Economic Highlights

New Delhi, 6 August 2010

Common Loot Games

REPEAT OF GREEK TRAGEDY?

By Shivaji Sarkar

Is Indian society on a growth path or is it sliding? The question agitates the mind. Also, if it is growing could the growth be sustained? True, liberal economic rules have ensured breaking away from past morbidity. But the nation has yet to recover its health and if symptoms persist may slide once again.

This is the lesson one learns from the game of all games --- CWG --- Commonwealth games 2010, which has also come to be known as Common Loot games in popular parlance.

A nation organises such games to show that it has arrived on the international scenario, could be trusted and to lead other countries. Probably, by the same standard despite lots of pomp and show the Beijing Olympics hurt the sensibilities of the world as its poor were kicked out and banished from anywhere near the games venues.

Delhi has in many ways emulated Beijing. This nation is good at copying all that is even not worth discussing. So India’s Capital is also mulling over putting up giant Beijing-like screens to “cover” the filth and darker sides of the city.

The national Capital has also shown the street vendors and beggars the door. In a “shining and incredible India” they do not have place, at least, here. Delhi does not belong to them. It cannot belong to them. The Capital, its pride or shame belongs to the people who have amassed and looted! Immense wealth as the poor toil. They are only supposed to serve the Masters. Yes, even in a Constitutional democracy wherein the autocrat and feudal rule the roost.

Recall, when the Olympics were held in Greece in 2004, people were similarly perturbed and were filled with cynicism about the success of the games. There were similar delays and murky affairs. It finally succeeded. It restored the confidence of the people but in less than a decade Greece has slid to a most unenviable position in Europe almost failing on its sovereign debt liabilities.

The Greeks are wondering whether it is the fall-out of the Olympics. Indians too need to think if we would be able to sustain the “expenses” which have not been made, but pocketed systematically.

London says it is prepared for the next Olympics whenever it is held. It has built it hopes on the strength of what it has, not on destruction as Delhi has done. Stadium after stadium, be it the Talkatora swimming pool, Shivaji stadium and many others, due to host national and international events, were demolished and “rebuilt.” Nobody has heard of such extravaganza and “wise” decisions. Yes, when you hold a new game you refurbish, put a fresh coat of paint, repair and may be re-carpet sporting arenas. But demolish! None has ever heard of it.

Even Mohammad bin Tughlaq could not have imagined this. He built a new city at a very high cost and paid an astronomical price: liquidation of his Kingdom. Are we excelling Tughlaq? If so, we should remain prepared for the consequences also.

Nobody still has the figures of the actual and total expenses that have gone into demolishing stadias', well-built roads, footpaths, bus shelters et al. Money was also spent on building “flyovers” where these were not needed, in purchasing sub-standard buses at least double their price and hiring equipment, which could be bought at one-tenth of the cost. The sub-standard work at various facilities stood “leaking” in the very first showers Delhi witnessed.

Making matters worse, even the Government asserts that it does not have figures of the monies spent. It might be Rs 12,000 crore or Rs 28,000 crore, it avers. This again raises a question, should the nation allow the Government to indulge in such financial profligacy?

Clearly, it calls for amending the Constitution to bind the Government to take permission to spend anything beyond Rs 500 or may be Rs 5000. This is an urgent requirement and there should be a cap on how many times the Government could revise its budgetary estimates.

The Government’s demand for Rs 54,589 crore more for spending should not have been passed by Parliament without thorough questioning. It should have been grilled on how it could go so wrong in its estimation. And if the Government needs the money, why cannot it wait till the next budgetary process? Interestingly, the Government has made the demand for many considerations. It does not refer to the CWG. However, it is on record that the money allocated for other purposes has been transferred to the Games.

This raises doubts about the timing of the Government’s demand. Normally, such demands come in Parliament’s winter session and not in its monsoon session. What is the urgency to have this Parliamentary sanction before the CWG games? Is the Government short of money for the games?

Undoubtedly, this is a pointer to the grim crisis the nation is passing through --- a crisis of confidence and the fear that it might get into a Greece-like situation. One hopes that the growth projections by the RBI, Prime Minister and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) come true.

Arguably, can we really trust the IMF? It had given promising signals for Greece also. Remember, Dubai which hyped up its image of real estate growth, as Delhi is trying to do now in the wake of the CWG preparation, and slid into a similar sovereign debt failure.

India needs to be extremely circumspect. Its reputation and heightened world standing should not go down the “games”. The moot point: If such huge funds have been siphoned off from public exchequer, how would the sums be compensated?

The nation has not got any compensation from many scams – fodder, Harshad Mehta and Ketan Parek scams, UTI scam, judges Provident Fund scandal, amassing of wealth by UP politicians and many others. Undeniably, the CWG symptomises a deep malaise and ushers in a threat, one hopes does not become a reality.

The country needs to frame its financial rules and introduce auditing even before the money is spent. On monetary matters scrutiny by the CAG (Comptroller Auditor General) is more a matter of academic interest. Nobody knows if someone has been punished, any monies been recovered from him?  

The nation urgently needs a stringent pre-audit of expenses so that the corrupt cannot thrive. Else, the nation instead of progressing should expect a repeat of the Greek tragedy here in its amphitheatres. ----- INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)