THE T

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to be a winner and run with the other linemen,rather than keep being a loser running withthe backs?

The young man said, Im not here to out-run the linemen. I already know i can do that.Im here to learn how to run faster, and if youhave noticed, Sir, i lose to the backs by a littleless each day!

This account holds the secret to our spiri-tual progress. Whereas in worldly work, we always want to appear the best, when it comesto spiritual work, we cannot hide who we arefrom God. Our progress is an open book to theLord. The grace we receive to progress spiritu-ally is based on sincere efforts. We cannot hide

the truth of our spiritual gains andfailures from the Creator.

The football player learned thathe would not improve by living onpast glories. He knew he could onlyimprove by challenging himself. By

seeing his weaknesses as a run-ner, he could work on them to im-prove. By pitting himself againstthose who were better than hewas in the area he wanted to mas-ter, his shortcomings would be-

come visible and he could work on overcom-ing them. He was after improvement, notaccolades and praise.

The football player could see what the otherrunners were doing and could work on deve-loping his ability. The losses showed him whathe needed to do better the next time. By doingthis, each day he lost by a little less. When welook at our failures, we know what we have todo to do better each day. Then, by making an effort, we will have fewer failures than on theprevious day. Over time, we would ultimatelyreach a stage in which we have improved andreach zero failures. Follow Sant RajinderSingh at speakingtree.in

When we apply for a job, we usually tryto highlight all the good things aboutus. When employers read such re-sumes, they often feel each is describing thegreatest person who ever lived. We try to putourselves in the best possible light to land thejob. When going to a bank for a business loan,we list our greatest financial achievementsand best references. We want to appear to be asafe client and not a credit risk. When applyingfor college, we collect all the best referencesfrom former teachers so that a college will findus appealing as a candidate.

But here is the story of a footballplayer who worked on his weakness.A university football team was con-ditioning themselves by practisingrunning. One player had the posi-tion of lineman. This large playerwas in a tackle position and con-sidered the fastest lineman inthe team. One day, he walked upto his coach and asked if hecould run sprints with the fas-test running backs. The coachgave him permission.

The lineman went out daily to run, but eachday he came in last. Day after day, he continuedto run with the fastest backs, even though eachday he lost. This was to be expected becauselinemen are generally not considered as fast asthe running backs.

The coach, thinking it was strange, askedhimself, Why would this football player wantto play with the best runners and continuallycome in last when he could run with the line-men and be the fastest?

The coach observed the young man and finally, after seeing the lineman lose for manydays, decided to ask him: Wouldnt you prefer

THE SPEAKING

TREE

Sant Rajinder Singh

A Football Players Strategy To Excel

Kathmandu:Optimism, cau-tious to a fault, isthe thread thatruns through con-versations withacademics, poli-

ticians, journalists and business-men following the advent of theNarendra Modi-led governmentin Delhi. It springs from the newprime ministers conviction thatmutually rewarding ties betweenSouth Asian nations can alone allow New Delhi to pursue its economic, political and strategicobjectives beyond the region.This is a good enough reason, according to my interlocutors, tohope for a substantial reductionin the prickliness that has beenthe characteristic feature of India-Nepal relations.

The caution of interlocutorsis rooted in the fears and con-cerns that have shaped Indias im-age in the eyes of Nepals moversand shakers of just about everypolitical stripe for decades. Geog-raphy and history account forthem to a large extent. The gar-gantuan size of India has loomedlarge in Nepals ties with itssouthern neighbour. Moreover,the many bonds of culture andreligion between these countriesare more often than not perceivedas a threat to Nepals identity.

When Indians harp on suchcommonalities they provoke resentment, not empathy. Nepa-lis tend to interpret the feeblest Indian criticism as a slight andthe most reasonable Indian de-

this menace would be the earlycompletion of strip maps of theborder. Only a small nudge isneeded to finish this task. Itwould then have to receive a cachet of approval at the highestdiplomatic levels. Work can thenbegin promptly to erect the mis-sing boundary pillars.

Nepal has its own set of wor-ries too. It hopes that Modi willnot be swayed by what he hearsfrom BJPs sister Hindutva out-fits that have opened chapters inNepal. They want to reinstall themonarch or, at the very least, topressure the current governmentto revert to Nepals status as theworlds only Hindu nation. Andfinally Delhi is expected to let Nepals elected representatives inthe second Constituent Assemblysolve the hugely complex issue offederalism among themselves.

On all these fronts, my inter-locutors keep their fingers cros-sed. Indeed, one of them, knownto be influential, said that the ballis now in Nepals court. In theirmeeting after the swearing-in cer-emony, PM Modi and his Nepalicounterpart Sushil Koirala arereported to have had a compre-hensive discussion on subjects ofinterest and concern to the twocountries. Modi requested Koiralato urgently send him a list ofissues that needed to be tackledon a priority basis. That list had not reached Delhi at the time ofthis writing. Clearly the wheels ofthe India-Nepal juggernaut needto move in tandem. But hope ofbetter days for relations betweenthe two neighbours has a distinctedge over despair and cynicism.

cally muscular country.My interlocutors indeed made

it a point to emphasise that play-ing the China card against Indiais a dud card. Beijings main inter-est in Nepal, they argue, is not somuch the influence that Indiawields in the country (their am-bassadors enjoy a most cordial relationship that is often dis-played in public) but iron-clad assurances that its territory is notused to foment Tibetan activitiesaimed at the Peoples Republic.

Indias main interest is on thesame lines. It wants the Nepaligovernment to curb all malevolentactivities of foreign elements op-erating on its soil to harm Indiassecurity concerns. That includesPakistans espionage mischiefand the proliferation of radical-ised madrassas along the lengthyborder between the two countries.

One effective way to contain

would go some way to give a fillip toNepals economy as well especial-ly in the infrastructure, hydel pow-er and tourism sectors. This de-mands the activation of three jointcommissions that have been estab-lished at the ministerial, senior bu-reaucratic and technical levels totap Nepals hydropower potential.

Equally significant, manymedia commentators, bankersand businessmen not to speak ofpoliticians are positively up-beat about Modis intentions toattract Chinese investments toIndia. This, they believe, could result in joint India-Nepal-Chinaprojects in Nepal too. Such pro-jects would generate large num-bers of direly needed jobs, espe-cially for skilled or semi-skilledyouth. The leitmotif of conversa-tions is: let Nepal ride piggybackon India as it endeavours to fulfilModis ambitions for an economi-

mand as intolerable pressure. Successive monarchs played

on these fears and concerns aboutBig Brother India with their bare-ly concealed ambitions to play theChina card against it. Democraticgovernments that followed the endof the monarchy couldnt resistthat temptation either. What isparadoxical however is that NewDelhis role to ensure the decided-ly messy transition from a feudalregime to a secular, democraticand republican one was at oncesought and resented. Much thesame holds true for Indias assist-ance for developmental activities.

None of this however can explain let alone justify NewDelhis paternalist, even conde-

scending, attitude to Nepal andfor that matter its often clumsyand confused policies vis--visour neighbour. Consider for in-stance the fact that unlike four of his predecessors ManmohanSingh did not visit Nepal evenonce in his decade in office.

Nepali reactions to the newgovernment in Delhi must be as-sessed against this backdrop. Thesentiment expressed across theboard is that the acceleration of thepace of economic growth in India

Himalayan DiplomacyAfter Thimphu, can Modi revitalise our relations with Kathmandu too?

Dileep Padgaonkar

Eager to piggyback on an economically muscular India

Nepal hopes Modi willnot be swayed by what

he hears from BJPs sisterHindutva outfits that wantto reinstall the monarchand restore Nepals status as the worldsonly Hindu nation

Narendra Modi governments unsubtle attempts to remove a few gover-nors are a replay of what UPA-I did a decade ago. Following a legalchallenge to what UPA-I did, Supreme Court clarified circumstanceson removal of governors. The short point is that the president can remove agovernor from office at any time without giving a reason. While SupremeCourt did say that a change in Union government is not a reason to removegovernors, removal is open to only a limited judicial review. We hope Modigovernment will not proceed down this path as the fallout will limit its potential to bring about change. A bitter political dispute on this issue isthe last thing India needs now.

Congress has clearly indicated that it sees attempts to remove some ofUPA appointees as governors as a politically hostile act. In this context, itmakes no sense for Modi government to fritter away precious political capi-tal on this issue. While NDA may have a majority in Lok Sabha, it does not

have adequate numbers in Rajya Sabha.Moreover, tackling most challenges thatmatter to people needs the Union govern-ment to nudge states to reform. If financeminister Arun Jaitley wants a durablesolution to fighting food inflation, itcannot happen without states lending ahand by diluting the grip of wholesaleagricultural markets on horticulturaltrade or by discouraging hoarding.

Modi is surely aware of the debilitat-ing impact of political hostility on re-forms. Indias most important economicreform, dismantling fiscal barriers bet-ween states through a transition to

Goods and Services Tax (GST), was undone over the last four years by the political hostility and distrust between Congress and BJP. GST, one of NDAgovernments priorities, is contingent on cooperative federalism thatNDA promises to practise. Given what is at stake, it is not prudent for NDA tosquander its political capital on replacing a handful of governors.

It is not too late to drop the move to remove governors especially thosewho resist resigning. Its true that some of UPAs appointees to governorsposts were not the best choices available. But the political cost of removingthem may end up being too high. Given how weak the economy is and a looming crisis in the Middle East, which has already affected India, Modisgovernment cannot afford gratuitous distractions.

Go Governors GoneModi government shouldnt fritter away its politicalcapital this will limit its ability to deliver reforms

It was as unnerving as it was empowering. To tread the sameflagstones as two of the four iron ladies of our times. GoldaMeir and Sirimavo Bandaranaike may not have studied atSomerville College, but last week i was confronted by the sternbronze bust of milk-snatcher Mrs Thatcher in a centre therenamed after her, while, across the room, imperious Indirasmiled benignly from a full-length canvas, softening daisies at

her feet. After a fortifying sherry, in my own sari and borrowed grandeur, itook my place at the high table of the cavernous college dining room, allchuffed up by my invitation to one of Somervilles formal Tuesday dinners.The portraits of the women who had burnished Somervilles name since itsfounding in 1879 lined the walls, reminding me of the privilege. Male studentsweren't admitted till 1994. Equal opportunities and all that.

Ingeniously fitted into these fancy-frocks-and-formal-suits dinners is asafety valve. Attended by students, teachers and guests, they provide a weeklyrelease from the pressures of Oxfords intense tutorial system. They also allow a brief interface with the real world.

My invitation to it stemmed from another dinner, that one in Mumbai. Itwas hosted by business historian Gita Piramal who is continuing her researchat Somerville. Back home for a break last March, she had invited us to meet thevisiting core team of the new Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Develop-ment recently established at this college. At her grand flat in the Piramalsmany-splendoured Worli residence the fare was vegetarian, in its own way astraditional as the pork belly with that blooded sausage called black puddingon which i pigged out on Tuesday.

Gavelling the start of that formal dinner from her ornate high chair at thehigh table was the Somerville College principal, Alice Prochaska. Opposite

her sat the Oxford India Centres research director, Dr Alfred Gathorne-Hardy; with gin-ger hair, prompt smile and unnerving youth-

fulness hes better suited to Alfie, his usual moniker. To my left was the strik-ing Sara Kalim, who had read the Classics at Somerville, and is now itsdirector of development. Along with Alice and Alfie, she had been at GitasMumbai party, enthralling us with tales of her feisty Bihari MLA grandmotherwho too had championed womens education.

In Somervilles hoary dining hall, i sensed the ghost of Cornelia Sorabjee whohad enrolled in 1889. Her father was that oddity, a Parsi Christian, and a mission-ary to boot. Taking tradition-breaking to new heights, she became the first womanto graduate from Bombay University, to read law at Oxford, and be anointedIndias first lady advocate. The Christian Cornelia had opposed the nationalistmovement because she felt it violated the rights of the Hindu orthodoxy.

Then, over time, space and dessert wine, i met the young Maan Barua.Hes made the leap from his fathers Kaziranga tourist lodge to become thebrightest environmental researcher at the Oxford India Centre.

Two remoter subcontinental connections followed. Somervilles founderwas Mary Ward. Two centuries earlier, an Irish nun of the same name hadfounded the Sisters of Loreto, which would set up my own college in Kolkataalong with schools across the world.

The next day, having reverentially wandered among the dreaming spiresof Oxford, we found ourselves at an open-air evensong service of Keble College. The setting sun turned to gold the ancient stone of the buildings cir-cling its grounds. Here, Imran Khan had once stylised his sixers and bouncers.

* * *Alec Smart said: Does Preity want a Locked Ness Monster? Or

should he go scot-free?bachi.karkaria@timesgroup.com

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/erratica

With Mrs G and Mrs T

Bachi Karkaria

High on power at the high table of Oxfords Somerville College

Given the big role price rise played in felling the previous government,the new one is doing well to step up efforts to tame food inflation.Finance minister Arun Jaitley has announced pre-emptive measures inlight of the fact that a weak monsoon may cause another spurt in food prices inthe coming months. But the challenge is enormous. Experience of recent yearssuggests that efforts like curtailing export of some items while facilitatingimport of some others will have only a limited impact on food supply in general.Of course, persuading states to delist fruits and vegetables from the APMC Actand to take action against hoarders is a welcome step, but states often stone-walled such efforts during UPA rule. Such resistance will test NDA too.

For rice or wheat, controlling price rise is easier given the huge govern-ment stocks. But its devilish hard to restrain prices of vegetables andfruits and of high-value protein products like eggs, fish and meat a hugevolume of demand and logistic hurdles reduces the prospects of importingadequate quantities at affordable prices.

In these cases holding down prices basically depends on stepping up domes-tic supplies. Consider that in vegetables, growth of output dipped from 8% dur-ing UPA-I to 5.7% during UPA-II. Production stagnated in important vegetablegrowing states like UP and Bihar. Any pickup in supply will depend on a revivalof vegetable crops in these laggard states. And special focus has to be given toimportant vegetables like onions where output growth has slipped to half ofprevious levels during UPA-II. This demands serious upgradation of agricultu-ral technologies as well as a large investment in warehouses, cold storage andnew supply chains. A long-term strategy incorporating these objectives wouldfetch more dividends for NDA than knee-jerk reactions on the trade front.

Still In The Soup For vegetables, the only real defence against

inflation is upgrading the domestic supply chain

Power of removal [of governors] is given to the president in general terms

B R AMBEDKAR, in Constituent Assembly

THE TIMES OF INDIA, AHMEDABADTHURSDAY, JUNE 19, 201412 THE TIMES OF IDEAS

A T H O U G H T F O R T O D A Y

This is with reference to the editorial TaxmanHeal Thyself (June 18). Benefits of tax reformshave already been experienced by individualtaxpayers who can now submit IT returns online.Unfortunately, the satisfactory closure of oldermanual returns seems to have taken a back seat.Claims for pending refunds remain unsettled de-spite written reminders. Even if refund ordersare made, they are reported as not executableon flimsy grounds such as saying that postaladdress or bank account number of assessee isincorrect, a claim which is often itself untrue. Letus hope that the report of the group headed byParthasarathi Shome has covered such aspectsof periodic review by higher authorities of individual IT returns which remain unsettled.There is also a need for the IT department toreach out to the assessees and solve theirproblems, making life easier for all of us.

Suman Sankar Dasgupta, KOLKATA

Civility mattersThis is with reference to the editorial Lesson InCivility (June 18). While thoughtlessly apingthe West in our garb and external appearance,we often fail to notice the drawbacks that setus miles behind in the race for modernisation.Of course, we are also highly conscious of whatpeople, especially foreigners, think of us think of Naipauls mimic men. Hence, while wego around unabashedly littering our own na-tion we make painstaking efforts to use dust-bins in foreign lands. The Japanese cleaned the football stadium at Brazils World Cup onlybecause cleanliness is ingrained in them rightfrom childhood. Similarly, we Indians also haveto imbibe such civic sense. Lastly, rather thanpointing fingers we must strive to do our bit.A personal awareness of civic duties is theneed of the hour. Though it might turn out to be a long process we can surely bust theimage of a mimic man in times to come.

Ahad Siddiqui, GORAKHPUR

About aping the WestThis is with reference to the article Mimicman (June 18) by Jug Suraiya. The writer hashighlighted one of the major shortcomings ofour people. In a desire to appear modern thereis a craze to ape only the superficial aspects ofwestern culture, be it their fashion or opulentlifestyle. This is done blindly without bother-ing to understand the core values of civilisedsocieties. These values which we miss out oninclude scrupulous following of rules andlaws as well as being honest, sincere and polite. What we instead encounter amongstIndias mimic men is an utter lack of truegrooming and obnoxious behaviour. This is asad commentary on our today. This attitudedoes nobody any good.

Subhash Kaura, VIA EMAIL

Taxmen dont have to be taxing

P OW E R P O I N T Jug Suraiya & Ajit Ninan

Jairam Ramesh is absolutely if belat-edly right in advising Congress toemulate BJPs strategy of makingfirst-time MPs ministers. This will

help Congress reinvent itself. With 65%of its population under 35 years, Indiaspolity is veering powerfully towardsyouth and fresh faces. At 315 new mem-bers, 2014s Parliament features thehighest number of first-time MPs in 30 years. To overlook thistrend and bypass fresh tal-ent for tired old faces dy-nasts, family loyalists, even tainted associates will only cost a beleagueredCongress more.

The fact is, after years of decay, todaysIndia is impatient to see results. Fewvoters pedantically fret over whether apolitician has spent decades wilting onParliaments backbenches before becom-ing a minister. Led by first-time MP-PMNarendra Modi, BJP has understood thisurge for dynamism, appointing first-timerslike Smriti Irani and Harsh Vardhan asministers. Imbued with new ideas and enthusiasm, Iranis been a spokespersonaware of social change while Harsh Var-dhan has medical experience at hand.Other first-time MP-ministers include

veteran politici-an Nitin Gadkari,balancing BJPsbasket of skills,adding grass-roots political ac-umen to socialsuavity and com-munity work.

In comparison,

Congresss treatment of first-time MPswas pallid and unintelligent. When itshould have fully utilised the energies ofyoung MPs like Sachin Pilot and Jitin Pra-sada, it jettisoned them into ministries withinadequate work and powers, a fact bitterlycomplained about but frustratingly ig-nored. Less well-connected first-timers including Youth Congress stars like Mee-nakshi Natarajan languished in Parlia-ment with little tangible work to show voters. The result shows in Congresss pollresults and its inability to form even aproper opposition today. To keep itself rele-vant, Congress must entrust first-timeMPs with real ministerial power even ifthey overshadow Rahul Gandhi.

Jairam Ramesh praises BJP for giving first-time MPs charge of ministries

Congress must emulate model

Jairam Ra-meshs asser-tion that Con-gress shouldemulate the newBJP govern-ments decisionto give ministe-rial portfolios tofirst-time MPs

isnt well thought out. True, theres an ur-gent need for Congress to promote freshfaces within its ranks. The partys recentLok Sabha defeat can be partially attri-buted to an aging leadership. However,this doesnt mean that a future Congressgovernment at the Centre or current Con-gress-led state governments should makeit a policy to hand out ministerial respon-sibilities to first-time legislators. Onesimply cannot discount the value of expe-rience in effectively running ministriesand delivering on administrative issues.

Theres good reason for Congress tostick to a hierarchical system wherebyyoung leaders are brought up throughthe ranks. Starting from the Youth Cong-

ress through the district, state and na-tional levels of the party, each stage rep-resents a new level of learning for youngpoliticians. This allows them to acquireimportant leadership and managerialskills. Similarly, even in the parliamen-tary party only experienced MPs whoknow how the system works should begiven ministerial roles. The utility ofthis process is best highlighted by the

case of CongresssShashi Tharoor whowas given the MoS

external affairs portfolio as a first-timeMP but was clearly found wanting on account of his political inexperience.

Ramesh was right in earlier suggestinga retirement age of 70 for leaders in hisparty. But that doesnt mean that one pro-motes complete novices either. Partiesshould look to streamline internal pro-motions, making them merit-based andperiodic. In fact, being in the opposition,Congress should institute a shadow cabinet to propose an alternative pro-gramme to that of the government andprepare its existing MPs for future ministerial responsibilities. This will en-sure the party has able personnel to leadthe government when the time comes.

Inexperience will prove costly

C O U N T E R V I E WRudroneel Ghosh

T I M E S V I E W

E D I T P A G EM A I L B O X

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S A C R E DS P A C E

There is a magnet in yourheart that will attract

true friends. That magnetis unselfishness,

thinking of others first...when you learn to live for others, they

will live for you.Paramahansa Yogananda

Friendship is the purest

love. It is the highest formof love where nothing isasked for, no condition,

where one simply enjoys giving.

Osho

We live in a friendly universe. At the heart of

all things is goodness. Wereceive this goodness inthe measure to which we

cultivate friendship with the universe.

J P Vaswani

Friendship as the unionof two selves lies beyondhappiness or unhappi-

ness. It is simply the otherside of our life and thus

free from all danger.Ladislaus Boros

Friends Forever

E R R A T I C A