Thursday 15 March 2007

How much is OK ?

While on the topic of Guru,I was wondering if flouting with the law can be avoided in our system.
Giving it a good thought, I sincerely feel that at some point of time , we are forced to be corrupt albeit in a small way.
People argue that we have corruption in the grass-root level..what can we expect from a nation where there is economic disparity of such huge proportions ? We have corruption at all levels....be it grass-root , sub-grass-root and the Guru level corruption.

What would people know of businessmen investing huge sums (borrowed and partner's) and then losing it out in interests....We talk of industrial development....GNP growth etc. etc. , what about that guy who has his life at stake, and is forced to face corruption at every level.
He has to weigh his honesty , commitment and the interests (as compared with the bribe amount ) , then decide as to what has to be done.
I know businessmen who are so honest with the quality of product they deliver
and take pride in doing so but never even bat their eyelids while doling out bribes or contacting politicians to help them out in difficult situations.
They are the very same people who take into consideration the needs of the labourers .

Are'nt we all aware of the fact that with a help of a politician , one can give so
much trouble to a businessman that he would close shop and run for his life ?
What happens during elections ?
Where does all the money come from?
What will the poor guy do..but to shell down amounts to every party than risk closing down his factory and sitting at home wondering what other saleable skill-sets he has to support his family and their life-style.

As for me , I may not want to spoil another's chance directly but if I need a berth in a train , would willingly shell down a couple of hunderd rupees (if demanded ) and take the berth. I am sure , even if there is no one to take the berth , the guy is not going to allot it to me unless I pay. Ofcourse I can shout , call the squad and threaten him....but it all depends on how much time I am willing to spend fighting and then what kind of scene I would have created and what other risks I would be facing.
So most of the times it would be 'GTH' (Go To Hell!) !

The guardians of honesty should also think about the temples in our country...is it a good practice to take a letter from a person in power and go for a 'Special Break Darshan' ? These days I feel sick to visit these corrupt temples because at a personal level I feel its unfair to the other people in the queue. The very look of the priests there makes me so angry that the purpose of visiting a temple fails.

So being corrupt or not is not a measure of a person's value as an individual. Just b'cos he flouts the law out of necessity or b'cos the situation demands , does not make him a dishonest , cunning person.

Mind you, I am not saying there are no bad people out there , I am merely saying that this is not an yard-stick to conclude if a person is good or not !

This guy GURU has my stamp of approval for all that he did in the movie !
Infact I was quite nervous when the judgement was pronounced , would have been very disappointed if he was sent to jail !

I would say 'Guru ! Its good going!' .

28 comments:

Jeevan said...

Its a must watch film Guru, will check it some times. You brought a meaningful post sree, in today’s world everything depends on a demand. Like our president said, the countries developments are prevent by this bribe or expecting something to do.

unfuel the planet said...

http://shocking.wordpress.com/2006/11/13/election-funds-corruption-in-indian-politics/
I had similar ideas for the root cause of corruption in political parties.

as for the general masses are concerns... whenever u corner an individual and make sure that the only way he can survive is by giving/taking bribes... a GURU is born

Sree's Views said...

Hello Jeevan....
Thanks for your view and ur comment.
Keep coming :)
(What happened to ur plans of visiting Kumarakom ? )

Sree's Views said...

Hey Pegasus...
Was actually checking your blog..was reading the one where u had given advice as to which crops wld fetch profits..
mushrooms ? Doubtful !
Weed ? A sure shot !
(and more business to Lawyers too :) )
Will check out this one :)

unfuel the planet said...

those mushrooms are actually hallucinogenic. so they fall in the same category of weeds

Sree's Views said...

Hello pegasus....
Went throo ur post !
Cant agree with you more !
//Then why is a cabinet minister who with a stroke of a pen can make and destroy billions of rupees paid only 10,000/- p.m. Even unskilled graduates fresh out of college earn more.//
The entire system is so confusing
as one kosten leads to another....
:)




@ V..Hello...
En comments dhaan jaasti nnu kindal pannellna....no Kiwi and no Kamarkat :) Akkaaan :P

Sree's Views said...

Hey pegasus
//so they fall in the same category of weeds //
All the more better !
More profits for poor farmers...
More business for poor lawyers :P l
:)

unfuel the planet said...

u seem to be a lot concerned about the lawyers recently... ne special reasons ;)

Sree's Views said...

Yeah...Have been attending a Law office and a few court sessions. Also did some translation work for them.. :)

Ravi said...

Sree, I haven't watched Guru as yet but don't you feel, going by your point, that this is how the corruption starts and replicates to bigger levels? Infact that is the same theme in Anniyan as well. Even in our own country we have ended up in a situation where today (as quoted in "Indian"), we need to grease a palm even to do one's duty.

If you ask me if its worth fighting it (as in the case of the train berth quoted by you), then definitely "Yes". By doing so, we trigger off a new practice which would probably inspire others to follow suit and but not doing also, we set a new practice - of getting the easy way out. More than wasting time, I think its about "looking good" feeling. People wonder what would happen if they start a fight - about their image, about a possible embarassment.

And its for sure that corruption starts with the affordablem class. What if you did not have that extra hundreds for the berth? You would have probably fought it out or settled for what you got right?

So dont look at it as just 5 paisa or wasting 5 mins. Remember that this is the root cause...

unfuel the planet said...

wow... finally a non-IT for a change...
why don't u write something ban on entry of foreign law firms in India.

Sree's Views said...

Hello Ravi..
//that this is how the corruption starts and replicates to bigger levels//
It has already started and rampant in all levels..How we are going to deal with it in our everyday lives is the question.

'Anniyan' and 'Indian' were singing the same tune..but the effect of such movies on the society is Zilch.
God knows what all Sankar had to do, to get the movie out.
And in Indian , I remember the hospital scene and wld have strangled the older Kamal for what he did , rather did'nt do.

Ravi..trust me , its easy to fight the TT guy in the train...the real challenge is how you get ur registrations done at Taluk offices , Ravi...are you one of those ppl who carry a handy-cam when u go to Govt. offices ? or do you come back without getting ur work done ?
As compared to these ppl I feel shelling down couple of hundreds to TTs is OK.

As for 'looking good' and 'image' , I stop at nothing to create a scene if the situation necessitates it.
( Talk abt eve-teasing...and I stop at nothing ).

//What if you did not have that extra hundreds for the berth? You would have probably fought it out or settled for what you got right?//
Ravi...this is not particular to the berth alone....I think it was you who wrote abt educating your maid's daughter..rt?
Is it fair situation ? Are we anyway better than that poor girl , except that we were born to affluent parents ?
Everything depends on affordability , at some point even we are victims.

I understand this is the root cause..but I dont want to fight the easy fights Ravi...there is no point penalising the poor TT , he has to pay the flying squad..and it goes on. It may make me appear a weakling...but so be it.

You did not consider the businessmen I was talking about..I dont mean Guru..the real ones in Chennai who have to keep an Indian flag in the glove-compartment all the time..for God knows when a politician wld ask for the car !
What is that businessman's plight ?
Just b'cos they are doing things for these politicians , they are not bad or cruel ppl. They are family men just like other salaried employees.

But , all said and done..I dont criticise ppl like you who have ideals and stick by it , on the contrary I appreciate and admire you ppl . It needs great determination to stand up to all the pressure.

As for me , I choose to be guided by my conscience .

Sree's Views said...

Hey Pegasus,
Yes! definitely a non-IT person :) But has its disadvantages..I dont understand half the jargons IT folks use :(

Never knew that there were foreign law firms in India until u mentioned it. I enquired and heard that there were protests of some kind.
Will get more info !

Ravi said...

Sree, good points but what I am saying is to clean the mess, we have to start somewhere - however less significant it might seem because if you probably analyse - "pona pogudhu, oru roova dhaane..." appadinu aarambichu indha alavukku corruption kondu vandhirukku.

Yes, ofcourse the business people have to be pitied but if we need to end it, we have to begin it somewhere. The problem is we want to get our things done "at any cost".

Sree's Views said...

Ravi...
Enna porutha varai 'pona pogudhu oru rooba dhaaney' illa....'pona pogudhu...ivanoda edhukku' .

You are wrong Ravi...the corruption has not grown from lower to higher level...just after independance it has hit all levels at the same time.
As you said we shd start somewhere...but where ?
Ask urself...is this guy exploiting at the risk of jeopardising another person's chance ? Then decide ,if you wld be comfortable doing it.

//problem is we want to get our things done "at any cost". //
No Ravi, not at any cost !

balar said...

Sree i agree with you, we have corruption in all level..

This could be off topic but i would like to know the differnce.

Scene1. I am making a train reservation, but the clerk says you are on waiting list.
I am giving 100 Rs to Clerk and he is giving me a confirmed seat ticket using his influecnce..

Scene2. I am making a reservation, but the clerk says you are on waiting list.I am paying 100 Rs in Tatkal scheme and I might get a cofirmed seat ticket..

:)

Sree's Views said...

Hey Bala...
No it is not off topic.
Bala....if the ticket is available in Tatkal the clerk would not ask the same amount....it would usually be less than the extra that u have to pay for the scheme.

Well...if the situation u described arises..go ahead and use the Tadkal scheme...who wants to haggle with the clerk...infact even if it is more than the amount demanded by the clerk...go for the Tadkal . Keep things smooth and simple !
:)

balar said...

/*if the situation u described arises..go ahead and use the Tadkal scheme.*/
My question is why we need Tatkal scheme???..

Here is ravi's question and your answer.
//problem is we want to get our things done "at any cost". //
No Ravi, not at any cost !

So to get things done we are ready to pay whether it is govt imposed scheme like tatkal or to any private person.
If govt ask we say scheme if private person ask we say corruption..Isn't it.?

Sree's Views said...

Bala..
//My question is why we need Tatkal scheme???..//
Not sure if I got you right !
Why dont we need Tatkal ?

//So to get things done we are ready to pay whether it is govt imposed scheme like tatkal or to any private person.//

I'd prefer to get work done throo Govt. schemes...if I fail to get it done b'cos its a matter of greasing someone's palms..then I wld go ahead and do it , if the situation necessitates it and I am comfortable with it.

(With railway reservations I would'nt even think twice :P )

//No Ravi, not at any cost !//
I did'nt mean monetary cost, Bala !

Anonymous said...

Nice post Partner,

Could a mistake by one person lead to all this ? If a person swindles all the money and deprives the others who are entitled for the money, will it lead the deprived people to be corrupt to meet ends?

As for the "Tatkal" scheme, there should be a good reason as to why it was introduced. Let me ponder or find out.

Voracious Blog Reader

P.S Partner: Kamarkat kundungapa

Sree's Views said...

Hey Pangaali ....
Sorry for the delay !
(Unga Kamarkat prepare panna neram aagiduthu :P )

//If a person swindles all the money and deprives the others who are entitled for the money//

Swindling and depriving another person who is entitled to the amount is cheating and fradulent...the deprived need not resort to corruption..he has other remedies.
But , if by this u mean the politicians....it is all one big racket...and each and everyone is affected by it at some point of time.

'Tatkal' Scheme I think was introduced to enable passengers who have to travel on short notice , get a reservation .
You can only get the ticket within 24 hrs before departure and the excess amount for these tickets depends on the class of travel. But now , the time has been increased to 72 hrs and the amount has been increased too.

P.S Kootaaleee....
Fresh Kamarkats..st from the oven ...Ungalukkuthaan :P
ensssoiii cheyyandee :P

unfuel the planet said...

too all those who are against tatkal scheme....
1) do you think you can actually make your travel plans 45-50 days in advance always... and there can never be an emergency.. or last moment generous leave grant?
2) if you think that is even remotely possible... don't you think it is ok for the transport service provider to charge a little extra amount...
50-100/- extra for this special service does not amount to fleecing.

Sree's Views said...

Pegasus,
I think Tatkal is a welcome scheme as it def. helps ppl who need to travel at short notice ..
The amount is reasonable too...!

So , I forward your comment to ppl who may think otherwise !
:)

Ravi said...

Sree, thanks for coming by my blog. But innum pudhu post podala :( Happy weekend to you too...

Anonymous said...

@ Tatkal Scheme

One question which I am not able to answer:

If one can buy tickets at extra cost at the last moment, why aren't these tickets available for regular sale?

There should be a valid reason. Probably they mentioned this reason when the introduced the scheme. Should search the internet.

Voracious Blog Reader

P.S: Partner. Samma taste, pongo. Thanks ba.

balar said...

@pegasus,sree
i am not against tatkal scheme but my qustion is to get things done faster we are here forced to pay some extra money.....
I mentioned Railway tatkal is just an example, there are lot of similar kind of tatkal schemes are available in govt offices.(Eg:passport,building plan approval and so on..)
So our mentality is, we are ready to pay extra money to get things done faster...that is where the corruption starts. :)

unfuel the planet said...

i agree that bribes are also called "speed money"

but the real problem of curroption is not the extra payment....
it is "exclusion".... only those who know the railway TT or are confident that they can talk/bribe their way in get the last minute ticket...
while a simple man like me and u.... check the status of the tickets, and drop their plans.

tatkal by institutionalization of "speed money" takes care of this problem.

as I had repeatedly said in my blog...

whenever u corner an individual and make sure that the only way he can survive is by giving/taking bribes compromising with his principles... a GURU is born

Sree's Views said...

Hello V, Bala Pegasus...
Thanks for your comments...
I have replied in the comment section of my next post :)