India needs a solar energy revolution

Jigar Shah has posted a note on solar energy in India. Visit

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-solar-investment-can-light-up-india-jigar-shah?deepLinkCommentId=6158345653756973057

I responded to this post with the following comment. I repeat it here because solar energy is going to be very important for India. 

The problems with electrification of India have been mostly in distribution so far. Political interference has led to poor management of electricity distribution companies in the public sector. Giving free electricity to farmers has led to distorting the economics of these companies. Many farmers have been the losers because they do not get reliable power. 

In future, big thermal power plants will be seen as major polluters and will come under international pressure. The best way out would be to encourage builders to become energy entrepreneurs making new multi-story commercial buildings as well as new multi-story apartment complexes self-sufficient using off-the-grid solar systems. Many of these buildings use diesel generators for back up. Similarly, why can't they use solar power when it is available and switch over to the grid when it is not? Till technology gives us cost effective battery storage for back up, we might need to continue using diesel generators. However, it might be possible to use solar energy for meeting something like 30% of the total building load, most of it during peak-load periods.

                                              end 

Painfully Obvious Truths

I enjoyed reading this article.

Painfully Obvious Truths

Srinivasan Ramani

Avoiding wasteful work

There are many practices in India that should be eliminated. They waste people’s time and resources like paper.

One example is the filing of receipts with a revenue stamp for payment of salary or pension, even if the payment is through a bank. I do not know if this serves any significant purpose. Some municipal corporations do not ask for receipts from pensioners – they do not even send them an information slip saying what pension is being paid for which month or year. Intimations of payment with some detail can be sent even in the form of SMS. Failure to send salary slips or messages makes one suspect that such lack of transparency could facilitate fraud. We do not need an Administrative Reforms commission to set these things right. The Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India can do a lot by insisting on efficient procedures and transparency in all government and government funded offices.

There are other wasteful practices like the railways giving 10% concession to doctors – allopathic - travelling for any purpose, or giving 75% off for artists traveling to give a performance. The list of persons eligible for such concessions has 53 categories. Recently, the Railways woke up to the fact that it is not the job of the Railways Ministry to pay for these handouts – the concerned ministries should pay. Even that appears insufficient. Railways should not waste the time of their staff handling these subsidy transactions and slow down their service to people waiting to buy tickets. Trivial subsidies ought to be eliminated. More important ones should be handled by concerned offices – not by Railways.

Many government departments tolerate the practice of government employees being used as domestic servants by superiors. This is often justified by designating subordinates as orderlies. This has to be stopped. Government salaries are high enough now for officers to pay for their own domestic help. Making subordinates work as domestic servants is corruption.  

Digital India, Smart Cities and Good Governance are all good ideas. The way towards these ideals is through the elimination of mindless practices!

Elections: Give me the right to say “Anyone but not …”

A news item says that nearly one percent of voters in Tamilnadu exercised their right to say None of the Above in their ballot slips, presumably showing their disgust of the choice made available to them. 

Over 5.55 lakh Tamil Nadu voters opt for NOTA,
By IANS, Thursday, 19 May 2016

The NOTA option has earned more votes than at least four of the political parties in the fray. Further, the NOTA votes cast are probably more than 50% of the difference between the votes earned by the two major parties. If there had been no NOTA, the results could have been different. A simple idea has shown its teeth!

In the light of this, I have a suggestion for another step forward. We have politicians who exploit hatred and instigate violence. Many voters would like to ensure that such elements don’t get elected, leaving the field open to other candidates. The choice between Tweedledum and Tweedledee may not matter to them, as long as criminal or corrupt elements are kept out. I believe that we should get the right to say ABUT (Anyone but …)! If I vote against a candidate marking the ABUT box, it should reduce his/her vote count by one without affecting the vote count of other candidates. It will increase the chances of the ABUT candidate losing the deposit. Hate mongers, candidates put up to make mischief, etc., can be stopped easily by this process, making the election process a little better. For instance, it might make a party think twice before giving a seat to a known criminal or a corrupt politician.

What does it cost to recognize young talent in science and technology?

Science Talent Search (STS) in the US has been sponsored by Westinghouse from 1942 till Intel took over the responsibility in 1998. The organizing agency is the Society for Science. Visit https://www.societyforscience.org/intel-science-talent-search

Between 1942 and now, STS has recognized 3000 finalists, given away $13 Million in scholarships. Not surprisingly, twelve of the awardees went on to earn Nobel Prizes and two earned the prestigious Fields Medal in mathematics.

The question is whether countries like China and India should not set up such systems to identify and encourage young talent. Of course, they do have science fairs, science talent searches, etc. The question to be asked is if what they have is adequate.

Intel will serve as the exclusive sponsor for the Intel STS through 2017; what exactly will happen after that we have to see.

I do think that programs like the STS offer a great way to spend Corporate Social Responsibility funds. Big companies can run such programs, maintaining the highest standards, serving a great purpose. Funds available will decide the scale on which the program can be run; but, scale is not the most important factor. Respect for young talent and quality of program management will be the factors deciding the outcome.

Tell the world that the corrupt pay a big price in India

India has had a bad name for the corruption that prevails here. The ways by which netas and their pliable bureaucrats grab resources of the country are well-known. It is rarely that we get a chance to tell the world that this will not go on, that we are changing. Sending a message like that in a loud and clear manner is very important.

Now the Mumbai High Court has given us a judgement that is priceless. Visit 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bombay-High-Court-orders-demolition-of-Adarsh-Society-building/articleshow/52040562.cms

All we have to do is to obey the orders of the court, when the appeal process comes to an end. If the judgement is upheld during the appeals that will surely follow, the illegally built building should be demolished by men who fought side by side with the Kargil martyrs in whose name the building was conceived and then diverted. We should announce a date and time and then an army unit should carry out the demolition using explosives, with minimal damage to neighboring structures. World media should be invited to record the spectacle. It is very likely that this will be the loudest message any country has ever sent about its determination to rid itself of corruption. Every TV channel in the world will carry a clip of the demolition and every newspaper will carry a photograph. What better way to tell the world that we are no longer a soft state?

Lathi charging students and others you don’t like

 There is a 'quaint' word – "caning"; the practice is sometimes referred to more bluntly as lathi charging. “Caning” had the nice ring of the “Raj”, but you may not agree if you have been at the receiving end of the treatment. A lot of people wearing khaki in India seem to have the fundamental right to beat up others using sturdy sticks possibly weighing a kilo, about four feet in length and approximately an inch in diameter. Authorities seem to have set a limit of six men for beating a student at a time, because of their concern for the younger generation.

You see the practice being liberally used in different parts of India when you turn on TV news. This is a barbaric practice unworthy of a democracy. I wish that someone would consider using the public interest litigation route to have our courts civilize the men in khaki.

I suggest an alternative way for police to disperse people who have assembled against legal prohibitory orders by using indelible ink. Color sprayers used during Holi could be used by the police to spray members of the “mob” with this ink. Firstly, this will cause consternation because the spray would need to be removed by multiple washes. Secondly, it would stain the skin as well, providing proof the person’s involvement in a prohibited assembly. All that police would have to do would be to catch a few “stained” persons and prosecute them.

I guess I am not going to be a very popular inventor! Let me assure you, however, that I publish this only to save you from having your bones broken by angels in Khaki! 

A word about indelible ink. I don’t think anyone has done research on possible risks of putting this on people’s skin. The election ink used in India is said to contain silver nitrate. Before the angels in Khaki adopt the practice suggested above, they should get some research done to develop an ink that will cause no harm to the eyes and no permanent harm of any type to the victim. Further, I would hate to see any "indelible" permanently ruin someone's clothes. An ink that does not go when washed in water, but can be removed by dry cleaning would be ideal.  

For information on the hazards associated with silver nitrate, visit

http://nj.gov/health/eoh/rtkweb/documents/fs/1672.pdf