The Attitude Called Indian Democracy

Democracy had me stumped. I had been trying to figure out what it means for years together. My inability to do so had me read history, read dictionaries and even put out a poll to my friends with four options hoping that a consensus would lead me to my destination. Nothing helped and I kept thinking and searching till I realized that this seeming endless search was my answer. Democracy is the flexibility of adapting to the times in order to stay the course. It permits that we change gears, alter the pace and even change tracks. All it expects is that we stay the course.

In India we say we celebrate democracy and yet the country is in a flux. Is it because we are not flexible any longer or have we lost our course? I think it is a mix of both.

The politicos and the law makers are an elitist club that has grown accustomed to a comfort zone. With the experience of the most highly placed leaders comes a particular way of doing things. The age separates them from the desires of world’s youngest democratic population. Flexibility is restricted and vision blurred. With the privileges and the inheritance bestowed upon the younger political honchos there is a chasm between their ideas and reality. The course is thus awry but flexibility plentiful to reach the top. Every new idea that can help us as a nation needs to be shaped and implemented by this collective group that evidently is disconnected with majority of the population.

Those who can make a difference are the urban, educated and aware youth. But we seem to be weary already. Not many of us are flexible to join the services (IAS, IFS, IPS etc.) that connect with the common man and shape policy. We are fixated with the private sector, and rightly so, as we want to improve our standard of living. Consequently the services are being staffed with a majority that is there not by choice but by inevitability. We are hesitant in voting and do not believe in the slow process of weeding out the unwanted with our vote. We cry for our rights and demand that we be looked after and yet every day we forget that we have an obligation of honesty, opinion and productive expression to democracy. Thus the onus to shape the nation is on shoulders who are shirking the very responsibility of altering the future of this nation.

In the last few months the Anna Hazare campaign has taken the nation by a storm. He is being credited to the point of paralyzing government policy indecision. People’s emotions, their support and their expression and extrapolation are all first time events for India of this century. I do not support Anna Hazare but I endorse his spirit and salute him for demonstrating to the people of India that one man can indeed make a difference. He has rallied the rural, urban, young, old, rich and poor Indians across religions to gather together and voice their frustration. If he can do it, if Arvind Kejriwal could get us a new law,the why can the honest, educated, well meaning, hard working youth not? People coming together in support of Anna Hazare are from myriad backgrounds but with one desire, to see honest and transparent dealing in all actions of those who are sitting as our representative. All the young working professionals have too many daily triumphs and battles in common which bring us to a common base camp. All that we need to do from here is work hard and together to be able to summit the peak of change.

Every successful summit requires courage, perseverance, guidance and a little bit of luck. We are amongst the world’s youngest countries with the world paying attention to every economic political move that we make. We have an incredibly rich history replete with heroes and role models to provide for inspiration. If we find it within ourselves to learn from our ancestors and positively maneuver the world to focus on us, lady luck will be unable to run away from us. Founders of independent India have left us the incredible legacy of a constitution. A framework that upholds equality, freedom and justice for all; and provides us the guidance that we need to help govern a nation so diverse. Only if we took time to read through it would we know that new laws and agencies are not required. We only need to strengthen the constitution, tweak parts of the Indian penal code, assume responsibility to make the representatives more accountable and to start our climb. Once we find that courage to start and work diligently with perseverance, we will easily summit the change we so eagerly await.

This is a time for India to change. This is a time for Indians to change. This is a time to change our mindset and take responsibility for all actions. We are at the end of the day a 45 year old country. For how long can we keep blaming the 60 pluses in parliament for our woes? Surely if we are smart enough to create an Infosys, win the Grammy and the Oscars, go buy and run Western iconic companies and once in a while even win a cricket World Cup; surely we are able enough to learn the ropes and steer our own nation successfully in the direction of prosperity, peace and harmony. This is the time for the youth of India to awaken and realize that their time to create history has come. We need to show our might in hard work and affirmative action. We need to engage in and explore polity, debate and discuss policy, vote for and veto in twenty first century Indian democracy. We are a great nation and the time has come to prove it. If we cannot change our destiny no one else will.

We Don't Need No Legislation

I was in London the last week and hence missed the hoopla in the country with Anna Hazare’s fast unto death. I was back in the country for a few hours on Saturday and all I could read and hear was how this one man had given the country some hope of seeing lower dishonesty. I was not convinced; not with Anna Hazare’s spirit but with the suggested course of action, the bill itself. Call me a skeptic, call me a cynic; I just do not believe that another law in this country will actually help reduce corruption. The only thing it will do is generate employment – first for those who help the committee research the draft and then for those who become a part of the Lokpal. In fact if the Lokpal is set up it will bejust another way of exploitation and influencing.

These thoughts were loitering in the corners of my brain cells on Saturday night as I queued outside the airport waiting to get in for my next international flight. Suddenly the lingering thoughts burst to the forefront. There were two youngsters praising Anna and cursing the politicians. It was not their chatter that got my sleepy thoughts to wake up and skip around. It was their actions. As they spoke of the rampant treachery in the nation, they were trying to jump the queue. I was amused with the hypocrisy. I encountered the duo yet again at the security check, scurrying around to see how they could move ahead of turn once more.

This attitude and insincerity is what makes me a believer that legislation will not be effective in reducing or ridding the country of corruption. The interest around Anna Hazare’s fast probably benefited the media the most and the telecom company as some attention has been diverted away, finally! The rest of us will talk of this for a while and then move on to being who we are – finding the quickest route possible to achieve our goals.

Aboard my flight I was fighting my time zone clash and decided to watch a movie. I stumbled across a Naomi Watts film, Fair Game. The film is based on the autobiography of an ex-CIA covert agent, Valerie Palmer, who at the time of the US attacking Iraq was almost about to prove that there were no WMD in Iraq. As the invasion started, her husband, an ex-ambassador to Niger started questioning the government’s motives. In order to divert attention away from the tough questions that were posed, the White House made the couple a pawn. Valerie’s cover was blown, her credibility and track record trashed and her husband was made to look like an anti-American. The world knows today that there were no WMD in Iraq but there is a lot of Oil. If the White House could stoop to abysmal levels only to safeguard the President’s ratings and cover up the lies; I am sure that less powerful people, hungrier for power could stoop to lower levels. With resources and might on their side, a legislation will only be a small hurdle. Yes, I was all along thinking of the Lokpal bill.

Corruption is prevalent world over. The difference in India is that we see it blatantly in our faces every single day. That does not mean that we condone it or do not work to rid society of this ill. However, legislation can never work in the absence of willingness. Valerie Palmer and her husband decided to take the challenge head on and speak the truth. They did not succumb to the might of the White House. Anna Hazare did not worry about himself or how would his actions be received by the government. He believed that it was his duty to bring attention to the rampant corruption in the country and the need to address it and so he fearlessly forged ahead with his mission. It is fortitude that got the system to pause and pay attention. It was his sincerity and courage that got the nation to support him, however, the spirit that he would probably like to see (in my view) is probably absent; my point in case being the duo at the airport.

Legislation can work when there is a need to enforce a right, for e.g. the right to vote or the right to religion. Legislation cannot replace ethics, moral conduct or righteousness. So there can be a legislation that provides citizens with the right to query processes and get information, however, then it is up to law and lawmakers to enforce justice. Giving powers to a centralized committee to enforce “justice” in case of corruption related issues only provides an opportunity for the influential to exert pressure on one body rather than fight their ills through the system. We need to acknowledge that in any form or shape, the center of power and influence will remain the same. To bring change we need to change that core. To strengthen and alter that foundation we as citizens need to speak fearlessly and acknowledge our duties. Our primary obligation and most powerful right is the right to vote. If we execute this duty sincerely and sensibly, in time we will be able to rid the system of the leeches it has come to harbor. Our right to free speech and expression is what we need to capitalize on and not rest till the guilty are brought to justice. Numerous examples exist where with the help of truth and media, the aggrieved have secured justice. Yes there is a cost attached to all this. The cost of giving up some of our own comforts, of acknowledging that the blame game needs to start with self and of respecting that the rights that are ours are equally those of the other billion citizens of the country.

It has become fashionable to blame the government for every difficulty that we face. It has equally become a fashion to heap praises on someone who speaks against the system (rightly or wrongly). Grumbling and washing our dirty linen in public has become second nature to us Indians. We need to stop that, pause, reflect and then take a steadier course where we are in not a hurry to reach our final destination. In pace will come sensibility and responsibility. In stride will come the innate ability to render obligations, shoulder responsibilities and apportion credits. It is our country and it is up to us to shape its future. We can either speed into chaos or walk into prosperity. The choice is ours. No legislation can give it or take it from us.

Health and Safety Standards

It was still very early in the morning and I was not fully awake on the drive to the airport. Thus when I saw a huge cloud of smoke I dismissed it initially, but the accompanying fat bright orange flames, leaping into the air, jolted me into a state of total awareness. It was difficult to judge from a distance whether the fire had emerged from a construction site or the adjacent slum; but it was relatively easy to gauge that the extent of damage to life and property was extensive. “Maara gaya bechara gareeb” (The helpless and the poor have died), said the driver and drove on; but my mind stopped at that statement. In the city of Mumbai, life comes cheap and especially of those without any means. But just because there is such abundance of life in the country, does it mean that it can be dispensed with easily?

The November 26 attacks of Mumbai created a furore in the city. There was public outcry for a special armed force to be created for the protection of Mumbai; after all, the city has suffered numerous terrorist attacks in the last few years. I was among those who became a part of one such movement, a group that silently but visibly (with black arm bands tied through out the day) declared that we would not rest until such a task force was installed in place. Surprisingly, the government realised the need and the citizens’ stipulation was fulfilled. Yet today I wonder if our demand was adequate. A fight against terror is a must and the country needs to be protected from further attacks; however the loss of life that occurs due to such attacks is no different from the loss of life that occurs due to poor health and safety regulations. So why has there been no crusade in the country towards improving the general living and working conditions in our cities?

Yes we are a developing country and that means that we have limited financial resources. However, that does not mean that we do not try and improve efficiency and productivity. Improving health and safety standards not only protects human life from unnecessary fatalities but also improves the economic output. Take construction workers working on scaffolding without harness for example. A good worker, unable to balance himself will be inefficient at higher altitudes and will eventually be replaced by maybe a less able individual, either by the supervisor or by mortality. Providing the good worker with a harness will help him be efficient and deliver on time. The same harness will also prevent accidental falls and save lives. With India undergoing a construction and infrastructure boom, this safety standard that has apparently been made mandatory by the government, but its use is still not widespread. Setting up of new standards might also lead to an increase in jobs or in creation of new ones–manufacturers, distributors, training experts, inspectors etc. One cannot neglect the increased feeling of safety and security that it will provide to the daily wage earner, increasing his dedication to work.

Joseph Stiglitz, the noble prize winning economist calls communities the fourth pillar of economic development (the other three being markets, government and individuals). The vast economic disparity in India, the caste based society and the restricted access of English to the elite and the upper middle class; have all led to the non-development of this fourth pillar in India. Vested interests dominating inclusive growth and the prevalent acceptance of corruption, both further fuel the economic disparity preventing community development. In the absence of community development and with extreme poverty it is difficult to install health and safety regulations which will be adhered to and be effective. However, just because it will not be effective, does not mean that we should not start somewhere; the same way that just because in the long run we will all be dead does not stop us from living and learning in the process. Any thoughts, any ideas, please do share.

Brand Perception and India

With the existence of monopolies and public sector dominance, and in the absence of competition and multinational companies; Indians pre 1991 were resigned to buying what was available. Those who had desires and the monetary power, opted for the parallel black economy that sold “imported” goods. It was a mini nation of the elite living in another nation which was crawling on its knees. With the lowering of import duties and removal of the licence Raj in 1991, the flood gates opened. A swarm of international and private companies occupied the Indian consumers’ time. Instead of selecting only between Thums Up and Limca, the Indian consumer now had three colas to choose from – Thums Up, Coke and Pepsi. Even the “lime and lemony Limca” fought a fierce battle of supremacy against 7 Up and Sprite.

Every industry segment witnessed new entrants (both domestic and international) – from FMCG[1] to media to aviation to automobiles. With each player trying to maximise its market share, organisations embarked on the road to establishing their unique selling points (USP). During the industrial revolution non-local manufactures undertook “branding” exercises to increase awareness and acceptance of their products. This was an attempt to try an associate a certain experience or quality with the product in order to create a follower base. Some of the first brands thus to be established during that era were Coca-Cola, Quaker Oats and Campbell Soup[2]. Similarly to entice customers, Indian companies post 1991, embarked on a journey to create their own brand image.

This quest reached a level where even election rallies were being driven as marketing campaigns. Remember the “India Shining” tag line of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) in the last general elections! It’s sad that despite an innovative approach to Indian politics, the BJP lost elections[3].

It is not just BJP, but a number of Indian firms have spent millions of dollars on brand building exercises, unsuccessfully. Remember Onida television – “neighbours’ envy, owner’s pride”, or Amul chocolates – “a gift for someone you love” or my personal favourite – ECE “Bhool na jana ECE bulb lana[4]” the jingle was sung in a multitude of Indian languages one after the other!

Today, while there has been some success, urban Indians still recognize very few Indian names as “brands”. This conclusion is the result of a survey[5] with Indians in the age group of 18 to 62, living either in Indian metros or overseas and across professional backgrounds. Each participant was asked to respond to a simple question “what do you think of first when you hear the term Indian brand and the term international brand”. The results were quite fascinating. About 11% of the respondents replied stating that the term “Indian brand” made them uncomfortable denoting inferior quality or service, however, international brand to these individuals meant quality, expense or luxury. Only one of the 55 respondents actually said that his/her instantaneous reaction to “Indian brand” was trust in quality while “international brand” made him/her suspicious.

Leaving aside these responses, an analysis of the remaining answers came up with a very interesting tally. There was one Indian name that came out as being the strongest brand in India – Tata, with 44% of the respondents thinking of Tata as their Indian brand. In fact, if two other responses that belong to the Tata group of companies are added to this set[6], then the Tata Group walks away with almost 50% of the votes. On the international side, it is a same number of voters, 44%, who came up with varied answers which no one else in the analysis group had covered. So urban Indians relate to more foreign brands than Indian, might be a fair analysis. To further substantiate this thought is the fact that the most popular “international brand”, Coke, received 22% of the votes while only 22% of the respondents came up with Indian brands which were different from the choice of any other respondent! Thus, in a country with the most listed companies globally, the urban Indian middle class seems to miss the palpable brand equity domestically.

One reason for the weak brand recognition in India is that the middle class which has the largest targeted audience group is undergoing a brisk attitude change. Globalisation is rapidly altering the life style expectations of this segment of the society. For any “brand” to have a tangible “brand equity” there needs to be consistency in the message delivered to the aimed market segment. With the end consumer’s needs and desires changing from day to day, the product marketing also changes accordingly. This causes disruption in uniformity of message delivered, leading to a weaker “brand” perception.

Uniformity of message is also very difficult to maintain in a country like Indian which is culturally very diverse[7]. Thus the second reason for weak brand development in India is the different needs and mental makeup of Indians residing in different parts of the country. If a glamorous product appeals to the more materialistic north India, it loses its sheen in the more conservative South India. Similarly, while local handicrafts are still preferred in the east, there is a very conscious following of western fashion in west India. Food habits, lifestyles, intellectual curiosity are all different in this country of over 300 languages. Thus western brand building concepts cannot be used in India and we Indians need some more time to develop a branding system that works within our cultural diversity and sensitivities.

While it is true that a country which has seen a plethora of brands only in the last two decades, will take some time to develop its own unique marketing and brand building framework, a very important third reason for underdevelopment of “brands” in India is the shareholder attitude. Majority of Indian firms are family run with controlling stakes and management say vesting with the family, who are very conscious of the cash flows. Brand development requires significant investment into researching the target audience attitude, analysing varied marketing strategies and then finally undertaking a thought through long term marketing campaign. In the absence of the desired investment happening, the “branding” exercise is half hearted and hence the outcome is similar.

Substantiating the longetivity and stability of campaign and the investment are the two leading “brands” of the mentioned survey. Coke and Tata have had consistency of logo and experience for the consumer in their marketing despite customisation to address the local audience suitably. On the flip side, it can be seen by the experience of the Indian IT industry that lacklustre effort in brand development leads to non recognition. Globally India is the most known today for its ITeS[8] industry, however, only 2 of the respondents thought of an Indian IT company as a brand[9]. And if one comes to think of it, there is nothing that can actually be described about the Indian IT players except for their low cost base. Given that now even eastern European economies are proving to be equally cost effective with a significant workforce capable of managing outsourcing, Indian IT firms are facing competition. Thus in the absence of another quality associated with Indian outsourcing, the industry is threatened in losing its cash cow status.

Most developed economies are home to some of the most globally recognised brands. As India is progressing on its growth path, Indian companies also need to pay more attention to the “brand” awareness that they create; especially when they enter the overseas markets. India Inc’s brand awareness will improve its own revenue stream, build investor confidence in the country and support India Brand Equity Foundations’ attempts to promote the nation as the Fastest Growing Free Market Democracy.

[1] FMCG = Fast Moving Consumer Goods
[2] Source: Wikipedia
[3] Of course the reasons for BJP’s defeat were much more complex than just their marketing campaign
[4] Literally translated as “Do not forget to get an ECE bulb”
[5] Details in Appendix 1
[6] Titan and Taj
[7] Madhukar Sabnavis had a very interesting column in Business Standard on this topic. The article can be found on http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/madhukar-sabnavis-culture-sensitive-marketing/351047/
[8] IT enabled Services (IT = Information Technology)
[9] Surprising, given that almost 13% of the respondents are or have been IT professionals.