Kerala seems to be loaded with a variety of problems, if one were to casually glance through the main headlines of the day's newspapers. Are they as serious as they're made out to be or are they the misguiding tactics of the powers that be, to deflect the collective attention of the people from a much larger malaise? I'm befuddled by the accusations, the finger pointing and their counters! Let's take a look at just three of the headline hoggers:-
(a) A technical snag.
The stretch of the railways in northern Kerala, from Shoranur to Kannur and onward to Mangalore
is being electrified on a war footing and one hoped that a quality job would be done to commission
the line at the earliest, to reduce travelling time as well as the transportation time of goods. But it
doesn't seem to be happening - whose fault it is can be left to the reader's imagination.
A technical snag has risen due to the lack of height of the railway over bridge, near the Kozhikode
station. Now, don't tell me that the mathematics involved was not taken into consideration by the
professionals while undertaking the work! Shouldn't someone be made answerable for the bungling?
Why is professionalism and the work ethics being compromised at every stage? Why don't we want
to give our best to our country? I wouldn't call it a technical snag, I'd rather call it a lack of
application and the guilty should be made to answer!
(b) A ministry of corrupt men?
Oommen Chandy's ministry is being painted as a team of corrupt ministers. Today, two more
ministers have been brought into the long list of taint:-
(i) A complaint along with evidence, has been lodged against Ibrahimkunju, the PWD Minister,
by none other than KB Ganesh Kumar with the Lok Ayukta. It's just a fortnight ago that he'd
voted with the LDF against the UDF's candidate for the post of speaker. He has been nursing
a grouse on two counts viz. at not having been reinstated as a minister and for anointing a
politician as the head of the Kerala Film Development Corporation, where he wielded
considerable clout with the previous dispensation!
(ii) The revelation that K Babu, the Excise Minister, had asked Biju Ramesh, the hotel owners'
association's working president, to hand over Rs.10 crores in connection with the renewal of
the bar licences.
Going by the insinuations, the ministers seem to be corrupt and are shamelessly at it, throwing caution to the winds since they're into their last year in power! A bit difficult to digest because
politicians are adept at 'protecting their image' at all costs!! So, in this case, who's lying?
As days proceed it will become clear as to whether it'd be a miffed LDF that could not stop the
Finance Minister from presenting the budget and had come off with an egg on its face in the
Assembly shenanigans that's gonna have the last laugh or whether it would be the UDF that will
weather the political uncertainty and continue on the treasury benches to complete their full term!
(c) 'Truckloads' of problems.
The truck owners have been threatening to stop operating their goods vehicles to Kerala and back
through the check posts on the Kerala-Tamilnadu border from 01 Apr in protest against the
inordinate delay in clearing goods vehicles. The 'lorry owners' welfare association' has told the
Sales Tax Commissioner that it would keep away from the meeting called by the government that
has done ziltch to ease the situation at the Walayar check post at Palakkad.
To my mind every right thinking guy works towards smooth operations at every instant. I've always wondered as to why the Walayar check post has continued to be clogged with goods
vehicles smothering, at times, the smooth flow of traffic. Who benefits by such shoddy state of
affairs?
Tailpiece.
Swami Vivekananda had called Kerala a 'mental asylum' not very long ago. We continue to be.....just that!
(a) A technical snag.
The stretch of the railways in northern Kerala, from Shoranur to Kannur and onward to Mangalore
is being electrified on a war footing and one hoped that a quality job would be done to commission
the line at the earliest, to reduce travelling time as well as the transportation time of goods. But it
doesn't seem to be happening - whose fault it is can be left to the reader's imagination.
A technical snag has risen due to the lack of height of the railway over bridge, near the Kozhikode
station. Now, don't tell me that the mathematics involved was not taken into consideration by the
professionals while undertaking the work! Shouldn't someone be made answerable for the bungling?
Why is professionalism and the work ethics being compromised at every stage? Why don't we want
to give our best to our country? I wouldn't call it a technical snag, I'd rather call it a lack of
application and the guilty should be made to answer!
(b) A ministry of corrupt men?
Oommen Chandy's ministry is being painted as a team of corrupt ministers. Today, two more
ministers have been brought into the long list of taint:-
(i) A complaint along with evidence, has been lodged against Ibrahimkunju, the PWD Minister,
by none other than KB Ganesh Kumar with the Lok Ayukta. It's just a fortnight ago that he'd
voted with the LDF against the UDF's candidate for the post of speaker. He has been nursing
a grouse on two counts viz. at not having been reinstated as a minister and for anointing a
politician as the head of the Kerala Film Development Corporation, where he wielded
considerable clout with the previous dispensation!
(ii) The revelation that K Babu, the Excise Minister, had asked Biju Ramesh, the hotel owners'
association's working president, to hand over Rs.10 crores in connection with the renewal of
the bar licences.
Going by the insinuations, the ministers seem to be corrupt and are shamelessly at it, throwing caution to the winds since they're into their last year in power! A bit difficult to digest because
politicians are adept at 'protecting their image' at all costs!! So, in this case, who's lying?
As days proceed it will become clear as to whether it'd be a miffed LDF that could not stop the
Finance Minister from presenting the budget and had come off with an egg on its face in the
Assembly shenanigans that's gonna have the last laugh or whether it would be the UDF that will
weather the political uncertainty and continue on the treasury benches to complete their full term!
(c) 'Truckloads' of problems.
The truck owners have been threatening to stop operating their goods vehicles to Kerala and back
through the check posts on the Kerala-Tamilnadu border from 01 Apr in protest against the
inordinate delay in clearing goods vehicles. The 'lorry owners' welfare association' has told the
Sales Tax Commissioner that it would keep away from the meeting called by the government that
has done ziltch to ease the situation at the Walayar check post at Palakkad.
To my mind every right thinking guy works towards smooth operations at every instant. I've always wondered as to why the Walayar check post has continued to be clogged with goods
vehicles smothering, at times, the smooth flow of traffic. Who benefits by such shoddy state of
affairs?
Tailpiece.
Swami Vivekananda had called Kerala a 'mental asylum' not very long ago. We continue to be.....just that!
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