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पिछले साल को क़रीब-क़रीब पीछे छोड़ दिया है हमने. मैं तो एक साल ज़्यादा ग्यानी हो गया, या कहिये, कुछ बड़ा ही ज्ञान मिल गया मुझे. सोचा, आप लोगों से शेयर कर लिया जाए.  इंसान फ़ितरत से ऊल-जलूल सोचता रहता है, में भी सोचता रहता हूँ. अंत में हर बात का उत्तर मिल जाता है, लेकिन कुछ यक्ष प्रश्न हैं जो अन-सुलझे रह जाते हैं हर बार.  तो इस बार जब में सीरियस सा मुंह बनाकर बैठा था और कुछ सोच रहा था तो अपने एक साथी का करीब 10-11 वर्ष का बेटा जो शायद मेरी परेशानी भाँप रहा था, पास आ गया. "आप कुछ सोच रहे हैं ना ?" उसने पूछा. लगा, छोटे बच्चे इनोसेंट होते हैं और एक तरह से भगवान का रूप होते हैं, और इस भगवान ने तो मेरे मन की बात भी जान ली है. मेरे कठिन सवालों का हल भगवान के अलावा कौन दे सकता था, सो मैंने हाँ कर दी.   "पहले प्रॉमिस करिये कि आप मुझे अभी चॉकलेट लाकर देंगे?"  मेरे हाँ करने पर उसने मेरे प्रश्न को हल करने की मुद्रा में मेरी तरफ़ देखा. मुझे लगा, भगवान-स्वरुप इस बच्चे ने इस साल के जाते जाते मुझे सर्व-ज्ञानी बना देना है. (मन ही मन मैंने यह भी सोचना शुरू कर दिया कि अगर म

Don’t laugh as yet. The economy might really be growing at a rate higher than the economists calculate! As a [bad but stupidly curious] student of economics, I know that you have a sophisticated way of measuring national income and all that goes with it. Over years so much research and development in this field has taken place that statistician-economists are supposed to know everything that is happening in the economy, even non-economic activities, and how to measure them. And they have come to a figure of about 7.2%, the rate at which the economy would grow in 2017-18. Government economists claim, if things go well, it would grow at 8% in the years to come. Opposition economists find many fundamental things going wrong and feel that the economy is somehow maintaining a growth rate that would have been higher, had right decisions been taken. NEGATIVE NEWS FIRST Take, for example, demonetisation. Many economists tell us, domonetisation would take 1-2 notches out of growth figu

First of all, the disclaimer: The views expressed here have nothing to do my official position or of the views of my present organisation or the government on the subject. The ideal governance systems are supposed to be those in which high standards of ethics, efficiency and service (customer service in case of private entities and public service in the case of public entities, NGOs and public service organisations) are maintained and are constantly nurtured by a great leadership. Due to factors known to all of us, governance has traditionally not been an area of focus in India. Administrative reforms have not taken place in true sense though reams of papers have been filled by successive ARCs and innumerable committees. If ever there was a steel frame, it has rusted from inside while getting a shiny polish outside - its values have gone down to even below the colonial days while physical environment and pay-compensation have become much better. Long term governance reforms need

Dear mighty elephant, That an ant is big enough to kill you Is too obsolete an adage. It never held good anyway. Let me show you the mirror, In which you look as big as you are. You are mammoth, indeed. The ant is not even visible. Look deep into the mirror, Look at the nothingness. Inflate yourself and subsume a galaxy, Still, how big are you, dear colossus? Shedding your hugeness, Feel the pain Of carrying the burden A bit too much. Look at the ant That has just crawled onto the mirror. Take a lesson from its big head To lighten your burden.