placed on Education Loans. This burden can become a debt trap, leading them to choose death. Is it now the role of Education loans after Agriculture loans to become a death trap. The Bankers are now critical and pessimistic about these loans and moving with legal proceedings indiscriminately.

The frequent rate hike by Reserve Bank of India to control inflation adds further oil to the unrelenting fire of inflation. This adds unimaginable woes to borrowers. The better option could have been to increase CRR and SLR percentage to control money supply and inflation.

 

The importance of education is emphasized through these words of US President Barack Obama, when he said, ‘In an economy where knowledge is the most valuable commodity a country have to offer, the best jobs will go to the best educated - whether they live in the United States or India or China’. He makes a very important observation, pertaining to the need of education in holding a good job and flourishing in a successful career.

The importance of education is most evident in developing countries. There, it is a means to alleviate poverty and engineer social change. Education has a fundamental role to play in personal and social development. While it isn’t a magic pill to solving the problems of the world, it is a ladder that can be used to climb out of poverty and ignorance. The children and youth of our times, who will take over from today’s adults, need to be equipped with knowledge to usher in a better future.

In line with the goal of nation building, India has been committed to providing free and compulsory education to all children. Towards this end, Indian Parliament has enacted a legislation making free and compulsory education a Right of every child in the age group 6 to 14. “For every one of our people to benefit from new employment opportunities being created across the economy, we must ensure that every Indian is educated and skilled. No nation can progress unless its people are educated.”

Educational loan for all the eligible candidates

Higher education is only a dream for even the brilliant in the past due to the economic crisis. Banks were not ready to give loans for education. The rules were very strict. But today the whole situation was changed. Loans are available for those eligible candidates whenever necessary. Loans are available at present for all the talented students to acquire maximum education.

The students who are studying in India will get maximum 10 lakh rupees and for the study in foreign countries the student will get maximum 20 lakh rupees as educational loan.  Only precondition is that the educational institutions should have the recognition of UGC, INC or AICT.

Many institutions of different states follow different fee structure. The nursing institutions are creating havoc in the scene. In such cases a commission for the mediators is also charged. Rather than the aim of acquiring knowledge, the availability of loan induces a majority for taking educational loans. These tendencies repulse banks from sanctioning loans. Because of this some eligible candidates have to face some hurdles in getting loans. The advantages of Educational loans to our society are many. So a sensible approach should be given to educational loans.

The loan re-payment should begin after one year of the course duration or after six months of the employment. This period is known as moratorium period. Only simple interest is charged during this term. After that term, compound interest is applied. 1% special discount in the interest rate will be given to those who repay the interest in the moratorium period.

Rebate for educational loans

The government had put forward a special plan to refund interest in order to reduce the burden of the parents. According to the plan mentioned in the Central government budget of 2009-2010 the government will take care of interest for the educational loan during the academic years. These merits are given to those students studying in India, if the annual income of the parent is below 4.5 lakh. Government will pay the interest till repayment start. The loans sanctioned from the financial year 2009-2010 are eligible for this rebate.

Despite these advantages, the rate of interest applicable to Education loans spoiled the glitter. Take a look at the table below to know more about the interest rates of the education loans:

Amount (INR)           % of Interest per annum

Up to 4 lakhs               14 as per current market rate

(4 – 7.50) lakhs           15.5 as per current market rate 

More than 7.50 lakhs   14.5 as per current market rate

(The interest for Housing and Car loans is 11% up to a loan of Rs.30 lakhs.)

Take look at the EMI have to be paid after the moratorium period of 60months (48+12).On completion of this 60 months the loan amount of Rs.4 lakhs will become Rs. 6,77,000/- after addition of simple interest applied at 14%. The EMI for this amount of Rs.677000/- will be Rs.12700/- for 84 months. The interest subsidy announced by the government is attractive for borrowers from the financial year 2009. But numbers of recipients are few and this scheme remains a mirage for the majority. Even the bankers find it difficult to track the fate of the subsidy applications.

An engineering graduate who can get a campus placement for a salary package of Rs.35000/- and above only can repay the loan with the above EMI. It is not common that a professional graduate getting this salary as their starting salary. Non payment of EMI will make them ineligible for any other loans due to CIBIL rating. The mounting NPA of the banks also will be a matter of concern and has to be contained. 

The Reserve Bank of India and the Government should make changes in the overwhelming interest rate and reduce to the current Repo rate of 8.5%, considering the importance of education in a developing economy. Otherwise the future of this younger generation and the banks will be jeopardized.   

Read more »

HOW TO CONTROL CORRUPTION IN INDIA-CONCEPT PAPER

“Corruption is authority plus monopoly minus transparency.”
Availability and management of Currency.

Stop printing and issue of large denomination notes of Rs.1000 and Rs.500.

The above currency denominations will continue as legal tender. Banks can accept them at their counters but should not issue out to the public.

Currency retention limit for Individuals will be Rs.10,000/- and for families Rs.20,000/-.

Limit for various departments and commercial establishment has to be decided taking into account of the genuine need. Any amount exceeding the permitted retention limit can be confiscated to the government.

Currency payment for any product or service and any other money transactions is limited to Rs.5000/-.  Any payment or transactions above the limit of Rs.5000/- can be done through banking channels only. In this context banking channels means Smart Cards and all other existing banking channels.

Banking Spread

PSU bank branches can be instructed to convert our villages and towns to 100 percent banking zones. Each block or ward can be entrusted to one or more branches.

All bank accounts will be linked to the individual Aadhaar number/Pan card.

Introduction of Smart Cards

Banks will issue Smart Cards* with photo and biometric password to use as an Electronic Purse, in addition to the existing ATM Cards. The existing banking transaction modes will continue in operation.

Smart cards can replace the paper currency and therefore a green initiative also. Customers can load the SMART CARDS with required amount of cash and also replenish it from ATMs or Bank branches when necessary. They can also check the balance in the card on a display window available on the card. Display can be seen by pressing on the panel provided on the card using own thump/finger as a biometrics password.

What is a SmartCard?

A smart card is a plastic card about the size of a credit card, with an embedded microchip that can be loaded with data, used for electronic cash payments, telephone calling, and other applications, and then periodically refreshed for additional use. Users can load SmartCards known as an electronic purse with cash value (credit) to pay for goods or services or any other money transactions.

Smart Cards have a number of advantages over magnetic stripe cards due to high security mechanisms. Smart Cards are multi-functional and the Storage capacity is increased by up to 100 times. The anticipated working life of a smartcard is ten years compared to that of a magnetic stripe card at three.

Smart Cards within the next five years will be the industry standard in debit and credit cards. As the major high street banks and finance houses are now investing in the change over to smart card technology. The size of the card is determined by an international standard (ISO 7810).

Usage of Smart cards

The public departments providing services and merchant establishments selling products or services worth more than Rs.5000/- must install Card readers for any money transaction at their end. The credit card readers also can do this function. The currency limit doesn’t preclude use of Smart Cards for amounts less than Rs.5000/-.

More point of Services (POS) have to be provided by the banks for the convenience of customers in rural areas and cities.

Realty Transactions

Real estate transactions are always the mainstay of black money investments. To eliminate such possibility the government can consider the following steps to bring in sweeping changes.

National Realty Regulatory Authority

Establishment of National Realty Regulatory Authority, similar to SEBI and IRDA, can be a positive step in the right direction to formulate necessary rules and issue directives.

Payment through Banking Channels

State Governments should provide Smart Card swiping machines and other necessary accessories at all land registration offices. Realty Buyers and Sellers can transact the amount of the deal by swiping their Smart Cards at the registration office and confirm the transaction by checking the print out from the swiping machine. The amount of the deal will be credited to the sellers account directly by debiting the buyers account. The registrar should confirm that the smart cards belong to the actual buyer and seller. Any discrepancy will make the deal invalid.

Documentation

Central Government can introduce 16 digits numbering as Document Identification Number with the first 2 digits to represent States.  The number should be a self generated one by the system. The ID number and Name with details can be converted to Quick Response codes (QR codes)* and printed on the Outer Cover* and printed on the reverse of document sheets. The document ID number can be linked to Aadhaar/Pan Card.

QR Codes

Bar codes are linear one-dimensional codes and can only hold up to 20 numerical digits, whereas QR codes are two-dimensional (2D) matrix barcodes that can hold thousands of alphanumeric characters of information. Their ability to hold more information and their ease of use makes them smart, when we scan or read a QR code with iPhone, Android or other camera-enabled Smart phones.

Outer cover

Provide an outer cover with water mark of the state for the Title Deed Documents with the unique document identification number and the Photo of the Property owner and details of the property. The old documents also can be brought under the system with a time bound plan scheduled by the government.

Realty Brokers

In India it is necessary to have strict regulations for real estate investments. A central realty regulator can formulate rules for realty brokers and educate them with the new rules.

Registration Charges

Registration charges also have to be paid by Smart Cards. State governments can definitely think of reduction in charges, as all transactions will be through banking channels; which can reflect the actual value.

Precious Metals and Stones

Precious metals and Precious stones are another area where people invest black money.

The sale, purchase and repurchase of Precious metals and Precious stones should be allowed to operate only through Smart Card or any other banking channels.

Other areas of control

• All monthly salaries have to be paid through banking channels.

• Disbursement and repayment of any type of loans/borrowings should be routed trough bank accounts.

• All payments to colleges and schools should be routed through banking channels.

• Tickets for travel by Air, Ship and Upper class train should not be made available against Cash payment.

• All payments for stay in hotels 3 star and above should be routed through banking channels.

• Sale of Petrol and Diesel against cash has to be limited to Rs.2000/-.

• Cash payment for post paid and prepaid telephone charges can be limited to Rs.1000/-

• Public Distribution System (PDS) should be brought under the smart card system. Special smart cards, exclusively designed for the purpose of PDS can be used.

I am of the considered opinion that the above steps might not eradicate corruption completely but definitely it can reduce it to a very great extent. The above suggestions are not exhaustive but indicative in nature. The advantages to the people and the government by the implementation of the above concept are many.

Other Advantages.

Ø      It is a go green initiative by reducing the use of paper.

Ø      Government can save production cost of the currency.

Ø      Majority of money transactions will be through banking channels and more income for banks.

Ø      Money transactions can be traced and taxed. Hence increase in Tax collection.

Ø      Use of counterfeit currency can be controlled.

Ø      Big robbery and thefts will be under control and police force get relief.

Ø      Availability of cash funds for organized crimes and terrorism will be limited.

Ø      Crime rate will come down.

Ø      Property deals will be transparent and ownership of the property can be ascertained easily.

Ø      Hiding black money in cash, land and precious metals and stones also will be difficult.

Ø      Capital fee payments in educational institutions also can be curtailed.

Ø      Bribery other than cash also can be controlled.

Ø      Low supply and Lesser utility of currency notes will prevent hoarding of currency.

Unearth concealed Black money

Government of India may issue 2 types Special Bonds under an amnesty scheme, to uncover the money stacked in India and abroad.

Issue Special Bonds against Indian currency and foreign currency through banks, with a coupon rate of 6% flat rate per annum with 5 years lock in period.

Indian Currency Bonds

The Special bonds available against Indian currency will be issued at par for the first             6 months from the date of commencement. In the next 12 months after the first 6 months the bonds will be available at premium of 10%. In the subsequent years the premium for the bond will increase by 10% every year till the end of the 4^th year.

Foreign Currency Bonds

Foreign Currency bonds also can be issued with 5 years lock in period with similar conditions. But 50% of the maturity amount can be repatriated after maturity. 

Advantage

      Amnesty might give opportunity for the people to bring out hidden funds.

      Enough funds will be available for Infrastructure projects.

      Central Government may share them with the states from where the funds originates.

Read more »

Posted in: Please Comment