Ultimatums don't work on civilizations (1)

When Vladimir Putin stood in Beijing and told the west to stop treating India and China like colonies, he wasn't posturing, he was detonating the last illusions of Western exceptionalism.

Flanked by history at the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, he didn't give so much a speech, but rather a civilizational rebuke. "Events in Ukraine", he said, "are being used merely as a pretext for resolving economic issues with some countries whose economic ties and advantages do not suit someone". That "someone", of course is the collective West, cornered by its own decline and lashing out at nations it can no longer control.

The colonial virus never died. It simply evolved, from gunboats and red coats to sanctions, tariffs and more blackmail. When India buys Russian oil, Washington responds with 50% tariffs. When China refuses to join the West's theatre of sanctions, it is met with semiconductor bans and military encirclement. The West doesn't negotiate; it tries to dictate and engages in gangsterism. But as Putin reminded the world, this isn't 1947. "Countries like India, almost 1.5 billion people and China, 1.3 billion people, boast powerful economies and live by their own domestic political laws". In other words : the days telling ancient civilizations how to behave are over.

The arrogance embedded in Western foreign policy is both tone deaf and suicidal. You cannot browbeat India, a country with the memory of British-engineered famines still smouldering in its bones. You cannot threaten China, which withstood centuries of foreign subjugation and emerged stronger. And you cannot isolate Russia, which has turned every round of sanctions into new layers of domestic resilience and global leverage. 

.....to be contd.

Courtesy. Gerry Nolan

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent out all my morning messages, switched on the morning hymns, lit up the puja room lamp, opened up the house for the day.

Bath was after breakfast. Tried to speak to Indirakkutty through a video call on Resmi's cell phone but to no avail.

Lunch and siesta. saw a combination of Mammootty's films as today's his birthday.

A quiet evening.

Next-Gen GST Reform

Historic Diwali gift for the nation for ease of living and to build Atmanirbhar Bharat

From farmers to enterprises, from households to businesses, the next-gen GST brings happiness for all

1. Save big on daily essentials 

                 Items                                   From                  to

     Hair oil, shampoo, toothpaste,

     toilet soap bar, tooth brushes,

     shaving cream                                    18%                 5%

     Butter, ghee, cheese and dairy

     spreads                                                12%                5%

     Pre-packaged namkeens, bhujia

     and mixtures                                       12%                5%

     Utensils                                               12%                5%

     Feeding bottles, napkins for

     babies and clinical diapers                  12%                5%

    Sewing machines and parts                  12%                5%

2. Relief in healthcare sector

    Individual Health and Life 

    insurance                                               18%                Nil

    Thermometer                                         18%                 5%

    Medical grade Oxygen                          12%                 5%

   All diagnostic kits and

   reagents                                                   12%                 5%

   Glucometer and test strips                       12%                 5%

   Corrective spectacles                               12%                 5%

3. Affordable education

   Maps, charts and globes                           12%                 Nil

   Pencils, sharpeners, crayons

   and pastels                                                12%                 Nil

   Exercise books and note books                12%                 Nil

   Eraser                                                         5%                 Nil

4. Uplifting farmers and agriculture

    Tractor tyres and parts                              18%                  5%

    Tractors                                                     12%                  5%

    Specified bio-pesticides, micro

    nutrients                                                    12%                  5%

    Drip irrigation system and

    sprinklers                                                  12%                  5%

    Agricultural, horticultural or

    forestry, Machines for soil prep-

    aration, cultivation, harvesting

    and threshing                                             12%                 5%

5. Automobiles made affordable

    Petrol and petrol hybrid, LPG, 

    CNG cars (not exceeding 1200 cc

    and 4000 mm)                                            28%                 18%

    Diesel and diesel hybrid cars

    (not exceeding1500 cc and

    400 mm)                                                     28%                 18%

    3 wheeled vehicles                                     28%                 18%

    Motor cycles (350 cc and below)              28%                  18%

    Motor vehicles for transport of

    goods                                                         28%                   18%

6. Save on electronic appliances

    Air conditioners                                        28%                    18%

    Television (above 32")                              

    (including LED and LCD TVs)                28%                    18%

    Monitors and projectors                            28%                    18%

    Dish washing machines                             28%                    18%

Process Reforms

7. Registration

    Automatic registration within 3 working days for applicants

    Identified by the system based on data analysis

    Who determines that he would not pass Input Tax Credit 

    exceedingRs.2.5 lakhs per month and opts for the scheme

8. Refund

    Sanction of provisional refunds by proper officer, through system

    based risk evaluation for :-

    * Zero Rated Supplies

    * Supplies with Inverted Duty Structure 

My take

Well, PM Modi has delivered on his promises that he'd made to us this Independence Day, from the ramparts of the Red Fort!

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent all my morning messages, switched on the morning hymns on the home theatre, lit up the lamp in the puja room and opened up the house for the day.

Made the morning tea and gave it to Lekha. Fed the cats.

Sukesan gets us our breakfast. He got our lunch, too, by noon.

Siesta followed by the evening chores.

   

Just not acceptable!

Today is a combination of three important days - especially, for the Keralites, which are :-

       * The second day of Onam (Thiruvonam)

       * Teacher's Day

       * Milad un Nabi

And, therefore, what had happened at the shrine of Hazratbal Shrine situated at the northern bank of Dal lake in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir was just not right. Some among the Muslim devotees defaced the national icon on the inauguration plaque of the renovated shrine.

Now, this action is totally anti-national and classified as treason. For such categories of people, the immediate action is to have them rounded up forthwith, tried for treason in a fast-track court and punished with death.

These people cannot get developmental projects in the union territory, funded by the central government. Of late, we've seen a tremendous amount of progress in the state under the initiative of PM Modi and therefore, these people must show respect toward India and nothing short of it. Otherwise, they must ask for going to Pakistan or whichever Muslim country they want to go. 

It will be good riddance to bad rubbish!

They've no right to live on our resources and had better surrender their passports, aadhaar cards and any other thing that has our national icons and leave!

The governments of the U/T of J&K and the Government of India must take immediate action. All the culprits have been filmed by the government's media and that would make it easy for identification for the law to proceed with urgent action.   

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent off my messages, switched on the morning hymns on the home theatre, lit up the puja room lamp, opened up the house for the day.

The maid was on leave for the day.

Sukesan, our errand boy, brought in our lunch from the Pazhayidam Hotel.

Saw Janaki vs State of Kerala, Vettaiyan, the grand finale of Top Singer on the Flowers Channel.

 

Structural Reform.

5% and 18% : Just two GST slabs from 22 Sep

The 56th GST Council meeting held in New Delhi yesterday cleared all the proposed changes in the Goods and Services Taxes (GST), including the two-rate tax structure. Taxes on most daily use items, which were earlier in the 18% and 12% slabs, have been cut to 5%. Many goods in the 28% slabs were also brought down to 18%.

All these rates will come into effect wef 22 Sep.

This was as promised by PM Modi from the ramparts of the Red Fort on 15 Aug 2025.

Tailpiece.

Got up at 5, sent all the morning messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the puja room lamp and opened up the house for the day.

Fed the cats.

Walked within the house and recited my prayers.

The maid took away old newspapers and other items in the autorickshaw that had come by. 

India-US Economic Flows : Who earns more?

Figures 2024-2025. Sources : USTR, BEA, IIE Open Doors, World Bank, RBI, Statista, company reports. Corporate revenue growth projected based on past CAGR; digital/IP estimated from platform-level revenue disclosures (Google, Meta, AWS, etc.)

Flow Type

1. Goods (Exports & Imports)

India earns from US                            87 billion

US earns from India                            41 billion

Advantage                                           India (+46 B)

2. Services (IT, Consulting etc.)

India earns from US                           41.6 billion

US earns from India                           41.8 billion

Advantage                                           US (flat)

3. Company Revenues

    (Local Ops, Sales)

India earns from US                            40 billion

US earns from India                            81 billion

Advantage                                            US (+41 B) 

4. Students (Tuition & Living)             

    

India earns from US                                  -

US earns from India                             13 billion

Advantage                                             US (+13 B)

5. Digital/IP/Investment                 

 

India earns from US                                    -

US earns from India                              20 billion

Advantage                                              US (+20 B)

6. Defence & Aerospace                              

India earns from US                                     -

US earns from India                               2 billion

Advantage                                               US (+2 b)

7. Remittances from diaspora

India earns from US                                27 billion

US earns from India                                      -

Advantage                                                India (+27 B)

Summary. While India runs a clear surplus in goods and services, the dominance of the US companies operating in India is significant keeping the balance overall flat.

My take

This is why I say that US President Trump's monstrous tariffs don't hurt us in the real sense!

Tailpiece.

Got up a trifle late, sent all my morning messages, switched on the hymns on the home theatre, lit up the puja room lamp and opened up the house for the day.

Had breakfast before bath as it had to be warmed up and I did the needful.

Lekha had spruced me up followed by bath.

Lunch.

Siesta after watching television.

A quiet evening thereafter. 

A quiet Tuesday.

Lekha was fast asleep as I opened up the door of her bedroom. The last night throwing up before going to bed did not have any after effects as I observed. And since I anticipated that she would be ravenously hungry, made the morning cuppa earlier than usual and provided her with it along with rusks.

Walked within the house as the maid had not checked in and I didn't want to leave Lekha all by herself.

Breakfast was hot, piping idlis and sambar.

Washing machinex of the bed linen.

Browsed my mail and took action on the mail that needed urgent action.

Met Dr Jimmy Francis as a review to my earlier visit.

It was a quiet Tuesday.

Lekha's skin graft has been done.

After seven day course of antibiotics, Lekha went under the surgeon's knife this afternoon for a skin graft over the hole that had developed on the fold of her left foot.

Driver Shelji drove us both to the Elite Mission Hospital by a half past 12 and we were with the doctor on the appointed hour. The procedure had taken almost three hours for the surgeon's assistants to sew up the bandage and affix the vacuum system atop the wound.

Shelji and Sukesan, helped me in transferring Lekha from the house into the car and the vice versa on return.

It's my fond hope that the problem has been licked once for all!