Bihari Bihari Go away!

Thackrey’s are going back to their ugly basics due to lack of political agenda. And being an Indian (and a Bihari), this hurts.

Current aggression against Bihari’s and UP’ites in Mumbai is very saddening. More disheartening is the fact that no national leader other than Nitish Kumar and Mayawati has come against this strongly.

I am lucky to have spent considerable time in various big cities of India including Hyderabad, Bangalore, Ranchi, Delhi and economic heartland of Mumbai during last 10 years of my education and job. I’ve interacted with local people in all these places and to an extent, appreciate their pulse. At all these places I’ve not seen a clear case of discrimination or hatred but a subtle hint of protectionism is visible which for me is quite human. So what makes Mumbaikar’s agitate against my presence and not Bangalorian’s or Hyderabadi’s? Or is it just a matter of time and little ignition!

Last month we saw Delhi’s governor asking for ID cards for all residing there. The move was seen mostly against Bihari’s working in the state. He soon went back on his words after political outbursts. So, will it be suitable if all Bihari Taxi drivers in Mumbai, all Bihari rural workers in Punjab and Haryana, all road side operators and driver in Delhi and all software engineers in Bangalore and Chennai from Bihar go back to their own state!

I was watching “Lead India” show on Star Plus when one of the judges asked one of the contestants for his opinion on this issue. He came up strongly saying we need to take strong actions against people who are basing their politics on this and put them behind bars. Don’t know if that approach will be suitable. Something more fundamental needs to be done.

The core issue:
Flight of all classes of workers from Bihar is just based on lack of opportunity in the native state. This is very similar to flight of students from India to America or exodus of engineers or doctors to other countries.

We become very protective if America modifies rules to accept less H1B visa or Britain changes rules for stricter entry of post graduate doctors from India. Similar is the case when Raj or Uddhav Thackrey protest against Bihari’s to safeguard their Marathi Manus.

If I get the opportunity there is cent percent chance that I’ll go back to Bihar. But if I go back to my state now, the best possible job I can think of is farming on my grandparents land or may be teaching. Till then I’ll have to make do with “Kannada gothilla’ (don’t know Kannada language) and “Telugu raadu” (don’t know Telugu). But should I wait till eternity for that opportunity to come!

Everything within me says to go and contribute to my state. And I will one day. But won’t every Bihari say this… ‘one day’! Why am I not acting on it now! It’s only I who is to be blamed for the inaction now.

The whole episode is an eye opener for the management of these two states of Bihar and UP. The problem doesn’t lie with those Thackery’s but it’s within us. We need to make changes with haste to the conditions of these states. Until then these issues will keep coming up.

State governments need to make the environment conducive for many enterprising Bihari’s to come back and create a new Bihar. The message sent to the outside world needs to be strong that we are coming as well. I wish and will definitely contribute in big way to this transformation.

Cosy Hut reviews - Books

The first month of 2008 is coming to an end. I could lay my hands on three novels during the month. Here are my comments for them.

1. To kill a mockingbird By Harper Lee (***)- It's an overly hyped novel and i could not understand practical purpose of its name. A good story non-the-less, that engages you. It's a tale of two young kids who grow to the realities of the world following and often revolting against the disciplined and moral upbringing by their father. It has lessons.
2. India Unbound By Gurcharan Das (****)- One of the best novels i've ever read in all categories. I salute Mr. Das for so succinctly briefing the journey of modern India from pre to post independance days.... from Statism to Market economy, from Nehruvian era to Rao-Manmohan-Chidambaram combination market economics. This book is best read after one has understood the fundamental differences of Keynesian and Freidman economics.
3. If God was a Banker By Ravi S (**1/2) - Hmmm... was this a Hindi flick i was watching! A good novel by a first time writer who, i guess, wishes to be a movie director. It talks about the different approaches two highly educated bankers take to make their careers in Retail division of an International bank. It's a good read for budding managers.

This is all for Jan... i'm getting on to another pupular book named Wealth of nations Vol I By Adam Smith. I wish to complete it.

- Kumar Gaurav

FIIs take the shots here!

So as expected, FII have taken out money to rebalance their portfolios. Markets have corrected. This intermediate trend provides great buying opportunity for retail investors like us. Buy now and hold till March and i think we should we rewarded. However the first rule of investing in stocks is to remain patient. If you cant sleep properly after investing then stay out and invest in ELSS or other Mutual funds.

But do invest in some way.

My pics at current levels will remain as DLF, Reliance, JPAssociates, Karutui Networks, Religare, Crisil, Edelweiss (below 1450). One trading pick that i've been hearing is Assam Company (around 45/-) but people with high risk profile should go for it.

(Disclaimer*)

My Grammar-o-phobia

Well… I don’t know English grammar and Table counting. Not just now! I never did… Ya, not even in class 6th (former one) or while preparing for CAT (the latter one).

My father knew my brilliance (or the absence of it!) in mathematics when I could pick up the table of 5 while papa was teaching my elder. He got beaten up cause I could vomit just what he was expected to deliver. But alas! That’s where it stopped. I later learnt the tables of 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 12, 15 and 20. But I remember I always had a reason to hide my poor memory by resorting to my super duper multiplication skills (yes… exaggerated).

I was offered many sops for filling my intestine (that’s where my table counting memory resides) with those exotic tables. My favorite biscuits, that toy, even money. But I’m quite ethical person (after all I got into SPJain)!. My intestines wouldn’t have allowed those biscuits to settle-in anyways. My father gave up as I entered class 8th. By this time math went beyond rote learning. And I survived.

Well, if you were to compare my table counting skill with my English grammar skills then I’m a genius in table counting. Need I say more about the plight of my father and teachers?

Till this time, most difficult learning of my life had been Grammar. [and not Marketing!]

Papa still can’t figure out and has serious doubts about how I communicate or write in English.

I’m somehow still not convinced of grammar being taught in bookish ways. Now some super intelligent readers of this blog might want to check my Hindi grammar skills… I would just say ‘Beware’. If I get a chance I would actually write-off Hindi grammar altogether and its stupid differences in things like chandrabindu and bindu, three types of ‘S’, two types of ‘R’, deergh-ekaar and harswa-ekaar and what not!

But I don’t want to remain “un-grammatical” for my life. Next time I will go home, I’m going to pick my cousins grammar book and read through all the pages of complex participles, adverbs and verbs… May be I’m negating the chances of my kid writing similar post on his blog :)
Any help or sympathies or even ‘me too’s’!

PS: I just saw TOI has come up with editorial page article on "Say No to rote learning" today...

Month of December and Markets

December has been a month when foreign investors pull out money to adjust their profit and loss account for their yearly closures. This obviously brings Sensex down.

Also December is the month when most of us have to start declaring our actual tax savings under 80C. So I see a good opportunity to cash in falling markets to meet this declaration burden. Gear up if you have lost the best opportunity to invest during august-September and want to join the Indian Sensex bandwagon now.

The instrument that I’m suggesting here is ELSS (Equity linked savings scheme) scheme of mutual funds. Though there are many investment products that are eligible for tax deductions under 80C, ELSS gives you the opportunity to earn maximum return and has the shortest lock-in period of 3 years amongst all such investment options. However, it comes with an inherit risk of investing in equity markets.

There are several ELSS funds available. Following two are recommended:
1. SBI magnum Tax Gain Scheme
2. HDFC Tax-Saver
These schemes come with different flavors like dividend, growth, dividend reinvestments. I would recommend growth scheme as it takes care of our long term wealth building plan.

Now the main point: How to utilize the December factors if you have missed to log on through Systematic investment plan?

Markets will remain hugely volatile in the month of December fluctuating between 17500 (most pessimistic) – 20500 (most optimistic). I recommend you to follow the steps below:

1. Set aside the sum you want to invest in ELSS
2. Divide it in 3 chunks
3. Invest first chunk when market closes below 19000
4. Invest second when market goes down and closes below 18400.
5. Now wait for the third chunk to be invested around last week of December at whatever level the market is.

You will have to be really swift and track the market closing on a day-to-day basis. This strategy might give you little more return than putting whole of your money at once. Also it would need you to online trading account. If you don’t have it then get in touch with someone of these banks and invest your whole sum at around 18.5K level at once.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Regular Stock ideas: Buy DLF at around 850-875, Reliance at current level and on dips